Logs:Art and War

Art and War
Dramatis Personae Akihiro, Sarah
In Absentia	2020-02-04 You ever see napalm up close? Real nasty shit.
Location Chimaera Arts
Spring is continuing its head start across the city. While the wind occasionally brings a warning of chill once the sun sets, the temperature outside is currently pleasant enough that Chimaera has both doors open to let fresh air in. One of the countertops in the back kitchen has been claimed basically since early morning, taken over by bits of cardboard painted to look like the inside of a log cabin, a tripod holding a smartphone, and a teensy cast iron stove with matching cookware. While around the dollhouse stove (and presumably, the frame of the shot) is clean and neat enough, the surrounding area is less so. A few scraps of paper are taped down onto the countertop, bearing things such as 'Practice makes perfect!', 'Tiny cast iron is still hot, be careful!' and 'Hands enter into frame from here!!' with corresponding arrows. Just beyond this lies a cutting board that holds what remains of two slices of bread and a piece of cheese, both cut into smaller pieces to apparently make the handful of tiny grilled cheese sandwiches that Sarah examines now with a critical eye. Her hair is in the state it usually is when she's near the end of the project she's working on: in disarray and sticking up from her head in various directions. She wears a light gray crop-top that says 'CBC' on the front and 'Cookie Baking Crew' on the back in collegiate font and black high waisted shorts, a soft pink sweatshirt tied around her waist. After a long moment of consideration with her hands situated on her hips, Sarah finally moves to take one of the little sandwiches and put it on a blue plate that is just only bigger, carefully moving it into frame to sit on the edge of the dollhouse stove. A check of the phone screen later, she claps her hands with a small whoop and ends the recording. "That's one video done," she says to herself and whoever else is listening. “Hell Yeah.” Akihiro speaks up, stepping into the kitchen. The weather isn’t lost on him either, and instead of his normal pants he’s wearing a pair of grey cotton shorts that fall above his knees and a soft blue shirt. In his right hand he’s holding a lowball glass half full of an amber liquid. “What kind of video?” "Oh, hi!" Sarah flashes Akihiro a quick grin, before gesturing to the set-up in front of her. "I got this little cooking set-up for Christmas. I was figuring out how to start making videos with it. Want a bite?" She presents the plate and all it's contents in the palm of her hand, grabs another barely-bite-sized sandwich to pop in her mouth as she offers. "I didn't know you hang out here. Do you make anything?" “I appreciate it.” Akihiro says with a grin, tossing a bite sized sandwich back with one of his black splashed hands. “That’s pretty cool, hopefully it takes off.” Taking a swig of bourbon he lets out a small sigh. “I’m finishing up an ink painting I’ve been working on for a little while now. Can’t say I’m happy with it, but that might just be because of the subject matter.” "I don't know if I really need it to take off, you know?" Sarah asks, her head thoughtfully cocking to the side as she starts cleaning up her station. "I've just wanted to make them since I found out it was a thing. It's like a reason to play with food." Glancing at Akihiro's hands, she wets a dishcloth after depositing her few dishes into a nearby sink and offers it to him. "What's the subject matter? If you feel like talking about it." “A little ad revenue never hurt anybody.” Akihiro glances down at his hands when Sarah offers him a rag and lets out a little ‘huh’, before setting his glass down and accepting the washcloth with a “Thanks.” “I’m working on a piece about the Vietnam War. Everything I’ve seen has been patriotic, like it’s glorifying it.” He lets out a short dry chuckle and takes his glass back. “I was there, almost died a few times. Hell, wished I had at the time. You ever see napalm up close? Real nasty shit.” The ice clinks around in his drink as his gaze falls to it. “I just can’t get it right. Thinking about switching back to oil, but I haven’t touched it in decades.” The short smile Sarah offers in response to the thank you is followed by a cascade of emotions that have her eyebrows doing acrobatics. Raised slightly in attentive curiosity, jumping higher at the reminder of the seemingly young man's real age, diving down to furrow with confusion and some concern. "Um. I've heard melted sugar be compared to napalm? I can't tell you if it's true. I mean. I know it really *really* hurts to get melted sugar on your skin, but I don't have a, uh. Comparison." Turning back to her 'film set', she pulls the front of the little oven open to take out the two tea candles inside. Considering the conversation, she's especially careful not to spill any of the wax before gently blowing out the small flames. "I've never worked with oils, either. But if you don't pick it up now, it might be more... decades before you do. Then what?" “They both stick, but napalm burns underwater.” Akihiro says, eyes not making contact with Sarah as he remembers it. “The flechettes didn’t make it any better, got nailed to a tree once.” Giving his head a firm shake he lets out another small sigh. “You’ve got a point. There’s more wiggle room with it anyway.” He manages to offer the younger woman a smile despite the macabre topic, “I wanted to be an artist when I was younger. No time like the present, right?” "It's not like you're exactly old now," Sarah points out, visibly glad to be on to different topics. She's even more careful than she was with the candles when she turns the camera off and takes it from it's tripod. "And I'm glad to be able to tell you that if you're making art, it makes you an artist. Congratulations," she tells him with a smile. “Not by elf standards maybe.” Akihiro finishes off his drink and head over to wash the cup. “Maybe by the time I’m two hundred I’ll be a decent artist at least, but we always judge ourselves the harshest, eh?” He looks over his shoulder to shoot Sarah a small grin. At the elf remark, Sarah's head jerks up. Akihiro's back is on the receiving end of a suspicious stare that hasn't quite faded when he grins at her. "What do you mean, *elf* standards?" she asks, arms defensively crossing over her chest. “Tolkien?” Akihiro replies, clearly not sure how he hit a nerve. “I’m almost as old as his books.” He reaches up to scratch at the back of his head. “You’d think I’d’ve learned to talk to people by now.” "Oh!" Sarah's arms suddenly drop back to her sides to hang awkwardly, her face flooding red. "No, you didn't... I'm sorry. I thought you were making a short joke. I didn't even think about Lord of the Rings. That makes a lot more sense." Attempting a nervous laugh, she turns to finish breaking down her set. "I'd like to see the painting you're working on, unless you'd rather wait until it's done or something." “I’d of called you a hobbit if that were the case,” Akihiro says, his grin returning now that he feels slightly less awkward. “I should get around to watching the movies. Should’ve watched them when they came out.” When his piece is mentioned he lifts his shoulders in a small shrug, “It’s a little... macabre, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt anything.”