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 Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:28 pm
(an rp between Nilah and Sabra over discord) Nicias found himself in one of the private kitchens his family had for their personal use. Sometimes the years of not being in the lime light felt nostalgic for his parents and would often feel like doing some of the simpler things in life like cooking. It was never something Nicias had taken much part in. His parents had done it fairly frequently when he was younger but that was when he more enjoyed eating the food than the actual making of it. Yet, now the teenage prince was rolling out a parchment and reading it for what seemed like the one hundredth time. It was a time of year for giving thanks and treats to your friends and family and sometimes, when the world could be at your fingertips...it just didn't seem like enough to just 'pick something up'. He wanted to do something nice for his parents, Miss Varinia, and his best (and really only) friend of course. Today had been chosen since his best friend wouldn't be on guard duty so he might be able to sneak something in to surprise her. The little pies he had chosen to make had a filling of one of her favorite fruits so he hoped she would like it. He gathered up the ingredients and got to work on measuring it all out...in not exactly the most mess free way. Nic made sure to follow all the directions, perfectionist that he is, and put the pies in the oven before turning around and surveying the mess he would have to clean up. "Oh boy..." He said quietly to himself. [Nicias 1]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:28 pm
Reina was always eager to go to the palace. Despite teasing from her family and others that she encountered throughout the royal estate in Sulburi, Reina simply shrugged it off as being bored and wanting to bother a friend. She had been basically raised with Nicias since they were younglings and at times she even felt closer to him than her sister. It was oddly strange how things worked out like that especially considering how sometimes they felt like completely opposites with how much of a perfectionist he could be while Reina was more of a go by your gut feeling and hope things turn out for the best type of girl. But they managed to find a good balance and she couldn't imagine spending a beautiful day like today with anyone else. I wonder if we can go somewhere outside of the city or at least something more exciting than the markets? There were Xaraan races and they could always grab some of the seasonal food from a cafe on the way back...the thought made Reina smile happily before she turned a corner.
"Nicias?" She called out as she darted from room to room in the palace. She had tried all of his usual spots first before being directed by a maid towards the ktichens. Out of all the places to be... Reina pursed her lips in confusion before finally spotting her dear friend. "There you are!" She called out happily with a small grin as she peeked through the doorway and towards Nicias.
[Reina 1]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:29 pm
Nicias, ever the good kid, had started cleaning up his mess that was on the counter and had yet to clean up himself when he heard a voice from the doorway. The poor boy almost jumped out of his skin and dropped the towel he had been using trying to clean up the counters. "REINA." His voice was somewhat shocked and breathless. A few seconds later he recovered and laughed nervously. "What are you doing here?" Who knew what the average person would think of him if they saw him in such a manner. This was no perfect prince but a poor boy trying to do something sweet for someone close to him.
[Nicias 2]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:29 pm
"NICIAS." Others perhaps would have been hesitant to say the prince's name so directly but Reina was simply too close to the Oban royal for such formalities. At least not now when they were in private and away from the eyes of others. In fact she couldn't help but to grin playfully whenever she said his name back in an imitation of his own exclamation of her name. Why had he sounded so shocked? "I should be asking you that question." She quipped back lightly as she took a few steps closer. "Are you hiding something or did you forget that I existed? With that much of a surprised reaction I truly don't know what to think, Nicias." Reina glanced around thoughtfully, the motion slightly moving her hair that was twisted into braids that chimed slightly due to the small decorative bells that she had chosen for the day. While Reina wasn't completely fond of dresses she did enjoy wearing colorful tunics and golden beads and other such accessories in her dark hazel hair.
She also didn't mind messes and was not the type of girl to shy away from something to protect her appearance. That much was obvious as she walked towards one of the many kitchen counters and ran a finger through a trail of flour dust. "Looks like the kitchens were busy this morning. Is there something special going on today?" Wouldn't her mother have warned her if there was an event or formal meeting? After all Reina was a bit of a wild child at times and often needed her mother's warnings to keep her from simply barging into the palace during important visits.
[Reina 2]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:29 pm
"Oh..um. Well..." Nic stalled as he tried to think of what to tell her. Was he hiding something from her? OH ohh...yeah he supposed he was. "Well you see..." It was then that he took a deep breath to go into explaining what exactly had caused such a big mess, or rather, WHO had made it when he realized there was a slight acrid note to the air causing him to jump up again. "Just uh behind you here..." He skirted around her to the oven before grabbing some of the little mitts he had been told to use when using the oven. Nic started to pull the little hand pies out of the oven. The thin part of the crust where the two sides were crimped together had been starting to burn. The prince frowned as he finished pulling the last little pie out of the oven. There had been 6 in total and there wasn't one that didn't have some little burnt piece on it. He hung his head slightly. "Well, this was what I was kind of sort of hiding." He said sadly.
[Nicias 3]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:29 pm
"Just behind me?" Reina quirked a confused brow as she followed Nic's movements with her gaze. What exactly was he talking about? Something about the image of him being in the kitchen did not seem to click with her brain and she was still struggling to imagine Nicias actually cooking well....anything really. And yet there he was taking out little pies from the oven and she couldn't help the small smile that crossed her lips. I suppose those are definitely his pies and not the kitchen staffs' work. His sorrowful expression made her gaze soften and Reina swallowed back the playful tease that had nearly left her lips. "It's not that...bad." She responded lightly as she approached and looked closely at a pie. "So you made all of these by yourself from scratch? I didn't take you to be a baker, Nicias. I'm impressed!" Reina commented lightly, trying her best to keep a positive spirit to cheer up her friend.
[Reina 3]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:30 pm
Reina's comments couldn't help but make him laugh. "Yeah well if they taste like they look I don't think we're in for much of a treat." He joked in an effort to lighten his own mood. "I had wanted to do something special this year for those close to me. Guess I learned my lesson huh?" Nicias scratched the back of his neck nervously. It had probably been a bad idea anyhow. Its not like baking was in his repertoire of things he had been taught. Yet he thought that if he just followed the directions he'd do okay. Nic supposed baking wasn't quite as easy as he had expected.
[Nicias 4]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:30 pm
Reina gave a shrug of her shoulders. "We'll see." She replied lightly before stealing a pie for herself to try. "Plus, it's not like everyone can make a perfect pie on the first go." Now if he had been hiding some sort of amazing baking skill then she would have been completely stunned! Maybe even a bit annoyed if he had been hiding days of practice from me or worse...he did perfectly on his first try! Surely he couldn't be the best at everything, right? Reina took comfort in the fact that even the Oban royals were human and not some sort of gods. It definitely made interacting with Nicias a lot easier and was why she found him such an endearing friend, especially in moments like these when he was doing his best to try and do something so sweet. No pun intended.
Bracing herself, Reina took the first bite and tried her best to not make a face at the bitterness of it. It was like the sugar had somehow managed to clump together to one side while the bitterness stayed everywhere else. She avoided the burnt edge though and made a small nod. "Really not that bad." She managed finally after swallowing the piece. "I think one more go and you may have it perfected." Reina was already thinking about a possible save, her mind running through scenarios until she finally settled on a dramatic gesture over Nic's shoulder. "Ah! Maybe can use some of that sugar to cover them up a bit more... Reaching over she made certain to hook her foot on something so that she tumbled forward and the pies went flying through the air to land in various areas of the floor with a plop!
[Reina 4]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:30 pm
"Sure I know that. I just thought that as long as I followed the directions it would all turn out okay..." Nicias sighed as Reina decided to try one for herself. His right eye squinted as he made a face watching hers. So clearly they weren't amazing but not that he expected it to be after how they looked. "I don't know if trying again is the right option..." Nic said right as Reina seemed like she was starting to make a plan before tripping causing the pies to fly everywhere. "I guess there's always that options....I wonder if perzi would like them." He said with a small laugh as he looked at his failure all over the floor.
[Nicias 5]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:31 pm
"Well what if you tried again with company?" Offered Reina as she scooped the pies into a small pile. "I've had some experience and I think it could be fun." After placing the discarded pies on the pile, Reina gave Nicias a small pat on the shoulder. "I'm sure the perzi will love them." She teased lightly before bumpng into him with her hip as she reached for a new bowl. It really wouldn't be that awful spending an afternoon in the kitchen together, right? Reina's gaze was warm as she looked back to Nicias. "What do you say? Wanna try this together? I've been craving some of those spiced apple pies too."
[Reina 5]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:31 pm
Nicias chuckled one more time. "I suppose it couldn't hurt, there should still be plenty of ingredients left. When I gathered up everything I needed I made sure to get plenty of extra in case I messed everything up. Which I guess ended up being a good thing." He pretended to dust himself off which in reality only made his clothes dirtier. "Okay Chef Reina, here's the recipe if you need it, otherwise what is our first step?" He was willing to let her lead, it was rarely a pride thing with him when it came to his best friend.
[Nicias 6]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:32 pm
Reina beamed happily as Nicias agreed with her offer of making a second batch. They would get it perfect this time! She was determined especially since it seemed to mean so much to Nicias. "First step is adding in some love and fun." She teased lightly as she tapped a finger lightly against Nic's nose, the action leaving a small smudge of flour against his nose. The words were light-hearted and playful so she didn't think much more about them while she started to reorganize all the ingredients. "We can follow the recipe but it's always good to taste it along the way to make sure nothing needs adjusted." It was strange how sometimes things could change whenever you were baking that forced you to alter a step here and there. Rare but possible!
"If you don't mind dicing up those apples over there?" She gestured towards the pile with a small smile. "I'll work on getting the crust together while you prepare the fillings."
[Reina 6]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:32 pm
"Not that I wasn't using that before too..." Nic mumbled under his breath, crinkling his nose as it was dusted with flour. He nodded along as she went over the plan and when she assigned him a job he nodded and moved around her to where the extra apples were before he started peeling and then cutting them into small cubes. "Mkay, here are the apples." Nic moved the bowl that he had placed all the apples in towards Reina after he had done all that she had asked.
[Nicias 7]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:33 pm
"Hmm? What was that?" Replied Reina teasingly before giving Nicias another playful nudge. If anything she was the fun one and she often wuold tease him about it. As she worked on the dough the girl hummed a soft melody under her breath and was dramatic with every movement to roll out the flakey crust. It was almost more as if she were playing than just simply working in a kitchen. Once Nicias finished with the apples, Reina took them with a smile. "Thank you, sire." She winked before taking the apples and gesturing towards a bowl of sugar and cinammon. "Here's a trick to keep them from getting too bitter." She placed the pieces into the bowl before shaking it around with a flourish. Of course a little sugar escaped onto her clothing and cheeks but Reina didn't mind. Instead she held out an apple towards Nicias for him to try before resuming the work on their pies. Even if it took all afternoon Reina was determined to finish this task and get some delicious pies ready for Nicias so that he could be happy and not down from the first attempt.
[Reina 7]
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Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2020 7:33 pm
Rolling his eyes at her teasing, Nicias leaned against the counter as he watched her prepare the two parts of the pie together. Taking the offered piece of apple he plopped it in his mouth. "Mmm." So perhaps he had not added enough sugar? It was a possibility. He thought about this while he took the pie dough from her while she made sure the apples were nicely coated and started separating it into even sections to make the little individual pies, that w ay it was easier to share. "So now we just put the filling in, seal it up, and then don't get distracted when your best friend visits on her day off right?" He teased back himself.
[Nicias 8]
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