ataraxionlogs | Did someone say food?

Entry tags:

Did someone say food?

CHARACTERS: Elizabeth of York and EVERYONE
LOCATION: 1st floor kitchen + lounge room
WARNINGS: Nothing afaik, but this will be edited should anything arise!
SUMMARY: Last week, Lizzie issued the ship a formal invitation to a feast meant to lift their spirits after the events of the last few months. She's making good on her promise.
NOTES: I will be making sub-threads for food prep, the meal itself, and post-dinner hanging out and/or shenanigans.

( this occasion sees elizabeth in her natural element for a change, planning and organizing a social gathering. the familiarity is awesome and welcome, as much of a needed break from the angst of the past several jump cycles (months? years?) as she hopes the occasion itself will be for everyone attending. she can be found working hard in the first floor's kitchen from early in the day until the moment the meal is served; and then seated amongst friends while they eat. afterward, she will flit about and generally socialize with any and all who do not immediately leave after they have eaten.

where anyone might sit and how long they stay is entirely up to the character/player. if you would like anything specific involving elizabeth during or post-feast, let me know! )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

( elizabeth may be found in the kitchens throughout the entirety of the day to prepare the meal, along with the kind volunteers she managed to find last week. her gown is plain, her brow sweaty and her face likely smudged with flour, but she is merry, singing to herself quietly while she works. it has been too long since she has cooked for more than herself or one or two others, and this is just wonderful in her opinion.

and the bonus is that now she knows more or less how to operate both the range and oven, so she will not be starting any fires. )

[Hermione makes herself useful at Elizabeth's side. She has written down the directions she remembers for various dishes and she is going about putting them together. Half the fun of cooking is getting dirty and worn out.

It makes enjoying the meal all the better.]

Have you attended many court feasts?

( indeed! becoming covered in flour and sundry other things is precisely what she enjoys the most. if flour had not been so precious, she might have once been tempted to toss some at her sister cecily's hair at one point or another. the way she'd have shrieked makes her grin, even now.

she is currently combining some wine, spices and broth in a saucepan while her chicken is boiling away in another pot; and once what she is working on cools, she will venture over to join hermione to learn some french cuisine while also working on her pastry shells. she is making blancmanger and custard tarts at the moment; and the kitchen currently smells so much like home that if she closes her eyes, she can picture her sisters gathering around.

elizabeth releases a soft breath to steady her composure, and smiles over at hermione. )

Oh, yes. His Grace, my father was well-known for his love of feasting and dancing. During the dozen years he and my mother reigned in peace, there were many such occasions.

How are meals conducted in the future? At home, we sit together for five hours or more, talking and making merriment through each course.

[ Peeta still remembers the princess thing, how he'd assumed it meant she had more than a few things in common with the citizens of the Capitol. If he had to guess, he'd say they had no idea how to cook their own meals — Lizzie's already proven the comparison false, on that front.

She's got half a dozen things going by the time he shows up and gets started, falling easily into routine. There are a few brief moments where his memories serve as obstacle rather than reference, but they pass quickly. ]

Is this how you did it at home? Ten courses?

[ He's exaggerating. Probably. If he's got the same criticism for this indulgence as he does for the Capitol's, it's buried deep. He sounds lightly teasing, maybe, but entirely good-natured. ]

( she pauses to look up from her work, and smile at him once she sees him. elizabeth nods her head slowly to answer his question, and has the grace to look a bit sheepish. it is quite as opulent as it sounds, after all. )

At court, yes. But we have no electronic sources of entertainment; it centres all around social interaction. Dinners in particular might last up to seven hours or more, and then there is often music or dancing afterward.

( she brushes a smudge of flour from her cheek. )

Not in Sanctuary, however. My sisters and I ate rather simply during those times. I can imagine this might seem extravagant to many here. It is simply that we have all been through much that I believe it has been well-earned by us all.

We had to earn our feasts in Panem, too. [ It's a grim joke, all things considered, but the teasing lilt's still there. He's focused on his task, kneading the dough while he mulls over her words, but he looks over towards her a moment later. ]

You really didn't have a single screen? Nothing you could broadcast on?

[ That's odd. Even District 12 had plenty of screens, though entertainment wasn't really the aim. Music and dancing, that's more familiar — feasts weren't common, but social events were still the only real escape from daily routine. ]

( remembering what he's said in the past of the restrictive nature of his world, her chest tightens at merely speculating upon just what fashion his people would need to earn their food. outwardly, she continues to smile quietly, and effortlessly bounces back the same level of teasing as he has sent in her direction. )

Fortune smiles upon us both that the only real merit one must have to attend this meal is to not be the Red Smile. A relatively easy feat, save for the creature itself!

( her smile fades a bit to a thoughtful look, and she shakes her head before getting back to the task at hand. )

Not a one. All of this is foreign to my eyes. We have printed books, but they are as rare and expensive as illuminated ones. Social gatherings, hunting, war and politics; those are the sources of entertainment the nobility of my land have to choose from. I confess to not knowing much concerning the daily lives of the rest of my people.

A fact I intend to change.

Edited (Added something to my bracket narrative!) 2014-10-07 05:21 (UTC)

[ Sam barges into the kitchen kind of loudly, arms full with a carton of eggs, a bag of shredded cheese product™, and a container that says it contains something that Sam thinks looks and smells (and hopefully tastes) a lot like chicken. The lady organizing the dinner said she'd ask her friend about getting the chile peppers, but Sam wasn't sure whether it was on him to get the rest or not, so he figured he'd bring it anyway. That's what his mom would say to do, he figured.

He heads over to the counter where he sees her working, and drops his pile of stuff. ]

Hey! It's me, Sam. --Though I'm not sure I actually introduced myself before. Anyway, did you have any luck getting those chiles?

( she looks up from her current task, and pauses to smile at him. quickly, she moves around the kitchen island in order to take some of the supplies out of his arms for him, and set them upon the counter.

and to that, she nods, with a triumphant look on her face. )

We are well-met Sam, I am Elizabeth. And I have! They are small, but I have been warned not to use too many, as they are apparently very hot. Are they?

Oh yeah. Especially if you've never had one before. But that's why you stuff stuff in 'em, to sort of balance out the spiciness.

I think I remember how my mom makes chile relleno, so we should be good to go! If they don't turn out so great, then, uh, [ He looks around at all the food Elizabeth has been making, ] I think we'll be set without 'em.

Ah, yes, I see! That makes perfect sense. ( and now she understands just why they need to be stuffed. )

Take heart, sir. I have every confidence that they will turn out beautifully. Come, let us begin.

( she clears some space on the counter, so they can do just that. the peppers are already washed and ready to go. )

[It's been quite a while since Galadriel has spent this much time in the kitchen, but she has to admit, it can be rather fun. So in addition to being smudged with flour, she's in remarkably good humor.]

What is it that you are singing, pinig?

( elizabeth is also in high spirits, and she grins over at galadriel once her song is done and she has caught her breath again. )

"The Riddle Song", they call it. I heard it sung often through the windows while my family was sequestered in Sanctuary.

It is thoroughly charming. [She hesitates a little, curious, but not wanting to spoil the mood of the day by delving into territory that's too dark.] How old were you then, if you do not mind my asking?

Glad I am that you enjoy it. ( elizabeth stills at her question, but glances up at galadriel with a small smile. ) The first time, I was four and seventeen for the second.

[Galadriel notices how she stills and stops what she's doing to place a hand on Elizabeth's shoulder in apology.] Forgive me, my friend, if I have troubled you. I was simply thinking that you speak of your trials with remarkable grace, particularly for one so young.

( at once, elizabeth shakes her head, and offers galadriel a reassuring smile. )

Be rest-assured that you have not. You could never trouble me. I live in a dangerous era in a land still recovering from plague, civil war and political upheaval. My people have surely endured terrible things, as well.

( she presses her lips together thoughtfully. ) I am alive, by the grace of God. And for that, I am more fortunate than many members of my family. I cannot and will not cheapen their memory by lamenting over my misfortunes when I live and they do not.

You speak of your own experiences similarly, as a point of fact. I have ever admired that. One day, I wish to be like you; for all that you are grace itself, you are strong.

FOOD PREP

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject