[ Frankly, Akechi should be grateful for this opportunity. Especially after his birthday feast, anyone in their right mind would be clamoring for an opportunity to have a one on one cooking lesson with him–
Just kidding, Maruki doesn't think that highly of himself. He really is trying to impart some sort of practical skill on Akechi, though. The occasional sous chef duties chopping vegetables or stirring pots haven't been enough.
And he looks over from where he's tending to a soup stock, unimpressed eyebrows lowering beneath the frame of his glasses. ]
No. It's important to learn how to cook a whole fish. Don't tell me it's making you feel a little dizzy.
Our definitions of important couldn't be further apart. It makes me question how aligned we truly are.
[It's a passing comment with no real bite. They're aligned through and through - there's no question about it.
The dizzy comment? Ignored. His head's starting to ache and pound from the irritation of it all. He doesn't comment on it.
Izutsumi showed him how to do this - it's his execution that's questionable. Something that's displayed the second he starts to fillet the fish. Turns out Metaverse shadow carving really doesn't translate to cooking. He splits the fish open at its belly and turns it to the side to see?? If the organs just come out?
He's already sick of this shit. His fingers dig out the innards.]
Are you satisfied? Now that you got another to do your dirty work?
[She'll eat scraps - almost gleefully. It's one of her many benefits.
But whatever!!
There's another fish. His headache gets worse. The knife at his side is picked up and he briefly considers shoving it into Maruki's hand instead of whatever they're about to do. Doesn't, because he's a better person than that and filleting a fish won't take long.
He flicks the residual intestines off his fingers.
[It's still disgusting, is his argument. One that dies the moment gloves, scissors and instructions come out.
He is a good student, no matter the subject. A fish won't best him and if this stupid lesson is enough to placate Maruki, then whatever.
Akechi washes his hands. Slides on the gloves. Watches the man work from the corner of his eye.
Wonders if this technique could work on shadows in the Metaverse and-
Remembers, briefly, standing in a small kitchen, the same man by his side. Akechi's chin could barely touch the counter. They've had this lesson in another life.
He shakes it off and copies what Maruki does, step by step, as precise as he can be. It's not terrible!!!]
Akechi pinches the paper towel between his thumb and index finger, as if deciding whether or not to throw it back at Maruki.
He doesn't. Isn't that sweet?
Instead-
He decides to talk as he pats down its disgusting insides. He's not gentle. Get smashed, fish.]
Did you know there's a type of fish poisoning that compounds as it moves up the food chain? As more fish eat one another, the disease becomes more potent. The symptoms can last from weeks to years and there's no way to alleviate them. The disease will consume a person whether the fish is cooked through or not. It won't die, so to speak, once it roots itself into the food chain.
One was put through a maze and once it found the correct path out-
They ground it up and fed it to another leech, unrelated to the trial itself.
[Akechi watches the blood cleanup. ♥ He's still being a good student.]
That new leech found its way out of the same maze with no issues. It makes me wonder about this fish, what this fish ate, what we eat and if it's possible to gain knowledge in such a fashion. Well, I suppose an experiment like that will always be unethical enough to never see the light of day when it comes to humans.
[The fish stares. Akechi stares back.]
It's fascinating to consider what could be gained from eating a simple fish, is all.
[ The blood gets mopped up as Akechi goes on and on; Maruki snips the tails of both of their fishes, then hands Akechi another knife and wordlessly begins showing him how to separate the flesh from the bones until the fish is fully butterflied. It's not difficult work, and Akechi learns best by doing, so he lets this show and tell demonstration speak for itself.
Because, most importantly– ]
If we could gain knowledge from the animals we eat, it would have at least been hypothesized by now, if not proven. The phenomenon is fascinating, but I can't imagine it would ever work cross-species. And we certainly frown upon eating other humans, so we'll never know if that applies to us.
[ He hums, tips his head to the other side thoughtfully, brittle bones crunching beneath his blade. ]
Then again, it reminds you of a mutual acquaintance of ours, doesn't it?
[And follow along he does - step by step, moment by moment. He watches and copies every single movement with precision.
It does remind him of someone. He crushes a bone between his fingers.]
That grotesque reality is fascinating to me - to be among monsters that consume you, flesh and all, for nothing more than torment. To sit trapped behind a wall without knowing about the large, vast world that keeps you inside for nothing more than cruelty. Well, I suppose it's no wonder our 'mutual acquaintance' turned out the way he did, though I can hardly blame him for such an attitude.
I can't imagine you or I would have turned out much differently if we experienced a reality like that.
[ A quiet, tacit admission of what they both know to be true – they have more in common with a man who wiped out eighty percent of his population than they'd like to admit, in their own ways.
Both sides of the fish now cut away, Maruki spreads them out and sets the knife down. Butterflied, as it were. Akechi's is a little sloppier, but it's not bad, and now he at least knows how. ]
[Worse, more than likely. Akechi knows he would have left none to survive. Maruki's role in that world-
Well, it would be worse than if they perished from the wrath of another.]
I'll consider this a debt incurred since you changed our arrangement on short notice. You owe me a small favor in the future.
[He plucks the gloves off his hand - this is as far as he goes today.
It wasn't that hard though.]
However, this gave me an idea for future battles and how to fell the beasts we come across. I'm not unhappy with the outcome nor what I've learned today.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
OH I'M ROLLING ALRIGHT
Just kidding, Maruki doesn't think that highly of himself. He really is trying to impart some sort of practical skill on Akechi, though. The occasional sous chef duties chopping vegetables or stirring pots haven't been enough.
And he looks over from where he's tending to a soup stock, unimpressed eyebrows lowering beneath the frame of his glasses. ]
No. It's important to learn how to cook a whole fish. Don't tell me it's making you feel a little dizzy.
cw: fish guts
[It's a passing comment with no real bite. They're aligned through and through - there's no question about it.
The dizzy comment? Ignored. His head's starting to ache and pound from the irritation of it all. He doesn't comment on it.
Izutsumi showed him how to do this - it's his execution that's questionable. Something that's displayed the second he starts to fillet the fish. Turns out Metaverse shadow carving really doesn't translate to cooking. He splits the fish open at its belly and turns it to the side to see?? If the organs just come out?
He's already sick of this shit. His fingers dig out the innards.]
Are you satisfied? Now that you got another to do your dirty work?
no subject
[ Whatever shitty thing he was about to fire back at Akechi is instantly one thousand times less important than the absolute disgrace he's witnessing.
The stock can watch itself for a moment. All of his attention is on Akechi's hand stuck into the fish's belly. ]
no subject
[That's an intestine between his fingers now. ♥ He waves it, as if to prove a point.
Is he doing this to be a bitch? Does he just not know? Life is full of little mysteries.]
no subject
Use a knife. Are you purposefully acting stupid?
no subject
[In fact, he hopes so.
Until then, shut up!]
no subject
[ And with that, he turns off the burner and opens up the refrigerator to produce...
Two more fish.
Which he slaps down onto the cutting board. ]
Throw that one out and get a knife. We're starting over. I'll show you.
no subject
[She'll eat scraps - almost gleefully. It's one of her many benefits.
But whatever!!
There's another fish. His headache gets worse. The knife at his side is picked up and he briefly considers shoving it into Maruki's hand instead of whatever they're about to do. Doesn't, because he's a better person than that and filleting a fish won't take long.
He flicks the residual intestines off his fingers.
Ugh.]
This is disgusting, for the record.
cw fish gore all the way down
[ He's brooking none of Akechi's bullshit.
He lays their two fish out side by side, then picks up a nearby pair of kitchen scissors and, most importantly– ]
Wear gloves. Please.
[ One pair of disposable gloves for Akechi, one for him, and then they're off to the races! ]
This is a basic butterfly technique that will work for most fish. You start like this.
[ Easy as anything, Maruki snips beneath its gills before cutting a clean line down the center of its underside. ]
slurps
He is a good student, no matter the subject. A fish won't best him and if this stupid lesson is enough to placate Maruki, then whatever.
Akechi washes his hands. Slides on the gloves. Watches the man work from the corner of his eye.
Wonders if this technique could work on shadows in the Metaverse and-
Remembers, briefly, standing in a small kitchen, the same man by his side. Akechi's chin could barely touch the counter. They've had this lesson in another life.
He shakes it off and copies what Maruki does, step by step, as precise as he can be. It's not terrible!!!]
Now what?
no subject
Watch carefully.
[ With the fish opened up, he wedges the scissors beneath the tip of the gills, twists, and cleanly pulls out a whole line of organs.
If that sounds insane, it kind of is.
He discards them, then hands the scissors off to Akechi, smiling. ]
Now you try.
no subject
It may not work against shadows. The monsters in this reality have organs. Plenty of them!!
If he can latch on to an intestine, twist and pull it all out their innards, it would be a quick kill and liable to cause agonizing pain as they die.
...
Noted.
He copies Maruki's technique - manages to get it pulled up after the second attempt. He's an expert on slaughter, after all.]
Simple enough. [Organs? To the side. Vibe over there ya nasty - he hands the scissors back to Maruki.] Continue.
no subject
However, the scissors are discarded. He now wads up some paper towels and hands them to Akechi. ]
Clean out the blood. That shouldn't be a problem for you.
cw: fish disease
Akechi pinches the paper towel between his thumb and index finger, as if deciding whether or not to throw it back at Maruki.
He doesn't. Isn't that sweet?
Instead-
He decides to talk as he pats down its disgusting insides. He's not gentle. Get smashed, fish.]
Did you know there's a type of fish poisoning that compounds as it moves up the food chain? As more fish eat one another, the disease becomes more potent. The symptoms can last from weeks to years and there's no way to alleviate them. The disease will consume a person whether the fish is cooked through or not. It won't die, so to speak, once it roots itself into the food chain.
[PAT PAT PAT PAT PAT PAT PAT!!!!!!!!!!]
It makes you think, doesn't it?
no subject
But before Maruki can lecture him on that, he's getting a lecture of his very own. Fun facts that turn his stomach, as ever.
He taps his own gloved, bloody fingers on the cutting board, head tipped thoughtfully to the side. ]
I suppose that's not all too different from the things that can rot our own societal "food chains," so to speak.
[ And then he grabs Akechi's wrist, gently, to try to take the now sopping paper towel back. ]
no subject
Rot, or cause something else entirely.
Have you ever heard of chemical memory?
no subject
Where's this going?
Maruki throws the paper towel out, grabs a new clean one to finish cleaning up in a much gentler manner. No smashing! ]
I'm familiar with the concept. What are you thinking about, Akechi?
cw: leech cannibalism
One was put through a maze and once it found the correct path out-
They ground it up and fed it to another leech, unrelated to the trial itself.
[Akechi watches the blood cleanup. ♥ He's still being a good student.]
That new leech found its way out of the same maze with no issues. It makes me wonder about this fish, what this fish ate, what we eat and if it's possible to gain knowledge in such a fashion. Well, I suppose an experiment like that will always be unethical enough to never see the light of day when it comes to humans.
[The fish stares. Akechi stares back.]
It's fascinating to consider what could be gained from eating a simple fish, is all.
cw cannibalism....... sigh
Because, most importantly– ]
If we could gain knowledge from the animals we eat, it would have at least been hypothesized by now, if not proven. The phenomenon is fascinating, but I can't imagine it would ever work cross-species. And we certainly frown upon eating other humans, so we'll never know if that applies to us.
[ He hums, tips his head to the other side thoughtfully, brittle bones crunching beneath his blade. ]
Then again, it reminds you of a mutual acquaintance of ours, doesn't it?
cw: CANNIBAL CONT IG
It does remind him of someone. He crushes a bone between his fingers.]
That grotesque reality is fascinating to me - to be among monsters that consume you, flesh and all, for nothing more than torment. To sit trapped behind a wall without knowing about the large, vast world that keeps you inside for nothing more than cruelty. Well, I suppose it's no wonder our 'mutual acquaintance' turned out the way he did, though I can hardly blame him for such an attitude.
no subject
[ A quiet, tacit admission of what they both know to be true – they have more in common with a man who wiped out eighty percent of his population than they'd like to admit, in their own ways.
Both sides of the fish now cut away, Maruki spreads them out and sets the knife down. Butterflied, as it were. Akechi's is a little sloppier, but it's not bad, and now he at least knows how. ]
That wasn't so bad, was it?
no subject
Well, it would be worse than if they perished from the wrath of another.]
I'll consider this a debt incurred since you changed our arrangement on short notice. You owe me a small favor in the future.
[He plucks the gloves off his hand - this is as far as he goes today.
It wasn't that hard though.]
However, this gave me an idea for future battles and how to fell the beasts we come across. I'm not unhappy with the outcome nor what I've learned today.
no subject
I'm sorry. Are you telling me you're going to butterfly enemies in the future?
1/2
no subject
[Why wouldn't he? The organs just COME OUT. That's gg easy mode for slaughtering. ]
I'll admit it may not be possible here given the constraints of this reality, but in the Metaverse-
Well, I would be more than capable of doing such a thing
(no subject)
(no subject)
GOD WE CAN WRAP... STUPID... I HATE THEM... BUTTERFLY SHADOWS TOGETHER