Page 71 of Monster's Delight

“Worried you’ll get one wrong?” Aiden teased.

“When you put it like that, it sounds foolish.”

“No, no. I get it. Being unsure of even one ingredient can make you second-guess the rest.” Aiden squeezed my hand. “Do what you need to in order to feel confident.”

“Thanks.”

Aiden pushed open the swinging doors into the kitchen and we stopped cold.

The kitchen was a complete and utter disaster.

“What happened here?” I exclaimed, my jaw dropping.

We took cautious steps in, trying to avoid the worst of the food on the floor. At the first counter, I swiped my finger through the mess. “It feels like... batter?” I said, confused. “Did a cake explode in here?”

“Many cakes!”

We whipped around to the left, trying to spot the speaker.

“Is someone here?” Aiden asked.

A head popped up over the counter, a mixing bowl in their arms. Their hair was white, or perhaps covered in flour, and they immediately started pulling smaller bowls out of the bigger one, placing them in a semicircle on the counter in front of them. “I’m defending tomorrow morning at nine. It has to be perfect!” they said, and ran toward the fridge, puffs of flour remaining behind them.

I casually started a cleaning spell on the kitchen as we headed closer to the speaker. “Sounds exhausting.”

“Look,” Aiden whispered, pointing at five cakes on a table. Beside them were random other foods There was a magical barrier separating them from the rest of the kitchen, and the area inside the bubble was spotless.

“How many do you have to make?” I asked, trying to see around the fridge door.

“Only two, but they have to be perfect! They’re my thesis on replacement magic. Oh, I’m going tofail!” The white figure stopped in the middle of the kitchen and started crying, dropping everything in their arms.

Aiden sent a hovering spell to catch the items and carry them over to their workstation.

“I’m sure you’ll pass,” I said encouragingly. At Aiden’s nod, I added, “What do you need in order to feel more confident?”

Sniffling, they wiped their eyes, smearing more flour over their face. “I don’t know.”

“Why don’t you tell us about the ones you’ve finished?” I suggested. “Explain them to us as if we were your professor.”

“Oh. That could work. I’m Louis, by the way. This is my last year.”

“Since you mentioned your thesis, I kinda figured you were in your final year,” Aiden said.

I nudged him with my elbow and he squirmed out of reach. My stomach rumbled. “Louis, would it be possible for me to grab something to eat before you start your presentation? I’m starving.”

“Or we can listen to one presentation while we chew on some gum?” Aiden suggested, reaching into his pocket.

“No!” screamed Louis, his face ashen under the flour as he full on tackled Aiden.

Making a snap decision, I made the floor bouncy, and they came to no harm. I pulled Louis off. “What is going on?”

“No mint! Don’t you know what that will do?” he shouted.

“There’s mint all over the place. We use it in potions all the time. Obviously, I don’t,” I snapped.

“These creations are delicate. Mint would kill them!” Louis cried, standing in front of his magical barrier with his arms outstretched.

“It’s okay, we won’t go near them,” I said, trying to calm him down. “Why is mint such a volatile herb? I don’t understand.”

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