Faline

After going over things, we're able to get a new glaze planned out while I start getting things ready. No idea what time it is, but it was pretty dark when I looked out the Lady's window. My body is getting tired, but with all the craziness, that's not surprising.

Letting Kerry take over once more, I stand back in my dorky leather and write some more stuff down for her. Things that can be altered, or be replaced with something totally different. Also make sure to write down that she's free to experiment with her own ideas for something, don't have to follow what I wrote to the letter.

A couple of hours later I'm in the freezer pulling out older stuff that's freezer burnt. Some of it's really old, like, several years, judging by the dates on some of it. My legs are set wide to brace myself and hopefully keep from falling and avoiding another mishap like this morning.

Since it's been kept in frigidness, some of it is usable, but other stuff I'm not too sure about so it gets tossed. The rest of it, which is around twenty pounds worth, gets set aside for a stew later on. I have the boy make himself useful as he fetches a lot of vegetables, going back and forth for some of it.

Kitchen slash cooking staff switch off shortly after all the ribs are gone. Messy faces and smiles as they amble about. Looking at Kerry and seeing the look on her face is humbling.

"And that is why I like cooking for others; that feeling you get when you see the looks on the faces you feed of just how much they enjoy it. It can be stressful at times, but it's worth it."

Her thin frame is fairly vibrating while I talk, a huge smile planted firmly on her. Leaving her to her afterglow, I get out all the crock-pots I can find. Which isn't that many, so I end up looking around for something else.

Eyes landing on the fireplace at the end of the room has me smiling. Going over to it and really inspecting, it does indeed have all the required equipment for a large pot to be hung. Orders are given to get a small fire started and the pot put up, wherever it is.

It takes some time, but we eventually find it. Turns out there's a cellar below the kitchen that it'd been put in at some point. Even with my new strength, it takes a few of us to get it up and out with as awkward as it is.

We get it washed out thoroughly and set up. Reminds me of a giant witches cauldron, as that's basically what it is. Cast iron and several hundred pounds, getting it hung on the rod above the coals is real fun since they've started to smolder.

I have Maii cutting up vegetables that are also on the verge of going bad, Kerry choosing herbs and spices that she would like to use, and I figure out measurements needed while cutting up the hard meat chunks. Now there's a muscle builder. We eventually resort to using the microwaves to thaw some of it, not so much for my sake as much as the utensils I'm using. Frying to brown it, onions and peppers get sauteed, then salt and pepper made up as a spice base. After all that is the fun part with all the measuring of flour, water, and meat juices, but I skimp and just start guessing, eyeballing it till it looks good.

Have to laugh when I tell Kerry what I'm doing, her face almost one of horror. Once it's about half full, meat, onions, and peppers get dumped in. The female Shifter adds the spices she picked out, as well as some of the herbs.

I let her know it needs to simmer for a couple of hours and be stirred occasionally. For the hell of it, and since I found it in the cellar, I add a whole bottle of red wine. She looks on curiously till I explain red and white wines are in a lot of meat dishes.

She tastes it and spits with a face, but I tell her it tastes different when with food, having to grin at all her expressions. Giving a good stir, I finish telling her what's needed to finish it and to make sure to keep a fire under it since it will take a while for it to start cooking.

"Why are you telling me though? Won't you be here?"

"It's to teach you as well as just in case I'm not. At some point, the Lady of the house is wanting to talk to me."

Kerry and Maii look worried, but I'm not. Not really.

"Keep stirring throughout, if you leave at some point to rest or whatever, make sure you tell someone else to stir it at least once so the bottom doesn't burn. With so much of it, I don't see it being ready till tomorrow night. Sometime before that though the vegetables need to be added."

They both nod. Good. While waiting for the woman's call, I spend the time making banana bread, cinnamon rolls, and apple turnovers. Showing the whole kitchen staff how to make each. Hours go by and when she still doesn't show up, I give up on waiting and staying awake.

Shifting to my feline while looking at the flames under the pot and kicking the offending material away from me once on four feet, Maii ends up shifting as well as soon as he sees me doing it. I ignore him as I find a spot near the hearth that's warm, curl up against it, and fall asleep. I feel the small coyote lay down next to me, tucking close.

A short time later I get picked up and cradled to a hard body, smell identifies it as Nicolaus, so I don't even bother opening my eyes. I do, however, stay semi-alert as I'm carried to a room and set down on a rug in front of a blazing fireplace. Lifting my head to make sure I'm not too close, eyes turn in the direction of something getting tossed onto something else. The moody Vampire has tossed his pants and the leather dress I had been wearing onto a high backed chair set off to the side.

Wary scrutiny gets turned to him as he lowers to his knees next to me, I look away so I'm not level with his groin. A hand sinks into my fur, his mouth settling close to my ear as he presses his lips to it. I flick it and feel his smile, he pulls back and shifts to his cougar. That deep instinctual fear sparks but disappears just as fast. Beginning to think that my breed, the ocelot, and his don't get along in the wild.

The tawny cat literally stands over me. I lower my head as his under chest fur meshes with mine on my back. When he tries lowering himself, I yowl at him, not thrilled. My tail thumps onto the rug in annoyance. He chuffs, only moving back enough to headbutt the side of my face. A sharp exhale through my nose only gets me a tongue to the face.

Groaning internally, I protest again with a throaty growl. Which, interestingly enough, reminds me of zombie groans. The large cat doesn't heed me at all, continuing his bath to my face. If I didn't know better, I'd wonder if I had food on my face or something.

Since that's highly unlikely, another growl is given before my head goes down so I can curl back up and sleep. The large feline continues to lower himself, I'm just tucked up tight to his chest, his semi-long forelegs stretching out on either side of me. Nicolaus's purring starts, and with my head right there, it feels and sounds like an out of control vibrator on crack.

I meow pathetically, repositioning till my head is laying on one of his extended legs. The cougar, undaunted, keeps up his licking, going from head to tail. Apparently, I got extremely dirty today. Right now he's reminding me of my mom's cat. The calico is always cleaning herself.

The thought starts to sadden me, so I let it go. His wet brushing lulls me into dozing off. Hope he gets a hairball. I get woken again sometime later as he moves to curl around me, if he keeps waking me, I'm going to seriously get grumpy.