Second Floor Common Room, late afternoon

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

Cimorene had not yet noticed the invasion of the small children. However, she had noticed the date and realized that it was her eighteenth birthday. And she was still not married. This was a good enough reason to celebrate.

Of course, her idea of celebrating involved baking - a lot of baking. Which is why anyone who entered the second floor common room would find a neatly dressed young woman, up to her elbows in flour, cherries, and chocolate. But not all at the same time.

[ooc: Open like an open thing!]

Comments

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

Ella was on her way back from a handwavey walk into town when, on a whim, she decided to see what was going on in other common rooms, and spotted what seemed to be cooking in progress.

"Cimorene!" she exclaimed happily. "Are you baking something?"

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

Cimorene nodded. "Ella! And yes, I am. There are plans for a cake and a pie. And possibly something more substantial, but I have yet to decide what."

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

"Pie and cake sound plenty substantial," Ella observed. "Is there an occasion?"

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

"It's my birthday." Cimorene said matter of factly and set the oven to pre-heat after she doubled checked the handwritten sheet neatly tacked up to a cabinet. "So...baking."

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

"Happy birthday, then," Ella said, feeling bad she hadn't had any idea. "If I'd known, I would have gotten you something."

"Can I help, at least?"

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

"Oh it's quite all right. I prefer this to the banquets my parents insisted on. Now that was a waste of time." Cimorene moved over so there was room in the kitchen. "Of course. The plan is for a chocolate and vanilla cake and a cherry pie."

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

"My mother always said royal banquets were so dull the champagne almost didn't matter," Ella noted, moving into the kitchen and quickly pulling her hair back. "I can make pie, actually. Well, the filling, not so much the crust."

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

"They wouldn't even let me drink champagne until the last one that I stuck around for." Cimorene said with a sigh. "I think your mother has a very good grasp of royal banquets." She pointed at a more or less clean patch of counter. "That's the filling counter...I actually have the crust ready to go over ..." She spun around quickly. "Here."

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

"I never got to go," Ella admitted, not correcting Cimorene's tense on her mother.

She found a reasonably clena apron and yanked it on, then started slicing cherries and combining them with sugar and spices for the filling. "How did you learn to cook?" she asked.

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

"You didn't miss much." Cimorene reassured her. "And I bullied the castle chief until he taught me a little....then my father found out and told me it was un-princess like. After that, I wound up doing a bit of cooking for Kazul. So mostly through books. What about you?"

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

"Our housekeeper," Ella explained. "I spent time with her in the kitchen when I had the chance. She didn't show me much, just enough to get by."

She gave Cimorene a sympathetic look. "What does your father think is princess-like?"

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

Cimorene paused in her dough making. "Giggling, and being polite - which I think is a good skill anyway -, screaming very loudly while being kidnapped, looking pretty, getting married, looking pretty. In other words, boring things. My six sisters were more than happy though." She didn't have a very high opinion of them.

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

Ella rolled her eyes. "I'm sure your sisters would have been star students at finishing school. Especially if they could sing."

She finished mixing the pie filling and held some out to Cimorene on a spoon. "Here, what do you think?"

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

"Oh yes, they do sing. Very lovely voices." Cimorene rolled her eyes. She tried the filling that Ella offered her and made a very appreciative noise. "Very good! I'd say your housekeeper did more than show you the basics!"

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

"She was gifted," Ella said, smiling. "No one can cook like her. I just try not to mess up too badly."

Nodding to the crust, she asked, "Do you think it's time to put the pie together?"

[makescherries.livejournal.com]

"Feel free, it looks good to me." Cimorene said with a wave of her hand. "It must have been nice, having someone to teach you."

[ella-obeys.livejournal.com]

Ella's smile was shy and a little sad. "She was a second mother to me," she explained. "My father was usually away, and wasn't much interested when he was there, so Mandy and my mother raised me."

"I suppose I was lucky to have that."