Fandom Into the fire (1x1 MzHyde/Gallifrog)

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott had known of the Deep Space Dark Net (or to use it's more common acronym- DSDN) even as a kid, it was just one of those things that had infiltrated every aspect of culture in some shape or form. It was completely different to the dark web of Earth. The DSDN had started out as a military invention, a way for undercover agents to access secret files from anywhere in the universe. But it had quickly evolved into something else entirely- an internet below the internet, consisting of intricate network of forums, virtual meeting rooms and dropboxes protected by military level encryption that allowed for guaranteed privacy. Accounts were almost completely impossible to trace back to their owner without some kind of extra information. It was a way of communicating without data being logged and tracked by governments, hence why it was so useful for organising rebellions and protests.

Jay and Rinaa knew how to access both the DSDN and the Earth dark web. The DSDN was how Jay was paid for many of her jobs back when she was an active assassin, as well as being a way of keeping in touch with other assassins and the crew she ran with back in the day. For Rinaa the DSDN was the place in which she'd coordinated the heist and killing jobs that gained her a reputation fearsome enough to warrant her being put in the same prison as Jay. The dark web was used by both women in order to get classified information, in Rinaa's timeline it proved particularly useful for tracking gang and mob movements. John always kept an eye on the dark web as every once in a while magical artefacts would pop up there having either been stolen or 'mysteriously vanished' during fires, wars or other disasters (natural or unnatural). The dark web was a useful tool to him, but not necessarily the most reliable, nothing could beat talking to actual people.

"Kind of, yeah." Jay sighed slightly. "We could just sit here for the rest of the day reading through forums and messages, theorising until our eyes go square and our fingers are worn to the bone, wouldn't be the the first time I've seen or done such intensive researching." There was something in her tone that Elliott knew meant 'If I had a laptop I would do just that', so he decided to interject with a different option. "But this is our last day here, we should probably make the most of it." Rinaa was really wishing she was back in her own timeline, or at the very least at her own console so she could get cracking on the research. "As much as I'd love to get right into all this now, you have NO idea how much willpower it's taking me not to just 'port away to a proper console, he's right, it can wait. It's lasted this long without us, it can last another day or two. And besides, Chris'll dig up some more things in the meantime no doubt, he's a damn good researcher and dedicated. He knows all the places to look. I expect we'll get follow up messages in the next few days, possibly accompanied by pictures of his own art."

 

[MzHyde]

Both Kay and Fia listened to Jay as she replied to Kay's assumption which in Fia's eyes wasn't wrong. It seemed Jay sort of agree with her also, it was only a temporary hiatus but it was one nonetheless. They then looked across at Elliott when he said about this being their last day and they should make the most of what time they had left, something both Kay and Fia agreed with. They did only have what would now be considered half a day left on this island before they had to leave to go back to Attil, so they should make the most of it, rather than plaguing their minds of what was on the DSDN about this movement and rebellion.

When Rinaa said that despite how much she wanted to go off and sttart the metaphorical digging, they knew she was right that the information can wait for them, it wasn't going to go anywhere they thought and had been there before they knew about it, so there was no reason for it to not be there when they could do some research and digging. "I agree, we should be making the most of what time we have left, sitting here just dwelling on something we can't access yet is just wasting that time and pointless" Fia agreed.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott and Rinaa were right, that much was obvious to John, Chas and Jay. As much as they wanted answers there and then, both Jay and Rinaa had made it clear that the process of getting these answers would be long and laborious. It had only been a few hours earlier that John had been saying the same thing with regards to Chas' sleep drawings- postpone it for another time so they could enjoy the island and all it had to offer. It had been stressed multiple times earlier that they wouldn't have the opportunity to go back for at least another couple of years. Hearing Rinaa take the mature and logical ground made pride well up in both Elliott and Jay, it showed that despite everything, she was capable of doing the right thing.

"I 'gree, it would be hypocritical of me to say otherwise, given that I saw saying the exact same thing earlier." "Not that that's ever stopped you before." Chas smirked, to which John nodded. "True, but this is different." John replied with an air of finality in his tone, he was sticking to his stance and that was that. "Well, I don't know about anybody else, I'm bloody starving, if enough people are hungry I could cook for a change?" Jay suggested, the healing had taken a hell of a lot out of her, as had the long walk earlier. Rinaa may have eaten, but the teenager practically consumed half her body weight in food on a normal day, and she was injured, so Jay knew she'd be up for eating. As would Elliott, who never turned down an opportunity to sample Jay's cooking on the rare times she did cook.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay and Fia smirked when Chas pointed out that it never stopped John being a hypocrite/change his mind on decisions before, but they also heard the finality in John's tone that told them all he wasn't budging on this one. With that point made both girls relaxed a bit more as they put their phones down (Kay's on the table and Fia's in her pocket). When the topic of food came up, Kay internally sighed with relief, having been hungry for the last ten minutes but the conversations over the text and its attached links were far more important.

"I could definitely go for food as I'm pretty hungry, I don't know about anyone else" Kay replied, liking the idea of sampling Jay's cooking. She also knew she had to keep her diet up and not be so erratic with her eating. She wasn't just feeding herself now, so she couldn't let herself go for however long she wanted without eating. She also knew if she didn't eat, Cliff wouldn't exactly be happy with her and she didn't feel like having the doctor scold her. "I had a snack earlier which I ended up having share with this madam down here, but I could probably eat a little of something again, just of a smaller portion to you lot" Fia declared, gesturing at Meyer who was still at her feet, behaving herself and relaxing.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"I'm up for that, I'm bloody ravenous." John replied, and he was, the combination of a long walk, cliff diving and messing around in the water and the fact he hadn't eaten since the morning meant he was feeling the hunger. While staying with Cliff's family the group had adopted their eating patterns, which consisted of two main meals (breakfast in the morning and dinner in the evening) accompanied by regular drinking throughout the day to stay hydrated. "I'm in too." Chas nodded his agreement. "Same from me, food sounds great." Elliott replied, smirking at Fia, not at all surprised that Meyer had managed to weasel food from her. The dog knew all too well how to get what she wanted from Fia. Cliff's family knew how resist, but Fia was utterly under Meyer's spell. "And if you need somebody to hang around the kitchen and make annoying remarks, the offer still stands." He added, referring back to the times back when he and Jay were still at the stage where their favourite pastime had been to be as deliberately antagonising as possible to the other. Both of them took pride in their cooking and as a result the kitchen at A.J's became one of their main sparring grounds.

"The answer from me with regards to food is obviously yes" Rinaa declared enthusiastically in a way that made it quite clear that no matter who had suggested food, she would have been on board with it. "I feel like I could eat a whole goat and I really do need to eat, Cliff'd be on the warpath otherwise." "Speaking of Cliff, has anybody actually seen her and Cal today or did they just vanish?" Elliott asked, realising he hadn't seen a glimpse of his sister or her new wife since they'd said goodbye to the boat. "I can answer that easily" Rinaa smirked, putting her hads behind her head as she straightened back into a more normal sitting position, no longer feeling she needed the comfort she got from lying against Jay. "It's obvious really, they've spent the whole day shagging each other's brains out" she delivered the words bluntly and with a certain amount of relish.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia saw how Elliott smirked at her comment when it came to Meyer, and she felt like if he had said anything, she would declared how hard she tried not to give in but Meyer really put her emotional attachment to the test by just making the puppy eye look so exaggerated, she just couldn't hold her ground for much longer. She also wasn't fully shocked that John ravenous or that Rinaa was either. She also hadn't thought much about Cal and Cliff's whereabouts until Elliott brought it up. She shook her head no, as did Kay at the question, as they like the others, had only seen them in the morning at the boats.

What both women were surprised about was how casually Rinaa was making herself when she said what was happening in her mind. Both of them expected that sort of comment to come out of Fia's mouth, especially considering her latest quips she had been doing, but hadn't expected that kind of comment to come from Rinaa. "I would have expected Fia to come out with that" Kay chuckled. "oh jee.. Thanks!" "you know it's true though" "... Yeah okay, you got me" Fia admitted defeat.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Had Elliott being something he would have spat it all over the table in shock, partly at how candidly and coarsely Rinaa delivered her theory and partly because i his mind Cal was still his sixteen year old sister who he sort of idolised, not a grown woman with a wife. Because he still thought of her as a teenager, the idea of Cal having sex with somebody sat uneasily with him, although logically he knew there was nothing wrong with it, it was clear to even the most casual observer how much the two loved each other. He also knew from having read up on the driadic elemental bond between Cal and Cliff that the having the driadic bond between them would add a whole other level to their lovemaking. "Fair enough, this is their wedding week, should have seen it myself really." He conceded with a fond smile directed at Rinaa.

John laughed, as did Jay, both knowing exactly what kind of thoughts were going through Elliott's head. Both had suspected that Rinaa had a tongue as sharp as her mind and could be just as dirty minded as the rest of them, but until now, given Rinaa's reluctance to speak her mind, they had no real proof of it. "Good one, kiddo." "Yeah, that was brilliant, don't think you could have enjoyed yourself any more stating the obvious so bluntly." John smirked, half tempted to ruffle her hair in that embarrassing way adults do, but she was still wearing the yellow hat, making it impossible to do so. Jay looped her arm round the teenager. "Well Elliott can be a bit slow quite a lot of the time." She smirked, having suspected that was what the two had been doing, and not just that day, the day before as well. Rinaa smirked at the reception she was getting, one part of her a bit miffed and hurt that Fia and Kay wouldn't think her capable of such a comment, but she dampened down those feelings, knowing they only thought that because they'd never really seen what she was like in full swing bantering with her friends. "Well they do say it's the quiet ones you have to watch out for, and besides, those kinds of comments are LITERALLY in my DNA."

 

[MzHyde]

Despite what Kay and Fia said, they both did still laugh at the candid way Rinaa said what she did. They didn't mean any malicious feelings toward Rinaa or what they said about not expecting it from her. It was solely because they hadn't witnessed her be so witty to that extent before, that it surprised them. Also on Kay's behalf, she was still having fresh in her mind Fia's quick innuendo wit from earlier in the day when she made Elliott blush from what she said. Kay smiled and nodded, "touché Rinaa. They do indeed say that about the quiet ones. Seems both you and Fia have a knack of coming out with innuendo banter effortlessly." Kay replied.

The two of them also found it rather amusing that Elliott could be that slow at times when it came to his sister, yet they also understood that Elliott probably still found it difficult to see Cal as anything other than the teenage older sister that he last saw her as before coming to Earth. "and let's face it, it's incredibly easy to throw Elliott off balance metaphorically speaking when it comes certain things" Fia grinned, still feeling proud of making him blush in the morning.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Rinaa decided not to say what she was thinking which was that it made perfect sense that Fia would be good at innuendos and dirty minded banter given that she grew up surrounded by everybody in the room (who were also highly proficient in such fields) for fear it would come out way more bitter than she meant it to. Rinaa's dirty mind certainly had a genetic element to it, her chimera make-up meaning that she had quite literally inherited a dirty mind, but it had been influenced by the people she grew up with, particularly Cliff's siblings, Jay, the members of the old crew that jay still kept in touch with/worked with and Rinaa's teenage friends, both on and off Earth.

"Yeah, well, this is the sister I haven't seen for the around twelve years, when Cals' not actually physically here, my brain reverts back to thinking she's sixteen." Elliott shrugged by means of explanation, not ashamed of that mindset at all, knowing it was perfectly natural to think like that. Jay unlike Rinaa had no qualms about saying exactly what she was thinking. She had already been in the process of getting up and heading to the kitchen, but she couldn't resist a parting shot over her shoulder. "It's also incredibly easy to throw him off balance literally speaking, you just need to be me." She called out with a smirk, making it clear that by me she meant 'devastatingly awesome trained assassin'. Rinaa snorted with laughter at that, flopping back against the arm of the sofa so she didn't fall off it.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay just nodded with a smile hearing Elliott defend himself when it came to Cal. It was totally normal to think like he was, no one in the room could deny that. Fia just smirked at Elliott's defending words, knowing it was a valid comeback to say. Kay was aware of Jay getting up and heading to the kitchen when Fia said her bit only to have Jay retort back, making both Kay and Fia chuckle, rather than the snorting with laughter that Rinaa did, as she fell back into the arm rest so not to fall off the couch.

Fia knew just how easy Jay could topple Elliott off balance, or anyone for that matter. She had trained with her enough times in her timeline to know just how easily she could knock someone off balance. She was pretty sure she was over due a sparring session with her timeline's Jay now that she thought about it, to keep her skills honed. Realising this, she decided to make a mental note to check in with Jay when she got back to her time to see about it. Kay on the other hand was just thinking about the food that was finally in the beginnings of being done so she could eat. She was getting the mixture of hunger growls and baby kicking in her stomach and womb, which made for some very uncomfortable sensations. She was just that her stomach growls weren't loud like that one time when with John in bed when it was so loud even he heard it, making them both laugh.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott knew all too well that Jay could easily topple any of them. While being Devra meant he was naturally faster and more agile, a combination of Jay being the trace she was and the years of assassin training meant that Jay was way faster in every way when compared to the others. He knew Jay had said what she did to get a reaction out of Rinaa, more so than out of anybody else. Jay had no need to make such a statement, where she went her reputation and that of the Isogrii tribe proceeded her. It worked, making the teenager snort with laughter, nearly falling off the sofa in the process.

Jay made her way into the kitchen and began looking through the stocks in the fridge and cupboards in order to decide what to make. It needed something relatively quick that could be scaled up to feed all those in the living room, with enough for leftovers. Deer was off the menu thanks to Sykes, but there was plenty more meat and game on offer. After perusing she decided on a mix of goat and rabbit, simply because the animals on this island were among the most flavoursome she'd ever eaten. And since nobody had any objections to spices, she was going to go all out and make the spicy pancakes she had spoken about the other day.

Once she had stopped laughing Rinaa began putting everything back in the backpack, pulling of the hat with an audible crackle of static. "I'm gonna head to down to the harbour, get a new shirt and wash off the dried blood on me." She told them, heading towards the door, stopping to briefly pet the dogs on the way. She purposefully gave more attention to Rhys and Koso, knowing that Meyer was getting more than enough from Fia. "It'll be about twenty minutes, one of us'll give you a call when it's done."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia had almost completely forgotten about the talk of the spicy pancakes that Jay told her about the other day, when there was so much talk about how spices was a thing for phoenix's. If she had noticed Jay was making that particular food, her excitement for trying them would have been obvious, however she did notice. Both her and Kay couldn't help but glance at Rinaa as she stood up off the other couch declaring she was going to go change her shirt, something they didn't blame her in doing in the slightest. Fia smiled when she saw Rinaa give Rhys and Koso in particular some attention, the smaller amount to Meyer not going amiss on her.

Fia noticed Kay rubbing her bump and it was still just that bit weird for her to see Kay giving her other self attention the way she was. "kicking?" she asked, knowing that Kay would know what she was implying just by that one word. "yeah and hunger grumbles, not a nice combination" Kay explained, deciding she really hated when the two things happened at the same time. Fia just nodded in response, only imagining how that could be uncomfortable. The only thing that Kay was thankful for was that so far she wasn't affected by hot flushes and similar like a normal full human would possibly be affected with. She guessed it was down to what she was, but either way she was thankful. If she had to deal with hot flushes ontop of everything else she would have been extremely miserable by this stage.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott couldn't help but smirk at the crackle of static he heard when Rinaa removed her hat, it made no difference to Rinaa's hair, it was already short enough to stand up on end. He couldn't blame her for wanting to change from the bloodstained shirt, the dark crimson patch was glaringly obvious against the light green-white of the shirt. A couple of minutes after Rinaa left, he headed into the kitchen to see if Jay needed any help (which she didn't) or some company while she cooked (which she didn't object to). The two ended up reminiscing about the various attempts they'd made to annoy the other in A.J's kitchen, at one point bursting into hysterical laughter, loud enough to be heard in the living room.

Now that the other couch was free, John and Chas moved onto it, John kicking his feet up on to the coffee table. Neither wanted to get involved with the ongoing discussion of pregnancy symptoms, Chas had heard it all before and John had other things on his mind so instead they chatted together, mainly about what they both wanted to do when they got back to Earth. Chas was missing driving and John was wondering if London would feel even more polluted than usual when compared to the clean air and skies of Attil and the even cleaner, fresher air and skies of Cliff's home planet. At the sound of the riotous laughter from the kitchen they both turned around, looking for some sight that could have been the cause of this laughter, particularly from Jay, who had a tendency to remain aloof even when the others were in fits of laughter.. "What's so funny you two?" "You wouldn't get it, you'd have to have been there to understand it." Elliott called back before he started chuckling again.

 

[MzHyde]

When Elliott got up and headed into the kit hen to keep Jay company, making both Chas and John move instantly, Fia got off the arm rest and sat on the couch properly where John was. It was so mu h more comfortable than the arm rest digging into her arse and it did mean she could sit back properly. Both girls noticed how John and Chas avoided the brief pregnancy related question and answer like it was the plague but Kay didn't mind. If she could avoid bringing it up she would and just got on with it. She was too hungry to really continue the conversation and let herself fall into a comfortable silence.

Fia took her phone out and decided to go through the photos that she took earlier of the dogs and hike through the forest, so she could decide which ones to keep and which ones to get rid of. The sound of hysterical laughter that broke the half silence made both Kay and Fia look up toward the kitchen as it did to Chas and John. Hearing the comeback at John made Fia roll her eyes as it was such a typical response to something that was a inside joke between particular people. Kay was just happy that they were still having a happy time and the earlier mysteries didn't completely bring the mood down for anyone. It was also particularly nice to hear Jay not hold herself emotions back and just let go of her inhibitions and be herself around Elliott.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"Try me" John replied, not backing down just yet, even though he knew what they had been laughing over was an inside joke between the two of them. "Grape meatballs." Jay replied, sticking her head around the corner of the kitchen door, delivering the two words with the exact same look and tone of relish that Rinaa had used earlier when declaring that Cal and Cliff had gone off to have sex together. At the two words Elliott started sniggering again. John raised an eyebrow in confusion, before repeating the words, as if him saying them aloud would somehow result in them making more sense. "Grape..... meatballs?" "Yup" Elliott confirmed. "Really?" He asked sceptically, eyebrow still raised, partly convinced that Jay was winding him up by saying the first two words that had come to mind. "Yes, really."

"Sounds like some kind of gay sex move ta me." John declared with a smirk, which grew bigger as Elliott and Jay began laughing again, Elliott having to lean against Jay in order to stay upright. "Of course it does to your brain, everything is an innuendo to it." Chas sighed, shaking his head, but in a fond manner, John's dirty minded humour never failed to be either amusing or come out at completely the wrong time. "He's got a point, weirdly now I kinda wish that's what it was about." Elliott called back when he'd regained his composure.

 

[MzHyde]

When John stubbornly wouldn't let it drop both Kay and Fia looked at each other with a smirk that said 'here he goes again'. They then looked toward the kitchen when Jay leaned out and said two words that no one could have predicted, making them both raise an eyebrow in confusion before looking at John as he repeated the words out loud trying to comprehend them. They were convinced also that Jay was just pulling their legs but the way she confirmed it was true, they started to believe Jay. When John said it sounded like weird sex thing, Fia sniggered whilst Kay rolled her eyes smirking.

Either of them were going to say something but Chas beat them both to it, them both nodding at what Chas was saying. The smirking and sniggering only grew when Elliott said he now wished it was about that and not whatever it actually was about. "but now I'm curious to what it actually is about if you now wish it was dad's theory" Fia commented still sniggering. "of course you do. You and John are too alike when it comes to tour curiosity" Kay chuckled. Fia just took the remark as a compliment, grinning proudly like it was a badge of honour.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott and Jay weren't surprised at all at just how like John Fia was showing herself to be. They already knew that Fia was closer to John, and growing up with John's influence it would be impossible not to absorb some of his traits and mindsets. Elliott knew for a fact that it had happened to him and was strangely proud of that fact. "You'll just have to keep wondering then" Jay replied, directing the remark mainly at John and Fia, before retreating her head back into the kitchen. "I'm explaining nothing." "And neither am I." Elliott added, also going back into the kitchen.

"Spoilsports!" John called after them, but he received no reply, even though he knew damn well they'd both heard him. Had he actually got up and gone into the kitchen, he would have seen the reason why neither replied, as soon as they knew for certain they were out of sight of the group in the living room, Jay had pushed Elliott up against the counter and kissed him. The making out had stopped by the time Rinaa came back, in a clean t-shirt (the Hawkeye chevron she'd pulled from her backpack earlier), her hair wet and raked into spikes, indicating she'd been for a dip in the harbour.

The first thing Rinaa did upon re-entering the house was to name exactly what Jay was cooking along various spices she was using, simply by using her enhanced wolf sense of smell. "Impressive, those enhanced senses must be pretty refined if you can get all that." "Yeah, they're quite something and thankfully I can dampen them down, there are some thing I really DON'T want to smell by accident. But I also grew up eating the traditional foods whenever possible" she shrugged modestly "so I have an advantage."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia looked at Jay when she declared they'd have to keep wondering as she wasn't going to tell them, only for Elliott to state the same thing. She was about to say the exact same thing as John did, but he beat her, so she just rolled her eyes and faked a huff in the process. "talk about ruining our fun" Fia said but smirking and not meaning any malice in the remark whatsoever. Like Elliott, she found great pride in the fact she was a lot like John in her antics or quirks. Even in her timeline if their similarities got pointed out for whatsoever reason, she still held it as a compliment and with pride. She knew she had quirks of her mother in her, but there were times she almost forgot what they were because she always saw herself as a mini female John.

It was mostly always John that would point out when she was looking or acting like Kay or sometimes Chas would, and most of those times Fia would be surprised when it got picked up on. She didn't think of it as a bad thing, but it was always more surprising to her. She did notice, as did Kay, how much quieter it had gone in the kitchen which got them wondering what Elliott and Jay were up to, but their thoughts were interrupted when Rinaa came in, looking refreshed, clean and wet. They watched on as she started listing what she could smell, figuring out what was being cooked by Jay. Rinaa's enhanced smell was impressive to both Kay and Fia as they didn't have anything of the sort. Then it dawned on Fia what was being done by Jay, "this mean I can try those pancakes you were telling me about?!" she asked, eyes brightening deciding that there was no way she was going to let Meyer win this time with food.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Rinaa sniffed the air in exactly the same way as the were-creatures John had met on Earth, head tilted upwards an towards the source of the smell. He could almost see the analysis running in Rinaa's mind as she easily deciphered the smells wafting from the kitchen. It was the fact that she could turn on and off that particular sense that surprised John, usually with a lycanthrope they had a slightly enhanced smell in human form and a highly enhanced one in their animal form, there was no way of turning it off, which was why many lycanthropes either had specialised nose plugs or wore a particularly pungent body spray (they would focus on the smell of the spray, instead of the smell of everything else around them. But Rinaa was a special case in this regard, if there was anything they'd learned over the past few days it was very few of the normal lycanthrope/animal shifter rules seemed to apply to her and Sykes.

It brought a smile to Jay's face to hear that Rinaa had grown up on the Isogrii dishes, her culture was something very important to her, even though she'd been separated from the tribe for so long (excluding seeing Quincenti, one member on their own didn't count), the tribe were still her home and family. "Good to hear future me exposed you to our culture." "You did an excellent job at that, I grew up with the Isogrii as a sort of floating ward for a good chunk of my life and I really loved it. Then there was Quin in my later years, she also helped, but for the most part it was you who exposed me to the Isogrii life and culture." Rinaa explained, leaning against the wall near the kitchen door so she could chat properly. She tended not to mention what future Jay did and didn't do for her, but she knew how important Jay's culture was to her.

The assassin smile, before rolling her eyes at Fia's remark. "No, I made them for the dogs and the dogs only." She called back sarcastically, earning a smirk from the others. "I said I'd make tarabree, so I've made tarabree, I keep my word." She added, using her normal tone once again. "Don't let the dogs eat it, these guys can't digest it properly." Rinaa added, it was phrased as a general warning, but aimed specifically at Fia.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay noticed how John was watching Rinaa and the way she had been sniffing the air, she could also tell that there were so many comparisons going on in his head between her and other lycanthropes as it was so normal for him to do. She knew Fia had done the same thing at times with Rinaa and Sykes, and no doubt done it when she saw Sykes in the forest. They could hear the joy in Jay's voice that her future self taught Rinaa of her Isogrii ways and history, something that Kay particularly could appreciate. She hoped that her own future self did the same thing with Fia after it came out what Fia was, but she was also aware that Fia rebelled against it for a while out of it being held back from her.

Fia just smirked and rolled her own eyes when Jay came back at her excited remark with a sarcastic one. She then smiled and nodded having never doubted that Jay wouldn't keep to her word. When Rinaa piped up telling her that she shouldn't let the dogs eat due to them unable to digest it she shook her head, "trust me.. They're not getting anywhere near this. Not this time" she replied determinedly. She truly meant it as well, she wasn't going to let Meyer, Koso or Rhys get to her second lot of food this time as she wanted to try every bite she would have on her plate.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"Good, accidentally poisoning these three is not the way to go." Rinaa nodded, knowing that Fia would keep her word when it came to the dogs. She then turned back to watch Jay finish off the cooking, idly rubbing her fingers against her wrist. She was no wearing bandages on both arms, having replaced the one that covered her new tattoo. Rinaa knew that jay hadn't read it, being far to concerned with the gash on her other arm. Had she read it there was no way Jay wouldn't have made some kind of comment or given her a look that quite clearly said 'we will talk about this later kid, I don't approve at all, you are in deep shit' or something to that effect. "Like I said earlier, no pissing off the in-laws." Elliott added from the other end of the kitchen.

A few minutes later the bulk of the meal was ready, it was a spicy dish, a cross between a curry and a stew. The main meats were rabbit and goat and there were some onions, pepper like vegetables and some wild mushrooms (non poisonous, Jay had checked) added to the sauce. She'd also found the necessary equipment to make up some rice and noodles as well, adding different spices to both. Like with regular pancakes, the tarabree were best served hot, so she'd made a good pile of them and kept them warm in the oven, the rest she intended to make as the meal progressed. If Cal was here she would have asked her to heat them up, she knew Fia and Kay could do it easily, but had decided against asking them, unsure as to what kind of reaction it would cause in Rinaa. "If you want more tarabree, just ask, there's more batter in the fridge."

 

[MzHyde]

Pissing off Cliff and her family was the one thing Fia would never want to do, especially as she had done all she could and possibly more to keep the dogs happy as well as keeping their owners happy. "wouldn't even think about it!" she called back to Elliott.

When the food was ready she got up and headed to the kitchen grabbing herself a plate and one for Kay, trying to be helpful where she could be before walking back to the couch with them and handing Kay her plate as well as a fork. "thanks kiddo" she commented, putting some of the food on her fork and trying it. The spices were perfectly balanced with the rest of the flavours, making the dish spicy but not over powering. She could still taste all of the other flavours in the sauce and was rather impressed. "this is really good Jay!" she complimented.

Fia also tried it and had to agree with Kay on the quality of the food. Jay really did do a good job and she loved the rice and noodles as well. She had a much smaller portion to everyone else because she was purposely saving room for those pancakes. "agreed, sooooo good! Will do as I probably will" Fia added with a grin. She nearly ate the first lot of food as quickly as the dogs did their food earlier on in the day. "bloody hell kid, slow down" Kay chuckled. Fia just waved off her comment as she finished the first lot of food.

 

[_gallifrog_]

As had become custom Jay left the sides and the dish containing what was left of the main meal in the centre of the table for the others to take from at their leisure. Rinaa didn't even hesitate when it came to dishing herself up a massive portion, she was starving, but more importantly than that, she genuinely loved Jay's cooking, some of her brightest memories were of Jay cooking up some traditional Isogrii meal wherever they were staying at the time. There was on time when they'd been biking across a mountain range together and Jay had secretly brought along the all ingredients for Rinaa's favourite meal, just so she and her daughter could cook and eat it together while taking in the night starscape. She had to bite back a loud moan of enjoyment when she bit into it, the perfectly balanced spices and the tanginess of the meat working in harmony together, it was a delight on her tongue. "This is one of my favourite meals, and as usual, it doesn't disappoint" she told Jay with a genuine grin, before taking another massive forkful.

Elliott had had Jay's cooking before (but not this particular meal) and always enjoyed it immensely. Most of the traditional Isogrii recipes were heavily spiced as the Isogrii tended to travel long distances, in the past they would spend weeks and months on ships with no gravity. In zero gravity sinuses were blocked and tastes became muted, so spices had to be used in order that the astronauts could actually taste something. This particular meal was no exception, Jay had quite the talent for cooking, though most didn't know that. "They're right this is amazing." He told her with a smile, his eyes softening as he looked at her.

John and Chas had no idea what to expect, the only time Jay had cooked around them before, it had been for herself and herself only, so they were blown away by the taste sensation on their plates in front of them. The idea of spicing rice had never occurred to John, but tasting it then and there convinced him that this was something he was going to do from now on, it was delicious. "Damn, you really can cook." He told her. "Thanks Jay, this is amazing." The assassin simply nodded at the praise, but mentally she was doing cartwheels. It would have been really humiliating if nobody had liked the food, but she knew from their expressions and tics that they weren't just saying it, they genuinely meant their praise. "Thanks, it's not a skill I get to use as often as I used to. Glad you're all enjoying it."

 

[MzHyde]

It didn't surprise either Kay or Fia that Rinaa would have had this dish before, it made sense that in her timeline she would have had quite a bit of Jay's cooking and tasted a few dishes growing up. Fia Noticed Rinaa clearly biting back the moan of enjoyment from the food and she really could understand why it would bring that level of reaction. The food was amazing, and the spices truly satisfied herself and Kay with their phoenix DNA and connection to such things. Kay could even tell deep down that the consumption of spices was satisfying the essence of Fee that still lingered in her.

With everyone in agreement that the food was good, both Kay and Fia fell into silence as they ate, Fia being the first to finish as she waited to try the tarabree which was still in the oven staying hot. She did know though to not just head straight there and grab some, but to actually let the first lot of food sit. Kay was still eating, taking in the flavours and each mouth gladly. Unlike John, she did think about putting spices in rice, but not to the extent of this particular dish and she had done so for a long time. So this reminded her to do such a thing again, especially when they were back on Earth and she cooked again.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Rinaa and Jay both went back for a second portion, the teenager unashamedly loading up her plate with a small mountain of food, while jay took a more moderate second portion. Not only was the food delicious, but it was packed with the large amounts of energy they both needed. The dogs had followed them over to the main table, Koso and Rhys quickly realising they weren't going to get any of the actual meal itself. Meyer took longer to cop on, trying her puppy dog begging eyes with everybody at the table. But none of them broke, and eventually all three settled back down in their favourite spots, Rhys taking up a permanent position by Rinaa's side. The teenager couldn't help but smile and reach down to fondle the dog's ears. Having Cliff's family's dogs around reminded her of her own three wolfdogs, she knew they were in good hands between Jay, Quin and her mates, but she couldn't help but miss them anyway.

After a suitably long pause for digestion (about five minutes in Rinaa's case) the tarabree were brought out from the oven. They were thicker than a regular pancake, but thinner than the American ones (which John always compared to manhole covers). There was something about the colour and the spices on top that reminded Chas of a naan bread. According to Jay they could either be eaten plain, with some form of dip/sauce or with the tarabree acting like a tortilla, it was really just down to personal preference. As soon as he saw them, Elliott recognised them, having eaten them under another name on Attil. "I was thinking they sounded familiar, now I know why, you can get them on Attil, just under a different name." "Yeah, they're available under all kinds of names across the star systems, though Earth never got it." Rinaa explained, expecting it had never quite made it in Earth in her timeline due to the war and the suspicious attitude some people and politicians harboured towards aliens.