"So. Did Ian say something about pancakes?" you ask, sniffing the air.
Ah, yes. There it is. Delicious pancakes.
"Lynette's cooking," Miyafuji tells you. "She makes the best pancakes on the whole base!"
You follow the heavenly scent of pancakes to the kitchen, where you find Lynette standing on tip-toe to address a pancake griddle set atop one of the huge industrial ranges. She daintily flips another pancake over. "Oh, hello~" she says to you. "Are you feeling better?"
"Some," you admit. "How's Minna feeling today?"
"She's really happy that you actually made a report without any 'bouncing' involved, whatever that is," Lynette tells you. "She said you're learning, and you might be useful yet."
"Good dog," you mutter darkly as you load a plate with steaming hot pancakes. "We need to have a chat, her and I." You stab your fork at the last cooked pancake on the counter, but somebody tries to snag it away. Growling, you fork-fence with the intruder until you snag it away with a swift thrust and devour it with the relish of victory.
"Ah, good contest, chap." You look up at the opposing fork's owner, a wide-faced man with a broad sort of handsomeness; and a more mature combat-beard then the Brit in the dining room. "Lynette here's one hell of a cook, eh?" He tousles her hair affectionately, and she giggles.
"Your unit being pulled into this whole..." you wave your hand about vaguely... "this mess?"
"What, ya mean all the brass hats? Suppose they've got something planned for us, yeah."
"Yeah, that great big blowhard has something planned for us, all right," the rakish-looking man says, entering the kitchen with an empty coffee pot. He saunters over to the coffee maker and swaps the empty one for a full one. "Eh?" he says, hoisting it at you, and both you and the other man let him pour you a mug each.
"Who, Patton?" you ask, adding some sugar to your mug and stirring briskly as you prepare to shovel more pancakes into your mouth with your free hand.
"Nah, Monty," the wide-faced man replies, sighing.
"I think he's still pissed about the flowerpots," the rakish-looking man replies seriously.
"That was fucking WORTH it," Wide-Face replies, grinning. "Christ, was it ever." He sips at his coffee, eyes dreamy with some treasured memory, then winces. "Bit strong. Hey, love, is there any creamer in here?"
"First refrigerator," Lynette replies cheerfully, whipping up the next batch of pancakes.
The broad, tall, handsome Brit strides over to the refrigerator with the air of man savoring the simple joys of an enclosed, powered, fully-stocked kitchen for the first time in many months. Still smiling, he opens the refrigerator.
And Erwin Rommel punches him in the fucking face.
The British man is floored - quite literally, as Rommel takes him by complete surprise. Recovering swiftly, he scrabbles backwards over the floor as Rommel emerges from the refrigerator, tapping a massive frozen kielbasa in the palm of one gloved hand. He stalks across the tile like an avenging angel, his eyes smoldering with rage.
"K-knock it off ya fucking lunatic!" the Brit says as he crawls across the floor. The rakish-faced man is looking on with great amusement, sipping at his java.
"I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave," Rommel says, his voice low and dangerous. He raises the kielbasa for the killing blow, but the Brit slides under the food prep table in the middle of the room, buying himself seconds. He emerges from the other side with a half-thawed leg of lam, apparently found amidst the evicted foodstuffs you helped Rommel hide under there yesterday. Rommel leaps atop the table, swinging his kielbasa with gusto, and the Brit leaps to meet him, frozen meat meeting with a meaty MACK! sound.
"We're on the same side now!" the Brit apparently named "Dave" shouts, parrying a kielbasa thrust.
"ASK ME HOW MANY FUCKS I GIVE!" Rommel says, and knocks Dave clean off the table with a mighty blow. 'Dave' hits the ground rolling and comes to his feet dual-wielding spatulas.
"A little help would be nice, Paddy," he snarls, circling the table as Rommel adopts a two-handed low-guard with his kielbasa.
"Wouldn't it just," the rakish-faced man says, looking TREMENDOUSLY amused.
You edge out of the kitchen cautiously as the Ghost Major duels the Desert Fox, scarfing down pancakes as you retreat. Dave's got a point; Lynette sure does know how to cook. She joins you a few seconds later, clutching her spatula to her chest nervously.
"What's all that about?" she asks you tremulously.
"Not quite sure," you admit.