The students were terrified.

Not only had they been stressing over what their sensei's' would be like, they also had the fear of expulsion hanging over them as an unforgettable threat.

They approached the door, not knowing what to expect. One brave student, a young woman with a look of firm determination on her face, opened the door, bracing herself for the worst.

No one expected to be hit with a wave of delicious aroma, a heavy but fresh and salivating smell washing over them like the tide. No one expected to see the Speed Demon (none other than Yukihira Soma himself) cross legged on a high stool, seeming fast asleep while a pot sat on the stove.

Another brave soul, a young man (who, much like Yukihira, only came to Totsuki because someone said he couldn't) this time, cautiously walked closer to gently wake their sensei.

He jumped back in surprise when Yukihira suddenly came to life like a deactivated windup toy and quickly uncovered the lid. The contained smell of his cooking hit the unprepared students once again as they watched in shock and awe as he began to finish cooking.

His hands were a blur; a man possessed by something unnatural (no wonder he was called the Speed Demon!). Some even "ooh"ed and "ahh"ed quietly as he (appeared to be) carelessly throwing spices and other ingredients into the pot, the smell growing even more intense.

"Aha, you're just in time! Have a taste of my newest creation. I call it... Evolved Yukihira Style Apple Risotto!" Yukihira plated enough small bowls for all the students and gestured towards them as if he was silently telling them to take a bowl.

The students obeyed and were soon overcome with the power of his cooking. Many had heard of his famous apple risotto, but experiencing it was many times more life changing and amazing.

Once they were finished, Yukihira clapped his hands twice and told them to clean their dishes and head to a cooking station.

"Now that you've had a taste of what could be your future... I want you to make it."

'Huh?' was the only thing the students could think of. What did he mean, "make it?"

Yukihira spread his arms out in a "look around you" gesture. "Use the ingredients you find in this room to make an apple risotto. You and your partner have a maximum of three hours to attempt to make a dish that impresses me. Start now, and I will be right back."

With that, he walked out of the room. Seconds of silence followed his exit and then chaos erupted out of nothing. Many students panicked on both what to make and how to make it.

"What even goes into an apple risotto?!" A student cried in a brief flash of forgetful panic.

o0o

Yukihira could hear the noise from outside, but paid no mind as he brought out his cellphone. Dialing a number, he patiently waited for the other person to pick up.

"You better have a good explanation for why you're calling me during the day knowing full well I am monitoring a class," the normal grouchy and stern tone of Nakiri Erina sounded in his ear.

"Ah, Erina-chan! I was just wondering about the time the groups are supposed to be back at the hotel. I checked this morning, but I fell asleep while cooking and then my students showed up halfway through. I ended up forgetting," he chuckled in a sheepish tone.

Erina was silent for a few seconds, and on her end of the phone call, her students cowered in fear at the icy look in her eyes. "Don't call me 'Erina-chan!' You're supposed to be back at the hotel at 3 pm, four hours from now. Meaning you have an hour to return. If you're late I'm going to behead you using Miito-san's butcher knife," she growled, annoyed by both his forgetfulness and inability to be intimidated by her. She both respected and hated him for being one of the few people not intimidated by her superiority.

Her group of students were a different case, however...

On Soma's end, he smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Erina-chan! I'll see you back at the hotel, ne?"

"Hai, hai, whatever." Erina huffed in annoyance as she ended the call.

o0o

Inside, students were still panicking, just on a smaller scale as they began to collect themselves. They were still terrified of expulsion as they cooked their risottos, however, and as Soma walked around the room, he knew it would show in their dishes.

One by one, they presented him with mostly mediocre (and some even terrible) dishes. One by one he shook his head and told them they could try again if they wanted to. Three, however, were Totsuki material (however they were in need some improvement if they wanted to stay at Totsuki).

The first dish was made by a pair of girls, one being the girl who opened the door and the other being a girl Yukihira recognized.

"Ahhh, Ririko-chan! I remember when you were just a hump in your mother's belly! Glad to see you at Totsuki," he said warmly. She flushed and greeted him shyly. Her partner was stunned.

"You two know each other?!" The other girl, Miika something or other's jaw hit the floor, causing Yukihira to laugh.

"Yep, she's the daughter of a friend of mine who helped me back in my school days... By the way Ririko-chan," he added, looking back at her. "Tell your mom I said hi when you talk to her next."

Ririko smiled. "Of course! She'll be happy to hear from you, I'm sure."

Yukihira took one last taste of his food and sighed, "Ah, this brings back memories..." He gave the two thumbs up. "You two pass!"

The second pair to pass were a boy and a girl, who undoubtedly reminded him of himself and Megumi when they first met. He smiled fondly, a reminiscent look in his eyes, which confused the two.

"S-Sensei?" The boy asked, a bit nervous. He wasn't sure if the smile was a good thing or not.

Yukihira's look switched as easily as turning on the light, silent for a few more brief seconds. The two students didn't know what to make of their sensei. His cooking was revered but he seemed a bit sporadic and even easy going! It was hard to get a grip of what he was like as a whole.

"Eh? Oh, sorry, I was just reminiscing about a certain boy and girl who survived this very challenge many, many years ago..." he chuckled jovially, whilst the other two were unaware of his meaning.

"Anyway, let's have a taste. It looks good, but that's only half the work." He took a spoonful and chewed thoughtfully.

"This is delicious. However, the apple is a bit softer than it should be. When did you add it in?" He asked. The two looked at each other.

"Well, I added them in after I turned off the stove... I let them sit for a few minutes to soak up some flavor." He almost winced, but stopped himself when his sensei made an unidentifiable noise.

"Ohh... I see the problem. You didn't choose the right apples. Certain apples are softer and will become mushy if left in liquids. Others retain their crunch longer. What kind of apples did you use?"

The girl piped up this time. She squeaked as she ran back to the ingredients, coming back within seconds holding a large yellow apple.

"We used these ones, sensei!" Yukihira took one look and came to a silent understanding.

"You should have used Fuji apples instead. Or gala apples just before they are perfectly ripe," he said, holding the golden apple with a scrutinizing gaze. "These are soft to begin with and become mush in hot liquids after a rather short period of time. Simple mistake that could cost you gravely here at Totsuki. Mistakes mean lessons to heed when repeating your actions."

His tone was serious and his words were severe, though he somehow managed to give off a casual and friendly aura. The girl was already awed and intimidated by Yukihira's fame and skill, but the mixed messages he exuded made her even more nervous and unsure of how to react. The boy was feeling similarly, concealing it with a profound nod.

"So that's where we went wrong, eh? Thank you so much for the advice, sensei!"

He smiled again, making a dismissive wave of nonchalance. "No problem, ehhh..." He paused. He was sure he was told their names... or was it on the group list?

"I-I'm Kano Matsuhara!" The girl wasn't sure if her sensei paused out of thought or something else, but she went out on a limb and supplied him her name. Her partner followed suit.

"My name is Kai Atsuko," he said, bowing slightly.

"There we go! Knew I recognized you two from the group list," he chuckled. The two students laughed along, not sure if that meant that they weren't that impressive or if he was just forgetful.

Kano-san decided to go with the latter.

Yukihira walked on to the another pair, unfortunately spitting out the food due to its overly sweet and tangy flavor, which was way off the mark they were aiming for. This particular pair of boys were not going to be missed however, because Gin-sama had noted their disruptive, albeit harmless, behavior. He'd told Yukihira to fire them as soon as a plausible reason arose because he'd sensed that they were unfit for the kitchen life.

"You're both fired. This is terrible in the fact that it's too sweet, too tangy and the apples are practically apple sauce. You either added them in too early, chose an ill-suited type of apple to use in this particular recipe, or both, and such mistakes could cost you severely in your culinary career." He'd left them gaping, angrily sputtering half-curses and complaints.

They abruptly stopped when Yukihira gave them a scalding, terrifying glare. "You have something to say?"

Muttering darkly, they walk out.

The last pair of the three most exceptional dishes in his group were two boys, one of them being the boy who was about to wake Yukihira earlier this morning.

"What do we have here? Ah, I do love seeing a nicely arranged plate," Yukihira murmured softly, smiling at the beautifully plated risotto.

Let's hope that it tastes even better than it looks, he thought to himself, as he brought a spoonful to his lips. It was hot, but that was no bother to the culianry master; he'd burned his tongue more times than he could bother to count, so it barely stung anymore.

The taste itself was pleasant, however, it lacked both luster and a compulsion that made whoever tasted it to want more. It was simple, through and through, which Yukihira didn't necessarily see as a bad thing; it just made it harder to climb to the top with simple tasting dishes.

It lacked a lot of things that would make it Totsuki worthy: finesse, impact and distinct flavors were the most prominent missing components. He mulled it around in his mouth, before swallowing and looked at the two boys.

"Tell me your names again?"

"Yamaguchi Kazuya," the boy on the left said, bowing his head in respect.

The boy on the right bowed his head immediately after, introducing himself in a professional manner, "My name is Daichiyo Akio."

Yukihira returned the proffered respect, smiling lightly a moment longer. Suddenly, his smile vanished and he donned his kind yet stern teacher mode.

"Now, onto the state of your dish," he pronounced, looking down at the pristine white ceramic plateful of off white creamy porridge like substance. "I have a few adjustments you'd be wise to follow, in however you choose to interpret them."

They looked at him in perplexedly.

"It tastes delicious, however, it is missing three very important things. Things that all food here at Totsuki has and needs in order to be up to par. Your dish lacks a certain finesse, and the flavors aren't as clearly defined as they should be. And another thing, it has no compulsive element. As soon as I or anyone else eating your food swallows, they should be pulled into the dish and want to take another bite immediately. Your dish was more like… A mediocre one bite wonder." They looked crestfallen at those words, until Yukihira amended his statement.

"Do not look so down." They look back at him, attentively. "Use the information I have given you to make your next dishes even better. You are one of the three pairs that stood out from the rest, which is no small feat. I look forward to seeing you boys perform in the next tasks." They eagerly nodded, smiling once more.

As Yukihira turned back around to walk to the front of the room, the door almost burst off its hinges as someone came barging into the room.

"YUKIHIRA SOMA, WHEN I GET MY HANDS ONTO YOU I SWEAR YOU WIL-" Nakiri Erina was about to let loose a barrage of threats and expletives when she suddenly stopped. The children nearest to the door seemed to have died frozen in terror.

She took a deep breath and regarded Yukihira with the frostiest and most murderous glare ever seen on her face by anyone alive, causing several students around him to shudder in horror and give him a wide berth.

"I hope to any god listening that you have a good reason to be late by thirty minutes," she whispered, ice coating her words.

"Thirty minutes, eh? Where had the time gone…?" Yukihira, as always, remained unaffected by her terrifying anger. "Well, I sure owe you one for coming to check on us, Erina-chan!"

He gave her a warm smile, seeming to not notice the clenching of her hands and the narrowing of her eyes. She took a deep, slow breath and closed her eyes.

I can't kill him, she reminded herself. Not even my reputation and wealth can leave me unscathed should I be pinned for his death.

"Soma..." she said softly. "Get your useless, plebian self onto the bus before I drag you there, dead. You, and your student group." She smiled at them, and they were suddenly all packed and exiting, leaving Yukihira and Erina alone in the deathly quiet room.

Yukihira sighed. "Still trying to keep me from being your friend, eh, Erina-chan?" He giggled softly, "you should know better than that. I'm stuck to you like barnacles on a boat."

She almost, almost, facepalmed then and there. Miraculously, she managed to refrain from doing so.

"Shut. Up."

Ayyyyeee, I'm back!

Readers:...

Me: ... Eh heh? *sheepish smile* I'm ... sorry ? for being gone so long ? aha... I promise there's a good reason for me updating so goddamn late, but it's a longggg story and my fingers hurt from typing 2458 words (minus this author's note, of course), so I'll just boil it down to it being a really chaotic year and whatever number of months, and that it's still chaotic as fuck and I have no clue as to when I'll be able to write Chapter Three. Many, many apologies and awards for the most patience to the readers who haven't given up on this thought to be abandoned story.

I LOVE YOU ALL IF YOU DECIDED NOT TO GIVE UP ON THIS STORY!