Notes: Thanks to the nice English lady (that requested anonymity) for revising my chapters.

Chapter 7 – Baking Battle Final

'This Baking Battle final competition might be the hardest we've ever seen,' Josh Miller, the show's presenter, started dramatically. 'We have two winners from our semi-finals and two pairs voted in.' He started to turn around, pointing to the first baking station. 'Stars & Stripes representatives, Dwayne Wright and Kate Mills, representing the Star & Stripes Children's Foundation, winners of the last Friday semi-final.'

He waited for the applause to finish before turning to the next station. 'In the final by popular vote, San Francisco Police Department Lieutenant Alina Liu, and Cadet Harold Serrano, representing the Swords and Plowshares charity.'

Another pause to wait for the applause and he turned again. 'The other contestants by popular vote, Charleston Fire Department representatives, Firefighter Martin Jackson and Paramedic Bethany Young, with the Charleston Habitat for Humanity charity.'

Another turn, and Josh was facing the last baking station. 'Again, last but certainly not least, the pair that raise the heat on our social media, Naval Criminal Investigative Services representatives, Agent Tony DiNozzo and Ms Dolores Bromstead! Raising money for the Gary Sinise Foundation.'

The applause was louder and longer, and Tony and Dolores felt the heat of their blushes. The presenter took control of the situation then. 'And for our judges on this final,' he turned to the dais where the judges were waiting. 'Our lovely Mabel Stewart, creator, and owner of Sweet Stewart!'

She waved. 'My pride took a beating in this competition,' she said with a smile. 'I think I'll try to convince some of the competitors to sell me their recipes.'

After the laughter died down, Josh turned to the man beside Mabel. 'Harry Salas, restauranteur, owner of Salas Eatery at the Bay, our critic!'

'It's hard to criticise when your mouth is full of so much baking goodness,' he joked.

Again, Josh had to wait for the laughter to stop before turning to the last judge. 'And our guest judge for the day, Mrs Erin Robinson, senior counsel from the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Justice!'

The woman smiled and waved. 'I think I'll reserve any comments after I taste the baked offerings.'

The discreet laugh finished quickly when Josh turned back to the contestants. 'For the last battle of this wonderful tour with law enforcement and military personnel, we decided that we'll liberate the teams from the rigidity of the rules they normally work with!'

Surprise and curiosity covered all the participants' faces.

'There is no theme today!' Josh exclaimed, arms open wide. He waited for oohh, and whats from the participants to die down before continuing with the explanation. 'We want a representation of you,' he said, pointing around, 'in the goods you will be baking. Give us your favourite recipe, or something that might represent you, it's completely your choice. For the cupcakes, through the pies, and ending up with the cakes, your imagination can bake anything!'

He waited for the laugh to diminish before finishing up. 'The time frame is still the same: one hour for cupcakes, one hour for pies and 3 hours for the cakes. One team will fall each turn until we get to the winner of this special Baking Battle!'

With applause all around, the presenter walked towards the judges' dais, nodded to them, and turned back to the competitors. 'Your first hour starts… NOW!'

Even without planning it, both Delores and Tony were taking this turn slower than in the previous episodes. They discussed their recipe options and went to work with certainty but without rush. The other teams seemed to be feeling the pressure or were too much into the competition headspace, but the NCIS pair decided separately but found themselves in agreement that this last opportunity was for fun, and they would not stress about the results.

The Star and Stripes team finished first, rushing to press the button to bring out their flag barely passed the 40 minutes mark of the hour allotted for baking. The Charleston Fire Department team flagged that they had also finished just seconds afterwards. The judges moved to the first pair's station and tried out their black forest cupcakes.

'Black forest in cupcake version…' Mabel Stewart started, encouraging the contestants to talk.

'Yes,' smiled Kate Mills, a reporter for the military news website. 'Something rich and interesting. Sophisticated.'

'The dark chocolate is very bitter,' Harry Salas commented, leaving most of his cupcake on the plate. 'And the whipping cream really sweet.'

'I can't taste cherries, but the alcohol is quite strong,' Erin Robinson, the Department of Justice representative said.

The competitors lost their cheery mood with the comments and Josh smiled wanly, starting to guide the judges to the next station. 'And what is Charleston Fire Department offering us today?'

'Carrot cupcake with chocolate filling and cream cheese frosting,' Firefighter Martin Jackson answered.

'It's all about being connected to earth and family for us,' Bethany Young, the paramedic, said timidly.

'Good carrot cake,' Mabel complimented.

'Not much of the chocolate filling though,' Harry seemed to be very critical today. 'Probably a bit more would help.'

'It's nice,' Erin Robinson said with a polite smile.

Before they had to keep trying to make small talk, the San Francisco Police Department flag came up, soon followed by the NCIS one.

'And we are moving to the next competitors,' Josh cried, going with the judges. 'Lieutenant Liu, what you two prepared?'

'Chocolate cupcake with hazelnut frosting,' she smiled.

'Something rich and fulfilling,' Cadet Serrano laughed.

'Humm…. Tasty but yes, very rich.' Salas commented.

'It's good, but might be too much for a whole cupcake,' Mabel said.

'It's indulgent,' Erin agreed.

'Well, let's see what our NCIS friends have to offer,' Josh said, already moving towards the last station.

'Agent DiNozzo,' Erin Robison started before anyone else could. 'Were you the Ohio state player that went twice to the Final Four?'

Tony was surprised by the question. His time as university player hadn't been commented on before in the show. 'Yes, ma'am.'

'My husband is an avid sports fan, Agent. He still talks about your games. He was very sorry about your injury that took out your chances to go pro.'

'Well, it put me in the law enforcement path,' Tony laughed. 'Thank him for me, ma'am. It's good to be well remembered, even after all this time.'

'Look at you, Agent DiNozzo,' Josh laughed at the stare Tony gave him. 'Tony! A man with multiple talents!'

'Every bit helps in this line of work, Josh,' Tony answered with an exaggerated wink.

'Today we want to see what your baking talent brings us, though,' Harry Salas interrupted, not unkindly.

'We prepared a vanilla cupcake, with soft dark chocolate filling and a cinnamon frosting,' Dolores responded.

'Seems pretty simple,' Mabel commented before taking her first bite.

'First impressions can be deceiving,' Tony smiled.

'Oh, yes,' Erin said, looking at her cupcake after a couple of bites. 'It seems simple enough, but the combination of flavours leaves a great aftertaste.'

'I agree,' Harry said. 'This is a memory that's going to last.'

'And now the judges will need to decide who has fallen on the first stage of this final Baking Battle,' Josh said, guiding the judges to the middle of the room to deliberate.

The other teams were frantically cleaning their stations, anxious to go to the next phase. Delores and Tony were still sticking to their resolution to enjoy the day and not get stressed.

After a couple of minutes of intense discussion, the judges nodded to each other and moved back to the dais to sit out and wait for the next baking good. Josh Miller turned to the competitors and opened up his arms.

'It's always hard to see one go down, but it's the nature of the battle.' He clapped his hands and turned to the NCIS station. 'Fierce competition but the majority vote is for you guys, Agent DiNozzo, and Ms Bromstead. Congratulations for continuing to amaze our judges!' He then turned toward the first station he stopped by on this round. 'Unfortunately, the decision was that the Stars & Stripes team, Dwayne Wright, and Kate Mills will not be going forward. Thank you for your spirit and your charity of choice, Stars & Stripes Children's Foundation, will be able to keep receiving donations until midnight tonight,' he finished and clapped.

The other contestants and the judges clapped towards the departing team. The pair nodded in recognition but was clear that they were not happy to have to leave.

Josh turned to the other three teams. 'And now, it's time for your second round. The theme is still a representation of yourselves or your teams. Wow us!' He said with open arms, before turning towards the dais while the contestants went back to their baking.

For the second round, the Charleston team was the first to raise its flag, followed shortly by the NCIS team and the San Francisco one, with barely a minute between the three.

The presenter and judges walked towards the Charleston FD station and were presented with a white concoction covered with a variety of fruits.

'It's a pavlova, a meringue cake with fruits!' An excited Bethany Young explained. 'We used strawberries, kiwifruit, pineapple and raspberries. It's an Australian dessert I read about.'

Harry Salas used a fork to break the dessert, making the white piece scatter around in almost powder. 'Yes, needs some time in the oven and a delicate hand to make it hard outside and soft inside, like meringues,' he explained without even trying to taste it.

'It might have been adventurous to try it,' Mabel commented after trying to bite into it. 'But I don't think it was successful.'

'I tasted it before in my travels,' Erin Robinson commented. 'It can be nice and fresh, but I don't believe you mastered it.'

The pair was forlorn and sad, with proof of their failed effort in front of them. Josh mouthed a 'Sorry, thank you' before guiding the judges toward the NCIS station.

'We present you with a strawberry cheesecake with white chocolate;' Delores started talking as soon as they were close to their station. 'Starts cold and tarty but should leave a sweet aftertaste to remember us by,' she laughed.

'I'm seeing a theme here,' Josh joked.

'Like I said earlier: first impressions can be deceiving,' Tony smiled. 'With people or food. Most of the time we need a little longer to get the full measure of a dish. Or person,' Tony finished quietly.

'Well, I'm really impressed and liked everything you two produced so far in the show,' Mabel said, cleaning her plate. 'We had good bakers before, some exceptional ones even, but your goods have something extra that I can't name.'

'Agent DiNozzo explained it in his interview after the first battle,' Salas answered, also cleaning his plate. 'You cook with your heart to feed the body and soul.' He nodded to the pair preparing to move to the last station.

'I must agree,' Erin said. 'Your baking is exceptional, and I also believe that cooking with love is what gives that indescribable extra.'

Josh nodded in appreciation and moved with the judges to the San Francisco PD station. 'And what have the representatives of our fair town to offer?'

Lieutenant Alina Liu brought up a nice pie. 'Apple and blueberry pie,' she said.

'With some caramel sauce,' Cadet Harold Serrano completed.

'Looks beautiful,' Erin said, accepting a slice.

Mabel took a bite of hers. 'Nice but the caramel sauce doesn't really go with it.'

'Yep,' Salas agreed. 'Not sure if the mix with blueberries is the issue. Maybe it was the time you took to cook the caramel.'

The contestants nodded, a bit miffed with the comments, but they knew it was true. The judges moved to the centre of the room to reach a decision on the final pair going forward. It was not a long discussion. Soon enough the judges were moving to the back of the room and the presenter was facing the competitors.

'Let me tell you, it's getting a bit repetitive, but nevertheless true.' Josh turned towards Tony and Delores. 'And NCIS had the best dish again!'

Tony and Delores high-fived and then bowed, content smiles on.

'And for the bad news,' Josh looked around and stopped in front of the Charleston team. 'Unfortunately, Firefighter Martin Jackson and Paramedic Bethany Young from the Charleston Fire Department didn't pass muster. Your charity of choice, Charleston Habitat for Humanity, will be able to receive donations up until midnight tonight through our website.'

The team bowed and waved their goodbyes, leaving the room. Josh turned to the last two teams.

'For the next round, you have 3 hours to prepare some cake for us,' he said, clapping his hands. 'Whatever you think could showcase your talents. Good luck,' he waved and left the room with the judges.

There was an overall sense of calm in the recording room when Josh and the judges came back in. All the competitors were doing the final touches on their cakes without any external signal of stress.

'Oh, this is really a first!' Josh exclaimed. 'No frantic stressed teams? No rushing back and forth to finish? What happened here?' He joked.

There was laughter all around while the big clock ticked down the last seconds. 'And time's up!' Josh said, moving forward with the judges. 'Let's start with our San Francisco team.'

Lieutenant Alina Liu and Cadet Harold Serrano were behind the station and stand with a 3-tiered cake.

'It's an orange cake with white chocolate filling and glazed frosting with some coconut shavings,' the lieutenant said.

Cadet Serrano started cutting and distributing slices. 'We wanted something light and fresh, a reminder of summer.'

'Humm,' Mabel put her fork down. 'The taste is a bit all over the place.'

Alina Liu seemed a bit lost.

'Separately, everything is good. Sometimes the mixing of tastes doesn't work,' Harry Salas commented.

'It's beautifully,' Erin Robinson conceded.

The competing pair smiled in thanks and observed while the group moved to the NCIS station.

'And what do the NCIS prodigies have to offer?' Josh questioned with a big smile.

'You are jinxing us, Josh,' Tony played back.

'From what I tasted so far, I find it unlikely,' Erin laughed.

'So, what you are offering us as your last-ditch effort?' Josh kept joking.

'We couldn't escape the chocolate today,' Tony answered. 'So we present you a 3-layer milk chocolate with salted caramel filling and a dark chocolate with cayenne frosting.' The cake in front of the judges was covered by some careful piping, with beautiful swirls.

'Beautiful piping,' Mabel commented.

'All done by the talented Delores,' Tony answered while cutting the cake and passing the slices for his partner to distribute.

'Piping is something we practise a lot at the training centre,' she said. 'It's a very sought-after skill.'

'Yes, it is,' Harry confirmed while cutting into his slice of the cake. 'If your students have this kind of ability, I'm ready to have one or two in my restaurant.'

'Oh, yes!' Mabel agreed. 'I could use this quality of piping in my bakery.'

Delores smiled openly and proudly.

'I was underwhelmed by the other baking goods that used caramel today,' Erin started. 'But this combination is really spot on.'

'I agree,' Mabel smiled. 'The chocolate cake is sweet enough to balance the salted caramel. And the spicy frosting is a nice touch.'

'Really rich,' Harry said. 'Like it but it should be consumed in small quantities.'

'True,' Tony agreed. 'This is a… highly indulgent commemorative cake. Probably nice for an event, but I wouldn't do it for a house party or something like that. Even for a bad break-up it would be too much.' He completed with a small smile.

'I don't know…' Mabel smirked. 'I wouldn't mind a chocolate overload for some break-ups.'

'That's what ice-cream is for,' Tony winked.

'But we are here today to judge these cakes, not plan for possible future break-ups,' Josh intervened. 'Now the judges will have to decide on the winner.'

The group moved to the centre of the room, while Tony, Delores, Alina, and Harold met behind the stations, talked between themselves in hushed tones, and tasted each other's cakes.

'I hate to agree with the judges,' Alina said, licking her fingers of the chocolate frosting. 'But your cake is marvellous. Way better than ours.'

'Oh, thanks, but your orange cake is good!' Dolores demurred.

'But weird!' Harold smirked.

'It can be a good thing…' Delores tried again.

'If you served it with some ice-cream, it would be perfect.' Tony offered.

'Ah, living and learning,' Alina said. 'But you guys deserve the win.'

'Hey, no decision yet!' Tony responded.

'As if you could lose with this cake!' Harold hmphed, cutting another piece of it, while the group laughed.

In the centre of the room, Josh Miller and the judges were more wasting time than actually discussing their decision.

'I don't want to make it look like favouritism,' Mabel commented.

'None of that,' Salas responded. 'They were exceptional in everything they did. I don't have any issues with giving the victory to them.'

'I agree,' Erin said. 'Not that I tasted what they produced in the other episodes, but considering today's baking, they were the winners, no shadow of a doubt.'

'So, let's go on with the show,' Josh decided. Turning towards the competitors, he clapped his hands to grab their attention. 'Decisions have been made!'

The NCIS and San Francisco PD participants walked towards the centre of the room, arranging themselves in front of the presenter and judges.

'Thank you all for the effort and tasty morsels you offered us,' Josh started. 'But this is the final competition on this special Baking Battle with law enforcement and military personnel.' He looked at each one of the competitors. 'It's no surprise, but certainly highly deserved, that the winner is the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, represented by Agent Tony DiNozzo and Ms Delores Bromstead!'

Applause erupted in the room, and Tony and Delores high-fived and shared a hug, laughing out loud.

'Thank you, Lieutenant Alina Liu and Cadet Harold Serrano from the San Francisco Police Department, for your enthusiastic participation. Your charity of choice, Swords & Plowshares, will be showing on our website to receive donations until midnight tonight,' Josh announced, clapping for the pair.

They bowed in thanks and reached to shake hands with Tony and Delores. After congratulations all around, the presenter pulled the NCIS pair in front of the cameras for the closing of the episode.

'So, Tony and Delores,' Josh positioned himself between the two. 'How was your experience with Baking Battle? I can say you were the first pair that we had here that went through nine rounds completely undefeated.'

Dolores Bromstead giggled. Tony looked at her with a raised eyebrow. 'It was an amazing experience,' she laughed. 'I had a lot of fun. I'll have tons of stories to tell back home.'

Josh turned toward Tony, expecting his comments.

'I had a wonderful time too,' Tony smiled sadly. 'I planned to do my best, but even I was surprised by the results.'

'Well, my friend, I would say your best goes above and beyond,' Josh congratulated him. 'And your charity of choice, the Gary Sinise Foundation, has raised over $50,000 so far, and people have until midnight tonight to contribute through the show website.'

'We can only say the most heartfelt thank you to everyone that contributed, or will contribute, to our preferred charity, and any of the other charities represented during this two-week-long Baking Battle,' Tony smiled winningly to the camera. 'We all do our best to be there for those who need us, and it's good to know that we have support if needed.'

'I would say all of you guys deserve it,' Josh said. He moved ahead of the pair, looking into the camera. 'Let's remember those in need, and those that support us, whether with their work for our safety, or to fill our bellies with the most delicious baking goods!'

He let the laugh die out before closing the show. 'Thank you for watching and supporting this great cause! And this is the end of the final for the law enforcement and military personnel special edition of Baking Battle!'

From the dark came the shout 'Cut!'