Tales of Majesty: Heated Discussion (Oneshot)

"Dinner's ready!" chimed Mei as she emerged from the cooking area, carrying a rather...interesting dish. The group sat quietly as they watched her set the dish in front of them unveiling what was inside.
"Smells wonderful, Mei." said Saira. "...what did you make?"
"Spicy cake." she replied with a smile of satisfaction. "I'm just glad I didn't burn it this time. It's so hard to cook over an open fire..."
"Spicy cake?" questioned Zepher, "Don't you mean, spice cake?"
Mei looked at him questioningly, "...Aren't they the same thing?" she asked.
Jake and Zepher could feel something in the pit of their stomachs as they gave each other a worried glance, remembering what happened the last time, when she confused the sugar with salt...
Saira frowned, "Mei, dear, don't tell me you only made cake." she said, completely oblivious to the worries of the two teens beside her.
"I just wanted to try out that new recipe we got. Though I did have to make some changes since we were out of a few things." she replied, "But don't worry, I also made stew to go with it. ...Oh, that reminds me, I should go check on it." She hurried off back to the cooking fire, leaving the group with her creation.
Zepher stared at the steaming cake in front of him and frowned, "I wonder if it's edible..." he pondered quietly, lightly poking it with his fork."--Oww!" he shrieked, "Jake that's my foot!"
"I know it is, now be quiet." he hissed.
"Now now you two, settle down. I'm sure it's not that bad." assured Saira. "It doesn't smell burned, so I'm sure it's fine."
"Well you've never had Mei's cooking before. Besides, looks--er--smells can be deceiving you know." replied Zepher, recoiling from Jake's glares. "...Evan'll agree with me, right Evan?"
"Hey, don't go dragging me into this," he said coolly. "But we should eat before it gets cold. We can't afford to waste food."
"..."
"So..." began Jake, "...who's first?"
"Well, since you're so supportive of Mei, why don't you go first?" Zepher replied rather smugly.
"..."
"Oh come on, surely you don't want hurt Mei's feelings, she worked hard on this you know. She'll be sad if no one eats it."
Jake looked at the cake for a moment before muttering something under his breath. He brought some to his plate and took a fork to it; he slowly took a glance at his staring comrades before tentatively sticking the fork into his mouth, tensing up as the unique flavors enveloped his taste buds.
"Well? How is it?"
Jake suddenly relaxed, and swallowed, "Hey, not bad..." he said. He eyed the plate again before going for another bite.
"Huh, well what do you know, I guess miracles really do happen." muttered Zepher as the others began to get a plate.
".....Ah d-dammit!" Crash!
"Then again...maybe not..."
Everyone quickly turned their attention toward the startled Mei who had dropped the pot of stew in her hands, spilling the thick, oozing liquid on the ground before her. "Jake, what's wrong?" she asked with notable worry.
Ignoring her worry, he darted past her and grabbed the small bucket of water beside the fire, gulping down its contents in three seconds flat. Once satisfied, he breathed a sigh a relief and plopped backward onto the ground.
"You know, we do have drinking water for that." stated Evan, motioning toward the small pitcher of water on their makeshift table. Jake only glared in response.
"Are you okay, Jake?" Mei asked.
"D-don't worry, I'm fine." he muttered, pushing himself to his feet. "But dammit that was hot..."
"That's why you let it cool first, stupid." Zepher remarked, steadily becoming unsure about what was on his own plate.
"Not that kind of hot..."
"Is this...cayenne...?" asked Saira, after taking a small nibble of the daunting cake.
"You added cayenne in there?!" exclaimed Jake.
Mei frowned, "...Um, was that bad?" she asked quietly, Jake stiffened.
"Er...n-no...it's just..."
"It does have a rather...piquant flavor. Perhaps next time you could ease up on the spices a little." suggested Evan, wiping away the brimming tears in his eyes.
"...Just a tad..." Saira added, gently setting down her fork.
Mei perked up, "Really? That's all?" she asked. The group silently nodded and her smile beamed. "I guess I'm better at this then I thought."
Zepher palmed his forehead, "You're all hopeless..." he muttered quietly. This was going to be a long journey...
Oh, the joys of cooking. Heehee~

Hope you enjoyed it. Expect to see another for next month's: Valentine's Day mush! :,D
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