Waking from hibernation

[bitterguardian]

Amarante's first visit to Horvath's home was brief, but the place makes an impression. Deep underground, buried in metal and concrete and layers of wards even his old master would be impressed by, Horvath is an old dragon huddled in a subterranean lair. He may have mentioned 'the vault', and he's told her before of how he guards something the Morganians would gladly kill him to get. His home is a bomb shelter, and he keeps it very tightly under lock and key.

Inside this fortress, he's made a grand space, though. His library fills most of an abandoned train station, with a cathedral ceiling that's mostly lost in shadow and rows of bookshelves that stretch further than can be seen from standing in any one spot. There are throw rugs, plush antique chairs and couches, desks and tables piled with books and papers and knickknacks, and a few display stands and cabinets that hold bizarre and impressive items collected on his travels over the ages. Lamps scattered throughout the place cast just enough light to give a warm and cozy glow to the place, without making it too bright. It's a far cry from the sanctuary Mara took him to, but the place has been molded around him like well-worn clothing or a favorite chair. Every inch of the place is very him.

Winter sent him curling up close to home, in the kind of retreat he tried to warn her he so often falls prey to. The cold has begun to creep into his bones, the past few years, and he hates to even risk slipping on the ice. It's far easier to stay down here, in the warmth and comfort of his books and his cats. He feels a little guilty for it, but with spring, it seems time to make an effort to come out of hibernation. His invitation is tentative, since she's been busy serving her Lady over the winter, and having her visit him isn't much of a step outside himself, but he's trying. With a table laid out for tea, Horvath awaits his guest, while the cats demand his attention simply because they can sense his quiet anxieties.

Comments

[sunandshadows]

The pinPoint is truly a wonder, though Mara hasn't grown to trust it really, not yet. After all, going through a gate is one thing, there will always be a gate at the other side. But what if one of the coordinates to the little time-space-warp-mechanism-thing is off? What if she disappears and ends up in a wall, or under the ocean, or even out in space? What if it malfunctions?

No, she'll take her gates any time she can. Still - some places she can't reach by gate; and when its to these places she wants to go, this is the means by which she will be there.

And this is one place she very much wants to go.

When she does arrive, it's in a sweetly delicate, fragrant cloud of mock orange and snowdrop anemone, because that's what's braided into her hair this time. Over the holidays she wore deep red rose buds and sprigs of pointed, green mistletoe. But spring has come, at least somewhere. And with it, came the new growth, new life, new beauty.

As is her habit, she's brought a full satchel of something that hangs on one arm, and she sets it down on the floor as soon as she appears under one of the massive arches that rise up overhead. Her grass-green salwar kameez is bordered by bright embroidery, hues of pink and bands of gold. And yes, this time she's wearing shoes.

"Maxim? Maxim, Je suis d'ici! Maxim?"

Would have been great if DW told me I had a reply...

[bitterguardian]

All PINpoints are designed with security measures to prevent just the kind of thing Mara is worried about from happening- no PINpointing into objects, or into an unbreathable atmosphere (Thanks Eiko!). Malfunctions are rare... but not completely out of the question. That said, Horvath greatly prefers to use his own means to get from one place to another despite years of familiarity with the Nexus, so he's not going to bolster her confidence there. People who can create their own gates so often seem to trust that better.

Horvath's home is tricky to get into, though, and she may feel the wards as the PINpoint pulls her there. It's just possible, if he didn't have them set to let her through, the PINpoint would end up bouncing her to the unlovely tunnels just outside. There's a front door there, but he doesn't like to bring friends through it, because it's a little embarrassing to have them realize his cozy library is nestled in mucky rat-infested tunnels. His home smells of tea and cookies and old paper, though, warm and inviting. The sudden swirl of springtime breeze in that environment is unexpected, but very much welcome. "Ah! You are here." The smile that spreads across his face is broad and genuine, and once he's levered himself to his feet he crosses a few paces to meet her and holds out an arm, inviting a hug.

On the chair he was so recently sitting, a grey cloud of fur flattens itself as if hoping to meld with the furniture, while a slightly plumper white and grey mass of fur drops over the arm and underneath to stare from the shadows.

*kicks DW for you*

[sunandshadows]

Most other times she would skip over, gleefully curling into his arms with exclamations loudly in both French and English and kissing him on both cheeks. This time however she had an audience, although it was admittedly a furry audience for certain. And she doesn't want to startle and discomfort them any more than they were already. After all, they lived here. She was just a visitor.

"The weather has been windy and cold this spring, I've not wandered afield as much as I wanted - which means I've been baking quite a bit lately. I'm running out of people to to feed, so I am quite afraid it is your turn to suffer with my cooking, Maxim. Oh, and I brought some fresh fish for your companions as well."

He keeps the lighting just right in his vast underground. Not too bright, not too dark. And so many books! In spite of her initial trepidation, Mara was soon oohing and aahing over his vast library of knowledge.

Last time she had visited, Mara had gotten so entranced in a book of Medieval Italian poetry she had been reading that her host had found her fast asleep with her feet over one arm of a chair and her head tipped back over the other. And the book of poems curled protectively in her sleeping arms on her chest.

Ah, last time. She was between messages, from one court to another; from one festivity to the next and the shimmer of the shining ones was bright upon her. And his home had been a soothing balm for a bright-burning soul, giving her a chance to rest and relax in the midst of a crazed holiday rush. It wasn't her home in the forest; but it was majestic and regal, and dignified and yet still comfortable.

Quite like her host in fact.

"Can I tempt you with some lavender-lemon tea cakes perhaps? With lemon-zest frosting?" Giving him an extra squeeze, she pulled away with a smile, just her head and shoulders to look up at him. "I have missed you so! And I brought food to share with Belthazar as well, when you see him. If you don't feast on all of it before his next visit I mean!"

I *think* I have the settings fixed, now.

[bitterguardian]

If Horvath only knew any lack of enthusiasm on his part was out of concern for the cats! As it is, he does wonder briefly over the more subdued greeting, but then she's wrapped in a long arm for a gentle bear hug, and all is right with the world. This winter hasn't treated him too badly, between her visit and Bel's baking his favorite cookies, and now she's bringing him more food. He'll have to visit her next time, in the outdoors, for some exercise. "Goodness! U have mentioned you're dangerous? But of course you can tempt me. There's tea ready, to go with them." He so rarely has guests, and his excitement over her visit is palpable, dignified though he typically tries to be.

The last time she was here, the cats never came properly out of hiding, although Smoke came around to sniff at her when she was asleep. They're accustomed to Horvath falling asleep sprawled in chairs or couches with a book across his chest, so the familiarity was good. This time, Smoke is on top of the chair instead of under it, even if she does look like she wants to escape notice, so that's an improvement?

"Come, sit, and I really need to get both of you here for tea at once. Are you... still being kept busy?" He ignores the wary cats, inviting Mara over to the small grouping of chairs and coffee table he uses for what little entertaining he does do. The teapot and cups are laid out, and a plate with some crackers and cheese and cut apple, because here he was trying to be healthy.

Re: I *think* I have the settings fixed, now.

[sunandshadows]

And here she comes to absolutely ruin his attempts at eating healthy for the new year. The tea smells wonderful, and should go with what she's been baking very well. However, first things first. Mara gives her host one last hug, then retreats to where her satchel is, coming out with something that's been wrapped in paper, and wrapped again. This, and a large, clear jug of fresh-from-the-cow milk of course. These things go into Horvath's refrigerator immediately. Because when she says that the fish are fresh, she means it.

She starts talking as she walks toward the kitchen, and then as she's coming back."Oui, now that the festivities are over - well, next is the Belaine celebration, but that isn't for another month yet." She pronounces it 'Bael-sheena" as she comes back to the room. "That one is also rather large, but I am hoping to avoid much of the festivities this year. I always did love the bonfires and dancing on Walpurgisnacht however, the night before."

The grin she gives him is slightly mischievous, slightly knowing. "And you know not to go out roaming in the wilds on that night, oui? Your old teacher would have known to teach you that especially."

[bitterguardian]

Horvath's attempts at healthy eating tend to be half-hearted, at best. He's in the habit of eating in an irregular fashion, the lack of daylight in his home leading to an erratic schedule, but he has the sort of stocky build that means he was probably always doomed to put on a little extra weight later in life. He also has a weakness for cookies.

The kitchen isn't far, since he doesn't want to travel a long distance with the tea things, but it's a slight contrast to the massive main room that is his library. Tiled in pale green, with a mix of industrial steel counters and an old nineteen-fifties refrigerator, it's hard to guess what the room was before it was repurposed as a kitchen. Of course, the plumbing for the sinks was already present, so it's just possible it was once a bathroom. Probably it's better not to think about it too much. When she returns, Horvath is leaning on his cane to watch the cats with an expression of mild amusement. "As if I'd go roaming in the wilds without you. But yes, not only Merlin, but when I was a young boy there were always warnings and stories..."

Whisper, who Horvath has warned her is shyer and terrified of feet, has poked her head out from under the chair, pink nose twitching in the air.
Smoke, craftier, is stalking Mara from the shadows, long grey fur helping her to blend in.

[sunandshadows]

"But is that not how I found you, a roaming in the wild? And good it was that I did, for I'd have been lost without you!" She giggles, and pauses to lean carefully against her host, being careful press to too much of her body weight on the sorcerer. Her eyes follow the direction of his head, and see both of his pets in their activities. With an elusive smile, she shakes her head.

"I sometimes think that the story of le homme that slept a hundred years - Rip Van Winkle? He was out on Walpurgis night, and found a fairy ring." She changes subjects abruptly, as something else catches her attention.

"Shall we combine our foods to make a feast, mon ami?" Her arms snakes around his back to squeeze him gently before pretending she does not see his little furred friends and heading over to her satchel. Crouching down, lifts it, sets it into a chair, and then begins pulling containers of food out of it. The first one, once opened indeed has the lavender-lemon tea cakes. And then out comes a tiramisu, various cookies, a container of fresh cheeses, a loaf of bread, still hot from the oven and drizzled with melted butter (there really are some benefits to this PINpoint, she thinks again).

[bitterguardian]

"A rare exception these days, I'm afraid." There's another brief one-armed hug, and while it's wise not to lean on him too much, he seems to have no end of hugs for her. "And I expect I was the one who was lost. Being lured along by the charms of a faerie seems to have done me no harm, though. I expect you're right, about Rip Van Winkle... there are so many stories, not just in the old world, but here in the Americas, too..." He limps after her slowly, offering to help set things out. It's fortunate the coffee table is big, and he's cleared away the usual piles of books and papers for their tea. "Oh goodness... another feast..." He was half expecting it anyway, knowing her.

Whisper ducks back, but she's still watching, while Smoke slinks closer, tail curling this way and that. "I think you'll win the girls over yet. They're certainly interested in you..."

[sunandshadows]

"Perhaps I should not have put the fish and milk away?" She watched them out of the corner of her eyes, making sure not to stare in the direction of either cat.

Her head turned, surprised. "Really? Here in the Sunset Lands? I know stories of Europe, I was raised on them. I dis not know that there were stories here as well! Do you know any?" Her excitement was almost palpable as she pretended to ignore the cats and help finish setting the food on the table.

"I think the table is ready. Care to eat?"

[bitterguardian]

"They won't starve immediately." He shrugs, but his eyes are twinkling. "And if you throw a paper ball for Smoke, she'll forget all about food for a bit." They're both young enough to be playful, still, but Whisper takes after her daddy, and prefers a more sedately-paced life.

"I don't know as much about them, if only because the imported Europeans did their best to trample out the native tales. There are definite similarities, though. Little men of the forest, tree and rock spirits, creatures of nature who must be appeased and not angered, lest nature itself be turned against you. The names are different, that's all." He gestures her to a few chairs and a couch, letting Mara have first pick of seating, and pours the tea for them both.

[sunandshadows]

"If you can find me paper that I can roll into a ball, I shall be glad to do so, sorcerer." She laughs, choosing a seat where she can watch the cats and their antics easily.

"And as to that, I do not know if you know whisper so well as you think you may. For I know her father, and though he says he may prefer a calm life, I can tell you now that there is an adventurer within his heart. It is that adventuring spirit that keeps me coming back again and again. Like will ever call to like, and the adventuring spirit in me shall always cry out to the adventuring spirit in you."

As he has poured the tea, so then shall she serve him the first of everything she has made, everything that he wants to taste or try before filling her own plate.

"I must beg you, whatever you do, whether you change your lifestyle choices to include more meats and less creams, more fresh vegetables and less baked goods? Whatever you do, please never say the word 'diet' in my hearing. It is an evil word, Maxim. And in fae it means loss of taste and serving size. Non, it is true!"

And now that the holiday is over, several of the things she's chosen to make for him this time do actually include less refined sugars, a larger variety of meats. Except of course for the desserts. Those she can't - and won't - skimp on.

[bitterguardian]

"Mm. The spirit is willing, yes, but the flesh..." He pauses there, and sinks into a chair with a sigh, since she seems set on filling his plate. "If I were any good at- the word you'd rather I didn't say aloud, I'd look more like I do on the astral plane, I suppose. So don't worry too much over it." The truth is that while he's not a glutton, he's accustomed to larger portions simply because he's a larger man, and he does enjoy solid steak-and-potatoes sorts of food. Between that, somewhat erratic eating habits, and a more sedentary lifestyle, he's well settled into his current weight. As much as it might embarrass him he carries it very well, suffers no ill health, and it seems to suit him. Settling into semi-retirement, adopting cats, and finding friends in the Nexus has all softened him, in more ways than one. If Mara had met him 150, or 200 years ago, it would have been a more dashing but far more grim and dour figure of a sorcerer. The man she knows now is more teddy bear than grizzly, and he looks it.

"But... mm, Smoke tends to be the more playful of the girls. Whisper is shy. That's... likely my fault. I stepped on her, when she was just a kitten..." He still feels guilty over that. Reaching over to a small table close beside the chair, he rummages through a handful of papers, finding a sheet that's blank but for a few unneeded scribbles and half-notes. He'll trade Mara scrap paper for a plate of food, and shows just how little reservation he has about eating what she's brought by sampling it before she's even gotten her own.

[sunandshadows]

"The flesh is wonderful. And adventure does not have to mean slaying dragons, or capturing castles my friend." She's in bright spirits, lots of soft spring-like laughter and gentle touches on the edge of his hand when she can reach it (when it's not occupied with holding a cup, or fork). "It can be as much or as little as joining me on a walk around some of the land I care for, to be make certain that all is right with the new life that now grows there."

And yes, that is a tacit invitation to come strolling in the forest with her.

"We could bring packs, and perhaps help replenish some of your older herbs, roots and seeds. And too, fresh air does every body good." Picking up her tea cup, she lifted it to her lips, flicked her tongue out to test the heat of the tea within, then took a long sip. All ladylike, almost.

"Ah, I understand" She crumples up paper, makes a ball of it, then tosses it in Smoke's direction. Not at Smoke, but just close enough that the cat can watch it go by. She laughs to herself to see him start eating already, and her lessons come to mind immediately. She knows what the rules are - never eat anything offered by the fey. the Fae. But the fact that he trusts her enough to simply dig in to the offerings she made for him widens her smile.

"So I shall be bold with one, more gentle with the other and perhaps in time they both will come to accept my presence here." She gives a soft cough that sounds suspiciously like she's hiding a laugh.

[bitterguardian]

Fae she may be, but now Mara is also a trusted friend, and she seems determined to feed him besides. Any reservations he might have had about eating her food were banished the first night in her home, when she not only served him a feast from which he suffered no ill effects, but then tended his wounds after. Now he greets her offerings with relish, despite the grumblings about his own physique.

While Horvath samples what she's brought, the cats stare at the crumpling paper in her hands. Both their heads turn to follow the paper ball, but it's Smoke who bounds off after it, leaping and ending in a somersault to grab at the scrap paper and wrestle with it. Whisper watches, curious, but she isn't bold enough to emerge just yet, glancing warily back at Mara.

"They'll come around, I expect." Horvath says after he's swallowed, watching Smoke wrestle with her new toy. "And a walk around any lands under your protectorate would be lovely. I could do with the exercise, and spring... is underwhelming, here in the city. It would be good to see it in full, out there." The chance to stock up on herbs isn't one to be missed, either, but he'd go walking with her for the company alone.

[sunandshadows]

Mara is determined to feed the world. And as she cannot do that, she will be more than happy to indulge those within her small circle of close friends, which Horvath is very much included in these days.

she watches Smoke play with her teacup in her hand, forgetting her own plate and her food get cool for a while.

"Spring was delayed a bit, winter held tight with both fists. But now, with the spring rains? The forest is in new bloom." She pauses and remembers her food, so she hastily picks up her fork and begins to eat. "I would suggest rain boots for you, it is quite marshy in areas. The only real question is - should we plan a day trip, or something for overnight? And too, is there anything in particular you need to reacquire?"

[bitterguardian]

Horvath will always protest he doesn't need feeding, embarrassed and self-conscious as ever, but he's also not likely to turn down what she brings. Getting him out more for walks should offset the effects, and there's a definite hunger there for escaping the city and exploring wilder lands, whether he acknowledges that impulse in himself or not. There are fewer woods and wilds away from human civilization, now, but such places wake a nostalgia in him for the best period of his life. She just may get more tales of his childhood and apprenticeship, if she brings him out there.

"I'm not sure if I have rain boots anymore, but I'll buy a pair if I don't." He sips his tea, thoughtful, while Smoke sends the paper ball skidding away with a swat of her paw, only to chase it down again. Whisper resumes her slinking around the edges of the place to get under Horvath's chair. From there she can feel safe, while sniffing and staring at Mara with curiosity.

"And I may have to take stock of my cabinets, to see what I'm low on. You can have a look, after tea, if you'd like. I try to keep a full supply for first aid, just in case, and Bel has stumbled over here at least once needing to borrow from it." A smirk plays at the corners of his mouth, because there's a story, there, but one he's not sure it's his place to tell. "If it's warm enough, I could manage overnight... I'm afraid I don't take sleeping on the ground as well as I used to, though. Even if I do bring my own padding."

[sunandshadows]

Oh, if only she knew that she could get him to tell more stories, she would be trying so much harder right now to tempt him into coming along with her. But right now she's blowing into her teacup, cooling the tea a bit more and taking sips between bites of her food.

She doesn't bother to mention that she won't be wearing rain boots, or any shoes really. He probably knows that anyhow. She had spent time outside during the longest night this past winter, dancing in the snow on bared feet, a little rain and a few deep puddles won't hurt her at all.

Mara perks up at the idea of going through his cabinets to check out his stash of medicinal, possibly magical herbs. It was a game to her now, what name did one culture call a plant, as opposed to another culture's word for it? Was there anything new on his shelves that she couldn't identify? This whole nexus that he had introduced her to gave her sudden access to plants, to herbs and spices that she'd never known before, even with her own training. The faeling's foot began tapping excitedly before she realized it and she had to forcefully keep herself in her seat rather than going around to give him an impulsive hugs of thanks.

Good thing there was a table in the way, or Maxim would have his arms full of gleeful and excited young woman, who would drag him away to chatter as she dug through his bottles and jars.

[bitterguardian]

While Horvath is not a storyteller by nature, she's already gotten him into the habit, since it was her asking price for the quest on which they first met. They may be doled out slowly, small treasures of his past, but Mara will be sure to get more stories out of him in time. He's fond of her, this childlike sprite who runs barefoot in all seasons, and he finds his past a little easier to talk about when told as a tale to her.

"Just remind me to take a pad out there for notes. It's probably been too long since I took stock properly, anyway." He's more focused on the food she's brought than anticipation of exploring his own medicine cabinets, but after a moment he does notice the fidgeting. "...Are you all right? Anxious to be off so soon?" One eyebrow rises, but his tone is a little teasing.

Whatever else he might have planned to say is cut short as a grey blur runs in to tag Mara's tapping foot, then darts off again. Smoke has found a new best toy.

[sunandshadows]

Mara wants to deny it. After all, it's the polite thing to do, isn't it? But she can't out and out say that, because that would be a lie, and she simply cannot lie. But she can try to stop her tell-tale toe tapping, and shoot Maxim an innocent looking smile over the edge of her teacup. Teacups come in so handy, not just for drinking tea!

"Anxious? Whatever do you mean?" A soft tap on her foot has her suddenly leaning down to look under the table at the tail of the retreating cat. Eyes full of laughter rise above the table to look up at Horvath's amused face. "I think that your friend likes my shoes."

Her toes can stay calm and quiet for only so long, and as she eats she glances over at his plate to see if he would like more food. Or to see if he's getting full, because she brought more than enough.

[bitterguardian]

The strafing run on her foot evokes a chuckle from Horvath, and he grins at his guest. "I meant you're squirming, but Smoke seems to appreciate it. Are you so eager to look over my herbs? I suppose we can always come back to the tea..." He does look a little reluctant, not quite finished with what's on his plate or in his cup, but he's not about to stand on ceremony with her, and he can always place a light shield spell over the table to protect what's on it from furry creature's inquisitive noses.

Smoke hasn't gone too far, stopping close against the bottom of a bookshelf, in shadow, to turn and watch Mara again. Her tail is long and as fluffy as a grey cloud, and it's swishing with excitement, now.

[sunandshadows]

"I am always eager to spend time with you." Comes back the enigmatic reply. But really, she realizes at once how terribly rude she is being, and to one she calls friend. So her squirming slows down to something barely there - except for the occasional toe-tapping that is as much a game now between her and Smoke as it is an outlet for her excitement.

"Eat, eat my friend. I have plenty of time, and do not have to return until the morrow. And hot food is best eaten that way."

Who knows, perhaps she will be able to talk him into a small trip to the nexus, or stories on a loveseat until the dawn, or so many things they could do!

[bitterguardian]

Horvath rarely has a pressing schedule, so she can likely talk him into one thing or another until very late, and maybe before the evening is out her excitement will settle until she can curl up against him, calm and cuddly. His home is designed for comfort, with sofas big enough for even his long frame to stretch out and nap, as well as plush chairs, and settling into one for storytelling is more his speed of things.

Smoke stills briefly, even her tail, then makes another run for Mara's foot, and this time after the tap she hides much closer, just under the table to watch. Horvath may take things a little slower, but Smoke has an energy level to better match Mara's.

"If... you're sure. I don't want to bore you." He's watching Smoke, amused, and nibbles a little more at what's on his plate. "I fear I'm too slow for you. You danced circles around me from the beginning... but you're allowed to explore, here, you know. I don't keep anything dangerous out, because of the cats." The vaults are off limits, but she'd never be able to get past the wards anyways. Everything else he has in his library he trusts her with, although saying none of it is dangerous is probably not strictly true. There are books on dark magic, just for research purposes, that could be used for ill by somebody who had a mind to.

[sunandshadows]

She sits back in her chair, sets down her cup, and gives him that look. The one with the head tilted slightly to the side, and the single eyebrow raised.

"Bore me? You?" Her very tone says it all. Of course he wasn't boring. Not to her. Not with his warmth and his stories and his hugs and his wisdom and knowledge and courage. Here comes a slow shake of the head, and a grin. "I dance circles about you and everyone else, because I dance in circles!" It seems very logical to her.

The cat has made another playful strafing run at her foot, and she ducks down to look, then pops back up again. "What I may do, once we are finished and I've helped to put away the dishes? Is to put on something more comfortable than my travel clothes, and explore your spices, and your imagination, and perhaps even your bookshelves some more! What treasures you have accumulated over time, mon ami!"

"Now, are you ready for dessert??

[bitterguardian]

Never has Horvath minded being scolded so little as he does when it's from her. Her arched eyebrow is met with a sheepish smile, and he hurries to finish what's left on his plate as she talks. "I just worry I'm a bit pedantic, and slow. But if you want to explore the place, I'm happy to help you do it." It's a relatively new thing, for him to have guests, but since finding the Nexus he's found a few rare people he trusts enough to bring home, and there's a joy to be had in showing off the massive collection of books and artifacts he keeps. He's an old dragon, lurking around his vaults and his library, but it's nice to be able to show off his hoard.

"And you don't need to do the dishes. I'll get those tomorrow." Horvath has never bothered to invest in a dishwasher, but he's never really minded doing them by hand. Living alone, he doesn't usually have much to wash up anyway. "...but yes, I could do dessert." He smiles, finishes off his tea, and leans forward with a grunt to pour a second cup. If hers is empty or near it, he'll be happy to top it up.

Smoke crouches and looks up, hearing the various sounds of things being moved on the table above her.

[sunandshadows]

"We must explore it together!" Amarante raises her fork up into the air for emphasis, and at the very height of the thrust, the piece of cake falls off of the tines, to be caught deftly in her other hand. Easily she pops the food morsel into her mouth with a half shrug and a laugh. And, if I am staying the evening, you must at least let me help you pick up - either now or later. After all, you helped me."

Fair is fair after all. "If you wash, I shall dry. Or vice versa that is. I shall do whatever half that you enjoy least." Now she stacks some empty plates, and lifts her teacup up for second helpings from Horvath's willing hands.

Now comes the lavender-lemon teacakes, with their delicate icing. As Mara leans to the side to lift the container out of her bag, she gives a little finger-wave to the cat under the table as she lifts the desert up onto the top of the table, placing it between her and Maxim, and lifting the lid off. The sweet-tart fruit and herb scent wafts up as soon as the small cut and icing-topped confections are seen.

"I made plenty, so your friend Belshazar stops by, he should be able to have a piece or three before they are gone."
And indeed, there is another container still in the bag.

[bitterguardian]

He can't help but chuckle at her antics with the fork, although he's oblivious to the way Smoke and Whisper both make little twitches in her direction when they see falling food. Cake isn't really the sort of thing they'd like, but how are they to know that, when she caught it before they ever had the chance to sniff at it?

"Carrying it all to the kitchen is the hardest part. I'll let you help with that. He's only ever got one hand free, thanks to the cane, so it slows him down. Once their cups are refilled, he sits up a little to watch her present the teacakes, and breathes in the scents of fruit and sugar. "...Strawberry is his favorite." He adds, distractedly. "Those smell wonderful! You'll let me eat a few before it's time to go dancing around the place?"

[sunandshadows]

"Well, he shall have to suffer and make due with these then. Strawberries are not yet in season." Oh yes, there was mock sympathy there, and barely disguised sauciness. And Mara knows - and she knows that Max knows - that she could coax the strawberries into early bloom, early fruit if she wished. And perhaps someday she will. But not today. She made these with Horvath in mind, the tartness of the lemon, sunny and spring-summer like. And the soothing balm of lavender. Fresh and refreshing.

Or, more specifically, she made them with the idea in mind of coaxing him out of his winter underground hibernation, and back out into the wild woods once more.

"And you can eat as many as you desire. They are for you after all. Ah" She presses a finger to her lips for a moment. "With the caveat that you do not eat so much that you fall asleep there in the chair at the table. I cannot curl up with you if you fall asleep there."

[bitterguardian]

Horvath rolls his eyes, because he knows of course she'll bake for Balthazar just as gladly as she did for him. "No, no not yet. We used to have them for his birthday, though, in June I believe." That just might be a hint. Horvath isn't in the habit of celebrating these things anymore, and neither is his friend, but now that they both have friends to celebrate with, it just might be time to get back into the habit.

"But I'll be sure to save him a few of these. And," He adds a little sheepishly, "I will strive not to eat so much I fall asleep. You certainly don't make that easy on me, though." Her restlessness to look over his medicinal herbs and other supplies is subtly infectious, though, and he's looking forward to that now.

[sunandshadows]

No rolling the eyes at her! Even if he is correct, and she is just teasing and being bratty. And they both know that now that he has mentioned not only Belshazar's favorite food but the word 'birthday' that she will be all over that and preparing a dessert for Maxim's friend that is sure to leave him speechless.

In fact, Mara is already starting to plan it.

"Well we can, as they say, compromise? We can bring this tray with us to the couch later, and we can eat to our heart's content and then fall asleep with sticky fingers, and sticky lips!" Not that she's never done that before, oh no.

But then again, sticky fingers mean that cat hair would stick to them, and cats like to be petted. So perhaps there is a compromise for the compromise?

[bitterguardian]

Horvath's own birthday is sooner, in April, but perhaps next year they'll get around to that one. He's not sure how old either of them is, anymore, and a party is a party. If Mara makes a dessert, then the three of them will have to share it, and it hardly matters whose birthday is being celebrated as long as it's an excuse for celebration.

"Well, let me just taste one, and then we'll go poke at the medicine cabinet. It really has been too long since I took stock. I have a smaller supply of herbs and odds and ends in the bedroom, and I should probably pull them all out and make a list..." He has an organized mind, but he also has far too much stuff collected over the centuries to keep proper track of it all. Some ritual and healing supplies have an expiration date, but some do not, and if there's some powdered dragon's fang or other obscure stuff in the back of a dusty cabinet, he should probably get it cataloged. Mara just may be able to tell that her eagerness has begun to infect him, and she shouldn't be sorry for it. He's looking forward to it, now.

[sunandshadows]

Mara's own birthday is coming up as well, but since her's is technically a holiday; she simply enjoys the revelry and imagines that some of it is especially for her.

"Just one? But of course ma chere!" She holds out the tray of precisely-cut edibles for him, but as Horvath reaches for it to take one, she pulls it away with a minxish grin. Laughing, she gets up, goes around the table and with one hand she takes his lunch plate away, then hugs him from behind. As he gets the one-armed hug, her other hand is setting the entire container of desserts in the place of his former plate.

"Oh Maximus, I would never be so cruel as to force you just one! Please, take a few if you like them. We've lots of time to explore your cabinets and shelves! And lists, oh yes!" Yes, if it sounds like she considers this just another adventure, he's right. Delving into places, retrieving forgotten artifacts... who cares if they are only bottles and jars of ingredients? To her the idea is fun!

[bitterguardian]

When first she pulls the plate away, he looks just a little startled, but of course it's only a friendly trick, and the next thing he knows there's an arm around him. There is, thanks to a rough early life, something in Horvath that tends to flinch and withdraw if he thinks he's being taunted, but that hug dissolves any and all fears. One hand rises to squeeze her arm, and he leans into the gesture, and from where she's standing she can see the curve of his cheeks in a smile. If his other hand were not occupied now holding the whole container, he'd be returning the hug all the more.

"I did mean just one for now." He teases back, grinning. "I fully intend to try some of each and every kind before the day is done."

Smoke makes a made dash for the seat Mara recently vacated, pounces up onto it, and watches them both with her fluffy tail twitching. She knows a kindred spirit when she sees one, and the sudden movement just seems like another invitation to play.

*short reply is short, sorry!*

[sunandshadows]

"And down here, so long as the lights stay on? The day can go on forever!" She leans forward, just far enough to kiss his cheek before letting him go to eat some of his dessert in (relative) peace. But when the faeling straightens her back to head back to her own seat, she suddenly realizes that she may have to fight for her spot. And by fighting she means to play.

Or at least, to pet a certain someone. "Mmmhmm, so that is how it is, mademoiselle petit chat?"

But long threads are long. ;)

[bitterguardian]

"I do tend to lose track of time, down here. Sometimes I think it's the middle of the day and then go out only to find all the shops closing... or just opening. I've gotten out of the habit of keeping any sort of regular schedule."
The light kiss on his cheek makes him smile all the more, just a little sheepishly, but every touch from her seems to ease out of him a tension he never notices he's carrying. Mara is good for him, and the how and the why are unimportant. He takes the first bite carefully, not too small, not too big, and lets his eyes drift closed while he properly savors what she's made for him. Just knowing it was baked with him in mind makes it sweeter.

Smoke, on the recently abandoned chair, crouches slightly, and ducks her head a few times as if she's about to jump down, but she doesn't actually move her feet. Her tail continues to lash slowly, a touch-tempting grey fluffy cloud of fur that earned her name. She wants to play, but she wants to be sure Mara is safe to play with.

*had SUCH A HARD TIME thinking up a reply, shooot me*

[sunandshadows]

Her seat was taken, hmm. Mara eyed the challenger for her place at the table with a mixture of curiosity and mischief. Her very first instinct was to simply use the end of her hair, that tuft at the end of her braid to play with the cat for a while. To use her hair as the cat toy, but no. No, the faeling decided at the last second; that would get Smoke used to swiping at her hair, and it might be best if she used something other than what was attached to her body as a toy for those claws.

So instead, as she came around the table, Amarante dipped her hand into her bag, pulling out a few dried, woven-together stalks of lavender. Crouching down, the woman began to play with the cat, forgetting the food, forgetting even Maxim for a while as she tempted and played back and forth with the cat. Not yet touching it with her hands, but getting it used to being close to her, in a game that they both were enjoying.