Killers everywhere, it ain't no place to run.

[intangibleman]

The Desert Palace, all in all, wasn't such a bad place.

Tyki rather liked it. It was almost lively under the near funereal, subdued air. There might have been a fog hanging over everything, the heavy weight of a member missing, but underneath that was a subtle layer of anticipation, a mountain-stream burble of excitement at what the meeting might hold. For those normally resident, the reaction to strangers was mixed. Some approached the situation with their heads held high, giving no indication one way or another how they felt about the sudden intrusion. Others seemed nervous, the unknown quantities enough to frighten them, not that they broadcasted it. For the minions, there seemed to be a novelty to it. It almost seemed to take the edge off the fear the Arrancar were harbouring.

Almost.

Neliel, however, apparently Sosuke Aizen's biggest fan, seemed positively mired in it. There were moments when she came out of herself a little, but it was obvious that he was on her mind. Him, or her precarious position.

The young girl Road had taken to seemed less concerned, but it was possible she didn't understand the gravity of her situation. The short man with the pet Malboro covered whatever worries he had with a bright veneer of smirking sarcasm, but Tyki could practically smell the fear on him. The lanky Tag with the attitude problem didn't give anything away, instead choosing to sneer one-eyed at everybody, teeth grit and bared like an animal caged, as though he didn't care whether he lived or died so long as he got to sink his teeth into somebody. It was possible this was the case, but Tyki had rarely seen somebody who didn't care when it came down to it. Perhaps he'd get to see his real feelings on the matter after the meeting's conclusion. That might be fun.

The others hadn't presented themselves for inspection.

Tyki found himself enjoying it all. Road was keeping an eye on things, doing her best impression of a precocious young girl there under Tyki's watchful eye, but the reverse was probably more true. She knew more than he did, about everything. It was her who told him what would become of the Arrancar if things went south, her who told him about the members he had never heard of, who he'd never bothered to read the backgrounds of. He simply watched and enjoyed.

What had surprised him was that the majority of the members present and, indeed, those expected, were natives of their own floating continent, and not Ivalice. Some of the residents were certainly lowerworlders, but all of the visitors seemed to come from Niflheim, Lucis or the Jyllandi Union. Was it merely a trip for them, a chance for the to size each other up on neutral ground, with Aizen's imprisonment serving as little more than window dressing? That was possible. None of the had any real personal investment in the man, nor his continued safety, or that of his underlings. He suspected Kreeth was simply there for the holiday.

There hadn't been any newcomers for a few days. The last had been the two from the Union and before those, the Lucian envoys, apparent nobodies there in the stead of somebody important. It was probably fortunate the absent lowerworlders didn't send the same in their places, or the palace would run the risk of being standing room only, with underlings turfed out of their rooms to house the temporarily higher-ranked dogs of members. Road said they were still waiting on a woman from Reseune, a town that bordered the two major halves of the Niflheim Empire, and some mid-tier noble from Nagapur who Road, all full of childlike delight, was expecting to kick off at some point during her stay.

There had been some arrivals last night, but they'd come in without fanfare, or announcement. They felt familiar, so Tyki assumed they were residential minions, gone and returned. He'd soon find out, anyway. He'd left his hat and cane in his room, but still made sure to dress nicely. His white side wasn't welcome in such a place, and the black was far, far classier. He found himself gravitating to the kitchen without effort and he was almost surprised how quick such a thing had happened. Perhaps that was how the palace got you.

He pushed open the door.

"Good morning," he said.

Comments

[thatsit]

Ignis had woken that morning shortly after the sun had risen. As strange as the little underground enclave was, it was also pleasant. They'd expected to spend the time they were here ensconced in a hole below the ground, away from the sun and normalcy, surrounded by the most dangerous people in the world. Instead they were ensconced in something more akin to a climate controlled hotel, or perhaps a terrarium depending on one's view, and, yes, surrounded by the most dangerous people in the world.

Although honestly, Sir Integra's underling had come across as infinitely more unpleasant than the Nifs, thus far.

Noah. Possibly the worst possible individuals for a pair of low-ranked Lucians to share breathing space with, but provided they kept clear and didn't cause ructions, they'd likely survive the encounter. Sir Integra had made very sure that Ignis was as fully up to speed as she could bring him on the matter of the Noah, and their loyalties, and he, in turn, had carefully informed Gladio of what she knew.

Still, hiding oneself away in one's temporary quarters wouldn't do, and for all Ignis wasn't going to complain about sharing with Gladio, there was little point in listening to him snore for another hour. Besides which, he was running critically short on Ebony. He'd brought some, of course, but it wasn't sold on Ivalice, and now he felt the need to save the dozen or so cans he had left for actual emergencies. Neliel had, at least, been good enough to keep the kitchen supplied with real coffee.

And reaching out and making allies was one of the most important tasks left for himself and Gladio right now.

He'd found Neliel in the kitchen. It was, she'd explained, her usual spot, should he ever wish to find her. If Ignis was pressed, he might admit to feeling a kinship with the Arrancar; she did all the menial homemaking tasks for people that never voiced any appreciation, and she did it because someone had to make sure it was done properly or certain individuals would contentedly live in squalor.

He had the kitchen smelling of fresh coffee within minutes, and was just clearing off the worksurfaces ready to make a start on breakfast, after making Nel take a reluctant seat at the table, when he felt the approach of a slightly menacing individual.

There was no point in startling like a jumpy dreamhare. They'd have to weather being in each other's presence for a while longer, yet. The least either of them could do was be cordial about it.

"Good morning!" he replied, turning to look at the incomer. Tyki Mikk, the male Noah. Seeing an ally of the Nifs wear black sent a shiver of offense up Ignis's spine, but he pushed it back down. After all, there was no point in letting them know it bothered him.

[intangibleman]

Nel and Ignis, the smaller of the Lucians and evidently the brains of their operation, were in the kitchen. On other mornings, he'd seen the lanky Tag sitting there perusing a newspaper, all gangling limbs and sour expression, but it generally took until mid-morning for the kitchen to get much traffic.

Some people even seemed to be avoiding it lately. He half wondered where Kreeth was, or if she was nocturnal. It was possible. Perhaps she didn't use a bed and instead hung upside down from her feet in a wardrobe. It was possible, he supposed.

"Do you two always rise this early?" Tyki asked, his Überwald permeating his speech even in Ivalician.

Nel, he figured, did so because she was the ... housekeeper? Mother? Whatever, of the place. Ignis... it could be that he didn't want to miss anything, maybe he just rose early.

[declaregamuza]

Nel wasn't familiar with the politics of any conflict between the Noah and Lucis. Ignis was, to her view, an achingly polite, upper class gentleman who, it turned out, was willing to get his hands dirty in the kitchen.

When he'd insisted she take a seat and allow him to handle breakfast she'd been torn between wanting to argue, because breakfast was her job, and he was a guest of the clan, whereas she was merely an underling, and wanting to kiss him. The fact he looked good in some pressed trousers and a shirt helped a lot. The glasses only added to it. There were, she'd decided, as she'd taken a seat at the table, worse ways to spend a morning than admiring the view as a handsome man made her breakfast.

Then Tyki had strolled in. He still scared Nel, in ways she'd never managed to put her finger on. He was charming, attractive, dressed well, and had the sort of smile that made Nel's higher brain functions shiver.

"What makes you think I sleep?" she asked, flashing Tyki a smile. If she took her eyes off some of the Palace's reprobates, they'd burn it down around all of them. She'd felt them return last night, too. Fortunately, they'd retreated to their rooms instead of causing a ruckus.

But there was one other persistent early riser among their number and she needed to make sure she was present in the kitchen before Szayel found someone to kill himself on.

[thatsit]

Ignis allowed himself a small smile. He knew what Neliel meant about not sleeping. It was how he usually felt, which had contributed to his chronic dependence on caffeine.

It wasn't, he'd once explained to Noct, that Ignis would die without it, it was that if Ignis didn't have it, other people, such as for example, Noct himself, might.

"I'm an interminable early riser, I'm afraid," he answered, turning back to giving the counter a last wipe to dry it off.

Now. Breakfast. But could he really make breakfast for Neliel without offering it to Tyki? Would that be rude? Although perhaps a Noah wouldn't want something prepared by a Lucian in any case.

Could he bear the thought of cooking for the enemy?

But then what better way to get people to drop their guard than to feed them?

"I'm about to make breakfast," he said, "if you'd like some?"

[intangibleman]

Tyki gave a small grin at Nel's comment, and her smile, his teeth showing bright against his dark grey lips. He considered giving her a corny line about beauty sleep, and her clearly not needing much, but decided it would be rather heavy handed, even for him.

Instead, he turned Ignis, surprised at being offered breakfast. That must have smarted. For a Lucian to offer a Noah, of all people, anything... a display of geniality, perhaps? Or maybe the concern that he would look petty if he didn't, when he was obviously preparing to treat Nel to a meal. The prudent thing to do would be refuse, politely, to make it clear that he didn't trust him, or his intentions.

Tyki wasn't particularly prudent, though, so he downgraded his grin to a smile.

"That would be wonderful," he said, managing to keep his gracious acceptance of the offer from looking like he'd just moved a chess piece into a particularly favourable position.

[declaregamuza]

Nel put her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her hand, smiling at Ignis's back. "Turfed out of my own kitchen," she said, giving Tyki a lingering look of very insincere sadness.

"Not that I'm complaining," she added, hastily, just in case Ignis got the impression he'd done something wrong. You could never quite be sure how tone of voice might translate, after all. "I don't think a man's cooked for me since-" she trailed off, and thought about it for a long, long moment.

"I don't think a man's ever cooked for me," she admitted, with a frown. Stark had been sweet, but she hadn't trusted him in the kitchen, and then, well... It had always just been her job.

[thatsit]

Ignis couldn't help the smile that crossed his face. Yes, so he was having to prepare food for the enemy, but he was going to prepare damn good food for the enemy and show that he could rise above such concerns.

A simple croque madame should suffice. Nothing too complicated to make, and nothing too time consuming, either.

"An unforgivable oversight on the part of my gender that I intend to correct forthwith," Ignis replied over his shoulder, flashing Nel that same smile.

He began by turning the oven on so it could warm, and turning the burner on beneath the frying pan while he retrieved the ingredients from the fridge.

[intangibleman]

Well, wasn't Speccy showing off? The accent with which he spoke his second language was undoubtedly as weird as the one he used with his first. He hadn't heard many Lucians speak their native language, but when he had, they'd all sounded ... strange. Archaic, almost, with odd turns of phrase. His accent in Ivalician was positively ridiculous, like a pompous television character.

"Does nobody else cook here?" Tyki asked, stepping around Ignis to get to the fridge to pour himself a glass of milk. He wasn't in the mood for spending time waiting for a kettle to boil, not with Ignis commandeering the space.

He pulled out a chair and sat at the table, his back to the door. He didn't need to see who came through it. Short of that white-haired Selkie Tag, he'd feel the coming before they reached the door.

[declaregamuza]

Ignis, Nel thought, was going to make somebody a great husband one day. Unfortunately, the more time she spent with him, the more she got the very distinct impression that he'd make a very good husband to another man. At this point, Ignis was coming across as marginally less straight than Szayel.

Although in a much more enjoyable way.

"Only when they have to," Nel answered, turning her attention back to Tyki. "It's easier if I do it, because no one ever mentions that we're running short on something until it's already gone, and everyone thinks the fairies restock the cupboards while they sleep."

It was why she had permission to leave the Palace when required to do the grocery shopping. The one time they'd run out of tea had been enough to prompt some higher ups, particularly Aizen, to sign off on a responsible underling doing the supply runs even without him there to authorise it each time.

[thatsit]

Ignis listened to the conversation as he worked. With the oven heating he buttered a few slices of bread and swiftly grated some cheese onto the unbuttered side of it. Then he topped it with some ham before assembling it into a sandwich, and then placed it carefully in the heated frying pan.

It sizzled, throwing up the smell of toasting bread and frying butter.

He did the same with the other two, and then let them rest in the heat and cook.

[intangibleman]

"Ah," said Tyki, tapping one black nail on the side of his glass.

The food, he had to admit, smelled nice, even if it was being cooked by the envoy of a political enemy. Tyki wasn't particularly picky when it came to food. He'd eat anything. He'd sampled a sausage-inna-bun from a fellow named C.M.O.T Dibbler during his trip to Ankh-Morpork and hadn't rated that as the worst thing he'd ever eaten and he'd bet his boots that less than half of what had comprised the sausage had been meat. This could be worse and he'd still eat it, though it didn't seem likely. Not when he was giving the same to Nel.

"Must be like having a houseful of children," he said, with what he hoped was a knowing look, on account of his travelling companion. Road wasn't all she seemed, but her appearance was certainly helpful sometimes. "Speaking of, who was it who arrived late last night?"

[declaregamuza]

Nel laughed at Tyki's complaint about a houseful of children. That was, she thought, exactly what it was like. At least she thought so; she'd never had children; the other Arrancar were as close as she'd ever get.

They were not, on reflection, a poor facsimile. For better or worse.

"Children," she answered, with a nod and a smile. "Some of the other Arrancar," she explained. They were Kadaj's friends, for the most part, but she didn't want to do identifying them as that just in case one or the other of them caused trouble. "No doubt you'll meet them once they crawl out of their respective pits."

[thatsit]

Ignis listened attentively as he flipped the sandwiches over and let them cook through on the other side. The smell coming from them now was of cooked ham and melted cheese.

All he had to do then was put them in the oven to stay warm while he cooked the eggs.

So, he thought, there were more Arrancar in the building. Aizen had certainly accrued a lot of them, hadn't he? Their reiatsu was familiar to the place; they'd clearly been here for some time. Perhaps regular forays out into the wider world was the norm for them, and the Palace merely acted as a base.

What did they do out there? It wouldn't exactly be prudent to ask, not at this stage, anyway.

[intangibleman]

"Fair enough," Tyki said, keeping his smile slightly sympathetic, but also amused. He felt a bit sorry for Nel. She had been brought into Khamja as the underling of one of Ivalice's most low-key powerful men, and here she was, babysitting. Cooking for others and undoubtedly doing their laundry as well. It was a shame. She had a lot of potential.

"Where's your companion this morning?" Tyki asked of Ignis, slipping easily into what Ignis would no doubt consider heavily accented Jyllandi. Speaking his native tongue, Tyki sounded very common, more so than Road, who spoke like a slightly posh Überwald girl. "Getting a lie in?"

He carefully kept the question casual, not wanting it to come across as a threat, or a veiled observation that he was without his bodyguard, here, in a room with a Noah. All vulnerable.

[thatsit]

Well now, that accent was a great big Uberwaldian flag, wasn't it? And the implied threat trailed along like a banner behind it, fluttering in the wind, impossible to miss. Yet if Ignis responded to it directly, he'd be the one jumping to conclusions about the intentions of the Noah.

"By now I expect he's working out and performing his morning ablutions," Ignis replied, his Jyllandi coming in a cut-glass Insomnian accent. He'd always sounded more like the King than Noct ever had. "What of yours?" he asked, glancing at Tyki over his shoulder. "Homework, perhaps?"

He removed the sandwiches from the pan, and placed them directly in the oven to keep warm. "How do you like your eggs?" he asked, in Ivalician. He didn't pause as he added some more butter to the pan and swirled it around to melt.

[declaregamuza]

"Over easy," Nel answered, watching Ignis work. He moved with a relaxed enthusiasm as he cooked, she noticed. He had everything under control; he knew exactly what he had planned, and exactly what he was doing next, and he liked it. It was rather cute.

A shame about the conversation in Jyllandi that she couldn't follow. "I do hope you boys aren't fighting," she said, looking at Tyki, and then at Ignis's back, and then back to Tyki because he was free to look at her. She'd hate to have to knock any heads together over breakfast.

[intangibleman]

"No, no. She made sure to get all that done before we left for Ivalice," Tyki said, smiling brightly. He then switched back from Jyllandi and gave a shrug. "I'm not fussy."

Nel's words made him turn back to her, and he did his best to adopt an innocent facade, though it didn't come easy to him. It was a little like trying to make a racoon not look like a small furry burglar, but he tried.

"Of course not," Tyki said, not bothering to add in a touch of offended dignity. That would have been too much. "This is the first time I've been down here, I have to admit, the Ivalician language doesn't come easy to me."

That wasn't entirely a lie. He'd been given lessons since being taken in by the Earl, and while he'd done very well, it still took a small amount of concentration to translate it all in his head.

[declaregamuza]

Nel hummed with quiet skepticism and eyed Tyki. He was, she thought, rather bad at acting innocent. She'd certainly encountered better, but then, she'd also encountered worse.

On the other hand, it was entirely possible that whatever words were transpiring between them were actually macho posturing that they didn't want the lady in the room to overhear. In that case, it wouldn't be any different from Grimmjow and Yylfordt talking in Al Bhed.

"I suppose," she said, giving Tyki the benefit of the doubt.

[thatsit]

Ignis cracked the first egg into the pan, one over-easy, one chef's choice. That was simple enough.

"It is," he admitted, "a little difficult to converse in a second language at all times." He flashed Nel a glance, and his best charming smile. "Sadly, Jyllandi isn't as commonly spoken here as Ivalician is on Jylland."

He eased the spatula under the first egg and flipped it carefully, before he retrieved the first sandwich from the oven and plated it, ready.

"I expect I'm a little difficult to follow in Jyllandi regardless," he added, as he removed the egg from the pan and settled it on top of the sandwich. "Lucian Jyllandi is more formal than our friend's Uberwaldean dialect."

He flashed Tyki a swift glance as he turned, and settled the first plate in front of Nel, slipping back into Jyllandi to tell her, "Enjoy," with as subdued a flourish as he could bring himself to give.

[intangibleman]

"It is a bit," Tyki said. "I'm not sure formal is the word, though. Old ..." he thought for a moment "...style, maybe." He paused again. "Archaic." He added, in his native tongue, for clarification. "Stuffy," he included, unnecessarily.

He wasn't wrong, though. Ignis's dialect was strange to Überwaldean ears. The accent was weird and some of the word choices were off, though the same could be said of his to them, and no doubt Integra and her dog. The Überwald dialect was considered a relic of parts of his own country, with the more modern Union Jyllandi being spoken in Ueltham, home of their capital.

"I learned late," he admitted. He watched Ignis present the meal with a smile. Not even he could deny that Nel's breakfast looked, and smelled, rather good. "That means 'enjoy'," he clarified.

[thatsit]

Ignis tried not to let the description of his language as 'stuffy' get to him. He'd heard it before. He'd almost certainly hear it again.

Old... style. Doubtless Tyki meant fashioned. He knew Gladio would likely agree on that note. His highness, too, if he was asked.

He turned back to prepare Tyki's egg, and resisted the voice that pointed out how easily he could tamper with the meal. Ignis was above such tactics, however offended he might be.

[declaregamuza]

Nel looked at the plate placed in front of her with wide eyes. It looked amazing for something Ignis had whipped together in the space of ten minutes.

"I intend to, thank you," she said. She put her knife through the yolk and into the bread below. The bread was crisp, and the yolk ran down in the trail of her knife.

"For what it's worth," she said, as she sliced her breakfast in half, "you do both speak Standard extremely well."

[intangibleman]

"Him better than me," Tyki said, quite honestly, with a bit of a smile.

Ignis was clearly well-educated. He was there as an envoy, so he wasn't stupid. He wasn't just a minion, he was likely trained to deal with people, so he wasn't going to show his hand, or act up in front of other members, especially not him. It must have been a wrench to cook for him, but politeness came first.

"Ivalician seems as varied as Jyllandi, at least," he added. Could it be described as standard, if that was the case? Nnoitra spoke differently to Nel, who sounded entirely different to either of the member Selkies he'd met. Perhaps it could, by those who considered their language the norm, and anything other as 'nonstandard'. "I'm glad my accent hasn't carried over too much. It's considered quite ... rough."

Ignis would no doubt attest to that.

"Have you ever considered learning?" He asked of Nel, suddenly aware of a presence approaching the door to the kitchen.

[cierva]

The presence in question, was Apache.

They'd got back late from their trip out. They'd stayed out longer than they needed to after wrangling the Aizen brats, just to keep the assholes, herself included, away from any visiting members of the Clan. Szayel was their primary concern, according to Nel. Grimmow and Yylfordt's egotistical macho nonsense was a secondary one.

She'd gone straight to bed, exhausted from the effort of putting up with Szayel without throwing him bodily from the Ragnarok into the desert, or the sea. She didn't, however, sleep particularly well, not with all the new reiatsus in the palace, so when she'd woken she'd showered, and dressed, and headed to the kitchen for some coffee.

There were two strangers in there, but she was tired, and she didn't care if it was a grouchy behemoth so long as it didn't get in the way of the kettle. She didn't fancy a grouchy behemoth's chances against Nel, anyway, and she could feel her there as well.

[declaregamuza]

Nel felt Apache's approach, and was briefly relieved that out of the possible firstcomers to the kitchen out of the returning parade from yesterday, it was her. The other options, Grimmjow, Yylfordt, Szayel were less appealing given present company.

"I think I'm a little old to be picking up new languages now," she told Tyki, giving him a slightly self conscious smile.

She cut off the first piece of breakfast and took a bite. Immediately she groaned, and looked at Ignis, making sure to chew, and swallow, before she said, "This is beautiful."