ishisstrength | IC CONTACT

[ He was in the midst of slicing them just so, when he felt the press of Justine's body against his. She felt warm, her voice sweet in his ear.

Oh? Was that an invitation? Majima was going to take it as such, dipping down to see if he could sneak a nibble off of Justine's olive. But regardless of whether he could or couldn't, he'd take a slice of olive between thumb and forefinger and hold it out for her so she could give the quality of his work a sample. ]

That's a good point.

Here, taste this. I'd love to hear what more ya have to say on the subject of toppings.

[ Mmhmm. ]

[Justine tries not to smile as Majima takes a nibble from her olive. If she does smile then the topping will tumble from her lips and she doesn't want to break their little game with a fit of giggles.]

You want to know?

[She lightly bites her lower lip before leaning forward, wrapping her lips around Majima's finger. She sucks gently and then takes the olive as she pulls away.]

Salty but I like it.

[She is not going to clarify what she's talking about.]

[ Majima applied himself to keeping as straight a face as possible, maintaining a manner of proper decorum even when she dropped that line about being salty. Or he did for at least a second before he was forced to turn away, shoulders shaking in silent laughter.

Justine had prevailed. ]

Okay, okay -- I admit defeat.

[ He was still trying to master his smile as he picked out some more ingredients from the bag, but he could do nothing to hide the warmth with which he regarded her. ]

Anythin' else you want to try? Bacon? Green peppers?

[Justine's smile widened as a sense of warmth and pride swirls in her chest.]

You put up quiet the challenge. [She raises to her toes and lightly kisses his cheek before returning her attention to the toppings and their task.] Do we need to cook the bacon or is it pre-cooked? [It needs to be cooked before it can go on the pizza and it'll take bacon a little bit of time to cook so that's its crispy enough that it won't get soggy while on the pizza.]

I don't need to taste the green peppers but thank you.

Definitely needs to be cooked ahead of time.

[ He supposed he could have gotten the bacon pre-prepared, only it never did taste quite the same when it was reheated. Now, where did Justine keep the pans? Ah.

Majima slipped around her to pick up the frying pan and set it up on the stove, fingers trailing lightly around Justine's waist as if she were the grounding from which he'd temporarily strayed. ]

Say, Justine -- how'd ya get into baking? And cooking, too, I guess.

[ While he waited for the pan to heat up, perhaps he could indulge a little curiosity. ]

[Bacon doesn't take very long to cook and she honestly doesn't mind having her apartment smelled like delicious cured meats.] We can cook it now. [Her dark eyes follow him as his fingers trail around her waist. She'd planned to move and help him but she likes it when he touches her and decides to remain standing slightly in the way in order to feel the soft pressure and light touch of his hand against her back and side as he moves around her.]

It kept my mind busy when I was alone.

[She shifts and stands next to Majima, watching as the bacon sizzles and spits.]

Thomas would leave for long periods of time and I had very little to do during that time. It's dangerous speaking to others in the court so I found things that I could do on my own; cooking, cleaning, crafts.

I enjoy the distraction and the focus involved.

[Thomas would be risking his life with his brother or off to see his father and with Justine's fate so wrapped up in the young white court vampire, she found herself worrying until he returned. Books helped from time to time but they rarely kept her thoughts occupied for long.]

I draw too.

[Among her other random talents. Justine doesn't perform all of her hobbies well but she isn't ever afraid of messing something up.]

That's pretty amazin'. Will tried to teach me how to draw once, but I never did keep going with it.

[ The sounds and smells of sizzling bacon soon filled the kitchen, mouthwatering and savory, as he listened to her speak. He turned the heat down after flipping the bacon, neat as you please. As it crisped, he stepped back. One hand was still lightly pressed against her back.

A life speaking to few people, occupying herself with hobbies where she could... it brought to mind something she'd asked him once. ]

...Was it lonely?

I don't know if it's amazing.

[She lightly leans against Majima's side, staring at the bacon as it sizzles and pops in the pan. She doesn't think that there is a single human alive who doesn't like bacon.] I should get us a plate to put the cooked pieces on. [With her intensions known, Justine slowly breaks away from Majima and grabs a plate with a paper towel on top to catch the grease.

His follow up question isn't surprising but it does cause Justine to pause and consider.]

It was. In more ways than one. I always felt anxious when I was alone. [Likely because of her dependency on the supernatural drug that Thomas emitted.] But even when I was younger, I never enjoyed being alone.

[ Majima turned the stove off and plated the bacon as he listened, then moved to the sink to clean off the pan. He could sort of see it, even though he'd never known Justine in those early days. As he placed the pan quietly back, he looked at her in that oddly serious manner he had about him sometimes -- the one that slipped, often unnoticed, in the gaps between the rough speech and street attitude. ]

I'm glad ya ended up here, Justine.

[ And not only because of the obvious, selfish reasons. He'd gotten to twenty-four without a shoulder to cry on; he supposed he would have been good for at least that much more. ]

This town might be full of weirdos, but they're pretty decent to talk to.

[ And yes, he was including himself in that weirdo category. ]

[Her head turns and she froze for the span of a heartbeat.]

Me too.

[She's seen his serious expression before but she's never been able to figure out what it means. Justine wonders what wheels might be turning in his head or what memories flicker to the forefront of his mind.

Her expression relaxes and she smiles as she raises up on her toes and lightly kisses Majima's cheek.] I'm lucky. In more ways than one. [She means him though she isn't ready to express what she's feeling into words.]

What's after bacon? The dough might be ready to roll out.

[ He smiled back at her, glad to know that she did consider herself lucky, even with all that had happened. And if he should be included in one of those ways? Well... maybe he wouldn't worry about that at the moment. Wouldn't it be avaricious to ask for more than he already had?

Majima did, however, make a show of considering the question. It was no contest, though ]

Hmm. After all this preparation, I vote getting to business with the dough.

[ Look, he was patient, but he totally wanted pizza! All these little tastes were starting to make him hungry. ]

[She steps towards the rising dough and cuts a piece of the fluffy concoction free. Her fingers roll it into a 4 inch ball before placing it on the cutting board that's already powdered with flour.]

Have you ever rolled out dough before?

[Justine steps behind Majima and moves him in front of the cutting board with the dough.] First you want to cover your hands with flour. That prevents the dough from sticking to your fingers. You want to touch the dough as little as possible as well, there are oils on her fingers that will flatten it when it cooks. [Her fingers intertwine with his as she covers them both in flour and then puts his fingers over the dough.]

First we're going to push out the edges like this. [Justine guides his palm against the dough so that it's a perfectly rough circle.] Now we use the rolling pin. [She lifts her chin to look up at Majima, enjoying the closeness of the act.] Make sense so far?

Never.

[ The dough looked so strangely soft and fluffy whenever he watched Justine handle her own baking, and though he'd watched with interest and even tried mixing or simple tasks, he'd been fairly sure he wouldn't have the same knack. (He was kind of tempted to poke the ball, actually.)

Now, he followed her instructions as best he could, first dipping into the flour, then in rolling out the dough. ]

Hmm, so ya can't overhandle it, huh? I'll try and give it a lighter touch.

[ So now their roles were reversed, and Majima had the distinct impression that Justine enjoyed this. The touching, the proximity... it was a different kind of intimacy. Maybe even vulnerability, which he would have shared with few others. He was tempted to kiss her, but resisted just this once. ]

How long did ya have to practice at this?

With bread? More than a few times. The first time- [She smiles down as the roller pushes into the dough.] -well, I got the dough stuck to the roller and what I made came out shaped a little bit like a frog. [It'd tasted fine but it hadn't risen properly nor has she rolled it well.]

Okay. Now you want to roll it evenly between sides to make sure it's coated in flour and even.

[Justine flips the dough over for him and spins it once to show him what she means.]

Think you got the hang of it? once it's about a half inch thick we can add the sauce and toppings.

Yeah, think so.

[ And indeed, Majima was a quick learner; that time he'd spent watching Justine hadn't been in vain, it seemed. The dough became steadily thinner, and though it wasn't completely even, it was pretty close. ]

It's hard to imagine that happenin' now. But I think I'd like to see one of those dough frogs. Bet they're pretty cute.

[ Kind of like Justine. But it was getting harder and harder not to think of how nice it'd be to sample the taste of pizza that didn't come out of a freezer for once. ]

So, about that sauce... for real pizza, you don't have to put on as much, right?

[Justine shakes her head and tries not to blush.]

It really wasn't.

[They were very creepy pieces of bread that happened to also look like large deformed frogs.]

That's right. A few table spoons should be enough. It's there to keep the dough from drying out while its in the oven. [She steps out from behind him and steps over to the sink to rinse the flour off her hands.] What do you want to put on the first pizza?

Well, cheese goes without sayin'. But since we just cooked the bacon, why not start with that first? And after that... your pick.

[ Majima retrieved the sauce and a spoon, starting to spread it out onto the pizza from the center like he'd seen others do. ]

We need some olive oil or anything?

Alright.

[Justine grabs the cheese and spreads it over the pizza when he's done spreading the sauce.]

And no, we'd only need that if we weren't using the sauce. [She continues to sprinkle the cheese until it's evenly spread and then nods to the bacon.] Would you like to do the honors?

[ It was strange. He enjoyed watching people work in general, from restaurant chefs to construction workers to practically anyone in between. He always had, and if pressed, he'd probably say that it was because he respected work. Closer to the truth, perhaps, was that Majima enjoyed watching people perform those skills that they had chosen to hone, whether out of love or duty.

Justine's skill might have been partially born from boredom or loneliness, but there was no skimming over the truth that was the deftness of her hands. And when she was finished, he leaned in swiftly to kiss her fingers before she could entirely pull them away.

With a small smile of his own, he started crumbling the bacon evenly over the pie, leaving a couple bigger pieces here and there. Variety was what made life (and pizza) interesting, after all. ]

The bacon stage is complete, ma'am.

[Justine begins to cut another piece of dough free while Majima covers their first pizza with bacon bits. She's thinking that this one should be green peppers and olives though a pizza with absolutely no meat seems strange, she thinks that the two flavors will work well together.]

Then we put it in the oven. [She steps over to the oven and sets it to 350.] I forgot to pre-heat but this will be tricky anyway.

The way to get the crusty crispy is to put the pizza directly on the oven grate. We'll need to be careful so we don't drop anything. [She looks back at Majima and her smile widens.] What is it? You look like you're thinking about something.

I was just thinking how cool you look.

[ C... cool...? The compliment seemed completely genuine, however, from the way he was watching her handle the ingredients. There was a sort of quiet affection to it, more subdued than usual. ]

Never saw myself in a million years, making pizza in a kitchen like this.

...Thanks, Justine.

[A light musical laugh escapes from Justine's lips before she can stop it. She doesn't laugh often and while it's short, it's honest.]

Thank you. I don't think I've ever been called cool before.

[It's more of a compliment because Justine knows that he means it.]

I'm more than happy to do anything with you.

I like being around you.

[ Majima smiled a bit mischievously. ]

No? It's true, though.

[ While the oven heated up, surely there was some time for a chat. He turned, looking out the window at the evening stars showing themselves outside. ]

When I was back in Reims, we had a star chart app on all the phones. I forgot a lot of 'em, but I still remember where the Cygnus constellation was. That's the swan flying around without any feet.

[Justine steps around the counter to take a better look at the stars.]

No feet? [She doesn't know a lot about the constellations. There is the little dipper and the big dipper but she's never tried to pick them out in the sky. Justine had grown up in a city with too much light pollution to see the stares.]

I've been told that there are stories to go with each constellation. Do you know why it had no feet?

Hmm... they fell off?

[ There was a gleam in his eye that strongly suggested he was joking. ]

See, it's that bunch of stars there. Those are the two wings, and there's its head. My best guess? People think swans, and all they look for is long, graceful necks and wings. But if ya ever do look at a real one, its feet are there -- plain as day.

[ Which meant that the Cygnus constellation was likely more of a statement on human nature than anything to do with real-life birds. ]

As for the story behind it, there're a couple of different ones, I think. One of them is Orpheus got turned into a swan after he died.

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and wrap!