Disclaimer: The entire Sailor Moon universe does (not) belong to me.
AN: Until the next chapter comes out, please let these Espresso Shorts whet your appetite for some Coffee…Princess that is. /lame tagline
Espresso Shorts
Second Shot
Graceful
When she made them she didn't even have to wear an apron. There was no fear of spilling the contents onto the rich white fabric. Every inch of her clumsiness was replaced with something else, something different. It was like she was possessed by the angel whose costume she wore.
The neat squares of chocolate melted in the cast iron pot and with them all her anxieties. She loved watching the dark, bittersweet pool form. The smell of it was like nothing else: chocolate was one of her main weaknesses. She stirred carefully, occasionally adding in small dashes of the spices she had discovered heightened the flavor. When her chocolate was ready she had to fight back the childish urge to lick her spoon.
Not yet.
It had taken forever to convince Makoto to let her sell the chocolate covered espresso beans in the store. She thought they demeaned the sacred art of coffee. But her experience with the treats had left Usagi in love at first taste. After much howling she won: Makoto let her make and sell her creations twice a week. She looked forward to the days where it was just her and the melting decadence.
With one hand she dropped a hand-roasted bean into each mold, with the other she continued to stir the chocolate. When the moment was right she grabbed her dipping spoon like a magic wand and proceeded to poor the dissolved dark cacao into the several dozen molds.
Next came the worst part of the day: the waiting. She had considered freezing them to cut down the hardening time, but instantly dismissed the idea. It would change the texture and constitution of her precious chocolate. So she left them tucked in a pantry and resumed to her normal klutziness. She was the patron saint of impatience, the angel of eagerness.
She couldn't rush to the back fast enough when her shift was over. Some people added sugar, other chocolates, fruits, sprinkles, or cocoa powder to their beans. Not her.
Let the chocolate speak for itself.
Instead she took the simple snacks and placed them in delicately crafted bags. A clear pane of plastic forming a window into the wonders held within. A neat ribbon tied around and she was finished. They were perfect. The result was so lovely, so elegant that she felt hope that those same traits were in her: somewhere.
It was only when she made them that Usagi felt as graceful as the angel she was dressed as.