Chapter 16 – Cocktails
At the end of that week, and just after Becky had returned Cait's Sirius suit back to her as good as new, the team began preparations to head up to Taffington Boathouse. Nate had decided that instead of taking the Red Wave up there this time, that they would walk, making a detour to the Cabot residence over the other side of the city. It had been a few days since Nate had given Curie her hiding and on the most part she had bounced back to her normal bubbly self. On occasion, when discussing something to do with Hardware Town or what the Fens Sheriff Department had planned for the raiders there, Curie had gone quiet. Once Nate had got cross with her, telling her off for keeping hold of the guilt and letting the issue linger. She had looked at Nate with such a fallen expression, tears welling up in her eyes, that all Nate could do was sweep her up into his arms and hold her tight, telling her that she was truly forgiven. Perhaps that is what she had been needing all along as things improved after that.
Nate was in the armoury, packing his own chest webbing, when a waft of the most delicious smell permeated through the door.
"Lunch is ready", came the call from downstairs.
"Coming," answered Cait and Piper. Nate was soon behind them as they headed down to the main kitchen in Home Plate. Curie was by the oven pulling out a tray of small circular pots of some kind.
"What have you got there?" Nate asked, his mouth watering.
"Oh, it is nothing really. It is some soft brahmin cheese with toppings." Curie answered. "In France this type of cheese was called camembert."
"Baked Camembert," Nate exclaimed, "amazing!"
"You've had this before?" asked Cait.
"Oh, yes," replied Nate, "It was a bit of a favourite at mess dinners, but really bad on the waist." He smiled.
"Well, the walk tomorrow will burn all that off," Piper pouted.
"I know you are unhappy, us not using the boat," Nate looked over to Piper, "But I can't risk her tied up the other side of the city whilst we visit this Jack Cabot chap."
"I know, I know, just having a grumble about it," Piper frowned.
"Don't frown," Nate said sternly, "It makes you look old," He then split into a big grin.
"Ha, old indeed!" huffed Piper.
"What are these on top of the cheese," asked Cait, examining the different coloured toppings on the small parcels.
"You have," began Curie as she leant over the table to point. "Garlic, honey and rosemary," she indicated four small rounds on the tray, "candied nuts here, olive pepper and tomato here," she continued down the tray "and finally these four are red onion and cranberry chutney."
"Is that it?" asked Piper jokingly, clearly impressed by the amount of work that had gone into creating this dish. Curie blushed, which was a trait Nate absolutely loved in her. She was clearly gifted at an almost superhuman level at so many skills and even though she knew it, she was still constantly self-effacing and bashful when it came to receiving compliments.
Cait scooped out a mouthful of one of the small parcels and savouring the taste made an appreciative, almost feline purr. "Oh my god I've just had a foodgasm." She hummed, closing her eyes.
"A food what?" Curie asked in surprise.
"Ha, you haven't heard of that?" Piper asked the puzzled looking Curie, "it is used to describe a moment of pure eating pleasure."
"Well, I am glad you are enjoying yourself so much," Curie said still looking a little puzzled. "Is the sensation similar to, well you know?" Curie asked, pointing down to between her legs, obviously wanting to know more about this effect.
"Erm, no, it's just a figure of speech," laughed Cait, "Although it's been so long, I wouldn't mind." Cait tried to sound hard done by.
"Cait!" exclaimed Piper, "you will make Nate blush." She laughed.
Nate began to say something when Cait interrupted him, "let me guess," she rested her hand on Nates wrist, "behave you two or we shall be having a conversation." Cait mimicked a very deep voice.
"We most definitely would be if it weren't for the fact that we have got a great deal more to do before we head off," Nate looked at Cait with a mock serious glare. Tearing off a piece of the farmhouse bread Curie had made to accompany the baked cheese, Nate turned the conversation to the more mundane. "I haven't gone through the med pack since Caits fight with the shotgun, how are we doing on stims?" he asked.
"Oh, I bought some more from Doctor Sun this morning," Curie answered, "we are all fine."
"And where are those extended magazines we bought from Arturo, the extra ones I thought we would need?" Nate asked. These had been imported from Washington and increased the weapon capacity from thirty rounds to forty.
"Didn't you have them last?" Cait asked, pointing to Nate.
"No, I put them on the ammo bench and asked you guys to put them away when we were back from Fairlines." Nate responded.
Piper pulled a confused face, "I was in the armoury doing the ammo count and you never asked me."
"Maybe I asked you later when we were back from you getting spanked by Becky," Nate turned to Cait.
"What!" exclaimed Curie and Piper. "Becky spanked you?" Piper asked open mouthed.
"No," Cait glared at Nate, "No, she didn't spank me, Mr Funny here is being not very funny."
"Well, I bet she wanted to, did you see her expression." Nate retorted.
"She was annoyed at me for the damage to my suit," Cait explained seeing that Curie and Piper still had surprised looks on their faces. "Nate began taking the piss as soon as we got into Fallon's."
"You were blushing," Nate smirked.
"Oh, shush you." Cait smirked back.
"But, this still doesn't answer my question as to which one of you has got the extended magazines." Nate continued, speaking to the girls like a teacher would a group of naughty school kids.
"Maybe you have hidden them in your torture cupboard," Piper suggested.
Nate looked puzzled, "Torture, cup…..oh, yes, I get it. The cupboard I keep my motivational aids in."
"No, there are no magazines in there, I checked yesterday when Percy came by to deliver that rattan school cane, he said you had ordered." Curie stated in her signature matter of fact way.
"Ha, he has found one, he said he had a lead on one, that's great," Nate looked genuinely happy with Curies news.
"Oh, and when were you going to tell us of this great news," Piper looked unamused.
"I didn't know if Percy was ever going to find one, and so I didn't want to get your hopes up." Nate grinned.
"Ha, now you are being funny!" Cait looked at Nate as if she thought he was being anything but funny.
"Why should any of you be worried about what I have or don't have as motivational aids, as none of you will ever need find out." Nate tried to sound reassuring.
"Hmmm" was all Piper could manage, she was not convinced.
"Anyway," continued Nate, "enough about torture cupboards and school canes, I still don't know which one of you has wandered off with my magazines."
"Maybe none of us have," Suggests Piper, "maybe you have just put them down somewhere and forgotten where that was."
"Given that you do have a habit of doing that," Cait backed her friend up.
"That is an outrageous, slanderous slur," Nate protested grabbing his chest and feigning a look of hurt. "I never forget where I put things."
"Except when you left your reading glasses on top of the generator." Curie jumped in.
"Or the time you made us all look for your watch, and it was on the shelf above the sink in the bathroom." Cait added, counting on her fingers.
"Or what about the silver locket you were going to sell to Myrna, that had fallen into one of your boots?" Piper gave Nate a 'that wasn't very clever, was it,' look.
"Ok, ok, apart from those few times," He held his arms up, "and… maybe some others, this time I am certain I gave it to someone, or asked someone to put them away, I just can't remember who or when."
"That's' helpful," Piper responded flatly.
"Well," Cait said sporting a mischievous grin, "we could always settle this with a wager." She had her hands together in front of her, drumming her fingertips together.
"Oh! That will be fun," Curie smiled.
"But what is it that we want from Mr Bossy, it has to be good?" mused Piper.
"Wait a minute, what if it is one of you that has them?" Nate looked a little hurt that the girls were all assuming he was the one who had forgotten where he had put these magazines.
"Then whoever it is loses the bet, right." Cait shrugged, as if that was an obvious point.
Nate smiled, "Ok, this could be interesting, what did you have in mind?"
Cait continued to grin like a Cheshire cat.
"Well, I think Cait here might have a suggestion." Piper nodded towards her Irish companion.
"Curie, you said Percy delivered this school cane yesterday, right." Cait asked conspiratorially, as it was obvious everyone knew the answer to that.
"Yes, he did." Curie confirmed.
"Well then, I think that the dolt with a gap in their memory gets …." She paused to think, obviously enjoying herself, "six strokes of the cane from each of us," she signalled to herself, Curie and Piper, "oh and we get to open the bar as well."
"So, you have obviously not already decided who that 'dolt' is then," Nate smiled at her.
Cait grinned back.
"We get to cane Nate then?" Curie asked, doing a very bad job of hiding her joy at this prospect.
"This has just become a very interesting little chat," Piper beamed. "Let me just enjoy that image in my mind for a little while."
"Hang on, hang on," Nate put both hands up, "only if I am the one who has misplaced the magazines." He protested sounding anything but confident. "But I do like the idea of having the bar open tonight."
"I'll make some cocktails," Curie suggested.
"So, we are going to have a caning Nate party tonight," Piper laughed, rubbing her hands together.
"We are having no such thing," Nate interjected, making the girls drop their smiles, he then paused for a little while, "we are going to have a caning whoever loses the bet party tonight." He then added.
"Ok, I'll rephrase that, I cannot believe we get to have our revenge tonight." Piper looked genuinely excited by the prospect.
"Oh, and your caning will be in three stages," Cait listed with her fingers as she turned to look directly at Nate, "We will begin by you standing in front of us, naked, whilst we lecture you about the importance of taking care of your equipment and then after the punishment…."
"You will stand with your nose against the wall for ten minutes." Enthused Curie, interrupting.
"With an arse like that," Cait looked over to where Nate was sat, "I'll want to stare at it for about an hour." The grin on her face returning.
Nate was beginning to feel less and less confident about this bet, but he was determined not to let that show. "And the very same goes for any of you as well?"
"Yup," Piper rubbed her hands together, "The poor loser will get caned three times, once by each of the winners. A total of eighteen strokes in all."
"That's quite a lot," Nate looked impressed, "sure you ladies can handle it?"
"Look mister, the only one who will need to handle anything is you." Cait stated emphatically.
"We shall see," said Nate, again failing to sound fully confident.
After the team had tidied the lunch things away, they broke up into pairs to look for these illusive extended magazines. Nate and Piper stayed downstairs, searching the main kitchen, planter room and the girls bedroom alcoves, whilst Cait and Curie went upstairs. It was Curie that eventually found them stacked on top of each other covered by a weapon cleaning cloth and the lower receiver, the trigger casing, of an M16 rifle.
"Weren't you working on this a couple of days ago?" Curie held up the weapon part.
"Oh crap!" exclaimed Cait, going scarlet.
Just then Piper walked in to see how they were doing, "What?" she looked at her devastated Irish companion.
"I had them." Cait sighed. "And I was so looking forward to striping that smug mans backside this evening."
"Cait!" Exclaimed Piper, "you realise you have just ruined my life. When will we next get the opportunity to see that man squirming under our attentions for a change."
"It would have been a sight!" Curie smiled.
"You are so getting it tonight missy," Piper looked at her friend with a mock frown. "For spoiling my fun." She pouted.
The three girls made their way into the main part of Home Plate, by the breakfast bar.
"Nate!" Piper called downstairs, "we found them."
Nate came up the stairs and with real concern on his face he asked, "Where were they?"
"Cait." Piper looked over to her friend.
"Well, they might have been hidden under a cleaning cloth and parts of my rifle." Admitted Cait, the blush still reddening her cheeks.
"I knew I had asked someone to put them away," Nate clapped, obviously relieved by the realisation.
"I wasn't even listening; I was too busy trying to fix that sticking trigger." Cait admitted.
"Well, isn't karma a bitch," Nate was now the one with the broad grin on his face. "Your wish for some revenge on me has bitten you well and truly on the ass." Nate was doing a little celebratory dance around the dejected Cait.
"More like caned on the ass, if we are being accurate," Piper smirked.
"And we will have to be accurate this evening, if we are going to get all eighteen on target," Nate emphasising the number, as he was now in full on celebration mode.
"Should I make the first cocktail the Bare Bottom Spanking?" Curie asked, joining in the teasing of Cait.
"Wait," Cait exclaimed, smiling for the first time since she realised she had lost the bet, "you are not telling me there is actually a cocktail called The Bare Bottom Spanking!" she looked genuinely amused.
"Of course," responded Curie, "Bacardi, crème de menthe, a butterscotch liqueur and grenadine. Using the right glass, the grenadine will settle to the rounded bottom of the glass giving it a nice rosy glow."
"Do we have everything we need?" Piper asked.
"Sadly not," responded Curie, "I do not have crème de menthe or butterscotch liqueur."
"Oh my god, I am not sure I want one of those!" Cait pulled a face, balking at the mention of those ingredients.
"You will not be getting any choice in the matter, later on this evening young lady," Nate gloated. "But if we want to try, the cocktail that is, Henry might have some," Nate suggested, "he serves the more pretentious clientele of Diamond City." Nate was referring to Henry Cooke, owner of The Colonial Tap House which tends to be frequented by the more affluent residents of the stadium.
"I think, given the time and my desire not to have to wait for my first cocktail, why don't we just stick with a good old fashioned?" Nate looked knowingly to Cait, "Why change tradition, eh?"
Cait looked unamused by that, but Curie agreed and headed into the armoury to grab the spirits.
Dinner was superb and a little raucous as the cocktails flowed. The team let their hair down for the first time since Cait's near-death experience and it was good for all of them to let off a bit of steam. It was also the first real party they had enjoyed since beginning their new relationship, and Nate was really pleased that it was one of the girls who had suggested using his new school cane in a fun way. Any concerns Nate may have had about the girls' reactions to this new dynamic, when the idea was first introduced, had not only been quashed by their reactions after each time they were punished, but now Nate couldn't imagine the team without it.
Helping Curie put the dishes away and clear the table, Piper headed upstairs.
"Where are you going?" asked Curie.
"Oh, I am off to get the cane," Piper responded in a matter-of-fact way, usually reserved for Curie. "Now that Cait has ruined my evening and prevented me from being able to REALLY ENJOY," Piper emphasised those words, "caning Mr Bossy's naked backside, I intend on showing my displeasure across miss sassy pants bare bottom there." She waved her hand behind her towards Cait.
"She is enjoying this way too much," Cait grimaced.
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