Blind Date

"Table for one miss?"

Sonia had been waiting at the restaurant for half an hour. She had never had to wait that long back in Novoselic. That could be because she was the princess, but nonetheless, the wait was much shorter back home. She turned to the hostess who was waiting expectantly for her answer.

"Um. No." Sonia said uncertainly. "I am meeting with another person... A date"

The hostess nodded, seemingly annoyed by what Sonia had said. Sonia felt her cheeks turn red. She wasn't used to doing stuff like this on her own. She wished Ibuki was here. That girl was always there to help her in social situations.

Though now that she thought about it, Ibuki was the one who had gotten her into this situation. When the musician had offered to set Sonia up on a blind date, Sonia assumed it was some sort of blindfolded encounter with a boy. She couldn't have been more wrong. However, even if the situation was strange, it was still an opportunity to learn more about the country's culture. That was one positive at least.

The hostess turned to a different customer just as the door opened. Sonia's head snapped up to see who it was. Truthfully, she hoped it was Gundham. She had a huge crush on the boy, but he seemed like he only wanted to be friends. If Ibuki had managed to set her up on a date with him, then this could be her chance. However, once again, she couldn't have been more wrong.

"Fucking weather" Fuyuhiko mumbled as the door closed behind him. It had been snowing outside, and now his feet were so cold he couldn't feel his toes. He kicked the snow off his shoes, causing him to feel pins and needles.

When Ibuki had told him that she set him up on a blind date, he had half a mind to not go. That musician airhead was always coming up with stupid plots and schemes and he wanted no part of it. However, he soon realized that there was a possibility that the girl had set him up with Peko, his childhood friend. She was the only one he was willing to trudge through the snow for on this godforsaken December Saturday. He took off his hat and scanned the entranceway for his date. However, instead of Peko, he saw Sonia', the Ultimate Princess.

"Fuyuhiko?" she said. He could see the disappointment in her eyes, and no doubt it was the same with him. He was disappointed too. For a moment he considered leaving, but she had already seen him. There was also the possibility of this just being a coincidence.

"Yeah." Fuyuhiko said, nodding his head in greeting. He walked over and rubbed the back of his neck, looking away from the girl. He still wasn't used to talking to people, but he didn't want to be rude.

"What are you doing here Sonia?"

Sonia smiled and tilted her head to the side. She felt her stomach tighten as she thought about the possibility that Fuyuhiko was her date. She had no interest in dating the young yakuza, but she had to make sure she didn't hurt the boy's feelings.

"I'm here on a blind date." She said happily. "Ibuki told me to meet the boy here."

"Fuck."

He had meant to say it quietly, but apparently Sonia had heard him.

"Is something the matter Fuyuhiko?" She asked.

Fuyuhiko looked at her in surprise.

"Oh. You heard that?" He asked. He felt his mouth get dry. Was there some sort of punishment for insulting a princess? He decided to answer her anyways.

"Well, I'm here for a blind date as well. I was just expecting someone else."

Sonia nodded several times.

"Then, fuck." Sonia said. She always enjoyed learning new words; she just hoped she had used it in the correct way. "I am in the same scenario then, because I too was expecting someone else.

They both sat in an awkward silence for a bit. After a while, Fuyuhiko shrugged.

"Do you wanna just eat together anyways? Ibuki did already pay for the reservation."

Sonia nodded. She might as well. It's not every day you get to eat with the Ultimate Yakuza. She stood up and walked to the hostess.

"Pardon me miss?" She said, waving the girl over. "My, uh, date is here now."

It didn't feel right calling Fuyuhiko her date, but she wasn't sure what else to call him. The hostess looked at the boy.

"Him?" She said. "But isn't he a bit young to-"

Fuyuhiko cut her off.

"I'm fucking sixteen okay? So don't go acting like I'm not."

The hostess' jaw dropped. She had thought the boy was only 13 or 14, but she was apparently wrong. Not to mention his language. She bowed her head to apologize.

"I'm sorry sir." She said before turning back to Sonia.

"I'm sorry miss, I just gave the reserved table to a different couple. We can only wait for so long."

Fuyuhiko couldn't believe this.

"Then why the fuck would someone reserve a table here if it's just going to be given away when they get here? That's just bullshit!"

The hostess gulped. The boy was small, but he was quite frightening.

"I'm sorry, sir." She said. "But we can't just give you a new table now. You'll have to wait until one opens up."

Fuyuhiko glared at the girl before turning to Sonia. She seemed disappointed. No doubt she had been waiting for a while. Fuyuhiko turned to the hostess and pointed at the princess.

"You know who this is?" He said. The hostess shook her head. "This is the princess of Novoselic. She could have you beheaded for this kind of treatment." He saw the hostess gulp as she glanced at Sonia. Fuyuhiko smirked. It seemed like his plan would work. He pointed to himself.

"And do you know who I am?" He asked. Once again the hostess shook her head. "I'm Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu. You've heard of the Kuzuryuu's right?" This time the hostess nodded. Fuyuhiko was enjoying this. "Well, I could have you in a body bag by the end of the day, so why don't you cancel the reservation you just made, and give us our fucking table."

The hostess nodded. She waved over a waitress and asked her to show the two guests to their table. She then picked up the phone and began trying to cancel the reservation. Sonia and Fuyuhiko walked to the table. Sonia tapped the boy on the shoulder.

"Were you not afraid that you would make a scene in public?" She asked. Fuyuhiko shook his head.

"Nah. They were being a bunch of fucking idiots. I just verbally knocked some sense into them.

Sonia nodded and the two of them continued walking to the table. Apparently, the young yakuza was full of surprises.

Peko nodded to her companion as he held open the door. She had forgotten to bring gloves and her hands were too cold to turn the doorknob. She entered the restaurant and began kicking the snow off her shoes. She hadn't expected her blind date to end up like this. She turned to the boy closing the door behind him. She had ran into him down the street. Normally she would have ignored such an encounter, but he was her classmate, and she hadn't expected to see him in this area. He had almost not heard her though, since he had been talking to his hamsters. It turns out that he had been dragged into a blind date as well. Peko made a silent note to never talk to the young musician again.

The hostess walked up to the two of them.

"Oh! Are you the 5 o-clock reservation?" She asked. Peko nodded.

"Yes. That reservation is for me and this gentleman."

As if on cue, Gundham walked up to the two of them. He nodded and looked away, taking in his surroundings. He never did like restaurants like this. They had too many meat dishes on the menu. The hostess stared at him for a moment, distracted by the scar on his face, but then she turned back to Peko.

"I'm very sorry miss, but the table you had reserved had to be given to someone else."

The hostess looked at the sword on the girl's back. The two teens were definitely an interesting couple. She didn't want to get on their bad side.

"But I'll see if we can find a different table."

She looked around the restaurant. She felt her stomach tighten as she realized there were no tables available. But then, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed an elderly couple leave their table. She sent a waitress over to clean it.

"You're in luck!" She said to the young swordswoman. "A table just opened up."

The hostess gestured for them to follow the waitress. Peko and Gundham reluctantly did as they were told.

Sonia listened with extreme interest as Fuyuhiko finished explaining his role in the Yakuza clan.

"So you are not unlike royalty then?"

Fuyuhiko nodded. He had thought that this was going to be completely horrible, but he was actually starting to enjoy himself. Besides Peko, he was never really able to talk to anyone his own age. It felt nice.

"Yeah, I guess so." He said. "But don't go saying I'm a fucking prince. I'm not into that fairy tale crap."

Sonia nodded. Fuyuhiko was very interesting. He was teaching her many new words. Every time she had seen him at school, he had been sitting alone or with his friend Peko. She had assumed that he wasn't going to talk much, but now he seemed to be enjoying himself. Truthfully, she was enjoying herself as well.

"This is nice." She said, looking out at the snow through the window next to the table.

"The weather? You really are weird if you think a fucking blizzard is nice."

"No. Not the weather." Sonia said, turning back to Fuyuhiko. "This meal. It feels nice to talk to a boy in a not romantic way."

Fuyuhiko's cheeks turned red. For some reason, her saying that made him feel happy. When Sonia saw this, she became worried.

"Oh no!" She said. "I did not offend you did I? That was not my intention!"

Fuyuhiko chuckled and shook his head.

"No. It's just that, I'm so used to people either babying me, or being afraid of me. I'm not used to getting compliments."

Sonia tilted her head to the side; obviously confused by what he had said.

"But, you are always talking with Peko, are you not?" She asked. "Does she not compliment you?"

Fuyuhiko shook his head.

"She does, but..." He wasn't sure how to explain it. "Peko and my relationship is kinda complicated, so, I think she just compliments me cause she has too."

This time, it was Sonia's turn to shake her head.

"No. That's wrong." She said. Fuyuhiko looked at her, silently asking for an explanation. Sonia returned the gaze and continued.

"I know Peko. She often spends time with Ibuki and me. If she compliments you, then she is telling the truth."

Sonia had expected this to make the boy happy, but instead, Fuyuhiko frowned. In fact, he looked like he was about to cry.

"Fuyuhiko? Are you all right?"

"Yeah! Of course I'm all right." Fuyuhiko snapped, wiping away a tear. "I'm just, thinking about how much of a jerk I am to her sometimes." He sighed, trying to calm himself down. "She thinks she's just a tool, but I want her to be more than that. I want her to be my friend."

Sonia nodded several times.

"Then tell her that. I was in a similar scenario back in Novoselic. I was friends with one of my handmaidens, but she saw me as her boss, and only her boss. This bothered me, so I told her how I felt and she said she would try to be my friend. Her and I became inseparable until I came here."

"Why would you come to a shithole like this if you had such a great life back home?"

Sonia shook her head.

"My life at home wasn't easy. I had many responsibilities as the princess. Some of which I wish I didn't have. And I also had no freedom." She stopped for a moment, lost in thought. "Perhaps that is why I enjoy Japanese mangas. They are often about individuals making their own decisions and living their lives the way they want to."

"You really are weird." Fuyuhiko said smiling. "But I think you and I are really alike too."

Gundham sat staring out the window. The only thing he could find on the menu with no meat in it was a Caesar salad. He didn't mind. He could feed the croutons to his Four Dark Devas of Destruction. Peko on the other hand, had ordered nothing but a glass of water. He turned to the girl, who like him, had been staring out the window. He didn't like talking to people, but he felt like he should say something to her.

"Are you not hungry?" He asked. She turned to look at him.

"No. I usually don't eat until after the young master has finished. I am not used to eating on my own."

Gundham nodded. He had no doubt that the 'Young Master' was the boy that the swordswoman was always with. He tried to think of something to say back. He wasn't used to conversation, and she was not helping. Luckily, she spoke first.

"I could say the same to you though, since you only ordered a salad."

Gundham shook his head.

"It is not that I am not hungry, it is that I can not eat any of the other dishes."

Peko tilted her head to the side.

"And why is that?"

"Because none of these simple dishes are fit to be eaten by the dark lord."

Peko stared at the boy. He was definitely strange. First he had refused to take of his coat despite how hot it was in the restaurant, and then he had continued to wear his scarf as well. Not to mention that when she tried to stand next to him, he had told her to stay back. For some reason he believed that his body was filled with poison. She shook her head. Why did Ibuki think this boy would be good for her?

"No." She said. "Tell me the real reason. You being a dark lord is not a valid excuse."

Gundham looked at her in horror. No one had ever spoken to him in such a way. It could be because most people never spoke to him at all, but it was still unnerving. He laughed.

"I find your courage amusing." He said smiling. "Fine, as a reward for your bravery, I will tell you. I refuse to feast upon the flesh of the beasts of this world."

Peko stared at him. Not sure how to respond.

"So... you are a vegetarian?"

Gundham began to blush, but he pulled up his scarf to hide it.

"Yes. That is another way to describe it."

He didn't understand. This girl was completely unfazed by his behavior. Most people would have left him already, but for some reason she hadn't. He went to speak, but was interrupted by San-D climbing out of his scarf. He quickly picked the hamster up.

"What is it my friend? Why are you leaving the safety of my scarf?"

The hamster simply stared at him blankly. Gundham sat for a while, staring back. Was he hungry? Hot? Restless? Gundham couldn't think of what would have caused this behavior. As he stared at his friend, he noticed that Peko was staring as well.

"Is that... your hamster?"

Gundham looked up at her.

"This, is San-D. One of my Four Dark Devas of Destruction."

"Y-you mean you have three more of them crawling in your scarf?"

Peko couldn't believe it. She had always been a fan of small fluffy animals, and this boy had four hamsters cuddled up in his scarf. Gundham placed San-D down on the table and let the other hamsters out as well. Soon, the tabletop had become a small hamster playground. Peko felt her cheeks redden as the urge to pet them grew.

"Their names are San-D, Jum-P, Maga-Z and Cham-P. And it seems like they have grown restless."

Peko spoke without taking her eyes off of the tiny balls of fur.

"So you're saying they're agitated?"

Gundham nodded. Perhaps they were sensing his own agitation. He did not want to be there. As much as he was starting to enjoy speaking to Peko, he would have been much happier if this had been a date with Princess Sonia. That was the only reason he had agreed to this in the first place, and that was the only explanation he could think of for his friends' strange behavior. Suddenly, San-D jumped off the table.

"San-D!" Gundham shouted. He sprang out of his chair, chasing after the small hamster. Peko watched this, and so did several of the customers near by. She then turned to the hamsters still on the table. The looked at her expectantly. She nodded and picked them up, chasing after Gundham. She smiled as she felt their soft fur in her hands. Perhaps she could be friends with this boy after all.

Fuyuhiko pulled out his wallet. They had finished eating, and they both needed to get home soon. He knew that traffic would be horrible because of the weather. Sonia shook her head.

"No Fuyuhiko! Allow me to pay the bill. It is the least I can do." Fuyuhiko ignored her and took out the money, plus a little extra for the tip to make up for being a jerk to the hostess.

"Nah. I'd feel real shitty if I made you pay just because you're rich."

He put the money on the table. He couldn't help but feel happy. The day had started horribly, but in the end he had made a new friend. And she had also given him some great advice for becoming friends with Peko. As he placed his hand down, he felt something warm and fuzzy hit it.

"What the hell?"

He looked down and saw a brown rodent on the table. It shook its head from the impact of hitting his hand.

"Is that a fucking rat? What kind of restaurant lets rats jump on people's tables?"

He tried to hit the rodent away, but Sonia grabbed his hand. He looked up at her, confused.

"Calm down Fuyuhiko!" She said, looking at the rodent. "It is not a rat. It is San-D!"

She let go of Fuyhiko's hand and he lowered it to his side. Confused, he watched her pick up the rodent. Now that he got a better look at it, he saw that it was a hamster. For some reason, he felt like he had seen it before. Sonia held the hamster up to her face and it rubbed against her cheek. Before Fuyuhiko could even question the situation, they heard a deep voice.

"San-D! What are you- Oh! Miss Sonia."

The two of them looked over to see Gundham standing next to the table. He looked from Sonia, to Fuyuhiko, and then back again. After a moment he pulled up his scarf and looked away.

"I seem to be interrupting something."

Sonia looked to him in horror. What was he doing here? Why did he have to catch her eating with Fuyuhiko? This was going to make things very awkward.

"Gundham! It's not what you think!" She said, trying to stop him from making any assumptions. Fuyuhiko nodded.

"Yeah. We're just here as friends."

As he finished speaking, he heard a familiar voice.

"Gundham! You left the other Dark Devas behi-"

Peko stopped as she saw the scene in front of her.

"Young master?"

"Peko?"

Fuyuhiko and Peko stared at each other. Unlike the others, Peko understood the situation instantly.

"Young master. Are you here because of Ibuki?"

Fuyuhiko nodded.

"Yeah, she set me up on a blind date. But we're just eating as friends okay?"

He didn't want Peko thinking that him and Sonia were dating. That would just make their relationship even worse. However, Peko just smiled.

"It seems that you are in a similar situation."

Sonia's face reddened as she realized what happened. She looked at her three classmates.

"Are you saying that you are here on a blind date as well?"

Peko nodded, and the boys put two and two together. Gundham was the first to speak, but Fuyuhiko finished his sentence.

"Wait! Are you suggesting that-"

"-we got our dates mixed up?"

Sonia and Peko both nodded. Peko walked over to the table and put down the hamsters. She gestured for Gundham to sit down.

"Perhaps, the best thing to do is just eat together to ensure there are no more mix ups."

Sonia nodded and smiled.

"It will be like a, double date?"

Fuyuhiko was still a bit surprised, but he nodded anyways.

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense. Me with Peko, and you with scarf face here."

"My scarf acts as a home for the Four Dark Devas of Destruction." Gundham growled. "It is not something to be made fun of."

Fuyuhiko shrugged.

"Well, we already ate, but I could go for dessert."

He looked at Sonia and she smiled back.

"I hear that the chocolate cake is hella good."

Across the restaurant, Ibuki watched her four classmates sort things out.

"There! Ibuki said it would work!"

Hajime shook his head and sighed. He had told Ibuki that she shouldn't spy on them, but she wouldn't listen; and then she dragged him along with her.

"I'm surprised it did after the huge mix up that happened."

"Well, Ibuki's matchmaking skills are rivaled by no one! So Ibuki had no doubt that it was going to end up okay."

Once again, Hajime sighed. She had a point, since everything seemed to work out in the end.

"Maybe Ibuki should get Akane and Nekomaru together next!" Ibuki said excitedly. Hajime could see the sparkle in her eye and realized that he wasn't going to be able to stop her. The best thing to do would be to just stay out of it.

"Well, we should give them some privacy now. Let's just pay and go. I've been asked to go to the school tonight to see someone, so I need to make sure I'm not to late."

"Ooh! Going to the school at night!? Hajime! You're a regular Cassanova!"

"No. It's nothing like that! The headmaster just needs to ask me something."

"Ibuki can tell when someone is lying Hajime!"

Hajime shook his head again. At least she wasn't thinking about Akane and Nekomaru anymore. Nekomaru definitely owed him one. He called the waitress over and asked for the bill. Ibuki looked at him and tilted her head to the side. She seemed embarrassed.

"What is it Ibuki?"

"Well... Ibuki kinda spent all her money setting up the reservations, so she's completely broke."

Hajime felt his stomach tighten as he realized where this was going. Now he understood why Ibuki had bought so much food. He head dropped as he took out his wallet. This was the last time he was helping Ibuki.

He looked over at his four classmates across the room. They were all smiling and having a good time. Even Gundham, surprisingly. Hajime took out the money and placed it on the table. Maybe all of this was worth it in the end.