"And… there!" A little girl said as she placed a wreath of flowers on top of Vatista's head.
The autonomic nerve looked up to see the colorful flowers formed into a crown. The vibrant yellow, white, and red meshing together to form the object on her head. She wondered if this was the kind of activity kids do in this day and age.
"It looks really cute on you, Vatista!" the little girl said.
The girl in question had short black hair with a red hairband and wore a pink shirt and white skirt. Her brown eyes showed off a playful and friendly appearance when she invited the autonomic nerve to the park. She introduced herself as Chiharu and said she was Linne's friend at school. The reason Vatista accepted the invitation was because she saw it as an opportunity to analyze how the Princess of the Night Blade lives her life in these modern times.
"Cute: Appealing in a pretty or endearing way. You think I'm cute?" The white haired girl asked with a tilt of her head.
"Of course! I'm sure your big bro is lucky to have a cute little sister like you!" Chiharu gave a big grin.
Big brother and little sister… The alias that Hyde told her to go by when she is traveling the city alone. She was currently at the park with Chiharu here because Hyde had to take care of a quick errand. The experience so far has been… informative at least. And speak of the devil, the big bro arrives just when he was mentioned.
"Vatista! There you are. Thanks again for playing with her, Chiharu. You really helped me out big time." Hyde grinned at the sight of the two.
"Hiya Hyde!" Chiharu waved. "Vatista has been so much fun to be with. She even made this wreath for me!" She patted the one on top of her head to show him.
Sure enough, Vatista made a beautiful crafted flower wreath. The flowers were so meticulously put together, one could swear a professional designed them.
"Yeah. Looks really cute. Thanks again. You two are already good friends! Ready to go, Vatista?" Hyde held out a hand to the autonomic nerve.
With a nod, Vatista stood up and left with Hyde. Before leaving, she waved to Chiharu. "Bye Bye," she said.
"Bye Bye Vatista! Let's play again sometime!" Chiharu waved back.
The two would continue exploring the city. Every so often, Hyde would take the little girl around Kanzakai to show her what life was like outside the Night. He was hoping this would show her what she could be doing for herself instead of solely focusing on a mission she was given who knows how long ago. So far, she still kept the same monotone expression, but the fact she is adjusting to the city life was a start at least.
"I'm guessing Chiharu made that?" Hyde pointed at the wreath on her head."
"Yes. She said this was what she did with Linne when they would play at the park," she gave the crown a little nudge. "Do you think I'm cute?" Vatista asked.
"Huh? Well, yeah. It looks adorable on you," he wasn't expecting that question, but he gave an honest answer.
Hyde's answer was enough to give a warm feeling in the autonomic nerve's chest. Other passerbys called her cute as the two walked by, but Hyde calling her that felt like it really mattered. As for why that was, she didn't know.
Alongside the flower crown, she was currently wearing a casual light blue dress. By the time Hyde was thinking of how to buy clothes for her, Vatista already materialized the dress in question. So far, playing off as siblings has been working. It helps that the two had red eyes to keep up that act, as well as both sporting an ahoge, even if Vatista's was more over the top.
Eventually, their travels would take them to a bakery when Vatista remembered a conversation she had with Chiharu.
"Chiharu said that she went there with her parents and how it was really good. This sparks curiosity," the girl's eyes focused on the bread shown in display.
"Bread huh?" Hyde looked at what was in stock. A lot of the sweet bread did look appealing. Oh what the heck, he was in a good mood. "Wanna try one?" he offered.
The little girl simply nodded.
One transaction later, Vatista stared at the sweet bread in front of her. With one bite, she felt a soft sensation envelop her with the comforting warmness of the bread coming out of the oven.
"So soft… and… so sweet… How does it work?" She stared at the half eaten bread.
That caused Hyde to smile. "Well, it's still daylight. You can always see firsthand by baking them at home. Wanna try it?"
"Bake?" Vatista pondered for a bit and then gave a determined look. "We will bake bread as sweet as this. I must know how it contains such sweetness."
"Haha. Well alright then. I have a dish in mind. Let's go home and start!" With that, the two walked about to the Kido residence, ready for a new dish to make.
Now at home , Vatista put the flower wreath in her room and followed Hyde to the kitchen.
Hyde put on his apron and looked at Vatista. "Ready to help out?" he asked.
"Affirmative. Initiating Baking Mode," With her hands out, an apron and hairnet materialized on her. "We will now commence the baking."
With one look at the kitchen setup, Hyde smirked.
'Everything is all set. Time to get to work!'
Today's Dish: Custard Bread Rolls
"First, we must prepare the custard. Vatista, mind pouring the milk?" Hyde gave the girl 500ml of milk. Vatista proceeded to pour it on the pot. "Nice," he said.
"Then we add two eggs," Hyde cracked two eggs in a small bowl and stirred them together until they formed a yellow liquid and poured them on the pot.
"Add some sugar," Vatista poured 100 grams of sugar on the pot. "30 grams of cornstarch and a pinch of salt," Hyde added the cornstarch and sprinkled in the salt with a goofy grin. "And lastly, 2 teaspoons of vanilla," Once Hyde added that, the custard was ready to be mixed.
"Ready to mix, Vatista?" Hyde asked.
With a nod, the little girl began to mix the pot with a whisk until all the ingredients began to form one combined liquid. Now it was ready to be heated.
"We turn on the fire and stir accordingly to give the custard its shape," Hyde watched and stirred the custard until it began forming the yellow cream. Once it was ready, he turned off the fire and placed the custard on a large bowl. He placed a plastic wrapper on it and set it aside.
"Once we cover it up, we'll leave it at that for now. Let's get started on the dough!"
Hyde pulled out another bowl and began to let Vatista add the following ingredients.
"We add warm milk, yeast, sugar, vanilla, and 2 eggs," the little girl carefully poured 200 ml of warm milk, 1 tablespoon of yeast, 100 grams of sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and cracked 2 eggs.
"You're doing great," Hyde gave the girl a headpat which made her feel strangely warm inside.
"We mix it up," With a spoon, Hyde stirred the ingredients until everything was mixed together. "Add some room temperature butter," he then added 90 grams of butter in the bowl. "And then a load of flour," the boy then added 600 grams of flour.
"Now we mix! Add some more flour if the mixing does not give the dough its texture," Hyde began to mix the ingredients, adding any more flour if necessary until it eventually began forming the dough. With his hands, he began to shape the dough into an oval shape and then covered the bowl with a plastic wrapper. "And then let it rest for an hour."
"What will we do for an hour?" Vatista asked, tilting her head.
"Hm…" Hyde pondered until he pulled something from the living room. "Cards?"
-1 hour later-
"That's my 30th win," Vatista plainly said as she showed him her Full House.
"A-And would you look at that! An hour has passed!" Hyde was shaken as he staggered his way to the dough. 30 straight losses on both poker and blackjack… He was going to need time to recover from that. "At least I know I won't gamble…" he muttered.
"Anyway… Once we let the dough rest, we place it on a clean board and add just a little more flour just in case. Then we roll it," Hyde poured the extra bit of flour and let Vatista roll it until it formed one big rectangle. "Now we add the custard," Hyde added the cream at the center of the dough and slathered it all over with a knife.
"Carefully roll it all up," Hyde rolled the dough until it made one long cylinder shape. "And use a floss to cut the dough. Ready, Vatista?" Hyde gave the girl the floss and with careful precision, cut 20 different rolls now placed on a wrapped sheet pan and covered it with a plastic wrapper.
"Let it rest for about 20 minutes. If I remember correctly... Linne said she was with Yuzu right now," Hyde pulled out his phone and quickly texted something.
"What did you write?" Vatista asked.
"Oh just a little something for later. Now, we wait."
20 minutes pass and Hyde removes the wrapper. "We brush some eggwash on top of each roll and add a few almonds on each," Hyde did just that. "And now, in a 180 degree C preheated oven, we bake for about 38 minutes or until it becomes golden brown."
Hyde and Vatista watched as the bread inside began to slowly rise up. At around 35 minutes, they could hear the door open.
"Okay Hyde, I brought Yuzuriha and Chiharu. What did you wa-" Linne didn't finish her sentence as she began to sniff the aroma of bread.
"Ooh, something smells good, did Hyde bake something again?" Yuzuriha gave a cheeky smile.
"Wait! Your bro cooks too!?" Chiharu gasps.
"Ah! You three are just in time! And.." Hyde looks at the timer and boom, 38 minutes pass. With some mittens on, he opens the oven and pulls out the sheet pan. The girls all marveled at the golden brown coloring the custard bread rolls exuded. The dish was ready.
"Wanted to give Chiharu some bread as thanks for being friends to Linne and Vatista. And Yuzu, I just wanted you to try some since you were with Linne," Hyde gave a sheepish grin.
"Aw, thanks kiddo," Yuzu ruffled his hair and took a roll. "Don't mind if I do then," she said and then took a bite. "Ah! I'm in heaven!"
Chiharu took one and began eating. The sparkle in her eyes shined bright as she gave a blissful smile. "So soft and sweet! Hyde, this might actually be better than the bakery!" the black haired girl exclaimed.
"You think so? I didn't make it alone though. Vatista here helped out," Hyde patted the white haired girl's head.
The autonomic nerve looked puzzled as all eyes went to her. "I may have assisted him, but I assure you, Hyde is the real baker here," she said in dejection.
"Hey now, no need to be modest. If you won't admit it, then let me say it then. You have talent, kid!" Yuzu took another bite of her bead and gave a content smile.
Linne was off in her own little world as she kept on munching her bread. Chiharu took a look around to see everyone enjoying the food and grinned. "Linne, Vatista, you have an amazing big bro," she said.
Linne took a moment to process her words and smiled. "You know, you may be right…"
Vatista took a moment to ponder Chiharu's words and formed the tiniest of smiles.
"I think so too."
The next few moments were spent with the 5 conversing and having a grand time with their baked goods. What started with just a one off conversation from Chiharu led to another unforgettable memory for the Kido family. One that the Unknown Actor and autonomic nerve won't soon forget.