THE MOMENT
"What's this?" Rich glanced at the detailed diagram, then gave his boss a questioning look. It was a circle divided into eighths with a specific list and alignment of toppings per section. "I know I've only been here a few weeks, but I know how to top a pizza...," he said. Mari, the supervisor, nodded at him and spoke up over the ongoing noise of a lunch-time pizzeria.
"We get all kinds of customers with particular orders...," she shrugged. "...and, you never know when one might be a secret shopper. Just follow the diagram," she said. She'd walked the order to the back to give to him directly, and in the short time he'd been there, she'd proven she was friendly and helpful at every step. There was no chance she mentioned the possibility of a secret shopper accidentally; she wouldn't have put that pressure on him without reason.
"Alright," Rich nodded to himself and got to work. They'd ordered a thin pizza, so he rolled out the dough extra flat and put it on a pan to start the toppings. He took longer than he normally would've, but only because he was being so careful. As it was, he almost fell into his normal training; but, the instructions were precise in their difference compared to what he was used to. On top of that, the composition seemed off, too much pepperoni on one side, and only a single jalapeno slice at the 10 o'clock position.
"Ready?" Mari appeared as Rich held the last pinch of grated cheese, about to sprinkle it on the center of the pie.
"Yeah, just about," he nodded. He rubbed his fingers to release the last bits of cheese. As soon as they landed in the center the entire pizza lit up with an active magical sigil. A warm, yellow-orange glow enveloped the meal to cook it not only instantly, but also slightly longer than Rich was used to.
Magic was a part of everyday life, and there was not a single oven in the restaurant. In the time he'd been there, Rich had plenty of practice laying out the toppings for the self-baking sigils, and he more or less had the timing pegged. Except this one lasted for several moments longer, and when the glow finally dissipated, the pizza was extra toasty with black spots on the cheese and it had a dark, roasted crust.
"Oh... was that just 'extra crispy'?" he asked as he boxed it up for Mari.
"You got it," she nodded at him with a smile. "And, you followed the spell perfectly," she added. "Congratulations. I know it's kind of a low bar, but you'd be surprised how many people get tripped up by a simple 'follow directions'."