Waifu Wars: A Food Wars Fanfic

Ch. 115 Once Bitten

            After last night's security breach debacle, the students from Polaris were given permission by Erina to stay the night at Nakiri Manor. In fact, Erina insisted. It was a reasonable solution to the problem, since it had been very late by the time things settled down. However, it also would have been a simple matter for Erina to have one of her drivers take everyone back to the dorm by car. The only student who had protested Erina's decision was Alice, for obvious reasons.

"Aww, c'mon...Torrey-kins and I were just getting cozy on the couch," she had stated, accompanied by her very best pout. Erina was immune to such juvenile tactics, however, and wouldn't relent.

"Non. Everyone will need proper rooms, as well as lavatories, along with a change of clothes, since they will be heading straight from here to class in the morning. Such rooms are already prepared at the main estate," said Erina, with a signature flourish of her honey-blonde hair.

"But if it's just Torrey staying, he can borrow one of Ryo's spare uniforms. And on a side note, I can't stand it when you do that thing with your hair. It's pretentious."

"Alice, this isn't up for debate. Aside from you and Ryo, other students aren't permitted to stay in the guest house. And you've always been jealous of my hair, you admitted as much when we were children."

"How come? You were fine with letting him stay earlier. And stop holding stuff like that against me! I don't even remember saying that."

"...insurance, liabilities, etc...it would require a lot of paperwork and such. You know how it is with these things," said Erina, practically dodging the question. Alice raised an eyebrow at her.

"Why did you pause there? Did you just make that up?" she asked.

"Of course not, this is a serious matter!"

And so, everyone but Alice and Mimasaka (he'd stalked off back to the woods) had been shown to the main house, with its abundance of open guest rooms. The next morning passed uneventfully, with the exception of the gourmet breakfast provided by the Nakiris' cooking staff. It was certainly a step up for Torrey, whose breakfast routine usually consisted of grabbing toast on his way out the door. Afterwards, the entire group walked to campus together, along with Ryo Kurokiba and Hisako Arato.

"How'd you sleep last night, Torrey-kins? I'm sure those dumb guest bedrooms weren't nearly as comfy as my couch..." asked Alice, making sure to walk right beside Torrey.

"I slept pretty well, actually. I was so tired, I probably could have passed out on the floor even," he replied, adding a satisfying yawn.

"Aww..." said Alice, who'd been seeking a different answer for the purpose of guilt-tripping her cousin.

"I can't believe how nice the rooms were!" said Ryoko, beaming after a great-night's sleep herself.

"They were much bigger than our rooms at Polaris! Though I did miss Fumio-san's cooking," added Megumi.

"W-was the breakfast not to your liking? I'll need to have a word with the dining staff. Poor service is simply inexcusable for our guests," said Erina.

"Ah, no! I'm sorry; it was really good! I just meant...er, well...Ryoko-san, help please!" stuttered Megumi.

"I think Megumi just meant that it was different than what we're used to, that's all," said Ryoko. Megumi was in nervous tears, but she managed to flash a thumbs-up.