[center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/b3RmLjk2LjAwODA4MC5WR0ZzYjNNLjA/bonwick-weaver.regular.webp[/img] [h2]&[/h2] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/b3RmLjg4LmYwYmRjZi5Ubmx0Y0dnLjA/nebulo.demo.webp[/img][/center] [hr] It was late afternoon, passing into evening and Vincent was in his room. Iron masses and clouds of carbon hung in the air above him, combining and separating or forming complex patterns as he thought about what to make. Images of hot dogs, pizza, and baked potatoes, among other things, appeared and disappeared before an idea that he liked finally came to mind. [color=teal]”I could go for some curry,”[/color] he mused as he sat up. The carbon and iron recombined and returned to his implant as he stood and left his room to walk to the kitchen. There was already a pot of something bubbling away on the stove. There were bowls of pre-cut vegetables neatly set in rows next to it. A heap of shredded chicken sat lonely on a plate, clearly intended to be added to the boiling broth. It was starting to get dry at this point. If you would lift up the lid you would find that the broth had nearly reduced to half the original amount. The sleep deprived chef of the well intended chicken soup was hauled up on the sofa in the lounge. Daphne fell asleep with the cook book folded open on the floor next to her. Judging from the state of the kitchen she’d been asleep for at least an hour. Vincent’s brow furrowed at the state of the kitchen, [i]his[/i] kitchen, and was about ready to find whoever left it in such a state to tear into them until he saw Daphne asleep on the couch with a cookbook next to her. He felt his anger fade, replaced by mild irritation, and let out a sigh. First thing he did was turn the stove off, then he walked over to his teammate. Placing his hand on her shoulder, he gently shook her as he said, [color=teal]”Hey, Daph, wake up. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think you were planning on serving dry chicken.”[/color] Daphne startled awake bumping headfirst into Vincent’s forehead. [color=teal]”Bah!”[/color] Vincent exclaimed at the sudden headbutt, more out of surprise than pain. [color=Lightgreen]“Owh..”[/color] She was pretty sure that was going to turn into a bump. Her finger touched the sore spot. Looking up to see Vincent she immediately went into apology mode. [color=Lightgreen]“Sorry Vincent, I must have…..fallen asleep” [I]“Again….”[/I][/color] [color=Lightgreen]“Is your head okay?” [I]Her soup![/I][/color] Without waiting for an answer she jumped off the couch and ran to the kitchen. When she took off the lid from the pot she was disappointed to see nearly half of her stock had evaporated. [color=Lightgreen]“This is fixable right? I’ll just add more water.”[/color] Daphne mumbled to herself. Rubbing his forehead, Vincent followed Daphne into the kitchen. [color=teal]”Yeah, that should be fine,”[/color] he said. [color=teal]”It doesn’t look like you left it alone for too long, so it should still be salvageable. That chicken, too, so long as it hasn’t been more than a couple hours.”[/color] Crossing his arms, he leaned against the counter as he watched Daphne for a few moments, then asked, [color=teal]”I never pegged you as the kinda girl to take a nap in the middle of meal prep. Everything okay?”[/color] Daphne added water to the pot until it was back to being two thirds of the way full of soup. She added the veggies and chicken, stirring the ingredients gently so they could spread out. Vincent saying it would be fine gave her more confidence. He was a talented cook and could also bake pretty well. She stopped stirring the pot to look at Vincent, letting the spoon rest across the top of the pan. [color=Lightgreen]“Yes I’m okay. I’ve just been having trouble sleeping this past week or so.”[/color] Eager to change the subject to something less uncomfortable Daphne retrieved the cookbook from the lounge. She showed it to Vincent. [color=Lightgreen]“I’ve tried a bunch of things from in here, some of them came out really good, others not so much”[/color] Vincent couldn’t help but get the feeling that Daphne was hiding something, but he decided not to pursue it. He was still relatively new to the team, so he knew better than to expect people to be willing to open up to him, at least not so soon. Even he wasn’t as much of an open book as some might think. Daphne started to clean up the counter to make space for Vincent. [color=Lightgreen]“Or maybe that’s more me than the book…”[/color] She said with a chuckle. Vincent walked over to the counter and set the cookbook down on the space Daphne cleared. He flipped through a few pages, noting the various marks, dogears, and annotations Daphne had made throughout. [color=teal]”Nah, I don’t think you’re the problem,”[/color] he said. [color=teal]”Even cookbooks aren’t perfect. Some recipes might call for an extra pinch of salt here, an unneeded splash of soy sauce there. That’s why I don’t use them.”[/color] Daphne let that bit of cooking wisdom sink in. She added the tiniest pinch of salt. The soup was starting to come back to a boil. She lowered the heat so it could simmer. [color=Lightgreen]“So…how did you get into cooking?”[/color] Vincent was quiet for a moment as he cast his eyes upward in thought. After a few moments, he said, [color=teal]”It was after I got to Bludhaven. The guy who took me under his wing told me I couldn’t mug people for money, anymore, actually told me I wasn’t allowed to fight on the streets at all, unless I couldn’t avoid it. He found me some work in a restaurant as a busboy and I did well enough that the manager let me work in the kitchens. At first, it was just a way to make some money and keep the Old Man off my back, but after a while, I fell in love with cooking.”[/color] With his happy go lucky attitude it was easy to forget that Vincent’s past was rough. Daphne thought back on their picnic a while ago. There was probably so much more she didn’t know. She contemplated on asking him more about his past, the fighting, the old man. [color=Lightgreen]“Who’s the old man? I think I remember you mentioning him before. He sounds like an important person in your life.”[/color] Vincent had been stirring the soup, only to falter for a moment when Daphne asked her question. For the first time since they started talking, he seemed to hesitate, but quickly gathered himself. He resumed stirring as he said, [color=teal]”He was. I never learned his actual name. Every time I asked him about himself, he’d make me go train or flat out ignore me, but he was the guy who made me into what I am today. He taught me how to fight, gave me tips on controlling my power.”[/color] He pulled the spoon out of the soup, then chuckled as he tapped it on the rim of the pot. [color=teal]”If not for him, I’d probably be dead a hundred times over.”[/color] Daphne flinched inwardly when she noticed Vincent’s subtle reaction to her question. Her heart sank when Vincent told her the man wasn’t alive anymore. She gave him a hug, standing on her tippy toes. [Color=Lightgreen]”Sorry….I don’t actually know how to react.”[/color] He really didn’t deserve any of the bad things that had happened to him. It made her sad to know that he had to go through all that. Vincent looked down, surprised at the sudden hug. In all honesty, he couldn’t remember the last time he was hugged. Usually, any time he had any physical contact with someone, save for that time he flew with Pei, it was during a fight, so he wasn’t entirely sure how to react, either. After a moment, he smiled and gave Daphne’s back a couple of pats and said, [color=teal]”There’s, uh…nothing to apologize for. I appreciate it, though.”[/color] Clearing his throat, he turned back toward the soup. [color=teal]”So, uh, anyway, I think this is coming along pretty nicely,”[/color] he said. [color=teal]”Wanna give it a taste?”[/color] [color=Lightgreen]”Yes let’s![/color]