“Repeat that again Dawson.” Lord Piereva’s eyes were wide.

“The door was blown off its hinges and something was shot deep into the woods. We haven’t a clue what it was.” Sir Dawson recounted while still bowed before the Earl.

“Why hasn’t anyone investigated this?!”

“The kitchens are isolated in the South East corner as you know, my Lord. There is only an old servant’s quarter above the kitchens, but it has been vacant in recent months. Down the hall is the dining area for the servants, and the larder. Beyond that are more servants quarters that would’ve remained empty during the explosion on the first floor, and no one on the second floor may not have heard the bang.”

Piereva’s mouth was clamped firmly shut as his mind flitted through several thoughts and conclusions.

“Who is watching the kitchens right now?”

“Sir Wickfield is currently watching the kitchens. Though no other activity was seen for the rest of my time during the watch.”

“I see. For now you are dismissed. Tell no one else about this.” Lord Piereva snapped out as he began rubbing his beard thoughtfully.

‘Sounds to me like magic.’ A smile that was more of a jeer twisted the corners of his lips. ‘I think it’s time I start putting a little weight on that cook.’

***

As Hannah skipped down to the kitchens, she couldn’t help but battle a yawn. It had been another long night of work, but she knew her efforts would pay off soon.

Without a doubt, Fin was starting to face his fears, she was sure of it!

Why she would even bet-

Hannah froze, Lady Lamont and the Prince were walking away from the kitchens speaking quietly amongst themselves. “Good morning,” she curtsied deeply, but the royal pair only spared her a brief glance as they continued along.

Thinking better of it apparently, Lady Laurent turned back around to face the young kitchen aide.

“Pardon me, but is there a reason why the kitchen is locked up today? Mr. Ashowan and Prince Eric are to have their lessons at this time.”

Hannah gripped her skirts tightly.

‘What the hell? Fin is always up at the crack of dawn!’

“I suppose our cook has just slept in today, sorry for the inconvenience, my Lady.” As she dipped another apologetic curtsy, unease settled in Hannah's gut.

The nobles didn’t bother saying anything more as they swept back up the hall leaving the blonde maid to straighten and immediately bolt the rest of the way to the kitchen door.

She pounded on its worn surface several times while attempting to push the door open by force.

“FIN? FIN?! YOU HAVE TO BE IN THERE!” There was an all consuming panic and rage coursing through Hannah.

‘I’ll check his cottage!’ She thought to herself desperately as she fled back down the servant’s corridor. About to barrel up the small stone steps that would lead her to the main castle corridor, Hannah ran straight into none other than Peter.

“Woah there, what’s wrong?” He chuckled with a wince of pain as his ribs protested fiercely.

“Fin isn’t in the kitchen! He blew off his dance lesson with the Prince, and I just… I have a bad feeling. Come on!” Hannah took off at a sprint, leaving her friend to join her at his own far slower pace.

She didn’t bother looking over her shoulder as Peter followed her down to the West passage where they could exit closer to the cook’s cottage.

Hannah was already halfway across the lawn before Peter had fully descended the steps, when she saw the small figure of Katelyn Ashowan in the distance. The small blonde picked up speed immediately.

“Miss Ashowan!” Hannah hollered out, her heart straining as it thundered in her chest. The woman turned and smiled brightly at the young woman rushing her way at an impressive pace.“Is Fin still in his cottage?” The maid managed in a gasp once in front of the healer. Hannah doubled over and nearly choked on her dry throat immediately after asking the question.

“Hm? No no, I’m sure he’s already hard at work- my you sure are energetic in the mornings!” Kate admired while waiting for the girl to catch her breath. “I’m actually in search of the barracks- his majesty requested I aid some of the Knights with some long-term injuries while I’m here. Would you happen to be able to point me in the right direction?” The healer witch asked, scanning the castle and its rolling lush lawns with an invigorated smile on her face.

Hannah made a wild gesture over her shoulder before she charged off towards the garden door.

Katelyn Ashowan watched perplexed with a furrowed brow as Peter slowly strode up to her.

“Pardon me, did you tell Hannah that Fin is in the kitchen?” He queried with a pale pained smile.

“Why… yes I did, but young man are you alright?”

Before Peter- a man in his early forties could reply, Katelyn Ashowan reached up and gently touched his cheek.

A golden glow that blended with the warm hue of dawn emitted from his cheek as she gazed up at him with a furrowed brow.

“Oh you poor dear! Here, come with me to Fin’s cottage and I can heal those ribs up for you straight away!”

Peter balked then.

“How did you-” The aide swiftly remembered just whose mother he was talking to and instead asked. “Y-You can heal me that quickly?”

“Of course! I… er, I have a good touch. I can’t mend bones magically but I can relieve all your discomfort!” She laughed nervously. “I am a licensed Physician afterall. Come with me, I’ll have you good as new in a few minutes!” Kate blushed at her lie after remembering Fin’s strict order that she was to tell people that she was an esteemed Physician rather than a witch to the general castle staff. Though she doubted that she’d be able to keep up the pretense for long if she admitted she could heal broken bones in minutes.

The two strolled back to the cottage, with Peter too distracted with the prospect of being healthy once again to recall that there was a small matter of a missing cook.

*

When Hannah finally rounded the garden path, the Knights were all standing in front of the door discussing something with puzzled expressions and scratching their heads.

“-appears to be off its hinges.” Sir Harris was finishing saying when Hannah finished her approach.

“Why won’t it open though?” Sir Taylor wondered aloud while sounding abundantly exasperated- he had become a little reliant on Fin’s ‘coffee’ beverage over the few weeks he had joined the kitchen staff.

“This door won’t open either?” Hannah gasped before choking yet again- she really needed some water.

“Gods woman, were you doing laps from Austice to the castle?!” Sir Harris demanded as he pounded her on the back- an action which only made the coughing gasp worse.

“Fin… missed-” Hannah resumed struggling to breathe or swallow for another full minute before she finding any success.

“He missed his dance lesson with the Prince! I pounded on the castle door and there wasn’t any reply. I just… saw Miss Ashowan, and… Fin wasn’t in the cottage either.” Hannah was still working on her occluded airway while wiping away errant tears from her face, but saw the look of confusion on the men’s faces.

Sir Taylor turned back to the door and began pounding on its surface with more purpose.

“Oyy! Ashowan! We need the fruit for breakfast!”

Not a peep from within was heard.

Sir Andrews rapped at the door next.

“Cook! Breakfast will be late!” He hollered casually, though his expression showed his more serious concern.

They waited a beat before Sir Lewis stepped forward.

“Mr. Ashowan! We need to grab our stuff and then we’ll leave you be!”

Sir Harris let out a lengthy sigh.

“Amateurs. Come on, when has our cook ever been truly motivated?”

The three remaining Knights shared puzzled glances.

“When he has to have another Knight work for him?” Sir Taylor speculated with a raised bushy black eyebrow.

“When Hannah has been in trouble?” Sir Andrews offered while casting a small shrug at the blonde who gave a single shoulder lift and a nod in agreement.

“When Lady Jenoure prances in to annoy him?” Sir Lewis pointed out innocently.

“Yes to all three. So let’s try all of them shall we?”

Hannah gave Sir Harris a flat look of unimpressed irritation.

She stepped forward and pounded on the door.

“Fin! So help me- I will get your mother over here!” She called angrily while continuously pounding on the door.

But still…

Nothing happened.

Looking a little too smug, Sir Harris stepped forward and gave a single sharp resounding rap on the heavy wood.

“Fin! The Captain sent a new Knight to join us and he’s harassing Hannah! Lady Jenoure is trying to calm everyone down, but it’s getting a bit violen-”

The door didn’t swing open so much as fall open. The heavy oak door keeled over with a bang onto the stone floor to reveal a kitchen that was…

A disaster.

Half peeled fruit sat piled on various plates on the floor and the side shelves. Beans were soaking in tubs all over the room, and the cook himself stood throwing slices of bacon haphazardly into his skillet while using the stone hearth to hold himself up.

The aides wrinkled their noses.

Despite the food and sizzling bacon, the stench of ale was strong.

“Eyy! Wass this about? … Hannah- Hey there’s Hannah! Hows it… Hows it goin’ Hannah?” Fin called smiling happily.

“Fin…” Hannah began, her expression was growing into full-blown horror at a controlled, yet brisk rate.

“Ashowan, where the hell is your tunic?” Sir Taylor barked as they stared at the pale yet toned chest of the cook.

“Oh s-ssspilled stuff on it, it happens y’know. So itsss dryin’ over there.” When Fin gestured towards his ale stained tunic drying by the window, he inadvertently caused a pile of fruit to topple over magically.

“Oh Gods.” Hannah slapped her hand to her forehead.

“Ashowan, what the hell happened to you?” Sir Taylor demanded while carefully side stepping a precariously stacked plate of cantaloupe wedges.

“Nothin’s wrong. Jusst bein’ free. You know? I mean… I can do this, thiss stuff. Easy.” Fin’s bare arms shot straight out and all of a sudden every single piece of fruit rose into the air along with half a dozen paring knives that immediately began peeling the rest fruit in the room so energetically that the peels went flying all over the place- including onto the heads and faces of the kitchen aides.

“Agh!”

“Gods- Fin stop!”

“What the-”

“FINLAY!” Hannah shouted impatiently.

“Ahh… right… shit… son of a mage. I… Can explain!” He stammered while also stumbling as he attempted to stand on his own without the hearth holding him up. The fruit returned to their designated plates around the room.

“Hannah you were right. He’s awful at hiding this nonsense.” Sir Taylor growled while flicking an errant apple peel from his face.

“What the hell do we do?! I always thought it was insane we cooked for hundreds of people with only a few of us- where are Heather and Peter?” Sir Lewis demanded looking around the room panicked.

“Peter should be here soon and Heather is experiencing a bad cycle right now… she will try to join us later.” Hannah explained offhandedly while scanning the room and gnawing her lower lip.

“Cycle? What cycle?” Sir Lewis wondered as he brushed a glob of pear from his arm.

“A woman’s cycle Sir Lewis.” Hannah was too distracted to be bashful over the topic.

“A woman's what?”

“Sirs and Lady, this is a very unapeeling topic.” Sir Harris announced while shaking his auburn curls to loosen the errant watermelon seeds from his tresses.

“Gods, what the hell are we going to do?” Sir Andrews rubbed his eyes as the fruits began to restack themselves magically.

“We need to get breakfast ready for hundreds of people with our cook being drunk off his arse?” Sir Taylor asked with a dazed expression on his face.

“… So it would seem. We can deal with whatever made him like this later. For now we need food for the servants immediately. Meat. We need- Gods get that bacon out of the pan before it burns.” Hannah winced as Sir Harris ran over to the cast iron pan and grasped its handle without realizing how hot it would be and snatching his singed palm back with a hiss.

“Son of a mage…” Sir Taylor’s look of dawning dread expressed the general mood of the group as Fin sent a tankard over to the ale barrel, had it fill itself and return to the witch while spilling over the sides.

A pounding on the castle door interrupted the chaotic situation making all heads turn and an unnatural silence settled over the group.

“Mr. Ashowan? Is the servants breakfast coming soon?”

Ruby’s voice sounded from the corridor, and each aide glanced at each other anxiously.

The drunken redhead replied before any of them could stop him.

“Sssure thiiing Ruby! Fruit salad an’ bacon!”

Everyone held their breaths hoping the Head of Housekeeping wouldn’t attempt to investigate further.

“Very well, just be quick about it!” The sound of her footfalls faded, and the group breathed easier once again.

Hannah strode over to Fin and grabbed his bare shoulders.

“Alright, I don’t know what in the world happened to make you act like a drunk Bard, but can you get breakfast for everyone out? We will try to handle the rest.” Hannah released him as he swayed merrily.

Fin responded by doing a tight spin on the spot and snapping both of his fingers.

All the fruit flew back into the air and began spinning and tilting in sync with one another while also color coordinating themselves while heading towards the kitchen door. In other words, the fruits were dancing…and were oddly coordinated despite their inebriated master.

“…We’re so screwed.” Sir Andrews slapped both palms to his face.

“Fin!” Hannah rushed forward and grabbed the redhead by his shoulders once again.

“Please, please try to remember people don’t know you’re a witch. Please. What is the simplest breakfast you can get out that door without magic in the next five minutes?” She demanded desperately.

Fin snapped his fingers and continued dancing to silent music in his head. He then began to sing slightly out of tune.

“Come in, my friend, sit doooooown,

And have y'self a pint.

The dice are fair, so grab a chair

And join us for the niiiiiiiight…!” Fin looked at the Knights expectantly. “S'nooo Cookins getting’ done without some singin’!”

The Knights all shared a look, and sighed as they joined in the familiar tavern song.

“Come on, my friend, deal in,

And bet yer coin away

No use for gold when you get old

So have fun while you may

Come now, my friend, perk up,

And set yer drink aside

Yer lookin' pale, put down the ale

At least ye've kept yer pride

Come back, my friend, t'morrow

And hope yer luck is better

No man is poor who has his friends

But no one likes a debtor!”

They finished the song while maintaining their usual tight harmony despite Fin’s less than perfect efforts. As they had sung, the food had slowed their previously frantic dancing, and sorted themselves onto well-organized platters of the nearly burnt bacon and… ham. Apparently the cook had also roasted a ham prior to their arrival.

Once the dishes were organized, Sir Taylor opened the door after an affirmative nod from Hannah, and the servants filed in while giving the crowded and oddly messy kitchen skeptical looks.

Both Sirs Andrews and Lewis stood shoulder-to-shoulder blocking the half dressed drunk cook from sight as the man chugged down another tankard and leaned against the ale barrel.

After nearly twenty minutes of toe curling tension, the final plates were carried out. It wouldn’t be for another two or three hours that the nobles sought their own morning meal.

However they still had teatime, lunch, dinner after that… and the cook didn’t look like he’d be in his right mind until the following morning.

“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m shitting enough bricks to build a house.” Sir Andrews turned and stared at the red-cheeked cook that was already sending his tankard back to the ale barrel.

“Who here knows how to cook?” Sir Harris demanded, his expression for once serious.

“I can cook a good hearty stew.” Sir Taylor announced stepping forward.

“Perfect! I think we can do sandwiches for lunch if we can coax Fin to prepare a few more hams. What about tea time?” Hannah looked around frantically at the men.

“I…” Sir Andrews stepped forward looking thoroughly uncomfortable as he cleared his throat. “I can make a chocolate cake and oatmeal cookies. My mother had a special ingredient for the cookies that-”

“Good! Let’s get to it! Who is on breakfast for the nobles?” The blonde demanded desperately.

“I can do eggs and meat- I’ve not a clue how to bake bread though.” Sir Lewis piped up nervously.

Hannah clapped her hands together.

“We will make the drunk in the corner add fruit to compensate.”

“Eyyyyyyy.” Fin called out in reply with a bleary smile stretched across his face.

“Gods.” Hannah muttered before they all sprung into action. “How could this day get any worse?”