"I will reserve these for later," he muttered as he wrapped the cookies in a napkin and slipped them into his jacket. "As for the present..."

The way Cyrus tasted the cakes was a process that could be defined only as elaborate. Taking a small piece from the end of one, he sniffed at it, took it on his tongue, let it sit on the tip, moved it slightly back, pushed it against the roof of his mouth, and finally swallowed it, only to repeat the process with the other piece.

"Hm. I prefer the lemon cake, although the carrot cake has more nutritional value."