#rivervale_lodge

"Symon likes it." A laugh at the memory.

"I have no doubt of that," Kerri says. She does not mention what she was about to say at first, about how it probably had mouse droppings inside it.

"Feed the sluagh, tuppins a bag.. tuppins, tuppins, tuppins a bag" Vali mutteers

"Well, Dirk and Prissy do a number on it, too. So, I guess it's not too bad. But the blog says these are nice with hangovers..."

Kerri laughs a bit at Vali.

A blink. "A lot of call for hangover treatment there?" she says, half-grinning. "I suppose I'm not surprised."

"Let me see the ingredients?"

Dagmar offers over the phone. "I mean, a lot of satyrs..."

"I imagine it's going to get pretty wild." To her credit, Kerri does her best to keep the little inklings of anxious mother out of her voice. "You've enjoyed, though?" She looks over the recipe.

"I think I have everything here. Want to work on it right now? Test out the first batch on Vali, see if he turns into a toad?" A wink at the proto-Mountain.

"Too late. Ribbit"

"Sure! I mean, I guess it's okay. But, like... like... I'm Lodge."

"You can be both," Kerri assures her. "Nobody in this room is going to fault you for that."

"Definnitely not. " Vali agrees with the Hearth

"Mm. I know I am.. welcome, yeah. But I am also trollish and titled, even if I don't think I feel much like a 'noble,' y'know?" She looks at the other two knights.

Kerri frowns. "Has somebody said something to you? Told you you don't belong?"

"Someone giving you and Siv shit?" A frown from Vali too

"No!"

"Just.. I mean, the point of Goldfinch is to not be troll and noble..."

"So I kinda feel like the fuzz going in there. But if I bring cookies...."

"Dagmar, Seelie or unseelie, as longg as I've known you, you've tended to believe 'snitches get stitches'. I bet they know that too"

"I can understand that maybe you don't feel like the Goldfinch target market, and I understand the awkwardness, too. You shouldn't feel that you have to earn your way into the space near people who are already your friends....but that said, making cookies is very seldom a bad idea," she says with a wink.

"Yeah. Everyone is being nice. But it feels... like.. in my head it's weird and kind of scary? EVen though they're my friends?"

Kerri takes a deep breath and lowers her voice. "Truth be told? I feel kind of the same way. It feels like...." she searches for a moment for a comparison. "It feels like riding a motorcycle on an unfamiliar road at night in the fog. You're more likely to wipe out if you don't trust yourself to know what you're doing."

"Mm I suppose I can relate a little. I feel anxious still about becoming Mountain. Weird and crazy inn my head too"

She exhales and nods.

Kerri nods. "So what we're going to do is accept the fact that things are different, and sometimes things are going to go wrong, and we're going to figure out how to work through them and get to the other side of the problem."

"And I can't speak for you, but I won't be too proud to ask for help"

Kerri nods approval. "That's part of how we get through."

"So. Yeah. Cookies never hurt."

"This is , I suspect, a universal truth" A nod "Cookies never hurt"

"Then I suggest we get started!" Kerri turns and leads the way into the kitchen.

"Have fun, you two"

"You don't want to put on an apron and join us, Vali?"

"If I won't be in the way?" He rises though to help

"We'll kick you out if you are," Kerri promises. "Besides, you could use a few more recipes you can manage."

"I could. Gerd shouldn't do all the cooking for us" he agrees

And the great breakfast bar experiment begins!

"She shouldn't, nope. C'mon."

A chuckle, and Vali follows the lead of the ladies

(End Scene)