Cooking Lessons

T

he day is...unexpectedly lovely. The autumn colors have painted the land in warm shades and the air is both crisp and clean without the threatening bite of winters' chill having yet set in. He has a gathering of herbs spread out-- today they are at his classroom--or an offshoot of it. The room he often uses to show how heat and moisture can effect things.... But it is perfect for todays lesson! Sundstol's first lesson! He is so proud. He sets his herbs down and then wanders off, only coming back to set down the next few slabs of meat. A large rack of boar, and several smaller pieces of.. what could have been deer? It is somewhat gamey, but the freshness of it is undeniable. His excitement is palpable; he quickly wanders back to the front entrance and waits with a childish impatience, shuffling on his feet and meandering back and forth through the grass until he realizes he is expending too much energy. He sits, though he practically vibrates, allowing the excitement of the day to roil under his skin until he spots the form of someone on the horizon. "Over here!" he calls, his foot pressed to his own tail to keep it from wagging.

One might assume his excitement is for him--but that is wrong. Rather, he is excited for Sundstol, who gets to venture into the world of teaching by helping out someone. As harsh as his lessons can be, there is an undeniable pride and happiness that teaching puts into him. A feeling nearly impossible to share with others, unless they have experienced it too.

art and code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck

@Sundstol @Arythmetik @Grigori

A R Y T H M E T I K

Their getaway was cut shorter than planned, mostly due to the fact that Aryth was expected at the castle more often than he initially presumed. Not that the scholar minded, of course—educating the princess was the highlight of his entire career! But he wouldn’t have minded just a couple more secluded weeks in the mountains with Grigori. And he was sure the cowboy felt the same way. So when Grigori informed him that they were going to meet up with a friend for a cooking lesson, Aryth was surprised. Pleasantly so, but a bit stunned nonetheless. He knew his lover wasn’t the most outgoing soul. They strolled to the rendezvous now, Frik toddling at Aryth’s heels as the Professor grinned up at the cowboy wryly. “So your friend…Sundstol, you said? is a good cook, hm?” The russet male wagged his tail playfully. “If you can convince me to hunt, you can do anything—I have high expectations of you, mo chridhe.”


As the pair crossed Cyrill’s doorstep, Aryth suddenly remembered that he had actually met both of these wolves once before. Cyrill introduced himself during the Samhain of 1707; back then a fresh arrival to the crownlands, having seen much grief and blood in his time. That was what Aryth remembered, at least. He recalled the male being blunt and somewhat reserved, but friendly. And now that he saw Sundstol, he remembered the golden male from Jacob’s bonfire. He’d simply asked him a question once, but it made the scholar curious how Grigori and Sundstol had become more than acquaintances. Aryth smiled calmly at their hosts and nodded his head in greeting. “Hullo there,” he called back, his voice warm and smooth—the way it used to be, before his stint of traumatization. “I remember you, sir,” he said to Cyrill, “how have your classes been going?”

RUBY RIVER GLOWING IN THE SUN

There had never been a moment he had imagined he would be here on the College grounds, at least...not until he'd met Cyrill. Sund would still be kept away in his little clearing of Redwood with his himself and his chickens and his work to keep him busy. The sharp-tongued spitfire of a man had commented on his talent for cooking and at first he was taken by surprise by this...seeing as how his lack of skill for baking was how they'd met. That and he'd only truly cooked for himself and was a fan of meats flavored with spices and marinades...without it, his meals were simply bland to him. Needless to say, somehow or another the field medic and professor had talked Sundstol into accompanying him to the college to host a cooking lesson of sorts with a few of his colleagues.

To say that he was nervous was an understatement at best. The College of Eolas was a bit overwhelming at first...being used to his secluded the sanctuary of his eternal autumn forest, he'd managed to stay away from the hustle and the bustle of other wolves. Here there were students and professors moving about their day throughout the campus. While Sundstol and Cyrill awaited the arrival of the others, he busied himself with preparing and over-preparing for how he was going to walk the other wolves through a simple recipe he knew.

Ears perked up as he heard Sundstol calling to someone and as he watched figures making their way over, he immediately went back to re-arranging the already arranged cuts of meat idly as they were greeted. He looked up when he was greeted and he then lifted his head a bit higher, blinking to find that he did recognize these fine gentlemen.

Thick brows rose to reveal a better glimpse at the surprise in his emerald orbs. He gave the first male who approached a curt nod and a small smile. Sundstol glanced between the two men and his cheeks warmed with a blush as he recalled that the two had appeared to be a couple before. "No classes...only this one. " He admitted shyly, scuffling his paws bashfully as he waited for them to settle themselves.


@Cyrill @Grigori @Arythmetik

Wash me over,
Show me where you run...

Roll me deeper in your tide,
Take my spirit, take my mind,
Take me over to that other side...

code by claerie ~ art by ashon

It was a novel prospect, to socialize with others as a couple. Grigori was used to either being by himself, or as was more common as of late, spending time with Aryth exclusively. Well, there was Nimue now and then, and the hedgehog, both as persistent as fleas, though admittedly he’s grown fonder of them with time. But this was new, and perhaps the cowboy was even a tad nervous. Maybe it’s old habits? Being seen together in public quickly stopped being intimidating when no one paid them any mind. But this will be a more direct encounter, so perhaps a part of him still expected to be shunned, against all reason. ”Ah, well.. we just talked some at the bonfire.” Grigori blurted out, frowning once he realized after the fact that this wasn’t exactly an answer to the question his partner has asked. ”Frankly, it was ‘cause I was missin’ the workout of sparrin’ and he was the biggest wolf ‘round. But then I never asked ‘bout that, ‘cause it’d be… awkward?” You can’t just walk up to someone and casually ask for a fight. At least it didn’t seem like a thing you can do. So now it was a cooking lesson instead.. which wasn’t a bad thing, admittedly.

His unease only escalated when they arrived and it wasn’t just Sundstol there, but also a wolf Grigori had once literally tripped on. ”Howdy.. And, uhm… sorry again ‘bout thing that happened.” Well, isn’t this off to an embarrassing start? The blonde brute proceeded to sit and stare at his own paws.. at least until the variety of meats overtook his attention. It was already quite perfect, making his stomach growl as his experience from living on the fringes of society scoffed at the idea at wasting time for any extra steps before eating. But he also had the experience of the king’s ball, and the food there was something else entirely. Tasting something similar again was worth a little patience.

„*”