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 Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2022 2:39 pm
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Although it had been a mere handful of days since Draven had finished work on their cottage, Lunaris had been frantically at work adding the fine details for months now. The cottage feature lovingly hand crafted furniture and implements, including shelves for their books and sundry, a kitchen with a real working stove and oven, a cold box, hangings to dry herbs, a soft bed, a kiln, a pottery wheel, and so many finishing touches that it would have been difficult to list them in one sitting. Maybe the centaur was obsessed, but he couldn't help it.
Domestic felicity required work! Work that Aris was almost too eager to do. Not that he hadn't had many wonderfully idle moments with Draven, but he couldn't waste the opportunity to really make their home shine. They'd grown the garden together, a labor of love that he did not in the least regret. Today he was working on weaving rugs to add a cozy touch to the wooden floors that his mate had installed into their cottage. True, they were certain to grow dirty with time, but that was what the washing bucket was for. "Draven, did the sprite return today?" he asked softly, glancing up from his work for a moment to regard his love.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2022 3:15 pm
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Draven had devoted most all his free time to building their home, ensuring it was as close to perfection as he could possibly get it. He took the time to study various wood types, carving techniques, the proper way to fasten the wood together, to polish it and erect it. It had taken months to build, but it was finally nearing true completion.
And that made the large centaur smile.
He had just finished adding a few more logs to the oven for tonight's dinner when he heard Lunaris's voice from the living area. "They both did, my Moon. Fire seemed exceptionally pleased by the beads you left." he replied in his thick, ever so slightly raspy voice. He grabbed a small cloth and wiped his hands off before fixing the small apron that hung around his waist and upper horse half. An apron that was too small for him and slightly too tight, but he made it work. His Ari had made it for him after all.
"The pheasant should be ready soon." he called, letting his mate know that dinner was soon to be done. He had gathered herbs from their garden, made a gentle glaze with some of the bee's honey and spices, and had a fresh mixed salad for a side dish with some warm honey water. The scent filling the kitchen about made his mouth water and he couldn't help but take a small moment to thank the stars he had developed the gift of cooking.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2022 6:21 pm
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Personally, Draven thought they would be fools not to appreciate Lunaris's gifts. But then again, he was rather biased. "I think they'd like that a lot." he smiled before cheekily adding, "Except I might be a touch jealous." he grinned, eyeing an hour glass whose sand was just about to run out.
He grabbed a glove made of thick cloth to allow him to withstand holding something heated for a few moments and opened the door to the oven. "Basil, sage, thyme, garlic and a pinch of ground cinnamon. In the honey glaze of course." he smiled, pulling the tray out of the oven just as the last drops of sand ran out.
He waved the big mitted hand over the roast to fan away a bit of the steam before nodding, pleased. The pheasant was a nice roasted brown on the outside. Draven removed the mit and took a knife and fork and gently sliced into one section, the meat slicing quite smoothly. "Not too bad. Not as buttery smooth as I'd like but hey. New home...new stove." he paused and turned to give a wink to Aris.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2022 7:10 pm
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"Well," Lunaris said, sending a fond look in Draven's direction, "if it means all that much to you I'll make you a necklace, too." He was touched that his lover enjoyed his creations so much. It was nice to know that his efforts were appreciated. "We're lucky to have sprites about," he remarked, bringing his shuttle through the weft until he reached the other edge. The pattern wasn't complicated, but it was colorful, at least.
Once he'd finished the row, he set the shuttle down and got to his feet. "Do you need help setting up the table?" he asked, and without waiting for an answer began to collect dishes and cutlery to make the table. "Sorry about the stove," he said apologetically. After all, he was the one who'd made it. Aris wasn't exactly the most experienced in that department, but the important thing was that it did work. Setting the table with mats, plates, and utensils was a comfortable thing, something domestic and ... well... in its own way, decadent.
He'd always enjoyed the little thing. "Did you happen to bring in fresh flowers for the table?" he asked, folding a pair of napkins up to rest on top of the plates. The smell of the pheasant was aromatic and lovely, and he couldn't wait to taste it. "I was thinking of using them as a centerpiece."
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Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2022 10:15 am
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Draven shifted from a smile to a frown at Aris's words. He hadn't meant that to be an aim at his mate's fault. He took a few steps back, making sure to clean off his hands before maneuvering his way over to the purple male. Gently he reached over and turned Aris's head towards him, his face gently cupping both of the other's cheeks. "My Moon, I didn't mean it was your fault. Your oven is as perfect as you are." he said, leaning down to kiss the others forehead. "I however, still have some cooking skills to learn. I believe it was an error with my timing, nothing more." he said before a look of shock came over him.
"I forgot the flowers!" he said quickly, backing up and heading towards the garden. "Don't fret and make yourself comfortable. I will be back with the flowers and to cut the pheasant and toss the salad." he winked, his hoof falls sounding a bit more heavier than they had before in his urgency.
On the way out into the garden, his larger rump managed to hip check a vase and he had to quickly spin around to catch it from falling, pausing to breath and calm himself a moment. "Don't rush. It's not worth it to break Ari's precious art." he said to himself before taking a small pair of clippers and snipping a few stems of lavender, soft yellow daises, babies breath and a few white roses to top it off. Once back inside he stood in the doorway to the kitchen, holding the selection and taking a moment to just admire the beauty of his personal Moon, whom he had the joy and pleasure of seeing both mornings and night.
A dreamy smile spread across his face unknowingly.
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Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2022 11:18 am
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If there had been a tiny sliver of guilt and distress growing within the purple centaur's chest, it was quickly salved by his mate's sweet, swift actions. "You're too kind," he told him, an affectionate smile curving his lips in spite of himself. "But darling, your cooking is divine!" It really was. When the gods had handed out talents, they certainly hadn't skimped where Draven was concerned. With another fond look, he patted his mate's hand reassuringly. "Maybe we can say that it was just having a new oven?"
Since all were different. Lunaris couldn't fault Draven for not quite knowing the new one yet. Besides which... he was not a picky creature, no matter what others might assume of him. "The flowers aren't mandatory," he protested as the large centaur hastened to retrieve them. Ah, but he was too late - Draven was already well out the door.
Shaking his head, he settled down by the table as requested. It seemed silly that he couldn't help even with tossing the salad, after Draven had gone through all the trouble of crafting a wonderful meal for them both. But he knew all too well that when Draven made requests he did not make them idly. With a soft and nearly inaudible sigh, he picked at the mat he'd only recently woven, oblivious to the drama of the vase.
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2022 2:45 pm
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It was not lost on Lunaris how much he had lucked out in Draven as a mate. The large centaur was sweetness itself, and always considerate of him and his needs. Really, it made Aris want to work harder to be worthy of him and of his love. "They're beautiful," he remarked, taking a moment to admire the lovely arrangement. It wasn't long before Draven was arranging the roasted pheasant as decoratively as the flowers, and Ari smiled at the sight of it. Really, Draven might think him the crafty one, but it was he who was the artist.
"To our new home," he said softly, a ghost of a smile tugging at his lips. "Well, probably some more rugs. We'll want them when the frost really sets in." Of all things, Lunaris had found himself dreaming of feather quilts and pillows, something to make their lives a little cozier. "Do you know how to make candles?" he asked, suddenly realizing he'd never actually asked Draven. He didn't know how to make them himself, but surely it couldn't be too hard.
The aroma of the meal before him made his stomach gurgle, and he flushed, hastening to take a bite of the pheasant. It was, unsurprisingly, delicious. No matter what his lover might've said before about the oven it was clear that Draven was a quite talented chef. "Delicious," he commented, taking a moment to truly savor the meal.
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Posted: Fri Jan 14, 2022 5:29 pm
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Draven had finally allowed himself to take a bite of the meal and smiled to himself. It hadn't cut as smoothly as he thought he wanted it too (despite still slicing about as smooth as butter), but it sure did taste excellent. Mark another one for his personal recipe book!
"Oh yes, we can't over work Little Flame, perhaps next time we are out we should see about also getting more furs for blankets?" he said, grabbing two cups and pouring each a bit of the honey sweetened water. Which speaking of honey... "As for candles, well we'd need wax no? We have bees, I suppose we are already one step of the way there." he said with a positive nod. "As for wicks, I'm sure your genius could figure that out for us. Or we could always trade?" he added, a soft tilted of his head, the brain gears already working on how to make his lover's ideas a reality.
When Aris was happy, he was happy.
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Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2022 9:40 am
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Sometimes Draven felt he could just scoop up Aris and kiss him.
Well actually, he felt that way all the time, but when Aris seemed to just alight his own mental 'light' and get his wheels turning, Draven felt this need even more so. "I count the stars every night at how lucky I am to have found such a talented and brilliant beauty." he smiled, reaching across the table to gently cup the other's head in his hands a moment before gently sliding his hands back, enjoying the smooth feel of the other's cheeks. "How could I have forgotten all your contacts. You master at trade secrets you." he chuckled a bit, pausing only to enjoy a bit more of the meal before it ran cold.
"You tell me what you need and I will gather it. We can experiment together. Perhaps even our little friends can help somehow?" he offered as a thought, his head tilted to the side, a rather child like and hopeful look coming across his face.
I was almost child like wonder how Draven took to the elemental spirits that agreed to help them out, he felt almost like a proud father of sorts... except that he knew they weren't really their children....still, he wanted to treat and spoil them like family, so including them in various activities besides their 'jobs' felt like a fun idea.
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Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2022 7:57 pm
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Sometimes Draven drove Lunaris to levels of sugary sappiness that were just truly astonishing. He was not, by nature, a saccharine creature, and yet with Draven he could not help himself. It would have been easier to teach a fish how to breathe air than to keep Aris from melting over his lover's adorable tenderness. It was almost embarrassing, really, except that the centaur was not the least bit ashamed of himself.
Now was one of those times. Beaming, he leaned into Draven's touch and covered his hands lightly with his own. For a moment he merely gazed back at Draven, then he laughed softly. How could he resist this centaur? It was clearly an impossible task, and no doubt one very good reason why he was here sharing a cottage with him. "I am surprised you forgot," he teased, though it was clear from the smile tugging at his lips and the sparkle in his eyes that he wasn't serious.
"Hmmm... well, we'll certainly need wax, and then I suppose we might need wood or thread. Do we have any cotton available?" he asked, musing over the problem. His food he left nearly untouched as he pondered what materials they might possibly require. "Little fire might be able to help," he suggested, "since we'll need to melt the bee's wax to begin with." As for their other little friend... well, he was sure he could come up with something - oh! "And maybe when we're letting the wax cool, Frost can help speed things up?"
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Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2022 7:53 am
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Cooling had bene exactly what he had thought of and was about to mention it when Aris beat him too it. He chuckled, that was his mate, always on top of things. Both the Beauty and the Brains of the pair, that Draven was sure of. "That sounds like a perfect plan. Little Ice to help cool and Little Fire to help melt. I wonder, could we delicately carve the candles, maybe with their image?" he mused again, leaning back to take a sip of his water, a smile across his face.
"As for cotton, I'm sure we have a bit left. I do also wonder, with your exceptional brains..." he paused, leaning forward as if proposing a business deal, except his facial features were anything but serious. More playful and and scheming. "If we could experiment with different scents in the candles. Maybe... Little Ice candle smells of.... babies breath and crisp cool breeze...Fire could be cinnamon and apple..." he trailed off again.
Stars were in his eyes and he was clearly very excited about this idea, especially to be making it with his beloved. He was already imagining different scent combinations along with designs for the candles and what all they could possibly trade them for.
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Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2022 9:52 am
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Draven was so clearly excited about the prospect of their new enterprise that Lunaris couldn't help but smile. "Whatever system we come up with, carving wood, stone, and metal can't be all that different than carving wax. I'm sure we can do just that." His own mind was already abuzz with ideas on how they could fashion the candles, and how to make the wicks. There were probably already skilled artisans out there who knew the ins and outs of candlemaking, and reinventing the wheel didn't make too much sense.
Yet he was already musing over the makeup of wax. "I suppose it would be a little more brittle than clay," he pondered aloud, brows knit with concentration. Whatever his dining plans might have been, he'd quite forgotten about food, and was just as absorbed as Draven in the minutia of their dreams. "There's an art to perfumery," he added, contemplating how they might best draw the scents out. Although he had only a passing experience with the process, he was certainly curious about it. Perhaps if they asked the spirits for help they might yield even better results.
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