For all the things
Slashback is there's also something he is not. He is neurotic but he is not cruel. He is moody but he is not extremely unreasonable. He is good with technology but he is not a baker. So why he's being tasked with baking a cake, he's pretty unsure of. He's not familiar with it, and honestly, he has no interest in learning really. There's a lot of mess involved in baking and "mess" does not go well with "sensitive machine parts." He sat hunched over and off to the side in the bakery's store-front, making sure he was out of the way of any potential customers.
He was being expected to help this other Plate Dragon, Mr. Churro, with preparing cakes for his business. He didn't know how he got into this situation, and really didn't know how to get out of it without having to go through the motions of making at least one cake. Slashback had several issues with this, though. Firstly, he does not want to get dirty, and baking is messy in general. Secondly, because 'baking is messy in general' he does not want to ruin his Television Screen by wearing it while he is baking. Thirdly, he doesn't want to take his screen off around and just expose his face around others. Finally, and this is possibly the most important issue: he does not know how to bake. However, Slashback also does not have another way to get out of doing this, and he's going to have to figure out what he's going to do about all this quickly, as it seems Mr. Churro is reemerging from the back with an extra apron for him. Great.
Slashback growled to himself, he could probably afford to let his body get dirty. His screen, however, will need to get put elsewhere to keep it from getting water, flour, or anything else inside it. He'd just have to deal with having his face exposed for a while. Mr. Churro, then, would have to deal with him being unhappy about it. As if seeming to have sensed this coming, Mr. Churro simply motioned to an oddly convenient space under the front counter where Slashback could safely store its Television Screen for the time being. With that stashed away, Mr. Churro was suddenly in Slashback's space, excitedly throwing the apron on Slashback and tying the knots to hold it on. By the time Slashback had processed that Mr. Churro was in his space and figured out that he very much did not enjoy this, the other Plate Dragon was already turning away and leading him into the bakery's kitchen. Slashback followed along miserably. Better to get this process started now so it can be over with faster.
The kitchen itself was, in Slashback's mind, a bit of a wreck. In reality, this was probably something considered acceptable to bakers, and probably normal for a busy bakery. To Slashback though, it was a mess that was already starting to set him on edge - even more so than he normally is, anyway. Still, there was a decent amount of actual machine technology back here, and Slashback found that his technomancy was compatible with the majority of it, so perhaps this process would go better than he thought. What's more was that Mr. Churro was now spreading a book out on a dusty - no, a flour-covered table. He motioned and Slashback reluctantly shuffled over to peer at it. It was obviously a recipe book, though everything in it seemed to be relatively simple and easy to make, Slashback observed as Mr. Churro flipped through the pages. Whatever he was looking for, he seemed to find as he stopped his page turning on a recipe for a Simple White Cake.
Mr. Churro told him that he was to make one, and that all he'd need to do was follow the directions in that book. Slashback narrowed his eyes at the page. It seemed easy enough. It felt almost deceptively so. Nonetheless, Slashback wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. Ten minutes of prep time, thirty minutes of cook time, a list of simple ingredients that were all things Slashback was familiar with. This could work; he could make a cake for Mr. Churro and then he could go home.
Step one, gather your ingredients. Easy enough. Slashback made his way around the kitchen, getting just what he needed in the quantity that he needed it. One cup of white sugar. Half a cup of unsalted butter. Two large eggs and half a cup of milk. One and a half cups of all-purpose flour. One and three-fourths teaspoons - it had, admittedly, taken him a moment to figure out what teaspoons were versus tablespoons - of baking powder, and finally 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract.
Step two, preheat the oven and grease an appropriately sized cake pan. Slashback looked over and, oh, it seemed Mr. Churro had done him the favor of already having set and turned on the oven for him. That was nice. Now what was an appropriately sized cake pan? Slashback stalked over to the assortment of clean pans. He squinted at them, tilting his head one direction and then the other. It seems that Mr. Churro notices his uncertainty, as the other Plate Dragon helpfully tells him to pick the mid-sized square shaped pan. Slashback grunts out an appreciative noise and took it back to grease up at his table.
Steps three and four, using the mixer. Slashback followed the combining steps carefully. Cream sugar and butter in the mixing bowl first, then the eggs. He willed the machine to life for a brief moment between additions. Vanilla now, too. Off to the side, he combined the flour and baking powder in a separate bowl and then carefully mixed them into the wet ingredients. Slashback let the machine mix them for a moment before adding the milk and watching the machine mix until the batter seemed smooth.
Steps five and six; batter into the pan and pan into the oven. Slashback poured the cake batter into the pan carefully, doing what he could to ensure that it all got in. He picked up the pan and turned to put it into the oven but Mr. Churro stopped him before he could. The other Plate Dragon took the pan from him, pushing a pair of oven mitts into his paws. Right, right, he would probably need some kind of protection against the heat when using the oven. Slashback put them on and Mr. Churro returned his cake to him. He slid it into the oven.
Seeming satisfied enough with this, Mr. Churro clapped him on the shoulder. He told Slashback that he was free to leave now, his first lesson in baking now complete. Slashback blinked back at the other Plate Dragon. 'His first lesson?' There were more coming? What had Slashback gotten himself into? Mr. Churro was now ushering him out of the bakery's kitchen, though, only after having pushed that recipe book that he'd let Slashback reference into his paws. He told the confused Plate Dragon that he was free to keep the apron and the cookbook as long as he'd keep baking! Slashback, confused and unsure what to make of all this, simply took the items and collected his TV screen before making a quick escape. Honestly, he wasn't sure if he was going to return any time soon. The process was easy enough, for now, but Slashback was worried about what more was potentially to come from this all.
Word Count: 1,266
