Varian grinned excitedly as he opened the door to Monty’s store. His blue eyes drifted over the different treats that lined the shelves as he stopped himself from bouncing in excitement. “Monty?” He called out, laying his hands on the counter where the little bell was. He lightly drummed his fingers along the edge as he waited for the older man to come out of the back.

Suddenly, a crash was heard from the back, making the alchemist stiffen, his eyes widening. “M-Monty…?” He called out once more, concern dripping from his tone. He looked through the small window that showed part of the kitchen only to stand up straighter in alarm when a cloud of white dust appeared followed by a series of coughs.

His concern turned into confusion and slight amusement when a young girl around his age walked out from the kitchen, completely covered in flour. Her e/c eyes glanced up at him, before widening in shock. “S-Sorry. I didn’t know there was anyone here.” She stuttered out, giving out another cough, which resulted in a small cloud of flour escaping her lips. 

“What can I do for you?” The girl asked, a smile lighting up her face. Varian gave her a goofy grin, making her blush underneath the coating of flour. “Surprise me.” The girl gave him a thoughtful look, before nodding to herself and disappearing back into the kitchen. The bell above the door rang out, making Varian turn to see Monty walking in with a bunch of ingredients in his arms. A bag of cocoa powder tumbled from the pile in the older man’s hands and Varian quickly snagged it before it could hit the ground. “Thank you, my boy.” He chuckled, putting the stuff on the counter and letting out a big sigh.

“No problem.” Varian shrugged, a small smile crossing his freckled features. “Monty, who’s the girl?” Month hummed, before glancing to the kitchen in confusion before realization crossed his face. “Ah, that’s Y/N. My sister’s daughter. Her mother had an incident and Y/N had to come and stay with me. Luckily for me, the girl adores baking, and she’s not half bad either!” He gave a hearty laugh and a wink, before he gathered all the ingredients and walked into the back to put them away.

Just as he did, Y/N came around the corner and placed down two giant cupcakes on the counter. The cake was a light pink color, with white icing on the top. Blue sprinkles covered the swirl of icing and placed perfectly to the side was half of a strawberry. “Woah…” Varian breathed, making the young girl chuckle softly. 

“Here ya go!” She grinned, placing the two treats in a bag for him and accepting his payment. 

Varian walked out of the store and took one of the cupcakes out of the bag. The treat was the size of Rudigger’s head, and Varian felt himself salivate at the sweet scent that drifted from it. He quickly took the wrapper off before taking a bite. 

His jaw dropped at the taste, blue eyes widening as he looked back into the window of the shop, watching the girl interact with her uncle. “Amazing….” He whispered out, his cheeks heating up as he watched her toss some of the flour at her uncle, who laughed and retaliated by squirting icing on her.

“Y/N, huh?” He grinned, his heart beginning to race at the sound of her name.