The Ninth Trial

[advisories]

Who: everyone
When: Day 18, starting just after dawn
Where: The Hermit's Tent, and all around

[This morning as the sun begins to pour through the train's windows, there's the tremor that signals a Trial.]

Come hither, Heroes. Prove thy worth. Or something like that!

[It's the same older man's voice from the sixth trial, and outside is the same fortune teller's stall. Today the front flap is lifted to show a normal interior -- there's a wooden table, carved with geometric patterns and painted in bright colours, lit by teal-coloured carved candles.

At the table sits a man of indeterminate age, somewhere between 30 and 60. He's wearing what appear to be monk's robes, teal with patterned trimming. In front of him is a crystal ball and a stack of bingo cards, along with a stand-up sign bearing the rules of this Trial.

Across the top in large font, it says:

Icebreaker Bingo

Good luck and have fun!]

Comments

[bad_crowmance]

My legs weren't meant for the eyes of mere mortals.

[ He grins and rolls his eyes at his own statement-- he's making fun of himself with that one. He's confident in his looks but he wouldn't actually go quite that far with it. ]

You're really confident in the kitchen, aren't you?

[voreaciously]

[Her voice is solemn, heavy with the knowledge that he has bestowed unto her a great privilege.]

Then it is my honour that I can count myself among that number.

[She says it so straight that she must be joking.




Probably.]

Ah, well, I still have quite a bit to learn, actually...

[Comes the humble reply, but does not miss a beat. He is right, though, she does look very comfortable here, yes.]

I must apologise in advance. [She pulls out a baking sheet from the freezer and puts it in the oven, places a pan on the stove to be heated, and chops herbs and spinach to add to the eggs.] We are not stocked with the largest variety of food, I will have to remedy that, shortly.

[bad_crowmance]

[ He laughs at her reply to his stupid joke, shaking his head. She's got a dry sort of wit to her, it's a lot of fun.

And then she apologizes for the variety of food, and he waves a hand vaguely to and fro. ]

I promise you, whatever you make will be better than what I've been cooking for myself. I'm a mediocre cook at best.

[voreaciously]

[She wonders if she will ever get tired of hearing him laugh. Not many did in the Carrots house and that was fine, really. It just was not in their personalities even if most of them did possess senses of humour.

Her heart hurts to think about it. She grew used to cooking with others at this time for the rest of the house, but she needs to shove that memory aside to function.]

That is surprising.

[She pours a bit of oil into the pan and follows with a bit of the egg mixture, folding it in on itself as it cooks and then adding more egg into the pan to repeat the process.]

[bad_crowmance]

What, that I'm not a fantastic cook too? The Goddess already gave me enough blessings as it is, I've gotta have some flaws.

[ The truth is, he's got at least one or two things he can cook pretty well-- but overall, he hadn't been interested in becoming better than "okay" at cooking. ]

[voreaciously]

I suppose that is reasonable, you simply never struck me as being very mediocre at anything.

[Keeps up with the egg cooking, but the smell of baking bread starts to filter into the air to join the rest of the savoury, frankly delicious aromas. While the last bit of egg is cooking, she retrieves a pot from the fridge and sets it on the stove to cook.

When she's finished with the eggs, it ends up as being something of an appetising, colourful loaf that she transfers onto a dish before slicing it into thick pieces. Next, she filets the fish before adding a rub to it and frying it in the pan.]

[bad_crowmance]

Heh! My ego thanks you for that one.

[ Honestly, the delicious scents are setting his stomach to growling. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until she'd set herself to preparing breakfast, but now he's simply famished. He'd worked up quite the appetite back at the beach, and he's ready to eat now. ]

[voreaciously]

Ever so humble, as usual.

[Running and having sex and other stuff will make you hungry, yeah.

But it will not be long now.

She stirs the soup in the pot and satisfied that the fish is cooking well, slices assorted fruit and vegetables before putting them into separate bowls. The tableware is very standard, which is fine, but not very conducive to how she is used to plating things with many little bowls and such, but she will admirably make do with what she has.

She flips the fish, slips on gloves pulls out the sheet from the oven. On it are freshly baked croissants.]

I am nearly finished.

[Scooping out rice into proper bowls as well as doing the same with the soup, she starts to put the finishing touches on some things. The fish is placed onto sprigs of fragrant leaves on a pair of plates, for presentation.

She also makes some tea, for herself, otherwise, she tidies up a little and plates everything else. In the end, she has made: fresh bread, with jam on the side, miso soup, fried fish, rice, tamagoyaki with spinach and parsley, mixed fruit, and a small salad. There are two sets of these dishes for each of them and she places them on the table in a tidy, elegant setup.]

My apologies for keeping you waiting.

[bad_crowmance]

[ He could point out that he sees no reason to pretend to be humble, but there's no use in saying something she already knows he thinks. There's a happy medium of course, he doesn't need to brag about how great he is either-- but he feels confident he hasn't been doing that, so he's just fine the way things are.

The food is finally ready, a feast placed directly in front of him to eat. He grins and shakes his head at her words. ]

I'm not seriously gonna complain about you keeping me waiting when it was to make a meal like this. Thanks for the food! ♪♫

[voreaciously]

[It's fine. We tried the shy humble thing and it gave her the heebie jeebies.

Never again.]

You are welcome, Crow-san.

[She would leave him to it, but they have to share in this. She knows that. It's why she has her own food as well.

She takes a seat.]

If you find this to your liking, I could make other dishes for you, perhaps.

[She wouldn't wish bad or mediocre food on anyone.]

[bad_crowmance]

[ Her subtle horror at his act was hilarious, but he has no intentions of doing it again. Not without a really good reason, at least. He takes a bite of the fish and nods approvingly. ]

Mmm, this is great. Man, I love fish.

[ Despite his horrible experience with raw fish after a bet with Naeva. It's not the fish's fault. ]

I definitely wouldn't complain if you cooked for me again. You're a good cook~ ♪♫

[voreaciously]

Ah, thank you, I am glad! W-well...you are welcome to it, then.

[She's embarrassed. She craves praise but also cannot handle it.]

Um. It would be a good way to get points, too.

[bad_crowmance]

[ She's flustered, that's kinda cute. ]

You can get points for cooking?

[voreaciously]

If it's a gesture of gratitude or a gift, yes. People have to eat. Typically. And so I can continue to do it. I suppose this could count, as well.

[bad_crowmance]

[ Crow gives a low whistle. ]

Damn, you could really work this system if you wanted!

[ Does he want to? Of course he does. ]

[voreaciously]

I do want, and I already have.

[Delicate bite of food.]

My projects will not pay for themselves, unfortunately.

[bad_crowmance]

Oh? What kinds of projects are those?

[voreaciously]

[She won't mention the secret stuff.] The one we have discussed, naturally. Some improvements for Jasmine. A training area seems as though it may be forthcoming according to our last vote on the matter, but I would like one sooner, even if it were private. Better communal spaces. A studio. A bath. But, of paramount importance, I require my pods and all my weapons.

[bad_crowmance]

That's a lot of projects you've got going. No wonder you're hungry for more sparks.

[ He flashes a grin at her. ]

Of course if you ever need help getting more, you know I'm up for the task.

[voreaciously]

Thank you, Crow-san. That would be appreciated.

[You are like, the only person who can really stand her so.]

I will have to think of more ideas. I am rather useless most of the time, socially speaking. I defer to others.

[bad_crowmance]

[ At some point, he's bound to get frustrated with her but the great part is that they can still bang afterwards. ]

Try cooking for people and you'll have a bunch of people willing to pop up and talk to you. This food is amazing.

[voreaciously]

[Angry sex!]

...I did consider that, yes. It would not be the first time I planned such an endeavour.

[She sips her soup so she does not frown at the memory of a cafe. She could not do a maid one again, maybe. That would hurt too much.]

Although talking is not quite what I had in mind.

[bad_crowmance]

Do you have any ideas, then?

[ He nibbles on the bread thoughtfully. ]

[voreaciously]

Food. And fortune telling was about as far as I was able to generate in the way of ideas. [The bread is light and moist with a great exterior. Also very warm.

She sighs, lightly.]

I do not much care for divination at any rate, anyway. But the goal is to combine general bonds with my team bonds in as many combinations or iteration as possible. Perhaps I could teach something...but I am not certain what would garner interest.

[how do i figure out what people like.]

[bad_crowmance]

[ The bread is really good, but he hadn't expected any less considering the rest of the meal. ]

I bet cooking lessons would get at least some attention.