Grim: *holding up a dead mackerel and putting his paws between its gills to work it like a hand puppet* 🎶I don't know why I love her like I do. All the changes you put me through🎶
Shriek: *giggling as she does the same*🎶Take my money, my cigarettes. I haven't seen the worst of it yet🎶
Deuce: Shriek, don't sing that! 😨 You need to pick a more age-appropriate song.
Jamil: Yeah, that's the crux of the issue with using dead fish as ventriloquist dummies. 😒
Shriek: *pointing the fish in Jamil's direction* 🎶I don't know why you treat me so bad🎶☹️
Grim: 🎶Think of all the things we could have had🎶
Jamil: *snatching the fish from Grim* Give me that!😠 Ugh, there's no way I'll be able to use this now.
Shriek: You got no music in your soul, brother! 😒
Ghost Chef D: You should get ready too, Deuce. You’ll be making mackerel curry today.
Deuce: Huh. We’re using fish? I thought curry usually paired with beef or chicken? 🤨
Ghost Chef D: Mackerel’s savoriness goes well with the curry spices! And it’s full of calcium and omega-3 fatty acids, making it a healthy option.
Deuce: So it’s good AND good for you.
Grim: Of course it is! It's fish! Not my beloved tuna, but anything that swims is bound to be triply tasty! 😋
Shriek: *hoisting the mackerel she's holding into the air* Yours is a curry powder-crusted fate! 😈
Ghost Chef D: Start by chopping the vegetables, then peel and dice the carrots.
Deuce: Uh... Dice? Are you saying to throw them across the table? 🤨
Shriek: Lemme do it! I'm great at Craps! 😀
Grim: You're good at Beetle, you're crap at Craps. 🙄
Ghost Chef D: No, no, I mean chop ‘em into chunks. Y’know, as opposed to slicing them. Here, I’ll show you. You roll the carrots around like this, angle your knife diagonally, and cut ‘em into bite-sized pieces.
Deuce: Oh! A roly-poly cut! 😯
Ghost Chef D: Well, I’ve never heard it called that before, but sure. Whatever floats your boat.
Deuce: That’s what my mom calls it. I didn’t know there was another word for it.
Shriek: I like that name much more! *rolling giddily on the counter* Roly poly cut! Roly poly cut! 😄
Ghost Chef D: I guess it would be more fun for a kid to say.
Deuce: I’ve done the roly-poly cut—ah, I mean, I’ve “diced” vegetables before when I helped my mom with the cooking.
Ghost Chef D: I see, I see. Well, go on, then! Get chopping! Then once you're done, put the sautéed vegetables and mackerel into the pot and bring to a boil.
Grim: Hey, look! Jamil's doin' a fish fillet! 😺
Deuce: Oh, wow! 😯 He's using that knife like it's another hand.
Shriek: I've seen lots of demons with knives for hands. Jamil probably cuts through just half as many guys as they do. But it's still so cool! 😀
Deuce: Hm... Chef, could I ask a favor? I’d like to learn how to fillet a fish! I mean, not NOW, of course. But I’d love to do it at some point during the program.
Ghost Chef D: What an eager beaver! I don't see why we can't start on it right now. 😊
Ghost Chef D: We’ll fillet a mackerel, sauté it until it’s nice and crispy, then top your curry with it. Now, filleting a fish is no easy task. You sure you’re up for the challenge?
Deuce: Yes, ma'am! Absolutely! I mean, it can't be that hard, right?
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Deuce: *desperately struggling to grasp the slippery mackeral* I TAKE IT BACK!! I TAKE IT ALL BACK!! 😭
Grim: Myahaha! Man, that fish kicked the bucket ages ago and it's still kickin' your butt! 😆
Ghost Chef D: It’ll be less slippery if you put it on a cloth or paper towel!
Shriek: *giggles* Deuce, watch me! *picking up a mackerel and starts scratching at its side* It's less slippery with claws, but you don't got 'em so you just gotta scratch the scales off!
Ghost Chef D: You're better off using a fish scaler. *handing Deuce the tool in question* Short strokes from the tail toward the head.
Grim: I usually just get the bones out by tuggin' on the head.
Shriek: If it wasn't a fish, you could just do a slash at the back of the neck, one down, and then flick out the spine. Buthere you just gotta reach into the gills and give the bones a good yank!
Deuce: Yeah, I don't think that's in my wheelhouse.
Ghost Chef D: The kid's got the right idea of cutting into it from the back, you just gotta urn the knife flat and glide it smoothly along the spine.
Deuce: *steeling himself* Right.
Grim: Here, I'll hold the tail down and save ya the face smack.
Deuce: Hey, I'm not that hopele- ACK! 😨Part of it tore off! What am I supposed to do with this thin, flappy piece?
Ghost Chef D: Don’t worry, happens to everyone their first go-round. No need to panic. just move the knife carefully and don’t push too hard.
Deuce: Yes, ma'am! I’ll start from where the bit tore off.
Ghost Chef D: I’m sure your dear ol’ ma would be over the moon if she saw you workin’ so hard, Deuce. 😊
Deuce: I hope so... *sighs with a somewhat forlorn expression*
Ghost Chef D: What's the matter?
Deuce: Well... the other day my mom told me that she’d been laid up in bed with a bad cold.
Shriek: Miss Deuce's Mom is SICK?! 😱 Grim, don't just stand there! Grab some eggs and poultices and soups! I'mma go get all the furs I can find and push 'em into the Dark Mirror to Deuce's house! LET'S GO, PEOPLE!!
Deuce: Whoa! Whoa! Shriek, it's okay! It's not like it was anything really serious! She's fine now.
Shriek: Ohh. Good, cuz I don't think I could get all the furs in one trip.
Grim: Sheesh, don't lead us on like that!
Deuce: How do you think I felt? She didn’t bother to tell me she was sick until after she had fully recovered. I get that she doesn’t want to scare me, but I kinda wish she’d lean on me more when she’s struggling.
Deuce: So the next time I visit, I want to cook for her and show that I’m more dependable than ever!
Ghost Chef D: sniffle* Aww, that’s so sweet! 🥹
Shriek: *smiling at Deuce before unsheathing her claws once more* When ya get good at makin' mackerel curry, I'll help ya make another one for your mom!😊
Deuce: *smiling back with a chuckle as he prepares to fillet the rest of the fish* Maybe by then I'll be as good a fish flayer as you! 😊
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[[Night Raven- Cafeteria]]
Sebek: So you’re the one who made my meal? Be warned, for I shall be exacting in my critique.
Deuce: That’s totally fine. Hit me with your most honest feedback! Here’s the mackerel curry I made.
Sebek: Hmm... It looks and smells passable enough. As for how it tastes... *takes a bite* Hm... Surprising... What’s with this flimsy piece of mackerel? 🤨A most odd cut.
Deuce: Oh, that’s the first piece I filleted. It tore off while I was cutting it. I gotta tell you, filleting a fish is pretty tough. This was my first time doing it, and it was kind of a mess. 😓
Grim: *from where he's gobbling up the scraps in the kitchen* But a delicious one!
Sebek: Heh. I’m sure it was. 😏
Deuce: Did you just snort at me? 😠 Well, can YOU fillet a fish, Mr. Fillet... Mignon?
Sebek: Wrong meat, human. 😒 And yes, I used to go camping with my family, and we’d catch fish at the riverside on a regular basis. Handling them is second nature to me.
Deuce: Oof. Thanks for reminding me I’m such a noob...😟 Well, I’ll keep practicing until I can fillet a fish in my sleep! 😤
Ghost Chef D: That’s what I like to hear! Ahh, nothing motivates a teacher more than a keen learner! 😊
Sebek: If you require fish with which to practice, I could do you the favor of taking you fishing sometime.
Deuce: I’ll keep it up in the kitchen, Chef. And I appreciate that, Sebek!
Shriek: *flapping into the cafeteria* Deuce!! Ya forgot the finishing touches!
Sebek: Devil Child, what are you-?!
Shriek: *plopping a bunch of fish heads on the curry, each with a Pandemonian rune carved into them, and tapping them with Mangal like a conductor's baton* 2, 3, 4! 😄
The Re-animated Fish Heads:
🎶I want to know that you'll tell me
I love to stay
Take me to the river, drop me in the water
Push me in the river, dip me in the water
Washing me down, washing me🎶
Deuce and Sebek: *staring in aghast silence*
Shriek: My favorite part's comin' up! 😃
The Re-animated Fish Heads: 🎶Hug me, squeeze me, love me, eat me
'Til I can't, 'til I can't, 'til I can't take no more of it🎶
Shriek: *picks up one of the fish and slaps Sebek over the head with it*
Shriek: I love mackerel curry! 😄
