#yukihira raiden

[wishingforatypewriter]

Hey, if you've gotten to the point of knowing the futures of the kids of the sns characters, could you do a what restaurants they own? Similiar to what you did for the sns characters. Especially Erik, Raiden, Sosuke, Akane, Bella, Sumire and maybe Maria. But honestly just do whoever you've got figured out. Thank you! Also, I really love Samara fyi

Hi! Happy New Year! In truth, I haven’t gotten very far in planning the futures of the 119th gen, but I’ll be happy to share what I’ve figured out so far! 

Erik

I don’t see Erik opening a restaurant right after graduation the way Alice did. Soe (and Senzaemon, when he was alive) kind of groomed him to handle the external affairs of the Nakiri Group, so I see him going right into the business side of things.

In his early twenties, Erik would act as something of a liaison between the tech world and the culinary world, and he’d get a few lucrative patents under his belt.  

He’d probably live his best tycoon/inventor life all through his twenties, and only consider opening a restaurant once he’s settled down and gotten married. 

Raiden

In Raiden’s early career, he’d travel a lot, making documentaries about different culinary traditions and issues within the industry (sometimes in collaboration with his mentor and spiritual advisor, Rindou). 

He’s always on the move and doesn’t even think about opening a restaurant until Akane and Sosuke start racking up Michelin stars and he’s like “Oh, shit. Better get started!” 

His debut restaurant, Sojourn, is in Paris (because of course). It’s an homage to the rare ingredients and techniques he encountered while abroad. It’s quite niche and high-end, but definitely receives rave reviews and critical acclaims (three stars within the first few years). 

Second restaurant would open a few years later (because Raiden still cannot bear to stay in one place) in California. This one would be a lot more casual and accessible, but it would still be considered gourmet cuisine. 

Sosuke

Right after graduation, Sosuke takes over the head chef position at Souma’s New York restaurant. After two years or so, he’d leave that role to open his own barbecue restaurant in Manhattan. 

The restaurant is an overnight success, and the hype around it quickly elevates him to the status of celebrity chef. He earns a star within the first year, and the restaurant’s popularity helps Sosuke’s brewing company take off. 

Around this time, he gets married to Isabella and the Ibusaki brewery joins its fortunes with those of the Aldini wineries. He ends up a businessman overnight and it’s a while before he can even consider opening another restaurant. 

Akane

After she graduates as first seat, Akane moves to Paris and takes over as head chef of Tsukasa Eishi’s flagship restaurant.

After proving her mettle to the Parisian culinary scene, she opens Le Diadème, a restaurant dedicated to French haute cuisine. Her keen aesthetic sense and emphasis on fragrance set her apart from other chefs, and she’s the first in the 119th generation to earn three stars. 

Her second restaurant would focus more on Indian cuisine and the kinds of flavors and scents she grew up with. 

Bella

Bella would open her restaurants early in her career, knowing that she would eventually have to take over as head of the Mito Group. 

Her first place would be a steakhouse in Manhattan, playfully called The Meat Mansion. Given her access to the highest quality beef cuts as scion of the Mito family, her success is almost guaranteed, and she easily becomes a sensation and begins earning stars. 

Her second restaurant, Decadence, is an ode to comfort foods. Her menus combine a fusion of rich Italian dishes  and the culinary traditions of the American south. A critic noted, affectionately, that one would gain five pounds just walking through the door, but the culinary experience is well worth it. 

Sumire 

Sumire is tapped by the WGO before she even graduates from Totsuki, and begins her career as a bookman. She quickly rises through the ranks based on her ability to use technology to identify meritorious restaurants that were previously overlooked by the WGO’s selection process.

She will be offered the role of bookmaster after Anne retires (I like to think that she’d be the one to succeed Mana), and may or may not accept it (at this point, Alice offers her a top executive role at Nakiri International on her son’s recommendation). 

Maria 

After graduation, Maria returns home to Tuscany and begins planning to take over Trattoria Aldini. 

After a few years, she opens a sweets shop and bakery—named Paradiso after her signature dish—and it definitely puts her on the path to dethrone Momo as the world’s top pâtissière. Her ambitions may or may not be limited by her desire to put down roots and start a family, but only time will tell. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

AHHHHHH! It's brilliant! Thank you so much! This made my day! 💕

i have no sorina son so i’m kicking down yo front door at 5:22am sliding this over to @wishingforatypewriter​ in a ~civil~ manner

[tiagorcp-art]

Some more misc. fanart portraits - Yukihira Souma, Taliyah, Raiden and Emil

[sinfulcries]

选项 . 𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐄 𝐁𝐎𝐘𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋𝐒 𝐈 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐑

MY HERO ACADEMIA ━━━━━━━━  midoriya izuku, todoroki shoto, bakugou katsuki, kirishima eijirou, kaminari denki, occhako uraraka, momo yaoyorozu, mina ashido, jirou kyoka, monoma neito, shinsou hitoshi, shindo yo, mirio togata, tamaki amajiki, tenya iida, tsuyu asui, sero hanta, endeavor, aizawa shouta, hawks, shigaraki tomura, dabi, toga himiko, kai chisaki

HAIKYUU STUDENTS  ━━━━━━━━ daichi sawamura, sugawara koshi, asahi azumane, nishinoya yuu, tanaka ryuunosuke, kageyama tobio, shoyo hinata, tsukishima kei, yamaguchi tadashi, yachi hitoka, kiyoko shimizu, kuroo tetsuro, kenma kozume, lev haiba, yaku morisuke, inouka sou, oikawa tooru, iwaizumi hajime, matsukawa issei, hanamaki takahiro, kyoutani kenjirou, yahaba shigeru, akira kunimi, yuuji terushima

HAIKYUU STUDENTS 2 ━━━━━━━━ daishou suguru, akaashi keiji, bokuto koutarou, ushijima wakatoshi, tendou satori, semi eita, goshiki tsutomu, kenjirou shirabu, aone takanobu, futakuchi kenji, koganegawa kanji, sakusa kiyoomi, komori motoya, kita shinsuke, miya osamu, miya atsumu, aran ojiro, suna rintarou, aoi himekawa

HAIKYUU ADULTS ━━━━━━━━ coach ukai, takeda ittetsu, alisa haiba, saeko tanaka, tsukishima akiteru

ATTACK ON TITAN ━━━━━━━━ eren yeager, levi ackerman, armin arlert, mikasa ackerman, hange zoe, erwin smith, jean kirstein, annie leonhart, historia reiss, sasha braus, porco galliard, pieck finger, zeke yeager, connie springer

FOOD WARS! ━━━━━━━━ yukihira soma, erina nakiri, hisako arato, megumi tadokoro, ryokou sakaki, shun ibusaki, ikumi mito, takami aldini, isami aldini, nakiri alice, ryo kurokiba, akira hayama, isshiki satoshi, terunori kuga, eishi tsukasa, rindo kobayashi, somei saito, momo akanegakubo, saiba joichiro, azami nakamura

APEX LEGENDS ━━━━━━━━ bloodhound, gibraltar, lifeline, wraith, bangalore, caustic, mirage, octane, wattson, crypto, revenant, loba, rampart, horizon, fuse, valkyrie 

DEMON SLAYER ━━━━━━━━ kyojuro rengoku, giyuu tomioka, akaza, muzan, iguro obanai, shinobu kocho, mitsuri kanroji, obanai iguro, muichiro togito, sanemi shinazugawa, kanae kocho, kamado tanjiro, zenitsu agatsuma, inosuke hashibira, kokushibo, enmu, sabito

JUJUTSU KAISEN  ━━━━━━━━ gojo satoru, itadori yuuji, megumi fushiguro, nobara kugisaki, toge inumaki, maki zenin, nanami kento, naoya zenin, mahito, sukuna ryoumen, choso, geto suguru, toji fushiguro, yuta okkotsu

TOKYO REVENGERS ━━━━━━━━ chifuyu matsuno, keisuke baji, manjiro sano, takemichi hanagaki, ken ryuguji, takashi mitsuya, izana kurokawa, kazutora hanemiya

GENSHIN IMPACT ━━━━━━━━ diluc ragnvindr, kaeya alberich, albedo, beidou, eula, ganyu, hu tao, jean, kaedehara kazuha, kamisato ayaka, keqing, kujou sara, lisa, mona, ningguang, raiden shogun, rosaria, kokomi, tartaglia, thoma, aether, venti, xiao, yanfei, yoimiya, zhongli, itto, gorou

[wishingforatypewriter]

Raiden VS erik

Bella or Sumire

Sosuke + raiden

Raiden v. Erik - Typically Raiden wins in a shokugeki and Erik wins in a fist fight because Raiden has been facing off against Souma and Grandpa Jo since he was little and Ryo let Erik participate in underground fight clubs when he was growing up. 

Bella or Sumire - (Wow. I feel attacked by this lol) I love them both SOO much, but if I had to choose one I like better, it’s gotta be Bella. I think she’s my favorite OC overall because she has such a big, vibrant personality. 

Sosuke + Raiden - I see their relationship as kind of familial. For Raiden, Sosuke is the brother he never had. Also, Sosuke was basically adopted into Raiden’s family. Souma and Erina look out for him like he’s one of their own. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

Hi, a lot of people have been asking you about Before the Fall but I was wondering if, by any chance, you might have something in your drafts for Portraits of 119th. I just miss this collection a little, haha. So yes, I just wanted to ask! Good luck with everything and I hope the remaining days of this crazy year will be good to you 🍀

Hi! I hope you’re doing well too! This year has been so much. I have an embarrassing amount of Portraits of 119 WIPs in my drafts. Here’s one that centers on the new Polar Star kids (sorry it isn’t finished yet!)

Yukihira Raiden knew that it was rare for his father to ask favors of him, so when the old man called to see if he could check up on a friend’s shop over summer break, he had agreed without hesitation.

“You guys really didn't have to give up your whole break for this,” Raiden reminded his friends for the umpteenth time as they pulled up to the Okinawa beach house great-grandpa Nakiri left him in the will.

“This is way nicer than the beach trip I had planned anyway,” Utau said with a shrug. After receiving murder stares from Maria and Yuna, she backpedaled a bit. “Uh, I mean we're your friends and we have your back and stuff.”

“Thanks, Kawashima,” he said with a grin. “I'm gonna take a look around, but listen, hot tub's out back.”

“You don't have to tell me twice,” Utau sang as she made her way out to the patio. And of course Aoki-senpai was right on her heels.

“Library's upstairs,” he continued.

Yuna nearly gasped. It was said that the late Nakiri Senzaemon held an unprecedented number of rare culinary texts and personal food writing in his private collections. “T-thanks, Yukihira-kun,” she squeaked before mounting the stairs with a wide-eyed Endomoto Kairi behind her.

“So where are we headed?” Sosuke asked when only he and Maria remained.

“Are you sure you don't want to check out the beach or something?” Raiden asked them.

Maria just shrugged. “We can all head to the beach when we’re done with this.”

The shop was a quaint seaside shack, where beach-vacationers and locals alike could walk in for some world class casual faire.

However, despite the throngs of students on the beach and commuters racing home with the evening rush hour, the restaurant was all but deserted when the Totsuki students arrived.

“You kids are early,” the owner chef said as he came around to shake their hands.

“What seems to be the problem?” Maria asked after tasting chef's takoyaki. Everything they’d sampled has been delicious.

“There’s a place up the beach that’s recently come under new management. They cut deals with some of my suppliers to drive up the prices, and brought in some hotshots to revamp their menu.”

“That’s awful,” Maria said. “We’ll do whatever we can to help.��

“Someone’s pumping money into dude’s competition,” Sosuke said as soon as they left the shack. “Probably took one hell of a bribe to turn the vendors.”

“Who had that kind of pull?” Maria questioned, still nibbling on her stick on dango. “Well, besides your people?”

“I guess we’re about to find out.”

[wishingforatypewriter]

❥💝💜 for Raiden & Maria please? ;v;

❥: who is more likely to plan something big for valentine's day?

Honestly, I can see both of them planning something in secret to surprise the other, and then things going horribly wrong because they each have reservations at different places at the same time. It eventually reaches a point where they just decide to alternate who gets to make the plans each year.

💝: who spends more time (possibly overthinking) what presents to get the other?

Maria, definitely! After growing up with Bella, she knows that rich kids are incredibly difficult to shop for (because there is a 99.9% that if they’d like something they already own it) so she always spends months thinking of what to do for him. Usually she ends up inventing a new sweet or dish for him, and then (politely) asking everyone else to leave the dorm for the evening so she can create a romantic atmosphere. 

💜: who said "i love you" first? or, if neither has said it yet, who is more likely to say it first?

Raiden probably says it first because he’s the bolder of the two when it comes to things like that. I could see him confessing to her late at night out on the balcony at the Polar Star. I think hearing that from him would just melt Maria, because for her it was basically love at first sight. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

6, 9, 15, 23, 25 for Akane and Raiden pls xD

Akane

6. Rural living or urban living?

Definitely urban! Leave it up to Akane, and she’d live in the middle of Paris for the rest of her life. 

9. Brutal truth or blissful lie?

Brutal truth. She’s pretty good at sensing bullshit (she gets that from Hisako) and has very little patience for it. She always prefers for people to be direct with her. 

15. Tradition or innovation?

Tradition, at least when it comes to cooking. When she was training under Tsukasa Eishi, he basically taught her that surprises and showmanship are for people who can’t contend with perfection. 

23. Company or solitude?

Company, but only that of a select few people. 

25. Shame or pride?

Pride! There is so much pride inside of this girl. 

Raiden

6. Rural living or urban living?

Urban probably, but Raiden can also enjoy a quieter area. 

9. Brutal truth or blissful lie?

Blissful lie, probably. He has a bit of an aversion to difficult emotional stuff. Good vibes only for Raiden. 

15. Tradition or innovation?

Innovation, at least with his cooking. He’s constantly racking his brain (and his palate) trying to come up with the next big thing. 

23. Company or solitude?

 Company usually, but sometimes he really just needs to be by himself. 

25. Shame or pride?

Probably shame. I think with Raiden there’s always a bit of guilt about the amount of privilege he has as the Nakiri heir, especially when his closest friends at Totsuki come from more modest backgrounds. He tries to tread lightly in certain regards.

[wishingforatypewriter]

100 for Sorina's family!

100. “Like my Dad always says-” “Stop quoting him.” + The Yukihira Nakiris

Nakiri Erina kicked off her shoes as soon as she got home from her dinner service at The Evening Star, and left her whites on the floor of her bedroom before heading directly into the shower. These were habits that usually drove her husband up a wall, but he was off at his Paris restaurant, and she deserved a long bath and a glass of wine. 

She had just stepped out of the master bathroom and changed into her pajamas and robe when she heard the sound of a washing machine starting. She looked down and her forsaken whites—as well as all the other garments she’d left laying about over the past week—had vanished. 

When she went to the laundry room, Raiden was loading the dark clothes into the second washer and whistling along to the song blasting in his airpods.

“Hey, ma.” He flashed a bright grin when he saw her. “Did you eat yet?”

Erina blinked once. Twice. When on earth did he get to be so much like his father?

“So you finally remembered that you have a mother,” she quipped before pulling him into a tight hug. She still couldn’t process the fact that he was taller than her now. “And weren’t you just in Prague? When did you get in?”

“My plane landed at 11:30,” he replied. “I just took the air-train straight into Tokyo.”

Erina sighed. Had no one in this family of hers ever grasped the concept of advance notice? “I would have sent a car to get you if you’d said something.” 

“I actually only booked my ticket a few hours before the flight,” he said. “Pops keeps telling me how the prices can hit rock bottom on the day of, so I decided to try it this time.”

Erina couldn’t help but roll her eyes. She would never understand how a child of hers had become so budget conscious. “And why are you doing laundry, of all things, when you just got off a thirteen hour flight?”

“I mean, pops always says if you don’t get to it right away, it’ll start piling up and—”

“Please stop quoting him,” she said, caught halfway between a laugh and a groan. “You took after me in the beginning, you know.”

“Still do,” he promised. “Let me show you the dish I came up with this time.”

They’d just reached the kitchen when Erina heard a key turn in the door. No fucking way. 

“Yo, Erina.” Souma came in wearing a grin toting only his knife case. Even in his forties, he still moved like a goddamn alley cat. “Oh, and Raiden too? I guess I picked a good time to come home.”

“I thought you were in Paris until the end of the week,” Erina said, smiling despite herself.

“My flight app showed me a ticket for only €350, so I decided to just leave early. Besides, I missed you.” Souma crossed to her in three quick strides and kissed her briefly. “Let me get a load of laundry started and then I'll show you two my new menu item.” 

“I already have both of the washers going,” Raiden told him. 

“Good shit, kid. I bet your mother left her clothes all over the house again.” 

“How disrespectful,” Erina snapped, her cheeks pinking a bit at being called out so accurately. 

“C’mon, pops. It wasn’t even that bad this time, especially when you think about the Sydney house right before Christmas last year.”

“You thought that was bad? You should have seen the California place right before we opened Canvas. You could barely even see the floor—”

“Enough about the laundry, already!” With an annoyed huff, Erina stomped back into the kitchen. “It seems like it’s time to remind you both who the real MVP of this household is.”

Despite herself, she smiled as she set to work on her new masterpiece. It had been too long since she’d last cooked for the two of them. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

♡ 💌 For Akane and Raiden please

♡: who is the bigger romantic openly? secretly?

Raiden, openly. He spoils her shamelessly, and has since they were really young. Akane’s outer facade is very Serious Girlboss™ so she often acts like she doesn’t have time for love. However, behind closed doors she always roots for a good love story, even in her own life. 

💌: who is more likely to send cutesy texts to the other?

Raiden, most likely. If he’s traveling and he sees a horizon or cute animal or a spice plant, he’ll send her a picture and a sweet message. Akane will roll her eyes and be like “It’s 3 AM here...” but rereads them in the morning and finds them cute. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

Who’s ready for marriage first? Who wants kids first? For Akane and Raiden please

Who’s ready for marriage first?

Neither one of them was in a huge rush to get married. They were both very focused on their respective professional pursuits and could have very well made it into their thirties before their relationship became that serious. However, all of this changes after Akane is proposed to by Eizan Eijirou (and seriously considers saying yes). This event (paired with some light nagging from Erina) definitely creates some urgency on Raiden’s part that wasn’t there before. 

Who wants kids first? 

Raiden wants kids first. By the time she’s in a position to start thinking about having children, Akane is already an aunt and a godmother several times over. The idea of being that childless fun aunt who’s always traveling kind of appeals to her. They’d probably have children eventually, but significantly later than their 119th gen contemporaries. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

Akane and Raiden 6 PRE-RELATIONSHIP, 6 GENERAL, 1 LOVE, 2 and 3 DOMESTIC LIFE please

6. If you had told one of them that the other would be their soulmate, what would they think? (pre-relationship) 

Raiden: (Shrugs) I mean, probably. 

Akane: (Nods thoughtfully) Yeah, that tracks. 

I’d say both of them have been around 60% sure they’d end up together since they were little kids. They even had something like a childhood marriage promise between them. However, the idea of this gets a little murky when they’re older because of Raiden’s dalliance with Maria and Akane’s focus on her goals. 

6. What’s their relationship with each other’s families? (general)

Souma and Erina are Akane’s godparents, and she’s very close with them both. In fact, Erina and Akane are closer than most mothers and daughters, so it would be a very close family dynamic if Raiden and Akane got married. 

Hisako is Raiden’s godmother, and she adores him. Raiden also holds Hisako in extremely high regard; he’s said on several occasions that she is the smartest person alive. Akira, on the other hand, is sort of ambivalent towards Raiden, and vice versa. There is mutual respect as chefs between them, but it’s clear that  Akira holds Erik in higher regard. 

1. Who said “I love you” first? (Love) 

Raiden, definitely. Akane does not confess. She gets confessed to lol. 

2. What’s the wedding like? Who attends? (domestic life)

I’m gonna be honest. I haven’t gotten this far because I’m not sure if these two are endgame yet. It’s more than likely at this point, but I still don’t know. 

I imagine that it would be very expensive, though, and in Paris (because Akane). Virtually everyone they’ve ever met would be bowing and scraping for an invite. Maria probably wouldn’t go, but Erik would, if only out of a sense of obligation. 

3. How many kids do they have, if any? What are they like?

They’d probably have three kids because Raiden would have some only child angst, and Akane finds being the oldest sibling rewarding, even if it’s a bit thankless. 

[wishingforatypewriter]

📂 RAIKANE

Before they're officially together, Raiden and Akane have a godchild in common (Bella and Sosuke's daughter, Gabrielle). Several times when they're out shopping for baby clothes and toys, or just watching the baby for a weekend, people stop and tell them what a beautiful family they are.

[wishingforatypewriter]

#12 with Sorina

12. “But Uncle/Aunt lets me!” “They what?!” + The Yukihira Nakiris 

On her birthday, Erina woke up to the sensation of something tickling her face. She opened her eyes slowly and saw her husband sprinkling both her and the bed with the petals of pink carnations. 

When Souma saw her awake, he kissed her forehead. “Happy birthday, Erina.” 

“You’re ridiculous, you know,” she said, though she knew that a light blush was already dusting her cheeks. “Exactly who is going to vacuum all of this up later?”

Souma shot her a long look at this. “Have you ever even touched the vacuum before?”

“O-of course! What are you talking about?” 

“So where is it now?” he asked, smirking. 

She paused for a moment. Where did he keep that thing, anyway? “Well it’s...it has to be in the...rather—”

“Pops, stop antagonizing ma,” Raiden said as he came in, holding a tray loaded with breakfast. “It’s her birthday.” 

Souma ruffled their son’s hair. “What does that matter when you take her side every day of the year?” 

A broad grin bloomed on Erina’s face. Their eight-year-old was always quick to come to her defense. “It’s because he has sense like his mother,” she said before taking the tray from him. “Thank you, Rai. I can already tell it’s delicious.”

“The level of hypocrisy in this household,” Souma said with a laugh. 

Erina quickly smacked him with a nearby pillow and then turned back to their son. “So, explain your dish,” she said.

“Alright, so I know that if we go out for breakfast, you normally get eggs benedict, so what I have for you is a southwestern play on that dish,” he explained. “It uses chorizo in place of Canadian bacon and features a jalapeno hollandaise sauce. Next to this you have a side of potatoes and pan-fried asparagus with peppers, parsley, and sun-dried tomatoes.” 

Erina nodded, impressed. “You got all of that out of that one trip to San Antonio?”

“Pretty much,” he said. “Enjoy!” 

And enjoy she did. The flavors were perfectly balanced, yet whimsical, like a tightrope walker putting on a performance at the circus. “Nice work,” she said. “Though next time, I’d use grape seed oil to cook the vegetables instead of olive oil, which is perhaps more robust than necessary in the context of this dish.”

Raiden considered this for a moment. “Make sense. I got you next time!” 

Erina smiled at him, and then took a sip of the fresh cranberry juice on the tray. She made a face. Turns out it was a vodka-cranberry, and god-tongue notwithstanding, no eight-year-old should have been able to mix a drink half as well as he had. 

“Who taught you how to make this?” she asked, though she already had a hunch. 

“Aunt Alice,” he said, smiling. “She says it’s the only way to have cranberry juice.” 

Erina shook her head ruefully. “She would say that, wouldn’t she?” 

“Uncle Ryo disagreed with her though. He said you should drink it by itself.”

Once again, it seemed that Kurokiba was the only other sane person in this family. But then it dawned on her. “You mean the cranberry juice, right?”

“No, the vodka,” Raiden replied. “He says it’s always better to serve it neat unless they ask for something else.” 

“Sounds like Kurokiba,” Souma said, and when Erina looked he was now wearing the same expression as her. “Wait, what do you mean serve?”

Raiden shrugged. “Oh, he let me and Erik run the bar last time we were at the pub.”

“HE WHAT?” Souma and Erina asked simultaneously. 

“Ah, I wasn’t supposed to tell you guys that.” Raiden laughed, scratching the back of his head. “You’ll keep quiet, right?”

Erina exchanged a look with her husband, who only shrugged. 

“It’s not the craziest thing he could’ve been up to in Denmark,” Souma said before glancing over at Raiden. “Right?”

“Yeah, the rest of the trip was pretty calm, except for that and fight club.”

“FIGHT CLUB?” 

Raiden sighed. “It’s a lot to explain,” he said. “But I just watched...mostly.” 

Erina picked up the vodka-cranberry and sighed. “I suppose I’ll need the rest of this after all.” 

[wishingforatypewriter]

can you write Raiden and Mana first meeting please

Summary: Erina and Souma find out that their baby inherited the god tongue.

Nakiri Erina was not the praying kind. People in her world had little need for rituals and sentiments to ease the soul. They made their own luck, and when that failed, bought it, and when that failed, took what they wanted by force. 

But that had been before her child had stopped eating. 

Erina gazed down at the infant in her arms, red faced and fussing after she tried, unsuccessfully, to get him to drink. 

“Still nothing?” Souma asked, stepping out of the kitchen with an omelet for her and a bottle for Raiden.

Erina shook her head, not trusting herself to speak without tearing up. If she had learned nothing else in the past few days it was that when she cried, the baby cried, and her son was already worn out from his own misery. 

“Do you want to try the bottle again?” 

Erina took a moment to collect herself, breathing deep until the urge to sob on the exhale abated. “I don’t think it will work, but let’s try.”

It didn’t work, despite her husband’s best efforts to amuse their son into hunger, juggling coasters and spinning the remote control like a baton. “Maybe we should try taking him to a different doctor,” he said. “There’s no reason why he’d be like this if it’s just a regular fever.”

“You know why,” she said, her voice hollow, resigned. 

Erina had never been the praying type, but she had prayed and hoped and made silent deals in her mind with every deity she knew of to be kinder, less judgmental, more generous if they would only spare her child this. 

And they hadn’t.  

“We don’t know that for sure.” Souma rested a hand on her knee, tried to smile reassuringly, but she could see the anxiety behind his red-rimmed eyes. He hadn’t been sleeping either. “It could be something else.”

“No, not in this family.” She had snapped at him then, but didn’t mean to. Even among the Nakiris, this was simply unheard of. The appearance of the god tongue in three consecutive generations was unprecedented. Unfair. “Sorry, I just...I really didn’t want this for him. I wanted—”

“I know.” He gave her knee a gentle squeeze. “He’s going to be alright, Erina.”

Just then, the doorbell rang, shocking both of them. “Did you buy something on Amazon?” he asked her. 

“I don’t think so,” she said, “But Hisako or Alice might have sent me something.”

“I’ll go look.” 

And when her husband came back to her in the living room, Nakiri Mana was with him. “I expect you’ve both come to terms with it by now,” her mother had said before Erina could ask any of her questions—her what-are-you-doing-heres and where-have-you-beens. Once again, she found herself playing by her mother’s rules, standing on her turf even within the comfort of her own home. 

“Yes, we know,” she said quietly. “I trust you’ve been well, mother.” 

“Better than you have from the looks of it,” Mana replied. She took a seat on one of the lounge chairs, queenly and unbothered as always. She placed an ivory and tortoiseshell box on the coffee table and opened it. There were three glass jars filled with liquids and a glass eyedropper inside. “Hand me my grandson, Erina. I have something that will help.” 

Hesitantly at first, Erina obeyed and watched, transfixed, as her mother rocked and cooed to her son. “It’s alright now. Grandmother is here,” she said softly. “Souma, open that first jar and bring it to me”  

Once he had done so, Mana managed to get a few drops of the tincture onto Raiden’s tongue. The baby made a face that could only be described as offended, but stopped fussing after a moment or two. After giving the child a once over, Mana handed him back to Erina. “Try feeding him now.”

By some miracle, her son began to drink, as though he had suddenly remembered how to be hungry. Erina felt tears pricking her eyes and could do nothing to stop their leaking. Thank god. 

“Thanks, Mana,” Souma said, grinning at the woman in her imperious furs. Only he got away with addressing her so familiarly. “You really saved us there. What’s in that stuff anyway?”

“It’s a tincture of tarragon leaves, Gymnema sylvestre, and a few other herbs. It’s supposed to numb the taste buds,” she explained. “Or so Hiro the hero tells me.” 

“Arato Hiroshi?” Erina asked, recognizing the name at once. “Hisako’s father?”

“He never lets me down,” Mana said simply. “There are two more medicines in there because that man never fails to go overkill. The second one is to prevent nausea after he eats and the third will stop the fever.”

“Please give him our sincere thanks,” Erina said, gently rubbing her son’s back once he’d finished eating.

Mana shook her head slightly, smirking. “Convince that friend of yours to bring his grandchild back from London.”

Erina sighed. Hisako had been under so much stress with her family that Erina hadn’t even wanted to tell her what was going on with Raiden. “You know it’s more complicated than that.” 

Or she would have, if she’d been around. 

“People will always be flawed, Erina, but you have to believe he wanted what was best for her. Most parents do.” 

Erina knew this was as close to an apology as she would ever get from a woman as proud as her.  “We’re throwing a holiday party at the end of the year. If you bring him,” she said in measured tones—if you come—“I’ll try convincing Hisako to talk to him.”

At this Nakiri Mana’s expression softened for just a moment, and then she was all ice and ivory again. “You’ve always been a kinder child than we deserved,” she said before reaching for Raiden once more. “You should try to get some sleep. You look like hell, both of you. And I’d like to spend some time with my grandson.”

[wishingforatypewriter]

(Tumblr didn’t notify me on the OTP Question Meme Im mad !!) May I ask for 5, 12, 15, 16, 19 and 21 for Raiden/Maria please?

5. How would they describe each other?

Raiden would say that eating her cooking is like coming home after spending a lifetime away. He would tell you that Maria Aldini’s smile is what keeps the earth spinning on its axis, and that she creates community wherever she goes. 

Maria....let’s be honest, Maria would gush once you got her started. She would start by saying that he is kind, and handsome, and worldly, and creative, and the greatest cook she’s ever known. She would tell you that the most selfish thing she’s ever wanted was to keep him for herself (not for Totsuki or the Nakiri family or the culinary world at large, just for Maria Aldini). 

12. What would happen if they never met?

I don’t think Maria would have risen as far in the Elite Ten as she does if she hadn’t met Raiden (as of now I have her landing at the fourth seat during their third year). Before meeting him, she kind of felt like having a lot of ambition was a negative thing—that it was corrupting—but Raiden definitely changes her attitude towards power. 

If he hadn’t met Maria in Tuscany when he did, he probably wouldn’t have ever ended up at Totsuki (and ironically enough, if Raiden didn’t end up at Totsuki when he did, Akane definitely would have ended up with Erik). Honestly, I think she kind of saved him from spiraling into a bad place mentally. He could have very well ended up the way Mana did if not for his fated encounter with Maria Aldini. 

15. Describe your favorite moment of that ship!

I really love the moment when they met. Whether or not they ultimately end up together, I feel like when they first crossed paths, both of their trajectories changed irrevocably and each of them is a better person for having known the other. I know it’s corny and cliche, but I don’t get to write love at first sight often and the instant chemistry between Raiden and Maria was something I really found fun and refreshing. 

16. What do other characters think about this relationship?

Sosuke ships Raiden and Maria a lot. He thinks that Raiden’s at his happiest when he’s with Mari, and that they bring out the best in each other. 

Yuna thinks they’re a really cute couple for a lot of the same reasons as Sosuke. She also thinks Maria deserves to end up with her first choice. However, she does feel for Akane because she too knows what it’s like to pine after a childhood friend. 

Utau also ships it, mostly because she wants to see Maria—her pet project—marry well and rise in the world. (That Maria actually loves Raiden is just an added bonus as far as she’s concerned). 

Interestingly, Takumi ships it more than Megumi does (although they both like Raiden as a person and support the relationship). Megumi’s on Team Kesuke, but more on that later lol. 

Souma supports the relationship; he likes Maria a lot and respects her as a chef. Erina is pretty lukewarm about the idea of them together, but she certainly won’t stand in their way.

Grandpa Jou definitely would prefer for Raiden to end up with Maria, but Grandma Mana likes Akane better. 

19. Talk about a headcanon you’ve never talked about before.

When Isshiki Kesuke assumes the first seat and had the Elite Ten vote on whether to launch an investigation into the Nakiri family, Maria votes against it to protect Raiden and his family...and then breaks up with him because she realizes that continuing a relationship with the Nakiri heir will force her to compromise on her principles. I don’t see the breakup as permanent, or even lasting the entirety of their second year, but I’ve had that headcanon for a while now.

21. What’s a really significant moment in their relationship?

When their relationship is getting started, Raiden is often taking refuge in Maria’s world. It’s kind of a relief to him to spend time with her and her family at the trattoria and only worry about the customers in front of him. But I think a really significant moment is when Maria makes her debut in Raiden’s world and is determined to hold her own there. 

(In one of my many unfinished drafts) Right after they meet during family and alumni weekend at Totsuki, Erina invites Maria and Raiden to a get-together at one of Alice’s estates. The invitation is kind of a test because Erina suspects that a simple girl like Maria wouldn’t be able to navigate the world of the elites. However, Maria goes to her Aunt Ikumi and Uncle Isami for a crash course in the important names and faces and is able to handle herself, even when she comes face to face with Akane in her natural element. I found this an important moment because it’s when Maria really decides she isn’t going to step aside and asserts herself as Raiden’s partner to the people in his world.