typically, you'd find her sitting at her desk, busying herself with work and trying to find a brand new design. very rarely would anyone find her out and about at this time, especially when the night seems to fall so much earlier and the full moon can be seen far above the sky. she sighs, softly, as she tugs her scarf over her lips. it was just a little bit chilly after getting out of the car, but it was manageable. though it was somewhat later into the evening, she was more than wiling to come out. [break][break]

and only for him; not for anyone else. and just for him, she smiles slightly, because she's a bit excited to meet him today. she's quite excited to meet him tonight. [break][break]

so she makes haste to his home, arriving to the door shortly after. there's a brief pause as her hand clutches around the strap of her purse, but she forgoes it to raise her hand and ring the doorbell. [break][break]

now for the waiting game.

Calix Nikolau

☉

His mind wandered as he noted the time.[break][break]

He hummed for a small while more, tapping his fingers gently against his leg prior to turning his attention back towards the kitchen. At the very least, he could take his time with the evening. After all, his son had been on some horse riding expenditure with a couple of friends and was going to stay with another over the weekend, so as far as he was concerned, he was waiting for the call to pick him up, come the following weekday. Reaching out towards the counter, he grasped a pair of tongs he’d set aside before settling himself in front of the stove again.[break][break]

Not too long after doing so, the sound of a chime rung through his ears, and after giving a quick glance over his shoulder, a muffled call sounded from beyond the door. One roar later, and gradually approaching footsteps would have sounded before the sounds of locks being undone, and before long, the woman would be met with the sight of a familiar, bicolored feline, giving her a brief smile and smaller roar before opening the door further.

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉

she doesn't have to wait long before she's faced with a large, bipedal cat. daphne eyes up at it and smiles, slightly, and raising her hand in greeting. "good evening." she nods her head towards it, all while moving her body through the door and closer into the cozy, little home of the man. the first thing she does is raise her feet to quickly slide her shoes off, and set them aside by the door. [break][break]

"is he in the kitchen?" she raises her hand, pointing a bit further into the cozy home. she assumes so, based on the aroma that comes from the kitchen and the soft sizzling she hears coming from the stove. "i hope i didn't keep you waiting long~."

Calix Nikolau

☉

At the sound of the door opening and the footsteps that came with it, a smile surfaced softly upon his lips. Hearing the steps nearing towards his location, he tended to the pan upon the flames before him for a while more before raising the tongs within his grasp. He gave them a quick flick (a wave) before touching it back down into the pan, all while vigorously shaking and tossing its contents with the remaining hand. ”Nah, don’t worry about it~,” he chimed, chuckling while glancing over his shoulder for just a moment. ”You made it here in the end, anyways, and that’s all that matters~,”[break][break]

Following that, the hand upon the pan handle crossed over his chest and towards his shoulder to grasp the cloth that he’d hung over it- or thought he’d hung over it, at least. Immediately upon noting its absence, he glanced down at his shoulder, and then his other one, and then began to instinctively pat himself down, unaware of its true location upon the countertop by the etched doorframe.[break][break]

”Oooh… Where’d I put it…?”

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉

'.. he looks good in home wear' [break][break]

were her initial thoughts. she has to gently - metaphorically - bonk herself over the head for thinking that, seeing that it brings a slight, pinkish hue to her cheeks at the thought. he was casually cooking something in the kitchen, though she couldn't quite distinguish what it was (even though she does enjoy cooking from time to time, her tight schedule often doesn't allow it. ever the busy body). [break][break]

her arrival is on cue, just as she watched the man begin to pat himself down for.. something. emerald eyes glance down to her side, seeing a piece of cloth placed on the countertop. she observes for a while longer, and she can't help but to smile a bit, seeing the man aggressively patting himself in an attempt to find the piece. "are you looking for this?" she asks from the doorframe, letting herself in after taking the piece and holding it within her fingers, and out to him.

Calix Nikolau

☉

At the sound of her voice, he shifted his gaze towards her with both hands and form, altogether, relaxing; gentle hues of azure brilliance blinking as he eyed her, and then the cloth hanging from between her fingertips. It took little more than a moment’s reprise for his mind to properly connect words to sight, and upon doing so, he found himself breathing a gentle sigh of exasperation through lips curled into a small, defeated smile. He placed the tongs down and took the towelette from her.[break][break]

”Exactly what I was looking for, yeah. Thanks~.” He chuckled softly, shaking his head while draping the cloth over his shoulder once more and turning back towards the stovetop. ”Working a bit too quickly, I guess~. Dunno what else I might’ve misplaced~.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉

focus daphne. forcus on the man who's nice enough to be making you some food, and not how he looks good in home wear. god dammit daphne. [break][break]

in an attempt to distract herself from what she sees, she turns her nose up, slightly, to get a better whiff of what was wafting through the air. he was always a good cook (blessed be her), but she sadly never had the smell nor the palette to be able to identify what was being made. the woman moves, slightly to the side with a curious tilt of her head to ask "what are you cooking?"[break][break]

of course, she's careful so that no oil will splash onto her. the last thing she wants is an oil burn - something that she so often recoils back from. oh, speaking of which, there it is, popping from the pan and getting the tiniest little drop on her hand. the reaction is immediate and brief as she hisses, softly, and instinctively tries to move behind a man, away from the pan. [break][break]

... is she acting like a feline right now? [break]
yes, she is. [break][break]

how embarrassing.

Calix Nikolau

☉

”Nothing too—...”[break][break]

….’Complicated,’ had been what he’d intended to say, but as the words left his lips, his head turned in attempt to catch a better, momentary glimpse of her, all the while. It seemed to be just in the nick of time to catch her shying away for reasons unbeknownst to him right away, but as the sudden, crackling sensation of flickering heat touched upon his hands and arms (only annoying at best, really) he gave a soft click of the tongue before idling upon the feeling.[break][break]

The realization clicked as he shifted his gaze over the other shoulder, grinning a bit with a raised brow.[break][break]

”...You good, there~?”

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉

"i--" she starts, though glaring softly at the stove top skeptically "i.. am alright. slightly discomforted but.. alright." her brows furrow, before carefully (cautiously) moving away from behind the man, taking note of her image and clearing her throat into her fist. [break][break]

"please.. do not mind me." she maintains a lowered gaze - she can't face him after that embarrassing display "a-anyways.. what did you say you were cooking?"

Calix Nikolau

☉

…Skeptical.[break]
It was all endearing, either way, but still.[break][break]

His eyes remained upon her with a soft, knowing smirk of amusement as finally found it within herself to step back and away from him, only glancing away from her and towards the stovetop after a few moments more. ”It’s just a ‘lil oil, y’know~. I know it’s super, super scary, but it won’t hurt you too bad— promise~.”[break][break]

He chuckled, rubbing the aforementioned oil that had crackled upon one of his hands against the cloth she’d so graciously handed him as it then resided upon his shoulder, briefly lifting the contents of the pan to gauge its sear before allowing it to rest once more. ”Nothing too fancy, though,” he started off with a hum. ”Just steak and a couple other things~. Shouldn’t be too long before everything’s done, but off that topic— how was work today~?”

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉

"i never said that it was scary.." she's pouting, with her cheek slightly puffed as she takes another glance past the man's arm. there was nothing wrong about wanting to avoid getting splashed by the oil.. again. so then why does she feel so embarrassed, and childish? haa.. [break][break]

she collects herself, moving away from him to give him the room to work. she wouldn't want to get in his way, after all. "work was alright.." she enjoys this more than when she would work for the family business ".. mmn, nothing too important happened today, and no news is good news." at least, it's how it always was. [break][break]

"what about you? nothing bad happened today, i hope?"

Calix Nikolau

☉

He hummed, absentmindedly pursing his lips and shrugging softly.[break][break]

”Technically no, but technically yeah, also. Just comes with the job, though.” His eyes shifted towards the side for a brief moment, locating a set of tongs he’d set aside some time earlier before reaching for them. He clicked the end of them against his chest to undo the lock before using them to turn the steaks over. ”Even from a civvy standpoint, you know how it is. Bad stuff happens. The good guys gotta look into it. Same old, same old, really.”[break][break]

He took a moment to trade the tongs for a spoon, quickly stealing a couple scoops of butter from a prepared part of the mise en place he’d brought out (though not before tossing in a couple of crushed garlic gloves, as well) and beginning to baste the steaks.[break][break]

”I’m not gonna lie, though… With all that’s been happening recently, I’m getting a bit more worried.” He pursed his lips, his eyes narrowing towards the stovetop all the while. ”It’s not even just normal crime anymore— and not even the less normal crime I’m used to dealing with, either. All the stuff that’s been happening is just…so outlandish. Foreign. New. It’s kinda scary, honestly.”

DAPHNE STONE [break]

☉

well.. no news is good news, especially in his line of work. to be honest, daphne would be more worried if there was something noteworthy to be said, and she'd be more than happy if he just ended it at "same old, same old". she had hoped that it would only end there as he worked with the stove, although they're in hoenn, and with hoenn came disasters that seemingly appeared to happen one after the other, for no explicit reason.[break][break]

".. mmn. i imagine that it's.. jarring." she still remembers the events of the bombing, the war and the appearance of ultra beasts. it made the take over of rocket in slateport look like child's play in comparison (so is it a surprise when rocket wants to help fight against the beasts? after all, there is no region to rule if destruction runs its course). [break][break]

her eyes lower to the stove, and a pensive hum comes from her lips as she, very instinctively (and unconsciously) pinches a piece of his apron between her fingers, to tug. perhaps it's the anxiety getting to her, or the idea of someone getting hurt. even though it's his job.

Calix Nikolau

☉