Bloodstone was bringing Bacuda and Veldet to meet Boti and their tribe in Issiq. Boti had mentioned that this time of year was a festival for their tribe, and it was traditional to bring or make food to share with everyone. Bloodstone had a dish in mind to make, but it was a little delicate, so she wanted to go to Boti's tribe a few days earlier and make it there. The desert heat would be a welcome relief from the all-encompassing cold of the mountains…

Gru, Splash, and Pepper were coming along as her 'assistants,' though Bloodstone was sure they were mostly there to lick the spoons after. Well, if they wanted to come along, so be it.

Bacuda and Veldet had the same idea, and waved at Bloodstone when they climbed out of the transport and into Boti's tribe's transportation hub. The sun shone high ahead, glinting against the hull of the transport. The heat hit them like a wall, though it was a pleasant dry warmth that warmed Bloodstone to her bones.

"Welcome!" Boti exclaimed, hurrying up. "I see you all got here in one piece… let me show you the kitchens."

They gave the group more familiar with their tribe's home - Bloodstone, Pepper, and Splash, a quick showing of where the kitchen and stockrooms were. Boti showed them where the main cookign room was, with the ovens, counters, prep space, and then where the walk-ins and stockrooms were.

"And if you need something you don't see here, feel free to ask!" Boti assured them, making sure they were settled. Boti then took Gru, Bacuda, and Veldet on a more in-depth tour, as they hadn't visited before and didn't know the tribe's layout as well. Bloodstone got the youngsters settled in once Gru came back from the tour, then began to prep some things before going to bed.

The next day she woke up early and slipped out while the youngsters were still sleeping, and began to ready a corner of the kitchens to bake. Seeing Bacuda and Veldet in there, she smiled.

"Same idea, huh?"

Bacuda snorted, setting some pans down on a counter. "Seems so!"

"'Get up before everyone else,'" Vedlet said, amused, setting down some pots with a clatter. "'The kitchen will be empty, we thought,' but it seems we thought wrong!"

"Yeah, yeah," Bloodstone grinned, setting their own pots and ingredients down on a counter, "you're stuck with me. However will you survive?"

"Through sheer force of will."

The trio laughed, and got down to cooking, pots and pans clattering on shiny metal surfaces as burners clicked to life and ingredients were organized on counters. Or at least Bacuda and Veldet did, as Bloodstone had to deal with the youngsters coming in, eyes wide at the kitchen's contents. Bloodstone got Splash settled stirring a pot to melt some butter over low heat, while Pepper and Gru were given whisks and eggs. She wondered if she'd made a terrible mistake, but it was either that or they would make their own fun. Probably with knives.

Bacuda and Veldet were going much smoother, mixing some sort of batter and carefully weighing ingredients to add. It seemed like some sort of fruit cake? But that was as much speculation as Bloodstone got before she had to take away the eggs before the youngsters overbeat them. 10/10 enthusiasm, execution needed some work.

She combined the wet ingredients and gave them to Splash to blend, then gave Gru a sifter and a cup of flour, and gave Pepper the very important task of preheating the oven. While Pepper puzzled over the buttons, Bloodstone corralled Splash and Pepper to combine everything else and stir in one big bowl. The two did so enthusiastically, and Bloodstone sighed with relief abd pulled out her cast iron muffin pans. At least she would be able to distract them with scooping…

In the meantime, Bacuda and Veldet were starting to layer their cake into a pan. It was different layers of different batters, each with a different type of fruit flavoring and coloring. They would cook the layers individually, then put it all together at the end. Even from across the room, the colors stood out, bright and eye-catching as the pair put the rounds into the oven. They then began to mix a few batches of cream cheese frosting, again each with different flavorings and colors.

Bloodstone wanted to watch, but Pepper, Splash and Gru were done scooping, and it was time to put the brownies into the oven. Bloodstone did so, not trusting the youngsters, and then set them to making some frosting in the interim. It was buttercream frosting, better for decorating.

Eventually, despite the chaos of the youngsters and other beginning to come into the kitchen to prep their own meals, the two groups finished their productions with only minor hitches. They converged again as they went to put their creations into the fridge for tomorrow, Gru Pepper and Splash with frosting spattered-fur and looking very content.

Bloodstone eyed Veldet and Bacuda's fruit cake admiringly. The different colors of frosting had been swirled in a way reminiscent of a piece of tie-die, and smelled alluring. Her own decorated brownies seemed almost gaudy in comparison, especially since she had let the youngsters decorate more than a few.

But, that was the goal of the festival tomorrow - for everyone to bring something that had meaning to them. Even if it wasn't the fanciest creation on the planet.