A/N: A first enstallment in a self made challenge. To write a flash fic centering around a character and a summon spirit. The first is a Mithos centered peice, pre-game, set during the Kharlan War. I'll have notes for each piece so no one gets lost.

Cooking

Mithos glared at the ex-brigand, Kratos returned the glare. The remains of the human's stew were slowly dribbling along the sands, making a dull brown stream at the red clad man's feet. Kratos' eye twitched, a bad sign. Seeing the Protozoan, Mithos lifted a hand and pointed to the avian shaped being.

"Noishe started it!"

"Noishe, did not start it. And it matters not who started it, you finished it and wasted more food than I care to think about-"

And Kratos went on… and on about the dumb food. He didn't even listen to Mithos when the half elf tried to explain. So the brave hero of Sylune, savior of the Duke of Klavir, and hopeful regenerator of the great Kharlan Tree was now stuck making dinner.

He had sulked and whined, but at last he'd gotten to it. Cutting the vegetables wasn't that bad, fetching the water tiring but not really a big chore. It was the waiting that got to him. The long, boring span of waiting that drove him absolutely crazy!

"Boil, curse you!" Mithos growled at the water.

"No using your fireball spell!" Yuan barked.

What made it twice as unfair was that Kratos had gotten Yuan to go along with this. Mithos could have cheated, just a tiny bit, but with those alien sapphire eyes boring into him he hadn't quite dared. Because Mithos knew Yuan, Yuan wouldn't yell at him or anything, he'd just tell Martel then he'd really be in it then.

It just wasn't fair! Heros shouldn't have to make dinner!

Then suddenly an idea came to him, he smiled and raised a hand. With a quick chant the small fire flickered, then shot up, expanded a hundred times and the heat became so intense that the nearest trees withered and shed their branches. The grass around the once small cook fire ignited, and from the towering blaze came a creature.

Red, it towered over the nearest tree and was wreathed in flames from the deepest hells, it's hide had been forged from the hottest pyres of the sun, and it's twin horns made from the ashes of the burned bones of the world.

Little wonder they called him "the red giant".

The creature bowed to his summoner, it's ember eyes then scanned the clearing and it's shocked occupants indifferently.

"I see no enemies."

Its voice was the crackling of fire, the snap of trees shattering in the face of the hottest conflagration.

Smiling Mithos spied the pot perched between those horns, he pointed and Efreet reached up with a clawed hand to take off the makeshift "helmet".

"Thank you." Mithos took the steaming pot and it's scalding hot water from the spirit. The oversized mitts he was wearing protected his hands from the scalding heat. "I just needed the water to boil, and it's really hot now."

Had Efreet any eyebrows to raise both would have shot up, as it was he was bound by the pact and now that his duty was done must leave the world that could only barely tolerate his presence. Confused, he looked around to see if that's all his summoner had needed, no fell armies materialized and the golden haired child seemed content to fuss over the charred pot.

At last, he shrugged, the last words he heard from the world of mortals was the spring haired girls voice.

"You summoned Efreet to cook dinner!"

"The fire was too slow Mar-"

"You are in serious trouble mister."