"You're the one who made the lunch!" Phoenix laughed incredulously. "Why are you thanking me?"
Before Eliza could answer, a grizzly voice came through the stairwell, "Someone's making dessert?" Arcos came into view in the doorway, a smile on his muzzle.
"No," Phoenix scolded, "no dessert. But Eliza made this salad out of the salmon we found!" She twirled her fork about above her plate, showing off the food-riches she'd received. She twirled the fork, full of salmon salad, and put it into her mouth with a flourish.
Arcos laughed in reply, passing the kitchen table to get to the sink. He turned on the water, and soaped up his hands. "I can eat that," he said, rinsing his hands off, and grabbing himself a plate. He served himself a heaping helping of both the greens and the meat portion, before seating himself at an empty seat at the table.
"You're brother and sister not coming up?" Phoenix asked.
Arcos stopped with a forkful of food halfway to his mouth. It might have looked rather ridiculous to an outside onlooker, with the giant bear man holding a human sized fork in his great paw between two fingers, a green and pink mixture perched on the end of it, and his muzzle open to receive it. He looked over at his mother without moving his head, as if he did so the salmon salad would disappear from the end of the fork. "They're going to the cargo bay," he said, "I didn't feel like dealing with that." He put the tip of his fork in his mouth slowly, raising his lips and taking the salad off of it with this teeth. He closed his eyes, and chewed slowly, before swallowing. "Plus, I smelled salmon," he turned to Eliza and smiled. "This is so good," he crooned. He then turned to his mother playfully, "Why don't you make things like this?"
"Because the fact that we can eat my food period is a miracle in and of itself," she replied dryly, looking at Eliza , not at Arcos.
Arcos, also looking at Eliza now, leaned in and asked, "WIll you stay for dinner?"
"What he means is," Phoenix said, "will you cook dinner?"
Arcos snuffled in his approximation of a chuckle. "Will you cook us dinner?" he asked, blinking his big, brown eyes rapidly, the edges of his muzzle curling up in a smile.
She watched the exchange between mother and son with amusement as Eliza continued to work on her meal slowly. She was both the center of the conversion and on the outskirts of it. She returned Acros' smile pleased that he was enjoying the meal but had to control herself from spraying her food while chuckling at her companions dry but playful exchange.
Eliza took a moment to collect herself, keenly aware the attention was focused on her again. At his request she couldn't hold back from laughing directly in Acros' face though she made a belated attempt to hide her muzzle behind one hand. Was he seriously batting his eyes at her? Still there was some part of her that was intensely satisfied and flattered at the blatant plea for another meal.
"If I'm still here then I guess I don't really mind." She smiled and popped a chunk of salmon in her mouth, chewing it quickly as she waggled her fork in his direction. She swallowed and gave him a teasing smile. "Though you should know my policy before you ask again. First one's free, after that you either help or offer something of equal value." She nodded her head in Phoenix's direction. "And the arrangement between your mom and I doesn't trickle down to you kids."
She laughed heartily, letting the table know that she was kidding, mostly. While she loved being generous with her time and talents, she had been taken advantage of before and was careful about overextending herself. Granted, she measured what that meant on a scale all her own, that was both relative and flexible. But a standard existed all the same.
"Kidding aside, I'm glad that you like it." She gave Phoenix and her son a wide smile. "It's always fun to cook for different tastes." Eliza looked over their shoulders into the kitchen. "Granted if we make this" she waved her hand to include the table. "A regular thing I may have to root through your cabinets to see what I want to bring with me next time. But for as for tonight I will see what I can do." Her tone was light and accommodating, and she tipped her head happily before returning her attention to her plate once again.
"If we make this a regular thing," Phoenix repeated Eliza's words, "You will bring nothing with you. You will tell us what you need, and we will get it." While her voice was good natured, it was not joking in the least. She chewed another mouthful of salmon, and swallowed, "However, I shall not complain if you want to make it a regular thing." It was nice to have good food to eat, and to sit down at the table like civilized people to eat it. The Grey Cats had some amazing cooks in their midst, but they never sat and ate communally, at least when she was there. The dining table was a place to relax and enjoy the company of others, one could not do it if one did not sit at the dining table.
She rarely got to see this side of Arcos directed at anyone other than her. It was not a way he normally related to his siblings, he had no reason to charm them. He could simply bully them if he really wanted to, though bullying was not his style. He usually just did whatever it was he wanted on his own if he could not elicit the help he wanted. Then he brooded about how no one helped him.
He wasn't brooding right now, though, he looked as if he was thoroughly enjoying himself. Phoenix gazed at him adoringly when she wasn't looking at Eliza, and admired the man her son had become. He would have been a fine thing indeed, if she had been able to keep a stronger hold on the kids against the gang that consisted of their only friends. But them having friends, having a community, was more important than raising a fine, civilized man who could never do anything with it.
Arcos beamed when his eye batting got a full out, almost-spray-food-in-the-face laugh from Eliza. He rarely got that kind of reaction from anyone other than his family, his sense of humor was much too dry for most people to find funny. Her chuckle was cute, a sort of snarf that matched the shape of her muzzle beautifully. She was pretty when she smiled fully, like she was supposed to, with her teeth showing, her two canines poking out over her bottom lip, the front of her tapering muzzle stretched out, bringing attention to her nose. Aries was right, she was definitely nice to look at.
She waggled her fork in his face in a sassy way, much like her reactions at the park the last time they'd met her, and it was his turn to laugh outright, a deep, grizzled sound, like an underwater stream drifting up from a cave. He put his hands in a nnn of surrender, his fork still in one of his palms. "Nothing trickles down from my mother to her kids," he said, "Her kids earn their accolades themselves." He ignored the blatant guffaw that came him from his mother. While his mother was not a bad cook, she wasn't a good one either. None of them were. They all made satisfactory food, good enough to eat. Arcos doubted that Medusa would even eat prepared meals at all if it wasn't for the boys and their mother, she would simply forage for live game. "You tell me what to do," he instructed, still looking at Eliza joyfully, "and it's yours." He put another spoonful of salmon in his mouth, and half closed his eyes as he enjoyed it. He opened them again after he swallowed, pulling his lips back in an expressive grin. "Your wish is my command."
The ferret was enjoying the young bear's playful smile and his laugh was deep in a rumbling way that she felt it as much as heard it. It was interesting that he claimed autonomy from his mother and that he and his siblings were divorced from any benefits resulting from the familial association. Phoenix's short sarcastic laugh showed that she didn't buy the statement.
Though Eliza was sure that Acros and his siblings were independent enough to have plenty of their own merits, glancing at the healer she was equally as sure that others identified them through the Phoenix. After all it was how Eliza herself saw them at the moment. In time she would probably come to know them all better, but for the moment they were more or less lumped together as her friend's children. She let out a small huff of amusement at the irony of it being the opposite of herself when back home in Missouri. There she was more often known as 'Gwyn's Mom' thanks to her daughter's bubbly personality and involvement in multiple clubs and activities.
She laughed at Acros' feigned surrender and easy smile. It was nice to know that she would have an ready assistant should Eliza need it. When he ate the salmon with exaggerated bliss she was flushed with a mix of embarrassment and happiness at the non verbal compliment. It was decided there and then that she and Acros would get along fabulously.
"If wishes were fishes, we'd all be casting nets." She smiled as propped her chin on her fist. "Who knew it worked the other way around. That I could use fish to net some wishes." Eliza noted that his smile widened even more and she found that it suited him, with his large canines gleaming and his expressive eyes sparkling.
Eliza turned to the healer and could detect a hint of a threat in Phoenix's insistence that the ferret was not to augment their kitchen on her own. She made a noncommittal sound, it could be interpreted as compliance though she did not mean it as such. This would be another instance where she would just have to engage in guerrilla generosity. What could Phoenix really do if she just showed up with something? Ban her from cooking? Send her home? It was possible, but she'd be shooting herself in the proverbial foot. Eliza smiled, almost looking forward to the game of wills, granted she would have to cede a few points here and there to the healer, but it would all be in good fun.
"This is nice. I don't know how often I can come but when I do we'll definitely make the most of it." She smiled at her friend. Determined to make the moments they could share as pleasant as circumstances would allow.
Eliza finished her plate and pushed it slightly away from her, she was completely full. "For the moment though I am very satisfied." She glanced at her tablemates. "I will need to have a rummage through the fridge later unless you know what you'd like me to make. It can wait till later, after we've cleaned up and attended to other" her slight pause was barely noticeable as she searched for an appropriate term. "business."
With Eliza's mention of 'other business', as if she uttered magic words, the jovial attitude changed to one of a bit more seriousness. Arcos, still smiling, began to eat what little was left of his salmon salad with great scoops of his fork, and Phoenix pushed what was left of hers toward him. He eagerly, without a word, took the plate and finished it off too.
As he was eating, his mother stood up, and began to gather the dishes and utensils that were not longer being used. "You are welcome to rummage through all the cabinets we have," she said to Eliza. "If the salmon salad was off the top of your head, then we'll have a gourmet meal if you actually have time think about it!"
She turned, to see Eliza helping to clear the table, and made a move to take the things from Eliza's hands, but then stopped. The woman wanted to help, Phoenix realized, and felt a surge of stupidity for not having realized the reason why earlier. The woman was a widow, she'd been in charge of everything in her and her daughter's life for the past two years, was it? She was used to be in charge of her household, and she obviously enjoyed, at least some, of the aspects of household-dom more than the Phoenix herself did. Her cooking alone attested to that.
Arcos grabbed everything else on the table, and delivered it to the fridge for cold storage. He wasn't going to let food, in any shape, form, or fashion go to waste. They had to work much too hard for it in the winter, and the winter itself was still too fresh in his mind to be careless yet. Let it wait until the fall, when food was bountiful, both in the garden and out foraging, then one could be less careful.
He closed the fridge, and turned to his mother and Eliza. "I will be in the studio," he said. "Call me if you need anything."
The Phoenix gave her son an adoring look. "Alright."
The bear reached over and kissed his mother gently on the lips, having to almost bend down to half his height to do so. He looked at Eliza, and gave her a nod and a smile, before heading to the stairs.
Once he had disappeared, Phoenix turned to Eliza, and smiled reassuringly. "I can see," she said in a quiet voice, "that you are eager to get down to business." Phoenix didn't blame her. If she was in her shoes, she'd want to get down to business too.
Eliza took the dishes she had gathered over to the industrial sink and set them on the adjacent counter top. The ferret-woman turned to retrieve what was left on the table but saw that it was being taken care of already. It was nice to see that Acros was helping without having to be asked. Having lived with teenage boys, not to mention her own daughter, she knew from experience that it was not a trait to take for granted. She smiled as Acros bent to kiss his mother. He was just going downstairs and yet it warranted an affectionate departure. Her first impression upon stepping onto this floor was correct, this was a family brimming with love. Eliza returned his nod and gave him a small wave as he headed for the stairs, idly wondering if he was going to work on the painting she had seen earlier, before turning back to the sink.
She was so used to her post meal cleaning routine that Eliza had grabbed a sponge and put a dab of dish soap on it just as Phoenix addressed her. She looked at the woman a and appreciated the comforting smile but turned away to contemplate the slowly filling basin in front of her. Perhaps she was in more of a hurry to find out what was happening to her more than she was willing to admit. After all, the results could change her life even more then her recent mutation. If she was pregnant she had issues bigger than simple shedding or odd cravings to worry about.
Eliza didn't look at her friend as she addressed her in the same soft tone. "I guess I'm a little bit more anxious then I realized to get some answers." The ferret-woman rolled up her sleeves towards her elbows. The edge of wrapped bandages became visible on both arms. She began to wash the dishes as she spoke. "I've had a lot of time to think over this past week. Maybe too much time, and knowing what's wrong with me will make a huge difference in some of the choices I have in front of me."
She finally looked and gave a weak smile as Phoenix joined her at the sink to help in the chore. "I'm sorry that I brought the mood down. I really was enjoying the meal and talking with you both. I just have this constant niggling thought in the back of my mind that is hard to ignore. Am I or aren't I?" Eliza passed her another dish to rinse and dry. "It's pretty ironic really, I had prayed for another child for years before Grant got too sick for it to be a viable option for us anymore." The ferret huffed a small laugh at herself. "Now the thought of that prayer being answered, frankly, terrifies me."