2023-10-27: The Silver Spoon

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<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bThCmG_vl8

         It was dinner time on the Division Train, and in the dining "car", set up in a similar way to Orbit Base's own Orbit Cafe, the sound of piano keys and saxophone chords could be heard from the kitchen area, muffling the more familiar clinking and clacking of pots, pans, dishes, and utensils. On top of that, the music is accompanied by a voice that very specifically was not that of GGG's trusty lunch lady, Kikuho Eir, but of...one of their latest recruits, Lina Lombardi.

Earlier in the day, a notice had gone out to the entire train:

                           TONIGHT'S DINNER
                           WILL BE PREPARED
                           BY MISS LINA LOMBARDI

                           (Extra hands in the kitchen are both appreciated and requested)

         Lina, standing in the kitchen in a black tee, an apron, and with her hair tied up under a net and out of her face to give a rare view of her left eye, flips through several notecards with aged cursive writing on them. Her thumb gently runs over the slight imprint of the text.


         It is 0076. The Earth Sphere is at relative peace. The Lombardi Grove thrives. And a young Linelise is helping her mother in the kitchen. Being seven years old, her actual avenues of assistance are limited to cracking eggs and stirring pots, but she loves it anyway. Isabella Lombardi always flips through a series of cards in the kitchen. Recipies passed down from mother to daughter.

         "Food is one of the greatest traditions of Italy, Linelise. It is one of the few things that stays the way it is as the world goes forward. The same instructions, the same ingredients."


         Lina snaps herself out of her memory as people begin to come into the dining area. "Benvenuti! Sit down wherever you please! The first course will be ready any minute now! Extra helpings for anyone who helps me back here!" She ducks back into the kitchen, making sure pots are boiling and ovens are preheating as she prepares the appetizer, a mozzarella and tomato caprese with crostini on the side. She had attempted to prepare as many fresh ingredients as possible, both brought from Earth and procured on Alba City, though she found herself still having to rely on the ingredient synthesizer to fill in the gaps. Her movements are quick and graceful, darting around the kitchen in sync to one of her jazz albums playing on a wireless speaker. "And let me know if you eat meat or not, I do have a vegetarian option available!" 

<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.

Sonia knows her strengths and weaknesses, and right now, she is firmly staying the hell out of the kitchen. She is also doing this for the fact that if she is left in a kitchen Lina is accidentally going to hurt herself and that's already happened once this trip.

"I'm here!"

Sonia announces this as she glances at the table, glancing at the table for a moment, before heading to the kitchen area.

"Lina, dear, you best bring out extra mozzarella, fresh cheese..." Fresh cheese good. Fresh, round, mozzarella, very good. That being said, Lina and anyone else will find her leaning on the doorway, arms crossed over a frilly apron that surfaced from somewhere over a navy blue dress. She looks somewhat smug. (She is, incidentally for anyone that pings easily, smug.) 

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        While Alba City's cosmopolitan nature makes it a great choice for sampling the cuisine of a several Earth cultures, as well as Mars-specific fusions and twists. Cooking that cuisine, however... that's another matter. Due to the relatively rapid growth of the city over the course of decades, as well as the following burst in population growth, finding specific ingredients is akin to finding a needle in a haystack. It'll be there, but you'll likely need to find a convenience store tucked into a corner somewhere, selling to a specific demographic.

        And that was before the Jovian lizard invasion.

        So, when Lucine gets the notice of a dinner prepared by Lina, she had to pause a moment, marveling that someone else is going through the same sorts of loops she was, even if hers were a little easier due to-- ..... Well, that's a story for another day.

        -------------

        Events like this require a bit of dressing up, so Lucine..... tried to borrow a dress from her mom, at first. However, the fashion of a workaholic biologist who has put such things like 'dates' and 'dressing up' behind her (as well Lucine finding out she's a different size than her mom now) as well as a distinct line in the sand as to what they like to wear, Lucine...

        .... mysteriously now has a dress available to wear, like she was preparing for something else. Mysterious! Nothing too complicated, though, being something she could easily get away with rolling up and packing: a sleeveless soft pink dress with a light monochromatic botanical print, falling to just below her knees. Her hair is done up in two French braids along either side, leading into a low bun near the nape of her neck. A pair of strap sandals completes her look-- no jewelry aside from the Sheryl Nome-branded ring on one finger.

        Which makes helping cook not that hard to do; an apron will protect her dress, and even if it gets stained later, it'll be a worthy price to pay.

        "Aah, I think we might be the only ones here, unless some guests come in. Maybe there's a movie being shown in one of the other cars." Lucine doesn't seem to mind; it'll be like a double date!

        ..... One that won't end with Liam being kidnapped. That was definitely a mood-killer, to be sure. ".... Oh wow... you managed to find fresh mozzerella? Cheeses have taken a hit in the past year or so, but... I wonder if some people will start owning cows near the lake area... so many cowboys, but not enough cows..." 

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.


        Liam is in a strange and uncomfortable place right now, but this hasn't dampened his need to be useful. When Lina put out the call for kitchen help, he answered--while not a practiced chef, he's comfortable in the kitchen. His knifework is impeccable, he follows instructions to the letter, and he knows when to sit back and let someone with more experience take the lead.

        Now, it is time to eat.

        Liam sits next to Lucine, in the same suit he wore to their fancy date in Orb; this may be his way od justifying packing a tiny extra bit of mass because he was worried he'd meet Lucine's mom and be improperly dressed. "It's okay," he says. "I... like it like this. Not that I wouldn't like something bigger. And we can make sure everyone who wants food gets it, even if they're busy."

<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.

         "Sonia, I could never show my face in Italy if I didn't." Lina glances over to her g...to Sonia, as she begins to arrange the silky slices of mozzarella on plates, alternating with slices of tomato. She's moving so quick around the kitchen, one would forget that she was technically still in recovery for her injuries. "Now are you going to come in, or just enjoy the show?"


         It is 0085. Six years have passed since the One Year War, and more importantly to the Lombardi family, Isabelle's passing. A teenage Lina, short hair tied back into a ponytail, is working in the kitchen of the Lombardi villa. Her father was home on shore leave tonight, so she insisted to her uncle Francis that she be allowed to make something for him. Flipping through the cards her mother left her, she's had several years of cooking for her sister to do a lot more than cracking eggs and stirring pots. Of course, Felix Lombardi had always insisted that Lina not need to go out of her way for him.

         "Papa, you're not coming home just to get takeout! Mama said you need to eat real food once in a while and not just rations!"


         "Lucine! You seem to be alright after last week, thank God." What about you, Lombardi? "Technically, the mozzarella is from Earth. I brought a few things up with me and stashed them in the fridge." Pulling the crostini out of the oven and replacing them with the main course, parmesans of both the chicken and eggplant variety, she points her knife towards the ingredient synthesizer. "I don't like that thing. I don't know where the food comes from or WHAT it's made of. And don't worry, people will get hungry and eventually file in. Luckily, the kitchen can keep the leftovers fresh for a while."

         "A double date..." Were she and Sonia...dating? It was true they had gone out on two dates...how many dates makes dating? As plates begin to go out, she finds herself momentarily distracted. Were they girlfriends?! As she wonders, one of her pots begins to boil over with water and she rushes over, wincing as for the first time tonight, she hits her ankle a bit wrong, quickly dialing down the heat to settle the water. "Mamma mia..." 

<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.

"... so many cowboys, not enough... cows...?" Sonia echoes that sentence, mildly confused. "Is that like too many cooks in the kitchen... No, no that's not right..."

Oh no.

"Lina's got me hooked on fresh cheese. Also wine that's not five dollars. That last part is cheating, though. She -is- a Lombardi."

Lucine and Liam are chilling, and Sonia respects that. they've had some rough times, much less than she and Lina have in any way. "I was just going to watch. Can I be instructed? Yes. Am I also well aware this is the place where you excel and I end up cracking ribs? Also yes!" A pause as Lina says some magic words, and she flicks a glance back at the other two, then Lina.

"I'll help carry stuff, -please- don't hurt yourself further."

"Would this really be so wrong as a double date, even if the two of us are slow about talking about things to each other?" Sonia does ask her nonchalantly before ferrying appetizers. 

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        Already, the kidnapping feels like years away. Is she just burying it, Lucine wonders? "Ah, I've been keeping myself busy, more or less," Lucine replies back, with a small smile. "... Mom's still been hoping I'd change my mind and just live in her apartment forever, but... if getting kidnapped was going to be enough to scare me from going out, then I wouldn't have been brave enough to go on this trip in the first place." It's said in that half joking, half serious tone of voice that suggests an element of truth somewhere in there.

        It's the language of family, something Lina seems to understand keenly too. It's in the air, and how expertly she busies herself around the kitchen area. Nostalgia and memory, carried forward into the future. Also, mozzerella all the way from Earth. Lucine's eyes widen. ".... whoah..." Lina's attention may be on the ingredient synthesizer, but Lucine's too amazed over the crostinis.

        Ushered back over to the tables, Lucine takes a seat across from Liam. Looking at him in this setting, as the smell of appetizers waft in the air, her smile grows slightly coy with a gold twinkle in her eyes. "... They have a point... this is like a double date."

        But more than that, it was nice just to see Liam helping in the kitchen. Reaching out to clasp his hand, if it's visible, Lucine says, "... You've had a hard enough time lately. I'm... glad you felt up to doing this, Liam. And..." She turns over towards Lina. "... The same goes for you too. And you, Sonia!"

        Liam and Lina do have a good idea, however. ".... That could work... I'm sure a lot of people just felt too tired. Having some food would be a nice way to get people's spirits back up. Maybe the Bebop crew would be interested too... I think Spike's still in his cast, though, but Jet and Faye wouldn't mind their shares..."
I don't understand that.

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.


        Liam simply nods as Lina expresses misgivings about the ingredient synthesizer. "Fresh food is good," he says. "But I'm glad it's here, too." A sad, understanding smile crosses his face as Lucine talks about what her mother wants. "I bet she's worried. Who wouldn't be? I'm worried, still."

        Lucine takes his hand. He squeezes, gently. "I'm glad we can finally sit down and talk, Lina--and Sonia, too." A faint flush rises in Liam's cheeks, and he turns to Lucine, laughing. "Sure. It can be one."

<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.

         "I guess not, gatita." Her cheeks immediately flush as the pet name slips out and she turns her face down to the stove to hide it. "Y-Yeah, go take the plates out. You can leave one for me, I'll take bites between." How could such a small package leave Lina so flustered every time? She didn't think she had even used the L word yet with Sonia...Ugh, the one time where she's NOT willing to go as fast as possible. Maybe it was waiting for the right moment.

         -----

         It is 0089. Lina Lombardi is driving her scooter home in the dark from her summer job at a local restaurant. The wait staff was lucky, they got to go home right when the place closed. The kitchen staff is usually lucky if they're done by half an hour past. Getting paid peanuts, having to cook exactly to the letter, coming home smelling like stale pasta water...God, she thought, the academy couldn't come soon enough. If the damn war hadn't blanched the vineyard, she wouldn't have to be slaving like this.

         She shuffles into the villa, prepared to make something quick before bed, to be greeted by her younger sister and a plate of spaghetti.

         "I know it's not much, Lina, but I thought you'd appreciate being the one eating and not cooking for a change."


         "I think all three of us have had a pretty hard time lately!" She begins the final preparations of the main courses, taking the chicken and eggplant out of the oven and beginning to plate them with the noodles. "Heh, yeah, I'll get some containers for them. I'm sure Jet will appreciate the break from bell peppers and beef with no beef."

         She comes out of the kitchen with a few plates to finally join the rest of them at the table, her hair un-netted, but still tied in a high ponytail. "I made the tiramisu ahead of time, so all I need to do is pull it out of the fridge. We can take our time." Setting herself down, her hand moves in a quick sign of the cross before she finally starts to enjoy the fruit of her labor. 

<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.


Lucine and Liam get a broad smile from Sonia.

"You two are very cute, you know? That sort of understanding the two of you have is..." She shakes her head a bit. "... The fact that it's been so rough and the two of you are still going strong, is very heartening to see. Even if Liam and I got off on the wrong foot, it's wonderful to get to work with the two of you, professionally and personally."

"Lina, I told you I'd help..." Waves of exasperation roll off of her as she watches the other one bring out the last few plates. "You are annoyingly stubborn, you know that, right? Thanks do need to be said though... you've created a food loving monster out of me." Lombardi gets a swift kiss on the cheek before Sonia dives, metaphorically, into the mozzerella.

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        Sonia and Lina's affections for one another may have been held back, each for their own reasons, but Lucine looks upon these small glimpses of their relationship with a small bit of veiled amusement.

        .... So, it's not just her and Liam that did this? She suspects their reasons would be different from Lina's and Sonia's, but in the end, they took forever to confess their feelings for one another.

        And Liam still gets scared. None of the issues he felt about getting close to someone else have necessarily been resolved, no more than Lucine's own. The kidnapping only made them come out into the open. "... Yeah." Lucine's head tilts downwards. "I...." Her mouths bend in a frown as she guides a loose tendril of hair back into place, tucking it behind one braid. "It feels so alien, in a way... I'd... gotten so used to just.... being the outsider. Always being able to come at things with a clean view. No past. No ties except what I made. Here... it was my dad's ties. I wasn't the outsider, anymore... and it's.... I dunno..."

        Lina comes in with some plates, and Lucine uses that as her cue to snap out of it, and into the moment. "..... you made tiramisu..." Lucine can't help it; her face blooms into a dumbly happy smile, like she had just found a fifty dollar bill on the ground.

        Liam squeezes her hand back, and he laughs. It's good to hear Liam laugh that that. She doesn't state it aloud, wanting the moment to remain spontaneous, and not give Liam the impression he ever has to force it.

        Which makes Sonia's comment have the best timing, as Lucine's cheeks flush pink. "... Ah.... Liam makes it easy, you know...? Ah... I hope I'll continue to live up to your expectations--" She gets distracted by the fresh mozzerella. ".... So this is what it looks like...."

        She manages to hold herself back until Sonia dives right in, and then she, in turn, begins to grab her share. "Ahhhh, it tastes so good!!"

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.


        'A pretty hard time'. That's the understatement of the year, or at least the week. Liam nods, his expression fraying a little at the edges--exposing some of the fear and weariness and trauma that accompanied him as he left. (Interplanetary travel: still not far enough to run from your problems. The other topic is positively benign. "Isn't that just bell peppers?" Liam says, a brow arching.

        Clearly, someone here has no personal experience with the Bebop's unique approach to stretching its rations. Perhaps that's for the best.

        Sonia's compliments make Liam's blush spread. "Thank you," he says, "It's... been good working with you, too. I'm glad Lina's taken to GGG so well." The plates come out. Liam picks up his fork and knife and digs in.

<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.

         "Well, maybe it'll end up growing you a few centimeters the--" Her attempt at teasing Sonia is cut off by the kiss, awkwardly shoving a couple more bites in her mouth before managing to mutter out, "Th...Thanks, Sonia. Love you."


         It's 0091. Lina has dropped out of the New Roman Academy after her father went missing on a mission. On a search for leads, she joined up with a mercenary company in Moralia whose proprietor was familiar with her father. Of course, this necessitated Lina drifting away from the family estate and into her own lodgings close to the company.

         Her first night in her new apartment, she's barely had time to furnish it. Hell, she's been so busy, she could barely get groceries. So tonight is a cup of instant ramen. She sighs as she pours the water from her electric kettle into the cup. She couldn't even salt it, the damn cup had enough sodium in it.

         As she sits on the hardwood floor with her...dinner, she looks out the window at the city lights, a far cry from the more pastoral surroundings outside Pistoia. With a wry smile, she toasts a cup of water to her new life and begins to eat, noting that something keeps dripping into the broth.

         Dammit, Lina, stop salting the water.


         Lina lets out a chuckle at Lucine's astonishment. "You're darn right that's what it looks like! And once we're done with our mission and celebrating, I'll show you what real Earth wine looks like too!"

         "Heh, I guess a crew full of idiots was a lot better a fit for me than ol' G-Hound," she chuckles out between bites. She really had been grateful for GGG for giving her a place to belong. One day, she was going to really earn the title of Brave. She wasn't there yet, but soon. "Just let me know when you're all finished and ready for dessert." 

<Pose Tracker> Sonia Sophia-Grace has posed.

"I figured she'd work out here. It was just a hunch, but they have a way of working out for me." Sonia, you're a engineered Newtype, not a luck-based superhero. "I like seeing people thrive." This she admits easily.

"Also, you enjoy me just the way I am, Lina... and I love you too~".

Internal screaming.

"Ahhhh... I am glad we have fresh supplies. I'll have to check in with the team on the Paradiso and see about what our stock up ran. I ... look, but I'm probably quite a bit too hands off sometimes with my crew. It was interesting getting to meet your mom the other time, by the way, Lucine - it's interesting to see parents and their kids." 

<Pose Tracker> Lucine Azul has posed.

        Lucine notices the cracks in Liam's expression; she stops herself from trying to 'correct' it.

        Perhaps, it's a lesson every Newtype with these types of abilities has to learn; to have a clear view of some of the emotions a loved one has, and giving them the dignity of being able to decide when and what they will do with those emotions, rather than muddle with them. She realized that much, in the past few weeks.

        It's pondering this serious realization that Liam points out something that had slipped past Lucine's nose. "....." Her blink is almost audible. She turns the matter over in her head and, aha, there's the answer! ".... Green bell peppers are... a lot easier to grow in hydroponic labs than.... cows."

        It still makes no goddamn sense, Lucine.

        And besides, it's time to eat something several times better than.... a meal that is missing the most important ingredient. Lucine turns back to the important task, picking up her necessary tools to complete her most important and delicious task.

        Even with her mouth full of food, she grins happily, nodding along. ".... GGG really brings out the best in people, doesn't it...? It feels so different compared to NERV, even if they both deal with threats to Earth. It feels... sort of like the Nadesico in some ways... maybe with a little less of the love triangles."

        AND SPEAKING OF LOVE-- well, thankfully not love triangles, specifically--

        The Newtype's eyes just twinkle mysteriously as she shares a glance with Liam, as if to confirm it: Lina and Sonia are throughly and utterly doomed to a wonderful and beautiful relationship.

        ".... You two... are very cute as well." That is Lucine, yes, just happily chowing down, a wide smile on her face. 

<Pose Tracker> Liam 7-020 has posed.


        "But it's not beef with bell peppers if there's no beef," Liam says, his voice softening as he tries to further engage with the concept. He feels for Jet and Spike, though, and it's evident in his eyes. To say that he has been food-insecure in the past is an understatement.

        Liam glances at Lucine--and, conveniently, away from Lina and Sonia as they share in that kiss. "Yeah," he says. "Very different people. But I'm glad to serve with them." And he's not so glad to serve with some in NERV's leadership, not that this is something he's going to voice aloud. "Guy's under so much pressure right now. I just. I hope this all works out." Liam has no idea what 'work out' means in this case, and he's not going to interrogate that.

        He does meet Lucine's eyes. He nods.

<Pose Tracker> Lina Lombardi has posed.

         Lina coughs and blushes at both Sonia's return of her affection and Lucine's declaration of their cuteness. "W-Well, it's looking about time for dessert, lemme just" and she's cut off by the door closing behind her, followed by a small muffled scream.

         Bless these two.

         She comes back out with three pieces of the coffee-flavored cake, setting them down for each diner to get to as they please. It is 0097. Lina is finally where she belongs, sitting down for a meal with good friends (and potentially girlfriends.)

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