This chapter marks THREE YEARS since I started publishing "Culinary Rivals"! Lately, summer has been busy for me as I stuck around for the summer school term (part-time study, by the way), but I still take my studies seriously! I'm glad to be writing, but this chapter should have come up sooner!
But lately, I've been experiencing a resurgence in writing fanfiction once more and I started continuing my spy-story, "Eclipse", once more. No wonder I can't keep up with this one.
AND, finally, this is the chapter that wraps up the beach special...
For DaX0315, Dev1ce, and QUEENSPELLER67, please enjoy this chapter! No food delivered for now, because you'll enjoy it here...
Chapter forty-one: Curry Harmonies
It hadn't taken long before the members of the Stone Restaurant and Bistro had gathered around James d'Arc's barbecue grill to watch lunch being prepared. However, the situation was very different as Cynthia herself was preparing the lunch itself. Steven watched her coldly as she placed fish steaks over the flames while she prepared a mix of spices to complement a few Nanab berries she had crushed. The next thing she did was to place Iapapa berries over the grill so that they were to be partially smoked for added flavour. For Steven's part, he was just doing preparation work for lunch, and soon after he brought his ingredients forward.
Even though the weather was hot, Cynthia had opted to wear her tank top just so she wouldn't make a mess on herself. Iapapa berries were soft, and who knows if it exploded?
Once the Iapapa berries were over the grill, Cynthia cut open the Iapapa berries with a knife and exposed the pulp, which was to be partially grilled and smoked too. She laced the pulp with another set of select spices, and the result was a bursting aroma that diffused across the beach. The scent caused everyone's mouths to water, and it got the Pokémon curious enough to see what was going on. The aroma was sour but had a subtle spiciness to it.
Eventually, Cynthia added a thick cream base to her spice and Nanab berry mixture of which she was going to place the bowl on the grill – but that was after she had taken the right measure of cream and milk before adding it in. Too much cream would likely be overpowering…
For a brief second, she looked at Steven (who was still doing prep work). Seeing him made her blush out of embarrassment, but she also blushed out of anger. Cynthia breathed for a moment before returning her attention to her dish. The Iapapa berries were ready, so Cynthia poured them into the mix of cream and Nanab before mixing the contents, which became an appetising curry, and by then, her fish steaks were ready.
While Cynthia was getting her curries and fish steaks prepared onto plates, Steven started his work. With several Pomeg berries, a Liechi berry, and a Pecha berry, he used the barbecue to his advantage to roast plenty of pieces of Eggant berries. In a faraway land call Alola, it was said Eggant berries in chilli sauce were a specialty in the region's capital, Hau'oli. Steven smirked. Eggant berries were actually native to Hoenn, no wonder Hoenn could make plenty of money exporting them.
While the Eggant berries were roasting, Steven crushed the Pomeg berries so that they would create a sweet, spicy, and bitter base. By adding a single Liechi berry, the spiciness and sweetness of the Pomeg blend would be amplified as well as adding a slight savoury touch to it. With the addition of mixing a Pecha berry, the flavour of the blend was just sweet enough to make up for the spiciness. The blend was then mixed with water and brought to a boil over the grill. As well, a bit of Topo berry – one of the rarest berries from Hoenn – was grounded up to make the blend starchier.
It took a while before the water began boiling, but that gave Steven enough time to season the Eggant berries with pepper and Cajun. By the time he had finished flipping over the last Eggant berry, the concoction was boiling and the spicy and sweet flavour erupted.
Satisfied, Steven began placing the seasoned Eggant berries onto plates and added a spoonful of his Pomeg, Liechi, and Pecha sauce – which had thickened into a curry thanks to the Topo berry – and coated the Eggant berries carefully. Meanwhile, Cynthia was preparing the last of her curry.
"Well, lunch is ready," Cynthia said. She had her curry set aside into smaller bowls and used the tongs to place the fish steaks beside it. The aroma of spices laced the fishes to its core.
Everyone looked very eager to taste what Cynthia had in store – and because this wasn't a competition, unlike the fondue fight, everyone was able to get one serving of Cynthia's dish. This suited them fine.
Martine brushed her hair away from her arm as she looked at the dish closely. The scent of the orange-pink curry gave out a strong sour feel to it, but it also had a certain weight that made it appetising. Paired with the fish, Martine could only imagine what sort of flavours Cynthia had in store.
"I'm supposing you dip the fish into the sauce?" James asked as he cut a piece of the meat.
Cynthia replied with a nod, saying, "It's actually curry," so everyone – Steven included – followed suit. The seared meat was covered with the creamy curry and the spices seemingly melted into the coat. Among those who ate, Martine had the first bite. That went without saying that Cynthia tasted the curry first and knew that she had done the job right.
It's so… so creamy, Martine thought. It kind of makes you forget how spicy this is supposed to be!
Sweet and sour blended together. The flavours refused to clash but instead formed an elegant mix, and with the overall creamy texture of the curry, it felt like the fish had merely melted into the curry itself once it was all in her mouth. The smoky flavour Of course, afterwards Martine's focus went to her boss.
He has GOT to like this! No way around it! He's probably checking her out less since she put on that tank top, after all, Martine added.
Judging from his own reaction, which was quite neutral, Steven was left to wonder if he should enjoy the taste. Smoked Iapapa berries and adding Nanab berries to it was unconventional, but it seemed innovative too. On the whole, because of the blend of those berries as a curry, the flavours worked as if they were trying to simulate being sweet.
"This is delicious, Cynthia," James was first to speak out. "Merci beaucoup."
The other employees nodded in agreement, albeit some who were sensitive to spiciness did show it by the sweat on their foreheads. Overall, everyone was trying to hold back from finishing the fish steaks all at once. The flavour was too good! However, if they left the fish alone, it would certainly cool off at some point.
"Indeed…" Steven muttered. "The smoky flavour you get from both the curry and the fish themselves makes the flavour overpowering, but it tries to compensate by using its sour and spicy qualities. It's enough to make your head spin."
It was only a quiet remark, but it definitely caught Wallace's attention.
"Did you hear that, everyone?!" Wallace shouted. "Steven LIKES the food! So…"
"He must really like the cooking," Lisia finished.
Now Steven wished he had kept his mouth shut. He might have given her an honest compliment, but that didn't mean anything! It was just the opinion of a chef. Unless, of course, he really did start to soften up to her since he saw her in a swimsuit…
Impossible. She's just trying to get at me. Again, Steven thought.
But because of how well the flavours mingled, it felt like Steven was joining a cocktail party at a café. He stood around in a suit with a cocktail in hand, which included a blend of spiciness and sourness. He sipped it carefully in the midst of the many guests he was surrounded by. Those guests were in fact the servers of the Stone Bistro.
He eventually made it to a stage where he was welcome to pick up a guitar and play some tunes. The guests at the party could use a little more atmosphere, after all. What Steven picked up was a regular acoustic guitar, and it seemed like that was enough. He played a jazzy tune for the party to hear.
It was then Steven was joined shortly by a piano accompaniment. He looked behind to where the sound was coming from and saw James sitting at the piano. He looked into Steven's eyes and Steven nodded back before turning his attention back to the party.
It was also then that as the acoustic guitar and the piano were playing together, the two instruments were also joined by the high-pitched, but light, sound of an electric guitar. It blended well, and that went without saying that it was Martine playing it. She was standing with the guitar, an amp, and a pick. As the guitars and piano came together, the jazzy tune became a wonderful combination. The music flowed together with Martine taking a leading role the others to follow. That is, her guitar was the benchmark, and every instrument – including Steven's – built on its notes to create a masterpiece.
It wasn't before long that everyone, including the Pokémon, was done with that meal. From the looks of things, everyone was quite satisfied. Only Steven and Cynthia, ironically, appeared slightly indifferent and they also happened to take the longest to eat.
The sun continued to burn on their necks so half of everyone went about taking cover under umbrellas. Only the other half, including Wallace, Winona, and the Pokémon, chose not to. They handed their plates over to Martine who put them away. They would be cleaned later.
Interestingly and by sheer coincidence, the bird-like Pokémon had taken a liking to the next course Steven was about to serve. Skarmory, Togekiss, and Altaria stood beside Steven and looked at him expectantly as if begging for a bite.
Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give some more to share, Steven thought. He had brought more than enough Eggant berries initially, but he hadn't counted on the Pokémon or Cynthia to be inclined to eat. In this case, he had just enough. Plus, there was quite a lot of Pomeg-Liechi-Pecha curry left in the pot, so it made sense to use it all up. Within the next few minutes, Steven had the Eggant berries smoked and seasoned more pepper and Cajun on it before serving fresh plates to the Pokémon. Shortly after, he joined his staff for lunch, who were all taking in the smell of the food.
"You still haven't eaten?" Steven asked. He was surprised.
"Oh I'm eating, for sure," Wallace said. He sliced a piece of Eggant berry and put it in his mouth, along with the Pomeg-Liechi-Pecha curry.
Everyone sighed like they were enjoying it too much; except for Cynthia, who was contemplating on the flavour she was enjoying right here and now.
"Spicy… and so sweet…" Wallace muttered. "Just how do you do it, my friend?!"
"What are you talking about?" Martine added. "It's pretty savoury! Think of all that flavour! That Cajun, and the pepper…"
"I am thinking of it!" Lisia chimed in.
Even the bird-like Pokémon were having quite the feast with their share of the Eggant berries and the spicy-sweet curry. Skarmory and Altaria were fighting over a bigger piece of Eggant berry, while Togekiss snuck a few for himself.
"The smoky flavour in the Eggant berries are well supported, almost drowned, by the seasoning and with that curry giving the overall dish an excellent fragrance," James said. "It's mostly sweet and spicy, but it's also slightly bitter, which adds a bit of refreshment to all the rich flavours in this dish. It's kind of meant to stabilise all the clash of flavours in your mouth."
At the same time, Sophie and Laurent were equally enjoying the Eggant berries themselves. Having had Cynthia's curry already, it seemed like they should have been full, but the dish created by their boss – on a beach barbecue no less! – was too good to ignore.
"Bon appétit," the two receptionists said as they both sliced their respective Eggant berries and ate together. The fragrance was not too overwhelming, but just right, and enough to make their stomachs long for more. If the smoked Eggant berries weren't enough to satisfy their appetite, the curry certainly did. It was too tasty, and it helped to have the touch of bitter on sweet and spicy.
It was a very dark and stormy night that Sophie and Laurent were running together towards the theatre to get away from the rain. They were holding hands as they rushed in. There was no way they were going to miss their show.
The thunder rumbled, but that did nothing much to drown out the sound within the theatre. Within moments, Sophie and Laurent were near the front row, near the stage, to witness quite a performance. A band was playing alongside what looked like an orchestra. How would that work? That would depend on what they were playing… And they had just finished playing a song.
Martine took the lead with her trusty electric guitar and began playing a delicate rift for the next song, as if keeping the audience in suspense for something bigger. The orchestra started to play long and rich notes like it was a bass, with an actual bass guitar joining in as well as a drum set to cue Cynthia's entry with the acoustic guitar. The full band was playing, and now its melody was combining with the orchestra's melody, and something great was happening right here and now.
The playing was intense, and to top it all off, Lisia and Wallace showed up in the middle of the stage dancing to the drumbeat and the music behind them. The music got louder and louder, but the dancing was graceful at least, and everything was coming together as one.
The music died down all at once, suddenly, like a battle had ended. However, Sophie and Laurent saw the spotlight had beamed on Cynthia alone, who was playing a gentle tune with the acoustic guitar as if there was a sense of finality going on, and ended it with a final strum.
Sophie and Laurent were the first ones to jump up as the theatre became a roar of applause.
By then, Steven had finished his meal and collected the plates with a smile. Martine also had a hand collecting the plates too, and noticed that Steven had deliberately kept away from Cynthia (to which Martine snuck a mild laugh, but stopped when Cynthia and Steven glared at each other). Although almost everyone craved seconds, they knew that Steven had served just enough for everyone including the Pokémon.
Martine approached Cynthia to collect her plate, but noticed that she hadn't finished her meal.
"Avez-vous l'aimé?" Martine asked. "I know you did."
Cynthia's eyes shot up to Martine's in which the redhead giggled at the reaction. It was simply a reaction too familiar to her as she had seen that multiple times with her boss.
"That is a lie and you know it…" Cynthia muttered.
Martine's giggles turned into a suppressed laugh that was only held back by her smile. She passed over the plates to some of the waitresses, who would take them back to the restaurant to be washed. Surprisingly to Steven, Martine went over to sit beside Cynthia afterward.
"Have you ever thought about what I asked you two days ago?" Martine asked, hoping to make Cynthia crack. "You may hate Steven, but I sense something going on… You like his cooking, no doubt about it. Come on, now."
Cynthia clenched her fists.
"Look, Martine. I'm mature enough to think of these things, and I'm sure that –"
"Oh, but if you're mature enough, then isn't it time to start thinking of other things? Like…" Martine batted her eyelids, "… finding a boyfriend?"
Cynthia glanced at Steven for brief moment. "If you're thinking of him…" she hesitated for a moment, "th-then no, it's not happening."
Martine smiled and stood back up whilst dusting the sand off her dress. As Cynthia finished the last of her Eggant berries, she had also noticed that not a single drop of curry on her plate had been wasted. In her bones, she had much to appreciate how the slight bitterness had balanced out the spicy and sweet flavours she had enjoyed. After that, Martine took the plate away.
"You should ask him out sometime. I've got your back on this one!" Martine added. "It makes me wonder how Steven actually made a declaration of hatred against you."
A declaration of hatred… What?
Oh right. That fateful exchange. That.
But when Cynthia looked at Steven again, she only remembered that thanks to him, she wanted to get away from what was going on in her life. Her reprise at home led her to come to the beach, and now, it felt like her worries had followed her to the beach. It wasn't the best feeling for Cynthia.
"I –" Cynthia started.
But she was cut off by Wallace's scream for everyone to join him and Winona (albeit Winona looked reluctant to do so) for surfing. Several waitresses were interested in doing so and already were grabbing surfboards to join Wallace and Winona.
Meanwhile, as Skarmory, Metagross, and James began wrapping up their judging, Martine and Sophie were having a crack at the motorboat and towing Laurent on water skis. As Sophie kept her hat on her head, Martine was driving the boat at full blast while Laurent hung on for dear life.
"Um… Martine? Aren't you pushing the boat too hard? You might cause something bad to happen to Laurent, you know," Sophie said.
But Martine only smiled at Sophie. "Ooh, I see. Is it because you're really concerned for his safety? You must be worried sick about him! Maybe it's because you and him are so attracted that he shared a brownie with you."
Sophie's cheeks instantly went red and she clamped her hand over Martine's mouth for the second time today.
"Just drive," Sophie ordered, with a twinge of annoyance in her voice.
But Martine smiled once more and removed Sophie's hand with her own. "Let's be honest. Laurent must have been checking you out every minute ever since we got here, and how many dates do you have planned? Let's see… There's always the Battle Château. Your cheeks are looking pretty red as my hair, I have to say."
That was no understatement, since Sophie's cheeks burned too hot.
"You know, I bet you enjoyed kissing Laurent too much, but you had to get Wallace's help," Martine added smartly. "What was it like? That must have been your first kiss ever! "
Sophie started to wonder why she had boarded this boat with Martine in the first place. "Alright, alright! Stop it, Martine!" she cried as she was as flustered enough already.
Martine, however, was enjoying this torment too much. Toying with her boss was fun enough, but Sophie's reactions were more spontaneous, so it was more fun.
"Plus, that was probably romantic, you know? Imagine, you and Laurent, in swimsuits, kissing each other on the sand…?" Martine started.
Sophie cracked.
"There's a wave coming!" Wallace announced, and with that, he and his Milotic started swimming towards it – with Wallace paddling on a surfboard. Cynthia's Milotic followed shortly after, with Winona reluctantly paddling on a surfboard herself. Wallace no longer was wearing his hat, and he couldn't help but still notice how attractive Winona looked with her wet hair down.
However, Winona was distracting him enough that the wave caught Wallace by surprise, and a knee-jerk reaction brought Wallace back to his senses as he started riding the wave long enough that he could stand. Surfing was quite fun, and it helped that his Milotic poked her head from beneath the waters to surf alongside him, and Cynthia's Milotic too.
They were the only ones riding that wave, as it happened, because the waitresses were waiting on the next one and didn't want to risk any possible collisions. That was fine by Wallace, because he was getting all the genuine fun he needed out of this one wave. He looked behind him to see Winona maintaining her balance on her board, and Wallace wasn't surprised at how well she was doing. For all that rumour of being a 'graceful' girl, Winona was living up to that reputation by keeping great balance.
In fact, Winona was the only one who managed to get back to shore still standing on her board. Everyone else, including Wallace, had to either swim back or paddle. Because of this, Wallace could remember another reason why he dated her: her graceful personality.
"You look good in the water, did anyone tell you that, my dear?" Wallace remarked.
When Winona realised Wallace was talking about her (why was she surprised?), she first blushed, and then became angry.
"That's nothing to be proud of, my dear," she shot back, as she glided on her board back to shore.
By the time Wallace and Winona were on sand again, they saw Steven and James staring at the ocean. It appeared the latter had chosen to stop judging the castles for a while to gaze.
"What's going on with them…?" James wondered.
"I think they've… oh no, they've flipped!" Steven shouted, which garnered the attention of everyone else, including Cynthia. In the distance, they saw the motorboat going haywire as if two people were fighting for the controls, and then the boat jumped in the air before it crashed, which sent a certain red-haired girl and a certain black-haired girl overboard. "I don't think Martine knows how to swim, to be honest."
Wallace smiled. Without saying a word, he gave his Milotic a nod before sending her off to the ocean. Cynthia likewise did the same thing.
It did not take long before both Milotic were back to shore carrying Martine, Sophie, and Laurent on their backs. Martine was soaked, Laurent looked exhausted (for the record, he had been treading water for a while), and worst of all Sophie was unconscious (who for miraculous reasons still had her trilby hat on). She was being carried to shore by Martine and Laurent.
"Sophie!" Steven and James panicked.
"Not sure if she's had too much water or if she had drowned," Laurent said calmly. "She's living by a whisker, I bet."
He and Martine rested Sophie on the sand, and then Laurent proceeded to use force on Sophie's abdomen in an effort for force out whatever water was in her lungs. Everyone around was concerned, as Laurent tried his best before letting Martine have a go.
"Come on, Sophie…" Martine urged. "You are stronger than this. What would Laurent say? You know, you only just kissed each other today –!"
Sophie's eyes shot open, and then a spray of water followed, which led to coughing.
"You take back what you said, Martine!" Sophie cried. "I'll – I'll get you for this…"
And then Sophie fainted.
Steven sighed. "At least we know she's alive. What was it that you said, Martine?"
"Nothing! Nothing you need to know!" Martine replied quickly.
Afternoon was going strong, and that was when James had made his conclusion.
"Well, Skarmory, Metagross, and I have made our decision by consensus of who wins the château building contest, and a prize cheque of 70,000 Poké for the local boutique…" he said.
Are you kidding me, James? This is a conspiracy, Steven thought.
"It was a very tough decision, as you all have performed well, but there can only be one winner," James added. "The winner, or rather, the winners are… Sophie and Laurent! Congratulations, you two!"
While almost everyone was clapping their hands, Steven stood still as he watched James hand over the cheque for 70,000 Poké to Laurent who brought it over to the unconscious Sophie. It did Steven no good either, and Cynthia noticed that.
"That's 70,000 of my own money in there…" he quietly complained.
"Serves you right," Cynthia added as if to shoot Steven down. "That's what happens when you carried me thinking I had a fever." As a result, Steven shot Cynthia a glare, and Cynthia rolled her eyes in response. It didn't matter if today was supposed to be relaxing, because just encountering each other today did the opposite effect.
But thinking back to the time when they saw each other, alone, was enough to bring back that memory of how attractive the other was.
"Look, you were on the verge of collapsing, alright?" Steven muttered. "It had to be done. If it weren't for Wallace, you wouldn't have joined us for lunch."
"But you wouldn't have tried my curry either," Cynthia added. "Plus, you liked it."
Steven said, "I may have liked your curry, but that changes nothing. I don't think you have an opinion on my curry, eh? At the end, I know my curry is better."
That remark left Cynthia silent, and she let out a sigh of frustration.
"Which château did you build, anyway?" she asked, as she examined the many sand castles, as if to change the topic.
Steven swallowed, as if unsure how to reply. Silently, he pointed at the respective one, which as Lisia had pointed out earlier, was way too reminiscent of the Sinnoh Pokémon League. Even Cynthia seemed to have caught the idea.
"That's all you could throw, eh?" she said with a smirk.
Steven shook his head. "It was an accident."
Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by Wallace who poked his head in between theirs. "Admiring the work, are you? You know, I bet there are better things to admire besides sand. You could always start with each other…"
Cynthia and Steven looked at Wallace with widened eyes with the sort of mindset that he was getting ridiculous. But as the words sank in, they simultaneously looked away from each other. That made Wallace smile even more.
"You know, how about we fix those frowns with a nice surf ride?" he said, and using force he dragged the former Champions to the seashore where Winona was waiting for him. "Winona and I would love you two to join us!"
Steven glanced at Cynthia at first, but Cynthia said, "No. It's fine. I'll just watch you three."
"That's fine by me, because you can hold my shirt while you're at it," Steven replied.
Before Cynthia could respond, he had already removed his shirt and tossed it to her. He then grabbed a surfboard and followed Wallace and Winona to the waters, but that didn't stop Cynthia from staring at him either. She shook her head. Just what was she thinking? That Steven was the source of her troubles, and to really think that this was supposed to be relaxing…
Martine took a seat beside Cynthia.
"Still thinking of a boyfriend? Have you taken my sage advice, yet?" Martine asked, smiling. "I bet you can't take your eyes off him, you know. Who knew he had muscles like that…?"
That got Cynthia thinking back to her lone encounter with Steven earlier, and even further back to that picnic when she saw his arms.
"Ooh… Are you blushing? I knew it. You don't need to say anything, Cynthia," Martine added playfully. Clearly, Cynthia wasn't blushing, and Martine alone wondered if Cynthia would call her bluff.
"I…" Cynthia started.
But before she could say another word, she was interrupted by a scream across the ocean. Steven and Winona were riding the wave quite well, but Wallace was a completely different story.
The way Cynthia and Martine saw it, Wallace was being harassed by an aggressive Wailmer. It didn't seem to do any good that no one was hearing his cries for help.
And that wraps up the beach arc special! You know, Sophie cracking up over her personal always makes me crack too. Ha! Alright, now we'll get back to the main story!
Leave a review, and have a serving of each of the curries! Smoked Eggant berries with a spicy-sweet Pomeg-Liechi-Pecha curry, plus fish steaks with a creamy Iapapa and Nanab curry are on the table!