Two Month Old Birthday Cake (Abalia/Elyss)

A knock at the door. The timing is right, yeah? She made sure to come right before lunch. Well, the Captain Commander’s lunch, that is. There’s supposed to be a bunch of processes for this and all that, but that’s why this specific time was chosen. You don’t need to make an appointment if it’s lunchtime, yeah? It makes sense in her head, but who knows how the other woman is going to respond. The last time Elyss was here, she was almost killed. Thinking back to that moment, it’s a bit weird to be here now holding a box. What’s in the box? Well, that’s a surprise. Is Abalia even here? What if the woman left early or something? Nah. Probably not. Abalia doesn’t look the type to cut corners like that. Now, would the woman do something shady? Well, the operation that Elyss is a part of is proof enough, but shady and lazy are two different things. Anyway, the redhead will have her answer soon, and, just to be safe, she knocked again.

Well, it’s not like Elyss asked what Abalia did during her breaks. She just asked where she could find the woman during her lunches. Though, she’s not that ignorant to think that Abalia would be lazing around. Rather bother the woman when she’s not supposed to be working rather than bother her when she is. Besides, even with the box in her hands, the redhead has something important she wants to talk about concerning the upcoming mission.

Anyhow, the same words from before that let her into the room rung out through the door, and without a further ado, the redhead strolled in. Looking around, everything looked the same. The only thing different from normal is the food on the desk. Ah. Yep. The Captain Commander is working while eating.

“Yo. Ya know, eating and working is just asking for a mishap, ya know?”

Walking closer to the desk, she’d place the box on an area that seemed pretty empty and would fit it. Then, her eyes would get a bit nosy and try to peek at whatever Abalia is up to. It’s just out of curiosity, but she’s quick to move on with her business here.

“Anyway. What’s going on, uh, Captain Commander. Thought I’d stop by and check up on ya. Talk about a few things while there’s some free time.”

“Uh huh… A lot of people say that until they eventually, ya know, trip. Sometimes it’s not even their fault either. So, even if you’re infallible, the world has a way of just kicking you for no reason whatsoever.”

She’s been getting kicked around a lot lately. Whether it be something about Ulv or something about work, life hasn’t been treating her that great. It’s annoying, but it is what it is. She’s making the best of it. However, she started to notice that she’s been distracting herself with work again, so she took the time out to do something relaxing, even if it proved a bit stressful. That’s why the box is rather important. Seeing how Abalia is quick to get on with the conversation, why waste any more time? They’re on a timer after all.

“Anyway, I made a cake, and I want you to taste it. You’re a mom, right? I also heard around the place that you also know how to bake. Who better to taste test my creation besides the “to the point” Captain Commander?”

She was going to ask someone else like Murasaki or something, but there’s something about the way that Abalia just gets on with it that’s appealing when it comes down to helping a person decide on something. She wants a straight answer without any fluffiness added to it and pointers on how to approve. Likewise, she should probably add why she made a cake, but that’s just a waste of conversation, yeah?

“Oh. Probably gonna have to talk about our special assignment too, but cake first.”

Now, that’ll probably get Abalia’s attention, but Elyss isn’t interested in that just yet. She has to reveal her cake, and with a flick of her wrist, her marvelous creation has been revealed. It’s rather ugly. Yeah. Elyss isn’t the best at decorating. The chocolate on the cake is uneven and shabby, looking like it’d fall off at any second if disturbed. Actually, the whole cake looks a bit lopsided, and a quick taste will reveal that it’s unevenly cooked, the center proving a bit too doughy still. Another thing, for a plain cake with chocolate icing, doesn’t it taste a bit too eggy? Seems the eggs weren’t beaten well enough, but, overall, it’s still a cake.

Also, Elyss using her Zanpakuto to slice Abalia a piece is probably breaking some safety code, but whatever.

Yep. Right to the point. So, too many eggs that weren’t beaten enough, bake it for longer while controlling the oven’s heat, and work on her decorating skills. Well, she feels a bit bad for having Abalia taste something that probably tasted weird, but the pointers proved helpful. Not too shabby for her first time cooking something like this, and it only gets better from here. Even though her cake was trashed, Elyss couldn’t help but smirk just a tad and exhale a bit of air from her nose aggressively. She almost felt like patting her own back, but the theatrics would be lost with Abalia. Speaking of her Captain Commander, straight into the furnace, huh? With her spirits falling after her initial burst of pride, she moved to close the box and shrugged her shoulders, looking somewhat exasperated.

“I went to go talk with Makoto. Went swell. Didn’t know she taught at the Academy, sort of invaded her class, then we sort of threatened one another a bit. Nothing too problematic, but there might be a clash of personalities here.”

Threatened each other a bit? They sort of threw death threats around, but Elyss isn’t going to make it look that bad. However, Elyss moving her eyes away from Abalia’s is probably enough of an indication that the redhead is unsure about this team up that's going on. And, people that know Elyss know that the redhead doesn’t normally show worry or guilt so readily. She’s like a child that got caught stealing from the cookie jar.

“Several? Man. Some people just…”

She probably shouldn’t finish that thought, not in front of Abalia of all people. With a sigh, she just resigns any grumblings she has about that situation and simply nods her head. There’s no point in trying to defend herself. It is what it is. She’s come to accept that she’s not capable of being by the book all the time. She’s never been one to do things by the book, and, even when she’s trying to do it correctly, a mishap occurs occasionally. All she can do is what she feels is the best. Is it wrong to want to get to know a bit more about the person you’re going to be working with? Apparently, it is.

It’s hard not to frown, so she doesn’t try to hide it and let her lips fall. It’s clear she has a lot on her mind, but she’s already taken up enough of Abalia’s time. The woman is working, after all. At least she’s received some advice for the next time she bakes a cake. Why did she bake this thing again? Oh. Yeah. She never did celebrate her birthday. If memory serves correctly, she had, in fact, almost died on her birthday from hypothermia.

“...He? Well, I guess I’ll just wait and see who this man is when it’s time to head out.”

Gripping the box, she takes it and turns to head for the door. She doesn’t really want to talk anymore, mostly because she has some thoughts in her head she wants to be alone with. Maybe she just needs to go back to being more introverted. It’ll probably save some paper. Guess she should avoid the Academy for a bit too. Wouldn’t want to spook anyone again.

“Thanks for the advice, Captain Commander.”