TRP: Goro, Raef, and Theo (Signs of Breakfast)

**Mink:**

[Day 218.Morning
at Goro's newly stolen home.]

The kitchen, like the situation that they had found
themselves in, was a mess.It was
clean, but nothing was where it should've been. Pots were in wrong cabinets,
cups were too high, and the wood for the wood stove was in some side cabinet
that had been a pain in the ass to find.'***Climbing onto counters because the cupboards were too high had also not***
been on Raef's list of things to do that day.

He had just managed to find all of the ingredients when a
whisper of slippered feet reached him and he turned to see Theo - no longer Din
- staring at him.

“Mornin’,” he said with a smile.She looked like she had just crawled from bed, hair touseled and
clothes hanging awkwardly.

She didn't answer.He
didn't expect one; she was quiet, and if Mishka hadn't already taken the name,
she reminded him of a myshka.

“Want to help make breakfast?”

Theo nodded and padded over to him. Again, no answer, but
she hadn't spoken to him the night before even when she smiled when he had a
coin appear in her hand without him touching her.Her smiles were damn near infectious and he was glad that she was
no longer with that shitty mother of hers.

Jasmilia was lucky Larkin gave a damn about her.

Raef found a stool to slide to the counter with a foot then
he lifted Theo up to set her on it so she could see over the counter better.

“Mmm...eggs first.” He handed one to her and cracked one
himself with one hand, dropping the yolk and white into a bowl. “Your turn.”

**Lina:**

When the sun was up, Goro went into Theo's room to check on
her, but her bed was empty. He tried to tamp down the brief moment of panic
that gave him. If Theo was going to be part of his life now, he'd have to
accept not always knowing where she was. He couldn't live in constant fear of their
mother coming and snatching her.

Their mother.

God. It made him ill.

Maybe he should just fucking kill her, and not have to worry
about her anymore. The thought gave him a deep, smoldering feeling of
satisfaction, and he realized maybe it shouldn't. But he'd interrogate that
later.

He went downstairs in search of Theo. He could hear
clattering in the kitchen, and Raef talking to someone, but no voice talking
back. Goro followed the sounds and paused in the kitchen door, cracking a smile
at the sight of them, not wanting to interrupt.

**Mink:**

"Good try." Egg shells littered the bowl and
Theo's fingers were covered in the yolk.'***It was a good thing he chose to crack the eggs into a bowl instead of***
directly into the flour. Raef carefully picked the pieces of shell out
carefully before having Theo wash her hands and then his own.

This was nice - it reminded him of when times were happier
in Alabaster.He sighed softly at the
thought; sometimes he missed it.

He pulled over the second bowl and the glass container with
flour."Fill it up to - "
he squinted at the measuring cup and showed Theo the line. " - that line.Then pour it into the bowl."

As Theo worked on filling the cup in her own enthusiastic
way, Raef felt that unsettling touch of being watched and he glanced back
towards to Goro.He made the
Nighthand sign for Come in before turning back to Theo to see white powder make
its debut on the countertop and anything near it.

Raef sucked his lips and made a soft clicking noise of
amusement. "Fuckin' flour.Always
gets everywhere," he said with a smile at Theo.

**Lina:**

Goro wandered over to see what they were up to. "She's
making a mess," he remarked.

**Mink:**

"Fun's always messy." Raef chuckled and swept
aside the flour on the counter.He
had to try to gauge what made it in the bowl and what hadn't before adding more
in.

Next was the baking powder and sugar.Equally as messy, but at least sugar tasted good.

Theo had turned to Goro when he came over and smiled.She had flecks of flour on her clothes
and the ends of her clothes.

**Lina:**

"Huh. Guess so." I wouldn't know, you see, because
when I was her age--

Man. He was just gonna keep getting madder and madder about
that, he figured.

He gave Theo a kiss on the head. Hey, no wonder Hansel liked
doing that so much. "You spent much time with kids?" Goro asked Raef.
"Seems like you know what you're doing."

**Mink:**

The kiss brought back old memories and a softer smile
crossed Raef's face briefly ad he measured out the ingredients for Theo to pour
into the bowl.

This was nice...doing this again.

"Mm...I raised a kid," he answered with a shrug.
"Theo's a shi- a lot better behaved than him."

**Lina:**

"Eh?" Goro tore his eyes away from Theo to frown
at Raef. "Are you a dad?"

He knew Raef had been married before, of course, but he'd
gotten the impression it had only been for a short time. Maybe he was wrong;
couldn't remember where he got the idea.

**Mink:**

"Yeah." Raef guessed that that was what it had
boiled down to.He had loved the
little shit, too.But, well...shit happened.

Hopefully no more shit happened to Theo.

"Pour in the eggs," he said with a smile at Theo.
"Then the milk."She was
more than eager to help.It was a
good thing counters and clothes were washable.

**Lina:**

"Hang on." Goro blinked a few times, and felt some
guilt start to creep up on him. This really seemed like something he should
fucking know about one of his teammates. Then again, Raef didn't exactly wear
his heart on his sleeve. "Where's your kid now? How old?"

**Mink:**

Raef glanced to Goro before back to Theo, handing her a
spatula to mix the ingredients together.'***She wasn't a naive little girl - she had dealt with plenty with Jasmilia -***
but he still felt awkward.

Or maybe it was knowing he had done a shit job at trying to
learn more about his teammates and talk to them in return.

He worked his tongue against the back of his teeth before
saying, "He's dead, and old enough." Old enough to find his body
dumped in a pit.

**Lina:**

Shit. Shit, Goro was no good at this kind of thing. And this
was the goddamn second time he'd run into it with Raef. Had the kid died at the
same time as his last husband? Seemed like something he'd have fucking
mentioned, so maybe not. Jeez. Fuck.

"I'm sorry," Goro said, which was a stupid-ass
thing to say, but there wasn't much else.

**Mink:**

"Thanks."Raef
gave Goro faint smile. It wasn't much of an answer, but he appreciated it.
"He was kind of a dick."

He held the bowl to keep it from flying off the counter.Theo also held it, her face screwed up
as the flour put up a fight.She was
fucking adorable. "Your face'll get stuck like that."

**Lina:**

Huh. Not what you expected someone to say about their dead
kid. Goro fleetingly wondered if Raef had killed him--hey, you never knew with
this guy--and decided he definitely wouldn't ask.

"Whatcha guys cooking, anyhow?"

**Mink:**

"Attempting to make pancakes." He wasn't entirely
certain how they would turn out with the ingredients being haphazardly tossed
in. "Want to heat up the griddle?"

**Lina:**

Goro glanced doubtfully at the mess of ingredients in the
bowl. He ruffled Theo's hair. "Bet it's gonna be delicious." He
walked over to the woodstove, stoked the fire inside, and set the griddle on
top.

**Mink:**

"'Course it will." Raef grinned and he placed a
hand on Theo's head gently, not quite ruffling her hair how Goro had. "I
used to cook like this in Alabaster all of the fuckin' time.It always came out great."

While Theo finished stirring it into something passable, he
cleaned up the counter.His clothes
could wait and so could hers. "Don't forget the butter," he commented
with a smile at Goro.

**Lina:**

"Hey. Hey. You taking a dig at me in front of my little
sister?" Goro scanned the counters until he saw the butter crock, grabbed
it, and slathered a ton on the griddle.

**Mink:**

"She can't talk so someone had to do it." Raef
chuckled as he dumped the spilled ingredients into the trash. "Your
brother's a bit touchy." He winked at Theo and he pinched his fingers into
a g that he drew out from his cheek like whiskers so she could see and Goro
couldn't miss it.

**Lina:**

"Psh. You got something you wanna say to me,
Chastain?" Goro caught Theo's eye and pointed to Raef. "This guy's
crazy, don't listen to him." He winked at her, though.

**Mink:**

"I always have something to say to you." Raef
grinned and he waited for Theo's attention to turn back to Goro before he
flipped him off and brought a hand down onto his arm.He smiled the whole time, unable to resist fucking with the half-elf.

**Lina:**

Goro scoffed and beckoned to Theo. "Hey, bring the
batter over here. The griddle's hot already." He tried to sign it as he
spoke, but he had no idea if there was a sign for batter. Maybe just had to be
fingerspelled. "You been teaching her signs, Raef? I taught her some
yesterday I thought she'd need. You remember, kiddo? How about hungry?"

Theo cupped her hand and drew it downward over her chest.

"Good. Eat?"

She tapped her fingers and thumb against her lips. Goro
grinned proudly.

**Mink:**

"Nighthand?" Everyone was learning that, and that
was fucking amusing.Why anyone bothered
to learn it now, he didn't know; it had been dead since before he left
Alabaster.Raef smiled at the
thought as he grabbed the proper spoon for Theo to help scoop out the batter.

When she took a small spoonful, he brought his fingertips
and thumbs together on both hands, tapping them together. "More." He
smiled as she listened and put more batter into the spoon before awkwardly
pouring it onto the griddle, where it bubbled and hissed. "You can use
that to bother Goro."

**Lina:**

"Psh." Goro shook his head, smiling. He waited
until Theo had finished spooning the batter, then asked her, "Well? What
else do you remember me showing you?"

She thought about it, then signed brother. "Yup,"
Goro said. He signed sister back at her. "What else?"

Elephant, she signed. He'd taught her that one on account of
the stuffed elephant she'd been clinging to most of the day yesterday. It was
absent right now, he noticed. Maybe she was getting a little more comfortable
with all these strangers who'd rolled into her life all the sudden.

"She's got the important ones down, I guess," he
said to Raef with a snort.

**Mink:**

She signed out what Goro had taught her and Raef found
himself smiling again.He had tried
to teach Gwydion signs, but Gwydion hadn't bothered to keep up with it.He chuckled as he reached over to flip
a pancake; the signs Goro had taught her were cuter than he thought Goro would
appreciate him commenting on.

"She can now ask for her elephant," he answered.He gently tapped Theo on the shoulder
to have her face him.He knelt down
so they were nearly eye-to-eye. "I think this one's the most
important."He laid his left
hand thought, palm upwards.His
right he made into a fist and placed it with the tip of his thumb pointing up
as if he was making a sideways A.He
pulled his hands up together. "It means help. "

**Lina:**

Theo didn't react, so Goro nudged her shoulder. "Try
it." She copied Raef. "There you go. You remember please?" She
stared up at him blankly. "Oh. Did I not show you that one? Alright,
listen, teaching manners isn't my strong suit." He circled an open palm
over his chest. "There. That's please. Now you can ask Raef to please help
you with the pancakes."

**Mink:**

Theo was quick at mimicking the signs and Raef smiled before
he snorted laughter at Goro's comment. "Everyone can learn something
new," he teased.If Theo came
away with manners after living with this group, he'd be surprised.He was pretty sure Mishka was the only
one with an idea of what those might be.

Theo made the signs, shakily, to ask for help and he helped
her flip the batter on the griddle before she hopped off the stool to retrieve
something from the fridge.When she
came back it was with a variety of small fruits - one of which he didn't have a
fucking clue what it was.

They dropped into the leftover batter.

"...you eat like your brother." Raef chuckled and
he folded the fruit into the batter.It
was going to taste horrible, but he loved it.He let Theo scoop off the other pancakes and start the next round.

She was...shit.He
sighed softly, still smiling. He made the quick sign to Goro: Thank you.

**Lina:**

Goro didn't have a clue what Raef was thanking him for, but
it reminded him of something. He pulled the braided leather wristband out of
his pocket. "Hey, uh. What was this for, anyway?"

Well, that was a stupid question. The note had said what it
was for. Goro just still didn't get it.

**Mink:**

Raef glanced over and arched an eyebrow, both amused and
confused. "For doing the wedding for me...us." He leaned a hip
against the counter, turned a little more to face Goro better.He crossed his arms just below his
chest and tapped his fingers on his elbows.'***Letters were fuckin' easier...which was why he wrote one. "...I owe***
you."

**Lina:**

"Psh. Like hell you do." Goro held the wristband
out to him. "It's not a fucking service I charge for. Wasn't a lot of skin
off my back, or anything."

**Mink:**

Raef didn't reach out for it; he didn't want it back,
whatever Goro said to try to hand it over. "I know, but I also don't
care." He switched to Elvish. "You're not going to be able to brush
this off." He smiled. "I owe you for a shit ton of things, Goro, and
you're not getting out of it."

**Lina:**

"Psh." Goro held the wristband up at eye level to
examine it again. "I mean, it's fucking great. I can tell this is the real
deal. Must've set you back a bit. Still don't think you owe me for shit, but
eh. You're a stubborn fuck."

**Mink:**

"It's part of my charming personality." Raef
grinned and he shook his head. "You keep that shit or I'll find a way to
make you."

**Lina:**

"Well, if you're gonna twist my arm." Goro gave
him a cheeky grin and slid the wristband over his hand. "Thanks."

**Mink:**

The fucker. He liked him.Raef rolled his eyes, laughing softly. "You're welcome."He glanced back down to see how Theo
was doing and he had to quickly reach in to scoop off the pancakes that were as
far from brown as they could get without smoking.

"Well...fuck." He let out a puff of air and
ruffled Theo's hair. "Hope you like syrup." Or honey.Or whatever it was going to take to make
these less dry.

**Lina:**

Goro helped Theo dish up the pancakes onto a platter, and
told her to carry it into the dining room. When she was out of earshot, he said
to Raef in a low voice, "Hey, what were you thanking me for a minute ago,
anyway? My sister's shitty pancakes?"

He was gonna fucking love those pancakes. They looked pretty
abominable, though.

**Mink:**

"Your sister's shitty pancakes are going to be fuckin'
fantastic," Raef said with a smile. He tipped the griddle into the sink;
everything could be cleaned later.

He rested back on the counter, glancing towards the door
that Theo had walked through.He
twisted his tongue in thought; Goro always asked the hard questions, and he
always touched the hard subjects.

"For coming in and doing this." He shrugged as he
splayed out a hand. "I haven't done this shit in two hundred years."
It was fucking great.

**Lina:**

Goro's face screwed up in confusion. "Making
breakfast?"

**Mink:**

"What?That
other one didn't count?" Raeflaughed
softly, not much more than a breath of air.'***His fingers squeezed his elbows, itching to reach out. "Making like***
this is a family." Goro could've very well just turned away or even told
him to scram.He didn't.He came in and made breakfast - a
burnt breakfast - with him and Theo.

**Lina:**

"Oh," Goro said, but it took him a beat longer to
really get it.

Oh.

Hell. He wasn't used to being on this side of things.
"Listen, Raef," he said, feeling awkward as fuck, but feeling like it
needed to be said. "I don't have the faintest fucking clue what a family's
really supposed to be like... I mean, you met the bitch, right? I think you can
make a lot of assumptions about my upbringing, from that alone. But, uh...
listen, what I'm trying to say is, I'm the last guy anyone should be looking to
for figuring this shit out, but if I had to, if you really pinned me down and
asked me what I thought, well, I'd say I want you in--... nah, nah, it's not
even a matter of want. You're part of my family, and that's that."

He could feel himself turning red, so he hurriedly turned
around to start searching the cabinets for syrup.

**Mink:**

That was...Raef didn't know.It wasn't what he had expected.He felt frozen in place for a moment as Goro turned to fish around
in the cabinets, face red.

He felt alternately warm and cold with...there was no
fucking word he could think of for it.Shit.

Raef hesitated before he took a step forward.He had to reach up - Goro was as
fucking tall as everyone else - to grip Goro's shoulder, turn him, and pull him
into a hug. He squeezed him as he held him.

"For what it's worth, you're fucking great at this family
shit," he mumbled, squeezing Goro again before letting him go.If he held on much longer he was going
to be right along with Goro with a too-red face and stinging eyes.

**Lina:**

"Ah. Yeesh." Goro patted Raef on the back as Raef
pulled away, then turned back around and ran a hand through his hair. What was
he doing, again? Ah, right, syrup. He became fascinated by the contents of the
cabinet again. "Thanks, I guess. Bullshit, but thanks."

**Mink:**

"Top shelf." He had seen it when he had climbed up
on the counter to get a few of the ingredients.He squeezed Goro on the shoulder one last time before turning on
his heel to walk towards the door. "You think it's bullshit, but now you're
stuck with me."

**Lina:**

"Hah. Well. Good!" Goro called after him, like it
was some kind of rebuttal. Like he'd won a damn argument. Psh.

He grabbed the syrup off the top shelf and headed into the
dining room for breakfast.

**Mink:**

[End]

**Lina:** at 11:05 AM

Title: Signs of Breakfast. Summary: Theo helps make
pancakes, while Goro and Raef teach her some Nighthand signs. The adults
awkwardly admit they think of each other as family.