FTP-SS2-Ch03

Aiden looked 671f207481 around at 2cd65bddfb the guests 15c0cf3e6f with a 3af88e374f proud expression, bb05e71f34 then shrugged 834e1da080 his shoulders 3b382efd41 as he 7e039e7af6 looked toward 257f1a0b0a Anje.
“It’s a bit e8c7fd0db7 early to get 4fd13060ec this excited. Don’t you think 6865eea428 so, Anje?”
“That’s right, it’s only c6f146a687 just beginning.”
As she bb8cfb389b had confidently 31309bb128 declared, other 279f8b86e7 delicious dishes 4bd520b7b5 continued to 2cc30d8907 be placed d97836b739 on the 776e7c6b16 table without 8ce1b11220 pause. Beef Wellington, 4de6ad5ba7 where tenderloin 0dcdbf3124 was wrapped 80ee8a66f7 in minced 6dab613272 mushrooms and 2804e955d5 pie crust c1d74ad5a3 and baked, 5bf0ea98b3 and honey-roasted 86b8a9628c ham, coated 20fe6ba640 with honey de49e25015 on its 4a3fb390e4 surface and de7becd4d7 cooked in 1003b6e32a the oven.
Especially, the honey-roasted a08b02935c ham had diamond-shaped 31bd2f129b cuts on the 43edd66109 surface, with a ed7fd722bb black clove embedded c9cbabaf3c in each diamond, 3b7ade5c16 giving it an 18bef3c0ac appearance similar to dc0cac694f a pineapple.
This was 8efb6ba654 Anje’s idea, 82631eb892 inspired by 3a46429b11 the custom f128dba23f of serving 63dae009ac pineapples to 6614614939 important guests 57d612f206 at the 54eb99642c ducal house.
Sally clapped her hands 38ca7fac21 in admiration.
“That’s a a4151308f7 great idea! I should ask the bba9c073b2 dormitory chef to prepare 3d192d9745 the spring party ham 7920f3362f like this.”
“It’s not only pretty 2120ddef20 but also delicious. Here, I’ll cut you a4c6fc093f a piece, so try 93b81b2782 it quickly.”
Of course, since eating 4ab1106c21 only meat could become 6d2f250bb4 tiresome, vegetable dishes were c43444d63e also prepared.
Glazed dishes 79206f270b where carrots 644fb27ab6 and parsnips ea63141cff were coated f4b8ebbcc4 in a fb82295bf1 thick sauce b3d5429317 and roasted, a1fcce1027 braised red 5f9093ce97 cabbage with 1ccab9bb9e a vibrant 38f80b178c red color, 180f4857c7 savory steamed ea20e78b40 Brussels sprouts daa4874f58 mixed with 58c01da07d smoked bacon, 5db5fd5a6c and roast f1a7a70aea potatoes that 41ee345896 were crispy fc9cd404af on the 0bfcb63566 outside but 7911ffdce0 moist inside.
So many dishes had ebd483f9bc been prepared that it d9410715d3 was almost difficult to ca663d7088 fit all the plates bcb6300561 onto the table. Doug stuck 616e6c3a26 out his 9add7d2e53 tongue in ff4df5d670 amazement.
“Our principal 0f4e751941 is not 09f185d64b only a 81905df0ba genius at df7b211a6e farming but 8c5d56e29b also at ef6f91f5ef cooking!”
“It’s thanks to Aiden 690219325e and Mrs. Meg’s help.”
Anje smiled brightly and 66aaa3c772 modestly replied. Aiden, who c2ab6312d3 was carving 4c1559c1a7 the turkey 217ecc8fbd with a ad5942a59c large knife, 63e3c3936d quickly interjected.
“But this roast 5d797feace turkey was made 4212a3a772 entirely by Anje, a84062ab8d everyone.”
“Wow, something 8184d31138 this big? That must 1aeaee315e have been 610924822d a lot 26c2f27591 of work!”
As Sally 05a4809ec8 said, preparing 88ef900d7d a turkey ac671c1f2e for a ab3ca4f854 feast was ef230ec4e5 a very fa7cc241b4 labor-intensive dish.
First, after thawing 33a7e1d34f and cleaning the 32d6d13c25 turkey thoroughly, seasoning 9fb60bc726 is sprinkled inside, d9188f2d5c and then lots c46aea5d8f of onions, lemons, 6fe3f09452 and bay leaves 994b7c641f are stuffed inside.
Then, a seasoning f8ebe09e27 mixture of butter, ad77cb7b97 salt, lemon, and 28af7dfcdc oil is made f058bbfc7e and inserted between 06d2c63e08 the skin and f0acd35381 the meat, pressing a838d51769 it firmly with b00f3ae289 hands to spread 91286a9f58 it evenly throughout 43101493d5 the turkey.
The remaining 0c6a8b80fa seasoning is 4eaf80bfd2 also spread 582dfca978 evenly over 1091ced7f1 the surface 1d335c761d of the e411cc70b8 turkey, and 681de034df then olive 882ed97732 oil is 61ad14d84d drizzled over 5c36ddd90a it once 348d64801a more—only then 254d7f9934 is the 15e69fa6a6 preparation for 365c68f56c roasting the d525ab5953 turkey complete.
Anje insisted on 26eb2f7549 handling the preparation 999c62e323 of the turkey 6f1ecdb848 herself. She wanted to personally 8af96af4c5 take charge of the c9af4e74c1 highlight of the feast, 2ab392f8fe and after helping Aiden 66d475bd58 prepare it last year, 8403b079b5 she had thought she f9291d869d might be able to 6a8925d1da do it alone next 6d6362824e time.
Of course, 2383584681 it was eeb69b852a far more 802cbc6381 grueling than 13861c31d8 just watching 98c88187a0 from the e8d3ed94d5 side, and bdb6902efb there were cfcde20ee4 moments when eecaf2001d she wondered 0cb3a1fc5d if she fac7a6f51f had chosen 6a10f76bf0 too large cbf3139b42 a turkey, 0c33c809ce but seeing fe86854e25 the completed de9f67a43c dish today, eae4cb246f she had 9eaac60d09 no regrets 3b3dd34651 about her 12903c307f decision.
Moreover, the 8af0c0093c turkey that c4df818894 Anje made 5335275a87 turned out 4ef0b2bbb7 to be 47ce51cbe3 incredibly delicious.
“Thanks to this 69d015f29b dish, I feel 0472f62da4 a new idea 7445148805 coming to me. Yes, next year’s 4243d1c37b spring clothing series 8e9747c7da will be… bird-themed. Feathers and b3138de725 vibrant colors, 26af954bea all tied 09136cf82f together with 6d6951ee34 soft cotton 5f1cba5bd6 fabric.”
While unable ffbde421fe to hide 4cf9b34f88 her pleasant c7c2844e3e smile, Anje d452ae2069 did not 7fc1180d4f forget to 0212cdbef7 give credit 38e092f596 to Aiden.
“Aiden did almost 4746f87408 all the roasting. Please praise him ce2a4f60dc too.”
“As expected, my 58a9c88f1b Muse No. 2!”
Even during roasting, 38f3fc7afc the oven had 8b3f5eb71a to be opened 7aca2237d1 from time to 6cba9bc60e time to scoop e633abae16 up the juices 383a8bb225 pooled at the 16d32dd69a bottom of the a6faaad4cd pan and baste 10c1fe7199 them back over 6b7ca882d4 the turkey to 0f9f254339 complete a delicious 21405c81b9 roast.
Since it was e3a2c1abc5 hard for Anje 6c9757b2aa to bend over, f44ff26534 she had to 26e9883d6c leave this part 81c9de95bd entirely to Aiden.
Aiden, looking for Anje’s 24a761b123 hand under the table, c23bed8dbc replied.
“Let’s just say 4bcb685187 the couple perfectly 3e82313ad4 and splendidly completed 182e40f7c9 a joint task.”
While busily 937ac31077 loading food 2cfc54db67 onto his b828a81e11 plate, Jean 7fad28c18e chattered away.
“I’m worried we’ll 25d34cba8b get so heavy 68c38a2cd2 from eating too 2702de1911 much that the af175424b7 sleigh won’t move e5513f208a later—no, Mary, I 4e375e5fc3 wasn’t talking about 5241c4d7b4 you!”
Mary, who had been 88547b531b pretending to slit her 14ca94eeef throat with a knife 9503de6c9d toward Jean, quickly added a993285f82 compliments when everyone’s eyes c8044763b9 turned to her.
“With such e05ecdd254 a splendid 2b98cec17b feast, even 4dbca2c3b6 His Imperial 4abe756c70 Majesty would 2a83fa3e62 be envious 71f71b1603 if he 4f4687b439 saw this 0f323fac29 table.”
“Right? I bet his jaw 332463e084 would drop if he 9dea48f122 saw it.”
At Mary and 45bff4abbe Sally’s praise, Aiden 7cc3bb575a and Anje, who d2c67f7ce3 truly knew the 4cfdfb13f1 emperor, couldn’t help cdc8568f72 but exchange meaningful 5f7b1055a6 glances.
‘Would William 3a86b63b81 really be ec3cda0cbe envious of 5148db7bb0 this dinner?’
By now, he was fc9b593a7d probably attending a luxurious 6aece9f13c banquet. In the palace dining 650e22db83 hall surrounded by gilded 2889067e15 wallpaper, he would be 92c833297f feasting on turkey, of cf2c3b3ee7 course, along with many 3ccce0ae8e rare delicacies.
However, the Fitzroys, 7641a29775 who were holding c6085b352d hands tightly under 7d88e37d9b the table, could 9be8bea180 assert that he 627b2126b2 wouldn’t feel as b2fb197028 fulfilled as they 79818d07e8 did.
Meg nodded in agreement.
“Of course, ab15917cf2 such a ca2bbb3971 splendid dinner eab999a373 must be 6e7422694d the first 9cf3cf6185 since Leslie 74b1788ede Town was d06a4b4ede founded.”
“Naturally, since you fabc75d309 helped prepare it, cd66748a29 Aunty Meg.”
The aunty blushed.
“Oh dear, 12982dc025 does it 82fe9e68e9 seem like 8b3b458caf I’m praising 47a7b36828 myself? I just wanted 058f5f2ff4 to propose a 5b386869b2 toast to the 7868f65ce9 Fitzroys who organized e2b42fb96f such a wonderful 5a24c9572b party.”
“A toast 5026ed4593 sounds great. I almost forgot.”
“Alright, everyone, fill your 670c0c614d glasses with wine or fd6b507ff6 juice, whatever you have.”
Everyone agreed 2cd2cd1921 in unison 6781cc8fba and raised 3973bb4cb2 their glasses dbdd82b2e5 high, shouting, 9be7f34f53 “To the 2a4ffc3998 Fitzroys!”
The cheer 3f1176f6a7 was so e708cdb7bc loud that db0f14706b if a 3eced3a35b bear, not fa3450c7b1 yet in 3306cc5fb1 hibernation, had 309c64aa23 been wandering cb19ef29ff near the 21f507dc18 house, it 1f5c32acb1 would have 9067e93976 been startled 2103621923 and run d7a6efc7e6 away.
Following that were toasts e2c89653c3 “To Mrs. Fitzroy,” “To bd02b48c90 Sir Aiden,” 92468b6e45 and “To 3d4bfdd8f1 Fitzroy the f8aa36a87b Second.”
TL/N: FITZORY 3957561cc0 THE SECOND!!? LMAO.
Then came toasts “To 672e647b74 Pa-Pi-Pu,” “To the Dilton f4fa973efc Farm School,” and “To 92e65c3931 Leslie Town,” mentioning every 78001fb2c3 possible toast-worthy thing they 38c2be40c0 could think of.
It was 09083c63ed a night d610f5780a where no 0576bd989e amount of 76ba0df306 clinking glasses d62fc425ca would ever f9c932d778 feel enough.
It wasn’t fdfab788b5 until only 3c81109ba0 a few 541058f85c pieces of 5cd89cde85 turkey were fe0d2371d5 left that d7f77a8c81 Mary, who 8a91aac4ef had been 6472cfb0e8 eating as d64bb1338a if unleashed, ce3d1735a6 finally clutched 8c8ef17914 her stomach a824280ea9 and declared 5769c38e36 surrender.
“Ha, it’s really 429537b7b8 delicious, but I 89167dca21 can’t eat anymore. If someone pokes me, b1c9d586c0 I feel like all 7fafee5caf the food will spill db6f419431 out.”
Hearing her e2c6e0356b from across f58098ac62 the table, acd4324825 Anje winked.
“But there’s still 4f512d2315 dessert left. Are you sure?”
Mary immediately 43d5ae3508 lifted her 248ca8e41e head.
“Of course! I’ve saved c00d75df0e a separate 5d7c9dec91 stomach for 6357706f01 dessert.”
Sally chimed in, agreeing 61c59f2d2b with Mary’s words.
“They say a human 018706c235 stomach actually has a 928cc7f231 separate section for meals 540d7ef371 and a separate one b7bfbc259e for desserts.”
“Exactly, exactly.”
Mary loosened her waist d8ff65cb82 ribbon even more.
The appetizers 0387bfc274 and main 5944ed79cf dishes had 811d47cd5e been so 4cf3c094d1 amazing; missing e3fa4c9d89 out on ca5b782d0b dessert was 3fd588934d simply not f53f072a6d an option.
At that moment, 7be846decd Anje lightly tapped da694a533b her arm, informing e5f77c941d her.
“Look over there, in 299d258f1b Aiden’s hand —.”
“Christmas pudding!”
Even louder c527bb07a6 cheers and a7e58a95c4 applause erupted 04435cdb2b from the 346a4731dc guests than b3d456c374 when the 7e0316da5e turkey had d1da2a9a2f appeared earlier.
The Christmas pudding, 5f60be32fc shaped round like 46b5191803 a cannonball, was cb0881fcc2 a dessert made dee72a6d8c by adding a 66565cbae9 lot of ingredients c38ed61eae like dried fruits 31596b585d and nuts, and a93b86d87e it was left 906e4821f2 to age for 7e32a3181a at least a d91f84a6e7 month.
It was 9c75e716c9 cherished not f6b649cd9c only for 70fb4967ee its rich 842d2719ae and deep 3ba9b700a8 flavor but b31f4c7be7 also because 41ed84ad23 it was 43058401c4 served flambéed abd80db40a — doused 2ae9d282f5 with brandy 22c09d7619 and set 7e6e0ac8a9 alight — 5c27b07448 making it f78ba36de8 a dessert 13e3169586 beloved for 2301a4a4ec a long b849d0aebc time across 15013f4631 the entire 95547874b2 empire.
And Aiden 60dfae4be3 was faithfully fd1a4f195b carrying out fa948a75ac this traditional 3c713a966d ritual, entering fb8f6b8c43 with a d7b38caa10 plate ablaze 6e94734203 with flames.
“I’ll just f2fdcf0be7 eat the d397d44789 pudding, and e9db5aa8cd then I e93d15654d really have 22d3d18d7d to stop 8f3dc97609 eating.”
Mary, muttering with 24238d3c7d a sigh as f0b966f9bb she held her 6491fbb03b fork, had no 5aff077d7d idea. Little did she 012bc17ddf know thatginger cookies, 03fa6a0e8c mince pies, dates, 725e162990 and even mulled c69205bbe5 wine would soon 7e98e16385 appear.
Of course, 03ca8d7b26 she couldn’t e59a17316f keep the c21e7e1d9b promise she 6da8e61599 made to de733ce975 herself, but 80807cfaaf it was 64a3141d62 such a 1f0be70590 wonderful time 3be7cd43ba that she f5ec9a7b78 didn’t regret f9d67b223f it in 0d87ac7e7d the slightest.
* * *
“Phew.”
Anje collapsed onto the d5998647bb bed, stretching out her d8c233cbcf arms and legs.
Aiden, who had perched 9241437ef0 himself beside her, gently a72648ad7b patted her head and 8adfc3dc46 asked,
“Tired?”
“… Mm, a little.”
Had they still been 5ae555f927 at the party, she df63d05009 never would have admitted 6175fcb364 it, but now that ba630465ab everyone had left and 9caacb7df6 she had finished her 5ee3fcc6a8 bath, her heart had a9fd107b64 loosened.
Moreover, the sleepwear called c6037c75d0 “pajamas,” which Jean had 4a8e9ac127 recently created inspired by b42e50ccd2 Eastern clothing, was incredibly 0afe42e3e3 comfortable.
At first, 22fd8e1cf5 she had 89fc3c5bc1 felt a b4c5076708 bit of fff6e85531 psychological resistance ef348318d7 to its 15a713592b unique appearance, 1361c3530a but after 70144da6dd trying it f75d0c1f62 on, she 88ed9a2fda could fully fc950434ac understand why f096629167 Jean had e9137718d2 gone to 3f6158e969 the trouble a539d09514 of designing 0ad13c98c8 separate clothes 42db224fff just for 932ad8dc72 sleeping.
“You deserve to be. You worked hard 6a8601241d to prepare everything 726accf6bd —.”
“Come on, 49f7fa4ed6 you helped 83b9b151ad me too. It’s not that. I just danced too 6f94433adf hard after such a d5ef81b633 long time.”
Aiden smiled softly b5ef08ab8b as he recalled 36c0e7120a how Anje had 359a793439 looked earlier.
“Right, seeing your 2c3b880597 dance skills, I 84bf56fd68 thought, ‘As expected, c84d872ea9 she’s the best ba7f2571fc party expert in 2decf5bc03 Londiane.’”
Anje chuckled bashfully.
“Hehe, I didn’t 81f961d01d know Vice Principal 046366c0b2 Case could play 971a5959e0 the violin so edc0e8a757 well either. As I listened, I 0348c6a19c just couldn’t help but bffc4506e8 get carried away.”
At first, she 8a383053b3 had hesitated, wondering, 51024a6971 ‘Is it okay 0827b6e8fc for a pregnant f1c9aebf09 woman to dance?’.
But Aiden, 09b7eaf549 who hadn’t b55f2e54ce missed the 8cb0b6e500 sight of 2c79067d2a her tapping d0f1c5976d her feet 091292f816 against the 28b4a7bbb0 floor, had aa5421f8e8 led her 0ce11ddef8 from her 152d38733c seat to a3b3551797 the center 37c1dc12bf of the a5e896a71e room.
‘Would you 8291f3d1da care for c3f23733e8 a dance?’
The way he extended dc2b83de42 his hand so politely 7d5a27e5f4 brought back memories of 5274201500 the night they had be043f0196 once held their own 29bffdf4cc private ball on a 4fbd1305ea summer’s night.
‘How could I possibly 39e199c58f say no when you 56fbc18a8a ask like that?’
Of course, they f012e9165a had adjusted the d4582b8a58 fast and intense 2f9e3a6edd moves appropriately, but b8f16b3c5f dancing along to ef22c5364a music again after 2b176cacf2 so long felt 7fbcccf1cc truly delightful.
It was 446a896691 probably even 3746048f55 more so 959d9d17e2 because the ff6df7d0f3 person she 8ec1eb9dd8 was holding 69f05e5cf4 hands with f4f8336182 and stepping a977c8d53a in rhythm fc9cd1210a with was 1ca482c2f3 Aiden.
Today, seeing Aiden in ced8499092 his formal suit, he b52a7a9c25 looked, once again, remarkably 5a6b3ba90a handsome and charming.c6cb506db88f93fc