Notes: I will never not refer to the pies, in one way or another, in a Sumia fanfic. Someone please save me! *loves pies*
Stats: 500 words for SumiaStahl. I'm actually sad they don't have supports, even as friends. The developers truly dropped the ball on all things Sumia, and Stahl would have been so nice with her, as he is with everyone else.
Stahl entered the kitchen carrying a bag full of vegetables, in preparation for later on. He was on the roll for cooking duty, and he was already thinking of a delicious stew that would leave everyone asking for another serving. It was going to be special treat for the team, something to get their minds off the war...
He spotted Sumia by the oven, and going by the smell floating around them, something was already burning. "You need to take out what you're baking now, Sumia," he called as he neared a counter, putting down his sack.
"Oh! Stahl! I didn't notice you come in."
"Tend to your baking first, it's burning."
"What?" Sumia turned and carefully looked into the oven. "Oh Gods! Oh no!"
He watched her panic, wincing as she dropped the thick mitten over and over, before she finally managed to get her hand in and the pie out. He could tell what the ingredients were now, by their scent, as Sumia put her creation on a table. The ingredients could work together, but at that moment, they smelled like an affront to all things good and delicious would. And it wasn't the burnt bits making that stench.
"Not another one..." she whispered, poking at the pie with a fork, looking extremely sad.
"Sumia, do you need help?" Stahl offered, walking over to her side.
She shook her head lightly, but started sobbing, glancing away... in the general direction of a pile of failed pies. He didn't bother to count them, but they were over a dozen. There was only one person that would make Sumia try so hard, Stahl knew because he had seen her do so much already to impress the prince.
"Come now, don't cry," he told her softly, patting her shoulder. "I'll help you make the best pie in the world, I promise you."
Sumia's pretty eyes looked at him, and Stahl tried not to blush. Still saying nothing, she nodded shyly. He smiled as brightly as he could, trying to inject some optimism into her.
"Alright! We must first prepare a crust that goes with the ingredients you chose, it can't be just any classic crust..."
They went around the kitchen together, Sumia hanging on to his every word, as he picked what they would need for the new recipe, telling her about how things would be like once they were mixed, how the flavor and scent would change. Stahl hadn't been prepared for a small lesson on pies, but he had time to kill before dinner had to be made.
"Stahl?"
He looked back at her. Her cheeks were pink. "Sumia, is something wrong?"
"Why are you helping me?"
"You are a friend, you needed a hand... How could I not help you?"
"Oh." She looked disappointed. "I was making a pie to... impress someone."
"I could tell!" Stahl admitted. "Chrom again, right?"
Sumia smiled at that. "No. I was trying to impress you, Stahl."
He dropped everything he was holding.