Some things are said to happen by chance. Others by fate. Of course, these terms seem to be interchangeable at times, much to the annoyance of English majors and dictionary editors.
One such event occurred to Death the Kid on his way down one of the halls of Shibusen. He hadn't taken on any missions from the bulletin board, and Liz and Patty had taken the time off to go shopping. With free time, Kid had decided to not rush getting back home, and with this chain of seemingly independent and random events, he found himself in an encounter with the potential to change his life forever.
Of course, it was a lot less dramatic than that introduction was just now.
Spirit Albarn and Franken Stein also happened to be walking the same corridor, and, of course, Kid just happened to overhear the part of their conversation that most interested him.
"So, Spirit, your little girl's having a birthday tomorrow, is that right?" Stein addressed his companion.
"Yep," sighed Spirit, "and she absolutely refused to let me throw the kind of massive party she deserves! Actually . . ." and here the red haired Death Scythe blushed, "she got so angry . . . she absolutely refused to hold any kind of party. She just yelled at me that she didn't think anyone would care about her birthday. I hope her friends will remember, though."
"Cheer up, senpai!" The stitched professor threw a comforting arm around his old partner's shoulders. "She has lots of friends. Moreover, her birthday is still important to her, I'll bet. Ask Blair to deliver a present or something."
The color drained out of Spirit's face. "NO. I don't even want to remember what happened last time I tried that . . . "
The two men passed by Kid, who had frozen in his tracks as effectively as if he had been turned to stone. Maka's birthday was tomorrow? How could he have forgotten? On second thought, he hadn't even really been her friend a year ago. Still, how could he have let such an important date almost slip by? He didn't even have an idea for a present! Whom could he ask? Not Maka, of course. That went without saying. Spirit wouldn't be any help either. That left . . .
"Liz . . . Patty . . . hurry . . . need help . . ." Kid gasped out, having just run halfway across Death City to find the store where the sisters were shopping. "Geez, Kid, you look awful," Liz remarked. Patty only giggled at Kid's disarrayed and windblown state. "It's not a mission from Shinigami-sama, is it?" The older weapon continued.
Kid took a moment to compose himself and straighten out his clothes and hair. "No, fortunately not. Did you know it was Maka's birthday tomorrow?"
"Of course!" Patty happily exclaimed. "Why else would we be shopping at a bookstore? A smarty-pants one." Kid looked around, and sure enough, they were in a shop that specialized in academic and scholarly texts. "Fine," he said. "Well, I haven't got an idea what to get Maka. Could you possibly –" "Hey, big sis, how do you pronounce that?" Patty and Liz had already lost interest in the conversation and had returned to scanning the shelves. Death the Kid sighed. No shinigami power covered how to decode the mind of a girl . . .
"Guess it wouldn't hurt to get Maka a book . . ." the boy murmured to himself. Idly wandering through the store, he found himself near the entrance, where a selection of local arts and crafts were displayed at the checkout. His eyes wandered over them, not finding anything of interest – until his gaze fixed on something with true intensity. Without a doubt, he knew he had found the perfect gift. "Those, please." The store clerk nodded, and gift-wrapped the present in a box when Kid asked.
The next day, Kid and his partners met up with Black Star and Tsubaki outside of Maka's house. Every person was bearing a gift, most packages being suspiciously book-shaped. Tsubaki knocked on the door, which was opened by Soul. He bared his sharp teeth in a grin at the sight of all the presents, then admitted them into the house. Maka was sitting at the living room couch, setting out snacks and drinks for her perpetually hungry friends and Black Star, the bottomless pit.
After a few minutes of chatting, the presents were brought out and Maka opened each one. Naturally, Black Star insisted that his gift be opened first. "Here you are, Maka!" he exclaimed. "Something to make next year much brighter and more beautiful for you!"
"Thank you . . ." Maka unwrapped the (rectangular) package to reveal – a photo album filled with photos of Black Star, signed by Black Star. "Er," she seemed to fumble for words, "thanks, it's, um . . ."
"Beautiful, isn't it?" The blue haired meister supplied as Tsubaki looked on, appalled, and the other meisters and weapons traded similar looks. "Thanks . . . it's certainly one of the most . . . unique presents I've ever received." Maka recovered beautifully, and gingerly set the album aside.
The other girls and Soul then gave Maka their gifts, which, unsurprisingly, were all books. Tsubaki, Soul, and Liz had given her books about science or history, but Patty had gifted Maka with a picture book about animals, which she declared to be 'one of my favorites!'
Finally, Kid held out the small box he had gotten at the store. Maka carefully removed the wrapping and opened the present. Inside the box, two hair ties nestled in cotton. Both had a small Shinigami-sama mask on them, which would be visible when wearing the ties.
"Do you like them?" Kid felt he had to ask. Maka smiled at him. "Yes, I love it. They're perfect. Thanks a bunch, Kid!" She put them on without further ado. A blushing Kid nodded to himself that he had made the right choice.
The ties and her hair – were in perfect symmetry.