Waifu Wars: A Food Wars Fanfic

Ch. 113 A Night at Nakiri Manor, Part Two

            Torrey shot a nervous glance towards Alice, as he took a hearty bite of prawn from his bowl of brodetto. Alice had already been looking at Torrey, and the two of them made eye contact and grimaced. Not because the food was poor. In fact, the recipe had turned out delicious as far as their tastes were concerned. The real concern was Erina's tongue, however. She hadn't said a word since taking her first bite.

Erina casually reached for a slice of grilled sourdough, and proceeded to scrutinize it carefully. Next, she carefully split the piece in two and dunked both in the stew, having apparently deemed the bread to be edible.

"Why are you both staring at me like that? I-it's making me lose my appetite," said Erina, red with embarrassment. The sourdough remained in the broth, as her meal was put on hold.

"Sorry, Coz. It's just...well I'm totes curious to hear your review. Torrey-kins and I worked pretty hard on this dish, and I'm worried that it won't measure up to your impossible standards," said Alice, unable to meet her cousin's eye. Torrey nodded in agreement.

To her credit, Erina was trying hard to suppress her mixed emotions. She was Alice's guest, after all, and was grateful to have been provided a meal. This gratitude was likely a result of Erina's time spent at Polaris, and the lessons that she had learned from her new friends.

On the other hand, she was still Erina Nakiri, the God's Tongue, and the Director of Totsuki Culinary Academy, the world's leading factory of top-tier chefs. Her feistiness may have dulled since Hokkaido, but it still lurked beneath the surface. Ready to flare up at a moment's notice.

"Impossibly high, you say? How would you have it, then? Would you prefer a Director who slacked on her duties and allowed our prestigious institution to become the laughingstock of the culinary world? I should think it necessary for me to hold EVERY dish to a high standard. To lower my standards would mean the regression of everything that our family has worked towards for generations. Generations, Alice! I will not be the one to tarnish the Nakiri legacy, in spite of my father's efforts to do precisely that."

"Whoa! Erina, you'll have to forgive Alice's poor choice of words," said Torrey, trying to mediate. He gave Alice a stern look to warn her against stoking the fire, but she returned it with a pout instead. "C'mon, Alice. You know you didn't even mean it to sound like that. You were actually trying to compliment Erina for her standards, right? Otherwise you wouldn't have asked for her criticism."

"Well duh. I'm like, super anxious to find out if there's something we could have done better," said Alice, still pouting with crossed arms. Though the cousins had been getting along well prior to sitting down for dinner, they had quickly devolved into their usual bickering ways.

They sure get along better than they used to, but I guess some things never change, thought Torrey.

"Are you absolutely certain that you wish to hear my thoughts on this dish?" said Erina, mercifully allowing Alice a chance to back down. "I seem to recall giving you an honest opinion on a birthday cake that you had made for me when we were children. If memory serves, you cried for hours and ended up moving halfway across the globe shortly after."

"Nuh-uh! I moved to Denmark with mom and dad so that I could learn cutting-edge techniques and eventually beat you. And don't embarrass me in front of Torrey-kins like that!" said Alice.

"Alice, you told me that story yourself. Plus, it sounds like the cake incident actually did lead to your move, since it made you more determined to surpass Erina," said Torrey, matter-of-factly.