March 26, Spring, Year 36

Skye's entering the cooking contest this year! He's the only one who has a chance of beating Ruby, so it ought to be interesting enough. Better oust the kids so that we can have breakfast before he completely dominates—and decimates—the kitchen.

Skye loved the cooking festival. Both of them, but the one in the spring was always more fun. In the Spring, he was allowed to be creative and could enter whole meals if he wished! The Fall one had a set theme… which made it rather boring in comparison.

And this year, he even had help. Laurie had volunteered to share kitchen duty with him.

What this meant for Claire and the rest of the family was simple. They were barred from the kitchen after breakfast, until it was time to lug everything down to the beach for the Gourmet to check.

Said blonde, far too used to this, vacated the house as quickly as possible, Jamie at her heels, and the other children close behind. They preferred to not be drawn into the chaos, and even Alan agreed that farm chores was preferable to the disaster that the kitchen would become.

Claire took a deep breath of the morning air, and shook her head, smiling wryly. Jamie wiped his forehead mockingly, and the young kids imitated him, making their mother laugh.

"Alright, since Lauren's with your father, Mirei, you and Jamie will help Uncle Tak with the cows and sheep. Alan, you check for chicken and duck eggs, and don't slack mister," she waved a finger at him teasingly. "If you get all the eggs you can find, I'll let you go bug hunting before the festival."

Which was enough incentive for him to hurry off.

"Mirei, let Jamie show you how to milk the cows before your actually try it," Claire continued. "And don't go near that bull. I'm going to call Rick tomorrow and have him sell it."

Which left Claire the horses, and outdoor dogs and cats. Meredith tugged on her mother's pant-leg looking up curiously.

"What about me Mommy?" the youngest child asked.

"Hmm… Would you like to go brush the dogs?" Claire crouched to be level with her daughter. "And the cats too. Once I'm finished with the horses, you can come help me make up the dog and cat food to lay out. Sound good?"

"Yeah!" Meri gave her mother a sunny smile, took the small animal brush that Claire offered, and toddled off to complete her tasks.

Straightening, the thirty-six-years-old woman laughed softly, then turned to the horse barn again. She would have to start alternating Jamie with the horses as well, he was getting tall enough to reach the backs of the mares without help of the stepping stool, and she wanted to milk cows herself. It was relaxing in its own way.

She heard, through the open kitchen window, a loud crash, and winced.

"If I have to replace dishes, there will be words!" she yelled across the farm.

A hand waved at her from the kitchen window, and she shook her head, smiling in spite of herself.

"Cooking festivals," she chuckled softly.

Then she went to give the horses their daily attention, and pass the time while waiting.

In the kitchen, the farm's calm atmosphere was dissipating rapidly. Both Lauren and Skye were trying to do as much as they could without breaking any of Claire's cooking implements. Just because she didn't often step foot into the kitchen didn't mean that she would be happy with them if they broke anything.

The crash had been, thankfully, only a wooden bowl full of salad, easy to clean up and remake. Lauren was currently working on baking a complicated cake, and Skye had turned his hands to his favorite thing… outside of his wife, kids and the farm, naturally.

Curry.

Curry smells blended with cake, fruit drinks, and even the simple crisp salad wasn't exempt. Lauren had a sneezing fit, and had to stick her head out the window for some fresh air. This was accomplished by half hanging over the sink, and said sink was filled with food-remains-covered dishes, which would have to be washed before they left.

Claire was very particular about keeping a clean house, and Skye was picky about 'his' kitchen. One way or the other, dishes would be done, as the teen well knew.

"Jeez Dad," she sighed, pulling her head back in. "Use any more spices and Mom will start thinking I've developed asthma or something."

"Probably the 'or something,'" Skye chuckled. "Like a cold."

"Not. Funny," Lauren deadpanned. "At this rate we're going to have more food than we can carry, you know? Curry, cake, drinks, salad…"

He tsked, and tapped her lightly on the nose, winking one sea-green eye.

"Now when have I ever made that mistake?" he grinned. "Don't you worry Laurie, everything will work out just fine."

"Skye! It's almost noon," Claire called. "If you want to qualify for this year, hurry up!"

There were some things even almost sixteen years of marriage couldn't change, she mused, folding her arms patiently as his head of silver poked out kitchen, icing smeared across one cheek. Her husband's love of cooking was most definitely one of them.

"How much time?"

"Half an hour, if we run," she replied dryly. "So I would finish up quick. And," amusement laced her voice, making him pause. "You have icing on your face."

"Hmm," and he traced a finger through it, blinking, "so I do."

She could see the comment lining itself up, and gave him a look of amused irony, halting it in its track. Skye just grinned.

"You're getting good at that."

"After fifteen year, I would certainly hope so," she retorted tartly. "Get a move on, you!"

He ducked back into the kitchen, and Lauren made her weary way out. She had worn an apron and had taken the time to clean her face before exiting the kitchen, but it was clear that she was tired. Claire reached out and gave her oldest daughter a one-armed hug.

"I did warn you," the blonde mother chuckled. "The Spring Cooking Festival is the one your father goes manic over."

"I heard that," came the muffled complaint.

"So?" was the cheeky response. "You can't deny it, can you?"

There was no reply from the kitchen, and Lauren found herself grinning. Her parents sometimes acted so ridiculous… But it was fun at the same time, that they didn't act like they were old.

"Silly Daddy," Meri piped up.

"Now you've even got the kids doing it!"

Claire didn't even bother trying to muffle her laughter, and Lauren couldn't help joining in. Jamie poked his head through the open main door after a minute, blinking.

"I missed something, didn't I?"

"You have no idea," Lauren grinned at her twin. "It's Mom and Dad, what do you expect?"

"If I answer that I'll get smacked," he replied promptly. "Mom, I brought Alan back, but Mirei fell into… well, a cow pat."

"Oh dear… Hosed her down?" Claire's smile was rueful.

"Yeah, enough so that she can come into the house. She's pitching a fit because she's going to miss part of the cooking festival," Jamie winced a little as his younger sister kicked the side of the house for emphasis.

"I'll start the bath, the rest of you help your father take the food into town. We'll catch up."

Both twins nodded as Skye came out of the kitchen, face and hands… mostly clean.

"How did she fall into a cow pat?" he asked mildly.

"Running from the bull. She thought it might be a good idea to try and pet him into a better mood."

Claire felt her heart jump, and she quickly hurried outside to look her younger daughter over. Mirei's expression was a mix of miserable and angry, and she was shivering on top of it. The smell was all too familiar, and Claire shook her head with a faint sigh.

"Come on Mimi," she held out her hand. "Bath time."

Sullenly, the blue eyed girl took her mother's hand and followed her into the house. She knew she was going to receive a lecture as well as a bath, and a well-deserved one at that.

"Alright then, two hands short…" Skye frowned in thought. "This is going to be tricky…"

Jamie and Lauren exchanged amused looks. Laurie picked up the pitcher of fruit juice and her cake, Jamie grabbed the salad. Alan was handed the cutlery that they would be bringing to the festival—everyone brought their own—and Meredith was given the honor of carrying the drinking cups. Skye himself took the curry, and the family—minus two of its members—hurried down to the beach, just before the cut off time.

Mirei was in soapy water up to her neck as her mother washed the manure stained clothes in a separate bucket. The fact that Claire was steadfastly not saying anything proclaimed her displeasure more than a spanking would have, and Mirei sunk a little lower in the tub.

"You understand now why I said don't go near him?"

"Yes Momma," she replied unhappily. "I'm sorry…"

Claire sighed softly, pausing in her washing.

"Kiddo, you're always pushing the limit," she reached out and tucked some of Mirei's silver-streaked blonde hair behind her ear. "In some cases it's good. With animals, it can be extremely dangerous. Had that bull gotten a hold of you, I might be taking you to Doc Hardy's right now instead of just giving you a bath."

The child's blue eyes widened, and Claire shook her head again.

"Honey, you have a brain," she tapped the girl's forehead sharply. "You're extremely intelligent. You need to start using it to think things through, alright? When I say stay away from something I always have a reason, and you know it."
Mirei nodded, eyes focused on the bubbles instead of her mother. She never liked being scolded, none of the kids did. They were rare occasions, because Claire was such an easy-going mother. So when they did happen to incur a scolding, it always hurt that much more.

The child sniffled as a few tears slipped down her face. It had been a dumb thing to do, and she'd known it… but it was her nature to always push and push and push. Claire left briefly, to throw the washed clothes into the dryer and get new ones, doing her best to feign ignorance of Mirei's tears.

Truth be told she didn't like scolding them any more than they liked being scolded. But some things… just required it.

Mirei was in full blown tears when she returned, and Claire lifted her out of the bathtub with a big fluffy towel, just holding her until she had cried out her remorse.

"Not going to do it again?" Claire asked, gently wiping away the last of the tears.

Mirei shook her head fiercely, making her mother smile, and kiss her forehead.

"Good. Now if we hurry, we might be in time to hear the Gourmet decide the winner!"

That was all the incentive that Mirei needed, and the child clambered out of her mother's lap, heading for her clothes.

"It was a tough call," the Gourmet was proclaiming as the pair arrived on the beach. "But this year the prize definitely goes to…"

The silence was tense enough to eat, Claire mused, and Ruby and Skye seemed to be shooting dagger-looks at each other.

"Daddy gets so worked up by competition, doesn't he Momma?" Mirei whispered.

"He does indeed," the blonde woman whispered back, muffling a chuckle.

"Skye! Congratulations, that was some of the best food I've had in a while!" the Gourmet's voice made both mother and daughter jump. "You certainly are quite the chef."

Skye was beaming, Lauren was doing a victory dance, and the cheers were deafening. Ruby laughed, and waved from her own table of food as people swarmed the tables, hungry for the free eats.

Chalk up a third victory for my hubby. He really should take this contest less seriously though, the looks between him and Ruby were almost frightening.

Ah well, Skye wouldn't be who he was without his silly quirks. And I have a craving for the leftover cake, so I'm going to go sneak a piece of that before it vanishes tomorrow for desert.