Chapter Three: Cooking Together

Two weeks had passed since the resolution of the fight between Myuke and Bram. The days were still cold, but miraculously, not one member of the Scarlett family had fallen ill. Anima never faced such a risk, for no illness could penetrate his body; Myuke, a veteran Hunter, wasn’t going to let a little cold weather take her down; Marie ate well, and had more than enough energy to run around both inside the house and out from dawn until dusk; Bram hated the cold, yet had become surprisingly lively despite it; and Luina usually sat back and relaxed, smiling gently while she watched her children play. Anima hoped that their carefree, problem-free days would continue forever, but deep down, he knew that such a future was unlikely. Everyone was as healthy as an ox, but he was worried that that would change, especially for Luina.

In the past, Luina had managed to run the orphanage on her own, which was no small feat. The average person definitely wouldn’t have been able to do what she did—she clearly had exceptional stamina and spirit. It was unlikely that she would catch a cold, and if she did, she would shrug it off in a couple of days.

Things were no longer that simple, though. Luina was pregnant. Even if she did shrug off a cold, there was no guarantee that it wouldn’t have grave, lasting effects on the child growing inside her. That, combined with the fact that her doctor had warned her that her immune system was weakened and she should take extra care to avoid catching a cold, made it easy to see why Anima was worried.

In spite of his internal struggles, however, he made a point to always wear a smile. He didn’t want to unnecessarily rile his family up. After the fight between the girls, Anima had promised himself to abandon his overly anxious demeanor and become a more levelheaded father. He had to act calm to ease everyone else’s minds.

“Anima?”

“Ah!”

Moments after reconfirming his pledge to be calm and collected, Anima was dragged back into the real world by someone calling his name. He turned around to find that it was exactly who he’d expected: Luina. Out in the garden to help take down the laundry that Anima had hung up to dry that morning, she was wearing her favorite fluffy coat and a scarf to keep herself warm, yet was visibly shaking as her white breath dissipated in the cold winter air.

“Is something the matter?” he asked her.

“Not really, you just didn’t react to me. I was wondering why.”

“Sorry, I got caught up thinking about something.” He looked around and noticed that the once-blue sky had started to take on a pinkish hue. The fact that he’d only just realized that meant that he’d been out of it for quite a while, so it was no wonder that Luina was concerned. She seemed to have calmed down after making sure her husband was okay, but just to be safe, he turned to her with a kind proposal. “I can do the rest; you should go in and lay down.”

“I want to help now that I’m outside. We’ll finish in no time if we work together.”

She didn’t want to take Anima up on his offer, but rather stay and keep working with him. Given that she was much more lively and talkative than she was when she was locked up inside the house, she had to have been enjoying herself. Anima couldn’t bring himself to force her inside.

“Are you cold?”

Regardless of her decision, he was still worried about her.

The snow they’d had two weeks prior had eventually melted away, revealing the cold ground underneath, and none had since replaced it. If there had been any snowfall while they were asleep at night, it had completely disappeared by daybreak. Even the five snowmen the girls had put all their effort into had given in to the relentless rays of the sun and melted away into nothingness.

Anima had feared that Marie’s crying when she’d realized that their snowmen had disappeared would tear him apart, but Myuke and Bram were quick to cheer her up.

“They didn’t melt away, they just left on a trip!”

“We’ll make them again next time there’s snow, m’kay?”

Their kind words had put a smile right back on her face. After the addition of Luina’s cooking and a ride on Anima’s shoulders, she had completely forgotten about the snowmen and regained her big, beautiful smile.

Either way, despite the lack of snow, the air was still extremely cold. The freezing wind cut straight through the bald forest to relentlessly assault their garden, yet Luina was braving it with a warm smile.

“I’m okay. The cold has never really bothered me.”

“Never? That’s incredible. All right, then would you care to help me?”

No matter how much he wished for her to stay warm and cozy all day long, he couldn’t lock her up and forbid her from doing the things she wanted to do. Were he to do that, not only would she get angry with him, but it was also sure to stress her out, which was the last thing he wanted. Luckily, she was doing well. She didn’t need to push herself like she had before marrying Anima.

“I’d love to,” Luina chirped back, then skillfully unpinned the clothes and put them into the basket.

Doing laundry had been one of Anima’s daily chores for the past few months, so he figured he had gotten pretty decent at it. In watching Luina, however, he quickly realized that he still had plenty of room to grow.

Ah, I should work as well.

Anima started taking the clothes down, glancing at Luina every couple of seconds to make sure she didn’t slip on the grass. Before long, their basket was piled high with clothes for five, and they were finished taking down the laundry.

“See? I told you we’d be done in a heartbeat.”

“Only because you’re good at this. I’m surprised you’re so swift in this cold.”

“I can do anything when you’re by my side.”

“I feel the same about you, but please, don’t overexert yourself.”

“You’re such a worrywart.”

“Of course I am. I love you, after all.”

“I love you too!”

Luina hugged him tightly as her face lit up. Anima wanted to stay calm, but he couldn’t possibly resist the butterflies in his stomach left by his wife’s hug. He locked his arms around her waist and hugged her back, to which she buried her face into his chest.

“You’re very cuddly today,” he commented.

“It’s because you spoil me every day. I might end up becoming needier than our little baby will be.” Her words reassured him that he was indeed helpful. Knowing that he lessened someone’s burden was enough to make him happy, but when that someone was his lovely wife, looking up at him with a mellow smile while snuggling up in his arms, it made him absolutely giddy. “I love your smile. It’s very cute.”

“You’re much cuter than I’ll ever be.”

“You’re making me blush.”

“Good. You’re extra cute when you blush.”

Anima fought to keep his feelings in check—as did Luina, who was looking up at him with her enchanting eyes—but his love was too powerful to fight off. He couldn’t resist the allure of his wife’s small lips, which remained moist and inviting even in the dry winter air.

He leaned in, and the two of them shared a kiss. When he finally drew his lips back, she fidgeted bashfully.

“I want more…” she whispered, looking deep into his eyes.

Time lost all meaning as Anima planted another kiss on Luina’s lips. It was just the two of them out in the garden—nothing else. Their lips drew apart once more, but Luina remained dazed for several moments.

“Anima… I love you.”

“I love you too. I would spend all day kissing you if I could, but we can’t have you catch a cold. Shall we go inside?”

“I suppose…”

Reluctantly, she let go of Anima. He picked up the laundry basket, and they made their way inside the house.

“We need to be quiet,” Luina warned as she slowly opened the door. “The girls are sleeping in the dining room.”

When he’d first gone outside, the girls had been sitting around the table drawing. Some time had passed since he’d left, though; they had apparently finished drawing and fallen asleep in that time.

Carefully, quietly, the two of them stepped into the kitchen. Luina had clearly stopped cooking to check up on Anima, as there was chopped cabbage sitting on the cutting board.

“Are you making a cabbage soup?”

“Yes, with sausages. Meat is important for a balanced diet.”

“I’m salivating already. Here, let me get the pot ready for you.”

After she’d given him her thanks, he poured water from the jug he’d filled at the well that morning into the pot.

“Oh no!”

Just as he set the pot on the stove, Luina let out a yelp. She looked a bit frazzled.

“What happened?!”

“We only have four sausages…”

Anima let out a sigh of relief. He was afraid she’d cut herself or something.

“I don’t need any in my portion,” he told her.

“You do!” she commanded. “You work a lot and need meat to fuel your stamina. A single sausage isn’t enough for the girls, either. They’re still growing; they need to eat well to stay healthy!”

Luina was absolutely right. While Anima didn’t care much about his own portion, he couldn’t let the girls starve. They loved meat, and they weren’t going to go without it on his watch.

“I’ll run to the town and buy some. The butcher should still be open.”

“Thank you so much.”

Grabbing both his copper coin-filled leather pouch and a basket, Anima promptly left for Garaat.

◆◆◆

The butcher was situated right behind the row of restaurants in Garaat’s commercial district. In order to get there, under the light of the setting sun, Anima had to walk the so-called “road of temptation”, named for the incredible aroma of freshly cooked food and the allure of beautiful women inviting passersby into nearby pubs that made detours incredibly difficult to resist. In fact, as if to demonstrate just how few and far between those able to conquer the road of temptation were, the crowd around him thinned out at an alarming rate as he walked.

Anima’s resolution was unshakable, though. He had places to go and things to do, and no worldly desire would stop him from reaching his goal. He also had the best food he’d ever eaten and the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen waiting for him at home. The women calling out to potential customers were beautiful, but they couldn’t hold a candle to Luina.

After walking the road of temptation for a couple of minutes, he hung a right at the intersection where most foodstuff shops were located—an area quite busy with people buying ingredients for dinner. He made a beeline to the butcher, who had dozens of salted hams, bacon strips, and sausages hanging on display.

“Welcome, Anima! What can I get for you today?”

A heavy-set man—the owner of the shop—peeked out from behind the curtain of meat. His mouth curled into a smile beneath his moustache, and his friendly tone reverberated through the building. As Luina had been buying meat from him ever since she was a little girl, and as the two of them had visited the area together countless times after getting married, he, like most other shop owners in Garaat, knew the both of them by name.

“I’d like this, please.”

Anima pointed at the rope sausages, each one long enough for around ten thick sausages.

“Just the one?” the man asked as he began coiling one up.

“Umm… Make it three, please.”

“Comin’ right up!”

He figured three ropes would be perfect. While it may have looked like a lot from an outside perspective, for a family of five, that meant each person would get about six sausages. Given that they ate sausage every day, they had enough to last a week.

At first he’d thought that it would have been better to buy more, as the more he bought the longer it would last, but he’d remembered something. By purchasing only a week’s worth, they would run out of milk at around the time they finished the sausages. Once that happened, they could simply purchase more of both at the same time and have them fresh.

While Anima was arranging his next shopping trip, the butcher finished coiling up his sausages, which he paid for and put into his basket.

“How’s Luina doing, by the way?” the man asked just as Anima was about to turn and head out. It wasn’t a surprising question, as he looked after Luina like his own daughter.

The news of her pregnancy had spread through the town like wildfire after she’d told the woman at the fruit stall about it. Just about every food seller knew about it, including the butcher. Anima appreciated that everyone was so concerned about her health, so he answered with a warm smile.

“She’s doing well.”

“Ahhh, that’s good. Great, even. Here, hold on a minute!” He grabbed a whole ham and handed it to Anima. “This is for Luina!”

“How much is it?”

“C’mon, now, I don’t need money. Luina’s like a daughter to me. Just have her come around one of these days to show that she’s doing well—that’s more than payment enough. Oh, and maybe you could let me hold the little one after they’re born. That’d make me the happiest man in the whole town!”

“Thank you,” Anima said, accepting the generous gift. “I’ll make sure to give it to her.”

“Good! Have her scarf it all down; this ham’ll bring her good health for the winter!”

“Maybe you should think twice before having her eat the whole damn thing,” a well-built lady chimed in. She was the owner of the fruit stall.

“Huh?” The butcher furrowed his thick eyebrows. “Are you tryin’ to say there’s something wrong with my ham?”

“Don’t be silly, I know perfectly well how delicious your cuts are.” The butcher’s scowl immediately became a smile. “Thing is, I don’t know about stuffing a pregnant woman full a’ ham that’s saltier than the ocean. You should give my sweetie some of my apples instead!”

The woman pushed a basket full of apples into Anima’s hands.

“You’ve given her enough apples to last a lifetime! And giving her food that’ll rot’s only gonna upset her stomach!”

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away!”

“Eat enough meat and know no defeat!”