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Her bright green eyes can’t tear their gaze away from the steaming piece of meat on the table. Velvet stares at the exorcist expectantly, an unreadable expression on the therion’s face.
Chocolate prickleboar.
Velvet decided that would be on the dinner menu.
Chocolate. Freakin’. Prickleboar.
Apparently, Velvet had been wanting to make something like this for a long time — she just hadn’t gotten her hands on fresh prickleboar meat. Her brother came up with the idea, she explained with an unnervingly sweet smile back in Aball, but Velvet wouldn’t acquiesce because a kid like him shouldn’t be eating so much chocolate.
As soon as they arrived back in Taliesin — Velvet never looking back at the Morgana Woods — her demeanor shifted right back to what they all knew and loved from the Lord of Calamity.
But something about her changed — and for the better, Eleanor hopes.
Velvet seemed to accept what happened in Aball, especially after the citizens in Taliesin spoke normally to all of them. A quiet voyage later, she decided that she’d finally whip together that chocolate prickleboar. In memory of Laphi, she said sullenly as they paid the Port Zekson innkeeper to stay the night.
Eleanor knows she should be sympathetic toward Velvet’s situation and perhaps proud that she expressed her suppressed emotions in a surprisingly healthy way, but…
Her nose crinkles. Every part of that phrase — chocolate. prickleboar. — sounds awful.
She shouldn’t be surprised — that combination sounds exactly like a kid throwing two of their favorite ingredients together.
Which, well, was what happened, if Velvet’s younger brother truly did come up with that disgusting idea.
Usually, Velvet’s request for Eleanor to be taste-tester leaves her ecstatic; the redhead can’t stop thinking about that delicious quiche she made a few days ago. (Besides that, they kissed, so the memory is certainly seared into her brain at this point.) Without fail, Velvet would whip up something that tasted like heaven, and she still can’t get enough of Velvet’s rappig stew or her flaky yet soft-baked breads.
But chocolate prickleboar? That sounds more like a one-way trip to culinary hell.
“Eleanor.”
“Hm?”
“You’re not eating,” Velvet says matter-of-factly. “It’s probably better than it sounds.”
“Probably?” Eleanor repeats, flinching. She blinks a few times, staring at the ridiculous pile of steaming meat… and the perfectly hardened dark chocolate covering it. “It’s, uh… it’s kind of a lot for one person, don’t you think? Maybe the others would like to try it.”
“Sure. But I wanted you to sample it before we drag their asses over here.”
Eleanor breathes in sharply, staring down at the slice Velvet had cut for her. She cuts the piece a little smaller, raises it to her face, and examines it closer, the scent of dark chocolate filling her senses. Without a doubt, the pork is cooked to perfection, and she knows that if she pulls on it this way or that, it’ll fall apart without much effort. The chocolate sits on top… menacingly. How it doesn’t melt will forever be a mystery — although, Eleanor’s not too keen on finding out, either.
“Are you trying to kill me?” she mumbles.
Velvet snorts, then shakes her head. “If I wanted you dead, I wouldn’t have let you live back at Hellawes.” Eleanor cocks an eyebrow, and Velvet counters with a smug smile. “Or the other three times I could’ve ended your life.”
Eleanor sighs, seeing no new excuse to get her out of taste testing.
“Well… thanks for the food, I guess,” Eleanor mumbles, closing her eyes as she cautiously takes a bite.
Her teeth crack the chocolate immediately, and she winces as its bitterness seeps into her taste buds. Soon after comes the tender prickleboar meat, and Eleanor’s face softens a little bit at its robust, savory seasoning. Then she starts chewing, and the crunchy chocolate comes back with a vengeance. The mouthfeel is all wrong, and all she can taste is a sweet, bitter, meaty mess of a meal.
It’s not pleasant, to say the least.
Velvet starts laughing, and Eleanor can only imagine she’s reacting to the exorcist’s conflicted expressions.
“You honestly didn’t think chocolate prickleboar was going to bebad?” Eleanor groans after forcing the food down her throat. “I mean, you cooked the prickleboar perfectly, and whatever you did with the chocolate succeeded. I just don’t think the combination works well. It’s not great.”
Velvet makes a quiet hm sound as she tries the food out. Apparently, no matter how fast or slow she eats, Velvet can never distinguish any of the flavors. Eleanor figures she’s eating it as an act of camaraderie.
“Thanks,” Velvet says after a moment.
“Hm? For what? For consuming that awful concoction? Or maybe telling you how bad the food was?” Eleanor says, frowning.
“I guess that’s not wrong, but for bein’ my taste-tester for dinner tonight.” Her eyes focus on the wall behind the exorcist. “I knew it was a dumb idea.”
“That’s okay.” Eleanor chuckles a little to lighten the mood, shaking her head. She hums to herself for a moment as Velvet snaps her attention over, eyebrow cocked. “Sometimes, unconventional is good. Take our ragtag team, for example. Do you really think any of us pairs well together?”
“So... you’re saying that you and me are like chocolate and prickleboar.”
Eleanor lets out another laugh as Velvet’s expression softens. “Not quite.”
“Maybe we're more like quiche?”
“How do you figure?”
“The vegetables and meat take a bit of prep work, but once you let it bake in the oven, it’s easy sailing from there.” Velvet shrugs. “Then you get a nice flaky quiche that no one can complain about.”
“What a weird metaphor.”
“You did say weird — I see that look; unconventional, then — was good.”
“Yes,” Eleanor says with a smirk, then stabs her fork into the chocolate prickleboar and waves it around. “But sometimes, you just end up with chocolate-covered prickleboar.”
“Hm.” Velvet pouts a little then shrugs again. “They all can’t be winners,” she concludes, clambering to her feet. “Well, it’s almost dinner so —”
“You’re actually going to serve this to the others?”
“It’s food, isn’t it?”
“I… suppose they will not care so much.”
Eleanor sighs again and stands, striding over to the dinner bell. Velvet cuts in and grabs her wrist before Eleanor can ring it, leaving Eleanor staring up at the daemon. Her messy black hair curtains around Eleanor, and the exorcist breathes in a sharp breath as Velvet flashes a smirk.
“Velvet?”
“You need a palate cleanser.”
“Eh—”
Velvet presses her lips against Eleanor’s, the sensation shooting bolts of electricity up the exorcist’s spine. She pushes Eleanor back and pins her wrists against the wall, causing Eleanor to let out a muffled groan. The exorcist closes her eyes, letting Velvet’s warm, earthy scent engulf her as the daemon’s nails dig into her hands.
Pinpricks of pain shoot up Eleanor’s sizzling skin, but the sensation soon fades into a constant warmth low in her belly as she molds her lips against Velvet’s. The bitterness from the chocolate seeps back into her taste buds as Velvet’s rough kiss melts the remaining flakes of chocolate, the therion’s tongue lapping at every last crevice that she can find.
Her gloves fingers find the daemon’s thick mane, and Eleanor, heart hammering in her throat, gently tugs her back.
Velvet’s eyes gleam with a hint of desire as she runs her tongue over her lips, her mouth parted as she sucks in air. She presses her forehead against the exorcist’s, and the cocky snarl on the daemon’s face doesn’t match the light stroke of her thumbs across the soft flesh of Eleanor’s wrists.
“Well?”
Eleanor lets out a low groan as Velvet releases her hands. The exorcist breathes in sharply and steadies herself, then blinks a few times. Her emerald eyes meet Velvet’s, and she taps a finger against her lips innocently.
“I thought it was quite refreshing in comparison to the prickleboar.”
Velvet chuckles, then shakes her head.
“Low bar, but I’ll take it as a win.”
“Is it wrong that I’m actually loving this?” Rokurou declares, stuffing another piece of the chocolate-covered prickleboar into his mouth. The chocolate shell breaks with a crunch of his teeth, and Eleanor winces at the sound of him chewing so fondly. “Man, this kinda food really hits the spot!”
“Of course he loves it,” Velvet grumbles, pressing her palm to her forehead. “I guess that’s good. The food won’t go to waste.”
“Makes sense,” Magilou sighs, pushing her plate toward Rokurou who happily accepts her leftovers. “Rokurou’s exactly the kind of person who’d love pure chocolate on meat — a child.”
“Huh? But I don’t find it very satisfying at all!” Laphicet exclaims. “The chocolate confuses me! It’s too bitter and gross...”
“That’s a compliment to your sense of taste, then,” Eizen says, shaking his head. “Thank you for trying, Velvet, but it’s a no from me. I prefer chocolate sauces on meat, not... this.”
“Yeah, well.” Velvet’s eyes briefly meet Eleanor’s, and the exorcist’s face flushes bright red. “You win some, you lose some.”
Eleanor shoots to her feet, rattling the table as she nearly trips over herself. “I’m going to clean my dishes! Does anyone need their dishes cleaned? I’ll clean the dishes!”
“I’ll help you.”
“Nope! Velvet, you stay right there and don’t move a muscle, and I’ll definitely clean the dishes and come right back!”
Eleanor scurries off, and the rest of the team looks at Velvet for an explanation. Magilou grins devilishly, tipping her hat toward Velvet, while Rokurou struggles to hold back his laughter. Laphi tilts his head to the side, and Eizen sighs, preparing to cover Laphi’s eyes at a moment’s notice.
The therion flashes a smug grin before getting to her feet and following the exorcist with slow, controlled steps.