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 Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2010 11:20 pm
In front of a towering display that proclaimed only the finest ninja technology and NASA engineering, a small figure in a light blue uniform quivered with excitement. This. Was. It. Emily had heard rumors of a new kitchen tool so advanced that the Russian spies had attempted to steal the blueprints and auction them off to the Middle East. A piece of home technology so epic that George Lucas already owns the movie rights. It was as if “Ride of the Valkyries” could both toast an English muffin to perfection and slice tomatoes. Such a masterpiece of engineering could only be known as…
Chef Master Pro’s Ultimate Masamune 9000 Plus:
Caught in it's hypnotic splendour, Emily could only stare, eyes glassy and dilated, cheeks gaining a flush most common among drunks and perverts.
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Posted: Tue Jan 19, 2010 6:12 am
Yes, the partial scholarship was still valid, though she'd still be a sophomore when she came. The decision was finally made: Esen was going to Crystal Academy.
It took her quite a bit of reasoning with her mother and father, but there was a compromise made: Esen was also allowed to board at the school, but a newer cell phone was to be given to her and taken care of so mother could keep in contact.
This was why Esen was here today: her father, fresh on break, had given her a decent lump-sum for the birthday and holiday she missed. However, when you needed to buy all-new things for the most part, one thousand dollars (the book deal father got gained benefits!) did not go far at all - no, she wasn't a clothes-horse, but she was a person who liked technical stuff, and she was eying a new $700 notebook computer bundle, so if she wanted it, she'd have to spend less than $300.
That was why the display for the Ultimate Masamune 9000 Plus caught her eye in the kitchen department. Esen's issue with gluten was not something the green-haired girl took lightly, and since it could be triggered by contaminated surfaces (cookie sheets are usually used for its namesake, involving wheat-based flours), she figured it best to buy her own kitchen equipment to ensure that it was not contaminated. This could slice and toast stuff pretty well, from the looks of it.
There was also a Crystal-clad girl with a pale complexion staring at the display with red eyes a shade or two brighter than her cheeks. We mean, however, staring - the intent sort that said they've been doing that for a while now. They were also blocking the part of the sign proclaiming its low, low price of... well, Esen didn't know, they were blocking the sign!
Esen could have been rude, but she knew the reputation of most Crystal students as sub-zero in the kindness factor if you were on their bad side (or simply BELOW them, Esen knew bullies like that), and she was going to be one soon, so in the interest of not making enemies before entering the gates, she asked Emily a polite, though mainly expressionless, question.
"Excuse me, miss, do you know the price on this?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 19, 2010 9:57 pm
Price? Price?! The question made Emily stand ramrod and she was about to declare that one could not simply put a price on the Masmune 9000 Plus. Then she looked down and saw the starting price tag. Oh. Well then…
Turning to the girl behind her, Emily replied in infomercial-ese, “The basic Masamune 9000 Plus can be yours for a low price of $59.95. Price does not include taxes, or additional accessories.” Looking the girl over, she felt the need to add, “For an additional $9.95 you could get one in green.” She nodded toward a smaller display featuring other colors. Emily was fairly certain she would get one in a nice fire engine red, as the color suited Miss Mindy’s aesthetics rather well.
“Of course,” she continued, feeling the need to really explain the product in question, “that’s just the start of it. The true power of the Masamune 9000 Plus is in the additional accessories. There are over nine thousand.” Most of which were special order, but just the thought of all those possible extras made Emily want to grab the other girl by the hands and dance around. As it was she settled for flushing a little more and stepping out of the girl’s way so she could truly behold the wonder that was before them.
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Posted: Wed Jan 20, 2010 12:51 am
Fifty-nine, ninety-five, and apparently if you paid another nine ninety-five, you got a color choice. The basic white color would make the product blend in too much with other, similar products, so that would be a good thing, Esen thought, giving a nod.
"Helpful information you've given me, miss, especially since I'll be boarding at Crystal soon. Thanks." When the black-bobbed girl stepped back, the sign proclaimed, sure enough, the price was about $60, and (in smaller print) that another $10 or so would offer colors. Granted, the additional colors were your basics; red, blue, yellow, the aforementioned green, and black, none of which were rather spectacular-looking - but the blue seemed suitable...
"Wait... you can get nine thousand accessories for this?" The slightly surprised-sounding Esen usually wasn't the sort into As-Seen-On-TV products for the fact that there was always something behind their words that made the product really crappy in comparison to the actual infomercial selling it (You had to do so much prep before setting and forgetting it, that rotisserie they advertised a few years ago was not worth the buy), so this seemed like the catch, as well as the reason the Masamune 9000 Plus was named, well, the 9000 Plus. "What kinds of accessories could one get for it? Beyond the toaster and slicer it comes with, I mean."
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Posted: Wed Jan 20, 2010 3:21 am
Nodding graciously at the the other girl's thanks, the mention of Crystal perked Emily's attention right up. So, this was someone who would be sharing space, dorm space with Miss Mindy, then? Walking the same halls, breathing the same air...
The maid's eyes narrowed a bit and gave the girl a much more thorough going over. She seemed fairly well put together, and clean. At the question, Emily shifted closer to her and sniffed before responding. Pleasant smelling enough as well. Excellent. In addition, she was interested in learning more about what was possibly the greatest kitchen tool in the history of mankind. Which meant this girl was quite obviously intelligent.
Quality check satisfied, Emily began, "Well, most aren't available in regular stores. But this place does appear to carry the food dehydrator, egg cooker, bedazzler, fruit peeling, extermination, and omelet maker attachments. Oh,” a small, pleased smile appearing as she noticed one other item, “…and they have the breadmaker one as well.” Turning, she quietly confided, “I prefer to make my own when possible, to avoid rotting from the inside-out.”
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Posted: Wed Jan 20, 2010 4:50 am
Esen was a thoughtful person herself, and as such regarded the girl's actions as simple signs of the fact the girl before her had a thought process. Granted, Emily was not just thinking about her response, but was putting Esen through a cleanliness test instead; Esen didn't really see the girl's nose move in the manner of sniffing, rather choosing to keep the straight faced-look she always held in public when Emily spoke about the attachments.
Regarding the list of attachments that one could get for the Masamune 9000 Plus, the BeDazzler attachment made Esen laugh internally, and the Extermination attachment may or may not be of use - it likely wouldn't be, it IS Crystal Academy, after all - but the actual attachments meant for use with food seemed promising, though especially the breadmaker.
"I definitely have to agree there on making food myself, miss. I can't eat regular bread." Or cereal. Or pasta. Or practically half the foods on the given Earth. Esen did not divulge more than that in the list of "Food I'm forbidden to eat for my health." Though one thing was bugging her excessively.
"I don't usually like calling people by their titles. My name is Quinn, how about yours?" No offered hand, no really evident change in expression, just the question of "What's your name?"
Esen was not the kind of girl very open with her name... her first name, at least. As Quinn was her middle name, she wasn't outright lying.
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Posted: Wed Jan 20, 2010 5:32 am
Emily found herself nodding in approval, “A number of foods should be forbidden for everyone’s health. It’s only common sense to take matters into your own hands.” Miss Mindy’s love of artificial foods was the source of many sleepless nights for the maid. She’d taken to sneaking multi-vitamins into her mistress’s food, just to keep her from dying of malnutrition.
The introduction combined with the lack of an offered hand, had Emily automatically clasping her own hands in front of her and bowing slightly to the other girl. “My name is Emily, Miss Quinn. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance.”
The maid’s interaction with others had a fairly straightforward hierarchy, depending on where she mentally placed them. It went something like:
MISS MINDY (Final Boss) > LEE FAMILY (Boss) > GUESTS (Mini Boss) > EVERYONE ELSE (NPCs)
At the moment, Emily wasn’t sure if she could consider Miss Quinn to be a “guest” of sorts (she would be living in the same dorms after all) or just part of the great wide mass of “everybody else.” In the end, Miss Mindy would likely be the deciding factor, so she decided to err on the side of helpful formality in the meantime. “Will you be needing any assistance?”
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Posted: Thu Jan 21, 2010 4:28 am
"Very much true on additives, Emily, very much." Esen did not eat ramen noodle flavorings (no point, she couldn't even have the actual ramen), so she would likely either A) agree or B) not care if she ever saw Mindy Lee eat the salt mixes supposedly flavored 'chicken' or 'beef,' though the way Mindy ate the packets would likely have Esen agreeing with the girl in front of her.
"You're welcome, by the way." Esen took note of Emily's formal introduction - she should probably expect that from others when she got established at Crystal.
A few seconds passed after Emily asked if Esen could use some help. Esen's stitches weren't out yet, even though they would be soon, and if there was one thing she did not want to do, it was break them. The green-haired girl could take stuff herself, but she figured she could use some help when buying this experiment: that is, whether or not infomerical products were worth the hype.
"I usually don't like to ask, but as you've offered, could you take a Masamune Breadmaker Attachment for me, please?" The price tag for that attachment seemed to be of a decent enough price that it would not be over $100 (well, over $107, if the Destiny City tax stayed the same as she remembered) to get the set if she bought the $70-ish blue-colored Masamune. That was at a height not too high or low for Esen to reach as she took a few steps to the colored display, taking a box with a blue machine on the front. "...wait. Were you going to buy one?" Esen remembered the way Emily was staring at the display, like some other girls would stare at posters of their favorite famous heartthrob, which Esen lacked.
Of course, Emily was not so immune to such fangirlish impulses as she seemed to be, but Esen didn't even know of Don Diablos, much less the nuances of pro wrestling.
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