[X] Get started immediately
-[X] And while working, talk
--[X] to Archer
---[X] about learning from the master himself while cooking
"So, when should we get started?"
It would be a good idea to get started right away, especially if you want to time your meal to the snacks - most likely some sort of chocolate dessert pastry - being made by Tomoe-san's group. But before you can answer, Kure Kirika takes the lead with "Right now!" You and Archer look to her. "It took you long enough to get back with the ingredients. I don't want to keep Oriko waiting any longer."
You neglect to point out that you aren't cooking just for Mikuni Oriko's sake. The two of you may have reached a slightly better state of understanding, but you doubt that anything you say will soften the tunnel vision that girl has for her lover.
The three of you make your way to the kitchen which - surprise surprise - does indeed smell of chocolate, as Archer claimed. Kyouko is seated at the kitchen table and snacking from a nearly-empty bag of pretzels, while Tomoe-san and Mikuni Oriko appear to be doing the brunt of the baking. Seeing your group enter the kitchen draws their eyes, and your words to Kure Kirika are proven true when her eyes meet Mikuni Oriko's and the two share a smile. "You've got something on your cheek," Kure Kirika says, prompting Mikuni Oriko to hurriedly wipe the faint smear of chocolate from her face.
The baking team vacates the kitchen, save for Mikuni Oriko, who stays behind to help Kure Kirika up to the sink so she can wash her hands. Then, she too disappears, and it's just the three of you that are left.
Archer readies a large pan on the stove-top, asking as you unpack the ingredients "So, what made Kure decide to make a dish like this?"
"It's Oriko's favourite," she replies. "I wanted to make something she'd like since someone-" the look she shoots in your direction is hardly a friendly one "-decided to call us in the middle of dinner last night."
To your surprise, Archer has no snide comeback to Kure Kirika's statement. "Well, if you really wanted to do something special for your girlfriend, you'd have made fresh pasta ahead of time. The pre-packaged stuff is fine, but nothing beats fresh when you're looking to impress. Speaking of, master, put some water in that pot and bring it to a boil, would you?" Archer hands the pot to you, and you do as you are told.
"Now, while we're waiting for the water to boil, let's get started. I'll need one of you to mince up, say, three cloves of garlic." There's a single - "What do you call a thing of garlic?" - garlic in the grocery bag, which you retrieve, along with a cutting board and a knife. "Have you ever done garlic before?"
You shake your head. "I haven't."
"To start, you'll need to peel the skin off. To do that, just crush the clove with the flat side of the knife, and the skin should come right off." You follow Archer's directions, and are left with three semi-crushed but skinless lumps of garlic. "Now just chop those up into tiny pieces." That part you don't need instructions for, and in no time at all, what had been three lumps of garlic is now a single pile of finely chopped garlic slivers.
"Alright, mushrooms are next." Following the garlic, you retrieve the package of shiitake mushrooms from the grocery bag, opening them up while Archer speaks. "Now, traditionally, carbonara is made with pork, usually something like pancetta or bacon, but since Mikuni is a vegetarian we're going with shiitake mushrooms instead, which will give us most of the texture and flavour we're missing from not having the meat."
"I'll cut the mushrooms," Kure Kirika says. "It's about all I can do from this height." You slide the minced garlic into a bowl using your knife, washing down both the knife and cutting board, and hand them to Kure Kirika along with the package of mushrooms.
"You're going to trust her with a knife?"
"As I said, I have to learn to trust her eventually if I'm going to work with her later on."
Her cutting technique is amateur at best, dangerous at worst, and when it looks like she's going to get herself hurt, "You're doing it all wrong," Archer says. He kneels down, and taking her hands into his, says in a much gentler tone "You're going to hurt yourself if you do it like that. Here, this is how to do it safely." Archer demonstrates proper cutting technique to Kure Kirika and together, with no complaints from Archer, the two make short work of the mushrooms.
"Looks like you do care, after all."
Archer bristles at your insinuation. "I just didn't want her to cut herself and get blood all over the food, that's all."
You smile, Kure Kirika looks back and forth between the two of you in confusion, and Archer says "Okay, now that we've cut the garlic and the mushrooms, it's time to get cooking. Master, put some pasta in the water if you would; and Kure, scoot a little closer so you can see what I'm doing."
"Me?"
"Yes, you. If you want to make this for Mikuni you'll need to see what I'm doing, so get over here." Kure Kirika does so, and once you've placed the pasta into the water, you join her on Archer's opposite side. "First, we're going to heat up the pan with some oil, and once it's ready to go we add the mushrooms." Into the heated pan the mushrooms go, and as they fall a single sliver of mushroom out of many catches your eye. Archer stirs them for a few minutes, letting them brown and filling the kitchen with the distinct aroma of cooked mushroom. "Alright, now it's time to add the garlic. Master, could you get that for me?"
You reach for the garlic, but "Before you do that, there's a mushroom that I cut into the shape of a heart." So, the strangely-shaped mushroom sliver that had caught your eye had been intentional. "Could you grab that and set it aside for me?"
Archer drags the wooden spoon through the pan, until he finds the piece in question. "One heart-shaped mushroom slice," he says, spooning it out onto a napkin before handing it to Kure Kirika. "A bit of garnish for your girlfriend, I'm guessing?" A nod confirms Archer's suspicions. Into the pan goes the minced garlic, and then it's back to work stirring.
After another couple of minutes, "Master, get the pasta and scoop it into the pan. Make sure to get a bit of the pasta water as well when you do it." You do so, scooping out five big clumps of pasta, along with the requested pasta water. "The water will help thicken the sauce up," Archer says, before resuming the stirring.
"Now, while I'm still stirring, I need you girls to beat some eggs." A half-dozen eggs are included with the assembled groceries. "Two at a time should do it, I think, until we've got everything to the desired consistency."
The job of beating eggs is one that's easy to divide between you and Kure Kirika, and in no time at all you're hearing her say "Alright, that's just how Oriko likes it."
"Now, last ingredient- cheese." Small wedges of smoked provolone and parmesan. "I went with the smoked provolone to try and emulate the smokiness you'd normally get from the pork. I'll need you girls to grate about half of each of those." Unlike the egg, with only a single small grater - courtesy of Archer, from God-knows-where - the task of grating cannot be done by the both of you. But it does get done, courtesy of Kure Kirika, and once both wedges are grated to specification they too are stirred into the pan along with everything else.
Archer adds just the tiniest shakes each of salt and pepper, and gives everything one final stir. "Alright, now all that's left is to plate up." Using a large, two-pronged fork, your servant places five large - would you call them swirls? - swirls of pasta into bowls, garnishing each with a generous spooning of leftover mushrooms and sauce once each is ready. A single bowl is given to Kure Kirika, along with the words "You can serve Mikuni yourself. I'm sure she'd like that."
With a smile, Kure Kirika kisses the heart-shaped sliver of mushroom she had been holding before placing it delicately atop the serving meant for her girlfriend. Together, with two each in yours and Archer's hands - forks included in each serving - you bring out lunch. Kyouko eyes her lunch like a bird of prey, while Tomoe-san is a bit more hesitant in her acceptance. "It certainly has a strong scent to it," she says, prodding at lunch with the provided fork.
Mikuni Oriko just stares at lunch glumly, pushing it away. "I don't mean to be a bother, Akemi-san, but... This has meat. I can't eat this. I... I haven't been able to stomach the taste of meat since... That day."
"I'm aware," you reply, pushing lunch back towards her. "Kure Kirika informed me of your vegetarianism, so Archer made a meatless version."
"That's hardly fair to lump all the credit onto me, master. I just stirred some stuff in a pan. It was you and Kure that did all the heavy lifting."
The faintest smile creeps up the corners of Mikuni Oriko's mouth as she turns to Kure Kirika. "You made this for me?" A finger points to the heart-shaped mushroom garnish.
"I made it just for you, Oriko."
"Alright, alright, enough of the sappy crap," Neither lover, nor Tomoe-san for that matter, takes kindly to Kyouko's interjection. "Now, let's eat!"
Be sociable!
[ ] Talk
-[ ] to Archer
-[ ] to Tomoe-san
-[ ] to Kyouko
-[ ] to Mikuni Oriko
-[ ] to Kure Kirika
--[ ] About what? (write-in)
[ ] What do you do after lunch? (write-in)
