[THD][Alexandria] tick tick boom - Eva

It had been awhile since Amanj had been in Alexandria. He loved Egypt, loved getting the chance to see family and old friends here. Despite the fact that he was not on good terms with his father, he had cousins and aunts and uncles who still liked seeing him every few months to know he hadn't killed himself on some reckless adventure. Currently, he was staying with an old childhood friend and plying an old trade of his.

Potion making was far from Amanj's passion, but it passed the time and provided a way to earn some easy income on the side. He didn't do any black market stuff, mostly sticking to perfumes and completely cosmetic potions, like the ones that grew out hair or changed its color or texture. He liked the idea that the things he made with his own hands made people feel pretty or better about their looks.

When people had the opportunity to watch him craft, they were always a little amazed. Being blind, Amanj did everything a little bit differently than other wizards and potion making was no exception. For instance, he couldn't see the way a potion might change color or start to bubble more rapidly so he had to figure out other ways to tell when a batch was ready for another ingredient or when it was finished. He didn't like to divulge his secrets. The Iranian wizard thought his own particular skill set gave him an edge over others. But he didn't mind if people watched, especially if they were suitably impressed by his skill and also inclined to be amazed.

Amanj knew the moment something went wrong in his ever-scent perfume mixture. His friend had sworn the cauldron was cold iron but it seemed that he was mistaken. As soon as Amanj added the verbena, the pot suddenly went hot. He swore Arabic and dove for cover just as the cauldron shot a jet of boiling liquid into the air in an explosion of steam.

"I told him the pot had to be cold iron!" Amanj grumbled as he crawled out from under a table. "I told him very clearly!"

@Eva

Sometimes, Eva really wished Elaine lived somewhere more interesting. Eva left England for months at a time and only ever came back because her longest friendship - her strongest tether - lived in England. If it were up to her, Eva would prefer for Elaine to just ditch her home city and move around a lot with her. As it was, however, Eva spent most of her time away from her friend and in the company of a diverse and ever changing range of people. At the moment, she was heading home from the shops to the place she was staying with her friend and sometimes lover, Amanj Namdar.

The rainbow-haired girl took the steps up to their current place two at a time before pushing the door open. “I bought some wine…” The girl trailed off as she stepped inside, taking stock of the mess. “Wow, Namdar, I thought you were good at potion making.” Eva watched as he got up out from under the table, mentioning something about cauldron types. Eva dropped her backpack onto the ground unceremoniously and went over to him. “Still smells pretty good though,” she commented, putting her hands on his chest and giving him a quick, affectionate kiss on the lips before moving away again. Eva had always been very tactile with Amanj, even before their friendship had crossed various lines into more sexual territory.

She hadn't met up with this particular friend for probably almost a year now, but Eva had always found it easy to fall back together with people she hadn't seen in a long time. There were a lot of them, she thought. Eva didn't stay in one place too long. The girl flitted away, unpacking the things she’d bought from the shops. “Don’t worry lover, we can get a cold iron cauldron tomorrow. What were you thinking of for food?”

Amanj made a semi-rude gesture at Eva's teasing, returning the kiss with equal amounts of affection. They were mates first, lovers second. He'd always loved how very physical she was with him, besides the very physical things they sometimes got up to. Being blind, Amanj liked indulging his other senses whenever he could and touch was one of his favorites. He knew that he and Eva could snuggle, cuddle, kiss, and it didn't have to lead to them in bed. It could just be affection without expectation. Not that he minded being in her bed, but he and Eva were almost too much alike. They were both wanderers, lovers, free spirits. Eva belonged to herself, and possibly to @Elaine Morgan who seemed to always pull Eva back to England eventually. Since even Amanj had ties that bound him to places and times, he understood it.

"Good. I could use some wine," he told her with a charming smile. He picked up his staff from where it had been leaning against the wall, pounding the copper-shod end against the floor as he chanted an incantation. The mess boiled away and the cauldron righted itself. The ceiling had a weird stain on it, but Amanj literally couldn't see it so he didn't bother to fix it. He helped pull things from bags, leaving the arranging of said items to Eva. "I'm not sure about food," he remarked, pulling a bag of dates from a cabinet and throwing a small handful into his mouth. He chewed thoroughly before speaking again, grabbing two wine glasses down from a high shelf. "Are you wishful for any kind of food in particular? I could try my hand at making us something but right now I don't know if I could bear another disaster at my hands."

Eva picked up the wine bottle again and pressed it into his hands so he could pour them each a glass. "I'll make a curry or something," She said, pulling some of the vegetables she'd bought out of the bag and placing them on the bench. "Can you pass me a knife?" One thing Eva had learned in her travels was not to underestimate people or make judgements about them based on trivial things, like whether or not they could see, for example. Amanj was just as capable as any sighted person she'd spent time with. Magic helped, she supposed, just like it did with all kinds of different physical ailments.

Eva took the knife and started cutting up some of the vegetables, humming happily to herself. The girl passed some of the work to her friend, instinctively touching him on the arm when she approached. Amanj was attentive as a lover, probably moreso than most other people she'd been with. He allowed her space and freedom whenever they were together but was affectionate and passionate at the right moments. She liked spending time with him, but they'd never really be together in any sort of committed capacity. Eva thought that there was maybe some lack of danger here that made their relationship nice and fun but not quite as exciting as she preferred. Something that kept them as friends who did things rather than lovers first.

Amanj poured the wine, handing one glass to Eva while he kept the other. One of the things most people seemed to have the hardest time understanding was that Amanj's blindness didn't make him helpless. He was a fully-functioning wizard, able to cast spells and live his life exactly how he wanted to. The one thing that could make the easy-going man frustrated was pity. He wasn't some broken thing just because his eyes no longer functioned like others did. Eva, though, had never treated him like that. From the first moment that they'd met, she'd never acted like his blindness defined who he was or what he was capable of. It was what he loved most about her. That, and the little noises she made when he bit the place where he shoulder met her neck.

He handed her a knife, hilt first, a slow smile blooming on his face. "Curry, huh? How about we experiment a little?" He offered, chopping up the onions. Since his eyes were almost always closed, he didn't suffer from the tears most people got doing this task. "Remember that night we tried to figure out what the most boring food is? And you said it was plain white rice and I said it was mashed potatoes? We should put that to the test. Curry over rice and over mashed potatoes and we'll see which is better. Everything is improved with a little spice..."

He began searching through the cabinets for the rice, finding it with ease. "We can even make it a bet if you want. Make it even more exciting, yes?"Amanj never squandered a chance to make things more interesting. "If the curry fails to help the mashed potatoes and I win, then you get on a magic carpet with me." Amanj's carpet rides were notorious for being wild and life-threatening. Going flying with a blind man was not for the faint of heart. "And what shall you get if you win?"

Eva snorted. "I never said that," she said, not knowing whether it was true or not. Elaine always said she had a terrible memory. "Curry over mashed potatoes sounds like a disaster," The girl tied her hair up in a haphazard messy ponytail, shaking her head even though she knew he couldn't see her. The young woman cut the vegetables and separated them accordingly, then set aside some potatoes just for mashing. Mashing the potatoes the manual way, Eva watched him move around the kitchen with mild interest.

When the potatoes were done, Eva moved up behind him, putting her hands on his waist and slipping them under his shirt a little. "You don't have to goad me into it," she said, teasing the words into his skin with soft lips. Their height was almost matching, so she had access to the curve of his neck easily. "You know I'll come with you." Eva slipped out of reach again, heading back to the stove. The potatoes were done. The rainbow-haired girl picked up a small ball of the mushy substance with her bare hand and went back to him.

"Isn't it good?" she said, mashing the glob right on his mouth. Eva laughed, expecting some kind of retaliation. Rather than let him do something to her, Eva quickly leant up and kissed him right on his mashed-potato mouth. In moments, both of them were covered in potatoes.

Amanj chuckled. "Perhaps. Does that mean you're not willing to give it a try?" He was teasing her, but then found himself being teased in return. The Iranian wizard groaned softly at the sensation of hands on his stomach and lips on his neck. Then Eva was flitting away like a butterfly and he couldn't help but smile and shake his head. "I should have known you'd be game for anything." He loved her adventurousness and how unafraid of life she was. People were too careful, in his opinion. People needed to let loose sometimes, give up control and let the world take them on a ride. He liked when the world let him and Eva spend time in each other's company.

He made a playful face as the mashed potatoes were pushed into his mouth. Eva was right to expect some kind of retaliation, and there was a fair-sized glob of potatoes in his hand when she kissed him. He still trailed the squishy substance down her back as his hand made its way across her skin to give her pert butt a quick squeeze. "You definitely make the potatoes better," he teased, kissing back. He lifted her up onto the table, leaving her there to grab them both bowls of curry. Amanj dug in, humming appreciatively.

"I miss your cooking," he told her, pressing a spicy kiss to her potato-covered cheek. "You must come spend some time with me at the circus. You can be in my act. I need a pretty thing to throw knives at." He settled between her legs, cuddling her while they ate. "You can bring your English girl, too. Use it as an excuse to take her out of that drab country and just never take her back."

The tall woman let him lift her onto the bench. They had always been very tactile together, and him settling in between her legs was comfortable. It felt natural, even if she was covered in food.

Eva glanced up when he mentioned her english girl. She didn't talk about her much, but she must have talked about her with Amanj. Eva turned her attention back to the food, eating thoughfully. She wondered sometimes what life would have been like if she'd gone to hogwarts instead of durmstrang. He was right about her wanting to take Elaine away and never take her home. Elaine was always up for an adventure - sometimes even months at a time, though it had been a long time since they'd been away together for a substantial amount of time. Last time she'd been away from England for almost a year Elaine had been angry at her. Angry for staying away. Angry for not writing. Eva could see why. Elaine didn't want to feel like Eva grouped her in with other lovers or other friends. Really, Elaine wasn't anything like anyone else. Her place in Eva's life and her heart was entirely unique.

"I could be a pretty thing," she said softly, licking the last of the sauce from her fork. "I'd let you throw knives at me." Joining the circus, huh? It was a bit of a cliche, but she supposed it would be one that she'd fit. After a moment, she put her bowl down beside her and stole a little rice from her lover's bowl with the tip of her fork. "Want to have a shower?" she asked.

Amanj chuckled as he ate, not minding that Eva ate from his bowl. He was always happy to share with his friends, most of whom were closer than most of his family. "You are a pretty thing," he averred. "Pretty beautiful, pretty wild, pretty unpredictable." He was smiling, happy to compliment her. He loved these things about Eva, as he loved her. Amanj was lucky that his love lacked the inherent possessiveness that seemed to be so prominent in many relationships. He was happy to have Eva to himself, but he was just as happy to share in her time and affection. His lovers all belonged to themselves and he was not one to hold on too tightly. That could easily suffocate a relationship. He and Eva were such good friends because they could separate and come back like no time had passed, ready to share their stories with each other.

"A shower sounds nice," he agreed. "Besides, I do not think my friend would appreciate us getting potatoes all over his carpet." Oh, they were going on that carpet ride. Eva was probably one of the few people brave or mad enough to let a blind man fly them around at high speeds. Amanj grabbed his staff, tapping the butt on the floor. The dishes began to clean themselves up. He held out an arm to Eva, ready to escort her to the shower. "Would you like to shower first, or do you think we can both fit in together? Either way, I'll let you decide how to style my hair." Most of his friends liked playing with his outlandish Mohawk. Today, it was a pale lavender fading to pure white at the ends.

"Hmm." Eva tilted her head to the side, watching him as he complimented her. He was so free with words like this. So giving. She wondered what a more committed relationship with him would be like. There were things that he understood about relationship models that she didn't think mane people did. What did commitment look like when "commitment" didn't equal "monogamy"? When "fidelity" and "infidelity" had different meanings? Eva wondered what a life at his side would look like; what lovers they'd share or what kind of relationship structures they'd build. Briefly, she entertained the idea of raising children in a relationship of more than two loving people. Eva had long since decided she didn't want to ever have children, but the idea of a family like that existing made her happy. She wanted to see it, if not be a part of it.

Eva kissed her friend on the lips, placing a feather-light kiss just after the longer one. "We can fit," she said, teasing the words against his lips. The rainbow-haired girl slipped her hand into his free one and made her way to the bathroom. Shower first, then whatever else later. The food on her skin was making her uncomfortable. "I'll let you style mine too," she said lightly, smiling at him. She was sure he'd hear the smile in her voice, even if he couldn't hear it.