Wen-ci followed her friend, Shal-ye down the hallway to the main parlor of the Ye Clan house. The way was familiar to Wen-ci; she'd walked it countless times during her younger years when she and her siblings played with Shal-ye and hers. The Yes and Cis were old allied families and frequently intermarried, as shown recently by her brother and his wife.
"Mother is going to be thrilled to see you. She was just complaining that you never come by anymore," Shal-ye said as she pushed open the traditional heavy door that existed in all Clan houses to demonstrate the transition from outside to in.
"I come!" Wen-ci protested. "I just visited, like, five years ago!"
"That was because Drak-ci and Kali-ye got married! That doesn't count," Shal-ye replied.
"She is right, Wen-ci," Shal-ye's mother, the head of Clan Ye said from where she sat on a comfortable chair, sipping tea.
Wen-ci threw her a sheepish smile even as she ran the time through her head. It couldn't possibly have been that long, right? She bit her lip, silently counting.
"No, no, it really has been," Shal-ye tossed over her shoulder as she crossed to her mother. "Mother, how radiant you are this fine afternoon!"
"Cozening up to me while still teasing Wen-ci? My, how things never change." Pral-ye Rhine commented, offering her cheek for a kiss.
"Because Wen-ci is so absentminded when it's not food," Shal-ye complained. She turned to Wen-ci who shook her head at her.
"I must admit that maybe you're right…for once," Wen-ci said, injecting the haughty tone she used when disciplining her students.
"And the professor emerges," Shal-ye said, plopping down into the chair next to the tea table. She poured herself a cup of tea.
"Now, now, children," Pral-ye Rhine said, setting her cup down on its saucer. She graced both women with a smile. "Now, what brings the most illustrious Professor Wen-ci to my clan's humble abode?" She paused, placing a finger against her chin, at once charming and mischievous. "Could it be…hmm…ghastens?"
Wen-ci and Shal-ye exchanged bemused looks. Pral-ye Rhine didn't look like she'd borne eight children, much less like a clan matriarch. Most of Shal-ye's siblings were scattered around the province, looking for new opportunities for the many stores and cafes that the clan owned. Kali-ye marrying Drak-ci and then them opening their restaurant had come as a surprise to both clans.
Even Wen-ci's father had been surprised. He'd expected Drak-ci to apply to work in the Royal Kitchens after his marriage, not open a new restaurant. Even in the Liannenken Kingdom, a restaurant had to develop quickly to stand a chance of lasting more than five years.
Elves were notoriously fickle about their food. There were even some who were so vehemently vegan that they wouldn't venture anywhere near the street a non-vegan restaurant was located.
A good chunk of the Ye clan's cafes catered to those elves. To meet the dietary requirements, most of Shal-ye's siblings had to nurture and maintain the clan's relationships with several farmers who grew traditional crops. That number dwindled every decade as the demand for the crops lowered with the introduction of new fads.
"I could have come to visit for another reason," Wen-ci said, not able to stop her blush. "I'm not that much of a glutton!"
For some reason, that made both Shal-ye and her mother laugh. Even the servant who approached with a fresh pot of tea had to visibly bite back a smile.
"It's fine if you want to see Parker's little herd," Pral-ye Rhine said, putting her cup and saucer on the tea table. She fixed Wen-ci with a stare. "I truly understand since Kali-ye has requisitioned some for her little venture."
Both Shal-ye and Wen-ci winced. Golden Leaves on High was fast becoming the most popular restaurant in the capital. Even the princes were rumored to have reserved their private rooms at times.
"I will just take her to see Parker," Shal-ye said, springing up, her cup of tea forgotten.
"But I wanted to," Wen-ci began as Shal-ye snagged her arm and tugged her deeper into the house.
"Trust me. You do not want to listen to the 'Tirade' as it is," Shal-ye muttered to her, not releasing her hold.
Wen-ci blinked at her. She hadn't thought that Pral-ye Rhine would also have a Tirade. Her parents also had one for Drak-ci's restaurant, both different depending on the parent in question. Wen-ci had heard both several times the last time she'd gone home, finally understanding why her other siblings had warned her about the topic of Drak-ci's restaurant in several letters.
"She'll get tired of it in a few minutes, but you want to see ghastens, right?" Shal-ye said, taking a deep breath and huffing it out.
"The restaurant's been in existence for decades! Decades! They even made it official five years ago," Wen-ci sputtered.
"And that's another thing. Cute little Krak-ci is talented. Oh, so talented," Shal-ye muttered under breath, eliciting another exasperated look from Wen-ci. "If they hadn't married, then there was a chance that we could have set him up with a cute little café. He's handsome, to boot, Wen-ci!" That last was said in a tone that matched Wen-ci's look.
"And of course, you were already thinking of future alliances," Wen-ci said dryly.
"Of course! A cook who's handsome and related to both Ye and Ci?" Shal-ye stopped and took a deep breath, looking contemplative. "The bidding war, my friend. The bidding war!"
"Enough trying to sell off nephews who are currently more interested in perfecting a roll recipe than some girl's eyes," Wen-ci said, giving her a shove towards the little plaza they were approaching. "Which pasture are the ghastens? Left, right? Don't tell me you gave him Prime? That's not a little herd, then."
"Of course it isn't!" Shal-ye rolled her eyes. "There's a reason my father is gaga all over Parker."
Wen-ci narrowed her eyes as she stalked forward. The plaza was the demarcation between the living and working parts of the clan house. Beyond stretched work sheds and the pastures they served. She could almost hear the weird, nerve-tingling sound of ghastens.
"Let me introduce you to Parker-ye beforehand," Shal-ye said, once again taking the lead. "He gets caught up in that wine business of his."
"Are you going to sell it? I tried some, and it was passable." Wen-ci followed her friend towards a new set of sheds along the prime walkway. You could still smell the sawdust of the boards used. "Very passable."
"Seriously? Even the wine?" Shal-ye frowned lightly. Then she shook her head. "He's so outrageous that even I feel threatened at times. Can you imagine what's going to happen during Courting Season?"
"I will be back in the Institute, thank you very much. Been avoiding that nonsense for years so far," Wen-ci shot back with a wave of her hands.
"Of course, you have," Shal-ye replied, pushing open the door of one shed.
Inside was an orderly mess of barrels, flasks, glassware, grapes and bottles. Amidst it stood a human with wild hair. He was dressed in a purple stained white shirt and heavy cotton pants. Clutched in one hand was a flask of liquid he was examining as he swirled it.
Wen-ci hummed in approval. She recognized the practiced moves of a master mixer. It caused the human to whirl around towards the door, eyes widening. A smile graced his face.
"Shal! I've done it!" He said, coming forward. He snagged a glass from a nearby table as he approached.
"You've done what, Parker?" Shal-ye asked, eyes darting from flask to glass. Clear puzzlement was visible on her face.
"I've perfected the Autumn Bounty! Here, taste!" Parker-ye said, pouring a bit into the glass and pressing it into her hands.
"Mmm," Shal-ye said, taking a sip. Her eyes widened. "Here, Wen-ci!"
Wen-ci took the glass, staring at the liquid inside. Instead of a uniform red, it held concentric rings of color. She looked up at Parker-ye who grinned. Then Wen-ci cautiously took a sip.
It was like eating a handful of the best grapes, a taste of the best apples, the perfect bite of pear and just a hint of the sourness of blackberries. It all swirled around Wen-ci's mouth in a chorus of heavenly flavor.
"Exquisite," Wen-ci breathed.
"Can we put that on the label?" Shal-ye asked, smiling happily.
"With my blessings this time," Wen-ci replied. "How much for a bottle?" She asked Parker-ye.
"Haven't figured that out yet. Um, I'm Parker, uh, Parker-ye," Parker-ye said with a bob of his head.
"Wen-ci," Wen-ci said, resisting Shal-ye's attempt to reacquire the glass.
"You know, I know an artist by that name. Painted that for me," Parker-ye said, nodding towards the opposite wall.
The two women turned around to see a large painting of a sleeping ghasten set above the door. A butterfly floated above its head and drifts of early pollen could be seen blowing in the air.
"Gorgeous work," Shal-ye praised. "When did you get it?"
"I had to hunt Wen down in that beginner's village she lives in. She was good enough to paint Lissy while she slept in the forest nearby." Parker-ye grinned. "Didn't even cost me much. Wen was just charging me a pittance because we're friends and she wanted practice."
"Very good deal then," Shal-ye said. She gave Wen-ci a gloating look. "Look, you have an artistic counterpart. There's hope for you yet."
Wen-ci gave her a sour look in return. There was a long standing belief that lacking creative talent meant a bad ending. Wen-ci couldn't carry a tune, sketch or even wax poetic over anything other than food. She was the one and only person in her family forbidden from entering the kitchen. While able to help someone to perfect a recipe, Wen-ci was legendary in her bad kitchen skills.
"You're not funny." Wen-ci took a step backwards, guarding her glass of wine. "You don't deserve such good wine."
"Wait! Are you that Wen-ci? The one who works at the Delicacies Institute?" Parker-ye asked, eyes sparkling as he looked at Wen-ci, distracting her from her perusal of the painting.
"I'm the only one I know," Wen-ci said.
"Then you could help me," Parker-ye said. He turned around and started rummaging around his lab. "Just a minute!"
Wen-ci looked at Shal-ye who shrugged and shook her head. They watched as Parker-ye finally paused with a muffled shout of triumph. He reemerged from a pile of glassware with a small, closed basket.
"This! I have no idea what to do with this, but I'm not sure I can feed the ghastens with it," Parker-ye explained as he approached.
"What is it?" Shal-ye asked, not taking the basket. A long childhood with brothers had given her a healthy wariness of closed baskets.
"They were calling it Blood Corn," Parker-ye said, opening the basket.
Nestled inside on a white cloth was a brilliantly green cob of corn. It looked almost unreal, even in the dim light of the lab.
"One of my new brothers sent it. Said he got it from an orc collective." Parker-ye shook his head. "There are orcs? Here? Because I hadn't heard that before."
"Good farmers, orcs, when they're not busy doing other things," Wen-ci said absently as she picked up the corn cob.
"Is it really," Shal-ye asked, leaning in.
They both grinned as Wen-ci gently peeled the outer husk to reveal the ruby red kernels inside.
"We might have solved a few problems here," Wen-ci murmured to Shal-ye who nodded happily.