The usual disclaimers about how I don't own Elena of Avalor or any of its characters apply.
This fic was meant to have been posted a long time ago, as it was a contribution for the Elena of Avalor ship week on the Discord server, for the day two 'Adventure' which was meant to be about a crackship.
Unfortunately, far too many real life issues got in the way, and I was unable to get it, or any of my other ideas, ready on time. It also got long enough that I decided to break it into chapters rather than publish all of it at once.
I hope you still enjoy it.
Like all my Elena of Avalor fics, it takes place in my AU where episodes after 'Two Left Fins' are not taken into account.
Chapter 1 - Customer Importance
A bit over a week before Avalor's third Navidad after Princess Elena's exit from the Amulet of Avalor...
A growling stomach would usually not be described as something to be proud of, but as Alonso followed Avalor's new magister of trade into Café Angelica, he knew none of his body parts had ever spoken up at a better time.
Yes, Julio Guzman meant well, and it was remarkable he tried so hard to be good at his job, and it was good he had become more confident in his position since they first met at the last Feast of Friendship, and it was true Alonso was still trying to better himself. But there were limits for everything, and while Alonso had learned to be polite enough to not outright say so to the man, he was sick of hearing heaps of proposals that traders, whether Avaloran or not, had regarding partnerships with Cordoba.
Thankfully, his stomach's growl had served as an effective stopper to those, for the time being anyway, and Julio had suggested a meal on the house before he left for Cordoba to spend Navidad with his family.
At first, Alonso had accepted just to have some way of escaping this conversation, but as he smelled the divine whiffs coming from the kitchen even before he entered the place, he knew it had been a good idea for more reasons than one.
As he walked in, he couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort at the soft glow of the lights, the warm golden-orange on the walls, and the blue tables and chairs set about in an organized but not geometric fashion, each of them simple but well-crafted and sturdy.
It all seemed to give a feeling of being part of the family, like he heard Elena said she wanted her guests to feel, although this café looked far too old to have been set up by her.
"Here, Prince Alonso," the man instructed, pointing at a table for two right in front of the door. Alonso circled it so he could face the door and sat down as he removed his messenger bag from his shoulder. "Do you have anything in mind, or would you like to read the menu?"
Alonso picked up the list before him. "I think I'll read the menu. I don't know enough about Avaloran cuisine to ask for anything beforehand."
Julio nodded, standing at attention by his table like a soldier, his hands behind his back.
Trying to keep a calm expression, Alonso said, "Relax, will you? I won't terminate the alliance with Avalor if you just sit down for a bit."
The magister of trade did not sit down, but at least did stand in a more relaxed fashion, his arms now falling alongside his body.
Not as far as Alonso had suggested, but maybe it was better not to be too pushy, he decided as he started looking at the menu.
He recognized some dishes in it, like locro and guacamole and paella and enchiladas and tacos, but there were others which he had never heard of, like morisqueta and aguachile and puntas and milanesa and chicharron.
It might be interesting to try some of those out, but given it would be quite some time before he could eat again, and he might end up being accidentally rude by conveying through his expression that any given dish would be bad, perhaps he should go for something a bit more familiar.
Sounds like you're not trying all that hard to be better, after all. A reproachful voice pointed out at him.
Alonso suppressed a frown. He had been trying hard. The fact he still remembered all the proposals Julio Guzman had conveyed to him proved it, he thought.
But maybe he could try even harder. After all, his father went through even worse ordeals during his rule. If Alonso couldn't even be trusted to show gratitude for food he didn't like, he could hardly hope to be the kind of king who'd be a good ruler.
Not that he could hope that anyway, but he could still try his best.
Just pick something! Alonso told himself as he willed his eyes to pick something out from the list.
They landed on a dish at random, and he voiced his request to Julio.
"I'd like some rissoles with arroz rojo," he said. "Please." he added at the very last minute as he remembered his manners.
"I'll ask my sister to make some right away," Julio replied.
Saying so, he jogged someplace behind him, probably the kitchen to tell his sister. Interesting. Alonso would have thought the man would have called out the order rather than leave his guest alone, but perhaps he also felt the talk of trade matters had run its course and didn't feel comfortable around Alonso without it.
Shrugging to himself, Alonso settled more comfortably into his chair. He wouldn't say that to the man's face either, but he could do with some peace and quiet for a bit.
Sitting at the kitchen table, Carmen looked up as she heard the kitchen's double doors creaking open. Normally she barely blinked at the noise, but something about it was different enough this time that she raised her eyes from the new recipe she was outlining on paper before trying out for real.
Indeed, Julio had a rather strange halted skip to his step as he approached, his eyes glowing with eagerness and yet the rest of his posture strangely tense.
"You'll never guess who agreed to come to the café!" he whispered at her like an excited kid who'd gotten a toy he'd been wanting for months.
Carmen set down her pencil. "Hello to you too."
Julio stopped as if trying not to stumble on a sudden obstacle.
"Yes, yes, hello." he conceded. "Did you have a good day?"
"It was quiet. Enough people came here to turn in profit, but not enough to overwhelm the staff." She could see from the way he was tensing up that he was just dying to keep talking about his topic, so she added "I'm guessing you had a pretty great one. Who came here with you?"
"One of the best guests we could have!" Julio leaned forward and 'loud whispered'. "Prince Alonso of Cordoba!"
Carmen could actually feel her eyes widening.
"You mean he stayed with you all day long to listen to everything you wanted to tell him?"
Even without knowing him, she was impressed. Julio had had quite a lot of proposals to share, even though he had spent the better part of two days discarding lots of suggestions whether because they were repeated, too impractical to implement, or, in some rare cases, so asinine that they didn't deserve to be taken into consideration.
"I was impressed as well," Julio remarked. "Especially after Princess Elena's warnings about him."
Carmen shrugged. "Maybe he's trying to change?"
Julio nodded. "Maybe, but from how he acted with me, he either really changed a lot or wasn't that bad to begin with." Before Carmen could reply, her brother made a gesture as if pushing a heavy burden to the side. "Point is, he's here! And he's going to eat your food!" In a more normal tone, he finished. "He asked for rissoles with arroz rojo. Let's get them done."
Carmen narrowed her eyes. "We're almost closed. I'm not sure I can have those ready before then. Can't you ask him to order anything simpler?"
"We could close a bit later, can't we? This is an important customer, after all." He looked like he was ready to throw his arms up from the grandeur of his following statement. "And if he likes it, maybe word will spread to Cordoba, and other visitors from there will come here, and we'll get more money!"
Carmen tried not to frown.
"I think we're good on the money front for a while."
Julio folded his arms. "That's why we need to have enough to save up in case we ever end up on the wrong side of poverty again."
Carmen held back her remarks. She could see where Julio was coming from. Even with the café's success, it had taken over a year to pay off all the bills and debts that had built up during the dark period in their lives. Still, she didn't exactly like Julio's excessive concerns with money. They were well off by now, at least enough that she didn't see the need to seek for a source of profit everywhere.
"I'll help you." Julio added, opening his eyes wider and pouting like a puppy.
Carmen sighed. "I think you're overdoing it." She took a deep breath to gather herself. "But let's make the rissoles with arroz rojo."
Julio broke into a relieved smile. "Thank you, Carmen."
Despite herself, Carmen spared him a smile of her own before she put away her pencil and the book she had been writing on.
Here's to hoping he can appreciate good food. She thought as she picked up a piece of bread to be turned into crumbs. She knew some royals could be really picky about what they ate. Granted, that might be undeserved reputation in some cases. She didn't have motives to complain about any of those she had actually met, and no one had ever disliked any of her abuela's dishes.
Carmen closed her eyes, a jolt of pain cutting through her heart. Even years later, she could get bouts of sadness when thinking about abuelita. And she had been getting a lot of those lately with the approaching Navidad.
She willed the thought to leave her brain as she set the bread down on the table and went to get the onion. Her point was, Prince Alonso sounded like he would be the first royal she served who was a picky eater. Though Julio's words had hinted he was trying to be better, it was hard to say if he had become good enough to be polite about food he didn't like. Doña Paloma had spoken of his comments on single lettuce leaves after all.
Well, let him think whatever he thought. Carmen would do the dish he had requested, and would do her best job, like her professional and personal pride always compelled her to.
And if Prince Alonso didn't like it, all the worse for him.
So, this is it for part 1. The following parts (I'm thinking there will be two or three more parts) should be out over the next days.
Again, I hope you enjoyed it.