Note: A Friend helped write some of this.
“Do you just not understand the problem that just arrived on our doorstep?”
Emiya couldn’t understand why Cu and his Bar staff weren’t worried about the influx of new Servants.
They had been preparing for Cu’s Celtic kin, known alcoholics who could drain towns dry and spend days drinking non-stop.
And they assumed the Romans were of roughly their level or worse.
But Emiya KNEW his history. You can’t understand a Weapon unless you knew the History of its wielder.
And the Celtics had nothing on the Hedonists known as the Roman Emperors.
Cu and his staff were actually lucky that the Emperor of Roses seemed less inclined to drink yet, for he feared she alone could drain them dry within a week.
And his Master had seemingly summoned three more Roman Emperors, none of which were known for their restraint.
“I understand that you want to whine about the problem,” Cu said, giving the Archer a sideways look. He put a couple of bottles away and turned fully to the other man.
“What’s so wrong with attacking this ‘problem’ as it comes up instead of worrying and cringing and wasting time?”
What was it about this Celtic warrior that always grates me so….
Emiya sighed, hoping it would release some of the tension building in him.
“Because the key to a good kitchen is preparation, and we’re still not prepared for your friends, let alone the individuals who essentially became Embodiments of Hedonism.”
He was only barely managing to fill the voids that were the stomachs of the Artorias while also making sure everyone else got enough to be satisfied.
The Sage put a shot glass down on a counter, quickly filling it with some sort of brown liquor.
“Ya can’t prepare fer everythin’, ya know,” Cu said, raising the glass to the man in red. He poured the liquid down his throat and gave a grin.
“Sometimes ya gotta grin and react.”
Cu turned back to his inventory.
“The Romans will tell me what they want, and I’ll make sure to stock what’s needed. There’s no point hoarding what I think they might want only to be proven wrong.”
“First, my entire existence begs to differ that remark.”
EMIYA raised one finger, determined to make a point.
“Second, adaptability is a cook’s best weapon, and having to prepare food for the Kings of Britain has me very confident in my ability to ‘grin and react’.” He raised a second finger, anger and snark in full force when he uses the Celtic Sage’s own remark against him.
“Third, from what I understand of the Romans, and what I’ve seen watching our Master deal with them, we just don’t have the resources. We would need roughly a 300% increase in supplies in order to be able to meet their demand.” The Romans were known hedonists, and now they had the constitutions of Heroic Spirits. How did the Child of Light honestly expect them to do this?
“Fourthly, the–“
“Oh EMIYA, you worry too much.” A kindly female voice interrupted the agitated archer, as a woman in red with bright red hair entered.
She typically wore very revealing armour, but when it had seemed his nag wouldn’t stop, she had changed into a chef’s outfit. And while it hid her generous figure, the way that some of the Staff and Servants seemed to come to the mess hall just to watch her cook seemed to suggest that the chef’s outfit had it’s own appeal.
EMIYA sighed, the wind leaving his sails. While Boudica was nothing like the young woman who he had lived with when he was younger, she shared a lot of her kind and sweet qualities,as well as her skill in the kitchen.
“What do you suggest then, oh Queen of Victory?” EMIYA wearily asked. He could maybe win against one of them.
But going against both was a lost cause, akin to denying the Artorias’ their latest request.
Boudica smiled.
“Its simple. We actually enforce the few rules we have.”
Her smiled turned radiant, as she turned expectantly towards Cu the Caster.
“Don’t you agree, Mister Cu?”
Cu put down the bottle he had been inspecting during Archer’s rant, and turn fully to face the two other servants. Crossing his arms, the druid gave a smile that suggested he wasn’t entirely happy at the notion of ‘rules’.
“Depends on what they are, I guess,” the Caster allowed.
The bright beaming smile, seemingly turned dark and demonic, an evil aura slowly spreading through the area.
“Its simple. The Romans aren’t in charge here. They will obey either the Kitchen Staff or the Bar Staff, depending on whose in charge at the time. This area is ours, and we provide this service of our own free will. If they choose to abuse it, they can starve.”
There was a moment of tense, dark silence. A full, joy-filled laughed rang out and shattered it. Caster, hands on hips gave a genuine smile to the red head.
“That. I can agree to.” The sage tipped his head to Boudica. “Thanks for yer wisdom, lady.”
The bright, beaming smile returned, the demonic aura dissipating as if it were never there.
“You’re welcome! Now, we need to hurry and get both our staffs prepared, the first Day of the Roman invasion is about to begin!”
Maybe she has more in common with the young lady then I realised… Emiya mused as he set to work.