"So I'm thinking something sweet, yet savory," Karen pulled on her apron.
It was the night before the cooking festival and she had come over to practice a recipe with Claire.
"You do realize I don't have a kitchen," Her friend reminded her once again.
"Details, details!" Karen scoffed. "It's just practice, anyway. The important thing about cooking is that all of the ingredients taste good."
"I guess I can't completely disagree with that," Claire replied quietly.
Karen emptied a grocery bag on the farmer's table. The grocer's daughter quickly grabbed a chocolate bar, a loaf of bread, and some curry roux. She had swiped a hotplate and skillet from home.
"So here's the idea – a sandwich with melted chocolate inside with a curry spread. I was inspired after your visit to the shop the other day; maybe I should give chocolate another chance. I think it would be good if we spiced it up a bit. What do you think? It would be sweet, spicy, and salty!"
"Uh…." Claire tried her best to keep an open mind. "Maybe we should taste the chocolate and curry together before you commit to using the whole package."
"Fair enough." Karen broke a corner off of both bars and popped them in her mouth. She immediately spat them out in disgust.
"Maybe if you cooked up the roux first," Claire offered weakly.
"How do you do that?"
The blonde sighed and broke off a couple blocks of roux and dropped them into the skillet filled with hot water. Karen watched as it slowly melted.
"Did you get the spatula?" Claire asked, surprised that the young woman acted like this was all so new to her.
"No, I didn't. Damn that Gray," Karen grumbled. She rustled through the bags for something else to stir with, but produced nothing.
Claire took the curry box and folded it in half to stabilize it. "Let's give this a try." She pushed the sauce around with the stiff cardboard. It worked better than she expected. A warm, savory smell filled the room as the curry reached its magical temperature and began to thicken. Claire tried her best not to drool at the aroma.
"Wow, Claire! You're awesome!" Karen was genuinely impressed.
"Now let's try adding some chocolate, I guess." Claire felt bad to be wasting food.
Karen broke the bar in half, but Claire halted her. "Let's add little by little," She instructed gently. "We can always add more chocolate, but we can't take it out."
"I guess you're right."
Karen handed her a small piece, and Claire melted it with the curry.
The brunette dipped her finger into the skillet to give it a taste. "Hey, this isn't half bad. It needs more chocolate, though; it just tastes like curry."
Claire decided to give it a try. Her friend was right. It was savory, but needed just a hint more of sweetness. The young woman handed the farmer another small piece, but she broke it in half.
"Oh, you're such a chicken, Claire," Karen laughed.
By the time the sauce was done, the cardboard had become flimsy and useless. Claire turned off the hotplate.
"I guess all that's left to do is try it with the bread," Karen reasoned.
Claire hesitantly ripped a couple of pieces off of the loaf. She handed one to Karen, who promptly dunked hers into the sauce. Claire brushed the bread along the top of the sauce gently. They both bit into their bread in unison and stared at each other with widened eyes.
"This is AMAZING! Claire, we are GENIUSES!" Karen exclaimed, her mouth full. "This is the strangest, most addicting thing I have ever tasted!"
The young woman laughed and had to agree.
"How did you learn to cook, anyway?" Karen asked.
"Well, I learned when I was a child; my parents taught me. They wanted to make sure I could take care of myself from an early age." Wasn't that how everyone learned?
"My mom won't even let me in the kitchen," Karen tried to play off her frustration. "She thinks I'll burn it down or something," she scoffed, "But she never even gives me a chance. I mess up once, and she puts everything away and tells me I'm helpless."
"Well, that's not a really encouraging learning environment," Claire commented, taking another chunk of bread.
"You're right, it's not. I mean, look at what we made together tonight. Sure, it's weird, but it's edible and strangely delicious…" She licked her fingers. "It was an experiment… Isn't that all life is, anyway?"
"You got real deep there for a moment," The blonde giggled. Karen laughed and shoved her.
"You're smart, Claire. I like you a lot." She put an arm around her friend's shoulders. "And tomorrow we're going to kill the competition!"
0o0o0o0
Karen and Claire impatiently waited at the gate to the town square the next morning. Karen spied Rick and his mother waiting and made her way toward them. Claire saw a familiar redhead waving to her.
"Good morning!"
The farmer walked over to Ann and her father. "Good morning."
"Are you entering the competition this year, Claire?" Ann asked.
"I'm not really sure," she admitted, "I don't really have a kitchen."
"It will all have to depend on what the theme is for this year, then," Doug thoughtfully stroked his moustache.
"Themes?!" Why hadn't Karen mentioned this to her before?
"Oh, yeah," The redheaded waitress replied. "The Gourmet will announce a theme and then we have a couple of hours to cook our dish."
"Wow." The farmer found that she was very intimidated. Karen's culinary skills were already so narrow…
"I can only really make simple things," Ann admitted. "But I'm willing to give it my best shot!"
"I really don't have any say in the matter," Doug chuckled, "If I don't enter and win, I'll make the inn look bad!" He looked a little anxious despite his smile. Claire wondered if he really wanted to be here at all or if he simply felt obligated to enter the competition.
Ann scanned the crowd that was forming. "I asked Cliff if he wanted to come to the festival, but he seemed a bit indifferent," she sighed.
"Were you eager to show off your skills for him?" Doug teased.
His daughter reddened. "It's not like that, Dad! He needs to get out and be with people!"
"Well, there's Carter," Claire recognized the priest in the crowd.
Ann eagerly looked in Claire's direction. She pouted. "But no Cliff. Carter shows up every year for the free food. Quite a few people do; there's Gotz, too. Everyone gets to eat the leftovers once the contest is over… That's actually my favorite part," She admitted sheepishly.
"Is this competition done in teams or individuals?" Claire wanted to know all the rules.
"Individuals. Why?" Ann looked at the farmer.
"Well, I was going to help Karen with her entry if that was allowed."
Doug smiled good-naturedly. "Honestly, Karen needs all the help she can get. And what the Gourmet doesn't know won't hurt him," he winked at Claire.
"Yeah, Karen always gets discouraged during this festival year after year," Ann kept her voice low. "Her mother keeps telling her not to enter, but she does anyway. I wonder if she does it just to defy her."
"She doesn't." Claire tried to keep her voice level; Ann's comment had struck a nerve. "She's just trying to prove to her mother that she can do something on her own."
"Oh." The young woman looked over at the grocer's daughter. "Well, I can respect that." She smiled genuinely at Claire. "I hope that the two of you are able to make a great dish!"
"Thanks, Ann!" The farmer's feelings toward the waitress greatly improved.
"It looks like they're letting us in now," Doug watched the moving crowd.
Claire made her way toward Karen and her mother in the square.
"Are you really sure you want to do this again?" Sasha sounded exasperated.
"Of course! I think I have a good chance," Karen's voice was strained.
A heavyset man stuffed into a loud purple suit waddled up on stage. The crowd fell silent. "Welcome to the Annual Cooking Festival! I am here to announce this year's theme! The theme is appetizers! I'll see you back in the square at noon to judge the dishes!"
The crowd quickly dispersed. Claire followed Karen and Sasha back to their house and into their kitchen.
"I don't have time to help you with your dish, Karen," Her mother said curtly.
"I didn't ask for your help!" Karen's voice was a little too loud. She turned toward Claire. "Come on, let's go to over here and plan what we are going to make."
"Okay," Claire was a bit afraid to do otherwise.
Karen pulled her friend to the other side of the room.
"Okay, so I'm thinking deep-fried rice balls on skewers. But we can fill the rice balls with different things…"
"Let's stick with what we know. We could just cook what we did last night," Claire offered.
Karen cocked an eyebrow. "I think I would classify that as a main course."
"We could just cut the bread into toast points and present the curry as a dip."
"Yes! I like that idea! It's so much easier!" She ran to the kitchen to fetch the ingredients and equipment.
Claire sighed.
"Alright, here we are! And I even grabbed a spoon for stirring!" Karen chuckled.
Her friend was relieved that Karen's mood lightened. They worked together swiftly.
"Hey, I think this tastes even better than last night's!" Karen exclaimed.
Claire smiled, "Me, too, but let's save some for the judge."
They made their way back to the square. A few people had come back and were waiting for the judge to return. Cliff waved and headed in their direction; Claire was surprised to see the shy young man at the event.
"Hello, Claire, Karen," he seemed a little anxious even in the small crowd.
"Ann's not here yet," The farmer explained to him.
"Oh, right… I only came because Carter told me that you two were competing today, but don't tell Ann that." Cliff's gaze moved to the ground and he guiltily shuffled his feet.
Karen grinned. "Well I'm glad you did, because we're going to win with this dish!" she shoved it in her friend's face.
The young man's face lit up at the smell. "Curry?"
The girls nodded.
"Well, then, yes, it's going to win," a small smile spread across his face.
"We actually took chocolate and melted it in the curry to make a dip. It's a delicacy!" Karen looked a little too proud of herself.
"Did you follow a recipe?" He cocked an eyebrow.
Karen shook her head. "It was a happy accident we created last night! Originally it was going to be a sandwich."
Claire could see from his expression that he was having a hard time choosing his words. "Well, it will definitely be a unique entry." She smiled; he was very polite.
"You're more than welcome to stay here and watch us win," Karen beamed.
"A-alright," Cliff stammered, taking a spot next to Claire.
Claire spied the chicken farmer making his way into the square with his mother.
"Hey Rick!" Karen ran to her friend, carrying the dish, eager to show it off.
With the main focus of her attention now gone, Claire scanned the crowd for any sign of the blacksmith. She wasn't surprised she didn't see him; this didn't seem like his kind of event.
"This is the first festival I've attended at this town." Cliff's sudden voice made her jump.
"Me, too."
"I do a bit of cooking myself, but I don't think I'd be much competition," He continued. "I do very simple outdoor cooking."
"Ann said you don't eat much at the inn…" She remembered.
"I don't need to; I go up Mother's Hill a lot," he sounded a little more confident. "There are a lot of great resources there."
"Oh, Cliff, I'm so glad you could make it!" Ann beamed and made her way over to them.
"Hi, Ann," The brunette smiled at the waitress.
"I made french fries," she grinned at the pair, "And guess whose potatoes I used?"
Claire's face lit up. "Mine? Wow, that is so awesome, Ann! I'm honored, really!" She managed to say.
"I knew you'd be impressed," she winked at the farmer. "So how did Karen's dish turn out?"
"I think we did pretty well. I will be interested to hear what the Gourmet has to say about it. Karen's a… creative cook."
"Well, I wish you luck!" Ann smiled warmly at Claire.
"Thank you, you too!"
"Claire, you make sure Cliff doesn't sneak away today. I asked him to come earlier to socialize with people." She laughed and headed back toward her father.
Cliff reddened. "She makes me out to be so anti-social…"
There was that word again. Anti-social… "Hey, I'm not the biggest fan of crowds, myself," Claire offered, and his face relaxed. She noticed he had a much calmer demeanor than when she first saw him earlier. "H-hey, Cliff?"
"Huh?"
"I was just wondering… D-did Gray happen to mention anything about coming to the festival today?"
The young man shrugged. "Nah. I think he had work today."
"Oh… I thought all of the shops were closed today for the festival."
The brunette chuckled. "That doesn't stop Saibara; he didn't even let Gray go to the horse races last month even though he went himself. Gray was… not happy…" He frowned.
"S-So he likes horses, huh?" She noted.
"A lot… S-Sometimes… I feel like it's the only thing I have in common with him… That we both love animals, I mean." The young man's expression turned pensive.
"I have a horse," She murmured to herself more than anyone else. "A dog, too…"
"And I have a-" Cliff cut himself off. "I have a… fondness… for horses, too."
Claire looked at him curiously. "Yeah… horses are pretty great," She nodded politely.
They sat quietly together on a bench and watched more people enter the square. Claire squirmed when she noticed the mayor coming their way. She hadn't spoken to him since she purchased the farm. Cliff sensed his friend's nervousness and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Good afternoon, Claire and Cliff."
"G-good afternoon to you, too, Mayor Thomas," Claire couldn't meet him in the eye.
"Did you enter the competition today?"
"No, Sir. I came to watch my friend Karen compete," She said cordially. She politely left out the fact that she didn't compete because she had been sold a house that didn't have a kitchen.
"Ah, well, hopefully next year," He smiled at her. She nodded uncomfortably. "Well, I'm sure some of the competitors are using your vegetables. You've made us rather proud."
"T-thank you," his compliment caught her off guard.
"Running the farm will take some getting used to, but I know that you'll be great at it." He turned on his heel and left.
Cliff turned toward her, confused. "And the last time you talked to him was when-"
Claire blushed. "Yes."
They both stared in amazement as the mayor slowly made his way up by the stage, chatting with the man in the purple suit. Thomas didn't say a word about her attack on him the day she moved into town. She wondered if maybe she wasn't the first to do something like that…
"Hey, guys."
Claire's heart pounded as the scent of oil and smoldering metal hit her nose.
"Ah, you made it, man." Cliff gave his roommate a nod. "Saibara let you out early?"
"Yep. I made a passable horseshoe and we had a few rounds of sake to celebrate. Scoot; give me some space and I'll sit with you guys." Gray commanded, tugging on the bill of his hat.
Claire's face caught on fire; she was happy to oblige. She nearly slammed her hips into a startled Cliff as she eagerly made space for the apprentice; he was going to sit by her. "H-hi, Gray. It's n-nice to see you."
"Ah, Claire… you're always so polite," He gave her a friendly nod and a hint of a smile crossed his face.
Her heart gave a flutter; the apprentice was in a very good mood today.
"S-So… We were just talking about horses," Claire explained, turning to face her new bench mate.
"What about them?"
"W-well, we both like them," the young woman said lamely, playing with a strand of blonde hair.
"Ah, I like horses a lot, too. Great creatures… I help out at Barley's sometimes, you know."
"Oh, really? You must know all kinds of things about livestock, then!" She grinned; she felt much more comfortable talking to Gray in a more open environment. He seemed to as well. Gray seemed awfully chatty today, and it was very encouraging.
The young man blushed. "I wouldn't say that. I mean, I pull and reset horseshoes. That hardly makes me a pro at anything."
"W-well, hey! It's a start, right?" She encouraged him.
"Yeah… I guess so," he nodded. He readjusted his hat and Claire's heart stopped when his arm brushed past hers.
"S-So… I'm surprised you came to this festival," Cliff ventured, leaning forward on the bench to talk to his roommate on the other side of Claire.
"Oh, I usually don't come, but this year, I had to. I came to watch Karen fail," He smirked.
Cliff groaned and rolled his eyes, and Claire was surprised at how informal he was around the apprentice, but she quickly remembered the obvious fact that the two lived together. "You are still on about that?"
"It'll be funny, don't you think, Claire?" The apprentice gave her a flirty grin and winked at her. "Karen can be a bully sometimes, eh?"
The young woman's face caught on fire and she suddenly had a hard time figuring out who to pledge her allegiance to.
Cliff frowned, but didn't say anything. Claire wondered if he was debating to tell Gray that the farmer had helped Karen make her dish. She was a little curious if Cliff knew that she and Karen were bending the rules a bit; she sat in nervous silence.
"Well, I'm rooting for her," Cliff finally said.
Claire wondered if she was being asked to pick sides. "I-I think Karen might surprise you this year, Gray," she said quietly. After all, she had helped make the dish, and it tasted even better today than it did yesterday.
He said nothing, but his smirk grew.
The Gourmet made his way up as to the stage, and the competitors began submitting their dishes.
"The first dish is Ann's french fries!" He bellowed. Ann made her way up to the judging table and watched him sample her dish.
"Hmmm… Very crispy and flavorful. Just the right amount of salt. Very good."
Ann beamed and walked back toward her father, braid bouncing.
"Wow, so I guess he just critiques them right in front of everyone?" Claire whispered.
"It would seem so," the brunette returned.
"This is gonna be good," Gray's eyes lit up.
Claire watched nervously as the Gourmet sampled Lillia's hard boiled eggs, Doug's pickled turnips, and Sasha's croquettes.
"And the final dish is Karen's…" He looked at the plate, confused.
"Chocolate Curry Dip!" Karen boldly stepped forward.
Gray snorted and smugly mumbled a few colorful words, but Claire was too busy concentrating on the judge's reaction to listen properly.
"Alright…" The Gourmet looked at the food nervously. He took a bite and sat silently for a moment. The crowd fell silent. Claire could feel the tension in the air; she found herself clutching Cliff's arm.
"Hmmm… Very interesting…. The flavors blend together in a unique and exotic way. The toast offers a bold contrast in texture… It's… kind of good!"
"Heh… Well, what do you know? The crazy broad actually kind of did it," Gray folded his arms and gave a nod of approval.
The crowd broke out in cheers. Karen's face lit up and she strutted back to her mother. Sasha was unable to hide the pride on her face. She embraced her daughter.
"And now for the winner! Doug's pickled turnips!"
Doug made his way up to the judge's table. "Your dish was truly fresh and delicious, a wonderful taste of spring. Thank you all for competing!"
"Leftovers are over here on the table!" Thomas hollered to the crowd, and people lined up for the free food.
The trio made their way over to Karen, who had a crowd around her. She may not have gotten first place in the competition, but she had won in her own right. Claire noticed that her friend was blinking away happy tears, and the farmer's heart felt full.
The grocer's daughter caught sight of Gray and stuck her tongue out at him, winking. The apprentice rolled his eyes, but the blonde noticed a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"Karen, I'm so glad you dish went over well," Rick blushed, "I'm really impressed."
Karen reddened. "Really?"
"Well… yeah. Maybe you can show me how to make it sometime," he smiled shyly at her, rubbing the back of his neck.
"O-okay!" She waved goodbye to him. "Thank you for your help," Karen whispered to her friend.
"Don't mention it," Claire smiled.
"Cliff, get in line to try it!" Karen ordered. "You said you like curry, right?"
Her friend looked over at the table of food. "It's already gone," he laughed.
"Well, maybe I'll just have to open my own restaurant," Karen smirked and put an arm around Claire. She looked over at her mother. "Maybe a food stand inside of the supermarket…" She laughed heartily at her mother's expression.
0o0o0o0
Author's Note: Curry's on my semi-regular menu at home; I tried making some curry a while back and added cocoa powder. It was actually kind of good, I kid you not! Hope you enjoyed my attempts at humor! :)