TWF: Hey ho! What's up? Time for our second rambling of the day! And that's Blade's turn! But wait… we got a problem, dude! 8O

Fen: And what problem is that exactly. '_'?

TWF: We got two different versions of it. One being Kurogasa, the prequel, and one being Lyon, the sequel. How can we tell from either one of them, if we wanna do some random stuff?

Fen: Hm… *thinking*

TWF: Should I eliminate one of them? *wearing black glasses, wielding a shotgun while posing as a terminator with Arnold Schwarzenegger's voice.*

Fen: NO!

TWF: … *looking at Fen-kun* Unless you got a better idea, you are terminated.

Fen: Okay, how about we do it like this!


Blade (Kurogasa) Gaiden 1: The Great Celebrity Cook-Off!

One day, Eirika had her day off from modeling, as she tended to her seven-month-old son, Lyon, on the baby futon on the ground, with both 5-year-old hyperactive Kizuna and her younger sister, 3-year-old, Sasha, looking at their milk brother rather happily. Right now, Eirika was changing her son's diapers after giving her son a good bath. "Little brother happy, Mommy!" Kizuna chirped.

"Yes, he is." Eirika smiled onto Kizuna, looking back at her son while gently moving her son's legs, giving him the exercise that he needed. The toddler couldn't help it but to smile brightly upon seeing his mother's smile.

"When I can play with little brother?!" Kizuna asked eagerly.

"Wait until he can walk first, dear. Then, when he's big enough, you can play with him whenever you want."

"Awwww…" Kizuna pouted.

"Onee-chan, Mommy shaid little bwoder still cwaling!" Sasha told her, as Eirika put on Lyon's fresh baby clothes, making the toddler smiled upon seeing his mother wears it on him.

"That's right, Sasha." Eirika nodded. "And he can't move around a lot, other than his playing area. It would be dangerous for him if he somehow crawled under the table and we did not notice him as well."

"D'awwwwwww!" Kizuna whined more, as Amber happily barged into the manor, surprising the princess.

"Hey, sis!" Amber chirped happily, along with the tired Kurogasa behind her.

"Oh, Amber." Eirika got out, before noticing her husband walking along with her. "Anata. Welcome home."

"Hey Eirika…" Kurogasa groaned.

"Are you okay?"

"I would have been, if not for Amber suddenly screaming in my ear that we're home when I was sleeping in the car."

"Really?" Eirika got out, as she carefully carried her son in her arms, while the Ryder girls happily ran out of the manor, wanting to greet their dad. "Amber, why did you shout at him?"

"Because he really doesn't like the fact that I just put him in a celebrity cooking contest, like that Iron Chef thingy!" Amber grinned. "And the best part is… I put you as his sous chef!"

"W-What?" Eirika was surprised for a bit. "B-But, Amber, I don't know how to cook, other than making simple meals…"

"Oh, don't worry! You'll get the hang of it!" Amber grinned nonstop. "And besides, with you around, that's just gonna pile Kuro to do all the heavy lifting!"

"And the worst part of them all… she didn't even discuss it with him about it." Storm added, as he came into the room while carrying both of his girls. "And boy, did Kuro lash out on her after he got up from his nap."

"Hey, he did say he wanted to be well-known on the map, so I helped him! And throwing sis in it is just a bonus!" Amber grinned. "C'mon, Kuro! Just admit that you just missed cooking, like old times!"

"I was only doing that for Pontifex Mansel for just that one time…" Kurogasa sighed. "Dinner was so sullen that day, so I thought of cheering everyone up."

"But you did have fun, didn't ya?" Amber teased playfully.

"Well…"

"C'mon~, admit it. You had fun."

"Well… I guess… a little bit…"

"Hm~ what's that? I can't hear you." Amber said, cupping her hand around the back of her ear. "Say that again, Kuro~."

Kurogasa grumbled in annoyance, knowing he can't fight back her teasing. With a heavy sigh, he admitted, "I… miss it."

"See? It's not so hard now, wasn't it?" Amber chirped, happily patting his back a few times.

"Anata, are you sure about this?" Eirika asked worriedly, as she felt the small tug from her son on her blouse. "I mean, you don't have to do it, if you don't want to…"

"Amber pretty much signed me up for it and there's no clause saying that I can back out… I don't show up, the people will be outraged…"

"Hey, look on the upside! At least this would boost up your career, and Eirika's fans would be increasing dramatically, seeing her clumsily doing the kitchen work too!"

"A-Amber!" Eirika exclaimed, as she unbutton a few buttons from the top, before pulling it to one side to breastfeed her son. "Just because I live in a sheltered life, that doesn't mean I don't know how to use kitchenware!"

"Really? Like that one time where you wanna prepare a surprise meal for your hubby and you got some patches on your fingers for accidentally cutting on them?" Amber teased her, making Eirika blushing slightly.

"I just… wanted to show my appreciation to my husband. Is it wrong?"

"There's nothing wrong with that." Amber got out before she takes a deep breath, saying, "But trust me on this; you two would learn to love each other more, if you think about it!"

"How can you tell?" Storm looked at his wife.

"Hee, hee~! Call it a woman's intuition!" Amber grinned.

"Somehow… that doesn't seem to help me in a way…" Kurogasa sweat dropped.


A few days later, the Kururugi couple arrived on the studio, where there are a few celebrities who knew how to cook, along with their partners, present on the scene. Meanwhile, her son is in care of her manager/family member, Amber, along with her own daughters. "Anata, there seems to be quite a few friends of yours who got invited as well." Eirika noticed.

"Yeah, I noticed." Kurogasa nodded, seeing a few friends of his within his sight. "Are you nervous, Eirika?"

"I would be lying if I said no…" she sighed. "I mean, if there's something that I should cut, but I am unable to do so… oh, I can't imagine how embarrassing I would be…"

Kurogasa just couldn't help it but to notice his wife's other side that revolves around cooking. When he sees her like this, he just couldn't help it but to find her… cute.

"A-Anata, don't tell me you start imagining things that involves me in it!" Eirika scolded her husband lightly, blushing slightly.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Kurogasa said innocently.

"I'm calling your bluff…" Eirika slightly deadpanned.

"Ehehehehehe…" He laughed nervously with a sweat drop.

Meanwhile, in the audience…

"Wow, that's a lot of people." Akira muttered, holding little Elsie in his lap.

"Yeppers~!" Mikoto chirped, holding her recently born infant named Sakura, sleeping cutely in her arms within her warm pink blanket and cute pink hat on her head. "And Eirika-oneechan is going to cook? Wow~, I didn't know she can do it!"

"She did ask for my help to learn how to cook a simple meal." Melissa pondered, tending to her 3-month-old Ryuu.

"Yeah, but knowing how she works in the kitchen…" Kurai muttered, as his six-year-old son, Toby, was playing games on his father's phone.

"She… nearly burned the kitchen down…" Melissa sweat dropped.

"Ne, ne!" Mikoto chirped. "Has she ever dealt with live seafood before?"

"Oh dear… I don't think she has…" Melissa realized. "Because all I teach her was using foods that is already packed up."

"Oh, this should be fun…" Kurai chuckled.

*STOMP!*

"Ite!"

"Be nice…" Melissa chided.

After half an hour of introduction, the show began and the announcer introduced the key ingredient for the cook-off. And after the quick introduction, the cook-off started immediately.

"…" Eirika couldn't help but just look at a live lobster on the chopping board, with its claws taped up nicely for the safety of others. Kurogasa noticed her pale expression, knowing that she didn't know how to deal with live seafood.

"Okay, Eirika, I'll deal with the lobster, you prepare the other ingredients." Kuroagsa said.

"N-No!" Eirika exclaimed, surprising her husband. "I-I'll try to dissect this lobster, j-just like how Mother taught me how to c-cut the whole chicken in portions!"

"Oh dear…" Melissa said worried.

"Uh… Eirika?" Kurogasa said. "You just need to put that lobster to boil first before you do anything on it."

"…oh." She got out, blushing from her mistake. Kurogasa just couldn't help it but to chuckle lightly, seeing his wife acted up like that. At first, when she tries to poke the lobster with her knife, it didn't move initially. Feeling that it's safe to grab, she puts it away and reached out for it. Even before she could even grab it, the lobster flailed wildly, causing Eirika to squeak cutely and immediately hiding behind her husband, much to his surprise. "Eeeek!"

"…wow." Storm could only say it, as even some of the assistants noticed the predicament. "I bet she's afraid that lobster's gonna bite her with its tied up claws, huh?"

"Storm, claws don't bite, they pinch." Amber deadpanned.

"H-Hey, you okay?" Kurogasa blinked.

"S-Seafood is scary…" Eirika mumbled, buried her face on his back. "E-Especially live ones…"

"That's why I said that I'll handle it." Kurogasa sweat dropped. "You deal with the other ingredients."

"H-Hai…" Eirika mumbled. Maybe Amber does have a point, as Kurogasa was able to see Eirika's cute side pops out during the course of the meal.


With that, Kurogasa went to boil two lobsters and after a while, he took it out showing the lobsters all bright red, before he cut the claws off both of them and then cut the tails off. He then stuffed the lobster tails with crabmeat and added spices before searing them on a grill.

Eirika started on another part of the dish as she first cleaned the rice before cooking it in a pot, and then went to prepare the rest of the ingredients. She carefully chopped the green onions into fine pieces before placing them in a bowl. She then cracked open two eggs and stirred the liquid in a bowl, adding seasoning for flavor. She kept reminding herself that less is more, remembering her Mother's teaching.

After checking on the rice to see if it was cooked, after seeing it being done, Kurogasa then went to work on the lobster tails that were stuffed with crab meat and placed them on a plate for later. Earlier, he had prepared sauce for the lobster tails. It was already heating up, and when he saw it, he turned down the heat and left it to simmer.

"Okay, the rice is done." Eirika said.

"Good, I'll take over from here." Kurogasa said as he then started on the rice.

Kurogasa placed the rice in a wok before adding the egg. Then he used the spatula to coat the rice with the egg liquid, making sure to coat every grain. He then added the green onions and once it was ready he put the rice onto a plate in the shape of a dome. Finally, picking up the lobster tails, he placed them upon the golden fried rice, arranging the two so that it looked like a V and he used a spoon to drizzle the sauce over the grilled lobster tails that were stuffed with crab meat.

"And done!"

"Time's up!" The announcer declared, as everyone backed off from it. "Step away from your tables and hand off the food!"

"Thank goodness we're able to finish it in time…" Eirika sighed in relief.

"Yeah, and we got some leftovers, too." He grinned. "Enough for the two of us."

"I'm sorry…" she suddenly got out.

"Huh?" Kurogasa blinked.

"For being a burden to you in this cooking show…" she got out. "Amber or Tana would have been a better assistant to aid you with the cooking than me…"

"Are you kidding me? I'd let you cook with me anytime." Kurogasa chuckled. "Don't sell yourself short like that now."

"But I nearly have eggshells in it and I almost cut my finger again…" she pleaded, as Kurogasa held her hands.

"True, your hands are not suited for cooking." Kurogasa began. "But, they're good at something else that you are already good at."

"Truly? What is it?"

"A gentle touch for both Lyon and I, first thing in the morning." Kurogasa smiled.

"Oh, you teaser…" Eirika giggled lightly.

"I mean it, Eirika. Those hands of yours are meant to tend both of us. B'sides, if it weren't for your gentle touch, I don't think I'll be able to get off from bed first thing in the morning and Lyon might continue crying in the middle of the night." He added, now placing one of her hand on his cheek, as he rubbed it on the back of her hand. "That's how important you are to us, despite you don't know how to cook."

"Anata…" she got out, being in awe of hearing his words. A smile can be seen on her face, saying, "Thank you. For these comforting words."

"Anything for my wife." He smiled back.


"Aww~, you two didn't win!" Mikoto pouted, as Eirika held her son back in her arms.

"Third place out of five isn't that bad, y'know?" Kurogasa defended.

"But, but… the moneh~!" Mikoto pouted more, as her eyes glittered brightly upon mentioning it.

"Look on the bright side: at least Kurogasa gets to see her cute side, right?" Amber grinned widely.

"O-Oi!" Kurogasa stammered.

"Still, the judges thought the dish was delicious." Melissa added.

"And sis' antics were just too cute to pass up!" Amber added, making Eirika blush more.

"A-Amber, how can you say that?!" Eirika scolded her.

"Because my iPad rang nonstop, since the show was live!" Amber added, making Kurogasa paled.

"Wait…" Kurogasa got out. "Amber, you didn't tell me it was live…"

"If I told you, you'd immediately back off from it!" Amber chuckled. "That's why I gotta keep secret about it!"

*POP! POP! POP! POP!POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP!*

"T-Then, those words of comforts I said just now…" Kurogasa stuttered badly, clenching his fist rather tightly.

"Yep! The comments I received in my tab was you are just so~ cute when comforting her, it's gonna be a lo~ng trend and gossip!"

As Eirika's blush is now as red as a tomato on her face, Kurogasa's boiling point is nearly reaching its peak, as his nerve has become more prominent than ever. "I mean thanks to this, both of you just dramatically increased your fans by a whopping 20%!"

"I smell romance between the two of you~!" Mikoto chirped… and that's when Kurogasa had enough.

"AMBERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR?!" Kurogasa snapped, immediately start chasing the laughing Amber to their rides.

"Um… should we stop them?" Kurai asked.

"When he's angry like that? Nope." Storm added.

And since that day, the Kururugi couple's lives has become much more hectic.


TWF: That's something… o.o

Fen: Yeah, things got more chaotic…

TWF: *continues impersonating the terminator's voice* Hmph, at least you have made a good way to distinguish the two series. For that, you are free… for now.

Fen: Uh… ok?

TWF: *wearing black glasses* I'll be back… to Burger King!

*DUN! DUN! DUN, DUN DUN! DUN! DUN! DUN, DUN DUN! DUN! DUN! DUN, DUN DUN!*

Fen: Uh… right. Well, see ya later everyone!