After the proper introductions, Raquel and Rachel finally relaxed. The fear in Raquel's eyes faded into tentative relief, and Rachel's shoulders dropped from their protective hunch. They had clearly expected punishment, or at least anger, for knocking over the master of the house, who they previously only heard about by the kind Galleon.
Yet nothing came. They thanked the Gods for this.
In any case, with that small crisis averted, the four of them moved toward the kitchen. The smell of whatever Galleon was cooking drifted down the corridor, rich and savory, wrapping around Edric's senses and making his stomach clench.
The scent was unmistakable: slow-roasted beef with rosemary and garlic, fresh bread just pulled from the oven, something buttery and herbal simmering on the side. It was simple, comforting food, exactly what Edric enjoyed.
Raquel walked between Rachel and Tina now, one small hand clutching to her sister's hand. Rachel kept throwing glances at Edric, only curious now. Tina walked at Edric's side, as always, ready to be a steady pillar for him if needed, but never quite touching him.
Just like that, their little dysfunctional group crossed the dinner hall, soon arriving at the kitchen.
Like most of the mansion, the kitchen was also entirely made of marble, perhaps even more so. Pale gray veins ran through white stone floors, counters, and walls, turning the space into a cool, almost clinical cathedral of food.
The only warmth came from the wood stove attached to the far wall like a burning heart, its iron door open to reveal glowing coals and the low roar of flame. Copper pots hung from hooks overhead.
There, the first thing Edric saw was the boiling pan, which he guessed was the source of the rosemary-and-garlic perfume that had pulled him forward. Beside it sat a heavy cast-iron skillet, beef slices already resting on a carved wooden board.
Galleon stood at the center island, sleeves rolled to the elbows, white hair swept back as always. The knife in his hands moved with almost deadly precision. He didn't look up immediately, too focused on his task to even notice them entering, but the moment Raquel let out an involuntary gasp, his sharp green eyes flicked towards the doorway.
"Oh, sir. You are finally back." he said, getting a towel and cleaning his hand, "I see that you finally meet our lovely guests."
"Indeed," Edric responded, being the last one to step into the kitchen. "Quite well, I would say."
Tina went straight toward the pan, lifting the lid and dipping a small spoon into the broth. She tasted it, then gave a thoughtful hum.
"This needs more salt, old man."
"Huh?!" Galleon's expression twisted into pure annoyance the instant the words left her mouth. "There's nothing missing. It's that damn tongue of yours that can't taste anything good."
"Huh!?" She replaced the lid forcefully, "What are you saying old man! My tongue works pretty well thank you. It's yours that's probably too old to even taste anything anymore, perhaps we should send you to an asylum already!"
The girls were shocked to see the gentle Galleon suddenly change his attitude. Edric though, couldn't care less. They were always like that with each other. An outsider may think they hated themselves, yet that couldn't be more far from the truth. Galleon was Tina's adopted father after all.
Galleon sighed,
"Lunch is ready. Do me a favor and set up the table, would ya?"
With a last annoyed look, Tina grabbed plates, cutlery, and went back towards the way they came from. The girls–a little unsure about what to do–followed right behind her, ready to help her if needed.
Edric and Galleon were left alone. Galleon was the first to break the silence.
"You don't seem to have slept, sir. What happened?"
"Trouble," Edric sighed, "A lot of trouble… but I will tell the news later. Tina also doesn't know, so I may as well tell you two at the same time."
Galleon nodded.
"Ok, then help me here." Before Edric could say anything, Galleon pushed a tray towards him.
"...Are you really making a crippled person carry this?"
Galleon raised an eyebrow.
"You are not crippled," He looked Edric up and down, "...Not fully. So do yourself a favor and go exercise your good part."
Edric sighed.
"You know, perhaps that's why Tina complains so much."
"Does she? I don't even notice anymore."
Edric laughed.
"Ok, old man."
Obviously, even though he was making him carry this, it didn't mean that he wasn't considerate. The tray itself didn't weigh much at all, although it was covered, Edric could feel the smell of bread leaking out of it.
Back to the dinner hall, Edric arrived just in time to watch as Rachel placed the last place over the long table, while Raquel was already seated and Tina was placing the tableware.
Setting the tray down, Edric leaned over his cane and took a moment to appreciate the well adorned table before nodding in approval.
"This is pretty good." He said while taking his seat at the head of the table.
Rachel seemed to have taken it as a personal compliment, she smiled brightly and bow maladjusted.
"Thank you, sir." Then she took a seat beside her sister.
"Indeed it is good," Tina said, sitting beside him, slightly adjusting her plate.
One may think putting plates over a table was as simple as breathing, yet one couldn't be more wrong. In high society, maids were trained to do everything with millimeter precision, they had to. Most nobles were simply too picky and would demand things to be exactly in the perfect position, not even a centimeter would be forgiven.
Of course, Edric wasn't one of these, he barely even cared for his clothes, much less about how the plates had been positioned, but Tina couldn't help it. That's just how she was.
A minute of chit-chat later, Galleon finally arrived. One heavy pot in his left hand, three trays balanced across his right arm with impossible grace. A display of his incredible dexterity.
"All right," Galleon announced, setting everything down with a flourish and dropping into the chair beside Tina. "Time to dig in."
He paused, noticing that Tina was looking at him weirdly.
"Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Nothing," Tina muttered, suddenly very interested in her napkin.