InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Dumbledore's got style."

sugar_cycle (sugar_cycle) wrote in paxletalelogs,
@ 2011-01-17 14:15:00

Entry tags:

changing woman, jormungandr

Jack Skellington's Cookies
Who: Adam and Kami
What: Cookie baking... Is Kami hosting a Wilton seminar now?
Where: Kami's apartment, 607
When: Tuesday, December 14th
Warnings: Impromptu karaoke?

Kami had been pleasantly surprised with Adam had arrived at her door at the time suggested, even more pleased when he came bearing over half of the ingredients she mentioned they would need. The good half, too, not flour or sugar or baking soda - all things she had on hand at all times. He had also brought the movie and she could not resist an audible noise of joy upon seeing it.

Even better than his contributions, though, was Adam himself. He had proved a quick study, very good at following directions, and there were no moments of strange, unexplained control-issues like with Prudence. Kami finished pulling the plastic wrap taut over the bowl of dough and slipped it into the refrigerator to rest. Then she turned to smile brilliantly at her temporary student. "It has to stay in there for at least an hour," she announced. She glanced at the counters and her smile grew even more. While they were not completely returned to the sparkling condition of pre-baking, Adam had clearly been cleaning as she finished the dough and the sink was empty of most bowls and spoons, all of the various containers and bags sealed back up safely to prevent spillage. She sighed dramatically. "You are amazing," she continued. "I could kiss you for that."

Seeing his eyebrow raise at the comment, she giggled and reached for his hand to give it a squeeze. "Don't worry. I won't. Thank you, though. Now..." She turned back to the refrigerator. "What do you want to drink while we get our movie on?"

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jormungandr
2011-01-18 02:33 pm UTC (link)

It had seemed a small thing to clean up as they had gone along, rewarding himself with stolen spoons of finished batter when he thought his kitchen companion wasn't looking. It reminded him of home, after all: afternoons spent attempting to cook with his sisters tugging on his sleeves, ever a distraction, and the kitchen still having to be tidy and relatively unsullied by the time their parents returned home. He smiled at the memory, ignoring the small, lonely pang such thoughts often caused.

"Water's fine with me," he said, shrugging mildly. He gave a deceptively small smile, only the faintest hint of teasing coloring his voice. "I am pretty thirsty for some reason. I won't say you're a baking slave driver, but you do get far more into it than my sisters ever did." His dark gaze fell slyly away, focusing on a white smudge of flour on his otherwise pristinely black shirt. This he toyed at for a moment, wiping it away as best he could. "Glad I was a suitable sous chef," he added, tossing her an off-kilter smile. "Whatever you call them for baked goods. I have no idea."

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sugar_cycle
2011-01-18 09:29 pm UTC (link)

"I don't know either," Kami admitted, "but you'd be tops, whatever it is. You must have done some kind of cooking of baking before." Fetching two glasses, bright blue with tiny white birds painted along the rims, she set them on the counter next to the pitcher of water she had retrieved the moment he stated his preference. She poured them full and then handed one off to her helper. As she did so, she started to giggle.

Quickly, Kami put her back to him as she put the water pitcher away once more. "You, um, have a little something on your face," she managed through the laughter, looking over her shoulder. At his raised eyebrow, she giggled more and turned to snatch up a dish-towel. Neatly, she brushed off the streak at his cheek before tossing the towel back on the counter and picking up her glass. "Friendly fire," she teased. "I must've done that in the struggle over the measuring cup."

Lifting her glass as if in toast, she slipped from the kitchen and made a beeline for the small TV set up on a low console in her living room. "Do you have the DVD?" she asked as she set down her drink on a coaster and crouched to begin flipping on electronics.

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jormungandr
2011-01-19 04:38 pm UTC (link)

"Some," he allowed. Whatever response he had planned was cut off by her laughter, then by his own preoccupation with ensuring the flour was thoroughly removed from his pale cheek. Still not satisfied it was entirely gone, Adam grabbed his glass and headed for the bathroom, appraising his appearance in the mirror. He wet his fingers under the tap, dabbing at the place the flour had smudged his shirt. When this last bit of preening was complete he strode back into the living room, joining his patient host.

Upon reaching the sofa, he leaned down, rummaging one-handed through the black field bag he'd brought up from his apartment. He felt a faint dusting of some spilled ingredient or other marring the bottom; he wrinkled his nose, making a mental note to add this to the growing pile of clothes bound for the laundry. His fingers shifted, closing around the DVD nestled snugly in the bag. "Here you go," he said, handing it over to her. "Don't mind... whatever that is. I promise it's just baking stuff."

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sugar_cycle
2011-01-20 05:25 am UTC (link)

"Do you really?" Kami took the movie and made a show of inspecting the faint dusting of white. Putting her nose close to it, she sniffed delicately. Then she wet the tip of her pinkie and dabbed it over the smudge, finger immediately going next into her mouth. She rolled her eyes and the giggles started again as she withdrew her finger. "Mmm, sugar," she informed him. "Better keep your bag away from drug-sniffing dogs with a sweet tooth."

Popping the case open, she made short work of setting up the movie and she grabbed the remote and her glass once more as she stood. "I love this movie," she informed him. "Thank you so much for bringing it." Her glass found a new home on the coffee table, little strawberry-shaped coaster beneath it. Kami settled down in a contented semi-ball on the other end of the couch, legs curled beneath her, and she pointed the remote at the television. She smiled sideways at her guest. "I know all the words," she warned teasingly.

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jormungandr
2011-01-20 03:43 pm UTC (link)

As a general rule Adam avoided drug-sniffing dogs and the cops at the end of their leads - his was not a look their ilk typically appreciated - but he nodded all the same, appearing to take her teasing advice quite seriously. Her light-hearted nature was a marked change from his usual quiet sulking, earnestly content though it was; Adam found he enjoyed it more than he might have guessed, and felt more comfortable around her cheerfulness the longer he remained.

"Feel free to sing," he said, smiling against the rim of his glass. "If you're unlucky enough I might join you." He gave a quiet chuckle as the movie began, pleased, too, with the nostalgia the movie brought welling up to the surface. "You know, one year I went for Halloween as Jack Skellington. What I lacked in lankiness I made up for in face paint, I think."

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sugar_cycle
2011-01-21 04:41 am UTC (link)

Kami turned her attention from the screen to regard him with bright eyes, smile growing even more luminous as she clearly imagined the man sharing her couch with white-face. "I would pay to see pictures," she announced after a moment and the mischief in her face warned him to never introduce her to any family member with a photo album. "I would pay in lots and lots of baked goods and maybe some personal favors that don't compromise my moral standing."

At his answering look, she giggled and shook her head. "No, really," she insisted. "That is a killer costume idea. So much better than endless Batmen and ninjas." She looked a bit sheepish and hunched her shoulders in a decidedly girlish manner. The sparkle in her eye, though, gave it all away as a rather good imitation of sweet innocence. "I was never that creative," she admitted. "I was pretty much every kind of princess and kitty cat you could think of." A sudden thought stopped her and she tilted her head. "Wait, I did see you in white-face already. You were Joker at the Halloween party, right? You and Alex looked like a perfect pair."

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jormungandr
2011-01-24 04:08 pm UTC (link)

Adam found it was not that difficult to envision Kami as a princess or kitten, though he suspected the costumes of her childhood bore little enough resemblance to the titillating Indian princess she had been at the party months before. Costumes on that particular end of the 'adorable' spectrum had never been within his grasp, being possessed of neither appearance nor bearing conducive to being seen as in any way traditionally 'cute.' His own youth had been marked with costumes of varying degrees of strangeness, including one year he had distressed even his own relatively accepting parents by trick or treating as Maleficent herself. On these points, however, he wisely held his tongue.

"Thank you. She's the best Harley I've seen," he said, nodding pleasantly. "Definitely the best I've had on my arm." He leaned up to the coffee table, gingerly setting his glass atop another coaster. "If you do ever want to see those pictures, I have a few at my place. My mom kept most of the really incriminating ones, and I don't know that any cookies or personal favors are worth me digging those up. But you're welcome to see me as Lussurioso from Revenger's Tragedy, Eddie Izzard style, which might be worth something to you." He shook his head, laughing. "One of my favorites, hands down."

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sugar_cycle
2011-01-25 06:10 am UTC (link)

She was nodding even as he admitted to favoritism and her smile shone wide and warm. "I'd love to see them," she agreed. "I've never gotten around to seeing that one but I know of it. Seriously, though, Eddie Izzard? How can you go wrong?"

Shifting her position slightly, Kami faced her guest a bit better and absently rearranged her legs so that her feet were better tucked up under the warmth of her body. She propped an arm on the back of the couch and settled her head against the raised hand, smile still lingering. Despite the amusement in her expression, though, she seemed to hesitate. The mention of Halloween brought to mind the strange memories and the inexplicable moments. Did he have those black spots in his memory, too? Could she ask? Wrinkling her nose, Kami brought a giggle to her lips and pushed forward without thinking. "How did the Joker enjoy his night?" she asked suddenly.

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jormungandr
2011-01-26 07:38 pm UTC (link)

He sensed the subtle change in her line of questioning, the faint differences from one laugh to another. Adam felt certain she had a more pointed question in mind, something vastly more dangerous than that common query. Though his curiosity was piqued he held his tongue on that score, content to merely follow her lead. "I had a great time," he said. "We first met Pru there - she was at Naea's Christmas party, so I think you've met. Her costume was amazing, and she did it all herself." He shook his head. "I wish I had talent like that. I can barely sew."

He raised a hand to his black hair, toying idly with one sharp spike. "What about yours? I only saw you for a bit. I lost track of a lot of people later in the evening, though."

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sugar_cycle
2011-01-27 08:40 am UTC (link)

"Me? Oh, I had a blast. I'm sorry I missed you in my dance round-up." Kami met his cool with her own best sunshine-filled smile. "I went through and claimed as many as I could," she added in explanation, adding a little wink into the mix. "My birthday was the next day so it made a great excuse." She paused then and one hand toyed with the remote for a few moments as she turned her head to watch a favorite snip of the movie.

Then the dark-haired actress returned her focus to her guest. "And I know Pru," she continued and the look of mischief was back full-force. It appeared she was going to let the Halloween question rest. "I actually helped her make some gingerbread up for her co-workers on the holiday slasher movie. Gingerbread bats if you can believe it. Sooooo cute. Oh. We should've asked if we could borrow those for your cookies."

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jormungandr
2011-01-29 03:42 pm UTC (link)

As much as Adam enjoyed the conversation, he enjoyed the respite as well, perfectly timed to direct their discussion away from less savory topics. He wasn't sure how many of his fellow tenants knew of his odd immunity to intoxication, but if word had gotten to Kami it would be far more difficult to explain his memories from nine o'clock on. The mention of Pru's gingerbread bats brought a slight smile to his face.

"I wish we'd thought of it," he said, nodding amicably. "If we're feeling brave we could always attempt our own bats with a knife or something. Who knows how they might come out. Bats can't be that tough, can they?" He chuckled quietly. "Worst case scenario one of us gets cut. I can handle that pretty well."

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sugar_cycle
2011-01-30 03:55 am UTC (link)

Kami gave him a dubious look, eyebrow raised in the best manner of silent screen stars of old. Then she broke into another smile and shook her head. "How about we just stick with royal icing and sprinkles?" she suggested. "Less chance of making these Nightmare Before Christmas cookies, you know?"

Mention of the movie caused her to turn back to the television and Kami suddenly laughed softly. "Oh, Jack," she murmured as the Pumpkin King stumbled around Christmastown in amazement. "He can't help himself, can he? God, can you imagine being a skeleton with an existential crisis? How awkward!"

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jormungandr
2011-01-31 08:52 pm UTC (link)

Adam found the idea of Nightmare Before Christmas cookies remarkably appealing, but that seemed a thought best kept to himself, at least for the moment. Still, he smiled at the mental image it provided. It lent him a whole new appreciation for the film, as his mind began to wander to various movie-inspired treats he might be able to create for the next Halloween. His siblings would want to be involved, of course, and Pru's help could be invaluable. He started a mental checklist to determine what people and materials might be necessary, and was soon distracted from the film altogether. Still, he smiled at her joke, nodding his agreement before descending back into his own ridiculous plans.

(OOC: Closing times?)

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	sugar_cycle 2011-02-01 04:50 am UTC (link)
	(OOC: Closing time! No one wants to read about the resulting Cookie Test. XD) (Reply to this) (Parent)