Chapter 15: The Final Dish

It was the morning of the final interview at Clouds of Butter. Up until that point, the interview process consisted of long talks about KC’s abilities, what they were expected to do, and why they wanted to work there. Nothing spectacular; KC reminded themselves not to respond with ‘Because I don’t want to starve’ when asked ‘Why do you want to work here?’

As Daisy explained the customs at Clouds of Butter, KC looked in awe at the kitchen: Daisy, up until then, did everything themselves. From recipe creation to plate prep, from cleaning the kitchen to clearing their schedules for large orders. KC had to ask. How could they not? “Why are you all alone? I thought you had staff, or at least a receptionist.” Where is everyone? Daisy knew the question was coming.

The answer was always the same, and Daisy had to watch potential bakers leave after hearing it. Except this time, KC and Daisy’s pasts shared a connection. Did this mean they might be the first ones to stay after the tour? “That is a long story, KC. You need to know if you are serious about working here, but it’s not a very pretty story, I’m afraid.” Once Daisy finished, it took KC everything they had not to march down to the Blue Kitchen and confront Chef Cyan and Celeste.

How could they do this? I know Celeste can be mean, but encouraging new chocolatiers to leave because of a rumour? The rumour isn’t even true. It was as if Daisy had read KC’s mind. How did they do that? “It started because Celeste misread something on my computer screen when she handed in her resignation letter. What was on my screen was: The Daisy Chain; Come One Come All but what Celeste misread was: The Daisy Chain; Don’t Get Lost in The Stalls.”

Apparently, Chef Cyan knew someone who used that as an opening for a show in the next town over, someone with a bad reputation for a strange stage act and even stranger patrons. Celeste then assumed I was somehow connected. That’s all behind us now, though. Apparently, the tent master moved to a more secluded area. “Enough stories, back to the kitchen! Please show me what you learned from your time away. The Viridian Kitchen told me about a Grand Opening for their own. It must have been nice to see the show.”