I can't BELIEVE how long its taking me to write Culinary Rivals. It's been almost a year since I've started! Noooooooo...

I'm still studying university still, being a part-time student, but I've found myself becoming increasingly lazy to write. *Sigh*

To falconadventurer, the honoured Guests, and especially dawnleaf1234, have some pie and Slateport cakes! dawnleaf1234, have two slices of Bluk berry pie on me.

Chapter ten: Striaton Critics

"We need pie," Wallace said as they walked through the doors of the bakery. This kind of statement earned curious look from his niece.

"I'm sorry, uncle?"

"Pie's good if there's something we can't solve, and in this case the love life of a certain friend," Wallace continued. "It'll help us, trust me. It helps us think."

It was extremely fortunate that Steven Stone was not in the premises at the time Lisia ordered a couple bestselling berry pies. Leppa pie for Lisia, Bluk for Wallace. Both dishes looked extremely appetizing to the eye, with the stone-baked hot pie shells emitting steam and struggling to contain the berry extravagance beneath. It helped that the two of them had an appetite.

Wallace speared a piece of his Bluk berry pie and began to eat. It was extremely good, with the flavour of fresh Bluk berry filling his mouth and putting his senses to oblivion…

"Uncle," Lisia said. "Has it occurred to you that this tastes just as good as the croquembouche from last night?"

"Well… I haven't eaten enough of Steven's food to understand how he works, but…" Wallace faded off, lost in thought, "This is good pie. Especially the berries. It does remind me of the croquembouche indeed."

Berries.

Bluk berries. Leppa berries. Very good berries.

Lisia had an idea.

"Uncle…" she giggled. "Aren't these berries the ones Cynthia ordered. Why would Steven order berries at all? He might have stolen them."

"It doesn't matter," Wallace pointed out, and then an idea of his own sparked. "You know, we did see him passing off a bribe to someone, didn't we? You know what, Lisia? We were right to trust the pie."

"That was him?! So he did steal them!" Lisia exclaimed. "But wait, uncle. Aren't we supposed to help out with Steven's love life? This is far from that…"

"We had time to think it over, and I distinctly recall that Steven was out in front of your restaurant bribing your supplier," Wallace told Cynthia. They were in the café, with the former enjoying one of Cynthia's milk teas.

Cynthia did not find this information surprising. Anyone could have stopped by her restaurant, and despite that it was someone who had just opened a bakery to help her café. Restaurant supplies aside.

"Well, I suppose that it was nice of him to make my café flourish. Look how popular it's been!" she said. "We could work together if we wanted to!"

Winona remained silent. She knew Wallace well enough that with the kind of tone in his voice, something was bound to go wrong.

"It's just that... I recall Steven actually bribing your supplier earlier," Wallace slowly said, with a hint of anticipation in his voice. "And we wonder why Steven always talks about business with you. He's not helping you. He's only helping himself!"

Cynthia laughed.

"I think I know enough about Steven that he wouldn't do something like that. It's not his type," she rolled her eyes.

To Cynthia's mild surprise, Wallace had a plate of Leppa berry pie ready on the table before her. It was still warm, and they all could smell the scent coming from it.

"I got this from Steven's bakery," he noted. "It's the best pie I've eaten so far around here, and the Leppa berry inside it is… awesome. You should try some! It helps you think."

Lisia, however, caught wind of what could possibly be brought about if Cynthia actually knew that Steven had bribed her supplier. The consequences could be unpredictable, and might jeopardise the relationship. Never mind how well the café and the bakery suited each other.

It had taken a minute for Cynthia to grab a fork and sit down again. She examined the pie carefully, speared a piece, and ate it slowly.

"To think that my friend wouldn't specialise in these things, but here we are," Wallace happily said. "Leppa berry pie at its finest. Well, I'm not surprised. The Leppa is first-class, and the pie – let's just say Steven is champion at baked goods! And we thought being Pokémon Champion wasn't good enough. He has a new passion for pies!"

However, Cynthia didn't say a word after taking that first bite. She only stared at the pie, as if her entire mind, and thoughts, was lost in it. The only audible sound was from the chewing of that pie in her mouth.

"These Leppa berries taste too good to be true," she muttered. "Where did he get these? Wait. Wallace. Are you sure that Steven made this?"

"I'd stake my Milotic on it," Wallace answered with a confident grin. "If you'd like, I can bring you over to the bakery. Steven sure knows how to make things happen. You know, you two are perfect for each other! One has a bakery and the other a café. My dear, have you seen what's going on outside your doors?"

Cynthia shook her head. Not because she wanted to say 'no', but because she had no intention of wanting to hear Wallace's explanation. Her day was starting off badly, given that her supply line has just been shortened somehow. Well, Wallace and Lisia pointed to Steven as a suspect. She only needed to verify if it was true. Personally… she hoped that it wasn't true. The Steven she knew back in her Champion days was not like that. He was a legitimate businessman, wasn't he?

Winona cleared her throat, and it occurred to Wallace that she hadn't spoken for a while. Never mind once.

"I suppose you don't want to hear what he says," Winona muttered, as if she could read Cynthia's mind. "But don't take him the wrong way, Cynthia. He's always pushing when it comes to conversations like these."

Maybe she was overthinking the pie. That was kind of ironic, as Wallace had just said the pie was supposed to help her think. Cynthia took another bite.

"I think," Cynthia said as she swallowed the pie, "I ought to pay that bakery a visit."

"Now, now, Cynthia. We don't want to jump to any conclusions yet," Wallace held his hands up. "Please. I'm sure that Steven may not have stolen your berry supply, even though Lisia and I have witnessed exactly that, but hey! Take the bakery as a complement! For all we know, he's trying to help you and himself."

To Wallace's surprise, Cynthia smiled.

"If that's true, then I'll head over there and thank him," she said.

Before Wallace could say anything else, Cynthia stood up and walked to the café doors, whilst leaving her pie unfinished. It then occurred to Winona that Cynthia was the one who was eating pie, and it was apparent that Wallace and Lisia had some too.

Winona turned to Wallace and slapped his face with her right palm.

"OW! Again?! What was that for?" Wallace cried while doing his best to not attract attention. "Cynthia's not here anymore, so why?"

It looked like Winona's eyes were on fire, and her face became as red as magma. "THAT'S… for not getting me a slice of pie. You just have to greedy, eh Wallace? You couldn't spare a minute thinking about me."

Wallace held a hand on his cheek, and if Winona's face couldn't get any redder from being angry, it did when she saw Wallace smile. Was he trying to make fun of her?

"But Winona, my dear, I did think of you," he said, and motioned to Lisia. "I saved you a slice of Bluk berry pie from the bakery. I know you would prefer that over Leppa berries…"

Winona, already red from anger and irritation, seriously thought she could not have gotten any redder. She was wrong. The redness on her face from embarrassment, severe embarrassment, had overridden all emotion. There it was. A slice of pie on the table before her.

All Winona did was burying her face on the table. She did not want Wallace to see her face in this state, as her face was burning red-hot with some tears streaming from her eyes.

"Winona. Are you okay?" Wallace asked, although he had a hint of satire within his concerned voice. "Well, whatever you feel right now, could always be fixed with some pie. It helps you think."

There was still a lineup at newly-opened Stone Bakery such that it extended to outside, which Cynthia found strange. The Stone Bakery, which occupied a corner of the Stone Bistro not far from Steven's museum, was not small. Surely there was enough space to accommodate a reasonable number of customers, but a number of this size was excessive.

As she drew closer, Cynthia could smell the aroma of freshly baked goods wafting from the doors of the bakery. It smelled of bread, honey, and berries.

By the time Cynthia had gotten much closer to the doors of the bakery, and besides the fact that the scent of fresh bread was much stronger, it became apparent that there was another reason why it was so busy. However, it was certainly not just because of the suspected bribed ingredients. No, it was because that there in the bakery were three people. If anything, judging by the crowd's reactions, they were celebrities, or were they?

A redhead, a bluehead, and a greenhead were surrounded by the crowd. The trio were sitting at a table, and they – besides wearing identical waiters' apparel, save for their bow ties matching their hair colours – each had a slice of pie. No doubt about it, they were the popular former Gym Leaders from Striaton City: Cilan, Cress, and Chili. Alongside them was Steven, who was looking over them.

"So, what do you think?" Steven asked.

"This is one of the best pies I've ever eaten," Cilan commented. "I'm surprised that even you, of all people, would have wanted to operate the restaurant business. It's excellent."

"Come on, Cilan, let's talk about food here," Cress added. "Steven, this pie is delicious. The ingredients, especially the berries, are so fresh you could hear it calling for you. I'm serious."

Chili took the longest to form his opinion. While Cilan and Cress were talking, Chili helped himself to more pie, with the crowds around them watching him. After taking more bites of Leppa berry pie, he put his fork down.

"Wow, Steven, you really know how to make good pie, yeah? However, I think there could be some improvements. The lady across the street – Cynthia, was it? – could turn this into a greater masterpiece, but I think the berries here speak for themselves!"

This, however, earned a silent glare from the host. Usually, in circumstances like these, Cilan would reprimand his brother for such a remark. But today was an exception.

"Consider us critics today, Steven. Take nothing personal," he said. "We'll be evaluating just how tasty your food is. At Chili's discretion, he went to Vue sur la Lune to try out one of their cakes. Speaking of which, however, I must credit your Slateport cakes. They're excellent. Speaking of which; Martine, my friend, bring me another of those cakes."

Martine Grenadine nodded and went to fetch the cake. Meanwhile, everyone's eyes were fixed on the trio's reactions upon eating the pies. Steven was still speechless from Chili's remark, but he regained his composure afterward.

But before Steven could think of a response after regaining his calm, he was disturbed by a voice in the crowd around him.

"I would like one of those pies, please," the voice had a cool undertone in it.

Oh, to think Chili had just mentioned Cynthia, and she appeared. It was like speaking of the devil, and Steven was looking right at him. This case was slightly different, since it was Cynthia. Sure enough, he saw her amongst the crowd, and in fact, she was particularly close to the Striaton trio's table. Had she been spying on them?

There were several actions Steven could take, so he took the one that made sense, given his gentleman personality.

"No," he said. "You can't have one."

The reply caused indistinct chatter among the people. Steven, however, was unaffected. He had no doubt that the people here had read the Apples and Oranges article from the popular Kalos magazine. Would it matter if he tried to prove the article wrong? Absolutely.

"I'm sorry?" Cynthia raised her eyebrows.

"I mean, you could wait until I've got fresh supplies," Steven said, "but as of now, I'm out of pie. They're too popular these days. I could get you a Slateport cake if you'd like."

But Cynthia wasn't having any of that. Not that she was angry at Steven, but that she was still under the impression that Steven may have taken her supplies. She had to get to the bottom of this, to the truth.

"Hey! What's going on here? Why is it so quiet?"

What better time than to have Martine pop up just now, just when Cynthia had caused a silent commotion? To Steven, this seemed to always be the case. By the time Martine had placed a Slateport cake before Chili, she caught wind of exactly what was happening.

"Martine. Excellent timing," Cynthia said, which caused Steven's eyes to twitch. "Do me a favour and get me a nice Bluk berry pie, please?"

"We're out," Martine said. "However, I still have a bit of Custap or Leppa berry pie if you're up you're up for it. Trust me, I recommend the Custap berry."

"Of course you would…" Steven muttered, as Cynthia placed her order and Martine went to fetch the pie.

On the other hand, Chili, Cress, and Cilan kept a close eye on the conversation after it finished. For one thing, they noticed Steven looking a little on edge, at best. Otherwise, he would have been downright flustered. For now, he leaned back on his seat.

The people muttered to themselves

"Is there something going on between you two?" Cress asked him.

"No," Steven's response was automatic.

"My friend," Chili said, "this is what you would call denial."

Now that sounded a lot like something Wallace would say. To be fair, Steven was almost certain that neither Cress nor Chili nor Cilan would have gotten their hands on a copy of the recent popular Kalos magazine. That would spell some problems.

For now, they were guests who were sampling Steven's pies. Cynthia, on the other hand, helped herself to one of the tables nearby in the Stone Bakery. She sat down and watched the Striaton brothers eating the berry pies happily. Well, once she had a taste, she would see if these were good pies at all. As far as she was concerned, to have a bakery making bestselling pies and having her supply line cut seemed too coincidental.

Chili was first to finish his pie.

"Excellent baking and especially the berries, Steven," he said. "My compliments to the chef or – in this case – the baker."

"Shall I interest you three in some vegetable pies? I just created the recipe last night, so if you'll please, test it for me," Steven offered. "As for your Custap berry pie, Cynthia, I'll see to it personally –"

"No need, boss," Martine's voice broke in before Steven could finish. "I've got the Custap berry pie baked and ready. It only needs another minute."

Steven could actually smell the aroma of Custap berry coming from the ovens from where he was standing. It had the exact same smell of Watmel when Martine splashed some of the berry juice on his sleeve.

Wait. Watmel berry? Where did that come from? It couldn't have been the berry Martine brought in from the morning, could it? What exactly was the Watmel berry doing here?! Did Martine somehow add Watmel berry to a Custap berry pie?!

Within minutes, a slice of Custap berry pie was placed under Cynthia's nose. Steven could smell the Watmel berry even from where he was standing. Pretending to ignore the pie, he went to see to the Striaton brothers, but they were occupied with watching Cynthia taste the pie.

Steven, however, could not allow Cynthia to try the pie by any means. If she knew her berries, she would know how they tasted. This was not good. He had to find a way to avoid a potential catastrophe. It didn't help that almost everyone's eyes were fixed on Cynthia, it almost certainly didn't help that everyone knew they were rivalling chefs, and it certainly didn't help that – Steven suspected – they had all read the popular Kalos magazine article.

"You know what, Cynthia? Would you be interested in some vegetable pie instead?" he bluntly offered. "I think Leppa berry pie can wait –"

"Out of the question, Steven," Cilan said. "Let Cynthia have her pie."

"But –"

"No buts," Cress added. "If you are a gentleman, you'd let the lady do what she likes."

"But I –"

"Steven. No," Chili said, as if he was scolding a pet.

By the time Steven uttered the first sound of response, Cynthia already had a piece of pie in her mouth, and she chewed it slowly.

Did anyone notice the Fire Emblem reference I put in here? Hint. It happens with Wallace and Winona… and it was in the previous chapter too!

I also threw in a Men in Black reference here too.

Review, place your order for a pie, and wait! You get to choose between a Custap berry pie with a Watmel berry (Martine's recipe), or perhaps a classic vegetable pie.