"You can thank me by enjoying the food!" And with that, Chouji disappears into the kitchen.
He dishes out a couple bowls of beef stew, one of them a very large bowl, then places them on a tray and fills in the space around them with bread, cheese, a couple apples, and some plums. Simple it is; Chouji has never liked anything too complicated, and while his main love is junk food, he's never met a food he doesn't like unless it's been ruined by its cook. From the kitchen, he calls out, "Is there anything you'd like to drink? Milk, juice, water, tea?"
"That I can do!" She'll wait for him pretty patiently. After all, she doesn't mind waiting.
And simple absolutely works for Prim, too. She's never met a food she's complained about, since she went hungry for so long - though some of it just seems overdone to her, she'll eat anything that gets put in front of her, and thank people for it. But there are options here, and she's allowed to say what she prefers or doesn't prefer.
It's strange, but she's getting used to it. That's why it's easy to respond, too. "Water or tea is fine - tea if it's made, but water if it's not."
"No tea brewed, but I keep water hot," he answers as he carries their meal back out of the kitchen. He's added a teapot with green tea and a couple small cups to the tray. Just let it steep before you pour. I guess if you'd like cream or sugar I can go get those."
Chouji deposits the tray on an empty neighboring table so it doesn't take over all of theirs. He takes the larger bowl for himself and gives Prim the smaller, sets out two plates, and sits back down. "Normally there are wait staff, and I spend a little more time in the kitchen, but... it's been a strange couple days." He looks mildly worried for a moment before he smiles at Prim again. "I'm grateful for the company."
"Oh, I'm fine without." She doesn't want to put him to the trouble. And besides, Prim's never taken cream or sugar in her tea. They never had it to spare. And the tea already seems a little different, just from the scent. There was never money at home for good tea. Just what Prim and her mother could make from drying their own herbs and steeping it. Sometimes water with flavor, however weak, was better than nothing to fool them into thinking they were full.
On automatic Prim begins to arrange her things, unrolling her silverware from her napkin and spreading said napkin over her lap. At the mention of a strange couple of days, she nods. "It's...a little hectic. I have to admit I'm having a hard time being as entirely cavalier as some people, but...I understand this sort of thing happens rather a lot?"
Chouji has never gone hungry. He is the heir to a fairly well-off clan, always more prone to overindulgence than deprivation. The intensity of his appreciation of food is due entirely to a mix of his clan's philosophy and techniques his own disposition. So while he values food highly, has more use for it than most, he would not understand Prim's view of it. Not through experience, at least.
"I haven't been here long enough to shrug things off yet, but that's what I've heard too. This is only the second time since I arrived." Unless you count the draft, but Chouji doesn't. That wasn't strange or incomprehensible. He was at war, like he was at war at home. The rules had shifted, and he didn't have the luxury of fighting for his own people and homeland, but Chouji still wanted to protect whoever he could here.
"You're newer than I am, then? How are you holding up?"
Maybe someday they'll talk about food and their views on it. For now, though, Prim looks to what Chouji said to her, and asked.
"I've only been here since May first. I'm not sure if that's newer or not, but...that's how long it's been. I think it's newer, since the wings were my first thing." Her first event, she means. She's curious about the other one, and about all the ones to come before it, really. What has Katniss lived through? "What was your first?"
"I got here in mid-March. The first one... I wasn't really affected, but it was sort of like everyone was suddenly characters in a really badly written movie or book. They were all acting strange, and none of it made any sense."
Chouji is curious too. His teammates have been here so long without him, after all. He knows that even if they did give him a briefing and let him know what to watch out for, they've glossed over the worst of whatever they've gone through here. They don't want him to worry about them, of course, but that's part of being a team: concern for teammates, wanting to help them, care for them. That feeling is even stronger than usual right now.
"That sounds...well, weird. I know people are acting differently now, but..." Prim shrugs. It at least makes some sense: something about a new spirit. And it doesn't seem like a badly written book or anything. "I wonder if every experiment like this changes how people act...?"
Obviously people would act differently if something surprising happened, but...this was changing people's natures.
"I'm not sure. I don't remember whether the guide went into more specifics, but we could check. A lot of them probably do, but I bet there's some that do other things." What other things, Chouji doesn't actually know. "There could be physical changes instead of behavior sometimes."
He isn't that fond of this aspect himself, but at least... "I don't think this one has changed the way I act too much. What about you?"
He takes a few bites of his lunch while he waits for Prim to answer. Food, as always, is a pleasant distraction from worrying. When Prim eats, Chouji is careful to watch for her reaction, hoping that she likes the meal.
Prim's taking a bite of her stew when the question comes, but she takes the time to chew and swallow before answering, rather than getting flustered. She's a bit cautious just in case it's too hot, but she clearly likes the flavor. A+, Chouji.
"I don't think I've changed much, either. I guess...if anything, I'm worried about people even more than usual, but...I haven't wanted to do anything I wouldn't normally want to do, if that makes sense."
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He dishes out a couple bowls of beef stew, one of them a very large bowl, then places them on a tray and fills in the space around them with bread, cheese, a couple apples, and some plums. Simple it is; Chouji has never liked anything too complicated, and while his main love is junk food, he's never met a food he doesn't like unless it's been ruined by its cook. From the kitchen, he calls out, "Is there anything you'd like to drink? Milk, juice, water, tea?"
no subject
And simple absolutely works for Prim, too. She's never met a food she's complained about, since she went hungry for so long - though some of it just seems overdone to her, she'll eat anything that gets put in front of her, and thank people for it. But there are options here, and she's allowed to say what she prefers or doesn't prefer.
It's strange, but she's getting used to it. That's why it's easy to respond, too. "Water or tea is fine - tea if it's made, but water if it's not."
So as to not put him to any trouble for it...
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Chouji deposits the tray on an empty neighboring table so it doesn't take over all of theirs. He takes the larger bowl for himself and gives Prim the smaller, sets out two plates, and sits back down. "Normally there are wait staff, and I spend a little more time in the kitchen, but... it's been a strange couple days." He looks mildly worried for a moment before he smiles at Prim again. "I'm grateful for the company."
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On automatic Prim begins to arrange her things, unrolling her silverware from her napkin and spreading said napkin over her lap. At the mention of a strange couple of days, she nods. "It's...a little hectic. I have to admit I'm having a hard time being as entirely cavalier as some people, but...I understand this sort of thing happens rather a lot?"
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"I haven't been here long enough to shrug things off yet, but that's what I've heard too. This is only the second time since I arrived." Unless you count the draft, but Chouji doesn't. That wasn't strange or incomprehensible. He was at war, like he was at war at home. The rules had shifted, and he didn't have the luxury of fighting for his own people and homeland, but Chouji still wanted to protect whoever he could here.
"You're newer than I am, then? How are you holding up?"
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"I've only been here since May first. I'm not sure if that's newer or not, but...that's how long it's been. I think it's newer, since the wings were my first thing." Her first event, she means. She's curious about the other one, and about all the ones to come before it, really. What has Katniss lived through? "What was your first?"
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Chouji is curious too. His teammates have been here so long without him, after all. He knows that even if they did give him a briefing and let him know what to watch out for, they've glossed over the worst of whatever they've gone through here. They don't want him to worry about them, of course, but that's part of being a team: concern for teammates, wanting to help them, care for them. That feeling is even stronger than usual right now.
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Obviously people would act differently if something surprising happened, but...this was changing people's natures.
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He isn't that fond of this aspect himself, but at least... "I don't think this one has changed the way I act too much. What about you?"
He takes a few bites of his lunch while he waits for Prim to answer. Food, as always, is a pleasant distraction from worrying. When Prim eats, Chouji is careful to watch for her reaction, hoping that she likes the meal.
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"I don't think I've changed much, either. I guess...if anything, I'm worried about people even more than usual, but...I haven't wanted to do anything I wouldn't normally want to do, if that makes sense."