Apartment Above Stark Industries, Sunday Afternoon

[imafuturist]

Tony had started the day working on some coding with the television on in the background to provide a little noise. And to make it seem less weird that he was mostly just staring at a tablet and coding with his brain. But whatever.

But that somehow turned into watching the background noise. Which turned into 'I could do that' after a few episodes.

And that would be why Tony had a fine dusting of either flour or confectioner's sugar turning his hair a bit grey as he frowned down at the collection of ingredients.

"I have a masters in chemistry, this shouldn't be so difficult," he grumbled to himself.

Stupid Great British Bake Off.

[Mostly for the housemate! GBBO owns many souls.]

Comments

[heroic_jawline]

"Did the kitchen explode?" Steve teased, leaning in the doorway.

[imafuturist]

"...no." That'd be later.

[heroic_jawline]

"You just need all the ingredients at once," Steve said, smiling. "What are you making?"

[imafuturist]

"It's supposed to be a pie." With no soggy bottoms.

He might also have half a diagram written out on a paper towel outlining improvements to the oven to accomplish that.

[heroic_jawline]

"I like pie," Steve said with a grin. "Apple."

Because he liked pretending to be a cliche.

[imafuturist]

"You like anything edible," Tony shot back, sorely tempted to toss an attempt at pastry at his head. "How is this not working? I'm focused on it."

Sort of.

[heroic_jawline]

"Are you following a recipe?" Steve asked. "Or adjusting one as you go?"

[imafuturist]

Well, see... the thing was...

"Adjusting as I go," he ventured. He looked up a recipe at first and romantic there it went off script.

[heroic_jawline]

Steve chuckled. "Would you like some help?"

Not that Steve knew how to bake. At all.

[imafuturist]

"To save me from myself?" Tony asked dryly. He was leaning in a bit of butter, so it was sort of necessary. "Of course."

[heroic_jawline]

"Sure," Steve said, grinning. "But mostly because I've watched a lot of food television."

He hadn't really absorbed a lot of the lessons of it, but details.

[imafuturist]

"That's how this happened," he replied. "Tuesday is Pi day, so I felt I had to try."

Neeeeeeeerd.

[heroic_jawline]

"Pi Day?" Steve repeated, looking confused.

[imafuturist]

"Pi. 3.14," Tony said. "March fourteenth. Pi day."

This is seriously what happens when you hang out with Tony. It was one wild party after another.

"It's both a mathematical constant and delicious."

[heroic_jawline]

Steve burst out laughing. "That's the best thing I've heard today," he finally managed, beaming at Tony.

[imafuturist]

Tony just lit up like that was clearly the optimal reaction someone could have to it the greatest holiday in... the first half of March.

"You can peel apples if you want to help."

While Tony continued to figure out the crust.

[heroic_jawline]

"I am an amazing apple peeler," Steve told him. "It was all Ma would let me do when she made apple cake."

[imafuturist]

"I will add apple cake to the list of things to try making."

If this didn't end in a small kitchen fire or bringing a pie to life and it becoming their arch-nemesis.

[heroic_jawline]

It would call itself "Pie-Rat" and probably have a pegleg and a terrible accent.

"Apple cake is wonderful," Steve said with a fond smile. "She'd make it for my birthday."

[imafuturist]

Steve, you can't say things like that and not know that Tony would be forced to learn to make it for the occasion because he was a sap.

"I don't think I've had it," Tony admitted, carefully throwing out the sticky mess of his dough so he could start again. Melted butter and flour were a bad combination.

[heroic_jawline]

"It's an old Irish recipe," Steve said. "Sometimes we had it with ice cream if we were feeling flush."

[imafuturist]

"I'll get JARVIS to research," he promised. "But I'm pretty sure we have ice cream for the pie."

Unless someone ate it all. Which was a possibility.

The other possibility was the ice cream becoming Pie-rat's evil sidekick.

[heroic_jawline]

Steve looked slightly guilty. "The vanilla one?"

That he'd finished?

[imafuturist]

"I want to feel surprised, but I've lived with enough enhanced people."

A beat.

"And Barton."

[heroic_jawline]

"He's always struck me as a big ice cream-napper," Steve agreed with a nod. "I can duck out to the store while the pie is cooking."

Awww, he was so optimistic there would be pie.