#also be prepared if I decided to bake you another loaf

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #265 (part 1)

I had a beautiful solo adventure today. And I got so many awesome pictures for you in the process that I'm going to have to break it up into two parts, at least. I'll start from the beginning!

I finally got around to making another loaf of garlic bread. Of course, I already did some of the preparation for it yesterday, what with peeling the garlic and taking the butter out overnight to soften. Today, I cut off the woody ends of the garlic, and chopped them in my handy-dandy veggie chopper:

That represents two full heads of garlic. I would recommend that a person of more ordinary levels of garlic tolerance should probably only use one head of garlic at most; my taste for alliums quite possibly borders on insane, ahahaha~!

In any case, with this, I mixed together two sticks of butter, a bunch of dried herbs (basil, parsley, marjoram, oregano, and ground coriander), salt, and parmesan cheese:

From there, I sliced the bread in half, divided my butter in half, and spread each half of the butter on each half of the bread:

...I baked this in the oven at around 400 degrees F (or 204.4 degrees C) for about 15 minutes. Last time, I spread the mozzarella cheese on before putting it in the oven, and so the garlic didn't get toasty. I didn't have that problem this time:

...Roasty, crispy edges, and roasty, crispy garlic... This came out so perfectly.

From here, I decided that the thing to do was try a Korean-ish-style garlic bread again. We had this cream cheese that we don't have bagels for, and it needs to get used, so I softened it in the microwave, divided it in half, and applied it to each half of the garlic bread:

...From there, I applied a whole bag of mozzarella cheese to this, divided evenly between each half of the bread, like so:

...And then I stuck it under the broiler for a couple minutes to get it all melty!

...It turned out absolutely perfectly:

...I wish you could be here to try some of this with us. I wish so badly that you could have eaten some of this. But maybe someday, when you're safe and free from all the weird bullshit that surrounds you, you can look back on this letter and remember how to do this, so that you can have some in your own house with all the people who care about you.

In any case, since today was Monday, and since it was also rainy, I went to the orchard, confident that I'd basically be the only person there. Sephiroth... have you ever been to an orchard? They grow lots of things there. Usually in my area, they're known for apples:

...However, I was here for the grapes. Specifically, I was here for concord grapes:

...Sephiroth, have you ever had concord grapes? They're intensely sweet at first, and they have a tart finish. They have seeds, and they slip out of their skins. Because of the fact that they slip out of their skins so easily, they're actually kinda fragile; you have to be very careful about how you pick them and transport them, because they're plump, heavy, and eager to fall off the vine or slip out of their skin. Just being set down into the bag a little too roughly will do it. And then you get a little bit of grape juice everywhere...

Sephiroth. If you've not had concord grapes, you gotta try 'em. They're one of my favorite things, like ever. They rival even my love of garlic. They rival even my love of cheese. They rival even my love of sushi. And if you've been reading my letters up until this point, you'll know that that's really saying something!!

Hey, Sephiroth? If you ever find yourself in my neighborhood when these are in season, you wanna go together to grab some up? The drive there is beautiful, too; I think you'd have an amazing time. Even though I know it's impossible... I'll still ask you to please come along with me sometime.

I'm at 23 pictures already, and I still have so much more to show you. So I'm going to end this part of today's letter and begin the next one.

I love you!!! I'll write again in literally just a little bit!!!

Your friend, Lumine

[nine-of-words]

Something Borrowed (Part Three)

M Gargoyle x M Reader

PREVIOUS || STORY TAG || NEXT

Wordcount: 3815

Content Warnings: Discussion of a Breakup/Divorce

Are you the type of person that wants to read several hundred words worth of descriptions of various baked goods? If so, you are in luck! Also, I promise not every story I post to this website will revolve around divorce.

Kirby had told you that you couldn’t stop living because you were cursed. You had told them that you would keep it in mind.

While you do keep that in mind, you certainly don't act on it during any of the encounters you have with Carlyle over the next few weeks.

Maybe if you weren't still so devastated from your breakup and the threat of your curse ruining any attempt, you'd have the courage to ask him out yourself. But as for now, you stay rooted in the comfortable little routine you've built.

Your next attempt is still something that is a perfect pairing for coffee, but slightly more involved. You prepare a tender batch of coffee cake, with a hearty ribbon of cinnamon swirled through the middle of the loaf, and crumbles of cinnamon streusel on top to to match, forgoing any glaze or drizzle that might have otherwise ended up finding its way onto the cake.

Still too sweet. Way too heavy, too dense of a crumb. But cinnamon is clearly a welcome flavor. Maybe something more elegant?

The week after that, you tried a ginger-pear gateau, hoping that the sweetness of the honey would be more permissible than normal sugar, with the heat from the ginger to balance out what sweetness there was. You painstakingly arranged the thin slices, the whole thing baked to perfection and kissed with citrus zest.

He didn’t like that either; but he does seem to like the burn of ginger, commenting on the underlying warmth.

And he may or may not be the type of guy that eats with his eyes first, given how impressed he was with the admittedly beautiful layering of fruit slices.

The next thing you tried was an opera cake. An almond sponge soaked with coffee, which you already know he’s quite fond of. Layers of cream and dark chocolate ganache diligently stacked and cut neatly serve to pleasantly enhance that already present espresso flavor.

You had even piped two Ss, elegantly connected with an ampersand, for Sugar & Spice- the current name of your shop, as of moving locations- in immaculate script across the top. If most of these are going to go into the case, you might as well make them on brand.

He seemed to like this one the most so far, taking a lot longer than ever before to decide its fate.

But he doesn’t like any sort of application of buttercream, it turns out. You should’ve known better already, you suppose- he doesn’t like frosting- he doesn’t even take cream in his coffee, why would he like cream layers in a coffee flavored cake, either? 

It wasn’t a complete loss, however, because he seemed to really enjoy the addition of cardamom that you had used to compliment the flavor of the espresso, at least enough for him to point it out. 

And honestly, the praise he heaped onto you for your careful penmanship and attention to tidy little details takes any hint of sting from the failure away instantaneously.

You’ve already figured out he likes citrus- specifically oranges- and almonds. He prefers a fluffier crumb to a denser one. No heavy glazes or frostings or cream layers.

With the culmination of your last few attempts, you've put together another critical detail: he likes spiced things.

Cinnamon. Ginger. Cardamom. Clove. Nutmeg…

Those flavors seem to be the one big unifying element of what he’s liked of your baking.

Mixed spice.

You’re making some progress, finally.

But what to make him that can test your theory? Cinnamon buns? Too sweet, surely. Gingerbread? Too dense, no go. You could always make a simple spice cake, but it would probably seem sad and bare without frosting, which you’ve already confirmed that he despises in all forms. 

Not to mention that any of these options will make your shop smell like a Yuletide market, or a candle store… And it's the height of summer…

“Wowie, don’t think too hard over there!!” You snap back to attention upon hearing Kirby’s lively voice through your mental fog. You realize you’ve been silently ruminating for quite a while. “You’re frowning so hard your face might break! What’s on your mind?”

“Trying to figure out what to make Carlyle for Tuesday.” You tap the end of the pen you’re holding onto the notepad in front of you. “Can’t think of anything.”

“Hehe, can’t you just bake this man a nice loaf of crusty bread and call it a day already? Everybody loves good bread.”

“Hah, no. It has to be a sweet baked good, I’m afraid. No need to worry though, I’m just a bit stumped at the moment. I’ll figure it out.”

“Oooo, I can help you decide on something!! I’m awful at cooking anything but I’m pretty good at the whole deduction thing, hehe~”

“Oh, no- I couldn’t ask you to help me with something so frivolous. You’re doing actual detective work.”

“A little distraction now and then can be good! Especially when you’re as stuck as I am right now with these leads…” Kirby looks almost forlorn for a moment before any lack of cheer is immediately erased from their expression. “Sometimes thinking about something else entirely can help get you the breakthrough you need!”

“Well, is there anything you’d like me to make?”

“Ooo! Ooooh!! I would ask for baklava but that’s probably way too sweet for your man.”

“Hah, well, maybe I can make you some baklava too, if this goes over well.”

Kirby grins wide, their ears flicking back and forth in excitement.

“Yes!! What’s this guy like again? Gimme something to work with.”

You quickly summarize your previous findings.

“Hmmm… You know what that sounds a lot like? My Oma used to make these little Yuletide cookies that sound a lot like that, with the spices and the orange peel.”

“Huh. Those do sound familiar.”

“I dunno, I forget…”

After a cursory scroll through your respective devices, Kirby manages to find the name.

“These, these! Pfeffernuse!” They exclaim in excitement and shove their device towards you, pointing to the screen with their other hand.

“Ah- I can whip these up for sure...” You reply, scrolling down to skim through the ingredients list.

The cookies come together relatively quickly- you could knead dough in your sleep after growing up in your parents’ bakery. And, as expected, they make your shop smell like a Yuletide candle stall, which it seems every customer you have over the course of the afternoon seems to feel compelled to comment on- It doesn’t get old at all.

“Here they are.” You present the serving dish filled with pfeffernusse to Kirby, then take one of the small, shiny cookies for yourself.

By general standards, they’re quite good. Very flavorful.

But for your specific purposes; the shiny glaze is too sweet; and the cookie itself is too heavy and too dense. There’s no way that Carlyle is going to like these…

“Oh, wow!!” Kirby says your name in a shrill tone, almost a squeal around a mouthful of cookie. “Amazing!! Divine!! These are absolutely perfect, just like she used to make!! If he doesn’t like these, his tastebuds are broken!!!”

“Hahah- I’m glad you like them.” You feel the smile spreading out onto your face.

“You’re the beeeest-”

Honestly, seeing your new friend’s reaction makes it worth it to have made them anyway, even knowing from the start that they weren’t going to bag you a win. Luckily, you manage to reserve some for Carlyle to at least try later, before the ecstatic faun manages to devour the whole batch.

Later that day, the dwindling overcast daylight from the encroaching evening creates a lonely, gloomy atmosphere in your empty shop. The uneasy feeling that always seems to reappear when you’re alone starts to creep back in, and you can’t help but worry that Carlyle’s not coming today. Perhaps the on-and-off rain is keeping him from stopping by. You’ve only seen him show up on foot, and even if he drove there’s not any ample parking on this street.

Or maybe he’s not coming back, period. Maybe he’s gotten bored of whatever this little thing between you is? You couldn’t blame him.

After all, you don’t know each other all that well at all. You’ve only seen each other a total of five times now, basically in passing. You wouldn’t even know he was a lawyer if he hadn’t specifically used the word ‘case’ when referring to his job and mentioned the courthouse before.

And the curse… Well. You know what the letter said by heart now. Withering before blooming, and all of that.

It’s nearly to the point of you giving up and just going about your normal closing procedures when the familiar jingle plays. And while the notification sound and the name on the order is familiar, the order itself is not at all.

Usually, as you’ve learned, you see an order for half a dozen cupcakes- always a variety, except for whomever always orders your lemon meringue flavor without fail.

But this evening, he’s ordered… a disposable cutlery kit.

No cake, no cupcakes, no other items at all. Just that.

You tilt your head at the screen, wondering what it could possibly mean.

After a bit of deliberation, you take a single cutlery kit from the open box and set it on the counter top. 

Moments pass as you stare at the lonely item on the counter, contemplating the situation with only the ubiquitous smooth jazz playing on the overhead speakers to keep you sane.

…Should you brew coffee?

But the minutes tick by, with still no sign of Carlyle.

You decide not to, not wanting to waste it if he's not coming. You fight the urge to either break into uncontrollable laughter or equally uncontrollable tears.

The rain has picked up enough that you can hear it audibly pattering against the panes of your shop windows.

Time marches on.

You sigh. You drum your fingertips on the counter top. You glance at the clock. 

It's two minutes past close.

You’ve finally moved to turn the neon sign declaring your shop as open off for the evening, and just as you’re standing there pressing down the switch you see Carlyle a few paces down the sidewalk, walking towards the shop underneath the protection of a clear umbrella.

He stops in his tracks, looking at the darkened sign and then back down at you on the other side of the glass, seeming at a loss for how to proceed.

After a second of stalemate, you push open the still unlocked door.

“Carlyle?”

He finishes the rest of the walk as quickly as he can without splashing through the accumulating puddles in his leather shoes.

“Hey. Sorry I'm late."

“Hi! I’m- I’m sorry, I wasn’t sure what you meant by a cutlery set.”

“I planned on going home early today, so no cupcake order from the ladies this evening. I wanted to let you know I was still coming, but I realized I had no way of knowing what you’d make to order it for myself, so.” He smirks faintly and shrugs beneath the umbrella, the shoulder pads on his suit lifting up slightly with the motion. “That was the solution I chose. You eat with cutlery, so: I'm still coming to eat.”

“It's okay. That’s actually pretty clever." You beam. You don’t care in the slightest that you’re already closed- you’re just happy he showed up. You motion with your hand for him to enter. "Come in, come in. You’re going to get soggy.”

He obliges, closes his umbrella, then shakes it off before he steps completely inside.

"I suppose the weather held you up?"

"Yes, the train was delayed. There was a large rain spirit blocking off the tunnel, it was an entire ordeal.”

“Well, that would certainly explain the sudden rain. It wasn’t on the forecast this morning.” You chuckle nervously.

“I don’t want to intrude, since it took me long enough to get here that you’re closed now.” He motions to the sign. He’s always been courteous enough to punctually depart when you’ve turned the sign off, cutting off your conversation far earlier than you’d like at times. “We don’t have to do this today if it would be a hassle.”

“Oh, no, it’s no bother- it’s pouring out now, you can’t walk back to the station in that- even with an umbrella. At least stay until it passes.” You reach out and gently touch his forearm for effect. Then, you recoil like you’ve touched a hot stovetop, realizing you’re probably being a bit too comfortable with him when you don’t even know how he feels about physical touch from a relative stranger. You move the culprit to stroke the back of your own head for comfort instead. “Er, if you wanted to, of course. We could sit at one of the tables for a while and have a chat…”

"That sounds like exactly what I need right now." He gives you one of his characteristic bright smiles, and you're so close you can see the outline of his wide, slightly protruding canines. He places his contained umbrella in the bottom of the coat rack.

"Why don't you sit down? I'll go make you some coffee."

You do just that, returning with coffee for you both; his in his claimed mug, and yours in one from the regular marbled set. You can’t help but laugh at the stark difference between the color of your respective drinks, perhaps being on the very far end of the spectrum in shade, seeing as he likes his with no additions and you with as much cream and sugar you can reasonably put into yours.

When you return, he’s sitting at one of the tables, looking out the window. He’s removed his suit jacket and draped it across the back of the chair. You nearly drop the mugs as you’re coming down the stairs as you miss the last step on the flight, because you’re too focused on the how aesthetically pleasing you find the sight- emotionally evocative, like you’ve taken a wrong turn in your own shop and walked into some sort of sad, tragically beautiful painting.

After delivering the (thankfully unspilled) coffee, you turn back to the counter to grab the plate of pfeffernusse. You set the cutlery set down, as well.

“I don’t think you’ll need this for the cookies, but… you did already pay for it.” You say with as straight a face as you can manage.

Carlyle laughs a deep, rich laugh- somehow gravelly and smooth at the same time. He takes the cutlery kit and slides it into the breast pocket of his jacket where it’s hanging on the chair behind him with a pointed smirk, before turning his attention to the cookies on the table in front of him.

You take a seat across from him, hoping you don’t look as obviously captivated as you feel.

You’re used to having a countertop between you, so this is a new experience. It certainly feels more intimate, like you’re having a coffee break with a friend rather than a customer you’ve developed a bizarre crush on. You’re close enough now that you can’t help but notice all the subtle details of the stone texture of his face- the small divots and minor cracks, and the faint lines of erosion where water must have chosen its path down his face countless times.

“These look a bit familiar somehow.” Carlyle selects one of the cookies and rotates it between his fingers in observation, watching the overhead light glint off the shiny coating.

“I don’t think you’re going to like them.” You say, watching him inspect the small treat through an inquisitive look on his face. “But I made them for a friend earlier, so I thought I’d have you try them anyway.”

He’s quiet for an uncommonly long amount of time as he eats the cookie- but not in the good, stunned-into-silence way you’ve been dreaming about seeing. He looks tired. He looks wistful. He looks sad.

It goes on so long that you wonder if you should say something, until you finally do.

“...Carlyle?”

“Hahah… Sorry, spaced out a bit there. I’m sort of a mess today.”

“Is everything alright? You seem unhappy.” You may not be very familiar with him yet, but you’re not so dense as to have not noticed he’s acting much more muted than normally. “I hope the pfeffernusse weren’t that bad…” You laugh quietly to try to lighten the mood. 

“Oh, no- Not at all. Nothing you’ve made has been anywhere close to bad in quality.” He smiles, and you try desperately not to reel from the compliment. “It’s just too sweet for me. Too heavy. The flavor is great, though. Smells like Yuletide morning as a kid.”

“Did you also have a grandmother who made these?” You laugh. “It seems like everyone who’s come into my shop today has had one.”

“Ah, no. My Mom made something kind of like them, but they were rolled in powdered sugar instead.” Then a realization clearly lights up his brown eyes. “So actually yes, I suppose I technically did have a Grandma who made them. But I didn’t know her before she was a statue.”

“Oh- Did you hate sweets as a wee little stone man as well?” You can’t help but laugh, covering your mouth picturing an overly formal gargoyle child. “I bet you did.”

Your laughter is infectious, and you can see his beige spaded tail swishing around the chair legs animatedly.

“I did! Mom always left some out of the sugar for me.”

“Damn, that’s smart. I should’ve thought of that.…” You ponder, tapping your lip with your fingertips and avoiding his eyes.

“No reason to, honestly. They were still a little too sweet, even when she didn’t. I’m sure your friend enjoyed them though, so they fulfilled their main purpose.”

“They did… So, if it’s not my baking, what’s got you so down, then?” You ask, then hastily add: “If you don’t mind me prying.”

“Work.” He says simply. “Work has been difficult for me lately.”

“Understandable. I imagine being a lawyer must be quite stressful.”

“Not only that- I’m a divorce attorney.” He sighs, rubbing his fingers restlessly along the mug’s handle. “I see people when they’re going through what’s likely the worst time of their lives, every single day. And because of the nature of the job, I can't even offer much in terms of support. I’m not a therapist. Ultimately, all I can really do is make sure my client isn’t being shafted.”

“Oh, that does sound draining.” You look down into your ridiculously milky coffee to try to hide the wince. You can’t help but wonder if you would’ve needed a divorce attorney if the curse had destroyed your relationship later than it did. You can’t help but feel perversely relieved- at least you didn’t have to go to court over your heartbreak. “What made you choose that field?”

“I didn’t, really. I used to do criminal defense. I was moved to civil cases a few years ago. I do enjoy my job, for the most part. Most of the time, it’s easy enough to separate myself. …It’s when something is hitting a little too close to home- that’s when it’s hard.”

“Close to home?”

“Yes. My parents were married for thirty-five years- owned their house, fully grown kids, perfect example of a good relationship and they decided to just- get divorced a few months ago, out of nowhere. I mean clearly it wasn’t out of nowhere to them, logically, but it was a shock to me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. That must be hard to come to terms with, even as an adult. Especially when it’s a surprise.”

“The irony isn’t lost on me, believe me.” He swirls his half-full coffee in the mug, a grim smile on his face as he takes another long sip. “Sometimes I feel like I’m cursed.”

“Cursed?” You say, barely louder than a whisper. You haven’t told him about your own curse- so you know he must not know the weight of using that word with you, but it slices into your chest all the same.

“Yes, not literally of course, but as if working with geasa all this time has rubbed off on me- like the magic itself has backfired on me somehow.” He takes a deep breath of air and shakes his head. “I know I’m just being dramatic. I would know if my magic was off. I was fine when they told me months ago, then- It just didn’t feel real until I went to help them pack up my childhood home this past weekend. I’ve felt down ever since.”

“I know how that feels…” You quickly course-correct. “I mean, how hard that is- packing up a place you loved like that. It’s like having to physically detach from part of yourself.” 

“From such a heartfelt description, I assume you’ve had to as well?”

“Yeah. My fiance broke up with me last autumn. Lived together for years, and I was the one that moved out- That’s how I ended up opening shop here.”

“I’m so sorry.” Carlyle says, genuine concern in his voice. ”That must have been incredibly hard for you.”

“It was… But it’s in the past.” You lie with a sad smile. Maybe sometime soon, you’ll manage to convince yourself…

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“I’d rather not.” It’s bad enough feeling like that loss will swallow you whole at any moment. It’s only even more mortifying to be reopening the wound once again in front of the handsome regular you’re crushing on.

Carlyle nods, clearly intrigued but not pushing you for any more information. There is a short, surprisingly comfortable stretch of you both sitting in relative silence apart from the rain pattering on the shop window and the low background music of the shop. 

Carlyle finally clears his throat.

“At least there’s always coffee,” He sighs in catharsis. 

“True. In your favorite mug, at that.” You chuckle, eyes resting on the familiar lettering. Strangely, seeing it in Carlyle’s hands, it doesn’t fill you with nearly the same heart wrenching sadness as it used to.

“I hope you don’t find it tasteless that I’ve claimed it, given what sounds like the painful context.”

“Ah, no, not at all- If anything, it’s making me feel a lot better about the whole thing.”

“I’m just saying- he can’t change his mind and come back for it now.” Carlyle smiles at you from behind the cup. “I’ve become very attached.”

You somehow manage to speak through your flustered laughter and your heart trying to race out of your chest.

“Haha- I don’t think you have to worry much about that…”

>> ✨ MASTERLIST >> ☕ KO-FI

[suguruslut]

Teaching you how to cook

𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘴

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Gwen’s Notes: I can’t cook worth shit. I got these food ideas from Haikyuu characters🤣

🐉𝒯𝒶𝓉𝓈𝓊🍳

-now THIS is the man you want to teach you how to cook. probably, maybe, definitely. you want to make milkbread, and Tatsu agrees, but that’s the last decision you make in the kitchen

-put on your apron. now. the cute Polycure one that will quickly be destroyed by flour. you have to match!

-Tatsu is a tough teacher, ngl. he wants you to follow the instructions exactly the way they’re written, no deviation, and if you do, he’ll get after you. maybe even lightly smack your ass with a wooden spoon but you like it

- “If you think you can skip a few steps here and there, yer dead wrong! Don’t underestimate any of the steps!”

- you underestimate most of the steps, so you guys have to start over at least twice, but his instructions are clear and easy to understand, once you decide to start listening. there’s lots of yelling, but not malicious or accusing

-Tatsu the master bread maker demonstrates how to knead bread, then gets behind you and places his hands on yours for a more immersive example; only then do you start to gain confidence in your kneading skills

-most of Tatsu’s time is spent actually trying to make the bread and stopping you from burning yourself or cutting a finger off (you were mockingly pretending to cut your pinky off for making a cooking mistake and got a little too close to the skin)

-ridiculous, overdramatic compliments he subtly backtracks from

- “See? Yer getting the hang of it. With those kneading knuckles, you’ll be better than Paul Hollywood himself. Well, that might be a stretch...but yer definitely getting better. Wait--don’t take it out! It’s still rising!”

-you quote The Great British Bake-Off and Guy Fieri the entire time, which Tatsu finds cute, also takes the seriousness out of the cooking lesson

-when you stop touching the dough and finally listen to Tatsu’s instructions, you are left with a huge, delicious milkbread loaf, and there is no disastrous dropping on the floor like there was with Masa

-Tatsu breaks off a piece for you to test first, holding the piece to your mouth and smiling smally when you hum in amazement. you give him the credit, but Tatsu is quick to correct you

- “You kidding? Ya almost sacrificed a pinky for this bread. Show some respect.”

-it was nice, spending an afternoon in the warm kitchen watching Tatsu work in his apron, so cute and focused on making everything perfect...you realize how crazy you are for this shades wearing, peach fuzzy man

-(this lesson caused your husband a lot of stress, though, so don’t expect him to invite you back for at least two weeks. *Azula voice* “You, are banished.”)

🐅𝒯𝑜𝓇𝒶𝒿𝒾𝓇𝑜🍰

-another man who knows a thing or two about cooking...or does he? baking is his specialty, but there’s nothing a little “secret ingredients” and “family recipes” can’t fix

-Tora takes you to his truck for your cooking lesson: you’re going to be making Oinarisan (inari sushi) a recipe of his mother’s which he got from his sister. does he know anything about sushi? no, but he prepared well, reading over the recipe a dozen times

-being in such small quarters with Torajiro makes you both nervous and excited; you like the homey atmosphere he’s created here, just the two of you in your own little cooking show world

- “And now, ladies and gentlemen, the lovely [ YN ] will cook the rice; watch it materialize right in front of yer eyes. Brown grains, from the hills of Tokyo, freshly bought this morning.”

- “Didn’t we get it from Tatsu, Tora? And there aren’t any hills in Tokyo.”

- “...”

-how much ginger is too much?? apparently the amount you dumped in without measuring. oh well. Tora thinks it’s kinda cute how pathetic you are at cooking, so he doesn’t get mad that you have to start over (but he keeps the ginger away from you after that)

-he nudges you with his elbow or lightly touches your arm when he asks you to do something, keeping your attention on what you’re doing so no accidents happen. he would FREAK out if you even got so much as a mild burn

-Tora is very delicate when folding the tofu pockets, not at all speedy like he is when making crepes. you watch him with a smile, getting distracted from your own folding, and he blushes and tries not to smile back when he catches you watching him

-it’s impossible to not overfill the stupid tofu pockets with the rice, kombu and mushroom mix, and that’s when Tora starts getting pissed at the damn things, trying desperately to patch them together so you two don’t go hungry. he even tightens his headband, like that will help him focus more

-you find his desperate attempts hilariously endearing, and ensure him they’re fine the way they are, which he eventually submits to

-the sushi doesn’t look...horrible. it’s not the best looking street food you’ve ever seen, but to your surprise, Tora seems impressed by your combined efforts, grinning and holding one deformed Oinarisan up for you to see

-you insist he tries first, and when his eyes light up upon tasting the sushi, he quickly offers you a piece

- “It ain’t good lookin’ like you, but it sure tastes good!”

-Tora and you spend another hour eating the fruits of your labor before the dreaded time comes...to do dishes. Torajiro will insist he will do them, but doesn’t nudge you away when you slip up beside him to help

-overall, you had a good time on Tora’s “cooking show,” and hope to be invited back soon as a special guest (hopefully with more cooking skills by then)

🐕ℳ𝒶𝓈𝒶🥡

-oh baby boy...we all know you still cannot cook worth a damn, but that’s okay. we’re in this together. try not to burn the house down this time. either of you.

- “You want...a cooking lesson? Uhhhh....s-sure! No problem! I’m a pro, now! Big brother Tatsu taught me everything he knows!”

-everything Masa knows: how to open the microwave door, how to buy instant ramen, how to pour water into a glass

-you two decide for something very Western to eat, something very common that shouldn’t be too difficult to make...how about grilled cheese?! cheese on bread! easy! apparently not

-obviously you know Masa has no idea what the fuck he’s doing, but you let him believe you don’t know. ingredients bought, now Masa is staring at them in confusion, wondering what goes first

-it doesn’t help that he’s easily distracted by you, even though you aren’t doing anything in particular aside from looking cute in your apron...he keeps getting even more nervous by looking over at you, knowing you’re expecting him to produce something edible for you to eat and not be poisoned or die

- “Haha! Okay, here I go, babe! On second thought...wanna just order in?”

-you insist that with the two of you on it, making grilled cheese is possible. why do you have to put butter on the bread? neither of you are sure, but you manage to follow the instructions somewhat and get a single piece of bread on the skillet

-it burns

-you try again

-and again, and a few more times after that, wasting almost an entire loaf of bread

-down to the last two pieces of bread, Masa finally manages to get an overload of cheese on and places the other bread piece over top of it. the bread partially rips because the butter is too hard, but the flip doesn’t go as bad as both of you expected, and the bottom bread piece isn’t burned!

-after three agonizing minutes of trying to stay focused enough to ensure the bread doesn’t burn again, Masa realizes most of the cheese is spilling out of the sandwich onto the skillet and lowers his head in defeat

-you tell him it’s okay and plate the grilled cheese, watching more cheese spill out when you cut it in half. Masa sits beside you and looks down at the sad sandwich you have to share because he messed up so badly.

- “Some househusband I am! I’ve failed you, boss!”

-however...when you bite into the grilled cheese sandwich, all of Masa’s defeated attitude floats away. even though a lot of the cheese fell out, it’s still good enough to eat, and the two of you giggle while fighting for the glops of cheese on the plate

-in a better mood, Masa sends a selfie of you two with cheese on your lips holding up your pathetic grilled cheese to Tatsu and Miku. Miku thinks it’s cute, Tatsu is horrified, but Miku stops him from sending a long text about the proper way to make grilled cheese

-Masa and you may not be the most talented married couple on the block, but you have glops of cheese, and that’s really all that matters

                                                     🐉 🐅 🐕

[umichenginabroad]

Madrid Week 5: I been in the kitchen, whippin, whippin (cheffin?)

Holaaaa a todxs otra vez! Niko back here with week 5 of the Madrid blog, sorry that I’m a day late :). This week’s blog will have less to do with Madrid/Spain/Europe/culture, and more to do with a little personal project of mine while abroad: learning how to cook (well).

I’ve always had cooking as a part of my life, and that’s thanks to my Mom, who always made the most delicious meals growing up from all sorts of cuisines. On a typical Sunday evening, my Mom would pick a recipe — either something new, or a family classic — and enlist me and my sister’s help in preparing it for the whole family. I learned a good amount this way: how to dice an onion, how to chop an onion into slivers, how to caramelize an onion… along with various other skills that don’t have anything to do with onions.

In high school, right before COVID hit, I decided to teach myself how to bake bread. It seemed like a kind of impossible task, of sorts — something that only professional bakers who woke up at 5am knew how do to, or grandmas who somehow always had the skill. I don’t remember how my first loaf turned out, but I’m guessing it was just good enough, because I found a new passion in baking from that point onward. I kept challenging myself to go for more complicated pastries, culminating in my proudest buttery achievement: a 3 day baking marathon that yielded some perfectly flaky homemade croissants.

In baking, I found joy in the precise imprecision of it all. 

Many people I know have told me that they see baking is a science; All of the ratios have to be perfect; There’s no room for error. While it’s true that if you add too much flour you’ll dry out your dough, or if you overload on the butter you’ll end up with a crispy puddle instead of a cookie (that also destroys your baking sheet) (speaking from firsthand experience), the more I practiced, the more I was able to bake using feeling and intuition instead of trusting a recipe. I could tell what dough felt like when it needed a little more kneading, or what it looked like when it had risen just enough. Through baking traditional Greek breads and desserts, I also found a new avenue for connection to my heritage. The gratification I received when I got a delicious final product — and one that I could share with family and friends — was all that I needed to continue having fun with the hobby.

Now, flash forward a few years, I’m a freshman in college. I’m in a dorm (Bursley T_T ), no kitchen access in sight, and eating exclusively in dining halls. Baking fell to the wayside, aside from the casual holiday cookie produced during breaks. Flash forward another year, I’ve got an apartment with a very functional kitchen — but now I’ve overloaded myself with classes and other extracurriculars, bought a dining plan, and treated mealtimes as activities to be completed as efficiently as possible so that they wouldn’t interfere with everything else I had to do in a day.

Needless to say, I wasn’t doing much baking, and the same was true with cooking — once a week I’d maybe make some dry chicken breast in a pan with some crudely chopped red bell peppers and call it a night. Last semester, fall of Junior year, at the peak of my business with school and extracurricular responsibility, I found myself in the kitchen even less.

I was satisfied with this rhythm. I enjoyed dining hall food for the most part (much to the surprise of most friends), and I really was saving time that I spent on other things. However, part of me looked at friends that were regularly home-cooking delicious, healthy meals for themselves (or for their entire co-op) and felt a pang of jealousy. Mealtime can be a sacred ritual for connection — both with yourself and with others — if you want it to be, and that was something I wanted to be able to foster.

The turning point in this cooking journey revolved around Monday night game night, the CFB championships, Michigan vs Washington. My cousin had invited me and my sister over to watch the game, with the promise that he would chef us some of his world famous confit chicken wings. My cousin is probably one of the best freehand chefs that I personally know. If you give this man some simple ingredients and a couple of spices, he’ll pull out some random cooking technique I thought only existed in high end French bistros and make some truly creative — and delicious — food, based solely on his experience and earned intuition. I think of him and flavors kind of like Remy from Ratatouille with the cheese and the strawberry, y’all know what I’m talking about.

This was the type of cooking that I had always sought after but never figured I was capable of without going to culinary school. Impressive, but something that only professional chefs who woke up at 5am knew how to do, or grandmas who just always had the skill…

Before leaving my cousin’s house (and after Michigan had won the natty 😎), I asked him how he learned to cook freehand so well. He told me that, although he had always been around cooking in his family, his skills truly blossomed when he was abroad in London for a year — when he was forced to cook for himself. He mastered simple dishes, without using recipes — pan seared chicken breast, roasted vegetables — which served as a launching pad to trying more and more complicated dishes, each time committing the cooking experience (and result) to memory and drawing upon it for the next plate.

So, flash forward to present day. Essentially, I said “Bet.”

I’ve got a bunch more time now that I’m abroad, and groceries here are significantly cheaper — meaning I can get more ingredients at a higher quality and set aside a few hours to truly explore. The first week or two, I was pretty much just doing chicken and red bell peppers, and maybe some rice. But since then, I’ve started exploring a little more — risotto, Bolognese, spatchcock chicken, basted steak — and the process has been incredibly enjoyable. I can feel some sense of intuition forming, and I find myself relying on recipes less and less with each meal cooked — having my baking experience as a backdrop gives me confidence that I'm on the right path.

dishes from my first week or two cooking freehand

Those that know me well know that I find a lot of pleasure in learning a new skill. To be honest, I do a lot of random stuff that doesn't really have much of a common thread, which is why I’m somewhat of a “Jack of All Trades, Master of None”. Cooking freehand is the newest addition to that list of random skills, but I think it’s one that’s here to stay. Not only is it fun and delicious, but incredibly utilitarian. 

In the words of my cousin: “It means you’ll never have to eat bad food... Not everyone wants your homemade candles or scarves, but everyone can f*ck up a home cooked meal.” 

Facts.

The biggest item on my food to-cook list is to make Avgolemono soup with homemade chicken broth, which is a Greek soup dish that holds a special place in my heart — one that my grandma made all the time. Stay tuned for the results in a future blog. Per usual, check out the image descriptions for a little inside scoop on the meals I've cooked so far.

In other news this week, I saw one of my favorite DJs Interplanetary Criminal, continued on with classes, and some friends from Arlington VA, my hometown, visited for the weekend from their other study-abroad-cities in Europe (including Emma, who's house I stayed at in Granada!).

See you all again next week!

Hasta ahora,

Niko Economos

Aerospace Engineering

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

Madrid, Spain

[livingwithlosingyou]

Living with Losing You - 12/5/2022

I’m on a boat, mother fucker take a look at me. 

Today was an adventure day! So fun. 

We woke up early for Leos bagels before taking the ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I have to say that I appreciate that I have been able to find delicious gluten free food around the city so far. Anyway, we walked over to grab those, then took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty first. It was really cool to finally see that in person. They even added a museum which was great. Lots on construction going on around it though, you'll see what I mean. I was really excited to go to Ellis Island since your mom and I were able to find my grandpa and his family on the sign in sheet. I would have tried to access those records there, but you had to pay. Either way, it was a unique but really cool experience to get to see how it was to arrive to America. Hearing and reading those stories reminds us of what we take for granted everyday. 

After the ferry returned, we jetted back to the hotel to get ready. TODAY WAS THE DAY I MET WITH RELEASE RECOVERY, AHHHHH! I have been waiting for this day for a VERY long time. I wanted to be as prepared as possible. I initially tried to take a short nap, but unfortunately they were testing their alarm systems. Luckily it eventually stopped and I was able to close my eyes for a little bit. I was getting really nervous today for this meeting. Again, AHHHH. 

We all finished getting ready, hopped on the subway, and made our way up. We decided to find the location first, then walk the  holiday market since we were early. They had a booth from the  GF bake shop I had found online. I bought a loaf and will have to report back once I am able to try it! 

Then... It was time. I had my meeting. I am going to spare a ton of details, but it was AMAZING. I didn’t get to meet Zac, but honestly, that was okay. It was not even why I was there. I ended up meeting with the executive director of the non profit. HUGE DEAL. Anyway, he was extremely supportive and wants to partner which makes me very excited! He believed in Redefine Recovery, and gave me some tips. I feel so incredibly grateful. I wish you were physically here for me to share moments like this with you. 

Once I left the meeting, I met the girls at Eatily (an Italian market). Once they were done there we walked to a place called Little Beet. Everything on the menu is GF! WOW! Also, they sold these delicious DF and GF cookies. I bought one, but I should have bought more. After dinner we had decided on a place and stumbled upon a Sex Museum. Naturally we went in and did the tour. I will spare all of the details, but there was an arcade / carnival part with a claw machine. We each got one play on each game. I somehow was able to pick up a silver penis stress penis! The funny part about me claiming this prize is the fact that James went to Iceland with some friends, and the place he requested as a must see was the Penis Museum. I feel like you helped me get that penis. Not to be weird, but the claw literally perfectly grabbed it. And even in the swaying, it never fell (until it was meant to).

Bri had another dinner tonight, so Marissa and I walked around a bit. We ended up getting matching booty shorts, candy, and waters. We decided to do a little photoshoot with the shorts. I will post a pic on here, as I think it’s pretty funny. 

Today was a great day. I am sorta getting sad that NYC trip is ending here soon. Soaking it all in (and literally am soaking).

Rest in Peace, James Burton Nichols 

10/1/1993 - 7/26/2022

PS - I saw this street sign and thought about how you’d think it was funny cause it’s like your name and an aggressive lisp.

[anothermarkiplierfan]

this is gay bread for you ✨🍞✨

Thank you I'm going to Consume this Gay bread and Level Up

[peachy-rambles]

Kikis delivery service au? 👀 Please go on, that’s one of my favorites of the ghibli movies and I would love to hear your thoughts on it

(Also really dumb idea but Tommy as Gigi but he’s a raccoon. Who for? Yes. Regardless of who is Kiki- oooooh and there’s that artist lady with the crows-)

-inky

Ok so here's some thoughts I have about it off the top of my head:

When Phil was 13, he left home as young witches do (with his dove familiar, Wilbur) to find his way in the world and whatever his special talent was because every witch has a special talent. He finds his way to a big city and settles there, finding work at a garden centre. He was always good with plants and he enjoys his job, even if it's a lot of work. There's even a bakery down the street he often visits and becomes friends with the owner.

One day when Phil visits the bakery, he notices that the owner is acting different and seems much more quiet and closed off. It doesn't take much pressing from him to get her to tell him what's wrong.

"It's my son. He's sick and I can't afford the medicine he needs," she eventually admits.

Phil gets more details from her about her son and he heads back to where he's staying, pulling out an old book he'd packed before leaving. It's an ancient journal written by one of his ancestors about herbs, potions and brewing medicine. He gets to work, figuring out which potion he needs to make and collects the plants he needs to it from the garden centre. It takes a few trial and errors but eventually he successfully makes the potion he needs.

He brings it to the bakery's owner and gives her the proper instructions on how to give it to her son before leaving.

A few weeks later when he visits the bakery, the owner is delighted to see him and tells him that his potion worked! Her son is still recovering, but he was no longer sick and almost healthy again.

The owner brings Phil to meet her son, Techno, who just turned 3. Techno loves Phil right away, especially because he knows Phil is the one who helped him get better. Over the next few years, Phil often visits the bakery and will sometimes babysit Techno, spending time with him.

Eventually though, Phil figures it's time for him to leave the city and to head back home. Techno is naturally distraught and is angry at Phil, thinking his friend is leaving him for good. But Phil promises he'll send Techno letters and definitely visit whenever he gets the chance.

Phil returns home and makes good on his promise, sending Techno letters at least twice a month and Techno always writes him back (well, he tries his best, being only 5 and all).

But then...Phil's letters slow down to once a month. Then once every few months.

The last letter Techno receives from Phil is wishing Techno a happy 6th birthday, and how Phil will try to visit in a few weeks if he can.

He never does.

Despite this, Techno keeps sending letters, hoping maybe if he sends enough Phil will reply. But as more time passes, he realizes that's it's probably useless and knows that Phil won't reply. Techno doesn't give up completely however and once a year, he'll send Phil a letter, telling him about all the things that have happened to him in the past year. He always ends the letter by saying how he misses Phil and hopes he's okay.

Years pass and Techno grows up, eventually inheriting the bakery from his mother who passed away when Techno was 18. Techno is an amazing baker, but because of his giant size and generally terrifying appearance+social anxiety and awkwardness...he isn't good at running the bakery and interacting with people. So, he hires another local baker named Niki to help him out. They're both great bakers and work well together, but Niki is usually the one manning the front and interacting with customers while Techno stays (hides) in the back.

Eventually, Techno (and Niki) take on an apprentice named Ranboo. He's not the best at baking yet, but he has a genuine interest in it and is great at making cookies and decorating cakes.

One day, while Ranboo is helping closing up the bakery with Techno, he's notices a little yellow raccoon with a green bandana tied around it's neck, digging through the trash. It hisses and runs away as soon as it spots Ranboo, but it's back the next night. This time though, Ranboo is prepared and has a spare loaf of broad to offer the raccoon. The raccoon still hisses at him and runs off, but not before nabbing the bread from Ranboo.

This becomes a routine for about a week, Ranboo feeding the raccoon any spare food from the bakery. At the end of the week, Ranboo decides to follow the raccoon. Because it's clearly going somewhere with the food and the bandana around it's neck probably mean it belongs to someone.

That's how Ranboo meets Tubbo - a witch in training, who wasn't able to find a place to stay and has been wandering the streets for the past week. His raccoon familiar, Tommy, was taking the food that Ranboo gave him and giving it to Tubbo to eat since he had no money or food left.

Ranboo listens to Tubbo's plights and after thinking it over, Ranboo comes up with an idea: Tubbo could live with Ranboo in the spare attic above the bakery that Techno let's Ranboo stay in!

Tubbo doesn't hesitate and accepts Ranboo's offer. They do attempt to hide Tubbo's presence from Techno, unsure of how he'll react to a witch (or you know, just a strange random teenager living in his attic), but Techno catches them on the first day when Tubbo sneaks into the bakery to steal some desserts.

Techno isn't heartless so he let's Tubbo continue to stay with Ranboo, just as long as he helps around the bakery and doesn't get in anyone's way. Even though Techno seems to not mind Tubbo's presence, the others in the bakery still can't help but notice that Techno very much avoids Tubbo and they have no idea why.

Maybe Techno dislikes witches or is scared of them? But if he does, why would he agree to let Tubbo stay.

Of course we know why Techno is hesitant around Tubbo: it's because of Phil.

Techno doesn't hate Phil or hate witches because of Phil, but he is...hesitant to trust them or get close to them. Which is why he's so wary around Tubbo and does his best to ignore and avoid him. Afterall, Techno has no idea what happened to Phil or why he stopped sending letters and why he broke his promise to Techno.

The truth is, when Phil returned home all those years ago, it turned out that while he was gone his parents had made an arranged marriage for him to another witch from a powerful family. Phil didn't really have a choice and went through with the marriage. He didn't tell Techno any of this through his letters because Techno was just a child and Phil didn't think it was relevant to tell him.

All of Techno's letters that he mailed were all sent to Phil's family's house, which Phil no longer lived at (now living with his spouse) and Phil would always send Wilbur over to deliver any letters from Techno to him.

As time went on, Phil became more and more depressed with his living situation, especially because his spouse and their family weren't...the nicest.

Eventually, something happens with his spouse, which makes Phil snap and he runs away, leaving everyone behind. He travels for a very long time until he finds a little abandoned cabin at the edge of some woods, nearby a small quaint little town. Phil decides to make the cabin his own and it becomes home to him. He eventually builds a greenhouse and garden, turning his little cabin into an apothecary, where he makes and sells potions and medicines (he will also sell his plants if people are interested, but it's mostly the potions).

He eventually earns the nickname "the Crowfather" by the town and surrounding area, due to the amount of birds (mostly crows but other birds as well) that tend to hang around his cabin and shop. Sometimes you can ever catch him talking to the birds (usually scolding them for whatever reason).

Phil enjoys the life he's made for himself and avoids thinking about his past, but sometimes he'll remember Techno and feel some regret. He sometimes wonders if maybe he should send Techno a letter and tell him that he's okay, that he misses Techno and had full intentions of visiting him, but life had other plans. Phil has written many letters over the years to Techno, but whenever he tries to send one, he always backs out and ends up throwing the letter away.

Techno was just a child when he last saw Phil and has probably long forgotten Phil already, so there's no need to send him a letter. That's what Phil believes anyway.

Phil pushes any thoughts of Techno out of his head and tries to focus on the life he has now.

Eventually, Phil finds and takes in a toddler named Tubbo, who Phil recognizes as another witch. Phil raises Tubbo and trains him in the ways of witches, until the day Tubbo turns 13 and heads off to go on his own journey to find his special talent.

Phil has no idea that his apprentice ended up in the same city Phil did all those years ago, and somehow found the same bakery Phil did and is now living under Techno's roof and being looked after by him.

But Phil will find out when Tubbo sends his first letter to Phil, giving him all the details of his journey so far, including the bakery he's staying in and the owner - Techno.

[selfships-in-spanish]

The Queen of Demons 4/?

Pairing: Erwin Smith x OC, Levi Ackerman x OC

Rating: Mature (the rating will go up as the story advances! But it will totally be explicit ;D I even have some smut chapters already half written woooo! But right now just in case)

Warnings: None for now, but sexist and misogynist upbringing (Eva's father is a huge asshole).

Word Count: 8885

ALSO POSTED ON AO3

A/N: FUCKING FINALLY. I was so stuck and had a severe writer's block, but here it is! Part 4! I feel like my writing went down a bit but I hope to make up for it on the next one. Finished, not perfect! I hope you enjoy this one and were we can see a bit more of the vets and the 104 kids ôô

CHAPTER 4: WINTER BLOOM

The pale morning rays of sunlight woke the Princess up, mumbling and turning to her side. Eva heard the distant chirps of birds flying by, as well as the sounds of the village being already busy. The neighing of horses, carts being pulled around, setting up the shops, the rooster screeching…

Wait.

That’s not what she usually woke up to.

Back home she only heard the birds and some maids, especially Flora when she would come barging in and opening the thick curtains of her windows, letting the sun hit right in Princess’ face as she knew how much Eva despised being woken up like this, hollering: “What–”

“–A great morning this is, your Royal Sleepy Highness!”

Ah, there she was.

Eva attempted a reply but curled up further into the duvet and blankets.

“Oh c’mon, Princess! We’ve got a busy day today! Lots of exciting things!”

“Exciting for you.” Eva mumbled covering her head with the thick bedding.

Flora snorted, rolling her eyes. Without any kind of remorse, Flora grabbed the end of the duvet and blankets and unceremoniously pulled them off the Princess, enjoying the irritated groan she let out as Eva tried to blindly find something to cover herself with.

“Rise and shine!” Flora said in a singsong, stepping out of the Princess’ reach as she tried to kick her leg.

“How can you be so happy and chirpy so early in the morning?” Eva gave up, sighing and rolling out of the oddly comfortable bed; Eva fell asleep earlier than she anticipated.

“Oh, spare me the dramatics! We gotta get you to eat breakfast and prepare you for—��

“I’m not hungry.”

“Yeah, sure thing Princess, as if you don’t gobble up like a duck when you are nervous.” Flora handed Eva her robe, guiding her to the bathroom where a basin already filled with water and a cloth awaited her.

Once her morning routine finished, Eva padded to the living room where breakfast had been already served. It smelled heavenly.

“I don’t gobble like a duck.” Eva sat down, huffing displeased.

The Princess served herself some warm bread, eyeing the jams and butter with a watering mouth. Flora set a steaming cup next to her before sitting down in front of the Princess.

“Sorry, not coffee yet.”

Eva sighed.

The Princess cut some more bread for her handmaiden, sharing the spreading knife after she was done with it. On the first bite Eva hummed, satisfied with the taste and texture. Freshly baked bread was the absolute best. Flora leisurely poured sugar over the butter, her smile widening at the sugary mess. Eva frowned, chewing.

“It’s still a wonder how your teeth haven’t rotten out yet.”

“Ah, family thing for sure!” Flora took a heartly bite of the sweet monstrosity in her hands. “Gramps still has his teeth intact and covers everything in sugar when he gets his hands on some.”

Eva’s lips curled into a grimace.

“I love sweets but I don't think that is healthy.”

“You just don’t appreciate the flavour.”

“I sincerely doubt there’s any flavour left in that.” Eva nodded towards Flora’s loaf of bread.

The handmaid shrugged, biting down on it and making a show just to irk the Princess further. Eva exaggerated a gag which made Flora giggle.

Three knocks on the heavy wooden door announced the Eldians coming to pick her up. Eva sighed as she watched Flora stand up from the chair next to the Princess and walk to the door, opening it with a short bow and a smile. Eva sat straighter as the looming and bulky figures of the Eldian warriors came into her view, entering the lodgings provided temporarily for her and her handmaiden. They were the same as yesterday, the giant called Mike, the female warrior that caught her attention, Nanaba, and another man Eva couldn’t remember the name right now.

The three warriors bowed, Nanaba and the other warrior waiting right next to the open door as Mike approached her. The giant warrior waved to the door, the message of “you have to go outside” quite clear in his movements. His face did not give away any of his thoughts, keeping a neutral expression as he watched the Princess stand up and follow him, Flora right behind her with giddy steps.

Flora should have been born a Princess or a noble, her happy and open disposition towards everything and everyone would win anyone over, as well as the way she found happiness in the little things of life. How Eva wished she had Flora’s positive mindset.

“Alright, ready for your big day?” the handmaiden asked in hushed whispers, something both women mastered from years of court banquets.

“Of course not. I want to run right back inside.”

“You’re such a big—” Flora was cut off by Eva’s gasp.

Flora raised her eyes just in time to see the giant warrior leaning way too close to the Princess’ personal space and… sniff. The Princess had turned around, disbelief and stupefaction etched on her face at the nerve this big, brute man had to go sniffing people without… without their consent. Eva found it uncouth, impolite, and her cheeks blazed in indignation.

Mike leaned back, humming, pleased at something Eva wasn’t sure she wanted to know. Nanaba immediately chastised the big man, kicking his leg and nagging at him as he shrugged, crossing his arms and looking slightly guilty. At the scene unfolding right outside the house, people began to stop and watch, and Eva felt her blood run cold at the sound of the Chief’s laugh coming from down the stairs. Hans and Friederich were already there, and the youngest of the two brothers was about to march upstairs, his displeased frown deepening. The Chief nodded to Moblit, motioning him to rush to them and clear misunderstandings. Levi rolled his eyes, clicking his tongue.

“Your Highness, please accept our deepest apologies.” Moblit hastily bowed, an apologetic smile in his lips. “Mike here has this habit of… uh, sniffing people.”

“Is he implying I smell?” Eva’s mouth was pulled into a tight line. Flora did not spend as long as she did grooming her and using those soaps and perfumes Eva loved for this man to mock her handmaiden’s efforts. Besides, she kept her hygiene up to date, thank you very much.

“No! Not at all, Your Highness. Mike has a great and sharp sense of smell, like a… ah, what’s the name... ah, wolf! Like a wolf, and although I do concede that it may be considered rude, he just does it from force of habit.”

Eva raised her brow skeptically.

“He meant no disrespect, Your Highness. It’s his way to say that he uh… he welcomes you.” Moblit ventured a quick glance towards the man in question, muttering something as he almost imperceptibly nodded towards the Princess with wide impatient eyes.

Mike huffed, but muttered something back to Moblit in a deep voice. Next to him, Nanaba nodded, pleased.

“He apologises, Your Highness, and compliments you.” that piqued Eva’s curiosity. “He says you smell comforting, of lavender and honey. That’s something he appreciates, with his sharp sense of smell he can easily get overwhelmed by strong scents.”

“Ah, that must be troublesome.” Eva turned to face Mike and inclined her head. “My apologies for acting harshly.” But Eva still thought her response was totally justified. A warning beforehand would have been nice, and she still had her pride.

Mike answered with one curtly bow of his head of his own.

“Indeed.” Moblit decided the issue was resolved and lifted his arm towards the Chief and the Gottesreichan Princes, watching the whole ordeal with amused expressions sans Friederich. He still looked murderous. “Please, after you, Your Highness.”

That shocked Eva. Normally back at Gottesreich she would walk behind the men and respectfully listen to whoever was talking, and even after visiting other countries, that rule still applied, or maybe they weren’t willing to go against Gottesreich. Either way, Eva was taught to never disrespect its citizens and rulers when visiting foreign kingdoms from her brothers, and the Princess always willed herself to follow the Kingdom’s culture and customs out of respect, despite what her father said on more than one occasion. Her brothers taught her to be respectful, and she would not ignore them, and even less be an embarrassment for her brothers. Summoning with all her will a composed mask on her face, Eva dared to take the lead and walk down the snow covered stairs to where her brothers and Chief awaited. Flora walked right behind her, always keeping a watchful eye to her skirts and cloak, in case they may get in the way.

The crunching of her steps on the snow were deafening for the Princess. Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch. She was used to having all eyes on her, from courts and dances and banquets, from nobles and princes trying to win her father’s good graces, but having the people of Eldia stop and observe every single move she was doing felt suffocating. One slip and she was probably doomed in their eyes.

Eva stopped right in front of the men, bowing respectfully.

“Good morning, my Lord. Brothers.” Moblit’s voice softly translated for the Chief, who didn’t take his eyes away from her the entire descent.

The Chief returned the greeting, bowing as well.

“I hope you had a pleasant sleep, your Highness.”

“I did. Thank you, my Lord.” Eva did not find the need to tell him how she tossed and turned around, her mind restless, musing over yesterday’s events –his touch– or how she missed her pillows back at the palace. The Chief seemed pleased, although there was a glint in his eyes that he most certainly caught the lie. Damn it.

“If there is anything we can offer to help you get settled and to further accommodate you, please do not hesitate to say so, your Highness. I understand it may be unpleasant being so far away from home and your people.” Eva was slightly taken aback at how the Chief seemed to be understanding of her situation, contrary to what she had heard and been told a husband would be once she married. The Princess didn’t want to let her hopes up in case the fall was to be harder than it would already be.

“Thank you for your consideration, my Lord. I will do so in case I need it.” Eva knew she wouldn’t say a thing, her stubbornness always playing against her favour.

The Chief seemed pleased enough with her answer. He turned slightly so he was facing the three Gottesreichan siblings, addressing the rest of the foreign party as well. Moblit translated for them all, and Flora managed to contain her excited hops when the Chief officially announced the start of their walk around the village.

Much to the Princess’ dismay, the Chief had offered up his right arm for her to hold on as they began the tour, an encouraging smile on his lips as if saying “go on, I will not harm you”. Eva had hoped her brothers would keep him distracted enough so she could trail behind and listen, observing her surroundings, but no such luck. It seemed like here in Eldia they weren’t as reticent of closeness as they were in Gottesreich, and women were treated differently.

The Chief was still as big and massive as the Princess remembered from yesterday’s banquet, thinking it was her own nerves and wine that exaggerated her memories, but the way her hands had trouble meeting on the Chief’s arm told her otherwise. The Eldian leader kept a slow pace, mindful of his companion and her shorter legs, as he began explaining their village and the way it was structured.

The Eldian architecture was entirely different from the one used in Gottesreich, as well as the distribution of the village itself. Where Eva was used to narrower streets with houses sharing walls, clustered, messy (although the closer to the castle, the better were planned the streets and districts), mossy cobblestones, puddles around the corners with barrels and wooden crates, the townspeople walking as merchants and shopkeepers yelled their offers to the passersby, pennants hanging from side to side of the streets with the Kingdom’s colours… Here in Eldia the streets were wider, the buildings lower in height which gave a sense of the town being less claustrophobic since you could easily see the scenery and the sky. Wooden fences, dark roofs made of slates, the streets made of the earth itself with grass heartily growing on both sides and wooden planks on the floor to help create a more visible path on certain parts, but one could clearly see the cart’s marks as well as the horses pulling them.

Although everything was covered in thick layers of snow, Eva had no doubts it would be a magnificent sight in spring, with the imposing mountains surrounding the village and the vast fields littered with the farmer’s homes composing a picture deserving of a painting. It was rurally beautiful. Different, more primitive, if she took into consideration her own Kingdom’s ways, but efficient. The Princess was sure this level of coordination would not be able to be achieved without years of honing this lifestyle, and it honestly intrigued her, her curiosity piqued. Eva hoped this curiosity and wonder for the novelty wouldn’t disappear quickly and would stay with her until her situation was more bearable, or grew accustomed to.

Moblit’s gentle voice guided the Gottesreichan guests through the Chief’s explanations, looking at the direction where the Chief pointed with his free hand while speaking, often stopping to further go into details about their dwellings, their storage facilities and barns, the marketplace with the villagers already busy with their daily chores. The town’s market was lively and uniquely beautiful, wooden stalls standing proud with all the goods on display. There was all kinds of variety, going from food to parchment and candles and clothes, to jewelry or tools for butchers or farmers.

The Princess’ heart thumped wildly on her chest, trying her hardest not to show her rising panic at the fact that she was walking around the village on the Chief’s arm, having everyone’s eyes on her as they kept their tour. The villagers stopped their chores midway to stare at them, whispering and chattering as they went through. Some respectfully greeted their Chieftain, mostly the warriors patrolling the streets doing a particular salute upon seeing them, but the villagers smiled and bowed, the children present doing the same as they tried to contain their laughs while not being able to keep their eyes off the scene in front of them. The Chief continued their walk after answering the greetings.

An excited giggle, followed by a shriek of what sounded like a name, startled the guests and their hosts, even. The Gottesreichan soldiers took a defensive stance, ready to pounce on the source of it as well as attack if necessary; their priority was defending the monarch's lives at any costs. Eva couldn’t help the scared jump her body did upon hearing the childish laugh and running steps on frozen ground getting nearer, gasping loudly in fear and tightly clutching the Chief’s arm with her tiny hands as she unconsciously leaned on him, seeking protection.

The Chief was ready to make her stand behind him and face the attacker, but stopped immediately upon seeing it was one of the children from before. The boy had rosy cheeks, the colour intensified by both the running and the cold, and probably the excitement too, and had a wide smile that was missing a few teeth. The kid was holding something in his hands, hidden behind his back, and with the eagerness of a child waiting for the exact moment an adult would pay them attention to show them what they got in their hands, the little boy almost shoved his possession to the Chieftain and the Princess.

Once he saw what the boy had in his hands, the Chief visibly relaxed, shoulders shaking in silent amusement at how a little kid got the best of them all. The Princess still looked uncertain, clutching and pressing herself into him. Eyes wide and breath a little bit short, Eva looked down at the kid’s hands. He was holding a… flower?

A flower in the middle of winter? How was that even possible?

The kid kept his eyes on the Princess, urging her to take his present with quick words and lifting his hands further up, his smile widening. Eva thought herself of a stupid fool. How could she have been scared of a child? What harm could he do? Unless… No, unless nothing. This was a little boy offering a flower, a beautiful one that Eva had never seen before. Father would not tarnish the good intentions of a child.

Upon not having, still, immediate response from the Princess, the kid hopped on his spot, irremediably making Eva show a timid smile; she could never resist a toothy grin and sparkling eyes.

One look at the mother told Eva how this was not planned and how the kid had ran off on his own volition. Everyone on the street stopped dead on their tracks and silently watched the exchange, not even daring to breathe. The mother’s wide eyes jumped from the Princess to the Chief, then to his child, not knowing if she should run and apologise to their guests or wait and have faith in their leader and his soon to be wife.

Eva understood quickly this was to be a decisive moment for her and her stay in Eldia. One wrong movement that led to misinterpretation could be beyond disastrous. She had to be good, she had to fulfill her duty and be a good wife and—

Eva took a deep breath. Focus. Don’t succumb into panic.

Fighting her burning cheeks out of her own embarrasment, Eva let go of her almost deadly grip on the Chief’s arm and faced the little boy alone. Keeping her smile on her lips, Eva approached the child with small steps, stopping right in front of him and elegantly folding her gloved hand on top of the other. The kid kept talking at a dizzying speed, and when he noticed how the Princess furrowed her brows in confusion, while still maintaining her smile, he understood not a word he was saying reached her.

Humming to himself while thinking hard, the kid’s face illuminated itself when an idea came to him. He hastily pointed to the flower and then to the Princess, practically shoving it in her hands. Eva looked down and then up at the kid, pointing at herself with a questioning look. The child nodded effusively, shoving the poor flower again.

Eva couldn’t help the soft chuckle upon his enthusiasm, never being able to resist a kid. The Princess took it, making sure to do a slightly exaggerated bow, lifting slightly the skirts and careful enough to not crumple the flower, so the little boy understood her gratitude. The kid happily ran back to his mother, skipping and laughing as he began talking at that incredible speed while his mother looked beyond relieved. Eva did a curtly bow to her too, trying to show the mother no offence of any kind was taken.

Returning to the Chief’s side, Eva brought the flower to her nose. She always did that whenever she came by one, out of habit, and was surprised by the faint but sweet fragrance it emitted. Eva would have to ask about them, knowing Gottesreich did not have any flowers blooming in winter.

Just when they were about to resume their walk, more excited giggles and shouts could be heard. Other children ran away from their mothers and fathers, holding the same flower in their tiny hands. Eva found herself surrounded by eager eyes and smiles, shoving their flowers up so the Princess would pick them up too. Some would tug at her cloak so she would pick theirs first, others jumping on their spot, other’s patiently waiting their turn as they marvelled on the fabric and embroidery of her pale blue winter dress.

The Princess ended up with a small bouquet of flowers, the children shouting and running happily back to their parents once they delivered their gifts. She did not know what to do with them now, and frantically looked at the Chief and her brothers, then to Flora when her siblings had confused expressions, for a clue. The Chieftain had an amused glint in his eyes, but half his mind was busy thinking about something. Finally, Flora took pity on her Princess and walked up to her with a smile on her lips.

“Let’s show off those gifts, shall we, your Highness?”

Flora expertly secured the flowers on the Princess’s up braid, the pure white and calm blue of the flowers an unexpected but welcome complement to the Princess’s own choice of wardrobe. Moblit later explained, upon inquiring about the flowers herself, that they were a special kind of flower that bloomed on their woods only during the cold season, earning the name of “winter miracle”. It also symbolized the welcoming of new people into their tribe, as its sister in the warmer weather.

Eva was touched, knowing not that those kids wanted to welcome her upon hearing she was to become one of them soon. The Princess only wished the adults would have the same feelings towards her.

Thankfully the walk around the village suffered no more incidents and surprises, and Eva was able to delight herself on the market and what it had to offer; she definitely had to go there often and take her sweet time. The quills looked absolutely exquisite, and those were the famous travelling books she heard so much about! Even the jeweller had a beautiful selection of earrings, bracelets, necklaces and rings that the Princess had no idea the Eldians were capable of such craftsmanship. She particularly liked the brooch with the silhouette of a bird resting on a golden branch, the gold of the bird expertly mixed with beautiful midnight blue gemstones, resembling feathers. Also the hairpins! They were absolutely marvelous. The jeweller himself was both pleased and proud that the Gottesreichan Princess liked his products.

Their next destination amazed and terrified the Gottesreichan guests.

Eldia’s military prowess was legendary, and right now, they had its base and core right in front of them. The training grounds were a massive expanse of terrain, with barracks, thoroughly used wooden dummies, racks full of well-cared training weapons of all kinds, archery ranges, horse-riding training fields… and each and every single space was filled to the brim with warriors and trainees.

It was frightening to see how Eldia’s army was composed of perfectly trained warriors with wide expertise in the arts of combat. Not a movement wasted, not a single error in the placement of their feet to maintain balance. Strength, power, endurance, knowledge— every skill needed to become a perfect warrior, it was taught here in the massive training fields.

The Chief walked them right through the training grounds, nodding towards the warriors and fresh trainees who ceremoniously saluted him and the entourage he was leading. It was the same salute the Gottesreichan guests had seen in their entire walk around the unexpectedly gigantic village: right hand closed in a fist over their hearts, left hand on the back, and a proud stance full of tenacity and devotion. The newest recruits surprised the royal siblings, full of young faces who couldn’t be older than 15, but with a fierce determination to learn and to prove themselves. All sizes, shapes and forms– if you were up to it, were ready to go through an intense training, it did not matter who you were: a farmer’s son, a baker’s daughter… if you dedicated your heart, trained hard and understood what values had an Eldian warrior, what a life meant, you were fit to become one.

They stopped to observe the fresh batch that just started training a few months back go through a hand to hand combat. The instructor, a tall and intimidating man, bald with prominent wrinkles on his forehead and very notorious dark circles under his eyes, yelled out orders to the recruits. Some flinched, some fought every fibre of their beings into not taking a step back –a few of them failing–, but some stood their ground with confident and resolved stares, bearing down the drilling of the grim and frightening man.

Upon seeing that their Chief, the veteran warriors and the Gottesreichan guests where watching them, the recruits swallowed down their fears and tried to impress their leaders and royal guests, trying to make a good and fearsome impression of what the Eldian training grounds and warriors were made of. Punches, kicks, throwing the opponent on the floor… the field became a controlled battlefield of snarls, growls and frustrated shouts that developed into determined grunts. The recruits’ clothes soon became soiled by a mix of sweat and dirt, as a result of their vigorous and energetic try of today’s exercises.

The Princess did not dare to voice it aloud, in fear of her thoughts being perceived as a critique and direct attack on the Eldian ways, but her heart shrank inside her chest at the sight of what must be the smallest, tiniest of the new recruits, a blonde girl with wide blue eyes like the sky above, go against a trainee twice her size. Eva involuntarily clenched her hands in apprehension on the Chief’s arm, eyes not able to look away from the imminent tragedy. She was too tiny to be there! That poor girl was surely to be beaten into a pulp, taken advantage of the fact that she was much weaker, much more smaller–

A large hand squeezed her tightly clasped ones, making the Princess tear away her concerned gaze, even if she thought it was impossible for her to do so, to look down and see the Chief’s one bury her own. The Princess immediately searched for the Chief’s eyes, surprised at how he was already gazing down on her and had a small reassuring smile on his lips, nodding towards the training field. Eva looked straight ahead, just in time to see the petite girl dodge and deliver a solid punch to her opponent, making the cadet stagger backwards and clutch their stomach in pain. It was still far from being perfect and devastatingly powerful, as Eldians were known for, but it was good enough for a start and for the tiny warrior’s size. A small breath of relief released itself from the Princess’ lungs.

It still shocked Eva to the core to see women amongst the military ranks and files of Eldia, and nobody questioning it. Apparently there weren’t any kind of laws to forbid them to enlist, or to do any other job that back in Gottesreich it was meant only for men. How could they do it? How could those brave women endure it? Eva had always been taught how them, the lesser, weaker sex, could not what a man could do, just because God said so in his holy words. Father was the High Priest of Gottesreich, Father preached the word of God, the Holy Scriptures, that he made memorise Eva the moment she began her intense training as the third Princess of Gottesreich. It was so deeply ingrained in her mind that the mere thought of thinking herself above a man and their role made the Princess want to get on her knees and beg for forgiveness from her God.

How far did the dissimilarities run between their nations? How could Father entrust her with his desire to enlighten the Eldians into the correct, pious path? Just the simple thought of questioning her husband-to-be and his ways chilled her entire body and soul. She just… couldn’t. Her father’s will confused Eva.

But still, deep down inside her, locked down and not even daring to let it see the light, she couldn’t help but to… envy them. Envy their freedom of choice, of options, of life. Could she ever be like them? Aspire to have their wide range of choices? Alternatives? Could she choose her own path? She had been taught since she was a little girl that she would spend her life in a home, with her husband and a child in her arms. Not travelling, not expanding knowledge, or meeting new people and cultures… Everything Father and the Governess told her reminded little Eva of a bird cage. Pretty, comfortable, enough to see what was beyond the bars… but a cage.

She learned to accept her fate quickly, not daring to cross Father ever again in her life.

Eva knew she was born in a privileged home. A castle. A Princess. Never hungry, never cold, only the best of the best for her. It only took a quick look beyond the capital to see how privilege fed and took care of her. All her whims and wishes met without hesitation. Not a single patch to fix on her dresses, her hairbrush not missing a single bristle and made of the best silver— a perfect, content life. All you have to do is your duty, Father said. Do what you were born to do. Your only purpose.

Make me proud of being your Father.

Bring glory to the Holy Kingdom.

She was made to be bred, she was made to bear children, heirs, she was made to be a leverage for deals, a bargain chip, as her mind whispered to her in her darkest moments, to bring prosperity and glory to the Holy Kingdom of Gottesreich. She was… She was…

“Your Highness?”

The Princess was brought back to the present by Moblit’s placid voice and the Chief’s gentle tug, as if she had been rooted there, staring at the warriors, and getting lost in her troubles instead of following her fiancé and Eldian hosts. They were staring at her. Everyone. At least it felt like everyone, even the animals. Her breath had caught in her lungs, her throat a hard knot she forced herself to swallow before speaking.

“My deepest apologies, my Lords.” Eva’s mind scrambled to find an appropriate excuse for her lack of manners and being caught zoning out. “I did not mean any disrespect by my actions or to show an unwillingness to follow this pleasant walk. I was simply transfixed by your warriors, admiring their tenacity and will.”

What a load of bullshit.

They all seemed to buy it. Not Flora, though. She could see right through Eva as if she had been made of glass. Her handmaiden would probably ask her about it later in the privacy of their own lodgings, but let it go for now, knowing it was no use to inquire about it in the middle of the village tour, even less in front of their hosts.

They resumed the walk, passing through the training grounds before turning to their right, strolling until they reached one of the biggest houses of the village. Moblit informed them it was where the sick and injured were taken care of. A house for the sick, a hospital. Gottesreich had its own physicians and doctors, but never a house dedicated for the sick, the poor. Eva knew the Palace had their own royal physicians, dedicated only to them, and the people needed to rely on the town’s doctors.

Eva wondered how did this hospital work. Did they dedicate a part of the taxes to it? Was it free? What remedies did they use? What—

One of the windows was slammed open, an excited yell coming out of it. Moblit let out a tired sigh, mumbling in Eldian, as if he knew exactly what was that about. Levi spoke too, the tone in his voice denoting annoyance. Eva felt the Chieftain chuckle, answering his right-hand man with something that made Levi snort.

A head poked out of the window, messy brown hair tied up in a scrambled ponytail. The stranger kept shouting, excited, continuous noises of delight coming out of their mouth. The person noticed the small entourage right down their window, and quieted down instantly, curious as to who were the ones standing there. Then, another excited screech, lurching their body almost out of the window as they enthusiastically waved down. Moblit let out a strangled noise, uselessly raising his arms as if he wanted to catch the over excited person dangling off the window.

Eva discreetly looked to her side, looking for an answer or explanation in the Chief’s eyes, but he was looking up with an amused smile. She used his distraction to look behind her, finding the exact confused expression on her handmaiden and brother’s faces. The Princess saw Flora quietly shrug her shoulders, and she was so tempted to join her, but refrained in case the Eldians caught her and found it impolite. The person on the window shouted something and disappeared inside, sounds of furniture being moved around reaching their ears. Moblit groaned, rubbing his temples.

A few minutes later the same person who had half their body out of the window came out from the main doors of the hospital. Levi discreetly stepped away, not wanting to be involved with the newcomer and the imminent events. He really wanted to go back to the privacy and tranquility of his own home, drink a nice cup of tea…

An excited exclamation followed by a strident laugh broke Levi’s long desired daydream. He watched their eccentric approach, wondering how their guests would react to them. Judging by how the delicate Princess gasped at anything that came running and loud, Levi guessed it would not go right. Mike silently joined him, crossing his arms as he, too, observed the catastrophe about to happen.

“Bets?” Mike’s low murmur made Levi snort.

“She will freak out.” Levi turned his head to amusedly stare at his fellow warrior. “Like she did with you.”

Mike scoffed, crossing his arms.

“C’mon, not you too. And I say she doesn’t, just to spite you.”

“Hah! Serves you right, you big-nosed moose.” Levi’s gaze fell back to the front.

“It was not my intention.” it truly hadn’t been. He couldn’t help it, Mike trusted his nose, knowing his instincts never failed him before. He had to know.

“Just, don’t go sniffing people.”

“I will not make such promises.” Mike’s lips curled into a smile, proud at the way he managed to make Levi’s shoulders briefly shake.

Both warriors kept watching the scene in front of them, with Moblit trying to save the situation from their beloved doctor’s clutches, quickly directing their attention to himself and his words. Everybody knew that Moblit had a reserved spot on their Goddesses’ paradise; nobody worked as hard as him, and was as skilled to manage the village’s resident genius doctor.

“Your Highnesses, it is my pleasure to introduce you to our doctor, Hange Zoë. They are the head of the hospital and–”

“IT IS PLEASURE TO MEET, HIGHNESSESES!” Hange cut the poor and exasperated Moblit out, excitedly looking from one sibling to the other. The royal hosts were surprised at the doctor’s broken Gottesreichan attempt, albeit enthusiastic.

Flora successfully covered an amused snort. Ardor! Fervor! Passion! Flora admired that in a person, and for now, Doctor Hange Zoë managed to catch her attention. The handmaiden was sure she could learn interesting things from this eager physician, and secretly wanted to see how Eva would react. It reminded her of her first week as the Princess’ handmaiden, chasing a scared and overwhelmed Eva down the corridors as she tightly clutched one of her precious books, wanting to volt out of any situation that involved a loud and chatty girl following her everywhere. Flora realises know that she had been a little bit insensitive to her poor friend, but in her defense she just wanted her Princess to live.

The eccentric doctor went from sibling to sibling, offering their hand for them to shake. Prince Hans took it surprisingly well, smiling warmly and shaking the offered hand with what would be considered a perfect grip, confident and secure, while Hange still kept letting out broken gottesreichan, not giving any thought to the mistakes. Friederich was confused, and as such, shook his hand with the same sentiment as he was feeling; the second Prince felt as if a strong wind knocked him out of his feet and all he could say was “huh?”.

But ah, Eva. Poor Eva. She had brief flashes of her childhood with Flora, of an overexcited girl running after her as she talked, and talked, and talked… until Eva began to enjoy her extroverted nature and secretly thanked her for dragging her out of her room or the library. But still, Doctor Hange Zoë managed to scare the living daylights out of her with their excited gasp and sparkling eyes. Eva clutched the Chief’s arm in a deathly grip for the second time that day.

Hange offered their hand out too, but then seemed to think about it. Did princesses shake hands too? Was it protocol? Well, Hange never truly cared about protocols, to be honest, Moblit usually took care of that. So maybe it was too forward? Should Hange bow? Did they thoroughly screw up in their eagerness–?

Eva raised her hand and took Hange’s as her brothers did, Forcing herself to paint a warm smile on her lips.

Her father and governess’ voices were screaming inside her head, louder than her own heartbeat. How dare you shake hands with a commoner, you, a princess of Gottesreich? A princess should never shake hands! Commoners must bow, must kneel, must–

“The pleasure is mine, doctor Zoë. I am afraid I do not know any word of Eldian yet, but thank you for your efforts. I hope to learn soon.” Eva would follow her brothers’ lead for now, as they discussed on their journey to Eldia. Father was not here. Father did not understand. If Eva was to settle here to start a new life and end it here, she could not start fights and discontent because of her father’s pride. It was the smart thing to do.

The coarseness of her father always upsetted her, even if she swallowed her discontent, not wanting to repeat that night.

Hange’s uncertain face instantly turned into a bright smile. They didn’t screw up! The doctor turned to say something to the Chief, who in return gained a brief smile. Then, Hange returned their attention to the siblings.

Levi was rendered speechless. He lost the stupid bet! Levi was sure the Princess would freak out upon Hange’s overly enthusiastic greetings, judging by how she had reacted earlier with Mike and his antics. He didn’t dare to turn to his left to see Mike’s moronic moustache smiling smugly at him.

“You owe me.” Mike’s grin could be heard in his voice.

“Shut up, you giant tree.” Damn it!

“Want come in? Show house?” Hange signaled to the main entrance of the Hospital, already thinking about the tour they would take the royal siblings and show how amazing their inventions and discoveries had been.

Should Eva say yes? No, that was arrogant of her, she couldn’t decide on a whim what or what to not do, even less without consulting it with her brothers or the Eldian leader. Didn’t the Eldians also have an itinerary already made for today? The people on the streets and outside the hospital were staring at them, curious about the scene in front of them. Eva was getting nervous. their stares were suffocating her, their attention adding more weight on her, her mind scrambling to find an appropriate response–

Moblit intercepted before Eva could begin, quickly saving the moment.

The Princess was grateful for it, feeling the weight of the decision on her shoulders diminish; she restrained her relieved sigh from escaping her lips, though. Moblit would handle it, thank God above! With a pang of pity in her heart, Eva watched Hange go from thrilled to crestfallen as Moblit spoke. Now she felt bad, knowing for sure they had the best intentions in their heart. Maybe the detour wasn’t that bad…?

But Hange immediately returned to their cheerful self.

“Must come other day! Question Erwin about it!” Hange clasped Eva’s hand in theirs, that exhilarated spark back in their eyes. “Must show you fun things!”

Eva pressed her lips into a tight, nervous smile and nodded, hoping it would be enough to quench Doctor Hange’s eagerness. Too forward! Too forward! Was this also an eldian thing? It seemed to do the trick, as they went back inside the hospital when an assistant called them from the door and enthusiastically waved goodbye.

“Apologies, your Highnesses.” Moblit deserved a raise and long vacations. It had been only a day, but it was clear for the gottesreichan guests that the poor man dealt with a lot, and it seemed that Doctor Hange occupied 80% of it. “I must ask for you to forgive Doctor Hange’s lack of protocol and take no offence by it. The Doctor really enjoys meeting new people and telling about their discoveries and new remedies.”

“No offense taken, Moblit. I’m sure Doctor Hange can make it up to us by showing us what they are so excited for, right?” Hans was genuinely interested, always asking the doctors and physicians back at the palace about everything, going as far as reading some books, although he understood half of it. He truly wanted to know Doctor Hange’s thoughts.

“Honestly, I’m curious now.” Friederich scratched his nose, mumbling. Hans sniggered, lowering his voice so only his brother and her sister’s handmaiden could hear him.

“You, willing to listen to non-battle-related things? Who are you and where is my dear brother?” Flora snickered, covering her mouth.

“Oi!” Friederich’s ears went red at the tips.

“We will have to come tomorrow, then.”

Moblit approached them, always with his calm smile on his face.

“May we continue, your Highnesses?”

Only when they resumed their tour, hearing Moblit talk with her brothers and the Eldian warriors escorting them, did Eva realise how Doctor Hange was wearing glasses.

Saying Eva was scared was not enough. Terrified? Frightened? Petrified? There was no adjective to describe the sheer terror those beasts instilled inside her heart. Those were not horses. No horse could be that monstrous size. Nope. No way.

She didn’t even reach the horse’s chest! And even one leg was as thick as her whole body! How did they even suppose she could get on one of them?

They were led to the village’s stables, where the stable hands and grooms had horses ready with their saddles. Each one of them had a different saddle pad, beautiful Eldian embroidery and motifs of golden and white thread on a teal fabric, most of them resembling the ones from the village’s houses, the themes of the needle work being mostly of mother nature herself. The leather of the saddles were beautifully taken care of, going from darker to lighter tints of brown, no doubt the artisans made a good work of the dyes and its delicate processes.

The horses looked healthy, robust and ready to be ridden by their masters. If Eva wasn’t as scared as she was, she would be admiring the animals and the pure strength they exuded.

Friederich was getting more invested into this part of the tour than the previous one. Yes, Eldia was beautiful and curiously different, but for Friederich, it was still boring; he had never been good at diplomacy and pleasantry visits. He had always heard of Eldia’s monstrous steeds, and was delighted to see such enormous and sturdy stallions, powerfully built and vigorous. You could see the raw power in them, and couldn’t wait to see what it felt to ride one of them. Maybe he could convince the Eldian Chief to trade some… Surely his enemies would piss themselves upon seeing a beast such as this charging against them. Yeah, maybe he could, preferably at the evening banquet. Now was not the time.

This was an important ritual for the Eldians.

Moblit gracefully explained how this was considered crucial when two souls got engaged in Eldia. Hunting was part of their culture, a huge one, and they would not bring shame to their traditions and ancestors. It was an art, and the Eldians deeply respected nature and what it provided for humankind, so the solemn air was palpable. For Eldians this was a trial, also. Those who proposed to their lovers would have to hunt a magnificent piece for their betrothed, to both show that they could provide for them and also have the strength, patience, wit and endurance used in hunting that would prevail in their lives.

Since the Chief was getting engaged to the Princess, he had to prove himself to her, so she would accept and approve of her future husband. This ritual held even more importance for who was performing it, and the villagers were actually curious about how well would their Chief perform; sadly, some couples had to use all three attempts to succeed. They hoped the Chief would succeed at his first try.

For Eva, it was basically a show to see how much of a peacock the man could be, not that different from those in court who would fawn themselves and their achievements to win her hand, and what came with it. Bitter? Maybe so. She was just tired of men, but would respect the Eldian tradition. After all, traditions were traditions, and one should always honour them, no matter what.

For Flora, it was just like her beloved romantic novels. A man proving their worth to their beloved? Man versus Beast? Oh, how she wished that for herself! Maybe one day she would find love here, in Eldia. Who knew what the future awaited for her?

“As tradition says,” Moblit spoke. “The future bride and groom must ride together, as the willingness of their souls to start a new journey.”

Eva froze.

No way.

No.

There had to be a mistake. She thought she would ride in a small carriage with Flora, as the men rode and discussed their matters. Her dress wasn’t suited for riding!

On cue, one of the stable hands brought a magnificent white stallion, it’s crest carefully brushed and not a single tangle and bit of dirt on it. It was bigger than the other horses, robust, and Eva understood now what people meant when they said pets and horses resembled their owners: a horse truly fit for a Chief; it had to be his judging by the proud look the man had on his eyes.

The beast patiently stood right in front of them, not showing an ounce of nervousness or uneasiness. How Eva wished she felt the same. She just wanted to bolt right out of there.

The Princess felt the Chief turn towards her, and automatically released her hold on his arm, although he kept her hand in his, gently guiding her towards the Chief’s own stallion. Eva didn’t want to get closer, even less mount on it. She was terrified! They stood in front of the beast’s head, admiring the noble profile and long golden lashes it had. Eva saw the Chief affectionately gaze at his horse, giving it a tender stroke on its muzzle. He looked back at Eva, inviting her to do the same, but the Princess remained rooted, frozen on the spot. The Chief nudged her to pet the stallion’s head by lifting her hand himself, slowly, always watching her reactions closely— the Chieftain knew he was pushing her, but Erwin believed this would help her lose a little bit of her fearful first impression.

Eva watched, between a mix of horror and wonder, how her gloved fingers brushed the horse’s muzzle, its heat warming up her palm. The stallion didn’t even flinch at the change, letting itself be pet. Eva was amazed, transfixed, not even aware of the Chief’s gaze on her. Slowly, a sensation of relief washed all over her body, feeling more secure now that the beast showed no trace of nervousness upon seeing a new face. Eva even let herself release a small smile, even though her heart was still pounding fiercely inside her chest.

More horses were brought to them, each warrior taking the reins of their own steed, as well as new horses for the Princes to ride. Friederich was beyond excited, eyes going from head to rear of the enormous beast he was lent to ride. He looked like a child in a candy shop back at the Capital.

Everyone waited for the Chief to mount first, as tradition dictated. The solemn air felt like a pressing stone on the Princess, not truly knowing what she was supposed to do besides having to ride with him. Should she say something? Perform a certain move? But the Princess stood rooted there, letting her never-fading anxiety begin to swallow whole again.

The Chief prepared himself to mount on, grabbing the pommel with his left hand and easily hoisting himself up when he set his foot on the stirrup. Every move he did looked effortless, as if even a child could do that with their eyes closed. If they thought Eva could achieve such levels, they were going to be thoroughly disappointed. The Chief extended his hand to the Princess, signaling her to come closer and join him on the horse.

The question is: how the hell is she supposed to get on it?

Moblit did not give any clues or hints about it, and everyone respectfully watched as the Princess approached the Chief with small steps. The Eldian leader never looked away from her, and she truly reminded him of a scared fawn.

What came next was a blur for the Princess. One moment she was standing right beside the Chief, timidly taking his hand and raising her other one to try to reach the pommel as the Chief did, her foot raising too to set on the lowered stirrup, and on the next moment Eva found herself being lifted as if she weighted nothing, strong arms pulling her up, easily turning her so she sat astride the horse with her back pressed against his chest.

Eva couldn’t focus on anything but the feel of his broad and strong chest snugly pressed against her back, despite the layers of thick clothing and cloaks between them. Eva did not pay attention to everyone else getting on their horses, or how Friederich couldn’t help the boyish grin on his lips, or how Flora turned beet red when she was made to mount on the same horse as the second Prince of Gottesreich, her confident and self-assured attitude gone for a moment. She couldn’t, not with how the Chief righted her stance with gentle hands, or how he straightened her own dress skirts and cloak without being prompted to do so, or how he guided her gloved hands to the crest and horn, so she had something to hold on to, even if the arms that caged her in wouldn’t let her slip and fall. The cold was forgotten for a moment, as well as her nervous tension.

Prompting the beast to an easy gait, the Chief led the party outside the stables and onto the main street. That’s when Eva snapped out of her trance and quickly ventured a look towards her handmaiden, seeing her grip the crest of the horse she was on with red cheeks. Both women crossed looks, twin bewildered expressions greeting each other. Eva silently cheered for her friend, but was too occupied herself with her own troubles to even waggle her eyebrows to tease her handmaiden.

This was going to be a long day.

The main street greeted them with the eldian villagers gathered on the sides of it, creating a passageway of curious and expectant faces. Everyone looked like they were waiting for a signal, eyes glued to the Chief’s horse and its riders, fingers and feet fidgeting. When the Chief and the Princess passed the first bystanders, the whole wide street exploded into cheers and shouts and blue.

The villagers threw flowers on them and the horses’ hooves, smiling and clapping as they passed by. Eva recognised the winter flowers from before, the same she wore now on her braid, and watched the villagers cover the entire street in a mantle of blue and white. The Chief did not turn to greet or answer them, keeping his head and eyes straight ahead in a solemn show of respect towards their faith in him. That’s when Eva understood this was part of the hunting ritual too, bidding farewell and good luck to the couple about to engage in the ritual. So, to not be disrespectful towards their culture and traditions, Eva did the same, looking straight ahead towards the main gate, into the sky blue path. A flash of the Chieftains’ eyes crossed her mind. The same blue.

It truly was a beautiful sight.

[dinneratsheilas]

Meyer Lemon Pound Cake

This Meyer Lemon Pound Cake  comes to you because our good friends shared with us some of the bounty from their beautiful Meyer Lemon tree !

The lemons from their tree are some of the prettiest I have seen.  They are large, bright, smooth, and juicy...perfect!

They sat on my counter in a bowl just looking great for a while.  I decided to use some of them to make this pound cake, a recipe from Martha Stewart.

The recipe makes two, so  you can eat one, and freeze the other for another time.

It does make a lighter cake than typical pound cakes, and when I make it again I would add some lemon juice to the batter, since it only called for the zest. 

The glaze calls for both the juice and zest of the lemon and has great flavor.  I love how the tiny pieces of zest show through the glaze.

Here is the recipe...

Meyer Lemon Pound Cake (Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

For the Glaze

Zest of 1 Meyer lemon

2 and 3/4 cups confectioner’s sugar, plus more if needed

1/4 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice

In a medium bowl, whisk all glaze ingredients to combine.  If necessary, add additional confectioner’s sugar to desired consistency.

When cakes have cooled, pour glaze on top of cakes.

For the Cake

1 and 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans

4 cups sifted cake flour, plus more for pans

1 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

2 and 3/4 cups sugar

8 eggs, room temperature

1 cup milk, room temoerature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Zest of 1 Meyer lemon

Dinner at Sheila’s Notes:  When making again I would add 3 to 4 tablespoons of lemon juice to the batter to enhance the lemony flavor.  Also when baking, always check the expiration date of your baking powder to insure the cake rises as it should. If a recipe doesn’t specify size of eggs use large. Also if a recipe calls for sifted cake flour (or flour), always sift before measuring. If it calls for cake flour, sifted, measure first, then sift.

Directions

For the cake

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Butter and flour two 9-by-5-by-3-inch (or larger) loaf pans and set aside.

Sift the flour with the salt and baking powder two times and set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream the butter until fluffy.  Add the sugar gradually, beating until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk and vanilla.  Stir only until thoroughly blended.   Gently fold in the zest.

Pour batter into the prepared pans, making sure to divide the batter evenly between the two pans.  Level tops with an offset spatula.

Bake for about 1 and 1/2 hours, until a cake tester comes out clean. 

Let the cake cool in the pan about 10 minutes; then remove to a wire rack to cool thoroughly.

Pour glaze on top of cooled cakes, and serve.

[lizzie-tempest]

We've had a lot of angst last few days, how about some fluff? Boy/s of your choice cute meets with future SO? :D

Yay!  Some fluff! *rubs hands excitedly*

I’ll start with the Sanses from Tale, Swap, Fell, Horror and Swapfell.  

Undertale

Sans is heading up a hill in the dead of night when he meets you.  He doesn’t usually wander out at night.  But that night is special.  There’s a meteor shower and he intends on watching every moment of it.  

When he gets to the top of the hill, he finds that you’ve already beaten him there.  His first thought is disappointment.  It took him ages to find a spot this good and he’s so certain that you’ll want him to leave.

He’s just about to head back when you call out for him.  You ask him if he’s here for the meteor shower and ask him to stay when he confirms that he is.

To say that Sans is pleasantly surprised is an understatement.  He hesitates for a moment in case you don’t really mean it.  But when you don’t show any signs of changing your mind, he gives in and heads over to you.

You came prepared.  You’re sitting on a blanket, another one wrapped around your shoulders and holding a cup of hot chocolate with a book open in your lap, displaying different constellations.

He sits next to you and you open up the blanket around your shoulders, silently inviting him to get warm beside you.  It’s a cold night and he appreciates it.  Besides, he gets a better look at your book like this.  

You manage to find another cup and pour him some hot chocolate as you introduce yourself.  He rattles off his name and a few space puns and he can’t help but love your cute little giggle.

And once the show finally starts, you both huddle together in silent awe at the display above you.

Underswap

Blue is on a morning jog and he decides to head through the park.  Not exactly unusual, he likes to change up his routine every now and then and this won’t be the first time he goes through the park.

But it is the first time he sees you.

He stops jogging, eyelights wide when he sees you.  You’re crouched down by the pond, feeding the ducks.  You have a gentle smile on your face as you take in the ducks and their little fluffy ducklings.  So cute.

You feel his gaze on you and you look over.  You smile kindly and Blue feels his soul pulse when you wave him over shyly.  He’s nervous as he wanders over and he’s worried about scaring the ducks away and upsetting you.

But you stand and introduce yourself and take his hand, scooping some frozen peas into his hand and patiently showing him what to do.  

It doesn’t take long for the two of you to be absolutely surrounded by the little ducklings.

Underfell

Red’s walking through the park when he meets you.  He’s just minding his own business when he hears panicked shouting.  Next thing he knows is nearly being bowled over by this huge fluffy dog.

Red will deny it if anyone mentions it, but he has a major soft spot for cute and fluffy things.  This dog is the best.  He doesn’t care that it’s a little muddy.  All he cares about is that this adorable dog isn’t scared of him and judging by the tail (which is wagging so much it looks like the dog is about to take off) it’s also very happy to see him.

He’s gushing over the dog when you trot over, meaning to get your dog back.  You approach him cautiously, apologizing again and again.  The tone of your voice says it all.  This has happened before with a less than friendly reaction.

He smiles at you, stating how cute your dog is and cracks a joke.  He loves your cute little giggle, it’s like music to his ears.  

He goes walking in the park a lot more after that.

Horrortale

You meet each other in the grocery store.  

Axe is just going through the aisles, trying to make sure he gets everything he needs on the list that Crooks gave him.  And then he steps into the aisle where all the cakes and baguettes are.  That’s where he finds you.  You’re clutching a freshly baked loaf and inhaling it’s scent.  You always loved the smell of freshly baked bread.  

He doesn’t know whether it’s the lighting, that you’re incredibly cute or the fact that you’re practically shoving your face into one of the loaves just to smell it, but Axe falls hard and fast.  Then he sees the amount of cakes and treats you shove into your cart and it’s like love at first sight.

He’s walked up to you before he even realizes it.  You turn to him, smiling shyly and saying a quiet “Hello.” and he just freezes.  Axe didn’t prepare anything to say as he was walking up to you.

He babbles like a complete idiot for a moment before he grabs something random from your cart.  A can of soup.

“er...you like soup!” You giggle at his statement and he blushes.  Oh no, he’s cute.  His nervous stammering is so endearing.

“good.  i like soup too.  it’s um... soup-er?”

He trails off at the end and instantly wants to smack himself.  That was awful.  He can come up with better than that in his sleep!  He’s about to die of embarrassment when you start laughing, cracking your own food puns.

Heh, yeah.  Definitely love at first sight.

Swapfell

He’s walking home from the gym when he hears a commotion.  When he follows it, Black finds you on the floor, surrounded by guys who are being unnecessarily cruel to you.

All of the things that you’d been carrying have been scattered around.  One guy is holding you back and stopping you from struggling and the others are smashing the objects you’d been carrying.  You’re pleading for them to stop, but they just continue to laugh.

Black sees this and is filled with rage.  He has seen his brother on the receiving end of this kind of treatment, has seen the effect it can have on someone’s self-confidence and he instantly knows that he won’t stand for this. 

“HEY!” 

They stop what they’re doing, knowing that they’re being watched and instantly back off, running away and laughing as they do and leaving you sobbing on the floor.

He’s about to pursue them, but one look at your form tells him not to.  You’re more important.

He helps pick up your things and apologizes about the belongings that have been broken.  You’re devastated.  They were heirlooms that had been passed down from your mother, who passed away not too long ago.  They were all you had left of her. 

Black helps pick up the pieces, he calms you down and helps you to breath evenly again.  Then he brings you to a little cafe and buys you a drink to help you calm down. 

He asks for your number and when you blink, surprised at his bluntness, he explains that he’s going to try and fix the heirlooms for you.  You try and protest.  He doesn’t have to do this.  Black just smiles and gently insists that you let him do this.  Eventually you give in and part ways, with the skeleton promising to let you know when he’s fixed everything.  You’re not entirely convinced, considering they were in literal pieces but you decide to let him try.

Black spends the whole week working tirelessly to fix the heirlooms and even though he is so tired by the end of it, the smile you give him and the kiss on the -cheekbone makes it all worth it.

sorry it took so long! ^^;

[the-world-that-was]

Roman Bread by Apicius

Today, I'll be making some Roman bread! Bread is one of humanity's food staples - if there's a collection of humans, they'll find a way to make bread one way or another! This particular bread is actually recorded by Apicius - Marcus Gaius Apicius, a Roman writer and gourmet - who was writing in the 1st century BC. This is a simple wheat loaf, that I've decided to give a little decoration too.

In any case, lets take a look at The World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video above!

Ingredients 1 cup wholemeal flour 1 cup plain flour 1 packet instant yeast OR 1/2 cup sourdough starter 1 tsp salt warm water (to mix)

Method

1 - Prepare the Dough To begin with, pour your packet of yeast into a large bowl, and add a little water, just to rehydrate it. Romans didn't have access to dried yeast like this, but they used natural airborne yeast - like how we use it today when making sourdough! You could just as easily use a 1/2 cup of sourdough starter if you want to be more authentic - but since that's something few people would have on hand these days, dry yeast works fine! Whatever type of yeast you use, add your teaspoon of salt, a cup of wholemeal flour, and a cup of plain flour into the bowl. Pour in a little water, and get to mixing. Always add less water than you think you need, so your dough doesn't get too wet. I usually add about a half a cup of water at a time, and work it through, before adding more if needed.

2 - Work the Dough When your dough looks cohesive, get to kneading it in the bowl a little, before tossing it out onto a lightly-floured worksurface. Knead your ball of dough for a while, stretching it out and folding it around repeatedly. You should know that you're done whenever you can poke the dough and it springs back fairly quickly. This is also dependant on how warm your kitchen is, and how active your yeast is - which is dependant on a thousand different factors. In any case, go shape your bread loaf. More often than not, Roman bread was disc-shaped. Examples can be seen carbonised in bakeries in Pompeii. However, it's not unlikely that bread could have been shaped and braided, much like bread today! So that's what I'll be doing here. If you're going to braid yours, divide your dough into three long sausage shapes, each about the same thickness. Then, join them together at one end by pressing the dough together. Next, take the left-most length and pull it over the middle strand, and under the right strand. Repeat this with the middle strand (which will now be on the left-hand side of the loaf), and tuck the ends underneath the loaf!

Even if it doesn’t look cleanly done here, it’ll turn out gorgeous when you’ve baked it!

3 - Rest the Load and Bake Now that your loaf is formed, go place it onto a lightly floured baking pan. Place a damp cloth over this, and leave it next to a heater, or in a warm area, for the dough to prove and expand. Leave this be for about an hour, or until the dough has doubled in size! When it's finished proofing, take the cloth off it, and place this into the middle of an oven preheated to 200 ° C / 395° Fahrenheit, for about 25-30 minutes - or until they develop a golden crust! This will take more or less time than my oven, so be sure to keep an eye on your loaf so it doesn’t burn. When it's done, take it out of the oven, and let it cool before you cut into it!

[thesvenqueen]

With All My Love

Rating: M

Pairing: Kristanna (as if it would be anything else)

Also on AO3

Previous Chapters

{Chapter 15}

Not for the first time, Anna finds herself thankful and amazed at how easy things are between her and Kristoff.

From the start, when they’d decided to meet, to run away from it all, she’d expected things to be awkward. A tension lying between them in the form of a thick smog, heavy and uneasy, that would take so much time to disappear.  

Anna had imagined, before knowing the identity of her lover, that things would move slow, painfully so. Neither wanting to push boundaries, to make the other uncomfortable, both being unsure of their movements and what to say to the other. Which really, is silly when you think of all the things they’d spoken about in the letters over the years but it’s easier to write words, to write out your feelings than to speak them openly. 

The moment Anna had seen Kristoff, the moment she’d realized he was in fact the one behind the letters, her K, her love, she mentally prepared for the awkwardness to settle in. 

For a moment it had, the air had been thick with tension and shock, both standing stock still in the lantern light. 

She was sure, then, that the relationship would take much more time to build, for walls to be broken down between them; for the comfort they’d built within letters to settle openly, for the walls of tension to collapse. 

Anna was an open person to a default sure, willing to talk to anyone after so much time left alone in an empty castle. Her walls and barriers could come crumbling down easy, but Kristoff? He was different, always having walls from the moment they’d met years before.

Some parts had begun to crumble, to crack as more time went on but they still remained tall and firm, unmoving no matter how much Anna pestered him.

Though he may be her K, the one who spoke so freely on his love for her, how much he cared and wanted to be with her, he was also Kristoff who was closed off to most. Rough around the edges, a grump in a sense who trusted very few after such a rough upbringing.  

So it had been surprising that with a large smile, Kristoff had hugged her, letting his wall begin to fall and the awkward tension lying in wake to fall with it. 

It had been then that Anna knew this would be completely different and not at all how she had imagined. 

There had been moments when the awkwardness crept in, sure. That night for example, Kristoff had been unsure to even place an arm around her. 

Now he moved freely, confidently, no hesitation or worry in his movements. In her own right, she spoke openly, no longer afraid to hold back her thoughts, to speak her mind as she pleased.

More often than not, the awkwardness would follow when kisses became too heated, too intense for them both, hands moving over as much of the other as they could. They couldn’t touch enough skin, feel enough of the other, kissing for as long as they could without coming back for air. On many occasions Anna found herself in his lap, her legs on either side of his own, losing herself to his touch as he kissed his way down her neck.

They would pull back though, always stopping before it would get too far, both blushing and gasping and oh, how Anna longed for the day they never stopped, when they kept going. 

But Kristoff was an honest man, so sweet and good that he’d never push, never make the move for more and Anna knew she’d have to be the one to do so. 

Someday. 

For now, though, she’d wait. It wasn’t that she wasn’t sure, oh gods no, she was surprised at how sure she was, how she hadn’t even hesitated at the thought of being with him that way. 

It was more of wanting to savor this, what they had now, not wanting to rush anything. They had time, more than enough now Anna thinks that there would be another day for that.

Till then, it would be shy giggles after hot, full kisses, and bright blushing faces as they moved off one another, untangling their hands from each other's hair and garments. The awkward tension that comes after would, like most times, disappear as quickly as it came.

They speak without hesitation, smile widely and laugh loudly, tease relentlessly, and touch without so much of a second thought. 

Even now, with Kristoff holding her close to his chest, rubbing his fingers idly up and down her back as they lay in his--their bed. There is sureness in his movements, in his touch, in the way he holds her close, kisses her with such fierceness. 

There is no doubt, no apprehension; just love. Pure, strong, powerful love that makes Anna smile. 

~.~

He’s late.

The thought is one Anna had fought to avoid, fought to push down and out of her mind. 

There is no fighting it now with the sun set, the darkness creeping into the mountain side. The fire burns, crackling within the cabin. 

Anna can’t remember when she started crying, if it was before the sun had fallen or as night had crept into the cabin, forcing her to light the fire. But at some point, the tears had begun to fall, dropping to the floor as she wept.

She sits now staring at the flames, wrapped in the too large fur pellet that he is meant to be entangled under with her. The stew sits untouched, still warm but quickly going cold. She’d wanted to wait to eat it, and wanted to surprise him at the fact she’d remembered an old recipe Gerda had taught her. 

It had tasted heavenly, making Anna hum in delight when she dipped a spoon in to try. A fresh loaf of bread sits beside it, ready to be torn apart and dipped within the stew. Anna had all but drooled at the smells, of the baking bread and boiling stew, that she’d had to walk outside to keep herself from diving in.

Now, the smell of both makes her stomach turn, a solid weight of knots sitting in her chest. 

She keeps waiting, hoping to hear the familiar sound of hooves approaching, to maybe hear him call out to Sven in excitement. To hear anything, anything at all to let her know he was home. 

But the night is still, the fire the only sound and she sobs openly now, the tears falling faster as more time passes. 

The fear settled in quickly, engulfing her and making her gasp for breath. It holds tightly to her heart, creating horrid thoughts of what could have become of Kristoff. 

So many different scenarios, so many worst cases that it only makes Anna sob harder. 

She buries herself into the fur, letting it catch her tears as they fall, muffling her painful sobs that wrack her body. 

It was only a matter of time, she thinks, berating herself for being so careless, for not worrying as much as she should have. She had been at first, so worried and thankful every time he came through the door. Looking back now, she knows he became too comfortable, too sure that he would always come home. 

“I will always come back to you.”

He’d told her, he promised her. But it is hard to keep promises, let alone one so strong as that one.

They should’ve been more careful, had thought things through but now it was too late. Who knew where Kristoff was, what had become of him. If the guards had caught on, if Elsa had realized somehow he was involved, if he’d been ratted out by someone within the castle; she’d never know. 

She curls in on herself, moving to lay down as her body is too exhausted, too weak to stay up anymore. 

If he was here, she would lean into his chest, sigh happily as he kissed the top of her head. There would be no tears, no fear weighing heavy within her; it would just be them, holding onto each other in peace.

Anna regrets many things, one particular question she’d been too shy to ask, too nervous to inquire. Now, she may never get the chance and the realization makes her want to scream. 

The last thing she thinks, as sleep overcomes her is if only, if only. 

~.~

Anna awakens suddenly, unsure what has brought her out of her restless slumber. 

She is still on the floor, the fire still burning but not as bright, showing that she’d been asleep for some time. 

She blinks slowly, not daring to move as she lies there, eyes puffy and nose stuffy from her crying.

Then she hears it, the unmistakable sound of the door creaking and she realizes she awoke to the sound of the door opening as she now hears it shut. 

Anna sits up, turning to find Kristoff looking at her with so much worry, his brows creased in concern. He moves to her, mouth opening with what is sure to be an apology but Anna doesn’t wait. 

She moves, running to him and slamming into his chest, tears coming once again. His arms wrap around her, his face buried in her hair and as she cries, she hears him repeating over and over and over, 

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” 

Anna pushes back, smiling as she is filled with complete relief at the sight of him, bringing her hands to the back of his neck to pull him down and down till her lips find his. 

She’s desperate, pressing fully against him, moving her lips forcefully against his own, her hand grabbing hold of his hair. 

They’ve been like this before, desperate with want but always quick to push back, to stop without going too far, Kristoff always the one to pull back first. 

Anna decides though, as she moans at the feel of his tongue on her lips, his hands grasping her waist tightly and entangling into her hair, that there was no stopping.

Not anymore. 

She would never go another day regretting never asking, never being able to know what if. 

All her life she never inquired about things, never pushed to get what she wanted as she didn’t want to inconvenience anyone. Left pondering in her room alone at night wondering what if she had, what if she’d spoken up.

Old Anna would have stayed quiet, too afraid to speak her mind and her wants & needs. But that was then, this was now and now, Anna knew exactly what she wanted and she wasn’t going to sit back quietly either.

She wanted Kristoff, wholly and fully, she wanted to be with him and every way she could. 

Kristoff moves to kiss down her neck, finding the spot he’s come to learn always brings a sweet moan from Anna. As he sucks and kisses his way down, Anna brings her hands to his chest, and with shaky hands moves down slowly, ever so slowly, grazing her nails as she does. She stops when she finds the bottom of his shirt, and as she moans once more at the feel of his teeth biting lightly on her neck, she tucks her hands underneath and presses them on his bare chest. 

This makes Kristoff pause his exploration, pulling back slowly and Anna’s heart begins to race. 

This was it, it was now or never as he looks down at her with a quizzical look. Anna swears she can see the same storm brewing in his eyes that was sure to be reflected in her own, and it gives her courage to finally speak.

“Make love to me?” 

[onf-headcanons]

ONF in Cafe AU

(Establishment)

A/N : 200 followers special!! This different universe from Baker Yuto

Settings : A total brand new universe where they just gather by pure coincidence. Or an alternate universe where ONF later when their contract ended, they gathered to open a cafe once Yuto return to Korea from graduating his bakery course back in Japan. Hyojin, Seungjun and Jaeyoung helped by researching how to register+open business in Korea.

Roles

Yuto : The bread maker

Seungjun : Barista

Hyojin & Jaeyoung : Chief waiter and in charge of cashier

Minkyun : Assisting waiter and more of a helper in the kitchen preparing ingredients

Changyoon : In charge of other menus such as sandwiches/bagel sandwich and dessert

Reader : could be part timer or the regular guest (bonus a fan of ONF as well)

Bonus : Minseok might occasionally drop by to visit or Minseok as another member in the kitchen (i mean have you seen his IG???!!!!!)

Headcanons

As Yuto is more of a bread lover, the cafe would be a bakery+cafe style eatery.

The menu is made and proposed by all 6 of them. Also before they start running business, the kitchen gang has already tried making food to do taste test. (Including WM family)

The menu is written in Korean, English and Japanese.

Yuto would keep trying on making the best bread so he would experiment with different options such as more milk or less flour

Hyojin would always give ideas to improvise. And members trust Hyojin's thoughts because he is such a foodie XD

Seungjun would research and practice on his barista skills.

Changyoon would do graphic design of the menu

Minkyun and Jaeyoung would go out to find spot to rent and open cafe

Once the cafe is opened, this is how they run it.

Because of ONF's nature, I personally think they will test the timing of business by doing a few around of simulations.

This would be suggested by Changyoon and agreed by the leaders

So before they opened, they really tried it out at the empty cafe and simulated with full house for 3~5 days straight. Then they are content with the current timing as below.

I also think Seungjun Jaeyoung and Yuto would keep suggesting adjustments on the timing.

Especially Seungjun and Yuto. Seungjun in the bystander view because he is the barista and Yuto sharing the perspective on what timing those outside kitchen should alert those in the kitchen. They would run timer using their phone.

Bakery closes on 6pm, tidying done by 7:15pm, head out for dinner or simple dinner by whipping up some left over ingredients.

Grocery shopping on 8:45pm or 9pm, headback for cafe for preparations if necessary

Next day 6am at cafe to do early preparations, bakery side and morning take away opens on 7:30am,

10:00am opens for eat in + buffet, they do not do dinner so closes at 6pm and repeat for every day.

They closes on big event public holidays, end of the year+new year.

(They will get quick lunch by ingredients whipped up from the kitchen. Hyojin will switch with Jaeyoung, Seungjun will switch with the part timer, Yuto will get quick bites while waiting for dough to rise, Changyoon and Minkyun will switch)

(BTW this is just reference from my weak experience working on restaurant)

There are 5 walkie talkies. Hyojin, Seungjun and Jaeyoung have 1 each, 1 at the cashier and another is at the kitchen with speakers. This is for them to communicate and alert each other about the crowd and also any food items that are running out.

BTW should we are using the Minseok as one of the member in kitchen, he did not join immediately. But he do drop by to support his hyungs and being the 2nd food taster.

His hyungs and Yuto are a bit reluctant to recruit him but, to their surprise, Minsk volunteered himself.

And oh boy his hyungs all in awe at how good this baby boy's cooking is!!!

Funny moment when Seungjun caught Hyojin eyes are gleaming with bliss after Hyojin tasted Minseok's food. And then only the other hyungs swarming over wanting to taste Minseok's cooking lol

(Hyojin already numb due to so many times food tasting lol but cos he loves to eat he still finishes all the samples. But Minseok's cooking was a breather for him at that exact moment)

Also Changyoon has an idea that putting surveys on each table and let guests to fill in. When they submit to cashier, they might get coupons (?) or maybe discounts about 83%

Or maybe some collectibles and when they got all six stickers, they get 83% discount? (its flexible)

The cafe gains popularity because of the quality and due to good looks of chief waiters and barista.

Also, I think in their menu, (should this is the contract ended ONF universe), they might integrate the member recommendations, it is flexible either food or drink. Or maybe both

Hyojin definitely going to recommend 2 smoothies.

Changyoon would recommend pasta and dessert

Minkyun will go for a sandwich

Jaeyoung might recommend Yuto's sourdough bruschetta

Seungjun will recommend one type of latte

And Yuto will recommend 1 or 2 breads found at bakery/buffet corner. But for menu he would give out tips like which bread type goes better with which cheese or jam

（BTW I think its cute should they use their mascot deer, shark, maltese, gorilla, cat and bread as avatar/icon that appear at recommendations!）

And on their birthday, (this could be Seungjun's idea) there will be a 83% discount sticker placed on the recommended food/drink by the member.

And since we talked about menu...

Again its a bread themed cafe, so the main would be bread, brunch and all day breakfast.

Bread type (buffet) : mini croissants, mini buns, scones, baguette, bagel, white loaf, sourdough

Bread type (bakery) : croissant, buns, garlic bread, scones, baguette, bagel, red bean bun, packed bread loafs

Let me explain about buffet first.

Buffet is for brunch+lunch, which starts on 10:30am to 2pm. Its a 90 minutes course. In that course you can pick 1 of each option of bread, salad, toppings, sides (sausages, hams, cheese and baked beans) and also random desserts.

They offer butter (salted and unsalted), 3 to 4 types of jams (strawberry, mixed fruit and marmalade), variety of paste to go with bread (mashed avocado and Parmesan garlic pesto). also Nutella

For buffet, beverage there already stocked variety of juices, warm coffee and tea (that are already prepared earlier) and fresh water

Cheese they will go for cheddar, Havarti, Feta, Mozarella and brown cheese.

Should you don't go for buffet, they have eat in cafe menu. Which are separately made set meals that comes with beverage. Like sandwiches, bagel sandwiches, spaghetti/pastas, or bruschetta with topping of your choice (6 the most)

Seungjun would prepare freshly brewed coffee, latte, tea, frappe and even smoothie.

Desserts are all simple desserts, like mini tarts and mini cupcake. For specially ordered ones would non baked stuffs that Changyoon and Minkyun made early in the morning and stored in fridge (because dont wanna clash with Yuto baking should any bread nearly sold out. Also can have more flexible timing should Yuto need help they can back up)

Initially, Changyoon will always make extra desserts by x2.5 amount, especially mini tarts or mini cupcakes at the buffet area. He is a worry wart.

BTW the bell Changyoon presented Yuto during OnDaeJeon? Its later used at the cafe lol. As the alert tool for waiters that food is done come and take it

I think on early years, at most 2 years, they are not going to do delivery or food app order service just yet.

But they will run an Instagram or twitter account for the cafe and using it just like how they are doing with they current twitter account. Promoting food and giving out random recommendations also a glimpse of their daily lifes running the cafe and bakery

I think Changyoon would upload a pic of seasonal fruit and a teaser for new seasonal dessert? And then lol it will sometimes plot twist ends up being seasonal beverage that made by Seungjun lol

Should Minseok is not a member running the cafe, the boys consult with him occasionally about adding new seasonal,time limited items.

Also Hyojin and Yuto being the photographer taking picture of the food. Oops I forgot, the pictures of food items in menu are both taken by them too!

Minkyun will bring along one of his fave part timer to do emergency grocery shopping should he needed a hand.

Hyojin and Jaeyoung will try to help customer to decide by suggesting recommendation

Also Hyojin, who would sometimes keep an eye on how customer do combination on their food and get inspiration from it then later try to propose to the team.

As chief waiters, both Hyojin and Jaeyoung would always during at the cashier, asking customers should they have any suggestions or proposal (even if they submitted the survey). Values communications and feedback between staff and customers.

Also Seungjun will help out keeping an eye in case they miss out someone trying to call a waiter. Later after a year of profits, they upgraded to bell calling service type, press a button and they come serve you in a minute.

Initially, Hyojin and Jaeyoung would make use of walkie talkie to recite orders that they get so that Seungjun, Yuto, Changyoon and Minkyun can get them

After maybe a couple months of profit, they upgraded it to tablets. while the walkie talkie is used as mentioned above, to alert regarding to run out/sold out food items.

Also, once reached closing hours, I think they will also have a brief meeting. Especially for waiters team. I think Hyojin would guide and critique on performance.

In overall it is very warm to work with ONF but you have to keep up because they are also strict.

I can see should they know part timers birthday, they would wish them. Maybe Changyoon/Minseok will shove special dessert or pasta for them.

It will be funny that some fans went there hoping to see Yuto, Changyoon and Minkyun but they are busy, do not want to disappoint, Hyojin and Seungjun might try to call them out using walkie talkie. (only apply to the contract end universe)

Oh I had a thought, maybe not the public knows that Minseok joined? I think maybe its also Minseok's terms and conditions because he does not want the spotlight he just wanna help running the business

Also should WM family drop by to visit, the first word as they enter the door, both sides will go “Aigooooo~~~~!!!” (Refer to RTK where Oh My Girl drops by to check out ONF for TWML practise)

Should that happen, its a big day for the fans

BUT!!! I can think ONF cafe later be the hangout spot for WM family? like member’s birthday? lets go to ONF cafe! Because Yuto baked a cake specially for us!! and off they go~ 

I mean its a great deal, considering Yuto’s love for bread and he did not sell customised cakes. So its personalised stuff he made for those he cared about.

That is why mostly the gathering will happen after 6pm or

Maybe WM managers drop by to pick up the special cake

Also, Yuto let part timers to have leftover breads or desserts at bakery and buffet area for free. His hyungs agreed because you should not waste food. Plus freshly made bread are their selling point so they won't recycle them.

A/N : gonna stop here and should there is more, I might do a part 2~!

[47pictures]

“Abysmal”

Link to original r/nosleep post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/o4mdi8/my_husband_and_i_checked_into_a_new_underwater/

______________________________________________________________

My husband and I are the first guests to check into a new underwater suite with a full glass display. Yet, all of the fish are missing… but I don’t think we’re alone down here, either.

“No peeking still,” my husband nagged, his hands still over my eyes as he guided me.

“How can I peek with your hands literally over my face,” I remarked. He chuckled.

After what felt like forever with him making sure I didn’t bump into anything up to the mystery destination, my husband Jackson assured me that we were finally there. Thank the Lord…

“Alright, open up!” he said as he unveiled his hands from my face.

Now that we were here, I felt the rush of excitement again, and a shy yet exuberant grin grew over my face as I slowly opened my eyes. Once they opened, however, they widened tenfold at the sight before me.

“Whoa,” I exclaimed.

Jackson chuckled. “Soooo, did I pick out a good birthday gift or what?” he teased.

It was truly a sight to behold. An underwater luxury hotel suite, with all the delicacies and comfort a guest could dream of, encased entirely in an underwater tank with a view to die for at nearly every angle. Undoubtedly, it was a great birthday gift.

“Baby, this is amazing,” I spoke. I turned to look at him. “I-I was just kinda joking when I said bring me the ocean if you could, you know?”

He and the usher who led us to the room with our luggage exchanged laughs.

“You should know by now I take almost everything you say literally,” Jackson said as he stepped my way, towering over me by merely two inches.

“Mmm-hmm,” I uttered through my smile, and we both leaned in for a kiss.

The usher awkwardly rolled our luggage over to the king-sized bed (really, it looked even bigger than king-sized) and neatly set them to the side.

“Happy birthday,” Jackson said.

“Thanks, Babe,” I replied, as we both went in for another kiss. Poor usher, I thought. I know it must’ve been awkward for him right about now.

“Um, sorry to break the moment,” the gentleman timidly noted, “But if you two would like, the kitchen staff has prepared a lovely four-course lunch, which should be about ready in the next 30 to 40 minutes?”

“Oh,” I uttered.

“Nice,” Jackson followed. “What do you think?” he asked me.

I gave him a crazy look. “Shit yeah,” I replied under my breath, but quite loudly. I noticed the usher, “Oops, I mean-”, clearing my throat, “Yes, my husband and I would love to attend,” changing my whole demeanor.

Me and him both chuckled like idiot children. That’s simply how we were together. Like children. Though, when it was time to be adults, I was usually the parent in the relationship. He was a messy eater, I used proper dining etiquette. He needed a haircut, I did it for him. He got bruised up or injured doing god knows what, I fixed him up. He wants to travel to a random city over the weekend, I do all the planning (except this time, to my surprise).

Jackson was smart - very smart… but dumb at the same time. He was like a golden retriever. Had lots of energy and charisma, always the center of everyone else’s attention, yet, he couldn’t hold his own to save his life. Very all over the place. In a way, however, that’s what I find attractive about him. His zest for life and a childlike curiosity outlasting his years. I liked to have my fun as well, don’t get me wrong. But I was more Virgo-like in my ways, even though I’m a Pisces myself.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lunch was held in the hotel’s center aquarium, giving us a full view of the ocean around us. Glass surrounded us with a bright blue luminescence as the sun reflected light through the large sea.

We were presented with a lovely four-course meal of seafood selections. Both of us got the seafood chowder as a starter. I got spicy Caribbean shrimp and he got oysters for appetizers. For the entrees, I got a nice big baked salmon, and Jackson got a huge lobster tail with a side of melted butter and mashed potatoes. It was all delicious, needless to say, and to top it all off, we had carb-packed tall slices of strawberry cheesecake. I could barely get up from the table after we were done.

After congratulating the head chef for such a fine meal, Jackson shot the question.

“Where are all the fish?” he asked.

It was one of those things I didn’t even think to ask, yet it was so obvious. Where were the fish? I didn’t know we were coming here until just a while ago. Had I not seen any pictures from the brochures in our room, I’d think this place didn’t have any fish at all. It was a good question.

“Ah, the fish,” the chef said. “They’re usually out most of the day and usually at night, they’ll obviously be harder to see and go elsewhere. But today must be one of those days where they’ll just… sorta hide.”

“Hide?” I remarked.

“Yes,” the chef replied. “Mostly from predators, if they’re around. But that’s strange, there usually aren’t any around. There’s the sharks, but even still, nothing that’s a serious threat to make the others leave.”

“There’s sharks here?” Jackson asked in a tone that I couldn’t tell was either amazed or afraid.

“Oh yes, a couple of them will show up from time to time. No great whites, or hammerheads, or anything crazy of the sort, but yes, there are a few.”

“Hmm,” Jackson uttered.

“Well, hopefully they turn up soon,” I added. “We gotta get some pictures, right Babe?”

I nudged Jackson at his side, to which he didn’t noticeably return much of a reaction.

“Mm-hmm,” he noised passively.

Maybe he was starting to get a food coma, too, and needed to lay down. I know I did. We’d gotten back to the room and done exactly that.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After a pleasant nap, I woke up to the magical view of the suite being illuminated with hidden LED lights outlining the bed, walls, and other pieces of large furniture. The room held a bright gold luminescence along with the now dark blue to almost pitch black abyss of the ocean. I wonder if that was something that could be turned off or it just stayed like that. Either way, I wasn’t complaining one bit.

Jackson woke up not too long after, and I barely saw him shuffle over to the bathroom in a hurry, as I was on my phone with my back turned. Was he sick?

“You all right, Babe?” I called to him.

“Yeah,” Jackson replied. “Had to piss.”

Oh, well that made sense. With that, I turned on camera mode for my phone, and began snapping random pictures, and was getting ready to do a panorama view. I had the lens set at one side of the room, starting at the edge of the first wide window, then began to drag across the room. I made it past the first window, then past the walls and door to the bathroom occupied by Jackson, then to the other side window, and was about to come around to the end of the last huge display behind me, until I noticed something through the lens.

I lowered my phone to get a look with my own eyes and saw that there was an enormous shadow of space outside the glass. It could’ve been the lack of sunlight reflecting down on that particular spot, but then I thought, was it really that dark already? It was only a half ‘til six, so it made sense for the water to be dark, but not that dark. The thing was, it stood out from the rest of the area like a sore thumb. You could still tell apart the ocean floor from other sections of the room, as well as the tiny rocks at the bottom. But over in this particular spot, it was near-total blackness. An abnormally large disquieting contrast in the area around it.

Maybe it was just a large rock structure. Like a fjord, maybe? No, those are like mountains or something, I think.

Then I heard the toilet flush. I waited for Jackson to come back out, but a couple of moments kept passing longer than expected. I was getting suspicious again.

“You sure you’re okay?” I called again.

“Yeah,” he answered.

It would make sense if he got sick from the food, perhaps. It was seafood, after all, and that among other recipes could have a tendency to make anyone’s stomach queasy if not properly prepared. But I didn’t have any issues so far. We ate nearly the same thing, as we picked from each other’s plates all the time.

I went ahead and gave him another minute, but as more time kept passing and I didn’t hear from him, I decided that was it.

“Hey, I gotta piss, too,” I announced, as I got up and started approaching the door.

No response. Then, a few seconds later, “Okay,” I heard him respond. Weird, I thought.

I slowly turned the knob and opened the door slowly, as not to budge right in. To my confusion, he wasn’t in the bathroom anymore at all. Huh?

“Jackson?” I called for him.

I looked across and saw that there was another door leading to a different room, or closet maybe? It was cracked open.

I went over and swung open the door to find a nice tidy compartmentalized space, the only room that wasn’t encased in glass, with Jackson loafing around. It had a nice window seat cushion that extended along the side of the walls of the entire room, and a circular window that simply showed the outside view of the ocean, which was also nearly pitch black as the shadow that cast over near the bedside window I’d a moment ago. Perhaps I was right. It was just large boulders or rocky structures blocking the light on those specific sides of the glass.

“You know this wouldn’t be a bad room to crash in,” he said, as he kept aimlessly searching around for something.

“I guess not?” I awkwardly replied.

“Could be a good place to do… other things, too, yeah?”

“It’s kind of a tight space, don’t you think?”

“We’ve managed with worse.”

“You know, there is a whole bed back there,” I said, pointing my finger to the door.

“Yeah…” Then his mind trailed off elsewhere before he looked at me again. “I’m done in the bathroom. You said you needed to go, right?”

I gave him a certain look. “I lied,” I answered. “You okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” he responded, but I knew when he was playing clueless.

“You’ve been acting kinda strange since lunch.”

“Oh?”

“I mean, we both know you’re strange as it is, but… earlier you seemed sort of all right, but now since the sun is starting to come down, I don’t even know.”

“True,” he said, still not actually paying attention as he was still searching around the room.

I was getting a little fed up. “What are you looking for?” I asked.

“Something to cover this window with,” he said. “Can we get seasick from this? You know, with us being underwater and everything?”

“… Maybe?”

“There’s nothing but towels and a bunch of useless crap in here - are there any like really big pillows out there in the bedroom?”

My gosh, he was acting strange. The obvious question came next.

“Why do you need to cover the window?” I asked.

“Because… I don’t want anyone spying on us,” he answered.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“We’re underwater.”

“I noticed.”

“Who’s gonna spy on us? The fish? There aren’t any.”

“You don’t know, there might be people with submarines or something down here trying to capture a couple of lovebird guests having a good ole time down here to sell on the internet or who-knows-what.”

“Okay, one, I’m not fucking you in this room, and two, what is going on with you? You’re just acting so weird. What’s wrong?”

He looked around nervously, biting his lip like a child keeping a dirty little secret. Then, he finally fessed up.

“I have… thalassophobia,” he guiltily admitted.

“What?”

“Thalassophobia.”

“What’s that?”

“Fear of the ocean. Like deep water, all the shit that lurks in it, you know? Being stranded at sea, even. I’ve always been afraid of the water, babe. I tried to work on it, believe me, but nah. It’s just always been that one thing I can’t get over.”

I was dumbfounded. “Wh-” I started, trying to find where to even begin. “You have a fear of the ocean and you booked us an underwater hotel with literally a 360 view of open water?”

His face was red. “Yeah,” he muttered.

“Why?” I asked.

“‘Cause, it was for you. It wasn’t about me. I wanted you to be happy, and I wanted to get you something nice for your birthday, something I knew you’d love.”

It was one of the many sweetest things I’d ever heard him say that I almost forgot how dumb he initially sounded at this moment. I went over to him and gently cupped his face with both my hands, my back facing the window now and his facing the door.

“Okay,” I started, “Baby, you didn’t have to get me anything - though, I’m very grateful for all of this. And besides, I still don’t want you to be uncomfortable even if I’m not. We’re… you know, a marriage. A unity, or whatever. A team. I wouldn’t do something for you if I didn’t like it either.”

Jackson arched a brow.

“Okay, I didn’t mean for that to sound as bad as it did. Of course, I’d make sacrifices for you, too. But you get my point?”

Then I realized he wasn’t reacting to what I said at all, and was looking across the room past me towards the glass.

“The rock is gone,” he whispered.

“Hmm?” I uttered.

I turned to face where he was looking and saw what he meant. The black abyss of space beyond the glass was no longer there, and instead, we saw the faint blue glistening of the evening once again. Strange… it’d been black as night a moment ago, I thought. But Jackson said the same thing I was thinking. He, too, thought it was a rock.

I looked to him. “Tell you what, I’ll order us some drinks - you pick - and I’ll bring them back and we can just hang out here, okay?”

His face lit up with excitement again. “You don’t have to do that, Babe? Don’t let me ruin your b-day.”

“To me, it’s ruined if you’re not happy.”

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I’d gotten room service to order us a tray of varied alcoholic beverages (only under his card, Jackson insisted). Champagne, Moscato, Grey Goose, and a few other cocktails, along with some crackers and cheeses to go along. We hung out together in the small enclosed room with our backs facing the window atop a fortress of pillows I pulled from the master bedroom and threw into the other room. I even fulfilled his request to cover the window with other stacks of pillows and whatever else I could find so he wouldn’t have to look outside.

We cuddled in the pillow fort we’d made and watched a movie on his phone. Any other person might view this as a complete downer to their vacation, but for me, I actually enjoyed every second of it. We never usually partook in high-end sort of living activities, even with me thoroughly planning and making sure we budget down to a T, so they usually ended in us doing things like this instead where we much preferred the comfort of doing things the unconventional way, such as sleeping in another room aside from the bed on a stack of pillows. Plus, it made Jackson feel better, and he was usually always braver than me. For once, I saw a true vulnerability in him.

“We’ve been to the pool and stuff together,” I said.

“Mm-hmm,” he replied. He drank way more than me. He’d answer anything at this point.

“You didn’t seem scared then.”

“The pool isn’t scary, the ocean is. Remember though, I couldn’t go past six feet?”

Then I thought about it. He was right. He never went too far to the deep end of any pools we got in.

“Huh,” I expressed. “I never noticed ‘til now.”

We kept on watching the movie for a couple more seconds before I had the urge to ask more questions.

“What about it scares you the most?” I asked.

He shrugged. “I mean, a lot of things. Like the thought of how deep it is… you never know what could be down there - here. The feeling of being surrounded by a vast bunch of endlessness, and being so small…” He shivered with chills. “Yeesh. Fuck that.”

“Yeah, when you put it that way, that does sound pretty scary.”

“Nah, you love it. You and the ocean have a pact.”

“What?” I smiled.

“Admit it, you would love to be a little mermaid just swimmin’ along in the abyss, waving at seamen - haha, seamen - passing by on their little boats and just having a grand time-”

“Oh shut up!” I laughed.

“-Just floating around with your long red hair collecting seashells singing, ‘Unda da sea!’-”

“Whatever!”

“-Unda da seaaaa!”

He was hysterical, and we were both having a good time. At least he was enjoying himself now.

I had to get up and use the bathroom again. After doing so, I decided to go get my phone that I’d left on the charger from the bed. But when I stepped into the room, it was nearly pitch black. I couldn’t see a damn thing.

What happened to the LED lights? Did they automatically turn off by themselves? It’d be weird if they did, though, because it wasn’t at our discretion to do it ourselves, and who’s to say we still needed the light or not?

I decided to use the bathroom light by swinging the door wide open to let the rest seep into the room and illuminate. Now, I could discern where everything was, if only faintly.

I went over to the bedside and pulled my phone from the USB. 100-percent battery life. Nice. While I was over there, I also turned on the lamplight perched next to me, and saw that it emitted a bright enough radiance to fill the entire corner of the bedroom. Might as well leave it on.

Then a thought occurred to me to check on the vast space I’d spotted earlier through the window. It would be directly in front of me. So I lifted my head to take a look, and to my stupidity, of course, it was indistinguishable now at this time of night. Some hours had passed since I last saw it, making the entire perspective a dark blue tint.

Though I loved the ocean and all the creatures that inhabited it, after hearing Jackson’s opposing view on the subject, in a weird sense, I was now starting to get what he meant. The vast darkness of the underwater. The endless abyss. I could imagine how terrifying it must be to swim in such a colossal space with no sense of direction, no other object in sight. No way out…

And what made it more frightening, I think, wasn’t that the water was pitch black. No, it was the fact that it was nearly complete darkness, but not entirely. You could observe the murkiness of the depths shift from light blue to an uncanny shaded indigo. Were the shadows underneath simply an indication of how far the light could reach from above? Or, could it be that something waited - patiently - down below?

Geez, I could have quite the imagination when I got to thinking too much by myself. I was even getting scared at my own thoughts. But if anything, I could now sympathize with my husband’s dread.

I turned to walk back to the bathroom door when another thought struck me, stopping me in my tracks. The rock Jackson and I noticed earlier, or at least what we thought was a rock… wasn’t it black? Like, entirely black. Black as night? And we both thought we were seeing things, where the rock had suddenly moved and we couldn’t identify it anymore through the window of the back room. It was hard to say if it was a bad memory or the alcohol, but I could swear…

I went over to the telephone next to the bed and decided to call room service again.

“Hello?” the female clerk on the other line answered.

“Hi, yes, I was just calling because I noticed the lights in our room aren’t working anymore. Not the main lights for the lamp and bathroom and stuff, but for LED lights, you know?”

“Oh, I see. Yes, there’s a switch on the wall right next to the thermostat where you can turn them on. It has a knob where you can adjust the brightness, and another one that lets you change the color to whichever one you’d like also.”

I shifted my eyes over to where she was referring to and found exactly what she meant. I could’ve found that if I bothered to look first.

“Oh, I see it now,” I laughed. “I guess I’ll check and make sure it’s on or off.”

“Okay,” the clerk responded, sounding pleased. “But that’s strange. They normally stay on unless of course, the guests decide to shut them off or when they automatically shut off at sunrise.”

“Hmm… maybe there was just a short power outage?” I suggested, though, it was probably unrealistic.

“Could be,” the clerk fancied. “But either way, hopefully you and your husband can enjoy the lovely moonlight from above as well.”

I was confused. “Moonlight?” I said.

“Yes. From where your room should be, it’s placed in the perfect spot for the moon to be seen from the top of the glass.”

“Really?” I replied, very puzzled. I looked up to see if I could maybe notice it through the top. “I don’t see any-”

At the sight I was now witnessing, I felt every bone, every muscle, every nerve in my body turn cold. There was something on top of the glass. Not just on top, but engulfing the entire tank. Above were faint details of what I could only imagine was its mouth. It was circular almost, with rows of what looked like razor-sharp teeth getting smaller at the center.

“Hello?” the clerk said on the other line.

I couldn’t move. A sensation more than just fear overcame me. I was petrified. At this moment, I never felt so small.

Then, the creature began to shift its entire body away from the glass, sending a near-seismic rumble throughout the suite. I dropped the phone onto the floor, and I followed suit as I got down, raising my arms as an instinctual reaction to try and shield me from whatever was about to happen next - as if that would do anything. I was in the presence of something further up the food chain than myself. Further up than any other predator that I knew that walked or swam the face of the earth.

As it released its grip from off the glass, shapes of monstrous tentacles began to flail about, leaving behind a powerful swooshing noise through the water, along with a resonant sound that the only way I could describe it as is something that couldn’t be replicated. Not on this planet. It was deafening, earth-shattering, like something from a different world.

MuuuUUUuuuuuh

MuUUUuuuUUUUUUUuuh

It was so alien-like. It seemed to be coming from the thing itself. So powerful, even more so than the call of a blue whale or the roar of an earthquake. It was truly one of the loudest sounds I’d ever heard.

Suddenly, pure blackness no longer surrounded the view, as shades of the natural lighting of the ocean floor began to form again, and instantaneously, a white glow emitted from the glass ceiling. There it was. The moon. It had been there the whole time… and so had this thing.

As the creature rose higher away from my view, I was starting to get an even better look at its size. I still couldn’t even grasp its entire shape. It was huge. A behemoth of an unknown force lurking down here, waiting to be discovered.

I was amazed, astonished even, but not in a positive manner. The same sensation kept overtaking me as I began to curl up into a ball next to the bed. The sensation that I’d never felt so small…

I planned on staying there and hiding under the bed until it was gone. Then I’d be safe. But Jackson…

I got up and immediately ran towards the bathroom and over into the other room, shutting the door behind me. He was still lying against the pillows watching the movie on his phone, not noticing a thing about what lies beyond the glass. I couldn’t have been the only one to hear it, I thought.

“Baby,” I panicked.

He looked at me, concerned. “What’s wrong?” he asked. I guess he didn’t hear what I did after all.

But I couldn’t tell him, I thought. I was already scared as it was, but telling him might be catastrophic, and he’d never want to leave this room.

“I-I…” I stammered. “… I saw something.”

It just came out. What was I supposed to do, lie?

“What?” he said, now growing nervous as I was. Fuck, why did I do that?

“Th-There was something outside the glass, um…” Then I realized, I hadn’t told him the whole truth. “A shark or something. Like, a big shark.”

Jackson arched his brow, like he always did when he thought I was crazy.

“Are you pranking me?” he asked, his whole demeanor changing from worried to a perky suspicion.

I was dumbfounded. “Huh?” I said, still in a state of clear panic.

“I thought you loved sharks? Go play with your new friend,” he joked.

Without a doubt, the alcohol took the edge off of him from earlier, but he had no idea just how serious I was. Maybe that was a good thing, but right now, I needed both of us to leave this room asap.

I kneeled in front of him, looking him in the eye.

“Listen, I don’t wanna be in here right now. I’m getting… claustrophobic,” I lied. “Let’s just go to one of the lounges and hang out there for a bit where there’s no open water outside to look at, okay?”

He still wasn’t buying it. I’d be skeptical, too, if I were him. I never expressed fear of any sort in regards to the ocean. Even all the scary creatures he feared that swam in the sea, I took a liking to. But not that thing. Not that thing that waited outside…

“Your acting never fails to impress me, dear-

“Jackson!” I snapped.

He turned straight-faced again. I never snapped at him like that before. He knew I was serious this time.

“You’re serious,” he said. I nodded.

“Just put on your pants and let’s go,” I insisted. “I-I’ll cover your eyes so you don’t have to see out there when we cross the room.”

“Okay…”

He got up and started to put his hands on.

“By the way,” he started, “Did you hear something a minute ago? Or was it just the movie?”

“Hear what?” I asked, a noticeable fear in my voice.

“Well I don’t know, I thought I heard something, like a loud rumbling noise. Thought it came from the movie, but then I was like, there’s no way, because-”

MuUUUuuuUUUUUUUuuh

We both felt it rumble down in our feet and up to our rib cage, and stared at each other for a moment. Aware of precisely the same thing now, Jackson whispered under his breath, “Honey… what was that?”

Suddenly, the rumble sounded again, and was followed by both of us losing balance on both of our feet, and we both began to stumble. We both struggled to hold on to each other while simultaneously trying to grab onto the wall for support. Jackson managed to clutch one of the beams sitting atop the wall, and his strength alone was enough to hold both of us. I held onto him for dear life as the suite kept violently shaking.

His back was to the window as my arms hooked around him for balance. But I could see ahead that the barricade of pillows we’d put up on the window had now fallen, leaving the glass open for a full display of the outside. And to my confusion, I couldn’t see anything beyond it. It wasn’t a dark blue or black tint this time, but instead, a bright yellowish shade that now covered the window.

The rumbling had now stopped, and it was quiet as a mouse.

“You okay?” Jackson asked.

I didn’t say anything. I was too fixated on the window. Why was it that color? It’s like we shifted into a different environment altogether. Like a whole new backdrop.

“What the hell?” I muttered.

“Hmm?”

He turned to what I was perceiving and shared the same confusion. It was a strange sight indeed. Then we saw a black circle shift from nowhere and down into different corners of the circular window. The direction of the circle bounced randomly from corner to corner as if it were a corrupted game of Pong, until finally sitting dead center on the glass, facing us.

I felt a sick sensation in my gut, and Jackson’s jaw dropped in terror at the realization of what we were now both seeing. It was an eye… and it saw us.

MuUUUuuuUUUUUUUuuh

The sound rumbled the whole area again.

“Go, go!” Jackson shouted, trying to lead us both out of the room, and we did just that.

We’d crossed into the bathroom when the lights cut off. There was darkness again. We were blind to the lack of light as we both tripped into each other, him almost knocking me down completely. I grabbed onto what I could only guess was the sink as Jackson quickly grabbed me to keep me from falling.

“You all right?” he said.

“Yeah.”

“What the hell is that thing?” His voice trembled.

“I don’t know,” I cried.

We needed to get ahead into the room and out into the main lobby and let someone know what was going on. But the lamp I’d left on in the bedroom ahead was out, too. Otherwise, there’d be some lighted path for us to distinguish. It was pure darkness. The only faint light, if any, came from the dark hue of the water surrounding us.

I pulled out my phone and turned on the flashlight to lead us.

“C’mon,” I demanded.

Jackson followed closely behind with his arms still over me for protection. Though, I’m sure it was more for him than it was for me. I could only imagine…

We raced through the bedroom and for the door in a matter of seconds. But in that time, we caught a glimpse of the outside. It was a nightmare. Just an endless void of murky dark water that appeared to stretch for an eternity. We were two small, meaningless creatures in the center of the vast universe.

When we got to the door, I turned the knob and pulled back without hesitation, as Jackson reached over and helped by yanking it back into the wall, and we both hauled ass out of there. In the halls, the lights were out as well. No source of illumination anywhere except the faint moonlight protruding the ocean’s horizon. Like the suite, the halls were made entirely of glass like a giant walkthrough tube to behold the ocean life exterior.

“Which way is it?” I anxiously asked.

“Here,” Jackson said, pointing down to the left corridor.

He and I made our way down the halls, but slowly this time. Something outside caught our eye. Indescribable. Countless dark silhouettes of fish. Hundreds of them. The ones that had been gone earlier were now all here for us to see beyond the glass. However, something was wrong.

The way in which they swam didn’t align in a fluid horizontal motion. Some of their bodies were positioned diagonally, vertically, and in a strange sense, seemed to be floating rather than swimming…

Then the realization hit me. They weren’t swimming at all. They were dead. Lifelessly drifting in the water down to us.

“Jesus,” Jackson gasped.

“L-let’s just keep moving,” I said, trying to be brave.

Then to our left, the creature emerged from below, its massive tentacles and fins rising into view, its bright yellow eyes glaring into us. The hall began to shake as the earth-shattering rumble sounded throughout the structure.

Without hesitation, the two of us raced down the hall to reach the next corridor that would eventually get us to the lobby. We just needed to make it. Where that thing could no longer see us.

All throughout the long glass tube, it followed from the outside. But not like a predator chasing its prey, but in an unsettlingly forbearing nature, as if it knows its place in the animal kingdom hierarchy. We were no challenge for it. It wanted to taunt us. It knew…

We’d managed to run down to the lobby and thankfully, one of the clerks was still there at the counter, likely the one I’d spoken to earlier on the phone. The woman saw us in our state of panic and immediately stood up to ask what was the matter. We told her of the creature that was terrorizing us, to which she was understandably struck by. We even told her about the fish we’d seen that were now regurgitated from the monster. It was hard to say if she bought our story or not, but based on her facial expressions, she innately knew we were dead serious.

The two of us refused to spend another night in that room. We asked if there were any other rooms available that didn’t involve windows of any sort, or better yet, any that were at the surface, but truly, Jackson and I both wanted to get the hell out of this place.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A couple of hotel staff offered to take our belongings out of the room and personally hand them over to us in the main lobby, as the clerk informed us that there was a vacancy in the only other room available at the top above the water, on top of the fact that neither one of us agreed to enter that hellish fishbowl again.

In our new more relaxing suite on the surface of the land, it’d taken a while for either one of us to fall back asleep. Jackson, in the shock of it all and for good reason, had taken it harder than me. I lied there with him in bed and stayed until he felt comfortable to drift off.

At some point in the night, I’d got up to peer out the window, which gave a view of the ocean’s horizon under the full moon. Any other day, I’d find the sight to be an ethereal beauty, not one to literally die for. What was supposed to have been a beautiful day for the two of us, at the expense of Jackson going out of his way to try and make me happy, was now ruined by the untethered force of nature that resided beneath.

I began to quietly sob, as not to wake Jackson from his slumber, my vision becoming blurred from the muddiness of tears.

But as I looked down again at the ocean below, I could sense that somewhere in my line of sight, it waited. And with a startling revelation that haunted me from when we first looked the creature in its eye, there was an undeniable fact that it knew.

It knew…

[whitecatindisguise]

Give Him A Chance To Mend 1

So, I’ve finally did it! I’ve started writing a sequel to my He Will Pay fic. Took me a while. I have only one chapter now, ideas for few more and basic plot. With how it is, I can’t guarantee any regular updates. They will happen once they happen. Also, the length of the chapters will vary, depending on how long does it take me to tell everything I wanted.

Anyhow, for those, who don’t know the previous story, here is the AO3 link.

Summary: After Andrew is imprisoned and sent away, Varian can focus on another challenge, which is learning to live with his overly-protective and slightly crazy aunt and uncle. That is... until certain someone decides to make a comeback.

------

Chapter 1: Not An Ordinary Family

The sun seeped in through the open window,  lazily moving through the room. It shined on the sleeping face of the boy, his freckled face scrunching in grimace. He groaned and shuffled, turning to the side and covering his face with a blanket.

There was some movement in the legs of the bed, the grey animal stretching before silently walking up to the boy. It gently pawed at the head sticking out from under the blankets, chittering happily. 

The boy groaned again, one hand leaving the warmness of the blanket and trying to shoo away the animal. It didn’t help, but rather intensified the pawing and chittering. With one more groan the boy finally gave up and turned to his back, uncovering the blanket.

“Okay, okay. I’m awake now.” His blue eyes landed on the raccoon to his side. “Happy now?”

The raccoon chittered happily and turned around, jumping down the bed. It trailed towards the door, turning its head to look at the boy expectantly. 

Knowing well the raccoon won’t let him sleep any longer, the boy swung down his legs from the bed, stood up and stretched, yawning. Still a little bit sleepy, he moved towards the wardrobe, taking out his day clothes. He changed out of his pyjamas and reached out to the nightstand, picking up the goggles which he quickly put on the top of the head. 

“Let’s see what’s for breakfast, huh, bud?” He asked and the raccoon jumped up excitedly, running up his frame and setting on the boy’s shoulders. 

A gloved hand reached out to pet the animal, small smile making its way to his face. The two left the room and descended the stairs. The smell of fresh-brewed coffee and fresh-baked bread reached their nostrils, and the boy quickly made his way towards the smell. 

He entered the small kitchen and inhaled the familiar smell, smiling wildly. 

“Smells amazing, dad.” Varian said, moving towards the cabinet to fish out two cups. 

“Morning, son.” The reply came, the large man turning his head to smile at the boy. “The breakfast is almost ready.”

“I can sense that.” The boy replied with a smile, setting down the two cups on the table, moving to grab plates now.

On his way back to the cabinet he reached out for one of the apples lying in the pile, giving it to the raccoon on his shoulders. The animal chittered thankfully and bit into the fruit, munching in delight. 

The alchemist quickly set up the table, right on time for his father to put down the pot with coffee, a fresh loaf of bread, along with some ham, jam and other sandwich-materials. 

They sat down together, eating in silence. The raccoon jumped down from the boy’s shoulders and sat on one of the empty chairs, munching on his apple. 

“So, any plans for today?” Quirin asked and the boy looked up to him.

“Not really.” Varian replied, reaching for another slice of ham to put on his sandwich. “Rapunzel didn’t give me any tasks to work on, so I think I’ll go down to my lab and try to work on some of my experiments. You?”

The man nodded in response, taking a sip of his coffee, before answering. 

“Gabriel came by while I was preparing breakfast and told me yesterday’s storm knocked over some trees, one of them hitting his barn.” He took another sip of the hot drink. “They might need my help with getting it off and repairing the roof.”

“I see…” The boy replied and they sat in the silence for a few minutes. He opened his mouth to speak again, when the sound of closing door made them both jump. 

They shared a look, before the man slowly stood up and silently approached the entrance to the kitchen, grabbing a knife on his way. The alchemist tensed, blue eyes scanning the corridor. It was silent for a moment, before they heard footsteps. Someone was in the house. And they were coming their way. 

Quirin looked at his son and motioned for him to keep quiet, positioning himself by the entrance, ready to strike the intruder the moment they step inside. 

The door creaked open, the man rising a hand with the knife above his head. 

“What in the name of the moon are you doing, brother?” The woman standing in the doorway asked, her eyebrow raised in question. 

She had white hair tied in a bun, half of her face was painted red. Behind her stood a black-haired man, long hair tied in loose braids. They both stared at the man positioned by the entrance, all three eyes wide and surprised. 

“Oh… I… I’m sorry.” Quirin replied, lowering his hand and smiling apologetically. 

“We… kinda forgot you live there too.” Varian supplied and the woman laughed, her voice booming in the house. 

“That hurts, nephew.” Hector grumbled and walked in, sitting down with a sly grin. “How can you forget about your own uncle?”

“In my defence, we DID live alone for almost 14 years now.” The boy replied, his father already moving to bring more cups and plates.

“And you moved in only a couple of days ago.” Quirin added, putting down the cups and plates for the two. “Give us some time to adjust.”

“If you say so, brother.” Adira smiled and poured herself some coffee. “So, anything we can help with today?”

Quirin smiled. It was nice to have them around. 

[urban-homesteading]

Planning a zero waste Thanksgiving

Step one: Plan

First, figure out how many people are coming.  This will be your first step to planning how much food you will need.  For five people, a great spread is four small hors d’oeuvres, one main, one starter, four sides, rolls, and two desserts.  Personally, I like to keep it even simpler.  I make glazed carrots, brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes, a turkey, gravy, stuffing, rolls, and pumpkin pie.  

Once you have a head count, calculate how much food to make based off of this chart.  If you are having trouble reading this one, here is another chart that says the exact same thing, but less fancy.  

Step two: Shop

Zero waste involves cooking from scratch.  And on Thanksgiving, when you’re required to serve a feast, this can quickly become overwhelming.  So decide what you’re going to serve, write down every ingredient you will need for the day, then, organize and list them according to where you can get them.  Vegetables can be acquired from the farmer’s market.  Meats from your local butcher shop or farmer (which are often at the farmer’s market as well).  Bread for stuffing can be homemade.

If you can’t make it at home, buy as little plastic as possible.  Buy the stuffing in paper boxes instead of plastic, nuts from the bulk section instead of plastic containers, gravy packets in the little paper/foil packets or glass jars, bullion cubes instead of containers of stock, etc.

Step three: Prepare

So you’ve bought everything that can be bought, now is the time to prepare.  Underlined items have recipes included.

Days before:

Broth:  If you’ve been saving your vegetable scraps in a jar in the freezer, now is the time to use them.  Make your broth, decant into jars, and refrigerate.

Turkey: Plan on 24 hours of fridge thawing for every 5 pounds of frozen turkey (for example: budget 4 full days of thawing in the fridge for a 20-pound turkey).  If you are like me and forget about your turkey until the very last second (Hello Thanksgiving 2018), turkeys can be cooked from frozen, but it takes a very long time and a close eye.

Stuffing:  Bake a loaf or two of bread.  Cut into 1/2" cubes and lay them out on a baking sheet or in a large bowl. Let them dry out on the counter for about 48 hours. You want them STALE—the chicken broth will help moisten them.  Store cubes and use to make the stuffing on the day of.

Pumpkin pie:  Because of their rich custard fillings, pumpkin pies can be baked and then frozen.  Bake your pie in a tin pie pan. Aluminum pie pans are thinner and the pie will freeze faster which avoids ice crystals on the surface of the pie.  Ice crystals will cause pie to become soggy once it thaws.   Once baked, allow it to cool completely, which can take up to three hours.  If it’s still warm in the center, this causes more ice crystals.  Store in an air tight container (or wrapped in beeswax wraps).  Frozen pies are good for one month.  Pumpkin pies also are good in the fridge for 48 hours if you don’t want to freeze them.

The day before:

Peel and cube the potatoes for mashed potatoes.  You can store peeled potatoes in water in the refrigerator for about 24 hours. Peeled potatoes left out by themselves at room temperature, on a refrigerator shelf, or wrapped in foil or plastic wrap will still get dark overnight, so submerge them in a bowl of water, cover and refrigerate.

Bake sweet potatoes.  If you are making mashed sweet potatoes, or baked with extra ingredients, bake now and reheat in the oven the day of.

Defrost pie if frozen.

From there, cook Thanksgiving meal as normal for your schedule.  On Thanksgiving, we usually eat dinner at 2 pm as that gives people plenty of time to socialize and go back for seconds and thirds.