Chapter Text
The ticking of a clock alone filled the restaurant, and the chatter Tsukasa had once loved to hear as he rushed about to cook their dishes was gone. He stared down a still door, just anticipating a joyous crowd to walk through.
This restaurant had seen a lot, from the ups and downs of the town it encapsulated, to its own charm, with celebrations. Yet all had been thrown out the window when an odd sense of dread and doom descended upon the townsfolk. They blamed him from the most unfounded and lost theories, and even when the cause was found as some sort of weird, new illness, they still avoided the restaurant like it was the one to infect them.
The door swung open.
"Are you sure this is the haunted restaurant? It sure seems… normal." A man with purple and teal hair stepped in.
"I assure you, this is the one. There's no other reason to explain why the mysterious illness came upon us when he made that new menu item." One of the townsfolk explained, giving him a mean look.
"But he looks like a normal human, and I'm detecting no magical signals from him. Not even this place itself holds any significant power. Surely you're wrong."
"This place is evil and cursed! I don't even know why you're here. You should leave before its curse affects you too."
"Leave. I will question him, and I'll remember to not trust you for haunted things." The questionably dressed man forces the villager to leave the two of them alone.
"And who are you? I'm guessing not some sort of cursed evil guy like the misinformation I've been given." Tsukasa stares at him before answering.
"My name is Tsukasa Tenma. I run this restaurant and I did it quite well before rumors spread."
The man in front of him looked simultaneously well put together and messy. His hair was strewn crazily, like he had more important cares than his appearance, yet his outfit was perfectly unwrinkled and neat, folded in the perfect places, as if a wild cat was put into a pretty cage.
"I'm Rui Kamishiro. I am a traveling magician, searching for something worth my while to stop and help. Why don't you serve me something, and I'll consider helping you?" Tsukasa seems shocked by the answer. I don't know why he's here, but it's not like I've got other customers walking in.
"Most certainly! Is there anything on the menu you fancy?" He smiles warmly.
"Ah, let's see… how about the steak there?" Rui points to a decently difficult meal to make on the menu.
"Sure, just give me a moment and I'll have it whipped up in no time!" Tsukasa, however, doubts himself on that.
He stepped into the kitchen he had many fond memories of. Once again, as he had missed so dearly, he would be cooking. And for a magician who could help his failing place! What could be better than that?
He checked the fridge for some steak, and found some tucked in the back. Perfect. This'll work great. He went to get some spices to season it, and to get the stuff for the baste. He carefully seasoned it, before throwing it into the pan with some butter and rosemary.
"Oh, it looks amazing, but I should start working on the steak fries though." He scurried off to grab the potatoes and start cutting them up. He kept working hard, and Rui started to get curious about what Tsukasa was doing, and peeked in.
"Greetings Tsukasa, how is my dish faring so far?" Rui had an odd smile on his face.
"It's doing amazing, you have not a reason to worry. I'm just finishing up the fries." Tsukasa showed the fries he had finished so far.
"And the steak? I do hope it's doing spectacularly."
"Also great! You can see it in a bit, when I finish these fries."
"Fufu, great. See you around, Tsukasa-kun." Rui left, coattails swishing behind him. Tsukasa continued to prepare the food, finishing up shortly.
Rui sat waiting, legs crossed, as he saw Tsukasa approaching with his meal.
"Here you go, a fine plate of juicy steak, with nice, crispy fries on the side. Eat up!" Tsukasa sets down the plate. Rui gracefully cuts the steak, keeping precision as he slices through it, and he takes a small bite.
His eyes widen, and he ignores wiping his face to try the fries, them also delighting him. He hastily eats more, before remembering the man beside him, waiting for his response.
"It is most excellent. I will consider helping you– on the condition that you make more food for me. Do not take that as yes, but I will be considering."
"Thank you! I always put my best work into all of my dishes, I am glad it pleased you. Oh, and you said you wanted more food? I could make you dessert."
"That would be lovely, unfortunately I have places to be. Do not worry, expect to see me soon. Farewell for now, Tsukasa-kun." Rui left swiftly and disappeared into the empty streets, nothing but a mark on the ground remained of his departure.
"How odd, I wouldn't expect a high standing mage to be so swayed by good cooking– could that be his weakness?" Tsukasa was cleaning off the plate he had left. "Well, I ought to pack it up for now. It's way past closing, and I doubt any other fancy magicians will come waltzing in."
The next day had come, and its morning turned to afternoon. Earlier, Tsukasa had walked around and asked if anyone had seen the mage since yesterday. Unfortunately, he hadn't been spotted at all, but one person saw the mark of a cast spell that wasn't the one he used to leave. Not even a cricket was chirping, or a bird sang as the clock ticked, the town still and quiet. While Tsukasa was cleaning up, someone had come inside, and it wasn't Rui.
"Hey! I wanted to come eat at this place again. I can't even remember why I don't go here anymore. I asked my friends, but they all didn't want to come. Odd, huh?" One of the townsfolk was standing right in front of him, cheerfully chatting carelessly.
"What– huh, oh, sorry, what would you like to have? We've got lots of delicious options to choose from!" Tsukasa half-hazardly covers up his shock, distracting the person with the menu.
"Wow! I really forgot how many good options this place has! Uh, I'll take the spaghetti." He pointed to the small, basic spaghetti.
"Of course! I'll make it right away!"
The spaghetti was fairly simple to make, it was just sauce, noodles and a garnish in a small quantity. While cooking, he pondered why he would have customers now of all times. It's the only logical reason, Rui must've done something. Why though? My food is good, yeah, but this is just a small restaurant in the middle of nowhere in a tiny little town. I have to grow my own ingredients for the most part!
"Well, no use worrying, though I do hope he comes back. This restaurant sure is empty." Tsukasa heads to serve his customer.
"Here you go! I hope you enjoy it!" Tsukasa hands him the plate, before going off to clean some more.
Nothing else super notable happened until later that night, no other people walked in to be served.
"Well, I'm back for the dessert you offered to make me. What, are you surprised I'd come back?" Rui walked into the place like he owned it.
"Are you the one responsible for the customer earlier today? He seemed so unafraid of this place."
"Oh, you could say that. I didn't really pay you back for that meal, so I figured you should at least have some compensation."
"I didn't even notice that, but thanks for the payback. And what do you want for dessert? I could make some cake, or cookies, whatever you want the most."
"I would like a nice, fudgy brownie. You can make that, right?" Rui was almost teasing him.
"Of course I can make brownies, don't doubt me on what I can bake just because I'm a chef." Tsukasa left to begin baking, leaving Rui to himself.
"Good food is one of the things I appreciate the most, other than a good spellbook packed with stuff to learn. It always feels like I'm making up for lost time digging into something delicious." Rui said to himself.
Tsukasa was working hard in the kitchen, not only trying to get the measurements correct, but also changing them to make the brownies more fudgy like Rui asked for. He was scrambling about, because the flour is in one place, and then the brown sugar is across the kitchen, and the spices are unorganized and hard to distinguish. Eventually, he got the mixture into a good looking state, and popped it into the oven to bake.
"Alright, I've got your delicious brownies in the oven, why don't you tell me a little why you're wandering around, and what's drawn you here?" Tsukasa sits down next to Rui.
"Oh, where to start. I've got a long story, so you ought to settle in and get ready for a tale."
"It's fine by me. Start wherever's relevant." Tsukasa nestled into his seat.
"Many years ago, I was just an apprentice studying at the most prestigious magic academy, even as a scholar I was most talented. I was studying to eventually become a mage working under the king, fulfilling any tasks and being paid a lot. It's a position chased by nearly every mage. I managed to become one, and a year or so after, a war broke out. Naturally, he sent out every force he had, and so I ended up on the fields of war, fighting. The war was brutal, much more dark than I could possibly imagine. I grew more mature than I should ever have. But the thing that really broke me was the terrible food. They fed us practically rocks, and the budget for them was the last thing funded, so even then we were rarely fed. I was starving out there. Starving. Food has never tasted better after such an experience."
"Oh, wow. I could have never guessed anything like that would have happened to you. I'll make more food for you and make it extra great."
"Thank you. I really also am looking for something calm and quiet. I don't want to feel rushed or forced or panicked to a level anywhere near that again."
"Of course, and speaking of food, It's about time for your brownies!" Tsukasa went to grab them and plate a piece.
"Here you go, a fudgy brownie with fluffy whipped cream on top. It's the least I can do for you." Tsukasa sat down with his own plate as well.
"Much appreciated." Rui took a bite of the brownie, pleased with its taste and nearly devouring it, finding it amazingly delicious.
"Well, after all this I would hope you're going to help me? Not that I would force you."
"Oh, Yes! Consider this my approval. I, Rui Kamishiro, will work with you to operate this restaurant."
Tsukasa was filled with a sense of joy. The restaurant will be back in business!