001) Home is Where the Heart Is

[abyssbound]

Who: Asura and anyone who wants to help with construction/landscaping. Or just want to watch a buff, half-dressed man do manual labor. No judgement.
Which: Open log, mingle post
Where: Out in the farmlands to the east of Reverein
What: Tree houses aren't for everyone, so Asura's building a house on the opposite side of town where it's quiet and he can raise his geese in relative peace. This log takes place over the span of about a week.
Warnings: Shouldn't be any.


Days 1-2
[Over the last few days, Asura has been collecting usable pieces of lumber and debris from around the city over to a small hill out in the farmlands, halfway between Reverein and the Wildlands. By now, the frame of a cabin has been erected--large enough to comfortably house two people.

Asura has stripped off the upper part of his robe while he works, using his Spiritual Entity's sharp edges to carefully chisel the beams so they'll fit together without nails (for there is a notable lack of iron in the city right now thanks to the redcaps). He'd intended to build the entire house on his own, but he won't turn down a helping hand or two. Or just someone to talk to while he works.]

Days 3-4
[Once the house is put together (or at least the walls, floor, and roof are), what comes next is that lotus pond Taishakuten wants. Asura's already dug out a large crater in the ground, but until it fills up with rainwater (or by some other means), it's not much more than just a big hole in the ground. The geese are already interested though, and can be seen wandering down into the crater in curiosity, or waddling around the rim and being a general nuisance to anyone whose name isn't 'Asura.']

Days 5-6
[The hole in the ground is now filled with water! Somehow. Whether it was rain or someone helped fill it up, the fact of the matter is that the crater is now a pond. As for planting the lotuses, this is something Asura will need some help with, because he's never actually grown them the correct way before.

Thankfully, the geese are safely locked up in the hutch so they won't bother anyone today.]

Wildcard/Catchall
[Catch Asura while he's taking a break from work, or if you have another scenario you'd like to play out with him, here's that option! Feel free to use this log to mingle during the construction as well.]

(OOC: If you have any questions or want to throw some ideas my way, you can reach me at hsumi or on Discord at hsumi#6070.
Fun fact, the technique being used here to build without nails is a real thing!)

Comments

[abyssbound]

[Asura watches in silence to evaluate the prince's form as he splits the log. Not that he needs to since the hatchet Hans wields is a piece of Asura's Spiritual Entity--even if he wasn't looking directly at him, Asura would be aware of everything the human does while holding it--but so that Hans himself is aware that he's being assessed.

Hans isn't as physically weak as Asura had initially estimated, as evidenced by his being able to split the log with one swing. But more than that, he had zero qualms with being told to do manual labor. Again, Asura is unsure what to make of the royal; the nobles and royalty of the Celestial Realm were proud and arrogant, and would never lower themselves to doing a servant's work like splitting firewood. There are two possibilities in Asura's mind:

1. Hans really is that blithe, or,
2. He's very good at pretending to be that blithe.

And until Asura can figure out exactly which it is, he's going to remain leery of him.]

Not bad, for a noble. [He says and returns to his own woodwork, but not before pointing to the waist-high pile of firewood nearby.] Finish up that pile and I'll fix up some food for you as payment for the help.

[sleightofhans]

[Unaware of Asura's deeper thoughts, the prince continues with the woodwork, grabbing another log from the pile before swinging the hatchet down once more. He can definitely see how this can get exhausting after a while, but he's determined to last for a respectable amount of time. Heh, maybe he's just preparing himself for his punishment back home, who knows what his family is going to do with him after they hear about his crimes in Arendelle.

...

But a smile spreads across Hans' face when Asura brings up food, looking genuinely delighted by the thought of someone making food for him. The worst part of being here is having no servants-- mainly, no one to cook him anything.]

I can't think of a better motivation than that, Asura. Call me spoiled, but I'm still not used to preparing my own food. [He laughs slightly, expecting the ridicule his comment may derive.]

[abyssbound]

[As Hans continues his work, Asura lashes planks together with some rope scraps he'd found while helping clean up the city, gradually forming the exterior walls of the small cabin.]

Neither is the other person who's going to be living here. If I didn't know how to cook, we'd both starve. [Nope, no ridicule on that one. Asura is used to cooking.]

What's your spice tolerance level?

[sleightofhans]

[He's a little surprised when he doesn't hear mocking from the other man, but Hans accepts it without complaint. Truly, he's fine without being ribbed when it comes to his lack of skill.]

Ah, my spice tolerance... I'd describe it as average. But I'm open to a meal that could challenge that tolerance. I wouldn't want to hold you back.

[Famous last words? Maybe.]

[abyssbound]

[Famous last words definitely.]

You may regret that choice. [Asura chuckles as he finishes up the wall he's been working on. It's a good stopping point on his side of things, so he'll leave Hans to finish up his work while he ducks inside the half-built cabin to get started on some lunch.

...About thirty minutes later, Asura comes back out with a plate of what appears to be baked fish, breaded and covered in a drizzle of some kind of red sauce. Even just the scent of it is spicy enough to irritate the throat, but otherwise it smells delicious. Asura holds up the plate for Hans to see it before taking a seat on the porch and setting it beside himself to await his "assistant."]

For when you're done.

[sleightofhans]

[It definitely takes Hans a bit longer to get through his pile, but he's almost done when Asura comes back out with something that honestly smells good, if spicy. He can get a whiff of it despite the sweat that's now coming down his face and yeah, he's definitely glad he took off his jacket earlier for this.]

I can smell it from here-- it smells delicious, Asura. [Hans bites his lip, a few thoughts coursing through his head, before he swings his hatchet down on his next log with a little more force than before.

...It's not like he feels bad about deceiving him about his personality-- everyone puts up a front for others. And he doesn't plan on betraying him right now, but well, he's not letting a homecooked meal hold him back if a situation should arise. That's always been his resolve.]

[abyssbound]

[Deceit or no, Hans hasn't betrayed anyone yet to Asura's knowledge, and though Asura will remain leery of him just by virtue of being a noble, the human has thus far not given him any reason to consider him an enemy. He's done honest work, and Asura can recognize that and at least repay him for the help with some food.

Whether or not Hans can stomach the heat is another matter--Asura enjoys peppers so hot they'd render a weaker man unconscious.]

It's nothing fancy, just something I could make with our limited supplies. Probably too plain for your royal tastes. [He jabs, but his tone is less hostile and more teasing this time.]

[sleightofhans]

[With the last log chopped, Hans wipes the sweat off his brow and gives a final stretch, rubbing his shoulder before making his way over to Asura. Once there, he offers the hatchet back to him with a small smile and takes a seat next to him, getting himself comfortable as he takes the plate. Now that he's closer, the food still smells heavenly, but there's truly something spicy about it that's impossible to ignore.

He feels the spice hitting the back of his throat, even before taking a bite. That's... a sign to come, but Hans actually isn't keen on wasting food.]

...It's quite impressive that you've managed to cook something like this with the limited supplies offered to us. Besides, it will be far better than the food I've been making for myself. [And he highly doubts that something this spicy can be plain. Hans takes his fork, only hesitating for a moment, before taking a small bite out of the baked fish.

With his eyes watering almost instantly.]

Goodness-- [If he's talking with his mouth full, it's because it's the power of the spice.]

[abyssbound]

[Asura cracks a grin when he sees that reaction, allowing Hans to suffer from the hot food for only a few seconds before he stands up and heads back inside. A minute later, he comes back out with another plate of baked fish--this time without the red-hot sauce drizzled over it. It's not as flavorful without the sauce, but it will surely be more merciful than what he's already eating.]

Here, [He chuckles, offering the new plate.] I'm surprised you actually tried that if you could already smell how hot it is. I'll finish up that plate if you can't.

[sleightofhans]

[What has he done to deserve this!! Besides everything.

Hans somehow manages to swallow down the small bite he bit into, and he's more than grateful that he took such a tiny piece as his first attempt. He still feels the burn down his throat that's now settled in his stomach, with his eyes wet from the pain. He's not sure when he'll be able to talk again, only being able to cough as he tries to pass through all this.

He simply nods when Asura comes back, for once not having a good comeback to any of that. Most of his focus is on recovering anyway.]

T-thank you. [His voice is definitely far scratchier than before.]

I want to apologize for falling off the face of the earth for a few days there

[abyssbound]

[Asura exchanges the plates and sits down on the porch with the one he'd initially handed to Hans, tucking into the insanely hot food without so much as a flinch.]

If you can't handle something, you don't have to pretend otherwise. [He says after swallowing a few bites.] If you try to prove your masculinity by accepting something that's too much for you, it'll come back to bite you. You could have avoided that pain if you'd been honest about your tolerance to begin with.

no prob!

[sleightofhans]

[A bubble of resentment begins to build in Hans' chest as he feels himself getting lectured by Asura. He can't deny the points that he brings up, but it doesn't make it much easier to accept. It's always been difficult for him to accept this sort of talk with grace, but the lack of mockery in Asura's voice at least helps to simmer that earlier anger.

He bites into the new dish, finding the non-spicy version to still be very flavorful. Also helps to further improve his mood.]

I didn't wish to seem ungrateful or overly particular about a meal someone's cooked for me, but I'll keep your words in mind.

[abyssbound]

[Asura simply lets out a single chuckle in response and finishes off his plate. Once the fish is devoured, he sets the empty plate beside him on the porch to clean up later and leans back, propping himself up with his hands to look out across the nearly-barren farmlands toward the city of Reverein.]

It's partly my fault for not giving you fair warning of what to expect anyway, and I'll admit a bit of sadism on my part too, so... sorry about that.

[sleightofhans]

...

[He should still be mad about all this. And sure, a part of him is still irritated about the whole spice thing, but most of that feeling has faded away, replaced by a slowly growing contentment. For a brief, wild moment, he thinks that Asura spiced the new dish in a different manner, but he immediately squishes that thought.]

It's fine. [Is he forgiving too easily?] We'll just say that this dish here makes up for it, just this time, however.