Please Teacher! Fan Fiction ❯ Onegai Bounty Hunter ❯ Breakfast at Shinobus ( Chapter 5 )

Matagu and Zabaione took public transportation back into town. The alien marshall tried to remain non-plussed at the plethora of new sensory stimuli. After all, she was a trained professional, having been to numerous planets within the Galactic Federation. Yet try as she might, the tourist part of her felt more than elated. Law enforcement personnel rarely had time to appreciate the sights. She spent more time in spaceships since she had attained her position.

"I've been meaning to ask, I know it's daytime here, but doesn't your biological clock get messed up traveling so many light years?" he asked her.

She shifted in her bus seat to face him. "You mean time differences?" she guessed. "When I entered your system, I tried as best I could to compensate. Luckily when it was night for you, it was night for me. Sometimes that isn't the case and I'm used to going without normal rest."

He had a number of questions he intended to ask and it felt exhilarating to talk to such an enchanting woman. After Ichigo, she was a breath of fresh air! He wondered if a trend was beginning as he started to show attraction towards older women. Ichigo, Ms Kazami, and now Zabaione. His relationship with Ichigo had never progressed beyond friendship. Of the six friends, he related to her the least and knew she wanted nothing to do with him in a romantic sense as she outnumbered him by almost six years in age. With Ms Kazami, it only amounted to a teacher/student relationship; he had entertained wild thoughts of proposing to her, but the cold reality was that he had nothing substantial to offer. Even thinking he had a chance with Zabaione was a pipe dream. But to not even try at all, like he had not with Ms Kazami, was something he never wanted to endure again. There were rumors throughout the last year of high school that she was having an affair with Kei of all people.

The bus came to a stop in the center of town. Zabaione felt like she had stepped back in time, so ancient the surroundings looked to her compared to her homeworld. There were gas powered automobiles and bicycles on the streets. Matagu led her down the busy sidewalk that ran alongside the thriving business district.

"My parents own a beauty salon," he mentioned to her. "If you'd like to get a manicure, pedicure, or anything let me know!"

She arched an eyebrow, but gave no comment. Dolling herself up was a low priority on her list. The collection of Mizuho Kazami remained priority one. He stopped at the entrance of a café which had outdoor seating in a lush garden setting. Characters on a banner read "Flower and Sword Garden Bistro". A tall girl with red wavy hair in a pony tail greeted them just inside the door. Her exotic look was attributed to her being a quarter of Irish.

"Matagu?" Kaede Misumi said in stunned disbelief. She had never seen him in a social setting with a girl, not to mention such a looker as the one now. Matagu had always been down on himself, referring to be the last member of the "Virgin Federation". Thoughts of him hiring her to be his girlfriend crossed her mind, but she quickly dismissed them. He didn't have the money for such things and as a friend, she would give him the benefit of the doubt. After all, Kei had landed Ms Kazami.

"Hello Kaede," he smiled weakly. "How are you this morning?"

"Fine," she smiled back. "Two? Would you like to sit outside?"

He nodded and she led them to a small table next to a gurgling manmade fountain. Goldfish of various sizes swam around in the clear cool water. After pulling out her chair for her, he sat himself then took two menus from the hostess.

"So aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" she pressed.

He chided himself for his lack in manners. "Zabaione, this is my classmate and friend Kaede Misumi. Kaede, this is Zabaione Costada, a graduate student from America."

"Nice to meet you," Kaede smiled warmly at the woman. It felt nice to meet a person a little taller than she with almost the same hair color.

"Likewise," Zabaione afforded her a pleasant look. "This is my first time sampling the fare of your land."

"This place serves a traditional Japanese breakfast as well as a Western one," she let her know.

"I'm used to the Western," she expertly covered Matagu's white lie. "What do you recommend?"

She glanced at her menu then looked at Matagu then Kaede.

"I'll let Matagu help you choose," she decided then walked away to greet some more arriving customers.

He paused, distracted by their eye contact. Those jade green ones mesmerized him to no end. "I usually have miso soup, rice, eggs, and some natto."

"Rice is your staple food, right?"

"Yes, how did you know?" he asked with interest.

"I browsed the manual. We have field reports on your cultures."

Actually, she had read from one of Kazami's own observations, when the fugitive had been a bona fide planet inspector.

"Explain eggs, miso soup, and natto to me," Zabaione requested.

It would have been more helpful to wait for the food to arrive to provide a visual aid, but maybe she was testing his communication skills. "Well, eggs are a protein source from an unfertilized embryo, usually from a domestic bird, a chicken," he responded helpfully. "You can eat them raw or cooked. Miso is a paste that is dissolved in hot water, hence the soup. A few vegetables and bean curd can be added. Natto is something that takes getting used to. It's not pleasant to look at, smells funny, but is very healthful. It's an acquired taste."

"You speak warily of it," she observed.

"That's because a lot of people I know don't like it," he said. "But you should try it anyway. Most foreigners don't like it, but I'm anxious to know what an alien might think." He chuckled nervously.

"I've tried different food from all over the galaxy," she told him. "I have a pretty strong stomach."

"What do you like best?"

"Food that comes from oceans."

"The lake here has great fish," he mentioned. "We could go fishing later on from a boat. There are people right on site that prepare your catch right after!"

The waitress came by with some green tea and he requested a tall glass of ice to cool it down.

Their breakfast arrived soon enough and Zabaione picked up her chopsticks. "You'll have to explain how to use these utensils," she requested.

"You take the food from the dishes and put them on your own plate," he relayed.

She stared at the natto, a conglomeration of gossamer strings and small circular particles.

"It's fermented soy bean," he added. "Goes good in the soup or on your rice."

She inhaled the pungent smell and wrinkled her brow. "This is going to be interesting," she commented, then followed his example as he took the food with his chopsticks.

Kaede watched with interest from her podium, knowing that Hyosuke and the others had to know soon about Matagu's change of luck.