ryuwrighthistory | Empatheias IC inbox

...(For some reason, that doesn't make me feel more relaxed)

[He looks to Asougi, hands on his hips.] No, I'll be the one putting it together. You'll help me prepare the ingredients. [He looks to the tin box of sweets and decides to take another for the trip down to the kitchen.]

[ Where was all this coming from all of a sudden? Then again, it probably wasn't "all of a sudden" for Naruhodou. For him, it had only been nine months, but it had been nearly two years for Naruhodou, where he'd been through a lot — without him by his side, thinking he was dead, and without Mikotoba's influence as well. Asougi huffs again, but his stance softens as he steps out to go downstairs. ]

You're letting me do most of the work, at least. I've had more time to rest than you, so my hands are steadier.

[~~Naruhodou is a strong and independent man now~~]

We're just baking a cake... [He mutters while chewing on his candy. As they enter the kitchen, there was already a bag full of ingredients he had purchased earlier today already set on the counter in preparation.] You want to cut the strawberries?

[He says as he looks for the kitchenware and the remaining ingredients they'll need.]

[ He nods firmly, going to get them out as well as a knife. He'd been around for long enough now to learn where everything was, though try as he might, he couldn't seem to overcome their "little" clutter problem. They'd have to deal with that in the future, eventually. In the meantime: strawberries. ]

I can take care of that.

[ If there was one thing he knew he was good at, without a doubt, it was cutting things. ]

[It's exactly why Naruhodou assigns him to the strawberries for now.]

Just save a few for the topping. The rest are going inbetween the layers. [Naruhodou is going to get the oven preheated and get the dough prepared for the time being. Before that though, he puts a small bowl near Asougi.] Here, you can put the sliced strawberries in this bowl and then mix some suger in.

[ When he says that, Asougi sets a few aside for the toppings before going to town on the rest of the strawberries. He's quick and efficient as he cuts and really, it's amazing that he doesn't accidentally cut himself in the process. He doesn't even really need to focus on it as he chop chop chops away. ]

Define "some" sugar for me. [ At that, he glances over at Naruhodou and raises an eyebrow. If they're going to make this cake together, he's going to cover all their bases. ]

[...Ok then, Asougi chopped those strawberries far quicker than he does He shouldn't really be surprised honestly.]

Oh, um... [Let's be real, he kind of guesses half the time.] Just enough that there's a light layer on top of the strawberries. [He better get this flour ready before Asougi finishes.] I'll have you stir the flour once I've gotten all the ingredients in.

Light. Alright.

[ He nods firmly, setting the knife aside and reaching over for the sugar. And to his credit, despite his intensity, Asougi takes it seriously, carefully sprinkling what can absolutely be called a "light" amount of sugar on them. When he finishes, he sets the sugar aside and steps back, crossing his arms and moving over to hover over Naruhodou and watch what he's doing. ] And this is . . . ?

[Naruhodou has been observing on and off what Asougi was doing, how he just goes at those strawsberries with such intensity. He can't help but smile a little, trying to stiffle a bit of laughter. He's so serious, it's hard not to find it amusing.]

It's...well, it'll be the cake batter. [He slides the large bowl over to him once he had finished putting in the eggs. He then offers him a large mixing spoon.] You just need to stir all of the ingredients together.

[ Asougi raises an eyebrow at Naruhodou's stifled laughter, but says nothing otherwise. At least he's happy, which is more than well earned at this point. He takes the bowl and the mixing spoon, starting on that with an admirable amount of restraint. ]

I see . . . so this is how it's made.

... [Hehe, he nods. He then walks away, in search of the pan and cutouts for the batter to go on.] Have you ever cooked anything before today?

[ He shakes his head almost immediately, still stirring the batter. ]

No. Not even in Great Britain. It was never . . . [ Asougi's voice trails off as he waves his free hand, almost flippantly. ] I never had to. There were other areas that required my focus.

Ah...right. [He did have a lot of other things to worry about.]

Well, as I'm sure you've likely noticed, Holmes' focus isn't exactly in cooking either. So, I had to figure out cooking myself. [Takeout gets pricey after a while. It puts the pan and cutouts on the table, brushing them with butter in preparation.] It was out of necessity at first, but...I found it enjoyable after a while.

[ He hums softly, nodding with consideration. Of course it would be necessary here if it were just the two of them. Of course Naruhodou would find a way to make it work. ]

So you did what you had to. Mm . . . well, I'd expect no less from you, partner.

[He goes slightly red in the face.] W-Well, if you ever want to learn, I'll see what I can teach you. There's still things I have to learn myself.

[He comes back over to Asougi, to see his progress on that cake batter.] That looks good, you can go ahead and pour that into these two cutouts. Ah, but don't fill them all the way.

[ It wasn't that he didn't think he could learn, but more . . . well. There was still a lot on his plate. His mind was too occupied with a million other things for him to really learn something like that. Instructions were simple enough, at least. Asougi doesn't comment on that, following Naruhodou's instructions instead. ]

Don't fill them all the way? . . . If you say so. [ It's a bit different for him to not go 110% on everything, but he manages. ]

They're going to expand when they bake. You don't want it to overflow, otherwise you're going to have a mess instead of cake layers.

[He'll help Asougi a little, taking the bowl from him after a bit, to make sure the batter getting into the molds are at least even. Once satisfied, he nods and picks up the tray.] Can you get the oven open for me?

[ He steps back, allowing Naruhodou to take over, albeit grudgingly. He's all too eager to do something, so when he's asked to get the oven, he steps over immediately. ]

What now? [ Surely they don't just wait, right? ]

[Once the tray has been put in the oven and left to bake, he turns to Asougi with a smile on his face.] Frosting!

[By the excitement in his voice, this seems to be his favorite part. He gets another small bowl, gets the ingredients together and then gives Asougi a whisk.] You're going to have to really stir this time. This, [He points to the puddle of sad ingredients in the bowl] needs to turn white and somewhat fluffy.

[ Frosting? He seems mildly skeptical at first despite Naruhodou's enthusiasm, though that quickly fades when he's handed the whisk. Asougi steps over, raising an eyebrow. ]

All of that, huh? . . . Alright.

[ He rolls his shoulders and then proceeds to go to town with stirring the ingredients. Fortunately, he has enough control to keep it from splashing everywhere, so everything remains inside the bowl itself. It isn't long before the sad little puddle starts to come together, as white and kind of fluffy as anything. ]

[Naruhodou had gone to work on the remaining strawberries that hadn't been cut while Asougi was working on that. He cuts them in half, in preparation to use them as the toppings. As he checks Asougi's progress, he looks impressed at what he finds.]

W-Whoa, you already made it that white? This is one of the most strenuous cooking tasks to do.

It wasn't that difficult.

[ He shrugs his shoulders as he keeps whisking, though he does slow it down some so it doesn't end up overly whisked. ]

[He laughs softly.] I suppose it wouldn't be, for you. [He sits down in a nearby stool. At this point, all they have left to do is to wait for the cake to finish baking.]

You should try to relax a little more. There's no rush to get this done.

[ Asougi sits down nearby, giving him an incredulous look for a brief moment because has he met him? But he follows that up with a small smile, shaking his head. ]

You might have a point.

[ But that's about all he'll concede to. ]

Well for one thing, finishing that frosting quickly isn't going to make that cake bake faster. [He gestures to the oven. He leans on the counter, his hand supporting his head up.]

...You really should give yourself a break.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject