Peppermint Ice Cream
Rifiuto: Non Miriena
Summary: Fiyero reflects on his wife's favorite dessert. An outtake from Journey On.
The hot Vinkun sun beat down as the young couple raced into the kitchen.
Quickly, the young girl grabbed the doorhandle, yet her escape was fleeting, as the boy grabbed her around the waist and lifted her off the ground from behind. She shrieked in delight, as he carried her into the kitchen, away from the summer heat. It was hot. Tolerable. The way only a Vinkun summer can be. However, once inside the cool kitchen of Kiamo Ko, the heat seemed to vanish, unable to penetrate the stone walls.
"Yero! Put me down!"
Chuckling, the Crown Prince did as told, setting his wife gently on her feet. Once she was back on solid ground, the young Crown Princess turned to face her husband, and smacked him lightly on the arm. He chortled gently, and slid his arms around her thin waist, pulling her to him. The kitchen staff watched the young couple silently, all relishing the smile on the Crown Princess's face.
It had been three months since the Munchkinland Govenor's young, green-skinned oldest daughter, had married the Crown Prince and moved to the Vinkus. In those three months, she had learned the traditions of her husband's people, the proper ettiquette for a young princess, and was slowly - very slowly- starting to adapt to the Vinkun tongue. She still said things in Munchkin that the staff didn't understand, but made an effort to try.
The first few days after she arrived, she had wandered through the castle, trying to get used to the old stone fortress.
She'd gotten lost.
The whole household had come running at the screaming, only to have Fiyero open the wardrobe in the west tower room, and have her tumble out in a heap on the floor, her long, lush onyx hair falling out of her twist and around her shoulders. She had looked up, seeing her husband and the rest of the household gathered around her, and screamed bloody murder, before latching onto Fiyero and burying her face in his chest; the only intelligeble thing that had come from her mouth was the word "savages". After a moment of confusion, Fiyero had said something softly to his father, and then scooped his bride into his arms and carried her from the room. The king had then explained that the sight of the cooks- covered in blood from having to kill the fowl they were cooking for dinner- had scared the young girl half to death, on top of the fact that she was in a foreign land, married to someone she didn't know, living in a household with complete and total strangers.
In other words, she'd had a slight nervous breakdown due to stress.
The staff had nodded, understanding, and later, all stopped by the Crown Prince and Princess's room to check on her. It had taken Fiyero a good two hours to calm her down.
Now, Candle watched with silent joy at the sight of the Crown Prince locked in a gentle conversation with his bride. Soon, he pulled her into a loving, tender kiss, and only broke the kiss when she whispered something unintelligeble against his lips.
"What love?" He asked, looking at her.
"Could we have some ice cream, Yero?"
Candle chuckled, and got the bowls out, without having to be told. She scooped the ice cream into the bowls, set the spoons in both, and left them on the island counter, as Fiyero and Elphaba turned to ask.
"Candle, could-" Elphaba stopped, at the sight of the bowls of peppermint ice cream awaiting them. She glanced up at the head cook, who smiled gently at her. Silent, the two took their bowls, whispered a thank you, and disappeared upstairs.
Once they were in their room, Fiyero closed the door softly behind them. He then joined his wife in the armchair across from hers, and silent, the two settled down in front of the fire to enjoy their treat. Though it was summer, the bedrooms were chilly, even with the windows closed. Kiamo Ko was old and sturdy, and not the best at retaining heat. Fiyero was drawn out of his thoughts of the old stone castle he'd grown up in, by his wife's curious glance.
"I'm sorry, Dove?"
"What are you thinking about, Yero?" She asked, taking another bite of her ice cream.
"Nothing, just... you." He replied, eating a spoonful of his own ice cream. A smile graced her pretty features, as she got up and went to him, stealing a kiss before returning to her chair. She then continued to chatter on, as her husband listened wistfully. Instead of paying full attention to the conversation, he thought back on the first evening Elphaba had asked about peppermint ice cream.
She'd wandered downstairs one evening- not long after their wedding- and slipped into the kitchen, where Candle was still working. He'd come downstairs a few minutes later, to find her frustratingly arguing with Candle about something.
"What's going on? Elphaba, is something wrong?" The two had turned to see him standing in the doorway, robe tied tight, and abruptly broke into their arguement again. "What's going on!" Finally, in a huff, Elphaba stalked over to him.
"She doesn't like me! I just asked a simple question, and she gets all huffy!" Fiyero had looked at his wife, before turning to Candle.
"What did you ask?" The young girl had started, shocked by such a simple question.
"What?"
"What. Did. You. Ask?" He said again, slowly so she understood. Uncomfortable with being put on the spot, she'd tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and crossed her arms.
"Just mumble-mumble ice mumble."
He looked at her, confused.
"What?"
"I asked, mumble-mumble-mumble ice cream."
"I can't hear you, Elphaba."
"I just asked if I could have a bowl of..... peppermint.... ice cream." She'd then ducked her head, embarrassed, rose coloring her cheeks. Fiyero stared at her a moment, letting the words sink in.
"That's what you two are arguing about?" Both Elphaba and Candle had nodded, before Fiyero burst out laughing. Elphaba's head snapped up.
"It's not funny, Fiyero!" She'd cried, smacking him lightly on the arm. Once he'd calmed down, he'd pulled her into his arms, and kissed her gently.
"I'm sorry sweetheart, but it is." She'd glared at him, but he'd quickly kissed it away. "We don't have any peppermint ice cream, love." She'd pulled away, horrified.
"What? What do you mean-"
"I mean we don't."
"But in Munchkinland-"
"Sweetheart, the Vinkus has very different customs compared to Munchkinland. The only place that has peppermint ice cream anywhere near Kiamo Ko is Tersan's Ice Cream Parlor in the village." He'd pulled her close, and kissed her forehead, before pulling away.
"But-" Supressing a yawn, he'd stopped on his way out of the kitchen, and turned to look at her. "But in Munchkinland, I-" She'd stopped, unsure if she should tell him. Seeing the trust in his eyes, she forged ahead. "I always had peppermint ice cream on nights when I woke up. It helps me sleep." He'd sighed, and returned to her, taking her gently by the shoulders.
"Can you get by tonight, Dove? We'll go down to Tersan's tomorrow, I promise." Slowly, she'd nodded, and allowed him to lead her back to bed. As they'd climbed under the blankets, he asked, "Why do you need it to help you sleep, Dove?" She'd looked up at him; her back to the door, she slept most nights in Fiyero's comforting arms. Usually, the sound of his heart, the scent of him, and the feel of his body close to hers- especially nights when they made love and became entangled in each other and the sheets- helped coax her to sleep, but that night, it hadn't. Even though he'd lovingly, tenderly brought her small body to the peak hours before; she wasn't going to sleep easily.
"It reminds me of my mother." She'd whispered, looking up at him. He'd stopped pulling the blankets around them, and laid down beside her, facing her. Then, he'd reached out, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and pulling her close. She'd snuggled gratefully into his embrace, curling onto his chest, allowing him to rub her back. "Whenever I couldn't sleep, she'd come get me and we'd go downstairs to the kitchen, and she'd fix two bowls of peppermint ice cream. One for her and one for me. We'd sit in front of the kitchen fire and eat it together; we wouldn't have to say anything." She took a shaky breath. "It was her favorite.... when she died, I went downstairs and fixed a bowl, and then curled up in front of the fire. It... makes me feel like she's still with me, when I have a bowl of peppermint ice cream. It's like.... she's sitting with me in front of the fire, like she used to when I was little."
She'd dissolved into sobs then, and Fiyero had spent the rest of the night singing her to sleep, as tears slid gently down his cheeks as well.
The next morning, Fiyero had awoken early and slipped downstairs. He found Candle working on breakfast. Quickly, he'd told her and the rest of the kitchen staff about the ice cream, and asked for a favor. Candle and the others had agreed, promising to keep quiet about it until they got back from their day in the village. Then, he'd snuck back upstairs, to find Elphaba getting dressed. Once they were ready, he'd led her out of the castle, and took her down to the village.
"Come on love, I want to show you something. Remember how I promised we could got to Tersan's today?" She'd nodded, as he led her down the street. Once there, he'd opened the door, and led her inside. Her jaw had dropped at the size of the parlor and the selections, and as he'd led her to the counter, a young man had come over.
"Good to see you again, Fiyero. And who's this?"
"You too, Tersan. And, this is my wife, Elphaba." She'd quickly shaken hands with the owner of the parlor, and then wandered off to look around. Tersan had known Fiyero since he was a child; it was normal for the young Crown Prince to come to the parlor for ice cream; if not tradition.
"Well, what can I get you two today?"
"Actually, Tersan, my wife has a specific flavor that's... exceedingly special to her for a certain reason. Would you happen to have it?" Fiyero asked, as Elphaba joined him.
"Depends on what the flavor is."
"Does he have it?" Elphaba asked, looking at Fiyero. He'd smiled at her, and nodded to Tersan.
"Ask him."
"What's the flavor, Your Majesty?" Tersan asked, waiting, ice cream scoop in hand. Elphaba had bit her lip, before speaking.
"Peppermint."
He thought a moment.
"We might have that. Let's take a look, shall we?"
He moved down the counter, Elphaba following.
"Peppermint, you said?" She nodded, and he quickly scooped it up, before filling a glass. Then, he added chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and a cherry, and set it on a tray, before adding another. "There you go, Princess." Fiyero paid, and joined her at one of the small tables.
"Thank you!" Tersan nodded, before going to help another customer. As the two dug into their ice cream, Fiyero asked,
"So, what do you think?"
"I love it, thank you."
Later that night, Candle had surprised her by getting her a bowl of ice cream; they'd called Tersan and asked for a tub, he'd happily agreed, once he heard the story. Tears had come to Elphaba's eyes as she realized that the staff had done this to make her feel at home.
"Yero. Yero!"
"I'm sorry, Dove. What did you say?"
Elphaba set her bowl down, took her spoon, and perched on his lap, once she'd snapped him out of his reflection.
"I said your ice cream's melting." Then, as if to emphasize the point, she stole a spoonful and took a bite. He chuckled softly.
"I guess it is." He replied, dipping his spoon into it and then tapping it on her nose. The spoon left a pink, dripping spot on the tip, which he promptly kissed off. Then, she captured his lips in hers, the spoon falling into the bowl, as her arms went around his neck. Slowly, he set the bowl on the table, and wrapped his arms around her waist.
He pulled her close, savoring the taste of her.
She tasted like chocolate, whipped cream, and peppermint ice cream.