Linky's Fics

Friendships as Sweet as Chocolate

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It was another day during the slow hours of the Ichinose Kitchen. Hotaro was busy making… something, back in the kitchen. Renge and Sabimaru still had yet to arrive.

Meanwhile Rinne wanted to help out with cleaning. Washing the tables, smelling the artificial lemon smell of the soap Ichinose provided her from the kitchen.

Unicon made a bit of noise as its card flew out of her pocket, with Hopper1 doing the same. The two chemys conversed with each other at a nearby table. It added some liveliness to what was otherwise a pretty quiet scene.

Not that this day being on the slower side was a bad thing. It was far from it, to Rinne. So much had happened as of late. With Geryon coming onto the scene, Minato’s shocking betrayal, and the end of the academy as they knew it on top of that. So to be able to get some moments of respite was very welcome to her.

Glancing over to Ichinose, who was stirring something in a bowl with a hum, she could imagine that he felt the same way. There was no doubt he loved the world of alchemy, to be able to experience life with the chemys. But ever since he got that driver it had been one thing after another.

So to be able to get a moment of rest, it would be good for him. For all of them.

And all the same, it felt so damn good to Rinne that her powers had finally come back. It also felt slightly different compared to the first time she was able to transform… As if something new had awakened within her. She felt more powerful than she had before. It was invigorating. She couldn’t help but smile to herself as she wiped away at this table.

Hotaro smiled as he continued to mix the bowl, “You look happy, Kudo!”

She was caught off guard and taken out of her train of thought. Blinking for a second before responding. “Ah… It’s just nice to be able to fight with you again.” She looked down at her ring, now a bright orange color, almost like amber. A cherished gift from her father. “And for things to be able to stay that way this time.”

“Yeah! It was awesome seeing you fight again!” He poured the mixture into some molds, humming the same tune he always did. “With that power it’ll be easier to grasp your Gotcha!”

She couldn’t help but blow some air out of her nose, “Still waxing poetic as always.” Which was something that undoubtedly grew on her over time. The same went for Ichinose himself. At first she didn’t want to really be near him. Or be near anyone, for that matter.

But now, he was someone she would proudly call her friend. And now, she had other friends alongside him. Renge, Sabimaru… No longer was she the lonely little girl that wanted connections deep down inside. She had them now.

To no longer be alone, to have friends she could count on through thick and thin… She still didn’t really know how to describe how good this felt. But she was grateful for it.

Once again her stream of thoughts were interrupted as Ichinose cheered from across the kitchen, gleefully placing the set of molds on the table. “It should be done! Now to let it cool!”

“What did you make anyways?” Would she regret asking? Probably. His cooking was always off. But she didn’t want to straight up reject it. Because one day he’ll be able to improve his cooking…

Right?

“To celebrate your powers returning, and to also celebrate our friendship, as well with Renge and Sabimaru-senpai, I made us some chocolates!” He held up the molds with pride, “I call it the Ichinose Choco-Friendship-Special! We just need to wait a bit for them to solidify before we can dig in.”

That actually sounded like it would have a chance to be something that tasted good. As long as he made solid, normal, chocolates. And didn’t fill them with anything that didn’t suit the flavor profile. Or top them with anything like that either.

“Thank you Ichinose.”

“Don’t worry about it! You’re my friend, and now you’re my partner in battle too,” he said, with that big smile of his that she’d become very familiar with by now. “Let’s both do our best!”

“Right.” She nodded with a small grin. Grateful for everything. Knowing that she’d grow up to gain the friends she once thought she’d never be able to have.

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The others sat at the usual table as Hotaro prepped the finishing touches on the chocolates back in the kitchen. “You guys arrived just in time! Prepare for the Choco-Friendship-Special!” The enthusiasm in his voice was palpable.

Renge turned her head back towards the direction of the kitchen, her eyebrow raised curiously watching Hotaro add a topping to the chocolates that she wasn’t able to clearly make out from this distance. “What’cha doing back there treasure-boy?”

“I’m just adding the finishing touch!” Smiling again as he arranged the plate of sweets. He brought over the tray of chocolates to the table with a smile, humming that one song he always seemed to like. They looked like your average chocolate hearts, topped with a white chocolate drizzle. “Enjoy!”

Hotaro watched the group with anticipation and bated breath, slightly swaying side to side with excitement. He couldn’t wait to see what they thought. This time he knew for sure he’d created a Gotcha with this dish!

Each of them took one of the little hearts and had a bite.

After a quiet moment of taking in the flavor of the chocolate, there was silence. Seconds felt like hours to Hotaro. What did they think of it??

Suddenly everyone’s faces twisted with disgust, confusion, or both.

Rinne hesitated to speak. Visibly thinking very carefully before she said anything, she opted to go with her usual in this situation: “…It’s still a bit off.”

Renge was near speechless, just looking at the chocolate she bit into with a befuddled set of blinks. “Rinne’s right, there’s something fishy about how this tastes.”

Sabimaru raised Issac, who spoke for him with the fierceness the AI’s voice tended to have. “What did you put on those chocolates?!”

Everyone’s words felt like a stab to the chest, just one after the other. “Man…!” Hotaro groaned, falling to his knees and rubbing his face in his hands. Once again he didn’t get a Gotcha with his cooking. And he’d thought that this time, for sure, he had created something great with his chocolates! “I would have thought the mayonnaise I used for the drizzle would have worked!”

Issac spoke up again, all while Sabimaru’s face was twisted with absolute horror. The others had a similar expression. He felt he was going to be sick. “Who in their right mind thinks mayonnaise and chocolate work together!?”

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