It's cluttered, yes. A few open boxes, dishes spread out. But the appliances are gleaming. There's a huge window over the sink. The island is big enough to land a plane on.
"Oh," I breathe. "Okay. I see why you needed me. This oven needs respect."
"We have no idea what we're doing," Malcolm says, leaning against the counter with a mug. "The last place had a stove older than we are."
Alex hops up on the stool at the far end. "Whatever you want to make. We are not picky. Finn is, but he'll eat anything if you call it experimental."
"Lies. Slander."
I set my notebook on the island and start pulling ingredients. Flour. Sugar. Butter. They've got the basics. Malcolm fetches things when I ask; Finn peppers me with questions; Alex just watches.
In a nice way.
"What do you want to start with?" Finn asks.
"Chocolate chip cookies are the law. Then we can get weird."
Finn beams. "Oh, we are absolutely getting weird. I bought cardamom."
"Cardamom is not weird. Cardamom is holy."
"Marry me." He catches himself. "Uh. Platonically. Packronically. I'm very attached to not dying."
Alex rolls his eyes, fond. "You're safe. From me, anyway. Malcolm might kill you if you steal his coffee."
Malcolm raises his mug. "I would consider it."
It's easy.
We measure and mix. Finn helps cream butter and sugar, tongue sticking out in concentration. Malcolm cracks eggs like a pro. Alex takes over dish duty.
Their scents stay mild and weirdly blank, but their energy is warm. No edge. No eggshells.
"Okay," Finn says after the first tray goes into the oven. "I have questions."
"Of course you do," Malcolm says.
"How does someone like you, with this level of baking skill, end up banned from her own kitchen?"
I freeze.
Alex's gaze sharpens.
"You don't have to—" he starts.
"It's fine."
"It's not," Finn says. "You avoid our questions like we're the registry."
He's not wrong.
I busy my hands with lining another tray.
"My pack has a lot going on. We had a bad incident. I handled it badly. I got punished. Like Ragon said. The kitchen used to be my job. It became my hobby. Baking especially. Now it's sort of Marie's space, too."
"And you got booted."
"I got sidelined. I was always in her way. She didn't even know how to cook when she came. But she's been learning. They still let me cook sometimes, but there isn't much room for baking."
