The Price of Food
Roonaga, Meeritza, and Yes
The first one caught a fistful of salt right in the eyes. The second got a three-and-a-half stoneweight cannonball made of kobold crashing into their knee, hyperextenting it and bowling the tough guy over her. A canny third landed a kick to her side that shifted her, but clearly not as much as the kicker had expected. It hurt, but Roonaga was no stranger to pain.
She rolled with the impact but crashed into a cabinet, jarring loose a cascade of jars and pots that held her larger utensils. No time to arm herself, she scrambled to get out of sight as the thug advanced on her. She was scrappy and heavy for her species with plenty of muscle, but he outmassed her by twice over and stood twice her height. Among her own kind she was massive, but against these ones she was still puny.
Darting between tables, she sought to keep a barrier between her and her opponents. The brute, unable to get around to her after a couple times, began knocking down the contents of the tables hoping to hit her. Bowls and ingredients, rolling pins and utensils, even a few knives made their way to the floor. Despite her bulk, Roonaga was able to evade the cascade easily. Taking a chance, she reached out to grab one of her rolling pins.
The salt-eyed thug had pulled himself up and washed out his eyes in a water basin and was getting back into the fight, the one with the broken knee still hollering and clutching at his leg. Now the two capable ones were trying to head her off and flank her. It was a tactic she knew all too well and was ready for. As they both made for her, she vaulted over the table to scramble toward freedom.
Almost to the door, Roonaga hesitated. Every instinct screamed at her to keep running, get away, seek shelter. It had kept her kind alive since time immemorial. Be nimble and quick and slippery and unseen...
But this was her kitchen! They had violated her sanctum, her nest, her domain! That wasn't how her kind did things. Shelters could be rebuilt, food could be replaced, and too many things could kill them. But something had always been wrong with her... several things to hear her people tell it. That something said that she couldn’t just abandon this and start over. She had to do something.
Everything that came to hand was thrown at her attackers. Most were too small to do any real damage, but it nevertheless brought up their arms to block, slowing them and giving her the opportunity to better position herself.
Under the right circumstances, an opponent's size and strength could be used against them. A smaller mass, but with better speed or leverage, could do some real damage, especially to the softer bits. And as her grandmother was fond of telling her, “the bigger you get, the closer I am to your knees”.
Break their balance. Hit where they don't expect. You're small, use speed and surprise.
She sorely wished people would just let her cook. It would be such a nicer life for everyone if they would just let her cook. If only her fancy marble rolling pin was only ever used for dough.
Krack!
It wasn’t his knee, but a shin worked just as well. Salt-eyes collapsed, screaming and out of the fight. Backward-knee made it to the doorway, still sobbing and scooting. But this time Mr. Clever had taken the advantage. Two fists came down on her shoulders as she realized that in hitting Salty, she had lost track of him. He wasn't too strong, but he outmassed her and was swinging downward.
It hurt, but still she rolled with it. Tucking into a forward roll, she tumbled away as Clever tried to keep up. Somehow he was able to keep up as she reached the wall, but his size kept him from grabbing her as she dodged under a table. He kicked at her, trying to hurt her rather than bending down. Grabbing a scouring brush, she swung at his intruding leg.
And missed! She missed! Worse, seeing that she had swung at him, he rethought his tactic and grabbed at a broom propped against the door. He stabbed it at her, shaft-first and not stupidly with the bristles. She dodged, but not every strike. They hurt. Worse, he was cornering her. Panic.
“Hey! Leave her alone!” shouted the voice of a young girl.
Mr Clever whirled, dancing out of the way of Roonaga’s counterattack and readying himself against a new foe.
“Get out of here now,” the voice said, "and maybe I won't tell Rithik what useless losers you are. Go on Jeret, get your friends and git. That's my breakfast you're delaying and you're gonna pay for it.”
Jeret came out swinging as Meeritza fully entered the doorway. He jabbed the broom handle like a spear, missing Meeritza's head by a mere finger width. Pulling back he launched a series of short strikes against her, each missing as she twisted and dodged every one, moving even as he lined up his next attempt. Moving backwards and twisting aside from every hit, Jeret moved through the doorway after her as she retreated.
KLANG!
Jeret stopped, his hands dropped to his side, and he crumpled like a doll being released from a hand.
“Good work,” Meeritza said flatly to the three shadowy figures on the other side of the threshold. The triplets unstacked themselves, Beegou surreptitiously hiding the cast iron skillet behind his back.
“Rithik is gonna be so mad at us,” Reedah moaned, “he's gonna send his toughs after us.”
Meeritza ignored the whining and went back into the kitchen.
“Rooney? You ok?” Meeritza called, “Ey, dimwit, get your friends and get out before I make all this worse.”
Roonaga pulled herself up from under the table, her stone rolling pin in one hand and picking up a skillet in the other. She advanced on the crying boy with the injured shin. It was clear she was considering putting down her attacker.
“Rooney, don't make it worse. Let him go,” Meeritza cautioned.
“They trashed my kitchen,” Roonaga growled, “I gotta make a statement.”
“You made it. I'd be surprised if his shin's not broke. Jeret's gonna be out for a good while with the whack the trips gave him, Gora went and crawled himself out as we were getting here, and looking at that leg he's not going to be roughing anyone up soon. And Puthei here looks like he's about to piss his pants, but I'm certain,” she stopped and locked eyes with him, “he's learned his lesson?”
Puthei nodded frantically between sobs, “S-sorry ma'am. It was all Jeret's idea...”
“Save it,” Roonaga snapped, “Get out of here, never come back, and just be thankful you didn't ruin anything too much.”
Puthei scooted himself out the door, half crawling, half hopping on his good leg. Meeritza and the triplets came fully into the kitchen, with the triplets moving immediately to start picking up scattered utensils and dishes.
“I hate to be like this,” Meeritza sighed, “but Rooney, I'm starving. I swear I could eat for two right now. I'll help, but please is there anything?”
Roonaga heaved a heavy sigh and set down her weapons, “damnit ‘Ritz.” She sighed again, shook her head, and brushed her hands down her apron, “You're eating for two now? You're far too y...”
“No! No, nonono,” Meeritza blurted, waving her hands defensively, “I'm just really hungry that's all. Had a hard night, that's all.”
“Get you a bowl. That one should be just about ready, but I was gonna let it simmer still. There's bread in the box. Help yourself. And I don't know why you got a lizard round your neck, but it best to not eat my silverware.”
“Ok,” Yes said after a long silence, “How are you people seeing through my disguise? It's flawless.”
Roonaga stared for a moment.
“Oh, so you can talk then? Are you here for food too?” Realization dawned on Roonaga’s face, “That’s what you meant! I thought you was gravid!”
“The word is ‘pregnant’ for people who don't lay eggs,” Meeritza said around a mouthful. No grace or charm was cared for as she shoveled in another bite. The question answered, she returned her focus to her food and ignored the rest.
Yes ‘ahem'ed imperiously, “I asked a question. And you also may get me a bowl.”
“I don’t know. I’ve been seeing Ritzy for years, since she was a lil bap fresh outta the oven. She never... changes? Not much anyway. She comes in with something draped around her neck and I saw when you moved and twitched in the fight. I think you got distracted or something and then... once I saw you, I couldn’t... un-see you?”
Yes groaned, but then remembered the other thing that had been irritating.
“Also, I am not a lizard,” Yes snapped, “I am a mighty and fierce dragon, destroyer of nations and ruler of empires. My hoard will surpass all others. I will not be...”
Meeritza’s hand came up and ran gently down Yes’s head and neck. It was so good. Shivers. No one had ever done such a thing, and no joy could quite match it. A sigh escaped, more shuddering followed as she repeated the motion. This was... lovely.
Roonaga stared. Not knowing quite what to make of it all, her mind still processing, she methodically went to her pot, took up a bowl, and ladled food in. A dragon? It was scarcely smaller than she was! And far, far longer and skinnier. It was a scaley, and somehow hairy, version of those long mammals some fancy ladies kept draped around their necks as pets. But, yes, it looked very much like Meeritza had draped a rope around her neck and just been wearing that.
“You? You’re really a dragon? Like... the real thing?” Roonaga asked doubtfully as she set down the food, “You can talk. I see some resemblance from the ancient stories. But... you? How can you be a dragon? There aren’t dragons anymore.”
Yes did not reply as it would have disrupted the mouthful of food. Whatever this was, it was wonderful. Not the same as the delightful things from the bakery, but a different level of delightful. It was rich and thick, savoury and spicy, with bits of meat and vegetable all through the soft, warming grain. Truly they had been stealing from the wrong sorts of places, because this food was a marvel.
No, Yes stopped the thought, not stealing. Dragons didn’t steal. It was beneath a dragon’s dignity.
“Alright then dragon. You want food? My price is the story. How are you one of the creatures my ancestors worshiped, and why should I even believe you? And you,” she pointed her ladle at Meeritza, “had best to get me up to speed on how you found this one.”
