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damned_lounge2010-10-29 02:00 am
avengingfists.livejournal.com) wrote in damned_lounge2010-10-29 02:00 am
Entry tags:
Oktoberfest '10: Dinner with Friends by Cager
Title: Dinner with Friends
Author: Cager ♪
Beta: Jansen ♥
Word Count: About 3,800
Rating: PG
Character(s): Ronixis J. Kenni, Claude C. Kenni, Ilia Silvestri, Guy Cecil, and one small mention of Tifa
Pairing(s): Um… who knows? XD;
Summary: Claude has scheduled a dinner to try and get his parents together! Or is Ilia the one trying to play cupid? Ronixis is suspicious! And where does Guy fall into this strange family affair? And epic communication fail was had by all~
Notes: First, I apologize if my formatting is hard to follow. I tried to write in a way that would be easy to catch the viewpoint changes, but I might have failed in that aspect. ^^; Also, a lot of things in this fic are assumed, such as that Guy and Claude know about the relationship between Claude, Ronixis and Ilia, but Ronixis and Ilia are still in the dark about it all. Please, enjoy.
Dinner with Friends
Ronixis drummed his fingers restlessly against his hip. He didn’t quite understand how this had come to pass, but here he was, spying.
No, no, not spying! he insisted, shuffling on his feet and crossing his arms. Really, it wasn’t spying if he was invited. And he had been invited along. That he wasn’t invited until after he had replied to Claude’s bulletin board note was just a minor detail. He belonged here in the kitchen tonight, just as much as Guy or Ilia. There was nothing wrong about his presence. But then why did it feel so awkward?
They had traveled to the kitchen of the institute tonight for what usually might have seemed like a silly reason—Claude had asked if Ilia wanted to have dinner with him. Sure, this place gave them free dinners, but what about something nice, just between friends? And Guy was coming along too! How great was that! And of course she had agreed enthusiastically. Sure, she’d love to come along. And she actually didn’t mind doing the cooking herself. What a nice night this would be! As soon as Ronixis had seen that post he had responded with his own note. Hey, mind if I tag along? Sure, they had said. The more the merrier, right?
He was glad he had asked. It bugged him, thinking what might have happened if he’d let Ilia, Claude and Guy travel here alone. They might have gotten attacked by a monster and needed his help. If he hadn’t have offered to accompany them, what kind of friend would he have been? Or, that was what he continued to tell himself, at least. But really, it was painfully obvious in his own eyes, he was just here to make sure Ilia wasn’t alone with only Claude and Guy here at night. Not that he expected the men of planning anything harmful, and it wasn’t like Ilia couldn’t take care of herself had that been the case. However, he just didn’t feel right about it. Really, how well did he know Claude and Guy, anyway? Did one of them actually… like Ilia?
“Hey guys,” Ilia said, breaking the captain’s concentration. She was rummaging through some drawers, taking out various pots, pans and utensils that she planned to use to prepare their meal. The three men were standing to the side, but they all jumped at her words. “I could use a hand gathering ingredients. And could someone set up the table and some chairs?”
“Why don’t I help cook?” Claude said cheerfully, earning a sharp look from Ronixis in the dark. He would never have expected Claude to be so bold, but he had been the one to suggest the dinner in the first place…
“Actually, I’ll help with the cooking, Ilia,” Ronixis insisted, not planning to give the job to either of the younger men if he had a choice. He took a step forward maneuvering himself in front of Claude, but before he got too far Ilia was already straightening up, waving a hand in dismissal.
“N-no thanks, Captain. Actually, I think I’ll have Guy be my helper, if he doesn’t mind?” She laughed a bit, but seemed set on her choice. Ronixis found himself frowning in disapproval. Really, that had kind of hurt.
“I don’t mind,” Guy said as he pushed away from his spot leaning against a counter. “I guess that leaves Claude and Ronixis to get the dinner table set up.”
“Okay,” Claude conceded willingly enough, but Ronixis could only nod curtly. He didn’t care if they could see it in the dim light of their flashlights. It was taking every ounce of his self-control to keep smiling.
He set about the task of gathering a small table and utensils from the cafeteria with grim determination. While he worked, he tried to keep his mind on task, but he found it kept wandering back to the kitchen. Where Ilia and Guy were cooking them dinner. Together. Alone.
* * * *
Even Claude was willing to admit his plan was sketchy at best but he had to give it a shot. This was a rare opportunity. The institute offered little time to themselves like this, and they had been so lucky tonight! No monsters had attacked (yet!) and at least his mom seemed into it. But as for his dad…
“You traveled around a lot with M-- Ilia before coming here, right, Mister Ronixis?” He still hadn’t quite gotten used to having his mother around the institute just yet, and sometimes he still made these little mistakes. Someone had yet to call him on it, though.
“Mn,” was the only reply he received. Yeah, Dad was less than enthusiastic.
But why? Claude couldn’t help questioning his father’s weird attitude. He set some chairs around the table they had set aside, pondering.
Ronixis had seemed so excited on the bulletin board earlier that day—at least that had gone to plan. He hadn’t been able to guarantee his father would read it, but even so, he would have sought out Ronixis earlier in the night if he hadn’t responded. Now he just needed to set the mood a little and disappear with Guy, leaving his mom and dad alone for the rest of the night. It should have been a good plan but so many factors were in the air, and now another had been added into the mix—his father’s unusually dark demeanor. Maybe Dad wasn’t feeling well, or the setting was making him uneasy. Understandable. This entire place was a nest of danger, but he was usually so collected. What was wrong with this particular night?
Claude could only think maybe he didn’t like how their group had split apart. Maybe he was worried a monster would pop out from somewhere in the kitchen while they were out gathering in the cafeteria, leaving Mom open for attack. Maybe he could put his father’s mind at ease. “It’ll be fine, Mister Ronixis. Guy is in there, and Ilia seems capable in battle.”
“Claude, how well do you know Guy?” Claude had begun placing silverware down at each place setting when Ronixis had shot him that odd question instead of answering. It was so sudden and unexpected, Claude had to collect his thoughts for a moment before answering.
“…He’s a good friend.” Claude laughed, his confusion morphing into curiosity. “Why do you ask? You know Guy pretty well yourself, don’t you?”
“Hmmm…” Ronixis sat down at the set table and crossed his arms. Claude fought a sigh and sat down in the seat next to him.
Great. Now what’s the problem? He could only hope Guy was having better luck in the kitchen with his mother.
* * * *
Ilia checked the rice she had cooking. It was still a bit too al dente for her taste, but that was okay. That just left her with plenty of time to grill up some beef.
“Vegetables are all cut, Ilia.” She turned to her cooking partner to judge the results.
“Looks good, Guy. Toss them in the wok over there, would you?”
“Sure thing.” It was nice to have such a helpful hand in the kitchen. Ilia supposed she had guessed right when choosing Guy, though she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Sometimes it took a bit of the joy out of eating when you had to work hard over the preparation and she wanted Guy to enjoy tonight, but it had been her only option. Allowing the captain to cook would have led to disaster, and as for Claude, Ilia had never sampled his cooking, but her gut instinct held her against it. It was just a feeling, but Ilia trusted her instincts.
“Anything else I can help you with?” Guy offered with an obliging smile her way.
“If you could just keep an eye on the rice, that would be great!” Guy inclined his head towards her once and moved to do as he was told. Really, he was a great kitchen hand.
Ilia moved to start on the beef and vegetables, tossing in a few splashes of soy sauce and vinegar to taste. Stir fry was not the most romantic of meals but that wasn’t the point. Not entirely. When Claude had posted a note asking whether Ilia wanted to have dinner with himself and Guy a plan had formed in her mind. She would cook the food, make sure the mood was right, then make herself scarce.
This place didn’t offer much in the way of quiet time. Contemplating feelings for someone else was often set on the backburner, especially if the two with feelings for each other were too dense to see it themselves. Ilia could attest to that from experience. Although neither Guy nor Claude had admitted their feelings, Ilia was sure it was there—she saw it in their actions, they way they regarded one another. They just didn’t have the time to see it. She hoped to remedy that tonight, but there was just one potential problem…
“Sure is nice Ronixis could join us tonight,” Guy said, breaking the silence between them. Ilia glanced to the side, noting he had begun to plate the finished rice.
“Yeah! N-nice…” That’s right. Her captain had signed on for the meal as well. He was the dark horse; she hadn’t had the time to explain her plan to him before night had set. Well, no matter. He would probably catch on soon enough.
* * * *
Guy thought dinner was already looking pretty good, but that wasn’t his objective tonight. He sighed when he finished plating the rice, then set about grabbing a tray to carry the plates out on. Really, he wasn’t even sure why he was here anymore.
No, he knew why. Claude. His friend had asked for his help in this, and Guy hadn’t had the heart to turn him down, no matter how much he was against the idea. He didn’t like the idea of tricking Ronixis and Ilia into a date but it wasn’t his place to tell Claude what to do about his own parents. And who knows? Maybe it would have been different if it was a couple that held such a huge impact on Guy’s life, but he couldn’t say. Claude was sure his parents needed this, but Guy figured since Claude was here at all then they probably didn’t need any help getting together in the future.
Well, what was done was done. He had agreed to help, so he would stick to the plan. He just needed to finish cooking with Ilia, then somehow work with Claude to segue the meal into a romantic dinner for two. He could do that at least.
“Okay, stir fry is ready!” Ilia said, carefully lifting the wok from the range. She smiled at Guy, an endearing, familiar smile that Claude had inherited. Guy found himself unable to keep from smiling back. “Let’s plate it at the table.”
With an understanding nod, Guy grabbed the tray of rice-filled plates and began to lead the way to the dining table where Ronixis and Claude waited. Their flashlights were situated to light the table like mock-candlelight, but something was off. Guy could feel it as he set a plate of rice before each setting, but what could it be? Guy looked towards his friend, but Claude was fixated on his parents.
Once Guy had placed the rice down, Ilia moved to ladle their stir fry onto each plate. Servanthood instincts kicking in, Guy moved to Ilia’s side—not too close—and held out his hands for the heavy wok. “I can take care of that, Ilia.”
Before she could even make a move to accept or decline his offer Ronixis stood up, his eyes serious as ever. “No, you’ve both done enough. I’ll do it.”
Guy waved his hand dismissively. “It’s not a problem, Ronixis.”
“No. Sit down. I’ll take care of it.”
It was silent for a moment. Guy had never quite hear that tone of voice come from Ronixis before—not outside of battle, anyway. Yeah, something was definitely wrong, but what? Ronixis was smiling rather brightly. He hadn’t imagined it, had he? Not questioning, Guy sat and allowed Ronixis to take the job over from Ilia. She handed the wok to him with a slight reluctance, but otherwise didn’t say a word about his demeanor.
“I’m really excited about this meal, Ilia,” Claude said then, but even his chuckle seemed strained. All fell quiet again, with the only sound being the scrape of the ladle against the wok.
Well, if Guy was going to have to sit through this a bit longer, he could endure it. Especially if the meal was going to taste as good as it smelled, all spicy and smoky. He picked up his fork in preparation and sat down at his seat. Ronixis smiled at him, that same smile he had before, then served him up some stir fry.
Huh. There was an awful lot of cabbage on his plate…. Did Ronixis even give him any meat or other vegetables?
* * * *
Ronixis was very much an “act now, think later” kind of person and tonight was no different. He set the wok aside and took his seat, regretting nothing. Okay, maybe that move had been a little childish, but it was a test. That’s what he told himself, anyway.
That’s right! Guy had asserted himself as Ilia’s helper and he had yet to prove himself worthy of her exclusive company. But then again, Ilia had actually been the one to rebuff Ronixis before… Wait! Did that mean that she preferred Guy’s company over his own?
Ronixis turned suspicious eyes to the Auldrantian next to him. Guy was eating his food without complaint, if anything he looked content to munch on cabbage and rice all night long. Well, anything cooked by Iria back home had always turned out delicious. Ronixis hadn’t expected any different from Ilia, though tonight he couldn’t very well taste his food without it leaving a bitter aftertaste in his mouth.
“This is wonderful, Ilia!” Claude exclaimed, drawing Ronixis’ attention to the other man momentarily. Suddenly, the young blond from a future Space Date seemed rather animated. And Ronixis’ mind paused, switching gears. What if it was Claude that liked Ilia? Guy probably understood his place—he hadn’t come from their world and he understood nothing could really happen between himself and Ilia. But Claude, he came from the same world, just the future. Sure, that put him about 20 years younger than Ilia, but Ronixis was also about that much older than Ilia. So… so…
Ronixis clutched at the fork in his hand with a death grip. Both men were closer to Ilia’s age now and they probably were better suited because of just that little detail. However, they were going to have to prove themselves to Ronixis before he gave Ilia over to either of them. Yes, that he resolved to be sure of before she chose either man.
* * * *
There had been a few bumps at first, but Claude was sure things could only go up from here. Or so he hoped.
Dad was quiet but Mom seemed happy, and both had been all smiles tonight. So that meant his plan had been at least half-way successful so far! So all they needed to move farther in the appropriate direction was just a little extra push.
“It really is a great meal, Ilia,” Claude laughed, forcing his most cheerful smile. “I especially think the addition of the mushrooms made it absolutely delicious!” And that was the truth, but he was actually fishing for a compliment to come from his father’s way. Normally Dad was head over heels for his mom’s recipes that included mushrooms, but he had been overly quiet about everything tonight. Claude hoped it was more of a love-struck dumbness than anything, though he hadn’t known his father to be the type to be speechless.
He looked towards his father, but Ronixis didn’t seem interested in speaking. Or even eating, for that matter; he was barely picking at his food, even shuffling the mushrooms aside. So, Claude tried again, “You must be comparable to a trained chef, Ilia.”
“Oh, this is nothing special, really,” his mother laughed, raising a hand to hide her modest blush. Her eyes rested on Claude then slid them to Guy, and she smiled. “Actually, it was Guy that took care of the vegetables for me. He’s a terrific cook, and such a wonderful helper!”
That… wasn’t quite what Claude had been hoping for. There was a clang of silverware from his father’s side of the table, but Claude didn’t have time to look. He was too transfixed on his mother. What was she saying? Claude was starting to feel a bit confused as to what was really going on.
“Ah, don’t mention it, Ilia.” Guy gave her one of his most charming smiles.
And then Dad started shoveling more food from the wok onto Guy’s plate again. “Here Guy, have some more cabbage.”
Huh, that was odd, now that he thought about it. Claude hadn’t gotten much cabbage on his plate at all…
* * * *
Ilia had done her best to pay Guy a compliment, trying to get across to Claude that he should also send a compliment to her sous-chef but the other man hadn’t seemed to get it at all. Well, it might have worked better had the captain not decided then was a good time to offer more food. They had just sat down! How could any of them be finished with their portions yet?
Well, the captain wasn’t the best at picking up on social cues, unfortunately. She’d have to try and salvage what she could and really get this date undergone.
“Too bad we don’t have any drinks for tonight. I could use a glass of wine…” She was sorely disappointed she hadn’t managed to swipe a bottle for tonight, but it was rather short notice. And the underground bar Tifa owned didn’t cater quite the right type of booze for this kind of situation. “Yeah, a glass of wine would have really made the meal.”
“Oh, I don’t think it needs anything at all.” Guy said casually, but the bright way he smiled made Ilia wonder if maybe he was just being polite.
“Really, you guys are giving me too much credit,” she chuckled, the she sighed softy. This wasn’t going the way she planned at all. Something was bringing down the atmosphere…
“No way, I’ve never had such great cooking before!” Claude’s voice sounded just a little too loud that time, or maybe that was just Ilia’s imagination. He seemed a little nervous in her eyes too. Why did he keep looking around like that? “Mister Ronixis, you must be so lucky, getting to eat food like this all the time! Ha ha hah…”
“Mmn,” was the captain’s distracted reply. He didn’t sound enthusiastic at all, not like Claude and Guy did. And… that hurt. But why did it bother her now, when she was trying to do something for two good friends she had met here? Why did her captain always have to barge in without thinking? He shouldn’t have come if he was just going to bring everyone down like this!
“Captain, if you’re not even going to try to have a good time with us, you should just go back to your room.” She looked her captain square in the eye, glaring. She knew she would probably regret it later, but if sparks were ever going to start flying tonight they were going to have to get rid of the dead wood.
* * * *
Guy pushed pieces of cabbage around his plate, his jaw growing tense from smiling for so long. How much longer were they supposed to be here, anyway? As much as he wanted to help Claude, this was getting ridiculous. It definitely wasn’t going any better than it had at the beginning of the night, in Guy’s honest opinion. But Claude kept looking at him with those “please help me!” eyes and he just couldn’t leave his friend looking so desperate. It was time to do some damage control, and maybe figure out how to wrap this whole fiasco up without it getting any worse.
“Really, Ronixis, you should stay,” Guy insisted with a wave of his hand. “Claude and I will leave—“
“You will do no such thing!” Ilia interjected, crossing her arms. Guy could see her eyes flashing, and that was enough to quiet him, and freeze Claude and Ronixis for that matter. She turned those dangerous eyes directly on Ronixis then, and Guy felt like he could breathe again.
“Captain…” Her tone was filled with warning.
Ronixis sighed and stood—and with that, Guy knew Claude’s plan had officially failed. Although he hadn’t been in support of it, Guy couldn’t help feel defeated a little himself when he watched the older man turn away with a soft, “Fine then.”
Guy set down his fork and scrubbed at his face with his hands. That was that, he supposed.
“Wait!”
The desperate cry and the sound of a chair’s legs scrapping against the ground brought Guy’s face back up. He watched as Claude reached out, grabbing Ronixis’ hand before the older man could move too far. “Don’t leave! Please! I’m--” Maybe he really was that desperate, but hearing Claude’s voice shriek like that…
And then another chair was being pushed back. Ilia stood to her feet and she was… blushing? She stammered when she spoke, her eyes that had been flashing so adamantly before now filled with embarrassment and dread. “O-oh! I… I didn’t realize… I must have misread the situation!”
That sinking feeling… Guy had begun to feel a chill along with it. Certainly… certainly, Ilia didn’t think that Claude and Ronixis—Guy was the final one to stand to his feet, but in no less haste than any of the others. He laughed nervously and waved his hands, trying to put the mother of his close friend at ease. “Hold on now, Ilia! I-it’s not what you think!”
Guy looked to Claude, and this time he was the one begging for help, but neither Claude nor Ronixis seemed to understand why Ilia was suddenly so distressed. Guy was only about half-sure himself, but in any case he knew tonight could be considered nothing short of an absolute failure.
….. And that was about the time the intercom came back on, bringing their confounding night to an unsatisfactory close.
* * * *
There was an unspoken pact between the four of them afterwards to never speak of that night ever again. So much the better. None of them ever quite understood the situation in its entirety, anyway.
The End
Author: Cager ♪
Beta: Jansen ♥
Word Count: About 3,800
Rating: PG
Character(s): Ronixis J. Kenni, Claude C. Kenni, Ilia Silvestri, Guy Cecil, and one small mention of Tifa
Pairing(s): Um… who knows? XD;
Summary: Claude has scheduled a dinner to try and get his parents together! Or is Ilia the one trying to play cupid? Ronixis is suspicious! And where does Guy fall into this strange family affair? And epic communication fail was had by all~
Notes: First, I apologize if my formatting is hard to follow. I tried to write in a way that would be easy to catch the viewpoint changes, but I might have failed in that aspect. ^^; Also, a lot of things in this fic are assumed, such as that Guy and Claude know about the relationship between Claude, Ronixis and Ilia, but Ronixis and Ilia are still in the dark about it all. Please, enjoy.
Ronixis drummed his fingers restlessly against his hip. He didn’t quite understand how this had come to pass, but here he was, spying.
No, no, not spying! he insisted, shuffling on his feet and crossing his arms. Really, it wasn’t spying if he was invited. And he had been invited along. That he wasn’t invited until after he had replied to Claude’s bulletin board note was just a minor detail. He belonged here in the kitchen tonight, just as much as Guy or Ilia. There was nothing wrong about his presence. But then why did it feel so awkward?
They had traveled to the kitchen of the institute tonight for what usually might have seemed like a silly reason—Claude had asked if Ilia wanted to have dinner with him. Sure, this place gave them free dinners, but what about something nice, just between friends? And Guy was coming along too! How great was that! And of course she had agreed enthusiastically. Sure, she’d love to come along. And she actually didn’t mind doing the cooking herself. What a nice night this would be! As soon as Ronixis had seen that post he had responded with his own note. Hey, mind if I tag along? Sure, they had said. The more the merrier, right?
He was glad he had asked. It bugged him, thinking what might have happened if he’d let Ilia, Claude and Guy travel here alone. They might have gotten attacked by a monster and needed his help. If he hadn’t have offered to accompany them, what kind of friend would he have been? Or, that was what he continued to tell himself, at least. But really, it was painfully obvious in his own eyes, he was just here to make sure Ilia wasn’t alone with only Claude and Guy here at night. Not that he expected the men of planning anything harmful, and it wasn’t like Ilia couldn’t take care of herself had that been the case. However, he just didn’t feel right about it. Really, how well did he know Claude and Guy, anyway? Did one of them actually… like Ilia?
“Hey guys,” Ilia said, breaking the captain’s concentration. She was rummaging through some drawers, taking out various pots, pans and utensils that she planned to use to prepare their meal. The three men were standing to the side, but they all jumped at her words. “I could use a hand gathering ingredients. And could someone set up the table and some chairs?”
“Why don’t I help cook?” Claude said cheerfully, earning a sharp look from Ronixis in the dark. He would never have expected Claude to be so bold, but he had been the one to suggest the dinner in the first place…
“Actually, I’ll help with the cooking, Ilia,” Ronixis insisted, not planning to give the job to either of the younger men if he had a choice. He took a step forward maneuvering himself in front of Claude, but before he got too far Ilia was already straightening up, waving a hand in dismissal.
“N-no thanks, Captain. Actually, I think I’ll have Guy be my helper, if he doesn’t mind?” She laughed a bit, but seemed set on her choice. Ronixis found himself frowning in disapproval. Really, that had kind of hurt.
“I don’t mind,” Guy said as he pushed away from his spot leaning against a counter. “I guess that leaves Claude and Ronixis to get the dinner table set up.”
“Okay,” Claude conceded willingly enough, but Ronixis could only nod curtly. He didn’t care if they could see it in the dim light of their flashlights. It was taking every ounce of his self-control to keep smiling.
He set about the task of gathering a small table and utensils from the cafeteria with grim determination. While he worked, he tried to keep his mind on task, but he found it kept wandering back to the kitchen. Where Ilia and Guy were cooking them dinner. Together. Alone.
Even Claude was willing to admit his plan was sketchy at best but he had to give it a shot. This was a rare opportunity. The institute offered little time to themselves like this, and they had been so lucky tonight! No monsters had attacked (yet!) and at least his mom seemed into it. But as for his dad…
“You traveled around a lot with M-- Ilia before coming here, right, Mister Ronixis?” He still hadn’t quite gotten used to having his mother around the institute just yet, and sometimes he still made these little mistakes. Someone had yet to call him on it, though.
“Mn,” was the only reply he received. Yeah, Dad was less than enthusiastic.
But why? Claude couldn’t help questioning his father’s weird attitude. He set some chairs around the table they had set aside, pondering.
Ronixis had seemed so excited on the bulletin board earlier that day—at least that had gone to plan. He hadn’t been able to guarantee his father would read it, but even so, he would have sought out Ronixis earlier in the night if he hadn’t responded. Now he just needed to set the mood a little and disappear with Guy, leaving his mom and dad alone for the rest of the night. It should have been a good plan but so many factors were in the air, and now another had been added into the mix—his father’s unusually dark demeanor. Maybe Dad wasn’t feeling well, or the setting was making him uneasy. Understandable. This entire place was a nest of danger, but he was usually so collected. What was wrong with this particular night?
Claude could only think maybe he didn’t like how their group had split apart. Maybe he was worried a monster would pop out from somewhere in the kitchen while they were out gathering in the cafeteria, leaving Mom open for attack. Maybe he could put his father’s mind at ease. “It’ll be fine, Mister Ronixis. Guy is in there, and Ilia seems capable in battle.”
“Claude, how well do you know Guy?” Claude had begun placing silverware down at each place setting when Ronixis had shot him that odd question instead of answering. It was so sudden and unexpected, Claude had to collect his thoughts for a moment before answering.
“…He’s a good friend.” Claude laughed, his confusion morphing into curiosity. “Why do you ask? You know Guy pretty well yourself, don’t you?”
“Hmmm…” Ronixis sat down at the set table and crossed his arms. Claude fought a sigh and sat down in the seat next to him.
Great. Now what’s the problem? He could only hope Guy was having better luck in the kitchen with his mother.
Ilia checked the rice she had cooking. It was still a bit too al dente for her taste, but that was okay. That just left her with plenty of time to grill up some beef.
“Vegetables are all cut, Ilia.” She turned to her cooking partner to judge the results.
“Looks good, Guy. Toss them in the wok over there, would you?”
“Sure thing.” It was nice to have such a helpful hand in the kitchen. Ilia supposed she had guessed right when choosing Guy, though she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Sometimes it took a bit of the joy out of eating when you had to work hard over the preparation and she wanted Guy to enjoy tonight, but it had been her only option. Allowing the captain to cook would have led to disaster, and as for Claude, Ilia had never sampled his cooking, but her gut instinct held her against it. It was just a feeling, but Ilia trusted her instincts.
“Anything else I can help you with?” Guy offered with an obliging smile her way.
“If you could just keep an eye on the rice, that would be great!” Guy inclined his head towards her once and moved to do as he was told. Really, he was a great kitchen hand.
Ilia moved to start on the beef and vegetables, tossing in a few splashes of soy sauce and vinegar to taste. Stir fry was not the most romantic of meals but that wasn’t the point. Not entirely. When Claude had posted a note asking whether Ilia wanted to have dinner with himself and Guy a plan had formed in her mind. She would cook the food, make sure the mood was right, then make herself scarce.
This place didn’t offer much in the way of quiet time. Contemplating feelings for someone else was often set on the backburner, especially if the two with feelings for each other were too dense to see it themselves. Ilia could attest to that from experience. Although neither Guy nor Claude had admitted their feelings, Ilia was sure it was there—she saw it in their actions, they way they regarded one another. They just didn’t have the time to see it. She hoped to remedy that tonight, but there was just one potential problem…
“Sure is nice Ronixis could join us tonight,” Guy said, breaking the silence between them. Ilia glanced to the side, noting he had begun to plate the finished rice.
“Yeah! N-nice…” That’s right. Her captain had signed on for the meal as well. He was the dark horse; she hadn’t had the time to explain her plan to him before night had set. Well, no matter. He would probably catch on soon enough.
Guy thought dinner was already looking pretty good, but that wasn’t his objective tonight. He sighed when he finished plating the rice, then set about grabbing a tray to carry the plates out on. Really, he wasn’t even sure why he was here anymore.
No, he knew why. Claude. His friend had asked for his help in this, and Guy hadn’t had the heart to turn him down, no matter how much he was against the idea. He didn’t like the idea of tricking Ronixis and Ilia into a date but it wasn’t his place to tell Claude what to do about his own parents. And who knows? Maybe it would have been different if it was a couple that held such a huge impact on Guy’s life, but he couldn’t say. Claude was sure his parents needed this, but Guy figured since Claude was here at all then they probably didn’t need any help getting together in the future.
Well, what was done was done. He had agreed to help, so he would stick to the plan. He just needed to finish cooking with Ilia, then somehow work with Claude to segue the meal into a romantic dinner for two. He could do that at least.
“Okay, stir fry is ready!” Ilia said, carefully lifting the wok from the range. She smiled at Guy, an endearing, familiar smile that Claude had inherited. Guy found himself unable to keep from smiling back. “Let’s plate it at the table.”
With an understanding nod, Guy grabbed the tray of rice-filled plates and began to lead the way to the dining table where Ronixis and Claude waited. Their flashlights were situated to light the table like mock-candlelight, but something was off. Guy could feel it as he set a plate of rice before each setting, but what could it be? Guy looked towards his friend, but Claude was fixated on his parents.
Once Guy had placed the rice down, Ilia moved to ladle their stir fry onto each plate. Servanthood instincts kicking in, Guy moved to Ilia’s side—not too close—and held out his hands for the heavy wok. “I can take care of that, Ilia.”
Before she could even make a move to accept or decline his offer Ronixis stood up, his eyes serious as ever. “No, you’ve both done enough. I’ll do it.”
Guy waved his hand dismissively. “It’s not a problem, Ronixis.”
“No. Sit down. I’ll take care of it.”
It was silent for a moment. Guy had never quite hear that tone of voice come from Ronixis before—not outside of battle, anyway. Yeah, something was definitely wrong, but what? Ronixis was smiling rather brightly. He hadn’t imagined it, had he? Not questioning, Guy sat and allowed Ronixis to take the job over from Ilia. She handed the wok to him with a slight reluctance, but otherwise didn’t say a word about his demeanor.
“I’m really excited about this meal, Ilia,” Claude said then, but even his chuckle seemed strained. All fell quiet again, with the only sound being the scrape of the ladle against the wok.
Well, if Guy was going to have to sit through this a bit longer, he could endure it. Especially if the meal was going to taste as good as it smelled, all spicy and smoky. He picked up his fork in preparation and sat down at his seat. Ronixis smiled at him, that same smile he had before, then served him up some stir fry.
Huh. There was an awful lot of cabbage on his plate…. Did Ronixis even give him any meat or other vegetables?
Ronixis was very much an “act now, think later” kind of person and tonight was no different. He set the wok aside and took his seat, regretting nothing. Okay, maybe that move had been a little childish, but it was a test. That’s what he told himself, anyway.
That’s right! Guy had asserted himself as Ilia’s helper and he had yet to prove himself worthy of her exclusive company. But then again, Ilia had actually been the one to rebuff Ronixis before… Wait! Did that mean that she preferred Guy’s company over his own?
Ronixis turned suspicious eyes to the Auldrantian next to him. Guy was eating his food without complaint, if anything he looked content to munch on cabbage and rice all night long. Well, anything cooked by Iria back home had always turned out delicious. Ronixis hadn’t expected any different from Ilia, though tonight he couldn’t very well taste his food without it leaving a bitter aftertaste in his mouth.
“This is wonderful, Ilia!” Claude exclaimed, drawing Ronixis’ attention to the other man momentarily. Suddenly, the young blond from a future Space Date seemed rather animated. And Ronixis’ mind paused, switching gears. What if it was Claude that liked Ilia? Guy probably understood his place—he hadn’t come from their world and he understood nothing could really happen between himself and Ilia. But Claude, he came from the same world, just the future. Sure, that put him about 20 years younger than Ilia, but Ronixis was also about that much older than Ilia. So… so…
Ronixis clutched at the fork in his hand with a death grip. Both men were closer to Ilia’s age now and they probably were better suited because of just that little detail. However, they were going to have to prove themselves to Ronixis before he gave Ilia over to either of them. Yes, that he resolved to be sure of before she chose either man.
There had been a few bumps at first, but Claude was sure things could only go up from here. Or so he hoped.
Dad was quiet but Mom seemed happy, and both had been all smiles tonight. So that meant his plan had been at least half-way successful so far! So all they needed to move farther in the appropriate direction was just a little extra push.
“It really is a great meal, Ilia,” Claude laughed, forcing his most cheerful smile. “I especially think the addition of the mushrooms made it absolutely delicious!” And that was the truth, but he was actually fishing for a compliment to come from his father’s way. Normally Dad was head over heels for his mom’s recipes that included mushrooms, but he had been overly quiet about everything tonight. Claude hoped it was more of a love-struck dumbness than anything, though he hadn’t known his father to be the type to be speechless.
He looked towards his father, but Ronixis didn’t seem interested in speaking. Or even eating, for that matter; he was barely picking at his food, even shuffling the mushrooms aside. So, Claude tried again, “You must be comparable to a trained chef, Ilia.”
“Oh, this is nothing special, really,” his mother laughed, raising a hand to hide her modest blush. Her eyes rested on Claude then slid them to Guy, and she smiled. “Actually, it was Guy that took care of the vegetables for me. He’s a terrific cook, and such a wonderful helper!”
That… wasn’t quite what Claude had been hoping for. There was a clang of silverware from his father’s side of the table, but Claude didn’t have time to look. He was too transfixed on his mother. What was she saying? Claude was starting to feel a bit confused as to what was really going on.
“Ah, don’t mention it, Ilia.” Guy gave her one of his most charming smiles.
And then Dad started shoveling more food from the wok onto Guy’s plate again. “Here Guy, have some more cabbage.”
Huh, that was odd, now that he thought about it. Claude hadn’t gotten much cabbage on his plate at all…
Ilia had done her best to pay Guy a compliment, trying to get across to Claude that he should also send a compliment to her sous-chef but the other man hadn’t seemed to get it at all. Well, it might have worked better had the captain not decided then was a good time to offer more food. They had just sat down! How could any of them be finished with their portions yet?
Well, the captain wasn’t the best at picking up on social cues, unfortunately. She’d have to try and salvage what she could and really get this date undergone.
“Too bad we don’t have any drinks for tonight. I could use a glass of wine…” She was sorely disappointed she hadn’t managed to swipe a bottle for tonight, but it was rather short notice. And the underground bar Tifa owned didn’t cater quite the right type of booze for this kind of situation. “Yeah, a glass of wine would have really made the meal.”
“Oh, I don’t think it needs anything at all.” Guy said casually, but the bright way he smiled made Ilia wonder if maybe he was just being polite.
“Really, you guys are giving me too much credit,” she chuckled, the she sighed softy. This wasn’t going the way she planned at all. Something was bringing down the atmosphere…
“No way, I’ve never had such great cooking before!” Claude’s voice sounded just a little too loud that time, or maybe that was just Ilia’s imagination. He seemed a little nervous in her eyes too. Why did he keep looking around like that? “Mister Ronixis, you must be so lucky, getting to eat food like this all the time! Ha ha hah…”
“Mmn,” was the captain’s distracted reply. He didn’t sound enthusiastic at all, not like Claude and Guy did. And… that hurt. But why did it bother her now, when she was trying to do something for two good friends she had met here? Why did her captain always have to barge in without thinking? He shouldn’t have come if he was just going to bring everyone down like this!
“Captain, if you’re not even going to try to have a good time with us, you should just go back to your room.” She looked her captain square in the eye, glaring. She knew she would probably regret it later, but if sparks were ever going to start flying tonight they were going to have to get rid of the dead wood.
Guy pushed pieces of cabbage around his plate, his jaw growing tense from smiling for so long. How much longer were they supposed to be here, anyway? As much as he wanted to help Claude, this was getting ridiculous. It definitely wasn’t going any better than it had at the beginning of the night, in Guy’s honest opinion. But Claude kept looking at him with those “please help me!” eyes and he just couldn’t leave his friend looking so desperate. It was time to do some damage control, and maybe figure out how to wrap this whole fiasco up without it getting any worse.
“Really, Ronixis, you should stay,” Guy insisted with a wave of his hand. “Claude and I will leave—“
“You will do no such thing!” Ilia interjected, crossing her arms. Guy could see her eyes flashing, and that was enough to quiet him, and freeze Claude and Ronixis for that matter. She turned those dangerous eyes directly on Ronixis then, and Guy felt like he could breathe again.
“Captain…” Her tone was filled with warning.
Ronixis sighed and stood—and with that, Guy knew Claude’s plan had officially failed. Although he hadn’t been in support of it, Guy couldn’t help feel defeated a little himself when he watched the older man turn away with a soft, “Fine then.”
Guy set down his fork and scrubbed at his face with his hands. That was that, he supposed.
“Wait!”
The desperate cry and the sound of a chair’s legs scrapping against the ground brought Guy’s face back up. He watched as Claude reached out, grabbing Ronixis’ hand before the older man could move too far. “Don’t leave! Please! I’m--” Maybe he really was that desperate, but hearing Claude’s voice shriek like that…
And then another chair was being pushed back. Ilia stood to her feet and she was… blushing? She stammered when she spoke, her eyes that had been flashing so adamantly before now filled with embarrassment and dread. “O-oh! I… I didn’t realize… I must have misread the situation!”
That sinking feeling… Guy had begun to feel a chill along with it. Certainly… certainly, Ilia didn’t think that Claude and Ronixis—Guy was the final one to stand to his feet, but in no less haste than any of the others. He laughed nervously and waved his hands, trying to put the mother of his close friend at ease. “Hold on now, Ilia! I-it’s not what you think!”
Guy looked to Claude, and this time he was the one begging for help, but neither Claude nor Ronixis seemed to understand why Ilia was suddenly so distressed. Guy was only about half-sure himself, but in any case he knew tonight could be considered nothing short of an absolute failure.
….. And that was about the time the intercom came back on, bringing their confounding night to an unsatisfactory close.
There was an unspoken pact between the four of them afterwards to never speak of that night ever again. So much the better. None of them ever quite understood the situation in its entirety, anyway.
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I mean, I'm kind of a sucker for the whole "reader knows things the characters don't" device, and we get this from, like...four different angles, LOL. Changing points of view in a single piece can be rather difficult, and yet you pulled it off really well, I think. The story was easy to follow, and you managed to capture each character's voice well! I could easily see this playing out as a Star Ocean-esque PA or something like that.
Favorite parts: I loved how Claude and Ilia's identical methods of trying to set people up just wound up sabotaging the other, while the image of Ronixis being all, "HERE, GUY, HAVE MOAR CABBAGE :)" and Guy being like, "8D;; wow this is ridiculous" never fails to make me laugh for some reason.
Also, I liked the line where Guy notes how Ilia and Claude have the same smile. ;u;
AND THE END = LOLLLLL. YEAH, I...pretty much loved all of this. Thank you for writing it!! +_+
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Ha ha, I worried about my method of switching it around, but I didn't feel like anyone would understand what was going on if I just followed one of them. ^^; If I had followed one, it would have been Guy, too, since he's the odd one out, but I wasn't confident I could write it all from his perspective either. So, there's that! I'm glad it came across as kind of PA like too~
I have been thinking lately that Claude and Ilia are a lot alike. I mean, Claude does has his father in him, but he's so close to Ilia, probably because I imagine he grew up around her more, so imagining them having similar ideas but with different goals seemed plausible. And pffft! The cabbage. I almost didn't put that in, but I felt Ronixis would need some method of retaliation and trolling Guy with cabbage seemed more likely than Ronixis actually lashing out. "NO MEAT FOR YOU, GUY! JUST CABBAGE AND RICE! >:["
I figured if anyone is going to make the connection between them looking so alike, it would be Guy. And I do think Claude inherited Ilia's smile. :3
Once again, I'm glad you enjoyed it~ <3 I'll have to do better next time, but this was a fun little project to write.
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And I agree, Claude and Ilia are definitely a lot alike! There's some Ronixis in there, but there are a lot of things Claude seems to take from his mother, too. (It would have been easy to make him a "mini" version of Ron or something, but I loved how the game designers tried to make him an Ilia/Ron hybrid.) Like, I could easily see them both trying to set people they cared about up with each other, while Ronixis is less likely to get involved with something like that, I think. And instead a lot of his thoughts would be focused internally, while not doing much to broadcast them. You created that dynamic well, which is fun to see since we never get to see the three of them interact onscreen in canon.
But yeah, I really loved reading this and thought it was fantastic. I eagerly aware to see what you cook up next time. +_+
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And I'm really glad my interpretation of the characters and their way of expressing/suppressing their motives came across well. I worried, since I'm not through with SO2 or Abyss, and I've never played Ronixis before (though that would be intriguing to throw one up in FOC or d_m), so... yeah. I'm glad it worked according to your standards. *considers you the authority on these characters*
:3 Ha ha, my next one for Damned will likely concern Damon Gant and a few other misfits/baddies, and maybe set in a post-Landel's setting, but I don't really know yet. ^^; Hopefully I come up with something good, though! <3
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And all things are amazing if they are done damned styleAlso loving that everyone kept shipping everyone else (or anti-shipping in Ronixis' case) and mixing everything up in the most horrendous of ways. And lol the hate-cabbage, I enjoy the idea of that way more than I should.
GREAT WORK CAGER. 8D
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Yeah, there's a lot of mixed signals in this dysfunctional family. And the cabbage almost didn't make the cut. I guess it was a good idea to keep that in there in the end, lol! ^^;
THANKS FOR READING! :3
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I both enjoy and cringe when reading something like this, with all the misunderstandings and misinterpretations flying everywhere while everyone is simultaneously trying to keep their cool. It's a pretty hilarious situation and I think it turned out wonderfully! 8D
You handled all of the characters awesomely, and the switching around of POV wasn't confusing in the slightest. If anything, it really helped the fic and I liked it a lot. ♥
I love that Ilia was trying to get Guy and Claude together, too. That's a really adorable idea, especially considering Claude is her son. You have that undertone of "I want my kid to be with a good guy" ... even though she has no clue that she's related to Claude. x)
Also, the cabbage. That really was one of the best parts. I felt really bad for Guy in this situation, but I think the way you portrayed him trying to keep his cool and mediate it all worked out pretty nicely.
So yes, this is just a great mishmash of things going terribly wrong that was a pleasure to read! It's just a shame we can't mess around like this in Damned itself. ;__;
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So glad you enjoyed it! Even if it did make you cringe with the awkwardness of the situation. XD
The mixed POV seemed like a great idea when I conceived it, but there's an elegance that this fic is lacking because of it. I need to figure out how to work it out better, but I'm glad it seemed to come across well to you as a reader.
:3 I have this feeling that Ilia will subconsciously know that Claude is her son, despite not knowing directly. And Ilia is kind of a busybody in the game when it comes to other peoples' relationships so... XD Yeah, it came out like this.
Pfffft, the trolling cabbage is apparently one of the most enjoyed parts of this fic for everyone. Which amuses me, since I almost cut it out completely for fear that Ronixis might seem OOC. But I think it was passive enough to be allowed. SORRY GUY WAS THE ONE THAT HAD TO PUT UP WITH THIS FAMILY'S SCREWED UP CHEMISTRY! But he was the most likely target~ :p I'm glad he didn't come across as OOC. I understand his characterization the least out of all of them (though Claude is also still a little lost on me.)
Ha ha, well, maybe we could at least have more shenanigans with Ilia, Claude and Guy together sometime. XD I'll just have to try to not fail so much at posting next time around.
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I'm pretty sure that you pulled it off just fine, though! You don't need to worry about it, since it all flowed and I found it easy to follow.
That's a pretty cute idea, and yeah, I could totally see her doing this, so. :3
The cabbage thing was just hilarious, what can I say? Sometime you just have to roll with it if the idea is good enough, so I'm glad you that you kept it in! AND DON'T APOLOGIZE, I'm thrilled that Guy was in this fic and you did great with him, seriously!
We will definitely have to plan for that. And you didn't fail!