Dinner for Two - RPLOG
Participants
Date
25/5/477
Log
The transition between spring and summer, always a warm time for Firmament and Sweetwater as a whole. Today Longtail Manor is largely empty, the master and mistress of the house off on their own business, the hirelings safely down below, and everyone else...well, conveniently gone. Which leaves a warm scent of cooking wafting through the courtyard and dining hall, a medley of scents and smells.
A small twitch, and Trace rings the doorbell, wearing a quality-outfit, albeit not the suit he wore to the opera. No need to get too fancy, right? He looks up at the large doors, still marveling slightly at the sheer size of the house as he waits for Sveta, or someone else, to let him in.
Appearing to greet Trace at the door is the large bear hireling, although "security staff" probably sounds better. Recognising the kite, Bruno smiles and opens the gate for Trace, leading him - if he will follow - into the manor proper, past the foyer and into the dining hall, ushering him to a seat before departing with a nod. There's a good view of the still-being-restored courtyard from the dining table, and amidst the statues is Sveta, making a beeline for the table, a dish of something large balanced in her hands.
"You didn't have to dress up, you know," she says. "All I told you to bring was your appetite."
"I... I know, but still," Trace mumbles, looking back to sveta. "He... He didn't bother you again, right? I mean, if he did," he mutters, but not finishing the sentence as he follows behind Sveta and takes his seat, curiously looking as Sveta returns with the food.
"You don't have to worry about me all the time," Sveta replies. Compared to Trace, she's dressed in her usual work clothes, save that she's tied back her hair into a ponytail - probably to keep it from getting in the way while cooking. "It's not good for you. But if he did, I wouldn't be here about to serve you a good meal, right? Now relax and little and enjoy yourself. There's nothing that you don't particularly like, at least from what I gathered last time, so I tried a few things. You deserve a bit of a reward. I don't think anyone will be in today, so it's just the two of us..."
The first course is uncovered - a simple broth-based soup flavoured with stewed eel from the Sweetwater and spring puffballs picked from Eastbank, the latter sliced into thin strips. Steam gently rises from the soup bowls as Sveta uncovers them and sets down a small basket of dry bread, and she waits for Trace to make the first move.
Trace nods and mumbles a little, looking over the food and he collects his utensils a and sets into the food. "I... I suppose that works... Though I... I doubt you couldn't fend him off yourself, though," he mumbles, raising a brow before slipping the spoon into his beak, and looking a little short on words, today.
"It's the thought that counts," Sveta replies. The goshawk still doesn't eat yet, not much, but continues to observe Trace. "And to be honest, it reflected on you more than it did on me. Although I still did enjoy myself." Another pause. "How does it taste?"
"Tastes good," Trace chimes in with a gentle smile on his beak, even as he works down the soup with another, light twitch. Seems it's just a tad too hot, but that doesn't appear to stop the kite, either, by the looks of things. "I... Suppose it did? Still, I can't say I appreciated his, er... Threats towards you," he mumbles with a sligh frown.
Sveta tilts her head from side to side, as if trying to suss out any deeper meaning to Trace's words, then sighs and shrugs, digging into her soup in earnest. "That's...good to hear. I did my best to use local ingredients, as well as a recipe. You probably won't find this in restaurants. Probably. As for that fool...well, Flora's gone and hired some more security. It's about all we can do, really. So, please...this is supposed to be a nice day. Let's not ruin it by digging into that particular unpleasantness."
A small nod, a slight twitch. "Of... Of course," he mumbles after a good, long time of contemplation, smiling faintly and mumbling softly. "Well then... Anything... Anything you want to talk about?" he concludes, before taking another spoonful of soup into his mouth.
"Hmm...give me a moment to think. Excuse me." The first course is finished, and the dishes cleared away for more: It's not long before Sveta reappears from the kitchen with salad greens in a communal bowl: lettuce, tomatoes, shredded onions amongst others, tossed in a light oil which smells faintly of garlic and tumeric. A bit of a contrast. Maybe the heat will lossen his jaw a little.
"You did say you had folks in Sweetwater. Who are they? What do they do? Where do they live? I suppose I'll have to see them someday, should you keep sticking around."
A mumble, a slight twitch. "Uncle Arnold and aunt Vega live a little to the west. Farmers, nothing special... Nice folk, though," Trace mumbles softly, before he looks at the salad and smiles faintly, looking back to Sveta.
"That's..." Sveta looks a little disappointed. Was she expecting more from him, or at least for Trace to give her something to go on? "Nice," she finishes lamely, prodding at her salad with her fork. "Good memories of them?"
Trace nods a tad, taking a bite from his salad and smiling faintly. "A few... Regular travel between cliffside and firmament is... Difficult, for obvious reasons, so we didn't get to visit a lot, and they didn't come over a whole lot either."
"That, and there are no holidays on farms," Sveta replies a little thoughtfully, finishing the last of her salad. "Well, I asked and you answered, so it's your turn to ask me something now. Anything. Within reason, of course."
"That, too," Trace adds with a small nod, tapping his beak lightly in contemplation as he tries to come up with a question of his own, and so far, drawing blanks. He seems a bit lost, until something seems to click, just momentarily. "So... Erm... E-ever thought about starting a family of your own? E-eventually, I mean?" he mumbles, looking away as if he just committed a felony.
Sveta has the grace to look slightly embarrassed at that, not quite looking Trace in the eye. "I'm almost tempted to say, 'have you?' and throw back the question. But I did ask, so..." she hems and haws a little. "Well, some. I'm already nineteen, you know. Going by that, almost half my life is already over...I've never really thought about with whom or the wherefores, you know? But...yes. Someday, preferably before it's too late. A big family."
"There aren't that many birds in Firmament, I think. Not compared to some," she adds after a little while.
Another nod, and Trace looks up at Sveta with a small smile on his face as he takes another bite from his salad. He nods again, before mumbling. "I've... Never really thought about it that much, myself. I mean, sure... With the right lady-bird, I mean..."
"Lady-bird"...hah, that's a cute way of putting it. Come on, then. Let me take care of that for you..." Sveta gathers up the empty dishes, giving Trace a pat on the feathery shoulder as she passes him by, then disappears into the kitchen. A few minutes later, she emerges with a large bowl of sticky salted porridge, although it's a little hard to pinpoint what exactly it's made from - there're at least three different grains in the mix, it would appear. "My mother would make this often," she exlplains off handedly. "Said it puts meat on the bones and keeps the cold out. But you really haven't given it much thought? What would "right" be, then?"
A nod, a small smile. "I... I don't know... I... I guess I'd have to like yo- her," he mutters, growing a bit flush and coughing lightly to try and cover his slip of the tongue up, before trying out the food to keep his beak shut.
Sveta keeps her face straight, pretending not to notice, although it's clear that she's struggling to do so. "Careful there. It's still hot - best that way, but take care not to burn your tongue. A small piece of advice, if I may? It might do well to think about one's future. Not that plans will always or even often follow through, but - well, take that for example. It's obviously expected that one should at least put up with the same being you're going to be seeing every morning for the rest of your life, but there's more to it than that. I hope."
A nod, a mumble and a slight twitch as Trace continues his food, a little slower, and still mostly silent. "I... I didn't mean put up with... I mean... Like like?" he mumbles after a moment of awkward silence, before looking away again and taking another bite.
"I know what you meant. But you can't "like like" someone every day for the rest of your life, you don't think? Not very romantic, perhaps, but my mother was always a realist." A pause. "I suppose I got it from her." Sveta thinks a moment, then lets the conversation lapse into awkward silence as she stuffs her face. Open mouth, insert foot.
Another nod, a mumble, and the awkward silence continues for a good while as he looks back up to Sveta. "I-I'm not sure what else to say, I suppose," he mumbles after a moment of contemplation, huffing lightly. "I mean... Sure, there are other things, but... I don't want to plan /everything/ out in that regard... I... I mean, love has to be spontaneous too, sometimes?"
"Some things come as they are, I suppose. But others aren't. Opportunities come by luck, but you have to make the luck happen." Sveta prods the bottom of her bowl with her spoon a few times. "That's what my mother used to say. I wonder if I'm turning into my mother more than I care to admit. Not that it's a bad thing, I suppose, but..."
A nod, a mumble, as Trace listens to Sveta, smiling faintly. "Suppose I should get more roses then, huh?" he jokes lightly. "I mean, if you're turning into your mother..." More silence as Trace looks down at his soup, before mumbling again.
"I... I just made things even more awkward, didn't I?"
"Only if you grow them yourself, Trace Blackwing. Only if you grow them yourself. That's what my father did. And they don't cost money, do they?"
"I suppose they don't, presuming you grow them yourself?" Trace mumbles, shrugging lightly, before taking another bite of the porridge. "I... Guess so," he mumbles again, shrugging lightly, before looking back to sveta... "So... Suppose... Suppose someone wanted to win your heart... How would they go about it? Other... Other than being more... Assertive?" he mutters, once more putting a spoonful of porridge in his beak to shut himself up.
Sveta raises an eyebrow, her green eyes glimmering. "Now, should I be answering that question? And if I did, would I do it honestly? And even if I did THAT, would my honest answer be reflective of what I really wanted, or just what I thought I wanted? I don't know, Trace. Maybe the best solution to that would be to see what I do, no rely on what I say."
Trace nods and twitches lightly as he looks back to Sveta. "I... I suppose there's that," he mumbles, shrugging faintly as he finishes up his porridge. "I... I think it's your turn to ask a question?" he mumbles, looking at his empty plate for a moment.
"I don't think I really have any more questions off the top of my head, Trace. Let's just sit down and enjoy the last course, shall we? Maybe I'll take the time to observe you," she says with a small laugh. "You, on the other hand, can ask away, but be careful of the answers I give."
The bowls are cleared away in good time, and dessert is brought out: clear cubes of gelatin, tinged a slight yellow with honey and chilled with ice formed with a touch of water magic. Generous servings are piled onto plates - Trace's ever so slightly bigger than her own.
Trace nods and mumbles. "I... Don't have a lot of questions myself," he mumbles after a moment, poking an utensil at the strange gelatin, before taking a hesitant bite of the oh-so-foreign food.
Sveta says nothing, just finishes her portion of the gelatin on her own time and smiles faintly at Trace while she waits for him to finish, a small smile on her beak. When he's done, she'll move to clean up for the last time, crossing over to his side of the table to do so.
A soft mumble, a small smile as Trace looks back to Sveta, gently standing up and assisting her as she cleans up the table, following closely behind her to help carry everything. Finally, once he sees his chance, he hesitantly leans in again and nuzzles against her, almost faintly shaking on his legs with nervosity.
Sveta says nothing, but leans slightly backwards into Trace's nuzzle, letting him get a beakful of fluff. "Here? Now? Maybe you have some courage now, but still an awful sense of timing. Come on, let's set down the dishes in the kitchen...and then maybe we can be more earnest about it."
A mumble, a slight twitch as Trace nods, before looking a little... Confused at Sveta's statements. He half-expected to be scolded for what he did... He didn't exactly expect to be told 'hey, lets try it again, but now in a more convenient place'...
Sveta nods, leading Trace to the empty kitchen and setting down her dishes, then taking Trace's burden from his hands. "Please, before you drop them, you silly bird. You look so out of it. Now..." her voice drops a little. "Remember what I said about watching actions, not words? What do you think you should do now?"
"I... I... E-erm... T-try a-again?" Trace mutters, taking the time to contemplate her question and swallowing aa lump. He looks almost frozen in his spot, too terrified to move, by the looks of things. It seems that last try took pretty much all of his courage, unfortunately.
Finally, after what seems like an hour, and assuming Sveta doesn't actually make a move back in his direction, he leans in again, hesitantly, even more nervous than before...
"Oh, don't be such a lump," Sveta says, then reaches her arms around Trace, her gloved hands kneading through his outer guard feathers and feeling the soft down through his clothes. A gentle yank has him up against her, and she nibbles at his beak with her own, standing on tiptoe to do so.
"See?" she whispers, drawing away slightly and clearly inviting him to initiate the next one. "It's not so bad after all. What's there to be afraid of?"
A small nod, a slight twitch, before Trace does in fact lean in for his own attempt at a nuzzle, a little more confident than his last as he wraps his arms aroundher in that moment, his eyes closed at that time.
"If you're going to do something, do it. Don't be halfhearted, all right?" Sveta leans in against Trace, sharing the nuzzle, then rubs her face in the crook of the kite's neck and exhales gently. "Ah...you're very warm. Did anyone ever tell you that?"
Trace nods and smiles faintly, his eyes gazing into Sveta's own, before she rests her head on his shoulder, and leaves him smiling gently. "I've... Not had a lot of people this close to me, honestly," he mumbles after a moment of contemplation, nuzzling against her own neck.
"Well, now you have." Sveta withdraws with a small sigh. "It's better this way, as opposed to those infectious types who keep on trying to hug you all the time. It loses meaning like that." A pause. "Well, then. I think this ends things for today...shall I show you out, or can you make your own way through the manor?"
A small smile, a faint mumble as Trace leans back and nods faintly. "I'd like to be shown out, even if I think I know my way around somewhat," he mumbles after a moment of contemplation, smiling and clicking his beak lightly.
"After you, then," Sveta says with a smile.
