Field Office 9 - Evening - Hurricane
Nevena Solomon
Nev sighed heavily as she pulled her hair into a tail. They were, essentially, trapped inside of the office building because of the storm outside. The hurricane sirens had blasted over the loudspeakers, and while some of the grunts were able to leave, Nev, Eryk, Kas, Aidan, and Katia were among the ones who didn't make it out in time. It wouldn't have bothered her so much, but of all the people she was stuck with, she could do without Katia.
The woman was nearly insufferable. She could understand, now, why Eryk and Aidan didn't seem especially fond of her. Nev was almost certain there was an underlying hatred in Eryk's case, but she couldn't be too sure. “How long do you think we'll be stuck here?" she asked, turning in Eryk's direction. The five of them had gathered in the conference room mostly because it was the only place that had enough space to breathe.
“Who knows. Maybe a few hours, maybe all night, but it doesn't fucking matter," Katia answered, causing Nev to furrow her brows.
I wasn't asking you, she simply thought as Katia drummed her fingers on the table.
“Can you stop? It's fucking annoying," Eryk stated, a little irritated by Katia's actions. The woman merely grinned, and continued drumming her fingers. Nev sighed softly, and turned towards Kas.
“Think you can find us a good music station?" she asked. The lights were still on, but with the way the weather was going, who knew how long it would be before they went out.
He blinked at the question, his face pulling to the side. "Well I doubt we're getting any radio signal in this weather but the wifi's working for now I suppose." He opened the top part of his laptop and for a moment, his finger blurred rapidly over the keys. "Uh... genre requests? I'm not really sure what everyone here thinks is 'good.'"
"I'll listen to anything that's not pop," Aidan replied, leaning back in his conference room chair with his arms crossed over his chest. He'd been about ready to go home before the sirens happened, so there wasn't really anything for him to be doing, unlike Kas, who seemed to be at least trying to get some work finished in the meantime.
“Well, I think anything is fine at this point, really. Maybe just actual music, like classical or something of the sort. I think it would really help to fill the silence," Nev stated as an alternative. Clearly it was the wrong thing to say as Katia heaved a dramatic sigh.
“Ugh, classical music is boring, though. Play something lively, and maybe electric," Katia stated as she turned her attention towards Kas. Eryk immediately gave Katia a flat look and rolled his eyes.
“I agree with Solomon; play something that fills the noise," he stated as he turned his attention away from Katia. Nev chuckled softly before pulling out her laptop. If they had wifi for a while longer, she could at least send an email to one of her colleagues to see if they had a suitable power source for their machine. They hadn't been able to find one, and that left her research at an impasse. If they wanted to get somewhere, they needed to be able to find something that would work.
And something like that wasn't easy.
Kasimir sighed. Clearly the lack of consensus had left him a bit less than certain what to do. With a roll of his eyes, he made a few keystrokes, and it wasn't long before the introduction to something mellow but synth-based filled the room. Clearly that was the best he could do with the conflicting opinions.
Unfortunately for Nev's work plans, the wifi seemed to be knocked out. It wasn't clear how Kas was getting the music if so, but it was possible it was predownloaded.
Aidan muttered something inaudible under his breath and propped his feet up on the conference table, tilting his head back to look upside-down out the window behind him. "That's probably going to get worse before it gets better," he noted flatly.
“Thanks for the info, captain obvious," Katia muttered beneath her breath, leaning forward to place her chin in the palm of her hand, and rest her elbow against the desk. Eryk rolled his eyes at the statement, but didn't seem inclined to say anything. Perhaps he thought it was best to not pester Katia or feed her nagging.
“If it bothers you that much, there are other places to be in the facility. You do not have to be here with us, Miss Durova," Nev stated as she glanced up from her laptop. From the way Katia was sitting and acting, it seemed like she didn't want to be in the room with everyone. Or maybe it was because Nev and Kas were there? Katia would often glance in Eryk and Aidan's direction which Nev found strange, but didn't necessarily know why. The way she glanced at Eryk was completely different from when she glanced at Aidan, and Nev felt a little twinge in her chest every time.
“It's not that easy to get rid of Katia, Solomon," Eryk, stated in a slow drawl. He was leaning back in his chair. Katia snorted as she rolled her eyes. Nev wasn't necessarily trying to get rid of Katia, but she thought it might release some of the tension that seemed to be building up. She sighed softly, and glanced at the time.
“Well, if we're going to be here for a while, we might as well see if there is anything we can scrounge up for dinner. It's almost dinner time," she stated as she glanced towards the others. Eryk seemed to contemplate it before shrugging his shoulders.
“I'll go with you if you want to see what there is," he stated, pushing his chair back and glancing in Katia's direction. “Anywhere else is better than being here," he added, though Nev understood his implication. He didn't want to be anywhere near Katia, but the situation was unfortunately doing just that. Nev smiled regardless, and closed her laptop. With the wifi out, she wasn't going to get much else done. Once it was placed safely back into the bag, Nev stood from her spot and glanced towards Kas and Aidan. She went to invite them, however; as soon as she opened her mouth to say something, the lights went out.
“Well isn't that fucking great," Katia groaned as she sat up.
“Uh... why haven't the back up generators kicked in, yet?" Nev asked. Eryk shrugged, indicating he didn't know.
Kas heaved yet another sigh. Closing the lid of his laptop, he checked out the window to confirm that yes, the lights all around were out, too, throwing the entire area into heavy darkness. There was a slight metallic grinding, and then a small light appeared, throwing warm shades of gold onto Aidan's face and hair. He'd flicked on his lighter, and immediately started checking through the drawers of the side table near the window.
He came away from the search with a proper flashlight, which he flipped on, throwing the beam towards the door. "Should probably see what's perishable in the fridge," he noted. "Since I'm thinking the power will stay out a while."
There was a slight pause, then Kas hummed a note of agreement. "Backup's on a separate grid, but that's out too, seems like. Might've been hit by lightning or something."
"I can check the breakers when we get downstairs," Aidan added. "If those don't work we're just going to have to wait."
“I'll go with you to check the breakers," Katia stated as she stood from her chair. She didn't seem inclined to push it back into place, and that didn't sit well with Nev, for some reason. Maybe it was because Nev always thought it was common courtesy to push chairs back in once you were done with them? She shook the thought from her mind, though, as Eryk made a slight snorting sound.
“Why would you go with Aidan? You don't know shit about breaker boxes. You'd just get in his way," he stated, earning a harsh glare from Katia. Nevena blinked a bit and tilted her head. If anyone knew about breaker boxes, it was likely to be Aidan and Kasimir. Not that breakers were complicated, but Nev didn't know how true Eryk's statement was.
“Because I'd rather be with him than with either of you three," Katia retorted, causing Eryk to roll his eyes. Nev sighed softly and shook her head.
“We have to make it downstairs, first, before anyone goes anywhere. And we don't have back-up flashlights in here," Nev spoke as she reached inside her bag to pull out her phone. She could use the flashlight aspect of it, but only for brief moments. She didn't want to drain the battery too fast with no way to charge it. Who knew how long the lights would be out for?
“Imp... you're better at seeing in the dark, help out," Eryk stated suddenly as a bright red flash signaled the gengar's release. That wasn't a bad idea, to have the pokemon help out, however; none of the pokemon Nev had would be much help.
“Let's get going. The sooner we can turn these lights on, the sooner I can be rid of you all," Katia stated, causing Nev to furrow her brows.
“It's not like anyone invited you to come along," she muttered beneath her breath. It was loud enough, though, that Eryk heard it. He huffed lightly but it didn't sound quite like a laugh.
One of the others snorted in what sounded like amusement, but she couldn't tell whether it was Kas or Aidan. The group headed downstairs, the bright beam of the flashlight illuminating the path as Aidan led the way to the kitchen. "Should be some candles in one of the drawers," he said, sounding vaguely puzzled by this. "I'm not sure why, exactly, but I've seen them before."
He handed his lighter off to Eryk and nodded back out the hallway. "Breakers are that way. I'll be back in a minute." He paused as if waiting for the inevitability of Katia moving to join him, then ducked back out of the room.
When they were gone, Kas whistled, low and soft. "I honestly forget how awful she is every time she leaves," he admitted. "It's like I can't even believe it's real. Then she comes back, and reminds me it is." Digging through a few of the drawers, he found a small tea light, then flicked Aidan's lighter, catching the flame on the wick and pushing it towards the center of the kitchen island before pulling out another, this one more of a squat jar candle.
“Be happy you didn't grow up with it," Eryk mumbled. Nev could almost hear Eryk rolling his eyes in the dark, and chuckled lightly to herself. “Since we're in the kitchen, might as well see what we can use to make dinner. The stove is a gas one, so we should still be able to get by," he stated, making a motion with his hand.
“Well, anything should be fine at this point. It's mostly what we have for ingredients that we can make a dish with. I saw a pack of noodles in the pantry not too long ago. If they're still there, we can make ramen or pasta," Nev suggested. It would be the easiest and simplest thing to make. Nev couldn't really cook all that well, but she remembered Kas could. Eryk seemed to do okay since he occasionally helped out Ana. Maybe she should invest in cooking classes?
Kasimir hummed, clearly considering this. "All right, you two go through the fridge and pantry and see what there is. I'm going to check the cabinets to see what supplies I can cook with." It was a fact that pots or pans or spices occasionally disappeared from the kitchen, so he probably wanted to make sure there was actually cookware to use.
“I'll take the fridge, you take the pantry," she stated towards Eryk as he nodded his head. He made his way towards his destination as Nev headed towards the fridge. She rummaged through it rather quickly, scanning as she went to see what they had. She didn't want to keep the door open longer than necessary if Aidan and Katia couldn't get the lights back on. Or the back up generators.
“We only have salt and pepper," Eryk stated as he seemed to rummage through the pantry. “And some rice and sesame seeds. What do you have?" he asked. Nev pursed her lips together.
“Some tofu, soy sauce, and a thing of green onions. There's not much else in here right now," she answered. That means that someone would have to go grocery shopping tomorrow. “Do you think you can make anything with those limited ingredients, Kas?" she asked, turning her attention towards him. Maybe he had something in his repertoire?
He snorted. "Well it won't be super fancy or anything, but I think I've got enough for something, yeah." Pulling down a frying pan from the cabinet, he eyed Eryk for a moment and switched it for a larger one. "I think we'll probably be—" He paused as a few emergency lights flickered on, illuminating the kitchen just enough that they could see each other reasonably well.
"Well, well. Looks like boss got the backup generator online, at least."
“Well that's a relief," she stated more to herself. “We won't be without some kind lighting for the whole night, at least," she added, turning towards Kas and Eryk. Eryk, however, had his lips pursed as he seemed to contemplate something.
“We're going to be stuck here all night," he stated, turning to face Kas. “The rain hasn't stopped, and it's coming down harder," he continued. Now that she actually concentrated, Nev could still hear the rain hitting the building. To even hear it through as much layering as the old mansion had, was a testament to how hard it was coming down.
“It could be worse," Nev decided to say, giving Eryk a reassuring smile. “We could be stuck in a smaller building with unpleasant company," she continued, earning a soft snort from Eryk.
"So... we could be stuck in a smaller building, you mean," Kas rejoined, opening the tofu pack with a knife and draining it in the sink. "Because while I love you guys, I could uh... I could do without everyone's least-favorite delibirdbrain." He rolled his eyes, visible even in the scant recessed lights, and shook his head faintly, leaving the tofu to drain while he diced the green onions.
Probably Katia and Aidan wouldn't be too much longer, if they'd managed to restore emergency power, but clearly he wasn't too pleased by the prospect.
Nev couldn't blame him for not being pleased. “How is it that the two of you are from the same clan," Nev asked, glancing in Eryk's direction. “You two are nothing alike," she added. It wasn't that two people couldn't have separate personalities or differences. Nev just found it strange that they were of the same place and yet complete opposites. Eryk snorted softly as he shrugged.
“Guess I was lucky," he replied, causing Nev to smile a bit. “She's a plague on humanity, but she'll be gone soon," he added, straightening out a bit and glancing in Kas's direction. “Need help with anything? Before the, as you put it, 'delibirdbrain' shows up to ruin everything?" he asked.
"I'm good. Small number of ingredients." Kas seemed to be working his way through them rather efficiently, too, and the stove was burning away at the pan he'd found to fry the tofu. He was whipping up some kind of sauce to go with it, too, it looked like, the process smooth and easy.
"You think she knows that, though? That's she's gonna be out of here soon? Because it seems like she's made herself right at home, you know what I mean? Boss's place is probably more hers than his at this point." He grimaced, and shuddered. Whether that was put on or not was hard to tell.
“With the way she's glued to Aidan's side, I don't think she does," Eryk replied, grimacing slightly as if he were plagued with some unpleasant thought. Nev didn't blame him, really. Aidan spent a majority of his time at her place; Mama Basil had been more than happy to accomodate him by setting up the couch as a potential bed if he needed some place to sleep. It seemed like Katia was very fond of Aidan in a way that made Nev feel uncomfortable.
She couldn't put an actual word to it; jealousy felt like too much of a word, and she wasn't even sure that was the right one. Why would she be jealous of Katia? “Something bothering you, Solomon? You're glaring at the table," Eryk stated, snapping Nev out of her stupor.
“No, I'm fine. Just wondering how you and Aidan managed to deal with her, is all. She hasn't been unpleasant to me, but from what I get from you and Aidan," didn't necessarily mean that Katia wasn't an unpleasant person. Sure, Katia would occasionally glare at Nev when she was working with Aidan, or if she happened to be on one of her walks with him, however; Nev never wronged Katia.
“Just because she hasn't been unpleasant doesn't mean that she doesn't have it out for you. You are a potential threat to her in a way that I will never understand. She won't do anything to you, she's not a complete idiot..." Eryk trailed off before pinching the bridge of his nose. “But do not, under any circumstances, be alone with her. She has a way of getting into people's head."
Nev pursed her lips together, unsure of what he meant by that.
“In any case, whether she knows she's leaving or not doesn't change the fact that she is. She's here on clan business which means she'll have to report back to them in the time frame she gave them. Even she wouldn't dare go against protocol," he continued before shrugging his shoulders.
"Never thought I'd be singing the praises of buraeucracy," Kas noted with a wry smile, already plating up their food. "But I guess there's a first time for everything."
Eryk seemed like he was about to reply to something, however; a shriek caused him to turn his head in the direction it came from. A slow, subtle smile crossed his features as he huffed lightly. “I guess Imp couldn't pass up the chance to have fun in the dark," he stated as if to clarify the source of the sound.
“Nero!" it was Katia's voice, and she seemed to be upset with Eryk. She wasn't anywhere near them, yet, but Nev couldn't help the light chuckle that left her. Kas laughed, too, soft and under his breath, but easily audible in the kitchen.
“Well, I suppose if we want even a semblance of a nice dinner together, we should probably get started before she returns," she stated, glancing towards Kas. Eryk was already picking up his plate, and nodded his head.
“Agreed. Aidan can manage on his own," Eryk stated before he took a bite of his food. Honestly, Nev wasn't sure how Aidan managed it. She felt a little bad for him. Maybe when Katia left, she could get him an appointment at the local massage place?
Kas nodded emphatically. "Patience of a saint, asskicking skills of a total badass. I'd say I want to be him when I grow up, but I don't really plan on growing up in the first place." He grinned at the both of them, setting a couple other plates aside and taking up his own, sliding into a stool across from the two of them.
"Enjoy it, guys. Might be the last pleasantness we get all night."
The woman was nearly insufferable. She could understand, now, why Eryk and Aidan didn't seem especially fond of her. Nev was almost certain there was an underlying hatred in Eryk's case, but she couldn't be too sure. “How long do you think we'll be stuck here?" she asked, turning in Eryk's direction. The five of them had gathered in the conference room mostly because it was the only place that had enough space to breathe.
“Who knows. Maybe a few hours, maybe all night, but it doesn't fucking matter," Katia answered, causing Nev to furrow her brows.
I wasn't asking you, she simply thought as Katia drummed her fingers on the table.
“Can you stop? It's fucking annoying," Eryk stated, a little irritated by Katia's actions. The woman merely grinned, and continued drumming her fingers. Nev sighed softly, and turned towards Kas.
“Think you can find us a good music station?" she asked. The lights were still on, but with the way the weather was going, who knew how long it would be before they went out.
He blinked at the question, his face pulling to the side. "Well I doubt we're getting any radio signal in this weather but the wifi's working for now I suppose." He opened the top part of his laptop and for a moment, his finger blurred rapidly over the keys. "Uh... genre requests? I'm not really sure what everyone here thinks is 'good.'"
"I'll listen to anything that's not pop," Aidan replied, leaning back in his conference room chair with his arms crossed over his chest. He'd been about ready to go home before the sirens happened, so there wasn't really anything for him to be doing, unlike Kas, who seemed to be at least trying to get some work finished in the meantime.
“Well, I think anything is fine at this point, really. Maybe just actual music, like classical or something of the sort. I think it would really help to fill the silence," Nev stated as an alternative. Clearly it was the wrong thing to say as Katia heaved a dramatic sigh.
“Ugh, classical music is boring, though. Play something lively, and maybe electric," Katia stated as she turned her attention towards Kas. Eryk immediately gave Katia a flat look and rolled his eyes.
“I agree with Solomon; play something that fills the noise," he stated as he turned his attention away from Katia. Nev chuckled softly before pulling out her laptop. If they had wifi for a while longer, she could at least send an email to one of her colleagues to see if they had a suitable power source for their machine. They hadn't been able to find one, and that left her research at an impasse. If they wanted to get somewhere, they needed to be able to find something that would work.
And something like that wasn't easy.
Kasimir sighed. Clearly the lack of consensus had left him a bit less than certain what to do. With a roll of his eyes, he made a few keystrokes, and it wasn't long before the introduction to something mellow but synth-based filled the room. Clearly that was the best he could do with the conflicting opinions.
Unfortunately for Nev's work plans, the wifi seemed to be knocked out. It wasn't clear how Kas was getting the music if so, but it was possible it was predownloaded.
Aidan muttered something inaudible under his breath and propped his feet up on the conference table, tilting his head back to look upside-down out the window behind him. "That's probably going to get worse before it gets better," he noted flatly.
“Thanks for the info, captain obvious," Katia muttered beneath her breath, leaning forward to place her chin in the palm of her hand, and rest her elbow against the desk. Eryk rolled his eyes at the statement, but didn't seem inclined to say anything. Perhaps he thought it was best to not pester Katia or feed her nagging.
“If it bothers you that much, there are other places to be in the facility. You do not have to be here with us, Miss Durova," Nev stated as she glanced up from her laptop. From the way Katia was sitting and acting, it seemed like she didn't want to be in the room with everyone. Or maybe it was because Nev and Kas were there? Katia would often glance in Eryk and Aidan's direction which Nev found strange, but didn't necessarily know why. The way she glanced at Eryk was completely different from when she glanced at Aidan, and Nev felt a little twinge in her chest every time.
“It's not that easy to get rid of Katia, Solomon," Eryk, stated in a slow drawl. He was leaning back in his chair. Katia snorted as she rolled her eyes. Nev wasn't necessarily trying to get rid of Katia, but she thought it might release some of the tension that seemed to be building up. She sighed softly, and glanced at the time.
“Well, if we're going to be here for a while, we might as well see if there is anything we can scrounge up for dinner. It's almost dinner time," she stated as she glanced towards the others. Eryk seemed to contemplate it before shrugging his shoulders.
“I'll go with you if you want to see what there is," he stated, pushing his chair back and glancing in Katia's direction. “Anywhere else is better than being here," he added, though Nev understood his implication. He didn't want to be anywhere near Katia, but the situation was unfortunately doing just that. Nev smiled regardless, and closed her laptop. With the wifi out, she wasn't going to get much else done. Once it was placed safely back into the bag, Nev stood from her spot and glanced towards Kas and Aidan. She went to invite them, however; as soon as she opened her mouth to say something, the lights went out.
“Well isn't that fucking great," Katia groaned as she sat up.
“Uh... why haven't the back up generators kicked in, yet?" Nev asked. Eryk shrugged, indicating he didn't know.
Kas heaved yet another sigh. Closing the lid of his laptop, he checked out the window to confirm that yes, the lights all around were out, too, throwing the entire area into heavy darkness. There was a slight metallic grinding, and then a small light appeared, throwing warm shades of gold onto Aidan's face and hair. He'd flicked on his lighter, and immediately started checking through the drawers of the side table near the window.
He came away from the search with a proper flashlight, which he flipped on, throwing the beam towards the door. "Should probably see what's perishable in the fridge," he noted. "Since I'm thinking the power will stay out a while."
There was a slight pause, then Kas hummed a note of agreement. "Backup's on a separate grid, but that's out too, seems like. Might've been hit by lightning or something."
"I can check the breakers when we get downstairs," Aidan added. "If those don't work we're just going to have to wait."
“I'll go with you to check the breakers," Katia stated as she stood from her chair. She didn't seem inclined to push it back into place, and that didn't sit well with Nev, for some reason. Maybe it was because Nev always thought it was common courtesy to push chairs back in once you were done with them? She shook the thought from her mind, though, as Eryk made a slight snorting sound.
“Why would you go with Aidan? You don't know shit about breaker boxes. You'd just get in his way," he stated, earning a harsh glare from Katia. Nevena blinked a bit and tilted her head. If anyone knew about breaker boxes, it was likely to be Aidan and Kasimir. Not that breakers were complicated, but Nev didn't know how true Eryk's statement was.
“Because I'd rather be with him than with either of you three," Katia retorted, causing Eryk to roll his eyes. Nev sighed softly and shook her head.
“We have to make it downstairs, first, before anyone goes anywhere. And we don't have back-up flashlights in here," Nev spoke as she reached inside her bag to pull out her phone. She could use the flashlight aspect of it, but only for brief moments. She didn't want to drain the battery too fast with no way to charge it. Who knew how long the lights would be out for?
“Imp... you're better at seeing in the dark, help out," Eryk stated suddenly as a bright red flash signaled the gengar's release. That wasn't a bad idea, to have the pokemon help out, however; none of the pokemon Nev had would be much help.
“Let's get going. The sooner we can turn these lights on, the sooner I can be rid of you all," Katia stated, causing Nev to furrow her brows.
“It's not like anyone invited you to come along," she muttered beneath her breath. It was loud enough, though, that Eryk heard it. He huffed lightly but it didn't sound quite like a laugh.
One of the others snorted in what sounded like amusement, but she couldn't tell whether it was Kas or Aidan. The group headed downstairs, the bright beam of the flashlight illuminating the path as Aidan led the way to the kitchen. "Should be some candles in one of the drawers," he said, sounding vaguely puzzled by this. "I'm not sure why, exactly, but I've seen them before."
He handed his lighter off to Eryk and nodded back out the hallway. "Breakers are that way. I'll be back in a minute." He paused as if waiting for the inevitability of Katia moving to join him, then ducked back out of the room.
When they were gone, Kas whistled, low and soft. "I honestly forget how awful she is every time she leaves," he admitted. "It's like I can't even believe it's real. Then she comes back, and reminds me it is." Digging through a few of the drawers, he found a small tea light, then flicked Aidan's lighter, catching the flame on the wick and pushing it towards the center of the kitchen island before pulling out another, this one more of a squat jar candle.
“Be happy you didn't grow up with it," Eryk mumbled. Nev could almost hear Eryk rolling his eyes in the dark, and chuckled lightly to herself. “Since we're in the kitchen, might as well see what we can use to make dinner. The stove is a gas one, so we should still be able to get by," he stated, making a motion with his hand.
“Well, anything should be fine at this point. It's mostly what we have for ingredients that we can make a dish with. I saw a pack of noodles in the pantry not too long ago. If they're still there, we can make ramen or pasta," Nev suggested. It would be the easiest and simplest thing to make. Nev couldn't really cook all that well, but she remembered Kas could. Eryk seemed to do okay since he occasionally helped out Ana. Maybe she should invest in cooking classes?
Kasimir hummed, clearly considering this. "All right, you two go through the fridge and pantry and see what there is. I'm going to check the cabinets to see what supplies I can cook with." It was a fact that pots or pans or spices occasionally disappeared from the kitchen, so he probably wanted to make sure there was actually cookware to use.
“I'll take the fridge, you take the pantry," she stated towards Eryk as he nodded his head. He made his way towards his destination as Nev headed towards the fridge. She rummaged through it rather quickly, scanning as she went to see what they had. She didn't want to keep the door open longer than necessary if Aidan and Katia couldn't get the lights back on. Or the back up generators.
“We only have salt and pepper," Eryk stated as he seemed to rummage through the pantry. “And some rice and sesame seeds. What do you have?" he asked. Nev pursed her lips together.
“Some tofu, soy sauce, and a thing of green onions. There's not much else in here right now," she answered. That means that someone would have to go grocery shopping tomorrow. “Do you think you can make anything with those limited ingredients, Kas?" she asked, turning her attention towards him. Maybe he had something in his repertoire?
He snorted. "Well it won't be super fancy or anything, but I think I've got enough for something, yeah." Pulling down a frying pan from the cabinet, he eyed Eryk for a moment and switched it for a larger one. "I think we'll probably be—" He paused as a few emergency lights flickered on, illuminating the kitchen just enough that they could see each other reasonably well.
"Well, well. Looks like boss got the backup generator online, at least."
“Well that's a relief," she stated more to herself. “We won't be without some kind lighting for the whole night, at least," she added, turning towards Kas and Eryk. Eryk, however, had his lips pursed as he seemed to contemplate something.
“We're going to be stuck here all night," he stated, turning to face Kas. “The rain hasn't stopped, and it's coming down harder," he continued. Now that she actually concentrated, Nev could still hear the rain hitting the building. To even hear it through as much layering as the old mansion had, was a testament to how hard it was coming down.
“It could be worse," Nev decided to say, giving Eryk a reassuring smile. “We could be stuck in a smaller building with unpleasant company," she continued, earning a soft snort from Eryk.
"So... we could be stuck in a smaller building, you mean," Kas rejoined, opening the tofu pack with a knife and draining it in the sink. "Because while I love you guys, I could uh... I could do without everyone's least-favorite delibirdbrain." He rolled his eyes, visible even in the scant recessed lights, and shook his head faintly, leaving the tofu to drain while he diced the green onions.
Probably Katia and Aidan wouldn't be too much longer, if they'd managed to restore emergency power, but clearly he wasn't too pleased by the prospect.
Nev couldn't blame him for not being pleased. “How is it that the two of you are from the same clan," Nev asked, glancing in Eryk's direction. “You two are nothing alike," she added. It wasn't that two people couldn't have separate personalities or differences. Nev just found it strange that they were of the same place and yet complete opposites. Eryk snorted softly as he shrugged.
“Guess I was lucky," he replied, causing Nev to smile a bit. “She's a plague on humanity, but she'll be gone soon," he added, straightening out a bit and glancing in Kas's direction. “Need help with anything? Before the, as you put it, 'delibirdbrain' shows up to ruin everything?" he asked.
"I'm good. Small number of ingredients." Kas seemed to be working his way through them rather efficiently, too, and the stove was burning away at the pan he'd found to fry the tofu. He was whipping up some kind of sauce to go with it, too, it looked like, the process smooth and easy.
"You think she knows that, though? That's she's gonna be out of here soon? Because it seems like she's made herself right at home, you know what I mean? Boss's place is probably more hers than his at this point." He grimaced, and shuddered. Whether that was put on or not was hard to tell.
“With the way she's glued to Aidan's side, I don't think she does," Eryk replied, grimacing slightly as if he were plagued with some unpleasant thought. Nev didn't blame him, really. Aidan spent a majority of his time at her place; Mama Basil had been more than happy to accomodate him by setting up the couch as a potential bed if he needed some place to sleep. It seemed like Katia was very fond of Aidan in a way that made Nev feel uncomfortable.
She couldn't put an actual word to it; jealousy felt like too much of a word, and she wasn't even sure that was the right one. Why would she be jealous of Katia? “Something bothering you, Solomon? You're glaring at the table," Eryk stated, snapping Nev out of her stupor.
“No, I'm fine. Just wondering how you and Aidan managed to deal with her, is all. She hasn't been unpleasant to me, but from what I get from you and Aidan," didn't necessarily mean that Katia wasn't an unpleasant person. Sure, Katia would occasionally glare at Nev when she was working with Aidan, or if she happened to be on one of her walks with him, however; Nev never wronged Katia.
“Just because she hasn't been unpleasant doesn't mean that she doesn't have it out for you. You are a potential threat to her in a way that I will never understand. She won't do anything to you, she's not a complete idiot..." Eryk trailed off before pinching the bridge of his nose. “But do not, under any circumstances, be alone with her. She has a way of getting into people's head."
Nev pursed her lips together, unsure of what he meant by that.
“In any case, whether she knows she's leaving or not doesn't change the fact that she is. She's here on clan business which means she'll have to report back to them in the time frame she gave them. Even she wouldn't dare go against protocol," he continued before shrugging his shoulders.
"Never thought I'd be singing the praises of buraeucracy," Kas noted with a wry smile, already plating up their food. "But I guess there's a first time for everything."
Eryk seemed like he was about to reply to something, however; a shriek caused him to turn his head in the direction it came from. A slow, subtle smile crossed his features as he huffed lightly. “I guess Imp couldn't pass up the chance to have fun in the dark," he stated as if to clarify the source of the sound.
“Nero!" it was Katia's voice, and she seemed to be upset with Eryk. She wasn't anywhere near them, yet, but Nev couldn't help the light chuckle that left her. Kas laughed, too, soft and under his breath, but easily audible in the kitchen.
“Well, I suppose if we want even a semblance of a nice dinner together, we should probably get started before she returns," she stated, glancing towards Kas. Eryk was already picking up his plate, and nodded his head.
“Agreed. Aidan can manage on his own," Eryk stated before he took a bite of his food. Honestly, Nev wasn't sure how Aidan managed it. She felt a little bad for him. Maybe when Katia left, she could get him an appointment at the local massage place?
Kas nodded emphatically. "Patience of a saint, asskicking skills of a total badass. I'd say I want to be him when I grow up, but I don't really plan on growing up in the first place." He grinned at the both of them, setting a couple other plates aside and taking up his own, sliding into a stool across from the two of them.
"Enjoy it, guys. Might be the last pleasantness we get all night."