Tea Party with Kruger

[Rayvinn]

The place was right where he'd left it, as absurd as that might be in some places Kruger was pretty sure that even the houses could shift and move in RhyDin at random. In this case it might be at the whim of the owner, one slightly paranoid elfess. He wouldn't be surprised if the place had been masked to appear as a vacant lot to everyone except those she really trusted, that he could see it meant a lot to him. He let a grateful sigh that she still considered him trustworthy, because in his head she had done exactly that. Check for booby traps... doorbells are great places to have those. Knowing that he chose to knock... and for some reason not use the stairs, something to do with landmines and punji sticks. Changing his mind again he just called out her fake name. "Olivia! Come out here and guide me in!"

The fact that Kruger knew his Olivia so well is probably one of the reasons he remained alive and wholly able to enjoy her company. It's not that she would intentionally harm Kruger (not since she'd decided to allow him to live) but she was quite the paranoid (with good reason!) elf with an uncanny ability to strategize and plan for every eventuality that could be thrown at her. This typically meant booby-trapped doorbells, landmined steps...and let us not forget the punji sticks! Being that Kruger knew his Olivia so well, he knew the best way to remain a whole man while navigating this jungle she called her new home, was to simply have the elfess herself assist him. Good thinking!

Having the best audio and video equipment available, Rayvinn knew Kruger was on his way probably before he knew he was on his way (maybe not). Thusly, she had already begun preparations for their lovely tea party and was not at all surprised when she heard him calling her name. It was a VERY GOOD THING that he hadn't used the doorbell because he wouldn't be able to see for hours after receiving the precise delivery of mace. And if he'd attempted the door handle? Well, let's just say he would need to have someone else to feed him because the use of his hands would be severely inhibited.

"Krugeeeeeyyyyy!" came the all too familiar screech anytime she saw him after it had been some time since their last meeting. "I have my hands full," this was transmitted through the two way speaker next to the doorbell..hopefully he didn't touch that either! "So, climb the third step, balance on your toes, tap on the window four times in rapid succession, sing your name to the tune of "Heartbreaker" by Pat Benatar and you should be fine. The elfess went back to stirring up whatever she was stirring, which ended up more on her apron than in the actual bowl, and then yelled into the little watch contraption that connected to the outside speaker. "Be sure to duck very quickly after the third tap upon the window but don't let it slow down the fourth tap!" Then she began to hum as she worked.

And this is why he'd taken to studying Rope Fu, instead of all those normal martial arts that others tended to use in the ring. It might have something to do with why he was constantly belting out lyrics while throwing punches too. He managed to climb that third step, but his tippy toes were not quite the same as Raye's so he could only hope she'd taken that into account and been a little forgiving. Knock, knock, ducknock, knock would have been audible if he hadn't started singing. "Kruger is like a tidle wave, spinning over your head! Drownin' you in promises... better left unsaid!" Was that the right part of the song? Did his impromptu ad libs to the lyrics count as singing his name? He really hoped that her absence hadn't made him get too fancy for these musical locks... What happened if he sang it out in the wrong key? He was tense and read for anything, but seeing Raye was worth the extra effort. Stretching however was uncomfortable still after the last couple fights he'd been in.


And just like that, the speaker spoke in a computerized male voice "ACCESS GRANTED. WELCOME KRUGER!" followed by musical laughter and cheering from one chaotic elfess. It seems that Kruger would remain intact AND get to enjoy tea with Rayvinn.

The door unlatched and began to mechanically swing inward (outward would have forced poor Kruger down to that second step...nasty business was lurking there!). "I'm in the kitchen, Kruger. Oh hey...be careful stepping over the threshold. Missing toes actually do mess up one's balance!"

There had been several close calls with Raye back when Kruger was some kind of pervy demon in disguise. Sharp implements were brandished, threats unveiled. Maybe he'd encouraged that a bit because those exotic looks became even more alluring when she was on the verge of homicide. He did take care though, putting more distance than necessary over the threshold as he stepped through. Did he notice that the door seemed to hang on a double hinge? If so, only because it was metal and he had an eye for how things got made. He knew the way to the kitchen well enough from the few times he'd been here when making up his mind to purchase. "Thanks, I'm afraid those don't grow back for me." He took a lean on the doorway to the kitchen, looking at Raye in her semi-domestic situation. Sure she was kind of a mess from the stirring of what could have been a cake, or plastic explosives, she still looked fantastic though. He began to see what the appeal was in seeing someone in that condition. "Whatcha got cooking?"

There had been a few close calls back then. Had she known he had provoked her homicidal rage intentionally? What a brat that Kruger was! She very well could have been mixing together plastic explosives IN cake batter...this surely wouldn't be a surprise, right? She was certainly a mess as well. Though, quite surprisingly, the elfess did know how to cook. It required far more concentration and patience than she could typically muster but she tried to think of it as a mission where she might sit with a sniper rifle for a certain period of time without moving. When she put it in those terms to herself, she could generally muster the self control needed.

"There are fifty different blends of tea in those canisters, the kettle is boiling, and there is every imaginable concoction of sugar and flour laid out in the sun room." Somebody took this tea party business to the extreme, much like she took most things she set her mind to. She might have been up most of the night baking goodies in between creating explosive devices. Here's to hoping she hadn't gotten them mixed up.

[Rayvinn]

He leaned back far enough to be able to see the spread she'd set out. He hadn't noticed it before, but his reasons were simple and understandable. He could care less about tea blends and condiments, he was here to see her. "Someone told me there something called housewarming gifts. Things you bring when going to a friends, especially when it is a new place." He reached into a deep pocket of his jacket and produced something she would recognize as a bottle of Patron. "I didn't pay a lot of attention to what is proper and what isn't but I thought you'd get some use out of this." Standing straight he moved further into the kitchen and set it on a counter packed with goodies. Somehow that seemed fitting to him. He started to feel mildly guilty that he wasn't doing something to assist, though he was sure he could only get in her way. "Tell you what, since you've managed to make all that, how bout I do the clean up? You'll have to tell me if any of this needs special care though." (like a hazmat team, or maybe the bomb squad.) "I was glad when I finally got something back to you while you were away. I was beginning to suspect my letters were just piling up at the shooting range."

Rayvinn looked from where she was furiously stirring that bowl of potential explosive pastry (now we know how she got those muscles!) and grinned. "YOU are the housewarming gift but I will never turn down Patron!" She looked him over, assessing his well being. "Are you in a good place? Able to share this housewarming gift with me or should I wait to crack it open?" Just because it was a tea party didn't mean they had to be tea totalers, right?

"You are my guest and there is no way you will be cleaning any of this up. I have a boy that cleans." And by boy, she meant hunky man...because, of course she did. "I had a few close calls," she pursed her lips as the conversation changed to her activities while being gone. "I settled a few things." That seemed to be all she planned to say on the subject as she turned that megawatt smile his way, perhaps hoping to distract him or blind him with its brilliance? "I appreciate you finding me this place. I couldn't go back to the loft." For obvious reasons.

Out with a grin for Raye, she was one of the few that could get it at any time. He did manage a slight incline of a shoulder and sideways tilt of his head. He knew why she asked, and it varied sometimes but it would take quite a bit to get him back to the depths he was in when she was there to help him through. "I'm good most days Raye, the holidays are difficult sometimes, but only sometimes." That was as honest as he knew how to be right now. "I won't make you drink alone, tea or Patron." He noticed what was missing from her explanation over her absence and wouldn't ask for more than she was willing to share. Not unless she really needed him to. She was a far cry from in that state though. "I don't mind a little manual labor, but I'll defer to your wishes." Some things would never change. When that smile hit him he let out a wink. "You're gonna have to put up with me lurking in the doorway until you're ready though... cuz seeing you is addictive."

She nodded, he seemed well the days that she had seen him thus far since being back and she had inquired of his well being while she had been away. "You look very well, Krugey. Very together. Are you happy?" Happiness was not something her little spies could gauge. They could describe his apparent mood, people he spent his time with, etc but they couldn't tell her the most important part...how he genuinely felt in regards to life.

"You've never minded a little manual labor in regards to helping me. I think it would be far more conducive to good health if you did." She grinned and then preened at his comment about seeing her. She looked very much the part of the domestic diva in her 50's-esque dress and heels, the particular way her hair curled, the red lipstick, and that apron. Something that could always be said for Raye is that she knew how to play a part.

"I'm not sure I know how to be happy. The truth is I walked away from something that could have been happiness." His face faltered a little, the eyes squinting in memory. "I really can't say why except that I couldn't be what they needed me to be. I'm doing all right though, if not happy at least I am busy, and much of my less public time can be a little intense. I like intense though." He checked out her outfit a little, perhaps lingering on the demure expanse of her legs. He'd done it before, whether she knew it or not. If she noticed she probably thought he was looking for hidden weapons. "I'm satisfied I guess, and that's really enough, though I do have a few things that need to be completed before too long. What about you, have you found something to keep that smile on your lips?"

"I find that to be an honorable trait, Kruger. Knowing your limitations and not allowing yourself to take without weighing your ability to give. I wish you could find happiness but if you had stayed and tried to force yourself to conform to the mold of what she needed, you would have caused far more damage to the both of you. You are a very strong man for being able to walk away." She nodded lightly, before pursing her lips and narrowing her eyes as she watched him. "Intense private time. I will not touch that topic." She looked rather amused as she watched him look her over, definitely assuming he was looking for weapons, perhaps he had forgotten that she, herself, was a weapon. "Staying busy is key to not losing your sanity, " so sayeth the crazy elf. At the question about finding something to keep her smiling, Rayvinn simply turned an enigmatic smile upon him. "We shall see, I suppose. It is too soon to tell just yet." And with that pronouncement, she was finished stirring and poured the batter into a pan, placed the pan into the oven, and then proceeded to take off the messy apron and wash up.

"I don't know about honor Raye, just what feels right. Good call on staying away from the other subject." He played off the slight coloring to his cheeks as though it had never happened. "Does this mean you're finished playing kitchen warrior and we can get into some more serious not-tea totaling?" He indicated the closing of the oven door and stepped closer to her. She'd obviously been on her feet for too long and needed to be picked up and carried. "I've been doing a bit of self educating lately, just don't tell anyone that I have found math to be horribly interesting." That certainly wouldn't fit in his muscle bound dumb look. "Plus the fights have kept me from being too comfortable, mostly from the bruising though." He looked around needing a bit of direction. "Where to princess?" There was an amused grin on his lips with the title. "I'd like to be able to keep you around for a while this time, so I might just find a way to stand between you and adventures that carry you too far away. There is plenty to blow up in town."

Rayvinn snickered at his apparent blushing, having not meant her words the way they sounded, but now realizing she should have chosen better words. Of course, being picked up and carried was always on her list of things to do and she pointed a finger, very much the commanding leader (though usually she commanded while upon her own two feet or horseback), "To the sun room!"

Kruger was patted upon the cheek fondly. "Perhaps I shall stay for a bit. I told Jack after my last mission that I am going to take some time to myself. He felt that would be a great idea, though you and I both know that he will be upon my doorstep the moment he needs me." She grinned just the tiniest of wicked grins. "I hope he steps on the first step." Once they had arrived in the sun room and she was upon her own two feet once more and serving their tea, scones, and tequila (she'd drink tequila with anything, after all), she smiled over at Kruger. "Now, I insist upon hearing all about your own adventures as well as this new interest in math. Leave nothing out."