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Having tea with Donna was always a strange event for Heisenberg. For one, Donna rarely said anything during the event, instead having the ever-present annoyance she called Angie bark orders at the other dolls to serve them. The dolls were a whole other issue. Sure, there wasn’t anything they could do to harm him, but they would stare as if they knew something he didn’t. It unnerved him.
The lady of the house was currently staring at her teacup. Even though he had already seen her face, and more as of late, this was the first time he had convinced her to remove her veil.
“Just tell him already, Donna!” Angie snaps.
“Yes, well…” The doll maker begins, picking at her nails. “I…made you something.”
“I’ll go get it!” The Angie giggles, leaving with the other dolls not far behind.
“The little psycho seems eager for me to see it, whatever it is.”
“Yes. I…worked very hard on it.” She hesitates before speaking again. “You had mentioned that you suffer some memory loss regarding your childhood.”
“Getting electrocuted can do that to a fellow, I guess.” Heisenberg smiles bitterly. Miranda’s experiments took a lot from him.
A dusting of pink starts to form on the woman’s cheeks. “Yes. Well, with The Duke’s help, I was able to obtain a German cookbook in a language that I could understand and picked one of the easier recipes. I thought maybe tasting it would help you remember something.”
“You are aware that I was born and raised here in the village, right?”
“Oh.” She says quietly, the pink on her cheeks turning bright red. He didn’t blame her for not knowing. Hell, he wasn’t even aware of her existence until Miranda introduced her as a Lord.
“But… one of the things I can remember of my parents is that they were very German, so whatever you’ve made I’m sure I’ve had it.” He lied. He didn’t remember jack shit about his parents. He didn’t want to upset her more than she already was. And, while he didn’t think her reasoning for the gesture was neither medically nor scientifically sound, it was the nicest thing anyone in this hellhole had done for him.
The squeaking of wheels announces Angie returning with the serving cart. On it, a rather amusing-looking cake. The black forest cake was lopsided, the cherries barely managing to stay on. The frosting was melted, a sign the cake hadn’t cooled enough.
“It’s a schwar..um..schwar..” Donna begins.
“Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte. An…interesting choice.” Heisenberg covers his mouth to suppress his amusement, for once not wanting to offend.
“Forgive the presentation. I wanted something that would go with tea, but I’ve never been good at baking.”
He could tell.
“Isn’t it lovely?” Angie asks, handing him a plate, staring as if daring him to say anything to the contrary.
“Of course.” He stares at it for a second, wondering just how bad she was at baking. He grabs the fork and takes a bite.
“It definitely tastes better than it looks.” He teases. He takes another bite. A vision pops into his head. It’s not a vision, he realizes, a memory.
He is sitting at a kitchen table, a cake in the center of the table. He doesn't know how old he is, just that his feet can't reach the floor. On the other side, a woman. Her face is blurred but somehow, he knows her.
“Karl, liebling, today is a special occasion.” Her voice is soft and warm. “It’s finally time for you to meet…”
The vision is clouded with black feathers and a different, colder female voice speaks. One he knows all too well. The table turns into a bed that he is strapped to, the kitchen is now a surgical room.
“It matters not that you are unable to remember your family. I am your family now, Karl, and you serve only me. That is all you need to remember.” He feels the Cadou in his chest clench and a jolt of electricity shoots up his spine.
“So?” Donna’s voice shocks him back to reality. “Did you remember anything?”
“No.” He lies, still shaken by what he saw.
“Oh.” He can hear the disappointment in her voice. He doesn’t want to hurt her feelings, but he can’t bring himself to talk about the memory.
“But if you wanted to try again with a different recipe…I wouldn’t be opposed to it.”
“Oh!” The doll maker’s face lights up. “Yes, of course. I’ll go through the book again tonight and see if I find anything interesting.”
Heisenberg didn’t know if he would remember anything, or if he even wanted to. But he decided that whatever happened, it was worth seeing Donna smile.