Bake Off!

The town plaza is bustling with activity, more than usual; all around the tower, you can see small kitchens installed, with the name of participants written on a sign right in front of them. Long tables have been placed along the outter walls of the plaza, making it easy for people to circulate between the stands; on top of those are a few food related activities, such as free cooking lessons, a few market stands with the best delicacies around, and a blind taste game where people need to guess what they're eating.

Many people have decided to join in the contest; this year, the theme is berries, and they're asked to bake a pie. The town is decorated in bright colors to match the theme, with red and blue tints. They're all ready to start baking, and hope the judges will elect them best cook in town, which is quite a honor.


((Reminder: Everyone is free to participate! However, if you decide not to join in, it's best to come up with a good excuse as to why your character isn't here since the whole town typically is present.
Feel free to start any new threads you'd like! This is just a general one where everyone can join.))

The Bake off was, just like every years, a perfect opportunity for Soh to bring home a lot of money; it always was a huge boost to his sales. Besides, he got to cook for a lot of people, which was admittedly something he loved doing.

That aside, if he won the title of best cook in town, he knew his restaurant would be even busier, which would fill him with pride; no really, this festival was probably one of his favorites.

That said the young man had just gotten his alloted ingredients, feeling thankful it was all given to him for free, and was currently looking for the stall he'd been given to bake at. He wasn't allowed to use his actual restaurant until he was done baking his entry for the contest, so he'd better get done with it quickly. Berries were fun to work with, and he hoped to make a delicious pie with them. He planned on using the same recipe for a small while afterward, just in case people liked it.

After getting to his attributed area, he started to busy himself with his food, a smile never leaving his face as he hummed happily.

[[Just FYI to anyone: If something's in italics it's a character's inner thought, but not verbally expressed.]]

Generally, a being like Caesar would never be seen at this type of event, but he felt he could use it to his advantage. The wheels in his head were turning non-stop: "Seems like everyone will show up, this will be a good chance to observe *her*, while under the safe guise of doing menial work." His informant & right hand man, Soh, explained the event's details & pleaded for assistance. "Normally, my answer would be an instant rejection but a certain realization changed that. There's no way anyone could pester me about my presence while using this opportunity to get closer to my prey. Having no need to conceal myself… it's almost too easy!” With a sly grin on his face, the white haired young man touched his chin, seemingly pleased with his cleverness. With every passing minute his excitement grew, but he coolly hid it as he nonchalantly leaned against Soh's newly designated stall.

After a small while, the humming stopped as Soh glanced toward his boss (and friend? He liked the idea, but Caesar was a complicated person to get along with). The man was annoying him just a little by standing her doing nothing- especially since he came along to help. Even if it probably was just some sort of scheme to create some ruckus in town.

"Could you hand me the flour? I'd appreciate it..."

That was the most he'd do to take his stand and make Caesar work really; he wasn't very good at confrontation and didn't want to create more trouble. It was nice to have company anyway, right? If Caesar thought he was subtle by just standing around like that, it was really his problem. At least if he looked like he was actively helping... Maybe it wouldn't all end up in disaster.

The sound of his servant's voice snapped Caesar back to reality & away from his grandiose thoughts.  "Hmph."  After displaying some slight annoyance, he started passing the flour to Soh.  Upon glancing around, Caesar noticed a certain Grimm famiglia member who was clearly gung-ho about their baking and the competition. "Where's the other half of the duo?" Referring to the clingy sister Caesar always saw at that person's side, Caesar's curiosity was piqued & he was debating with himself whether or not to ask Soh.

There was a faint scent tickling Caesar's nose that he would sometimes come across with in the forest, there was no doubt it belonged to the tiny *girl* who often donned a red cloak.  "Now that I think about it, wasn't she part of the same Grimm famiglia?"

By this point, Caesar couldn't stand all the unanswered questions piling up in his mind.  So, without being able to help himself he pointed in Hansel's direction and blurted out to Soh, "Why is he alone this time?"

Well that was better than nothing, he at least tried to participate some; and he did help him out, even if it had been reluctant. With a small thankful smile, the young man went back to working on his dough, making sure it'd be as perfect as he could get it.

Of course that would have been simpler if his boss didn't distract him. Looking up toward what Caesar was pointing at before setting his eyes back down on his future pie, he thought a little about it all.

"First of all he's in charge of the event, at least partly, from what I heard...And not his sister, so it might be why he's alone; also he's participating in the bake off, and she may not be interested, I think he's the one who does all the baking... I'm pretty sure she was feeling unwell lately. I hope she'll get better soon!"

There were many reasons why Hansel may be alone really, and in his opinion it wasn't a bad thing. He may make friends and mature a little while away from her after all.

While Caramia was part of the judge's pannel, there were no rules saying he couldn't bake something just for fun; sure, it wouldn't be judged, but still, it'd be fun. He always loved sharing what he baked after all, even if it was generally not the most fancy looking.

Of course, the don of a mafia family looked a little out of place at a cooking stall like that, but whatever; no matter what he'd been told, he wanted to do it and had gone through with it. It was rare for him to have an opportunity to do this after all.

It wouldn't take too long, and he was ready to go help if anything bad happened; he'd made sure to get here early and was already almost finished too, as he slid a pretty nice looking strawberry pie in the oven everyone was provided. It was a good excuse to check if everything worked out well too, right?

Leaning against the oven and enjoying the warmth emanating from it, he glanced around to see the competition; Soh was famous for being a good cook, and it wouldn't surprise him if he won. He pulled a bit of a face at the sight of his companion, making a mental note to keep an eye on him- and make sure security was reinforced around his guest. This could turn ugly.

Hansel was also busying himself with his entry, looking like he had fun; Caramia took a second to wave at him with a small smile, feeling pretty glad with the outcome of their collaboration. Most of the other cooks were present and hard at work, while the crowd was slowly but surely starting to appear and fill the streets. It looked like this event would be nice- as long as they kept Caesar in check.

Caesar expected a satisfying answer from Soh, one of his servant's true specialties was being in the know, and he certainly delivered.  After a brief pause & disregarding his companion's eagerness to return to the task at hand, Caesar continued, "This Hansel has some authority, you say?  Then, when it comes to the voting, it's possible he'll be shown favoritism.  I'm sure these people would rather see the award go to anyone in any faction compared to our kind."

Crossing arms and looking down with closed eyes, Caesar reasoned with himself, "It's unquestionable that Soh will be the rightful winner, but better to prepare him for the approaching disappointment of losing due to unfair practices, than for him to be caught off guard." Caesar bit his lip after a sudden realization, he was getting too concerned over the condition of someone who was just suppose to be a servant.  "Why does what may happen to him bother me?  It shouldn't make a difference!"  

Uncomfortable with his own feelings, Caesar lifted his eyes, glancing back at Soh and hoped no signs of his own awkwardness would be sensed.

Wow, so much pessimism coming from Caesar. Not was he was wrong, at least not in theory, but then it also came from ignorance. The rules were pretty clear; anyone on the panel of judges or anyone who had helped organise it all was disqualified. They were allowed to participate, but wouldn't get judged. So he really did have a big chance at winning this.

"He's not going to be judged..."

With a small sigh,He grabbed a bowl of blueberries he gently but firmly pushed in his boss' hands, all with a nice smile. His voice was low, barely above a whisper as he stood close to his boss after more or less forcing him to take the bowl.

"Why don't you help me by washing these? You did come to help me after all, people will grow suspicious if you only stand here glowering..."

When Hansel talked to them, the young cook turned,smiled at him and gave him a small nod, as a way to greet him.

"Hello Hansel! I'm sure your pies are going to be delicious, like always."

"Cheh." Caesar wanted to remind Soh that no matter who was voting in the end, they were both still outsiders. As he was about to open his mouth, they were approached by the young man who was just a recent topic of conversation, Hansel.

Of course, Soh instantly responded in his natural, warm manner. Caesar knew the question was directed to him, but he had no qualms about letting his servant interject to relieve him of dealing with this type of tedious socializing. Almost an expert at avoiding others, Caesar got engrossed in his berry washing. It was evident he felt out of his element because there was a bit of fruit squashed by his palms by the end of his task as proof.