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Valentine's Day.
There's hearts everywhere, pink and red flood the stores and streets, and apparently everyone has someone to spend it with. Some have their partners, some have their friends, hell, some people even act as wingmen for their parents. Not to mention how expensive everything gets.
Purple's never really cared for any of it. She's sure her parents must have celebrated when she was younger, but as time went on and their relationship got worse, it was only a matter of time before Valentine's Day became just another day on the calendar. Even so, she'd bring her mother freshly picked flowers whenever it came around.
The day was especially annoying at school, though. Everyone would ask if he had anyone he liked, or worse, ask him to be their valentine. He never liked seeing their faces go from hopeful to dejected once he said no.
Now, however, standing in the kitchen at 4AM, they wonder what to do. It's February 14th and their...guardian is fast asleep in his room, unaware of their current plight. They quietly roam the kitchen and check cabinets like they'll give them guidance.
Her eyes catch on a baking dish -- a small, rectangular loaf pan. Purple carefully drags it out and places it on the counter. Her fingers tap on the surface as an idea pops into her head.
He checks the oven, dusts it off, and preheats it. Then, he checks to see if they have everything he needs -- which he probably should've done first. Trying his best to not make too much noise, he gets out all the ingredients and bowls. He rinses off the pan, bowls and utensils before getting to work.
They've made their mother's banana bread recipe so many times they're sure they can make it blindfolded. Still, they measure out the ingredients, not trusting themself to not mess up. It doesn't take long before the loaf pan is filled with batter and in the oven.
Purple huffs, leaning against the counter. They've never been able to celebrate Valentine's Day properly, and while they know it's not necessary to celebrate, they still want to have a good memory tied to the holiday.
She returns to the cabinet she got the loaf pan from. A few more baking dishes catch her eye, and before she realizes it, she has a cookie tray, a muffin tray, and a whole pie tin in front of her.
She blinks, looks at the dishes in the sink, and groans.
After the awful task of washing all the bowls and utensils, he gets back to work. Purple's not really sure what kinds of flavors some of them like -- he knows Red is surprisingly neutral about sugary foods while Yellow has an absolute sweet tooth, and that Green adores having different flavors at once, but the other two...
He glances at the clock next to the door. 4:38. He doubts any of them are awake right now. Letting out a sigh of defeat, he grabs his old notebook and flips through it. He ignores all the embarrassing rants and rambles and skips to the back where he'd written down some recipes.
Purple skims through them, taking note of certain ones they think might be good, before finally settling on four recipes. Banana nut muffins, apple and cinnamon muffins, chocolate chip cookies, and strawberry pie.
They take a deep breath and pull out more bowls and pans from the cabinets. They check on the banana bread despite knowing it still has a while left before it's done, then work on the strawberry filling first, since that'll give it ample time to cool. Noticing the lack of corn starch in the kitchen, they wince, forced to use flour instead.
As the filling cools, she starts work on the pie crust. Her arms are still a bit sore from sparring with the others last week, yet she bites her tongue and kneads the dough. Once that's over with, she wraps it up and shoves it into the fridge. The banana bread has finished baking by now and she places it onto a plate, leaving it on the dining table to cool.
He rubs his arms as he gets the next recipe ready in his mind -- the apple and cinammon muffins. He huffs, knowing this would've been a recipe better suited for autumn, but he also knows that Green really likes 'warm-tasting foods' in her own words.
Grabbing a few apples from the dining table, Purple makes his way back to the kitchen.
Their thoughts drift as they use up the last bit of cinnamon left for the muffins. There was a thin layer of dust covering the baking supplies, and while King Mango himself has never said anything, they've seen some of the photos around the house. The kid smiled brightly in all of them.
She wonders if Mango and his child ever celebrated Valentine's, showing their familial love through spending time together rather than superficial gifts. She wonders if they went to stores after Valentine's ended, buying all the chocolate and eating it on the way home. She wonders if the kid begged Mango for all those baking supplies, if they ever baked together.
Mango's always worn a small, orange-yellow clip on his coat. She wonders if his kid got him that. She wonders if he'd wear something she got him, too.
Purple shakes his head, snapping himself out of it. He looks down at the muffin batter before him, which is...slightly over–mixed. He bites back an agitated groan and pours it into half of the muffin tray. He rinses off the batter bowl and gets started on the banana nut muffins. This time he makes sure to not over–mix.
As they set the muffins in the oven, a knock on the door makes them jump. Mango stands in the kitchen, blinking at them.
"Purple, it's—" he glances at the clock "—4AM, what're you doing up?"
Purple gestures to the counter they're at. Mango raises an eyebrow. "You're…baking?"
She nods. "I wanted to make something— I mean, it's Valentine's Day, so I thought it'd…be nice?" Purple cringes at her own voice.
Mango hums and leans against the door. "D'you need my help with anything?"
Purple pauses. The concept of accepting help was still awfully foreign to her, but if it let her get out of washing dishes then…
They gesture to the sink and hear Mango laugh. Still, he walks over, scrubbing the bowls and pans while Purple prepares the dough for the cookies. A small smile tugs at their lips.