AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm back for more! I feel like I'm getting a better grip on how to get this story to go where I want, so it's getting a lot funner to write. Anyway, I gave in to my inner dork in this chapter and included some Star Wars homages. Let me know if you can spot them, haha. Chie and Yosuke's bickering kind of reminds me of Han Solo/Leia, so I played that up a little with this chapter. As always, please read and review. A few nice words really make we want to keep writing :)
Chie and Yosuke strode through the Junes parking lot, heading towards the front doors.
"Why did we get stuck with this? I'm a master of many talents! I can contribute more than an arts and crafts project," Yosuke groaned.
"The only thing you've been a master of since we decided to run for council is complain! Will you knock it off already?" Chie fired back.
"Yeah yeah, I know, I've been a buzz kill. But of all the places I'd wanna spend my Sunday afternoon, Junes is on the bottom of the list. It's my day off from work, and here I am coming in anyway," Yosuke grumbled.
Chie thought about his words and conceded that he had a point, but she concluded that their 'arts and crafts project' actually had vital importance to the campaign.
"I know it's boring Yosuke, but we need to get some stuff in order to make posters to promote ourselves. We need to get our names out there if we want people to vote for us. We need construction paper, and paints, and coloured pencils, and glitter, and glue, among other things. If we're gonna do this, we're gonna play to win," Chie preached, feeling she'd win him over by explaining it clear and logically.
"And let me guess, I'll be paying for all of it?" Yosuke whined.
"I'll pay ya back, don't worry. You know I'm good for it."
"Ya, I bet," he moaned as they set foot through the large automatic doors.
"Hey Yosuke, do they have, like, maps of the store?"
"Maps of the store? What are you talking about?"
"I mean, there's so many aisles. How do we find anything? I'm lost already."
Yosuke let out another long sigh. "Oh Chie, this is why I can't bring you anywhere."
The pair had made their way into the store in search of the crafts department with Chie leading the way. Realizing that Chie was 'navigationally challenged', Yosuke stepped forward and began leading her in the right direction.
"Maybe we should stop by electronics and get you a GPS," Yosuke teased.
"Maybe we should stop by electronics and you can buy me a replacement Trial of the Dragon DVD, jerk. Don't kid yourself into thinking I forgot about that," she retorted. Yosuke remained silent, unable to think of a comeback. He couldn't argue the facts; she was right and he owed her a DVD.
Yosuke led Chie down a narrow aisle with high shelves, filled to capacity with art supplies of every variety.
Chie's scanned the shelves, taken aback by how much there was to choose from. She'd mistakenly assumed that they'd be in and out of the store in a few minutes, but she now doubted it would be so simple. She got to work immediately and began pulling things from the shelves. Within seconds her arms were nearly full so she gestured for Yosuke to find a cart, which he did begrudgingly. Chie dumped her haul into the cart when he returned.
"Soooo, you get an employee discount on this stuff right?" she asked. Yosuke only grumbled in response.
Chie continued to pull things from the shelves and toss them into the cart, losing herself in the unfamiliar sensation brought on by a shopping spree. She wasn't ever very interested in shopping, which she considered overly materialistic, but the blissful feeling of picking out everything she wanted at that moment swept over her.
"I like this paper!"
"That's a pretty color paint!"
"These scissors will work great!"
"Gold and silver glitter!"
"I can't forget the markers. I better get the scented ones!"
A barrage of similar thoughts flew through her head as fast as the goods flew into the shopping cart.
"Chie! Stop!" Yosuke finally objected.
The brunette turned toward him and saw that the shopping cart was overflowing with supplies. Some had already spilled over the sides and were strewn on the floor.
"Um, do you think that's enough stuff?" she asked, attempting to keep the embarrassment she was feeling from appearing on her face.
"I am not buying all of this," Yosuke replied resolutely.
By the time the pair departed the crafts aisle, they had significantly cut back the number of things in their cart. They had decided to stick to the essentials.
"So, we get our midterm report cards next week, huh?" Yosuke piped.
"Yup" Chie replied in a long drawl, which was meant to let Yosuke know that she was not looking forward to it and didn't want to talk about it either.
"I think I'll be fine this time around. I'm actually kind of looking forward to seeing my grades. I feel like I'm finally hitting my intellectual stride. Not that I had much of a choice. My parent actually threatened to send me to cram school if I don't pick up my grades. Can you believe that? I'd have to spend every day after school with a tutor! But hell, if I do as well as I think I did, I'd even be willing to tutor you Chie."
Chie considered halting in her tracks and chewing him out for implying that her poor grades we a fait accompli, but she decided against it. She wasn't certain whether he was teasing her or being sincere with his offer. She'd often found he walked that line; he seemed to know how to get a rise out of her at will. She'd deny him that this time, and hold him to his word if his grades were as good as he boasted.
"Yosuke, look!" Chie hissed suddenly through bared teeth, as she came to a halt. She raised a hand and pointed of into the distance of Junes, pivoting her head to look Yosuke in the eye. "Look who it is."
Yosuke stepped beside Chie and scanned for the person Chie had noticed. "Hey isn't that what's-his-name, that student Rep from the other day?
"Yeah! I bet he's here for art stuff too! We should go back and buy it ALL so he can't make any posters at all! That'll teach him to mess with us!"
"You're not spending anymore of my money Chie!" Yosuke shouted back.
Chie slammed her hand over Yosuke's mouth, silencing him. "Quiet! He'll hear you. I want to see what he's up to. It's probably nothing good! If we maintain the element of surprise, we can follow him."
"Yeah, just like a ninja scene from some Kung Fu movie, I bet," Yosuke answered back wryly.
"Follow me" Chie demanded as she headed in the direction that the rep was going. She glided forward with her back arched and arms extended in an apparent attempt to maintain stealth. She crossed the main aisle and ducked behind a display of paint cans on the other side. Peeking from behind her hiding place she motioned for Yosuke to follow the same path while she kept lookout.
Yosuke shrugged and shook his head. He walked unconcerned across the aisle, crossing his arms and letting out a sigh when he reached Chie.
"What. Are. You. Doing?!" She questioned in a hushed but angry voice.
"What are you doing?" he fired back. "You're calling way more attention to yourself than you would if you just walked normally. The key to stealth is to be inconspicuous, not to mimic some ninja movie. Guess what Chie, those guys in the movies that run like that aren't real ninjas!"
"Well how would you suggest we spy on him?" Chie answered, her pride wounded.
"I dunno, spy casual."
Chie stood upright and dusted off her skirt. She'd do it his way, this time.
"Fine, but I still don't want him to see us," she insisted.
"Ya, that's probably a good idea. Just act like you're shopping."
The pair continued in the direction of the student rep. The route took them into the grocery section. Weaving between the aisles, the duo was able to keep close watch on their target, who didn't appear to be interested in art supplies at all. To Chie and Yosuke, he seemed to be strolling. He wasn't buying any groceries, and he didn't seem particularly interested in much of anything.
Yosuke peeked around the corner of the aisle to get a clear look while pretending to read the dietary information on the back of a bag of chips. "What is this guy doing? We have a strict 'no loitering' policy in this store. If he isn't going to buy anything he should get the hell out!" he thought to himself.
The rep continued briskly and turned another corner.
"Chie, he's going into the meat section. If we follow him, he's gonna see us. There isn't anything we can hide behind there. It's really 'open concept' so there aren't any big shelves, just those shallow freezers and coolers along the walls."
"What? There's gotta be something we can do."
Yosuke wasn't trying to come up with a bright idea, but inspiration struck him nonetheless. He smiled deviously and snapped his fingers.
"I've got a plan. If I can get into the lunch room, I might be able to swipe these costumes that we use sometimes for promotions. You know, like, for giving out free samples and stuff. People want to try free food more when they're getting it from some dude in a costume for some reason. If we put the costumes on, he won't even recognize us," Yosuke informed.
"Costumes? What kind of costumes," Chie asked, perplexed.
"Well, the ones we've got now are bear costumes," Yosuke replied, feeling like he deserved high praise for his ingenuity.
"Bear costumes?! You're saying I'm drawing unwanted attention, and you want to dress up in freaking bear costumes!?" Chie answered back in disbelief of her friend's plan.
This time, Yosuke placed his hand over Chie's mouth to silence her, and keep the two from having their cover blown. "It'll work, trust me," Yosuke affirmed and then crept away before Chie could object.
"Oh boy, the last thing I need in my life in another bear," Chie whispered to herself as she buried her face in her hands.
Yosuke returned after a few minutes with the bear costumes in tow.
"Look Chie, they're Panda Bears!" he said triumphantly with a wide smile.
"Well that's..amazing," she answered. "Let's get these stupid things on fast and see if we can find him."
Getting into the bear costume proved arduous for Chie. The one piece bear costume needed to be stepped into rather than being put on like a regular piece of clothing. Each time she placed her legs into it and tried to pull the rest of the fur over herself, the waist would fall down in a mess, making it look like she was standing in a melted Panda Bear.
"How do you do this?" she asked, getting more aggravated with each attempt.
"You've got to clip the belt around first. That holds up the legs," Yosuke explained, already in full bear attire. "Like this," he added when he secured the belt to support the lower half around Chie's waist. Chie then drew the rest of the costume over her head, slid her human arms into the bear arms and allowed Yosuke to zip up the belly.
Bear Chie looked Bear Yosuke in the eye and issued a stern warning. "No bear puns," she said coldly.
Bear Yosuke nodded in agreement.
The two bears stepped around the corner of the aisle at last and entered the meat section. By chance, the Rep was still in the opposite corner of the section, and periodically checked his watch.
"He's waiting for something." Yosuke deduced. Chie nodded in agreement.
"Hey hey hey! Looking good in those costumes you two!" the voice of an adult called from behind. 'I thought you guys both called in sick today. But you're troopers, through and through! Glad to see you came in for your shift."
Both bears spun around to see the Junes promotional manager. Yosuke gestured for Chie to remain quiet while he formulated an escape plan.
"The table's already set up guys. It's right there actually," the manager continued, jerking his head toward a table with a small fridge placed underneath and a pyramid of beverage cans arranged on top.
"Once the free sample promotion is over, I'm sure we're gonna sell a ton of this stuff. Risette promoted it after all, and you know what that means! It's Rissette's Calorie Magic, New Grape Flavour! You're probably gonna be busy giving a lot of this stuff away, so if you guys need to go to the little bear's room, there's a walkie-talkie under the table, so just buzz me if nature calls. Anyway, you know the drill, have a good one!" the man chimed happily then disappeared down another aisle.
"Let's get the hell outta here before he comes back," Chie cried nervously.
"No, let's stay. If we hang out at the free sample table we'll have a clear view of the guy and he'll never know it's us. He's waiting here for a reason. If we hand out a few cans of…whatever that stuff is, we'll see what that guy's deal is."
"Did he actually call it 'the little bear's room?" Chie asked when her brain finally processed what rated among the stupidest things she had ever heard.
Nearly ten minutes had passed. The rep paced in his corner of the section and continued to check his watch every few minutes. Risette's Calorie Magic was proving less popular than imagined, with only a few people talking samples.
"Risette's Calorie Magic huh?" Yosuke pondered as he took a can in his paws. "I can't believe they're still using her likeness for this kinda stuff. Her face is even on the can. I thought she was pretty clear with her manager that she needed time off, and didn't want to be some hollow corporate product. I guess somebody didn't get the message."
He looked closer at the can.
"This is pretty cool though. There's a contest going on with this drink right now. You can win a trip to Seoul . You've just got to peel this sticker off the can to see if you win."
"That's really awesome and everything, but can we please just keep an eye on that rep?" Chie pleaded.
As if on cue, the rep stopped pacing when a man in a grey business suit, trailed by small entourage of other professionally dressed men, approached. The man in grey stopped in front of the rep and they appeared to exchange greetings.
"Hey, I've seen that guy before," Yosuke informed. "I'm pretty sure he's one of the big shots from head office. Yeah, I'm sure of it."
"How do you know?" Chie inquired.
"Those corporate big wigs have a real "Great Leader" complex or something. They make sure there's a portrait of them in every Junes. That guy's picture is on the wall in the lunch room. He's got this really dead looking smile in that photo. It's kinda off-putting to tell you the truth."
"So who is he exactly?"
"I can't remember his name, but I think his job title is Regional Director of Retail, or something like that. He's a pretty high up in the corporate food chain around here. He actually works for the company that owns Junes, the Kirijo Group. He's sort of the go between for Junes in this region and the parent company."
"Well, what they hell is he talking to that kid for?"
"Beats me."
Before they could think further about the matter, the group of business men and the young rep stepped through a door marked 'Employees Only'.
"Crap, we can't follow them Chie. That door leads to the conference room. I'm not even allowed in their normally. They keep it locked unless somebody from head office comes down for a meeting," Yosuke explained.
The pair fixed their gaze on the door, trying to come up with another course of action.
"Hey, can I have a drink Mr. Bear," called the voice of a child.
The pair averted their attention back to the free sample table and saw that the voiced belonged to Nanako, who was reaching for a can.
Yosuke disguised his voice when he answered and passed her a can, "You sure can little girl. Here you go. It's a new flavour, and it's bear-y good!"
Nanako took the can with a blank expression on her face, her eyes fixed on Yosuke. "Did you say bear-y good?"
"I sure did, little girl!" Yosuke replied cheerfully.
The blank expression remained on Nanako's face.
"Wow. That's really lame." She swiveled around to face Chie, whose bear costume was several sizes to big for her, allowing it to sag noticeably.
"Aren't you a little short to be a promotional bear?" she question Chie, before walking away.
"That kid is something else," Yosuke groaned, his voice muffled by the costume.
Chie and Yosuke discussed their options and decided to man their station at the table until the business man and the rep came back through the door. Time seemed to be passing slowly as they waited. Chie leaned against the table, wondering how she'd gotten into such a ridiculous situation. She resolved to use her better judgement next time Yosuke had a plan.
"Yosuke, look over there, it's Kanji!" Chie squeaked suddenly. "Let's get his attention. Maybe he can help us gather some dirt on that rep!"
Yosuke looked down the aisle and spotted Kanji as well. The pair began flailing their arms at Kanji and gesturing him over. Chie slammed her foot against the floor, making a loud noise. The sounds of her stomping caused Kanji to gaze in her direction, but the confused look on his face suggested he thought he was dealing with two very energetic employees trying to pass out free samples. He headed back in the direction he came and out of sight.
"Damn, he didn't recognize us," Chie muttered.
Just then, the walkie-talkie under the table crackled to life. Yosuke promptly grabbed it, trying not to fumble it with his bear paws.
*Hey man, are you there?* the voice of the manager rang.
"Right here boss," Yosuke answered into the walkie-talkie.
*Listen man, I just saw a little girl walking around with a can of Calorie Magic. You know it's a dietary supplement right? You can't give that stuff to children. I explained that to you yesterday.*
Yosuke picked up a can from the pyramid on the table and read the fine print:
SHOULD NOT BE CONSUMED BY CHILDREN
"Sorry boss, it won't happen again. I guess I forgot," Yosuke blurted. He then placed the can back on the pyramid, but due to the lack of dexterity of the bear costume, the can slipped from his hand. The can rolled down the pyramid and chain reaction ensued, with the entire display crashing down. The sound of the disaster reverberated into the walkie-talkie.
*What was that noise? Is everything okay?*
"Uh, everything's under control. Situation normal," Yosuke spoke into the walkie.
*What happened?*
"Uh, we had a slight malfunction, but uh... everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine. We're all fine here now, thank you. How are you?" Yosuke cringed at his choice of words.
*Who is this?! I'm sending someone over!* the manager responded, seemingly figuring out that the person in the bear costume was an imposter.
"Um, Chie, I think we're about to have company! Let's get the hell outta these costumes! " fretted Yosuke.
Chie found herself panicking. She didn't see any feasible escape route. Within her bear costume, she'd stand out. She finally turned to Yosuke for direction, only to find that he was nearly out of his costume already. He pulled the last foot out of the suit and came to Chie's aid, unzipping the costume, undoing the belt and lifting her out of the legs.
The sound of feet slamming against the floor echoed behind them. Someone was defiantly coming to find out what happened. Yosuke ducked down and ran in the opposite direction, not realizing that he had left Chie behind, whose nerves had frozen her in place.
The sound of the footsteps grew louder as they approached. They were nearly upon her. Getting her nerves under control, Chie spun around wildly, looking for a hiding place. Without thinking it through, she decided the meat cooler beside her was the best option. She slid open the glass top and climbed inside. It was chilly, but not freezing. She was more concerned about the size of the cooler than the temperature; it was a rather cramped place to hide out.
Chie imagined that she'd still be entirely visible if the manager happened to stare down in the cooler as he walked past, so she began piling the packed meat on top of her body for camouflage. Steaks, chicken, pork chops, whatever was available would do.
She heard the manager approach the mess she and Yosuke had left around the table. It sounded like he had a few other people with him. She figured it was Junes' security guards. They talked with each other for a long while, but Chie couldn't make out what they were saying from underneath the meat. She decided to wait for silence before she attempted to crawl out of the cooler.
For a few minutes all was silent, but she decided to wait longer just in case someone was still there cleaning up the mess.
Then the lid of the cooler slid open. Chie wasn't in a position to react. She simply gazed through the opening.
She looked up to see Kanji, who wore a baffled expression as he looked down at her. He rubbed his eyes and refocused his stare to confirm what he was seeing.
Chie Satonaka was inside a freezer, nearly covered in meat products, staring right back at him.
"Dude, you have a problem," was the only comment he offered.