Small Steps [Edelo, Natasha]

It went without saying, but Edelo was always welcomed to visit her home whenever he notified her ahead of time, and sometimes, not even that. She had been meaning to catch up with him after he visited her, anyway, so this was perfect. Casually fitted within a spacious white shirt and black leggings, Natasha greeted the man of the hour at the door with a grin.

"Howdy, Del! Long time no see, sugar. Come on in and make yourself at home, will ya? I'm whippin' somethin' up in the oven to repay the favor for that homemade mac ya gave me a while back. Take a seat and make yourself comfy."

Indeed, the first thing that might dominate his sense of smell was the sweet aroma of pie baking in the oven. She was always preparing and cooking something nowadays, even more so with the new guests she'd permanently welcomed into her household, but she'd prepared this one ahead of time especially for him.

"Careful now, Del. Too much of your homecooked meals might lead me to put on a couple o' pounds. That said, Sausage Bread sounds way too tasty to pass up. Well, In return, I'm bakin' you a nice blueberry pie."

Exchanging playful banter with her guest, Natasha chortled softly as she took a moment to overlook the pie in the oven. Since it wasn't ready quite yet, that gave her ample time to host a conversation with the man, motioning for the man to take a seat at a well-kept table in her living room. When he found a proper seat, Natasha would join him at the table, though not before offering to pour him a nice cup of ice-cold sweet tea.

"Ain't nothin' wrong with surprise visits in my book, sugar. Don't you worry your lovely sweet little heart about that. I'm glad ya took the time to visit little ole' me. It has been true that we've been pretty busy, but that sorta thing comes with a job that demands that you be on the frontline day in and day out, I reckon.'

"Of course, I have a real' soft spot for gestures like these. Back in my hometown, me and ma' would exchange dishes with our fellow neighbors all the time. It was always somethin' of a nice lil tradition between the two of us, and since she worked in a diner for a livin', she had always had plenty of food to share."

In fact, Natasha was always reminded of her home herself whenever he took time out of his day to gift her with a delicious home-cooked meal. It was a damn shame others couldn't appreciate good ol' fashioned hospitality. That was, quite honestly, one of his most endearing traits. There was something to admire about adhering to what his lovely mother, Leisa, raised him on. Reflecting on his mother for a moment, she wondered how that lady was doing. She still needed to go and take her up on those self-defense classes. Refining her martial prowess again sounded like it'd be fun, too. Pouring a cup of tea for herself, Natasha blinked softly as she chuckled. Thought she saw her, huh? Sports Store... Huh, had Jolie been wandering around the City of Lights? Or did she have a twin she didn't know about?

"Well, first things first. Recovery went great. No real lingerin' effects here. Of course, a more recent battle saw me gettin' burned mighty fiercely, but they've healed as well as they reasonably are movin' forward. Apart from that, I'm still rearin' to go. Only thing that'll keep me down is if they break my arms and legs! Haha! Anyway... I think you might have... saw my sister. Maybe. Either that or I've got a twin somewhere around I know nothin' about. How've you and your mother, been, Del? Life been treatin' you well, I hope?'

"Strengths, hm?"

Natasha pondered his question the moment he posed it, only for the oven's signal to ring, informing her that the pie was finished baking. The aroma of that bad boy would've told her that alone, but it was always good to have systems like this in place to remind her, especially during busy hours in her household. An upraised finger was pointed in his direction, a voiceless "one moment please" gesture before opening the oven and grabbing the pan as though it were an act as natural as breathing.

Did it burn? No kiddin' it did, but compared to suffering under the volcanic maw of an abnormal hollow, it didn't faze her at all. Of course, part of her now only realized how it wasn't the cutest or most charming image, but it was too late to worry bout it now. Turning back to him with a grin, she set the pie to the side to let it cool off as she redirected her focus back to the conversation.

"First and foremost, I think yer callin' card for strength is that impressive martial prowess of yours and yer ability to react and adapt in hand-to-hand combat. I reckon those probably aren't the finest answers, but then, I think you're pretty capable as a fighter and a cut above the simple ol' footsoldier. Our last fight was a prime example of you showin' off what ya can do when pushed to the edge. Like that cool little wind cuttin' momentum trick ya do with your kicks. Why do ya ask, sugar?"

"Whoops. Sorry sweetheart, didn't mean to worry ya. I recognize I should've fetched a pair of oven mitts, but I thought I'd be a little bold and test my heat endurance'."

Natasha didn't mind him tending to her hands one bit. She was far from the type to stubbornly deflect assistance from others now, so little was her resistance when he chilled her hands and wrapped them up. When he finished nursing her hands, Natasha returned to her seat at the table. His next words elicited a small hint of surprise in her countenance as she raised an eyebrow. A division switch, eh? Well, on one hand, she couldn't quite say she was exactly shocked to hear this.

Edelo was a good man with a good head on his shoulders, and while she didn't judge any of the Todgestalten members, they didn't exactly strike her as friendly people to operate with, most of them at least. Even moving beyond members, she wondered what the top brass's feelings were on Edelo. Was he worth those bigger missions or destined to permanently occupy the position he did now? How did he feel about the division as a whole? Plenty of questions sprung to mind, but she wanted to provide him with an answer he could respect in the grand scheme of things. An opinion to mull over.

"Well, first and foremost, think long and hard on where ya wanna go next. That stuff's real important. Far as my advice on the matter... I admit I'm not exactly surprised about that. The way they run things... never quite struck me as the type of stuff you'd like to operate in, ya know? Subterfuge, working from the shadows, the other grisly stuff they have to resort to. That is to say, I think ya ought to consider movin' elsewhere if ya feel yer current division is holdin' ya back, pumpkin. I admit I think of you as a more hands-on combatant who fights the enemy directly. If ya don't mind my askin', where've ya thought about transferrin', honey?"