royal_musings | Cooking Lessons & A Free Dinner [for @noreasonneeded]

It had been far too long since Kaz, Piper and himself had all gotten together for just about anything. He saw Piper plenty and he was starting to see Kaz often enough. But for the three of them?

When was the last time they were all in the same room together?

It had to be before they had taken out Tempest the the former King. After that, everything quickly spiraled. His (unlife) had changed what with taking over the Underworld.

More surprising of them all, Piper had found herself back in New Orleans and she was enjoying it. Not only that but claiming it as her own. Adonis didn't think that would ever actually happen.

And Kaz, it appeared to Adonis, always kept himself busy.

This was partly why Adonis only appeared hesitant to allow Piper to come to the cooking lesson he was giving Kaz.

His plan for tonight was fettuccini alfredo - it would be an easier one for him to make and then next time, because hopefully there would be a next time, he'd want to teach him a curry that had potatoes.

Maybe it was just an excuse to get them all together again, who knows? He needed something other than the literal demons he works with to look forward to.

Adonis teleports himself and Kaz to his penthouse in London the night they all came to agree to and steps back from the other man. "Piper is around here somewhere. No doubt stowing away a bottle or two of whiskey to take back with her, the little magpie," he says, looking around for the witch who made it a habit to nick his bottles of whiskey and take them home with her. "One day I'll have to water the whiskey down and see if she notices."

"First of all, I don't "stow" away anything. You leave far too easy to access. And secondly, I would definitely notice if you watered it down - why would you do that to good whiskey anyway? It's a sacrilege," Piper says, walking into the open space of the living room and sending a grin to Kaz.

"Welcome back to Adonis' obnoxious penthouse. You get everything you needed done in Ravka?" They've talked of course in between but it was always good to hear it from him and not just through text messages.

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It was just about then that Adonis thought it was ready to test as well, so watching Kaz do it makes him grin. He notices the indent and nods. "Looks like it is," he says and tests his own dough, noticing the same. "Alright, let's move onto the next part."

He demonstrates the next steps in making the pasta.

"Oh, what about making fun shapes like... rocket ships, penises or whiskey bottles," Piper pipes up as she watches them with a grin.

Adonis blinks at her. "It's fettuccini, Pip, not an adult macaroni and cheese-"

"I mean, macaroni and cheese is just noodles and cheese, right? Fettuccini is just noodles and cheese too, right?"

It's said with such an innocent look on her face that Adonis had to resist throwing a piece of dough at her. "So really they are one and the same," she continues, though knowing it's likely a different kind of dough. Still, she had to.

"Drink your whiskey, brat. You know very well it's different."

Piper shrugs a shoulder and takes a drink from her glass before standing and getting everything out she'd need for the salad. "I'm just saying. You could be one of the lead providers of adult shaped pasta noodles. You're missing your calling."

"Or you are clearly with where your mind is at."

"Please, as if yours isn't perpetually there on a daily basis," she snarks.

[ooc: and we can go to when they're sitting down to eat whenever you'd like! ]

Kaz lets the conversation they're holding with one another wash over him, background noise since he's not addressed in it. He instead focuses on the tasks at hand to make the pasta and the sauce, easily committing it all to memory. Not just the steps, but the time taken between each one and the precise consistency desired for the ingredients. By the end of the cooking process he's finished his whiskey, and rinses out the glass since he knows they'll be having wine with dinner.

His leg is aching a little from standing so much, but not too badly. He helps set the table and carry out the dishes, fetching the wine and pouring some in glasses. Wine is another thing he doesn't know terribly much about with regards to taste, but he knows what labels are fancy and what good prices are for each. The business side of booze he gets, even if his particular palate isn't refined to distinguish once the liquor hits hits his tongue.

Retrieving his cane, he hooks it on his chair and settles into the meal to come. It looks good if he says so himself, to himself. Not a man who when left to his own devices cares about preamble or toasting, he just starts to eat. Giving a little nod after, he proclaims, "It's fine. Certainly not poison." What other compliment would one need?

Piper serves herself a little bowl of salad before taking a bite of the fettuccini and makes an appreciative sound. There were certain things that reminded her of the happier times and this was one of them. She could make certain dishes - usually pasta dishes or a few chicken dishes but her talents were with baking.

When Adonis had chosen to become a chef, they had all been rather surprised but he and David had brought up a decent point that they always needed something to do. They couldn't just sit around indefinitely.

And they had the chance to try out everything that had been a major pro in all of their books.

When Kaz confirms it was 'fine' and certainly not poison, Piper can't stifle her laugh as she takes another bite.

"I'm going to pretend that 'fine' really is just 'good', you heathen," Adonis says with an amused smirk, looking at Kaz while taking a bite of his own food. "Is there anything that you think you need to know for this job coming up?"

Kaz's indifference to the flavor of food is something he's definitely cultivated over the years for the sake of exasperation and amusement. It started out in truth however, he's only in very recent years not dealt with food scarcity. From life on a failing farm to living by himself on the streets, he both never had the chance in his youth to develop a refined palate but also has the stubborn ideology that as long as he eats to keep going, food has done its job. It's hard for Kaz to let himself enjoy things that fall outside his accepted parameters. There are certain flavors and ingredients that he gravitates towards, like curry or potatoes, but admitting out loud that something is good or bad is baffling to him when he judges food ultimately on the function it performs.

It satisfies him to needle Adonis with his attitude though, and he could just say it's good, because it is clearly well-made, but that wouldn't be as amusing.

Twirling the noodles, he lifts a mouthful on the fork to eat. Holding up a hand, he waits until he's finished chewing and swallowing to answer. He might not have some manners, but he doesn't enjoy talking with his mouth full. "Flirting with me won't get me to change my opinion," he smirks at being called a heathen, because of course Kaz would take that as a compliment. His tone turns more thoughtful afterwards as he contemplates the question. "I've done some research, but I suppose any terminology or secret rules one wouldn't find elsewhere. Always call your boss 'chef' and never go market shopping in your chef's whites, things like that."

Adonis gives him a put upon sigh. "And here I had hoped that with a good dinner, great whiskey and some sweet words that I'd finally break through," he says with a smirk. "I can see it'll take more than all of that."

Piper shakes her head with an amused look, focusing on her dinner.

He nods at what Kaz mentions and starts down the list of things that chef's would be expected to know and to adhere to. It was at least enough that it would get Kaz by for this job. "So long as you do all of that, you'll have no problem completing this job."

"I'm a hard fish to catch, but don't worry. There are plenty of fish in the sea." Being from Kerch, there are endless fish analogies at his arsenal. Kaz then points a finger at Piper and adds swiftly, "And before you say anything, yes I am sure I'm not really just the bycatch." Whether or not she had that or a similar quip at the ready he doesn't know, but like always he's attempting to get out ahead of the situation.

He twirls his pasta and eats as Adonis goes on in detail to answer his question. By the end his belly is full and he feels like he has a good handle on the situation. Giving a nod, he polishes off the remaining wine in his glass, feeling sated. "Sounds simple enough." At least it is for his memory. "I'll let you know how it goes. In the meantime, I won't ditch out before helping clean up." Mostly because Adonis had to teleport him back in Ketterdam.

Cooking Lessons & A Free Dinner [for @noreasonneeded]

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