I.

"Nice you meet you all! My name is Yukihira Soma! Please, treat me kindly!" Yukihira Soma greeted with a bow.

He was standing in the middle of the Polar Star Dormitory, introducing himself to the other residents and students.

"… So it really is true that you're related to Yukihira-sempai," a teen with shaggy, dark-auburn hair murmured. It was hard to discern the expression he had because his bangs were completely covering his eyes.

Soma tilted his head. "… Are you talking about Kyou?"

"Of course we are!" A petite, blonde teen said. Her hair was tied into two buns on the side of her head. "We didn't even know that Yukihira-sempai even had a brother!"

"Now, now," a tall brunet said with a calm smile, "we all know that Kyou-chan is quite a private person."

"You don't get to say anything, Isshiki-sempai, because you knew about Yukihira-sempai's younger brother way before any of us did!" The blonde yelled, pointing an accusatory finger at the brunet.

"… Is everything okay out here? I'm hearing a lot of yelling…" Yukihira Kyou's mop of bright, fiery hair popped out from the kitchen as he looked at the gathered residents with concern and worry.

"Yukihira-sempai!" The blonde yelled, running towards Kyou. "Why didn't you tell us you had a little brother a long time ago?! You gave half the school a heart attack when you suddenly appeared at the Welcoming Ceremony and announced that you were looking for your brother so that he could try some of the cupcakes you made!"

Kyou tilted his head, his actions mirroring that of his younger brother's. "Didn't I tell you guys that my baby brother was enrolling here last month?"

"No! You didn't!"

"Really…? I'm sorry. Perhaps it just slipped my mind…"

"Y-Yukihira-sempai!"

"Anyway," Kyou turned his attention to Soma. "Soma! You have perfect timing! I was wondering if you wanted to have a little match with me like we do back home!"

Soma grinned. "Sure! I've improved a lot since our last match during my application, you know!"

Kyou returned the grin with one of his own. "I'm sure you have…!" He looked at the other Polar Star residents. "Can you guys be the judges for our match?"

"We'd be honored to, Yukihira-sempai," a teen with long, red hair answered motioning for the others to follow her.

"Great! What do you guys feel like eating?"

A timid-looking teen with braids spoke up. "U-Um… maybe, seafood, Yukihira-sempai?"

Kyou hummed thoughtfully. "Seafood, huh…?" He looked to his brother. "What do you think, Soma?"

"Seafood's fine with me, Kyou!"

"Alright then, seafood it is! Thanks, Megumi!"

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II.

"Hey, Kyou… what was up with that blonde chick who didn't want to pass me during my examination? She was acting like she was all that and super important…" Soma asked. He began dicing up some fresh ginger and scallions.

Kyou snorted and shook his head, draining a basket of boiled noodles before transferring them to a large wok. "That 'blonde chick' you're referring to is the granddaughter of the Headmaster and the heiress to the Nakiri family and, before you ask, the Nakiri family are the ones who founded Tootsuki and are basically considered royalty in the culinary world."

"Woah!" Soma exclaimed, adding the scallions and ginger to a sizzling pan at his station. "No kidding?"

"Nakiri-kun," Isshiki added, leaning forward in his seat with a smile, "is also the youngest member of the current Elite Ten."

"Oh, that's cool," Soma said absentmindedly, turning his attention to his pan. After a moment, he blinked and looked back at the brunet. "Wait… what's the Elite Ten?"

Isshiki's smile widened as he explained, "The Elite Ten is a… student council of sorts that's made up of the top ten students attending Tootsuki."

"… So they're like the best-of-the-best, right?"

"Precisely."

Soma's brow furrowed for a minute before a wide, eager grin spread across his face. "The best students at Tootsuki, huh…? I wanna challenge them!" He began to wash and dry a head of fresh lettuce.

Isshiki chuckled softly and raised a finger, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "We~ll… you're getting your wish right now, Soma-kun."

"Huh…?" Soma looked at Isshiki with an absolutely confused expression.

Isshiki chuckled once more and pointed his finger at Kyou, who had gone oddly silently. Soma still had a look of utter bafflement on his features. "Your brother, Kyou-chan," Isshiki clarified patiently, "is also a member of the Elite Ten."

A myriad of emotions flitted across Soma's face. Confusion. Shock. Awe. Pride. Indignation. He whirled around towards his older brother and waved his mixing spoon at him. "Kyou!" He yelled, his voice equal parts hurt, confusion, and delight. "You're part of this Elite Ten or whatever?! That's amazing! How come you never told me or Pops about any of this?"

Kyou shrugged before pouring some soy sauce into his wok. "Dad knows."

"What?! Then how come you never told me about it?!"

"It never came up in a conversation." Which was true, Some had never really shown much interest in Kyou's time at Tootsuki other than wanting to know what new skill or technique he had learned and, honestly, after telling their dad about the accomplishment, the two of them never really talked about it much afterwards. Dad really only brought it up when he was reminding him to not take his duties and responsibilities too seriously and to make sure he took enough time off to relax and recharge.

"I mean," Kyou continued, flipping the contents of his pan high in the air with practiced ease, "don't get me wrong, being a member of the Elite Ten is a great honor and all, and the benefits and perks are amazing, but, honestly? It's just a title – words that get added on after your name in order to give yourself some semblance of importance. I know a lot of chefs and students that would have been a far better Elite Ten member than me if given the chance."

"… Sounds like you aren't quite happy being a member of the illustrious Elite Ten, Kyou-chan." Isshiki said, narrowing his eyes.

"I like the freedom we're given when it comes to furthering our cooking skills and knowledge, but…" Kyou trailed off and shrugged once more.

"But…?" Soma prompted, adding a dash of salt and pepper to his frying pan.

"I dunno… maybe I need to follow Dad's advice and take a vacation or something… take some time off too really focus on me and my cooking and come back with a clear mind… I… think I'm…" Kyou paused and shook his head rapidly, slapping his cheeks a few times. He turned and grinned widely at the gathered audience. "… Enough of that kind of talk! My dish is ready to serve, how about you, Soma?"

"Almost done… just need a few… more… minutes…!"

"Alright then! While Soma is finishing up his dish, I present to everyone my creation!" Kyou handed out a plate to everyone and began serving the food. "I prepared a Seafood Mango Stir-fry… Enjoy!"

"Oh my god," Yuuki sobbed, "I am so glad I chose the Polar Star Dormitory as my place of residence!"

Shoji and Aoki both nodded fervently, tears of happiness streaming down their faces.

Kai Koanui smirked and leaned forward in his chair. "I wonder what kind of journey you'll take us on this time, Kyou~?"

"Well, you'll just have to try it and find out!" Kyou replied with a smile.

Kai hummed before breaking apart his chopsticks and picking up a generous amount of long, glistening, golden-brown noodles. There were bright pops of orange and green and red intertwined with the noodles. As he placed the noodles in his mouth, a veritable tsunami of sweet-and-sour flavor threatened to overcome him and wash him away by the sheer taste alone. His eyes slid close and he groaned low in his throat. He clenched his free fist tightly – his blunt nails digging into the flesh of his palm – as he blinked, trying to wrestle his thoughts and emotion back under control.

'Fuck…,' he thought with a pant, sweat beginning to bead on his forehead, 'e-even though I'm Kyou's a-assistant and his main sous chef in the kitchen… i-it's still a… challenge to not be swept away by h-his talent and skills…'

With an iron will that was forged from the years he spent at Kyou's side, Kai cleared his throat and opened his eyes to see an expectant-looking Kyou staring back at him. From the corners of his eyes, he could see the swooning – and blissfully unconscious – forms of the other residents of the Polar Star Dorms. He swallowed twice and cleared his throat once more, straightening up in his seat as he did so. "Y-You… you used flat Chinese stir-fry egg noodles as the b-base of your dish… The sauce is a combination of chili pepper, coriander, rice wine vinegar, soy and fish sauce, brown sugar, and freshly squeezed lime juice and mango. You called it a 'Seafood' stir-fry but I think you should call it a Clam Stir-fry since the only seafood you used is clams."

Throughout Kai's explanation, Kyou began to nod his head, something proud shining in the color of his eyes and the curve of his smile. At the end of the explanation, Kyou's smile turned a touch mischievous and he leaned forward and pointed at his dish. "Oh really?" he asked, watching as Kai's brow furrowed in askance. "Are you sure that clams were the only seafood I used in this dish?"

As Kai took another, hurried, bite of the stir-fry in an attempt to figure out what he was missing; Isshiki spoke up with an answer of, "Scallops. You also baked and finely minced scallops and added it to your dish."

"Right!" Kyou cheered with a smile. "But! None of you have had the best bite yet! You've only been eating the noodles!" He began pushing the plates closer to everyone. "Try the clams! First on their own and then with the noodles!"

A shiver ran down Kai's spine – it was equal parts nervousness and anticipation.

If Kyou was this excited for them to try the clams then how would everything taste together?

He wanted to find out.

With barely shaking hands, unlike the other residents who were barely holding onto consciousness – sans Isshiki, whom Kai was glancing at with awe and jealously; awe because the Eighth Seat was eating such an exquisite dish with ease, jealously because why couldn't he be as calm and collected at Isshiki when he was the one closest to Kyou and tried most of his dishes?!, Kai picked up a clam.

It was a hard clam. Common and generic, but Kai knew that Kyou could turn anything he touched into something extraordinary. The meat of the clam was a gorgeous, pale yellow – the color of the sun on a spring day and looked mouth-watering. Slowly, he brought the clam up to his mouth and his tongue darted out to scoop the clam meat up from its' shell and into his mouth.

It was succulent and juicy. Sweet and chewy with a light flavor that packed a huge punch.

"Oh. My. God~." Someone moaned from his right. It could have been Yuuki but it also could have been him – who knew?

"Good, right?" Kyou asked, still grinning widely. "Now try the clam with the noodles!"

Breathing heavily, Kai did as he was told – scooping out another clam from its shell along with a large amount of noodles and putting it in his mouth.

The flavor was too much and he could feel himself slipping away.

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III.

Kai was ship-wrecked.

Ship-wrecked and hanging onto a large piece of driftwood for survival.

Something with scales brushed past his leg and he kicked and flailed about in a sudden panic, thinking that it was a shark.

A soft, feminine giggle drew his attention and he looked to his right to see a… woman smiling playfully at him. She was stunning, with long, wavy golden locks, bright, blue eyes, and a dazzling smile. There were tiny pearls and vibrant-colored shells and pieces of coral threaded in her thick hair.

"A Human~" she cooed, wading around him in a lazy circle. "I've never seen a Human before…!"

Kai blinked. Was he hallucinating…? "… Huh…? You… you sound like you're saying you're not a Human…"

"That's because I'm not, Silly!" The woman raised her… tail(?!) out of the water. It was a deep, shining green that sparkled like emeralds.

"Holy crap you're a mermaid!"

"Yep~" The mermaid let out another giggle and lowered her tail back into the water. "But… I'm curious, what's a Human doing so far out in the middle of the ocean?"

Kai looked down with a wince. "Oh… my ship hit a bunch of rocks and sank…"

The mermaid let out a soft gasp and swam closer, her hands hovering uncertainly in front of her. "Oh! I'm so sorry to hear that…! Um… are you… were there others…?"

"No," Kai answered with a shake of his head. "Thankfully I was the only one onboard… my ship was small enough for one person to sail it."

"That's… good, I suppose…"

"… That's one way to look at it…"

There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment, before the mermaid swam closer and placed a slim hand on Kai's arm. "Do… do you want my help?"

Kai glanced at her. "And how do you plan on helping me, exactly?"

The mermaid smiled and moved her hands to the wood that Kai was hanging onto. With a flick of her tail, she began pulling the driftwood – and Kai – through the gentle waves and water. "We~ll… I can do this and pull you to the nearest Human port which is a few hours away… Or~…"

"Or…?"

"I could do that after I've shown you my home of Atlantis~!"

"Atlantis is real?!"

"Yep~" The mermaid giggled. "Real and oh so wonderful and beautiful…! Not many Humans get the opportunity to see Atlantis, you know."

"But… if I go with you then won't I drown? I can't exactly breath underwater you know!"

"That's fine! As long as you're with me, you won't drown!"

"… How do I know that you're telling the truth…?"

The mermaid stopping swimming and put her face just centimeters away from Kai's own. "That's because we both know someone~!"

Kai raised a brow in response, but didn't pull away. "Oh? And who exactly is this person?"

"We're both friends with Yukihira Kyou~!"

Kai's mouth fell open as he started at the mermaid in shock. "Wait… Are you Aria? The Aria that he met a couple months ago while out fishing?!"

"Yep~ That's me~ And you must be Kai Koanui, right? Kyou's told me a lot about you~"

"What? When?! How?!"

The mermaid, Aria, resuming swimming as she hummed softly. "We~ll… he's actually the reason why I'm so far from my ocean. He was worried that something bad might happen to you while you were sailing so he asked me to help you if you needed it~"

"… So that's why he told me to not swim away if my ship sank…"

"Exactly~"

"Hmmm… alright then… take me to Atlantis, Aria!"

Aria nodded and began increasing her speed. "Right away~ Oh this is so exciting! I'll show you the castle and the town and the other merfolk and then when you're ready to leave I can give you all the gifts I wanted to give Kyou but haven't had the time to~ This will be so much fun~!"

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IV.

"… This will be… so much… fun~…," Kai mumbled in ecstasy, his body slumped forward and sprawled across the counter.

Isshiki chuckled lowly as he crossed his legs and peered down at the comatose forms of his cute underclassman. Some, like Kai, were leaning against the counter, while the others were slumped backwards in their seats, wide, dazed smiles and looks decorating their faces. "Your cooking never ceases to amaze me, Kyou-chan."

"Thanks, Satoshi!"

"Okay, everyone!" Soma called out, bounding forward with a wide smile and a pot in his hands.
"My dish is finished so I hope you're all are ready to… Huh?! W-What happened to everyone?!"

Kyou tensed and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, Soma, it's my fault," he admitted with a wince. "This kinda happens whenever people try my food… I really should have let you go first…"

"Woah…" Soma looked at his brother with admiration. "Your cooking must have gotten even better if this is the type of reaction you get whenever people try your food! Now I'm even more excited to have them taste my dish! I wanna see just how my cooking is compared to yours!"

Kyou blinked at Soma's exuberance before the line of his shoulders relaxed. He smiled, brilliant and relieved. "… Right! Let's give everyone some time to recover and then we all can try some of your food! … Since our theme was seafood… it looks like you made some kind of seafood burger?"

"Yep! But I don't wanna spoil my recipe too much so I'll explain everything once everyone's back on their feet!"

"Sounds like a plan, Soma… normally it takes a few minutes for people to recover so it shouldn't be too long before they wake up."

"Great!" Soma placed the pot down and began tugging his brother back into the kitchen. "In the meantime, show me how to do that pan flip that you did earlier! It looked super cool!"

"Okay, okay… well… the first thing you have to do is…"

Yes. Isshiki is the Eighth Seat in this story.

All will be explained in future chapters.

Was planning on showcasing Soma's seafood burger but then everyone kinda passed out from eating Kyou's stir-fry.

As always, let me know what you all thought via PM or Review!