Disclaimer: I am working, but I don't own "Working!". The rights belong exclusively to Karino Takatsu, and I am only a humble fan.
Author's Notes: New chapter up and thanks for those who have read. I reiterate, this fic will be a full length story, but with limited chapters, maybe between 10 or 12. Once again characters from Season 4 appear. I think it's an exciting combination.
Thank you, thank you Shisoukengo-sama for your review. You know my pension for strong female leads, but I'm glad you feel it was a good transition. And the eyeglasses thing, is duly noted (LOL).
Now, on to chapter three! Please read, hopefully, enjoy and leave a review.
Chapter 3: Counterattack
Sunday
From the moment they entered the amusement park, Maya had traveled from Smallville, Pirates Cove to the Knights Realm and Shiori was still reeved to go. Her daughter did not want to miss any of the theme park attractions, and Maya felt guilty that it had been a while since their last outing.
Maya dressed casually; she wore a black and white striped baseball jersey shirt teamed with black cropped jeans with white, low top converse sneakers. The Wagnaria waitress wore a baseball cap that matched the jersey with her long hair protruding from the back in a thick ponytail. No one at work would recognize her in this get-up.
"Ooh, ooh, haha-ue!" Shiori pointed to the Block Topia attraction. The little girl wore a pretty pink t-shirt, white shorts, and white sneakers. "NINJA IKU!" the child shouted, wanting to see the live show.
"Alright, alright," Maya laughed, as she was pulled along to the ticket booth. "Aww... the next show is not for another two hours," she informed her child. "Why don't we take a rest and get a bite to eat before the show, hmm?"
"Okay!" Shiori sang.
As the two stood in line to purchase tickets, Maya thought of Obaa-san, who had stayed behind at the hotel. The old woman had complained that her knees were troubling her and decided that traipsing around an amusement park would only aggravate her condition. "Yeah, right," Maya murmured, knowing she'd been duped. "Those bad knees have probably hit every store in the nearby shopping mall."
"What, haha-ue?"
"Nothing... it's nothing, Shiori-chan," Maya smiled. "Mommy's just thinking out loud."
Finally, with tickets in hand, Maya steered Shiori to a small family restaurant on the premises; the place was twice the size of Wagnaria, and it was crowded. However, they were seated almost immediately; the service was fast-paced, but the staff wasn't perturbed at all, and after placing their order, their food arrived in record time.
"How is your Omurice, Shiori; is it good?" she asked her daughter.
"Not like haha-ue's chief," the little girl responded, informing Maya the dish was not as good as what she brought home from work.
"Chef," Maya corrected. "It's too bad I can't tell Satou-san how much my daughter enjoys his cooking," Maya thought. "Ah... I see," she said aloud. "I'll ask our 'chef' to make one for you when I go back to work, okay?" Shiori smiled, nodding happily with a mouthful of rice and Maya grabbed a napkin to wipe the excess from her lips.
In four months, Shiori would be three years old. Watching her daughter, Maya was amazed at how many traits the child had picked up from a father she had never seen. Shiori was just as fun-loving as Kojiro had been, whereas Maya had always been somewhat of a loner. In looks, it was hard to say who their daughter took after, as both parents shared the same dark hair and eyes as their child. Often, neighbors had mistaken Maya and Kojiro for siblings, but the two were longtime friends whose feelings grew into something more by the time they had reached their early teens.
"Stop it," Maya chided herself, as tears started to form and she blinked rapidly to keep them at bay. There was no sense in dwelling on the past; Kojiro was dead, and there was nothing she could do to bring him back. Shiori was Maya's responsibility; she wanted to keep their child happy and, above all, safe and was determined to make that happen, which is the reason she had to stop Souma's prying.
Speaking of the devil, Maya smirked as she watched her child clean her plate and then start on the child-size desert. Just one phone call to Kisaki Kondou and she had managed to foil the blue-haired chef's plans. Sakaki had recreated an employee file for Maya; all fabrication, of course, to be faxed the day Maya returned to work. With a smile, she recalled her conversation with Kisaki the night before...
"No worries, Maya-chan," Kisaki said. "I'll make sure Kenichirou handles your paperwork." The woman's voice was a bit husky from smoking cigarettes, and she had a lazy drawl that fit her physical personality. However, Kisaki was an academic genius with a mindblowing high IQ; she excelled at scheming, plotting and taking advantage of any situation. "This Souma sounds like a handful; from what you've told me, he doesn't seem to have a particular goal. It sounds like his hustle is just for shits and giggles," Kisaki said gruffly.
"Tell me about it," Maya scoffed. "I haven't gathered all his information yet; it's all kinda sketchy, like a puzzle," she said thoughtfully. "Well... enough about that info seeking jerk. I appreciate all your help, Kisaki and, oh... when did manager Sakaki-san become Kenichirou?"
"He's become quite attached to Hime; he takes care of her for me sometimes, even allows me to bring her to work. And in return, I feed his cats when he's away on business," Kisaki informed Maya. "It's kinda hard to remain formal with that kind of relationship."
"Hmmm, if you say so," Maya smiled, and decide to let the matter drop, at least for now. "Let's arrange to meet on my next days off; to catch up on old times," the brunette requested of her friend. "Shiori and Hime can also get reacquainted. Thanks for the picture; Hime is adorable and looks so much like you," Maya told Kisaki.
"Eh... she's got a good head on her shoulders," the blonde brushed off the compliment. "Now, little Shiori is your likeness; there's no denying that one."
"Wouldn't want to," Maya preened. She and Kisaki had met in prenatal classes. The two had also worked together briefly at Wagnaria's up north before Maya had relocated.
"Then let's do this... let's plan a get-together, but I'm warning you..." the blonde's voice dropped an octave. "... I plan to pump you for more information on this Souma guy."
"Right back at you," Maya laughed. "I expect to hear all about the child/cat sitting relationship between you and 'manager' Sakaki."
"You'll be disappointed," Kisaki grunted.
"I'll be the judge of that."
The clatter of plates pulled Maya from her musings and looked up to see the waitress collecting their dishes. She leaned back, allowing the woman better access to the table and realized it felt good being served instead of being the one serving and gave a brief thought of her co-workers back at the restaurant. She thought about Souma, recalling his 'cat caught the canary' look and smirked thinking how she had outmaneuvered him again.
"Is there anything else?" the young waitress smiled.
"No, thank you," Maya said, "Just the check if you please."
"Time to go, haha-ue?" Shiori asked, climbing down from the seat.
"It sure is," Maya leaned forward to clean the child's face and hands, keeping her still until the waitress charged her card. "Ready?" she asked Shiori, as they walked out of the restaurant.
"Ready! NINJA-IKU!"
XXXXX
Wagnaria Family Restaurant (southern location)
Souma felt everyone's eyes on him, but he ignored them. Instead, he focused on food prep and assisting Satou with late lunch orders, as well as keeping vigil on his cell phone, awaiting news from his informant.
"Satou-kun, is Souma-san okay?" Yachiyo asked as the two stood talking at the pick-up window. "He seems a little out of it today."
"Who knows," the blond chef answered. "He's been like that all morning; the nosy network must be shut down, and he lacks stimulation," he sniffed. "Well, as long as he gets the orders right."
"Now, Satou-kun," Yachiyo looked to her beloved, patting him lightly on the arm. "Something could be wrong; have you asked him?"
"No," his answer was blunt, but Satou saw the look his intended was giving him and held up a hand in mock defense. "Fine, Yachiyo-chan," the chef sighed. "I'll talk to him during the break."
"Aww... that's my kind, considerate Satou-kun," Yachiyo gushed and reached over to playfully pinched her husband-to-be's cheek.
"Stop that," Satou hissed, trying to sound firm, but failed miserably, as his face flamed. "I asked you not to do that at work."
"Sorry, Satou," Yachiyo said, but did not sound contrite. "I couldn't help it."
With a grunt, the head chef stuffed his hands into his pockets and turned back to his station, as his wife-to-be headed back to the serving area. He and Yachiyo had little over a month left working together before she transferred to a new job.
Satou entered the kitchen, walked over to the order station and read the request placed by Inami. 'Yakitori-Negima,' it read, and the head chef walked over to ignite one of the burners when a subdued Souma joined him at the stove.
The two chefs worked in silence until it became unbearable for Satou and he turned abruptly to Souma and asked, "Okay - so what's going on with you today?"
"Huh?" the blue-haired chef looked up, surprised. "Sorry, what was that?"
"Is that an earpiece?" Satou asked, noticing and pointing to the device protruding from Souma's ear.
"What..., this?"
"Yeah..., that."
"Oh... just following the baseball game; the Tigers are playing today," Souma explained, with his goofy grin back in place. "It's okay, right? It hasn't interfered with my work."
Satou certainly couldn't dispute that. Souma was seemingly a bit off today, but his orders were accurate and delivery, prompt. "Maybe he should listen to the game every day," Satou thought to himself. If listening to baseball kept him focused on work instead of prying into others personal life, Satou was all for it. However, his preoccupation had worried the other staff as they had assumed, Yachiyo included, that the assistant chef had some issue.
"No... it's fine." Satou, surprisingly, felt relieved. To have Soma acting oddly out of character was just as eerie as his typical day to day strangeness.
"Thanks, Satou-kun!" Souma grinned, as his superior grimaced and shifted a few paces away from his assistant and that's when the cell phone rang.
"Excuse me," the assistant chef, removed his phone from his pocket, checked the number and then turned to Satou. "A call from family," he said holding up the device. "A minute?"
"Sure, go ahead, I'll finish your order," Satou said. "Family?" he wondered. Souma had never mentioned family before.
Soma nodded thanks and then proceeded to the back entrance of the restaurant. Once outside, he picked up the connection and barked, "Whatta ya got?"
"Nothin'," the voice on the other end of the phone said.
"What does that mean?" Souma demanded.
"It means nothin'" the voice reiterated. "I've been at the station since 6 o'clock this morning. There were no reservations for a Maya Matsumoto scheduled at all today, and I haven't seen one chick that fully fits the description of the picture you sent."
"Hmmm," Souma murmured, his mind racing. "Maybe her ticket was purchased by someone else," he muttered, talking more to himself than the person on the other line.
"Yeah, I thought about that too," the voice said. "If that's the case, then that means the woman didn't travel alone, and the purchaser picked up the tickets."
Was it possible that Maya had a boyfriend or was dating? Souma thought it over and then dismissed the possibility; he had never gotten that vibe from her. Women in relationships rattled easily, he found; Todoroki and Inami were a prime example, but not Maya. Usually calm and composed, outbursts were rare for the young woman.
"And you couldn't find any woman fitting her description at all at the station?" Souma inquired of his contact.
"I've seen plenty dark-haired, dark-eyed beauties today, but none with thick-rimmed red glasses and no Matsumoto," the voice snapped. "Look, Hiroomi, I'm leaving; its way past noon and whatever this Maya is doing, she's having fun somewhere, enjoying her day off while 'I'...," he emphasized, "... am standing around looking like a train station stalker."
"Gomen, Tanuma," Souma apologized to one of his few friends, who until a few years ago, shared the same fetish for information by any means necessary. Both were members of the same journalism club back in high school; Tanuma was the only one who had stuck by Souma during his troubled senior year and when his life had spiraled out of control. "You know how I get with an itch I can't scratch," he smirked.
"Oh boy, don't I?" Tanuma stated sarcastically. He knew how Hiroomi felt because the two were similar. Both enjoyed the chase and the adrenalin rush of obtaining the unobtainable. "Well, we struck out; let's call it a day, I'm going home now and enjoy my own day off."
"You struck out; I've got bases loaded, but I'm still a bat," Souma scoffed. "Thanks, Tanuma. I owe you, later!" He disconnected.
After hanging up the phone, Souma leaned back against the wall and inhaled. Maya had thwarted him yet again, but that only egged him on; actually, it made the game much more exciting and challenging. "What is it Matsumoto-san?" he murmured, as he turned to head back into the restaurant. "What are you hiding?"
XXXXX
Monday -
Wagnaria Family Restaurant (northern location)
Leaning back in her chair in the break room, Kisaki took a long drag from her cigarette and exhaled, blowing smoke rings in the air. The lunch crowd was slowing down and, since Hime was with her grandmother today, Kisaki had made a minor contribution to her shift.
"Kisaki!"
Hanna Miyakoshi, Wagnaria's strict floor chief, appeared in the doorway, hands on hips.
"Oi, Miyakoshi," Kisaki responded lazily, plucking ash from her cigarette into the glass tray.
"What are you doing?" The teen's brown eyes flashed. "We still have customers," she said and jerked her head in the direction of the dining area, causing her short-tousled, light brown hair to bounce.
"I'm on break," the blonde answered smoothly.
"You're always on break," Miyakoshi snapped. "There are tables to clear in the non-smoking section."
"Where's Muranushi?"
"Waiting tables!"
"Kamakura?"
"The same!" Miyakoshi snapped. "Stop worrying about others and do your job."
"Okay," Kisaki said and leaned forward to snub out her cigarette. From the corner of her eye, she saw Miyakoshi smile, triumphant that she had finally gotten her blonde coworker to succumb. As Kisaki turned in her seat, the teenager would soon learn she had not quite succeeded.
"If you can tell me the origins of the tempura dish listed on the specials menu, then I'll head right over to the smoking section," Kisaki informed the floor chief.
"Huh?" Miyakoshi looked surprised. "Origins?"
Kisaki looked to the heavens. "Origin means where something comes from," the blonde said it slowly so the teen could comprehend. Miyakoshi was an excellent floor chief; diligent and hardworking, but academically and otherwise, more than a bit dense.
"Ah-ha!" Miyakoshi's face lit up. Kisaki made a habit of asking her questions she could never answer, but not this time. "The kitchen!" the teen announced proudly.
"Ehhhhhh," Kisaki made the wrong answer buzzer sound, turned back around in her seat and looked out the window.
"Kisaaaaki!" Miyakoshi cried and stamped her foot, as their English speaking coworker, Kouki Saiki, entered the break room.
"Oi, Saiki," Kisaki looked over at the half Japanese college student and asked him, in English, the same question presented to Miyakoshi a moment ago.
"Oh, that's easy," Saiki answered in English (his native language) also since his Japanese was rusty. "Tempura originated from Portugal."
"Right answer!" Kisaki, still speaking in English, congratulated her coworker. "And now, the prize," the blonde gave her rendition of a game show host presentation. "Miyakoshi here wants you to go clean tables in the non-smoking section."
"Ah... okay!" Saiki gave a thumbs up and moved into the dining area.
Miyakoshi's head had moved back and forth, between Kisaki and Saiki's conversation, as if she were watching a tennis match. She did not understand one word of English, outside of 'hello,' and even that was a stretch. After Saiki left the break room, Miyakoshi turned to Kisaki. "You made him go clean the tables, didn't you?" she asked.
"I didn't make him do anything," Kisaki said and blinked innocently. "He simply answered the question correctly, so..." the blonde shrugged and left the rest hanging.
"Being too smart is a curse, Kisaki?" Miyakoshi huffed, holding a serving tray in front of her like a shield.
"Then slow-wit must be euphoric," the blonde retorted, not missing a beat. But whatever gratification Kisaki may have felt at the snappy comeback was squashed upon seeing the teens blank look. The blonde crossed her legs and sighed. "Look at it like this, Miyakoshi, it's a win, win situation," she informed her floor chief. "Thanks to Saiki's willingness, your tables get cleaned, and I can continue my break. Who loses?"
Miyakoshi frown, but appeared to consider and then suddenly - "Waah!" the teen floor chief started bawling. "No one!" she wailed and then turned and ran to the back of the restaurant, brushing past the manager in her haste. "No fair, Kasaki!"
"Are you harassing Miyakoshi again?" Kenichirou Sakaki, Wagnaria's manager, asked his staff.
"What reason would I have?" the blonde sniffed, tossed her head and then muttered, "Other than the obvious."
Sakaki smiled, knowing Kisaki feigned offense. "You're much too hard on us lesser mortals," he told her before reaching into his shirt pocket to remove an employee assessment. "Here," he said, placing the sheet down on the table in front of her. "Look it over and make sure it's okay with Maya-chan. After its approved, I'll fax it over to Wagnaria south," he informed Kisaki and then moved to return to his office.
"On behalf of Maya, thanks, Kenichirou," she said, calling him by his first name since they were alone. "You know what Maya's been through the past couple of years. She and Shiori had finally found a place to settle down, but this Souma guy may be a problem."
"Souma... Souma," Sasaki murmured, his brow creased in thought. "That name sounds familiar, but I can't place it at the moment. Anyway," he paused and turned to Kisaki, placing a gentle hand on her head. "We'll just do what we can for Maya right now. She's a tough girl, and she's smart; there's no way she'll let this guy get the best of her."
"Of course, you're right," Kisaki said softly. Her normally stoic hazel eyes shimmered as she looked up at her manager/babysitter. "Thanks, again, Sakaki-jichou, and that's from me this time."
He merely smiled and then rubbed her head as if she were one of his cats before turning to in the opposite direction of Miyakoshi's cries.
XXXXX
The train pulled into the station and stopped, precisely at the appointed time, the doors opened, and passengers spilled out onto the platform. It was 6:17 pm and the majority traveling were leaving work; some were headed home while others to local bars, restaurants or some other form of entertainment.
Obaa, holding tight to Shiori's hand, strolled down the platform, headed for the exit gates. Behind them, Maya struggled under the weight of multiple shopping bags, a medium-sized suitcase, and a backpack. The young woman muttering expletives under her breath at the older woman who had, indeed, gone shopping while she and Shiori were at the amusement park.
"You okay, Maya-chan?" Obaa asked, looking back at the girl dressed in the boyish baseball get-up. Maya still wore the matching cap to the jersey, but the ponytail was tucked entirely under it. Whenever the trio traveled, the young woman would dress in casual men's clothes, until they reached their destination.
"Who told you to buy all this crap?" Maya managed, sounding winded.
"There were a lot of sales, dear," Obaa responded as if that explained buying an overabundance of stuff. "Bu... but, that's not all for me," the older woman hastily stuttered, as Maya looked up, her dark eyes furious. "I bought gifts for little Shiori and you as well."
"That ain't gonna cut it!" Maya's dialect changed when she was angry. "You're not gettin' away wit..."
"For me?" Shiori's delight interrupted her mother's tirade. The child's eyes were all sparkly at the prospect of receiving a new toy.
"Why yes, Shiori-chan," Obaa said, taking advantage of the situation. The old woman knew that the happy child would calm the angry mother down. "It's a surprise, so we'll have to wait until we get home, okay?"
"'Kay!" the child pipped in, pulling Obaa along, now anxious to get home and missed the smug look the old woman shot her mother's way.
Mya muttered more expletives and then barked, "You could at least carry something."
"You know my knees are bad," Obaa said and began rubbing the area for effect.
"Bad knees my ass," Maya thought, still struggling with luggage and packages. She was no fool; the former Judo instructor was just as spry as a twenty-year-old. "We're taking a taxi," she announced.
"Fine, dear!" Obaa said as they exited the train station. "But that's going to be a bit costly."
"I do not...," Maya emphasized, "... want to hear that from you."
The entire trip had been costly; the train tickets, amusement park and hotel fees, Obaa's shopping binge, but it was money well spent. She and Shiori had quality time together, and Obaa had a nice rest. For all her moaning and complaining, Maya was satisfied that everyone had had a good time.
However, now it was back to the grind. Tomorrow, Maya had to return to work to replenish her bank account. While on the train, she had received a text from Kisaki with an attachment of the assessment form for her to review. After making a few changes, Maya had returned the text and then relaxed back in her seat and whispered, "Round two to Matsumoto!"
XXXXX
"Pssst, Yamada," Souma stood by the office door of Wagnaria south, serving as the lookout. "Find anything yet?"
"No!" Aoi Yamada popped out from the inner office. "No file on Matsumoto Maya in the file cabinet."
"Dammit!" Souma inwardly swore as he bit his thumb in contemplation. On the one hand, Maya would have to admit defeat if she could not produce information for the assessment. On the other hand, the blue-haired chef was no closer to divulging the woman's secrets.
"Souma-san?" His young accomplice tugged on his sleeve to get his attention. "Why is Yamada investigating Matsumoto-san? Is it another workplace romance, like Todoroki-san and Satou-san? Does she have a shady past?" The young girl's excitement grew as her imagination went wild.
"No, no," Souma said, trying to calm the child. "But employee assessments are due. I did forewarn her, but... oh well, maybe she'll bring something in with her tomorrow," he said, although he would have liked to get a glimpse of her file beforehand. After their sparring of words the other day, Souma was peeved and also a bit worried, that Maya had some insight into his background.
"Is that all?" the dark blue-eyed youngster asked. "Yamada is bored," the girl spoke of herself in the third person. "It's been too quiet Souma-san. Yamada needs excitement -new targets," the girl said with a gleam in her eye.
Looking down on the girl, Souma saw a future reporter in the works. For her age, Yamada was cunning, eerily sharp and annoyingly persistent. However, he did not want her focusing too much on Matsumoto.
"And we will," Souma said to Yamada. "Remember, Todoroki's leaving and we'll have a new hire soon. Besides, there's no excitement with Matsumoto; she's as 'normal' as you can get."
"I guess you're right," the girl sighed. "Yamada thought that because Matsumoto-san wears fake glasses, we might be onto something, but I guess she's just trying to look smart, like Takanashi-san."
"Fake glasses?" Souma turned to the girl. "How do you know?" he asked.
"She left them on the sink in the restroom one day, and Yamada tried them on," the girl said. "They're basic reading glasses like Kirio wears when he's pretending to study."
"Is that so," Souma said rubbing his chin.
"Time to close shop, everyone!" Popura Taneshima, Wagnaria's future floor chief, called out to the crew, distracting Yamada and had her running to the front to assist with closing.
Souma digested the new information, as he headed into the kitchen to help Satou with cleaning. The glasses thing could turn into something or nothing at all, but it had the assistant chef's mind racing.
"Oi... stop daydreaming and get to work," Satou informed Souma. "Yachiyo and I are having dinner with our parents tonight, and I don't wanna be late."
"Hai, hai!" Souma saluted and dove right into cleaning the burners, anticipating round two with Maya Matsumoto tomorrow."
