(Flashback) Ginger Men (Kendall)

by **Aello** on April 3rd, 2011, 12:30 am

1 Winter, 506 AV

Aello was was walking silently through the snow. Her mother's long green cloak was wrapped tightly around her. The hood was pulled up. The edges of the woolen fabric swayed in the wind as her feet crunched through a sheet of pure white, newly fallen snow that seemed to sparkle in the pale sunlight. In her hands was a large white, crinkled bag of brown sugar. The top of the bag had been curled into itself and bound by a thin red ribbon. Tucked under the girl's sleeve was a thin piece of parchment. It was rough, tinted yellow, and curling around the edges. The parchment was fastened in place by a thin black ribbon.

Aello's mother had helped her write everything depicted on it earlier in the day. The parchment, although small, held several words in the Common language, all scrawled in a neat cursive. The vowels seemed to curl into the consonants, and the edges of the last letters seemed to drag across the page in an artful black ink. It was her mother's handwriting, Aello's own was too difficult to read.

The parchment held the recipe Aello's mother knew for making gingerbread men. It had been decided several days before that Aello would bring the recipe for her and her friend Kendall to refer to during their latest attempt at baking. The parchment read-

Gingerbread Men Recipe:

Ingredients

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup water

Directions

1- Cream the shortening and the sugar. Sift the flour together with the salt, soda and spices. Mix the flour mixture into creamed mixture. Alternate between the molasses and water. Chill for at least 1 hour.
2- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
3- Roll the dough until it is a quarter of an inch thick. Cut with gingerbread men-shaped cookie cutters. Lift onto lightly greased cookie sheet with broad spatula.
4- Bake above oven center for about 12 minutes or until cookies spring back lightly in center. Do not overcook, they won't stay soft. Remove from sheets. Cool on wire racks.
5- Eat the cookies.

The girl smiled pleasantly. Aello was really excited to see Kendall, and to bake. Baking was always good, since it left you with something sweet to eat. Assuming you didn't burn whatever it was you were making. We better not burn anything, Aello thought as another breeze swept her hood off her head, and sent her hair whipping wildly about her face. The girl growled as she held the sack of brown sugar more tightly, pressing it into her chest. "At least we'll be there soon," she whispered as she fought the wind to keep moving forward.

"Just a little more," Aello whispered as she lowered her head a bit, seemingly bowing to the sky. She was hoping it'd force the wind to cut around her, causing her to feel a little less chilly. Of course, if anything, her attempt only gave her a nasty head cold.

After several more minutes of walking, Aello reached the Saarinen's house. Since she didn't have any available hands, the girl kicked the door lightly. She felt bad about doing it, especially because her mother had always told her that it was rude to kick somebody else's door, but she didn't know what else to do. "Kendall, it's Aello," she called as she placed her foot back on the snow-covered ground. "Please come open the door, it's really cold out here," she called, as a shiver shot up her spine. A trickle of white mist poured out of the edges of her mouth, giving the illusion that she had been smoking. Of course, she hadn't been, the freezing air simply reflected the temperature outside.

References :

by **Kendall Saarinen** on April 3rd, 2011, 4:24 am

As Kendall waited for Aello to show up for their cookie baking session she sat facing her family's piano playing idly. Her mother no longer forced her to play but at times when she did not feel like writing she would play over the songs that had been drilled into her mind as a child. The melodic rhythm of her mother's teaching seemed to echo in the back of her mind as she played. "Start with C major. Good, good. Now move to D minor." She moved her fingers over the keys slowly, letting the notes ring through the house. She smiled at the sound coming from the family piano. She loved the fact that she could make music out of thin air like that. Where once there was silence there was now a melody. It was a simple melody but music none the less.

The music made Kendall want to sing. She hummed along to the repeating chords for a bit and then began to sing a song. "In this city, down by the shining sea. We sail by the moonlight when the air is clear and free. The water's song carries past the docks and mingles with the night. Keeping Zeltiva tranquil until the morning light..." A knock at the door interupted her song. "It must be Aello!" Kendall rushed to the door and smiled at her friend standing in the snow. With a small squeal she hugged her and ushered her into the house.

Kendall's house was a good size and decorated a bit more nicely than most houses in Zeltiva. The house held an air of scholarly charm although Kendall's brothers had made sure it had a bit of their sailor influence as well. Kendall smiled as she took the ingredients and the recipe from Aello's hands. "You can just throw your coat anywhere you like. If anyone gets upset about it I'll take the heat for you." She highly doubted her family would be upset about it. They did not get bothered by things like that although if the coat stayed there for a few days her mother would start to get a little peeved.

Grabbing Aello's wrist, Kendall pulled her friend down the hall and into the kitchen. The kitchen was large but only because it needed to serve six people three times a day. "Okay, let's get started Aello!" Kendall placed the sugar down on the counter and looked over the recipe. Placing her hands on her waist she looked around the kitchen trying to think of where her mother had put the other ingredients they would need. As she rummaged through the cabinets she began to question Aello about her life. "So, any boys catching your eye lately?" Kendall loved to talk about boys. She had learned to try and tone down her talk about Kay'lan around others. It didn't mean she never brought him up though. "You know Kay'lan and I would always love to double date with you if someone catches your eye."

After the ingredients were laid out on the counter Kendall looked over to Aello with a smile. "Okay, time to make these little guys. To bad more guys cannot be this sweet." She could not wait to get started with the recipe. She was not too skilled in cooking but she always wanted to learn.

by **Aello** on April 3rd, 2011, 6:00 pm

"Thank you," Aello said as soon as the door swung open and Kendall invited her inside. The girl gave her a little squeeze before taking everything she had brought. As soon as Kendall had let go of her, Aello unclasped her mother's cloak, and placed it gently on the door knob to dry. When the door was shut, Aello found herself being dragged towards the kitchen. "You know, we both know the way to your family's kitchen Kendall. There is no need to drag your friend along," Aello complained as the girl's fingers began to dig into her wrists.

As soon as they had reached the kitchen, Kendall let go of Aello. Aello's right wrist had turned red, she rubbed her wrists delicately with her left hand as Kendall ran around her kitchen. The young spiritist giggled, "well you know how they all are Kendall- heads stuck in the clouds, or perhaps buried underwater until they're forced to come up for air or risk drowning. It's all they every think about you know- being out at sea. Having their own boat, being able to see the world." Aello sighed. "It just seems like they never have time for anything else... like girls, or cooking, or cleaning and helping out around the house."

There was another pause before Aello spoke again as soon as she had pulled out a seat and situated herself at the head of the table. "You got really lucky with Kay'lan. Do you know that Kendall?" Aello inquired. "Really lucky. It seems like there are no Zeltivan men quite like him... maybe it's because he is a Vantha or something." Aello began to twirl her long brown hair around her finger. "But should anyone ever be proof that our little rule is wrong, then perhaps we can finally go on that double-date," Aello giggled. She could hear drawers and cabinets opening and shutting. Silverware clinking as drawers opened and were forcefully shut. The shuffling of jars and sacks of various ingredients. "Do you need help?" Aello called over her shoulder to Kendall. "Or are you finding everything ok?"

Aello pressed her feet into the floor, and pushed her seat back. She wouldn't have much more time to sit idly anyway, so perhaps it was best for her to get up. She hadn't replied to Kendall's last question yet, but that was because she didn't have anything nice to say. Aello's mother had always told her not to speak if you had nothing nice to say, but then again, she had already bad-mouthed all the boys of Zeltiva, so why stop there?

Aello giggled when a reply came to mind, "it's because they're not made out of sugar!" With that, she walked over to Kendall. "Is that everything?" Aello asked as she surveyed everything Kendall had gotten out. It seemed like a lot of things- various ingredients, spatulas, large wooden spoons for mixing, and of course, the recipe, but it still didn't seem like enough. Aello reached across the table for the recipe, and mentally checked everything off as she went along the list of ingredients. No, that's everything. The girl shrugged, "it seemed like there would have been more," she said absently as her eyes continued onto the first direction.

"We have to cream a half a cup of shortening and a half a cup of packed brown sugar. Do you want to measure the shortening, while I deal with the sugar?" Aello asked, as she reached across the counter for the ingredient she had carried through the snow to Kendall's house.

OOCI don't know why I had her go to the table... *facepalms*

by **Kendall Saarinen** on April 8th, 2011, 10:17 pm

Kendall smiled sweetly at Aello. "I know. He is great isn't he? He is so poetic too." She loved the Vantha more than life itself and she was glad her friend liked him. She would have been a bit surprised if Aello didn't like him. In her eyes Kay'lan was the definition of perfect. He was handsome, talented, and of course everyone else loved him. There was nothing left to be desired. "I'm sure you will find someone Aello. If not, there are many more boys past the limits of Zeltiva. That is if you feel like abandoning me in the persuit of a boyfriend!" She giggled as she rummaged through the cabinets. "Of course, a girl's gotta go what a girl's gotta do right?" Kendall could not imagine leaving Zeltiva. She had everything she wanted right in the city. A handsome boyfriend, a loving family, and of course great friends. As far as she was concerned, the rest of the world didn't matter.

When the pair was ready to start the baking Kendall nodded to Aello. "Yes, that is fine with me." As she began to measure the shortening she sang quietly to herself. Kay'lan had taught her a few Vani songs telling her that her beautiful voice would only make the flawless songs more perfect. Not wanting to disturb her friend, she began to sing quietly.

"Oh Morwen's glow, guide me home
For there is no place else I would ever care to roam
The everwinter winds are like sweet breezes to me
For I am nothing without the lights off the Talderian sea
The bears of white will guard my home against all who wish me harm
So I can sleep so very soundly without a hint of alarm
The ice may blister those of the southern land
But that holds no accord to me
For I have found my darlings hand
In the snowy land off the sea"

Kendall smiled as she rembered the first time Kay'lan had sang the song to her. She had been enchanted by the words even before he had translated it into common tounge. She looked over to Aello holding up her measured shortening with a smile. "All done! Now we need to..." Kendall looked over the directions quickly to find the next step. "Measure the flour, soda, salt and spices. Hmmm..., I'll take the spices and the salt if you would measure the flour and soda. When you are ready of course!" There was no rush behind her words, just a flair of excitement. She could not wait to show the cookies off to Kay'lan. "I wonder if they had gingerbread men in Avanthal?" She had been begging the Vantha to teach her some Avathanlian cooking but he was strongly against it claiming "The Snowsong do not cook, we leave the to the the Winterflames." He spoke so highly of the Snowsongs that Kendall often wondered if they were better than the other holds. They sure seemed like they were.

Carefully Kendall began to measure out the spices, letting them fall neatly into the cup. She smiled as the smell of spices filled her nose. "Mmmmm, it smells so good!" When the spices were measured she repeated the step with the salt as well. "So Aello, who are you going to share your little men with?"

by **Aello** on April 8th, 2011, 11:47 pm

Aello grabbed a small measuring cup as well as the sack of sugar she had brought over to Kendall's house. She unfurled the top of the bag, and lifted it in her right hand. She cupped her hand across the side of the sack with the left, and proceeded to pour the dark brown grains into the measuring cup. When the grains had tumbled over the "1/2 cup" mark, Aello tilted the sack of brown sugar again, so that it was upright. She put it down lightly on the table, and reached for a small spoon. The girl's pale fingers wrapped around the handle of the spoon. Her left hand held the side of the measuring cup as she lightly pressed the sugar granules into the bottom of the cup. When she had packed it tightly, and it would no longer budge, Aello realized that she had only reached a quarter of a cup. Only halfway there, she told herself as she reached for the sugar sack again, and proceeded to pour some more into the measuring cup. When the sugar had tumbled over the 3/4 cup mark, Aello placed the sugar back down on the table. She lifted the spoon again, and packed the sugar. When it was done packing, it came just over the 1/2 cup mark. "Good enough," Aello whispered as she poured it into the bowl with the shortening Kendall had measured.

Aello laughed. "Of course a girl has to do what she has to do to find love." There was a slight pause. "Hopefully, it isn't much though, no one likes to work too hard for anything. But then again, if you don't work too hard for anything, how good can anything be?" There was another pause. "People should be worth fighting for, right Kendall?" Aello asked as she pulled a whisk off the table, and pulled the bowl with the shortening and brown sugar closer to her. She held the whisk in her right hand, and the rim of the bowl in her left. Slowly, Aello began to move the whisk around in a counter-clockwise circle. Slowly, she picked up speed, until she was whipping the contents of the bowl around rather rapidly. The shortening seemed to darken as the brown sugar mixed into it. "You know, it'd be nice if the directions told us how long we are supposed to do this for," Aello commented as her arm started to grow sore. "Getting this stuff to cream is hard work."

Aello's palms were growing sweaty. The edges of her fingers had turned a bright red color, and her skin was starting to itch. Hopefully this won't leave any blisters or anything. How could you attract a guy with those things on your hands? After several minutes, the mixture began to grow a little less lumpy, and far more smooth. Small clumps of sugar could still be seen lingering within the depths of the mixture. "Hopefully this is about right," Aello commented as she began to slow her arm down. The edges of the bowl were lined with both the sugar crystals, and the shortening. They seemed to drip down the sides at times, and others, they simply seemed stuck there. The edges of the bowl contained the occasional bubble, as though Aello had mixed so quickly, the substance had grown frothy. Slowly, Aello pulled the whisk out of the bowl, and tapped it lightly on the side of the bowl to get the goop off. When she had gotten off as much as she could, Aello lay the whisk across the top of the bowl. She looked up at Kendall, "flour and baking soda? No problem."

Aello pulled the recipe across the table so that she could check her measurements. She glanced over the list, "three and a quarter cups of flour, and a teaspoon of baking soda," she mumbled under her breath as she reached for the sieve. She rested it over the top of the bowl. "We're going to have to sift everything?" Aello groaned. It was a rhetorical question. More than three cups of flour? Do you know how long that will take and how much our arms are going to hurt? Aello remained silent however, as she dipped a measuring spoon she had pulled off the table into the bowl containing the baking soda. She scooped up a small portion of the white powder, and shook off the excess. She lifted the baking soda over the sieve, and then poured it out. She placed the measuring spoons back on the table, before measuring out each of the cups of flour. After each cup, she poured the flour into the sieve with the baking soda. When she reached the last quarter cup, Aello smiled, "that's the last bit," she said. "Are you done adding the other spices and stuff Kendall? Because now we get to sift this mess."

After Aello posed her final question, she realized that Kendall's still lingered in the air, unanswered. Aello bit her bottom lip as she took a moment to think. She had a funny feeling Kendall would share a few with her boyfriend. It made Aello wish she had one all the more. The girl's eyes seemed to loose their sparkling edge for a moment, before her reply. "Probably just the family. You know how little brothers love eating sweets, don't you Kendall?" Aello said with a laugh. "What about you? Who are you sharing them with? Or are you keeping them all to yourself?" Aello inquired.

by **Kendall Saarinen** on April 17th, 2011, 9:07 pm

Kendall could not agree more. "You should have seen Kay'lan and me before we were together. We hated each other. I always thought he was a pompus jerk and he thought I was too stubborn. We got over our differences though. We did fight a lot to get there sadly. I guess that is what made it worth it." Kay'lan was still a bit stuck up but Kendall imagined that it was just because he was different than the Zeltivans. He wasn't purely human like everyone else, he was Vantha. Besides, he was marked by a Goddess, that had to mean he was special.

Kendall gave Aello a small nod as she worked with her own ingredients. "I suppose if our treats work out well we could write the amount of time in ourselves. Then we would be offical bakers." She held the measuring cup over her head triumphantly as she spoke. "That way, if this whole writer business doesn't work out for me I always have baking to fall back on." The words were partially joking. Making one batch of cookies and adding a single note to a recipe was hardly calibur of being a professional chef. She could pretened though. Imagination was always a good trait for a writer-to-be. "What about you Aello? What do you want to do when it is time for you to get a job?" Kendall tried to think of what her friend might do as a job. She was good at magic although Kendall was unsure about what job that could get her. The dream of being a writer had been strong in Kendall since she heard her first story. She wanted to be the one to make up the imaginary words and people that kids heard of when they were being tucked into bed. As she got older she started to wish for more mature outlets of her talent. She wanted to write stories that people her age or older would enjoy. It all seemed to be evolving and constantly changing but that made her asperations that more interesting.

"I'm all ready to sift when you are!" Kendall rummaged through the cabinets of the kitchen until she found a sifter and set it down in front of Aello. "Here we are." Kendall pulled the directions in front of her and studied the words written in Aello's mother's handwriting. "Sift the flour with the other ingredients. Does that mean throw them all into the sifter and then just... go for it or what?" She was a little confused with the directions. "Maybe we put all the ingredients together and then sift the flour over them? What do you think?" Kendall had thought she knew how to follow directions well. She seemed to have no issue with it in the classroom. She hoped Aello would know. If not, they would wing it which could go either very well or horribly wrong.

"I would imagine they do! I've never had a little brother. I'm the baby of the family." She smiled as she looked down at the ingredients on the table. "I suppose I will give some to Kay'lan and his family. Kay'lan seems to look down on people who cook and bake though. I think it is an Avanthal thing." Kay'lan had always made a stink about how he and his family were never going to lower themselves to cook meals. That, according to him, was a Winterflame's job not a Skyglow's. "I will share them with my family too. Maybe I'll bring some to the university and share them with my classmates."

by **Aello** on April 18th, 2011, 1:18 am

"Never really thought about it before," Aello replied, as she lifted one end of the metal sieve in her right hand. The front portion was shaped like a small bowl, made of silver wire. The wire was woven together so that it formed a sort of basket, which was attached to a circular metal strip. The strip kept the woven part in place, and was attached to a thin metal handle. Now that Aello thought about it, the sieve kind of looked like a large metal spoon. That was mesh...

Aello's fingers wound themselves more tightly around the silver handle as she started to shake the sieve ever so slightly. From time to time she'd tap the side with her left hand in order to help the sifting process along. Powdery white masses fluttered out of the bottom of the sieve, like snow. "Maybe an archery instructor or something," Aello finally replied. "Archery is fun." Aello kept sifting the flour, "and I think we do everything at once." Aello stopped what she was doing, and lay the sieve over the top of the mixing bowl. She had just realized that she had more than likely put a little too much in the sieve, and that if she wasn't careful, some of the flour mixture may spill out over the top.

Aello looked up at Kendall. You know, using a sifter would be smart. "Maybe if we scoop up some of the flour mixture in the sieve, we can transfer it to the sifter, and can finish everything in half the time?" Aello suggested. She had a funny feeling the process would be quite the mess, but she knew that came with the territory. The two were baking, and as of now, sifting flour. That stuff always made a mess, and left you looking like the ghost that lived in Aello's attic. Well, as close to looking like Fred as one could get while they were still alive.

Aello pulled a wooden spoon off the table, as well as the sifter. She brought everything over to her, and began to scoop the flour mixture from the sieve to the sifter. When the sifter was full, she handed it back to Kendall. She put the spoon back down on the table, and lifted the sieve again in her right hand. She was absently sifting the flour mixture as she said, "you know, if the whole instructing thing doesn't work out, I wouldn't mind running a bakery with you." There was a slight pause as Aello's eyes lit up playfully, and her voice got a little louder. Now it was filled with excitement, "but it won't be just any bakery Kendall. It will be a bakery that only sells gingerbread men... and women." The girl added, as though it were little more than an afterthought. "And we'll decorate them with various colored icing, and when they're too adorable to eat, we'll set them out on the counter for people to come and enjoy." There was another slight pause as Aello caught her breath. Her right hand was trembling, the flour mixture falling wildly out of the sieve and into the mixing bowl like an angry snowstorm. "We'll call it GINGER MEN." Aello's eyes seemed to sparkle as the words left her lips.

Aello fell silent for several moments as she continued to sift. She was now a quarter of the way done with what was left in her pile of work. Finally, she said, "so what do you think Kendall? Do you like that idea?" a smile had crossed the girl's lips, and she looked positively radiant, if not a little playful. Her fingertips were covered in flour, as were the edges of her clothes. After a moment, she started to giggle, "you know Kendall, your friend is kind of surprised you're not jealous, because here she is being all creative, and you're the one struggling to read her mom's recipe!" Aello finally burst out laughing, and placed the sieve over the bowl again. She continued to laugh for a few moments, before calming down, and wiping a tear away from her eye with the back of her hand. "Sorry Kendall, but it was just to cute a notion to pass up," she said, before picking up the sieve, and finishing her work. "So what do we do after this?" Aello asked.

OOCI tend to use a sieve when I sift things... so high tech over here. Erm... we share the work? Cuz sifting takes forever. Erm... sorry this post is a little awkward.

by **Kendall Saarinen** on May 18th, 2011, 5:05 pm

Weapons never made much sense to Kendall. She knew what they were of course! She wasn't uneducated. She had never put herself into their world though. Weapons hurt and killed things. All of the mess of blood and pain was the farthest from what she wanted. She liked quiet libraries and dancing with Kay'lan. She smiled softly at Aello as she continued to sift her ingredients. "I think you would be good at it. If you love something then it will never be a job. Just a pastime you get paid for. Right?" At time she wondered if she would even need to get a job when she got older. Her fantasy of course was for Kay'lan to take her to Avanthal. She would be like a princess there with her Snowsong husband.

"We can do that." Kendall nodded as she acted on Aello's suggestion. She tried to carefully pour the flour into the sieve but some of the powder managed to escape. The flour looked like snow covering the counter. "I hope I can go to Avanthal someday. Kay'lan talks so beautifully about it." She ran her finger through the flour on the counter, leaving an empty trail in it's wake. "Is there anywhere you would like to see?" Maybe Aello would like Wind Reach. From what Kendall had heard of their people they were fantasic archers.

"Thanks." Kendall smiled at Aello as she tool the sieve from her. She began to sift the ingredients as she listened to Aello speak. She giggled at the thought of having a bakery with Aello. It would be extremely fun. She knew that for sure. She worried a bit about it though. Kay'lan did not seem to respect bakers and cooks very much. What if he left her because she wanted to be a baker? "I think that would be fun. We would have to practice a bit though. I think we might have a way to go before we are ready to bake for Mizas." That could hold off the dream a bit. At least enough to get the proud Vantha comfortable with his future wife being a culinary artist. "It would be interesting to have it here in Zeltiva. We can give everyone a break from ou normal, nasty food." She wrinkled her nose in discust as she smiled. The issue was, where would they get the supplies for so many baked goods. "Maybe we could have it in a different city. There are so many out there. Can you believe I've never left Zeltiva."

In a childish act Kendall stuck her tounge out at Aello. "Bite me. I'm trying my hardest." She smiled as she looked over to the recipe. "It says we need to mix the ingredients together alternating between molasses and water." She chewed on her lip a bit as she looked for some molasses. "I suppose I can mix with the molasses and you can with the water. Unless I am misunderstanding the directions." She poured the sticky liquid into the measuring cup until it reached the 3/4 line. After she poured it into the mixture and started to stir. "After this we let it chill for a bell."

by **Aello** on May 18th, 2011, 8:16 pm

"That makes sense," Aello said as she reached for a measuring cup, and pulled it closer to her, before she reached for the recipe, and took a gander. A quarter cup of water, Aello read, as she walked over to the sink, turned on the faucet, and let the water rise to the 1/4 mark. When she had gotten all the water she would need, Aello walked back to the counter, and poured the water in the bowl with the other ingredients. "Hopefully we are doing this right," she muttered, as she considered all of her friend's questions.

"Well, knowing what your family is like Kendall, it's not at all surprising that you haven't really left town," Aello began speaking after a few seconds had gone by. She was watching her friend stir the ingredients together, everything growing wet and clumping together. It looked so very... unappetizing. "And it is not at all surprising that you want to go to Avanthal with your boyfriend," Aello added with a giggle, pinching a small pile of flour off the counter between her fingertips and flicking it at Kendall. Some of the flour clung to Aello's pale fingers, while the rest of the powder erupted off her fingertips and towards Kendall. It shot away from Aello in a puff of tiny white particles, no more than a few inches. It hovered in the air for a second, before falling back onto the counter, much like the snow would fall from the sky. "Guess I've got to work on my aim," Aello commented, realizing that she had more than likely, missed Kendall entirely despite their close proximity to one another.

As the flour fell, Aello dropped each of her hands onto the counter, palms facing down. "Now, as for where I would like to go... well..." Aello's voice trailed off for a few moments as she considered the question. "An adventure in the Wildlands would be lovely. The trees will be so nice come spring, when everything starts to bloom again. And all the animals will be out of hiding, the birds will be back. It'll be a beautiful thing to see, don't you think so Kendall?" Aello inquired, as she tilted her head to the side and allowed her long brown hair to tumble off of her shoulders. "AND, where do you really want to go? On your own. It's pretty obvious that we both know you only want to go to Avanthal since your boyfriend is from there and he gushes about the winter wonderland all the time!"

Aello shook her head. The weather in Avanthal is simply going to turn poor Kendall into a block of ice. Several strands of brown hair tumbled into Aello's face, and she pulled them away, tucking them behind her ears. When she was finished, she looked over at the mixture. "That looks like it should be done now," Aello commented. "Maybe we should put it outside for the next hour or so, so that it may chill?"

OOCSorry this is an awful post.

by **Kendall Saarinen** on July 18th, 2011, 3:20 am

With a shrug Kendall smiled at Aello. "If not, we have learned how not to make cookies right?" The brunette liked to keep things positive. At least when the situation allowed it. "Besides, we are bonding. If all else fails, we had a good time right?" A playful elbow jabbed into Aello's ribs as Kendall continued to mix. In truth, she was not worried about the cookies. She just wanted to spend time with her friend. The tasty treats were just an added bonus.

"They are great, aren't they?" Kendall giggled as she looked down at the mixing bowl. She was saying this in more of an endearing way than to sound cocky and she hoped her friend could tell this. "I just imagine walking through the snow with-" The brunette's words were cut off as the flour flicked off of Aello's fingers. "Hey!" She exclaimed with a giggle, gathering some flour of her own on her fingers. With a flick of her fingers, Kendall launched her own pinch of flour toward her friend. "You do. How are you going to be a professional archer if you have bad aim? Archer? Is that the correct term?"

Kendall nodded as she listened to Aello talk of the Wildlands. "The Wilds can be beautiful in their own time. Scary but beautiful." The Wildlands were the only place that Kendall had been other than Zeltiva. Even then, she had barely even made it past the limits of the city. Even when she did see the Wildlands, it was simply a lesson from her father about plants or animals, even wilderness survival if she was lucky.

With a blush Kendall nodded. "It's true. I won't deny it." Kay'lan's constant talk about Avanthal had made her want to visit the city very badly. "I suppose I would like to visit Syliras. I've heard it is very beautiful. Maybe Mura too. It's a nice little island paradise and of course, no guys to bother you." Kendall loved Kay'lan to death but at times she did crave some strict girl time. "Maybe we can go there some time. We may not be the prettiest there and we won't pick up any guys but hey, maybe we would get a tan and some interesting stories."

"Sounds good to me!" Kendall picked up the bowl and motioned for Aello to follow her to the door. "So what should we do now? Work on the frosting, gossip?"