The six of them made their way up the stairs...

Dinner with Julianne Hunter. It wasn't like the thought had not crossed their minds. This... perhaps, would be a more difficult challenge than simply sparring.

But as for what they were about to see...

Those who had not taken time to look at the kitchen beforehand, nor knew of what the mother was capable of, them being Ken, Luke and Rose, found themselves completely astounded by what they saw, with Tiffany being only a bit less shocked.

The room was lit up in an almost glorious splendour. One that paused all the teens, save Max.

On top of what Julianne Hunter had already done, there were now, in addition to the candle flowers in the room, also a few lamps in the room placed strategically to create an warm calming ambience.

The round circular dinner table now had six plates on it, each on top of a charger and each meal covered by a large cloche.

Each plate positioned only about an inch away from the seats, with the forks and spoons organized the way one would expect in a fancy restaurant, a few on both sides of and above the plate.

The chairs themselves were only a little apart from the table itself. And that, combined with the other light but somehow effective decorations of the room made it look like something right out of a 5 star restaurant.

All four teens remained completely stunned.

Tiffany: (thinking: It's even better than before...)

Rose: Oh... my.... (with a girly squeal) goooooooooshhhhh!

Luke: (thinking: What in the....?)

Ken: (thinking: This just gets more interesting every second.)

All four of them failed to move for a few seconds. Simply put, they wondered as to how what was originally a normal looking kitchen with a table and chairs had turned into a gorgeous scene. One so well put together, that one would even question as to whether they were allowed to eat there.

Julianne Hunter looked proudly at her finished work.

She had worked on this with great scrutiny, after all.

Julianne: Well... I simply wanted to give you all a treat. So... I spruced the place up a bit. You kids don't mind, do you?

Rose: Oh, not at all Mrs Hunter. It's so pretty.

Julianne: Really?

Rose: Uh huh. It's just like... like magic.

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Julianne: Oh, really? Thank you.

Max sighed in exhaustion.

His mother understood. Her son had never been one to enjoy such things, considering them to be trivial and girly. That much she was aware of. But anyway....

She walked over to the table and chairs, with a completely unperturbed Max following her, his hands behind his head.

Max: (thinking: Should'a guessed she'd do something like this. Ah, well....)

Rose followed behind them, all the while taking time to admire things. The lights, the table and chairs... everything seemed so divine.

And Julianne Hunter very quickly noted this.

Julianne: I see you've taken a liking to the cloth on the chairs.

Rose: Oh my gosh, yes! It's sooooo pretty!

Julianne: (giggle) (thinking: Well, at least someone appreciates my hard work.) Why... thank you, Rose.

Rose: And the lights... it's like.... it's like... some kind of fancy restaurant.

Luke, Tiffany, and Ken exchanged glances and then shortly after decided that they would look awkward staying where they were and slowly, like rabbits entering a forest full of wolves.

But they, also, took time to admire the scene. It was like something straight out of a romance movie.

Tiffany: (thinking: I.... I don't believe it...)

Luke: (thinking: Oh yeah. His mom is famous.)

Ken: (thinking: Oh boy.)

Ken's eyes then turned to the others.

Max had taken a seat, as had his mother, and Rose stayed standing, excitedly expressing herself to Julianne Hunter. Talking about how amazing the room was and asking follow-up questions.

Ken: (thinking: Hopefully, this will be the last of today's surprises.)

He thought that, but knowing he was in the Hunter household, he couldn't help but feel that there was yet more coming for him and for the rest of them. After all, had either Hunter failed to surprise him? No. And now, both were there.

Meanwhile...

Julianne: Oh... the lighting?

Rose: Yeah. How did you make it so pretty?

Julianne: Well... I guess I could say I have an eye for these things.

Max simply looked on... bored. These conversations meant nothing to him.

Rose: Really?!

Julianne: Uh huh. Well... I did have to practice a lot just to get good at it.

Rose: Oh... really?

Julianne: Mmm hmm. Back when I was acting, my manager had me practice making scenes look like this over and over.

Rose: He did!?

Julianne: Mmmm hmmm. I had to set up a table and have it looking "set ready" within one hour, for months.

Rose: Oh my gosh. That sounds so hard.

Julianne: It was. Really.

The mother's eyes then turned to the air, as though thinking nostalgically.

Julianne: (sigh) That old coot.

Rose: Hmm?

Julianne: He had me doing that for every dinner set I was in.

Rose: But... why?

Which would be the obvious question, as no one would expect a normal actor or actress to act like that.

Julianne: Hmm? Oh, that? Well... he said it would help me better understand as to how to make the most out of a scene, if I knew all the ins and outs of it.

Rose: Really!?

Julianne: Mmm hmm. And.... (nostalgic sigh) I guess he was right.....

Rose remained silent for a moment, as did Julianne and the others. Of course, understanding that Julianne was having a moment.

Julianne: Of course, such an act still took months to properly master. Buuuuuuut eventually.... I was able to pull it off.

Rose: That's sooooooo amazing!

Julianne: Think so.

Rose: Uh huh. It must have been so hard.

Julianne: It truly was.

She then turned to the other three, who had all kept their distance from the table. Perhaps it was out of shyness, or even unfamiliarity, or something else, but these three felt the need to remain away from the table. Almost as though some kind of invisible force had kept them out.

Almost as though sitting there would break some kind of rule.