driftfleet | Pockets of Posies

Entry tags:

death

Pockets of Posies

Who: Death and You
Broadcast: Yes
Action: SS Caprine
When: Today

Action - SS Caprine (Kitchen)

[Death cannot hum, owing to the fact that he lacks fleshy bits of any kind meant to really facilitate such a process. Not that he doesn’t have an impressive baritone, but the closest he can come to is quietly speaking words out loud with rhythmic pauses meant to accompany music.

Passers-by of the kitchen will see him fiddling with long strips of pie crust as he arranges them over the tops of tins containing his latest attempts at baking. Following the success of the fruit pies and tarts and their cookie cousins, he is moving on to pot pies and the cheeky mincemeat.

Naturally, this calls for other forms of experimentation. Poppy nibbles happily on scraps of meat as Death very carefully curves around the strips into an intricate looking spiral. He takes a step back to admire the work and a new poem springs forth from his jaw.]

LAVENDERS BLUE, DILLY DILLY… LAVENDERS GREEN…

Broadcast - Live from the SS Caprine

[The pie is still steaming when he turns on the feed to show how the crust came out. It’s rather intricate for a pie, but his shoulders are the set hump of someone who is quite proud of himself. Poppy climbs his sleeve to get upon his shoulder and meows loudly at the communication device.]

NOT BAD FOR A FIRST TIME TRYING AN ORIGINAL CRUST. I THOUGHT OF SPIRALS FOUND IN NATURE AND ATTEMPTED TO RECREATE THE OVERALL SHAPE.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Eugene does take a minute to really process that before responding. Because of all the things he'd seen in the fleet his last go-round, a skeleton is admittedly new. On the other hand, though. Pie. Fancy, artsy pie at that, and he is still weak in the face of anything even reminiscent of civilization.

Pie wins out. But it does take a second.]

Are you kidding? I'd be happy with a tenth effort that looked that good. What is that, shortcrust?

[Death would smile if he were physically capable of doing so. Instead, he nods and moves the pie closer.]

IT WAS VERY INTERESTING TO WORK WITH. MY ASSISTANT APPROVED OF THE FILLING, SO I SAW IT FIT TO MOVE ON WITH THE FINAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE PIE.

Your . . . assistant? [He gestures with his finger by way of pointing at the kitten perched on that bony shoulder, lifting his eyebrow skeptically.]

YES. HER NAME IS POPPY. AS I WAS ATTEMPTING MEAT PIES TODAY, HER SENSE OF TASTE CAME IN HANDY.

[He sets the pie down and offers a hand to the kitten, who bats at his fingers.]

CATS ARE CARNIVORES. IT MAKES IT EASY TO BE RID OF LEFTOVERS.

Huh. Never thought of that.

[Granted, mostly because the concept of "leftover meat" had become so impossible in his day-to-day life that he wouldn't have even considered what to do with such a thing.

But the kitten is cute. Really, really cute.]

I'm guessing you're the cook with another one of the ships, then?

THE CAPRINE, YES. I HAVE TRIED TO GET BACK INTO COOKING AS A RESULT OF IT. MY USUAL JOB IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DO HERE.

[Death is very attached to his little kitty. She sits comfortably nearly anywhere on him and purrs at the slightest touch. Perfect animal.]

THUS FAR, I SEEM TO HAVE NOT LOST MY TOUCH. I HAVE GOTTEN GOOD AT COOKIES, FRUIT PIES, SOUP, AND NOW MEAT PIES SEEMS TO BE THE NEXT ITEM TO ADD TO THE PROVERBIAL MENU.

[ That--is not the visage of someone she would imagine baking anything that looks that lovely. Which is really a terrible way to judge someone, she realizes...and it's certainly better than anything she can do.

But.

Still. ]

It's...very beautiful! What you've done.

[ She's trying. ]

[There are many reactions that he has gotten since arriving in the Fleet, but they always mix disbelief and shock to some degree. He rather likes it! It shows how quickly people can adapt.]

THANK YOU. I MIGHT TRY TO DO MORE OF THESE DECORATIVE PIE CRUSTS. THERE ARE ALL KINDS OF GEOMETRIC PATTERNS THAT CAN BE MADE THIS WAY.

[ Goodness, the way he speaks is...a strangely friendly and intimidating at the same time?? ]

You certainly have a talent for it! Is this a, um...hobby of yours?

[It's how his voice isn't really a voice so much as the idea of one. He always has an effect on others.]

NOT PARTICULARLY, ALTHOUGH I HAVE COOKED BEFORE AT HOME. THIS IS ANOTHER STEP IN A SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS I HAVE BEEN CONDUCTING.

Experiments?

[ Why does that make her more concerned??

No. She shouldn't judge. She's trying. ]

Baking experiments, you mean?

PRECISELY THAT. I LIKE BEING ABLE TO MAKE THINGS AND FOOD IS ONE OF THE FEW THINGS I SEEM PERFECTLY CAPABLE OF CREATING.

Well, you are certainly very skilled at it. Have you taught yourself?

FOR THE MOST PART, YES. IT IS NOT OFTEN THAT I HAVE CAUSE TO BAKE, BUT I LIKE TO TRY MAKING THINGS IN GENERAL.

Is that so? That is very impressive. You have clearly done well.

USUALLY WHEN I MAKE THINGS, I GET SOMETHING WRONG. I LACK A CERTAIN ABILITY FOR TRUE CREATIVITY. WHEN I FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS OR A RECIPE, IT IS MUCH EASIER.

Well, that is the basis of creativity, isn't it? To start with a structure that you understand and then experiment from there.

YOU WOULD THINK THAT, BUT I HAVE BEEN TOLD MY CREATIVITY LACKS A CERTAIN ORGANIC ELEMENT TO IT. FORM AND FUNCTION ARE OFTEN SKEWED.

[ Han is not at all troubled by the giant skeleton on his ship.

He tells himself this regularly. ]

That's... is it edible?

[ It's awful fancy. Maybe it's not real? ]

[Do take your time, Mr. Solo. Death is about as dangerous as the cat currently keeping him company in the kitchen.]

QUITE EDIBLE, IN FACT. I MADE SURE THE SAMPLE OF FILLING WAS UP TO POPPY'S STANDARDS BEFORE I LAID IT OUT IN THE CRUST. WOULD YOU LIKE SOME?

Kinda a shame to cut into it. [ But will that stop him? No. ] Sure, I'll try it.

[Death takes up a small knife and picks out a perfect slice in two neat cuts. He even goes so far as to get a plate and a fork, Poppy clinging to his shoulder for the ride.]

I DO HOPE YOU LIKE THIS AS MUCH AS I DID MAKING IT.

As long as your little friend hasn't had her feet in it.

[ He's joking... probably. Either way he digs in without any qualms. ]

[Death holds Poppy against his chest as he watches. It's so exciting when people are willing to actually try what it is he's made. The kitten, however, is more concerned with an abundance of purring.]

POPPY MERELY TESTED THE FLAVOR OF THE FILLING BEFORE I PUT IT IN TO BAKE. I AM QUITE FAMILIAR WITH EFFORTS NEEDED TO MAKE CLEAN FOOD IN A KITCHEN AND OTHER AREAS NECESSARY FOR MAINTAINING GOOD HEALTH.

[ Hey, food is food, and even if, uh, Death (who calls themself Death? ~~don't answer that~~) isn't a cook by trade, he's got a thing in his head to lend a hand, right? ]

Yeah, yeah... I'm kidding, anyway.

[Death would gladly explain the nature of his existence to others, but he's well aware that few are truly prepared to comprehend such things.]

OH. THAT IS GOOD TO KNOW. DO FORGIVE ME IF I TAKE THINGS TOO LITERALLY, IT COMES WITH MY LINE OF WORK, I THINK.

They don't joke where you're from?

[ does he want to know? probably not. is he smart enough not to ask questions he doesn't want the answers to?

wellp. ]

QUITE OFTEN AND SOMETIMES AT A LETHAL EXPENSE. I MERELY HAVE DIFFICULTY WITH IT, BUT I'M GETTING THE HANG OF PUNS.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

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