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Mirage_GSM wrote:

“You’re left,” he replied.

You know, this means something other than what you presumably meant it to...

Son of a... you know, I knew I'd missed something. Now I know what

Stupid English language...

“I swear on my sister’s heads I’ve only said it to you, and if I lie, may they go bald,” he riposted.

My my, he has a two-headed sister? Or does she have even more? How come this never came up in your stories so far?
If she is a medusa, you probably saved her up for another Halloween special...

He has a younger sister and an older sister. He only mentions one during the Lent special, and it hasn't seriously come up because George is so underutilized, unfortunately.

I wanted to have him geek out via text message during the last drink hard special, but Girls und Panzer was released after when that special took place. Which made me sad.

Move your apostrophe, then. Right now, the heads are plural, yes, but the sister is singular. Moving the apostrophe one character to the right makes the sisters also plural, while maintaining it as a possessive.

bhtooefr wrote:Move your apostrophe, then. Right now, the heads are plural, yes, but the sister is singular. Moving the apostrophe one character to the right makes the sisters also plural, while maintaining it as a possessive.

Ah, thanks for that.

There is a grammar guide on my amazon wish list, honest. Somewhere....

Okay, admit it, you were just TRYING to get me attention with all the oddball stuff. Still, I really don't have a lot of feedback for the stuff. Most of it's pretty good.

I'm not normally one to point out typos but this one from the St Pat's day story (part six) …

“Aaaaand I’m officially uncomfortable,” I declared, “Kenji, savor me!”

This is a very BAD typo that changes the meaning hilariously.

Also, everytime I read Kaneo's dialogue, I can't help but picture him as a prohibition era gangster.

Kaneo glared at me, “Hey, I am a legitimate man of business and politics! At least as long as dah evidence is unda wraps.”

Lines like that don't help either.

Oddball wrote:Okay, admit it, you were just TRYING to get me attention with all the oddball stuff. Still, I really don't have a lot of feedback for the stuff. Most of it's pretty good.

Thanks, I do what I can .

I'm not normally one to point out typos but this one from the St Pat's day story (part six) …

“Aaaaand I’m officially uncomfortable,” I declared, “Kenji, savor me!”

This is a very BAD typo that changes the meaning hilariously.

That's not actually a typo; the use of savor was deliberate.

Also, everytime I read Kaneo's dialogue, I can't help but picture him as a prohibition era gangster.

Kaneo glared at me, “Hey, I am a legitimate man of business and politics! At least as long as dah evidence is unda wraps.”

Lines like that don't help either.

That was more or less the intent -I try to keep his Brooklyn/Osaka accent as authentic as possible.

I was actually kinda disappointed when the Kill la Kill dub had him as a cracker pimp instead of a Brooklyn gangster, but such is life.

For Father’s Day I wanted to do something fluffy and happy, so I did. Because I can.

Push the button, Illya.

Full Circle –A Father’s Day Special

Hi! I’m Refia, Hisao and Hanako’s daughter! I have a really great Father’s Day present for Daddy, so I’m gonna tell you about it.

(I did the proofreading and editing –Akio Nakai.)

Right! Anyway, before I can tell you about the great present, I have to give it to Daddy, so I need to find him. It’s Friday afternoon before dinner, so he should be in his office, so I’ll look there first.

Daddy’s office is upstairs by the big bedroom, and it’s where Daddy works when he’s at home. Mommy doesn’t like to go inside without permission, and we don’t either, even though he always leaves the door open.

Daddy looks like he’s grading papers, his head bent over whatever he’s working on. The curtains to the office window are open, and I can see the cloudy sky outside. The clouds look pretty, but I need to focus on Daddy. So I step into the open threshold and knock on the wall to get his attention, my other hand behind my back holding his present.

Daddy looks up from his work and towards the threshold. When he sees me he beams and calls, “Hey, Little Albatross!”

Little Albatross is the nickname Hee-neesan gave me when we went to Manila. She’s really cool and I’d love to talk about her, but I really need to focus on Daddy right now. Focusing on things can be hard for me sometimes, but this is important, so I have to do my best not to get distracted.

“Hi, Daddy!” I chirp, “Can I come in?”

Daddy spreads his arms for me and I walk over to him. He picks me up and places me on the desk so we’re at more or less eye level. Nee-chan says I’m getting to old for this, but Nii-chan says Nee-chan still curls up in Daddy’s lap when she thinks no one is looking. Then Nee-chan started yelling. She does that sometimes. Daddy doesn’t though.

Getting back to him, Daddy pets my head and I giggle as he asks, “What’s up?”

I hold out my right hand so I can show him the little white box I found to hold my present in, “Happy Father’s Day, Daddy!”

Daddy looks down at the box, his expression thoughtful and curious even as he grins at me. His cowlick flutters a bit as he leans closer to it –the box, not his cowlick. Which he really should get cut some day, but Mommy never complains about it, so I won’t, either.

Daddy’s expression gets a bit serious as he takes the box and slowly opens it, and I worry he won’t like the present. But it’s the thought that counts, and this gift has a lot of thought! Even if I kinda just found it….

Daddy’s eyes widen as he pulls out the old silver coin from inside, and I know I found the bestest gift I could.

“This is a sen coin,” he states. Looking at me, he asks, “Where’d you find this?”

“In a closet,” I reply. Beaming up at him, I chirp, “Check the date, check the date!”

Daddy turns the coin in his hand to look at the date, “…Dad’s birthday…”

“Yup!” I chirp, “Isn’t it cool?”

Daddy lowers the coin and smiles widely me, “It’s great, Refia. Thank you.”

He puts the coin back in the box, sets it down, and pats my head again. I giggle again, and then he picks me up and sets me in his lap. I lean against him carefully –even though he got a pacemaker recently, concussions are still a concern for him.

I ease up to his chest and listen to his heartbeat, frowning at the rhythm as my ear presses against him.

Daddy looks down at me, looking concerned, “Something wrong?”

“Your heartbeat sounds weird now,” I state, “It isn’t normal.”

Daddy blinks at me a few times, then chuckles, “I guess for you it would be that way. Do you not like it now?”

I open my mouth, but stop. Now that I’m getting older, I need to think before I talk, which is hard for me a lot of the times.

After a moment or two of thinking, I shake my head and reply, “It means you’ll live longer, right?”

“In theory,” he replies, and starts stroking my hair, which is the same color as his, “My condition is difficult to control, even with pacemakers. Between it, the medications, and exercise, I have a good chance. But, I’ve also done things that might be bad for me, so you never know.”

I look up at him, “Why?”

Daddy smirks at me, “Why what?”

“Why did you do things that were bad for you?”

Daddy frowns, turning toward the window. He does that sometimes when he thinks about when he was younger.

“Well,” he begins, “at first it was because I was young and stupid,” Daddy chuckles and sighs before continuing, “Then it was because I was determined to do the right thing,” he turns away from the window to look at me, “You see Little Albatross, it’s not just how long you live that matters, but what you do with the time you have.”

I nod as Daddy wraps his arms around me. For someone with a heart condition, Daddy can be really strong.

We sit like that for a little while –me listening to Daddy’s weird/not-weird heartbeat, and him holding me close and stroking my hair every once in a while.

Once it’s gotten a bit pinker outside from the sun setting, Daddy asks, “How’s Mommy doing?”

“Quiet,” I reply, “More so than normal, I mean. Nee-chan is keeping her company while she makes you a cake for after dinner.”

Daddy smiles lightly, “Do you know what kind of cake?”

“Chocolate, I think,” I reply, “Wanna go see? I think dinner’ll be ready soon, too.”

Daddy smiles and nods, “Sounds like a plan. Oh, and thank you again for the present.”

I look up at Dad and smile, “You like it?”

Daddy kisses my forehead, and I beam in the glory of my victory as he states, “I do.”

==

You’re not the only one who did something for him this year. I made him that awesome card. –Satomi Nakai.

No one likes a braggart, Satomi. –Akio.

Cork it Prince of Nerds.

Tsundere jock.

I’ll be sure to tell Hee-neesan that you’ve been calling you dear little sister names.

I take it back, I take it back!

Nee-chan! Nii-chan! You’re ruining my story!

Sorry. Happy Father’s Day!

+++

Short, simple, and with all the subtlety of a brick through a window.

Just how I roll (puts on sunglasses, rides off into the sunset while AC/DC plays in the background and something randomly explodes.)

It's adorable!

I do like your cast of characters, they're great! I especially liked that little bit at the end where the kids start bickering.

Nice work, Hoitash!

Alpacalypse wrote:It's adorable!

I do like your cast of characters, they're great! I especially liked that little bit at the end where the kids start bickering.

Nice work, Hoitash!

Thanks, adorable was one of the things I was shooting for, so I'm glad I got it

Hanako baking a chocolate cake for Father's Day...

Sneaky... You, Hoitash, are very amusing.

Serviam wrote:Hanako baking a chocolate cake for Father's Day...

Sneaky... You, Hoitash, are very amusing.

Thank you, I try. Occasionally I succeed .

Rejoice! Christmas has arrived! Which means it’s time for another lengthy one-shot filled with OC’s very few of you care about.

Hey, get back here! I do have one OC at least one of you cares about, and I am going to try and format the story in a way that won’t be too overwhelming. I will likely fail in this attempt, but at least I tried.

So, let’s get this party started before I run out of whiskey and cookies. Or did Ilya eat all the cookies again?

Oh, right. Timeline. This story follows the Manila Tales, and is again written in present tense, because that works for me for this character.

Now, begin! Push the button, Ilya. Not that button!

Ugh, why do I even have that button? I’ll clean this up, you push the button.

Christmas Meetings –A Soon-hee Special


Well, it finally happened. I’m wearing a suit.

Allow me to backtrack a bit. Kenji and Miya’s extended little family of school friends is going to be spread out this Christmas across multiple continents, so beforehand as many of them who can are meeting at a restaurant owned by another former schoolmate a few days before Christmas.

Since it is a somewhat special occasion, everyone going will be dressing up a bit, and so for Christmas Miya bought me a suit. A tailored fitted suit, no less. It’s black and fits very well and is really comfortable, and to go along with it she also bought me black gloves and a tie, and several grey buttoned shirts to go with them.

So yeah, I’ve gone full bifauxnen –a short southpaw bifauxnen that can flip people twice her weight. At least the suit looks good on me, according to Miya. I have a feeling she just had fun picking out my outfit before getting me the suit, but she’s practically my mother now, so I won’t begrudge her the chance to dress me up once in a while.

I still prefer blue jeans, but those aren’t very formal or warm.

Kenji’s suit, meanwhile is brown, to match Miya’s skirted suit. Hisato, the two’s four year old son, is bundled up in a black parka, riding on Kenji’s back while we walk.

“Are we there yet?” Hisato asks.

Kenji grins and replies, “Almost.”

Hisato sighs and snuggles in his father’s back, “Will Aunty Miki be there?”

“Yep,” Miya chirps. Looking to me, she smiles and adds, “You’ll like her –she’s kinda like Akira if she were from Ryukyu and had an augment and was a reformed alcoholic and I’m gonna stop now.”

Kenji smirks while Miya fiddles with her skirt for the sake of having something to do. Miya can ramble sometimes like Kenji, but she’s better at applying the brakes herself.

Like Akira… hmm….

I had met the Hashimoto’s and Williams’ at the end of summer break during an extended weekend in Hokkaido after the trip to Manila. Akira was an easygoing woman and we got along alright, so if Miya says I’ll get along with the restaurant owner, I’ll believe her.

Although something she says piques my interest, which is why I ask her, “Augment?”

Kenji nods, “Otori tech –top of the line but fiddly. Hisao can tell you more about it if you’re curious.”

I nod. I was planning on becoming a physical therapist, and prosthetic adjustment was a subset of that field I was considering. Asking Uncle Hisao would be marginally less rude than asking the woman herself, anyway.

Anything that keeps me sounding more polite is probably a good thing.

“Are we there yet?” Hisato asks again.

“We get there when we get there,” I state. Smiling at the little Setou, I add, “part of the fun is getting there, right?”

“Not all those who wander are lost,” Miya recites.

“The old that is strong does not wither,” Kenji continues.

“Deep roots are not reached by the frost,” I add.

Hisato blinks at each of us for a moment, and rather than say anything just tries to snuggle closer to his father’s back.

I might just be getting the hang of this older sister thing.

I can’t deny that Kenji is as good as a father to me, and had been for a while. It just took me some time to figure it out.

Miya, meanwhile, practically adopted me the moment I first stepped into their home. Miya is kind of awesome that way.

A few moments later Kenji stops in front of an ornate wooden door with an elegantly carved sign above it, proclaiming the location’s name in kanji, Portuguese, and English.

I step next to Kenji and look up at him, “I take it we’re here?”

Kenji grins and nods, the lights surrounding us glinting off his glasses in a Christmas prism of red and greens. Hisato gives a muffled cheer, and Miya steps past us and opens the door. Kenji glances at me and raises an eyebrow. I nod once, and we step inside.

The well lit restaurant has a large bar area to our right separated by walls and doors, while tables and booths are scattered around the rest of the building. There are several closed doors along the back wall. The crowd looks to be several years younger than Kenji and Miya, and there’s Brazilian art sprinkled about it.

Kenji and Miya stop in front of the hostess, a relatively young-looking woman with long brown hair in a ponytail like Miya’s, and black shirt and pants.

The hostess smiles at us, and, after a brief bow, gestures to one of the back doors and says, “Hey guys –Boss is waiting for you in the back. Can I take your drink orders?”

“Three hot cocoas and one coffee, please,” Kenji states.

The hostess nods and walks over to a wandering waitress to relay our order. Kenji and Miya, meanwhile, head for one of the back doors, me following close behind. While we walk a spare a glance around the restaurant, focusing on my padded footsteps to avoid the clinking of silverware –the place seems to have a large foreign clientele, though not exclusively. None of the patrons give us a second glance, which is nice.

Miya’s the first one after the hostess to reach what is presumably the door to the private room where we’re all meeting. Since Kenji’s arms are occupied with Hisato, she waits until we’ve caught up to open the door, while the hostess bows and goes back to her post. Kenji and Hisato walk in first, and, after an encouraging smile from Miya, I follow after them.

The private room is set up for a large dinner, with several cloth covered tables along the right wall from the door. A quick scan of the room reveals only three occupants; Kenji, who’s setting Hisato down so he can run up to the other person, and a tall woman with long black hair and skin a few shades lighter than my own.

I hear Miya step beside me as the door closes behind us. I watch her approach in the corner of my vision, while my focus is on the woman, who has crouched down to grab Hisato in a hug.

“That her?” I ask.

Nothing gets by you, does it?

Miya smiles and nods, “Miki Akiyama, 2008 graduating class of Yamaku Academy –she was in the same class as Hisao, Hanako, and the Foundation President and VP.”

Hisato in her right arm sans jacket, the previously mentioned Miki walks over to the two of us. She’s dressed in a slightly fancier version of what the hostess was wearing, except she also has on a suit jacket. Kenji, meanwhile, is hanging up his son’s parka on one of the hooks along the far wall.

“Hey Miya,” the woman greets Miya first, who smiles and extends her left hand for shaking.

Miya grins and takes the proffered hand. It looks a bit thicker than her right, and seems a bit stiff, too.

Guess that’s the augment. Definitely not Sarif tech.

Although at least hers tries to look like a real hand.

After the two lower their hands, Akiyama turns to me and grins, “Hey, you’re Soon-hee, right? Nice to meetcha –Miki Akiyama at your service.”

Miki sticks out her left hand for me, and I carefully accept it. The augment doesn’t quite feel right, but it has warmth and reacts more or less like a real hand would.

Grinning, Miki remarks, “Heard you were gonna be a physical therapist and have a bit of a thing for augments.”

I shrug and lower my hand, “It’s an option.”

Miki chuckles and flexes her left hand; in this regard it behaves exactly like a flesh and blood hand.

“Wanna see a trick?” she asks.

“Don’t do the pencil trick!” Kenji calls, “Not unless you want a lecture from Hisao when he gets here.”

Miki pouts, sighs “spoilsport,” and lets Hisato down, who scrabbles over to Miya, who’s still standing more or less next to me.

Miya puts one hand on Hisato’s shoulder as she asks Miki, “Where’s the kids and Haruki?”

“Out and about,” Miki replies, “although I don’t mind the boys being away from the twins –those four are a pain in the a…. rear end.”

Wait, the twins… the Satous… there’s gonna be a lot of kids here.

Considering Japan’s population crisis, dealing with the extended family that is Uncle Hisao and Kenji’s can be a bit overwhelming at times. I did okay in Hokkaido, but we were more spread out then, usually.

This is gonna be interesting.

Miya sighs, and, as if echoing my thoughts, remarks, “Yeah, things are gonna be wild anyway, but that’s how we roll, right?”

“That’s right!” Kenji declares from the coat hangers.

I hear the door open behind me and whirl around to see the hostess’ head, “The Nakais are here, and your drinks’ll be out in a minute. Sorry for the wait.”

“No worries,” Miya states.

Akiyama sighs, her expression oddly dour for such a seemingly cheerful woman, “And so it begins.”

I turn back to the adults to see Kenji walk over and put a hand on Akiyama’s shoulder, “You love it and you know it.”

Akiyama smirks and nods, “…It’s gonna be one of those days, that’s for sure.”

Kenji grins, “Like Miya said –that’s how we roll.”

Miya sticks out a V sign into the air and shouts, “Go Team Venture!”

Kenji and Akiyama blink at Miya. Miya lowers her hand and coughs, while Hisato looks up at his mother, blinking.

I didn’t get it either.

Moving on, I turn toward the door in preparation for the new arrivals. Crouching down, I wait for the Amazing Speeding Refia to make her appearance.

Part II: The Nakais

A moment later, the door swings open and a pink blur speeds into my arms.

“Hee-neesan!”

Having braced myself, I take the speeding pink parka clad girl easily and quickly grab her in a puffy hug, “Hey Little Albatross! Merry Christmas!”

“Merry Christmas!” Refia chirps into my chest, “I missed you!”

I smile down at the little brown-haired girl and pat her head. Refia giggles and nuzzles deeper into my suit.

“It has been a while, I suppose.”

I look up at the door and see Satomi, Aunt Hana, and Uncle Hisao in the doorway. Satomi was the speaker, and she still has an amused smirk as she walks into the room, her long purple hair up in a ponytail and wearing a dress that goes perfectly with it.

Tomboy fashionista –an odd combination for sure.

“Hey, Satomi,” I greet, “Merry Christmas Uncle Hisao, Aunt Hana.”

Satomi grins at me and starts looking around. When she sees Akiyama she bolts over to her, leaving me with Refia, her parents, and…

“Akio?” I ask.

The only Nakai son is standing behind Uncle Hisao, looking a little skittish as he sidles into view. Aunt Hana and her husband exchange a look and step aside so their son is in full view.

Akio watches his parents step to the side before nervously looking at me, “Hi,” he smiles weakly and adds, “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” I return.

“Can I have a piggy-back ride?” Refia chirps, “Please~?”

I smile down at the little girl, who’s looking up at me with her big brown eyes like some kind of adorable puppy with pink fur, “Let’s get your coat off, first, okay? And not for long, and be careful –this suit was a very expensive gift from Miya-san.”

“Looks like she got it from where Aunty Akira buys her suits,” Satomi has returned, with Akiyama and Kenji in tow –Hisato’s still with Miya.

Refia shuffles out of her parka and carefully clambers onto my back. Once I have her secured, I ease myself up and turn to Satomi, “That’s right. You can tell that just from looking at it?”

Satomi shrugs while Aunt Hana grabs Refia’s parka, “I check their site now and then for fun, and I recognized the outfit. You look great, by the way.”

“Thanks,” I say. Glancing up at Refia, I ask her, “You okay up there?”

“Uh-huh!” Refia replies, “Thanks for the ride, Hee-neesan!”

I chuckle and turn toward Aunt Hana and Uncle Hisao, “Thank you both for the autographed books. I know my friends will love them.”

Aunt Hana smiles and says, “Glad we could help.”

“Yeah,” Uncle Hisao adds, “it was kinda nice acting like an author, although I prefer the quiet life of a teacher, so I don’t really do much besides attach my name to Kenji’s work.”

Kenji smirks and rolls his eyes, “You do more than that and you know it.”

Hisao sighs and starts grumbling to Kenji, and the two wander off together toward the tables. Aunt Hana goes to hang up Refia’s coat, Miya and Hisato close behind as Miya starts chatting with Aunt Hana. That leaves me with Satomi, Akiyama, and Akio, who looks a little flushed.

“Are you okay, Akio?” I ask him.

Akio nods and opens his mouth, but before he can say anything the drinks arrive.

The hostess has brought a tray with cups of coffee and hot cocoa, and she walks over to me and Akio because we’re the closest to the doors.

“Three hot cocoas?” she asks.

“Yay! Cocoa!” Refia chirps.

I smile and move to grab mine, but my impromptu backpack makes that impossible.

Flushing lightly, Akio grabs two mugs and holds one out under my nose.

“Here,” he mutters, looking anywhere but at me, “since your hands are full.”

I see Refia pout at her brother as she grumbles, “I want cocoa, too!”

Behind me I hear Satomi say Refia should get down first, but most of my attention is occupied by the cocoa in front of me. It’s enticing, chocolatey scent is nearly overpowering, so I carefully take a sip, doing my best to avoid the whipped cream, with little success.

“Thanks,” I say, “Did I get some on me?”

Akio nods, grabs a napkin from the tray, and wipes the whipped cream off my nose for me.

“Thanks,” I say.

Akio smiles, “You’re welcome.”

I hear stifled snickering behind me, and Akio blanches, blushes, tosses the napkin on the tray, sets my cocoa down, and starts heading for his father, muttering as he goes, “Please excuse me, I’ve… gotta go do something.”

Before anyone else can say anything, he’s off toward the other side of the room.

I let Refia down so she can grab her drink, take my own with a nod of thanks to the hostess, then turn to Satomi and Akiyama, who both look highly amused by something as the hostess makes her way toward them.

“Is he okay?” I ask, “He looked sick.”

After shaking a bit from the effort to restrain herself, Satomi coughs into her hand, and, still smiling, “Akio’s fine. He’s just a bit on the shy side.”

“Guess he takes after his mother,” Akiyama remarks, making me jump slightly –I had almost forgot she was there, “Speaking of, I should go say hi before she and Hisao have a fit,” rolling her eyes, she heads off and mutters under her breath, “Coulda sad hi when they walked in, but noooo….”

I raise an eyebrow at Satomi, who shrugs and grabs her drink from the wandering hostess. After lapping at her cocoa, Satomi wanders over to me, appraising my outfit. Despite the seven year age gap, Satomi’s not much shorter than me, and I can see the beginnings of gangliness that betray she’ll probably be on the taller side like her mother.

“That is a really nice suit,” Satomi declares.

“Thanks,” I sip my cocoa, “I figured I owed Miya the chance to play dress-up with me, and considering my usual look this seemed like a good choice.”

Satomi tilts her head, “I dunno about the tie….”

“I wasn’t either, but Miya insisted it completed the look. Kenji taught me how to tie it.”

“Cool,” Satomi states, “I’ve never liked formal wear much myself, but it –hi Refia.”

Refia, apparently finished with her cocoa, chose that moment to latch onto Satomi’s leg, her mug apparently having vanished into hammerspace.

“Hi, Nee-chan!” Refia chirps, “are you waiting for the twins?”

Satomi nods as she pats Refia’s head, “Yeah, I am. Aunty Akira and Uncle Daichi should be here soon.”

“The Williams’ and Kotobuki’s are coming, too, I heard,” I remark, “is anyone else?”

Satomi shakes her head, “Aunt Mimi and Natsu are busy with their own families –the ones that still talk to them, that is- and Ms. Hakamichi and Misha are working.”

I nod and sip my cocoa, my eyes instinctively watching the wandering hostess. Once she’s made her rounds, she heads through the door, back into the restaurant proper. The door hasn’t even finished closing when she shoves it open and pops her head back in.

“The Hashimotos are here,” she declares, then ducks back out.

Part III: The Hashimotos

Akira Hashimoto is the first to enter, sauntering in with a smile and a pinstriped suit. Her husband, Daichi Hashimoto, is close behind her, wearing a simple black suit the same shade as his hair.

Tall, dark, and silent, Hashimoto is an interesting contrast to the blond Japanese-Scot. His stoicism is a little off-putting sometimes, but he’s friendly enough, and seems to be the calming influence to the boisterous blond.

Speaking of boisterous, the two’s twins, Chise and Carry, are right behind their father, and quickly follow him into the room. The two girls, about the same age as Satomi, are wearing identical red dresses. The two have bright brown eyes and dark brown hair, cut exactly the same –slightly past shoulder length, like a curtain behind their heads. The only way to tell them apart is to remember that Chise always stood on their left –something to do with the order they were born, according to Kenji.

Satomi and Refia beam at Akira and chirp, “Aunty Akira!”

Aunt Akira –she was rather insistent on that on our first meeting over the summer- grins and kneels down, “Hey, kids! Merry Christmas!”

The two girls dart into the woman’s arms, smiling widely as she returns their embrace. Daichi, meanwhile, looks to me and smiles lightly.

“Hello,” he greets, “Nice suit.”

“Thank you,” I say, bowling lightly and saying, “Merry Christmas.”

I see the twins exchange a brief glance before stepping aside of the commotion. Their eyes fix on me for a moment, then they smile and, in perfect unison, say, “It’s a pleasure to see you again, Hee-neesan. Merry Christmas.”

They top off their little show with a curtsey, which makes Akira, Satomi, and Refia giggle.

Three can play at this game.

Turning to face the two girls, I place one hand behind my back, fold the other in front of me, and give them my best Western bow, “Lovely to see you again, as well. Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.”

The twins grin and start giggling.

“Nice one,” Aunt Akira remarks. Giving the two Nakai girls a final pat on the head each, Akira hefts herself up with a mild grunt and grins at me, “So, Miya really got you the suit, huh?”

I turn to face Akira and nod, “I wasn’t thrilled with the idea at first, but Miya-san had a lot of fun dressing me up, so I don’t mind.”

“Ooh!” Satomi chirps, “That reminds me: Chise, Carry, I need to know where you got those dresses.”

Refia blinks at her older sister, “But you only wear dresses when we go someplace fancy.”

Satomi ignores her and starts chatting with the twins, and the three wander off to their own corner of the room.

I step over to Refia and kneel down beside her to pat her head, “Having fun, Little Albatross?”

Refia beams up at me and nods, “Yeah! I should say hi to Hisato, though, before Aunty Lilly and Uncle George get here.”

“Hop on, then.”

Refia carefully scrambles onto my back again, and I head over to Miya, who is chatting with Aunt Hana. Akira follows me, and I notice on the way that Hisato is in Miya’s lap, his eyes lidded from fatigue, most likely. When he sees the three of us approach he perks up, hops off his mother’s lap, and walks over to us.

“Hi Hicchan!” Refia chirps.

Out of the corner of my vision I can see Uncle Hisao, deep in conversation with Akiyama and Kenji, dart his head toward us. This gets a chuckle from Kenji and Akiyama, and I can see Aunt Hana hiding a smirk behind her tea.

Hisato smiles at Refia, “Hi. Hi, Hee-neesan.”

I smile and crouch down so Refia can dismount, “Hello.”

Aunt Akira pulls out a chair and takes a seat, sighing in contentment as she closes her eyes.

She is older than the others, even if her kids aren’t.
After a precious moment’s rest, Akira opens a single garnet eye and grins at me, “Hey, Soon-hee, you’re gonna be a senior after next trimester, right?”

I nod, watching Hisato and Refia scramble back into their respective mother’s laps as I say, “Yes.”

Miya tilts her head slightly, “That’ll make you Captain of the Judo Club, won’t it?”

I nod again. I’m rather good at it.

Aunt Hana joins in as Refia settles in her lap, Hisato doing the same with Miya, “You’ve done really well in the Club, it seems.”

I nod yet again, “I got another rank before break, too, and I know who I’m gonna make Vice Captain. Getting recruits might be tricky, but that’ll be his problem.”

Great, now I sound like the Captain. No wonder Midders didn’t want the job.

Aunt Hana starts stroking Refia’s hair, eliciting a happy mewl from the girl as her mother asks me, “Being Captain will be a lot of responsibility, won’t it?”

“She can handle it,” Aunt Akira states, grinning at me with both eyes as she continues, “From what Kenji’s said she’s practically Captain now with all the work that gets palmed off to her.”

I shrug, “I’ll do my best. I’ll have help and we have good members, so I’m not too worried.”

Yet.

The conversation ends and I drink my cocoa while it’s still warm. I see Refia’s gaze wandering semi-aimlessly about the room, before settling behind me. I shift my position a bit to see the twins and Satomi wandering over to join us.

Once they’re in conversation range, Satomi is the first to speak, “Aunty Akira, do you know if Aunt Lilly and Uncle George’ll be here soon?”

“We wanna see Hanaye,” the twins add.

It’s almost scary how they do that.

Aunt Akira pulls out her phone to check the time, taps the screen a few times, then grins and shoves the phone back into her pocket, “They should be here soon.”

The twins pout and head toward the door to wait, though when it opens a little while later it’s the hostess with more drinks. Satomi sighs and turns to me.

“So, how’s the judo club goin’?”

I more or less repeat what I said to the adults, and when I’m done Satomi grins and says, “Cool.”

That’s the long and short of it, I guess.

Refia chooses that moment to hop off her mother’s lap and walk over to me. She doesn’t say anything, she just starts standing next to me.

She really is like a bird. Maybe I should start carrying bread crumbs.

I look down at the girl and raise an eyebrow, “…Hey, Little Albatross.”

Refia looks up at me and smiles, “Hello. How are you?”

Ah, Korean.

Refia’s free-range mind is kind of fun in its randomness.

I smile and bend down to pat the girl’s head, “Very well, Little Albatross.”

Refia giggles and Satomi smirks before presumably wandering off after the twins.

The Nakais like to wander in general, it seems.

Miya smirks at us and remarks, “I see you’re keeping up with the Korean.”

I nod, “I try.”

Aunt Hana smiles and adds, “I heard you were considering taking JSL next year?”

I shrug, “I’ve considered it, but I’m not sure about the extra workload in my senior year. I have time to think about it, though.”

Aunt Akira nods, “Good call, although you seem have a knack for language, just like Kenji and Miya.”

“Maybe,” I concede, and pat Refia’s head again –she has really soft hair.

Refia grins and looks to Aunt Akira, “When will they get here? I wanna see Karen.”

Karen is the Williams’ youngest daughter. She’s around three, if I recall correctly.

As if summoned by Refia’s will, the hostess barely has a chance to leave the room after serving drinks before she pokes her head back in to announce the Williams’ arrival. Refia squeaks in delight and dashes off to greet the newcomers. Although they didn’t squeak, Aunt Hana and Akira both bolt for the door as quickly as they reasonably can as well.

Miya sighs and gives me a small smile, but doesn’t say anything. I decide to stick close to her rather than join the waiting greeters; they have enough of a crowd waiting for them as it is.

Part IV: The Williams’

The small crowd gathered around the door spreads out a bit as Hanaye appears, shortly followed by her younger brother Thomas. Hanaye’s a year older than Satomi, but her height made her look a little older. As she walks in she carefully guides her blind brother, who despite being younger is the same height as her. Both children have black hair like their father, who appears in the doorway a moment later, carefully escorting his wife with one arm, while Aunt Lilly –you may be noticing a pattern here by now- carefully holds their youngest daughter.

Aunt Lilly and Uncle George are an interesting pair. For one thing they’re both about the same height, which is an oddity for both of them, in its own way. Aunt Lilly has the graceful, demure façade of being an obedient rich girl grown up, and George is… kooky, in a good way. He’s kind, caring, and a bit excitable, like Kenji. George’s excitement tends to be more focused though, considering his fondness for anime and manga.

Once the whole Williams family is inside the room, Aunt Hana and Akira start talking with Aunt Lilly, while Uncle Hisao and Kenji wander over to speak to her and George. The twins practically drag Hanaye off as soon as Thomas has a chance to orient himself, and after a call from Akio, Thomas wanders over to him. In the process Akio briefly catches my eye, which causes him to blush and wave awkwardly at me. I smile and return the wave with a wave, and he diverts his attention to Thomas.

Bit of an odd one, but it’s not like I have room to judge.

Speaking of odd ones, Refia is doing her best albatross impression by carefully circling around Aunt Lilly, trying to engage Karen in conversation. Once she’s sure of where Refia is –a generally difficult but entertaining endeavor- Aunt Lilly carefully let’s Karen down, much to Refia’s delight.

“Quite the bustling family, aren’t they?” Miya remarks.

I turn to her and nod, “Yep. Thank you.”

Miya frowns and tilts her head, “For what?”

“Letting me be a part of it.”

Miya smiles at me, while Hisato dozes lightly in her lap, “It’s what we do. Hello, Lilly.”

Aunt Lilly has somehow managed to remove herself from the group of greeters, though Aunt Hana, Karen, and Refia are close behind. Aunt Lilly’s dressed to impress as usual, her silver cross and Saint Lucy medal catching the overhead lights every now and then.

I move over to the empty chair Aunt Hana had been using and tap it lightly, “Hello, Aunt Lilly. There’s a seat right here for you.”

Aunt Lilly smiles at my direction, “Thank you, Soon-hee. Karen, you remember Hee-neesan, right?”

Karen takes a couple steps forward and gives me a dainty bow, “Hello, Hee-neesan.”

Karen Williams has black hair and hazel eyes like Hanaye, and tends to be a bit shy around the family, probably because there’s so many people taller than her.

You get used to that pretty fast.

I smile and return the bow, “Hello, Karen. Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.”

Karen gives a small smile and returns, “Merry Christmas, Hee-neesan.”

Having more or less exhausted her vocabulary for the time being, Karen clambers onto Aunt Lilly’s lap. Once the girl has settled, Aunt Lilly pulls her in close, which makes the little girl smile and snuggle more deeply into her mother.

Miya suddenly snaps her fingers, making all of us jump in surprise and Aunt Lilly wince slightly from the sound.

Miya grimaces, “Sh-ooot. Shoot. Sorry. Sorry, but I remembered I forgot to ask Soon-hee how that Christmas party she went to was.”

Aunt Lilly turns towards her best approximation of my location, “You attended the Christmas party at Yamaku hosted by Miss Nakajima?”

I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised the Chairwoman of the Yamaku Foundation Board of Directors knows who hosted the school’s Christmas Party, especially since I’m reasonably sure Nakajima-Sempai is the only Christian at the school when Aunt Lilly’s not on campus.

Setsuko would probably know if they’re more, but it doesn’t really matter anyway.

“I did,” I reply to Aunt Lilly’s question, “We live in the same hall and she invited me before break. We mostly sang carols and drank punch. There were also cookies. Lots of cookies.”

“I like cookies!” Refia chirps.

At some point the Little Albatross found her way back to me.

Maybe we should put a bell around her neck.

“Me, too,” Hisato adds, apparently roused from his earlier dosing state.

Aunt Lilly smiles at Refia’s voice before turning back to my general direction, “It’s good to hear someone is giving the occult club a fair chance.”

I shrug, “They seem like good enough people, and Nakajima-Sempai can be a lot of fun –her rendition of Jingle Bell Rock was a big hit.”

Aunt Lilly smiles while Refia tugs on my suit and asks, “When are Aunty Emi and Uncle Kwan getting here?”

This one I can answer, “Soon.”

Refia pouts and sighs, so I pat her head again, which makes her smile.

Aunt Lilly frowns and turns towards Miya, “Emi and Kwan are expected? I thought they weren’t sure they could make it?”

Before anyone else can, Akiyama appears to my right quickly and unexpectedly enough to make me reflexively step back.

She apparently doesn’t notice or chooses to ignore my reflexive flinch as she grins and replies, “They confirmed yesterday. Emi’s schedule opened up a bit so she decided to swing by,” Akiyama waves her augment and grumbles, “Probably to gloat in front of me and Kenji, but hey, whatever get’s them here, right?”

Aunt Lilly smiles and nods, “Indeed.”

I wonder if Miya ever feels like the odd one out because she didn’t go to Yamaku.

Then again, Uncle George isn’t even Japanese, and he fits in reasonably well. Speaking of, Uncle George and Kenji trot over towards our little gaggle, Uncle George holding two mugs as Kenji animatedly explains something.

“…So I said ‘it’s just been revoked’, threw the bottle, and that’s why I’m no longer welcome in Sapporo.”

Uncle George slowly nods as he says, “Yeah, my older sister had a similar problem in Oregon once. Oh, hey Soon-hee, we thought you might like another mug of cocoa.”

Uncle George offers me one of the mugs, which I accept with a smile and thanks. I can feel Refia’s gaze on the mug as I accept it, and when I look down at her she’s eyeing it with a focus I’ve rarely seen her display.

Could those eyes get any bigger?

I smile down at the girl, “Would you like a sip?”

Refia nods, her hair flapping a bit as she does.

“Can you say ‘I would like a sip’ in Korean?”

“I would like a sip in Korean.”

Miya, Kenji, and Uncle George all snort at the girl’s wit, and Aunt Lilly makes an amused noise as she hugs her youngest daughter, who doesn’t seem to get the joke. Which makes sense, her being three and all. Hisato didn’t seem to get it either.

I sigh and raise an eyebrow at the girl, who proceeds to actually say the line in Korean, which I honestly didn’t know she could do.

The Nakais are a clever bunch, in more ways than one.

“Your Korean’s nearly better than mine,” I remark.

Refia beams at me as I kneel down so she can take a sip. In the process she naturally get’s covered in whipped cream, so I use my handkerchief to wipe her face, which makes her giggle.

“That tickles!” she declares.

“I know,” I state, “but moving around just makes it take longer.”

I wad the handkerchief and shove it back into my pocket as I stand up.

Taking a sip of my cocoa, I turn to face Kenji and George. George is appraising me with an oddly contemplative expression. After a moment he opens his mouth, closes it, and opens it again, “That is a really nice suit.”

“Thanks,” I say, “Miya-san got it for me from where Aunt Akira used to buy her suits.”

“She still buys them there occasionally,” Aunt Lilly states, “Speaking of which, Karen, I’d like to speak with Aunty Akira and Miki for a moment, okay?”

Karen looks up at her mother and slowly nods. She gingerly hops off her mother’s lap, straightens her dress, and darts over to George, who pats her head as Aunt Lilly hefts herself up and walks over to Akiyama and Akira, who are having a conversation with Aunt Hana near the door. Refia, meanwhile, wanders off toward Akio, who seems to be talking with Uncle Hisao about something near the hanging coats. The twins and Hanaye are near the other end of the coat rack with Satomi, discussing something very intently.

After a moment Hisato eases off Miya’s lap and follows Refia. Kenji watches the two wander off as best he can, while Uncle George takes the seat Aunt Lilly was using. He barely has time to settle before Karen scrambles up into his lap. Uncle George smiles and pats her head, which makes her smile and stare at the floor.

After a moment Kenji wanders closer to me and asks, “Having fun so far?”

I nod, “Yeah. Lotta people, though.”

“It definitely takes some getting used to,” Uncle George interjects. Smiling, he adds, “You seem to have gotten the hang of it quickly enough.”

I nod to acknowledge the compliment, while Kenji ambles over to his wife. Karen, meanwhile, continues to sit in her father’s lap, looking about as immovable as something that’s really hard to move.

I stand there and finish my cocoa, and by then the door to the outside world once again peeks open as the hostess declares that the Kotobuki’s have arrived.

This should be fun.

Part V: The Kotobukis

This time I do go to the door to greet the last arrivals. I’ve met Emi Kotobuki before, but haven’t met her kids or her husband. Her daughter is closer to my age than any of the other kids, so maybe we’ll have more in common. And if I’m honest, I want to meet her husband because I’ve never met anyone else of Korean descent in Japan before.

Mrs. Kotobuki is the first one through, her blue coat over one arm as she saunters into the room and declares, “Hey guys, we made it!”

Kenji, who at some point walked up to my left, snorts and says, “Clearly.”

Mrs. Kotobuki rolls her eyes, “Missed you too, Four Eyes.”

Kenji smirks, “Same here, Shorty. You remember Soon-hee, right?”

Mrs. Kotobuki looks at me, smiles and nods, “Yeah, good to see you again. Lookin’ good.”

“Thanks,” I say, and giving a brief bow I add, “Merry Christmas.”

Mrs. Kotobuki grins as she says, “You, too.”

“Emi?” someone says behind Mrs. Kotobuki, “You’re blocking the door.”

Mrs. Kotobuki grimaces and steps away from the door towards me and Kenji. Akiyama and Uncle Hisao have wandered over at some point, standing on the other side of the door as they wait. Mrs. Kotobuki turns to greet them as the rest of her family walks in.

It’s not often there’s an adult around shorter than me.

Although Miya is slightly shorter than me now, I’m about a centimeter and a half taller than the physical therapist turned Olympic athlete.

Anyway, with the way into the room open, the rest of the Kotobukis can enter. The first in after Mrs. Kotobuki is her husband, who looks like some sort of rock star, with long black hair trailing behind him as he walks.

His hair might be longer than his wife’s.

Mr. Kotobuki looks around before walking over to Kenji and shaking his hand, “Hey man.”

Kenji grins and greets, “Been too long, man. How you been?”

Kwan smiles and shrugs as the two end their handshake, “Can’t complain.”

“Good, good,” Kenji nods his head, “you haven’t met her yet, but this is Soon-hee Kim.”

Kenji gestures to me, and I bow and greet, “Pleasure to meet you, sir. Merry Christmas.”

Kwan smiles and pats the air, “Just call me Uncle Kwan like everyone else.”

I blink at his informality, though Kenji had told me Kwan was very chill –his words, “…Sure.”

“Is this her?”

From behind Kwan appears a lanky teenager not much taller than me, with shoulder length purple hair ending in red highlights. Her eyes are a bright green like her mother’s, and when our eyes meet she steps forward and shakes my hand before I can react.

“Nice to meet you,” she greets, “I’m Ruka.”

Returning her handshake as best I can, I greet her more fluid Korean with my own, somewhat shaky, “Soon-hee Kim, nice to meet you. Please just call me Soon-hee, and Merry Christmas.”

Ruka grins and releases her grip on my hand, “Thanks,” she whirls around, apparently looking for someone. That someone must be Satomi, because when she spots her, the older girl darts off with a brief wave to Kenji and Hisao, who is walking over to greet Mr. Ko… Uncle Kwan.

The family tree for these guys must be a mess.

I turn back to Kwan just as he starts walking over to meet Hisao, and it’s only then I notice the young man who must have standing behind Kwan and Ruka to avoid being seen until now. He has short brown hair and a slightly darker skin tone, though lighter than his father’s and much lighter than mine. If I recall, Kenji said his name was Jin-ho.

He turns to me and nods, “Hello, I’m Jin-ho. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” I return.

Guess he’s the man of few words type.

Kenji grins and starts talking to the young man, while Mrs. Kotobuki is chatting with Akiyama and Aunt Hana, and Lilly and Akira are chatting by the tables while George has joined Uncle Kwan and Uncle Hisao.

Everyone’s found their little pocket of people to chat with, leaving me to look for someone to stand awkwardly next to.

Suppose I could talk to Ruka some more.

“Hi Hee-neesan!”

Or I could keep an eye on the Little Albatross.

I look down at Refia, who has Karen and Hisato in tow, both of them looking a little weary –probably from coping with Refia’s wandering.

“Hey,” I greet, “You wanna say hi to Aunty Emi?”

Refia nods, “I can wait, though. Do you think dinner’ll be soon?”

I nod, “It should be.”

“Yay!” Refia cheers and scrambles over to Mrs. Kotobuki, who pauses her conversation to heft up the girl onto her shoulders.

I look down at Hisato and Karen, who blink up at me. I smile and kneel down to their level.

“You two having fun?” I ask, “You seemed tired earlier, Hisato.”

“I’m fine now,” he states, “Hope dinner’s soon.”

“Hungry,” Karen adds.

I smiles and pat the girl’s head, “Me, too. Wanna piggyback ride? They always make Refia feel better.”

Karen gives a sheepish nod, so I gently help her clamber onto my back. Hisato, meanwhile, wanders over to Miya, who seems to have broken off from the various chatting groups to check up on me.

Giving Hisato a reassuring pat, she grins at me and says, “A bit crowded, isn’t it?”

I nod, “Yeah, but I’m fine,” I glance at Karen, “You okay up there?”

Karen nods, “Thanks for the ride.”

I smile at her, “No problem.”

Karen smiles at me, then looks to Miya, “Is dinner soon?”

Miya grins and nods, “It’s on the way, so you and the Little Lamb don’t have much longer to wait.”

“She means me,” I remark, “Bah.”

“Bah, bah, bah,” Hisato bleats.

Miya chuckles and I smile. The various groups of conversation have started meandering toward the tables, and Akiyama seems to have left the room to help with dinner. Ruka, meanwhile, is walking over to me.

When she’s close enough for conversation, Ruka smiles at Miya, “Hi, Aunt Miya. Merry Christmas.”

“And a Happy New Year,” catching my eye briefly, Miya says, “I should say hi to your mother –I wanna hear about your latest trip.”

And in a move not unlike the Little Albatross, Miya flitters off toward Mrs. Kotobuki, who is chatting with Akira and Lilly.

When she’s gone Ruka faces me and says, “Hey, I heard you’re going to the same high school Mom went to, is that true?”

The direct approach, I see.

“…That’s correct. Why do you ask?”

“I was curious how they treated you there,” she replies, “Even Jin-ho and I get our share of shit, and we’re only a fourth Korean.

Speaking of, my own Korean isn’t quite good enough for me to reply, so I have to switch back to Japanese to answer her.

“It’s fine,” I reply, “a few students might grumble about it, but there isn’t much they can do.”

Although we almost went to war with the archery club after that fiasco before finals.

Ruka sighs and smiles, “Good to hear.”

“What’re you talking about?” Karen asks.

“School,” I reply, “and how lucky I am to be going to the same place your Mom and her friends went to.”

“Speaking of,” Ruka interjects, “We should probably head over to the tables –looks like dinner’ll be here soon.”

“Hungry.”

I smile at the little girl on my back as best I can, “Me, too, Karen.”

“Well then let’s go,” Ruka declares, and heads for the tables.

I sigh and shake my head; I seem to be surrounded by Type A personalities. Still, it has its benefits, so, Karen in tow, I follow after the younger girl to join the fun.

+++

This is what happens when I don’t write novellas folks; I write them anyway.

Merry Christmas, everyone! See you at New Year’s for lesbian shenanigans.