A Glimpse into the Past, a Fragment

Phew...

(Huff... Huff...)

Dammit.

Hmm...

Ah.

The hell?

It's just baking a little wheat, right?

Hell, I pulled it off just the other day.

Huh?

You always gotta get in my goddamn way, don'tcha?

Little bastard...

... ...

If you think...

...I'm gonna let you...

...get away with this...

Huh?

Wh-what in the world is going on over there?

Is it just my imagination...

...Or did I just see flashes of magical energy that absolutely shouldn't ever be coming from a kitchen!?

And I could have sworn I heard a number of small explosions, too!

Actually, hang on. I just noticed it's after midnight!

Why in the world is Caenis in the kitchen at this hour!?

'Cause I lent it out!

You lent out the kitchen!?

I was told this was supposed to be an unaided solo journey, so that's exactly what I offered, woof.

I'm sorry, what?

Caenis wanted to borrow the kitchen until morning.

And since we were already done with tomorrow's food prep, we didn't see any reason to refuse.

She said she wanted to make a pastry, so I offered to help...

(Hmm? A pastry?)

...The tyrant in there insisted on making it all solo.

So here we are, keeping an eye on things from a distance.

I was hoping she wouldn't break too many things in there, but, ahaha, it looks like that might be too much to ask for.

Don't you worry, woof!

If worse comes to worst, Emiyan here can always go all "Trace on!" and "Full Cowl" and such.

Well... I guess I should be able to at least partially restore anything that gets broken.

So, let me get this straight.

You're saying Caenis, the Divine Spirit...asked to use the kitchen to make a pastry?

Ayup!

...And wants to do it all completely alone?

Uh-huh.

...!

Aha...

That's it.

(Now I see what's going on here!)

(All the world's secrets have just opened up to me!)

(Well, maybe I shouldn't go quite that far, but I certainly do feel good about this!)

(All at once, everything is clear as a bell!)

(Caenis, the Divine Spirit...)

(...is trying to recreate my croissants!)

%&#@ it, I'm out!

!?

Huh?

You mean...

You're giving up, Caenis? Just like that?

Huh?

Oh, hey. If it ain't Director Goredolf.

You're damn right I'm giving up. No way I can make something like that.

I must've been out've my damn mind. Hell, I really thought I at least knew the basics.

So I tried, you know?

I thought that maybe, knowing me, I might be able to figure it out somehow...

... ...

But, I can't, so that's that. Hmph.

I'm just gonna turn into my spirit form and get outta your hair here. Sorry for the trouble, Cat.

Are you sure, woof?

Yeah.

We can help, if you'd like.

Nah, that's okay.

We'll take care of the cleanup.

Thanks. 'Preciate it.

...Well, later.

Hold it! This isn't over yet!

Get back here, Lord Caenis!

...What was that?

Did you just try to give me an order, Director?

I don't know what the hell you were thinking, but you know what? I don't care.

If you think you can look down on me...

I'll kill ya.

Well, well!

You want a piece of me too, Emiya!? Boudica!?

Maybe.

I didn't want to fight, but if that's how you want to play this...!

Haha!

Stop that! All of you!

What do you think you're doing, blowing up like that over a minor request to wait!? Though I do apologize if it sounded like I was ordering you around!

Still, I addressed you as "Lord Caenis," so I hope you can understand I meant no disrespect!

Well!? What do you say!?

(That escalated far too quickly, even if I did happen to touch a sore spot!)

(Caenis would have never gotten this upset over a simple matter of tone before. At least, I don't think so.)

(I swear, what could have gotten into)

(Oh.)

(It must be because the baking didn't go as planned.)

(!)

(I-I see... Now I understand...)

(Lord Caenis! Wait, no, in my head, I'm just going to call you plain old "Caenis"!)

(Does this mean...)

(You still long for the taste of the croissant I made you on that day!?)

(That's it, isn't it!? Hahaha, now I see!)

(I guess the ones you made for Valentine's Day were so good you just had to try again!)

(Hahaha, you little rascal, you!)

...

...

...No disrespect?

？！

Oh, hey, Fujimaru.

Oh, Fujimaru! What are you doing here?

I thought I ordered you to get some sleep already after I found you muttering about formations in the Command Room well into the night.

Why aren't you back in your room?

？！

Oh. I see...

...Hmph.

Forget it, I'm not feeling it anymore. Guess I'll let Gof there off the hook.

Sorry I can't dance with you after all, Emiya. Boudica.

Now then...

Let's say you didn't mean any disrespect. Now what?

Why'd you stop me, Goredolf?

Well...

Um, how do I put this...?

... ...

It's not really THAT big of a deal. Honestly, it's a bit hard to say, now that I've been put on the spot like this...

But since I get the feeling you'll change your mind about not killing me if I don't spit it out, I'll say it!

I'll help you make your pastry!

You want to make a pastry! And I'm going to help you!

... ...

...Your guess is as good as mine!

？！

All right, now that it's come to this, I'm not letting you leave without helping either, Fujimaru!

？！

I cleared out the kitchen, woof! And the oven's not broken, so you can still bake with it!

Hang in there, young ones! Don't stop! Don't sleep!

Thank you! Wait. Did you just tell us not to sleep!?

Hahahaha, I like that! Fall asleep on the job and I'll lop off your head on the spot!

If you're willing to take that kinda risk, then come on, Goredolf and Fujimaru!

You wanna help me make a pastry? Okay, let's make a goddamn pastry!

？！

Yes, yes, this is it!

Huh. Looks like

Ooh, look at that lovely golden brown. They came out wonderfully!

Look, even Cat's running around, all excited!

We may not have tasted them yet...but I can already tell they're delicious.

They're perfect! Absolutely perfect! Go on, Lord Caenis! Have a taste and

Croissants!?

Huh?

Yes...

I can't believe it...

Th-these are croissants, right?

Right.

I mean, I can see that, but... Hmm.

Now I gotcha.

Well, yeah, obvi

Oh, wait.

Right, right. Yeah, yeah, now I see!

？！

Hahaha, I guess I never told you lot, did I?

I wasn't trying to make croissants!

These things are too, I don't know, refined? A little too sweet and fluffy?

Wha...?

And what's wrong with being refined, sweet, and fluffy!?

Easy, old man. You don't gotta cry. I don't mean it like that.

They're just too good, you know?

No, I most certainly do not! How can something be TOO good!?

S-still, I suppose... I see now...

So you weren't trying to make croissants...

Ahh, dammit. I can't believe this...

... ...

(I...)

(I'm so embarrassed!)

(How could I have been so foolishly overconfident!?)

(I feel like the world's saddest clown!)

(No, wait. Hang in there, Gof! This is nothing compared to your twelfth birthday!)

(Just keep cool. Keep cool. That's it. You're a coolheaded, unfeeling, pastry-making helping machine...)

...Now I see.

I clearly jumped to the wrong conclusion earlier. This time, I'll make sure I have the full story!

Lord Caenis! Are you trying to make a crispy pastry, or a soft pastry!?

Hm?

Hmm... Good question...

Which is it, anyway?

... ...

(You can't even narrow that down!?)

(Huff... Huff...)

There's not a single clue...anywhere...

I know Lord Caenis has an idea of what she wants in her head... Enough that she knows what doesn't look right...

But trying to pin down what this pastry is supposed to be is like trying to grab a fistful of cloud!

True, that we are!

We know now that it's not an overly elaborate pastry, so that's certainly something!

Indeed! We will seize this victory with our own hands!

？！

Wanna throw some dough in the oven and see how it comes out? Who knows? Maybe we'll get lucky.

Nnn, that's so...random!

Still, it does seem as though we've gathered all the information we possibly can, so I suppose there's no harm in experimenting.

Raaaaah! Let's do this, Fujimaru!

Well, I'd like to think we've made at least some progress...

... ...

Thanks for doing this, you two.

Hmm. (Munch, munch)

It's good. Real good. There's something special about freshly baked pastries, no doubt.

But...this still ain't quite what I had in mind.

Something still feels off. This just doesn't seem like the same pastry he had.

Mhmm.

No, I didn't.

？！

This isn't about recreating what I had before. It's a pastry a certain dumb bastard once had.

It sounds like it wasn't all that great, but even so...

I guess there was something unforgettable about it.

Now I see. There's no way we can make that.

Hm?

You're talking about the taste of your mother's cooking, or at least something similar.

Lord Caenis, what I suspect you're talking about...

...is the taste of an irreplaceable memory.

And that's something not even the greatest chefs can reproduce.

Not even the ones who head three Michelin star restaurants, or who work in royal kitchens.

These things are so intensely personal that no outsider can possibly ascertain their taste.

So, um...

Well... How can I put this...?

... ...

... ...Oh.

Yeah. Now I get it.

I think that's it, Goredolf. You got it.

It's like I've got this hazy vision of what this pastry is supposed to be, and yet, it's also so strong that I can't seem to break through it.

Yeah... I think we've got a winner.

The taste of an irreplaceable memory, huh.

That's it.

...It's almost morning.

I'm sorry to ask this of you, Fujimaru, but would you mind helping out a little longer?

I, um, know what I said to Caenis...

But I think my inner Toole will never let me live it down if I give up now.

I can almost see her looking at me with those cold eyes and saying:

"Oh? So you're running away from a challenge you know you're capable of completing?"

She certainly wasn't the most expressive of homunculi, but even so

？！

First off, we need to get a clear mental picture!

I'm certain Lord Caenis is looking to recreate a modern pastry, not something from ancient Greece!

And that would mean she's not trying to recreate something from her own memories

？！

...

？！

... ...

？！

？！

... ...

......Yeah.

Then I know exactly what to make!

I can deduce exactly what sort of pastry Kirschtaria Wodime would have liked based on where he grew up!

Hahahahahahaha, this battle is as good as won! It must be a pastry made for commoners while still retaining an air of nobility!

Hmm. Nah, I don't think there's much nobility in this pastry.

Are you sure!?

？！

R-right, of course!

All right, let's just start baking and see what we get!

This is it!

It's got just the barest hint of nobility, yet it's still so palatable that one could eat it every day without tiring of it!

It would go great with any kind of jam or butter you please, as well as just about any sort of standard home cuisine!

Why, I daresay...

This pastry is symbolic of Kirschtaria Wodime's very way of life!

Indeed!

Well done yourself, my lad!

？！

At last, it's finally done!

You know, I feel as though this baking has almost enlightened me somehow! Like I'm on the verge of a grand discovery!

Right now, I feel like...like... Like I can do something truly spectacular!

？！

That's wonderfully wonderful! Congratulations, woof!

This IS a good pastry. It'd go great with coffee, too.

I'm glad to hear that. But if you're done, can you get out of the way now?

We've got a bunch of hungry people about to wake up, and only so much time to make breakfast for them!

Ahh, there's Caenis now.

I still think there's no reason Caenis couldn't have tried the pastry in the cafeteria even after we were kicked out of the kitchen...

Ah, well. At least we found her. You there! Lord Caenis!

Hm?

We finally managed to arrive at the ultimate pastry. You can't leave without at least tasting it.

Well? Go on. Have a piece.

All right.

...Let's see what you've got.

(Munch)

(Munch, munch)

... ...

Huh.

W-well? How is it?

？！

Oh, yeah, it's good.

... ...Yeah. Really good.

Thanks, you two.

!

!!!

We did it! We really did it! We've created the ideal pastry!

We certainly did!

Now, now! I couldn't have done it without your help!

？！

Wahahahahaha! At last, success!

...Sheesh.