MINGLE: The Derelict Ship

[save_the_souls]

Who: Anyone traveling to the derelict ship(s)
Broadcast: If you want!
Action: At the Derelict Ship on the Planet
When: 10/13 onward



[After several days of traveling, the passengers are able to reach the ruins of the ship. Explore the ruins, try to find a distress single scavenge, play your hand at Harvest moon and grab some pumpkins- come on in, it's a mingle!

>> Plot Information ]

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[interstices]

[Asuka just takes a seat at the counter, frowning at the haul. She carried several in herself using a a baggy cardigan when she saw how excited he was at the pumpkin patch, but now, Asuka's starting to wonder if she gathered up too many of the smaller ones. They might not have enough in them to merit cutting open.]

You have to shred the pumpkin first, don't you?

[astrobleme]

[First things first: finding a decently large mixing bowl. And Shinji blames his irresponsible crewmates for misplacing things, because the first cabinet he goes for doesn't have the bowl he's looking for. Like a scavenger hunt, he sets off in search of it...]

I guess so. But it might be better to purée it, just to be on the safe side. Texture. You know. [Open cabinet, close cabinet. Open, and close.] Can you try to find some eggs for me, please? [Collaborating on Kaworu's birthday cake with Asuka nearly ended in disaster, so now he's trying to be more cordial.]

[interstices]

Yeah, yeah. [Her tone's not half as grumpy as it could be. But digging through the fridge produces all of two eggs that's she's not averse to lifting from whatever crewmate of his that stocked them.] Is two enough? You have the powdered stuff, too, right?

[Anticipating his response, Asuka sticks a cup under the spout of one of the machines, pressing the button for powdered egg substitute. Cooking is Shinji's forte, not hers, which is something she's never exactly been competitive about for all that she's tried to cook for him before.] We'll just have to add more liquid.

[astrobleme]

Two eggs should be enough-- [Shinji turns around just in time to watch Asuka fill up a cup with the powdered substitute. Damn. Even though it's synthetic, Shinji doesn't like the idea of wasting food at all. Better safe than sorry.] I mean, I think it's enough, but we'll see what happens...

[Mixing real ingredients with synthetic ones can have a revolting effect on the overall flavor. The stress of balancing it out makes him wonder, yet again, if he should have his augment switched over to Cooking. He'd probably be more useful if he did that.]

If we make more than one loaf, you can take one back to your crew.

[But even as he says that, there's a hint of irritation behind his words.]

[interstices]

[Asuka gives him a sidelong glance but doesn't say anything for a minute or two, a hint of annoyed resignation in her expression. It's not her fault Coil was such a bastard, but she feels like it ought to be her fault. It's because of her anyway. Now Shinji still won't set foot on the Red Fish, despite that demanded apology. Asuka pushes a finger down into the powdered egg substitute. The texture's weird, simultaneously grainy while having just a little too much give.]

Forget it. It's okay.

[astrobleme]

[But it isn't okay. It's embarrassing. Mortifying. Shinji, deep down, blames himself for not evacuating the Red Fish when he was initially told to. He recognizes that stubbornness--arrogance?--as the same sort that led to Fourth Impact, Kaworu's death, just everything awful ever. He never seems to learn from his mistakes.

He sighs under his breath.]

Let's make some extra loaves anyway. I want there to be enough to go around.

[He opens up the next cabinet--and there it is, finally, the bowl he was looking for.]

Should we leave the seeds in?

[interstices]

[Asuka nods dumbly at his first statement, not really paying attention as she pushes the powdered egg substitute away from the edge of the counter. Then she reaches for a knife, unceremoniously, awkwardly trying to hack around the stem of one of the smaller pumpkins. It's firmer than she expects it to be.]

I don't know what they taste like.

[She has to all but wrench out the knife before she's gone halfway around the stem for fear that she'll split the entire thing in half.]

What did he say?

[astrobleme]

Not really a flavor thing, [Shinji explains.] The seeds would add pieces of crunchiness to it. So if that's the kind of texture you'd like to have... [He eyes Asuka's progress with the knife and the pumpkin, wondering if he should intervene. She looks like she's going to hack the poor thing into a hundred pieces by accident.

But he trusts her enough to step away, heading over the spice rack to grab some cinnamon and other ingredients. It's better, for his own sake, to have his back facing her when he answers her question.]

He told me that you told him to apologize.

[Not so irritated now. Just puzzled. He's asking himself, What was the point of that?]

[interstices]

No. It's fine without them. [Asuka makes it completely around the stem, yanking it off. She's no good with this sort of thing. Too much strength, too little control. She starts spooning the seeds out after a few seconds, staring at them. Maybe they could roast those, like peanuts.]

That's how he put it? God.

[astrobleme]

[Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger... salt, cloves, sugar... Shinji is more or less winging this recipe, but he's pretty sure he's on the right track.

And he's ready to ignore the question entirely, because he's tired of thinking about that stupid confrontation. He's just tired of people in general--he has been for a long time. Even so:]

He said he's sorry that he doesn't like me.

[A splatter of laughter: messy, and kind of ugly.]

I guess I can't fault somebody for being honest.

[interstices]

Was that it? [Asuka can't forget how he was on the shuttle, how hard it had been to get him to tell her what had happened. No, what Coil had done. She scoops out another spoonful of seeds, plopping them onto a cutting board, agitation obvious.]

If he said anything else to you, you can tell me.

[astrobleme]

[Shinji escorts the spices over to the counter, depositing them next to Asuka. Then he's off to the space-age pantry to get some vegetable oil and flour.]

He was just being... unreasonable. Felt like he was trying to guilt trip me or something. [...] It's still in my inbox if you want to take a look at it.

[interstices]

I will. Later.

[Asuka chews on her lip. She stops scooping out seeds, looking at him sidelong.]

Right now I want us to have fun.

[astrobleme]

Yeah. Good thinking.

[Shinji returns with an armful of ingredients, pretty much everything they'll need for the pumpkin bread. His expression is overcast: quiet, even calm, but portending a downpour. Coil's unasked-for comments have been bothering him for a while now.]

Anyway, don't throw away the seeds; they're good to eat on their own, or as a garnish. Plus, I wanna plant some in the garden on the Iskaulit. There should be enough room at the back...

[interstices]

You can eat them just like this? [Asuka frowns, then, abruptly, pops one of the seeds in her mouth. It's slimy and kind of weird, but then, she's never really eaten seeds before. Her face wrinkles up as she offers him a spoonful of seeds.]

They taste funny to me.