"Niu-king?" Souji's tongue echoed the word with difficulty. "Microwave is the oven that heats without flame?" He felt shamefully ignorant. The TARDIS generally translated all words spoken or written within its walls but there were occasional lapses regarding slang. 'Microwave' was at least vaguely familiar. He had never been confident enough to use the queer box that shone like an ancestral monument atop its stand. However, he had witnessed its operation when others used the device to heat food. How that orange light and ugly noise could cook he could not possibly guess--- and try as he might this mysterious process was simply too strange to trust. There were limits to what the 19th-century Samurai could embrace. The thought of 'horrid' microwave-reconstituted food caused Souji to wrinkle his nose in distaste for a few moments. "We don't have sandwiches where I come from. Though we do make rice-flour buns with fillings, if that is similar?"
Feeling a little out of element the younger man busied himself with preparing tea for both of them. He always felt more centred when a cup of steaming ocha was cradled between his delicate fingers. Dan was served first by gently pressing a warm beverage into his friend's palm. "Here you are!" Souji piped cheerily, all dimples and sweet timbre. A mouthful of his own tea soothed the confused spiralling of mind. Tea mended everything. After several more sips he decided to sample one of the sandwiches. They all looked foreign but tantalizing. The porous dough was loose and light in a way that rice flour could not achieve. It occurred to him that air might wheeze out like water from a wet rag. Souji selected a solid tomato and cheese first lest the food prove crumbly. Surprise at the texture of the bread replaced his smile for a moment. It was soft, dry, but firm to the touch! After carefully placing it on a plate the brunette pressed both palms together and dutifully murmured 'itadakimasu', then took a bite. The symphony of mild but distinct flavors delighted his tongue. He barely remembered to swallow before speaking. "Oh! Delicious!" The plate was lowered to his lap but not forgotten. It would not do to be greedily eating by himself. "You spoke as if others do not have time to cook in England. Are people so busy because women work as men do? How do they keep from starving?" He could scarcely imagine a world in which everyone was occupied like a common labourer.