Now you know it's so much better to pretend

[thatsit]

Since the revelations of the meeting the mood in the Palace had shifted. In part, that was because the population had shifted. A number of attendees had left for their own homes once more, and the air had felt a little less tense ever since.

Bellatrix had been the first to depart, slinking off with her tail between her proverbial legs before anyone had chance to notice her retreat. Ariane Emory had stayed the night and left for Gralea the following day. Ignis had no doubt the woman would be back, but since her chances of laying her hands on the stone were currently zero she'd likely considered it a waste of her time to linger. He wasn't sorry to see the back of her black clad followers, whose impassivity was unsettling and existence an affront, although neither of those things were the fault of the individuals themselves.

Sir Integra and Alucard had stayed an extra night, which Ignis suspected had more to do with the presence of Noah clan in the Palace than Integra's own wishes. Alucard was a barely leashed attack dog at the best of times, but the Palace was, if not a no-combat zone then at least a neutral one where residents were expected to behave themselves. Ignis had sought her out prior to her departure, and they'd spent an hour discussing the meeting, the attendees, and Ignis and Gladio's plans to stay on a while longer.

She'd promised to pass his well wishes to his aunt before she'd left.

The Noah remained, though they seemed more intrigued with the Arrancar than they did with Ignis and Gladio. It wasn't unfounded; the meeting had held a number of revelations, not least the fact that Captain Aizen's underlings were daemon-infused experiments. It explained a lot about some of them, such as why, despite their reputations and behaviours, they were kept around.

It only raised questions about others. Nel, for example, seemed perfectly level headed and competent, and even had a background as a ranked watchwoman, and yet as one of Captain Aizen's Arrancar, she was infused with daemonic power. Why she had consented to that was a small mystery, and one that was probably rude to enquire about unless one knew her personally.

She was preparing for another visit to D District, maintaining the air that she was Captain Aizen's lover. Ignis had informally taken over some of her kitchen duties, duties that were not, Nel had said, given to her but which she had assumed because it was that or allow a disorganised free for all that would see inhabitants surviving on cup noodles and ready meals, and no one ever washing the dishes.

Aside from anything else, it gave Ignis a good position from which to ingratiate himself with the Palace's other inhabitants. Some were self sufficient, stubbornly so in some cases. Others were accustomed to Nel's presence, and became similarly accustomed to Ignis's.

He had two flavoured batches of Lucian Delight, cooled and ready for slicing into cubes to one side. He'd found an apron too, which made him feel much more at home in the Palace's kitchen. With his sleeves rolled up and his jacket hanging over the back of a chair, he practically looked like he belonged there as he sifted cornflour and icing sugar together.

Comments

[thatsit]

It was the sound of the door that alerted Ignis to Lumi's presence, and he did his best not to be startled by it, his head turning towards the door reflexively, and then back again to his sweet making. It was discomfiting to be unaware of someone's approach by anything other than sound. Ignis considered himself to be reasonably magically adept, and as sensitive to reiatsu as was to be expected as a result, but Lumi had no reiatsu. The man was a ghost. A mild mannered ghost that had, following the meeting, been viewed in a new light by most of the Palace.

Lumi's erstwhile reputation as a loyal attack dog had shifted somewhat following his companion's swift actions in his defence. The entire Palace, Ignis included, had been forced to do some swift recalculations regarding their relationship. Ignis had never considered Lumi to be merely a follower of Marluxia's; he displayed far too much agency and a quiet intelligence for that, but the depth of Marluxia's loyalty had come as a surprise. Marluxia had revealed a previously unknown ability in the heat of the moment. A calculated move on Marluxia's part, no doubt, and yet one that by all accounts he need not have done.

It had been a move that was of particular interest to Ignis, and by extension Gladio. While it gave the appearance of the royal armiger, the Lucian Royal Kekkei Genkai, it was not a wholly accurate facsimile, not to the trained eye. Of course, only Ignis and Gladio possessed said trained eyes within the Palace at present.

"Lucian Delight," Ignis answered, when Lumi spoke. He glanced over his shoulder once more and offered Lumi a smile. "It's a traditional sweet," he added, "have you ever tried it?" It wasn't to everyone's palate, although Ignis did hold the opinion that anyone that disliked it had merely never had it made properly. Even in Lucis, these days, people tended to buy it pre-made, and shortcuts were taken in the manufacturing that altered the texture and made the end product overly sweet.

[thesilentstorm]

Lumi raised his eyebrows and shook his head.

"I've never even heard of it," he admitted, approaching the counter on which Ignis was working. "I don't get the impression that Lucian cuisine is a particularly well-known thing in Ivalice."

'Ivalice'. It was a useful word, and a far-reaching one. The Lowerworld. All of the various disparate cultures and countries that sat on the surface of the Spira fell under the term, their conflicts and alliances ignored. It distanced it from the Purvamae without the need to adhere to borders or nationality.

"It smells like roses," he said, perhaps somewhat redundantly.

[thatsit]

Ignis glanced sidelong at Lumi. The way he spoke, it sounded as if he wasn't native to the lowerworld, which might explain some of Lumi's general strangeness. As far as Ignis had been able to determine, Lumi was exceptionally powerful, but seemed to prefer guns to any other form of weaponry, a preference that was more typical of the Union, where guns were more prevalent than on Ivalice. Lumi was rarely without one; he walked around casually armed just as any mage did. The fact that he bore no discernable reiatsu suggested he was also horrifically powerful as a mage, so Ignis imagined it didn't make much difference whether the man was visibly armed or not.

Not that it made much difference with his companion, either, clearly.

"I'm impressed," Ignis admitted, "most people don't recognise it unless they know." He flashed Lumi a brief smile before turning to sprinkle a light dusting of the icing sugar and cornflour mix on the countertop. "Rose and lemon are the traditional flavours, though one can flavour it with ginger, orange, liqourice," he tailed off. "Personally I prefer rose," he added, "I enjoy the subtlety."

He turned the first batch out onto the dusted powder and carefully peeled the baking parchment away by degrees.

[thesilentstorm]

Lumi gave a soft snort of amusement, a light exhalation in lieu of a laugh.

"Rose, in my experience, is anything but subtle," he said, his voice even flatter than usual.

He watched as Ignis worked, curious to see something he'd never heard of prepared. It looked jelly-like, in a strange way. Jelly-like, but strangely thick. The smell was pleasant, but he did wonder if it would give between the teeth like jellies he'd tried in the past, or whether it would have more bite, or be stickier, like one of the pre-packaged sweets he'd tasted in port shops.

"You like to cook, I take it," he said, more as a statement than a question.

He didn't get the impression that Neliel enjoyed it. She did it, because it was that or suffer the kitchen looking like a bombsite and her compatriots starving to death or getting malnutrition. She did it because she was a mother to the others, Ignis... appeared to get very real enjoyment from the results.

[thatsit]

Ignis barely suppressed a smirk at Lumi's comment. It seemed the loyal attack dog wasn't above some humour at his companion's ostentatiousness. Of course, roses by appearance were anything but subtle, and they advertised both colour and thorns, but their scent was sweet and their flavour as delicate as their petals. Roses were very much about the show.

Fitting, perhaps.

"I do," he answered. A second light dusting of powder sprinkled the top of the slab, and then Ignis carefully sliced it into strips. The sweet clung to the knife stubbornly, but Ignis was patient as he worked, slicing the first strip up into evenly sized cubes and dropping them in the bowl of mixed powder. "Originally I took it on as a duty," he admitted, talking absently as he sliced. "I got no joy from the process of cooking, but I found the reactions of others to be worth the effort."

Now, of course, he enjoyed the process too. It was therapeutic to put aside the concerns of crown and state to concentrate on the art of melding flavours, and the precision of the process.

When the first strip was lightly coated in sugary powder Ignis threw Lumi a smile. "Would you like to try some?" he offered.

[thesilentstorm]

Lumi listened as Ignis explained. It made sense. Duty somehow blossomed into something enjoyable for some, but it seemed that the effect it had on others was more of a reward to him than anything else. Ego, perhaps, if innocently applied.

"Certainly," he said, half surprised to be offered something that was evidently special and part of the man's native cuisine.

He took a small cube between finger and thumb, the white powder pale against even his skin. It was squishy, as expected. The small cube was bite-sized, so instead of biting it in half, he put the entire thing in his mouth, mostly in an effort to avoid coating his teeth with potential stickiness.

It was rather nice. It tasted sweet, but Ignis hadn't been wrong -- the rose taste was subtle.

[thatsit]

Ignis watched for the change in Lumi's expression that told he was experiencing the flavour. His expression certainly wasn't one of disgust, which was fortunate. Some people disliked the texture, others the sweetness. "I daresay the taste is a little more understated than you'd expect, given your experience," he said, with a hint of amusement.

He turned back to the rest of the slab and began to slice that up, too. "You can have some if you like it," he said, "I've certainly made plenty to share."

[thesilentstorm]

Lumi gave a smirk that time, a slight quirk of the lips giving away his feelings on the matter of Marluxia's showboating and the excess of petals involved.

"I think I'll take you up on that," Lumi said, after finishing the piece he'd taken.

It wasn't at all bad. He'd certainly eaten worse in his lifetime. The taste was delicate and the texture was strange, but far from unpleasant.

"How long are you planning to stay?" He asked, tilting his head to one side just slightly, like a curious animal. "More importantly, how long are you planning to cook?"

[thatsit]

How long were they planning to stay? That was the question, wasn't it? Ignis didn't consider his task with Khamja to be complete. He'd been sent to attend the meeting, yes, but his task was to make allies, secure resources and support for Lucis, or at the very least, find out what the Nifs might be up to.

He hadn't found out what the Nifs were up to, although he could hazard a bloody good guess at what they had on their agenda following the meeting. That had only served to make the first two items on the list all the more important.

The Arrancar were a possible resource. Knowing that the likes of the Noah were present in Khamja, however, did not make them the strongest possible contenders, and their use would require ingratiating themselves with Captain Aizen and making an ally of him, although befriending Arrancar themselves wouldn't hurt. But they weren't enough, and Ignis wasn't prepared to place all of his eggs in that particular basket.

He laughed at the follow up question, however. At least someone wanted him to stick around. "I'm not sure, to be honest with you," he answered. "It's my first time on the lowerworld, it would be a shame to leave without taking in some of the local culture. Or cuisine," he added, with a glance at Lumi as he dropped another batch of delight into the powder mix. "I'm happy to cook for as long as Neliel is content to relinquish the reins in the kitchen, and for as long as people wish me to. It would be interesting to trial my attempts at local dishes on local palates."

And to introduce the local palates to Jyllandi dishes, too.

[thesilentstorm]

"From what I know, food local to this region is often heavily spiced," he offered. "I don't get the feeling that deserts have much to offer beside that."

He hadn't spent much time in Rabanastre, or the wider country of Dalmasca, but their food, in his limited experience, was often loaded with spices, perhaps to disguise the less savoury cuts of meat. He didn't imagine farming in a desert resulted in the usual plump, well-fed specimens it did elsewhere.

It occurred to him, if vaguely, that 'local' to Ignis may simply refer to 'Ivalice', but Ivalice was a big place. Bancouri food was not Dalmascan food. The dishes common to Rozarria were not like those from Landis. Mixtures happened, but there was a world of difference where 'local' was concerned.

[thatsit]

"It would still be a change," Ignis answered, glancing at Lumi once more. Nearly all of the slab was sliced up and suitably dusted now, and he gave it a light toss with his fingers to ensure even coverage. "Dalmascan food is a rarity in Lucis," he explained, "most of our spicy cuisine originates in Leide, and the best approximation one can find of Al Bhed gastronomy there would likely offend."

He gave Lumi an apologetic smile. It was one of the side effects of Lucian isolationism lasting so long. Now they were branching out, however tentatively, but Lucian palates weren't used to the way of spicing and cooking that was used in Dalmasca. "While I'm here I'd like to see how it's really done."

[thesilentstorm]

"There is a large food market in Rabanastre," Lumi said, after a moment of thought. "Of course, there are stalls where you can get pre-made examples of certain dishes, but I can't attest to the quality or accuracy."

It wasn't that he was picky with food, he just didn't spend a great deal of time in Rabanastre. That, and Marluxia was not a street food enthusiast. He preferred an overpriced restaurant with well-dressed servers, an ambience and meat with a pedigree to dishes of uncertain origin cooked in the open air.

Lumi wasn't fussy. He'd eat anything. It didn't matter to him whether the meat on his plate had been wild caught or raised for the table over generations, with a genealogy to prove it.

[thatsit]

That piqued Ignis's interest. He could, given the opportunity, spend a long afternoon browsing local markets, sampling herbs, spices, and the delicacies on offer. A culture's stomach was rarely found in an expensive restaurant, the likes of Altissia aside, but in the vendors selling fast food to the locals on the go.

"That sounds worth a trip," he said, giving the last of the delight another swirl and toss.

He had a container ready to transfer the sweet into, but paused for a moment and moved across the kitchen to the cupboard where it seemed Nel kept spare containers. Ignis gave one of them a rinse and a thorough drying before he returned to his original post and transferred as much of the delight into it as would comfortably fit. "I'll have to see if Gladio feels up to an outing," he said, as he moved. Though he doubted Gladio would object.

"How come you haven't sampled it?" he asked. Was it a lack of opportunity, or perhaps it just didn't take his fancy?

[thesilentstorm]

"I seldom go to Rabanastre," he said, giving a shrug. "I dislike the climate."

As a desert country, it was obviously hot. There was rarely a summer or winter distinction, just a few long weeks of wet to briefly break the grip of the unforgiving heat.

"Marluxia also isn't a fan of market food," he added, giving slight smile. "He prefers an upmarket restaurant. Some of the ingredients in Al Bhed food is enough to make some of the diaspora turn up their noses, let alone others."

[thatsit]

Rare visits to Rabanastre made sense. Ignis was hoping to spend some actual time in the city instead of merely passing through, but he had to admit that the climate would present a challenge. Insomnia was hot, but Ignis was fortunate enough to spend a lot of time in the shelter of air conditioning.

The information about Marluxia, however, was unsurprising. He seemed the type to prefer restaurant dining, and expensive hotels to street food and roughing. Lumi sounded as if he was less concerned, but went with Marluxia's preference.

They ate in restaurants a lot together, then.

"You should take him to Altissia sometime," Ignis said, adding a little extra powder to the two separate containers. "It's famed for its restaurants."

[thesilentstorm]

"Where is Altissia?" He asked.

Geography of countries he'd never visited wasn't his strong suit. Geography in general wasn't. He hated all of it, plains, mountains, steppes, beaches, deserts and scrub. It was all unpleasant, all in its own way, even though he had been forced to get used to it of late.

He liked to believe he knew enough about the world he was forced to live on to know it wasn't somewhere on Ivalice, but he didn't know if it was a country or a district of Lucis. He'd never heard of it, but that didn't mean it wasn't as 'famed' as Ignis said. It was possible that everybody knew. He was hardly normal, even for the Lowerworld.

[thatsit]

Perhaps not as famed on the lower continent, Ignis reconsidered, but then, Lumi had implied he wasn't native to Ivalice either. Perhaps Ignis had misinterpreted his wording, but something seemed off about a Selkie that spoke about half his heritage's food with the same distance he spoke of the rest of the continent that also hadn't at least heard of Altissia, if only in passing.

Or perhaps he was from elsewhere on Ivalice, and wasn't close to his roots. Neliel was Archadian, but Lumi lacked the accent to identify his origins as there. Ignis decided he'd have to ask, instead of trying to work it out for himself.

"It's a city state of the Union," he explained of Altissia, "across the water from Lucis. It's a popular destination for couples and gastronomes alike. It's reportedly quite beautiful, though I've sadly never been myself."

[thesilentstorm]

"Ah," he said, trying to imagine water featuring on a floating continent. He'd been to Dorstonis, which was as it sounded -- a continent floating some distance above the ocean between Ordalia and Valendia. Jylland, or Eos as people were beginning to prefer these days, was reportedly much larger, and he had heard tell of a floating sea. He could be referring to that phenomenon, though it could just as easily be across a sizeable lake.

"I'll have to mention it to him. I'm not certain he's interested in food enough to be considered a gastronome, but I daresay he'd like trying new things with an outrageous pricetag."

[thatsit]

Ignis gave a small huff. He felt he was getting quite the picture of the sort of man Marluxia was. Clearly he enjoyed the finer things the world had to offer. By extension, that meant Lumi was also more accustomed to them than to the alternatives. "If he's attracted to pricetags, Altissia is certainly going to appeal," Ignis commented.

"Might I ask where you two are from?" he asked, sealing up a container and sliding it along the counter to Lumi. Ignis could always make more, and would, given the opportunity. It was nice to be able to treat a large kitchen as if it were his own. The citadel chefs let him use their facilities, of course, but he didn't want to get underfoot.

[thesilentstorm]

Well, wasn't that just a question? It was sort of difficult to explain without telling him that they were, in fact Ryoka. Their licenses said they were from Lionel, but that wasn't strictly true except in the sense that it was where both of them had first set foot on Spiran soil. He had the vivid memories of the Thunder Plains to prove it.

"Neither of us are local to Dalmasca," he said, evading the question. "My License says I'm Lionelli, but I didn't grow up there -- I traveled around a lot. Marluxia and I have just bought a house in Rozarria, though. He intends to open a shop."

[thatsit]

Lumi sounded as if he came from a family of nomads. Perhaps that had included some time spent on Jylland before geography and local politics became factors in his education.

"A shop?" Ignis asked. It was difficult to picture Marluxia as a humble shopkeeper. In truth it was difficult to picture Marluxia as humble. The notion of a man as flamboyantly confident as that turning his hand to customer service was difficult, and that was before you inserted his ability with weaponry into the picture.

The only possible reason Ignis could imagine for a member of Khamja to open a shop was to act as a front, and possibly as a money laundering scheme.

[thesilentstorm]

"Mmm," he murmured, finding it hard to imagine. Ignis, it seemed, had the same reservations when it came to picturing the man who had pulled a scythe from thin air in a shower of pink chakra petals standing behind a desk and serving customers. "Flowers," he elaborated.

A florist. It was certainly his area of expertise. Providing they were in the area, it would be a good moneymaker, he said. Lumi had argued that they'd make more selling flowers in a desert region, like Rabanastre, or somewhere in Ishval, but Marluxia had insisted on the rather prettier and more temperate Rozarria, to no argument from Lumi. Flowers would still sell there, he'd said. Rich people with disposable income liked beautiful things and he could grow the most beautiful flowers.

[thatsit]

Floristry. Ignis considered that for a moment and found that it settled more easily into his imagination when one pictured Marluxia selling flowers. "I suppose he does have the flair for them," he conceded.

There was something almost quaint about it, really. The image of Marluxia and Lumi settling down to a peaceful life of flower selling , living in their house was almost enough to make Ignis a little envious. Though it was still a strange step for members of Khamja, let alone ones as powerful as Marluxia and Lumi appeared to be.

"I assume he won't be selling Malboros," Ignis said, thinking of Marluxia's garden here, and its patrolling guards.

[thesilentstorm]

Lumi's expression went very flat, quite a feat considering his usual subdued emotions.

"No," he said, just as flatly. "No, he will not."

Nobody liked the Malboros. They were revolting to look at, they smelled atrocious and they had wide mouths full of needly, sharp little teeth perfectly suited for transmitting bacteria into the ragged wounds they inflicted. They occupied a position near the top of the list of Spiran fauna -- or flora? -- that were to be feared and avoided at all costs. The list of afflictions they could transmit through breath alone was long enough.

Marluxia's pets didn't attack Lumi, or provide any threat, but that didn't mean he liked them.

[thatsit]

Ah, thought Ignis, something the happy couple didn't agree on. He did his best to hide his amusement, but he'd have been forced to admit that his best wasn't very good. "I take it you're not a fan?" he asked.

Ignis could hardly blame Lumi. Marluxia's Malboros were tiny compared to the ones Ignis had heard about, but they smelled no sweeter, and were no more affable. He hadn't attempted to venture near Marluxia's greenhouse, but it had been disconcerting to walk through the garden and feel oneself being watched by some very aggressive plants.