AN: Hm, I want pancakes for dinner...


Confidence

The delicious aroma of cooking eggs and meat wafted over the campsite as Genis and Regal knelt by the fire, putting together an omelet breakfast with the last of their ingredients. They would need to go shopping for groceries very soon, but at the moment they had just enough to cook up a hearty meal for everyone. It was almost finished, there was just one problem.

"Regal, help!" Genis poked at the omelet, vainly trying to lever it up out of the skillet with his spatula and a spoon. It had to be turned over so the top could cook more thoroughly, but every time he lifted more than a little of the omelet's edges, the eggy envelope threatened to split open. "We made it too big to flip! It's gonna burn!"

Genis started harassing the omelet with a renewed vigor, it couldn't burn! If he burned breakfast, Lloyd would never let him live it down! As he watched Genis' frantic spatulawork, Regal came up with a plan. It was risky. If it failed, the omelet would be completely ruined instead of simply burned; but if it succeeded, the omelet would be perfect... Yes, it was worth a try. Motioning for Genis to stop and stand back, Regal grabbed a towel and wrapped it around the skillet's handle, then got to his feet.

"This is a trick my family's chef showed me a long time ago. I never quite mastered it, but..." With a look of sheer concentration, Regal flicked the skillet up, sending their breakfast soaring into the air. Genis gasped, thinking Regal had lost his mind, as he watched the omelet fly up, perform a lazy flip at the top of its arc, then land neatly back in the skillet, upside-down and unburned.

"W-Wow. That was awesome, Regal! Can you do it again?"

"Perhaps," Regal set the skillet back on the fire, "but I don't think it would be wise to try. As I mentioned before, I haven't quite mastered the catching part yet."

"Please, just one more time? It was so cool, and I know you can do it!" With the young half-elf using his strongest sad puppy eyes, Regal had only one option.

"Very well..." He sighed, resigning himself to a repeat performance.

Genis jumped up and gave a small whoop, obviously excited, as Regal turned his attention back to the eggy concoction sizzling away in the skillet. Once it was fully cooked, then he'd try to flip it again. Regal gulped, knowing full well that if he failed here there would be no breakfast; and that hungry traveling companions are not happy traveling companions. Quite a bit of pressure... But then, Genis did have a point. He had already performed the trick once, and flawlessly at that; why shouldn't he be able to duplicate the feat? This was an opportunity to practice and improve his skills, something he should welcome!

The sizzling slowed until it had practically stopped, signaling that the omelet was ready and the moment of truth had come. Regal took a deep breath before rewrapping the skillet's handle in a towel and standing once again. If Genis believed he would be successful, then Regal supposed he could have some confidence in his abilities as well.

With a flick of the wrist he sent the omelet off on another smooth flight, monitoring it carefully as it flipped and began to descend. Repositioning the pan slightly, Regal prepared to catch the falling dish and...

Missed. Though not by much.

The majority of the omelet was safely in the skillet, but there was also a good-sized portion of it on the ground; Regal glared down at it with a mix of exasperation and embarrassment, reflecting on how he should have trusted his gut and not risked a second try. Genis, however, grinned as if nothing was wrong.

"Don't worry, Regal. It's fine. We'll give that part to Lloyd."


AN: It occurs to me that they must have a giant skillet to be able to make an omelet big enough to feed eight people...