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[ricebird]

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[gobetween]

[It's a simple message sent by journal, written in Gobo's sharp hand.]

Hey, Kotori! You free? I've got a food question for you.

[ricebird]

Oh! Hi, Gobo-kun! Yes, I'm free, what is it?

[gobetween]

I was wondering if you might be able to try making something for me! There's this snack from my homeland that's impossible to get here, and I'm kinda really missing it.

I don't think you'll be able to get it exactly, and I don't even know how it's made, but I'm willing to experiment if you are!

[Read: Eat all the "mistakes." Gobo Fraggle-And-A-Half.]

[ricebird]

[Shhhhh it's okay she's the sameway. She's just lucky to have a high metabolism even for a teenager and that most of her extra fat goes to her chest.]

Huh. I see... Do you know what's in it, at least?

[gobetween]

[His reply is far from immediate.]

....Radishes?

[Then another pause before]

Sorry, that's all I know that's in it. That, and that it's made made from powder. I've got a couple with me, if you want to check them out.

[ricebird]

[.........]

Radish powder?

[Yeah, no, already this is way above her skill level.]

[gobetween]

Yeah. Sorry I can't be of more help, we Fraggles didn't even know they were made of radishes in the first place until pretty recently.

[ricebird]

[Of course...]

Well... maybe seeing it in person might give me a clearer idea.

["The Doozer Stick Ragequit"]

[gobetween]

Right. I'll be there soon.

[Hope she doesn't mind a- temporary -tunnel in a clear spot of her cellar, because that's how he's getting there. A knock on the underside of the hatch and everything, to announce his arrival.]

[ action ]

[rokubro]

[A few hours after this disaster happened, Kotori is going to hear a strange tap tap tapping against one of the main windows of her pub restaurant. Should she investigate, she'll see a little brown hawk looking curiously inside.]

Birdy!

[ricebird]

[Luckily for the birdy, Kotori's downstairs, trying to let go of the stress from earlier. Making sukiyaki-don from the pot, some Linzer cookies from scratch (thank goodness for a recipe that doesn't require anything sharper than cookie cutters and butter knives), maybe some reading from the library-- huh?

Kotori looks up a... ridiculously large bird in her window. ... Veeeery cautiously she'll approach the window, but not open it quite yet.]

[rokubro]

[The hawk makes a soft chirrup sound as she tilts her head to look at Kotori before hopping closer. There seems to be a piece of paper tied to her leg.]

[ricebird]

[A... messenger bird? What is this, Empatheias? Kotori opens the window slowly and offers her hand to the birdy, like she would to a cat or dog.]

Is... this for me?

[If Akari lets her, she'll reach down to gently untie the paper and hold it up to read.]

[rokubro]

[Akari will let Kotori take the note without a fuss and then just watch her as she reads the message:]

My master was a dumbass, but he wants to make it up to you by letting you have a free punch to his stupid face.

[It's probably weird to imagine a hawk's voice saying these words, especially when the bird has its head tilted up in a rather cute angle.

But Kotori won't have to wonder long about the true writer of the message since a few seconds later Akari will chirp and look over to where Rokurou is half hiding half standing by the next building.]

[ricebird]

Punch to the...?

[Why would she... She'll follow Akari's gaze out the window to...]

Rokurou-san...?

[rokubro]

[Just a somewhat awkward wave before he steps forward.]

Hey, Kotori.

[ricebird]

[After a few seconds, she lets out a guilty sigh. Seeing Rokurou this awkward and asking her to punch him... it's definitely lead in her stomach.]

You can come in, Rokurou-san. I'm not going to hit you.

[sonrises]

[Varian figures the kitchen will be the best place to track Kotori down in a moment of quiet and relative inactivity. He smiles to himself for a moment, in a bittersweet way, then clears his throat to announce his presence.]

Thought I'd find you here.

[ricebird]

[Yup, right now she's in the middle of wiping down the kitchens after near-constantly cooking for the feast in the castle. As fun as cooking these large meals is becoming, especially when she has help, it's also really nice to wind down and have a moment to herself as well.]

Oh, hi, Varian-kun! [It's good to see him, especially since it's been so busy and he's been a little quiet lately.] I was just cleaning up, but I can make something if you're hungry.

[Actually, it's good she's finally caught him, because she's been turning an idea in her head she could use some feedback and help with.]

[sonrises]

[Her cheerfulness and kindness make one thing clear right away: This is going to be harder than he'd anticipated. He knows he's doing the right thing, though.]

No, that's okay! Don't worry about it, Kotori. I just... I wanted to talk to you about something. I can help you clean up, too...?

[ricebird]

Actually, that'd be great, thanks!

[He's always so helpful, it's sweet~ She hands him a dish cloth so they can wipe down the main table in the center of the kitchen together.]

[sonrises]

[Varian nods, and begins wiping down the table with intent focus. He's silent at first. How can he tell her what he needs to do without telling her what he'd done in the first place?]

So, uh... A lot happened after the first time I was here. I mean, back home.

[ricebird]

[Ah. Her own smile grows a little more sober as she nods.]

I... didn't want to say anything, since we didn't know each other well at the time, but... I could tell.

[She is glad that his second time here's given him some healing, even if she doesn't know from WHAT yet.]

But um... like I said before, you can talk to me about anything. You know that, right?

[sonrises]

I'm not surprised...

[It makes sense. He was so different, especially on first returning.]

And yeah. I know, and it means a lot to me.

[He sighs and moves to pull himself up to sit on the table, too distracted to think about how they'd just been wiping it down. As a result, he slips and nearly falls before just managing to catch himself.]

...I'm okay.

[ricebird]

Ah!

[Kotori moves to catch him as well, one hand bracing against the table while the other catches his shoulder. One he seems stable enough, she lets out a soft sigh and moves back, but not before giving his shoulder a quick pat.]

Phew, good.