Sage sort of groaned when she clearly wasn't going to let him get out of cracking the second egg, though this time he just gave up on cracking it on the bowl and stabbed it with his finger, using his fingers to then just tear it open and flop the inside into the bowl and flopping the now desecrated shell into the sink, turning the water in to wash off his hands, flicking the water at jora playfully before drying his hands on his pants.

"Now how the hell are we supposed to get this-" he held the chunk of butter up. "-into that?" He wasn't sure how she would get a solid hunk of something into a mixture like what had been created so far, though he'd let her just show him that much. His brain had worked more than enough for this cake already. Which was, admittedly, slightly amusing.

Jora raised an eyebrow as Sage flicked water at her, though she couldn’t help but smirk at his slightly defeated expression. She shook her head, amused by how he handled the mess with only half the effort of trying to actually be neat.

"Well, Sage," she began, taking a step closer to the counter, her tone playful, "I think you’re forgetting something. The butter needs to be softened before it goes in. You can't just throw a solid block of it into the bowl like you're tossing it into a trash can."

She picked up the butter, eyeing it critically. "So, what we’re gonna do," she continued, flashing him a grin, "is slice it into smaller chunks first. Then we’ll mix it in gradually. You know, so it actually melts into the batter rather than sitting there like a lump."

She glanced at him with a teasing glint in her eye, already grabbing a knife to slice the butter. "But I guess if you want to keep it all 'impressive,' we could always just throw the whole chunk in and pray for the best."

Sage rolled his eyes at her comments about the butter, moving back towards her with a huff of air. "I told you, I know nothing about this," he whined, sliding in next to her and watching her reach for the knife, seeing what exactly she meant by softening the butter. "I've been in the kitchen once in my life, and I managed to set the cooks soup on fire," he noted with a chuckle. "I wasn't allowed back in after that. The crew always did tease me about it," he hummed softly. He would miss them all....miss the ship. But he was definitely glad he'd come here with Jora. It was a new chapter that held its own adventures. And he was ready to take them head on, even if it was just figuring out how to bake a cake.

"Wouldn't it just be easier to melt it completely and then dump it in there," he asked after a few moments of watching her cut the butter up. It would certainly take less time, though maybe it wasn't supposed to be hot when it went in. He really had no clue. He wrinkled his nose at her last comment, snorting softly. "I figured just tossing it in wouldn't work. I just didn't have any other ideas," he grumbled, though obviously not upset with her.

Sage chuckled softly in response to her comment, shaking his head slightly. "Well I was surprised," he noted lightly. "I'm not entirely sure what I did," he added with a slight chuckle. He wrinkled his nose after that, and nodded. "I was pretty well banned from the kitchen after that," he admitted. He didn't blame them either. Burnt soup really didn't taste good at all.

He nodded slowly as she explained the whole butter thing, understanding what she meant but still rather confused about the whole thing. "I think I'll stick to decorating things," he mused after a moment or so, moving to hop onto the counter and sit there next to her, smile lingering on his face. He just liked watching her enjoy herself really. She could chat about what she was doing and teach him all she wanted, he just enjoyed spending time with her.

Sage hummed softly and nodded in response to her comment, a laugh coming from his lips. "It didn't taste very good after that," he admitted with a laugh. "I think the cook was the only one who genuinely did not like me," he added, tone still light. That one was fine....he wasn't a fan of the grumpy old man either. It was mutual.

Though, a light blush crossed his face when she mentioned he was good at decorating already, and he grinned over at her. "Well, I've never decorated a cake before, so I don't know how that'll go down," he mused lightly, resting his forearms on his thighs as he watched her stir the stuff together and then finish up the batter.

He moved to grab a pan and hand it to her, watching her pour it into the pan and then slide it in the oven. It was just nice to watch her doing something she enjoyed. Neither of them had much time for hobbies previously....but now they would have more time to grow them. To explore more. For now though, he was just content to watch her, his smile lingering on his face.

Jora leaned back a little, taking in Sage's words with a knowing smile. She had seen his grin when he mentioned the cook, and she couldn't help but feel a little amusement at the thought of the grumpy old man and Sage clashing. It seemed fitting somehow—two strong personalities, both a bit too stubborn for their own good. She nodded, her fingers still gently stirring the batter, appreciating his quiet presence beside her.

When he mentioned the cake decorating, Jora raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. "Oh? Never decorated a cake?" She chuckled softly, giving him a playful look. "Well, you might surprise yourself. I’m sure you have the touch for it." Her voice was light, teasing, but there was a warmth behind it. It was rare, this easy comfort between them, and it felt like something they were both still learning to savor.

As he handed her the pan, Jora took it from him with a smile, grateful for the small gesture. She couldn't help but feel a little lighter as she poured the batter in. There was something about doing this together, even in such a simple way, that made everything else feel a little less heavy. It wasn't just about the cake or the decorations. It was about this—the quiet moments, the shared space, the promise of more time to be themselves. No more rushing, no more having to push aside the things that made them happy.

When she slid the pan into the oven and glanced back at him, her smile softened. "We have time now, don’t we?" she said quietly, more to herself than to him, though the question was there, hanging between them. Time to do more than just survive. Time to live. Time to explore.

For now, though, she was content to just be.

Sage noted her amusement about the thought of her and the cook constantly fighting. "It got to the point we'd go out of our way to be as annoying as possible to each other," he hummed, tilting his head slightly as he recalled their efforts to continuously bug each other. "The crew would always call me an old man," he added with a chuckle and small shake of his head.

He shook his head with a hum when she repeated he'd never decorated a cake, shrugging after a moment. "I suppose we'll find out," he noted lightly, grinning over at her as she mentioned they had time. "The question is what are you wanting to do while we wait," he pointed out. "Standing there for half an hour doesn't seem very appealing, as pretty as you are in the sun," he added lightly.