10190/Path of Glory: Eat, Drink, and be Merry

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Path of Glory: Eat, Drink, and be Merry
Date of Scene: 18 February 2022
Location: Martin and Jon's Suite
Synopsis: A celebration of life, before a probably death. Jon makes curry mee, Martin does the cutting, Cael tries not to freak out. Plans for after Jon's death are discussed. Karaoke should be a welcome distraction from worries about dying.
Cast of Characters: Jonathan Sims, Cael Becker, Martin Blackwood
Tinyplot: Path of Glory


Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Maybe Jon ought to be out getting absolutely smashed the night before he's probably going off to his death, but 'out' is a lot, lately. 'Out' is strangers and people he knows but does not wholly trust. 'Out' is the ever-present worry that he'll break down somewhere in public, away from his home and his family where he could easily retreat to his bedroom. Will this change when he dies and comes back? He's honestly not certain.

    For now, he's got the bottle of Japanese whiskey he and Cael didn't finish, and the bottle of Midwinter Night's Dram that never got finished, and whatever other alcohol he can find, because in all honesty he doesn't really mind the idea of going to his death with a hangover. Despite all assurances from Uriel and Gaea, he's terrified, not least that nothing he's trying to do will work. That he'll just die, and be dead, and everyone depending on him will be disappointed. Best not to think about that. Best to get drunk, and cook, and have a night of laughter and happiness before everything maybe falls apart.

    Agnes is in her room asleep by the time this is going on. Jon spent a bunch of time with her that day, playing chess and synching up their Animal Crossing islands, and generally playing together. She's still adjusting to New York time, five hours behind London, so she goes to bed earlier than most teenagers would. Now, Jon's in the kitchen, peering at his phone while he stands with a bunch of vegetables and spices laid out on the counter.

    "Maybe if I... could I enchant the knives...?" Curry noodles, see. He promised Cael curry noodles, and he's going to do this before he maybe loses the chance.

Cael Becker has posed:
    Jon is not the only one who would rather get smashed, than face what's coming sober. Cael is terrified. Terrified that she won't be good enough to bring Jon back. That she'll fail him, and Martin, and Agnes. That somehow - despite what everyone has been telling her - that she //does// doom the people that she loves. And so, she's already had a cup or two as a headstart in her own quarters. After finishing off her whiskey, she sits on her couch for a while, with her hand clamped firmly over the leather cuff she now wears on her left wrist, with it's intricately punched out and painted design of butterflies in blue, teal, and gold. Bear is on the couch beside her, his legs in her lap, his head pressed against her chest, periodically licking at her chin or face to try to get her attention.
    "I know, Bear. I know. I'm good. I should- I need to head over to Jon's, yeah? You coming with? You gonna go see Jon?"
    After a bark that Cael decides to take as a 'yes,' she shoves the pup off her lap, heading to the door, and down the hall on barefeet. Her first instinct on reaching Jon and Martin's quarters is still to reaching for the chime, and her finger is almost there - before she reaches into a pocket for the keycard, to let herself in.
    "Jon? Martin?" she asks.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "In the kitchen," Jon calls. "Martin's not off work yet, but he'll be home soon enough. I'm trying to... mmm." He glowers at the ingredients in front of him. Onion, ginger, lemongrass, garlic, bean sprouts, cilantro, scallions, shallots, limes. Red chili paste, his own curry blend, paprika, turmeric, fish sauce, sugar, salt, oil, coconut milk. Chicken thighs. Rice noodles. It's curry mee that he's trying to make, and the flavor profile isn't that strange, he's comfortable enough working with all the ingredients... except that he only has one arm.

    "I'm trying to figure out how to... chop things with only one hand. Debating summoning up a magical prosthetic or waiting on Martin." He sighs, and goes to pull out a couple of pots, at least. He can heat those while he chops vegetables. Or figures out how to chop them, anyway.

Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael makes her way into the kitchen, Bear on her heels - though she tells him to sit just outside of the kitchen, to keep him out from underfoot - and to keep things a bit more hygeneic. She wraps her arms around Jon from behind, kissing the side of his face before resting her chin on his left shoulder for the moment. She studies his ingredients, an uncertain look on her features before she asks, "Do you want me to wash up and pitch in?" She doesn't sound entirely confident about the concept, even as she adds, "Surely I can't mess up chopping vegetables //that// badly?
    "Agnes turned in already?"

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon takes a deep breath for a moment, relaxing into the embrace. "Mmm... depends on how bad your knife skills are. You /can/ potentially ruin vegetables, chopping them up wrong... do you know anything about knives at all? Or just guns?" He grins, teasing her, just a little.

    "Agnes is asleep, yes. I think she wanted to give us some time to... drink, and be adults. And she's still shifting away from London time. And I think..." He frowns. "She trusts me, but she has to be worried, at least a /little/, about getting the Archive. I told her if that happens I'll take care of it, but..."

Cael Becker has posed:
    "Well, if the vegetables turned out to be a threat, I could dispatch them handily," Cael delivers in a dry voice - a hint of a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "But other than that..." She knows very little.
    She remarins right where she is - a comforting presence at Jon's back (or maybe she was seeking comfort herself, in the face of what was still to come). "It's okay to be frightened... isn't it? I mean - we've planned. We've prepared. we've learned all we can..." Her arms tighten around him as she adds, "I'll fight like hell for you. You'll fight like hell for Agnes. It's- it'll work out. We're as ready as we can be."

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    The sound of the door opening and closing precedes Martin's call of "Hello" as he comes into the suite. He makes a sound of embarassment. "Oh... am I interupting anything?" he says tentatively, moving away quickly to put his coat in the closet near the door. There is a bag in his hand.

    "I bought drinks. Seemed fair sense I was out. Either of you familiar with Ardbeg 10? I read up on it, says it pairs well with South Asian dishes so..." He slowly and gingerly peaks his head back into the kitchen, hoping not to embarass either of them further with his intrusion.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I'm terrified," Jon admits quietly, before Martin comes in. "I gave Uriel a whole lecture about how unfair this all is, and how I'd seriously considered just... not doing it. Any of it. And then I gave him a hug." He smirks. "I'm a complicated person."

    He turns as Martin enters and says, "No, not really, just Cael debating whether or not the vegetables are enough of a threat for her to dispatch them properly. Would /you/ mind chopping them?" He gestures to the groceries sitting on the counter. "I can measure and do the rest of the cooking, I think, I'm just... not ready to try the magic on knives. Not after..." He glances away, frowning. Not after he broke one of his favorite mugs and yelled at Martin, trying to make his own tea.

    "An Aird Bheag, opened in 1798, began producing commercially in 1815. A favorite of one of my ancestors, actually; Jonah Magnus gifted him a bottle when he agreed to transfer the Archive from Germany to England." Jon blinks and shakes his head. "Bloody... ugh. Sorry."

Cael Becker has posed:
    "It's pretty fucking unfair," Cael agrees. "But whatever happens, I'm with you as much as I can be," she promises. "I promised to watch your back, right?" This time, she frees one of her hands from hugging him, so she can brush his hair to the side - and briefly kiss the back of his neck, just as Martin enters. She turns to look at the man, before glancing towards Jon with mischief in her eyes.
    "Should we give him something to be embarassed about?" she teases, before stepping back from Jon so he can cook more easily.
    "I could, uh... set the table? Pour the drinks?" she offers - before she adds, "Now look what you've done, Martin. You've managed to set him off. So we have some historic Scotch, hrm?"

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Martin blinks at Jon. "That was... actually pretty informative and for once I'm not upset that it overode your thought process" he says moving into the kitchen and rolling his eyes at Cael. "Setting the table and pouring drinks sounds like a good idea" he says offering her the bag with the alcohol in it.

    He moves to start washing his hands at the sink. "I think we should hold off on knife work in your condition, yes" he agrees looking at Jon. "But I'll be glad to do the cutting as long as you don't expect me to do anything else, you know what happened last time I tried to cook something from your area of expertice." They don't talk about the curry incident of 2017, it's not meant for human consumption even on a imaginary level.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "My /condition/ isn't showing any signs of rapid improvement, Martin," Jon snaps. But then he sighs, and leans over to give Martin a kiss on the cheek. He doesn't really care about 'embarassing' anyone, he kisses the both of them and they both know it. Eesh.

    "I would appreciate it if you could do the knife work, yes. Mince the vegetables, except the scallions--those go in thin rings--and the shallots, which should be thinly sliced. Quarter the limes, and the chicken should be in 1-inch cubes."

    His magic hand can at least handle carrying a pot, so he takes one of the pots and goes to fill it with water to set on to boil. Noodles. "I've been promising Cael curry noodles for weeks now. I wanted to try my hand at this recipe, before..." He trails off, then shakes his head and says, firmly, "Before I go off and die tomorrow. But... she'll have my back. I know that." He looks to Cael, with a smile.

Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael's hand goes to Jon's back for a moment, as his temper briefly flares at Martin. Not that she blamed him. She listens to the instructions he gives on chopping the veggies, shaking her head as she adds, "Isn't it all just- cutting it into pieces?" she asks. Yeah, this is someone with //zero// 'knife skills.'
    As she starts getting down the dishes, she adds over her shoulder towards the dark-skinned man, "Always, Jon, whenever you need me there. We'll get through this."
    Ay, oruguitas, don't you hold on too tight...
    But why's it have to be so hard? She retreats from the kitchen for the moment, leaving Jon and Martin to have their own moment, as she sets the table.

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Martin makes a face at the slip up. "I meant..." he sighs. "I'm sorry." He moves to start mincing the vegetables indicated. "Tomorrow... right..." he swallows. "But... you're coming back." It's not a question. "Do you have any idea how long you'll be..." He doesn't like to say it too much, he's got a knife after all. Wouldn't do to cut his hands and bleed all over the food.

    It was three days for everyone else before and that nearly destroyed him. But this... this is worse and he knows he'll get through it. But it'll be hard. So hard to look at Agnes. To talk to Cael. To manage to get through the days without Jon around, and wondering so much when it'll be over and who he might be when he comes back from such an ordeal.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "Mincing is to cut something into /very/ small pieces, which is different than slicing, for instance. You usually mince things that are going into a sauce, so that you can get as much flavor out of them as possible but also make it esier for them to cook down into the sauce." Ahh, yes, Jon explaining things to people. And he thinks he wouldn't enjoy teaching? Really?

    "I don't know how long, no," Jon replies quietly, frowning at Martin as he puts the pot on the stove and turns on the heat. "A week? Maybe two? I don't... know, really. Maybe it'll all be done within a single day."

    He frowns thoughtfully, then adds, "Twelve days might... might make sense. One day for each of the twelve hours of night."

Cael Becker has posed:
    Fuck, will it really be that long? Twelve days of uncertainty? She sets down the dishes, and presses her hands onto the table, while Bear follows her to sit by her feet, nudging her with his nose and head.
    How much of that time will she be in Duat, herself? That would be easier for her - to be actively working towards bringing Jon back. But that leaves Martin here, and Agnes, without as much support... Maybe she'd better make sure Sara checked in on them?
    She stays there for a while, head bowed and leaning heavily on the table before she finally pushes herself up, and reaches down to scritch at Bear. "I'm alright, Bear. You're a good boy."

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Bear is greeted as a mobile ball of fluff comes from the spare bedroom (now Agnes' bedroom), and approaches the larger dog with a good natured chuff and many sniffs. It seems Lady Grey has decided to join them for their meal.

    "Alright. Twelve days then...I'll make a mental note" Martin says. He'd have to manage it. For Agnes if nothing else. "How soon after... I mean... how will I know if what you and the others have planned..." He finishes another vegetable and starts another, his hands moving counter to his thoughts.

    "I mean to say, if Agnes gets the Archive... how quickly will we know?" he asks. He remembers that it fell to Jon almost immediately. He remembers the man's terrified scream in the middle of the night. Having to help Agnes with that... he would do it. She's family. He would be there for her.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "Immediately," Jon replies softly. "You'll know immediately. It transfers at the moment of death." He stands there, staring down at the water for a moment, then shakes himself.

     "Set some of the chicken aside? I'll saute it without the spices for the dogs." He pours oil into the other pot and lets it heat for a moment. Stares at that, too, watching the oil begin to sizzle.

    "Alright," he says sharply, raising his voice so Cael can hear him. "Enough of that. What are we doing when I get back? To celebrate, I mean." He starts adding the minced onion and garlic and lemongrass to the oil, stirring it all up with a wooden spoon.

Cael Becker has posed:
    "Renting out a fuckin' bar for the night?" Cael calls back wryly as a suggestion, as she starts moving on setting the table, silverware at each spot, along with a bowl. She lines up the cups, pouring from the bottle Martin brought, while Bear - who had steadfastly sat by her side even when Lady Grey made her appearance - finally moves towards the smaller pup, tail wagging, as Cael seems to be doing alright.
    "Break into Disneyland after hours and see if we can turn the rides on?"

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    "As much fun as that sounds" Martin replies turning back to Cael, "let's not embrace anarchy at the moment of our celebration." He slides more veggies to one side and grabs the scallions working on ringing them with efficient skill. He may not be a chef, but he could work as a line cook if he wanted to.

    "I think the bar idea might be a good one. Gather all our friends and celebrate. You, Sara, others in the Justice League Dark, maybe a few of the Titans." He looks to the door. "We can get a sitter for Agnes that night if you want."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "She's thirteen, Martin, she could stay home alone. What's she going to do, burn down the Triskelion?" Jon smirks as he stirs the vegetables in the oil. "Really, the Trisk itself is a decent sitter--if anything happened there'd be alarms, nobody's going to ceom try to kidnap her here or anything." That... /was/ something of a worry, at times. Sadly.

    "While I'd /love/ to do something like break into Disneyland... mmm. You know, I keep wanting to..." He hesitates, and clears his throat. "I keep wanting to do karaoke," he admits. "I miss singing to people, and it's fun. But I don't know what our friends would think."

Cael Becker has posed:
    With the table set, and the pups playing, Cael returns to the doorway to the kitchen, leaning against the jam and watching the two cooking with her arms hanging in front of her. Her right hand fiddles idly with the bracelet on her wrist, even as she rolls her eyes at Martin. "You have no sense of adventure. What, just because they're //absolutely certain// to have 24/7 security and maintenance on sight, and janitoral cleaning up from thousands upon thousands of daily guests - you go and think it's a bad idea?" she teases.
    Her gaze flicks to Jon, and there's a momentary hesitation before she says, "Then we do karaoke. But I make no promises - other than promising to be there, and to be drinking."

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    "Then, I will find a place that has a machine and we can rent it out for the night" Martin replies hastily. It'll give him something to do and something focus on rather than fretting the entire time.

    The scallions done, he slides them over and starts finely slicing the shallots with really remarkable precision. Perhaps his work as an EMT helps with the steady hands needed for the work, or he's simply more physically calm than he is letting on. "How many drinks would we need to get into you before you get on the stage, Cael?"

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon smiles to himself, with a look of satisfaction. That was, of course, the entire point behind planning something now--to give Martin something to do, to give them something to look forward to. "Cael has a lovely voice," he notes. "Untrained, but clear, with good tone. And she knows a few songs, at least."

    He leans over to wrap an arm around Martin--yes, while he's chopping vegetables, it's terrible, he's inside the blood circle--and kiss him on the cheek. "And /you/ can sing some Depeche Mode for us, hmm? It's been years since I heard you sing 'Enjoy the Silence.'" He transitions to singing a snippet of the song. "Vows are spoken... to be broken..."

    He sighs, and pulls away to go back to stirring. "The real question is who in our friend group will be the ones to get up and do Spice Girls and other such silly things. I think I still have that duet Tim and Alya did to 'Wannabe' floating around on social media somewhere. I ought to show Agnes."

Cael Becker has posed:
    Despite Jon's endorsement of her voice, Cael's answer is simple, and unequivocal. "There isn't enough whiskey." Her fingers continue fiddling with her bracelet as she adds, "I'll be there to drink, listen, and make wry comments. You always need one of those, yeah?"
    She watches the interaction between Jon and Martin - a smile showing on her features for a moment. This was hell for all of them - but she was glad to see them managing to enjoy the moment, to at least some degree. And some day they'd all look back on this... and joke. Wouldn't they?
    "I think Jon and Alis are the only ones who've heard me sing," she remarks.

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Martin turns to regard Cael with a slight pout. "Oh. That's too bad. I think you and Jon would sound good together" he says with a grin. He smiles to Jon and gently nudges him out of the circle with a shoulder. "I do better with the actual music in the background."

    "You should" he remarks at Jon's suggestion of showing Agnes her mother in life. Then to Cael, "You -are- right a peanut gallery is always needed at these sorts of affairs. Especially one in the Waldorf and Statler variety of them." He grins. "I wonder if The Muppet Show is too outdated for Agnes to be introduced to?" he ponders and glances to Jon. "What do you think?"

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I..." Jon clears his throat. "I've never seen it," he admits, a bit sheepishly. "So I suppose I'd have to watch some before I made that decision. Are Waldorf and Statler the old men I see in memes all the time?" He knows what a meme is, but has never seen The Muppet Show? Odd combination.

    "Nobody's going to force you to sing, Cael... well, /I'm/ not going to force you to sing. I make no promises for anyone else. But not even Mark Anthony would get you up there, hmm?" He grins over at her as he tips in the minced garlic and the chili paste.

    He keeps stirring, and as the fragrance starts to envelop the kitchen says, "Martin, I'll need the chicken. Cael, do you want to put the noodles in the other pot as soon as the water's boiling?" Something she can do!

Cael Becker has posed:
    "We... have sung together," Cael admits. "Dos Oruguitas," she explains simply, with a wry smile. "...and maybe a little Phantom of the Opera." She continues to watch from the entrances to the kitchen - looking mildly surprise as she's given an actual task to do. "I, uhh... yeah. I guess I can put the noodles in. Do you have one of those 'StarkTech' times?" she asks. How did they ever survive in an era before voice activated times?
    I don't really sing to Marc Anthony that well. I've danced to him sometimes. If I got drunk enough. ...not that I'm a very good dancer, to be honest." She moves close enough to pick up the package of rice noodles, flipping it over to read the instructions on the back of the package.

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Martin smiles to Cael and seems happy in this domestic lifestyle. It's not something he could continue indefinitely, but here in this quiet moment it's somthing he will cherish especially on the nights when it gets too hard to continue after...

    He shakes his head to dispel the pain that wells up in him. No. Breakdown later, tonight, comfort. Togetherness. A family.

    He watches Cael. "We do. You think Mr. Stark would allow SHIELD to be equipped with anything less?" he asks. "I swear I think most of the equipment in the storage for these living places is Stark owned." He makes a face. "I'm just glad that they're reliable."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "Most people at karaoke aren't very good singers, Cael," Jon points out. "The point is not to be /good/. The point is to have fun, enjoy yourself." He makes a face. "...Admittedly that took me a long time to accept."

    Chicken gets put in the skillet, and he stirs for about a minute, then turns down the heat and starts adding the rest of the ingredients, bringing the soup to a boil and then turning it down so it can simmer. All of that done, he puts his back to the counter and leans against it, turning to look at them both.

    "Thank you," he says suddenly. "For... for everything. Both of you. I..." He hesitates, fiddling with the spoon he still holds. "It's very... it's all been... I'm just very... you both make me happy. I'm glad you... get along, and you've been... supportive, and I just..."

    He bites his lip, then says, "I... I really want to come back, to this. It's nice."

Cael Becker has posed:
    "Making a fool of myself in front of others isn't my idea of 'fun,'" Cael counters. "My idea of fun involves several close calls at over a hundred miles an hour, preferably on a course more challenging than a simple closed loop." She grins at Jon from over the package of noodles as she lowers it to look towards him.
    She's about to set the timer on the StarkTech assistant when Jon turns to face them, and she moves in towards him, tucking herself in against his right side - and leaving his left arm to go around Martin, as her own arm wraps around Jon's waist. "It's been hell," she doesn't hesitate to say. "But I wouldn't be anywhere else. And I already promised you Jon - I'll come for you. I'll find you, and help you find your way home. That's the deal, yeah?"

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Martin sniffs as he slips into Jon's side, letting the man's arm wrap around him. "And I will be here with Agnes making sure that you have the home you deserve is still in order" he says with a smile.

    He looks over at Cael. "See. This isn't so bad, is it?" he asks her with a wry grin. "It just takes some getting used to." He's made it his goal to convince the woman that family isn't a terrible idea and one that she deserves as much as anyone else. He might not do it now, but every little piece of evidence helps in the end.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon leans into Cael and pulls Martin in close. "That's the deal," he replies to Cael, and sighs, closing his eyes. "I'd rather go through hell with you than be in paradise alone." He lets himself just... bask in that for a moment, soak it up, like it's going to bolster him going forward.

    Then, with a sigh, he opens his eyes and lets them both go. "Well! This is very nearly done... let's get the noodles cooked and then we can eat, hmm?" He grins. "And drink, too, there's all that whiskey after all. Maybe if I have a bad enough hangover I'll be /glad/ to go."

Cael Becker has posed:
    "Yeah," Cael agrees quietly with Jon. "Me too." It's not a feeling she'd ever thought she'd have - and it still felt almost foreign to her, but it was fervently true nonetheless. She'd be perfectly content to lean into Jon for the rest of the evening - but the curry does smell //awfully// good, and whiskey doesn't drink itself.
    Before she can turn back towards the noodles, though, Martin speaks his piece - and rather than reassuring her, it actually causes her to look away from the man in an utterly irrational stab of anxiety. There was still a large part of her that felt this was //Jon's// family - and that she shouldn't have any place in it, despite Martin's repeated attempts to convince her otherwise.
    Rather than replying, she pulls away to retrieve the package of noodles, turning her attention to pulling the bag open, and dumping most of the contents into the boiling water. "Computer - two and a half minute timer."

Martin Blackwood has posed:
    Martin watches Cael pull away and sighs. He shakes his head and gives Jon an apologetic look. He mouths a pair of words to Jon. 'I'm trying' but he sighs and offers the woman's back a sad but patient smile. He gives Jon another tight hug and moves away to go see that they have everything they need at the table, even with the ups and downs he's going to make sure tonight is perfect. For Jon