First Family Outing
"So, besides trying to figure out what the kid is doing here, you two need to take her out and buy her new clothes. You can't expect Suzu to wear the same thing every day. And no Yata-chan. You can't just dress her up in one of your t-shirts either," said Kusanagi.
He continued on. "You should also take the girl out and do some fun things. No, I don't mean taking her to the arcade."
When Misaki had the duty of taking Anna out for the day, she ended up bringing the silver-haired girl to the play the bloodiest, most gruesome games that a young child should definitely NOT be playing.
"Ugh…like what exactly? Like go to the park, get a stick, and toss it to her to fetch for me?"
"…Mama Misa. She is your daughter, not a dog."
"UGH, WHATEVER THEN. I'LL LET THE STUPID MONKEY DECIDE WHEN HE GETS HERE!"
Fushimi went back to Scepter 4 last night after they ate dinner. He had to explain to his superior officers—or at least make up an excuse, as to why he can't perform his duties for the next couple of days. Although unwilling and annoyed, Lieutenant Awashima eventually gave him permission.
Suzuran stayed with Misaki at her apartment for the night. Having no other clothes, the vanguard simply dressed the child in one of her old t-shirts, which of course still dragged onto the ground and sagged off her shoulder.
"Tch, this is all so troublesome. Anyway, now that Saru is here, we're off."
Before they closed the door, they could hear Izumo shouting out, "Remember to be mature and NOT fight!"
There was one word that explained the current situation better than anything else: awkward. It had been so long since Misaki and Saruhiko actually were on friendly terms with each other. Especially since they were at one another's throats last night, silence seemed to be the best option for the moment.
Though, this is Yata Misaki. Silence wasn't really an option for her. "So… where are we going?"
"Hmmm? We might as well start at the shopping district. There's always a department store or something we can search in. "
"..Right."
Not another word was said until they arrived to Shizume City's busy shopping area. The three went into the largest, most popular department store within the district and soon arrived at the children's clothing section. The piles and racks filled with seemingly endless amounts of clothes overwhelmed the Red and Blue clansmen.
"Uhhhhhh…So which one do we choose?" the vanguard asked timidly.
"Fuck if I know. Just get anything."
Walking straight toward one of the piles, Yata began to pick up a few pair of pants and shirts, until she felt a large hand grab her wrist.
"Misaki, NO. We are NOT going to have our kid dress like you. Suzuran is a girl, NOT some gender-confused transvestite."
"Haaaaaaaaa? Shut the hell up! You're the one that told me to just get anything! These look comfortable! Shouldn't that be enough?"
Groaning out in frustration, Saruhiko scanned the area until he found a few different pieces. "Alright. Let's all go to the dressing room. Misaki, help her try these on."
Standing outside of the curtain, Fushimi could hear the two chatting away inside the dressing room. Suddenly, he heard the girls gasp out in surprise.
"What is it? Is something wrong? Come out."
Sliding open the curtain, the Blue clansman saw the most adorable thing before him. Suzuran was now wearing one of the dresses that the Scepter 4 officer had chosen earlier. The dress was pink with white, mini-kitten paws stamped around the bottom of the dress. The skirt portion ruffled out and had a pink tail coming off the back side. The top had a white ribbon tied around the front and a hoodie with kitten ears attached. Complete with white stockings and a pair of Mary Jane shoes, the entire set fit the blue-haired girl perfectly.
"Suzu, you are too cute right now!" Misaki said, while blushing a color matching the child's dress.
"Really!? Papa, how does Suzuran look?" the little girl asked.
Kneeling down to eye-level, Fushimi replied, "You look absolutely adorable, Suzu."
The blue-haired man could feel his icy-cold heart begin to melt, as he met his daughter's eyes. It was strange. He had never liked children before—if anything, he thought them to be loud, messy, and annoying. Yet somehow, he could feel love and affection for the child in front of him.
Jumping a bit in surprise, Saruhiko felt a hand grab firmly onto his. "I got to hand it to you, Saru! You really know how to pick 'em! Look at how happy Suzuran is right now."
Seeing his Misaki's genuinely blissful face brought him to his limit. Yanking the girl down onto her knees, she yelled out, "Oi, Saru! What do you think you're d—"
Two thin, but strong arms wrapped around the two beside him. The embrace was warm and gentle. "S-S-Saru? Are you alright?"
"Papa?"
Suppressing tears from slipping from his eyes, the man took in a deep breath and replied, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just felt a little light-headed, that's all. Go try on the rest of your clothes, Suzu. I'll be sitting by the cashier register until you're ready."
Pressing a small hand onto the Blue's forehead, the amber-eyed child said, "Papa is okay? Not sick?"
Taking the small hand into his, Fushimi showed a kind expression on his face. "Papa is fine. Be a good girl now and try on the other ones."
"Okay!"
Before Misaki joined the child in the dressing room, she said, "You sure you okay, Saru? You're kinda looking sweaty and pale right now."
"Don't worry about it. I just need to sit for a bit."
"Mmm, okay. Well, if you don't feel good, let me know. I don't want to drag you around if you're going to pass out on me."
Dragging himself over to one of the sofas, Fushimi threw himself upon it. He was perplexed as to these new emotions that were growing within him. He had experienced love before, as in the case of his beloved Misaki. Yet this new love felt completely different. The blue-eyed man couldn't explain it. It just felt strange, but comforting at the same time. He could feel the joy surging through his body. "I don't get it. Why am I so happy about this? I'm being dragged around to do errands with a brat and a single-celled idiot."
But there was nothing else he wanted to do more right then. Saruhiko was lost in his thoughts until the two girls were done. The three had decided that they were going to keep Suzuran in the first kitten dress she wore for the day. When they went to pay, the Scepter 4 officer instantly swiped his card before the crow could even protest.
Fushimi could then hear a stomach growl. "Papa, Suzu is hungry."
"Let's go get something to eat then. Is there anything you want in particular right now?"
"Hmm…Suzuran wants a crepe! A chocolate one with strawberries!" she said excitedly.
"Haha, figures my kid would end up liking crepes too. Nice choice Suzu! Let's go to our favorite crepe stand by the park then!" Misaki said with a laugh.
Grabbing onto both of her parent's hands, the three walked down the street linked together.
"Oh my, what a young couple. The mother doesn't look like she's older than sixteen! She must have had that child as soon as she hit puberty!" said a random citizen on the street.
"My goodness. What is the world coming to today?" replied the woman beside her.
Irked and ready for a scream-fest, the Red clansman stopped dead in her tracks. Foreseeing this already, Fushimi grabbed onto Yata's free hand and whispered, "Calm down and just ignore them, Misaki. We shouldn't fight anymore and make Suzu sad right now. Look at how happy she is."
Releasing her tension, the crow clicked her tongue and replied, "Fine, I got it."
Once they arrived to the crepe stand, the blue-haired child's eyes began to light up.
"Suzu, you can watch them make your crepe here. Do you want to watch?" the vanguard asked.
"Really!? I do!" squealed the child.
Although Suzuran was sweet and endearing when she was shy and quiet, she was also enchanting and loveable while she was vibrant and…well—childlike. Holding her daughter in her arms, Suzu watched in absolute delight.
"All done, here you go, young miss!" the crepe maker said, handing it to amber-eyed child.
"Thank you, mister," Suzuran said with a bow.
"Oh my, what a polite child. Just for that, I'll give you that crepe as a service item!"
"Wow, did you hear that Suzu? He said he's giving it to you for free! Make sure you thank the kind person again," Fushimi said with a smile.
"Okay! Thank you again, mister!"
The family unit moved over to the chairs and tables to eat their crepes. The warm breeze flew playfully between the locks of their hair. It was a perfect, cloudless, sunny day. It felt as if nothing could go wrong…
"Fushimi. What are you doing here, just sitting around? I thought you said you had an urgent matter to deal with, and yet I find you here sitting in the park and eating crepes? With an enemy clansman, no less?" a familiar voice said harshly.
"Geh, it's the Heartless Woman," Misaki thought, eyeing Awashima Seri.
"This is the urgent matter I'm attending to," Saruhiko replied curtly.
"Don't joke around. Fushimi, I want you to head back to Scepter 4 right now and—"
"Papa? Something wrong?"
"Huh? Papa?" the blonde lieutenant of Scepter 4 said.
Shifting her gaze, Seri saw a small child, who was now hugging onto Saruhiko's neck from behind. From a quick look, the girl could not be older than six. She had remarkably similar features to the vanguard of HOMRA, yet her hair color was…
"Oh my god, you have a child, Fushimi? How shameless!"
Planting his head into his palm, the third-in-command groaned out. Now he would have to explain everything to his superior, which he seriously did not want to do. He knew Awashima would ask a million questions, doubt everything he said, and assume there was some other hidden motive behind every word.
After about twenty full minutes of explaining, Scepter 4's lieutenant finally accepted the blue-eyed man's explanation. "You will need to give a full report once you address and solve this issue. Remember, I will be expecting you to take on overtime assignments in the future to compensate for your time lost, got it?"
Clicking his tongue, Fushimi then replied, "Got it."
Now receiving official approval for his time off, stomachs full and content, the three went off to search for things to do. Hours went by, and the three found themselves laughing and smiling the whole time. Besides the occasional bickering, Fushimi and Yata didn't get into a full-blown fight, which was also an extremely unusual occurrence.
Despite all the past arguing and bad air between the two, it was as if nothing bad had every happened. The three were truly united like a family unit—one that was held together by love, warmth, and happiness.
