"Oh, Ibusaki-kun! I'm very impressed by this cheese." said Rindō, munching away at a triangular wedge of cheddar she held. The chef in question said little, his bangs hiding his eyes as they always did. Despite that, the nervousness in his posture would have been apparent to those that knew him, although Rindō made no indication as to whether she noticed or cared.

"Most people don't bother with smoke based curing methods anymore, so I don't get to eat smoked cuisine as much as I would like. You do quite an impressive job, I must say."

"Much thanks, Rindō-senpai."

His words were almost completely muffled by his cup, which hadn't left his mouth since the overly energetic second seat's entrance. She'd stormed in just a few minutes ago, calling for Erina before getting almost completely side tracked by Shun's presence in the kitchen. The young man had decidedly mixed feelings towards being the sole focus of the Central aligned chef's interest.

"And what might this be?" Rindō asked, reaching for a piece of darkened meat on the platter the boy had been preparing. She popped it into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. "Ohhh, duck! And very fresh duck too. Where'd you get such a prime specimen, Ibusaki-kun?"

"That would be my contribution, Rindō-senpai…"

Yoshino Yuki, who'd also been in the kitchen with Shun, had been similarly swept up in the purple haired girl's personal wake. She hadn't spoken a word since introducing herself, preferring to do her best to hide behind Shun and let him do the talking, which said all it needed to say about how comfortable she was.

"Ah, do you have connections in Japan's wild game industry Yoshino-chan?"

"Something like that." Yuki said, her words barely loud enough to be heard. Rindō pouted at the girl, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"Oh come now, lighten up, I won't bite." Rindō said, before grinning in a manner that suggested she wasn't being completely honest. "How is it you came about something so high class? There aren't any ducks for miles, be they wild or farm raised. I should know. If I didn't know better, I'd think you raised it yourself in your backyard."

"It's because she did." supplied Shun simply.

"Shun-kun!" gasped Yoshino, poking her head over his shoulder to berate him. "Not in front of-"

She stopped abruptly, before looking back at Rindō who continued to munch on Shun's smoked platter happily while watching the two of them with a mischievous look. Yuki slowly sank behind the boy again, until only the tips of her buns could be seen peeking out over his darkly coloured sweater.

"That's so cute. You're worried about revealing your strengths in front of the enemy." mocked Rindō, smiling predatorily. Her gaze seemed to pierce directly through Shun, causing the orange haired girl behind him to shiver. "I simply can't wait to dastardly use my ill-gotten knowledge to plot against you, Yoshino-channnnn."

Before she could continue her teasing, she looked off to the side, perking up and dashing off, startling the two first years with her abrupt exit.

"Erina-channnn!"

The second she was fully out of the room, Yuki turned on Shun angrily.

"Shun-kun! How could you reveal my secrets to the enemy?!"

Shun sighed, removing the paper cup from his lips and setting it on the table.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a secret, Yuki-chan. You chase your animals around the dorm at least once a day. And there are paddocks outside."

"That's not the point! Now any surprise advantage I held against Rindō-senpai is completely gone!"

Shun quirked an eyebrow at the girl, the gesture somehow being conveyed past his fringe.

"Yuki-chan, with all due respect. She's the second seat of the Elite Ten."

Yuki's passion instantly faded, like a candle being snuffed out. She looked down morosely.

"Oh…yea."

Shun thought, trying to find some way to cheer her up without outright lying to the girl. Before he could come up with any solutions, the topic of conversation walked in, followed by an annoyed looking Nakiri Erina.

"Ah, Ibusaki-kun! Sorry for just running off like that, I simply had to grab Erina-chan before she ran away from me."

"Why would I bother running from you, Rindō-senpai?" Erina asked rebelliously, crossing her arms.

"You always used to before." she pointed out, looking over the platter Shun still held out for her inspection.

"That was because you always tried to get me to give you complementary tastings."

"Which you never did, by the way." Rindō said, munching on yet another one of Shun's smoked pieces of jerky. "Yoshino-chan, could you be a dear and get me some water? My tongue's all ashy."

Yoshino nodded, scurrying off to the fridge to fetch the pitcher. Rindō reached for another piece of meat, but she found the platter pulled just out of her grasp.

"My apologies, Rindō-senpai. But I'd appreciate if you left the rest. I spent a lot of time preparing this platter for Yuki-chan."

Rindō blinked, a little surprised. Then she smirked, eyeing the bun haired girl who seemed to be trying to find a glass, before turning back to the Prince of Smoke.

"You should be more polite to your guests, Ibusaki-kun. Especially if they're a lady. We're easily offended, you know. Why, it would be such a shame if I felt the need to represent Central when this dorm comes up on the chopping block."

Rindō's smile was sharp and her eyes were narrowed, the slits locked onto Shun's. Her aura had completely shifted, becoming one of dangerous amusement. Like a tiger playing with a mouse. Shun resisted the urge to step back, holding his ground. Sōma wasn't the only Polar Star resident willing to stand up to Elite Ten members.

"I wonder where your friend would keep all of her precious little livestock animals when this place is replaced with one of my gardens…"

"Enough, Rindō-senpai." said Erina, snapping authoritatively. She turned to Shun, who hadn't moved since Rindō's declaration, the platter still held carefully out of her reach.

"I assure you Ibusaki-kun. She's just kidding. Right, Rindō-senpai?"

The purple haired girl was all smiles and innocence when Erina turned to get her assurance. The aura of menace she'd been exerting had completely vanished as if it were never there in the first place. Shun's posture relaxed, his body language coming at ease once again. Although he still made no move to offer her the platter.

"Of course, Erina-chan. Sōma-kun would be furious with me if I were to take away something so precious to him."

At the casual mention of their friend's name, the two Polar Star residents paused, caught off guard. While it wasn't exactly a surprise that Rindō would know Sōma after his time with Central, the familiar way with which she addressed him spoke volumes.

"Here you go, Rindō-senpai. I hope I didn't add too much ice." said Yuki, trotting back over with a glass filled almost to the rim with ice cubes and water. Rindō took the glass from her, smiling at the girl charmingly.

"Arigato, Yoshino-chan."

She took a sip, letting out an exaggerated sigh.

"Ah, that's refreshing. A little tip, Ibusaki-kun. Try keeping the food wrapped in a fine mesh weave cloth when you're smoking it. It'll still retain most of the flavour, but there'll be less of that ashy aftertaste to deal with."

Rindō patted the boy on the head in a gesture of blatant condescension.

"Well, shall we go Erina-chan?"

Erina looked away from where she'd been attempting to communicate silently with Yuki, her eyes confused.

"Go where?"

Rindō shook her head, waving her finger at the girl in admonishment.

"My, my. Have you already forgotten why I'm here?"

With those words, Erina stiffened and nodded jerkily.

"Ah, right. Yes. Shall we go to my room then?"

"Please. Lead the way."

Erina exited the kitchen and Rindō started to follow her before pausing.

"Ah, before I forget."

She turned to the Prince of Smoke and Polar Star's Game Mistress, handing the empty glass to the surprised looking girl. Neither of them had seen when she'd finished the water, but the large glass was completely empty. Even the ice cubes were gone.

"It was a pleasure meeting you. Yoshino-chan. Ibusaki-kun. Your specialties seem to work well together. Thanks for the food."

With a playful wink and nod, she walked off after the former tenth seat, whistling cheerily.

Yuki sighed tiredly, her shoulders drooping, before turning to Shun.

"Well, that was nerve-wracking. Don't you agree, Shun-kun?"

He still held the platter of smoked products in his hand and he was looking down at it contemplatively.

"You have no idea, Yuki-chan."

"Ugh, this bed is so uncomfortable." whined Rindō, flopping herself onto Erina's mattress. The owner of said uncomfortable furniture glowered at her presumptuous guest but didn't respond to the obvious bait. Yellow eyes gazed up at her, sparkling with mischief.

"I still don't see how someone as high maintenance as you can make it here, Erina-chan."

"The facilities are more than adequate. Of that, I can assure you Rindō-senpai."

"Oh, I'm sure the cooking facilities are, at the very least. This is Tōtsuki after all. But come on."

Rindō gestured contemptuously to the room around her. To the outdated peeling wallpaper and worn floor. To the chipped furniture and scuffed floor. There was even a burn mark in the center of the room, like some sort of brand on the floor.

"This isn't exactly your style, Erina-chan. I mean, really, what are these?"

Rindō stood up and walked over to the rusted golden piping sticking up from a corner of the room. She leaned down, fiddling with the lid of one.

"Is this leftover plumbing or something?"

"Not exactly, Rindō-senpai."

The voice that responded wasn't Erina's. Rindō started, almost falling flat on the floor, which elicited a smirk from Erina. It wasn't often that the troublemaking second seat was the one caught off guard.

Rindō stood back up quickly, dusting off her skirt as she peered deep into the pipe's seemingly endless depths.

"Hello? Yurei-san?"

"Are you saying I'm a ghost because I'm not on the Council anymore? How cruel, Rindō-senpai!"

The voice responded back immediately, sobbing. Rindō perked up.

"Isshiki?! Is that you? How'd you become a ghost in the walls?"

"So hurtful, Rindō-senpai…"

Rindō laughed, amazed at the wondrously primitive contraption.

"Oh, lighten up you big baby! So that's what these pipes are for, huh? So you can nag all of your cute little kouhai?"

"I don't nag, Rindō-senpai! I guide with a gentle and loving hand."

'That's not all he guides with.' thought Erina irritably, thinking to the many, many naked apron surprise attacks she'd been forced to endure during her tenure at the dorm.

"Oh, I'm sure you do Isshiki-kun. So how've things been with you? I miss having you on the council."

"Don't you mean you miss the fresh vegetable snacks I would prepare for you every so often, Rindō-senpai?"

Rindō grinned, thinking back to the lovely spring medleys the second year used to create for her. She sighed wistfully.

"I figured that would go without saying. Be that as it may, as happy as I am to speak with you Isshiki, I'm afraid I'm here on business."

"Ah, what business could you have with our precious Erina-chan? Nothing nefarious, I hope? We've grown quite fond of her."

Despite the boy's light tone, there was a note of challenge in his voice. Erina found herself smiling slightly at the protective instinct of her upperclassman. Despite the somewhat shaky start they'd had when she first entered the dorm, he'd truly and fully taken her under his wing as someone to be protected.

"I can assure you, Isshiki-kun. I'm not here to cause Erina-chan any trouble."

She paused thoughtfully, before amending her statement.

"Not much, anyway."

"I shall hold you to that, Rindō-senpai." He said cheerily. "I shall let you get back to your business. Have fun, Erina-chan!"

Erina waved idly towards the boy's voice before realizing he had no way to see her.

"Thank you for your concern, Isshiki-senpai. Goodbye."

With one last farewell, his voice vanished from the pipes, a clink echoing down them. Rindō clapped her hands, turning to face Erina.

"That's a fun little feature, I must admit. It seems there are SOME perks to this place, Erina-chan."

"More than you know, Rindō-senpai." commented Erina offhandedly, walking over to the pipes and closing the lids over them, ensuring their privacy. "Now, just what is this business you're here to discuss with me?"

"So quick to get right to the point, Erina-chan." moaned Rindō, flopping back onto the bed. Erina arched an aristocratic eyebrow at her, taking a seat in her desk chair and crossing her legs daintily.

"I don't see the benefit in wasting time, unlike some people." she said pointedly. Rindō didn't speak for a moment, instead looking up at the loose ceiling tiles above her.

"You know, a few months ago, I would've believed you really meant that, Erina-chan."

Rindō turned her head, smirking.

"As it stands, I'm almost certain you've learnt more than you'd care to admit about the value of "wasted time", ne?"

Erina didn't respond, instead following Rindō's gaze to land upon a few of the odds and ends strewn about her otherwise perfectly tidy desk. A manga booklet lay face down and spine up, its pages splayed open to preserve its place. Next to it sat a little rubber duck, along with a beat up looking red whistle and a worn spade.

"I'm curious as to why you have such childish things, Erina-chan. I would've thought them "beneath you"." she said, air quoting her words mockingly.

"They're not childish!" fumed Erina. "They're…you see, well...there's a perfectly good reason for each of them!"

"Oh really?" asked Rindō, this time being the one that arched an eyebrow. "Just what use could the famed God's Tongue have for a simple spade? Do tell."

Erina looked over, angrily clicking her tongue.

"I require the spade to fulfil my duties in the dormitory's shared gardening space."

Rindō perked up, her ears doing their best impression of a cat's.

"Oh, they force you to earn your keep with manual labour? That's so demeaning, Erina-chan. I'm surprised you stand for it."

The simpering tone of Rindō's teasing did nothing for Erina's mood.

"Of course not! I participate by choice. They don't require anything of me. I'm an official member of the dorm, after all."

"So then why do you do it?"

Erina paused, caught off guard momentarily. She hadn't ever really had to justify why she did what she did at the dorm. It had all just sort of…happened. One thing would lead to another and, before she knew it, she would be in the backyard with Yuki learning about how to raise ducks, or with Megumi in the garden, learning the best way to keep tomato plants alive. She'd found these tasks so annoying at first, but she'd grown…accustomed to them. She might even say she enjoyed them.

"It's important to contribute." is all she said in response to Rindō's question, her inner turmoil not so easily masked from the older girl. She said nothing however and merely moved her eyes over to the worn looking whistle.

"And how exactly does a child's whistle help you to contribute?"

"It's quite simple. Allow me to demonstrate." said Erina, doing her best to hide how eager she was to showcase the practical value of her keepsakes. She stood up, snatching the whistle off of the desk before marching to her door and opening it. Taking a deep breath, she blew two short, sharp bursts into the toy. The high pitched bursts echoed down the empty hallway and Erina waited, expectantly.

Rindō levered herself into a seated position, watching curiously. After a few seconds of silence, she wondered just what the girl was waiting on before she heard it. It sounded like a series of little, assorted footsteps. The noise grew louder and louder, reaching a crescendo before stopping as the causes of it halted in front of the door.

Rindō blinked, honestly surprised. She'd seen many things during her time at Tōtsuki. But she'd had yet to see someone summon a troop of wild animals like they were some sort of spirit whisperer. An assorted crowd of animals stood just outside the door, jostling each other and making noise.

A veritable army of creatures stood before Erina, who was smiling regally, as if addressing her subjects. There were fluffy white rabbits, jostling for attention, flanked by several ducks of various colours. Chickens trotted and squawked, occasionally fluttering their wings irritably at the more excitable of their brethren. There was even a small deer, with a duckling perched atop its head.

But the strangest animal of all was the little boar that stood authoritatively at the head of them all. It stood up straight with its back arched, as if it were standing at attention. It probably would've saluted if it hadn't been quadrupedal by nature.

"See, Rindō-senpai? The whistle is for properly domesticating the livestock. Yoshino-chan and I use it to help keep the animals in line. It's actually rather fascinating how well they c-"

Whatever she was about to say was cut off as sound came blasting up one of the golden pipes of the room, completely displacing the cover that had been placed over it.

"Nakiri! Yoshino! Was all that noise what I think it was?!"

Erina's face dropped, her eyes widening. She dashed over to the pipe, placing her mouth near the opening.

"G-Gomen Fumio-san! I was simply showcasing the progress Yoshino-chan and I had made with the animals to Rindō-senpai."

Erina waited for a response, leaning her ear down to the pipe. A rookie mistake.

"I don't give a rat's ass if you wanted to show off to Inari-sama himself! I'm coming up there in exactly five minutes and if I see so much as a single feather, you're spending the night in the barn!"

Erina clutched her left ear, seeming dazed. Gathering her wits, she responded quickly.

"H-Hai Fumio-san! My apologies!" she managed to stammer out before standing up quickly and dashing out of the door to start ushering the menagerie down the hall. Rindō soon heard the voice of the Game Mistress echo down the hall as well.

"Erina-chii! Why would you blow the whistle? You know how crazy Buta-chan can get! And once he gets going, you know everyone else will want to follow."

"I know, I know! Sorry. Rindō-senpai was just asking me about the whistle, and I thought it would be simplest if…"

Their voices echoed off down the hall, accompanied by the bleats, grunts and squawks of the little zoo they were attempting to ferry. Rindō stood up and walked over to the door, peeking out to see the crowd of feathers and fur being herded downstairs by a frazzled looking Yuki while Erina stood nearby, trying to convince the lone deer to make its way down the steps.

The sight of the Nakiri heiress pleading with the animal caused Rindō to give off a rather unladylike snort, doing nothing to hide her amusement. She would've probably burst into full blown laughter if she hadn't been interrupted by the vibration of her cell phone. She took it out of her pocket and flipped it open, still chortling.

"Nikumi-chan, hey! You almost missed my deadline, you're lucky the stars seem to be a bit reclusive tonight."

"Sorry, Rindō-senpai. The last item on the list was actually very difficult to find, but I was able to. What's the plan now?"

"Just hold onto that stuff for now, Nikumi-chan. I need to finish up with some things here first. And then, I can see about giving you my…full attention."

The words were spoken in a hushed whisper and Rindō found the little gulp of terror on the end of the line very satisfying. It was simply so much fun to mess with the freshman. It was a feeling she'd miss soon enough.

"Alright. I'll just…wait then."

"Sounds like a plan, Nikumi-chan. I'll contact you a little later tonight. Be prepared." said Rindō, walking over to Erina's desk and picking up the manga, surveying the pages with a critical eye.

"I will be. Thank you Rindō-senpai."

A pause.

"And don't call me Nikumi!" the dark skinned girl bit out before the line abruptly hung up. Rindō laughed at how simple it was to get under the buxom meat chef's skin. She slipped the phone into her jacket packet and got back to leafing through the book, admiring the art style of the manga.

It was several minutes before Erina returned, huffing. She had feathers caught in her long hair, and seemed to be a mixture of embarrassed and displeased. A mood that reminded her all too well of a certain red headed chef.

"Erina, is that a new look you're sporting? I hadn't heard feathers were back in style." commented Rindō, doing nothing to hide her needling smirk as she closed the book.

Erina didn't respond, still trying to find some semblance of dignity after her mad scramble. She walked to the mirror, plucking out the feathers in her hair one by one. After a few seconds, she felt hands in her hair and she started to turn, surprised.

"Relax, Erina-chan." said Rindō, turning the girl back forward. "No way you can get all of them on your own."

Erina tried to say something in response, but she stayed silent and went back to combing her fingers through her hair. After a scant few minutes, their combined efforts yielded a small pile of feathers on the floor and a fully clear head of hair for Erina.

"There ya go. All tidy." said Rindō, walking over to plop herself back on the bed.

Erina continued to run her fingers through her hair as she examined it in the mirror. It seemed to be an idle motion however, as the girl's mind was clearly on something else.

"Rindō-senpai…" she turned to look at the older girl before stopping and averting her eyes.

Rindō looked over at her questioningly from where she'd been typing on her phone. After a few seconds where Erina just continued to look away from her, Rindō rolled her eyes and returned to her phone's screen.

"Come on Erina-chan. Just spit it out."

Erina didn't seem heartened by the second seat's prodding but she started to speak, if a little hesitantly.

"Why?"

The word was soft spoken but it may as well have been shouted for how much emotion the younger girl put into it. Anger. Pain. Confusion. Sadness. All and more were present in the simple, one syllable word.

For several minutes, the only sounds in the room were the gentle clicks of Rindō's virtual keyboard as she typed away. Finally, she spoke, her tone one of disinterest.

"Why what?"

Erina's eyes snapped up, setting their incensed gaze firmly on Rindō's nonchalant form.

"Why would you follow that man?"

Her tone now was all fury, and it would've given Rindō pause had she been anyone else. As it were, she simply finished typing on her phone and sat up, looking the heiress directly in her eyes. Erina found herself almost surprised by the unreadable look she had in them.

"I presume you're talking about Azami-sama?" she asked with no preamble. Erina nodded, her face still fixed into an expression of anger, with an undercurrent of hurt beneath it.

"Ojii-chan devoted his life to this school. To students like you. What could he have done that made you hate him so much that you'd hand over the school to someone like my father…"

Erina trailed off, clenching her fists.

"If he has his way, he's going to destroy this place. He may leave the buildings standing and he may not expel every student but he'll stomp every last shred of spirit from this place until every single chef here is reduced to a puppet going through the motions. There'll be no creativity, no growth, no life! Tōtsuki will be reduced to a glorified printing press, spitting out cooks of the same mould, year after year. That's the kind of man you helped put in charge."

Rindō's expression hadn't shifted throughout Erina's entire impassioned rant and, even now, she merely stared at the honey blonde, who was panting and staring back at her. Then she tilted her head and her calm expression shifted. Her eyes lowered until only the barest hint of yellow was visible and the corner of her mouth rose into a smile, just barely baring her fangs at the younger girl.

"Is that really why you're angry, Erina-chan? Such a selfless attitude doesn't suit God's Tongue, you know."

Erina saw red as she saw the casual disdain with which the girl treated her feelings. The girl's cavalier attitude was always annoying but to see it expressed here, after she'd practically poured out her heart, was simply inexcusable. With a cry of frustration, Erina lashed out and kicked the coffee table in rage.

The pain that resulted did much to quell her anger and she barely suppressed a whimper as she hopped back and sat down in her desk chair, holding her calf. Regardless, she still glared at Rindō as she rubbed at the injured limb.

Rindō contemplated mocking the girl for such a childish error but she let it pass, in favour of addressing the girl.

"You're right, Erina-chan."

The simple sentence caused Erina to forget about her injured leg and look over at the girl, who was still giving her that mysterious smile.

"With the way things are headed, if something isn't done, it won't be long before Azami-sama takes every last bit of ingenuity and brilliance from this place and stomps it beneath his heel. The students here will go from being the best in the world to cookie cutter copies of one man's gourmet standards."

"If you know that, then why do you fight for him?!" Erina asked incredulously.

"Because I don't care."

Rindō smiled wider as she saw the confusion descend on Erina's face.

"I could care less if every last speck of Tōtsuki's spirit is ground away under Central's machine. I could care less if our Elite Ten Council is the last of its kind here at Tōtsuki. I could care less if he subjected every single student here to the same kind of training he put you and Sōma-kun through."

Her first two sentences had been like slaps to the face to the Nakiri princess. But if they were slaps, then Rindō's last sentence was a full blown punch to the gut. Erina froze as she tried to process what she had said. How did Rindō know about that? How did-

"Did you say Sōma-kun?" asked Erina, her mouth moving on its own, her brain still trying to catch up.

Rindō blinked in surprise before sighing.

"Oh, I'm so bad with secrets. Sōma-kun's going to be so angry. I can practically hear him now."

Erina had stopped listening as the implications of what Rindō said started to hit home.

'...the same kind of training he put you and Sōma-kun through.'

She started breathing faster, the ice in her head colder than it had ever been. Her hands shook as she raised them, tracing that special character into her left palm. But, rather than comfort, the gesture only brought on more ice as she thought about just who had taught her that. About who had helped her so much in these past few months. And about what her father had done to that person's most treasured friend.

She began hyperventilating, her chest constricting as she looked around the room. The room that had belonged to the boy she'd already inadvertently stolen so much from. It suddenly felt small and constricting and Erina tried to stand but her legs weren't working. They refused to move, no matter how much she tried.

"Erina-chan? Erina-chan!"

The voice sounded like it was coming from far away. Erina tried to turn to face it, but her body still proved resistant to her efforts as her mind was brought back to that cage. But this time she wasn't the one inside it.

Was she always on the floor? She could've sworn she had been sitting up a few seconds ago.

A sharp pinch to her cheek brought her awareness back to reality and she stared up into yellow eyes. Golden eyes.

"Megumi-chan?" she asked softly. Desperately.

The eyes blinked and that's when Erina noticed the narrowness of the pupil in each of them. So unlike Megumi's round, expressive ones.

"Nope. Still just me." said Rindō, her voice just as carefree as it always was, despite the fact that she was cradling the girl's head in her lap. "You done freaking out now, Erina-chan?"

Erina blinked, her mind sluggish as it started to break free of the ice's grip.

"Just…just give me a minute, Rindō-senpai."

Erina felt soft hands in her hair and could only close her eyes as Rindō stroked her hair. She wanted to protest, to snap at the callous girl who'd been responsible for her episode in the first place, but all she could do was lean into her skirt, suddenly exhausted. She'd berate her senior in a few minutes, most definitely. She just needed to regain her energy for a bit.

Rindō continued stroking her hair, humming a tune as the breaths of the girl in her lap grew longer and deeper.

"You know, Erina-chan. In a way, I do feel sorry for you. For what Azami did to you."

The girl was already asleep, Rindō's words falling on deaf ears. She continued speaking, regardless.

"But not nearly sorry enough to deny myself the brilliant spectacle that will be your father's campaign against this school. When he first contacted me, I laughed in his face. His plan seemed like the ravings of a madman. And as he continued to speak, I realized that's exactly what they were. But this particular madman had the smarts and the money to actually see his plans through."

The slumbering girl didn't respond, instead just snuggling deeper into the girl's lap, eliciting a soft smile from Rindō. The sort of smile few could claim to have ever drawn from her.

"You see, Erina-chan, I like to see moving things. Things are boring when they don't move. Good. Bad. It's all irrelevant. When something is static and unchanging, it's simply detestable. But when that same thing is besieged. Attacked. Then it's forced to change, to move, to respond. And that is when it becomes truly interesting. That is when it has to show its worth or be destroyed."

Rindō brushed the hair out of the girl's eyes, staring down at her peaceful, resting face.

"And there is nothing more beautiful than something fighting against its own destruction with every piece of spirit that it has, as I'm sure you and your friends will, ne Erina-chan?"

Rindō closed the door behind her softly, doing her best to not rouse the sleeping first year that she'd deposited into her bed. She hadn't gotten to entreat with her as Sōma had asked, but it couldn't be helped. She'd just come back another time. Or nag Sōma into doing it himself.

As she moved to walk down the hall, the door right next to her opened, causing Rindō to walk directly into it, eliciting a yelp.

"Ah, excuse me, sorry! My hands are full." said a voice.

The door moved to shut, revealing the pajamas wearing figure of Tadokoro Megumi, who looked mortified when she realized just who she'd hit with her door.

"Gomenasai Rindō-senpai! I didn't see you there. "

She bowed swiftly, causing her shampoo bottle to fly out of her grip. Her cheeks turned red as she leaned down, trying to grab at the loose bottle. Instead, her haste simply caused other things to fall from her hands, her cheeks turning redder with each item that hit the floor.

"Geez, Tadokoro-chan. Relax." Rindō said, smiling as she saw the girl's turn even redder at being addressed during her embarrassing attempt to pick up everything. Rindō crouched down, grabbing at a few of the things that had fallen near her and handing them back.

"Thank you Rindō-senpai." said Megumi, going to bow again before being stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"No more bowing, alright? Wouldn't want a repeat of what just happened, ne?"

"R-Right. Sorry."

Rindō rolled her eyes at the overly apologetic girl. Her mannerisms reminded her of a certain neurotic first seat, and she found it just as annoying here. In rolling her eyes, she spotted something that the girl had missed. A small, yellow object. She leaned down to pick it up.

It was a small rubber duck. Exactly like the one that had been sitting on Erina's desk. She squeezed it, eliciting a squeak from the toy.

"Ah, I dropped Kawa-chan! Thank you for picking him up, Rindō-senpai."

With a shrug, Rindō flicked the duck towards the girl, watching her scramble to catch it amongst the bundle of items she held without dropping anything. Which she did, surprisingly.

"Thank you. Again. Actually, if you don't mind me asking Rindō-senpai, what brings you here today? I don't think I've ever seen you around the dorm before."

Rindō contemplated telling the girl the truth before deciding against it. She'd used up enough of her time speaking with Erina and she still had other things to do tonight. As fun as the little bluenette's reaction would be, she had responsibilities to attend to.

"Just catching up on old times with Erina-chan. She fell asleep on me though, so I'm just going to head out for now."

Megumi blinked, checking her watch.

"Really? It's only eight thirty and Erina-chan's already sleeping?"

"More like napping, I think. She seemed a bit tired." said Rindō, purposely leaving out just what the cause for said tiredness was.

"Well, alright then. I'll just check in on her later, I suppose. It was nice seeing you again, Rindō-senpai. I hope you enjoyed your visit."

Megumi nodded in lieu of her usual bow and proceed to head down the hall towards the bathroom. Rindō watched her walk away, wondering how much of the girl's kindness was an act. She was technically the enemy, after all.

Tadokoro's a special kind of person, Rindō-senpai.

Rindō thought back to what Sōma had told her all those weeks ago, when she'd first started interacting with him. She hadn't understood exactly what he'd meant then but, in meeting the girl here again, she thought she was starting to understand just why Sōma thought the girl was going to be important.

Rindō spun on her heel and started walking in the opposite direction, making her way towards the exit. She thought about the little yellow duck that Erina had on her desk, and about what practical contribution she could've possibly used it for before discarding the thought.

Through all of her bluster, Rindō had known instantly why someone as straight laced as Nakiri Erina would keep knick knacks lying around, out of place. It wasn't out of necessity, at least not in a practical sense. They were, quite simply, special to her. They were gifts from her friends. Something Erina had never really had. Even someone as naturally ambivalent as Rindō could see that.

Outside of her aide, Erina hadn't ever had any close relationships with any of the other students. They'd all held her on a pedestal as something untouchable and refined, something to be admired but kept at a distance. And, through a combination of her breeding and talent, she'd reciprocated. Until she found herself alone amongst her peers, looking down on the rest of them.

'It seems even you are vulnerable to sentiment, Erina-chan.' thought Rindō. She pulled out her phone, dialling a number and putting the phone to her ear.

"I'm finished with my business, Nikumi-chan. Meet me at my personal kitchen. It's in the main hall building. Two doors down from the entrance."

"Your...your personal kitchen, Rindō-senpai?" she asked, awe in her voice.

"Yup. Consider yourself honoured. I'll see you there in fifteen."

She hung up the phone and continued walking, finding herself back in the kitchen, where she found Yuki and Shun at the stove, discussing something quietly over a simmering pot. She idly noted how close their shoulders were and how red the stoic boy's face was as a result. She smiled privately.

Saying nothing, she continued past the pair, who didn't seem to notice her presence. As she made it to the foyer, she looked around at the building that housed so many of those that would rise up against her chosen leader. And she just grinned at the thought of the chaos that was primed to sweep Tōtsuki.

She couldn't think of a better way to end her last year of high school.

Alice hummed happily, coming up the steps to her home. She'd left Ryo back in the Cutting Edge Research Society's room, managing some of the new construction. While she'd been happy with what they had, Ryo had requested that she allow him to make some renovations and new purchases since they had so much spare funding now.

While she was almost certain that Ryo's requests weren't going to be related to anything "cutting edge" in the sense of her tastes, she also didn't particularly care what happened with the money. It was Tōtsuki's, and by extension Uncle Azami's, after all.

She'd opted to walk back home, leaving the car with Ryo, as he said he would probably be staying much later. It was a rare occasion that saw Alice Nakiri walking anywhere unnecessarily, but it had seemed like a nice night and so she'd went out on a whim, leaving through the building's back entrance.

This meant that her personal driver had no idea that she was on her way home. Which meant he had no way of informing Nakiri Azami of his niece's impending arrival. Which meant the elder Nakiri had no way of taking certain precautions.

Alice opened the main door, still humming to herself and heading towards the stairs. As she began her climb, she stopped. What was that noise?

It was faint, she probably wouldn't have noticed it if the halls hadn't been so oddly empty. She stepped back down, looking around in confusion. It seemed like it was coming from downstairs. But nothing was down there except for old store rooms.

Alice headed down, slightly concerned by the level of darkness. She didn't venture down here often, but she knew the light fixtures weren't meant to be darkened. Any maintenance issues were always resolved within minutes in the mansion of Tōtsuki's ruling family, which meant the lights were turned off purposefully. But to what end?

Alice continued following the dark trail and, in a sudden epiphany, she realized just what the sound was.

It was Erina's voice. But also not. The voice was higher pitched and lighter. The voice of a younger Erina.

Alice continued walking, finding the darkness to be even more encroaching as she progressed. She pulled out her phone, activating the flashlight on it to clear a path in the darkness. As she walked, the sound grew louder and louder, and she could soon make out the words.

"It's...it's alright but it's not ideal, I suppose. He could've used better seasonings..."

Another voice cut in, the owner of it unmistakeable.

"You must be strict and uncompromising, Erina. If a dish is subpar, then it. Is. Subpar. Don't quibble over what they may or may not have gotten right. You accept nothing less than one hundred percent. Perfection."

A sound echoed, the sound of a plate breaking, and Erina yelped.

"I'm sorry Father. I won't do it again."

"You've said that to me before, Erina. And you've proven yourself a liar. How can I believe you?"

More sounds could be heard and Alice quickened her pace as she heard Erina cry out, again and again. What was this? What was going on?

Soon she'd found the door, behind which she could hear the noises emanating from. She reached her hand out to the door knob, a sense of foreboding hitting her. Did she want to open this door? She could turn around right now and pretend she'd never been here, with no one the wiser.

But Nakiri Alice was no coward. She placed her hand on the doorknob, twisting it and opening the door, a dark room meeting her gaze.

That wasn't quite accurate. One of the walls were lit up brightly, almost painfully so, and it showed a projection screen. It seemed to be video footage of Erina, from years in the past. Azami stood over her, holding her wrist and whispering in her ear. Every so often, she would cry out, pulling at the grip he had on her hand futilely.

"Ah, Father! It hurts!"

Alice struggled to take her eyes off of the screen now that she'd entered. Her fist clenched until her palm almost bled as she grit her teeth. She knew exactly what she was seeing. Her mother had told her about it, years ago. About how Nakiri Azami had done his best to turn her cousin into his own personal tool. She never thought the man would have had the audacity to record his abuse.

"You shouldn't be here." said a voice.

Alice looked over, at the darkened figure she'd missed on opening the door. Her eyes widened as she recognized the golden eyes and spiky hair.

"Yukihira-kun..."