Third floor common room - Thursday evening - 6/5

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

Today warranted soup.

It wasn't really the weather that had him making the soup. It wasn't even a desperate desire for something that was in the soup. He just wanted soup today, something warm and tasty and in a big enough quantity that perhaps someone else might be tempted to come by and take some. He wanted to feed someone as much as he'd wanted to cook and there was a sizable portion left.

Liir, for his part, was still working on his broom research for Ino and so was enjoying his portion on the couch in the common room with a couple of the books open around him as he scribbled things into his notebook. The books might look a little odd to anyone who'd walk in, the text blurred and hazy, but he didn't seem to be having any trouble with them.

[ooc: open as common rooms are!]

Comments

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

On his way back to his room from work, something...awfully familiar caught Cal's attention to the point where it warranted investigation.

"Is that...avgolemono I smell?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

He looked up from his book and gave Cal a faint smile.

"Unless I made it wrong. But that's what the book called it, yes. You're welcome to some if you'd like, as there's plenty in the pot."

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

Aravis was bored and wandering, and found herself in the common room a floor below hers due to an invitingly warm and lemony sort of smell.

"What are you making?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

He pointed to the pot with what he hoped was a friendly smile.

"It's soup," he said. "Avgolemono, to be exact."

He'll never stop being happy that he'd made it for his cooking class, since Miss Lulu had shown him just how incorrectly he'd mentally been pronouncing it. While he wasn't adverse to showing himself for a fool since it was going to happen anyway given half a chance, cooking was an area he enjoyed and he'd rather not be shown a fool there.

"I can tell you what's in it if you're concerned over an allergy, but you're welcome to some if you'd like."

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

"I don't know that I'm allergic to anything," Aravis replied with a faint smile, going over to peer at the pot. "Did you just decide to cook for everyone? For no reason?"

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

"To be honest," Cal said with a grin, "I wouldn't know if it was made right. When my grandmother made it, it usually turned out to be little more than some kind of lemon-smelling paste, and she swore left and right that it had something to do with the air in Detroit. This...looks a bit less like something we could caulk the walls with, so, yeah, I might take you up on that."

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I like to cook," he explained as he nodded his head.

"And I wanted some myself. It's also a very good way to meet new people when you tend towards extreme awkwardness."

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I've taken my share already, so you're welcome to as much as you like," he told Cal. "It does seem eminently edible at the very least."

He closed a couple of the books and put them aside, in case he was taking up too much room. There might have been enough seating around for the two of them and then some, but there was something distinctly rude, it felt like, to taking more room than you needed to when you were no longer alone in a room.

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

"You know, I hate to be the bearer of bad news," Aravis said, helping herself to some soup, "but if you tell people that you're extremely awkward, it's a bit hard to reap the benefits of introductions not borne of said awkwardness, isn't it?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I already reaped the benefit in that I didn't have to figure out how to approach anyone or what to say to start a conversation. After that, I've always thought a warning was only fair."

He blushed, just a little, and scratched at the back of his neck.

"Especially as I'm even more terrible at small talk."

The last was said with a faint teasing note; he was kidding. He could do it, not too badly at this point, in fact, but he tended to skip it entirely if he knew someone well enough.

"And introductions, it seems. Liir Thropp."

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

"Aravis," she said, gesturing to herself and dipping a slight curtsy; old habits died hard. "Lady Aravis, if you insist, but please don't. Just Aravis is fine. Are you new this summer?"

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

Cal, as it turned out, wouldn't take up much room himself, choosing to lean his back against the counter after ladling out some of the soup into a bowl. He circled a spoon around in it for a moment, leaning in as he lifted it up for a deep breath of the aroma before finally shoveling in a bit. His head bobbed in approval, the spoon swirled again.

"So what's with all the books?" he asked before the next bite.

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"A pleasure to meet you, Aravis. I can clear off some of the books if you'd like to sit."

Goodness knew he'd respect her wishes. He didn't even want to think what might happen if someone called him anything of the like, recent revelation or no. He might explode.

"But I came in Midwi--January. Last semester. And you?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I'm trying to figure out how to make a gift for a very good friend of mine," he said as he closed his notebook and leaned back to enjoy some of the soup himself. The smell was soothing even with the tartness of the lemon, and he hadn't eaten much today otherwise.

"It's proving irritatingly difficult."

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

"Last summer," she said, demurely taking a seat in a chair. "So I've been here just over a year. What are you reading?"

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

"Hope it's worth it then," Cal commented, tilting his head at first as if to inspect some of the spines of the books, and then lifting his chin to stretch for a half-assed attempt at the covers. Really, though, it was just simpler to ask.

"What're you making?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I'm not so much reading as researching," he admitted. "Nothing all that interesting."

He closed one of the books and put it aside.

"A year. Would you mind me asking which class you're in?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"A broom that will fly without the rider having magic," he said, taking a spoonful of his own.

"Or something like it, anyway. A broom is looking to be the easiest option, even if I was hoping to spare her the trouble of brush."

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

Cal eyed Liir for a moment.

"Rocket jets," he offered, simply, and then had another bite of soup.

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

Ow.

He swallowed and decided to move away from that point quickly.

"No, I don't know a thing about mechanics.

"I have a broom, you see, that flies. However, it only flies for me for whatever reason. From what I understand of how all this works, whatever enchantment was on the broom reacts to my own... whatever you'd call it and thus functions properly."

He tapped the notebook.

"I'm trying to figure out a way to make something that wouldn't require that whatever you'd call it so Ino could have one of her own."

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

"I'll be a junior this fall," she said, barely remembering the unfamiliar phrasing. "You?"

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I believe the word mentioned was 'sophmore', whatever that means. I should probably look for a book on the whole thing."

He realized a moment later that should probably come with an explanation.

"I'm not from around here. This world, I mean."

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

Cal shrugged; he didn't see why people were so against rocket jets.

"So that was you that she was talking about with the flying broom," he commented. "But some stuff is just like that, you know? My dad had a car once that would only work for him. Granted, that was probably just sheer dumb luck on my dad's part, but...Either way, if you do figure it out, make sure you install some sort of seat belt thing, because I know that once she gets one, she'll bug me about going up on it and I told her I wasn't going to unless there were seat belts."

[notqueenyet.livejournal.com]

"Neither am I," she assured him. "Entirely different world, actually. Nearly all of my knowledge of this one comes from a boyfriend who's actually displaced in time by a couple decades, so still not exactly accurate."

[new-to-liirness.livejournal.com]

"I'll... certainly consider it in the design once I get things worked out," he said with a nod.

"Ozma knows I'd feel better knowing something was holding her on when I wasn't there."