Dreaming, or waking up? (open)

[Anthy Blacksmith]

It was the first time she had felt so happy being in someone's company. So comfortable with someone, in a very long time. He was special to her, she could tell that by how it made her to see him as he walked over to her. It was kind of like how sunlight made her feel. But a little better than that. Anthy wasn't sure on how to describe it. She just knew that she never wanted the feeling to leave.

She stood up quickly, a bright smile on her face as she didn't even bother to brush off her skirt before she went to meet him half way. She... she was excited. Anthy was actually excited to see him and that he was there. Even if they hadn't known each other for long. Her heart fluttered a little in her chest and for once she wasn't glowing from embarrassment, fear, or anxiety. No, she was... glowing from how happy she was. It was new to her, strange, and she was a little worried about it, but seeing his smile.... It made her forget about that.

"I'm really happy to see you ----"

Just as she was about to say his name, Anthy stirred and woke from the sound of her cellphone signalling a low battery. Giving a soft stretch and a sleepy sigh, she rubbed her eyes and picked it up before feeling around for the charger then plugging it in. She then rolled over and went back to sleep for another couple of hours before it was time to actually get up. Well, it wasn't something she had to do, it was just time for her to wake up because of old habits. No alarm was needed even. Even if she did still feel tired.

It was due to all of the flashing she had been doing lately thanks to the cold she had had. Luckily, it seemed to be over, so maybe she could get back to class like normal. Sticking a thermometer in her mouth, Anthy went to getting her clothes and such together for the day. By the time she was done, the thermometer had peeped and she checked it to see that her temperature was almost down to normal. Giving a soft sigh and disinfecting the device, she went on to continuing to get ready for the day.

It was a couple of hours later, she had been trying to replenish some of the light she was missing while eating breakfast. Anthy usually are either in her dorm room or out in the courtyard due to her still having some trouble being social so that with the combination of there being more sunlight in the courtyard than her room, had her finding herself falling asleep with an uneaten sandwich in one hand and the other arm under her head as she lay on her side on the grass.

[Koty Hura]

Fortunately for Anthy, the person who otherwise would have surely trampled her was actually heading toward her very much on purpose and would stop short.

Koty had been busy. In the.. er.. however long it had been since he'd happened across Anthy in the kitchen late at night, he'd done exactly what he'd promised.. He'd learned to make peanut butter cookies. And damnit all if he wasn't addicted to the things by this point. The first week he'd made a batch and given several away.. The second week he'd made two batches because he was sure he'd come across Anthy and wanted them to be fresh when he did. The third week he'd changed the recipe up a bit, and so on and so fourth.. but he'd been eating a lot of freaking cookies lately.. and having to run off the extra calories to stay in shape, too. So suffice it to say that Koty may have bulked up a bit since Anthy had seem him last. Then again, he was at least wearing pants this time, so she wouldn't get such a good look at his legs even if she did want to.

Regardless, he had literally just come from the culinary arts classroom and conveniently enough had his best batch of peanut butter cookies yet in a tin in his hand. He knew just how to wake Anthy up.

He at first jogged, then slowed to walking, and eventually slowed more to sneak up to her, careful to avoid being in the light so she would have no excuse to wake up at all... And then her olfactory senses would be blasted by peanutbuttery bliss.. Koty opened one corner of the tin and held it just beneath her nose, grinning like an idiot because this all seemed very silly to him, but he couldn't quite help himself.

How much penautbuttery bliss? This peanut butter had actually been shipped to him from halfway across the country. It was the best peanut butter one could get. The richest, creamiest, smoothest, peanuttyest, most fragrant, most amazing peanut butter Koty had been able to find.. and since Koty rarely halfassed things, he'd ordered it as soon as he could. This was the second batch he'd made with it. The first batch had been two dozen cookies.. and had only lasted him two days.

And now Anthy was getting a nose full of the delicious freshly-baked smell of them.

Of course, if she didn't wake up, Koty would simply reach forward and tap on her hand still holding a sandwich. His hands, of course, were gloved. No worries about him catching anything Anthy was dreaming about.

[Anthy Blacksmith]

The best smell in the world. Peanut butter cookies. At first, they entered her dreams, causing her to start imagining herself in the kitchen with the biggest peanut butter cookie in the world. And it looked absolutely perfect. She began smiling both inside the dream and outside of it. Before long though, she was opening her eyes as the delicious aroma pulled her out of the sleeping state.

"Wow, that smells amazing.." She said even before waking up all of the way.

When she realised she had fallen asleep outside and that there was a tin being held in front of her, she blinked a couple of times and blushed a bit in embarrassment as she sat up. She hadn't meant to nod off like that. But, as she saw who was holding the tin, she ended up smiling happily.

"Oh Koty, it's... it's nice to see you." She said.

She was a lot better with the stammering with him right now than she was last time. There had just been a brief stutter. Her improvement came from a combination of things. The time she had spent with others, the comfort level she had built with him even that first time of having met him, and with how often she thought of everyone she had built some kind of relationship with, it was like she got to hang around them all the time.

[Koty Hura]

Koty's grin turned into a full-on smile and he nodded to Anthy as she woke up. "The feeling is most definitely mutual, Anthy. I must apologize.. I feel that it was perhaps my fault that this second meeting has been so long in coming. I have been focusing entirely too much on my physical fitness.. thanks in no small part to these sinful cookies you brought my attention to."

He carefully set the tin down and removed the lid. "I believe I have perfected the recipe.. I must have made at least eight batches to get them what I believe is right. I cannot store them in my dorm because the smell is such a distraction. You have brought a curse upon me, Anthy." Koty was grinning like crazy and was obviously jesting, even if he was also serious. These damned cookies were delicious. He'd contemplated making some sort of dessert sushi with them, but by the time he'd thought of what else to include in the roll he'd eaten them all.

"If you are not too tired, I fully intend to make good on my word. As many of these cookies as you would like are yours, and if you are able, I will not only let you sample sushi, but show you how it is made as well." Of course, about that time, Koty realized that 1. Anthy had just woken up.. 2. she was holding a sandwich, and 3. he had been rambling for.. some time now.

"Please forgive me. Would you like a moment to clear your mind before you make any decisions? I have some water or can find you.. perhaps coffee or a carbonated beverage?"

[Anthy Blacksmith]

She smiled more when he told her that it was nice to see her too. Well, in his own way anyways. As he apologised for how long it had taken to meet up with her again, Anthy was about to tell him that he didn't need to worry about it but then ended up giggling instead when he mentioned "sinful cookies".

"Well, they are pretty addicting." She giggled out.

"But, you really don't have to worry. I was willing to wait as long as it took. Also, it's probably good you didn't catch me until now seeing how... well.. I only just got over a cold. I'm safe now.... so you won't be getting blinded again." She told him with a smile.

Without doing so literally, Anthy lit up when he removed the tin after setting it down. Wow. Those were some gorgeous cookies! As he told her he perfected the recipe, she couldn't find any room to deny it. She did look up at him though when he said she had brought a curse on him before giggling a little when she saw how he was grinning. Eight batches though? Wow, he really went out of his way to do this for her. That was really nice and made her blush a little. But then again, he had been nice like this from the beginning and that had been something that had helped her. If he had been different that first night, she probably would have spent more time hiding off to herself at every chance she got.

When he told her that if she wasn't too tired, he wanted to not just give her however many cookies she wanted but that he wanted to show her how sushi was made as well as letting her sample it. She was just about to give him her reply, but he was speaking again, apologizing then asking if she wanted a moment to clear her head. Then, he went to offering her some water, coffee, or a soda. Anthy smiled and shook her head.

"No, I'm good, really. Thank you though, that's really nice. I'd love to.. I mean, the sushi, that is." She told him excitedly before taking a quick look around to see where the little box for the sandwich might have been.

Luckily, it hadn't been very windy so she plucked it from where it was a couple inches away and she repackaged the sandwich.

[Koty Hura]

...Blinded? When had he been blinded? It took Koty several moments of contemplation before he even remembered the less-pleasant portion of his first meeting with Anthy. Clearly she'd left an impression aside from the ghost image that had been stuck in his vision for nearly ten minutes. That's what he'd said. Or something in that general vicinity. Yeah, that 'how she was' wasn't a bad thing for the right person. Flashing and all. He'd still stand by it. Someone like Anthy couldn't possibly chance so much so fast that what he'd said wasn't still true. It was easy enough to tell just by the way her face lit up. Genuine happiness. And she'd meant it honestly when she's said it was nice to see him. He didn't need to use his telepathy to know, either. That was.. refreshing.

Suffice it to say that Koty felt like his time spent making cookies was well worth it. If they made a person like Anthy smile, there was no amount of time that wasn't worth it. Besides, that's what friends did, right? And he's promised to endeavor to be her friend. This was.. just one of the ways he had gone about it.

"Excellent. Would you accompany me to the kitchen, then? Or would you prefer the culinary arts room? Both have a rice cooker and should have the supplies I need." He would actually wait long enough for her to reply before continuing this time.

"I would also ask that you put some thought into what you might like in your sushi. I can make vegeterian rolls, California rolls, spicy rolls, nigiri.. Even steak, chicken, or a slider roll I saw made once. The sky is the limit."

[Anthy Blacksmith]

Anthy couldn't resist and ended up picking up one of the cookies. She was halfway through biting it when Koty went to asking her if she'd accompany him and on which place she wanted to go. Blushing at her impulsiveness that had caused her to have her mouth too busy to talk with, she quickly went to chewing the bite and swallowing it. But not without giving a sound of pleasure at how good it had been.

"Wow.... That's got to be the best I've ever had. You weren't kidding, Koty, you really did perfect these." She said in excitement and with honesty.

"Um... maybe the... culinary arts room?" She asked.

She wasn't fully aware of it but she was kind of trying to make up for all the times she had used the kitchen instead of the perfectly good alternative.

"Oh, any kind you make would be fine. I mean, I don't have any specific one in mind, and you're the expert, so... Maybe one you like a lot? I mean, you've found the love of my favorite food, so maybe I could discover yours?" Anthy asked him.

[Koty Hura]

Koty gave a firm nod when Anthy decided upon the culinary arts room and rose to his feet, offering her a hand to help her up. "Very well. We will try a bit of everything, then. Spicy tuna roll, avocado California veggie roll, salmon nigiri.. I can even make tempura if you would like." Though that would require a bit more prep work and hot oil.. Oh, shrimp. He could do shrimp, too.. And maybe a rice ball or two? though those could be very filling. Sweet plum roll? So many possibilities. Koty himself liked nigiri more than typical sushi, but for many people it was simply too much..

He might be somewhat limited by the supplies in the classroom.. but then again, Koty did have literally everything he needed in the mini-fridge in his room. If the school didn't have something, he'd just get it himself. He did know that there was seaweed, rice, and at least a few kinds of fish, though. He'd seen them just the other day.

After presumably helping Anthy to her feet and helping her to gather her things, Koty would set an easy pace towards the CA room, smiling across at Anthy. "Forgive me if I stare, but your smile could light rooms if enough people payed attention. It is as bright as can be but not harsh like your surprise. How have you been, Anthy? Have you had any success finding friends?"

[Anthy Blacksmith]

As he offered her a hand, Anthy put the cookie to her mouth to hold it between her teeth so she could accept his hand. The other was busy with a sandwich box after all. When he told her that they would try a bit of everything though, her eyes widened and once she was standing and her hand was empty of his, she brought the cookie away from her mouth.

"E-everything? Oh, I didn't mean to have you feel like you have to do all of that. I.. I mean, you already went through so much trouble to make the most delicious cookies ever for me, I couldn't ask you to cook your fingers to the bone too. Well, cook-ish? Prepare food. There, yeah... seeing how you wouldn't be cooking all the fish... or all of the veggies... and now I'm rambling a little."

She was blushing now and had her hands not been occupied, she might have covered her face some to try to hide it at least a little. It still didn't compare to the blush that came when Koty complimented her smile. Heck, she even flickered for a moment, the glow only keeping from lasting due to her not having "charged up" much. She didn't know what to say to the comment even if she smiled sheepishly at him in reaction to it. But, luckily, he went to asking her how she had been and if she had made any friends.

"Oh, I've... I've been doing pretty good actually." She told him, her blush calming down some.

"And I've made a few friends, too. Even two that I've become pretty close to even if we haven't spent a lot of time together. I've... I've learned how to play the guitar, and the piano... and I learned about one of the people having an aunt that has Bioluminesence, so that was nice. I didn't even know until then that I kind of felt a little alone in that. But I don't feel it anymore. I managed to go into town, even if there was a close call everything turned out alright.... I... I wanted to thank you, Koty. Really. I mean... if that first meeting had been different, there's a chance I never would have made the friends that I did or have had had the opportunities that I've had." She told him.

"I would have been alone if it wasn't for you." She admitted with a small smile.

[Koty Hura]

Spazzing a little about 'everything' aside, Koty was glad to hear Anthy's voice. He didn't have an inordinate number of friends.. let alone people who had proposed the relationship completely on their own who ordinarily claimed to be shy.. Suffice it to say that Anthy's friendship, and how familiar she was acting now, after only one relatively brief meeting, meant more to Koty than he'd anticipated it would. Not that he'd imagined he wouldn't care about her, he just hadn't expected to feel so lucky to be among her friends.. privileged.

Good was good. And friends were good too.. and so were both guitar and piano... and someone to relate to, at least a little. Feeling alone was never fun, so Anthy feeling less so being good was a given. But she wanted to thank him? She was putting.. all of her success and.. on him? Uh.. wow...

Koty was silent for a few moments.. and then adopted a bit more of a serious face.. deciding that compromise was likely the best solution before negotiations had even been made. Because Anthy was... delicate. Stronger than she knew, most definitely, but still delicate. "I will say this in reply.. I am only willing to accept your appreciation.. if are willing to recognize that my influence aside, you yourself decided to seek out the new relationships you have gained, and you yourself were the one who took the small amount of strength I shared with you and amplified it within yourself to achieve what you have. I cannot ignore my part, but you cannot ignore yours either. Can we agree?"

Hopefully that would sound reasonable enough to Anthy.. It was a touch redundant, but it was fairly clear. 'Give yourself some credit'. If Anthy agreed, Koty would give her a smile and a nod in return.

"Also, I should clarify. When I said 'everything' a moment ago, I meant something in every main style. Standard, california roll, nigiri, perhaps sashimi if you find you enjoy the texture of the nigiri. It will be no trouble, I promise."

[Anthy Blacksmith]

He was silent, an Anthy looked to see if something might have been on his mind, or if she might have said something that had possibly bothered him. She quickly ran what she had said through her head again just in case and couldn't find anything. He... He looked pretty serious. She almost asked him if everything was alright, but he was soon speaking.

Her eyes widened slightly to give her almost a doe-like look as he told her that he wouldn't accept the credit, but then, she became more shy as he went to telling her about how she had decided to seek out the relationships and had been the oen who took the strength he had given her to do what she had done. Anthy almost looked a little sheepish when he asked her if she agreed to take some of the credit. Then, she smiled a little before nodding. Something he returned.

When he clarified that he had meant that he was talking about styles rather than every sushi that he knew, she smiled a little more. Well, that should be a lot less work, now shouldn't it?

"Would you be teaching them all to me too? Or would that take too much time?" She asked him.

It seemed that she was learning more skills this month than she had in a whole year. But, she wasn't intimidated by that. In fact, she was kind of proud of herself for having picked up new hobbies and learned new things.

[Koty Hura]

"Oh, most of making sushi is relatively simple and merely requires practice to improve. Similar to your instruments, practice is necessary to maintain or improve skill. Much is also based on preference. For instance, I am partial to salmon nigiri, light wasabi, heavy soy. Others prefer veggie rolls, sashimi.. Some prefer certain cuts of certain fish, others prefer several thin slices or one thicker slice. More or less rice. Short or Medium grain.. But this is all more than you need concern yourself with. Are you comfortable holding and using a knife?"

Presumably they were on their way toward the class by now.. Koty carrying his tin of cookies and anything Anthy had offered to let him carry of hers. Koty continuing his easy pace, maintaining a friendly distance.. a foot or so between shoulders.. the aim being for them to walk side by side rather than Anthy trailing behind. Koty was also attempting to talk with his hands more, though he wasn't very good at it just yet. Many westerners seemed to talk with their hands and it honestly did add something to conversation, so he was trying.. and perhaps succeeding but only with mild success at best.

"This question should be obvious.. but are you comfortable with the consumption of fresh, raw fish, Anthy? If not.. there are alternatives, but it would.. limit what I am able to make for you to sample." Maybe tempura would be a thing after all..

[Anthy Blacksmith]

Anthy blinked a couple of times as Koty went through all the different ways that people liked to have their sushi prepared along with the different types of ingredients. Sushi was pretty versatile, it seemed. It sounded more complicated than the "relatively simple" that Koty had described it as being. But, she was willing to try it out anyways. As he asked her about her comfort with using a knife, she had to think about it for a moment.

"Well... I don't have a problem with using one, I just haven't needed to use one often." She told him.

But, sushi probably involved a lot of knife work, so that might change for her. Koty had made her those wonderful cookies, so she kind of wanted to make him some sushi. It was why she had made extra sure to keep notes in her head about how he liked light wasabi and heavy soy on salmon neegeeri.

He asked her about her comfort level with eating raw fish next before going on to explaining ot her that there were alternatives even if it would limit what he might have planned.

"I'm willing to try anything at least once. And I've been interested in trying sushi more since we talked about it that time. So... I'm good for the raw fishies.... I mean, fish."

[Koty Hura]

"Then fishies it will be.. Though in that case, I would like to make a brief detour to my room, if you would not mind. The freshest ingredients make the best sushi, and I have some very fresh, unfrozen salmon and tuna that would be ideal." Of course he could also grab some of his leftovers from earlier today.. A curry-style dish, pickled veggies, fried tofu, as well as some really good sushi rice, of course. He also had a sour plum.. maybe she would like that, too? And some decent soy sauce.. oh, and his wasabi powder.. how could he forget that? Or the pickled ginger?

--Actually, come to think of it.. He had literally everything in his room to make sushi.. Why were they going to a classroom? "Actually.. Given the time of day and our reasoning.. Would you care to instead join me in my dorm? I have all the necessary ingredients and supplies there." If she wasn't cool with that, he could just run and grab things. It wasn't that much of an inconvenience. And.. who knew, maybe it was a little creepy that he had no less than three professional chef's knives kept razor sharp in his bedside table....

[Anthy Blacksmith]

She both got a little embarrassed and giggled when Koty called it "fishies". But, that didn't stop her from listening to him as he went to speaking about them possibly making a trip to his room for some of the ingredients. Well, she didn't mind that. She had done the same thing when she had baked cookies with Matt that time. It made her smile to think about that. Then, she went to thinking about how she had also made cookies for Lucas and she found herself smiling again. Even if there had been a lot of ups and downs on both of those days, it had still been special to her.

Koty brought her back to the present as he spoke up again, asking her if she wanted to join him in his dorm as he had everything needed to do what they were planning, there. Anthy smiled at that.

"I think that would be nice. There's be less chance of people coming in and me getting all shy and mousey while I'm trying to learn." She said with a small nod.