Page 47 of The Lone Wolf Café
I felt so guilty at having failed, especially since Aria had been helping me all morning. I had summoned her with the mark on my neck, just like Rowena had instructed, and she was more than willing to get to work. She was remarkably skilled in the kitchen for such a small, mousey elemental. She could lift herself up on a gust of wind to reach the top cabinets, and she even summoned a mini tornado to spin the dough in the bowl.
Which saved me a lot of time and elbow grease,I chuckled as tears pooled in my eyes.
My frustration softened. In the end, there was nothing more I could do. I couldn’t just magically summon baking skills I hadn’t learned yet.
I just hoped Rowena wouldn’t be too upset.
At that moment, there was a hard knock on the door that nearly sent me jumping out of my skin. I sighed. There was only one person that knock could belong to.
Better to get this over with now.
“Come in,” I shouted weakly over my shoulder.
The door creaked open, and Rowena looked mildly concerned as she peered out from behind the aging wood. I wondered if she’d heard my groans of frustration all the way in the front of the shop.
“You alright?” Rowena asked. She seemed more concerned than upset. I stumbled to my feet, trying to appear as composedas possible. Thankfully, the tears had subsided, and my ears and tail hadn’t popped out. For a moment, all felt normal.
Then Rowena’s gaze flicked over to the mess of cookies on the counter, and I winced.
“I’m… I’m really sorry…” I stuttered as Rowena walked slowly toward the counter. She paused and picked up one of the poorly frosted sugar cookies, one that had way too much icing on one side and not enough on the other. She studied it like some ancient artifact, but her face was devoid of emotion. The anticipation of her reaction made me tremble with anxiety.
“I should’ve just been honest with you,” I continued blabbering as she surveyed the rest of the cookies. “I’d never worked with frosting or sprinkles before. I didn’t realize how difficult the piping would be. I can learn… with time… but…”
I slumped against the counter again, curling my cloak around myself and pulling the hood tightly over my head.
And it was just in time. I could feel my wolf ears pressed up against the fabric.
Damn it. Curse these stupid ears. I swear to the gods…
“Nettie…” Rowena uttered my name in a soft and concerned tone. It should’ve brought me comfort to hear her being so compassionate.
But instead, I burst into tears.
Like a child.
I cried harder as Rowena knelt next to me, steadying her hands on my shoulders just like she’d done the day before.
“I failed,” I blubbered through my tears.
“No, you didn’t,” Rowena replied. Her response was so level and factual it made me snap out of my sobs.
“W-what do you mean?”
“Nettie,” Rowena sighed, rising to her feet and picking up one of the sugar cookies. “Trying something new and not getting itperfect on the first try isn’t failure. That’s how we learn. Failing is what leads to success.”
I let out a long, slow breath. “I know. But I don’t really have time to learn. We need to sell cookies today, and these–” I gestured up at the counter, “–are a disaster.”
Rowena pursed her lips as her eyes scanned the rows of cookies. “That depends on how you define the word ‘disaster’.”
I cocked my head, and Rowena chuckled.
“Here, take a look,” Rowena pointed at the sugar cookies, and I stumbled to my feet so I could see over the counter.
“See that first row there? Those have the messiest icing jobs. But if you go down the rows–” Rowena dragged her finger across the countertop. “–you’re getting progressively better with each cookie. I wouldn’t call that a failure.”
I frowned, lifting the very last sugar cookie off the parchment paper. It had green frosting with orange pumpkin sprinkles. “I mean… this one isalmostsellable. At least the frosting layers are even.”
Rowena plucked the cookie from my hands and surveyed my icing job. And to my surprise, she raised it to her mouth and took a large bite.
