The World of the Moon
Ten: The Cake is a Pie
Tiny note: I went back to Ever After (Chapter 3) and fixed some typos and made some extremely minor revisions. Might do it for the other chapters if I have the time.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
For several long minutes, there was a dead silence in the dining room of the Tohno Mansion.
The six people present shuffled about uncomfortably, furtive glances shifting from each other to the table – and what lay on it.
After a long moment, Shiki opened his mouth as if to break the deathly quiet, only for him to fail on account of being unable to find anything to say. He could feel a slight twitch going through his body, although whether it was an instinctive suppression of the urge to run away or simply a reaction to the smell, he couldn't really tell.
Ultimately, the silence was broken by Akiha. Shiki supposed she'd had training in learning how to keep her composure in situations like this.
"Well," she began, with only the slightest tremor to her voice. "If there are no objections, shall we begin?"
As Shiki numbly reached for his fork, his mind had a sudden flashback to the quiet morning that had spawned all this insanity, just yesterday …
"MM–mmm!" Arcueid let out a pleasurable sound as she bit into the waffle, an expression of dreamy bliss on her face. Nearby, Shiki was staring at her face intently, his own breakfast all but forgotten as he watched his girlfriend enjoy her meal.
After a long moment, Arcueid noticed that he was looking at her, and she glanced down at herself, suddenly self-conscious.
"What is it?"
"Nothing, just…" Shiki trailed off. It was just that the way Arcueid was now, a fork with a chunk of waffle halfway to her mouth, the corners of her mouth smeared with syrup, she just…
Looked incredibly cute.
Returning to himself, Shiki shook his head and chuckled as he began to dig into his own food. The way Arcueid could so easily captivate him with whatever she was doing was something he had realized for a while now. In some ways it was her beauty that made paying attention to her almost a matter of course, but really, it was the pure and innocent delight she found in everything that made her such a joy to watch.
Several minutes later, he finished his own breakfast and looked up in time to see Arcueid wiping her mouth. She let out a happy sigh.
"Thanks for making me breakfast again, Shiki," she beamed at him. "I'm really glad you do it so often."
"It's the third time this week, isn't it? I don't really mind, as long as I can get up early enough to get to school on time," he glanced up at the clock. "Speaking of which, I should be going now, Arc."
At that, she sighed but nodded. "All right, but come play with me again soon, okay?"
With a smile and a wave of his hand, Shiki departed the apartment, a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest, absolutely certain at that moment that all was right in the world.
Alone in her apartment, Arcueid busied herself with tidying up the dishes that Shiki had left behind. As she stood at the sink washing the plates, a frown of contemplation made its way onto her face.
"He's cooked me breakfast three times this week, already, huh?" she paused and stared off into nothing. "He's done that a lot this past month, too."
Several minutes later, as she was drying the dishes with a washcloth, she began speaking to herself again. "Shiki always says he's happy to do it for me, but he's had to wake up earlier to that, doesn't it? Plus my house is in the opposite direction from his school, too."
Finally, after she had finished her work and was now alone in her apartment, she fell back onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling.
"I should do something for Shiki, too," she mused out loud. "It's not really fair that he always does stuff for me and I don't do anything in return, is it?"
But what?
Well, the obvious tit-for-tat would be to help make breakfast for him, but Arcueid wasn't really secure enough in her skills as a cook to try that. Especially not when he had such fantastic cooks like Hisui and Kohaku living at his mansion. She blew out a sigh.
Come to think of it, she wasn't sure what Shiki liked to eat in the first place. She had the feeling that he liked his meals simple, so that was at least a small comfort. Still, she wasn't sure about the specifics. Shiki had always ordered a variety of different foods when he went out, so pegging him down to a single favourite was a hard task.
Hm. Maybe she could ask the maids at Shiki's mansion what sort of food he liked.
Yes. Yes, that was a good idea! And while she was at it, she could ask them for some help. Many hands made light work, and all that, right? It had said so in that book of proverbs that she had picked up at the store the other day, after all!
Had Arcueid not been so pleased with the cleverness of her idea, she might have remembered another proverb of a quite contradictory nature that was also in the book – one that, if nothing else, could be applied to the current situation in a far more literal fashion.
'Too many cooks spoil the broth.'
"You want to cook something for Shiki-san?" Kohaku clapped her hands together, a delighted smile on her face. "Oh my, that's really sweet of you, Arcueid-san!"
"That's right!" Arcueid smiled right back. She didn't know why exactly, but she'd always found the cheerful maid of the Tohno household the easiest of the residents to get along with. Aside from Shiki, of course; he was on an entirely different levelling of getting-along-ness. But Hisui was honestly too quiet for Arcueid's tastes and Little Sister… was Little Sister. Kohaku shared a cheerfulness and penchant for mischief with the vampire that had allowed them to bond a lot quicker than Shiki had thought possible. "I thought I should pay Shiki back a little since he always cooks breakfast for me. But I'm not sure what it is Shiki really likes to eat, though…"
"Ah, so you came to me for help," a brief frown creased Kohaku's brow. "But Arcueid-san, to be honest, I'm not sure what it is that Shiki-san particularly likes. He always eats anything I make him without complaint, and he never has special requests either."
"Really? Hm…" Arcueid cupped her chin. Even his maids didn't know? That was somewhat troublesome…
"Plums."
"Hm?" At the sound of the quiet voice from behind them, Kohaku turned.
"Hisui-chan?"
Shiki's personal maid nodded as she stepped closer, setting down the basket of washing she had been carrying with her. "Shiki-sama is fond of plums, Nee-san. If you wish to make something for Shiki-sama, you should make sure to include plums, Arcueid-sama."
"Plums, huh?" Arcueid nodded. "Got it! Thanks, Hisui!"
"But that can't be right," Kohaku stroked her chin thoughtfully. "I seem to recall Shiki-san telling me he didn't like them much before…"
"No, Nee-san," Hisui shook her head. "I am certain that Shiki-sama is inordinately fond of plums."
"Well, you might be right," Kohaku conceded. "So, that being the case…"
"I've got it! I'll bake Shiki a cake! A plum cake!"
"A cake, Arcueid-san? I thought we were discussing breakfast?"
"Well, not exactly. Anything's good as long as I can make it for Shiki, after all," Arcueid grinned. "Besides, if it's a cake, we can all share it!"
"Hahaha, how generous of you, Arcueid –san. All right, then," Kohaku nodded. "Give me a day to go out and gather the ingredients we'll need. I'll see you tomorrow, around noon would be good."
"Bye, Kohaku! Bye, Hisui! See you tomorrow!" With an energetic wave, Arcueid jumped out the nearby window onto a tree branch, rapidly vanishing from view.
"Hmhmhm," Kohaku hummed a note of delight into her sleeve. "Shiki-san was really fortunate to meet someone like Arcueid-san. Don't you think so, Hisui-chan?"
"She and Shiki-sama get along well together," Hisui answered in her usual reserved manner.
"But, still, Hisui-chan, I must say I'm surprised at you. Going out of your way to offer advice on winning Shiki-san's heart to Arcueid-san? To think that you would support a rival for Shiki-san's affections! Huhuhu…"
The effect was instantaneous. Hisui's face changed to the colour of a fresh tomato in the blink of an eye. "Wha- what are you saying, Nee-san? Don't be ridi- that's not-" she sputtered on for several seconds before she took a deep breath and managed to bring her feelings back under control. "Nee-san, Shiki-sama is my master. It is a maid's duty to look to her master's best interests, and not to let any personal feelings get in the way."
"If you say so, Hisui-chan," Kohaku chuckled as she walked towards the door of the room. "Well, I really should be going to town to get those ingredients. Watch the house until Shiki-san and Akiha-sama return, okay?"
The next day, four figures gathered in the kitchen of the Tohno Mansion, a singular goal of helping to create a masterpiece of the baking arts foremost in their minds.
"My, my, Len-chan wants to help too?" Kohaku chuckled as she petted the quiet familiar on the head.
"I think she wants to be able to lay claim to a slice for herself later," Arcueid said as she rummaged through the ingredients Kohaku had bought. Len's sweet tooth was common knowledge amongst those who spent time with the cat.
"Well, that's no problem, then!" Kohaku chuckled slightly before a slightly troubled expression founds its way onto her face. "Although… Hisui-chan, please don't take this the wrong way, but… why are you here?"
Hisui drew in a deep breath. "Arcueid-sama specifically requested for my help, Nee-san, in light of how much she enjoyed the last meal I cooked for her. I felt that it would be rude to refuse."
"O – of course it would," Kohaku chuckled nervously. So now Hisui would be helping them. Well, with any luck, she would be able to minimize any damage her younger sister caused.
"Anyway, shall we begin?" Arcueid beamed as she grabbed onto a bag of flour. "We should get started soon, too, so we can complete it before Shiki and Little Sister get back from school."
"Ah, Akiha-sama did not have any school today," Kohaku informed the vampire as she grabbed onto a plum and began slicing it into chunks with ease borne of years of practice. "She is currently in her room handling business affairs, and then she'll take a rest until Shiki-san gets home. In any case, we should have free reign for a few hours."
"Well, that's good! Come on, Len," Arcueid beckoned her friend. "We'll get started on mixing the flour and the eggs."
Kohaku smiled at the image of Len being Arcueid's assistant as she returned to chopping the fruit before a thought struck her and she turned to her sister. "Hisui-chan? What will you be doing?"
Hisui nodded. "I shall be searching for garnishes," and before Kohaku could say anything else Hisui had retreated to the other corner of the room and began rummaging to the cupboards.
G-garnishes… stifling an uncomfortable laugh, Kohaku returned to her work. Well, whatever it is that Hisui-chan digs up can't be too bad, right? I'll just make sure to keep an eye on her. And with that reassuring thought in mind, Kohaku returned to work.
Len silently watched as Arcueid began cracking the eggs. How humans did it and how supremely powerful True Ancestors did it tended to differ. For example, the standard human method would be to rap the egg against the side of the bowl hard enough to form a crack, and then use to crack to break the egg open and let the insides fall out.
Supremely powerful True Ancestors who had access to the Marble Phantasm simply manipulated the laws of nature so that after placing the eggs in the bowl, their shells disintegrated, leaving nothing but the yolks and whites to flowing out.
It seemed slightly excessive to the familiar, but then again it was efficient, and who was she to judge? Silently, she plodded over to the bag of sugar Kohaku had bought and brought it over to the mixing bowl.
The recipe, if she remembered correctly, had called for two teaspoonfuls of sugar. With a nod, Len scooped the amount out once, twice, and…
She frowned. She could not be certain, but… the amount of sugar seemed a little small relative to the amount of flour. Maybe just a little more?
After all, there was no such thing as too sweet, was there?
After a brief moment's hesitation, Len nodded to herself, and with a fiery determination in her eyes, began to scoop out more sugar from the bag.
Arcueid flipped through the pages of the recipe book, a frown appearing on her face. She had to admit that she was woefully lacking in experience when it came to baking cakes (which would be a major part of the reason why she was relying on the cookbook in the first place), but she could swear that certain parts of the recipe seemed… off.
For one thing, why would there be instruction on how to add a top pastry layer? That wasn't how cakes worked.
At least, she was pretty sure that wasn't how ordinary cakes worked. Maybe Kohaku had chosen some super special cake recipe because she knew Arcueid would want it be as special as possible for Shiki. Yes, that had to be it!
Kohaku really is so thoughtful. Arcueid thought with a smile as she returned to her work. Still, she couldn't shake that nagging doubt that this wasn't how it was supposed to go.
Well, when the time comes I'll just ask Kohaku or Hisui for clarification. They know what they're doing, don't they? And with a satisfied nod, Arcueid banished any and all worries from her mind.
Digging out several bottles of food colouring, Hisui paused to consider her options as she sifted through the various labels.
If it is to be a plum cake, it is only natural that it is to be the colour of plum. No one could find any flaws with that logic, and so Hisui continued in her quest to find the perfect shade of colouring.
Grabbing a paper napkin, Hisui poured out an experimental drop onto the sheet.
No, too red.
Another bottle.
Too pale.
Another.
Too rich.
Well, unless she could dilute it somehow… her eyes narrowed in concentration, Hisui glanced around the kitchen for anything she could use to lessen the intensity of the colouring.
Of course! The vinegar! It was colourless, so she could easily mix it in and lessen the strength of the colouring. A rare smile appeared on her face at her delight at finding such an innovative solution to her problem, and taking a deep breath, Hisui began to busy herself with her work.
Kohaku noted out of the corner of her eye that Hisui was puttering about in the additives section, but she was still keeping it to herself. I'll just run whatever it is she's trying to add by me before she puts it in. She's not doing anything particularly important, just the garnishes, like she said, so even if she did something horribly wrong, it won't waste that much time.
More important were Arcueid and Len's antics. Kohaku snuck a glance at the vampire who was busy mixing the batter with gusto. Well, she certainly couldn't fault her enthusiasm. And on that note, it would soon be time to add the fruit pieces-
Later, Kohaku would be at a loss as to explain how it had happened. She was normally supremely confident in her own skills in the kitchen, after all. Perhaps it was because she was busy keeping an eye on the other people in the kitchen. Perhaps it was because she hadn't gotten enough sleep last night. Perhaps it was simply that the powers that be, in a moment of whimsy, had decided to strike her with bad luck.
Whatever the reason, there was a dull thud! and suddenly Kohaku felt a sharp pain lancing up her hand. With a cry of pain she jerked her hand away, causing the others to come to her side.
I cut my own finger? Kohaku stared at the bleeding appendage for a moment. Her hurting from such things was relatively new, but still, she knew that the bleeding was serious enough that she'd need to deal with it quickly.
"Urgh…" there was a troubled moan, and suddenly Kohaku realized that Arcueid had retreated to the far side of the kitchen and was currently trying desperately not to look in Kohaku's direction. Ah, yes, Arcueid-san doesn't do well in the presence of blood. I'll have to leave.
"Nee-san!" she heard Hisui's cry and she smiled encouragingly at her sister.
"Don't worry, Hisui-chan. It's not serious. I'll just have to disinfect and bandage it."
"All… all right, if you say so," Hisui was clearly worried, but Kohaku was the one who had had medical training, and so Hisui deferred to her greater expertise in the matter. "Hurry up and treat it then, Nee-san."
Kohaku smiled, nodded, and left the kitchen.
It was only when she was halfway to her room and the first-aid kit she kept in there that she realized what she had just done.
She had left Arcueid, Hisui, and Len, alone and unsupervised, in the kitchen, to attempt the baking of a cake.
A bolt of pure terror shot through the normally unflappable maid, and almost involuntarily, she sent out a mental cry.
SHIKI-SAN, RUN!
"Hey, man, anything the matter?" Arihiko gazed at Shiki with concern, and the bespectacled youth shook his head.
"No, I'm fine. I just…" he glanced over his shoulder. "Felt like there was some sort of danger around the place."
"You know what's a danger? If we don't get there quicky, we won't be able to reserve enough seats at the cafeteria, and Ciel-senpai won't be able to join us for lunch! Now that's a danger, so hurry up!"
"Coming, coming," Shiki sighed and hurried after his friend.
"Hisui?" Arcueid asked as she lifted her head from the batter. "Could I ask you something?"
Hisui looked up from where she was busy pouring the food colouring into a pan. "Yes, Arcueid-sama?"
"Are you sure that this recipe is correct?" she handed the book over for Hisui to scan through, and Hisui paused.
"If Nee-san was the one who chose this recipe, then there should be no problems," she said. "As for myself, I cannot find anything wrong with it."
"Got it!" Arcueid smiled. "I just wanted to make sure. Thanks, Hisui!"
And so they returned to their work.
Several hours later, Shiki let out a long breath as he stepped through the doors of his family home. Today had been a tiring day at school, and he was glad to be back home, and to be afforded the chance to relax.
As he stepped into the interior of the mansion, he wasn't surprised to see Arcueid in the lobby, apparently waiting for him. After all, she'd called in the morning with news about having some sort of surprise ready for him when he came back.
What did surprise him was the fact that she was pacing back and forth in the lobby, wringing her hands nervously. At the sound of his the door closing behind him, she whirled to face him, her face filled with surprise – and badly-concealed anxiety.
"S-shiki!" Okay, Arcueid stuttering? Something was horribly, horribly wrong here. Arc didn't stutter.
"What's the matter, Arc?" he smiled encouragingly at her. "You told me you had a surprise for me, didn't you?"
A forced smile appeared on her face. "I did, didn't I? Well, about that, it's a bit of a funny story-"
"Arcueid-sama," appearing in the doorway of the kitchen, Hisui bowed deeply. "The cake has just finished baking."
"Oh, a cake?" Shiki tried to keep the smile on his face, but he had a sudden, awful premonition of doom lurking in front of him. "Is that the surprise, Arc?"
"Well, yes," Arcueid looked as if she was about to get a tooth pulled without anaesthetic. Definitely not a good sign.
"Shiki-sama, with your leave, I will go inform Nee-san and Akiha-sama that we have finished our baking."
A baking project that hadn't involved Kohaku? This was just getting better and better.
Which had of course led them to current situation, with all of them staring at the… thing in front of them on table.
Splotches of grey-green covered the uppermost layer of the stuff, mixed in with generous amounts of what appeared to be a purple that reminded Shiki of nothing so much as deadly poison. Despite the fact that it had received ample time to cool, Shiki could detect a faint hissing coming from within the lumpy depths of the creation.
Surreptitiously, Shiki glanced up at the others to see how they felt. Akiha, sitting opposite him on the table, had an expression on her face that was almost bored, a definite feeling of 'let's just get this mess over with' coming from her.
Kohaku looked apologetic, though for what exactly, Shiki couldn't tell. He also noticed that one of her fingers was currently bandaged. I wonder what happened.
Hisui just appeared puzzled, as if she couldn't figure out how they had managed to end up with what they had.
Len appeared on the verge of tears, her dream of tucking into a delicious cake thoroughly dashed by now.
And Arcueid… sitting at his side, Arcueid simply looked as if she wanted to crawl into a hole somewhere and die. Shiki reined in a sigh, even as he felt a stab in his heart at her crushed expression. Every last one of them knew that the cake – if it could even be called a cake, it half-looked like a pie, actually – in front of them was an affront to all that was good and pure in this world, but no one wanted to point that out and so risk upsetting everyone else in the room.
Finally, it was Akiha who broke the silence. "Well," she said. "If there are no objections, shall we begin?"
With a nod of assent, Shiki picked up his fork and got ready to eat, as did the others in the room.
Twenty seconds later, all of them stood and bolted for the various bathrooms in the mansion.
Night had fallen, and the residents of the Tohno Mansion had retired for the day, mostly to nurse aching stomachs.
Shiki was no exception, and he lay in bed, feeling his digestive tract howl protests at the indignity it had been subjected to earlier in the day.
Well, it couldn't be helped, he supposed. That was just the way things had turned out.
And on that note…
"Hey, Arcueid," he called.
There was the soft rustle of curtains, and Arcueid stepped into view. "Ehehe…" she gave an embarrassed laugh that Shiki could tell was forced. "You knew I was there, Shiki?"
"You've pulled that so many times, it'd be surprising if I couldn't tell," he sat up in his bed. "Do you want some hot chocolate?" He'd managed to convince Kohaku to install a water boiler in his room a while back, under the unspoken understanding that he tended to entertain unannounced night visits far more often than was usual.
She shook her head. "Not tonight, Shiki," and her voice was soft as she walked over to his bedside, settling herself heavily on it. Her downcast eyes stared at the ground, refusing to meet his gaze.
Shiki sighed. "Arc…"
"Shiki, I'm sorry," she began suddenly. "I just wanted to do something for you like you always did for me. But everything went wrong, and everyone ended up hurt because of me."
Shiki was silent.
"I don't even know where it all went wrong. I'd gotten help from Kohaku and Hisui, I'd prepared as best as I could and I-" she was cut off with a gasp as she felt warms arms wrap around her from behind.
"It's all right, Arc," Shiki said softly, into her ear. "It's true the result wasn't very good, but Hisui told me that you really enjoyed yourself while making the cake. That's good, isn't it?"
"But I-"
"Arc, even if the results didn't turn out so well, I'm still happy," gently but firmly, he placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her so that she was looking at him. "I'm glad you wanted to do something nice for me. So… thank you."
The beginnings of a smile almost found its way onto Arcueid's face before she looked away. "But – that means I still haven't done anything to pay you back for all the things you did for me, Shiki."
"Hey now, Arcueid," Shiki chuckled in the darkness. "You're wrong. Every time I do something for you, you always pay me back."
She turned to him, a questioning look on her face.
"Every time I do something for you, I get to see your beautiful smile when you thank me. That's all the reward I need."
There was a moment of silence, and then a smile spread across Arcueid's face. "Shiki…" Closing her eyes, she leaned forward to embrace him.
Shiki returned the hug, settling himself backwards on the bed until both of them were lying down on it, arms still wrapped protectively around each other. With a last sigh of contentment, Shiki closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, the two of them remaining that way until the dawn came.
Well that ending was pure cheese.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it, and I would appreciate it if you reviewed my work.
Next: Conclusion