2014-06-24 - How Do You Like Your Eggs
| Title: How Do You Like Your Eggs? | |
|---|---|
| Summary: Karaoke is a harsh mistress - doubly so when Kyouko ordered actual beer for someone who'd never had it before. Good morning, Eri, the sun hates you but your friends don't. | |
| Who: | |
| Where: Mamoru's Apartment | |
| OOC - IC Date: 3 February 2014 - 6/24/2014 | |
<Pose Tracker> Mamoru Chiba [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.
By the time they left the karaoke bar, Mamoru still wasn't comfortable with the idea of driving, so his car's still back in a lot nearby Pino and they most assuredly walked back to Yamanote.
The chill breeze was, after all, a relieving thing to people whose might have happened to be flushed, and more relieving still to those who may have been queasy in addition.
Mamoru also wasn't about to walk all the way back to Ohtori with Eri pretending to be his drunk backpack, and his apartment's closer than the school, so-- with admonishments from Mai that Mamoru should be a gentleman and the usual sputtering thereafter-- Eri'd been deposited at Mamoru's for the night, complete with bucket, large-print hiragana sign pointing the way to the bathroom just in case, paper towels, water, and aspirin.
The first thing Mamoru did upon waking up (as early as usual) (thanks, dreams) was, in fact, text Mai back: 'yes, if you are skipping classes too, come by, i'm not coming to campus today and eri-chan could probably use a hand getting there'.
By the time Eri wakes up, there are, variously, the smells of coffee and toast and frying eggs.
She's in a large white room, tastefully and understatedly decorated, but sterile and predominantly empty. She is in a strange bed. The sun's not streaming through the drapes on the floor-to-ceiling windows anymore, but that's because it's late enough in the morning, not because there are blackout curtains. She's tucked in, and her shoes are nowhere in sight.
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
Karaoke was fantastic, and Mai has almost no regrets about things. Almost - because as delicious as the food was, she felt guilty that Mamoru wound up paying for it all. He'd volunteered, sure, but that can not have been cheap. Not with the sheer quantity and quality on display.
Finding out that the beer Kyouko had ordered was alcoholic marks the other regret. Mai hadn't drunk too much herself - water being better than anything for keeping her throat in shape, and singing occupying more time than dining. It wasn't until Eri was basically comatose that Mai clued in, and she'd gotten rather cross with Kyouko over it. Still - Mamoru's apartment was much, much closer than Ohtori, and as safe a place as any for Eri to sleep off the aftereffects.
Admonishments had been delivered - but not all too seriously, because frankly Mamoru Chiba is among the best people Mai can name. Really, the comments were made just as a nice reminder, and to make him sputter.
Dawn breaks, alarm clocks go off and are ignored, and eventually Mai comes to in her own bed with a slumbering Mikoto clinging to her. All well and good...except for the hour. Much, much later than it should be - and cause for not inconsiderable panic. Her yells woke up Mikoto, and disturbed no one else because classes had already begun - and the morning routine was a rapid, panicked one.
Upon receiving Mamoru's text, she sent out three texts. One to her homeroom teacher, explaining that something came up that morning, and that she'd be in by lunch. The second to Takumi, informing him that she was fine, and would bring him a bento around lunch.
The third is to Mamoru. 'Just woke up. Will be over soon. Hope you two behaved yourselves!'
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
All her life, the sun has been a wondrous miracle. It was responsible for all living things. She knew the biochemical reactions in plants that it's light was necessary for, inside and out. It fueled her strange Puella Magi healing powers whenever she was injured in ways she didn't understand.
- For once in her life, the searing light of the daystar was a terrible, hateful thing.
As it crept up on her face, her immediate reflexive action was to wiggle her nose, and lid her eyes then turn over to try and thwart the angle. It was the bitter acidic aftertaste in her mouth and the incessant throbbing in her skull that convinced her to 'not' to go back to sleep. Sitting up suddenly, she brushed hair out of her squinted eyes and.. realized, she wasn't in her dorm room. Nor was she any place she recognized. Half-stumbling out of the bed, she takes a quick look around the room. The decorations didn't exactly give away whose home it was either.
Straightening, she looks at the sign and just stares at the large print sign, her head actually tilting to the side gradually as if gravity was forcing it down. Bobbing it back up, she gets a half-decent idea of what's going on, though not quite a great one. Water is drank, aspirin is taken, the offer to the bathroom was taken, a baleful glance is given to the sink as she cleans up.. something, that must have happened earlier. She then proceeds to try, and not succeed quite so well in smoothing out the creases of her dress that gave her a slept in look, and brush back her hair with her hands.
Padding softly into the living area and following her nose to the delicious scent of something wafting out of the kitchen. Putting a hand up against a chair, she steadies herself before taking a seat and imploring the cook in an embarrassed tone, "Please tell me we fought some strange witch with memory-altering and headache-causing powers on the way home."
<Pose Tracker> Mamoru Chiba [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.
In the morning after last night and pre-coffee, Mamoru's irritable enough to instantly text back the first thing that pops into his head, even as he's stirring fried starch on the stove to go with the fried protein.
- MAMORU to MAI: i was a perfect gentleman and made sure she was as happy as i was
- MAMORU to MAI: baka
Then Eri's wobbling in and she takes a seat, and Mamoru -- still in his clothes from last night, too, and bedheaded and it's a tossup whether he has more or less appeal that way -- glances up and pockets his phone. "You were blackout drunk, Eri-chan. Mai's coming over in a few. How do you like your eggs? I'm afraid grease is actually the best cure, no matter how unhappy the idea might make you."
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
That, confirmation. Just deflates her. Suddenly her head is on the table.
- Just as reflexively, she says, "My dad is going to kill me."
No. No he would't. Instantly she regrets saying that without thinking. He won't even find out, but he already believed she was doing such things as waking up in upperclassman boys' apartments, drunk. He'd already done about as much as he possibly could to punish her. Propping up her head on her arms, in terrible table manners with any other context, she mutters. "Over easy." A beat pause, "Didn't know you could cook." Another. "Sorry I was so much trouble last night. I guess, I'll go in in a few hours and see if Midori-sensei will cover for me. She sometimes does."
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
Mai's responsibilities are...more or less handled. A reply from Takumi, telling her not to worry about lunch, that he's making something for Akira today. Reassuring, in a way - Mai hasn't ruined his nutrition through her own inaction. But at the same time, she feels kind of superfluous...
And then Mamoru's pair of texts arrive, incensing her. Well, there's a certain someone who needs taking care of, anyway - two someones, if Mai's honest. There's still a few slices of pizza left over, along with some pre-cooked rice - Mai bundles it all up in a box for Mikoto, apologizes for the state of things, and sends her on her way.
The trip to Mamoru's apartment is a relatively short one - and shorter, if one 'cheats' by skipping the bridge and flying along the water. The rest of the distance, she covers on foot, making her way to the penthouse as quickly as she can.
Knock, knock - and then the door opens to reveal Mai, looking weary herself - but in her school uniform, instead of last night's clothes. She coughs once, and speaks with a somewhat raspy voice. "I hope you know that I meant behaving by normal standards, not Ohtori ones." She grins. "Eri-chan, how are you - and is there any coffee?"
<Pose Tracker> Mamoru Chiba [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.
"You weren't any trouble," Mamoru says to Eri, sparing her a smile over his shoulder as he slides her egg off the frying pan and shovels out some fried potatoes-and-onions to go with it. The buttered toast is already there. "We all got pretty silly, thanks to Sakura-san."
He comes over and sets the plate and utensils down in front of Eri, then goes to get her coffee and orange juice, too. "And you can stay as long as you need to, I don't mind. Just text Midori-sensei you're sick and not coming in. You probably don't want to text her that I can cook."
That's when Mai opens the door, and Mamoru leans out of the kitchen to see-- and he has the gall to smirk as she approaches. "Of course there's coffee, do you take me for some kind of barbarian?"
Well: he certainly looks okay, inasmuch as 'rumpled as hell and hair sticking up' is okay-- there's nothing cold or shut off about him, and he's not hiding depression with a smile right now, either. There's a little bit of distance, but it's only the usual kind, the 'no touch' aura that nearly always surrounds him.
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
"I'm always trouble. Just less trouble sometimes." At least the aspirin, is taking some effect, as her skull feels less like her brain is taking a jackhammer to her skull. Propping herself up as he slides over the breakfast, she idly starts to eat it, puncturing the yolk, so that some of it runs onto the toast and the potatoes. Some days, she was glad that she was an ova-vegetarian instead of a full vegan. "Kyouko-chan lives life on the edge, tries to enjoy it to the fullest. Can't blame her really. You would too if you'd lived the life she had." Yawning, she gives him the same bleary, bedraggled look, "I was going to invite her to crash at my dorm. Guess I'll let her do that some other time as repayment for all the food."
Taking out her phone, she does indeed input a text to Midori-sensei. Txt to Midori Sugiura| Feeling awful after a hard night. Any chance you could cover for me? I'll make it up to you some day.
Chewing on a few bites, the knocking on the door reminds her of her headache, as she groans immediately, but then smiles at Mai's presence, waving sleepily. "Hey Mai-chan. Sorry about last night. I didn't make too much of a fool out of myself I hope?" Eri does flash a grin at Mamoru though, "We take you for some kind of stupendous dork. It's makes up a good amount of the reason as to why we like you."
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
Mamoru's smirk is met by one from Mai as she walks straight for the kitchen, pausing only a moment to remove her shoes. She goes straight for him - then straight past, serving herself a mug of coffee without even bothering to ask first. Once she's had a sip of that black elixir, she lets out a sigh. "Some would say not having tea is just as barbaric."
Mai's voice is rough, and she looks a bit rumpled herself - hair a bit tangled, eyes drooping a bit, generally she gives the impression of wishing she was still in bed. The coffee is helping, though, and she rubs at her throat. Bright eyes lock on to Mamoru's spiky hair, but she doesn't straighten it out - both hands are occupied, plus that might be a bit too forward.
Since she has caffeine and something to soothe her throat in one mug-contained tonic, Mai leans against one counter to take in Eri's overall state. The poor girl looks wiped out, and Mai shakes her head in sympathy before smiling at her. "You were both fine - it was a lot of fun. I might have gone a bit overboard, though."
...speaking kind of hurts, so Mai just sips her coffee, and looks over her two friends. Looks like they both fell straight into their respective beds right after she left...not that she hadn't done the same herself.
<Pose Tracker> Mamoru Chiba [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.
Mamoru steps aside to let Mai more easily breeze past him, and suddenly looks archly at Eri. "A stupendous dork, huh? See who looks after your hangover next time!" he huffs, but he nudges her shoulder as he passes. There's definite amusement in his eyes as he glances down at her mid-nudge.
Then he's back at the frying pan, taking out another plate and shoveling potatoes and onions on it, then pausing with an uncracked egg held over the sizzling metal. "Mai. Do you like scrambled?" he asks, eyebrows up in the coffee-drinker's direction. "And what do you mean, overboard? It's obviously your favorite thing ever, I mean, you even liked my karaoke justice speech that one time."
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
Taking up her own coffee mug, she puts in two sugars, that's it. Black as night and sweet as the devil's kiss is how she liked it. Inwardly she wonders if that was an Ohtori euphemism too. A sip, as she allowed the hot liquid to roll down her throat into her gullet. She gives Mamoru a dour look, "Won't be a next time." She catches his amusement though, and just shakes her head, as the dour expression smothes out to a rueful smile.
Stabbing off a piece of egg then rolling it up into a piece of toast, she takes a bite. "You didn't go overboard at all. Look.." She points her empty fork at her, "You barely give yourself any time at all, you should enjoy the nights you do get. We're making that a rule now, Mai-chan must fully enjoy her nights off, especially if it's a Sunday. So, since like.."
The fork is now jutted at Mamoru, "...Mamoru-kun says, it's your favorite thing ever, you should allow yourself to enjoy it without regrets."
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
"You are a gentleman and a dork, Chiba-san~" Reminded of how the night went, Mai's mood brightens that much - and after taking another sip of coffee to soothe her throat, she sets down the mug to approach the stove. "Scrambled is fine, I prefer sunny side up - but you don't have to go to the trouble. You're taking care of Eri-chan, I can at least cook."
Her attempts to commandeer the stove are briefly interrupted by an embarrassed chuckle. "Karaoke really is the best - I usually have work too late on Sunday to do it all the time, plus it gets pricey. Still, no regrets...except doing those six songs in a row at the end." She grins sheepishly, and rubs at her throat again - before holding out a hand for the spatula.
<Pose Tracker> Mamoru Chiba [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.
"There'll eventually be a next time!" Mamoru tells Eri cheerfully, backing away from the stove automatically as Mai moves in on the space. Maybe he was there in her way a little longer than he normally would stay to maintain his personal space-- he's probably just distracted. 'Mamoru-kun says?' he mouths, blinking at Eri for a second.
Then he hands Mai the egg he was still holding, and glances to her again. He looks like he's actually going to just let her cook in his kitchen! His expression is briefly annoyed at her 'gentleman and a dork' comment, but then gets very serious as he hands over the spatula. "I like mine scrambled with heavy cream, pepper, onion powder, a little ginger, a very little garlic, and salt, but if you want to do something even more interesting, or way less, that's fine too. Bread's over there, toaster's there, everything else is on the counter; I'm going to go take a quick shower."
With that, he beams at the two of them and turns around to meander out of the kitchen, shrugging out of his overshirt as he goes. I mean sure there's a t-shirt underneath, but still.
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
"Only if I fight a witch with the power of inebriation." Eri rubs at the side of her face, in denial. She did not understand the appeal of drinking at all after her first experience. When Mamoru mouths something at her, she just hides a smile. "Yep, would you prefer it to be Tuxedo Kamen says or Tuxedo-sama says instead?" Despite it sounding like she's teasing though, there's no hint of it in the statement. It's almost like middle school girls think Tuxedo Kamen is serious business!?
"So shameless~" Eri teases at Mai, before she gets a button eyed look, "Six songs!?! I only remember.." She thinks back, is silent for a while, before it rolls out sheepishly, "...two." When Mamoru starts to unbutton his shirt, Eri catches it out of her periphery, and her neck swivels, as her eyes follow him out of the room, her nose and cheeks blushing more and more until... until...
- She realizes he's wearing a T-Shirt beneath it.
When she turns back to Mai, she's beet red, trying to allow some of that heat to diffuse out of her by hastily changing the subject, her first words out of her mouth rambling together. "SodoesMikotochangotoclass.." She swallows, " ...when you're not there?"
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
"Oh, definitely. I'm not letting this stop me from singing again." Mai taps her throat, then takes the cooking ingredients and implements. She doesn't have a notepad to jot down that recipe, but she's remembered more complicated orders before. Today, the pride of Linden Baum is at stake - as are Mai's own cooking skills. All she has to do is to time it to be done when Mamoru gets out of his...shower....
Eri's comment and the shirt-removal are both distractions, and Mai's face has some heat to it when she catches her junior's flush. A couple of new subjects sound ideal right now, and Mai turns her attention to the spice rack. "Mikoto? I had to pry her off of me when I woke up - I sent her off before coming over, and told her to at least attend the afternoon classes."
Mai cracks her egg into the pan, starting it cooking, and adding some paprika and chili powder - something she wouldn't dare risk with Mikoto a potential diner, but something she's been meaning to try. As it begins to cook, she gets out a small bowl, and starts whipping together the ingredients for Mamoru's scramble - if she starts cooking it when the shower shuts off, it should be done by the time he's dressed.
Keen ears listen for that cue, a face turned to the stove to hide whatever Mai is thinking on that subject. "Takumi told me he's taking care of his own lunch, so I just sent Mikoto off with the rest of the leftover pizza I took home last night. I'll try to get in for the afternoon, myself."
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
"Good, good it'd be a real shame if it did. You've got some real talent, and more enthusiasm than I've ever seen for like.. well, anything. Just about. Except maybe Takeo-kun and Mamoru-kun beating each other up with shin..." That redness on her cheeks momentarily increases to new heights, as she hastily tries to change that subject too. "Ah alright. She doesn't strike me as having much zeal for her studies, unless you're there with her."
Watching Mai gather the ingredients together, there's the sounds of the scrape and clatter of cutlery as she continues to work at her breakfast, taking another bracing sip of coffee. As Mai speaks though, something terrible occurs to her, one which has her staring at Mai for a long while. "So, Takumi-san can cook?" That inquiry sounds.. sadder than she actually intended.
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
Mai does actually turn her head to glance at Eri, and she's grinning. She starts to speak up, expression bright and cheerful - but then an odd croak comes out of her mouth, and she abandons whatever she was about to say to grab her coffee and take another sip. "It's fun, just - I overdid it a little. For the four of us, one hour would have been enough...and yeah, Mikoto doesn't see the point in a lot of her studies. The funny thing is, she's great at history - go figure."
Eri then asks another question, one that has her turning to attend to the cooking breakfast foods - she fusses, putting a few slices of bread into the toaster instead of answering immediately. "Well, I couldn't cook supper while working, so I taught him a few simple recipes - he's picked up a few more since then. You're not the first one I've taught to cook, Eri-chan~" Her voice is bright and cheerful by the end of the statement, but she's still not looking directly at Eri as she speaks.
(In all honesty, Takumi might actually be a better baker by now...)
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
"One hour?" Eri rubs at her face, then returns the grin. "We were all having fun. I don't see why we have to limit ourselves to just one hour. Unless money is a concern, and apparently Kyouko-chan has been making some absurd money this season."
Taking another bite of her breakfast, she noticed that the symptoms were all retreating quickly. Apparently hydration, aspirin, then caffeine was the way to go if this ever 'did' happen again, not that she was going to admit that it could. "Huh. History, really? Maybe I'll see if she can help me with my social studies homework."
The answer to the question has her listening intently, then putting down her fork, and folding her hands in her lap. Closing her eyes, she exhales a breath, like she was trying to work herself up to say something, and just.. doesn't. Instead she opens her eyes, picks back up the fork, and moves on, doing exactly the opposite, "Well I had a great teacher. Though I can barely do anything, I'm still pretty hopeless around a kitchen without you Mai-chan."
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
"It depends on-" Mai takes another sip of coffee. "-how many people you have. Split up the time among however many people are singing, figure out if you can sing that long. I just overestimated how much Chiba-san would take part~"
Mai puts a lid on the pan to help set the egg, bright yellow yolk dotted with red spices. "Sounds like he's still in the shower, so if you want another egg now's the time. And you aren't that bad - you just need more practice." Mai does turn fully this time, and gives Eri a teasing smirk. "Singing and cooking both."
<Pose Tracker> Eri Shimanouchi [Ohtori Academy (8)] has posed.
"We're talking about the guy who thinks a great evening is one spent with a book. And it's okay that I say that because I'm the girl who thinks that a great evening is gardening, and 'then' time spent with a book. Or at least I was that, I have less time for either lately." Maybe after she had territory, and established it but.. no. That would mean less free time, and she knew it. She didn't exactly want to tell Mai that soon enough she might have a schedule as busy as Mai's but that it was necessary for survival.
More coffee is emptied, to the point where she gets up, walks over to the counter, and pours more fresh out of the pot. Two more sugars are dropped within its murky, bitter depths. Leaning against the counter near Mai, she takes a sip of the coffee. "Sure. I'll have the same thing Mamoru-kun ordered, if you don't mind and have enough ingredients."
She flushes at her teasing, "I know I'm never going to be any good at singing at least. It's just fun to do it around people who aren't going to be mean. As for cooking? Well, I'll give it a shot, but I'm more into the growing ingredients than I am the actual preparation. I'll try the lessons every now and then."
<Pose Tracker> Mai Tokiha [Ohtori Academy (10)] has posed.
"Hey, I'm not knocking either of your hobbies - and I know what you mean about free time. Last night was kind of a lucky fluke, and thanks again for coming." Mai finishes her mug of coffee, and refills it - hers has no sugar, remaining as black as night. Giving Eri a nod, she removes her egg to a toast-topped plate, and pours in the scramble mix - letting it start cooking while she whips up a second batch.
"Karaoke and cooking both are about wanting to do it, more than anything. Professionals are one thing, but as long as you enjoy the results, no one else's opinion matters." Mai's smile is warm as she starts stirring the egg scramble. "So as long as you'll let me - I'll help you practice cooking the things you want to eat, and sing the songs you want to sing. Do it because you love doing it, right?"
