Archive of Our Own ^beta

Another beautiful winter afternoon—and only days before Christmas! With all the cinnamony-sweet smells wafting through the crisp brumal air, it had to be utterly impossible for one not to want to bake. Or... Well, maybe that was just Corrin.

She never was known for exactly being...particularly keen in the kitchen. Felicia was the type to mistake salt for sugar, and vice versa. Corrin was the type to mistake salt for flour . Suffice to say, she was horrendously bad in the kitchen.

...But this year was going to be different! Because not only was she well-equipped with a kitchen chock full of (thankfully labeled) ingredients, but she had her two little helpers, Kana and Dwyer, along to help.

“Mama?” started Kana, as Corrin led the two brothers into the kitchen. “What are we doing? And where’s Papa?”

“Papa will be here soon, my little Kana-bean. But for now...” Corrin practically rushes ahead to open the door, excitedly exclaiming “Ta-da!” as she reveals the plethora of ingredients sat atop the counter.

Dwyer yawned, “Didn’t Father tell you to keep out of the kitchen?”

It’s true. Though he’d at least phrased it nicer than that! Something along the lines of, Milady, you ought to allow me to be the one to take care of you after another failed cooking attempt . Though when it came to her, in Jakob-speak... Yeah, that roughly translated to what Dwyer had said.

“Well...yes,” Corrin admittedly sheepishly, “but what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him! Besides, I have my two very capable little elves here with me.”

Each one of her hands came to pinch one of the boy’s cheeks. Dwyer groaned, while Kana only giggled, beaming up at her. Gosh, they really were like polar opposites... Even if, while Dwyer was only being responsible, she could tell he was as excited to bake with them as she was. That spark in his eyes gave it all away.

“C’mon, Dwyer!” practically shouted an excited Kana, “I’ve never baked before! Pleeease?”

“How have you never...” Dwyer paused, meeting his mother’s pleading gaze. Then, after what felt like forever, he sighed. “Okay. I’ll color the frosting, then. You can both work on the batter.”

Both Corrin and Kana let loose a victorious “Wahoo!” as their only reply, before the princess weaved her hands into her pink locks, to guide them upwards into her usual ponytail. Only once it’s secure does she turn down to her younger son, a confident, bubbly grin stretched across her face. “Let’s do this.”

Unfortunately, that confidence... really does not suit what comes next. Chaos. Absolute chaos. It starts out alright at first—she does have a recipe this time, and labelled ingredients. But for someone so inexperienced in baking, that only does so much.

The small, cursive writing atop the recipe card leaves Corrin furrowing her brows as she guides Kana along. A dash of salt becomes a tablespoon, a cup of flour becomes two... And she realizes a bit too late that Kana had the misfortune of inheriting her horrendous cooking skills, when the two of them both failed in cracking the eggs they needed.

Needless to say, the shell-filled, powdery mess hardly resembled cookie batter at all. It more so resembled... Well, if she’s completely honest, that scrap of dust bunnies Velouria so proudly displayed in her room. Yikes.

From across the other, far neater side of the kitchen, Dwyer smiled as he finally finished his work—and atop his countertop now laid a rainbow of different frosting colors.

...Then he turned to meet the mess on Corrin’s side, and in an instant, he looked more tired than she’d ever seen him in his life. And honestly? That’s saying a lot, considering that he was Dwyer.

“Um... Uh...” In Kana’s panic, he exclaims, “Ta-da!”

Dwyer sighs again, but this time, it’s almost fond. Like he’d been thinking, I should have expected this . “You’re just lucky Father isn’t here to see—”

“Father isn’t here to see what ?” Jakob narrowed his eyes, as he stepped foot into the kitchen. Oh boy, does he look exasperated. “Do you all intend to gift me nothing but work this Christmas? And for all these years, I’d thought Felicia was a handful...”

Corrin knew him long enough to see that he wasn’t truly angry; just surely more than a bit overworked—likely by his own hand, unless the others were making requests of him. It’s clear for even Dwyer to see, with the way he near immediately cracks just looking at poor Kana’s tear-filled eyes.

“I’m sorry, Papa! It was just my first time baking... So Mama and I were...”

Jakob cuts him off, “You’ve never baked before?”

Kana shook his head. His caretakers were more than just a bit overly cautious, but honestly, it took a while for Corrin to fight off her motherly instincts and allow Kana to fight along his friends during battle without being by her side, so it’s not like she had much room to speak.

“No son of mine should be without experience in the kitchen!” With that over-dramatic statement, Jakob bent down to lift his child into his arms. As though it were some sort of charm, it warded away the tears. And with the newfound height, Corrin couldn’t help but step closer to ruffle Kana’s hair, with a playful grin plastered across her lips.

A grin that Jakob couldn’t help but match, with his own soft smile. “Now then, I will teach you the proper way to bake, while both your brother and mama tidy up.”

“Alright, Papa! I’m ready to learn!”

And honestly? He learns better than Corrin ever did. Maybe he wasn’t so hopeless in the kitchen after all! ...And thank goodness, too. If Jakob’s hair hadn’t been naturally white, she was sure having two kitchen disasters would leave it that way all on its own.

He guided Kana patiently through the baking process the correct way as she and Dwyer wiped up their mess. Sure, she knew he’d be excited when the two of them presented him with his presents, but...if she had to guess, the time spent with his family would be Kana’s favorite gift this year.

It wasn’t long before the four of them finished. And thankfully, without some sort of father-son competition on behalf of Jakob and Dwyer in the middle of it all! Yet. Don’t jinx it, Corrin.

Soon, the tray of freshly-baked gingerbread cookies were set cautiously atop the counter once cooled, and the family swiftly got to work on frosting them.

“Mama, Mama, look! It’s Selkie!” proudly exclaimed Kana, as he presented the frosted cookie to her. Corrin giggled, as she ruffled his hair. “You’re an amazing artist, dear. Are you going to give that to her yourself?”

He nodded, clearly enthusiastic, as he set the cookie back down upon the tray. “I wanna make cookies for all my friends! And then we can have our own Christmas party!”

“Here’s a start,” replied Dwyer, as he held up his own cookie—one of Kana’s dragon form. For a cookie, it’s so incredibly detailed! ...Oh boy, judging by that look in Jakob’s eyes, this might yet turn into a competition. But Kana was absolutely thrilled! He practically bounced up to his brother, to engulf him in a hug. One Dwyer returned with a smile, once he set down his cookie.

“It’s perfect, ” said Kana, “you’re the best big brother ever!”

Half to give the boys a chance to work on their own and half to sate Jakob’s competitive spirit, Corrin set her hand atop her husband’s wrist, gazing fondly at the cookie of her that he himself had been working on. “Can I speak to you for a moment?”

Jakob nodded. And before long, the two found themselves outside the kitchen, with Jakob gazing quizzically down at his wife. “Is there something wrong, my dear?”

“Sort of,” admitted Corrin. “It’s just...you’ve got a little something. Riiight...” She leaned up, giggling as she kissed away the frosting on his cheek. Oh, Jakob is red . How cute! “Here!”

“C-Corrin,” he stuttered out. It felt like an eternity before he composed himself enough to take a deep breath, settling his nerves, as he leant down and cupped her cheek. “I believe you may have something on your face as well... Just here.”

Their lips pressed together in an instant, and oh, Corrin swore no fireplace could melt her the way his kisses could. Her lips upturned against his, as her arms came to wrap around his neck. How she adored him—adored this holiday, adored their family. And if she could live in this moment forever... She just might.

Eventually, they need to part. And so, cheekily, Corrin asks, “Did you get it?”

Jakob’s gaze softens, to one so incredibly fond. “I don’t believe I did... I may need to kiss you again, to be sure—”

“MAMA! PAPA! Can you guys please help us frost the rest of our cookies? We wanna do some for our family, too!”

Well, there goes the moment. But Corrin can’t help but chuckle to herself, imagining Xander’s stern face frosted on a cookie. She stole one final swift peck from Jakob’s lips, before bringing her hand down to take his in her own. “Shall we, then?”