Second Floor Common Room [Tuesday Early Afternoon]

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

The facts were these: Ned was baking a pie again. He'd almost tried to theme this particular pie with that of a volcano but the volcano was long gone and so was that idea. Ned didn't really want to simulate lava in a pie anyway.

He'd chosen a new recipe this time, something he'd never baked before and had set out to prep and cook in the common room.

He wouldn't call this a routine yet but it was relaxing. And it was nice to get out of his room and do something besides annoy himself with all his issues.

[Open common room is open. Work is boring. I am hungry.]

Comments

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

Kaylee was wandering the halls, and peeked into the second floor common room.

"...that smells really good. What is it?"

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"Apple praline pie," he said, smiling at her. "Hello."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"Hi! What's a praline?" she asked curiously, wandering over.

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"It's a candy," he explained, scooting aside so she could see the pie. "It's made from nuts and sugar syrup."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"You made a pie with candy?" she asked, almost bouncing.

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"Making but yeah," he said, shrugging a shoulder as he slowly filled the pie with it's filling. "It's the first time I've made this recipe."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"I didn't know candy could go in pies," she said excitedly. "It's like puttin' two of the best things ever together in one spot! Like pretty dresses with pockets for tools or sex in a engine room or somethin'!"

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

Ned was nodding his agreement until that last one. At that last one, his nodding turning into a kind of shaking that made his hair fall into his face and his eyes go wide.

His hand slipped around inside the pie and he had to really focus on not spilling the pie filling onto the common room floor.

"Right, of course," he said, trying to recover quickly by smoothing out the pie with one hand. He contemplated just dunking his face into the pie to cover the blush. "Just like those...two things."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"Somethin' wrong?" Kaylee asked worriedly.

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"No," he said quickly, blinking and then just smacking himself with one flour and pie filling covered hand.

Which. Yeah.

"Well, now there is," he said, managing to laugh at himself.

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

She burst out laughing, reaching out on instinct to brush it away. "What'd you do that for?"

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

Ned didn't know what was going on. Maybe it was the pie fumes getting to him or the fact that he was no longer under impending death by volcano but, instead of flailing, he ducked down some just so she wouldn't have to reach too high.

He was still nervous and stood mostly still but he tried to make himself a little shorter.

"I dunno," he admitted. "Trying to smack some sense into myself."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"Were you missin' your sense before that?" she asked, carefully brushing flour and pie filling away.

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"It hides. Sometimes I have to find it," he said, glancing down at her fingers with his eyes. It'd been awhile since he'd been touched like that by someone who wasn't trying to punch him in the face and he forgot that not everyone was like that. "Your fingers are soft."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

She smiled. "Don't hear that too often," she said, finally pulling her hand back. "Did you find your sense?"

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"No," he said, standing up a little straighter. "Do I have a pie face?"

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

She shook her head. "Think I got it all."

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"Thanks," he said, blushing again and trying to smooth out the pie he'd misshaped. "You seem like an expert in cleaning pie off the faces of stupid guys."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"It's a acquired skill," she assured him, giggling. "Can I help with your pie?"

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"Sure," he said, taking his hands of the pie and nodding towards it. "Smooth that out for me?"

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

Kaylee'd grown up with a mother who cooked and a father who put her to work in his shop. As a result, she'd learned the importance of washing one's hands before touching anything, so she scurried over to the sink to do just that before smoothing out the pie carefully. "You gonna share when it's done, or is this a just-for-Ned pie?"

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"I couldn't eat an entire pie on my own," he said. "Well, not all in one day. I could eat an entire pie on my own over the span of a few weeks but, by then, I'll have gotten bored with that particular pie and want a new pie but wasting pie is never good."

He took a breath.

"Besides," he said, shrugging and blushing, "I make pie to share."

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"Good," she said, grinning at him. "'Cause I was gonna have to make you share if you said no."

[death-and-pies.livejournal.com]

"You were gonna make me?" he laughed. "How?"

[weefeetbigboots.livejournal.com]

"I can look real sad when I want to. Either that or my feminine wiles, but I ain't too good with those so I'd have to really try with the sad thing first," she said seriously, nodding.