Kyandi: Greetings, Kyandiacs!
Ariadne: We hope all of you are keeping yourselves safe.
Kyandi: And are taking precautions!
Ariadne: Make sure not to get sick!
Kyandi: I'd be sad to lose one of my precious readers.
Ariadne: We're taking precautions, too, so be careful.
Kyandi: That being said, this whole thing has everything around me on lock-down.
Ariadne: So guess who's stuck with no where to go.
Kyandi: This girl! I'm hoping to use that time to crank out a few more chapters a week, so everyone, enjoy and review.
Ariadne: Kyandi-sama does not own Shokugeki no Soma.
Chapter 5 Making Friends and Enemies
Yuuki and Ryoko were waiting for them when they arrived back at the hotel, Yuuki throwing herself at Ariadne and Megumi for a hug.
"Yuuki-chan! Ryoko-chan! What about the others?" Megumi asked.
"Ibusaki-kun is confirming that now." Ryoko replied, gesturing to Shun who stood a few yards from them, on the phone.
They all turned to look at Shun, waiting in silence as he finally got off the phone, snapping it shut. Shun turned towards them with a small smile on his face.
"All of the Polar Star members survived the first day." he announced, Megumi and Yuuki cheering.
"That is good news!" Ariadne added, smiling.
Souma, though, looked down at the ground where Zenji currently lay, looking about as white as a ghost.
"Marui is...you call this a survivor?" Souma asked.
"It seems he ran around the mountain the whole time." Shun replied.
"Ah, so they had an assignment similar to ours then." Souma retorted.
"Still...are you sure he is not dead?" Ariadne asked, crouching next to Zenji to poke his cheek.
There was no response from the boy other than a slight twitch of his foot. Ariadne's eyes fixed in on his twitching foot and poked his cheek once more. When his foot twitched in response again, her face lit up.
"Look, Souma! It's almost like pushing a button!" she exclaimed, poking Zenji's cheek again.
Souma chuckled as he watch Ariadne enjoy her new toy. In the background, the girls agreed that, after their assignment, they were all bone tired. Yuuki went on, gushing about how she was now going to enjoy all the luxuries the hotel had to offer.
As they moved inside, they found out, quick, that that was not how their evening was going to go.
Inside, they found a bunch of muscle bound men waiting with another one of their lecturers.
"Those who can finish dinner for them will have free time. They are the people of the bodybuilding club of the Upper Arm University that are having a training camp at a nearby facility. The people from the American football club and the wrestling club will come later. Each of you has to make fifty of these meals." their lecturer told them.
They were all directed to the kitchens, each given their own station and told to make fifty beef steak meals. Only once they had finished making the meals to the chefs' satisfaction, could they then make their own meals and have free time.
Yuuki, of course, was shattered by that news, especially when it was also revealed that they would responsible for all of their breakfasts and dinners while there.
Ariadne could almost hear Yuuki's heart break.
To add to the pressure, they were told that those who couldn't clear the fifty meals in an hour, would be expelled.
Ariadne heaved a sigh as those around her started to panic. While she could understand why they were so panicked, losing their cool like that, wouldn't help them. All it would do was insure that they messed up or hurt themselves. If they would merely calm down and focus on the task rather than what would happen if they failed, than it would serve them better.
Ariadne, unlike those around her, kept her cool and got to work. She pranced around the kitchen, humming lowly to herself while the others yelled and rushed around. In the end, she ended up clearing her fifty plates about the same time as Souma. She gave a wave to the others, wishing them luck, as she left the kitchen.
"Let's see..."
Ariadne checked her phone for the time. It wasn't yet late enough for her to call Taliyah and Dante, so Ariadne decided to take advantage of the free time to get herself a nice bath. She rushed back to her room, interested to see what these public baths were like. When she reached the baths, she found none other than Erina, humming to herself as she soaked in the steamy water.
"Oh, ma faute! I did not know anyone else was here." Ariadne apologized when Erina looked up. She gave Erina a smile, hugging her towel tighter around herself. "Sorry, I hope you don't mind me joining you."
Erina stared at Ariadne for a moment, the other girl giving her a bright smile. When she merely looked away, agreeing, Ariadne moved to the other side of the bath, easing her way in and setting her towel aside. Erina glanced over at her as she shifted, trying to get comfortable. When Ariadne caught her looking, she gave her a sheepish smile.
"This is the first time I've ever used a public bath. I'm not use to sharing with anyone other than my little sister." Ariadne admitted. "You're Nakiri Erina, right? It's nice to meet you."
"And you are?" Erina asked.
"Sinclair Ariadne. I was one of the two transfer students this year, though my enrollment was probably over shadowed by Souma's." Ariadne replied, Erina making a face at Souma's name. "I'm glad to see that I'm not the only girl done with the fifty plates. Would have been lonely and boring else wise."
Ariadne reached up, sweeping a loose strand of aqua blue hair behind one hair that was hanging in her face. Erina just stared at her. She couldn't understand why this girl was being so friendly and familiar if she knew who she was. Was she just the chatty type?
Ariadne sighing and sinking a little more into the water, drew Erina from her thoughts. She watched as Ariadne sank up to her chin in the water, relaxing back against the edge of the bath.
"After a day of having to walk all over a mountain side for ingredients, this bath sure does feel great. I'm sure you had no problem with your assignments today." Ariadne said.
"Of course not. What do you take me for?" Erina demanded.
"Cute."
Erina stumbled over her next words, turning wide eyes on Ariadne, who was grinning back at her. It only made Ariadne want to laugh as Erina took a moment to just blink at her, trying to process the meaning behind Ariadne's one word sentence. Finally she spoke.
"Are...are you...?"
"You know, it's probably best if you don't ask that question." Ariadne teased. "People tend to get a little embarrassed or up-tight when they find out that I'm pretty...fluid in my taste. But you don't have to worry about that. I was merely teasing. I do that to everyone."
Erina relaxed a bit when Ariadne assured her that she had merely been teasing her. She wasn't sure how she would have handle the knowledge of knowing that a girl liked her.
"Anyway, I'm glad to see that the rumors about you don't completely hold up."
"What are you talking about?" Erina asked, looking up at Ariadne.
"All the rumors I've heard about you have made you out to be exceedingly vapid, shallow, and self-centered. They make you seem like someone that can't hold a normal conversation without insulting the person you're talking to and looking down on them. I'm glad to see that's not completely the case. I mean, I can understand a bit of pride. After all, you're extremely talented and stand at the head of the culinary world at Totsuki. I glad it's not a twenty-four/seven thing. If it was, I wouldn't want to be friend with you. I don't like the concept of befriending someone for their status or reputation. It's insulting to both parties. Not that I have the patience to put up with someone for those reasons if I really don't like them." Ariadne explained, giving Erina a smile. "I would like to be friends with you, though, if you would let me."
Erina was shocked, to say the least. She had never met someone as forward and blunt honest as this. Nor had she ever met someone who was more interested in her as a person than for her reputation. That is, aside from Hisako.
"You want to be my friend?" Erina asked.
"Why not? I didn't just come to this school for the culinary experience. I came here to make friends, improve my cooking, and to enjoy my high school life. Are you against being my friend?"
The almost hurt and worried look that took over Ariadne's expression, had Erina stiffening. It was almost like having Hisako give her the same look. She instantly wanted to comfort Ariadne, despite the fact that she had only just met her. Which was strange and insane.
"No, I'm not against it!" Erina rushed to say.
Ariadne's face lit up and, before Erina knew it, the other girl surged across the bath to take hold of one of her hands in her two. Apparently Ariadne had completely forgotten the fact that both she and Erina were completely naked.
"Really?! You'll be my friend? That's great! I insist you call me Ari, then." Ariadne insisted, smiling brightly.
"A-alright."
Erina was just trying her best not to look down as Ariadne, in her joy, gave a jump, exposing herself. For a girl who hadn't grown up sharing baths, Ariadne certainly seemed to be very comfortable in her own skin. When Erina refused to look at her, Ariadne finally took stock of the situation and looked down, realizing that she was exposing herself.
"Oh! Sorry about that." Ariadne said, dropping back into the water. "Sometimes I just get too excited."
Ariadne gave Erina a smile. While she was strange, Erina couldn't say she disliked it. After all, only time would show Erina if she would or wouldn't get along with Ariadne. The two continued to chat, and when Erina decided she was ready to get out, Ariadne joined her. Erina had to show Ariadne how to tie her yukata, the girl giving her the biggest, cheeriest smile in return that Erina had ever seen.
As they left the baths, Erina glanced at the cheerful girl at her side. She wanted to ask Ariadne if she wanted to play cards with her and Hisako, but it was difficult for her to find the words to ask. Even asking Hisako was difficult at times, and they had been friends for years. Just as she opened her mouth to try to ask, though, Ariadne turned to her.
"Erina, would you like to play cards with me? The rest of my friends hadn't been anywhere near done when I left the kitchens." Ariadne said.
"Uh...I suppose I could do you the honor of accompanying you." Erina replied, flustered.
Ariadne barely kept from chuckling. While Erina was trying to come off as if she didn't care and was above it, Ariadne had a strong feeling that wasn't the case. It was kind of cute, in a way, almost endearing.
Well...it was if others could see past the facade.
"Great! I'll just get my deck from my room." Ariadne told her.
They were just nearing a corner at an intersection of the hallway, when someone came flying around the corner, bouncing off Erina and knocking the girl to the ground.
"Erina!"
Ariadne hurriedly crouched beside Erina, checking on her. When she was sure that Erina was fine, she turned her eyes up, looking to see who had bumped into her and let out an "Oh! Hey, Souma.", making Erina look up too.
"Yukihira Souma...!" Erina snapped, obviously not happy.
Ariadne had already known there was something bad between then, but it was kind of hard to guess what it was. Even Souma seemed a little perplexed by Erina's reaction to him.
"Sorry...! Are you okay, Nakiri!? Do you have a twisted ankle or something?" Souma asked, reaching out to help Erina up.
"D-don't touch me! I can stand by myself...Ari, help me." Erina said, holding an arm out to Ariadne.
Ariadne had to fight back her smile as she took Erina's arm and helped her to her feet. It was amusing that Erina could, in one breath, claim she could get up on her own, and then, in the next breath, ask Ariadne to help her up. Ariadne helped her to her feet, and stood there as Souma spoke to Erina, the girl snapping back at him.
"This is a worthless event," Erina said, speaking of the training camp. "They call it a hellish training camp, but it's nothing but tedious for me. Ah! Well, however...I wonder on what day you will drop out. Watching that might be mildly entertaining."
Erina had obviously been aiming to belittle Souma, but the boy didn't take it that way. He merely grinned at Erina.
"Don't make me laugh, you were even walking so cheerfully." Souma retorted.
Erina raised a fist, trying to suppress her annoyance with Souma when there was a sudden yell of her name. Turning, they found Hisako running their way.
"Erina-sama! Sorry for the tardiness! It took more time than expected...Yu-Yukihira Souma!" Ariadne clamped a hand over her mouth to ward off a laugh when Hisako came to a halt and pointed a finger at Souma. "You bastard, what are you doing there?!"
"Well...I kinda push Nakiri down." Souma replied.
Ariadne could have slapped herself in the face when Souma phrased it that way. As it was, she hung her head, giving it a shake as Hisako took it wrong.
"Don't say it in a way that will cause misunderstandings! Just go somewhere else quickly!" Erina snapped at Souma.
Holding his hands up before him, Souma carried on about this way, Ariadne giving him a wink as he passed back. Once he was gone, Hisako turned her attention on Ariadne.
"And you? Who are you?" Hisako asked.
"I'm Sinclair Ariadne. I ran into Erina in the baths. You must be Arato Hisako. It's a pleasure to meet you!" Ariadne said, taking hold of one of Hisako's hands in both of hers. "Let's be friends, okay? Erina already agreed."
Hisako looked from Ariadne's smiling face to Erina, who was too busy trying to straighten her yukata. When Erina didn't protest that she had agreed to such a thing, Hisako took it as truth and turned her eyes back to Ariadne. The girl seemed genuine in her offer to be friends, so Hisako agreed and was taken off guard when Ariadne jumped at her, hugging her around the neck with a cheer.
"I can't wait to tell Taliyah that I made two new friends!" Ariadne said happily.
"Taliyah?" Hisako asked.
"My little sister. She was worried that I would come here and be so focused on school that I wouldn't make any friends." Ariadne replied.
Ariadne's smile put a smile on Hisako's face too. When Ariadne finally let go of her neck, she turned to Erina.
"Are you really fine?" she asked.
"No problem, you should finish your bath." Erina replied.
"Yes...ah, Erina-sama, good news. I just asked in the reception and it seems they can lend us card decks and uno!" Hisako said, smiling.
"I won't play that." Erina retorted, puffing out one cheek.
"E...eh? But Erina-sama, just before, you..." Hisako trailed off.
"I won't do something so happy-go-lucky!" Erina said tartly.
"But you promised to play with me, too."
Hearing the sadness and disappointment that colored Ariadne's tone, Erina turned to her and instantly froze when she found Ariadne's eyes pooling with tears. When both Erina and Hisako rushed to comfort her, both agreeing to play cards with her, Ariadne quickly switched to a bright smile.
While they were happy that she wasn't about to cry, Erina and Hisako had to wonder if maybe, Ariadne might give them whiplash.
-0-0-0-0-
Ariadne stayed with Erina and Hisako, playing cards, until Yuuki and Ryoko texted her, telling her that all of the others were gathering in Zenji's room. Ariadne said good night to Erina and Hisako, agreeing to play cards with them again the next night, and headed over to Zenji's room. When she got there, they instantly jumped into a game, Zenji, Yuuki, Daigo, and Shoji all passing out within a few minutes of starting.
"It seems the fatigue hit them at one moment." Ryoko remarked.
"Well, let's leave them like that until it's lights off time." Shun remarked.
"All that energy to play cards only to pass out cold like that...they certainly are an amusing lot." Ariadne remarked, chuckling to herself.
Ryoko and the others agreed. To watch how quickly their energy could drain away, was funny. Smiling, Ryoko turned to Megumi.
"Megumi, you aren't sleepy yet? That's unusual. You usually get sleepy early." Ryoko remarked.
"Yeah...it's weird, I'm tired but I can't fall asleep." Megumi replied.
"I don't know. I imagine, if I laid down, that I could fall asleep without issue." Ariadne said, shrugging her shoulders. "That's how tired I feel."
"Well, we steeled ourselves all day." Souma pointed out.
"You're right...but it's probably not just that." Megumi agreed.
"What do you mean?" Ariadne asked.
"I always get really nervous in classes, and I always get in a hurry thinking what will happen if I fail, but today...I could do well when helping Souma-kun, so I got the feeling...I got a little confidence. And because of that...I'm really excited." Megumi explained. When all the others did was stare at her, she waved her hands in front of her. "Ermm...you see, it was all thanks to Souma-kun who gave the instructions...I'm not all that great."
"That's not true." Souma instantly retorted. "If you didn't get the ingredients I would have never been able to make that dish. And you also cooked perfectly."
"That's right, Megumi, you can do it if you try." Ryoko agreed.
"You should be more confident in yourself. That's the first step to standing on your own, after all." Ariadne added.
Megumi turned to Ariadne, who gave her a big smile. Megumi knew the others were right, that she needed to have more confidence in herself in order to progress on as a chef. She wanted to spend more time with Ariadne and the others, and if she wanted to do that, she had to continue to improve.
Besides...tomorrow would bring more challenges.
If only she had known what challenge that would be.
-0-0-0-0-
The next morning, at nine, Ariadne found herself, along with Souma and Megumi, standing before their next lecturer, Shinomiya Koujiro.
"Good morning, I'm Shinomiya, an alumnus from the 79th generation. On this assignment, you'll have to cook a dish that I designate. Have you passed the recettes?" Shinomiya called out.
While the rest of those around her freaked out, Ariadne took the paper passed out and looked over the recipe. The recipe before her was for a Nine Vegetable Terrine. It was a visible beautiful dish, but one that took a lot to make. Each of the different vegetables in the dish, had to be heated and prepared in a different way. It would take quite a bit of work.
Something that Ariadne was no stranger to.
"I chose a rather simple of my recettes. Did you wish for a more difficult one?" Shinomiya asked, seeing the looks on some of the students' faces. "And you won't form teams for this assignment."
Ariadne heard Kirimatsu curse low under his breath from behind her. She glanced back at him to find him sweating buckets. She knew he had been relying on her since they had first been paired, but hadn't been aware that it had been to the extent that he cursed his misfortune for not being paired with her. Facing forward, Ariadne caught sight of the concerned look on Megumi's face. She hoped the other girl would be alright.
"You should finish your dish alone. Exchanging information or giving advice is forbidden while cooking. You can select and use any of the ingredients gathered in the back of the kitchen. I'll give you one piece of advice: it would be wise to think that all those around you are your enemies." Shinomiya told them. "The time limit is three hours. Well then, start."
Ariadne was suddenly grateful that she had been one of those nearest to the back. Taking one last glance at the list of ingredients she would need, she rushed to the trays of food set out and began to collect what she needed, slipping between people that were elbowing each other in the rush to get the first pick. Once she had all that she needed, she moved to her cooking station and got to cooking, tuning out the mass of nervousness around her.
Some students stopped and shot Ariadne weird looks, like they thought she was crazy, when she started humming to herself as she worked, a smile on her face. While, yes, her continued enrollment counted on her finishing the dish to Shinomiya's satisfaction, Ariadne enjoyed cooking far too much to not hum and smile while she worked.
At least she wasn't full out singing and dancing like she did in her kitchen back home.
Souma and Ariadne finished at the same time, both presenting their dishes to Shinomiya. Both received a pass and stepped aside. Souma turned to look at Megumi while Ariadne watched as Kirimatsu approached with his dish...only to be sent packing.
Ariadne felt bad for him, especially since, in his nervousness and rush, he had messed up the recipe. Now she would be without her partner. Ariadne was forced to redirect her attention, though, when Megumi stepped up with her dish. Shinomiya took a bite, giving his head a shake.
"Tadokoro Megumi, you're fired." Ariadne could hear Megumi's heart break. "Now with this, everyone's submitted their dishes, right? All of those who failed must pack and go to the hotel's lobby."
"U-ummm...wh-why is my dish...no good?" Megumi asked, barely speaking up.
"When you boiled the cauliflower that had started going bad, you used wine vinegar, right? You used the vinegar, since it has a bleaching action, to preserve the beautiful color. And by using the vinegar as a seasoning too, you made the cauliflower's sweetness better. The vegetables' sweetness and the vinegar's mild sourness make an exquisite combination of flavors." Shinomiya explained.
"Th-then, why?" Megumi asked.
Shinomiya's next comment was so simple and straight-forward, Ariadne kind of wanted to smack him with his own recette.
"Who said you could change the recipe?" Shinomiya replied. "This dish is made so that you can enjoy the harmony created by the sweetness of every vegetable. Was there any part of the recette that said "Make the best use of sourness"? What you made is already a totally different dish. If you submit a dish that's not in accordance to the assignment, you're naturally disqualified, do you understand now?"
"I can't agree with that!"
"Neither can I, to be frank."
Shinomiya, who had just started to walk away, stopped and turned to look at the two who had spoken. His eyes landed on Souma and Ariadne, both of which looked completely serious about the situation.
"That was inevitable!" Souma added.
"After all...you had included ingredients whose freshness had begun to decline. And I am willing to wager that you did so purposely." Ariadne added.
"To begin with, we're being treated as senpais' employees, right? Then, the responsibility of the management of the ingredients should lie on you, Shinomiya-senpai, since you're the boss. Isn't that a fault as a "Chef"?" Souma demanded.
Ariadne's head tilted to the side as Shinomiya slammed a hand down on the counter top with surprising force.
"You brats," Ariadne turned to Souma, pointing to herself as if silently asking, "Is he talking about me?". "Who do you think you're talking to? Huh?"
Ariadne had the strong urge to reply with something sarcastic like, "Right now? A severely pissed off Japanese man". She wisely kept her mouth shut though.
"I'll tell you since it seems you didn't understand. The cauliflowers in a bad state were mixed in there on purpose, in order to narrow the passing students down. Cauliflowers are a triple threat. They oxidize easily, go bad easily, and are difficult to cook. They're one of the vegetables you have to be most careful with. I disqualified the fools who lost their composure and couldn't judge well without omission. The same goes for the dunces who got a late start and couldn't secure a good one." Shinomiya told them.
"That just makes our point all the more valid." Ariadne insisted, her hands going to her hips.
"Tadokoro came up with an original idea to cover up for the lateness-"
"I'm the chef." Shinomiya snapped, cutting off Souma. "There's no way underlings are allowed to revise the recette I made."
Both Souma and Ariadne frowned, their eyes narrowing in twin looks of displeasure. Shinomiya approached the two, adjusting the glasses on his face.
"Listen, underlings...if you keep defying me...should I fire you two too on my authority as the chef?"
Ariadne was sorely tempted to flick him across the nose. The only thing that stopped her, was Megumi latching on to both hers and Souma's arms.
"Souma-kun, Ari...it's okay! It's fine already." Megumi insisted. "You two will get expelled too...right? So, stop it already."
"Huh!? This isn't the time to say that!" Souma replied.
The sad, sheepish smile that Megumi gave them, nearly broke Ariadne's heart. She had never really been a violent person. In fact, she had only ever come close to a physical fight once and that had been because a bully had been picking on Taliyah at school.
Ariadne had hung him from the top of the monkey bars and had only let him go after he had apologized and Dante had insisted it was the lady-like thing to do.
That being said...Ariadne really wanted to punch this man.
Souma, though, had a better idea.
"Shinomiya-senpai! Excuse me!" Souma called out, stopping Shinomiya once more. "One last thing."
"What, Monsieur Yukihira? You have any other complaints?" Shinomiya asked, a smirk on his face.
"No...more than a complaint it's a question." Souma began. "Does that Totsuki rule apply to alumni too?"
Ariadne had a strong feeling she knew where this was going, and it put a grin on her face that Shinomiya didn't like.
"What are you talking about?" Shinomiya demanded.
"It's quite simple, really." Ariadne said, spreading her hands in a what-can-you-do manner, her grin growing into a smirk. "He's challenging you to a Food War. If he can defeat you, you have to take back the decision to expel Megumi."
A smirk, much like Ariadne's, pulled at Shinomiya's lips. He was obviously amused by the confidence that Souma and Ariadne were showing. Though, Ariadne wasn't the one challenging him.
"Food War...ah...such a nostalgic sound." Shinomiya remarked. "A Food War against someone who isn't enrolled...it's not like there's no precedents, but for a Food War, you need the approval of both parties...right? Sorry, but I don't feel like accepting your challenge. No matter how you struggle, Tadokoro's expulsion is already set in stone."
"Hey, not so fast." Ariadne leaned to the side, peering around Shinomiya as another voice spoke. Standing there, in the doorway, was Doujima and Inui. "It seems something interesting is happening here."
With the appearance of the two, those involves-Souma, Megumi, Shinomiya, and Ariadne-were all moved to Doujima's office, where Inui tried the dish that Megumi had prepared.
"Tadokoro Megumi-san's dish...! Isn't it delicious!? Then, it should be fine to let her pass. Shinomiya-senpai, you bonehead! Big-headed! Narcissist!" Inui jeered, buzzing around Shinomiya somewhat like a fly would.
Having grown annoyed with her and her constantly chattering, Shinomiya, without any warning, seized her by the head. Ariadne watched as he effortlessly lifted her in the air.
"Be quiet, Hinako." he ordered.
"Sorry!"
Shinomiya dropped her, Hinako latching onto her head. Ariadne leaned forward, leaning in to check on her.
"Doujima-san, this assignment was suppose to be entrusted to me." Shinomiya said in the background.
"Of course, Shinomiya. I'm not dissatisfied with the test contents and criteria you established. However, at least she tried to cope with the situation, right? Don't you think her guts are worth considering?" Doujima asked, gesturing to Megumi.
"I don't. I don't think so at all." Shinomiya remarked.
"I think they are!" Inui butted in.
"Hm, with this we have a tie...it's unavoidable." Doujima mused, only further annoying Shinomiya. "It can't be helped, an unofficial Food War. I'll take charge of it! So to call it, a casual match. Since we can't throw the training camp's program out of order, I'll have you both battle Shinomiya after you deal with all of today's assignments."
"Hey...wait, Doujima-san! Why do I have to keep up with this farce-"
Shinomiya cut off, Ariadne letting out a low whistle, when Doujima turned a stern, I'll-take-no-arguments look on him.
"Accept it, Shinomiya." Doujima ordered.
"Okay. I'll go along with Monsieur Doujima's whim. Okay, Yukihira, Sinclair!"
"Uh, no." All eyes turned to Ariadne as she cut off Shinomiya, a smile on her face. "I think you've misunderstood. While I'm all for speaking up when I think something's wrong, I have no interest, what-so-ever, in actually taking part in a Food War. I don't see the point in needless displays of strength. It's too much like boosting, in my opinion. Souma made this challenge, not me."
"Yeah? Well too bad." Shinomiya told her, making Ariadne raise an eyebrow at him in questioning. "Yukihira, if you win I'll take back Tadokoro's expulsion., but if you lose, I'll get all three of you fired."
Shinomiya looked back at Ariadne and Souma. Souma had a serious look on his face. Ariadne on the other hand...
"Eh...sounds fine with me."
Shinomiya's confident grin fell in the face of Ariadne's indifference, the girl easily shrugging her shoulders as if she had not a care in the world. The fact that she had not reacted in the way he had wanted her to, only further annoyed him, which put a grin on Ariadne's face. Doujima butted in before the French girl could further irritate Shinomiya.
"With that said, Yukihira, Tadokoro and Sinclair, after you finish your afternoon assignments come to the hotel's annex. Show me your worth." Doujima told them.
Ariadne had a feeling that the night was going to prove to be rather entertaining.
END
Kyandi: I love having you mess with people.
Ariadne: Well, it's fun for me too.
Kyandi: And we do everything for fun, right!
Ariadne: That's about right.
Kyandi: Then there's your weird, pushy way of making friends.
Ariadne: I just know what I want.
Kyandi: And how to get it.
Ariadne: Oui!
Kyandi: Well, that is what makes you, you. Anyway, everyone enjoy and review.
Ariadne: We will return as soon as possible.
Kyandi: Bye-bye!