All the stars in the sky (private)

[Jaks Flagner]

It had been awhile ago that Jaks had invited Frides to a dinner that paled in comparison to the hasty fried fish that was served aboard the Siren Song. Tonight was the night she would come to sample his cooking and it was also a great time for them to spend some time with each other since they had both been so busy with one thing or another. His "house" wasn't a house at all but a converted warehouse that held his living area, airship, and workshop. His workshop was in the far left corner of the ware house with Red Lion taking up the center. His living space was in the right hand corner that held the doors to his shop, and the outside> he space contained a section of counters with a sink in the center and a fridge on the far left end. Just beyond that was an island that held the stove as well as some cabinets to store things below. There were bar stools that lined the edge closest to the back. further on there was a simple wooden table with wooden chairs, set for a nice meal with two settings placed across from each other. The Plates were china and the silverware was indeed silver. Napkins were elegantly folded on the plates and every piece of cutlery was found in it's proper place. Wine glasses and a candelabra sat nearest to the center waiting to be filled and lit respectively. Then there was a small patch of lengthwise carpeted sections that broke the monotony of concrete that covered the rest of the space. On one end of the patch there was a love seat with two pillows, and a recliner that sat beside it. On the other end there was a moderately sized  flat screen sitting on a entertainment   system that also contained a dvd player and a speaker system that played Aldo's "Close to you" CD at a low volume. Behind the Tv and against the left wall was a queen sized bed with a night stand. The entire place was spotlessly clean and dimly lit that spread a warmth throughout the small section before it was cut of by the darkness that had enveloped the rest of the warehouse. Jaks stood waiting near the door for his guest to arrive as she would any minute. He was well dressed, but not so that he could go to a formal event, Semi-formal at best. The dinner that he had prepared was sitting, waiting to be cooked. He had spent the last half hour preparing it up to this point leaving the afore mentioned cooking the only thing left to do. The dinner he would be serving was chia-crusted, oven-roasted tuna that he would serve with a mango fruit salsa and balsamic blaze. On the counter sat a white wine with a nice vintage that he assured himself would go great with the meal. It was quite the meal, but Jaks stood waiting for the crown jewel of the evening to arrive at his door step.

[Frideswide Seys]

Frides was driven by Louis, and the poor homunculus actually worried for the alchemist but she had reassured him that she would be just fine. Jaks was a nice young man and dinner at his place sounded lovely. They had been working so hard lately and she still hadnt visited his store so she figured she could discuss it with him and see just what he prepared for dinner. She credited him as being a skilled engineer but she wondered what other talents he had. When she got to the door she gingerly knocked. "Hello?"

[Jaks Flagner]

Jaks heard the gentle knock at the door and quickly placed the tuna in the oven before making his way to the door and opening it. What he saw standing there couldn't have been just a woman. To him the girl was in a visage that would make jealous even the gods. The way the low lighting inside met the natural moonlight seemed to mark subtle differences in her lovely face and stark beauty that were one and yet somehow different in the mixing of the lights. Her hair and dress were buffeted slightly by a wind that caressed the both of them the same way a lover might. Jaks stood there for a second lost in the totality of perfection that stood before him before he had woken up from his day dreaming, " My gods Frides, you look beautiful tonight. Won't you come in?" he asked stepping back from the center of the doorway to allow her passage inside before he would shut the door behind her.

[Frideswide Seys]

Frideswide, who was over a thousand years old still giggled at the compliment. "well look at you Jaks. You look very dapper tonight." Frideswide had a fondness for vests, as they had a certain mix of casual and formal to them. She looked around, with her keen mind, taking in every detail of the man's home. "wow, i need a big space like this."

[Jaks Flagner]

As he closed the door behind the lovely maiden he blushed slightly at her compliment. "Thank you Frides" He said trying to get his racing heart under control. He knew he couldn't be like this all night. Perhaps the wine would smooth his thoughts when he sat down for dinner, and if not, well he had a bottle of sake he picked up earlier. " Yeah, but I was lucky I found this place so cheap. When I got it it was in horrible condition. Had to do quite a bit of work to get it like it is now. Though If you did find a place like this I would be happy to come help you fix it up. Though I don't know much about interior design," He said with a chuckle.

[Frideswide Seys]

Frideswide had maintained her enthusiasm for centuries, never failing in it. "Maybe theres one nearby, i would love to work with you more. You have a keen eye..and something smells fan-TASTic." The alchemist was also, as usual oblivious to how she looked or how bashful her host was.Seh spun around to face him. "you really cooked didnt you?" a part of her had worried he ordered something but that smelled like home cooking to her. Jaks was so classy.

[Jaks Flagner]

Jaks nodded with a smile " One of the best parts of my early childhood was when I got to work in the kitchen, I learned all sorts of stuff in there. I suppose it was a blessing that my owner was well off or I wouldn't be able to cook like I can today. They might be a minute seeing as I put them in the oven right before you got here. So I could make sure it was hot when I served it. By my calculations it should be about done, nothing more than a couple minutes wait." He turned and walked towards the table and pulled out a chair for frides "Why don't you have a seat?" As soon as he seated her he walked over to the counter and removed the Tuna from the oven. "After all I originally invited you here to prove that my cooking skills were top notch." Jaks took out a small sauce dish, drizzling a brown oil over the bottom of the plate. "Though I find this is a great way time for us to catch up. So how has the shop been going?" as he asked the question he took the tuna and placed in on the plate gently with a pair of tongs before placing a mango fruit salsa on the entire thing and giving one last drizzle of the brown oil. He carried the plates over to the table and set them down on either side. He also pulled out a match and lit the silver candelabra before going back to the counter one last time to fetch the wine bottle. "Would you like some wine? It's a White Simmonet Febvre Irancy 1887."

[Frideswide Seys]

Frideswide looked like a cat the way she eyed the tuna and the careful preparation of it. It smelled heavenly and for an alchemist who was seemingly continuously working it was extra enticing. She worked up an appetite with that brain of hers.'"Oh its doing okay but i really do need to move to a more spacious location. When you pack yourself in a dinky shop its so easy for something to explode.Oh yes, id like some, not too much though. Drinking and small alhcmeay shops do not mix." she laughed. "so that tuna? did you catch it?"

[Jaks Flagner]

Jaks poured the white wine 3/4s up the glass for both glasses. It was after all the standard for any meal. Enough to wet one's taste buds but never inebriate the drinker. " If you want I can talk to the original owner of this building to see if he has any more for sale" He placed the bottle back on the table and took his own seat. " And as much as I would like to say that I did, I really just bought them. I could never cut them as fine as this and I wanted this dinner to be the definition of perfect. " Jaks took a piece form his fish and began eating. Suddenly he sat up straight as if he had realized something. He reached into his vest pocket "I also wanted to give you something, I'm sorry I had forgotten until now. He pulled something metal out and upon closer inspection, it was a rose made of silver. The rose was incredibly life like down to every detail imaginable, even the way it felt, and the way it smelled. He handed it to Frides. "It started out as something to practice enchanting on, but then it became more than that. I realized that it had come to symbolize you in a way. For no matter how long it exists it shall always be just as beautiful as the years before."

[Frideswide Seys]

Frideswide smiled. "You know, ive had plenty of men treat me to fine dinners and and woo me, but none of them really got what it is i do. Its refreshing to have a common ground to speak of. I mean, if you found my a larger space to work in, i could pick your brain even more!" giddy as could be frides had just cut and popped a piece of the fish in her mouth when she was presented with the rose. She squeaked "Is it dipped or.." she picked it up carefully and just by feeling it she knew it was solid. "Oh Jaks, thank you, it has such stunning detail!"

[Jaks Flagner]

Jaks laughed as she spoke " lets hope thats a figure of speech, I don't exactly want my brain tinkered with unless it needs to be." Frides mentioned the rose.and he once again took a red tinted face. "No trouble at all, as you said, common ground." Smiling he began to twirl the silver fork and slowly it dulled until it was barely reflective. Soon after it took on a lustrous yellow shine before returning to its silver state. " We alchemists are practically extinct now that magic is so much more common for magic to be used, but I personally prefer a good potion or something of the same nature. However I must say that technopathy is exceedingly helpful while programming. "

[Frideswide Seys]

Frides beamed. "Oh i must agree with you. I should make you a youth potion, i dont believe in doing it for the sake of vanity but to keep studying, its spectacular." She exclaimed, the conversation getting very lively as she tucked the silver rose into her belt to keep it close at her side. "I mean ive been able to study and experiment for ages!" she laughed. "an i feel stronger than ever for all i know. I dont feel like some damsel in distress, getting kidnapped. Oh wouldnt that be lame and cliched." she smiled and leaned over to kiss Jak's cheek. "not that you arent strong good sir."

[Jaks Flagner]

He laughed with her, " I think I'll wait on the youth potion for a while, year or two at least, I want to experience the world the way only a aging body can until I finish growing. Then I will consume a youth potion, preferably one that I, myself , have made. No offense to you, but you of all people must understand the importance of discovering things for oneself. After all if I am to be ageless I would like to look back and see it was because of my own merit. " He continued to smile as she explained having to be a damsel in distress, " Damsel in distress? " He let out a chuckle before continuing " I feel sorry for what ever dastardly villain tries to put you in distress" His laughed continued boisterously until she planted the kiss on his cheek. It was a good thing it was a dim light because his face caught fire with an embarrassed. Sure she may have kissed his face before but every time it happened it was just as special and breath taking as the one before, truly a treasure worth savoring. His mind wandered for a moment to what an actual kiss might have been like and he felt his face get a tad bit hotter, if that was even possible. He took a drink of the wine hoping it would calm his staggering heartbeat before he commented back. "W-Why thank you my fair lady."

[Frideswide Seys]

Frideswide calmly sipped her own wine, marvelin ta what a proper gentleman she shared her dinner with."You have a point. so many i met let time change them, they do not roll with the punches. I feel like some people LIKE to suffer. But no, if you have a strong will you can survive for ages. I hope Jaks, that you can be like that. There needs to be a man like you int the world always."

[Jaks Flagner]

There he was calmly sipping his drink when she finished talking. Jaks promptly took to big a drink and began to choke on it. He put his glass down and the worst of it was some coughing, he hoped Frides wouldn't notice that it was because of what she said. When he finished clearing his throat he decided he could respond back. "Well, if its any consultation, I plan on surviving. If I gave up I wouldn't able to see you anymore, and that is more than enough motivation for me to live forever. " He tentatively reached forward and gently grabbing a hold of her hand, pulled it up to his mouth. allowing him to softly kiss the top of her hand.