Picnic in the Jungle

"Yay~ It turned out well after all~!" Red cheered, apparently not having the forethought to taste the damn thing like a good chef did. Honestly, and she called herself a connoisseur? ....Well maybe she didn't, but that's besides the point.

Munching down on the banana popcorn as Voulge grabbed one bunch after another, Red and Myun let out a unanimous, "MmmmmMM~!" displaying their satisfaction for the taste.

Soon enough, the combined efforts of the three made short work of the appetizer. Red giggled as she pointed at both Myun and Voulge's faces. "Sillies, there's cream all over your mouths~" The crimson crusader apparently didn't realize she was pretty much in the same situation.

"Go look in a mirror," Shin called out, chuckling a bit as Red wiped off the cream as best as she could from Myun's fur.

"Huh? Is there something on my face too?" Red inquired, turning to Voulge for advice.
With a questionable expression on his face, Voulge wiped the side of his lips to find the banana creams covering his mouth. Even more bewildered, the navi wondered just how many popcorn he snatched from the bowl while he attended to his bowl. "I guess it was that good." said Voulge as he wiped off the rest with his sleeves.

Voulge soon return back to preparing the next dish as he pulled out a wooden salad fork and spoon, but Red came up to him with her mouth literally caked with the cream. He shook his head as he sighed, placing the utensils down and pulled out a white handkerchief. "Are you always such a slob when it comes to sweets?" Voulge chuckled as he keeled down and quickly lifted Red's chin with his index finger without a notice, gently dabbing and wiping away the cream and putting the once-white fabric back into his pocket.

However, after he did so, the navi realized that he began treating Red as if she was a mere child once again. Voulge quickly retreated back to his side of the picnic and began to serve both the salad and the soup one by one before he would make things worse. Living up to his gourmet chef name (he obtained a little more than an hour ago), the navi arranged the salad's apple slices into a new design and placed two pieces of meat, veggies, and fruits into the stew as well.

The aroma from the stew hung thick in the air and the salad resonated in a beautiful crunch as Voulge dug his fork in for the first bite. "Bon Appétit"
Red closed an eye as Voulge wiped the cream off her face, pouting a bit before the work was done.

"Hey! We mashed a lot of bananas for this! ...Well, more of it went into the pie, but still!" Red stated, crossing her arms and turning away with a 'hmph' as Shin chuckled in the background.

This attitude quickly changed as Voulge served the fruit salad and placed the nabe in the center. Taking in a whiff of the stew, Red was hard-pressed to hold back drooling all over the mat. "MmMm! That smells great!" Red cheered, digging into her fruit salad...

...to find that it was really crunchy but kind of bland. At any rate, she would deal with it. It probably really needed some kind of dressing to hit the spot. Red curved her face upwards in a disgruntled fashion, so it was no use hiding her true feelings.

Myun didn't really seem to mind, it was almost like she ate that kind of salad every day, like they were Bugfrags even.

Finishing her salad, Red clapped her hands together and lowered her head saying, "Thanks for all the food." Chopsticks materialized in her hands at this point as she stared at the stew pot.

"Now.... what should I get first...?" Red wondered, giggling lightly.
Voulge chewed down the crunchy salad, enjoying the faint sweetness from the apples along with the freshness of the greens. However, he saw Red's displeased face as she ate her salad, reinforcing his previous thought about Red's childishness. "You'll learn to enjoy this when you grow up" chuckled Voulge as he bit into the last of the salad.

The navi wiped his mouth with the last clean bit of the handkerchief and quickly returned Red's gestures. "The pleasure was all mine." As soon as he raised his head, Red was already going for the main course as she wondered which meat should eaten first.

Voulge picked up a chopstick of his own and began to arrange the meats in a single line order. "Try the tougher meat first, like this bear meat." said the chef as he pulled out a rather darkish red meat out from the soup and ate it whole. "Amf den...*gulp*, And then go for whatever you want. If you chew the tough meat when your jaw's tired, you can't get the full flavor from it!"

The navi was starting to get pumped up from talking about how to eat a soup...Realizing how troublesome it might have been for Red, he just stopped and took up his spoon to taste the soup. "...The meatballs are probably my favorite." said Voulge with a half smile.
"I'm been active for 20 years I'll have you know!" Red replied with a 'hmph' to Voulge's comment about "growing up."

"He probably means your mentality," Shin replied, slurping on a smoothie he made himself. "Ugh.... this tastes like blended grass. Though I'm not really getting enough fiber intake so I'll have to bear it."

"....you have it worse than I thought," Red sweatdropped, staring at the sky before returning to the issue at hand.

"Alright, here I go!" Red cheered, picking at the bear meat and taking a bite. "Nrrrrgah!" It was a tough time pulling it off the main chunk, but she managed it somehow. Chewing slowly, Red rolled her tongue around the flavor before mincing the meat in her mouth and taking another bite.

Myun went for the octopus, enjoying the slimy/slippery kind of texture in her mouth before going for a mushroom.

"Hey! I was getting that next! Well there's still another one!" Red pouted, before eagerly going for the next mushroom.

And so it went on, a constant taste test of the ingredients before having the soup soaked in the mixed flavors for last.

"Yeah, these meatballs are great! I think they're the best thing here too!" Red nodded firmly, a cheerful tone in her voice. "What do you think, Myun?"

"Octopus."

"Mmm... let's make Takoyaki next time if we get it again, alright Mr. Voulge?" the crimson crusader suggested, giving her partner a warm smile.

"And now..." Shin began as Red moved the nabe pot out of the way and pushed the cake to the center, lifting the cover she had on to keep it warm.

"...it's time for desert!" Red proclaimed joyously. She whipped out a serving knife and spatula with gunman-draw speed and served a slice for the three of them in a very quick fashion. Picking up her fork, Red gulped as her utensil dropped down, cutting the creamy concoction down at the point.

"...the proof, is in the pudding," the fairy-tale wonder mumbled, taking a bite...
Voulge happily watched Red taste and enjoy the stew, picking up a chunk of meat once in a while with his chopstick or with his spoon. The thick, full bodied flavor of the stew hit the spot just perfectly, already "melting away" the wounds and bruises he sustained from the battle moment ago. The juicy meats was also packed with flavors, despite the fact that it was boiled meat, and Voulge began to pick and chew most of the meats Red didn't partake.

Before long, his stomach was already full and the pot was nearly dry from the stew. "Whew~ I'm stuffed. The takoyaki definitely needs to wait till next time." said Voulge as he padded his bloated stomach. Licht scurried along and began to clean up before Red prepared the banana cakes, "I appreciate that, Licht."

The cake was placed at the center of the picnic, sliced in three...No, sliced into 2/3rd when one slice mysteriously disappeared. "Looks fantastic, I'm sure you baked it just right." said the chef as his eyes twitched for a single moment. He took his fork and cut the very tip off his cake slice, examining the light yellow banana cream gently bouncing side to side.

Before he got too further, he realized, again, that he was approaching this as a chef "tasting" the food rather than enjoying it. Shrugging it off as he tilted his shoulders up, the navi quickly bit down on the cake and began to chew. The sweet flavor almost overwhelmed Voulge as he almost choked up, but the mild, creamy sensation from the banana exhibited the perfect balance the cake needed.

Voulge dug in for the next bite, and then the next, and one more till he realized that he already finished up the cake. Finding it rather embarrassing to gobble down sweets so quickly, Voulge quickly set down his dishes and bowed his head at Red with the clap of his hands. "Thanks for all the food."
"Hehe~ You're going at it," Red said, practically breathing the cake in. Myun followed suit, who knew this would turn out so good?

Wiping her mouth, Red stood up and patted off her skirt, stretching her arms above her head before letting out a satisfied sigh. "Ah~ That was delicious." With another snap of her fingers, the picnicware disappeared in a flash.

Helping Voulge up, Red patted off the front of his chef's robe before standing back and admiring her handiwork, hands on her hips and nodding firmly.

"Sir Voulge, I now bestow upon you the honorar- Ow!" Red started before she was interrupted by a fist of air bonking her on the head. "What the heck was that? A jab program?"

"More or less. What do you think you were doing?" Shin replied, sighing as he tilted his eyes toward Red.

"Giving him the best award for chefs on the net," Red stated matter-of-factly, crossing her arms and pouting.

"What kind of award is that? Not all navis eat you know?" Shin commented exasperated.

"It's the 'Red-Totally-Approves-With-5-Gold-Stars' Award of course!" the red-caped wonder stated with a hmph and putting her hands on her hips.

"There's no such thing and if there is I bet it's really not the thing you're talking about," Shin replied sighing and holding his face in his hands.

"Hey! It took me a while to come up with that!" Red pouted before turning back to Voulge.

"Well, it looks like our journey stops here for a while. I've got some other things to do, but invite me again sometime when you're hunting for ingredients. I'll be at the ready as much as I can!" Red said cheerfully, suddenly hugging Voulge around the middle.

"Even if we're apart, friends are connected by the bonds they've made in their hearts. So when you're lonely, do think of your friends," the fairy-tale maiden remarked solemnly. "Even without Crosses, our hearts will still stay connected. Miracles happen when people believe in each other, so don't forget that," Red continued with a small smile.

"It's a good smell..."

Voulge GET: Shin's E-mail - Ace@global.net
Voulge also stood up while Red took care of the picnicwares while he took care of the dishes and utensils he once prepared. The dishes simply disappeared off his hands while he arranged all the utensils back into his infinity pocket, AKA his apron. In the end, the navi had some good time as a bright smile similar to his partner lit up on his face.

"Enjoyed your meal?"

Marius returned back from his 2nd meal with a toothpick in his mouth, looking over the net through the holographic screen. The first thing he noticed was the bright change in scenery...along with the radiant smile Voulge had on. "...I'm guessing you did. No further questions." The screen momentarily disappeared, leaving Voulge frowning in embarrassment.

Red began to honor Voulge with the 'Red-Totally-Approves-With-5-Gold-Stars' course award and the navi bowed his head in thanks. "I thank you, and I am honored." Truth be told, he didn't get any sense of achievement from getting the award, but it was still a praise from a friend and he cherished it as much as a real cuisine award.

Voulge soon padded away the dirts on his apron and pants and began to say farewell to his partner. "I guess it's time to say goodb-" But before he could continue, Red seized him with a surprise hug. Voulge was astonished by this, but quietly listened to what Red had to say. As a man with few words, Voulge simply shook his head up and down with a smile on his face, "I won't forget it."

Squeezing Red closer for a moment, the navi let go and stepped back a few. "Till next time, Red." In a blink of an eye, Voulge was surrounded in a tower of green light and disappeared from the net...

Red GET: Marius' E-mail - guisarmepride@BLPD.org

-JACK OUT-
"Till next time then," Red whispered back, smiling as she and Myun disappeared into columns of light.

[JACK OUT]

((Someone go calculate the FXP after the last modpost))
-- FRIENDSHIP ANALYSIS --
Voulge x Red: 14 FXP