kineticcajun | 10th Card Dealt [Action]

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10th Card Dealt [Action]

[Gambit is back from his mission... finally. And he's definitely looking worse for the wear. With one Severely Black Eye, it's probably at least fairly clear that he did something to irritate the Malnosso while he was gone, although the rest of the effects aren't immediately obvious. Until he opens his mouth, of course. And then he's painfully, stereotypically British.

Which is precisely why he's trying not to run his mouth like he usually does.

There are, however, a few points of importance. He may have slipped off with fairly little notice to the mission, but he does mean to let the people who really matter know that he's back. Which is all of four people, but he's still making the effort.

First it's a trip to the Item Shop. He's outside of his usual Not Until After 3 policy, but he's finding it hard to care. After that, it's off to the Battle Dome clinic... which is oddly bereft of Adele, so he decides he'll track down Obi-Wan (wherever he might be) instead, since that should be just as efficient. He does leave a Joker card on Adele's desk, though, before slipping back out. It's just as good a signal that he's alive and well as seeing her, he's sure. And last but not least, Lupin.

And then it's back home to collapse in bed and sleep. Or at least that was the plan until the fierce craving for tea finally overwhelms him and he ends up at Seventh Heaven instead.

Thanks, Malnosso.]

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[Lupin laughed out loud this time, all the while wondering how he could help Gambit with his...curious injuries. His fellow thief looked like he had been in a brawl...]

Oh, I do know that feeling!

Capital. So there's hardly any need for me to elaborate, then.

[It was a complete joke of an answer, but his grin took on a decidedly impish air anyway. Right before he decided to rustle through the contents of the bag, completely shameless. A salad, maybe? This is an awful lot of veggies and a disappointing lack of protein. At least not the animal kind.]

So what are you trying to feed this poor lady friend of yours, anyhow?

...You know? I'm never going to get over that accent.

[but he was equally amused by Gambit's investigations. Curiosity was the boon and bane of all men in their profession; at least this was a harmless target.]

I'm not going to feed it to my girl, but to a friend. The last Shift hit him hard, and he's been looking like a kid that you need to feed chicken soup to. The snafu in that idea is that he's vegetarian, but he wants to replicate his family's answer to chicken soup. I'd hardly be a gentleman if I didn't oblige.

[There's a small pause as Gambit continues to stare into the bag of ingredients, his expression slowly growing darker. The last time he saw Lupin in a kitchen, things had gone boom in a big way. Granted, it wasn't food the man had been making then, but that doesn't mean Gambit is all that ready to trust him, either.

Slowly, cautiously, his eyes move up to meet Lupin's.]

I would not have taken you for the sort to have a vegetarian chicken soup recipe handy at a moment's notice, my friend.

[Is this soup going to burn? Explode? Leak radioactive contents down to lower floors?]

[The sudden shadow that overtook Gambit's demeanor forced Lupin to recall the terribly amateur nachos that were his contribution to a movie marathon last winter. They were too cheesy and too spicy...and Gambit was a classic Cajun chef.

Was he worried that Lupin would insult Floor 3's kitchen?

Lupin laughed.]

I don't. That's why I'm going out on a limb for a friend. He said that he's going to show me how to make it, but if you want to monitor the kitchen...?

[The knowledge that somebody was going to oversee the cooking only slightly improved the situation. Yes, someone could make sure that things wouldn't get too far out of hand, but there was still the fact that it was Lupin cooking.

Still, he couldn't help but crack a slight grin.]

I suppose someone should be there to prevent the entire building from going up in smoke. It may as well be me.

[...of course.]

Tell you what then. We'll work out an evening sometime soon where we can play in the kitchen, and we'll make enough for you to have some too.

[Because, humor aside, Gambit looked like he was on the losing side of a brawl. Comfort food would be good for him too, especially if he found a way to jazz the dish up.

--after they made a normal batch for his friend.]

[Gambit was hungry, too, which probably wasn't doing much for his overall appearance of not needing good comfort food. But all he wanted was tea. And maybe some crumpets. He was fairly sure he'd never even eaten a crumpet at any point in his life before.]

That does sound like quite a good plan, old chap. [Inward wince.] ...And you can go ahead and laugh at that.

[Because, hell, he'd be laughing about it if it wasn't him with the accent.]

[He was laughing before permission was granted.]

I'll let you know when we're at it then. How are evenings for you, and what sort of thing do you think would go with a soup made with--[an idle gesture at the bag] all this?

Is a vegetarian jambalaya going too far?

[Because Lupin, unfortunately, had no tea or crumpets to offer. He was more in the mood for a strong coffee and some beignets.]

[Gambit actually grimaced at "vegetarian jambalaya."]

It can be done. The results aren't quite as good, however.

[Although if anybody could rock out a vegetarian jambalaya recipe, it would be him. That didn't mean he had to like it, though. It just wasn't the same.]

And evenings are fine. [Wry grin.] I barely have anything else to do, anyhow.

...I trust that you'll find a way to make it so we're not eating tofu. That gets boring a little too quickly. [He knew. He learned it the hard way.

The jambalaya had been little more than a suggestion; he would leave the resident foodie to come up with a tasteful alternative.]

Actually, that brings up another idea. How do you feel about helping me cater a party I'm planning for my girl in November? We're still in the planning stages, but it's always good to know who all's in.

No tofu. I can make do only using vegetables. [Although, to be fair, he could probably season the tofu so that it wouldn't be quite so... tofu-ish. It does soak up flavor if you cook it right. But he didn't particularly feel like testing if he could cook tofu all that well.]

As for the catering, I can certainly help. When is this party, by the way? [Because he doubted if he would be invited to Thanksgiving with the X-Men again, but if that door was open again, he wanted to make sure he would space his time properly.]

[Lupin would never wish the horror of tofu on Gambit...]

Great! I had a feeling that you'd help! [Because he did, truly. They were a few scoundrels who were surrounded by law-abiding citizens. It was only right that they stick together.] I'm planning it for the the fifth of November, so we have a few weeks to prepare.

[The date was also his birthday, and only a week short of his Lucetiversary. Time had flown by at an exhausting speed.]

It's also after Halloween, [and when he was eligible for getting his Penalty removed,] so we can avoid the mess that everyone says is coming. How bad is it, really?

[He gave a nod in answer. A few weeks was more than enough. Thanksgiving contributions only took a couple hours last year, not including taking over the turkey from Rogue. And besides, this was way earlier. He'd have more than enough time.

At the mention of Halloween, though, his expression darkened again. Wasn't that a fun time. Okay, it had been kind of fun once he had stopped caring and made a game out of it, but in a very twisted way.]

Last year, a meteor crashed into the village. Nobody survived. I would like to think that this year won't be quite so dramatic, but I can't say that I would put anything past the bloody Malnosso.

[Lupin frowned at that. He had heard it before, but the knowledge only left him wondering about what kind of psychological damage that the Malnosso would inflict this year.]

...I missed that one by two weeks. Apparently one of my partners tried to cut it down.

[All else aside, that memory did make Gambit give a lopsided grin.]

I think I remember that. I tried to blow it up. It did not seem to want to budge. Shame, that.

[The thought of Ishikawa Goemon XIII cutting down the moon with his mighty Zantetsuken would never bore him. It was typical of the ronin because the moon itself was a challenge that he needed to surpass.

Lupin mirrored that smile in fond memory of his friend.]

Hopefully we don't need to try blowing moons up this year. You think that they'll be kind enough to give us a night of debauchery instead?

My, that would be a treat, wouldn't it? [He would love a chance for just a plain old Halloween night Earth-style to happen, but he really doubted it would. If the Malnosso had a chance to mess around, they would take it. With a frown, his tone took a decided turn for bitterly sarcastic.]

I'm almost certain they'll opt for a trick instead, though.

Of course they will. They're who they are.

[He shrugged. It was a thought, and one that he wanted to place a little hope in.

The elevator dinged when they reached the third floor and the door slid open, immediately stopping any flow of conversation that Lupin had.]

We're at the other end, Fujiko and I. Room 11.

...excuse the mess. We're still getting everything settled.

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10th Card Dealt [Action]

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