Chapter 22: The Brewing Does Not Stop at the Kitchen
AN: Finally! The plot is now starting to move! Huzzah! Enough of the fillers, eh?
Disclaimers: The Infinite Stratos and all other references aren't mine and belong to their respective owners.
"Hm…" Cecilia murmured, tapping her pen on her lips. For some reason, the teachers are taking ages to arrive. In fact, they're already one hour late! Her classmates were all chatting to their friends, transferring seats may it be one or ten tables apart. There was a whole circle of females in the back corner, a few smaller circles scattered throughout the room, and the three males huddled in the front accompanied by a single female. The windows were also open, mixing the artificial cold and natural breeze; a herald of the coming frost. Sunlight bathed the room as well, neutralizing the cold into a pleasant atmosphere. A thought struck her as she looked around.
"Good, they are all distracted. Time to jump the opportunity!" She cheered internally. Approaching the four, she lightly tapped their shoulders.
"Hiya." Elaine greeted enthusiastically. Apparently when Cecilia went to sleep, the brunette revived, pulled out energy from five cups of caffeine, and finished all the work in one fell swoop. Then again, that's definitely the reason why she looks out of sorts today. That, and her eyebags so big she looked like a tanned panda.
"Wow. Are you sure you're feeling well, Elaine? Earlier this morning you mistook the bathroom door for the room door and nearly went to the classroom naked." She recalled. An awkward blush filled the mentioned female as she fidgeted before laughing uncomfortably .
"Ahahahahaha…!" Pulling her roommate closer, the embarrassed teenager pulled Cecilia a few feet away from the males, who were laughing boisterously.
"You didn't have to tell them that…especially that Ems. He'll poke fun at me for the whole day, at least." Elaine pouted, crossing her arms under her relatively ample chest.
"Well, well…" The British lady giggled with her friend, sauntering back to the front desk. Laughing, whispering, and chattering away, the class failed to notice two things; Laura's arrival and the teachers' entrance.
"Alright everyone, take your seats." Chifuyu commanded in a serious voice as per usual.
"I bring good news and bad news. Which one would you like first?" An impromptu debate in the classroom was the result of the senior Orimura's poll. Being a serious, business-like woman, she did not appreciate the clash of views that is happening right in front of her.
"YOU IDIOTS CALM DOWN!" She roared. The Brunhilde's fury echoed through the student's ears, scaring most of them into submission. Noticing that one of her "special" students has arrived one and a half hour late, she shot her a questioning glance.
"Orimura. Guevarra. Bodewig. Williams. Stay in the classroom at lunch time. I believe we have something to discuss." Having said that, Chifuyu stepped back from the platform and gave the spot for Maya.
"Ehm…I, we have an announcement to make." Maya called out in a regulated voice.
"It seems that the higher-ups has decided that the cultural festival be moved to November." She said calmly. Despite that, she was fidgeting slightly.
"But!" She exclaimed happily.
"The three-day festival will be fused with the celebration of Halloween, so it will be one week of pure celebration!" Cheers echoed throughout the room as students chit-chatted immediately, exchanging ideas back and forth like soldiers in a battlefield. For once, Chifuyu let the students' excitement run their course as she recalled her conversation with Tabane.
I drank my coffee as I worked on my 32nd petition from the student council. Geez, all these youth and their crazy ideas. What's with this "Swimsuit Mondays"? And this "Casual Clothing" petition? This has always been a petition ever since I became a teacher here. The night is starting to approach the wee morning hours, yet I'm not even halfway done. Tch.
Suddenly, my phone beeped. The caller tag was "Tabane".
"Hi hi!" An annoying high-pitched greeting met my ears.
"What is it?"
"Don't be so mean, Chi-chan! You see—"
"I have no time for this." Just before I hung up, Tabane wailed.
"EEHH, PLEASE! PRETTY PLEASE WITH CHERRY ON TOP!" She kept on.
"Alright, alright, tone it down. Now, what is it? Straight to the point, or I'll leave you." I threatened.
"Um, well…Can you please hold on to this blueprint for me Chi-chan~?" At that moment, my laptop downloaded a file all by itself. The file read "Project Atlantis" but I can't seem to open it.
"Not yet, Chi-chan! All in good time~." As she said that, I heard a clutter of various objects falling in the background, followed by Lucas screeching.
"Goodbye Chi!" Tabane screeched, abruptly ending the call.
I wonder what this "Project Atlantis" is…?
Ding Dong! Ding Dong!
"Okay class, let's start with the next subject. Open your files on Module…"
Lunch Time…
"Hey dude, did you notice that Chifuyu kept spacing out earlier?" Stoney said, biting a chunk out of his burger.
"Yeah. Do you know why, Ichika?" Guevarra asked, mouth half full.
"I know just as much as you guys do." Ichika replied before eating his bowl of ramen.
"Speaking of which, where are the girls?" He continued, sipping the soup.
"The hell should I know?" Guevarra finished, setting aside his plate. The three boys looked at each other in confusion.
" " "Where are they?" " "
Same time, in a momentarily abandoned area of the Academy…
Meanwhile, our heroines are all alone on the fourth floor, toiling away in hard work. They were sweating in their endeavors despite the cold temperature, and the nervous tension is in the air. Sounds of metal clashed together in the heat of flames as it blazed on their foreheads. Suddenly…
TING!
"Oh!" Charlotte gasped in surprise. Such was her focus in staring at her scrutinized object that she did not notice the resounding alarm of the…
"The microwave!"
Oh.
She rushed to the white machine and instantly turned it off. Putting on her mittens, she removed the bowl of instant ramen and set it on the table. Meanwhile, Elaine was meticulously observing Cecilia's work, carefully calling her out on any mistakes she did, may it be intentional or not. On Rin's side, however…
"Hum hum hum, la dee da dee doo…" She hummed her little tune, oblivious to her culinary rival's troubles as she continued her cooking.
"Ahhh….let's put some salmon oil!" Cecilia cheerily announced, pulling a large salmon out of nowhere.
"WAIT! DON'T DO THAT!" Elaine nearly screamed, snatching the salmon away from the blonde.
"But you said that healthy food is always good!" Cecilia snatched back, but Elaine held her ground. Thus the two engaged in a fishy tug-of-war.
"YOU DO REALIZE FISH DOESN'T MIX WITH JELLY, RIGHT?!"
Meanwhile, Laura and Charlotte are quietly enjoying their lunch, ramen, in the sidelines, opting to avoid favoritism while Houki was looking at Rin's handiwork, mentally taking notes about her friend's cooking.
"Mark my words Elaine. Starting today, I will train hard to become the greatest chef in this academy!" She announced, pumping her fists.
"You some kind of anime heroine or something?" Elaine deadpanned with half-lidded eyes.
"Well, if you so desperately want to learn yet having your way, guess the only choice you have will be through experience. Go, you can do it." She sighed, sitting on the sofa. Cecilia then happily complied, dumping a whole cup of fish oil and mixing it in the jelly.
"Hey girls, it's almost time." Amelia suddenly popped from the door.
"How long have you been there?" Asked Charlotte as the rest nodded.
"Just passing by. Hurry!"
"Alright, alright!" Cecilia scurried, putting everything back in place as fast as she can. Rin however just smiled as she returned everything she used much faster.
"Ohoho~, what a messy workplace…" She taunted snidely.
"What?!"
"Nothing…"
"C'MON!" The greenette urged. There were only two minutes remaining and they have to run all the way to the changing room and put on their IS suits.
Later on…
"Whoo…" Guevarra blew loudly, falling on a bed.
"Man, I'm tired."
"We sure are." Stoney followed, falling on the other bed.
"Chifuyu is really serious about this, isn't she?"
"Well, she is in almost everything, if you look at it that way." Ichika replied as he got some soda from the fridge. The trio are currently relaxing in Ichika's room as they waited for the girls, who asked them to wait for them there.
"When are they going to get here…?" Guevarra whined, kicking his feet up in the air.
"Can't you just smell them like you did last time?" Ichika asked, finishing his soda.
"Three points." Stoney whooped, shooting the can in the bin.
"I'll try…" Guevarra replied as he stood up and sniffed the air, the window, and the door.
"I don't…hey, I think I can smell them." He announced.
"Hey dude, why didn't you use your nose to find out about the ambush if you knew Tabane's gonna set you up again yesterday?"
"How should I know if there was gonna be an ambush? Besides, they were wearing some sort of perfume that blocks their scent. Probably to get past the dogs."
"But there were no dogs, so…"
Guevarra and Stoney's expressions turned serious, so when Ichika turned around from peeking outside the door, he was surprised.
"What happened?" He raised his eyebrows questioningly.
"What? Oh, nothing." The two replied.
"Anyway, they're coming. I think they brought obentos." Ichika said, sitting on a chair. Suddenly, a thought hit all three of them.
"Ichika, when you said they brought bentos, did that include Cecilia?" Guevarra asked nervously.
Stoney gulped.
"Um, yeah…" Ichika replied normally.
"Why?"
"Eh…you'll see." Guevarra sighed as the door opened.
"Hey everyone!" Amelia greeted happily, bringing a large basket of fruits.
"Hi people!" Both Guevarra and Stoney feigned excitement. The thing is, both of them are actually quite excited to taste what their friends cooked for them. However, that also means having to eat Cecilia's as well…A terrifying thought. Ichika meanwhile, was clueless about this due to him somehow avoiding Cecilia's cooking prowess each time they eat food they made themselves. But then again, there's the cooking of the other girls. They had that going for them, which is nice.
"Is everyone's schedule free starting now until curfew?" She continued, unpacking her food. The rest of the girls followed suit as they cheerfully discussed the practice battles earlier afternoon. They talked about the fight between Houki's Uchigane and Amelia's Rafael and how close Amelia was to winning when Houki struck her with a loud "MEN!" They also recalled how Chifuyu taught them the ranged versus melee situation with Ichika and Cecilia's help. After that is Special Weapons lecture, this time with Rin and Laura. Overall, it was a tiring yet fun-filled afternoon.
Amidst the chatter, Elaine called out.
"Ichika, can you please get us some drinks? Any will do."
"Ah, sure." Ichika smiled as he went towards the kitchen. He still didn't get why Emmanuel and Tony suddenly became nervous while discussing Cecilia's cooking. It's not as if it' While he was brewing some tea, he can even hear Houki disciplining Guevarra on table manners, specifically about not touching the food before everything and everyone's ready.
"Can somebody help me carry these?" He shouted from the kitchen. He saw both Houki and Amelia rise, but Houki told her something that made Amelia yield, grinning. As Houki went to Ichika, he can hear Amelia say something that caused Houki to blush. He did not hear it though.
"What did she say?" Ichika asked, lifting a tray from the counter.
"N-Nothing!" Houki huffed, sharply turning her back on him as she marched towards the small crowd gathered in the room. Ichika wondered again. His friends can be weird sometimes, he thought.
"So, it's time for drawing straws!" Elaine announced.
"Hm?" The three seemed dubious.
"Here's how it works. Each straw has a number written on it, right? That number corresponds to whose food you will be eating. Nice, eh? A paradise!" She explained happily.
"You mean Russian Roulette, right?" Guevarra nervously thought to himself.
"Wait, there's six. Two for each one of us?" He asked.
"Glutton." Amelia smirked.
"Hey, Emmanuel, isn't that a bit too much? I mean, maybe they didn't eat yet." Ichika stopped him.
"Actually, he's right." Rin interjected.
"The fruit is for dessert or if you can't stomach what you ate…" She said, snidely smirking at a certain English lady, who smirked back with confidence.
"Well, late the games begin!" Elaine urged with an evil smile.
"Tsk…have to pick the right one…or else." He nervously reached out. Stoney however looked like he had a "all or nothing" mindset as he nonchalantly plucked two out of Elaine's hand. Ichika was even more carefree, even taking his time to think of what he could possibly eat.
"I wonder if I'll get to eat Rin's sweet and sour pork…or maybe Houki's fried chicken?"
Before he knew it, Guevarra had no choice but to pick what was left of the straws. Just when he thought of a plan on how to distinguish whose straw is whose (by looking at the girls' reactions as he put his fingers on the straws), the two other guys took theirs already.
"Well…here goes nothing." He said, plucking the last two out of Elaine's grasp, who was grinning madly.
"Oh crap, did I pick the wrong straw?" He felt sweat run down his face as he stared on the two straws. One had an orange tip while the other had a blue tip. Stoney had a silver tip and a grey tip, while Ichika had a pink tip and a brown tip. Looking at the girls' expressions, both Charlotte and Cecilia had big smile on their faces. Laura had a "meh" expression while Houki had a disappointed look on her face. Rin was looking happy with Elaine still wearing the evil smirk. While Ichika was genuinely happy of the food he received without bothering to look for who cooked it, Stoney was deep in thought.
"What is it, Tony?" Amelia asked, though it seems like she already knows what is happening. After a few moments, he suddenly smacked his fist on his palm.
"AH!" Then, looking at Guevarra and his straws, he laughed..
"What?" The boy in question asked incredulously. Tony approached him as he laughed and abruptly stopped, putting on a serious expression.
"You were a good friend, dude." He replied, desperately holding his laughter in. It took a few minutes for Guevarra to connect all the dots, but when he did…
Crap.
Cecilia, somehow sensing her romantic interest's distress, looked at him with concern.
"Are you alright, Emmanuel-san?" She asked, worried.
"Is this what they call women's intuition?" Guevarra thought, surprised at Cecilia's remark.
"Ah, no, no, I'm fine, I'm fine…" He nervously chuckled as he opened both lunch boxes. Charlotte's was a…he did not know the name. It looks like strips of ham with a white sour-and-cream like sauce on top. Cecilia's looked pretty normal, roasted fish with a…sauce. He then tapped his foot on Elaine's foot under the table. She looked at him as he signaled for them to go to the kitchen.
"Excuse us."
After safely getting out of earshot, Elaine questioned him.
"What?"
"What what? Why didn't you stop Cecilia? Everyone in this room except Ichika and herself knows how bad her cooking is."
"We tried, Ems, believe me. Short of tying her down on a chair with chains, I don't think she'll stop anytime soon."
"…" He leered at her.
"C'mon, it's not that bad…And besides, I think we can finally let her taste her own food…with your help of course."
"Didn't you even try to somehow direct her cooking or something?"
"I tried, but she's just so stubborn about it. She's normally reasonable, it's just in the kitchen that she's so stubborn."
"How does her cooking get so bad anyway?"
"She normally gets everything right until the very end where she decides to put on some 'extra flavor'. And that's already with supervision. :Left alone, she'll work miracles."
"Then why didn't you stop her?"
"I told you she didn't want to!"
Their whisperings are getting louder and louder until Laura heard it. Slowly approaching the wall, she stuck her back on it and listened in. Luckily the others were busy bantering with each other.
"Then what do we do? We can't just let her be like that forever."
"Hmm…"
Sneaking away, she entered the darkened kitchen.
"I have an idea." She butted in.
"L-Laura!" Elaine gasped.
"Dammit, stop doing that." Guevarra muttered, pulling her further into the kitchen.
"Your senses have grown dull, Alpha." Laura sighed.
"There's no reason to be on alert right now, is there? But I see your point, yeah." He shrugged.
"So, Laura-chan, what was your idea?" Elaine asked.
"Why don't you just tell it to her personally?"
"…" This time, Guevarra leered at Laura.
"What?"
"That's gonna hurt her, y'know?" He explained dryly.
"At least she'll—" Before Laura was able to finish her sentence, they heard the room door open and close.
"What happened" The brown-haired girl asked.
"Amelia-san got a call. She said she had to leave. Important stuff."
"Ah, I see." Returning back to the two beside her, Elaine shrugged.
"So, any ideas?"
At a restaurant not far from the Academy…
"What?! Are you sure about this?" Amelia exclaimed. The information that her connection just gave is a bit startling.
"A raid? Now?But the Academy is at it's peak!"
"What else do you know, Hermes?" The girl demanded. The hooded man known as 'Hermes' coughed lowly.
"Your voice, Emerald. You'll alert the customers." He hushed. Fixing his jacket, the man gestured for her to come closer.
"Hm?"
"It seems that…there's been a ruffle in the higher ups." He said. This noticeably alarmed the greenette. Normally the higher ups were cool-headed no matter what the situation, the types where even if a nuclear war happens tomorrow, they'll be right as day. Having them squabble about something is…disturbing.
She looked expectantly, waiting for an explanation.
"Sorry, no can do Emerald. My mouth is bound. At any rate, the bosses say you should just be prepared for an attack. Though we are sure that they will attack, what we don't know is why exactly they will. We have no objectives, no suspects, no leads. Even the staff might be them simply biding their time. Be careful." As Hermes stood and left the private, enclosed spot they took behind the fancy restaurant, Amelia fell on the cushioned chair and sighed heavily.
"Man…this isn't good."