thinkoutsidethebox | Memory 2 (trivial positive)

Chopsticks!! [EP5] Form of a packet of five shortbread cookies, 4/5 cookies remaining.

I would have find the scene to attribute all the dialog here properly so maybe I'll do that later. The setting is the dining hall, with all the Ushiromiya family seated at the long dining table having a very fancy Western-style dinner.

Erika's seat was the lowest one in rank. In other words, it was at the inferior end of the table.

Since Kinzo's seat at the high end of the table was empty, if you turned the whole thing around, it sort of looked like Erika was the host of this dinner...
GOHDA: Well then, everyone. I would like to begin tonight's dinner, if I may.

After Gohda's announcement, dinner began with the almost customary applause.
It was finally the beginning of the dinner orchestra conducted by Toshiro Gohda.

Except for Krauss's household, sitting at such a majestic dinner table was no everyday thing for these people by any means.
However, they were all used to it and acted as though this was completely normal.
......Again, if anyone was to be surprised, it should have been Erika.

And yet, she showed no surprise at this dinner and acted with composure, blending in with everyone else.

......There wasn't even a sliver of the fear one might expect from someone who had wandered here like a lost puppy.
???: .........She's a strange child. She doesn't seem the least bit flustered over the Ushiromiya family's grandest dinner of the year.
???: Kids these days have nerves of steel. ...Definitely not something I dislike.
???: Is Furudo-san used to meals such as this one...? She seems to be quite composed.
HIDEYOSHI: No kiddin'. She seems very experienced. Heck, I still get confused about which fork I'm supposed to use next. Yeah..., was it this one, or this one...? Wahahahahaha!
Without showing any confusion over the line of utensils in front of her, Erika gracefully ate her hors d'oeuvres.

Hideyoshi had started joking around with her, gripping a fork in each hand.
Of course, the president of a company in the food service industry like Hideyoshi would obviously know his table manners.

However, thinking that Erika must be nervous over this dinner, he had intentionally spoken with a comic tone of voice.
ERIKA: .........You just have to start on the outside and work your way in. ......If that's a pain, then just ask for some chopsticks. ......If you're Japanese, you've got to love chopsticks. Chopsticks are so great. Just one pair of those, and you can deal with any kind of food!

As soon as she began talking about chopsticks, her eyes started glittering.
......The smile she now showed for the first time was far different from the dignity she had shown before and more like something you'd expect from someone her age.
EVA?: *giggle*. But you would use a spoon for curry and rice, wouldn't you?
ERIKA: Just make it as donburi. Is there anyone who eats gyuudon with a spoon? Of course not. For the Japanese, it's absolutely, positively, totally chopsticks! So, Gohda-san. Would you mind bringing me some chopsticks? I want to show everyone how a true Japanese person should eat, without any shame!
ERIKA: ......By the way, what are we eating next?
GOHDA: Unfortunately, that would be soup.
As she pretended to shrug, Erika winked at everyone.
EVERYONE: Wahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha...!!
Of course, no one was laughing at her.

She obviously knew that soup came after hors d'oeuvres in a full course meal.
Furthermore, Erika had even noticed that she'd been performing too perfectly and creating a sense of tension...and that this was why Hideyoshi had tried to break the ice.

That's why she'd started behaving a little childish and light-hearted, acting out the part of a guest enjoying a harmonious dinner......
Pretty soon, not only Kyrie, but everyone else also caught on.

Even though she was an uninvited guest, she was apparently worthy of participating in an Ushiromiya family dinner.

Effects:
- +5 how to win friends and influence people (which brings her to a grand total of 5 since she had none before)
- Does not remotely decrease her obnoxiously absurd self-confidence
- Chopsticks are awesome!!
- Also I guess some other stuff like knowing how utensils work and that she's Japanese.