cape_kore | 007 | Audio

Only a couple of days.

[ This time. ]

[Balthazar is just a bit uncertain what to say to Raphael, between the scrambled memories of multiple dreams. He forces a weak, guilty smile.]

That's for the best, then. Has anyone else gone AWOL?

[ Raphael isn't either, but he had worse happen, and he's well practised at putting on a serene face. ]

Anna did, shortly before you. Chuck has returned.

Anna. [Gone again. His face falls, but what is there to say? Either she'll return or she won't, and nothing he can do or say will bring her back.]

Well...it's good to see Chuck again.

[ Raphael refuses to think about it. He doesn't know what he'd prefer. Anna in the hands of the scientists, or back home. The same with the other sibling who hasn't returned. ]

I am relieved he has returned.

[Balthazar might not want to admit it, but he has to agree with Raphael on that count.

So. Better to focus on the positive.]

I suppose the best thing to do is look after the people who are still here. Would...you like to try a radish?

I suppose.

[ But he isn't overly enthused by the idea. ]

You have ones to spare?

I've pushed them a little, so yes, I have more than I've given away.

[To spare? Depends on your definition. But no one will starve on account of one radish.]

Then yes, I'd like to try one. Do you want me to come to you?

If you're willing to, I'd like that. I'm about to try to cook radish tops and dandelion greens anyway. If I don't burn them, you can try a bite.

[ He's oddly a little touched. In most cultures, feeding someone, cooking them food, is a sign of effection - it was how most of the angels first tried foods, visiting humans and having the acient people prepare them a meal. It's odd for him, as Gabriel has taken to making him candy, but he recognizes that it's a sign of attempting to nuture and welcome. ]

If you prepare them, I'd love to try them.

[Affection is really the only justifiable reason to prepare food for an angel. Balthazar can't deny that's part of his reasoning here. The other part is a genuine interest in keeping fed the people of the Cape that genuinely require nourishment.]

I think that's a plan, then. Give me half an hour or so? Unless you want to come watch me fumble around the stove.

I can be there in half an hour yes, unless you'd like the company.

[ He didn't know if he'd want to be alone, himself. ]

[Oh. Well. If he's going to put it that way...]

I always like company.

I'll be there momentarily then.

[ And he will be, just flying into to sit in a kitchen chair. ]

[Balthazar turns when the archangel appears, having somehow expected him to show up in the doorway. Right in the chair works, too, though. He's got a pile of radishes in a colander, as of yet unwashed.]

Hello. Would you like tea or anything? [Herbal tea, that is. Mostly lemon balm and wild mint.]

[ He figured the chair would put him out of the way. ]

If you would like to prepare it. The herbs smell nice. You know the mints both have medical properties?

Sure. Apparently, I'm feeling domestic. [He smiles and nabs the kettle. It's not hard to get Balthazar feeling domestic, actually, when he's among friends and siblings. It's his dirty little secret. Someone should give him an apron.]

And, yes, you'd said that. I've been drying some in the spare room. It's certainly plentiful, especially by the stream.

Does that happen often?

[ Some angels nested more than others, Raphael didn't tend to. ]

Mint is a very useful weed really. Do you know the uses?

[ He's not going to pass up an opportunity to teach, especially not in a gentle way. ]

Only once or twice. Is it wrong that I'm having a bit of fun with the mundane chores? Maybe I'd feel different if I had to work to sustain my metabolic functions.

[Subtly, he brightens at the question. Another learning opportunity? Sure, why not?] I read it has mild antiseptic properties and can be good for headaches, but by all means, tell me more.

No, it's not wrong. A little amusing, that's all.

[ More than a little, but in a way that's fond, not mean-spirited. ]

Yes it does both, as a wash or crushed and applied directly to the skin for wounds - it's the oil, really. Also quite good for insect bites and stings. A tea made with other mints is good for a variety of stomach ailments, and a tea made with chamomile or valerian is used to treat insomnia and anxiety disorders.

Mint in general is useful for all kinds of stomach aliments, as well as good for wakefulness without caffeine.

I'm playing house, you know. That's all it is. [Doing human chores, playing at being mortal and helpless; it's an entertainment. There are a few things he'd give up his own Grace for, but on the whole Balthazar prefers to stay an angel.]

It grows all over the place here. I've been drying some in the spare room. [The room that used to be Anna's.] I'd know chamomile on sight, I think, but it beats me what valerian looks like growing.

I'm not telling you to stop. [ He's playing caretaker/alterboy at the Church, because the scents of the oil and incense are familiar. There's little comfort to be found here, he's not going to begrudge this. ] There's other things I would object to, but not this.

[ He glances out the window. ]

I haven't looked for it, because it can be abused and I'd rather not share that knowledge with people here, given I don't know how they would react. But if I find any, I'll show you what it looks like, how it's used.

[ And kick him all over the Cape if he abused it. ]

Good. [Because he might just have to disobey if told to stop, and that wouldn't make anyone happy in the long run.]

Valerian can be abused? Humh. [So. Tempting.] I know there's jimson weed about here and there, and some sort of wild tobacco. I haven't bothered with it since it's not food per se, but the way people keep trying to trade cigarettes around...

[Intoxicants are valuable commodities, and he's very aware of that. He's also aware that contributing to getting people high might get him into trouble with more than just Raphael. Sigh.]

[ Raphael was trying to make his siblings happy, so he was inclined to run lax, at least right now. ]

Most things can be, really. [ So don't think about it. ] But it might be useful to have some around, tobacco makes a decent insecticide, it'll be useful for your garden.

[ He hopes Balthazar will think about that before sticking it in his vessel. And while some intoxicants he'd protest...he wouldn't deny the usefulness of some of them. ]

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