The Winter Tyrant

Chapter 116: Luxury

Brooke descended the staircase to find that indeed nobody was downstairs. And it would appear it had been that way the entire night. With Yuki going back to sleep, and Dean ... most likely in Katherine’s room, Brooke decided to get started on breakfast and to put the dishes that had washed overnight away.

It was hard to believe that despite the apocalyptic snowfall permanently littering the backyard and the world beyond, that she could keep up such a normal domestic routine.

As Brooke got the food started for the morning, she couldn’t help but think about how abnormal their lives must be relative to the world beyond.

How many people went about their daily lives, with chores that were the same as the world that had come before, and died with the first snowfall?

In fact... how many people actually remained on the planet? Ten percent? Five? Less? She didn’t want to even think about it.

Brooke shook her head as she continued with her duties, and eventually she heard a yawn, and the plodding of two sets of feet coming down the stairs, along with a complaint from a very familiar voice.

"God damn it... I’m so sore.... Why couldn’t you have gone easier on me last night? Have you no decency?"

Dean laughed in the background, causing Brooke’s spine to tingle, she couldn’t see it yet, but he wrapped his arm around Katherine’s shoulder and dragged her in close, while messing with her in a way he hadn’t done before.

"You’re complaining now, but you seemed to enjoy it quite a bit last night, you know after the pain subsided."

Katherine didn’t say a word, she simply punched Dean in the gut, hard, but not hard enough to harm, only enough to force him off of her as they both entered the kitchen.

However, her fury dissipated the moment after as she realized Brooke was standing there, blushing in embarrassment, as she cooked breakfast.

It took all of two seconds for Katherine to realize that they had been overheard by the woman, and she immediately brushed her hair aside and looked away, stomping on Deans’ foot, as he simply sighed awkwardly.

"I didn’t realize you were up Brooke, thanks for cooking breakfast."

Brooke set the plates down and sat down in her own seat. She didn’t dignify this with a response, and instead shifted the subject, while glaring nastily at Katherine.

"Yuki decided to go back to sleep, so she won’t be joining us anytime-"

She said as the sound of feet rushing down the steps cut her off before she could even finish.

Yuki ran down, evidently smelling the bacon that had been cooked to crispy perfection on the stovetop. Rousing her from her slumber with excitement, she rushed down the stairs still in her nightgown, kissing Dean on the cheek before nimbly taking her seat by his side.

"Morning Dean! Sup hoes? She said playfully while preparing her silverware.

Katherine looked over at Yuki’s usual shamelessness and shook her head with a sigh. Prompting Yuki to fire back at her.

"Don’t act all high and mighty after the dirty deeds you did with Dean last night!"

Brooke placed the food down on the table, where Yuki quickly put her hands up in a brief prayer.

"Thanks for the meal" before digging into the bacon without restraint. Katherine barely had time to process the girls’ quip before Brooke sat down and joined in.

"She’s right you know. You said there was nothing between you and Dean when I asked you about it, and yet... so shameless... so very shameless, right Yuki?"

Yuki nodded her head, but didn’t say anything she was too busy eating the breakfast.

This prompted to call out the two girls on their behavior, directly appealing to Dean to defend her honor.

"Dean, they’re bullying me!"

It was perhaps the biggest shift Dean had seen in Katherine’s character as she clung to him, pleading with an obviously manipulative and "defenseless" gaze.

But he didn’t fall for it, as the other two women silently glared at him, instead he shrugged her off and bit into his own piece of bacon while ignoring the woman’s complaints entirely.

"So? You’re a big girl, you’re capable of defending yourself. Right, Doctor Whitaker?"

The full use of her title caused Katherine to wince. All the while Brooke and Yuki smirked in victory.

Ultimately, it was Yuki who shifted the subject before it could escalate further.

"Oh my God, do you have any idea how long it’s been since I had bacon? Where the hell did we get such a luxury? Please tell me this isn’t a onetime thing? I don’t know if I could handle that heartbreak."

Dean was more than happy to shift the subject, as he took a bite of his own bacon, savoring the flavor with every moment in between bites.

"Zach and the others found a pack of wild hogs out in the snow, they manage to hogtie the little bastards and bring them back. They butchered the oldest one, and the rest will be used to sustainably raise pork from here on out. We’ve added another source of meat to Elysium’s food supply."

Yuki moaned in ecstasy as she enjoyed the bacon cooked in goat ghee even more now that she knew this wasn’t a one time affair.

"Thank God! You should give those boys a medal for what they did! I can’t believe I lived a year without bacon! I never understood how much better your bacon is than those back home in Yamato until I moved here...."

The mere mention of the old world, and how it used to be caused everyone to go quiet. They chose to eat their food in silence, rather than reflect on a past that would never return.

Katherine was just glad that the two girls were no longer dogpiling on her. The four of them enjoyed their meal, returning back to the levity before long. Where they then cleaned the dishes, and went their separate ways for the day.