Niijima Sae examined the two tickets she had fanned out in her hand. They were for a character event later that day at Sunshine City. Buchimaru had fallen out of popularity over the last decade, but because it was his 25th birthday they were bringing him out among their more presently popular mascots. She tucked the tickets safely into her purse.
Having recently hired her first paralegal, Sae turned her phone to Do-Not-Disturb with some confidence that if an emergency were to happen, at least someone would be there to address the concerned clients. If she was lucky, he might even fix the problem. It was her first day unplugged from her job, ever.
Sae swirled her coffee and stared into her now silent phone. She closed her eyes and shook her head. This was time she had reserved to spoil Makoto. She looked down the hall, barely making out her sister's door. She turned again to her purse. She hadn't yet told Makoto the true purpose of the outing, hoping to keep it a surprise. She wondered if her sister remembered the last time they had gone to a character event.
–––
"Where are we going?" Makoto looked up at Sae, her little hand holding tight. Thankfully the little girl had already adjusted to their difference in height. Sae was in the tail-end of what was likely her final growth spurt. When her little sister spoke without lifting her head, she was hard to hear.
"You'll see," Sae leaned down, smiling.
Makoto twisted her head, this time examining Dad. She looked like she had a question, but whatever it was she didn't speak it.
The line for the event was long, snaking back and forth several times in the atrium at the center of the mall. Sae could barely make out the stage through the crowd of parents. Makoto's face darted in all directions. Sae could almost see the gears spinning in the small girl's head, trying to figure out why so many people were standing in line, what connected them all.
What connected them all were that they were waiting to see Buchimaru. While there were some groups of teenagers and even a few adults, most were families with children. It seemed Makoto wasn't the only child enjoying the attention of the rest of her family as most groups kept to themselves.
As they shifted forward in line, one particularly outgoing boy waved at Makoto as his alternatingly moving switchback crossed paths with theirs. She smiled brightly and waved back. Sae's eyes narrowed as she watched the boy recede. He continued to wave at all the children he passed.
Good.
The line was slow-moving, but Makoto remained well-behaved. She was a good child, but good children weren't immune to the occasional meltdown. While they waited, one child had to be carried off by a quite grim-looking father. Sae overheard some mothers gossiping about how embarrassing that must be.
By the time they were nearing the front of the line, Makoto had made some ephemeral friends, line buddies perhaps. She waved at them every time they crossed by, beaming the brightest of smiles in their direction. Sae kept close watch on the boy from earlier. The little snot had the audacity to blush.
Makoto was still distracted with the other children when they reached the front of the line. Sae had to tug on her hand to direct her attention to the large Buchimaru mascot waiting for her.
The girl turned. Her eyes went wide. Her smile dropped as her jaw hung open. She stood absolutely motionless. Dad gave her a firm pat on the back and she stumbled forward towards the mascot. When she gained her footing, she slowed down, walking towards the giant Buchimaru with deliberate steps. Sae wondered what was going through her little head as she continued to stare wide-eyed and slack-jawed.
"Makoto! Smile for camera!" Dad shook the camera up and down, managing to briefly get the small girl to look his way. She didn't smile however. She turned back to the big walking plush, staring upwards. The mascot put its paw on Makoto's shoulder. She jumped, her mouth snapping shut and her face snapping to view the paw. Somehow her eyes got wider and her mouth opened again, lips moving to something between a smile and an 'Oh.' Sae looked at the red light blinking on Dad's camera. It was likely the best they were going to get.
When time was up, Sae grabbed Makoto by the hand and led her away. Her sister walked haltingly, her little steps uneven as her head was still firmly pointed at the mascot.
Makoto remained quiet for the rest of the walk. Dad was treating them to a family restaurant to round out the day. Sae looked over to her father with so many questions she couldn't voice in front of her sister. Dad simply smiled at her. It was equal parts kind and amused. She wasn't sure what it meant.
When they were seated at the restaurant, it took Makoto all of fifteen seconds to declare what she wanted. They had been there before and there were only two children's lunch set options after all. Having announced her choice, Makoto then launched into a detailed description of meeting Buchimaru and everything that had happened including the line, the entire setup, and all of the props and decorations. It was like she had just come home from school and was sharing her day. She was speaking faster than normal. Her eyes were bright.
Sae looked up over her menu at Dad. He grinned as if to say "See?" before bringing his hand to his chin and looking to his other daughter, a sign to her that he was listening carefully. Sae turned to her sister as well, smiling as she took in her story.
–––
Makoto was no longer that small child, but she still had a soft spot for Buchimaru. At first Sae thought her sister was clinging to her Buchimaru goods as they housed memories of Dad, but one would have expected her to grow out of it before he passed away and certainly not buy new goods whenever she had the chance. It was one of the few things Makoto was willing to spend frivolously on.
The sound of the bell came as a surprise. Sae walked over to their front door, wondering who would be calling. Through the peephole stood one Amamiya Ren.
"Tch." Sae grit her teeth. Amamiya-kun was one of the most remarkable boys, no people, that she had ever met. His poise and determination during the Shido case had more than impressed her. She found herself talking to him about things she wouldn't even tell her sister. However, he had one fatal flaw of which she would later learn: a persistent interest in her sister. Sae had hoped it would fade when he moved back to his hometown and yet here he was on her doorstep.
Amamiya-kun looked down at a pair of tickets in his hands. Sae recognized them. She had exactly the same pair. He tucked them back into his blazer pocket and then adjusted the collar of his shirt. He shifted from one foot to another while looking from side to side.
Sae wondered if he would go away if she waited long enough.
"Sis! Who was that?" Makoto called from her room.
"I'm getting it now!" Sae called back.
She sighed as she opened the door. She narrowed her eyes at the boy. "Amamiya-kun."
"Niijima-san," Amamiya-kun stood up straight. "Is Makoto available?"
"We have plans," Sae reached into her purse and pulled out her tickets just enough to gain a look of recognition from the boy. His lips parted. His eyes searched. His neck reddened.
The sound of a second door opening caused them both to look up. Makoto was adjusting her headband as she entered the hallway. While Sae couldn't quite bring herself to give up wearing a pantsuit, just in case, her sister had donned a blue jumper-style dress, re-purposing her old high school uniform bouse to complete the outfit.
"Who did you say it-" Makoto stopped in her tracks. Her eyes lit up and a large smile grew across her face until realization hit. She deflated just as quickly. "O-oh. Ren. Um... I'm going out with Sis today..."
Amamiya-kun made a slow nod in acknowledgement.
"But I'm sure Leblanc is open! Futaba and Sakura-san would love to see you again..." Makoto spoke rapidly. She brought her hand to her chin. "And probably some of the others are free."
On one hand, Sae felt triumphant that Makoto didn't even consider ditching her for the boy. On the other, she had envisioned her sister being happy today, as happy as she looked when Sae had first proposed they have a girl's day out. This was not what she had planned. She glared at Amamiya-kun, again.
"Ah... Sorry," Amamiya-kun looked down. He scratched the back of his head. "I should have asked beforehand."
"I'm really happy you came to see me!" Makoto's eyes were wide open. She spoke a little too loud and her expression looked painfully forced. As her voice quieted, her lips fell to a more natural smile. "And... it was really good to see you, if only for a little bit."
Sae rolled her eyes and swallowed a sigh. The plan had been to spoil her sister. "I suppose he could come with us."
"But Sis, we rarely get to go out, just the two of us," Makoto almost sounded disappointed. Sae had to fight down a smirk that wanted to fire off in Amamiya-kun's direction.
"How about he join us for just a couple hours? Then he can go to Leblanc and we'll have the rest of the day to ourselves." Sae glanced over at Amamiya-kun. He briefly looked up at her before turning his attention to Makoto. As she expected, he had understood what she meant. While she wasn't enthusiastic about him coming to the character event, he had gotten tickets and come all this way. "I hope you don't mind. We're starting with some shopping at Sunshine City."
"Not at all," Amamiya-kun continued to focus on Makoto. "If it's okay with you."
Makoto looked at her sister. Sae nodded. The younger woman sucked her lips in, holding them until they broke into a smile. "I'd like that."
Small talk on the train to Ikebukuro was dominated by politely catching up with Amamiya-kun. There was nothing like asking a child how school was going to make one feel old. They didn't need to go into too much detail as apparently Makoto and Amamiya-kun kept in close contact. That was an entirely different problem.
Amamiya-kun kept quiet for the most part while the sisters shopped for basic coordinates to round out Makoto's wardrobe. A first year college student, she was now beyond school uniforms. While hand-me-downs had been serviceable the first few months and in the summer, with the promise of many cold months to come and possible internship interviews it was time for an upgrade.
That wasn't to say the boy's actions went unnoticed. When he and Makoto passed each other in the aisles, their fingers would brush against each other in a loose tangle that unraveled only once they had passed. They would turn and give each other little smiles. When something in a display would catch Makoto's eye, Amamiya-kun would take a picture of it with his phone after she had moved on. Sometimes he looked quite perplexed at her fixations. When Makoto would laugh at one of Sae's remarks or smile at an outfit she liked, he would be smiling too from afar.
It was almost cute.
Amamiya-kun was making it difficult to dislike him.
Twenty minutes before the event was to start, Sae led the students to the atrium. Workers were putting the finishing touches on the stage and the audience-cum-queue had already started gathering between the stanchions.
"Oh, they're having some kind of event today," said Makoto. Her eyes fell over the decorations. Sae could tell the exact moment she realized Buchimaru would be at the event. For just that one instant, her eyes went wide and her lips parted, making the same face she had made as a child. Makoto shut her mouth and brought her hand to her chin. "I-I wonder if it's open to the public."
Sae leaned forward, holding her pair of tickets at chest level.
"Sis! R-really?" Makoto's cheeks rose with a big, opened-mouth smile. Sae nodded, making her own small smile. However, once again Makoto's expression dropped, her lips drawing together and her brow furrowing. "But what about Ren?"
"Your sister already gave me one," Amamiya-kun held a single ticket in front of him.
Makoto turned from Amamiya-kun back to Sae. Her smile from before was even bigger. She all but dragged the two of them into the line. Stopping at the end, she turned towards the stage, hands balled into fists at chest height.
Sae turned to Amamiya-kun and mouthed a "thank you." Perhaps she could live with the boy's interest in her sister.
Amamiya-kun raised a single eyebrow and smirked in return.
Little brat.