The next few days passed as normal, without any catastrophes or brawls with Ares, for which Hercules was very grateful. The new cook was very reclusive, so he didn't see much of her either. He supposed that the old cook had been showing her the ropes before her first meal with the cadets, which happened to be tonight's dinner. The food was ready and waiting for the cadets as they entered the dining hall; it was still hot, but there was no sign of the new cook.
Hercules hesitantly prodded at the food in front of him. It actually looked edible and delicious this time. There were a few thick slices of juicy pork, a pile of mashed potatoes, a salad of mixed fruit, and a small round bread roll glistening with a butter glaze. He ate a bit of the pork; there some strange yet delightfully pleasant sauce all over it. He tried the other foods on his plate and found that he liked them as well.
"I tell you what, Ace," Theseus said as he dipped his pork into his potatoes. "This Petra is no Helen of Troy, but she sure can cook."
"Yeah, you guys don't know how thankful I am not to be eating oats anymore," Iolaus added.
"I think we do, Iolaus," Lillith corrected with a smile. She reached for a date from the bowl sitting amidst their little group and happily popped it into her mouth.
"We should probably be careful, though," Iolaus said with his sarcastic lilt. "The last time we got a new cook he tried to assassinate Jason."
"I think the worst she could do is kill you just by looking at you," Theseus answered and smirked, amazed at his own cleverness.
"Well, you never know," Iolaus leaned on his elbows and looked across the table at the dark-skinned cadet. "That trunk was really heavy, but she must have gotten it in her wagon somehow."
Something solid suddenly struck Hercules in his temple. He gently shook his head and looked around to try to find out what had happened. A shifty-eyed cadet caught his attention; his name was Athanasius. The scrawny teenager had had problems with Hercules ever since he joined the Academy, but he had never had the guts to confront Hercules. Maybe now he was trying to start something.
"What's wrong, Herc?" Iolaus asked as he munched on his buttery roll.
"Something just hit me in the face," Hercules replied and pursed his lips together. "And I think it was Athanasius."
It started innocently as Theseus and Iolaus grabbed dates from the bowl and began flicking them at Athanasius a few tables away. Whenever the young cadet would glare at them, they would turn away and snigger. Athanasius grabbed a handful of dates from the bowl at his table and started flinging them at Iolaus, encouraging his friends to do the same. All at once, it turned into a war. Before Hercules's very eyes, friend turned against friend as fruit, potatoes, dates, and rolls were hurled across the dining hall. Beside him, a glob of potatoes struck Lillith square in the face. With an excited yell, the stout cadet grabbed a handful of dates and threw them at the perpetrator as hard as she could. Out of the corner of his eye, Hercules perceived a large green apple in the air on a direct course for Iolaus's head. He reached out to intercept it with his god-like reflexes, but stopped short and stared in shock.
The food war came to an abrupt halt.
Petra, clad in a stained white apron over her garments, clutched the apple securely in her hand only a few finger-widths from Iolaus's head; the curly-haired cadet jumped when he noticed her presence. She quirked one of her bushy eyebrows and looked at every cadet in the room. Hercules shivered when her heavy gaze passed over him. Silently and decisively, she walked over to the flaxen-haired Athanasius and set the apple on the table in front of him. The cadet's shifty eyes glanced from the apple to Petra, unsure what to do. Petra grabbed him firmly by the ear; he winced and let a squeal escape his mouth as she pulled him to his feet. No one dared to laugh. Petra released the poor fellow's ear and withdrew a scroll that had been tucked into her belt. She unrolled it and handed it to Athanasius, pointing to the passage she wanted him to read.
With shaking fingers Athanasius grabbed the scroll and read in a quivering voice: "These are the rules of decorum in the dining hall: Fighting will not be allowed. Throwing food or other objects will not be allowed. Respect toward others and their properties will be observed," Athanasius took a long breath before continuing. "These rules have been set in place by Headmaster Chiron, Feducious, and Petra for the safety and well-being of every cadet attending the Academy. Punishments for violating the rules of decorum are decided at the discretion of Petra of Potidaea, director of food services at Chiron's Academy. Signed, Petra of Potidaea. Signed, Feducious. Signed, Chiron, Headmaster of the Academy."
With a curt nod, Petra took back the scroll. Athanasius tried to sit down, but the intimidating cook crossed her arms over her chest indignantly. Warily, the cadet looked at her for further instruction; she pointed to the empty spot next to her, indicating that he should stand beside her. Once he had complied with her unspoken wishes, Petra pointed to each individual cadet who had thrown a piece of food and bid them to join Athanasius at the front of the room. By the time she was finished, only Hercules and a small handful of other cadets remained at the tables. Petra pointed firmly toward the kitchens, following the cadets as they trudged away from their hot food to their punishment for the food fight. Iolaus looked over his shoulder at shot a pleading look at his friend, but Petra stepped in his line of sight and wordlessly goaded him forward.
Hercules sat there in stunned silence, his mouth agape and eyebrows lifted to his hairline. It was not every day that a cook would display such authority over the cadets. The old cook would usually let the cadets have free reign during their chow time. This one was different. How did she have so much influence over them, even without speaking a single word? This was going to be an interesting experience for sure.
Later that evening at Kora's inn, the four friends shared their versions of Petra's torture over mugs of frothy ale. A live band played soft music in the background, but that did nothing to soothe the tense atmosphere at the friends' table near one of the windows. The inn was almost empty except for the four cadets and few other customers on the opposite side of the room.
"Talk about an ice queen!" Theseus exclaimed with a frustrated gesture of his hands.
"I know!" Lillith added from her place next to Theseus. "And I thought Feducious was uptight."
"You have no idea, Herc," Iolaus said as he clutched his mug with both hands; he was sitting next to Lillith. "She made us wash the dishes, organize the pantries, and polish the ovens. And then after that, she made us all scrub the food off the tables and the floor with little tiny brushes." He sighed and gently rubbed his face with his hands, cringing when he got a whiff of their smell.
"So it was bad, I take it?" Hercules asked, thinly masking the humor in his voice.
"It was horrible," said Iolaus. "My hands still reek of mashed potatoes."
"I guess that'll teach you not to start food fights again, Iolaus," Hercules said in jest.
Iolaus jabbed his finger at Hercules. "It was Athanasius, not me."
"I think she's got a thing for you Iolaus," Theseus commented with a wry smile. "That's why she saved you from that apple."
Iolaus's face contorted into a grimace, earning him some hearty laughter from his friends. "Eww," he said and chugged his ale to drown the grotesque idea.
Hercules grinned and took a swig of his ale, but his smile quickly faded. "Hey guys, have you noticed that she hasn't said a word since she got here?"
"I was wondering about that," Iolaus observed thoughtfully. "She didn't even say anything when she was punishing us--just gave us the evil eye." He visibly shivered. "Creepy."
"Do you think she's mute?" Lillith asked.
"I don't know," Hercules replied, resting his chin on his hand in thought. Their new cook was a strange one indeed.
A/N: Okay, I've already got one review. Woohoo! I've got lots of cool stuff planned for our hero-cadets, so stay tuned. :D