Rating: T+
Pairing: Soma/Erina
Genre: Romance; Drama; Hurt/Comfort; Shonen; Slight Mature Themes
Notes:
Hey Everyone! Zancrowe Here!
I DID IT! A new Chapter, on Saturday, maybe even Friday depending on your timezone, just as promised! Now, first thing is first, since I've updated twice in less than a week, make sure to go back to "Chapter 13" if you have not read "Classique" in a while, as most likely you've missed two updates. Two, thank you guys for all the support and the reviews, as I've said before and will continue to say, they mean a lot to me. Now… as for the next update, I'm going to try and shoot for February… 14. That date is special, no?
On a separate note: Any Marvel fans out there? More specifically, MCU fans? If you are not a fan, just skip this part and read on, but if you are… Do you guys remember when in "Age of Ultron" we got teased by Steve Rogers moving Jonathan-I mean, Mjolnir like half a centimeter, only for him to never actually wield it at any point during the climax? I know I was disappointed. Come Endgame, and well, if you saw it you saw it… Wait, where was I even going with this…? :)
Disclaimer: Don't own Shokugeki no Soma.
"…Would you be a dear and open this door for me?" Ashitaro voiced softly, his eyes almost up his little sister's own skirt, which made her quickly cross her legs and try to somehow crawl upwards over the wall. She was trapped. She knew it. And even worse still; he knew it.
"A-Ashitaro-"
"Hey!" he suddenly shouted, and she flinched. "…Is that any way to talk to your older brother?" he added, now sounding absolutely nice. She knew it was all an act, and she had to play along.
"S-Sorry, brother, I-I just haven't seen you in so long," she voiced, meekly. "Can you, like, let me finish… here?"
"But you're not doing anything, not with your clothes still up," he noted, and she shivered. "But!" he perked up again, and she wondered if screaming again would get her help or just get her into bigger trouble with him. "Relax, little sis. I just wanted to have a little chat. So please, unlock this door. I don't want to have to crawl in there through this filthy floor. And you wouldn't want me to have to do that, would you?"
"…Of course not."
"Then I'll be waiting!" he said gleefully, and he pushed himself out of the way. She saw how he stood up on the opposite side, and it was here were the reality of it all set it. He was going to hurt her. And even if she tried to call someone, anyone, they would not arrive in time. And if she did, he'd hurt her even worse, so the only thing she could to… was take it.
So she stood up, forced her body to shake as least as possible, and slowly unlocked the door.
Ashitaro softly pushed it open, revealing little Nao, hugging herself, her eyes avoiding his, deciding it best to face the tiles on the floor instead. "How you've been?" the monster asked.
"Fine."
"Taking care of yourself?" it inquired.
"Yes."
"You haven't grown much at all," he noted, and she could feel his eyes on her body. "You need to eat more. Why aren't you eating more? This is a culinary school, ain't it?"
"Yes."
"Yes… what?"
"It is," she said. "And I should."
"You look frightened of something," he stated the obvious, and she wanted to run, run away from everything and never look back. "Come now, I'm here now. I'll keep you safe. Give your brother a hug."
She wasn't even sure if he was saying "now" or "Nao" at this point. Her vision was blurry, her hearing disjointed.
"…I'm fine."
"Nao," he said, and she felt her entire body shiver at the sound of her name. Her eyes were wide as could be, and she was already bracing herself for the pain. "Do not lie to your older brother. You are distressed," he told her. Warned her. "Come, give me a tight hug, and all will be okay," he added, and she didn't even know if he was glaring or smiling, or both, or if it even mattered at this point. All she knew was that her body would not move. "…Nao!"
"Brother, please-!" she desperately tried. Then…
"I'm afraid this are is off-limits. It is the ladies' restroom after all."
Both Ashitaro and Nao flinched, for different reasons, as soon as they heard a third voice speak up, coming from right behind Ashitaro. The elder brother turned around, his glare evident, until he saw the one interrupting his little reunion, and he just smiled at the sight. How utterly unexpected. Nao was just as surprised, as not once did she ever think he would appear, but for some reason, she felt… safe?
"So it is," Ashitaro noted, "That would mean we're both in the wrong, are we not, Satoshi Isshiki?"
Isshiki's features were the most vivid Nao had ever seen the elder teen sport, and his words lacked any of his trademark charm or charisma. They were direct and to the point, leaving no room for any doubt about how he was feeling at the moment.
"You are making my junior uncomfortable," Isshiki warned, "Leave, now."
"Junior as she may be," Ashitaro countered, a maniacal grin plastered all over his face. "She is my sister. I can do with her, as I please."
"A statement I'm sure the WGO would love to hear," Isshiki shot back. "I will not repeat myself. Go back to your seat, or you will never set foot within Tootsuki again."
"…How much of a threat even is that?" Ashitaro wondered, taking a few steps, getting into Isshiki's face. The Second Seat did not waver in the slightest. "…When this school already has an expiration date?"
"We have not fallen yet."
"But you will," Ashitaro added. "By the way, how's your hand?"
"Perfectly fine," Isshiki replied. "Would you care to see it up close?"
"…heh," Ashitaro let out a light laugh. "I like you Satoshi Isshiki. I shall pray for your good fortune, at least, until we meet in the arena. I mean, you could rat me out to the WGO, but," he added, his eyes turned to Nao for a moment, who was frozen in her spot. "…That may not be the best course of action for all of us involved."
"…We shall see," was all Isshiki replied, and despite their stare-down, Ashitaro did in the end back down, taking a few steps and walking pass the Second Seat. Within moments he was gone, allowing Isshiki to take a deep breath, and turn back to the younger girl. "Nao, are you alright? Did he…?"
"You came in just in time," she forced herself to say. "I-I can't even…" she tried, but it was difficult to even talk. So, as out of character as it would seem, the little witch just took several steps forwards and buried her head in Isshiki's chest, softly crying. He held onto her tightly.
"I'll let our Headmaster know at once," Isshiki told her. "He'll be gone before the day is up, I promise."
"N-No," a crying Nao said, shaking her head for a bit. "If that happens, I know there would be retaliation. My… father has too much invested into this. If Ashitaro gets eliminated like this, they'll pull me out of Tootsuki, and I'd be… I'd be…"
"Understood," Isshiki replied. "Then we'll find another way then. For now, best we keep you away from him, at all costs. You won't be alone, I promise you that."
"…It's that stupid little traitor none of you believe me about!" Nao cried out, clenching onto her senior's jacket. "That asshole is in contact with them! He's the one who's been keeping tabs on all of us! When will you believe me?! Why would I make this up!?"
"…I do believe you," Isshiki replied, and Nao looked up, confused. "In fact, Soma does too. He even confronted Loren directly already, and got quite the results, or so he tells me," he explained, as he took his hand and wiped a few tears from the little witch's visible eye. "But, even if he made me swear not to tell you, I think fair is fair…"
"Huh?"
"Little Loren Frechette is actually the one who texted me," Isshiki told her with a smile, and she felt her world turn upside down. What? "…Telling me that you weren't in your seat, and that Ashitaro wasn't in his either. So, traitor as he might be, he's still far from the kind of person that would allow a young lady to be hurt, it seems..."
And at this, the little witch had no idea of how or what to even respond.
-0-
As the crowd got set for the event, Erina found herself with her heart on her throat. Seated next to her parents, right in the middle, where the cameras caught her the best, Erina could not help but feel herself about to get teary-eyed at that display. Her teammates, five fists connected, ready to give it their all. What excuse did she really have to be up here, looking down at them, instead of helping? She knew why, she knew the role she had to play, but even so…
"Alright, let's start!" Urara announced, bringing everyone's attention back to the arena. "Let's see who our first contestants will be…!"
The screen began to flash, as all ten names began to fade in and out, as everyone, from the teams to the audience, all seemed to hold their breaths for what could very well be the beginning of the end. Then it stopped. And a multitude of audible gasps could be heard.
Takumi Aldini vs. Camille Le Gall
"I'm up," Takumi voiced, as he could hear his fanclub go utterly wild at seeing his name up on that screen. He gave them a little smile, which sent them into overdrive, but his eyes turned to two people more than anything. To his younger brother, who gave him the biggest knowing smile he could, and to his… girlfriend, or at least, that's what he wished he could call her. Hisako looked on, before she took a big breath and stood up, screaming at the top of her lungs, making those seating next to her outright jump.
"You've got this Takumi!" she roared, outright eclipsing the cheers from his own fanclub. Said members all looked at her, and they had more or less figured it out by now, but this just confirmed it. Their prized high school crush, the Italian Stallion himself, was most likely taken, by quite the girl at that.
Takumi's smile only grew, raising his fist into the air, and nodding at the beautiful girl that had washed away all the fear from him with just a few, albeit surprisingly loud words.
"Go out there and kick her hiney," Alice instructed playfully.
"You've got this," Ryou added, patting Takumi in the back.
"He doesn't need us to tell him that, do you man?" Soma said, his hand on Takumi's shoulder, while the other handed Takumi his trademark tool. The blonde nodded, taking hold of his case, and in it, his Mezzaluna.
"Remember," Akira told Takumi, moments before he marched forwards, "We're right here with you."
"Yeah, got it!" Takumi announced, and walked towards the center of the stage, as the crowd continued to cheer him on.
On the opposite side, Camille felt faint.
"~Oh dear, what luck," Kitsch told her, his snake-like grin ever-present. "Out of all the low tier Elite Ten members, you got the lowest seat. What are the odds?"
"Lowest Seat?" Camille barked back, glaring at him. "Did you not see how this guy utterly owned Lucrezia last match? She was their top student, their team leader. The Tenth Seat?! Don't make me laugh, those numbers do not represent how strong these guys really are!"
"You worried Camie?" Joseph asked, and Camille pouted.
"Of course I am!"
"She's not wrong," Lumiere noted, his eyes on Takumi. "Less we forget, that were this to have taken place about a year ago, that Tenth Seat would have been filled by the Erina Nakiri herself. We cannot underestimate any of them. Elite Ten means Elite Ten, seats be damned."
"Agreed," Gautier added, as he placed his hand on Camille's shoulder. "But you can do this."
"…Yeah," Camille responded, before she too walked towards the center of the stage, taking her tools with her. In due time, both opponents faced off against one another, with Takumi and Camille staring each other down for a moment.
"Ciao," Takumi greeted.
"Bonjour," Camille responded.
They both then smiled, and shared a little laugh, before their eyes shifted elsewhere. Takumi's eyes met with Hisako's again, while Camille's met with Ekaterina's, whose little smirk made her feel hot under the collar. Could she really pull this off?
"For our first match of the day, we have last time's overwhelming victor, our Elite Ten's Tenth Seat, Takumi Aldini!" Urara announced, as the cheers intensified. She gave Takumi a knowing wink as she turned to him, which made the boy give his trademark smile that could make almost any girl swoon. Then, she turned to the other side. "And, facing off against him is École des Plats Cuisinés' very own Camille Le Gall!" she added, as her team's own cheers and roars filled the arena, alongside some scattered claps from the opposition seated above. Camille did her best to remain focused. "And now, the theme!"
The screen began to flash again, as both Takumi and Camille and everyone else focused on it, until…
Veggie Burger
"A vegetarian dish, huh?" Takumi noted, at least somewhat relieved that while it had not been a theme he specialized in, it wasn't one his opponent seemed to either, if her expression was anything to go by. 'Still, I think this theme would fit you a lot more than it does me, eh, Megumi?'
"…That's not what I expected, but…" Camille voiced, as she went to her station. She heard Urara declare that the match had started, so she needed to get a move on, and stop second guessing herself at every turn. 'I need to win this! Not just for that date, if it even happens, but for my team! They believe in me, I cannot fail!'
Takumi quickly motioned to his storage, which housed pretty much every ingredient imaginable, as per Tootsuki tradition. His mind was racing with ideas, noting what really would be the most important factor in all of this. 'The key to any burger is the meat, and in this case, whatever I use to substitute the meat in favor off. I need something good, Something that can… Wait, that's it.'
Takumi seemed to pause, his hand to his chin, pondering his next move, until his eyes lit up.
"It seems like Takumi Aldini has something in mind," Histoire observed, his eyes on the boy. After his stellar and surprising presentation last time, it was clear he was someone to keep an eye on.
"All the while Camille has chosen her own meat-substitute as well," Charme noted as Takumi's opponent took out what appeared to be a fresh pair of beets, red and crisp. She proceeded to place them on the cutting board, before she took out her knife, and began to carve away.
Takumi, on the other hand, took hold of a different type of product.
"So he's going with…" Anne observed, her eyes on the boy's hand.
"A can of beans, right?" Courage added, tilting her head.
Decora said nothing, simply observing the boy work as he used a nearby can opener and spread the can's contents into a lined baking sheet, letting them dry out as he took out a bash of stemmed shiitake mushrooms, before he took hold of the Mezzaluna and wielded it swiftly, cutting the mushrooms down to the smallest pieces, before he mixed them in with the beans. The, he set them into the stove, setting the timer to roughly fifteen minutes.
Camille on the other hand, had finished cutting the beets down, and setting them aside, she also took hold of a can of beans, but unlike Takumi's black beans, she chose red kidney beans, and threw them in with the cut down beets. The almost neon red coloring directly contrasted Takumi's almost pitch black design, and as soon as she was done, she set it aside, and moved to the true flavoring.
As did Takumi. They two took hold of a handful of ingredients: garlic, onions, red peppers, green peppers, cumin, paprika (smoked lightly), different types of cheese, chili peppers and a variety of sauces. With very little variation, both opponents picked very similar ingredients, but the way they cut and prepped them could not be more different.
Takumi was like a one-man blender, using his Mezzaluna even more fiercely than even Isami, cutting everything into perfect bits, and setting them on a saucepan to cook.
Camille, meanwhile, was slower, using her knife to cut into the chunks, but she left the pieces bigger, in an attempt to bring out the flavor more. She knew it was a gamble. It could backfire, but she had no choice if she hoped to match him.
'She's not missing a beat, pun not intended,' Takumi noted, smiling a bit at his own joke, 'That said, I have to be cautious, she's being very careful. I cannot mess up in this production, otherwise I'll ruin the flavor and give her the win. I need to focus on this. Like father taught me. Like this school drilled into my head so many times!'
Takumi then took out his ingredients, and as the toppings and flavors grilled, he took out the bean and mushroom paste, and began to work on it with his hands, slowly adding in the flavor he had grilled.
At this Camille couldn't help but be a little shocked. 'Does this guy not have feeling in his hands?!' she exclaimed with a bit a fright. 'He's picking them out of the pan with his fingers while the flame is still on! Damn it, that's impressive… No, bad Camille, stop staring in awe at him and focus, damn you.'
Camille then forced herself to shift her attention fully to her craft, using a very different tool to process her meat than what Takumi was doing. Instead of the gigantic and imposing Mezzaluna, she pulled out a simple fork, and began to work in the dents and texture of her patty. It took her way too long this way, but at least she could be assured the flavor went where she needed it to go.
The time passed fast, and by the near end of it, both contestants were almost ready. The patties completed, the two focused on their toppings, taking their time to properly set up their burgers, down to the last detail, as both Takumi and Camille drew little shapes onto the burger with the sauces, and finished up with putting the buns on top.
"…And it looks like we are coming to a close right about now," Urara noted, as she turned to the first person to approach the judging table. "And our first contestant to step forwards is…"
Camille stood before the judges, placing her bright red burgers before them, trying her best to stop her hands from shaking. This was nerve-wrecking.
Takumi took a stand next to her, placing his own grilled and dark burgers before them, as the smell alone of the clashing patties made the judges almost drool.
Camille had offered her Bloody Red Beet Burgers.
Takumi had answered in kind with his Charcoal-Black Mix Burgers.
"Judges?" a very nervous Urara asked, as the five judges each took hold of their own burger, two for each, before taking a taste. First Camille's, then Takumi's. They took their time, tasting it fully, getting hit by such an intense flavor they could swear the kids had cheated and had added meat into them somehow. So they took another bite, and another, until the practically ate the whole thing. A bad idea if they were expected to judge a few more dishes after this.
"Camille, this has quite the spice to it," Decora voiced, her eyes on the sweaty and trembling young girl. The girl who had tied her brown hair back into a ponytail to avoid it getting the way just nodded.
"I-It was spiced up like its namesake," she replied.
"Namesake?" Charme asked, confused.
"Yea-Yes!" she quickly replied, almost apologetic. "It is a "Bloody" dish, so it takes after a Bloody Mary," she explained. "Hot sauces, garlic, horseradish, celery, all of it is used in making that cocktail, up and including…"
"A little bit of Vodka," Anne noted, recognizing the taste. Camille nodded, as Takumi turned to her, a little impressed.
"Vodka? Quite the impressive use for it," Takumi told Camille, who flashed him the biggest grin he had seen the girl sport.
"I was unsure if I could keep it from ruining the dish entirely, but I needed to try," she explained. "Otherwise… I knew I could never match you. You're amazing, and your dish I can tell by the smell alone… it's…"
"Yes, Takumi's dish is indeed something else," Histoire voiced, still feeling the effects of the full flavor. "The shiitake mushrooms and the black beans have mixed to such a degree that it feels you outright created a new ingredient out of them, and somehow, despite the use of such flimsy ingredients, they are not mushy at all."
"Yes, that's why I outright baked them beforehand, after I drained them of course," Takumi explained, arms crossed, his breath heavy but faking it as best he could. "It was the only way to keep the texture from ending up either too soft, or too rough. I had to time it down to the second, otherwise," he said, turning to Camille, with his smile still in place, "I knew I could never match you."
She grinned at his comment, giving him a little bow. He nodded in turn. The audience all stared at the judges, as both teams glared at the results screen, which was moments from showing the results.
"Takumi," Anne voiced first, "He gets my vote. It's a thin margin, but the mix of powerful flavor and fine texture makes for a more fulfilling dish in my eyes."
"I have to disagree, if only by the slightest of margins," Charme added. "While I do not feel you are mistaken, that added spice such a fine vodka that Camille used makes the flavor itself surpass Takumi's, even if the consistency is not up to par."
"Really?"
"Yes, really."
"I also vote for Camille."
"And I also vote for Takumi."
Both Takumi and Camille froze in place, as did everyone in the audience. Seriously, they all thought, two on two, this all would go down to the last vote. And everybody in the audience, from the teammates to the opponents, all stared in hesitation at the last judge, having no idea how this would go down.
All except for one man, who could not hide his knowing smirk.
'What awful luck,' Azami noted, his head rested on his closed fist, as he saw his daughter look on with anxiousness. How he wished he could calm her down a little, but this was needed. 'You had a pretty decent run, young Takumi, but business is business, after all, is that not right… Decora?'
And Decora voted.
Winner: Camille Le Gall
The entire stadium went silent, as the screen flashed the winner of the event, and with it, the next elimination from their Elite Ten team. Takumi stared at the screen, lost in those results, before he bit his own lower lip and owned up to it. He turned to Camille, but surprisingly, she gave him a rather strong hug, shocking the boy, who stood there, flustered.
"H-Hey," Hisako blurted out, shocked at the display. What was up with Takumi and, win or lose, getting girls all flustered up? That was so not fair.
"…Ah, Camille?" Takumi asked, unsure.
"…Sorry," she voiced, and it was here he saw that she was outright crying. "I-I did everything I could, pushed myself so hard. Not just for my team, but for… for…" she paused, but she felt like she needed to say it, if only to herself. "…for this girl I like," she admitted, tears still flowing. Takumi eyed her for a moment, before he smiled knowingly.
"Yeah, been there myself," he replied with a nod.
"You have no idea what this match means to me," she told him, still hugging him, knowing she was probably giving the wrong impression but she still liked the guy. He wasn't like the others in this competition. The dude was nice, and she was excited that she won, but she was also sad that she had eliminated him. "Just, you are indeed amazing, I don't think I could match you again if I tried ten different times."
"Hey, don't sell yourself short," Takumi told her, smile still in place. "It's your victory, so hold your head up high, and go let that girl know how lucky she is."
"Yeah," Camille said, brushing her tears with her worn-out sleeve. "A-And you too, okay?"
"Huh?"
"Everyone sees it," she told him, as she made her way back to her side, "You and Hisako Arato, the princess' best friend. She's beautiful as heck, a true Nadeshiko, so take your claim and let her know how lucky she is, alright?"
"…Yeah," Takumi said, as he walked back to his own team. "I should, shouldn't I?"
Takumi reached his own team, and before he could voice anything, Alice was the one who threw herself into his arms, almost on the verge of tears herself. "Don't you dare beat yourself up for this," she told him, and he could only nod. "We're still in this, still together, just like we swore."
"She's right, so chin up Aldini," Akira added, his hand on the Italian's shoulder. "You did amazingly," he added, but then his eyes shifted to the judges table, his eyes on one judge in particular. '…Am I being paranoid, or…'
"And the winner is Camille Le Gall, from École," Urara announced, clearly bummed out by the results, but trying her best to hide it. "…Can I even shorten it like that, doesn't école just mean school in-never mind!" she decided to focus, let the bad news out as quickly as she could. "With this, our Tenth Seat, Takumi Aldini, is officially eliminated from the Intercontinental Shokugeki, leaving us with I'm obliged to say seven but we all know it's more like a seven that heavily resembles a six but I cannot go into details as to why…"
"That was masterfully done," Gautier praised, grabbing Camille by the cheeks as soon as she reached them. "I could kiss you babe, you did great!"
"…I want to barf," was all Camille responded, her eyes still teary, and her cheeks held up.
"Perhaps I shall not kiss you then."
"That certainly gave our side the recognition we deserve," Kitsch noted, as the entire stadium seemed to still be in shock. "~Oh dear, seems they did not see this coming at all. What a pity."
Up with the audience, as a mix of emotions ran through everyone, no one was more conflicted than Erina herself, as she hugged her own frame as inconspicuously as she could manage. 'Takumi, you did great,' she said inwardly, knowing she should be down there, cheering him on. Or at least with the Third Years, much closer to the action that in this glass box. 'I… I should be down there. I should be…'
Up where the challengers sat, a few scattered comments could be heard. Ekaterina, for her part, was grinning. "Seems like I have a date now," she voiced, and her team turned to her, confused.
"Madam?" Aleksei asked, turning to his leader.
"Oh, just a little bet I made," she told him, and by extension, them. "Nothing to fret over. I'm honestly excited for it. She is downright adorable, is she not?" she added, before she turned her attention to the team that seemed the most conflicted over these results. "You all should be happy about this victory, he was the one who took your team down, or am I wrong Lucrezia Russo?"
"Oh, put a sock on it," Lucrezia barked back, her eyes still on Takumi. "She got lucky, is all. Takumi's insanely good, and that match was insanely close."
"I would not call Takumi Aldini's placement upon the Elite Ten as "insanely good"," Ekaterina voiced, which caused Lucrezia to feel a vein pop. "Number Ten out of ten is not a very good placement in my book. In fact, you do not see the number tenth student from my academy here, or do you?"
"Shut your trap, or I'll shut it for you," Lucrezia warned, her eyes on Ekaterina.
"Do not threaten me with a good time Lucrezia Russo," Ekaterina replied with a very playful tone. "Were I not already promised to another for my next date, I would have gladly taken you up on that offer."
Lucrezia just scoffed, her attention back onto Takumi and his team, as they all seemed to be trying their best to get back into the shape of things.
"Soma's friend lost," little Aisha noted, having ignored the almost fight that had just happened a few seats from him, his attention fully on his "rival" and his friends.
"Serves him right," Keelan voiced, and Aisha visibly got frustrated. "Hope that idiot Kurokiba is next and gets his ass handed to him as well."
"You sure know how to hold a grudge," Dakarai voiced, and Keelan turned to him, glaring. It caused the younger twin to shrink into his seat. Aisha, however, was not affected by it, as evident by him smacking his older brother upside the head, rather hard.
"Hey, you little shit, what's the matter with you?" Keelan barked, and Aisha just glared.
"Show our opponents respect," Aisha warned, and Keelan was considering smacking him back, youngest be damned, but one look from Hakeem quickly removed that idea from his head. He did not feel like getting his head smashed against the concrete today. Aisha, pleased with the results sat back, pushing his skirt down, and sighing heavily. "I don't want them to lose anymore," he admitted, before he turned to Hakeem. "Is that wrong?"
"I don't think it is," the eldest brother replied. "You've made friends with the boy, and that is what competition should bring. I too, find myself conflicted. Part of me wants them dethroned, another part wishes them to remain triumphant. Akira Hayama is not an opponent I wish to see defeated by any other opponent save for myself."
"You sure that's the only reason?" a third party added, causing Hakeem to turn to the Spain team's leader, Alex. The young man offered the Nigerian a knowing smile and a wink. "Word spreads fast, seems you lost your match but won yourself quite the prize afterwards."
"Oh?"
"Can you not," Alex's girlfriend and teammate quickly cut in, bashing him in the ribs with her elbow. "Leave the budding romance alone. Don't you know to mind your own business?"
"I'm just joking around," he defended, clutching his side.
"I do not mind, but thank you for your consideration Linda," Hakeem replied, his eyes back onto the stage for a moment, before he turned to the littlest guy there, and smiled. "Then again, it seems I am not the only one walking out of this school with a defeat and a prize at the same time."
"Huh?" all three of his brothers asked, all of them confused as to which one of them had gotten themselves a girlfriend all the sudden. Keelan wished it was him, but he was sure he didn't. Dakarai wasn't sure he even counted, as he got eliminated before his match had even started, to that damned bastard of all people, so that left… "Huh?!" they all voiced again, as the two twins turned to the little one, who blinked, twice. "Huh, me!"
"He's been cooking for her every day since they met," Hakeem noted with a knowing smirk. "All in the hopes of impressing the little lass."
"Wait, seriously, all that training you've been doing is for a girl?" Dakarai asked, shocked.
"How?! How on Earth did you get a girl to fall for you while wearing a damn skirt, you brat?!" Keelan added, and at this Aisha frowned. What did that have to do with anything?
"I didn't, and it's not!" Aisha whined, pouting and blushing at once, causing almost everyone present to struggle not to cuddle him on the spot, since they knew they could risk getting stabbed if they did. Even Ekaterina and Lucrezia, the former utterly focused on tormenting people and the latter pissed off to no end, had to keep themselves in check from the sheer adorableness that was Aisha Akintola and his denial of the obvious. "I am not interested in that girl!" he defended, "I just want to her to admit my cooking is delicious, that's all! Hey! Are you guys listening to what I'm saying!?"
Elsewhere, utterly unbeknownst to the blushing boy, on a separate area that Soma had found for them, sat the Hiei cruise squad, with little Kanon busy playing with her phone, sending her brand new contact Aisha a little smiley face. She was smiling from ear to ear as she did.
"I'm witnessing the birth of a monster," her cousin Yoshiaki muttered to Ava, who was sitting next to him. "She's getting free gourmet meals on the daily, all the while keeping that poor boy by the tip of her evil, little fingers."
"Oh, please, that's just the start," Ava noted, "She's a natural. But she needs to be ready. That little boy is going to grow, and if his brothers are any indication, he's going to be hot and she's going to want to stake her claim early."
Yoshiaki shivered at the thought, outright glaring at his little cousin, who just looked up at him, and gave him the most innocent "What?" she had ever uttered.
"Alright! Now onto the next match!" Urara announced, as all attention went back to the stage. "Our contestants this time will be…!"
The screen began to flash once more, and the crowd grew silent once more.
"Feels unreal to see that my name's no longer in the running," Takumi mused, a little crestfallen.
"…Truth be told," Soma voiced softly, so only he could hear. "I don't think the results would have been different had it been me instead of you, you know?"
"That's an odd thing to hear from you," Takumi shot back, his eyes on Soma. "It's all this regarding Erina, right?"
Soma just nodded, and was about to comment further, but upon hearing the gasps and cheers, he realized the next match-up had been decided, and as he turned, he was met by the sight of the next contestants chosen to participate.
Ryou Kurokiba vs. Kitsch Sionis
"Ryou?" Alice voiced, as she turned to her boyfriend, who seemed to take a deep breath before he moved towards the center of the arena.
"~Oh and it seems our luck continues," the snake man noted. "I get mighty number nine. What fortune indeed."
Both competitors reached the arena, and unlike Takumi and Camille, they did not look friendly. Ryou's glare was in full effect, while Kitsch's smirk was anything but genuine.
"My, how very frightening," Kitsch noted, the sarcasm dripping from his words like venom from a cobra's fangs. "To think I get to face-off against a man who had such an impressive showing against the Akintola's."
"You'll get more than just a face-off against me," Kurokiba growled. "I'm beating your ass back to France."
"Now this is how we get views!" Urara announced, signaling to the two. "On our side, we have the ever-threatening, possibly homicidal, Ninth Seat Ryou Kurokiba!"
"The hell are you calling homicidal?!" Kurokiba barked at her, but she just stuck her tongue out at him.
"You are! And if that's Alice's kink, good for her, but I don't go for the whole "wild boy" thing," she told him, before she signaled the opponent. "And, from the place that's hard to pronounce, we have Kitsch Sionis, who also looks creepy but in a different way!"
"I look creepy?" Kitsch asked, head titled, and Urara just nodded fiercely. "What a rude girl."
Then the screen began to flicker once more, and everyone turned their attention back to it, their eyes fixated on what the theme of this match would be. Kurokiba and Kitsch turned to it, their focus intense, as the roughly thousands of different choices flickered in and out until a theme was chosen.
"And our theme will be… Huh?!" Urara announced before she was caught off-guard.
Everyone just stared.
A Gluten-Free, Shellfish-Allergy, Vegetarian-Based Dish With No Mushrooms, No Tofu, And Low Sodium
Everyone remained silent.
"Why is that even in there?!" Urara blasted, her eyes wide, as she turned to the judges, who all five raised their hands to the sides, since it wasn't up to them to choose the themes.
"That's a… what now?" Soma asked, scratching his head.
"Water. They want water," Alice added, utterly unsure of what that was even meant to be.
"I'm sure someone added that as a joke," Takumi noted.
"And knowing this place, they'll expect Kurokiba to still pull through," Akira voiced, his eyes on the mad dog, for once actually concerned for him.
Kurokiba just stared, his eyes narrowed at the screen, waiting for it to flicker away and show the real theme. But it did not. It would not. 'What? The? Fuck?'
"…This place is weird," was all Kitsch said, and without any say on the matter, the contestants both moved towards their places in the arena.
"…Sure, why not, that's the theme!" Urara just gave up. "If either of you can make that work, then by all means, please enlighten us all! Contestants, begin!"
Both contestants went to their stations, both of them utterly baffled by the current events unfolding, but both refusing to surrender to the absurdity. Kurokiba placed his bandana firmly onto his head, igniting his passion to the fullest, but even with that adrenaline rush, he was still drawing a blank.
'What the hell am I supposed to even try and cook here?' he asked himself, as he went to the storage area, searching for any idea whatsoever. '…Calm down, divide it by parts, then maybe you can figure something out. First, gluten-free means just about every ingredient I use has to be without gluten. That one is simple enough, as most ingredients are labelled, so I just have to be careful while selecting, then… shellfish allergy means I can't use shrimp, crab, lobster or anything like that, which in itself is pointless since it's a vegetarian dish anyways, so I can't use real meat period…'
The more he thought about it, the more it made his head hurt. He could see, from the corner of his eyes that his opponent had begun to try… something. He had probably come up to the same conclusion Kurokiba was reaching.
'Bastard already has an idea,' he noted, his eyes on Kitsch. 'Probably same thing I'm thinking. Some kind of salad, but I can't flavor it with the umami of mushrooms, nor can I have tofu as a substitute… hell, I can't even use a proper dressing because of the high amount of salt in most of them. So what? Just washed lettuce and spinach?'
It made no sense, and he couldn't fathom why these people had even written in such an absurd theme to begin with. But, he at least had an idea on where to start, so a salad it was. Kurokiba quickly got his equipment ready, and begun to take out everything green he could find, being thrice as careful about what he was choosing.
Kitsch, on the other hand, was well into his dish, having already prepped most of his vegetables, as he took great pains to avoid anything that would fall under the vast umbrella of things they were prohibited from utilizing. 'This is outright moronic,' he noted, as he turned to Kurokiba and smiled when he saw the mad dog was lagging behind. 'But perhaps fortunate in its own way. This is less a test of how good a dish we can make, but rather how capable we are when severely handicapped. Such a thing would be outright unheard off in an establishment such as this, where guests would be probably thrown out if they even dared to suggest the chef change anything in his dish, but to those of us with our heads not that far up our own asses, we are able to adapt to what the customer wants… and needs.'
As Kitsch continued, Kurokiba seemed outright frustrated, cutting, slicing and throwing all the vegetables he could into a bowl haphazardly and without much thought. He seemed outright defeated before the match had even reached its midpoint, which seemed to please Kitsch.
"…God damn it!" Kurokiba roared, as he opened the trash can and threw his dish, bowl and all, into it, frustrated as all hell. Kitsch just looked on amused, as Alice and the others looked on.
"Oh come on Ryou!" Alice cheered, "You can do it! I believe in you! You can manage… something under that absurd theme!"
"Oh, can he now?" Kitsch almost sang, as he turned to face the second heiress. "Seems like your little boy-toy is currently utterly incapable of even thinking up a proper list of ingredients to use, much less an actual dish. Or am I wrong?"
"You want to go into the trash too?" Kurokiba growled, and Kitsch just smiled.
"Oh, how scary," he noted, "But remember, you said you'd kick my ass all the back to France. Hard to accomplish that if the best you can do is fill the trashcan rather than our judges' stomachs."
"You ignore him Ryou!" Alice shot back, getting annoyed. Kurokiba just shrugged and turned back.
He was just as annoyed as Alice, and a part of him wanted to smack that bastard right across his jaw, but he knew the stakes were high. Too high. Especially for Alice, and even Erina. Now was not the time to be prideful. Even Akira had shared his own fears with them… 'Damn it, that spice bastard is right… We can't win this if we keep thinking of each other as rivals,' he realized as he looked at his team for a moment. There was Alice, looking all worried, because of course she was. How many times was he going to make that girl worry? There was Akira, his eyes fixated on Kurokiba's opponent, observant as always. There was also Soma, utterly lost in his own issues, Kurokiba knew, but he was also trying his best to cheer him on. And there was Takumi, too, despite his loss still standing tall, still willing to try and help… if only they could actually… wait… 'That's it!'
Kurokiba went right back to the storage and the fridge, taking out more greens and beginning the cycle once more. As the timer ran out, Kitsch was the first among them to finish, presenting his dish to the judges.
"If I may, please, allow me to present to you all, my answer to this riddle of a theme you have all presented to us," he announced as he placed a very peculiar looking salad to the group, who all looked on, noticing how he had indeed managed to get something noteworthy out of that.
He had presented them a Gourmet Walnut-Kale Caesar Salad.
"Roasted walnuts?" Anne noted, as she took hold of one of the pieces with her chopsticks. They looked very finely done, and the lettuce and other veggies were crisp and lively, with only the lightest of oils to give them a touch of flavor.
"Salt-free of course, as is most of the dish," Kitsch replied, pleased with the reaction from the esteemed judge. "While I can't make it all salt-free, per say, given how many things naturally have salt, this is by definition low sodium, yet, once you taste it, you can see, no extra spec of salt is needed."
The five each took a portion of their servings, and gave it a taste. And it was shocking to say the least, to find such a good, crisp, healthy as heck flavor from such simple ingredients. They had been crafted to perfection, and the roasted walnuts' flavor had somehow seeped into the very leaves themselves, creating a great harmony in the dish that would have been generic at best, dull at worst.
"It's actually good, I'm shocked," Histoire noted, taken by surprise.
"Yeah, I didn't expect much from that theme, but this boy managed," Courage added, her eyes on Kitsch. The boy gave the blonde woman a wink and a smirk, and she smiled back.
"…So even with all that he still got something decent in…" Urara noted, as she turned to Kurokiba, hoping against all odds he had at least something ready by now. "How about… eh?!"
"Eat," Kurokiba ordered as he practically dropped the plates into the judges' table, his expression clearly not masking his frustration. The five just looked on, perplexed at what had just been thrown to them.
"What… exactly is this even supposed to be?" Decora asked, looking at the green… cigars that Kurokiba had given them. What was she even supposed to be looking at?
"Um… I too would like to know what this is, if we could before we taste it," Charme added, looking just as perplexed and slightly disgusted as Decora was. Even Anne looked less than enthusiastic about biting down at what looked like just rolled up lettuce with some black goo coming out of it.
"It's a burrito," Kurokiba just replied.
"…Um, okay," Urara stepped in, trying to salvage the situation, if possible at this point. "But what's it called?"
"I already told you."
"…Oh."
He had presented them a Burrito.
The five judges all stared, none of them really wanting to take a bite out of it. They were sure he was serving them actual crap out of nothing else but spite. And it wasn't even their fault he had gotten this theme, they were her to judge, they didn't pick the themes. That was all Tootsuki, and then approved by Azami and whoever else he had representing the other schools. Still…
"Eat before it gets cold and I lose points for that!" Kurokiba roared, and they all stiffened.
"If I die, tell my wife, I love her," Charme told Histoire, with tears in his eyes, as his best friend went into a shock, the moment he saw Charme take hold of that poop-filled, rolled up leaf.
"Wait, Charme, don't! It's not worth it! Don't do this! Don't leave Kazune all alone! No!" he screamed to no avail, as his best friend, no, his brother from another mother took a bite and died…
…
…then came back to life.
"Huh, it's not that bad, actually."
"Huh?" the other four asked, their heads tilted. Urara was also just as confused, at first at the stupidity she had just witnessed, then at the remark. Kitsch frowned, trying to decipher what the mad dog had actually done. Kurokiba just looked at the five, his expressions just as sharp.
"No, it's more than that, it actually tastes, pretty damn good!" Charme added, as he took another bite, and in no time, ate the whole thing up. The others looked on, still baffled.
Anne then took hold of her own piece. "…I am unmarried, so there's no one to tell I love them, but hey, here's to not dying," she declared and took a bite of the vile looking thing, and, "…No, yeah, this is pretty damn good… Wait, this flavor, didn't we just…?"
The other three took the dive and took a bite out of their own pieces, and to their surprise, both Charme and Anne had been right. It wasn't horrible. No, far from that. It was actually good. Really good.
"Wait, yes, this flavor, it's almost like…" Decora noted, as she turned to Kurokiba, before her eyes shifted away from him, and towards someone else. The other four did as well, all reaching the same conclusion.
Takumi had no idea why everyone was suddenly looking at him.
"…Yes?" he meekly asked.
"Wait, did he help you?" Kitsch asked, glaring at the mad dog. "That's against your own rules, is it not?"
"Is it?" Kurokiba merely noted, smirking. "The Italian team pulled this same little stunt on our last match, what with those stupid six sauces and sacrificing one member to get the temperature and measurements perfected so the others could simply mimic him and get an easy access to their trump card. I just did that same thing."
"Wait you mean…?" Kitsch asked, then he realized what it mean, as he turned to the judges' table, and the so-called burritos. "That black goo, it's actually…"
"A black bean paste," Kurokiba noted, showcasing a familiar can of beans, which clearly read "low sodium" on it. "I got the idea once I saw the can Aldini used in the trash. Beans make for an excellent meat replacement, so it was just lucky I got a theme that actually matched the theme he had gotten prior. I couldn't use the shiitake mushrooms, granted, so if we were to compare, of course his Veggie Burger trumps my dish, but thankfully I'm not going against him, but rather you…"
"You little…!" Kitsch held up on the curse, his eyes on the judges, who all seemed to reach a conclusion.
And the verdict was given, and after a brief pause, the crowd erupted into cheers.
Winner: Ryou Kurokiba.
"What, why?!" Kitsch demanded, his eyes on the judges.
"It's simple," Anne explained, raising her index finger for emphasis. "Your dish was a fine answer to such a… ridiculous theme admittedly. But it was just that, fine. Ryou Kurokiba's answer, on the other hand, went beyond that. It was honestly a taste comparable to the very dishes we are accustomed too. You were too afraid to mess up, that you didn't risk doing something with this theme. He, on the other hand, went all in, forgoing everything for the sake of flavor. Normally, that alone wouldn't cut it, but under such a strict theme, it was just crazy enough to work."
The cheering continued, as Kitsch walked back to his side, frustrated beyond belief, as his team quickly went in to console him, which seemed to only irk him more.
Kurokiba took off his bandanna, and made his way back to his team. He didn't even reach them before Alice outright jumped into his arms.
"You're awesome, you know that?" she whispered into his ear, and he just shrugged. He held onto her tightly, of course.
He then motioned to the other three, nodding at them before pausing right next to Takumi. Takumi was about ready for whatever trash-talk Kurokiba was about to give in order to hide how utterly baffled he had been throughout the match, but what he got instead was utterly unexpected. "Thanks Aldini," the mad dog said without an ounce of sarcasm. "Had you not been so damn clever on your own match, I'd have been wrecked."
"…Yeah, I've got your back," Takumi responded, smiling. "Together, right?"
"…Together," Kurokiba replied, as Soma grinned and even Akira was finding it difficult not to smile at least a little.
"And with that five-to-nothing victory, the Elite Ten tie things up with their opponents in a one-to-one!" Urara announced, outright brought back to life after her life had flashed through her eyes with that almost back-to-back defeats. "Ryou Kurokiba secured the win ladies and gentlemen! Go, go Tootsuki Academy! We're not screwed yet! Yeah!"
The screen then begun to flicker again, as the opponents began to be selected.
Akira looked on, his eyes on the screen for a moment, before the settled back down towards the judges. Or rather, one judge in particular. 'She didn't vote against Kurokiba, so maybe I'm… but, I didn't hear her praise him at all. She didn't comment on Aldini's dish either… No, she's a member of the WGO, there's got to be a coincidence here, no way would she actually…'
"You alright?" Soma asked, his eyes on the ever pensive Akira.
"…Yukihira," Akira noted, his eyes still on the judges. "In your experience, have you caught anything strange regarding-?"
His words were halted the moment the screen showed the next match, and upon seeing it the crowd all gasped, but this time, out of outright shock and surprise. That was not an expected match-up at all.
"Our next match is… them?" Urara voiced, utterly caught off-guard.
"Seriously?" Alice asked, her eyes wide.
Kurokiba said nothing, just sighing at the announcement. This was going to be one of those days, wasn't it?
Ryou Kurokiba vs. Camille Le Gall
"Wait, I'm going again?!" Camille almost cried, seeing her name up there once more.
"Hey, Ryou just had a match, can't he rest a bit?!" Alice barked at Urara, who gave her a gesture that was like "bitch, what you want me to do?". The crowds all began to whisper different things, especially since this would be the first time two prior winners would be pitted against one another.
"Guess I'm repaying you quicker than I imagined," Kurokiba noted, turning briefly to Takumi, before he went right back to the arena, his bandanna once back on his head. "And I swear to any god you want, if I get another mouthful of a theme, I'm breaking that damn screen!"
"We didn't write those," Anne said defensively. Geez, this kid was so volatile.
Camille, at the behest of Gautier, also stepped up to the stage, facing Kurokiba down, and panicking at the sight of him. Oh, how she so much preferred Takumi. This guy was scary.
"You beat Aldini," Kurokiba told her.
"Beat is kinda over-stressing it, it was so, so close," Camille downplayed. And it wasn't a lie, it had been down to the wire after all.
"Heh," Kurokiba just laughed. "Relax, at least you're a more worthy opponent that your mouthy teammate over there," he added, signaling to a still irate Kirsch. That comment did not help in calming him down. "So here's to a good match, but I am going to crush you."
"R-Right back at you," she defended, despite her nervousness. This was not her day… well, then again, she had won a date after all. Out of nothing but a whim, she turned to look upwards, her eyes falling onto Ekaterina's, who had her smirk in full display and her eyes on Camille. Then she said something, of course Camille could not hear her, since they were too far away. But Ekaterina had mouthed it slowly, purposely so she could read her lips. And read them she did.
Win this and I sleep with you.
Camille just went redder than her earlier dish, all the blood rushing to her head, and she seriously hoped she had read her lips wrong… maybe, part of her actually wouldn't mind if she… 'No, Camille,' she screamed at herself, actually slapping herself on her cheeks to keep herself in check. 'None of that! Stay focused!'
"Camille's not to be underestimated," Takumi noted, as Alice, Soma and Akira watched Kurokiba's opponent seemingly start to beat herself up. "She is cooking to impress a significant other after all."
"Oh, is that what that is?" Soma asked, realizing that yeah, in his current state of mind, Camille would have wiped the floor with him. If it were him cooking with Erina in mind, then he could, he was sure, but right now… He paused, his eyes drifting upwards, to where she sat, with her parents, just like she wanted… and he could almost swear she had been looking at him and then shifted her gaze elsewhere when he looked at her. That must be his imagination right?
"Power of love is it now?" Akira said with a small smile.
"Oh yeah, that doesn't matter, because…" Alice added, as she placed her hands by her mouth, in order to amplify her already loud voice. "Ryou! Use the power of love too! Cook something for the best thing that ever happened to you! As in, me!"
"I already did that," he noted, turning to her, causing her to pout.
"And what of it?!" she shot back, annoyed. "It's not a limited superpower that you can only use once! Do it again!"
"Even if you say it like that…" Kurokiba muttered, as both he and Camille turned back to one another.
"She likes you a lot, doesn't she?" Camille noted, with a shy smile.
"Stop making me find you likeable," Ryou muttered, and Camille was just confused.
"So we move on to our third match, now between two opponents that I've already introduced but I'll do so again, cause that's my job!" Urara announced, signaling to Kurokiba first. "Right back onto this stage faster than he left it, our Ninth Seat Ryou Kurokiba!" she said, before she switched to Camille, "And on this corner, our surprise winner of the first round, here once more, Camille Le Gall! Now then…!"
Then the screen began to flicker again, and soon a theme was chosen.
"…For the love of all things holy please be something normal-Yes!" Urara beamed as soon as the theme was chosen. "Simple and boring, as it should be! Contestants, get ready, your theme has been chosen and your match has officially begun!"
The theme?
Coffee Grounds
"Oh, thank heavens, something ordinary!" Camille said with a massive sigh of relief.
Kurokiba said nothing, but he did move back into his spot, with an idea already in mind. Luckily, since they were restocked after each match, he didn't have to worry about all the supplies he had thrown away, but before he went into any of that, his hands went to get the best coffee beans he could find. The idea was to ground it up as best he could, and while this wasn't his forte, he'd have to make it work. And using a processor was simpler, but not ideal for this high-level of cooking, which meant he had to do it the old-fashion way. The hard way.
He took each bean, and began to ground it into powder, using most of his upper body strength he had built up to get the most out of each little bean.
Camille used a different approach. She knew she didn't have the strength to match someone like the Ninth Seat, who seemed to be pretty damn built for a guy of his slender frame, so she'd have to adapt. Use the processor, then maximize the results further with her knife. Two different strategies, the end goal being mostly the same.
The two worked quite a long time on just the beans alone, each laser focused on their craft that they barely paid any attention to anything else. The crowd all watched, each offering an observation or two, as Urara did her best to offer any and all commentary, but it got to the point where it was hard to say "and they are grinding those beans" in like ten different ways.
So Urara spoke a bit about the school, about the previous matches, about their hopes and dreams, about her Instagram account and how they should all give her a follow, about the highs and lows of being at Tootsuki, and about that one time she was on a cruise and everyone was going insane and she had no idea how she had ended up there but she was happy she did because she met her boyfriend there, followed by a huge shout-out to that very same boyfriend.
Kurokiba was just about done with his side of things when Urara herself was just about done thinking up of things to say, as the very tired and worn-out guy then shifted his attention to a huge chunk of beef, which was a surprise to many.
"Isn't the match already well underway?" Histoire asked, seeing how there was not enough time for the young chef to fully cook that beast up.
"Oh dear," Courage voiced, "Do you think he made a mistake?"
"They aren't the type," Anne noted, her eyes on the Ninth Seat, who took out his knife, and began to make incisions on the meat slab, carefully.
He was being extremely delicate in his technique, a very unusual sight from such a brutish individual, most of them noted. As he did, Camille was preparing what was clearly the opposite of her opponent's dish. She had gotten batter and cake mix all ready and set onto the stove, her would-be creation clearly dessert based.
Then Kurokiba threw his huge meat into the grill, and in a minute at most, flipped it over, left it around one more minute, then took it out, threw a few dressings on it, and the slammed the whole thing into the judges' table, almost causing the table to break given the weight of it all. Decora outright glared at how much of a thug he was. Did he have not an ounce of delicacy in him?
"Wait, you're done?" Urara asked, surprised, as that steak looked like it was not only still bleeding, but it looked almost alive. Still pulsating as the heat settled, skin still bulging, what was it even supposed to be?
The Necronomicon?
"…Are you sure you're done? You still have five-ish more minutes left too…" Urara tried to advice, until she seemed to receive a notification to her earpiece, which seemed to irk her. "Which is in no way is me offering advice, mind you," she quickly defended. "It's just… commentary!" she screamed the last word to the upper part of the stadium, likely aimed at whatever aide Azami had on hand at the moment.
"Relax, I'm done," Kurokiba told her, before he turned to the judges. "Don't suppose you'll hesitate again?"
"Don't suppose we will," Anne voiced with a little smile, as she turned her attention to the huge chunk of meat before them. One piece for them all. "And what would this one be called?"
"Knowing him, probably just Beef," Decora mocked, as Anne tried her best to ignore her.
"A fitting name," Kurokiba noted, "But, it's actually a bit more than that. I call it the Coffee-Rubbed Filet-Mignon, Rare Temp."
He presented to them the Coffee-Rubbed Filet-Mignon, Rare Temp.
"Coffee-rubbed?" Courage asked, wondering when he had included the coffee beans to the steak at all. She had not seen that part. Was it when the hostess was talking about her love life she wondered?
Knowing appearances, especially with this guy, were deceiving, the five took the plunge and took a chunk of the steak and took down a bite on it. On that very moment, their senses were overstuffed with the intense flavor of both the steak, and the sheer bitterness of the coffee, but somehow, no flavor eclipsed the other.
"How on Earth did you manage this now?" Charme asked, taking a look at the steak, and noticing the small incisions there-in. "Ah, those cuts you so painstakingly took the time to make. That's where you hid most of the powder."
"Yeah, I coated the knife itself, as I made the cuts, then to add to it more, I literally rubbed them onto my hands and onto the meat," Kurokiba explained, brandishing his darkened knife. "The hardest part was making sure to add just enough. Too much and I ruined the steak. Not enough and the coffee would have made little to no impact."
"Quite a simple recipe," Anne noted, "But refined so perfectly. Truly the work of an Elite Ten student, it is."
Kurokiba just scoffed, but as soon as he did, he felt his senses get overwhelmed by the fresh sense of coffee. Or rather, by what Camille was pulling out of her oven. It looked pretty darn heavy to boot, as the little lady seemed to struggle to hold the thing up and bring it all the way onto the judges' table. She was pretty much out of breath as soon as she let go of it.
"And… here… is… my… oh goodness… dish…the Coffee… Cake… whatever…" she said as best she could, as the judges just looked on, wondering how weirder was this day going to get. Anyways…
She presented to them the Coffee Cake Whatever.
So they each took a piece of the cake for themselves. It was surprisingly soft and fluffy, the complete opposite of what Kurokiba had just fed them. Decorated so prettily even Momo found it un-cute, the judges were hit by the mix of bitterness and sweetness that seemed to compliment themselves perfectly. And it was here, with everyone watching, their eyes wide in anticipation, with both Kurokiba and Camille on the verge of collapsing before them, that the judges realized something.
This was not at all easy to judge.
And that sounded obvious, but given how this competition had been set up, especially to accommodate the other schools not used to the "Shokugeki" system, instead of the usual Ingredient and Theme being selected to help narrow the contestants' choices; here the just had a broad Theme to work with. While some themes were more restrictive than other, such as the last match, this one was the clear opposite. One served a main dish, the other a dessert. Both equally valid. And both had to be judged properly. Which really boiled down to…
"Which dish has the best use of the coffee grounds then…" Anne noted, already conflicted. Honestly, both dishes were terrific, and displayed these two chefs at their very best.
"I would say the steak does," Histoire noted, even if he didn't sound so sure. "While close, it is outright bathed in the coffee, unlike the cake, which is more coffee-flavored… if that makes sense."
"I get it, but I'd have to disagree," Charme countered. "While the steak is definitely stronger in its flavors, I feel you could remove the coffee grounds and still have a working dish. This cake falls apart without the coffee, it is a coffee cake, no doubts about it. That to me makes the difference."
"But isn't that kinda contradictory?" Courage asked, head tilted, "If the steak can stand on its own without the coffee, is it not superior?"
"Not quite," Decora countered, because of course she did, "Because it means the cake itself is defined by the coffee, as opposed to the steak just being bathed in it."
Once more, Kurokiba and Camille stood there, both on the verge of dropping to the ground, but holding out on sheer force of will alone. The judges debated each other for a bit, each offering their opinions on both dishes, going back and forth, before they each cast their vote.
Both Kurokiba and Camille looked on, both outright frozen in place.
There was silence…
Then a roar of applause.
Winner: Ryou Kurokiba.
"Fu-dge yes!" Urara swapped out her excitement as best she could. She was on live television after all. But she wouldn't censor her excitement. "He does it again! In a way too close for comfort three-to-two vote, our Ninth Seat Ryou Kurokiba takes home another victory, the first of our team to snag two in a row! What a champ!"
The entire stadium roared alongside Urara, as applauses abounded. Kurokiba felt lightheaded. It really was too much.
"…Well, I tried," Camille voiced, even if her voice was breaking as she did. "Great job. You guys are insanely amazing."
"You're not that bad yourself," Kurokiba told her, with a nod, before he turned back and walked back to his teams. This time Alice outright knocked him to the ground with the glomp she gave him, before she quickly apologized, not realizing just how worn out the guy likely was.
"Oops, sorry, sorry," she quickly said, rubbing his head like if he was an injured puppy. "But that was so amazing Ryou! Two in a row!" she added, signaling at him with two fingers raised. "That's the best record so far! I am so proud!"
"Yeah, yeah," Kurokiba just said, holding onto her waist and placing his head on the nape of her neck, taking in her scent of a moment, to try and bring himself back to the realm of the living. The girl froze as he did this, not used to such intimacy when they were out in the open. But he deserved that and more, so blushing, she just held onto him tightly until he let her go.
"You the man Kurokiba!" Soma quickly beamed as soon as the mad dog walked towards the others, raising his fist and bumping into Kurokiba's. "That was insane, dude. Like, top tier work!"
"You want to take all of them on, cause at this rate," Takumi teased, smiling at him, as Kurokiba just laughed, but shook his head regardless.
"That was amazing work," Akira told him. "See why I chose you to be my aide and lackey back then."
"You never said lackey you asshole," Kurokiba shot back, feeling a sense of déjà vu, but choosing to ignore it. "But, we got this now. One more win, and it's ours. Don't either of you three mess up now," he added, and two of the three pouted in response. Akira just smiled.
On the other side of the arena, Camille walked up to her team, a sheepish smile on her face. "Didn't quite nail that landing, sorry."
"Nonsense Camie, you did masterfully," Gautier told her, quickly taking her into his arms and hugging her tightly. "And I must say, you are horribly drenched in sweat."
"Yeah… I'm slipping out of your grasp as we speak," she added jokingly.
"A very impressive showcase Camille, you should be proud," Lumiere told her, as she began to tear up again. She wasn't used to compliments. "Not many here can say the faced down two Elite Ten members, and gave them both quite a run for their money."
"Yeah, you were great!" Joseph added, before he hit Kitsch on the side.
"Ah… yeah, amazingly done," Kitsch said, before he sighed. "…Thanks for making him sweat like that."
"Yeah…" Camille replied, smiling through the tears, but she really wasn't sad. Also, despite herself, she refused to look up to the audience, less she make eye contact with Ekaterina. That could wait until their date, no more, no less.
Then, once again, the screen began to flicker again. The excited crowd grew silent once more, as both teams turned to see who it would be this time. This match could end up being the final one of the day, they just needed a good match-up, and even more so, a normal theme if possible. Everyone looked on, and just like that, the screen showed the next match-up, and…
…no one could speak at all…
"…You've got to be BLEEPING with me!" Urara announced to the world on her microphone, in the most irate of tones, eyes wide; just like the entire audience present. All over the world, only her censored statement was broadcasted, but on the arena herself, everyone heard how she really, really felt. Because…
Ryou Kurokiba vs. Lumiere Dubois
"Wait, what!?" Alice cried out, her eyes at the stage, before she shifted her glare towards the control area. "How on Earth is that fair?! Three times in a row?!"
"Father?" Erina spoke up, having been mostly quiet and simply observing the events unfold, quite proud of Kurokiba's efforts, but she couldn't keep quiet now. "How is that even possible? They can't expect him to compete again."
"This is random selection," Azami merely told her, a visible smile in his visage. "Poor luck for the lad, but there's no foul play involved, I assure you."
On the other room, Soe Nakiri looked on, at the screen, his fists clenched and rested on the glass window before him. He had been observing the selections carefully, and he had not once seen any way for those match-ups to be anything but random… mostly. The one featuring Isshiki and Alex had been the exception, but that one had been agreed to by both parties beforehand. This was just something else.
"Soe," Leonora voiced, her eyes on the screen. "Ryou's tired, Alice's right, that can't be fair."
"I know dear," he told her. "But there's nothing I can do. Either he tries… or…"
"You are permitted to step down from a match if you so prefer," Azami announced, having gotten hold of one of the microphones and having momentarily shut off Urara's, despite her protests. The man looked down, at Kurokiba who was currently sitting on the ground, practically winded out and sweaty all over. "…It would still, unfortunately, count as a disqualification. Your choice Ryou Kurokiba."
"Uncle I swear…!" Alice tried, before she realized screaming her lungs out did nothing to help their cause. "Ryou, I-I… I don't know what we do here."
"We seriously can't switch?" Soma asked, his eyes turning from Kurokiba to Alice to even Erina briefly. He avoided Azami like the plague, less he risk throwing his shoe at the man. "What if Kurokiba's sick, or injured?"
"They know he's fine," Akira countered, and at the look Kurokiba gave him, he added, "As in fine enough in terms of injury or sickness. We know you're worn out."
"Can't we try something?" Takumi asked.
"I can stab him," Soma suggested, and Kurokiba outright stood up and away from the redhead. "…Gently, I mean."
"Yeah, no thanks," Kurokiba said, before he turned to Alice. She had a mix of emotions on her face that made it clear she had no idea what to do. She couldn't do anything. And frankly, neither could he. "No choice. I'll go… again."
He then began to walk right back onto the arena, before Alice stepped right in front of him, her eyes moist. "…Alice…"
"You don't have to push yourself this far," she told him, breathing heavily. "T-This is bullshit. They are trying to get us eliminated, now and not later. And I'm sure it's because of this whole mess with Erina and my Uncle and Aunt and all that…"
"If your father has not done something, then it means it is really just bad luck," Kurokiba told her, "Or your bastard uncle really covered his bases. Either way, we knew this whole thing was stacked against us from the start."
"Still, Ryou, you can just-" she tried, but he stopped her with a kiss.
It took her breath away completely. He had never surprised her like this. To steal a kiss in such a way, and so gently and at the same time so powerful she was unable to resist it. Unable to resist him. How many times had they kissed by now? Ever since they were kids, she would often steal a kiss here or there, and now that they were an actual couple, they kissed pretty much every day. She snuck into his room for make-out sessions so intense she'd be grounded for life if her parents found out. So why? Why was this kiss causing her to outright melt before him, as if it were her first kiss all over again?
"You said to cook for you, right?" he asked, after the kiss ended. After he left her unable to breath. "I will. I swear."
She said nothing. She simply nodded, and stepped aside. Ryou Kurokiba then marched right back to the arena for a third time, barely able to fake not having even an ounce of strength left to his name. His opponent, Lumiere Dubois, stood before him, a look in his eyes that showed no malice or mockery, but instead, genuine admiration.
"You really are one tough son of a bitch," he told Kurokiba with a knowing smile.
"…You don't know the half of it," Kurokiba shot back, and with that, the match was set.
Urara, finally given her microphone privileges back, decided against cursing at everyone and instead turned to the screen. This was too much even for her. "Well… our man who needs no introduction because I have literally introduced him twice already, but here he is yet again, because someone likes to see him suffer, our Ninth Seat, Ryou Kurokiba!" she announced, before she switched to the opponent. "And challenging him is École des Flats-I mean-Plats Cuisinés, Lumiere Dubois!" she added, almost mispronouncing the school's name. The stress was already getting to her too. "Yadda, yadda, insert theme… there!"
The screen once more began to flicker, and as everyone looked on, it chose the theme for the match, and both Kurokiba and Lumiere moved towards the stations as soon as they caught a glimpse of it.
Truffle Cheddar
'Quite the noteworthy ingredient they picked, huh?' Lumiere noted with a grin. Still, he couldn't have wished for a better ingredient.
'…Huh, Aldini would have probably made this work better than I can, but…' Kurokiba noted, as he opened his fridge up, seizing the piece of mushroom-infused cheese he needed. 'I'm not about to throw in the towel just yet!'
So Kurokiba forced his tired body to move. He began to slice the block of cheese into slices, already with an idea on his mind. After he was done, he pushed it aside, leaving it on the fridge so it wouldn't lose its chill, as he took out a bag of macaroni. It was the most basic of dishes, he knew, but given how damn draining all these matches had been, his best bet was going all in on a simple dish, rather than try to out-fancy his opponent. So he got the water into a large pot, and began to boil it.
Lumiere had a similar idea, just with pasta instead. He had a large pot of boiling water also prepped, and was busy using his smallest knife, almost the same length of his pinky finger, to carve into the dough he had been busy preparing. He had to be precise. He needed to cut the figures perfectly, and try to merge them with the cheese flawlessly. He could not, would not underestimate his opponent just because he was rightfully tired. That monster had taken out two of his teammates. He wasn't taking down a third.
Kurokiba threw the macaroni into the pan, before he took hold of his cheese slices once more, this time carefully taking hold of them and prepping them for the saucepan, using a bit of spices and herbs to maximize the flavor, as he proceeded to carefully melt the cheese into the ideal sauce. It was difficult, since he had to be precise in his timing. Too much time, and the sauce would be too thick. Too little, and it would be too watery.
But it didn't matter. He needed to win this. Alice needed him to win this. He couldn't just leave her alone in here. There was too much at stake. That girl, and her parents, they had taken him in, given him a home. Given him a life. He needed to repay that back, no matter what, even if he had to singlehandedly take out all the opponents by himself, exhaustion be damned.
He was too focused on his craft, and on his girl, that he didn't notice he had cut his index finger by the tip until his own blood began to mix in with the boiling water.
He narrowed his eyes, outright glaring at the small cut. Was he that tired that he had made such an amateurish mistake?
Cursing inwardly, he took hold of the pot, and discarded the contaminated materials, to the surprise of all those looking on, as none had seen why he had done so. He then moved towards the sink, washing his hands thoroughly, before he took hold of the small med-kit available to them in case of anything not serious, such as small cuts or burns, and placed a small bandage over his finger.
He frowned at the bandage. It had a very stupid design to it. What was this for, middle school kids?
As he made his way back, restarting everything again, his eyes feel onto the main screen, which now sported the timing left for the match. As he heard Urara narrate what he was doing in the background, a commentary he could do without, he turned back to Alice. Sweet Alice, who looked worried as all hell, but quickly flashed him a smile the moment their eyes met.
She could tell. He knew. And he knew it too.
There just wasn't enough time to try that again.
Swallowing his pride, he tried a different approach: forcing it. By dividing the portions, and outright setting the flame to the highest setting, he hoped to be able to soften the macaroni just in the nick of time. Using five smaller pots, he set it all up, and this proved even more exhausting, having to micromanage all of them plus the cheese sauce, which ran at a different temperature than the others.
"Ryou Kurokiba is now attempting a different method, as he just… Oh?" Urara paused, as she noticed Lumiere approach the judges table. The French contestant gave the five a smile, before he set his dish before them.
"Allow me to present to you all, esteemed members of the WGO," he announced, "My latest creation. The Truffle-Cheddar / Broccoli-Spinach Pasta Extravaganza."
"Extravaganza seems like the correct term," Decora noted with a sly smile, as she took in the sight and smell from the dish, which looked like a work of art rather than a culinary dish. "By this scent alone, I can tell it tastes heavenly."
"It's outright still boiling," Courage added, her eyes on the small bubbles still blowing up steam from the melted cheese.
"…Shall we then?" Anne asked, as the five judges each took a forkful of the dish, the steam still leaving the divided pieces as if it were still cooking itself further.
"By all means," Lumiere voiced, signaling to them to dig in. And they did. And it was such a big rush of flavor that it made them all weak at the knees.
"…Simply exquisite," all five judges exclaimed at the same time, steam now coming right out of their nostrils. They looked so dazed and lost in the own euphoria that they failed to notice Kurokiba slam his own dish before them until the sound made them jump, once again. He was doing it on purpose they figured.
"Here's mine," he announced, trying his best to hide how his hands were shaking more and more the longer he stood before them. "The Truffled Mac n' Cheese."
And unlike Lumiere's beautifully crafted dish, this in turn looked like a cheese volcano that had erupted and was overflowing with molten cheese. More like a science project than a culinary masterpiece.
"It… looks kinda strange," Courage noted, flinching a bit, her chopstick and fork both held at bay, unsure of which one to use, if any. It looked like they would both just melt as soon as they made contact with whatever that magma-like cheese was.
"It looks horrible," Courage didn't mince words.
"Let's give this a go then," Histoire declared, taking hold of his piece. He ended up using his fork, and as such, the other judges followed suit. In due time, all five had taken a bite, and to their surprise, it wasn't overstuffed for just the sake of it.
Then all five of them kept silent, deep in thought.
"…Well?" a very worried Urara asked, biting her lower lip as she waited for a response. On baited breath, the entire stadium looked on, as it seemed like the judges were at a loss for words.
But Kurokiba could feel it the air. He had given it his all, even in the face of his mistake, to try and salvage the dish. To make it with everything he had left to give. It had to be enough, he needed it to be enough. She needed it to be enough. So the moment the judges seemed to speak among themselves, and come to a decision, he closed his eyes, knowing there was a very big possibility that it had just not been enough.
Then he heard the screen give out the result, and he heard the crowd's reaction.
And he knew he had lost.
Winner: Lumiere Dubois
"…I," Urara tried, but she had to steel herself. This was so unfair. "…After a brilliant performance not once, but twice, Ryou Kurokiba has been eliminated from the Intercontinental Shokugeki, leaving Lumiere Dubois as the total victor with a five-to-nothing win," she hesitantly declared.
"It was an excellent effort," Anne commended, her eyes on Kurokiba. "But Lumiere's dish was on another level. Had it been the dish you served to us prior, then perhaps that would have been debatable."
"…Yeah," Kurokiba just replied, turning away, but as he did, he heard a few scattered claps begin to fill the arena, until more and more joined in. By the time he reached his team, the claps actually sounded louder than even Urara, who took this as a sign to keep quiet for the moment. Kurokiba looked on, still pissed, but he really didn't feel like arguing with an entire stadium trying the best to cheer him on.
"You were amazing…" Alice told him, softly, as she approached him. When he didn't immediately respond, she placed her hands on his face, making him face her as gently as she could. "Look at me Ryou… you took two of them out, and gave the third quite the match. None of us here can even claim half of that. Don't think for a second you've failed any of us here… Especially not me."
"…I really tried," he simply told her, and she could tell how frustrated he was by his body language alone. "For you, I really…"
And she returned his kiss, just as kind, just as powerful.
"And I love you for it," Alice replied, smiling at her boyfriend. "I've known you since we were kids. I fell for you since then too. So trust me, when I know you did everything you could. Thank you, for fighting so hard, but take it easy. We're not down for the count just yet."
He said nothing else, but nodded, and made his way back, where his team all acknowledged just how difficult that third bout of his was, and how great he had been in it despite all that. On the opposite end, Lumiere returned to his side triumphant, a five-to-nothing victory and a second elimination of an Elite Ten member, something no other team had managed to achieve. Which meant.
"This next match," Gautier noted with the biggest grin.
"…Will be the one that decides…" Akira said, as he turned to the big screen.
"…If we still have a school tomorrow," Urara concluded, gulping at the notion, just as the screen began to flicker one last time. For the day, and maybe for the event as a whole. The crowd grew silent again, as they waited for the screen to give them the final two opponents, and as soon as it did, no one knew what to make of it.
Because of course their luck would be so awful that their opponents' team leader would be the one chosen.
At this Gautier smile grew even wider. "I think… we have our victory guaranteed ladies and gents."
Akira turned to Soma for a moment, who gave him a knowing nod. Because both boys knew, that if ever there was a moment were their nervousness was at its peak, it was now. And if they were feeling that weight, they could not imagine what it would feel like to the girl who was on verge of losing everything…
Alice Nakiri vs. Gautier Pierre
"And I'm up," Alice stated, but gone was her bubbly tone or big smiles. But, the boys noted, that was probably for the best. She was focused. She needed to be. So, as she stepped up to the arena, with her team cheering her on, both those down there with her, as well as the Third Years above, they were soon joined in by the rest of the crowd. First it was the Polar Star teens and their friends, all cheering as loud as they could, but soon enough, the entire school joined in. All shouting to the heavens the prowess of their second princess, as she set foot in the arena, her eyes meeting with the French team leader, and one would suspect, their best chef.
"Ryou Kurokiba must hold his head up high," Gautier told her. "He took out two of my best friends, and even in defeat, he still has me beat, as he holds your heart while I sadly do not. I don't suppose a perfect performance from my part would get you to reconsider?"
"I am taken," she firmly replied, for once, her eyes on his without any pout or cutesy mannerisms. She was just plainly glaring at him.
"Football has a goalie," he shot back, still smiling at her. "Doesn't mean a man cannot still score."
"I am no one's goal," she told him without a hint of amusement. "And I will crush you, perfection or not. You will not destroy the home I grew up in."
"…And here we have it folks!" Urara forced herself to say. Her job was not yet done. Not just quite yet. "For our final match, we have our lovely princess, the Eight Seat, Alice Nakiri!" she announced, as the cheers grew louder still, all wishing the second heiress the best. "And on the other side, the walking restraining order himself, Gautier Pierre!"
"Ouch, harsh," Gautier replied with a little laugh. Urara just glared at him.
Alice paid him no mind. She knew she was in a tough spot regardless. When even Urara described her as "lovely" without caring about comparing herself to her, it was quite clear they were at the roughest spot they've ever been in. Everything her grandfather had built, remodeled, expanded and grown to this degree, his entire legacy, was on the verge of collapse, and it all fell on her. She felt like the weight of it all was just too much, but she did not have the luxury of failing. Not this time.
Her eyes then darted upwards. She could see her parents watching her from above, both worried as could be, and she couldn't blame them. She wouldn't cry, she promised.
And on the other side, were her uncle and aunt. He looked pleased, because of course he did. This was what he wanted, even if he had to destroy the entire family to get it. I mean, if he was willing to hurt his own daughter, what hope would she, the niece, ever have to receive even an ounce of mercy? And her aunt looked as indifferent as always, just as removed from the family as the day she walked out on them all.
And there was Erina…
Alice couldn't help but glare at her. This was all her fault. She placed her side of the family over Alice's, over the ones that actually cared and treated her with some actual human decency. Over their own grandfather, who had given it his all to actually raise her, unlike the sperm donor and the womb donor she had for parents. It was infuriating. Erina should be down here, helping them save the academy. Helping her! Not just looking down at the collapse as if it didn't involve her in the slightest.
And she didn't care how sad Erina looked, it couldn't compare to the pressure Alice herself was feeling now. 'Save those teary eyes for the cameras, cousin,'
"And our theme will be…!" Urara declared, as the screen began to flicker. Alice and Gautier turned to face the screen, and just like that, the theme was chosen. "…Huh, that's a country, isn't it?"
Mongolian
Alice and Gautier all moved to their stations, as the crowd grew quiet, allowing the chefs to focus. Alice quickly got her equipment set up, ready to take this victory in whatever way she could using her biggest talent and asset: her molecular gastronomy expertise. Her secret weapon against, originally, Erina herself, one that had proven not as effective yet, but one she was sure she could rise to meet and exceed her cousin and anyone else who stood in her family's way. All she needed to do was…
"My, such a scowl on such a pretty face," Gautier spoke up, and Alice felt like she was about to stab him with one of her knives.
"You know, just blindly dishing out compliments about a girl's beauty and all that crap is not the best way to get into her pants, my dude," Alice shot back, irked but using her sarcastic tone to cover it up.
"…She's right, you know," Urara added, and as Gautier gave her a pained look, she just shrugged. "Just saying…"
"How hurtful," Gautier replied. "And here I was trying to cheer you up. You always looked so happy, I did not want to be the reason for that beautiful smile of yours to fade…"
"Oh, shut up," Alice barked.
"…Or would you rather I just surrender, my dear?"
Alice froze for a moment, her grip on her vials loosening for the briefest of moments, but she was able to stop them from falling. "…What?"
"Normally I'd be one-hundred percent invested in my school's victory over anything else," Gautier explained, the smallest of grin on his face. He then extended his hand, pointing it at the princess, as if he were a gallant knight ready for the rescue. "…But for one as lovely as yourself, I am fully willing to give it all up. All of it, just to keep that smile in place. What do you way? Would you like that, my love?"
"…I've heard enough," Kurokiba softly roared, and he would have had Gautier by the throat had Akira, Soma and Takumi not flung themselves on him to keep him from entering the arena.
"If you go in there, she's disqualified," Akira reminded him, struggling despite the three-on-one assault to keep the mad dog at bay. "Don't play into his hands."
'…He's not flirting with her,' Camille noted, seeing the little display before her, as Gautier flung pretty words at his opponent, while his opponent's boyfriend had to be physically restrained to stop him from outright murdering Gautier. 'I know the difference. You're playing the role up, getting under their skin. Was this the true purpose of those documents? Gautier… how far are you willing to go for this victory?'
"Be serious!" Alice shot back, turning to face her supposedly enamored opponent. "Do you want me to believe you'd give away the change at taking Tootsuki out, for what? Not making me cry?"
And he just smiled. Hook, line, sinker.
"I just do not like to see girls cry," he replied. "And I know for a fact that such a defeat would hurt you deeply."
"You don't know me."
"Oh?" he said with the most amused tone imaginable. "Do I not? What's there to know, my dearest Alice Nakiri? How about how despite all your so-called prowess, you were eliminated in the very first round of the Autumn Elections? Did you not cry then? Voted off by your own grandfather even!"
Alice said nothing, but her eyes said everything. She seemed to stammer in place. He wasn't wrong, but still…
"What the hell does that have to do with anything you scum?!" Kurokiba roared, holding himself in line because he knew getting in there was exactly what Gautier wanted him to do. But even so…
"A lot, actually," Gautier replied. "Take you for example, my dear Kurokiba. Such a wonderful opponent you turned out to be. Masterful even. And yet, she… who is supposed to be seated above you, has actually quite the abysmal record when it comes to official Shokugeki matches against you," he added, and both Alice and Kurokiba flinched at the accusation. Gautier just smiled, receiving all the confirmation he needed. "How terrible is that? A chef that cannot even excel her own aide, truly devastating. And while I know my words may sound cruel, and I really do not wish to see you cry, but I cannot pretend I hold you to the same regard I hold the rest of your team. They all struggled to get where they are at. You, my dearest Alice, were handed everything on a silver platter, and even then, you accomplished so little. Even that seat you have, is probably undeserved. So consider my offer carefully, because if this school closes, so does the world giving you handouts… my little nepotism princess."
"Hey! That's going too far!" Urara cried out, turning to the judges. "Trash talk is one thing, but his attacks are too personal!"
"I agree, Gautier I won't-" Anne quickly voiced, before she was cut off.
"It's just harmless banter," Decora deflected effortlessly. "Just focus on your match you two. No more talking," she added, pleased, before she turned to a glaring Anne. "What's your problem?"
"That's it?" Anne demanded. "He says all that, and you just give him a slap on the wrist. This is not what the WGO stands for."
"Oh my dear, sweet summer child," Decora voiced knowingly, her eyes back onto the stage, ignoring Anne's glare and her fellow judges' questioning looks. "This is just the tip of the iceberg. If little miss Alice cannot handle this stress, that's on her. You don't see our Bookmaster stepping in, now do you?"
At this Anne said nothing, since she knew that Mana Nakiri was not actively the Bookmaster, but it was true that she could still pull rank if she wanted to. If she didn't even attempt to defend her niece, did it mean that such attacks were actually allowed?
Gautier still did as told, and promptly shut up. He had said his piece anyways, and could now focus fully on his dish.
Alice, on the other hand, was a mess. She tried to ignore it, focus on her craft, but she felt all her emotions bottling up and about to burst within her. What was she supposed to say or do at this point? She wanted to scream in his face, prove him wrong, but a part of her knew, most of what he had said was true. She could see her team, all worried for her. Kurokiba even more so, looking willing to commit actual murder if that's what it took. And it wasn't just him, her father looked like he had possibly cracked the glass window he had been looking down from. She could understand why…
And then there was her cousin…
Again with that dumb look on her face. Who was she trying to fool? Worried about her or herself? Which one was it?
'You stuck-up, annoying, childish, bully of a cousin!' Alice screamed inside her head. 'How I hate how you…'
Then it hit her.
She had said that once, long ago.
"…But it's true," a little Alice told her grandfather, as both she and he sat by the garden, all the while Erina picked up some flowers for a necklace she was trying to make. Alice, on the other hand, had her eyes puffed due to all the crying she had been doing, as her grandfather looked at her sternly. "She won't let me play with her dolls," little Alice complained. "I hate that. I hate her."
"No you don't," Senzaemon told her, his strong hands on the petite, little girl. "You just had a fight, that's normal in all families, but that never means you hate one another."
"Well I do!"
"Really now?" her grandfather noted. "Then does that mean you don't want to go to her birthday party this weekend?"
"Wha-no!" Alice quickly replied. She loved those parties. She had her pretty little dress and everything ready for it. And Erina's gift too. "I wanna go! I-I won't hate her then."
"Ha, is that how that works?" Senzaemon said with a laugh. "Then that is not hate. It can never be hate," he added, as he pulled little Alice closer. The crying girl just rested her head onto his lap. "Erina and you are both alike in so many ways, but different in others. You are far more emotional than she is, expressive as can be, always wearing your heart in your sleeve."
"No I don't," little Alice countered, checking her sleeve to make sure.
"…Not like that," he corrected, "But just like that, it means you love all that more fiercely. And I can tell you love Erina with all your little heart can manage. Erina may have a different way of showing it, but I can guarantee she loves you just as much as you do her."
"That much?" little Alice asked, before she caught herself, and pouted to herself. "Wait, no, I didn't mean it that way," she tried to deflect. "But, but she's always so proud just cause she has that God's Tongue of hers. Well… I have it to. I decided it."
"Oh did you now?"
"Yeah," she answered fully assured.
"Let me see it then."
So she stuck her tongue out at him, and he just gently took hold of it with his fingers. "H-Hey!" she whined, with laughter.
"A silver tongue is what you have," he commented proudly, and she tilted her head, puzzled.
"What's that?"
"You'll learn soon enough I'm afraid," he told her, knowingly. "And it's quite a gift I must say, one that even those who possess the God's Tongue itself should be wary of."
"…That sounds cool," Alice noted, still unsure, but before she could inquire further, she heard little Erina call out to her. Without even a hint of hesitation, she quickly got up. "Coming!"
Then Senzaemon looked on, as the two little cousins that "hated" each other, over a little spat involving a doll neither even remembered anymore, played around within the fields as Erina showed Alice the next flower she was going to use for her designs, which Alice quickly agreed was the best choice. He reveled in those tiny, little moments between the two. Then…
"Grandpa said I have a tongue made of silver!"
"No you don't."
"Yes I do!"
"That isn't real!"
"Yeah, it is!"
"It's not!"
"Is so!"
Oh well, it was fun while it lasted, Senzaemon noted. All three seconds of it…
'…Ah, we really are two spoiled brats deep down, aren't we…? Erina?' Alice said to herself, her eyes on her worried cousin, all the malice and ill-feelings inside her shifting into something resembling guilt. 'Who am I trying to fool here? To say that I hate anything about you? My strong, beautiful, brilliant cousin… Have I ever even told you how proud I am of you?'
Erina looked on, utterly petrified at the turn of events, but outright irate at those comments she heard being thrown around at Alice. She quickly turned to her father. "He can't just say all that and not be reprimanded for it."
"I understand your frustrations Erina," Azami spoke up, his eyes on the arena. So close to victory he could actually taste it. "But in these events, such talk is often-"
"No!" Erina cut him off, talking so sternly it caused both her father and mother to flinch at the ferocity of her statement. "This is Tootsuki, not any random school. If they are allowed to insult each other like that elsewhere, then that's on them. But I will not allow anyone to insult Alice within these walls. Am I clear?"
"…I understand, but-" he tried. He had not expected this reaction.
"Father," she voiced in no uncertain terms. Her glare made her intent clear. "Say something, or I will."
In roughly two seconds after, Urara's microphone got cut off once more, as Azami made his presence known once more. It took all the contestants by surprise, as there had been a massive silence after the little back-and-forth between the contestants. "Ahem," Azami began, clearing his throat. "I want to just add a little bit here… Gautier Pierre, while trash-talking is fine and all, you crossed the line a bit there, please apologize to my niece."
"Oh?" Gautier gave pause, a bit surprised at the sudden reversal. "I assure you my good sir, I never meant-"
"You heard me," Azami just added, the venom outright dripping from his voice. "Apologize or you are disqualified."
This made the Casanova-wannabe quickly shit a metaphorical brick.
"Please forgive my rudeness Alice Nakiri!" he said as he bowed before her, which in turn caused her to frown at the display. She knew her uncle really didn't care about her much, so it must have been… "I took it a step too far. I assure you I have nothing but the utmost respect for you and your family. There is a reason you are all at the top still. Please accept my apologies."
"…Yeah, sure, whatever," Alice just replied, her eyes still on Erina, who went back to the side, looking down at the arena. For the briefest of moments their eyes met, and Erina did her best to smile at her, while Alice did her best not to cry. '…I've been so selfish, haven't I?' she noted. 'All this time, complaining about everything you did. But not once did I even try to put myself in your shoes. What would happen if our roles were switched? Would I be able to handle all your responsibilities? Or would I just crumble under the weight of it all? I never realized it, but I really do have the luxury to fail, while you don't. I fail, I can try again. You do, and it damages not just your image, but our family's as a whole. I can be reckless, while you have to always be the firm pillar holding us steady. I can see you, even now, bending and cracking, but refusing to break… Have I never told you any of this? Why… because of my stupid ego…?'
Alice shook her head. That had to change. Their entire academy was on the line. Her family was too. And it was time she stopped relying on the fact that she had Erina as a safety-net and for once, hold her share of the weight.
"Okay, let's do this for real then," Alice declared to herself, as she took hold of her knife, and with a swift kick, pushed all her expensive equipment to the side. She could hear the gasps from the crowd, all wondering if she had gone insane, pushing her greatest weapon aside, but she had a plan. She had something else in mind. So she moved. She took out a meat from the fridge, then another, and then another, and then another. She placed them all on her counter, and after taking a deep breath, started to cut them down, focused solely on her craft, outright drowning out any and all sounds. She made her cuts, as picture perfect as she could manage, before she began to cook each meat individually.
Then she turned to the flour, the eggs, the milk and the oil. In no time, she had a perfect dough created, and then she began to work on it. Using her entire body, she pressed and pressed, flattening it as best she could, then molding it to her desired design. It took great effort. She wasn't used to getting her hands this dirty. To be so rough with her delicate hands. But those days were over. She needed to push through.
With knife once more on hand, she cut everything as desired, and had her noodles at the ready, before she threw them into the pan, her attention back on the meat as the noodles got prepared. Then, once she was done there, she'd focus on the sauce.
On the opposite end, Gautier, despite getting a bit caught off-guard by Azami's sudden reprimand, was confident he could still pull through. He had rattled her enough, and even if not, he wasn't the Team Leader for nothing. He was taking this win, no matter what. So he took out his dish, and presented it to the judges, with the biggest grin on his face.
"If I may present to you all," he announced, confidently. "My greatest creation. The Origami Buuz Collection."
The five judges looked on, at the tray of differently shaped and designed dumplings, all drenched in a light-colored sauce, all served in a large platter in a circular fashion. The presentation was exquisite, and the smell even more so.
"This would be…" Histoire observed, taking hold of one of the dumplings, and biting down on it. The flavor exploded in his mouth, as the minced mutton was so flavorful that it almost made the man moan. "Oh dear, what seductive flavor!"
"~Ah!" Courage did in fact moan, blushing when she caught herself. Gautier was pleased.
"~Ah!" Charme also moaned, also blushing when he caught himself. Gautier was not expecting it, but he'd take the compliment regardless.
"It's the use of animal fat that makes it so flavorful, right?" Decora asked, after having taken a bite herself. Gautier nodded with a smile plastered all over his face.
"These are the ever popular two-bite dumplings famous all over the Mongolian region," he explained proudly. "I've just upped the ante on them. Made the flavor even more intense. Using a far more direct method to outright inject the fat to the very center of the dumplings, all the while crafting each one with its own distinct design and mixture of mutton meat and herbs. Each dumpling is, as a result, more savory than the last. A thrill ride of flavor, a rollercoaster of deliciousness that only goes faster and faster until the very last bite!"
"That's sounds pretty good."
Gautier paused, as Alice stepped right next to him, a skillet in her hand, covered, with the lid outright shaking since everything inside was still boiling hot. She was holding the skillet's handle with a very fancy-looking oven mitt, her stance very casual in nature. He looked on, before she turned to him for a moment, a small, little smile in her pretty, little face.
"Careful, it's hot," she warned, and he couldn't help but flinch.
"Oh, I…" he tried, but she just walked pass the guy, and set her boiling skillet on the table. She gave the judges a little playful wink, and took the lid off…
…and it was like they were all transported. The sense was so powerful that the five felt like they had actually just gotten off a plane directly at the heart of the Mongolian region itself. It was so strong that even Akira, who was a good few steps back, had to recoil at getting hit by the aroma, almost as if it were one of his aroma-bombs.
"What on Earth did she make? Why does it smell slightly…?" he asked, sensing something… familiar?
"She gave that everything she had, damn, I can almost taste it from here," Soma added, almost drooling at the scent.
"She really wasn't joking around," Takumi noted.
"…This isn't even her style," Kurokiba said, his eyes on her, realizing that she was no longer faking any of it. She looked worn out, that was true, but likewise just as sure and proud of her work. Not a single hint of worry in her at all.
"And what do you call this latest creation Milady?" Urara asked her, as Alice turned to her, smiling at the girl who she knew was offering all the support she could.
"This is my attempt at making a dish beyond anything seen thus far in this event," Alice explained, her index finger raised. "I call this one the Four Seasons Tsuivan; Silver Edition."
And then she showcased to the world her creation. This Four Seasons Tsuivan; Silver Edition, as the judges all took a piece of it. It was hard to even know where to start, they all noted, as it was indeed a dish divided into four parts. One side had mutton, another had chicken, yet another had pork, and the last had shrimp. The vegetables also differed in each side, but the smells did not clash with one another, they instead seemed to complement each other. To enhance each other.
Deciding that they needed to try each segment, the judges began to taste the dish…
…And suddenly they were all in harmony. All of them living in bliss within these four nations. Until, suddenly, the Fire Nation attacked! They all screamed, running in fear, but the soldiers took hold of each of them, holding them down and stripping them down to the flesh. As all five were held down, naked and afraid, the Fire Nation's Princess made her presence known. Princess Az-I mean-Alice took guided steps, standing before the five nude and defeated prisoners, as she gave them all the biggest grin.
"When you needed him most, your precious Avatar disappeared," she told them with glee, before she gave a signal, and her soldiers blasted them with their flames. But, instead of killing them, they were instead hit with the most intense sense of pleasure imaginable. "But do not worry, you are no under my care. My prisoners for life, and you will find that there is no greater joy! Rejoice, you worms, you are now my playthings for all eternity! Ha, ha, ha!"
"Yes your highness!" they all screamed as they groveled at her feet, ready to lick her shoes if need be for just a little… bit… more…
"Oh dear!" Anne voiced, finding it hard to breathe, as she instinctively crossed her legs. "T-That was quite something."
"Y-Yeah," Charme added, also crossing his legs. He was a married man, damn it. "What an intense flavor, I can't even begin to describe it!"
The others were quiet, still lost in it all. As a serious Alice, a worried Gautier and an even more worried Urara looked on, without another word, the five judges cast their votes, and at that very moment, as soon as the screen displayed the results, the entire arena wanted to outright collapse.
Winner: Alice Nakiri
"And she did it!" Urara absolutely roared into her microphone, which was soon joined by the hundreds upon hundreds of cheers from everyone else. The Polar Star group were screaming. The Elite Ten, both former and current, were also screaming. Soma, Akira, Takumi and even Kurokiba were all cheering as loud as they could, even if they couldn't even hear themselves over the intense roar of the stadium.
Gautier looked on, crestfallen, at the score of five-to-nothing. So damn close, so many tricks, and in the end… 'She destroyed me…' he realized, as the victory he had practically held within his grasps was stripped away into nothingness.
His team just looked on, all of them saddened by getting so close and failing, but they were satisfied enough. They had come closer than any before. And, in Camille's case, she still got a date out of it, so she thinks she'd survive.
Erina, up high, took a huge breath of relief. Not only did they survive another round, but Alice was fine. She couldn't even imagine how crushed her cousin would be if she had lost the final round. She would have likely blamed it all on herself, despite how she wasn't cowering away, like Erina herself was. 'You did amazingly, Alice…'
"On the… Oh my goodness I can't even!" Urara tried, knowing she had yet to even announce it. "Sorry, I just can't…! Gah! On what was the closest match we've seen yet, Alice Nakiri manages to secure the fifth match, and with it, the fourth day! Tootsuki Academy remains open!" she cheered jumping up to the air, as the crowds continued to cheer with her. She knew, and they all knew, that this victory was short lived. They had lost not one, but two members to this match, leaving them with just five Elite Ten members standing, and one Shouko…
…But that could wait a bit. For now, they were just happy to have survived. And they had their princess to thank.
"Let's hear it folks," Urara continued, her excitement leaving her almost breathless. "To our platinum princess! And of course, to the great efforts Ryou Kurokiba and Takumi Aldini gave to help us survive! And to Akira Hayama and Soma Yukihira, for at least bothering to showing up!" she added, which made both boys just frown at the comment, but they said nothing on the matter. She had a point. "Now I leave you all with-huh?!"
Urara paused suddenly, as Alice had walked up to her. She then extended her hand, motioning to the microphone. Urara just blinked, surprised, but she gave it anyway. It was here the stadium began to quiet down, as all eyes, and cameras, fell on Alice. Everyone looked on, not sure what she wanted to do or say.
"…Okay, let's give this a try," Alice spoke to the microphone, as both a way to steel herself and to check that she didn't get cut off. Once done, she then turned, her eyes fully on her cousin. "Erina!"
The sudden microphone-enhanced shout made Erina jump in place, as she turned to face her cousin down at the arena, who seemed to be glaring daggers at her. 'Don't tell me…' Erina noted with a little hint of dread. She knew Alice well. Too well. 'She's going to challenge me, isn't she? She always does this. After an impressive victory she gets her spirits up and decides to take me on. Not winning even once never seems to deter her… But, Alice, come on, we are so not in the position to do this now…'
"I have so many things to say to you, but I want to make one thing very clear first and foremost," Alice told Erina, as the latter looked on, holding onto the railing tightly, steading herself for the challenge that was to come and wondering how she was to reject her without making her feel bad. "So listen up, and listen well, Erina… I…"
'I want to challenge you, I know…' Erina noted, eyes narrowed.
But, instead…
"I love you."
Time seemed to stop for a moment. It took Erina a few seconds to register her words. She eyes Alice, her sweet, little cousin, out of breathe and exhausted, but looking at her with the most determined eyes she had ever seen this girl sport. But… what was that she had just…?
Soe looked on, his eyes bawling.
Leonora was scrambling to find her phone, in order to record this. She had to be reminded it was being recorded anyways. Even more so, it was being transmitted worldwide.
Mana was dumbstruck. She knew the girls were close, but why was her niece…?
Azami had no idea how to react. What was even happening?
Asahi had the faintest of smiles in his face. Such a direct blow, even he felt it from here.
Dove looked on, trying her best to pretend to be uninterested, but that girl sounded so sincere it even got to her. It actually reminded her of… No, she shook her head. Not here, not yet.
"…A-Alice, what are you…?" was the best Erina could say, taking hold of another microphone and being utterly confused at the sudden turn of events. Alice was having none of it.
"Bitch, did a stutter?!" she barked back. "I said I love you. Always have, always will."
"I heard that!" Erina replied, blushing madly. "AndIloveyoutoo," she added quickly, trying her best to keep herself composed. "But this isn't the time for this! Why are you even…?"
"Because I need no reason to tell you, and I feel like I haven't told you it enough," Alice replied, her tone softer, her eyes softening as well. "I have always envied you for everything you do, for always being stuck in your shadow, the silver medal to your gold."
"Alice, that-"
"But far more important to me, is that even if I feel jealous about you," Alice continued, cutting her cousin off. "I need you to know that I am ten times just as much prouder at all that you are!" she added, and Erina felt her tears begin to flow. She couldn't handle this now. "You are an amazing, talented, beautiful, magnificent chef, student, cousin, sister, friend… everything. You are my biggest source of pride, and I want nothing more than to be just like you. And this dish, represents that. You recognize it now, right…?"
"…Yeah," a truly flushed Erina admitted. "…It's the one I used against Akira… when we got Soma back in here…" she said, unsure if she was supposed to even reveal that. It was supposed to be a secret, wasn't it?
"So I wanted to show you, that no matter who says what, I am on your side, Erina, and I will support you through thick and thin, and I am-am…" she said, fighting back the tears, "…so damn proud that you are my cousin…" then she gave pause. And steeled herself. Biting her lower lip so hard she almost drew blood, she made a choice, come what may. "And I don't care who needs to hear this, be it Uncle Azami, or Aunt Mana, but I will always do right by you! And my priority will always be to…!"
"…Alice?" Erina muttered, softly, eyes wide. Was she going to do what she thought she was going to do?
Azami and Mana both realized it too, but neither could cut off her microphone quickly enough. No one could cut the feed either, as Alice had already taken her stance, and millions upon millions had already seen it.
Her fingers intertwined, forming the numerical symbol. Or, also, the hashtag symbol.
"…Protect Erina!"
-0-
The event had closed as it usually did, with Urara giving her closing remarks before a very conflicted Soe and an absolutely fuming, but pretending otherwise Azami came on and each delivered their pre-planned speeches. In theory, everything continued as scripted, but everyone knew the truth. No sooner had those two words left Alice's mouth, than all the efforts Azami and Mana and even Erina herself had taken to squash the controversy in the bud had all but been rendered moot. With a solid confirmation, directly or otherwise, from one who carried the Nakiri name, and by extension, was fully perceived as having a lot more insider information than Soma Yukihira ever would, the accusations against both parents just… exploded.
There was no longer any form of bandage either of them could hope to achieve in the court of public opinions, as both of their images had been outright destroyed by the controversy.
Azami received over a dozen of emails, each from different businesses of his, which either he or his aide Shawn had previously assured everything would have been taken care off, now writing to him that either he sold his shares off or he was going to be outright booted off. His only business left was those with the rival schools, if out of nothing else but the contract and the money that still flowed in from the event itself, which the controversy had massively boosted. If asked, the schools would merely state they had no direct contact with Azami himself, per say, as their competition was with Tootsuki Culinary Academy, and offer no more comments on the matter.
Mana, likewise, got a call she had been dreading, from the WGO itself. She didn't even bother to pick up, and had not managed to find the guts to listen to the rather long voice message. But whatever it was, she knew it wasn't good news. While they couldn't outright fire her, she knew, thanks to her earlier conversation with Lanterby's strangely identical-looking brother, that they could force her into an in-name-only position for a while, like a "Consultant Administrator" or the like, then, quietly, force her to quit once the controversy settled.
Either way, they both knew that their bank accounts would take a massive hit regardless, and their prestigious positions within the culinary world was all but over.
That, of course, left Erina in the completely opposite spot. Despite her efforts, she had gained an even bigger following, reaching numbers rivaling those of famous singers or actresses, despite her limited televised presence, and in the grand scheme of things, rather niche demographic. It no longer mattered. Whether you were an expert, a foodie, a fan or a nobody, you had heard of Erina Nakiri and her plight, and after her own cousin had voiced her support of the movement, almost everybody was now backing her up and voicing their own support for the heiress.
She, at the behest of the public relations team that worked for the WGO, had offered no comment upon exciting the arena. Or rather, she was rushed out, despite her own protests, in order to avoid anyone catching even a glimpse of her. They needed to try and get some sort of narrative going if they hoped to salvage anything at all, and at this point, Erina was too shell-shocked to even think straight.
First Soma, now Alice.
She felt so conflicted at this, since they went against everything she wanted to achieve, but she couldn't for the life of her fathom that either person she held so close to her heart would do any of this for the purpose of actually hurting her. Were they right, then? Was it just a foolish fantasy of her, to have her family just move past all of that and start anew? She no longer knew.
So as she was driven home, the notifications on her phone of her thousands upon thousands of new followers writing or tweeting the hashtag created by Soma's words and popularized by Alice's, she turned to the last person she had left that was both involved, and at the same time, neutral enough to be able to offer her some semblance of guidance.
After all, what were elder brothers for?
On the opposite side of the campus, the boy that had unwittingly started everything, both the assault on Tootsuki itself and, now, the career self-destruction from the soon to be canceled Azami and the most likely likewise Mana; Soma just sat back on his bed, his earphones on, as his call to his father continued, as the boy felt he really needed parental advice now more than ever. God, how he missed his mom. She'd had resolved this in a heartbeat.
"Truth be told," his father voiced. "Your mom would know how to fix this a whole lot more than I do."
"Hey, come on, at least try before you give up," Soma replied with a laugh, finding it funny how his father seemed to share his thoughts. "Be a dad for once."
"For once? You brat," Jouichirou shot back, but of course Soma could tell he took his son's snide remarks in stride. "But listen, for what I know, you did the right thing. Maybe not in the best possible moment, granted, but if Azami really was that shitty a parent, and if Mana was outright… not even there for anything, well, they do deserve getting called out on that. And I'm sorry, but Azami gets no sympathies from me. I was a single father too, and I didn't have to resort to physical or emotional abuse to get you to straighten up."
"You say that like I was a hassle," Soma noted, his eyes on the tiles of the roof, near the vents were Isshiki first came out from. It was here he noted he didn't recall seeing Isshiki sitting alongside Nene and Kuga during the matches themselves. Where had the guy run off to?
"All kids are," Jouichirou replied. "But a kind hand can teach far more than an aggressive one ever could," he added, and Soma just stared up, surprised at the statement. They were seriously in trouble if his father of all people was talking that deeply. "That being said, I am worried about little Erina. She seems like the kind of girl who bottles it all up and tries to keep everything from breaking by herself, and no one can take so much pressure without breaking. Just the pressure from the expectations of graduating from Tootsuki itself and all the high praise I received throughout was enough to cause me to go into a downwards spiral were I lost all my motivation, and would have likely ended up changing careers had I not met your mom."
"Yeah, you've told me," Soma replied, as his eyes narrowed. "But, you're right. Erina is that type. I should know, I am too. And nothing good comes from it. I mean, I outright left Tootsuki the moment things got too… strange and twisted back then. Almost gave up on my career before I even had one… And, well…"
"Could you open the front door for me?"
And it hit him like a brick, the solid wall he hit before his own downwards spiral into the sandstorm that was his own mind had a name and a face. And it was Erina's. He paused, mid-thought, as he took hold of his phone and went into the messages. He could hear his father ask him if he had just dozed off, to which Soma assured him that wasn't it. But, after scrolling back a ton, from their most recent conversations, to everything before their second year had started, to the text she sent him telling him she was getting on the plane just before she showed up with over a dozen bodyguard at Yukihira's and outright kidnapped him for those unforgettable nights they spent in New York, and even further still, up until their actual relationship began.
All with that text.
"I would have been lost if it wasn't for her," he realized yet again, closing his eyes for a moment, and Jouichirou knew he was talking to both his father and to himself.
"…Seems you have something on your mind," his father noted, and Soma just took the deepest breathe he could before his eyes opened right back up. Reigniting his courage as best he could by outright forcing it.
"Yeah, I don't have the time to waste wondering about what I did or complaining about the results," Soma declared, as he pushed himself up. "She needs me, that's all that matters. Alice took a true stance, while I've been going back and forth, hiding away in a dumb attempt at hoping things clear up. I can't risk that. I can't risk her… Sorry pops, I gotta go, and… dad?"
"Yeah?"
"…Thanks, for everything, really," Soma said, and it wasn't much the words but the tone that got to Jouichirou. He and Soma were incredibly close, he knew, but they weren't that big on sharing feelings unless it wasn't something major. So, either his boy was growing into a more emotionally mature person than he was, or this was indeed something major. Or, most likely, both.
"…It's a father's job to take care of his kid," Jouichirou just said. And Soma smiled, nodding at the darkness in his own room. He couldn't agree more.
"Then I'll get moving, gotta text Kurokiba and tell him I'm coming in through his room… again," Soma explained, as he got off his bed, and began to grab his stuff. "Erina is in a rough spot, and with not many people on her side willing to help. Just Alice… and Asahi, but…"
"Asahi?" Jouichirou asked, almost as quickly as that name left Soma's lips.
"Yeah, I told you about him, didn't I?" Soma replied, since he knew he had called his father and inquired about the guy when Asahi had first introduced himself to him, especially after he said he had been trained by Jouichirou himself and even called himself "Saiba" of all things. Had Asahi not turned out to be Erina's secret brother, Soma would have suspected him to be his. "He is very defensive of Erina. And she's grown close to him. A good thing too, since, well, she can't even turn to her own parents' and old man Senzaemon is still MIA."
"Soma, listen," his father voiced, just as the young Yukihira put his jacket on. And it made Soma pause, since it was rare to hear his father sound genuinely… worried. "Like I told you, the reason I came back to Japan so quickly was to help you out as best as I could. I may have made a stop at Yukihira's first, making sure your grandpa is okay and all that, but once I'm done here, I… I'm going to have to talk to Asahi. I need to see what that kid has up his sleeve."
"He already told us," Soma noted, "Dude wants to take Azami out, and I can't blame him. You focus on Yukihira's and on gramps, leave this whole Tootsuki thing to me and the gang. We can manage."
"It's not just that," his father added. "Soma, just…" he paused, then his following words were like a bucket of cold water running right down his spine. "…Don't trust Asahi too much, okay?"
Soma inquired, rightfully taken back by that warning, but all his father could offer was that he wasn't entirely sure himself, since rumors were all over the place and he couldn't separate fact from fiction until he at least spoke to Asahi, and in person at that. But he was very clear that Asahi was known to be extremely cunning and at times, manipulative. So, best avoided if possible until Jouichirou spoke to the boy. And it sounded surreal to Soma. Could Erina really have that much horrible luck? Really? Like both her parents are the way they are, and then have her surprise elder brother turn out the same? He hoped not. He didn't think she could take it.
But, pushing that thought aside for the moment, Soma stepped out of his dorm room and walked towards the exit. It was already a bit dark out, and if he wasn't noticed, then it was for the best. Kurokiba had already replied to him with a "whatever", so he was set on that end. Most of the Polar Star teens were in their rooms, all drowning in last-minute homework that was sent to them by their professors in an attempt to keep them busy and away from the internet, less they comment on the current situation and make things even worse. A wasted effort, and one that Soma was glad that he, as an Elite Ten member, was excluded from.
Then he reached the kitchen, and rather than empty as he expected it, he found a single Polar Star cooking up a storm in there.
"Tadoroko?" Soma voiced, surprised at seeing her so utterly focused, so much that he forgot his own goal of "sneaking" out.
"Oh? Soma?!" Megumi noted, turning to the boy. "Are you going out?"
"…Yeah, sneaking out, I think," he replied earnestly, because he wouldn't lie to her of all people. And she'd never rat him out anyways. "Oh! And you should-"
Before he could say it, Megumi lowered the flame of the pot moments before the water began to spill, without even turning away from Soma. "Should what?" she asked, when she saw he had stopped mid-sentence.
"…Do what you just did," he replied earnestly. "Wait, what are you even preparing in…?" he asked, as his eyes slowly fell onto her hands. Or rather, her fingers, which upon noticing his gaze, she quickly hid behind her apron. But she knew he had seen them, and all the small bandages covering each and every finger. "…You're really giving it your all, aren't you?"
"…Something like that."
"Remember all that homework you guys got emailed," Soma told her, despite him being the last person on Earth qualified to offer such advice. "Don't want you to fall behind because of all this mess I started."
"You didn't start anything," Megumi shot back, firmly. "Mr. Nakamura and Mrs. Nakiri did, and if they have to pay for it now, so be it. I may not have voiced it on some televised event, but I too support the Protect Erina movement, I'll have you know."
"I know you do."
"And I've already got all that homework done, so don't worry," she added, and she could see how his eyes bulged from their sockets.
"Wait, what?" Soma asked, shocked. "All of it? I heard Marui complaining about it. Marui! And he's the guy that used to remind Chappy about the homework we had from the day before when it seemed like Teach had forgotten about it. That guy was complaining about it being a lot, and you got it… done?!"
"I needed it done," Megumi explained, and Soma could tell just how utterly exhausted the girl looked, even if she was barely lit by the few lights she had on, as to not bother anyone else. "I had to get back to this. Since if I don't practice my technique here or when I'm at the Shiomi Seminar, I feel like I can't practice properly."
"You've even joined the Shiomi Seminar?" he asked, feeling like a horrible friend for not knowing. It made sense, he noted, since her boyfriend was there after all. "…You're going to challenge one of our opponents, aren't ya?"
"Maybe," she replied honestly. "Not sure yet. But, I have the potential, don't I?"
"Don't say that," he shot back, smiling. "You know you hate that word."
And she just laughed. Had she ever even told him that? She knew she had told Akira, while drunk… anyways, but Soma? Still, it made sense he knew that. Of course he would. "…And you're on your way to the Nakiri manor?"
"Yep!" Soma said, nodding. "If I can't fix this mess, least I could do is there for whatever she needs me for. Even if that's someone to scream at. I am good at that too."
Megumi's smile was too bright and infectious, and soon they both shared a little laugh at this, before he nodded and offered her a little wave, and she did the same, bandaged little hand and all. If it had been at any point before today, Soma would have probably tried to persuade her not to take on the challengers, since he knew firsthand how tough they were. But, he just couldn't actually see all that hard work she was putting into her training produce anything other than a resounding victory. So, just as he would do right by Erina, he too would do right by Megumi. He trusted her enough to stake his own career when they had barely known each other? Now, he'd stake his life in a heartbeat if she even so much hinted at it.
And he knew he would not be in safer hands.
Erina, however, was another story. Just thinking about her made him worry, and as he drove his bike to her manor, just like he had done dozens upon dozens of times, his mind was racing with what to say to her and all the ways she could respond. But, whatever happened, he needed to remain focused. Just like the events last year had been his mess, this was her story. Her problem. He needed to listen, and not just spit out advice. He needed to do what she needed him to. Of course, in there lies the bigger problem in all of this. Something Soma was starting to suspect over the months of being in a relationship with this girl and that these events had just about outright proven. It was here, upon reaching Nakiri manor that Soma seemed to reach a conclusion that only made sense to him.
'The God Tongue really seems like a pain,' Soma noted, as his resolve flickered in his eyes, the moment he got off his bike, took his helmet off, and set his sight for the manor itself. 'It doesn't look like it lets you say the things you need to say, to the people you need to say them to.'
Soma then moved, using the secret entrance Kurokiba had shown him long ago, and soon found himself sneaking in through the courtyard, avoiding any wondering security guards, since he wasn't sure if Erina was in a visitor-friendly mood, or even if she was, he was sure her mother would not want him there, like at all. Luckily, Soma knew how to be sneaky, and soon enough, without incident, he reached Kurokiba's window, and as he tried to give it a soft knock without looking inside out of common courtesy, he found his fist hitting nothing but air, as the window was wide open.
"Just make it quick," Kurokiba muttered, rested on his own bed, not even bothering to look up at Soma. "Remember, if you get caught, I have no idea how you got in."
"Yeah, I'm clear on that," Soma said affirmatively, as he jumped on into the room. He moved out, but still paused for a moment. "…Thanks for this Kurokiba, and I mean for all the times you've let me pull this little stunt."
"…We Nakiri boyfriends have to watch out for one another," Kurokiba just replied, his eyes still staring at his own roof.
"Heh, sure man," Soma noted with a grin, and then opened the door and stepped out. He knew the route already by heart, and pretty much effortlessly avoided the manor's staff. On his route he passed what he assumed was Mana Nakiri's room, since he could hear the woman arguing with someone over the phone, her tone sounding just like Erina when he had been on that plane with her and she had been tearing into that former client of hers. Such a frightening tone, but not the Nakiri he needed to help. Mana Nakiri could save herself for all he cared.
So, moving pass that frightening room, Soma made a beeline towards Erina's, and was moments from reaching the doorknob when the door seemed to open itself up. The boy froze in place, half wondering if it was Erina about to surprise him instead of the other way around, or worse, it was a staff member and he had to try and blend into the wallpaper, somehow.
But as soon as someone did in fact come out, it turned out to be… neither.
"Soma?"
"…Asahi."
%
Some Things Are Simply Inevitable…
