Although she has been spending more time away from the kitchen recently, but she's always there to prepare and serve the main meals of the day. Today was no different. This morning she set out large stacks of bantha-butter pancakes and her version of "Besalisk's Bellyful" hash.

Raven was among the early risers of the Enclave, and today the tantalizing scent of butter being used for cooking drew her to the kitchen area.

"Something smells awfully good," she remarked as she poked her head in, helmet on her hip rather than on her head.

A sour-looking, clearly still sleepy face slowly trots into the dining hall. Within the Enclave, the helmet was off, hanging from their belt, showing what was today a spiky, scarlet and blue mohawk.

Their head tilts sideways and down before they scan the room - forcing them to shift their eyes slightly upward while doing so. The end result is almost as if the sleepy Eldar was showing scorn to the room itself.

They stretch slowly, crack some joints. The throaty, mid-pitch voice then breaks the silence.

"Ya ne'er stop that, do ya?" They sound almost annoyed as they look at the plates.
"And it's always got ta smell so good too." A compliment, maybe? Still sounded annoyed though.

Haat looks around, greets Raven with a nod. "Vaar'tur, cyare* one", they say with a snarky smile before turning to see what else there might be around ready for the taking. Hopefully some Caf? Or they might have to make some...

"Why d'ya do it, eh?" The voice towards Rook was calmer, kind of, but still sounded a bit like a challenge.

------
*'Morning, popular'
The other weird words are mostly Huttese thrown in, I'm assuming Haat just doesn't notice (or care) others don't necessarily understand it!

"Pancakes and hash." Rook said to Raven as Haat entered. "Eat your fill, there's plenty to go around. There's some wroshyr syrup, too."

Turning to Haat, she smiled. "Because I can. My blaster and blade skills still need a lot of work, but I'm good at this. I can keep the enclave well fed and in good spirit."

They look at the food again as if judging it, their head now tilting upwards as if to look at them from above (as if that wasn't a given already since they were standing up). "So ya mean we'll get tougher by eating pancakes then?"

A scoff. The tongue touching their lips was part of it and not a sign of appetite, surely. As if not entirely sure it wouldn't be "mistaken" for a craving, they turn around to get some things done.

"A full belly's all good and nice and cozy. Much better than the alternative, anyway", they say, their voice covered here and there by the sounds of water boiling, steel cups clinging and the general process of getting Caf prepared. "But a banquet won't get d'imperiolos to kark neechu, ya know? Unless that hash's gon choke their hoopas."

Rude or not, they soon return with three cuppas, placing them on the table with a thud each before they help themselves to a pancake.

"Ack... ibic bid jate!*", they say half to themselves, clearly pleased with the food despite all the attitude.

-----
*That so good!

She shrugged. "Tougher? Probably not. Sated and more energetic? Yes. Mealgrain may be more traditional, but it has limits."

"Vaar'tu, Haat," Raven greeted in return, meeting the smirk with a sincere smile of her own. As the other two began to chat, she helped herself to some of the pancakes and hashbrowns.

"Beats living off of scraps, or rationbars for that matter. I'll take these homecooked meals over that any day, to be honest."

They heard both answers and answered, at first, only with a shrug. Whatever they thought of the women's words, the plate itself sure seemed to be convincing to them.

Half the pancake had been gobbled down already when they lifted their eyes to meet Raven and Rook's again. "Well. Won't complain, it is a hearty meal." Another shrug. "Just shouldn't let ourselves be getting spoiled", they add - ironically just as they reach for some 'Besalisk's Bellyful'.

"Saaaah. Been busy a few days.", they start, munching again. "D'imperiolos ready ta get their behinds whacked yet?"

The impudence might first sound as imprudence, but knowing them, they were more likely to be hiding some worry than boasting.

"I think it will happen soon. They definitely won't ignore us for much longer."

"Yeah," Raven agreed with a touch of seriousness to her tone, pausing only to chew and swallow her food before speaking again. "It's not like the Empire to ignore a threat for too long. Especially not when they are already after us... I suspect they might be taking precautions and their leader is being thorough in this task."

The answers bring a sneering grimace to the Eldar's face. They take a bite of the hash, chew it pensive and purposefully.

"They damn right to see us as a threat", they finally say with a sneer that is, again, likely to be hiding more behind it.

"And we are taking our own precautions. Serim*? They'll regret comin' olar** soon.

Another bite.

"The wermos in New Hope oughtta stand with us too, eh? Princess Raven here's been seein' ta it I heard?"

--------
* 'Right?'
** here

She bit her lip at the mention of the colonists. "We've been getting ready. The Imps will regret going up against us. I'm not sure about New Hope. I wouldn't want to see them caught in the crossfire."

Princess?? Raven blinked a few times, caught frozen for a couple of seconds with food not quite reaching her mouth yet. Nobody had called her princess, and she wasn't sure if Haat was just teasing her or actually mocking her...

"New Hope will get pulled into the mess, one way or another," she finally managed to say, putting the food back down on her plate. "Imps won't tolerate leaving them be, especially not if they suspect them of aiding us, is my guess. Having them on our side will require us helping them out, but hopefully that will also benefit us in the long run - they got resources we don't, simple as that."

"I know." She nodded. "They'll raze a city to silence a few dissidents. I just don't want to see it again."

The moments Raven took to react did not seem to go unnoticed, as a smug smile forming on Haat's lips suggested. But they didn't force things. Not now at least.

"Gar serim*, of course." They then turn to face Yorrick. "But it's as vod Raven says - they'll be pulled in one way or another." The smug smile distorts into something like a defiant grin.

"Ya know how ya avoid being caught in the crossfire? Ya learn ta shoot. And better than the Imps. We'll help, sure. But they must be able to stand with, and stand for themselves, is what I think."

"I don't think we can expect them to get on 'our level' in terms of fighting skills," Raven shrugged. She had seen good fighters outside of the Mandalorians, some she wish were here now, but expecting regular settlers to match them would be something else entirely. "I totally agree that they need to pull their load too, you know, and not just hide behind us. Just thinking we should match our expectations accordingly, yeah?"

"It's a matter of expectations." she nodded. "If we expect the Empire to go through them to get to us, they need to be fully aware of that, and given the opportunity to do whatever they feel is necessary to protect themselves. Maybe that's fighting. Maybe that's running or hiding. That's up to them."