thepiemakerstouch

[thepiemakerstouch]

((Announcing my retirement))

And that’s all I really have to say about that, but if you want the nuts and bolts of it, you can read on:

When I initially got into RP, I was a student (for the second time) and I had a lot of free time. I was able to do really thoughtful replies and participate in complex storylines and make fanart and do little fics and drabbles here and there. I’ll miss it terribly. Time to do really good character writing has gotten so reduced since getting my certificate. Like…at first, I had a lot of spare time. But then I started doing school and a part-time internship, so the time was cut again. And then I had classes and 2 part-time internships. And then I had a job with very light, entry-level duties and that allowed me to make responses in my downtime. And now I have a job with a lot of responsibilities that require my full attention. Or, at least, more attention than I can give to RP (indeed, the only reason I feel safe writing this is because I’m between case reviews). And when I go home, I try my best to unwind from the day so I can exercise for a few hours (30 pound weight loss, whoo hoo!). And I’m usually chasing bands or being a pirate on the weekend.

So, I am going to say it now: I will no longer be RPing here or probably on any of my character accounts. And for this, I am sorry. I wish I could have been a better partner to everyone who took the time to message me and plot with me.

But I feel that I have come a very long way in my second career, and I am glad for all the positive changes in my life. I won’t say RP was a contributing factor to those changes but you know what? It’s fun. And it’s one of the most useful tools for pretty much any kind of storytelling, so I encourage you all to stick with it. You’re talented. You’re creative. And as long as you’re having fun, you should keep it up. Apologies to the threads I have to drop:

alaulachevalier, iremembereveryonethatleaves, blindeyedmastermind

Many thanks to all and special thanks to:

sodoffyabuggers – My gateway drug. Some of my favorite threads were written with you and I think you’ve really developed Worth into something special.

murderbynecessity – I feel like you really showed me the ropes of RP when I first started, and since these lessons came from you, they are invaluable. I got the best start possible because of you. You’re a terrific RP partner and writer.

amightyfinewoman – I’ll see you on Sunday. Thanks for writing and really being the first to forge an important relationship with one of my characters.

averyrook – Thank you so much for all the threads and goofiness and good writing tips. You’re amazing, and I love what you’ve been doing lately with your boys.

traveled-little-prince – Thanks so much for writing and really bringing out emotions in an otherwise very cold character (not Ned, of course). You’ve got such a good handle on one of my favorite fictional characters of all time. You’re lovely.

lokibrotherofthor122 – Thanks so much for sticking with me. I am really grateful that your Loki was Ned’s first friend. An unlikely duo, to be sure, and makes no sense in canon, but it makes me so happy. Thank you for writing.

derelictsoldier – Thanks for always reaching out, regardless of which character I happen to be writing.

zhatdoktor – You’ve come such a long way! Your writing has improved by leaps and bounds! I know you were bit nervous at first because of your grammar, but with all the practice you’ve been getting, you were able to make adjustments and do better for yourself. Thank you so much for writing. So happy you’ve stuck with it.

timeywimeyten – You’re a brilliant Ten! There are a lot of Tens out there, but I feel yours is the closest to canon. The dialog is spot-on and I am so thankful that Ned and Ten got to meet and have little adventures and that our threads made me cry a little bit. Your blog is quite unique and just generally lovely, so keep it up.

tval – If you think I’m not going to write fics involving your OC and Tibs and send them to you anonymously, then you don’t know me very well.

askfordoodles – Thank you for all the artwork and support. Hit me up if you want something written, I owe you that much at the very least.

blindeyedmastermind – When are we going to hang out again? :< Thanks for all the writing; I miss Eni something fierce, but I am so glad you’re still RPing and world-building.

I’m sure I’ve missed some people, and I do apologize. I apologize for everything – late replies, not very good replies, dropped threads, leaving now. I wish I didn’t have to, but priorities and all.

Ideally, I would be able to write little non-canon, non-timeline-related fics and drabbles and stuff every now and then, which I very much want to, but I can’t make guarantees.

Just, for now, thank you all so, so very much. I’m sorry. Please keep writing. I’ll be working hard over here. Hit me up if you want the personal blog.

<3

--Al

[thepiemakerstouch]

((Emergency hiatus))

I know I was gone for a weeks, but shit's going down at work and I will be gone for a while. I will resurface when I can. Huge apologies! I keep saying I'll be here with more consistency, but life has other plans.

[thepiemakerstouch]

((2 measly replies))

All I have time for. :\

iremembereveryonethatleaves and blindeyedmastermind, you guys are up next tomorrow.

[thepiemakerstouch]

"Baba- oh, yeah. I remember. I think." Ned was not a scholarly sort of guy, but he had read myths and fairytales while at school. "The old woman, right? With the uh, uh. The things that pharmacists have adopted as their symbol...?" Mortar and pestle.

Ned got a bit huffy. "What does she cook? How many staff- you know what? Never mind. I don't want...I mean. Um. I. Should. I should just enjoy my time here. With you." He didn't mean to pose so many questions to Alaula that had not too much to do with her. "Hawaiian? Have you been there? I never travel. I have a garden, though. It encourages bees. And other things." 

"Oh, um. Don't worry about it. It was just...the natural flow of conversation. And facts are facts."

"How short is it? Can you rattle off all the items before we get to the front of the line?" The piemaker smiled, "Kettle corn's the hard drug of any farmer's market." 

Halloween

[thepiemakerstouch]

"I think a lot of people think that about coffee. It's...well, bean-water. Weird. Lots of food things are weird. But they end up being good anyway. Um, unless, you know, allergies. Intolerances. Stuff like that." 

"You got it," he said, bright. In the typical, mid-range price restaurant style, he set up a cup of tea by pouring hot water over a tea bag into a mug. Nothing fancy here. "Here," he said, pushing it closer to Enya. "And your pies will be done in a few minutes. Doesn't take as long since they're...cup-sized." He shrugged. "So, what do you do? Do you work?"

Ned asked himself if such a thing could be possible. He wasn’t anyone special and he certainly couldn’t recall other people saying anything remotely like that about his person. “Aw, thanks. I mean, I do my best. Best with food, with talking,” he spoke at a normal level, despite being back in the kitchen - he wasn’t sure if Enya could hear. He wasn’t even sure if he said it.

"Mint tea, mint tea, mint tea…minty,” he muttered to himself. It didn’t sound like his usual repertoire. Ned plucked one of his glass jars from the shelves, and examined the tea bags within. Peppermint. Well, he reasoned with himself, it was that time of year. It turns out the piemaker had some insight after all. 

With the ovens set and the kettle whistling, Ned reappeared. “Okay, I found some peppermint tea. I don’t know if that’s the same thing. I’m more of a coffee guy, myself.” He squinted at the tea bag. He held up the pitcher of hot water ready for steeping and an empty cup. “Interested?”

[thepiemakerstouch]

[thepiemakerstouch]

((Good morning!))

Hey, campers! I am, in fact, back from my trip and still reeling from it. Indeed, I'm still not finished uploading all my photos.

I'll try to get into the swing of things later tonight. RP must be kept at a minimum during work hours...

[thepiemakerstouch]

((All right kids, I'm out for now.))

Happy holidays and such. Eat good food. Spend time with your favorite people. Pet a dog. 

[thepiemakerstouch]

((I'll have to take a rain check - my activity, sparse as it is, will go down until the holidays are over. But I would love to thread with you again soon.))

"Oh, are you sure? It's no trouble." Ned still hadn't caught on that Loki wasn't...comfortable in cars. "Yeah, that'd be good. Bright and early," he sighed. "Thanks."

The piemaker took Loki's hand without hesitation, giving it a firm shake, but his expression turned to one of slight confusion upon hearing the god's blessing; not because he didn't understand, but because he wasn't used to being talked to in such a formal manner. "UM, y-you too? I MEAN," Ned gulped, trying to think of something honest to say. It would be the least he could do. "I couldn't have done it without you. And, you know...earlier? Before this all happened? What you said about...whoyoureallyareIguess? It. It's not true. Or not as true as you seem to think it is. Maybe you're not wholly good, but you're not a monster, either. Or, well, I don't think so." Meeting people in specific circumstances can lead to such conclusions. But Ned's heart, slightly guarded and mostly naive, had aided in making up his mind regarding this matter.

"See you tomorrow. Today," he correct, seeing as how it was past midnight, "um, later." After holding Loki's hand for an embarrassingly long amount of time, Ned finally took his own back and drove home, trying to sort through the strangely momentous day and night he just had.

French Silk Pie// Lokibrotherofthor x thepiemakerstouch

[thepiemakerstouch]

Ned tried to take all that information in. How was it even possible to have an income like that plus benefits? Oh, not that the piemaker struggled to make ends meet. He did well enough for himself (most of the time), but it always came with a heaping helping of stress and guilt - would he be able to afford rent this month? Should he turn on the heater or just wear another sweater? Did he really need to see a doctor about that weird-looking bruise? He frowned. "What do you mean 'run the house?' My mother used to say stuff like that, but it was a much smaller operation, I get that, but aside from cooking and cleaning, what do you do to keep a house going? When did we, I mean, like 'we' as in the human race, start saying things like 'keep the house running?' Houses don't run. ANYWAY," he paused, "um, who's Mira?"

"You make candles?" he asked on their way down. "How'd you get into that?"

What an unpleasant way to go. Ned let out a long breath through pursed lips. "Thanks for telling me. I mean, you didn't have to. My parents are gone, too. Well. One of them is." And the piemaker was, in fact, the one who made sure of that. On accident, of course. "And the other is...well, he's gone, but in a different way. But, now's not the time for that, probably. Now's the time for kettle corn." Yes, food. "Uh, assuming you like kettle corn...?"

Halloween

[thepiemakerstouch]

"No, n-not like, inherited, like someone gave it to you!" Ned said, hurriedly. "Uh, I meant like...bookkeeping was something your father did, so he handed the skill down to you...?" That would be a nice thing, he decided. Like when your father taught you to shave. Except with numbers. The piemaker couldn't argue with the sound logic of taking a job one enjoyed. "As long as you enjoy it." Maybe Le Chiffre was more like Ned - preferring to be tightly wound. 

"Really?" Ned asked Basil. "What brought you over there? And then back agin? Can you speak Russian?" He marveled slightly - the piemaker had no idea. Then again, it wasn't like he and Basil were the closest of friends; and the intimidating man was hard to pin down.

"Mm?" Rene turned his attention back to Ned. "My father was a banker." A slight pause, then: "I began accounting as something of a necessity." A small, slightly grim smile on his face hinted at some larger story, but he went on. "I have always had a talent with mathematics, as you have for baking, it seems. It was only natural I put it to good use."

Then, almost like a retort to Basil’s statement, he went on: “Surely Basil has told you of his time in Russia.”

Basil ducked his head, focusing intently on his pie. Yes, this was Le Chiffre’s counterattack to his meddling.

[thepiemakerstouch]

((My bit for Munday. And now you all know a bit more about me.

Replies in a bit.))

[thepiemakerstouch]

((You knew it was comin'))

After I've gotten current replies off my desk (may or may not be today-today), I'm gonna take a break for the holiday-times. I got stuff to do, things to worry about, and work to catch up on.

Thanks so much for writing and sticking in there with me; I know I'm barely around as it is.

You're all lovely, talented folks. Please keep writing.

[thepiemakerstouch]

Cranberry and Orange Hand Pies

[thepiemakerstouch]

((Nedcanon:))

The Pie Hole sells popular pies, certain beverages, and offers a small breakfast menu. 

That is all patrons have to choose from.

Whenever he has other food items in the restaurant, it's because he was bored/hungry/feeling generous/stressed, so he made more food. Those items (in past threads, it's been things like cookies, sandwiches, soup, and boiled sweets) are not for sale, nor can customers order them. But if Ned happens to have them on hand, he may give them away.

The kitchen in the Pie Hole is basically insurance that Ned will have a place to cook at pretty much any given time of day. It is stocked mainly with his baking ingredients, but because Ned doesn't eat his own pie and because he doesn't like the idea of eating just anywhere for his lunch break, he stocks a small collection of cooking ingredients, just in case.

[thepiemakerstouch]

"Inherited, huh? D-did you always want to do that?" Ned always thought a desk job would be too tedious or boring.  "Oh, I dunno if it's a talent. It's just something I've always done." He shrugged.

"Russia?" he repeated. "No. Wh-" He sat up straight, "Really? What did you do there, Basil?"

Le Chiffre’s handshake was equally practiced. To be a businessman with dangerous people meant he needed a handshake and a poker face he could depend on not to waver when it counted. “Ned, then.” He nodded, and took a bite of crepe.

Basil was half-done with his pie. “I’m glad you could see the place, Mr. Le Chiffre.” Rene nodded absently, and Basil turned his focus to someone more attentive. “Mr. Le Chiffre is a private accountant,” he rumbled quietly.

[thepiemakerstouch]

Late-night Lee Pace portrait