✔Kin of the Curse (Book 1: Bloodbound Chronicles)

29. Harvest Moon Carnival

Pink clouds floated in the sky like tufts of cotton candy, and the crisp fall air nipping at Castor's face was refreshing after hours spent baking in the kitchen.

They'd spent the last few days toiling away in the kitchen, letting his mom and Lucien have their leftovers from entries they deemed unworthy to win. He smelled like pumpkin spice and sweet dough, but he was satisfied with their creation.

Their inspiration came from the carnival's carousel, reimagined in cake form. The base was a rich, dark chocolate and coated in orange-tinted buttercream while the carousel's poles were created from gold fondant, adorned with mini edible bats and pumpkins. The horses were probably the most difficult to create, with a light coat of glowing frosting to give them an otherworldly appearance.

Despite how fun it had been to bake with his dad, he wished Lucien would have joined them for the bake-off. He understood why he teamed up with Seraphina instead, for Charlotte's sake, but Castor had wanted him home with him. After Lucien had uncovered Charlotte's dark secret of selling her soul to a devil, Castor honestly wanted him nowhere near Blissful Bites Bakery.

Even waiting painstakingly for the judges to return with their verdict on the winning entry, all Castor could think about was Lucien at his own station setup with Seraphina. When they entered, they all brought in boxes given to conceal their creations, with only their numbers written on the top, which none of the judges knew about. It was to help keep the contest fair.

When the local cooks who volunteered to help with the carnival brought their entries, Castor wondered which box contained Lucien and Charlotte's concoction. Since they were competing against each other, Lucien hadn't even given him a clue of their idea. It wasn't like Castor and his dad were forthcoming with theirs either, but they had let Lucien sample their rejects.

Castor watched the judge's table as they placed five different boxes on the elongated table for them. It was unfortunate that Orick Mandrake had to be among them. Although it was fun to imagine him picking out their entry as the winner again. To his left sat his wife, clad in a wine-hued, off shoulder, long bell dress. Monarch Elaine's crown was secured in her hair, its filigree design allowed her pink locks to flow freely around it.

The third judge was none other than Mrs. Pepperheart, Everett's mother. Castor remembered how picky she was last year and it had stunned him when she concluded their entry had tasted the best. Once revealed it was created by the Vale family, she had tried to backpedal and claim they'd bake it with wicked influential magic, but there had clearly been no proof of such nonsensical claims.

Hushed whispers of excitement floated all around them from the curious townsfolk who'd crowded around in central park. Black streamers hung from the rafters of the gazebo, where they had all the contestants gather. There were only ten people total, each with a partner.

Once the unveiling of the desserts began, Castor found himself drawn to Lucien, watching his expression to see which one they had created. The first two were rather ordinary and quite similar. Harvest-themed cakes with fall leaves and bright orange buttercream.

The third went a bit different and created pumpkin-shaped sugar cookies. Castor wasn't really paying attention to the judges' reactions at all, but it sounded like they had enjoyed them quite a lot. It was hard to read Lucien's expression, and he wondered if those had been their entries. They looked so simple, yet the judges had loved them.

Each entry came with a recipe card for them to judge creativity, and Monarch Elaine read off the cookie's ingredients with delight. "Extra butter was substituted with pumpkin puree, which gave them such a soft texture and delicious flavor."