Crystalline Chill

[warpstriking]

Who: Residents of house C-01 and friends!
When: All throughout May, see prompts and individual threads
Where: House C-01
What: Monthly catchall for the XV House shenanigans
Warnings/Notes: There's likely going to be spoilers for Kingsglaive and the main game up to Chapter 13 somewhere in the comments.


A. Sometimes you just want to ride...
Late in the morning of the 1st, there is a low purring sound of an engine going down the street. One that wasn't accustomed to travel aside by foot or chocobo claw. Yet, somehow, a certain man manages not to clip a single thing. And it sits there, in front of House C-01, black, shiny, and very much a wonder to a few moogles. Especially since the convertible's roof is airship-grade plexiglass.

B. [Insert "I'll Make A Man Out Of You" joke here]
There was one upside to living with the once-deceased leader of the Crownsguard, and that was one didn't have to go far for a training enthusiast. There was also one downside to this: not having to go far for a training enthusiast. It's the crack of dawn when the nice little symphony of insects and kwehs get interrupted by the sounds of wooden weapons clashing and spells being practiced.

Rest in pieces, light sleepers. They apologize in advance.

C. That's it!
Of course, no one can train or go through the day on no fuel. And one person in particular has taken upon himself to at least ensure a few others can eventually cook eggs without burning them. The real question is: Will Ignis come up with a new recipeh involving that jar of kupo nut butter?

D. I want to ride my chocobo all day~
If anyone is surprised at the fact that there are two or three (depending on the date because Chocobo Eater event) lovely birds, then they clearly don't understand at least 50% of the household's love for the magnificent creatures. The black one in particular seems to be particularly happy with their nice little stack of shiny objects...

There may or may not be a pair of glasses on the top of that pile. Sorry, Specs.

E. Hold my Ebony
(Feel free to come up with your own prompts, guys; these aren't the limits to our zaniness.)

Comments

[regalblaze]

Ignis shrugs at the Moogle:"I can't tell you what to think but don't be hasty with your judgments." Just as he says that a plate is shoved in his face and Ebony's looking at him expectantly. He's shooed off because he had three pieces of toast already and can wait for more later.

He places an empty plate close for Clarus to use once the eggs are done.

"If you think that is for the best, Lord Clarus. It is true that they can be a handful but-" he kind of got used to Ebony waiting for him in the kitchen every morning, singing some random song.

[lordshield]

The stoic moogle simply scoffed and snapped his paper up to block their view of him and cease the conversation.

"I suppose we'll see what happens," Clarus agreed. He was an adult and a professional. He knew how to work civilly with people who hated him. In fact... "It's almost funny, Yarrow reminds me of a young Cor Leonis. He and I didn't get along either."

Taking the plate as a hint, the older man lifted the lid and peered down at the eggs, poking them with the spatula once more. "I believe they may be ready." Please double check him.

[regalblaze]

And here Ignis thought chocobos were temperamental.

"Marshal is indeed a very stern person," Ignis agrees while checking the eggs. Those turned out quite good.

"They indeed are. Careful while taking them out," Ignis warns. Clarus is already holding the spatula so: gently transfer them to the plate Ignis prepared. "I think even his Highness won't scoff on these," Ignis says encouragingly.

Once the eggs are out, Ignis passes the bowl with eggs for Clarus: "Next one."

[lordshield]

No apparently moogles came in all types too.

In a show that was probably almost comical to Ignis, the older man every so carefully scooped one egg onto the spatula, staring at it with great concentration as if he thought it might fly off if he made just the wrong movement, and set it down just as delicately on the plate. The procedure followed with the second egg, and then the elder released a breath he hadn't known he was holding before reaching for the bowl.

"Break and mix, yes?" He asked as though he hadn't already messed this process up once already today. At least his mistakes wouldn't go to waste, and he'd inadvertently learned a new way to prepare eggs.

[regalblaze]

Ignis said 'be careful' so there is nothing comical about this. It would probably be to Prompto or Noct, but Ignis knows that cooking can be a challenge if you don't do it a lot (Noct should also know this as well since he tried cooking himself before and burnt through five pots and pans).

"Excellent," Ignis nods and takes away the plate, putting it on the side so it doesn't get in the way.

"Yes. Break and mix. Careful of the eggshells," he says with a smile, hands crossed over his chest. He will not get involved unless things really get on fire.

[lordshield]

Not doing it 'a lot' was an understatement. Clarus had rarely had to prepare food for himself ever in his life, and the few things he did know were roasting things over a campfire, heating up a canned meal, or prepping Cup Noodle. Hardly a healthy or balanced diet.

He was an unorthodox student, he knew, but still... "Thank you, for taking the time to teach me these things. And for your patience with me," the older man said sincerely, making brief eye contact before he returned his attention to breaking the eggs in question and hopefully avoiding any shell mishaps this time.

[regalblaze]

That's more than enough to go from. He knows how to boil water and roasting things on fire actually requires skill- to cook it but not burn it. It's true, it's not healthy, but in dire times there's nothing wrong if you rely on good, old Cup Noodles.

"It is not a problem at all," Ignis reassures. "It is nice to have company while preparing breakfast," he admits. "The others are usually asleep." After checking that there are no shells in the bowl, he turns to his own bowl and starts assembling ingredients for pancakes. A couple of eggs will feed no one.

[lordshield]

"Not entirely true," Clarus corrected as he stirred. "Prompto is often on his morning run at this time, as I imagine he might be now." He appreciated the young man's diligence, and his help with the chocobos. Astrals knew Noctis wasn't going to wake early for the morning feeding. Honestly Clarus didn't mind taking care of the prince's bird for him, but he'd never let Noct know.

"I'm not certain I ever asked, why did you learn to cook? You grew up in the Citadel with chefs on call at all hours, and it was reasonable to expect that Noctis would always have the same." They hadn't really foreseen that Noctis would ask to live among the common folk, but they weren't displeased with the decision and results.

[regalblaze]

"It still proves my point that I cook by myself," Ignis chuckles while stirring the pancake batter. By the time Prompto comes back and has a shower, Noct is somewhat awake (after being dragged out of the bed by either Prompto or Ignis) and Ignis is already done with cooking. He's glad that the guys are taking care of the birds instead of him though. In return, they can always find fresh greens for them stored in the fridge.

No, Clarus didn't ask and Ignis didn't bring it up much unless he was directly asked, like now. His lips twitch a bit, "When his Highness returned from his trip to Tenebrae, he mentioned having a dessert there that he really liked. He looked..." his stirring slowed down for a moment as memories came back, but he quickly returned to stirring, "...sad. So I thought to cheer him up by recreating the pastry he had. Unfortunately, I lacked skills in both baking and cooking. So I decided to take up cooking classes."

He grabs the napkin from nearby to wipe his hands, "I learned how to cook, I ended up enjoying it a lot, but it was only recently that I managed to actually make the dessert his Highness had. It was quite a journey."