"You owe us SIX eggs. If you ain't gonna pay us back for 'em..."
Deuce slammed his fist hard into his other palm, yelling at the top of his lungs.
"THEN I GUESS I'LL JUST HAFTA' BEAT YOUR SORRY ASSES SIX TIMES OVER!"
The taller delinquent shook his head, apparently regaining some of his nerve.
"H-Huh?!" He demanded, squaring his shoulders. "What the hell are you talkin' about?! You gonna beat our asses?! HAH!"
He scoffed loudly, raising his own fists.
"Well, we'll just have to see about THAT!"
He leapt forward, swinging hard.
"Deuce!" Kat blurted out, starting forward on instinct.
Deuce ducked under his arm easily, popping up in front of him before he could get his balance back. He pulled back his own fist.
"You better grit those damn..."
He swung hard, catching the bully full on the cheek.
"TEETH!"
"BWAH!" The delinquent grunted, actually flying back with his feet fully leaving the ground.
He landed hard with another groan, coughing. His cheek was already red, and Kat saw him spit up a little bit of blood.
"Oh, damn," she muttered, putting a hand to her mouth and drawing back.
Shaking his head, the delinquent growled, staggering to his feet as he glared at Deuce.
"Wh-- Why, you... You little fuckin'..."
"I ain't gonna ask again," Deuce interrupted, fist thudding into his palm once more. "APOLOGIZE!"
The tall bully spat hard to the side, wiping his cheek on his fist with a wince and growling.
"Y-Yeah, right... Like there's any chance I'm gonna do that NOW!"
He cracked his knuckles, swaggering forward with an angry grimace.
"Hope you're ready to get beaten to a pulp, ya little freak!"
With that, he ran forward, going to punch again.
Deuce sidestepped, getting in his own hits-- one fist right in the stomach, then one in the solar plexus, in quick succession.
The bully staggered back with another groan. He tried to stay upright, but eventually failed, collapsing next to the statue of the Sea Witch in an untidy heap.
"Oh my god," Kat muttered to herself, hand to her mouth again and staring.
Holy shit, Deuce got hands...!
Deuce turned, panting slightly.
"Hiee--!!"
The redhead squeaked in terror, skittering back.
His eyes darted around nervously, then he gritted his teeth, running at Kat.
"Wh-- HEY!" She yelped, ducking and running off to the side.
Unfortunately, the red-haired bully managed to grab her hard by the wrist, yanking her in. She cried out in shock, dropping the grocery bags as she staggered.
"S-Stay back!" He squeaked, holding his pen in a trembling hand and pointing it at Deuce. "Another move and this Prefect--"
His words trailed off into a loud groan as Kat stomped hard on his foot, then punched him in the stomach with her other hand. Letting go of her wrist, he doubled over, wrapping his arms around his abdomen.
She took the opportunity to grab the sides of his face and bounce his forehead against her knee.
It hurt more than she thought it would, but it worked. The momentum of the bounce sent him keeling over backwards in a groaning, wheezing heap on the ground.
"Get. FUCKED," she snapped. Wincing slightly at the pain in her knee, she drew back, shaking with rage and adrenaline.
"Wh--What the..."
The bleached-hair bully coughed, using the statue of the Sea Witch to pull himself up.
"What the hell's--"
He coughed again.
"WITH this guy?! I-Is he outta his mind?!"
The redhead struggled up onto his elbows, making gross dry-heaving sounds.
Deuce growled, lowering his head and striding towards him.
"Did you. Seriously. Just try an' PUT YOUR FUCKIN' HANDS ON HER?!"
"W-Wait!" The redhead choked out, rising to his knees and holding a hand out. "I didn't m-- hurk! M-Mean it, I wasn't gonn-- GHURK! Gonna--"
Oh, damn...
Kat looked down at her own hands, eyebrows raising in surprise.
Who knew she could punch a guy in the stomach so hard he almost puked?
She'd never really had the opportunity to hit anybody before...
The redhead clambered unsteadily to his feet, face turning a little bit green.
"Th--This is-- HURK!- Bad! This guy's no ordinary first-year-- h-he's a fuckin' MONSTER!"
He looked over at his companion, panicked.
"Let's get the hell outta here!"
The bleach-blond nodded, wobbling to his feet. "Y-Yeah... Right!"
The two turned and bolted, running away from them with many pained groans and gasps for air.
Kat jumped aside, looking around baffledly as they made their escape.
However, Deuce didn't seem satisfied.
He took a step, then another, with fists still clenched and a savage snarl on his face.
"Oh no, you don't," he hissed, starting to speed up. "You bastards ain't gonna get away THAT easy!"
"Mweeeeee...!!" Grim squeaked, scurrying out of the way as Deuce passed and hiding behind one of the statues.
"D-Deuce, STOP!"
Kat ran in front of Deuce, grabbing him by the shoulders.
Digging in her heels, she struggled to stop him from moving forward.
"STOP it! You've already BEATEN them-- it's FINE! Calm DOWN, okay?!"
Deuce skidded to a halt on the flagstones, fists and jaw still clenched.
"NEXT TIME YOU EAT ANY EGGS, YOU BETTER APOLOGIZE A HUNDRED TIMES, YA BUNCH'A FUCKIN' IDIOTS!" He yelled hoarsely.
His shoulders rose and fell as he panted for a few seconds, eyes still fixed on the fleeing delinquents.
Then his eyes turned to her, and he blinked, like he'd forgotten she was even there.
After a few seconds, he stiffened, face going pale as he gave a strangled cry of shock.
"P--Prefect-! I-- I... I'm sorry, I-"
Stuttering, he staggered back a few steps, running a hand anxiously through his hair.
Grim crept forward, slinking on all fours and staring at the suddenly despondent Deuce.
"Wh--What's the matter?" He squeaked, giving him a wide berth and skittering back to Kat's feet. "What the heck was all that just now?!"
Deuce just shook his head, shoulders slumping.
"Shit.... I-- I did it again..."
Staggering over to the statue of the King of Beasts, he leaned his head on it, bonking it against the stone a few times.
Kat exchanged a glance with Grim, then walked forward. Tilting her head, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"...Deuce?" She ventured. "Are you... Okay?"
Deuce shook his head despondently again, not seeming to want to look at her.
"Dammit..."
He turned away, pounding the side of his fist against the statue.
"This time, I-- I was.... I swore to myself that this time.. I-I was gonna be a straight-A, model student... This time, for sure...!"
His voice cracked slightly, shoulders trembling.
Then, with a furious cry, he whirled, punching the side of the statue with a resounding thud.
Kat and Grim both jumped, but Kat was the first to recover.
"H-Hey... HEY!" She scolded as he pulled back for another swing, hurrying forward. "Stop that! You're gonna hurt yourself!"
She grabbed his hand, holding it gently between both of hers and pulling him around to face her.
"Look, I know you're really upset right now, but busting your hands open on a big hunk of rock isn't gonna help anything."
Deuce looked down and to the side, not catching her eye.
"Sorry," he mumbled.
Sighing, she dropped his hand.
"Hey," she said again, a little softer this time. "....What's going on?"
He didn't reply, shifting his weight from foot to foot and staring down at the tips of his shoes.
She stepped back a little, crossing her arms.
"...Are you hurt anywhere?" She asked, looking him up and down.
He shook his head, still not saying a word.
"Are you sure?" She insisted, taking half a step closer and lowering her head, trying to peer into his face.
He turned away slightly, but nodded, holding his elbow and biting his bottom lip.
Kat swore she saw a glint of tears welling up in his eyes...
She sighed again, stepping back. Then she started walking around the path, picking up the scattered bags of groceries and checking the contents.
Okay, the cans were fine... As were the cartons of milk and cream. The muffin liners were a little crumpled, but fine...
Yeah, looks like the eggs were the only thing that got fucked up.
Damn...
Hoisting as many of the bags as she could, she looked around.
Ah, excellent... There was a bench over there.
She took the bags over, dropping them gingerly onto the ground near the legs with a small grunt.
Walking back over, she picked up the rest of the bags, then moved over to Deuce.
"C'mon," she said, jerking her head in the direction of the bench. "We can't just stand here for the rest of the day, yeah?"
Deuce grunted quietly, trailing several feet after her and still not looking at her.
Putting the rest of the bags down, Kat sat down on the bench, patting the seat next to her.
"C'mere," she said, smiling.
Deuce hesitated, shifting nervously.
"Come HERE!" She insisted, raising her eyebrows and patting harder. "Come on. Sit down. Tell me what's going on."
Rubbing the back of his neck, Deuce wandered over. He sat down at the far end of the bench, putting his head in his hands.
Kat scooted a little bit closer, putting her elbow on her knee and propping her chin up on her hand.
"...So?" She asked after a second.
"What was all that about?"
Deuce sighed, rubbing both his hands over his head and making his ruffled head of hair even messier.
"Back in middle school, I.... I was... Pretty wild," he mumbled, still not looking at her.
Kat blinked.
"Wild?" She repeated, tilting her head. "What does that mean?"
His shoulders slumped, looking dejected.
"I.... I cut school all the time," he muttered. "Got into tons of fights..."
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, then quickly back down.
"I... Called my teachers by their first names, o-or just straight-up insulted them. Started hanging around with a bad crowd of senpais, b-bleached the shit out of my hair..."
He ran his hand through his hair again, leaving part of it sticking straight up like he'd rubbed a balloon against it.
"I'd go crazy racing around tight corners on my Magical Wheel. I'd even... Even use my magic against people who couldn't..."
Giving a quiet laugh, he shook his head, smiling ruefully at the ground.
"No matter how you look at it, I was a real dirtbag, huh?"
Kat shifted, putting her chin on both fists and blinking thoughtfully.
"So... Kinda like those guys back there?" She asked.
Deuce blushed, scooting away a little. "Mmm," he mumbled, giving a short nod.
She blinked again.
"Wow..."
It was... Somehow hard and easy to picture at the same time.
Sure, all in all he was a really nice kid. He was obviously trying his best, but... There was a sort of unpracticed feeling to his mannerisms and speech.
Then, when he got heated or something, it was like a switch went off, and all of a sudden he started talking and acting like an 80s action movie mook.
Hell, he even scared her a little bit sometimes...
Grim hopped up onto the bench next to her, clambering into her lap.
"What?" He demanded, giving Deuce a suspiciously shocked look. "Y'mean you were even more of a punk than you are n-- OW!!"
Kat had bopped him sharply on the head with the flat of her palm.
"Knock it off," she ordered, picking him up and moving him off her lap onto the seat next to her.
Sighing, she scooted a little bit closer to Deuce, putting her head to one side again.
"Mmm... Well, honestly I'm not gonna say it's a complete shock."
Deuce actually turned his head to look at her, blinking in surprise.
"Wh-What?" He asked, starting to look even more worried. "You mean you--"
Sitting up straighter, Kat held up her hands placatingly, shaking her head.
"Hey, hey, calm down... It's not like I'm scared of you or anything, alright? It's just... Sometimes, you get this kinda..."
She waved a hand, frowning as she tried to find the right words.
"Kinda.... Vibe? A very-- um..."
Honestly, he kinda reminded her of Josuke from Diamond Is Unbreakable. One minute earnest and good-hearted, then the next ready to curb-stomp a manga artist half to death.
"Punk-ish? Vibe? I mean the character archetype, not the style.... Kindaaaa.... Y'know, a little... Rabble-rouse-y? No, that's not it.... Scrappy? Ugh..."
Shaking her head again, she blew a quick raspberry to try and 'untangle' her tongue. "N-Nevermind. You know what I mean, right?"
Deuce actually snorted with laughter, putting the side of his fist up to his mouth and grinning briefly.
"Y-Yeah, I think I do..."
Putting her head back in her hands, she smiled.
"Well?" She asked.
He blinked, looking over at her again. "Well... What?"
"What changed?" She asked, tilting her head again. "That's not the end of it, right?"
Deuce shifted, face falling.
"....No," he admitted, voice lowering to a quiet mutter.
They sat in silence for a few seconds. Then Deuce took a deep breath.
"One night, I.... I saw my mom. She was talking on the phone to my grandma. She was being quiet, trying to hide it from me, but...."
Shifting again, he clenched his fists hard.
"Sh-She was... Blaming herself. For all of it. She was saying how she must've been a horrible mother, how she never should've tried raising me on her own. And she was--"
His voice cracked a little, but he shook his head, continuing on.
"She was crying...."
Kat sat up a little straighter, one hand going to her chest.
Oh, Deuce....
There was no mistaking it, his eyes were really filling with tears now.
"Deuce," she murmured quietly, not sure what else to say.
"But that wasn't it!" The boy muttered, slamming a fist against the bench angrily.
"She had nothin' to do with it. She wasn't the one to blame.... I-It was all ME! Everything... Everything was my fault..."
Giving an angry sniffle, he swiped at his eyes with his forearm, shaking his head rapidly.
"When the black carriage showed up, a-and we realized that I'd gotten into Night Raven College... That was the happiest I'd ever seen her. She was so proud of me..."
Sitting up straight, he looked at her, face set with determination.
"That's when I decided. This time, I wasn't gonna do anything that would make her cry. Not here-- and not ever again. This time, I was gonna become somebody she could be proud of-- a real honor student!"
Then he slumped again, almost deflating as he put his head in his hands with a groan.
"B-But now... Even after all that, I-- I still... Dammit...!"
"Oh-- Deuce," she murmured again, going to put a hand on his back, but hesitating.
Sighing, she folded her hands in her lap, gazing at him with a look of wordless concern, sympathy and... Other feelings she couldn't be bothered to isolate and name.
Grim clambered up and over her lap, plopping himself down on the bench between her and Deuce.
"Yeah, but-- y'know," he said thoughtfully, as he crossed one foreleg over his stomach and propped his cheek up in his other paw. "I mean, is just grinning and bearin' it really what an honor student would do? 'Specially with guys like those jerks just now..."
Deuce looked up, blinking.
"...Huh?" He muttered softly, looking at him in surprise.
Grim nodded, grinning.
"Yeah, yeah! I mean, even I wanted to punch 'em a good ten or fifteen more times than what you did!"
Snorting, he leaned back, crossing his paws behind his head and falling back onto Kat's lap. "You just got to 'em before I did an' saved me the trouble, is all."
Kat rolled her eyes, reaching down and ruffling the fur on Grim's belly.
He spluttered indignantly, squirming back upright.
"HEY!" He protested, paws on his hips. "Cut that out-- that tickles!"
"Sorry, sorry," she apologized halfheartedly, shaking her head and turning back to Deuce.
"But, you know, he HAS got a point... I mean, the guy did swing first, right? Just, as long as you don't overdo it, you know?"
Deuce sat up, scrubbing at his eyes with his fist.
"Y--You guys..."
Kat stood up, straightening her hoodie and shirt.
"Come here," she smiled, holding out her arms. "You did a good job, bud."
Deuce blinked at her, looking startled.
"H-Huh?" He stuttered. "I-- I'm sorry, do you-- are you asking for a--"
"Yep," she interrupted. "A hug-- looks like you need it. C'mere."
Deuce got up awkwardly, tugging at his jacket and blushing visibly.
"O--Okay..."
He stepped forward, wrapping his arms gingerly around her like he was trying to get as close as possible without actually touching her.
She snorted, pulling him into an actual hug, and he stiffened, freezing.
Patting him on the back a couple times, she put her hands on his shoulders, holding him at arm's length and grinning.
"Y'know, this doesn't change anything-- I still think you're a good kid," she said, cocking her head.
"You've got a good heart... As long as you keep moving forward and take responsibility for your mistakes, I'm sure you'll make your mom really, really proud, ya know?"
Stepping back, she patted him on the shoulder.
"Plus, honestly... I kinda enjoyed that. I mean, I had also had enough of those two's shit... Even though I did get to get a hit of my own in, you still did most of the work. It was really satisfying to see them get what was coming to them..."
Then she turned, picking up some of the bags of groceries she'd put down by the bench's legs.
"Okay-- let's get going. I'm sure Trey's wondering where we are... And I wanna avoid more of Ace's smartass comments if we're any later."
Deuce laughed quietly, wiping his eyes one more time.
"Y--Yeah... I-- I guess you're right, Kat... A-And you too, Grim."
He picked up the rest of the bags, then turned, smiling.
"With this, I'm sure those chicks can rest in peace, right?"
Kat blinked.
"...Huh?"
"The baby chicks," Deuce replied, nodding to the spot where the eggs broke. "They'll be able to rest in peace, right? Since we ended up getting even with those guys..."
Kat blinked again, looking back and forth between him and the puddle of egg-goop.
"Uh...." She ventured. "I.... I don't think these are the kinds that hatch."
Deuce frowned.
"What?"
"Yeah, I... I'm pretty sure the kinds of eggs that come in cartons aren't fertilized," she continued. "Or at least-- these ones weren't, I don't think." Tilting her head back, she tried to think.
"Yeah, I think the cartons said 'unfertilized', so... Yeah, I don't think they would've hatched."
"Wh--WHAT?!?!" Deuce demanded again, face going pale as he jumped back in shock. "No way... SERIOUSLY?! YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!"
"Uhhh.... N-No," Kat said, frowning.
"Wait, did you.... Did you think that all eggs would've hatched if they hadn't been collected?"
"Well-- Uh-- y-yeah!" Deuce blustered, looking more and more confused by the second. "I mean, that's how they make babies, by laying eggs, so..."
Kat shook her head, fighting back a smile.
"N-No... I mean, I'm not an expert or anything, but not all eggs that get laid are alive. It's actually, like, a health thing for birds to lay regularly... Especially with domesticated chickens, since they've been bred for egg production. But pigeons do it, too... Well, not really surprising, since pigeons are technically domesticated."
She tilted her head, frowning again.
"...Dude. Are you okay?"
Deuce was standing there, jaw hanging slack and staring off into space.
Actually, he looked more distraught than he had when he was giving her the rundown on his tragic backstory...
She waved a hand in front of his face, snapping her fingers a couple times.
"Deuce? Hello? Earth to Deuce-- or Twisted Wonderland to Deuce. Whatever. ...Hey, does this planet have a name?"
"No way," Deuce muttered under his breath. "I can't believe it..."
Kat exchanged a mildly concerned look with Grim, who was coming up to her ankle and tugging at her pants leg again.
"Pssst," he hissed, motioning for her to come down to his level.
She crouched down slightly, and he leaned up.
"What's up with him?" He whispered loudly, putting a paw up to his mouth.
Shaking her head, she shrugged, standing back up and slinging the bags over her shoulder.
"Come on," she sighed, taking Deuce gently by the sleeve and starting to lead him back up the path.
"Let's just get back to the kitchens... I'm not an expert, but I think I can explain it a little, okay?"
"O-Okay," Deuce muttered, nodding.
He followed her mutely, with Grim hopping along in front of them.
************************************
"So, yeah, they actually have to, y'know, DO it to create live eggs," Kat continued.
She walked backwards into the kitchen doors, pushing them open with her back.
"They're not reptiles, even though they're close, so they can't do the thing where they make live zygotes by themselves. I don't remember what it's called, though..."
She perked up, snapping her fingers as she remembered one of the many interesting factoids tucked away in her brain.
"Oh! Did you know there's actually a species of lizard that's entirely female? But they still engage in courtship rituals and-- uh-- the end goal of courtship rituals with each other? At least, there is in my world... They're called the New Mexico whiptail, but you don't have New Mexico here..."
"Ah-- hey, you're back!" Ace said eagerly, jumping down off the stool and running over. "Geez, took you long enough... What was the holdup, huh?"
Turning, Kat rolled her eyes, holding the door open. Grim skittered eagerly in, followed by the listless Deuce, who deposited the remaining groceries on a nearby counter with a sigh.
"Oh, shut up, Ace," she said, shoving her own bags into his hands and letting the door swing shut.
"We don't need to hear any of it from you, okay?"
Brushing her hair back out of her face, she walked over to Trey, giving an apologetic grimace.
"Sorry, we didn't end up bringing back the eggs... We kinda ran into some trouble on the way back."
"Uh-oh," Trey said, adjusting his glasses as his brow furrowed, looking back and forth between her and Deuce. "Is everybody okay? What kind of trouble?"
"Yeah, we're fine," Kat replied.
"...Mostly."
Walking back over to where she put her notebook, she took the paper rose out from behind her ear, putting the stem between the pages and closing it carefully.
Then she looked back over at Deuce, who was staring at a random spot on the counter.
"...He'll probably be fine," she said, turning back to Trey. "I think he just needs to think about some things for a while..."
Trey still looked a little concerned, but shrugged, starting to unpack the bags. "Well, okay... Good job anyway, you three. The important thing right now is the cream..."
Taking out the cartons of cream, he put them on the counter, taking the milk to the fridge and dropping the rest of the groceries onto the counter near the sink.
"Alright!" He said, clapping his hands and smiling. "While you guys were gone, Ace and I managed to get everything but the chestnut cream done."
"Ta-daaah!" Ace said proudly, running over and gesturing to three tarts on the counter. "Whaddaya guys think? Good work, right?"
"Ooh, nice!" Kat agreed, nodding and coming over to get a closer look. They were about twice the size of normal pies, smooth golden crusts filled with piles of white whipped cream.
"The recipe calls for several hours of chilling on a lot of the steps... But, thanks to magic, we could just skip those," Trey continued.
Taking the cartons of cream, he walked over to the counter island where the bowls of chestnut paste were.
"Next, we just add the cream to the paste, then get to piping!"
Putting the cartons of cream down on the counter, he walked over to Deuce, who was still staring vacantly at the counter.
He cleared his throat politely.
"Hey, Deuce, can I have my wallet back?"
Deuce nodded, reaching into his pocket, pulling out Trey's wallet, and holding it out limply.
"...Thanks," Trey ventured, taking the wallet carefully and putting it back in his own pocket. He looked at Kat again, who shrugged helplessly.
"Well, okay... Right! Let's get started, okay?"
Adding the cream didn't take too long-- and it was a lot easier than the pureeing step.
Then, Trey helped her transfer some of the chestnut cream into a piping bag, placing one of the tarts in front of her on a rotating cake stand.
"Do you think you can do this by hand?" He asked, giving her a concerned look.
Kat shrugged, tossing some bangs out of her face.
"Yeah, probably," she replied. "It might not come out quite as good-looking as yours, but..."
"Hey, it's fine!" Trey assured her, putting his hands on his hips and smiling. "This style of piping is actually pretty hard to mess up, as long as you keep the pressure consistent when squeezing. Do your best!"
She nodded, smiling.
Returning the smile, Trey walked back over to the others, adjusting his glasses. "Alright-- the last step is putting on the chestnut cream, okay?"
"Ooh!"
Grim jumped up and down eagerly.
"An' after that, we can chow down, right?! Count me in!"
"Same here!" Ace agreed, holding his own piping bag and grinning. "Let's bang this out in no time flat!"
Trey chuckled, folding his arms.
"Good to see you're all so motivated," he said, smiling. "Keep your eyes on the prize, okay?"
"YEAH!" Ace and Grim cheered in unison, pumping their fists.
"Mmm," Deuce mumbled, nodding vaguely.
Trey gave him another concerned look, then turned his attention back to the task at hand.
"Okay-- watch closely," he said, pulling out his magical pen again. "Same concept as before-- picture the results in your head before casting, remember?"
With a flick of his pen, a stream of cream drifted up out of the bowl on a cloud of sparkles. Then it started draping itself around the bottom of the tart like a coiling ribbon.
"Wow," Kat muttered, staring again.
Man, magic was so fucking sick...!
"My turn, my turn!" Grim insisted, jumping up and down again. "Hey, bring that stool back over here, okay?"
Trey nodded, turning and picking up the wooden barstool.
"Here you go," he said, putting it down by the counter and stepping back. "Give it a shot, Grim!"
"Mye heh heh!" The little creature replied, jumping up onto the stool and grinning. "Watch an' learn, Ace! You too, Deuce!"
He concentrated, and his pendant flashed with light again.
Summoning a puff of sparkles, he waved his paws like a waterbender, pulling a stream of cream out of the bowl with small grunts of effort.
"Hrrrgh...."
He gritted his teeth, and the cream coiled around the tart as well, where Trey's stopped.
It was visibly sloppier than Trey's, with a few gaps, and the thickness was a little uneven, but it wasn't TOO bad.
"Hey, nice!" Trey smiled, nodding approvingly. "Okay-- now you give it a shot, Deuce."
"O-Okay," Deuce mumbled, still not really paying attention.
His spiral of cream was even sloppier than Grim's, and Kat and Ace exchanged looks across the counter.
Then she shrugged, turning her attention to the tart in front of her.
"Okay, let's see..."
Sticking her tongue out of the corner of her mouth, she put the piping tip to the tart, squeezing carefully.
It started off a little shakily, but she got the hang of it pretty quick, rotating the turntable slowly and building up the swirl of cream inch by inch.
"Oops--"
Her hand slipped a little, and her next squeeze came out more like a spurt.
Putting the bag down, she flapped her hands for a few seconds, then started stretching her fingers.
Looking over, she watched the magic users work for a little bit.
"Mya ha ha!" Grim cackled, dancing back and forth. He'd gotten a small bowl of chestnut cream at some point, clutching it tightly between his front legs.
"This is a BREEZE! Hey, Kat-- check this out!"
His pendant flashed again, and another stream of cream spiraled into the air, spooling around the tart.
"Wow-- COOL!" She enthused, bobbing up and down on the balls of her feet and clapping her hands.
"Hey, good job!" Trey beamed, nodding with his hands on his hips. "Glad to hear it-- keep it up, Grim!"
"Heheh!" Grim scoffed, grinning.
"Well, obviously... You can't go wrong with future archmage Grim-sama on the case!"
Ace clicked his tongue, shaking his head dismissively.
"Hey, better be careful... Pride comes before a fall, ya know. Besides-- check MINE out!"
He gestured proudly to his tart.
He'd covered it about halfway with neat coils of cream, like the world's most organized pile of spaghetti.
"Whaddaya think, huh? Huh? No magic required!"
"Wow-- nice, Ace!" Kat agreed, nodding.
He winked at her, giving her a thumbs-up. "Thanks a bunch, Prefect!"
She craned her neck, looking over at Deuce.
"Deuce? How you doing?"
"Eggs... D-Don't become chicks?" Deuce muttered, frowning and rubbing his head.
Ace gave him a disgusted look, shaking his head.
"Man-- what is your fucking PROBLEM, Deuce? Whatever..."
He turned back to his tart, starting to squeeze the piping bag again.
Rolling her eyes, Kat did the same, humming quietly as she scootched the turntable around little by little.
She wasn't sure how much time had passed... She'd hummed several Sailor Moon songs and the first Cardcaptor Sakura opening.
After that, she just hummed Bloody Stream over and over until she realized she'd almost reached the top of the tart.
She looked around, blinking.
"Huh? Oh..."
"Hey, nice work!" Ace piped up, grinning over at her. "That'll just about do it, Prefect! Now you just put a big dollop on top... Like this!"
He demonstrated, squeezing out a large puff of cream to top off the 'peak' of the tart.
"Oh," Kat replied, nodding.
"I see... Okay!"
Craning her neck, she put her tongue in the corner of her mouth again, following Ace's example. Actually, she ended up swirling hers a bit, giving it a slightly fancier look, then stepped back, smiling.
Ace snorted, crossing his arms. "Show-off..."
She stuck her tongue out at him.
"Myum!" Grim said eagerly, hopping back up onto the stool and staring at the three tarts. "Man, these look AMAZING!"
Trey nodded, looking around and giving everyone a satisfied smile.
"Nice work, everyone," he agreed. "Alright-- once we stick the marrons glacés on top, we're pretty much all done!"
"Ooh-- OOH!"
Grim started jumping up and down again, waving his paws. "Me! Mememe! Lemme do it!"
Trey looked around, then shrugged.
"Well, okay... Here."
He picked up a small bowl full of peeled chestnuts in syrup.
"Four for each tart, okay? And put them up at the top, where that nice little dollop is."
"And be careful not to fuck it up at the last possible second, either," Ace added, smirking.
Grim scoffed, puffing out his chest. "Relax... I got this in the bag! BAM!"
With another cloud of sparkles, four candied chestnuts floated out of the bowl, lifting up to the top of the first tart and nestling in like eggs in a nest.
"NYA HA HA!" He boasted, paws on his hips again. "Check THAT out! One flawless chestnut tart-- all thanks to Grim-sama, master magician AND master chef!"
"Woo!" Kat cheered, putting down the piping bag and moving around the counter island. "Great work, Grim!"
Reaching him, she ruffled his head affectionately, grinning. "Think you can do the other ones for us?"
"Heheh-- sure thing!" He proclaimed proudly, puffing out his chest again.
His magestone pendant gleamed. With another grunt of effort, all eight remaining chestnuts floated up out of the bowl.
Hovering over the tarts, they started falling onto the puffs of cream with soft plops.
One, two, three, four....
One, two, three--
"Oops!"
Jumping forward, Kat put her hand out, catching the last marron glacé as it wobbled and started to fall towards the floor.
"Phew... That was close."
"Pffft-- what the heck was that?!" Ace cackled. "I thought you said you wouldn't mess up, fuzzball?"
"Grrr.... Sh-Shut UP!" Grim snapped, scowling. "I did the rest of 'em just fine, okay?! 'S more than YOU could do anyway, Mr. No-Head Ace!"
"Hey-- you guys, it's FINE," Kat interrupted. Walking over, she put the candied chestnut carefully in its place.
"Look, it's all finished, okay? Ta-dah!"
"She's right-- good job, everybody," Trey agreed. "That was very good for a beginner, Grim! Great work!"
"Heh!"
Grim scoffed, turning away from Ace with a proud grin. "Well, of COURSE! Next time, I'll be able to do 'em all-- no sweat!"
"I'm sure you will," Trey replied, adjusting his glasses and smiling.
"Now there's only one thing left-- the finishing touch. Think I could do the honors?"
"Sure thing, senpai!" Ace replied, crossing his arms behind his head with a grin.
"Less work for us, right?"
Kat rolled her eyes.
"Very funny, Ace..."
He stuck his tongue out at her, but didn't say anything else as they gathered around the counter, watching Trey preparing to deliver the finishing touches.
_______________________________________
Deuce's Bizarre School Life: Eggs Are Extremely Breakable.
Me: *typing this through my tears* I love writing.
Congratulations! You have become Level 5 Friends with Deuce! You are now able to unlock his Tragic Backstory!
Kat to Deuce: Oh I am about to mother/surrogate-sister the SH*T out of you. You are my son-ther now. You have done nothing wrong ever in your life and I love you.
For the tart, I'm following a recipe I found on YouTube by HidaMari Cooking, and now I kinda wanna try making it IRL.
I'd need to buy a lot of stuff online tho, like springform pans and the chestnuts. I don't think Safeway has any, lol.
Real talk tho, did you see how fucking big the tart was in the Twistune compared to the chibi sprites?? If that's supposed to be a semi-accurate representation of events/surroundings/objects but in a deformed/stylized style, that thing was FUCKING HUGE!!!!
I'm making them make three-- one for eating right away, as promised, one for Ace to present to Riddle, and one extra because Trey seems like the type to make extra, especially for a party with a garden full of ravenous teenagers.
With the off-the-shits American public school energy that most Heartslabyuls seem to have, they could probably give Savanaclaw a run for their money when it comes to eating, lmfao.
Small aside, but. I posted the first part of the other TWST fic I was talking about.
There's not much of it yet, but I still like what's there so far. I really like my OC I'm using there. Plus, I love the niche characters I've forcibly shoved into this app's jaws. I'm working on the next chapter right now.
....Please read it.
Please.