the pet store was all out of ponies [closed]

[daikonrose]

♥ Who: Kyoko, Shinji, Kaito, and Magolor if he deigns to bless them with his grand presence
♥ Where: Kaito & Shinji's house
♥ When: July 7th, early evening I guess?
♥ What: b i r t h d a y p a r t y
♥ Rating: G? PG?? I'll update as needed

Kyoko had gotten a little freer about casually stopping by Shinji and Kaito's place lately, especially when she could make up an excuse about swapping ingredients from their replicators, but today marked her first time taking advantage of Kai's unlocked door policy. It also happened to be her first time attempting to enter with stealth.

The final approach down the street to their house took a full half hour, as she ducked around corners and behind confused natives to make sure a certain blond wasn't outside, and paused to listen for faint sounds of a very quiet electric bike. When she drew near enough to fear being spotted from the windows, Kyoko took a deep breath, and called to mind the quick, silent movements she'd portrayed Momiji with--and zipped up to the door. Yesssss!

All that was left in this mission was to slip inside and get to the kitchen without being noticed by the target, and it would be a success. It was only a little harder with the cake box nestled securely in her arms.

Comments

[hedgehogsdilemma]

This is a stealth mission! Which means it's helpful to have someone on the inside, who is also attempting to execute some ~sneaky~ plans of his own. Sneaky... dinner plans. What a truly secretive thing to be doing, making dinner. Making dinner for three! Possibly more! Who can truly say, but he knows well enough to expect Kyoko to drop by to force just so much cake on the birthday boy, there's literally no reason to not make extra, just in case anyone's particularly hungry.

And where is the birthday boy? Who knows! But between the front door and the kitchen, Kyoko should have no problem slinking her way into the kitchen. Whenever... whenever she works up the nerve to squeeze her way through that door with that box of deliciousness, anyway.

[daikonrose]

After quickly pressing her ear to the door and confirming that, at the very least, there was nobody talking immediately inside, Kyoko gingerly shifted to cradle the box in one arm, before slowly

s l o w l y

opening the door, just enough to quickly slink inside. Back pressed up against the wall, Kyoko scanned the area--all clear! Safe to slip off her shoes and tiptoe over to the kitchen, where a sneaky peek around the doorframe confirmed that the source of all those gentle cooking noises and scents was only her partner in crime.

Hopefully she won't startle him too much when she slips in and set the cake box on an unused counter, with a heavy sigh. "Saaaafe~"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

You know what you get for being so sneaky? A tiny jump out of Shinji when you heave that heavy sigh out!

Just a tiny one, though, since he was expecting to see her sooner or later. With! That cake! Uwoh!!

"I didn't hear you come in." Score one point for stealth. He leans in to the box he's brought, as if he'll be able to get a good look at the cake through it. "How'd it turn out?"

[daikonrose]

Standing up straight, Kyoko grins, eyes lit with a mixture of mischief and triumph. "I think I managed to get in totally undetected!" An accomplishment only she cares about, most likely.

She'll gently lift the lid of that box for a peek inside, though, as much to satisfy Shinji's curiosity as to make sure it didn't get jostled or squished in all that sneaking around. Behold, it's a cake. Not much to see from the top besides a bunch of caramelized almond slices and candied orange peel over a glossy glaze, but it is here. "All right! It's okay. Is everything smooth on your end?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

As the cake is revealed, Shinji's eyes go wide and his mouth forms a small 'o' of awe. Even if it's not a terribly elaborate looking cake, it still amazes him that something of this caliber can be coaxed out of the replicators with the right knowledge of how to use those ingredients.

"It looks perfect! I'm sure he'll love it." By now, he's more than familiar with the fact that Kai is not what you'd call a picky eater by any means, but he's also sure they'd all be hard-pressed to find too many people in the city who wouldn't marvel at such a lovely looking creation, crafted just for them. Well done, well done!

"Everything's been smooth sailing so far, I don't think he suspects anything."

He also has not seen a whole lot of Kai through the day, if he thinks about it? Maybe not entirely strange but, hm. Hmm.

"We got some upgrades, so it's gonna be tonkatsu tonight."

[daikonrose]

Perfect is obviously too much, but Kyoko is actually pretty confident in this cake by now, and she's even more confident in Kaito being a well-established fan of it. So she only puffs out her cheeks a little, and accepts the praise with a sheepish grin.

There are more interesting things to talk about anyway. Like! Tonkatsu!

"Ohhh? Don't tell me you sprung for some high grade pork!"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

That... gives him a moment of pause. How high grade is the stuff he got out of this upgrade? He doesn't actually know. H u h.

"It's way better than the stuff it was making before, it least." He steps aside to give her a good look at what he's doing, and, sure enough, those seem to be genuine, actual, honest to goodness pork cutlets waiting to be dredged and fried up! "So it should be especially good now."

[daikonrose]

It's true, any decent piece of actual meat is bound to be in a whole other league than synthetic stuff formulated by robots. It's Kyoko's turn to lean over for a look at this extremely rare delicacy.

"Oh!! Whoaa! That rich, creamy shade of pink... it's been so long since I saw it! How beautiful...!" Verdict: high enough grade for the likes of Kyoko.

"Please let me help somehow! Whatever needs to be done, I'll do it!" She'd been planning to offer anyway, but now it feels extra important.

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Absolutely Good Enough! Nobody here's looking for super high-class, haughty and ~expensive~ cuisine, just something good and familiar, that reliably tastes like normal food! That's really all anyone's asking for here!

"You've already done a lot with the cake," he doesn't want to have her pulling much more weight than that. Though, with that post she'd made last month, detailing various dishes she'd put together with the replicators, it's not like she doesn't know her way around tonight's dinner anyway, and she does sound like she genuinely wants to help out more, so...

"Do you think you could get the cutlets ready for frying?" He's already got the rest of the ingredients for them all set to go, so it shouldn't take that long at all. "I'll finish up the rest of the meal before cooking them."

[daikonrose]

Perking right up, Kyoko flashes a grin, and claps her hands together. "Roger!!" She can super do that! She has in fact dredged and fried an alarming percentage of her food since living in Havenwell! Now's her time to shine! "Let's see, let's see~ is there already flour and all that out, or should I get some? Do you need panko? I'll take care of it!"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

He, with all of his preparation for today, in fact already has most of that covered!

"I've got the panko here," he points out where it's been left among the rest of the ingredients, as well as another dish of, "flour's here - I haven't gotten the egg taken care of yet, though." If you would be so kind!

"Let me know when it's all set, okay?"

[daikonrose]

How organized! Such good planning! Kyoko beams, and springs into action. "Yes, boss!" And unless Shinji feels like making conversation, that's the last he'll hear out of her--aside from some soft, tuneless humming--until those cutlets are ready to go.

"And, done~! If there's nothing else, I'll just clean up over here right away!"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Between the cake and the help she's already offering, it feels a little guilty letting her do dishes, too. She doesn't seem like the kind of person who'd be game for waiting patiently while there's still work to do, though, so...

"If you could, that would be really helpful."

He can set aside what he's working on now, putting the finishing touches on the salad can wait until the cutlets are nice and crispy! Time to get those going!!

[daikonrose]

Shinji is correct: Kyoko won't be truly happy unless you let her feel useful! And she would have been downright antsy leaving behind a mess she knew would be a snap to clean up.

The humming starts right back up as she works, only pausing for a mild remark once it sounds like everything is going smoothly with that bubbling oil. "Kaito told me you were his cooking teacher, but you really are good! Do you like this kind of thing?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

That's a good question! He hums it over softly as he tends to the food sizzling away in that hot hot oil, like he's trying to piece it out for his own sake, too.

"I guess it was always more of a necessity thing?" He'd picked up a lot of various things growing up, of course, but the past year and some change really turbo-charged the need to hone those skills. "My last guardian was a pretty terrible cook." To kind of... clarify that point a little.

"But there is something... rewarding about putting together a meal that tastes good."

So like maybe? he likes it? it's hard to really say.

[daikonrose]

His last guardian.... So there had been more than one. Ah. Not the kind of thing to pursue right now, or maybe ever, but she could tuck that bit of information away anyway.

"Right?" she chatters instead, getting those suds going on the dishes. "Especially when you can watch it get eaten up, too. You and Kaito must pretty much always eat together now, right?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

He vaguely remembers bringing up 'sensei' during that hectic baby adventure, so he figures it's not something that's a big secret in the first place. Not chasing the topic down is appreciated, at least, it really was more of an elaboration than anything.

"Most of the time, yeah. He takes care of some meals on some days, too, and he's really improved a lot." That's something worth being really proud of on Kai's behalf, and Shinji's expression takes a turn for the fond from it. "Getting to eat together so often really is nice."

[daikonrose]

"It must be." Kyoko's voice has a soft fondness of her own, with just a trace of a sigh. Taking her daily meals alone is probably the most regular, consistent source of homesickness--though she's plenty used to it by now, she can usually ignore the feeling, it's not a problem! But ah, she's glad for Shinji and Kaito, that they can have that homey comfort every day. Certainly they deserve it.

"Kaito appreciates it a lot too, for sure!" she picks up again, with more energy. "You know, he made really tasty tamagoyaki for me, and he gave you all the credit for it."

[hedgehogsdilemma]

"Did he?" Ahh, that leaves him feeling equal parts proud and embarrassed. It's great that she thought it was tasty! Those lessons are clearly paying off! How wonderful for Kai! On the other hand, "He should be taking the credit for his own creations. I may have showed him how to do it, but it's through his own hard work that he can make good tamagoyaki, you know?"

All of the instruction in the world won't make any difference to someone who isn't considering it seriously, after all.

[daikonrose]

Wow, he's so earnest about it! Not that Kyoko disagrees, it's just kind of endearing to see him so serious even when the mood is so light. She can't help but giggle gently as she reaches for a dishrag to start drying.

"He's that kind of person, though, you know? And besides, he really likes you."

[hedgehogsdilemma]

'He really likes you' is enough to pull a faint blush out of Shinji, a slight touch of red coming to a rest as his cheeks as the tips of his ears. Ah! Well! It's not like that's untrue! Just something about the phrasing summons up an extra dokidoki. Time to play it off as smoothly as possible, nothing to see here.

"He really is like that," he says, nice and fondly. "He works hard on his own, though, and I am really glad it's paying off. It would be nice if he could take the credit he's owed."

[daikonrose]

It's truly a shame that Kyoko's all the way over here with her head bent over these dishes, and she doesn't get to see that blush. A loss for everyone.

And Kyoko honestly hadn't meant anything special by it! It's just very evident that these two boys are quite fond of each other, and that's very sweet and wholesome, and she's happy for them. And it's not often that she gets to hear a teenage guy like Shinji talk so affectionately about a buddy! It's cute!

"Riiight? He's always avoiding praise, and he acts like he doesn't want anything. You have to work hard to spoil a guy like that, or he won't let you. As I thought, keeping this a secret was the right move~"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

So sad, his dignity will have to remain intact for now, a secret surge of feelings just between Shinji and those cutlets.

"Mhm." It really feels like it's working out nicely! Hopefully the surprise will land as well as they want it to, but it does seem like Kai's none the wiser so far. Wherever he may be right now... Hm! "He's always so thoughtful of the people around him, it really makes you want to try and do the same for him."

So, it's good that he has someone on his side to help make it a nice evening!

"Thank you, though, I might not have wanted to push him too hard to get the exact date if I didn't know you wanted to know, too."

[daikonrose]

What a thing to thank her for. Kyoko shakes her head, though that likely goes unseen.

"I'm the one who didn't have the guts to push him harder on it myself." There's a rueful smile in her voice. "Since he surely had a reason for only half-answering when I asked him about it... if I pestered him more about it, I was sure he'd resist." Hounding firey people like Moko-san was one thing, but Kaito... what if he got upset with her for real? A gentler prodding from someone closer was just safer for everyone; she couldn't imagine him ever getting fed up with Shinji.

"You were my best bet, for sure, and you really pulled it off. I'm grateful, you know?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Well, that makes one of them that's confident in Kaito never getting fed up with Shinji! But the gradual process of squeezing an answer to 'when the heck's your birthday, dude?' resulting not in ire, but an actual date, did help ease off some of his own recurring worries about being perceived as a pest.

"It did take a few tries, he was pretty evasive about it at first." So it's not like the half-answer was unique to Kyoko. "I can't say for sure, but he might not be used to it really being a big deal."

Just, you know, based on some things he's picked up about Kai here and there.

"I definitely wouldn't have been able to pull off a homemade cake on my own, and I'm sure having extra company around will be nice for tonight. Really, though..." going back to an earlier thought, "I'd bet both of us would enjoy it a lot if you wanted to drop by for dinner more often."