She did so, slicing with precise and diligent cuts. "Did you always like cooking, Jared?" she asked as she started on the second one.
"Oh yeah! Before I joined the crew I used to cook for people. Although not many people bought my food it was still lots of fun." He explained, eventually lighting a fire. He positioned the pot so that the flames roared underneath its center.
"I actually was self-taught. In my town I live in, there was this one man who always cooked his food outside and shared it with passersby. I was too shy at the time to ask him how he did it, so I just watched him and copied what he did until I left and actually began reading books and practicing using the information from them." He explained, looking quite happy.
"About..." Jared had to think. "Oh... It was about a couple of years, then I left so in total... 4 years." He said, finally
"Were your parents good chefs?" Ellia asked. She was well suited to this job that she had been given. Her fingers were quick from years of tying various knots into the rope at a moments notice, and she had handled enough daggers in her life to know how to use one with capability.
"They couldn't cook even if their life depended on it." He chuckled, walking back over to the cutting board. He looked at what Ellia had done. "Alright. That looks good. Just put them to one side for now." He said, wiping his hands.
"No poisoning with my cutting?" she asked with a smile. She did as he asked and looked at him expectantly. "What next?"
"Hah hah." He said, pulling out a chair. "Now we wait for the vegetables to cook. Care to take a seat?" H said, offering the chair to Ellia.
"Sure," she said, taking a seat. "So, what exactly are we making?" * * * (@Stuffy McPatch) "Jack. Jack. Wake up." Jack's eyes fluttered open as he stared straight into the face of Natalia. She had one eyebrow raised, and her familiar expression was one of impatience. "I need to talk to you." Jack glanced at Avice sleeping on his shoulder and then frowned at his sister. "It's important," she insisted. A half smile appeared on her face. "I wouldn't pull you from your love life for no good reason." He sighed, and then murmured into Avice's ear, trying not to disturb her slumber too much. "Avice, I'll be back, okay? I have to go talk to the captain for a moment."
"Honestly, nothing special. Just some carrot and potatoes with some apple to taste. It's the best we have." He said.
"At least it's not fish," Ellia said, wrinkling her nose. "God, when I was on the ship before this one, their cook loved fish. It was a never ending cycle of tuna and sardines."
"Oh dear. Must have been dreadful." Jared said, poking fun at Ellia and taking a swig from his flask.
She glowered, but her voice was amused. "It was awful! But at least he was sober," she said, laughing at his flask.
"In all time on this ship has my food bothered you? Hmm?" He asked, also amused, raising an eyebrow and taking another swig.
"But my point still stands." He said, triumphantly, masking the sound of the crackling fire in the sandbox.
"I'm not saying that you're a bad cook," she said, raising an eyebrow. "I'm just saying that I hate fish." She brushed her hands of invisible dust, and grinned. "It is incredibly important if you want to understand my character."
"So let me get this straight? For you character to develop properly, no fish can be involved?" He asked, still amused.
