Chapter 14 Delicious

Once the duo were on the other side of Morton's door, Roy turned toward Celia with a grin. "So, what do you want to do now?"

Celia put her hand to her chin. "Well…I suppose it would be nice to…"

Click.

The lock to Morton's door clicked into place, taking the hybrid off guard. She cringed at this sound. It was an ugly noise to be sure, and Celia knew exactly what it meant. Morton was closing the door on anyone and everyone. Whether or not he needed help was irrelevant. Through the one simple act of shutting himself in his room, he had cut himself off from those who could potentially help him. Those who could potentially care for him. Celia stared at the door with Roy looking at her in confusion.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She didn't answer, for her mind wasn't completely present. It was reaching out to a horrible place, a place where she had hoped she would never have to revisit. That being, her own childhood. As a little girl, she would often bury her face in her pillow and cry after a particularly long day. Even when her mom called out to her on the other side of the door, she wouldn't go see her. All she did was lock the door, shutting her mom out. Often, when Celia finally came back out, she would be greeted by her Mom's tear-stained face. And, all too often, she would go back to the bedroom, unwilling to interact with her.

Now that she was on the receiving end of such an act, Celia felt as if her heart had been torn to shreds. She lowered her head. She would have pulled her hood up, but she quickly remembered that she didn't have the hoodie on right now. So, she went for the next best thing. She allowed her long, grown-out bangs to cover her face, unwilling to pull them back even as they hugged her cheeks.

"Celia? What's wrong?" When she didn't answer, Roy grabbed hold of her hand. "Are you alright?"

Celia didn't even fully realize that Roy was holding her hand. Sure, she felt the sensation, but she wasn't fully present enough to take in the moment. It wasn't until she pushed her hair out of her eyes and looked down at her hand being gripped in Roy's that the gravity of the situation hit her.

Roy. Was holding. Her hand.

And the worst part? She didn't actually mind. If anything...she liked it.

The half koopa girl stared down at her hand as shock grasped her. His touch was warm, especially for a Koopa. It wasn't grimy or sweaty; it was gentle, and gripped her hand without squeezing it. She let out a little gasp, taking in a quick stream of air for just a little bitty moment. It was then that Roy, realizing what he was doing, released his grip and pulled his hand back. He cleared his throat as his face turned vermillion.

"I….I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay. I just…." Celia laughed. "It caught me off guard is all."

Roy gave a small smile. "Okay. Well, better that you be caught off guard than…." His face fell into a flustered mess. "Okay, you know what? I'm just gonna shut up now."

Celia nodded. "That's alright." She sighed and turned her back to Morton's door. "To answer your question, I am feeling a little bit hungry."

Roy's face lit up. "Hungry?" He laughed. "Well, don't worry! We have more food in our kitchen than you can shake a stick at!"

Celia perked up. As someone who grew up in a low-income household and spent the past six years in a sewer, that description sounded really appealing. She imagined having the satisfaction of stuffing her face, if only for a brief moment. She licked her lips.

"Lead the way."

Roy beamed and did just that. Celia took notice of the fact that he whistled and strutted down the hall. This was a sure sign of confidence, or at the very least happiness. She slowly realized that she loved the way that he walked. She didn't point it out to him though. Pointing out the little things and quirks regarding how a person acted could easily put the person on the spot and embarrass them, as she herself could attest.

Roy is a very cool guy, she thought to herself. A simple thought, but one that was true regardless. It even brought a smile to her face as she thought about it.

With that, the two continued to make their way toward the kitchen. The closer they got, the more Celia's mouth watered. She had said that she was a little hungry, but that statement wasn't entirely accurate. She felt as if she could consume the contents of a canyon!

"Well, here we are!" Roy said as he pushed the door open. The first thing that hit Celia was the smell. It smelt of cinnamon, cardamom, turkey, cream, apples, onion powder, strawberries, mint, bread dough, cookie dough, lemon, and rosemary, all at the same time. Celia didn't even know it was possible for all these amazing smells to exist simultaneously. And yet, when they all combined together, they created a scent that was so alluring that it increased her appetite by a hundredfold. It certainly beat the smell of the sewer, that's for sure.

In fact, as she got a better look at it, Celia couldn't help but realize something. The kitchen of Bowser's Castle was almost the complete opposite of her sewer...hideout (Celia wasn't entirely comfortable with calling it a home as it didn't really fit the definition of one). Not only did it smell amazing, but it was also very spacious, and filled to the brim with people. Koopa troopas, most of whom wore little chef uniforms, made their way to and fro. The chatter overlapped, creating a sound that almost sounded like music. A song, perhaps.

"Well," said Roy. He took a step forward, seemingly un-entranced by the sight of the kitchen. Understandable as he probably went into it more often than not, but it still made Celia herself feel a little awkward. Thankfully, that awkwardness went away when he beamed at her. "Come in! There's room for everyone!"

Celia nodded and took a step forward. Once she was in the kitchen, however, all of the awkwardness returned. She felt as if the Koopa troopas were staring at her. She felt as if the refrigerator and cupboards were off limits, and that she would also be thrown out of the room if she went searching through them.

Thankfully, one more look in Roy's direction calmed her nerves, if only a little. In reality, she was probably just a little on edge due to her time breaking in and out of kitchens. Realizing this, Celia took in a deep breath and made her way deeper into the kitchen.

Roy followed her, the grin from before not even trying to leave his face. "So, what do you want to eat?"

Celia looked around, trying to locate the source of the different smells. Her eyes immediately fell on a cream pie with a chocolate crust being put in the refrigerator by one of the chefs. "How about that?"

Roy beamed. "Good choice!" He made his way over to the chef. "Hey Bruno, can you fork over some of that pie?"

Bruno turned and blinked at Roy. "This? But this is for dessert tonight!"

Roy laughed. "So?" He leaned against the door of the freezer, which was parallel to the door of the fridge. "Why save for later what you can have right now?"

Bruno lowered his eyebrows into a scrunching position. "Wow. I see that someone follows a path of self gratification."

Celia snickered upon hearing this, covering her mouth as she did so.

Roy just chuckled. "I don't know what that means, but I still want the pie regardless."

Bruno shook his head. "Sorry. No can do." He put it on the shelf and closed the door. "You'll have to wait for dinner tonight."

Roy stamped his foot. "Oh come on! What's a guy gotta do to get some decent food around here?"

Celia went up to him. "Roy, it's okay. I can eat something else."

Bruno raised an eyebrow. "Who's this?"

Roy perked up. "Celia Patch." He was just about to delve into the rest of the introduction, but Celia, not wanting a repeat with the time that Larry had heard her secret, stopped him.

"Yes, that's my name; Celia Patch. I'm just a friend of Roy's."

Roy blinked. "Just a friend? No, you're not just a friend. You're…."

Celia cast him a glare. "Just a friend," she said through gritted teeth. "That's. All."

Roy blinked again before nodding slowly. "Okay." He turned back toward Bruno. "I was wondering if I could get her something to eat."

"Ohhh." Bruno chuckled. "Trying to impress a girl, are you, Master Roy?" Roy turned carnation pink just as Bruno chuckled again. "Don't worry; I've gotcha, Roy." He winked at him and pulled out the pie. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to hand over a little bit of this."

Roy's face lit up. Bruno went over to the counter, got out a knife, and sunk it into the creamy pastry. He put two pieces on a plate before handing it over. After thanking him, Celia and Roy made their way out to the very spacious and very echoey dining hall.

"Oh man," Roy said as he took a seat. "If I knew it was that easy to get Bruno to give me food, I probably should bring girls into the castle more often." He laughed, but there was a hollowness to it. He sounded like he was trying to suppress some pain.

Celia took a seat across from him. "Are you thinking about your girlfriend?"

Roy nodded. "Yeah." His shoulders slumped. "I miss Judy. I miss her a lot."

Celia nodded, her mouth in a line. "I'm sorry about that."

Rather suddenly, Roy put on a smile. "It's okay. We don't have to worry about that right now." He pointed toward the pie. "As my guest of honor and true princess of the Koopa Kingdom, I think you deserve the first bite."

Celia did a double take before nodding. "Um...okay." She stuck her fork into the pie and slowly raised it into her mouth. When she took a bite, it was as if all the stress she had accumulated over the course of her life magically melted away, in a way that was not too dissimilar to how the cream melted on her tongue. The light yet sugary substance was fluffy like a cloud. Celia couldn't remember the last time she had something with this soft texture. She supposed it made sense given how this was made by chefs who catered to royalty.

"So," said Roy. "What do you…"

Before Roy could finish his question, Celia leaned down and gnawed at the pie like a hungry wolf. Each bite seemed to bring her closer and closer to reaching enlightenment. By the time she was finished, Roy was staring at her in shock.

"...think?"

Celia smiled as she wiped some cream and crumbs off of her face. This pie was truly magnificent. It was something that she could probably eat over and over and over again without getting tired. How exactly could she sum up its amazingness?

"It was delicious." Yeah, that'll do. Roy cast her a smile, which she gladly returned. There was something about that smile. It made her feel welcomed in. Appreciated. Loved.

She cleared her throat. "Roy?"

"Yeah?"

"I was wondering if..."

Right at that moment, the door to the dining hall opened up. Both Roy and Celia turned and saw the rest of the Koopalings, sans Morton, enter the dining hall. Lemmy carried with him a yellow circus ball with orange stars, as well as a bag that was bigger than he was. The other Koopalings who followed him looked beyond excited, with the exception of Ludwig. He wore a face that said "I don't want to be here."

"Hey, everyone!" Lemmy said. His voice really was as sweet as the pie Celia had just devoured. "It is time for the Amazing Lemmy to put on the best show in the world!"

Celia beamed. There was no way that she wanted to miss this.