Work Text:
Chie's stomach groans.
"Really?" Yosuke calls out, "Now?"
Yosuke is right to point out the awkward timing. They're in the middle of a fight in the Secret Laboratory, on their way to save Naoto Shirogane.
"Shut it," Chie says and she kicks the Shadow into the air.
"Hmmm, maybe her hunger makes her more motivated to beat down the Shadows," Yukiko observes.
Yukiko has a point, because in her fervour, Chie punts all the remaining Shadows into the sun.
After the battle ends, everyone is staring at her in disbelief. Chie's stomach grumbles again.
"Can we go get some food now?" she asks, breaking the stunned silence.
"We're in the middle of an investigation!" Kanji exclaims. He's very desperate to find Naoto.
"I don't know..." Rise's voice calls out, "A break might be nice. We've been at this for hours."
"But- But..." Kanji protests.
Yosuke turns to Yu.
"What do you think, partner? You're the leader."
Yu thinks it over. Chie's hunger makes her weirdly strong, but starving his teammates doesn't sound great either.
"Let's take a break!" he says and he takes out a Goho-M. Fog overtakes them and they're back at the entrance of the Midnight Channel.
"Okay, let's go out!" Chie turns to make her way to the real world, but others stop her.
"We can't just leave now!" Teddie says, "After our break, we need to go back to find a way to Shirogane-kun."
That's the plan, after all.
"But... I gotta eat my meat!" Chie sounds upset.
"I have some other snacks that you can have," Yukiko suggests.
But Chie is so upset, she sits down to sulk. Her stomach grumbles again, reminding everyone of her hunger for meat.
"Well, why don't you just order a beef bowl?" Yosuke jokes.
"I can't order a beef bowl! We're in the TV World, dork!" Chie bites out.
Yosuke smiles, clearly enjoying teasing a hungry Chie. "Hey, Aiya delivers anything, anywhere, anytime. You hear that? Anywhere."
"We're nowhere!" Chie says angrily, getting worked up.
"I mean, we can try..." Yu says, trying to diffuse the situation, although it sounds ridiculous.
"Is there even a signal here?" Kanji asks Teddie, who shrugs.
Chie rolls her eyes, but the thought of it working makes her hunger even worse, so she flips open her phone and calls Aiya. To her surprise, someone picks up. Chie quickly orders food, but when she's asked where to deliver, she falters.
"... Uh. In the TV in Junes. Yes, in. In the TV. Yes. I know. Okay. Uh. Okay? ... Hello? Hello?"
Chie looks at her phone.
"They hung up on me."
And that is the end of it.
Or so they thought.
Chie had accepted her lack of meat and ate Yukiko's food instead. Luckily, it was store-bought, not home made. The Investigation Team is about to resume their expedition, when suddenly, they hear the sound of an engine of a scooter coming closer.
"Is that...?" Rise trails off.
"No way," Kanji mutters.
"I got your delivery," a familiar cheery-yet-deadpan voice calls out through the fog.
To everyone's utter surprise, Aika parks her scooter in front of everyone, gets off to open the delivery box, and hands Chie a plastic bag.
"Aika? How are you here?" Yu asks.
"That will be 1.200 yen," Aika says, ignoring the question.
"Wait, wait, this is just weird, even weirder than when she found us on the street!" Yosuke calls out.
Chie's own confusion gets pushed away by her longing for food, and she eagerly pays Aika.
"Oh my God, are you the killer?" Rise exclaims, dramatically pointing towards Aika. As a result, everyone except for Chie readies themselves for a possible fight.
But Aika doesn't seem to care at all.
"When you're done, just leave the bowls," she says and she mounts her scooter.
"Wait- Hold on a sec-"
And with that final request, Aika speeds away.
Everyone turns to Teddie for an explanation, but Teddie says he can no longer smell Aika's existence within the TV World. In fact, it's as if Aika was never here in the first place. This greatly confuses everyone. Even Chie looks up from her bowl with a confused face.
"... what the fuck just happened," Yu is the first to break the stunned silence.
"Do we go after her?" Kanji asks.
"But was she really here?" Yukiko asks, referring to what Teddie said.
"Well, my meat is definitely here," Chie says and she sets the first finished bowl apart. It's time for the second.
"Let's- Let's focus on the investigation," Yu suggests, mostly because he's also out of his depths. Maybe this whole Aika situation can wait.
Chie finishes her bowl and they go back to the Secret Labratory. After some more exploring, they find the final floor where Naoto should be.
"Are we going in, senpai?" Kanji raises his steel chair over his head.
But Yu shakes his head. They've found their way, now they need to go back to Inaba to prepare. They used a bunch of resources and items, and they all need a break. Kanji tries to protest, but he cannot argue with his own fatigue. Tomorrow, after school, Yu will go shopping and then they can save Naoto.
Everyone agrees and Yu uses another Goho-M to make them return to the entrance.
The bowls are gone.
"You sure you put them here?" Yosuke asks Chie.
Chie nods.
"They have been picked up!" Chie concludes.
Everyone stares at the empty spot where the bowls had been.
"I... need a break," Yu says.
He doesn't get one. The moment the Investigation Team returns to Inaba, Yu walks towards Aiya.
"Oh, hello!" Nakamura calls out.
Yu bows politely, but then immediately scans the vicinity for Aika. And yes, there she is. She's waiting tables in the back.
"Aika."
Aika turns around.
"Hello, did Satonaka-san like the beef bowls?"
"So, you were actually there?" Yu asks. He didn't expect Aika to say it outright.
"Of course. We deliver anything, anywhere, anytime, including there."
"But how- how did you get in there?" Yu asks.
Aika shrugs.
"I just drove to the destination that Satonaka-san gave me. That's all I can say," she says with a shrug, "Now excuse me, unless you want to order, I'd like to continue with my work."
And with that, Aika turns her back to Yu and continues her work.
Yu is left dumbfounded.
He's stood in the middle of Aiya, watching Aika work.
Maybe... he shouldn't think too much about it. Yu gives up and walks out of Aiya. This is a mystery for another day.