[LoweGear]

Originally Posted by Wild Goose

I'm going to recommend The Greatest Generation by sasahara17, which is on ff.net atm.

Basically, a USN intelligence officer goes to Japan to learn more about kanmusu and figure out what's the deal with the Abyssals... but that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Seconding this recommendation. It actually became so popular that the people working on the Pacific doujins recommend it as a must-read.

*****

For something else, here's some short crack I wrote, no idea how it came about:

"Commander, here's the reports- Commander?"

Akatsuki released an indignant pout at the empty office, her person of interest nowhere in sight.

"How rude! Telling me to come here then standing me up!"

As she walked over to the Admiral's desk to leave the sheaf of papers she carried with her hand she became aware of a very delectable smell that tickled her nose. A pleasantly burnt aroma, that smelled like...

"Coffee?"

Indeed, there was a cup on the table with the inky-black steaming hot beverage on the table, neatly prepared by the edge of the desk facing towards the door - the usual courtesy he gave to the shipgirls who came into his office. Akatsuki couldn't suppress the smile on her face even as she tried to look indifferent.

"Hmph! Preparing a treat for me, he shouldn't think this makes up for his in... in... inpro-", she coughed into her hand, "absence!"

Documents now firmly on the table, she held the prepared cup with both hands, savoring its smell as she blew on it. Truth to be told, Akatsuki did feel some trepidation as to the Admiral's choice of drink to serve today: he never served coffee before, only tea (she tried it once and didn't like it... only because the teas wasn't to her standard, honest!), warm milk ("Commander, I'm not a child!"), or hot chocolate ("Commander's the best!"). The alluring smell wafted over her nose, promising sweet temptations to Akatsuki's tongue. She paused.

But isn't coffee bitter? she rightfully thought, having heard the stories from her fellow shipgirls.

Then again, she was an elephant lady wasn't she? True, adult ladies should be able to drink coffee!

She breathed deeply, face scrunching as though bracing for a life-changing decision, with one last look at the concoction brought the cup to her lips, then carefully took a sip of the now lukewarm drink.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm-

It...

"IT'S DELICIOUS!"

It wasn't bitter at all like she expected, in fact it was very sweet, and slightly chocolatey too! Eyes wide with amazement, she drank faster now, her newfound ambrosia giving her tongue warm, silky pleasures as she savored it.

"Those guys, trying to scare me like that! It's not bitter at all!"

First thing she'll do after finishing this delectable cup of coffee was correct her sisters and Tenryuu on what coffee actual-

Why's it so hot here all of a sudden? And why do I feel... so... drowsy-

To her credit, despite the sudden onset of lethargy that came upon her Akatsuki had the presence of mind to put the cup down on the table, before she hit the ground with a nice view of the whirling ceiling fan above her. One spoken thought crossed her mind before darkness took her:

"So this is... coffee..."

**********

He kneaded his shoulders a bit, rotating them a bit to get some nice, satisfying cracks out of his joints. While the Admiral wouldn't say that he was an extremely busy man, he still had to do a lot of work to keep the base running, in this case keeping the supply acquisition paperwork in order. He had gone out to personally get some of the forms from the acquisitions department, and now he stood in front of the door to his office.

"I can finally try it..." he smiled with expectation, promises of the best drink he'll ever have putting him in a happy place, before he shook his head to remind him that he could do that inside his office.

He had mail-ordered this stuff he heard about from some friends called "Black Blood of the Earth", a coffee that supposedly contained 40x the amount of caffeine of a single coffee, which for the kind of job that this Admiral did was absolutely perfect - after a while, the usual coffees no longer did anything to his alertness, so having what amounted to the Godzilla of coffees was just what he needed to stay awake during long, boring nights with all the paperwork.

His friends had also shipped him a bottle of real Russian Vodka, saying that he spike the coffee with it for the best flavor. Given what he heard about Vodka from Hibiki - he was sure she only had second-hand knowledge of its effects, or he'd have some stern words with the destroyer shipgirl - he couldn't wait to try out the combination that would keep him wide awake and working even through the most mind-numbing of jobs.

The sudden summons from the acquisitions department had interrupted his first taste of the concoction, which he had left on his desk in a hurry, but now nothing can get between him and his coffee!

"Oh, Commander. A pleasant afternoon to you~"

The female voice that greeted him inside was smooth as velvet, filled with a raw sensuality that the Admiral had never before had the pleasure of being exposed to in his entire life.

Then he saw who had greeted him and his thought processes ground to a halt.

"Akatsuki?!"

The young destroyer girl giggled with a demure charm he had never seen from her, her crystal-clear laughter like honey to his ears.

"Ara, you seem surprised to see me Commander. Were we not supposed to meet at this hour? Should we meet later tonight maybe?" she smiled amusingly, her eyes reflecting her humor. "Ara"? Since when did she say stuff like that?!

"N-No, it's not that..."

She was sitting on one of the chairs, back straight, legs crossed like those businesswomen he had met before. On her left hand was a ceramic saucer, and on her right she gingerly held up a cup with two fingers as she took a sip out of-

Wait a minute-

"Akatsuki, that's my cup."

Of all the responses he was expecting, he didn't expect her to gently put the cup down on the saucer, meet his gaze, and then lick her lips.

"Indeed it is, Commander~" her thin smile and piercing eyes made him feel like a deer being stared down by a lion as she put away the tableware. "It was most delectable coffee..."

With grace and poise he knew only supermodels should possess, Akatsuki stood up, ran a hand through her hair to brush it aside with flourish, strutted towards him, and with a deft touch slowly ran a finger down his chest. With a tiptoe, she whispered by his ear in that silky siren's voice:

"... and now, it's time for dessert~"

Japanese men have always been taught to stand their ground, and face danger bravely and honorably even if it cost them their lives.

The Commander was not that Japanese though.

"IrememberedIhavesomethingtodogoodworkAkatsuki !"

He broke many land speed records on his escape that day as his brain was consumed by a single thought:

What the hell just happened?!?!!

**********

The office was empty once more, save for its lone female occupant, who simply giggled at the actions of the man who was once there. She put a finger on her lips, cocking her head sideways with a determined gleam in her eyes.

"I'll give you a headstart Commander, but know you can't escape from me~" the lilt in her voice bordering on feral. "But first,", she walked over to the table, and once again gingerly took the saucer and cup in her hands. "...a lady never wastes her drink."