"Uh...what's this?!" The boys huddled around Kazuichi after Kiki showed him her rough sketch.
"It's my kart, duh!" Kiki thrusted her hand on her hip and raised a brow.
"Okay, but...why does it look like a...butt, or something?" Kazuichi said, turning the paper at various angles as if it would help him understand the sketch better.
"It's not a butt, it's an apple!" Kiki scoffed, throwing her hands into the air.
"An apple?" Kaito said. "Why an apple?"
"I'll explain that later, but...do you think we can build it?" Kiki folded her hands together in hopeful excitement. Kazuichi scratched his head in thought while studying the drawing closely.
"Mmm...I guess I can try," he finally answered. "Alright! Just let me take care of this, and I'll be back with the blueprints tomorrow!"
***
"No, no, no! That's the steering wheel!" Kazuichi said to Kaito. It was late next morning, and the boys had woken up in the early hours of the morning to work on Kiki's kart. Kazuichi helped build, but also went around observing the other boys' work, helping them out whenever they needed it.
"Oh! Well...it's not my fault I can't think straight!" Kaito huffed. "It's hot out here, and I'm thirsty!" Right as he said that, Himiko came out with two glasses of lemonade in her hands. "Hey! Thanks, Himiko!" Kaito reached his hand out, but Himiko walked past him and handed the two glasses to Kokichi and Kiki instead.
"Nyeh...here you go, Kokichi," Himiko said. "You, too, Chibi-Kichi."
"Awwww, thanks, Monkey Buns!" Kokichi gave Himiko a kiss on her cheek as he took the glass.
"Yeah! Thanks, Himiko!" Kiki said.
"Heeeey! What about us?!" Kaito exclaimed. "We're dyin' out here!"
"As Supreme Lady, it's my duty to serve only the Supreme Leader...and his cousin," Himiko replied.
"So...the Supreme Lady is subservient to the Supreme Leader?" Gundham asked curiously.
"Sounds like someone's stuck in the '50s," Fuyuhiko chuckled.
"Believe me, I'm subservient to her, too," Kokichi muttered, taking a sip of lemonade. "I'm the one that had to help her unclog the toilet yesterday."
"H-Hey! You said we weren't going to speak about that again!" Himiko stammered.
"Uh...no, I didn't," Kokichi said. "We never agreed on anything like that."
"Well...you should already know not to speak about it!" Himiko said. "It's part of the Supreme Leader/Supreme Lady code of honor!"
"Well, as the Supreme Leader, only I get to decide if there's such a thing as a Supreme Leader/Supreme Lady code of honor, and there isn't!" Kokichi said with a cheeky grin.
"Well, change your mind!" Himiko demanded.
"Nope!" Kokichi crossed his arms and stuck his tongue out at Himiko.
"Hey, Kokichi? If you're the Supreme Leader, what does that make me?" Kiki asked as she handed Gundham a wrench. Kokichi tapped his chin in thought.
"Hmm...good question," he said. "How about...countess?" Kiki raised her eyebrows in delight.
"Ooo! I like that! Countess Kiki!" she said.
"Well, could you at least tell Kirumi to bring the rest of us some lemonade?!" Kaito shouted testily. Himiko just stood there with her hands folded in front of her, not even acknowledging Kaito. He sighed. "Kokichi...?"
"Himiko, please tell Kirumi to bring the guys some lemonade," Kokichi said.
"Nyeh...gladly, your supreme leaderness," Himiko replied with a curtsy.
"Thank you," Kokichi said, and Himiko ran off to look for Kirumi. Fuyuhiko chuckled and shook his head.
"You two are dorks," he said.
"Nee-heehee...we're also cute, so we make it work!" Kokichi replied.
"Hey, Gundham, could you pass me the hammer?" Fuyuhiko asked. Gundham tossed the hammer to Fuyuhiko.
"This is coming along nicely, you guys!" Kazuichi said, nodding his head approvingly.
"Pretty soon, you'll have the kart you've always wanted, Chibi-Kichi!" Kokichi said. Kiki smiled happily.
"I wonder how fast it's gonna go," she said dreamily. Suddenly, they heard a loud engine roaring. They looked up to see Mondo flying down the street on his motorcycle. Kiki gasped in astonishment. "Ooo! I wanna go fast like that guy!" Mondo zoomed past them, and they waved at him. Mondo turned around and drove his motorcycle right up to Casa V3's driveway.
"'Sup?" he asked, dismounting from his bike and walking up to them. "What'cha guys doin?' You buildin' something?"
"Yeah, we're building a kart for Kokichi's cousin here," Kazuichi replied, gesturing to Kiki. Kiki looked at Mondo with fascination. Mondo raised his eyebrows in surprise at her.
"No shit? I didn't know Kokichi had a cousin," he said.
"Well, you didn't ask!" Kokichi said.
"So, you like racin,' huh?" Mondo asked Kiki. Kiki blushed a little.
"Well, I've never actually done it, but I wanna try it," she replied shyly.
"Huh...first time I ever met a chick who wants to race, and she's only a little girl," Mondo said. "That's pretty badass!"
"You've never met another girl who wants to race?" Kiki asked in surprise.
"Nah. I mean, I've heard of female racers, and shit, but I've never met one face-to-face before," Mondo replied.
"Are you a racer?" Kiki asked.
"Nope, not me," Mondo answered. For a brief moment, his eyes were full of sadness. "I did it once. Don't think I'll ever do it again, though."
"Why?" Kiki asked.
"It's not somethin' I like talkin' about," Mondo said. "But, hey, if you wanna tackle racin,' I'd say go the hell on right ahead! You got balls, girlie!" Kiki giggled.
"I got...balls? " She asked with a puzzled grin. "What do you mean by that?"
"Oh, my bad," Mondo mumbled sheepishly for saying something vulgar in front of a little girl. "I just meant that you got guts, kid."
"Oh! Then, why couldn't you just say that?" Kiki asked. "Why did you say ball-"
"Uh-ooohhh...lemonade's here!" Kokichi interrupted, saving both, Mondo and Kiki from their conversation. The boys turned to see Kirumi holding a large platter of glasses full of lemonade. They thanked Kirumi as she handed each of them a glass, including Kokichi and Kiki, who had already finished their previous glasses.
"Mondo, I did not know you were coming. Would you like me to bring you a glass of lemonade, as well?" she asked politely.
"Shit, I couldn't do that," Mondo replied. "I don't wanna put too much pressure on ya."
"It is no pressure at all," Kirumi said. "As the Ultimate Maid, it is my duty to serve others."
"It would be an act of treason to not accept this concoction that even I, the Supreme Overlord of Ice, could not overcome, and have instead decided to succumb to this flavor most powerful and satisfying!" Gundham said.
"Huh? How would it be an act of treason?" Kaito asked.
"By denying this drink of life, you are betraying your own taste buds, and the rest of your body!" Gundham explained.
"You might as well drink some," Fuyuhiko said to Mondo. "You'll regret it if you don't."
"It's that good, huh?" Mondo asked. "Must be if even a yakuza thinks it's good. Well, if it's not too much trouble, I guess, I'll take a glass, too, Kirumi!"
"Of course. I will return shortly," Kirumi promised, and dashed back inside.
"So, you guys need help?" Mondo asked.
"Well, it wouldn't hurt to have another helping hand, I guess," Kazuichi replied. "Besides, the more people to help us work on this, the faster it might get done."
"Sweet!" Mondo said, removing his jacket, and joined the other boys. As they worked, Kiki crept over to Kokichi.
"That guy's kinda cute," she whispered in his ear, pointing at Mondo. Kokichi chuckled in response and kissed her forehead. The boys continued working for hours until mid-afternoon, when they were finally finished. Kazuichi checked all the parts of the kart, including the engine, making sure it was placed correctly. There, in front of them, was an apple-shaped kart. Though the boys thought it was weird, they were proud of the results.
"Everything is all good!" Kazuichi announced. Everyone cheered. "We just need to paint it, though."
"So, what color do you want your...apple kart, Kiki?" Fuyuhiko asked.
"I definitely want it gold!" Kiki replied. "The apple part, specifically. I'd like the tires to be a lavender color."
"Why is it even apple-shaped in the first place?" Kaito asked. "Weren't you gonna tell us why?"
"Ooo! Ooo! and what are you gonna name it?" Kokichi asked.
"It will have to be a name that strikes fear into the hearts of the other lowlife racers!" Gundham said. "Something like, 'Dark Diva of Destruction!'"
"Or, maybe something like, 'Dragon Core,'" Fuyuhiko suggested.
"Or the 'Apple Juicer,'" Mondo said.
"Or maybe, 'Fast Fuji Flyer?'" Kazuichi offered.
"Well...no," Kiki said, scratching her head. "I wanted to call it...'Eris of Chaos!' " The others stared at her in confusion.
"Oh! Like, as in an inheritor of chaos?" Kazuichi asked.
"Hm? No, no, not heiress. Eris, from Greek mythology!" Kiki corrected.
"Ah, yes, the goddess of chaos and discord," Gundham said. "I see. Interesting choice."
"Ohhhh...I didn't know that!" Kokichi said. "Nee-heehee...and all this time, I thought she was just a character from The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy!"
"Eris likes to stir up trouble. She's known for causing the Trojan War by simply using a golden apple," Kiki explained. Then, her grin became menacing. "Because of that golden apple...she ensued chaos, causing her helpless and mindless victims to go at each other's throats, and triumphing over their dead bodies in the end! Mwa-hahahahahahahaaaaa!!" The others turned to Kokichi, who dabbed at his eyes with his scarf, wiping away a few tears.
"Isn't she just...sniff...precious?" he sobbed proudly.
"Anyways, how do you know about that stuff?" Kazuichi asked. "I didn't think a little kid would be interested in stuff like Greek mythology."
"We have to learn about it in school," Kiki sighed. "Some of it's boring, but...some of it is also kinda cool."
"Hold up! I'm not satisfied with the name!" Kaito said.
"So? What's wrong with it?" Kiki said, placing her hand on her hip.
"It's gotta have something space-related in it!" Kaito said.
"Eris is the name of a dwarf planet," Kiki pointed out with a shrug.
"Well, yeah, but...not a lot of people know that," Kaito said.
"C'mon, man, this is her kart," Mondo said.
"Yeah, just let her name it what she wants to name it," Fuyuhiko said.
"Jeez, Kaito! Don't be a glory hog," Kokichi said.
"F-Fine...whatever," Kaito muttered. He crossed his arms and looked away. Kiki sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Okay, fine, I'll call it..." she paused and twirled her wrist in thought. "...'Celestial Eris of Chaos.' Is that okay?"
"I guess that's fine," Kaito said, although a small smile crept across his face.
"Okay, so let's go ahead and paint this thing," Fuyuhiko said.
"And then, we can take it for a spin right after!" Kokichi said, giving Kiki a wink.
"Yay!" Kiki squealed, bouncing happily.