Sea of Flavors Chapter 2, an azur lane/碧蓝航线 fanfic

Part Two – Sugar and Spice

I arrived the following week at Dunkerque's kitchen, bright and early, I was really looking forward to spending more time with her, I felt so cheated last week… but then again spending time with George hadn't been that bad. We'd made each other laugh and traded a few recipes… but today... well today I had a plan… one that I'm sure I can execute… heck I practiced them enough over the week… I'm sure Dunkerque will love the strawberry and cream crepes with baked apple roses, I'm sure armed with these I'll nab a second chance at finding out how soft her lips are… At least that was the plan, but you know what that wise man Murphy said… 'No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.'

Such a wise man that Murphy….

When I arrived at the kitchen, my hopes and plans had been dashed, for standing, laughing and conversing in French with the target of my affections was the most stunning cock blocker I had ever met, King George the Fifth. I sigh inwardly and stowed what I brought in the fridge, no point in keeping out now. No sooner had I closed the fridge then Dunkerque looked to me and with her heavy French accent greeted me in the most French way possible, by that I mean a kiss on each cheek as she said, "Good Morning John."

I know I started to blush a little, and by a little, I mean a lot… but I mean common she is the object of my desires, wouldn't you blush? I got myself under control as fast as I could as she started to tell me, "We are making an apple pie, from scratch today… the Eagle Union is having some kind of event today, and I figured what is more them than apple pie, non?"

I had to admit, she had a point, and it was their celebration of the American War of Independence… but damn them for ruining all that tea…

Anyways as we were making the pies I kept finding myself in close to Dunkerque, so close that our fingers would graze each other's, or our hips might touch here to there, I'll admit I sent shivers up and down my back each time, she'd always flash me this shy smile after. As we let the pie dough rest in the fridge, George excused herself but not before she whispered something to Dunkerque, who nodded her silver-haired head and gave a shy smile. I was curious as to what was said between them, but I didn't have to wait long as once the door closed behind George, I found Dunkerque all but occupying the same space as me, her beautiful features so close to mine, I could see the little marks of flour on her face, she had this shy smile and a twinkle in her rust-red eyes. I felt my heart start to pound in my chest as she leaned a little closer, closed her eyes, and tilted her head slightly. I had heartbeats to figure out what was going on, before I felt the softness of her lips on mine, the subtle smell of vanilla filled my nose, this was a glorious moment for me… and I felt nothing. No spark, just soft lips…. Talk about a letdown.

The kiss didn't last long, I got the hint that maybe she also felt nothing as it broke almost instantly, and she gave this awkward half-smile and looked to the side before patting down my shirt and returning to the other side of the kitchen… not a word was said. I think in that instant we both knew that we had built something up in our minds and it was going to go nowhere. Kind of glad I didn't make those crepes and apple tarts now… When George returned after several moments, it was like she and Dunkerque had an unspoken conversation with just a couple of head gestures. It wasn't lost on me as we started to make our pies that George would stand between me and Dunkerque, and I felt oddly relieved by that.

As I finished putting in the filling, George came over and started to help me with the latticework of the pie crust, I was finding that I was working really well with her, better than I had with Dunkerque. Every so often George would look up to me with her red eyes, before flicking them back down to make sure that everything wove together perfectly, our fingers all but touching as we completed the over and under pattern.

Just as we sild the pies into the oven and set the timer for an hour when Jean Bart came storming in making a direct line to Dunkerque, taking her by both hands and talking to her in their own langue, after a few moments George leaned over and whispered to me, "Something about an exercise with their sisters against the Iris fleet…"

I take out my phone and check and sigh before I whisper back, "I forgot about that today…It's been booked for months since this was the first time both fleets would be in port together in almost four months…"

Dunkerque turned to face us, with the most apologetic look on her face as she said to us, "I'm so, sorry but I can't miss this…"

I nodded as I said to her, "It's alright, I understand."

Truthfully, I was thankful, after the really lackluster kiss I was finding things to be a little awkward in the kitchen. When she was gone I turned to George and said, "Well, guess we should get to cleaning up now, not much else to do for an hour…"

I watched as she nodded to me and started to put away the ingredients, as she was putting away the flour she seemed quiet for a moment before she said, "I'm sorry the kiss wasn't what you hoped it would be."

I drop the knife I just started to wash in the sink, almost cutting my hand in the process as I nervously got out, "Wh…what makes you say that?"

She looked off to the side before putting the sugar in the drawer as well and said, "Well for her at least… she found it disappointing."

I hung my head… true I'd been stuck on this base for so long now, that'd been a long, long, long time since I had kissed a woman… let alone be intimate with one, but damn it, I wasn't that bad at it…. I've never had any complaints in the past… I sigh before I confirm, "Yeah, it was really disappointing…"

I paused to turn around from the sink, accidentally splashing some water on the floor as I did so and I continue, "I guess I had just built this idea in my head, that to feel nothing from it…"

George stood up to continue putting away the dry ingredients as she said over her shoulder to me, "Then maybe she wasn't the one for you then."

As she moves over to help with getting the dishes off of the worktop she slips on the water that I had spilled, her arms driving outwards to grab onto anything to stop her from falling, sadly, it was me that she gripped. As she fell backward and I fell forward I slipped my right hand behind her head so that she'd have something to cushion the blow from hitting the tile.

Oh god did that hurt, my hand slamming into the ground, followed by the back of her head slamming down on it, trapping it between the tile floor and her head. To say that we were in an awkward position is an understatement, if someone had walked in on us, I'm sure it would've been a scandal for the Royal Household.

I had a thigh between her legs and quite high up I might add, like to the point I could feel her pressed against it, my left elbow was on the tile along with my left hand, so at least I didn't grope her by accident. Our lips were just millimeter apart, I could feel her breath on my lips, I could see a slightly pink hue to her cheeks, her red eyes locked on mine, as she breathed in, I could feel her bust just touch my chest before retreating away as she breathed out. I don't know how long we were like this in a stunned state, the smell of roses filling my nose, it was intoxicating.

After a few heartbeats like this, she tilted her head up and off to the side slightly, our lips coming into contact with each other, almost like it was a magnetic force drawing them together. Her lips were soft, just as soft at Dunkerque's, but there was something else I felt, it was a shock that ran through my body, kind of like when you test a nine-volt battery with your tongue, but better, way, way better. I go to move a little as I feel her arms go around my back and start to rub it, while I hear her give off a little noise of pleasure when I tried to move my thigh. I guess I must've rubbed against her in a way she liked… I feel one of her hands move up to the back of my head and she starts to run her fingers through my hair, while the kiss starts getting deeper, I feel my lungs starting to protest their need for oxygen, but if I was honest I was happy to pass out at this point, this kiss was amazing…

I guess she felt the need for air as well as she broke the kiss, her cheeks bright red as she licked her lips and got out breathlessly, "That was a good kiss…"

Her hands slid out of my hair and off my back to my chest as she gently applied pressure to get me to sit up, as we were both sitting on the floor, looking at one another, but not looking at the same time, I watched as she adjusted her hair and clothing, before giving me a shy smile as she said, to me, "John… I…"

I nodded, I understood, as I said, "I get it, I'm a commoner."

She blushed, like out and out blushed brightly as she told me, "Not that at all! What I was going to say was; I would need to seek permission from my Queen if this is something you would be interested in pursuing…"

I give her a shy smile while I'm starting to blush and I say, "I would be, but only if you are."

She gives me this soft coy smile as she says, "Then a proper courtship then… I expect you to woo me, Johnathan Hawker."

I wince at hearing my full first name, only my mother used it, and usually when I was in trouble… I see her lean forward into my space again, her head tilted slightly and just as before it's like two magnets, our lips are pulled together, and it's the same feeling of electricity flowing through me, doubly so when I feel her fingertips on the side of my face, while her other hand seems to start running through my hair, happy noises are being emitted by her during this second kiss that started soft but has quickly become just as deep as the first one did, just as fast as the first one did. I feel my pants getting tighter and blood rushes south, my body seems to know what it wants right now, she breaks the kiss again, and gives me another shy smile just as the timer for the pies go off and I sigh… I'd really; really like to see where this could go right now.

I get it though; she's a noble lady and wants to be treated like a noble lady. I lie back against the floor as she backs up and stands, starting to tap her right foot on the ground and she looks at me with her red eyes like she is expecting something. It takes me a moment to clue in, that she's in a skirt and doesn't want me looking up there; I roll to my belly and push myself off the floor just before she takes the pies out of the oven.

XXXX

The next week, I canceled the weekly baking class with Dunkerque, I think we were both thankful for it to be honest… sweets really weren't my thing after all, and knowing the answer to my imagined affections for her, well I just didn't see the reason to go through with those classes anymore.

So this week, I actually invited Wales over, to be honest about it, it was more to pick her brain than anything else, but she came ready to work in the kitchen at least and under the pretext that I was hosting a dinner for The Queen… that wasn't a lie, I had received a call from her on Monday morning, making it clear that this was a formality, but she needed to vet me to make sure I was worthy of her household, as is the tradition.

I thought about asking Swiftsure rather than Wales, but I think that it'd get awkward really fast when I started asking questions about George… I wasn't blind to the fact that Swiftsure had a crush on me after all.

Wales was across the worktop from me, looking in my fridge at the arranged contents as I said, "Sorry to call you over on short notice, but I honestly wanted to pick your brain about something…"

"You want to know how to get to my sister's heart?" she said to me, not even skipping a beat as she pulled out a rack of lamb.

I sigh and shake my head as I ask, "How fast did that news spread?"

She laughs as she says, "Naturally she only spoke to the Queen about having permission to be able to pursue a personal relationship… so that means the entire Royal Navy detachment knows."

I shrug and sigh, "The nature of privacy, right?"

"Indeed, I think most of us are looking forward to seeing how this goes… well all but Swiftsure. But to answer your first question; food… George loves two things beyond all others, a good fight and good food." She said to me as she took out the carrots.

I hang my head and sigh while I pull some fresh flat-leaf parsley, rosemary, and mint, and start to finely chop it with my knife as I say, "I actually feel bad for Swiftsure, I wasn't blind to the fact that she had a crush on me…"

Just as the Dijon mustard hits the counter I hear Wales add to my statement, "To be fair Commander Hawker, many of the women here have a crush on you."

I sigh again as I pull over the breadcrumbs and pour some in a bowl along with the fresh herbs and setting it aside while I pull over the sheet pan with the lamb on it and the mustard. As I trim away all but a thin layer of fat and French the ends of the rack I tell Wales, "Again, kind of hard not to notice that… and I wonder if it's due to me being the only male on-base…"

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Wales starting to peel some of the rainbow carrots and toss them in a baking dish as she shrugs and tells me, "Likely has something to do with it…"

Once I get the coating on the lamb and get it in the oven, I wash my hands and ask, "So food and fighting to get to George… Well, I think my best bet is food…"

Wales laughs as she puts butter in with the carrots and places it in my second wall oven as she says, "Then you are going to be spending a lot of time in here… George has quite the appetite."

I nod, that was good to know… good thing I enjoy cooking then… The next thing I move on to is the potatoes I get them trimmed up and a cast-iron skillet read for turning them into fondant potatoes. I check my phone for the timing of everything and realize I've got some time before the potatoes will need to be flipped over so I go to my wine rack and start to look it over. I notice I've got a good selection of cheap wine, nothing good enough to serve to 'Lizzy. I hang my head and sigh, just as I hear Wales clear her throat and tell me, "Here."

I turn to see her with a bottle of red wine and I roll it over to read the label and I just about chock as I say with some surprise, "Wales, this is like a three hundred quid bottle…"

She nods before telling me, "It is, but I won it from Jean Bart a few months ago during the red versus blue training against Vinchya… she bet this, I bet a good bottle of scotch."

I put the bottle on the work station as she extends her arms out and waves the edges of them in as she says, "I've never heard George talk so much about one person, as much as she has about you since the banquet… ever."

I lean into the hug and raise my eyebrow at her when I feel her place a hand on my rear and give it a squeeze before she laughs and says, "You can't blame me for getting a feel when I can?"

I laugh and return the gesture to see her smile at me and whisper in my ear, "If things don't work out with George, come find me."

XXXX

Come dinner, my dining room contains a small gather of guests, The Queen, Warspite, George, Wales, and myself. I take note that all of my guests are dressed rather formally and I get it, this is a 'formal vetting' after all. I see the look on George's face as she takes a bite of the lamb and she looks like she is in utter bliss, the meat had come out a perfect mid-rare so that it just melts on your tongue. I see her open her eyes and look at me, a slight blush on her cheeks and I get the impression that I had scored some points on the board.

The Queen dabs the corners of her mouth as she looks at me and says, "Commander, we appreciate that you have gone to this level of effort, it is clear that you thought hard about a meal that we would find pleasing."

"You are most welcome Your Majesty; I am humbled to have you in my home." I say back, again a required saying for something like this, truth be told 'Lizzy is here once a month for a poker game… she is far, far less ladylike for those.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see George take a sip of the wine, again a look of bliss on her face as it washes over her tongue before she gives me a smile and a wink…. I'd kill to know what she was thinking about right now… I mean I know that I'm thinking about, how that uniform of her hugs her curves and makes her bust even more prominent, it made me wonder just how large it actually was if it was her bra making them seem larger than they were… I sigh internally; this was not the time to be thinking about this kind of thing.

'Lizzy clears her throat when she notices that my attention isn't on her before she speaks up, "We know that George is a most radiant person Commander, but as I was saying; you have my approval, but we would like to make the announcement of the courtship at the Royal Gala this month, so if you must get up to anything, be discreet about it till then… we would like to avoid any scandals. Also, Commander Hawker, we will need a copy of your service record for the Royal Navy before the Gala…"

I blush a little out of embarrassment as I thank her politely, I can see a look of amusement on George's face… I guess this is a turnabout for what happened at the banquet.

XXXX

It had been hard to go the month with little to no contact with George, but it was the night of the Royal Gala, I had put on my Royal Navy dress uniform 1A and had made my way to the Royal Hall, I'm standing at the base of the twin staircases, looking around I knew that I was to wait here for George. I sigh to myself and adjust my collar; I can't believe that I'm nervous right now. I take a breath to center myself and I start to wonder why 'Lizzy had requested my service record for the Royal Navy and made the request that I dress as a member of the Royal Navy for this.

I let the breath out and look around the room again, I notice that every one that is arriving seem to be fairly high up in their faction ranks, at this moment I'm thankful for my white gloves, they are covering up my palms that are starting to sweat, my ears pick up the clicking of heels on stairs and I look up to see a vision of the near-perfect definition of a goddess, a long red ball gown that is exposing her ample bust, red silk roses around her waist, black trim around the edges and key parts of the gown, and a white and gold shall around her shoulders, she gives me a shy smile as her red eyes spot me as she tells me, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Johnathan... I don't get to wear a dress very often, so it took me a bit longer…"

As she reaches the bottom of the stairs she extends a hand to me and continues, "Let's get going, then. Remember, you'll be the lead tonight."

I'm speechless, I knew she was beautiful, but this is a whole other level of beauty, I take a moment to look around and see that we are alone for the moment, so I touch just under her chin and turn her to look up and towards me for a moment to steal a quick kiss. She leans into it, hard, we are only like this for a moment before it breaks, but it is just as electric as the first time. When it breaks I see her blush slightly before she wipes my lips with her left thumb as she tells me, "My lipstick got on you… it's not set yet."

I blush a little, her thumb feels so soft against my lips, and the intimacy that this act suggests is a real turn on at the moment. Once that is done, we head to the door to enter and I see Javelin standing just to the side, as she spots us, she straightens up and calls out, "Announcing King George the Fifth and her escort, Commander Johnathan Hawker!"

I see all eyes in the room turn towards us as we enter arm in arm and I suddenly feel very, very self-conscious. George is leading me gently by the arm to the end of the hall, where 'Lizzy is standing, flanked by Warspite, Duke of York and Prince of Wales. I take note that Warspite is standing with her blade drawn, tip down… for such a little lady she sure can be intimating.

We stop at the barely noticeable stair at the base of the throne, I look to George and she makes eye contact before quickly moving her eyes to the ground and back a couple of times. I take a quick scan of the room and note that everyone seems to be on one side of the room or another, George leans over and whispers to me, "You need to kneel."

I blush a little and do as instructed, with my head down, avoiding eye contact with 'Lizzy, I feel the weight of Warspite's blade on one shoulder as 'Lizzy tells the room, "For service to the crown at great personal risk, many times over, we recognize thee…"

I feel the blade leave that shoulder than pass to the next one as she continues, "We grant thee all the rights and privileges that come with this recognition…"

The blade leaves my shoulders as she finishes, "Now raise, Sir Johnathan Hawker, Knight of the Order of the Garter."

I feel frozen, that's a title reserved for the Royal Household, I slowly get off my knees and bring up my eyes to see 'Lizzy smiling at me as she hands the blade back to Warspite before turning to face me again and taking my right hand as she looks towards George to see if I get the hint, I turn around slowly to my left as she places my hand over George's left hand as she says, "We are proud to announce the courtship of King George the Fifth and Sir Hawker."

I'm feeling even more self-conscious than I was before as the room seems to erupt into applause, I look to George and see her smile at me, this should prove interesting…

XXXX

A/N: Chapter two down, how will our Commander take to being in a position of nobility, stay tuned to find out….