mrrp: "From Eel to Salad"

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Cast: Lucifel (Dea) & Sally (Nerf)

TLDR: They make a recipe together. Fel fails miserably and Sally succeeds with flying colors. After offering to teach him a few things about cooking, Fel accuses her of falsifying their friendship. Sally flips out on him and leaves out of anger.

Support Points Earned: 1

[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
Lucifel narrowed his eyes at the recipe book he was using for reference. The young businessman had been rather displeased with the town's dining options, and rather than settle for a mediocre meal, he had come to the conclusion he'd rather attempt his own cooking.
As such, he was now standing in the open kitchen of the Purple Lily Inn, consulting his first cookbook. His jet black suit jacket had been swapped out for a brand-new apron embossed with "Please Restrain Yourself From Kissing The Cook". Before him on the counter were a wide assortment of ingredients ranging from fresh eel to spinach leaves. Lucifel lifted the worn knife the kitchen had provided him, and attempted to slice through an eel.
Which promptly slipped out from the dulled blade of the knife and landed with a wet squelch on the floor.
Uttering a curse a gentleman wouldn't be caught saying, he disposed of the tarnished eel before glaring at the knife. After making sure nobody else was in the vicinity, he set the knife down and conjured a jet black replica, identical save for a notably sharper blade.
Humming to himself contentedly, he set to work cutting the eel with significantly more success.
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
Of all the people Sally expected to run into in the kitchen, Lucifel was probably the last of them. Stopping at the room's entrance, she double-checked to make sure her eyes were not deceiving her. And yet, there was no doubt. As ridiculous as it sounded, the person standing next to the counter, humming a song to himself as he sliced up a fish was no other than Fel.
Uh? Now this is an interesting development...
Dropping a bag of recently bought vegetables on top of the table, she approached the criminal with a sarcastic smile on her face.
"I didn't know you were one to cook his own food, Fel. And certainly not such a large amount. Who is the unfortunate soul that you are sharing your cooking with?"
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
He looked up, startled as she dropped her bag on the table. Lucifel instantly regained his composure upon seeing her, carefully moving his manifested knife so it was blocked by his body before letting it disintegrate. He then picked up the original knife, hoping she hadn't noticed.
"Sally? Merely seeing your face always warms my heart, all the more so on such a miserable day." His carefully measured voice made it difficult to tell how serious he was, given that any traces of familiarity or vulnerability from their last meeting were absent.
"I'm usually not, but there's a first time for everything." Lucifel replied, briefly turning his attention back to the recipe book. "The town's dining selection leaves my palette wanting, especially after the recent riots ended up ransacking many of the finer establishments."
The businessman gestured to the ingredients before her. "And as such, I've decided to take up a commoner's craft, partially out of interest. Today, I will be assembling a-" He peered down at the pages. "Crab & Eel Soufflé upon a Nicousan Salad. It says it's an advanced recipe, but how hard could it be if it's written with commoners in mind?"
He paused momentarily, as if weighing his options. "Would you... care to join me?"
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
Instead of inmediatly responding to his question, Sally leaned over the counter, taking a peek at the cookbook Lucifel was reading. As she observed the recipe with critical eye, she made some mental notes before going back to the table, and once there she started pulling some ingredients out of the bag: garlic, goat cheese, a red onion, raisins...she thought about it a little more and then returned the raisins to the bag.
Once she was finished with that task, she grabbed the selected ingredients and brought them to the counter, right next to where Lucifel was standing.
"You know, I'd expect you to invite me to eat at a renowned restaurant, not making me taste a beginner's cooking."
She opened the kitchen's drawers, looking for a knife.
"By the way, do you have some mustard? I'm sure I can turn that salad of yours into something more...interesting."
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
Lucifel declined to rise to Sally's grumbling. "Oh, but Madam, I strive to only present you with the city's finest cuisine- Which in this case, would be my cooking. Don't be so quick to deride it, you may just find out that it's the best food you've ever witnessed."
He quickly turned away, as he was having trouble maintaining a straight face. Oh in the name of the Lady herself, why am I building her expectations? This better turn out well...
"Mustard? I'm afraid not, but there might be some in one of these cabinets." He quirked an eyebrow. "Have you cooked before? It's certainly surprising- I always thought of you as the kind of person who spent more time slicing people with your knife instead of ingredients."
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
"Slicing people with my knife? Oh no, that gets old fast. Sometimes you need to spice up the formula a little." She smirked at him. "Like for example, slipping some poison on their food when they are not looking instead. That's one of my favourites"
Her nonchalant tone made it hard to tell if she was being serious, but as she dove into the cabinet to search for mustard, she made sure to take notice if Fel reacted in any way to her words.
No mustard? I guess vinager will have to do...
"Still, I'm afraid your impressions about me are quite innacurate. I can tell you for sure I'm much better of a cook than I'm a fighter. When you work on this line of business, making sure no one has tampered with your food is of utmost importance. If I didn't know how to make a meal I'd never be able to travel." She returned to the counter and started chopping the onion at an impressive speed. "Now, shall I show you how it's done, rookie?"
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
The suave man stiffened unconsciously at the muted threat, but didn't comment.
She's just teasing me, that's all. She enjoys seeing me rattled. He eyed the eyepatched woman carefully where she was cutting vegetables. Besides, I can take consolation that if I felt the effects of poison when eating, I could probably close the distance between the two of us and knife her before she knew what happened. He felt his heart rate increase as another thought entered his paranoid mind. Unless... It's a slow acting poison that doesn't claim me until I go to sleep tonight!
Lucifel attempted to slow his breathing before engaging the other woman again. "Is that so? If your cooking surpasses your fighting skill, then you must truly be a skilled culinary artist." he replied smoothly, falling back on his nigh-infinite supply of flattery. "I have no doubt you'll leave me impressed."
"By all means, take the lead, masterful one." he said with a sardonic smile that was more forced than genuine. "Is there anything I can do to assist?"
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
My fighting skill? Has he even seen me battle? What sort of war monster does he think I am?
"Take the lead? Oh no, I'm just making the salad. The soufleé is all on you," she returned the sardonic smile. "Didn't you claim this could be the best food I have ever witnessed? I won't let you back down after making such an ambitious claim," she teased him. "By the way, you should better hurry. It won't be long before I'm finished. You wouldn't want to make a lady wait, would you?"
As if to echo her own words, Sally moved the now minced garlic into a bowl and, without waiting a second, started working on the goat cheese.
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
I should have expected as much. Now I've got a time limit as well. he grumbled inwardly. The young man shot Sally a reproachful look when he thought she wasn't looking, before picking up the worn knife and attempting to return to slicing the eel.
"My dear Sally, haven't you heard? You simply can't rush genius." The words were spoken matter-of-factly, without a trace of smugness. "Well, under normal circumstances. But for you? I'll see what I can do."
Lucifel proceeded to increase the speed of his uneven cuts, before moving on to cracking a series of eggs he had set out earlier. "So, I heard you and the others did a marvelous job of repelling in would-be arsonists. I must commend you."
Having finished cracking the eggs into a bowl, he proceeded to whisk them. Almost immediately he began to slow down, undoubtedly due to running out of stamina for the task within seconds. "My only regret is that I couldn't join you and the rest of the party on the battlefield, in order to survey the scene and offer expert strategic advice. By the time I had changed from my nightgown to suitable clothing to be seen in, the battle had already ended."
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
It took you the entire battle to change clothes? Yeah, sure...coward.
Without saying a word, she returned her attention to the salad, in order to let Fel concentrate on his cooking. Every now and then she would crack a joke, or throw some backhanded compliment at him, but for the most part she allowed the criminal to work in peace. Even once she was done with her dish, she patiently waited for him to finish, despite her previous complaints about his cooking speed. After all, she knew very well a soufleé took longer to prepare than a salad.
"You took you time, didn't you?" she remarked as Fel added the final touches. "Lets hope the result was worth the wait."
Next to her stood the now finished salad, almost unrecognizable from the dish on Fel's cookbook. It was if she had decided to make a point on how she didn't need a book to tell her how to cook, and had found no better way to do that than diverging from the original recipe as much as possible. Yet, she seemed to have the utmost confidence her changes were an improvement, and given how tasty her salad looked, one would be hard-pressed to say the opposite.
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
Meanwhile, Lucifel's creation was only a soufflé in the loosest sense, and it wasn't due in part to diverging from the recipe. He had, in fact, managed to somehow create a pair of souffles that were both burned and soggy.
The criminal glanced back and forth between Sally's concoction and his own, before adopting a thin-lipped frown. "I'll have you know presentation isn't everything. I followed the directions perfectly; there's no way I could have failed."
He brought the two dishes over to one of the many tables outside of the kitchen. and after setting them down across from each other, he pulled out a seat for Sally and gestured for her to take a seat. "Mistress Sally, your meal is ready. May I present to you: Crab & Eel Soufflé upon a Nicousan Salad."
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
"I'll admit, the salad looks delicious," she replied sardonically. "Did you make it? As for the soufflée...I guess I'll have to try it before giving my verdict"
What is even that...thing? How do you mess up a recipe so badly?
Grabbing the fork next to her, she decided to try Lucifel's creation first. Taking a generous bite from the souflée, she chewed in silence, taking her time to get a good taste for it. Once she was done with it, she calmly placed her fork back on the table, before extending her arm to reach for a glass of water. After talking a long sip, she directed her attention towards the criminal.
"Fel..." she asked more concerned than accusatory "...what the hell did you do?"
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
His eyes widened as his ever-present facade cracked slightly. "W-what?" he replied.
Sitting down opposite her, he attempted a small bite of the souffle himself. And promptly gagged. After swallowing and gulping down half a glass of water, he finally managed to get a reply out.
"Well, it certainly requires an-" he choked out. "-an acquired taste. I don't get it- I followed the recipe perfectly! It should have just been a simple process..."
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
"Lets just...forget about it." Standing up from her seat, she grabbed both dishes and headed towards the garbage bin, getting rid of the abomination Lucifel had just created before he could get a chance to protest. After she was done with that task, she returned to the table, now with only the salad having survived her purge.
"Well, that was...something" she stated, unsure how to sugarcoat it. "Maybe you'll do better next ti..." She stopped herself mid-sentence, realizing her words would only make it worse. "How is that you have never cooked before? Did your parents never try to teach you?" Sally asked the first think she could think of, hoping that it would be enough to distract Fel from the fact that she had just mercilessly destroyed what he had spent so much effort in creating.
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
Lucifel stared at the trash where she had disposed of the food, seeming a bit lost. "Oh... oh, okay. I guess... I'm not so good at this sort of thing after all." Contrary to his normal impassive persona, the criminal appeared almost hurt by her reaction.
When she brought up his parents, he seemed to break out of his stupor somewhat. "Hmm? Oh..." Lucifel absently prodded the salad with a fork. "Cooking isn't really a thing where I come from." He frowned. "I would imagine that sounds a bit weird, no? In that case, forget I said anything."
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
The strange response didn't go unnoticed for Sally, who inmediatly started to wonder what did the criminal mean by those words. Cooking is not a thing where he comes from? So he's not from Rettati? Against her own curiosity, she forced herself not to ask a follow-up question, aware that Fel was probably not in the mood for an interrogation right now.
"Well, I guess it's never too late to start, right? Maybe if you go for a simpler recipe next time..." she paused for a second, before reluctantly adding "...if you'd like, I could maybe teach you a thing or two. Maybe."
It wouldn't be a stretch to say that a part of her was surprised by her own offer. She didn't think she had anything wrong by disposing the dishes, after all, she was fully aware that Lucifel was proud enough that he might have eaten the whole thing just to save face had she not done that. And yet, she couldn't help but feel a little guilty about it.
What the...am I getting soft?
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
Lucifel looked up, and for a moment it seemed as if he would accept her proposal graciously. And then a frown clouded his face. "This is the second time you've offered to help teach me something, with no apparent benefit to yourself."
His fork dropped to the plate, salad forgotten. "You've made it perfectly clear that you don't care for those outside your 'Nest'. So what exactly do you hope to accomplish here? Is it in order to make me indebted to you? Or perhaps your objective is to get me to lower my guard." His words were calm, but the criminal's eyes blazed with a quiet intensity.
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
"What!?" Sally stood up from her seat, clearly offended by Fel's misguided accusation. "This is why you can't form bonds with anyone!" she threw back at him. "You are always expecting the worst from people, even when they mean well. If this is how you are going to act, you can forget about it. If you insist on being a useless waste of space that on top of being unable to fight cannot even make his own meal, I am not going to stop you."

[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
While he didn't return her raised tone, the businessman seemed rather taken back by her sudden change in mood. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend."
Internally, he winced. Some of her insults had hit rather close to home. Sure, I can't make many friends, but you didn't have to put so fine a point on it...
Lucifel couldn't maintain eye contact with her. "Yes, I expect the worst of people. In my profession, I can't afford not to. I deal with the dregs of society, who will gladly cut the throat of anybody who so much as looks their way with kindness. To them, it's not kindness, it's weakness."
He looked back up at her. "I just... All I knew is that you made a point of treating your own kindly, and your enemies ruthlessly. So naturally, I assumed that-"
The redheaded man broke off. "Wait. Are you saying you think of me as a friend?" he replied, the realization making him temporarily forget her anger.
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
Dregs. Yes, of course that's how he sees them. Why would I expect anything else.
"No. I'm saying that I thought you as one" Her voice was once again calm, the ire on it having dissapeared just as fast as it had come. "But it's clear I was mistaken about that. You don't have to worry about it. If you think my friendship all but a ploy to take advantage of you, then I won't bother you with it anymore. I'll be off to eat with someone that can appreciate my company."
Grabbing her own dish from the table, she readied herself to leave.
[–]ForgedCymbelineGM (K) | Jetsetter, Monk (A) 1 point  
"But I appreciate-" Lucifel cut himself off, seeming as if he wanted to say something, but couldn't get the words out. "No, you're right. I... I screwed up pretty badly. I'm sure you'd be happire spending your time with somebody else."
Lucifel lightly inclined his head in way of farewell. "I bid you a merry day, madam. May it be as pleasant as you are." he said, attempting to play off his sadness. The effect was somewhat ruined by his voice cracking, however.
"Oh, and thank you for the salad. I have no doubt it's delicious."
[–]NerfUrgotKhan, Fighter (J) | Donna, Troubadour (B) | Sally, Thief (A) 1 point  
Sally waited a couple seconds before moving, as if she was expecting Fel to say something else. Only once it became apparent such words would not come, she headed towards the door, with a calm but steady pace.
"Good day to you too, Lucifel. I hope you enjoy the salad."
Her last words were polite, but devoid of any warmth, giving the impression she was merely repeating a memorized phrase.
==END RP==

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