chaeriilus

[chaeriilus]

Ramen Days [December 5, 2018]

COMPLETE

Adler hears the knock on his door, momentarily excusing himself as he's interrupted in trying to tell Shion the story of how he had come to be Vesper's Cat Dad, moving to check through the peephole to see who was outside, verifying that it was Eberhard Vennett and Eberhard Vennett alone, before opening the door to allow the man entry. "Perfect timing, I was just thinking I'd have to train Vesper to cook ramen in your stead," Adler offers, moving to hang Eberhard's coat as he leads him towards the living room. "Speaking of, this is Vesper," he offers, gesturing to the small kitten seated in Shion's lap. "And Shion, though she needs no introduction," he casually offers, turning to lead the way into the kitchen. "So, are you ready, Eberhard Vennett? There are no half measures when it comes to Ramen in a crash course led by a Hirano, my good man."

A soft smile crosses onto Eberhard's lips as he feels the door open, revealing Adler, raising his hand to offer the bottle of Scotch he had brought as a thank you for the invite, shouldering out of his coat, as Adler takes hold of it. "I hope I wasn't too far off, in my hypothesis?" He offers, his smile remaining as he takes in the apartment, a twitch moving onto his lips as he takes in the small kitten in the lap of a woman he didn't recognize, offering his hand immediately. "Hm. I wouldn't say I wouldn't appreciate one anyway." He counters Adler's words, "Eberhard." He starts, to the woman before a strike of recognition moves through him at the last name, his smile widening. "A pleasure." He affirms to the woman, turning his attention to Adler as well. "I'm more than willing to accept these terms, let's start, shall we?"

Shion offers her hand in return, taking the man's hand in a firm grip. "Shion," she affirms before adding, "Hirano, I don't need to remain like Cher, unlike a certain someone," she adds, throwing a sideways glance at Adler, before turning back to Eberhard, her expression turning deadly serious. "If you tell anyone what I teach you today, I will have to kill you," she says, pacing her words out in a flat, sinister tone, before she lets the facade fall by letting a smile play on her lips. "Or Hayato will just be a tad pissy that I'm disclosing family secrets, but it's for a good cause and I get to pet Vesper, so," she adds, giving Eberhard a wink, before leading the two men into the kitchen, giving them detailed instructions on how to start the dish.

Adler thanks Eberhard for the drink, moving to pour one for everyone, allowing Eberhard and Shion to have their introduction before he gets to work on the ramen, meticulously following Shion's instructions, wanting to ensure he captured the essence of the signature ramen as close as he could. Once they complete their first batch, he offers a bowl to Eberhard.  "Ever been to Mew yourself?"  He offers, pouring a small bowl of for both him and Shion to taste test as well.

Eberhard gives a soft chuckle at the mention of Cher, harkening back to the meeting with the man that stood before him, finding it a delightful turn of events given where they were currently. "Noted." He responds back, a smile slowly moving onto his lips, "I appreciate being under the umbrella of such a charity venture, indeed." He affirms back softly, ensuring he respectfully and intently took in the instructions, before he takes hold of the bowl that combined the shared fruits of their labor, "Quite a few times, a beautiful place and sublime food, always." He nods, giving his honest opinion, "It's actually my brother's favorite, without a shadow of a doubt, which I would consider praise worthy, he is rather picky after all." Eberhard states, a warm laugh escaping him as he twirls a few noodles around his chopsticks giving a light blow onto them.

Shion moves to take the bowl, carefully testing the dish as she considers the flavors, cocking her head back and forth a few times as she considers her verdict. "Not too bad," she replies, a bit of a smile twitching on her lips, before looking over at Eberhard, taking in his words. "Did Saint Adler not disclose the nature of this charity venture, then? How unnecessarily humble of you, Adler Reyner," she replies, casting a glance over at Adler as she takes a sip of noodles after her final words.

Eberhard turns his attention back onto Shion at her revelation, before panning it back to Adler, "Not quite, I'd love to hear it though." He muses, moving to take a few more noodles into his mouth, giving them a thoughtful chew as he awaits the clarification.

"Because..." Shion begins, her memory harkening back to the why she had finally gotten from Adler as to why she of all people was to assist with this project after pressing him for an answer, finding it a bit odd after their breakup, and why there had been a necessary third party added to the whole equation when he seemed to be outside of Adler's regular circle. "...Adler Reyner is a secret softie who plans on delivering this ramen incognito as a care package to someone important to the both of you who hasn't been going through the best time lately."

Eberhard takes in the unexpected explanation coming from Shion instead, for a few contemplative moments, before a soft smile begins to form onto his lips as the connection comes to his mind. "Ah, I'm sure he'll love the thoughtfulness of the gesture, Adler." He affirms warmly, his mind moving through a few other ideas, "Have you thought of a dessert yet?"

Adler moves to brew himself a coffee, sparing a side glance over at Shion as he hears her explanation, finding it unnecessary, but harmless, before turning back to the other two individuals as he takes a measured sip of it. "Only one answer, right?" He inquires to Eberhard, giving a swift raise of his brow, a small curiosity moving through him now that their shared interest was unceremoniously spilled into the open air by Shion.

"Perhaps, yet one that yields so many possibilities." He counters back, a soft smile crossing his lips as he settles onto an idea. "Hm, why not try our hand at a pumpkin ice cream roll? Variety is the universal spice of life after all."

"As long as that spice is pumpkin spice in this case," Adler muses, a twitch of a smile momentarily forming on his lips as he moves to get the ingredients for the roll ready, intent on working with Eberhard and Shion to produce the treat to accompany the ramen to help Emerson through finals.

[chaeriilus]

The Experiment [October 21, 2018]

IN PROGRESS

Anastasia moves softly through her quiet brownstone, gently opening the door to the nursery, a internal strike needed to be satiated, promptly. A soft smile moving onto her lips as she takes in the sight of her restfully dreaming children, a curiousity moving through her as she leans against the doorway where their minds took them, the thought disrupted by the far away sound of knocking, causing Ana to softly shut the door. Adjusting her glasses she moves to look through the peephole to ensure her predictions were, in fact, correct to the visitor, opening the door, allowing the man passage as she makes extra note to lock the door after him. "Hello, Adler." She greets warmly, leading the man to the kitchen, taking hold of the coffee. "May I?" She inquires before moving to prepare it, taking in the instructions on how he wished for her to do so, as she makes herself a cup as well, taking a seat at the island beside him. "To what hour do we anticpate then?"

Adler knocks on the door, shivering a bit in the brisk wind in spite of his leather jacket, clutching his favorite after-hours coffee shop blend, a twitch of a smile moving to his lips as Anastasia greets him. "Hello, Ana," he says, giving her a nod of his head as he offers her the blend. "Of course, though there's a special trick with this blend," he explains, having figured out a way to brew an even bolder cup than what was offered by the instructions, taking the cup graciously from her after it was complete. "It's not a true Adler Carizzo Work Night if we aren't up until three," he offers, taking a seat at the island, before a smile twitches on his lips again. "Was the last time you've stayed up that late our study sessions back at Penn for Neurochem? Feels almost nostalgic, all we need is that terrible, terrible pizza that was the only late night food option near our dorm and it's almost like we're there again," Adler muses faux wistfully, thinking back to that time as he takes another sip of coffee.

"Is there now?" Ana responds back, allowing the trade secret to be passed onto her, taking measured precaution to adhere to Adler's instructions carefully, giving a nod of acknowledgment as he releases his number, a melodic, soft, laugh escaping her at the recollection of the shared memory of their younger years. "Surprisingly? Not in the slightest." She admits, taking a deep drink of her coffee, noting the bold flavors, "A perk of motherhood." She adds, a small smile moving onto her lips, "Has your cooking repertoire expanded past confectionary delights in the time since?" Ana muses, focusing her attention on Adler, "If not, I'm sure we can replicate the appalling, yet woefully nostalgic experience. I have all of the ingredients, I do...believe." She offers, mentally scrolling through her pantry's to indeed check the validity of such a statement.

"That there is," Adler responds back, moving to show Ana just that, before he takes in her words. "How have the twins been?" He inquires, before he lets out a subtle laugh at her comment. "It has indeed," he replies. "When you can't get iconic Philly food on a daily basis, you have to learn to craft your own, right?" He offers, intrigue moving through his eyes at the proposal. "A devilish proposition, Ana, if this goes right, we could run Allegro right out of business," he muses, before a twitch of a smile moves across his lips as he locks eyes with Ana. "Let's do it."

A soft smile twitches onto Ana's lips as the conversation moves to her children, "Quite well." She replies back, sliding her phone to the dedicated album of the two, along with cameo's of their sister, Shiloh, leaning in to share a few pivotal moments with him. "I'm sure it's a bit jarring seeing them, now, they grow so quickly. In the blink of an eye, honestly. A phenomenon unlike any other, to display the complexity of time, hm." She muses, her smile holding as she hears his own level ups regarding his skill set, "Well, isn't that just a shame. I suppose we'll have to make due, with something more palatable this time around then. Allegro, will just have to understand the changing of the guards, it is a circle of evolution, after all, nothing personal." She adds, giving him a nod as she takes a long drink of her coffee, moving to set the ingredients and utensils out in the order they would need them to make things more cohesive. "So, how about yourself? And, your overwhelming horde of cats, I was not aware you and Archer were in a heated competition on that front?"

Adler looks down at Ana's phone, a soft smile momentarily crossing his lips as he takes in all the moments that she had captured of them. "It just shows it's been too long, and it's a reminder not to let a lapse like that happen again, though I do have my job made easier now that you're here in the city, too," he offers back. "But still, quite the phenomenon," he muses, thinking on the passage of time since the first time he had met the twins, and what had and hadn't changed in his own life, before he nods his head. "Evolution is key, after all," he says, recalling the tweet of Anastasia's, making a nod to it as he takes in the ingredients in front of him, beginning to work at crafting the dish as he listens to Ana's question. "Common mistake, I'm simply going after my childhood dream of owning seven. If Archer chooses to make it a competition, though, it's just more step-cats I can enjoy without having to clean their litter boxes, so don't let him in on that little secret,' he says, pressing his index finger to his lips, before moving back to taking the next steps with cooking. "You know who does miss you, Ana? Cassiopeia herself, the unrivaled cat beauty, the only honorary feline child I could ever partially indulge the great Anastasia Noble to indirectly take," he recalls, thinking back to when Cassio had been the only cat he had owned during his college days when he and Ana were still together, on behalf of whom his college-aged self had ceremoniously bestowed upon his girlfriend the title of Honorary Cat Mother.

Anastasia moves to close out her phone, gently placing it on the counter, but mindful to leave it out of the way of their endeavor as she takes in Adler's words, panning a look towards him, "Mine as well." She affirms back in kind, continuing her half of the task, a small smile breaking onto her lips, "Seems someone's paying attention, a welcome change." Ana lightly notes, an air of teasing in her tone, as a low laugh escapes her as she moves to take wash the excess flour from her hands as Adler moves to place his half of the toppings onto the pizza, taking in the revelation regarding the cats, another smile crossing her lips at the mention of Cassiopeia and the memories regarding the particular feline, as she moves to wipe her hands dry, turning to give him a sideways look. "It isn't as though, you gave me much choice, now, did you Adler Reyner?" She posits back, recalling the name he had continued to bestow upon her, every chance that was available to him. "I do hope you've raised her properly in my absence. These are the rebellious years of feline exploration, are they not? Perhaps, it is the time for our reconnection to be made, after all." She muses, moving to eat an olive before finishing the toppings and placing the pizza into the preheated oven.

"One of those necessary evolutions when one leaves the safety net of Professor Dawson's neuropsych class where outlines are allowed on the exam," Adler lightly teases back, recalling the class from their college days in which the professor had made a last minute decision to have an open book exam even after he and Anastasia had spent countless hours deeply studying the material, before moving to place his toppings onto the pizza, putting it into the oven once they had everything on it they wanted. "Was it me who didn't give you much choice or her adorable feline face, Anastasia Eloise]?" He muses back, pulling up a recent photo of the feline in question herself, posing contentedly on his couch. "She's all grown up and graduated into the world of feline academia, not too unlike her parents. A real innovator, who can turn on sinks and open cabinets, but knows when is the time and place for such things," he explains. "Maybe one of these days, though, you'll have to drop by and see her progress for yourself? You could take my word for it, but does a true scientist ever just take what is before them at face value?" He asks, conjuring the last question from his memory as he quotes one of their Psychology professors who regularly used that question to spur forth experimentation in one of their labs, taking on the particular cadence held by that professor as he makes his inquisition.

[chaeriilus]

A Date? [December 22, 2018]

IN PROGRESS

- The Night of the NJDC Christmas Party -

Adler stands on the balcony of his apartment with Anastasia, having wanted to step out for a bit to have a break from the energy of the party contained beyond the sliding doors, taking a deep drink of his coffee as he looks out at the city below them. "It's no Penn Psych Department end of the year soiree," he muses, thinking back on his memories with Anastasia during their college days, a memory in particular being conjured of the holiday party the department had invited all of the seniors to as one of their big last hurrahs, "but will it suffice, Anastasia Noble?"

A thoughtful smile shadows onto Anastasia's lips as she recalls the memory that had been shuffled out before her, taking a slow, quiet, inhale and timed exhale as she takes in the moment around her. "Perhaps, not." She agrees, "It is perhaps, something new, of its own creation, which is just as valid, and much more relevant to the now, Adler Reyner." Anastasia notes, "If it will suffice, is entirely up to your interpretation, after all, though, it is your party, is it not? What was your intended goal?"

"It is, in fact, the second annual Non-Judging Dessert Club Christmas Soiree, title a work in progress," Adler explains, a twitch of a smile at the small party last year he had shared with his two best friends, taking a glance back at the party inside, seeing how the club had grown, a subtle twitch of pride moving through him at what he and his friends had achieved. "To celebrate the club, its growth, and also to give people a chance to relax and socialize with their fellow club members after finals season," he offers, before a curiosity moves through him. "What's your interpretation, as an outsider to the club, of this Adler Reyner original?" He inquires, an interest moving through him at her take of the club and its dynamics based on this event as her sole point of exposure.