towerofanimus | Time for a cooking lesson!~

[Diarmuid nods and watches her gather the ingredients she's listing off. That's something else he's not used to--having things so readily at hand. Even limited by what the administrators choose to stock, there is more here. In his time, it might have taken a whole day or more to make what she's gathered in just a few minutes.

Granted, he knows things are easier now, but it doesn't make it any less wondrous for him to actually see it in person.]

No insult intended, Tohko, but this almost seems like cheating...just having it all ready to be assembled--someone else having done the gathering.

[He pauses and blushes slightly.]

I guess that is just the hunter in me talking, though.

[Tohko couldn't help but chuckle at that as she got out a can opener for the few cans that she needed before turning back to Diarmuid.]

Well, you don't have to use the stuff in the pantry later, if you want. There are deer and other animals you can hunt in the forest, and you will need to hunt while you're here. Jason cuts off most of our food supplies when he's in charge, so if you want meat when he's in charge, you'll have to hunt.

[She then got out a large pot from one of the bottom pantry drawers and put it on one of the stoves burners.]

Lack of supplies or selection isn't really that big of a deal for me. Remember, I don't have to eat, but I imagine it's terribly frustrating for those of you who have to eat.

[Diarmuid is silent for a moment, not sure if he should say what he's thinking or not, but in the end, he decides to go ahead.]

If he does things like that, then I can see why so many people dislike him. I wonder why he does it. Does he really care so little for those of us here or is there another reason? Like it's somehow part of his experiment?

Ah, that's right..I'm sorry, I forgot for a moment. And it is a pain for those of us who have to eat. I can usually manage, but when I want to bake things for others, it's a huge pain.

[Not that Tohko was ever really bothered by the food shortages. As long as they didn't stop restocking the library, she was fine. However, Tohko shook her head at that.]

I think he cares about the people that are here..but it's like a scientist might care about a lab chimpanzee. He cares about seeing how we react under any and all circumstances, whether they be lack of food, too much cold, or the loss of senses.

[Diarmuid brings a hand to his mouth in thought.]

So he tends to be the kind that tests the body, not the mind. Yes, many people will react more violently when their comfort is threatened. I would imagine that would be even more true in a place like this where you know things are happening for a reason and because they want them to. Since this last experiment was more on the mental side...

[He has to pause a moment as memories of what had happen try to force themselves forward. He shoves them back again and then continues.]

...I'm going to guess it wasn't one of his. Do you know who was in charge this month?

[Tohko sighed at that.]

Diarmuid, he tests both the body and the mind. Last month's illnesses were all thanks to him. This month, Riki is in charge, and in December, Jason was, and before him were Dax and Ruana. After this month, it'll be Ruana's turn, and she's the worst of the bunch, in my opinion.

[Tohko sighed again as she started to use the can opener on the can of beef broth.]

..I'm not a violent person, but if I ever meet Ruana and Jason, I'm going to slap them before I start forgiving them. What they did to my friends and myself was horrible.

Oh? Most people I have talked to label Jason as the worst. May I ask why you think Ruana is worse than him? If it's not too upsetting to explain that is....

[He pauses and then shakes his head.]

Or perhaps we should drop the topic all together as it is an unpleasant one and we are suppose to be avoiding those with these lessons. I can always look up old information on the network later.

[Just as their had been signs of what had happened during this month on the network, he's sure there will be signs of what happened in previous ones on it as well. Despite his initial dislike of the network, Diarmuid's slowly starting to realize just how useful it really may be.]

[Tohko sighed as she opened the can and tried to get her thoughts in order.]

Oh, it's alright..the topic itself isn't unpleasant, and it's best you know exactly what these people are capable of.

[Tohko looked at the recipe book for a moment before nodding to herself and turning the burner the pot was on to the correct temperature.]

If you've never made a stew before, it's best to turn the burner on to the temperature it lists and make sure that you're turning on the right burner that the post is on. If you don't, you could cause a fire, so be careful.

[Tohko then poured the broth into the pot as the continued to speak.]

As for why Ruana is worse..when I first came to the Tower, it was during one of her months, and everyone, including me, was involved in an event where you were thrust into costumes, and if you weren't able to collect enough of the candy that was scattered around, your costume would crush you, and you would come back as a warped version of the costume.

[Another sigh as Tohko finished pouring and threw the can away.]

Your warped version would twist your personality, your mind, and your body. Mine cut into me so that I constantly bled, and I killed three people before I snapped out of it and realized what was going on.

And my friend Enoch..they stripped his free will from him and forced him to kill whoever he thought was a sinner...and broke him in the process. He was devastated after that event, and I'm not sure if he ever fully recovered.

[Diarmuid closes his eyes and draws in a breath as she speaks. Part of him had hoped that this month had been a bad one. That people's minds weren't so often the focus of these experiments.

How foolish he was.]

I can't even begin to imagine how horrible that was. To be forced to kill others against your will...

[He shakes his head.]

And I thought that what I went through was bad. Telling lies, no matter how cruel, isn't anywhere near the same as taking a life. I'm sorry. All of my complaining must have sounded so stupid to you...

[Tohko sighed again, but she shook her head as she opened p the can of green beans and poured them into the pot.]

It was pretty terrible..so you can now see why I think Ruana is much worse than Jason. But you don't have anything to apologize about. You didn't sound foolish to me. After all, even if our scars and problems aren't the same, I can still understand that you had a lot going on at that time..especially considering that you thought you were in the Tower for thousands of years.

Just being alive that long would be enough to break anyone..

Yes, that is part of the reason I was acting as I was, I'm sure. It is still no excuse.

[Diarmuid pauses and shakes his head, He's not suppose to be thinking about that stuff right now. Instead, he changes the subject back to cooking by squinting at the oven control panel.]

How do I know which of these control which burner? They seem to be laid out by position, but what is the front and what is the back?

It probably was..but there's still no reason to be sorry. I understand. Really, it's alright.

[Tohko then smiled and pointed to the different nobs above the burners. There were four of them, two to the right and two to the left, stacked on top of each other, and each one controlled a different burner. There was a panel in the middle to control the oven, but Tohko wasn't going to cover that right now.]

Alright then! You see the dark spots underneath each burner? That shows which burner it controlled. These knobs are set up so that the left burners knobs are to the left and the right burners nobs are on the right. The numbers around each burner indicate how high you want the temperature to go.

[Tohko then put two spoonfuls of garlic into the broth and stirred the mixture before putting the jar back.]

[Diarmuid nods as he watches her explain the controls. Once she has finished, he reaches out for one of the nobs giving it a twist and smiles when it turns on the burner he thought it would. He then quickly turns it back off.]

Well, that is easy enough as long as I remember to pay attention to the labels. What is this?

[He motions to the center console that she has skipped over.]

Controls for something else I take it?

[Tohko smiled as Diarmuid used the burners correctly before addressing his question towards the center controls.]

Ah, that controls the oven. The arrows help you control the temperature, and the two lights below it let you know when it's pre-heating and when it's actually ready to bake.

[Diarmuid nods and draws his hand back away from the panel. He had been half tempted to just start messing with the buttons to see if he could figure out what they did. After all, the burners had been easy enough.]

Something we aren't going to use today? I won't mess with it then. How is the soup coming? It's certainly beginning to smell good. Shall one of us taste it?

[Oh, the soup, the soup! Tohko quickly opened up the jar of garlic, put in two spoonfuls, and stirred it in before starting to chop up the tomato.]

Well, we could use the oven later, if you want to make something with it. And the soup's coming along! I just need to add in the rest of the ingredients, have it cook for about thirty minutes, and then it should be done!

[Tohko added in the tomato and gave the mixture another stir before putting the beef into the microwave to heat it up.]

If you want to taste it, you had better hurry! Once this beef goes in, you really can't taste it until it's ready.

[Diarmuid starts to point out she has already put garlic in, but she has it done before he can say anything. Instead, he finds a spoon to taste it with. Maybe mixed with the rest of the things, it won't be that bad?

He tastes it and then winces.

That bad.]

Uh Tohko, I think you doubled up on the garlic. It seems really strong anyway. Is there a way to fix that? Will putting in the meat help?

[There is a bit of sadness in his eyes. She'd messed up because he had been asking questions...]

[Tohko sighed when she saw Diarmuid wince and comment on the garlic. Where had her head been these past few days? She kept screwing up with small things. Maybe it was the stress from having to constantly calm everyone down and restore hope to those who had none.

Maybe. But it still didn't excuse the mistake. As the microwave went off, Tohko pulled out the beef and put it on the counter.]

Gah..I do that sometimes with soups. Don't worry. There's a way to fix it..it's not easy though. If you run into this problem, add at least two spoonfuls of sugar, stir it, and then taste it again to see if it'll help. Can you do that while I open up this beef?

[It shouldn't take her long to take care of the beef, but one way to get the student involved was to have him participate in the lesson like this.]

That sounds simple enough.

[Lancer does as she tells him. First adding just the two spoonfuls, then adding just a little more when it seems like that isn't quite enough.]

Done. I think that is much closer to what it should be. So, the sweet balances out the garlic's bite. Does it do that for other spices as well?

Also, do you want to taste this now to make sure I haven't added too much?

[As Tohko opened up the beef, she smiled and nodded.]

Good! I'm glad to hear that. And sugar can help with other spices and liquids, like vinegar. Not putting in too much liquid would have helped cut back the garlic as well.

[She then washed her hands to get the meat juices off them before pulling out another spoon.]

Oh, sure! I don't think you added in too much though.

[Tohko tasted the soup, and it tasted like sand, as normal foods usually did. However, she was used to this, so she was able to keep smiling as she chewed and swallowed before putting the spoon in the sink.]

You don't have to worry. You haven't put in too much sugar. And now..

[Tohko then added the beef to the mixture before giving it another good stir and washing her hands again.]

Let's see..all we need to throw in now is the potato and the onion.

[Tohko decided to start with the onion and began peeling back all the inedible layers and cutting off a bit of the root before throwing the mess into the trash and chopping up the vegetable.]

Good, sugar is not something I'm familiar with. Most of this stuff isn't stuff I'm familiar with when you get down to it.

[Diarmuid laughs at his own inexperience and then settles against the stove to watch her as she moves expertly around the kitchen. His wife had never mastered cooking so he'd never really had the chance to just watch what it entailed. Yes, this was much different than what he was used to from his time, but there was still an art to it.]

Is there anything I can do to help? Or would me trying to help you out just interrupt and cause you to lose your place again? I don't want to make this any harder than necessary, but I feel kind of useless just standing here.

[Not only useless, but potentially trouble because he doesn't realize that leaning against the stove has caused him to bump up the dial on the burner for the soup.]

[Tohko chuckled at that as she chopped up the onion. It didn't take her too long, as she wasn't going to put the whole head in Just half of it should do, and the other half could be sealed up for someone else wanting onion later.]

Well, don't worry. You'll get the hang of this soon enough! It's not that hard.

[As she finished chopping up the half she needed, she searched around the cupboards until she found a small zip-lock bag and then put the onion in that, sealed it up, and put it into the fridge before turning back to the cut up onion and Diarmuid.]

Oh, don't worry! That wasn't your fault. I do that sometimes with soups..my mind will just wander, and I'll lose track the garlic or the pepper. It's no big deal..but you could cut up that potato for me, if you want.

I can try. How does it need to be cut?

[Diarmuid moves away from the stove never realizing that he's bumped the knob or that the soup probably shouldn't be boiling quite so hard.]

I mean size-wise, of course. The pieces are usually small, yes? Squares? Is that okay?

[Tohko noticed the amount of steam that was coming out of that pot and quickly answered Diarmuid's questions.]

Small squares should be fine! About half the size of a marshmallow, or, if you don't know what those are, half the size of this circle.

[Tohko quickly made a circle with her fingers that was about the size of a marshmallow before rushing to that burner and reducing the heat. She sighed and stirred the soup. It was hard to burn soup, but it could still happen. She then added in the onion.]

Diarmuid, you have to be careful when you're leaning up against the stove. You accidentally raised the temperature.

[He nods, grateful to her for actually showing him the size she wants as opposed to expecting him to know what a marshmallow is because, in all honesty, he doesn't.

Diarmuid pauses and looks up with horror on his face when she points out what he did, though.]

I-I did? I didn't even realize it. I didn't know the nobs were so easily moved. I'm so sorry. Is it all right? I didn't ruin it, did I?

Yes, when dropping someone into a war, it's vitally important they can identify a car's drive...

I imagine so..

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