010 - Video

[sociallychallenged]

Video - August 4th

[Hank is looking frazzled as he turns on the camera, pokegear positioned in front of him on his desk. He has no idea how to approach a plan, honestly? Connor's birthday is this month, he never talks about his friends so he's not sure who they are, he doesn't know who to invite. Maybe he'll just tell Connor to tell them to come over?]

[Fuck he doesn't know. But here it goes. He's scratching his head and messing his hair up in the process.]

Okay, I have no fuckin' idea how to cook. I'm shit at it. I need someone to show me how to at least bake something in the next couple of weeks, alright? I'll pay.

[A cake made by him would be optimal. It won't be pretty, but it'd be the effort that counts. He supposes if he wrecks the thing he could go get a nice one from a store at the last moment.]

Also uh... last month while I was with Shadowmaru we ran into some Rockets. [Honestly it ended up being the highlight of his week. He's pretty sure that people aren't supposed to fight Rockets the way they did but it felt fucking great. Plus, you know, skinny funky-haired ninja being fucking impressive. That's a good show.] And the Jennies took 'em into custody. They got back to me and they think one of the pokemon they had was from that Prom that was attacked. Ambrose.

So Armin you can probably give 'em a ring and claim him.

[He hasn't even heard about the awesome dog he missed yet. Though his awesome dog leans in with its giant muzzle and snuffles his messed up hair.]

Comments

[schachmeister]

R-really? You found him?

[Telling Hank and Shadowmaru about Ambrose has been a long shot. He honestly hadn't had high hopes after how long it had been. But did they really just pull it off?! Can he have his pokemon back?]

[sociallychallenged]

Yup. It was a long-shot, really. [And more dumb luck that they happened upon him.] The Jennies remembered all the descriptions and were able to recognize him in the recovered pokemon pretty quick.

[schachmeister]

[Dumb luck or not, this is very excellent news.]

I'll go pick him up as soon as I can. Hopefully he'll still recognise me...

[But more importantly!]

Please. I'd like to repay you for what you did for me. Name your price.

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[sassymaru]

You certainly know how to show someone a good time.

[Shadowmaru... don't. Do that.]

[sociallychallenged]

Hey, I am nothing if not a good host when it comes to a fight.

[Hey, Hank has a super soft spot for badass robot twinks. Shadowmaru's 100% proven himself in his book.]

If you can give that sort of performance in your other form, I'd fuckin' love to see that.

[sassymaru]

It was, perhaps, the most familiar situation I've found myself in since my arrival.

[... hey Hank what's a twink.]

I certainly can. With far more flair, I assure you.

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[haveyouseenalittlegirl]

I've baked enough cookies or birthday cakes to know the basics.

[Poor, single dad life also means you learn to cook.]

What are you trying to bake?

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[sociallychallenged]

A uh...

A cake. Yeah. Birthday cake. [It's not really a surprise.]

I always just bought 'em before. Now I figure I need to dot he personal touch thing. And I'm good at making what's sort of like pudding with a brown exterior.

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[haveyouseenalittlegirl]

I think we all start out like that.

The first cake I tried to make, was somehow both burnt and under cooked at the same time.

Luckily, it's not that hard to learn. What kind of cake were you thinking of making?

[video]

[paladinlost]

Fear not! I'd never cooked beyond grilling meat over a fire pit before I found myself in this world, and now I can serve homemade dishes to my guests with pride. I've no doubt you'll learn how to prepare meals just as well.

[He'd like to offer to help, but first...]

Why do you wish to learn baking first? do you have a specific recipe in mind?

[video]

[sociallychallenged]

Yeah, I got an idea of what I want. Sorta.

Someone's birthday is coming up, and I wanna do somethin' special. You know. And try not to fuck it up.

[video]

[paladinlost]

A birthday cake, then? In that case, let me share an easy tip: use Blissey eggs. Not only is their quality excellent, but they also restore the energy of whoever eats them and bring them happiness.

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[liv_nye_the_science_pi]

There are basic mixes in most stores that come with instructions. Or is this the kind of situation where you manage to burn water?

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[sociallychallenged]

I've got a basic skill set, so I'm a little above burning water. I'm just hopin' I can do a little better than basic if I got some help. But every time I go higher than box level I don't know, I manage to get myself turned around and fuck it up.

The times I've gotten it 'right' technically it still isn't the best.

I don't wanna give up on it this time, though. I wanna push through.

[That said he is still prepared to buy a cake if he has to.]

[liv_nye_the_science_pi]

Hm, I'm told the thought typically counts most in this type of situation, so if you're really stuck on getting help a higher-end box mix might be best.

[Liv manages to not eat terribly, but when left to her own devices it's a lot of nutrition shakes and cereal and ramen, she's probably not the best to ask about this.]

Your timeline is a couple weeks, correct?

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[cyclonely]

It looks like you already have some people offering to help you so I don't know whether or not you still need any tips but I have a decent amount of baking knowledge! Not as much as my...

[He visibly stalls out. It's dumb to have the conversation about weird SBURB stuff every time but what does he even call Jane without it? It takes 6 whole frowning seconds before he settles on:] ...cousin...but I still know what I am doing! Even without a cake mix, I promise. Uh...preferably without a cake mix, actually.

[sociallychallenged]

I'm still open to any advice.

[He notices the stall. And just because it seems fair to check (perhaps old lingering cop inclinations), he goes ahead and asks-]

Everything alright there? You sounded distracted.

[lifebloomsanew]

Oh there are videos online to learn how to cook! They're wonderful!

And it sounds like you've done something wonderful, too!

[sociallychallenged]

I think we did good. Sort of.

[He did throw a pokeball into a guy's face.]

I've watched a few videos. [He's going to try some muffins first because those he feels okay splitting up between pokemon.] I just want some personal input, too. Who knows who's mom has the best fuckin' birthday cake recipe out there, you know?

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[colorpalatable]

Heeeey, someone at the crazy seance camp told me about the Rockets! What were they like?

[sociallychallenged]

He posed a lot and gave a nefarious speech.

Well, one did. The other just stood there, I guess he was lettin' the other one be a distraction while he prepped up.

Good show, though. I'll give the guy that.

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[plasticasshole]

[It's the end of Connor's shift at the PokeCenter and he's come home with Crockett in tow, who beeps happily to see Hank. Connor gives Hank a tired smile and goes over to kiss him, smiling in that way he does when he knows something.]

How was your day?

[He'd seen Hank's video on his break, and immediately figured out what his boyfriend was up to. So now he's all pleased to think that he wants to learn to bake for him.]

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[sociallychallenged]

[Hank still smells like flour when Connor finds him for that kiss, because he's been mid-cupcake attempt. There's some flour on his sleeve he's not managed to dust off. Now he's been introduced to the concept of using Pokemon centric ingredients, too, and his mind is blown.]

[He's practicing with the basics now, though.]

Hey, how'd work go?

[He knows Connor knows what he's planning. He made no effort to hide it. It seems useless to, since he feels like if he's not open about it, he'd just be disappointing.]

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[alittleobsessed]

What are you trying to bake? I'll try to help out as much as I can! I'm not the best at it, but I've done it a few times.

[Tried to, at least.]

And who are the Rockets?

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[sociallychallenged]

A cake. I figured I'd just try the recipes with cupcakes and muffins or something small first.

[He does not have a lot of hope for this working out. The chances are greater that he'll bellow and throw the flour out a window than produce a truly delicious cake.]

They're a gang of Pokemon thieves. They show up, try to steal pokemon. They usually challenge you to a Pokemon battle but uh...

I got impatient.

Mighta thrown a pokeball in a guy's face.