For Shiranai Atsune – sempai
Fwaaahh! QuQ Sempai thanks so so so so so a billion times much for continually supporting and reviewing and following this story that's taken over a year to finish! A Godzilla-sized thanks to you! QuQ
By the way, sempai, when will you update The Love Story of Two Snows in a Blizzard?
As for the rest of you, readers, thanks for your support as well! I love you FFN people! :'D
Disclaimer: I do not own Fubuki Yusaburu or any of the Fubuki for that matter! And Level-5 will sue me if I did own one!
10: Baby, it's Cold Outside
So stay with me, let me tell you how two snows had collide.
Fubuki Yusaburu was out today; Rika had arrived from Osaka, and was visiting the women a month before the Christmas festivities would prove travels impossible.
"Too-chan!" A ten-year-and-a-half-old voice squeaked from the living room. It sounded like it was in a midlife crisis…like it often did. "Shira-nee-chan's teasing me again!"
"I'm not teasing you if it's true!" Defended a twelve-year-old voice from the same room.
Fubuki Shirou, now in his early forties, got up from his seat and went down the stairs to meet his two children. Besides, he was also out of coffee. "What seems to be the problem here?" He asked softly, as was always his character. "Shiranai, haven't we talked about being the wiser person?" Fubuki raised his still silver brows at a pink-faced girl. The shorter one of the two looked aghast. "But, too-chan, I wanna be smarter than Shira-nee-chan!"
"And Atsune, what did your mother tell you about raising your voice?"
"But kaa-chan always yells on the phone every time Gou-san calls."
"That's because Gouenji-kun is a little hard of hearing," Fubuki smiled helplessly. It seemed Atsune got her mother's perceptiveness. "Now, going back on the topic, what exactly happened between you two?"
"Shira-nee-chan said it's normal to like boys!"
"Because it is!"
"But kaa-chan said I had to watch out for them!"
"Because you should!"
"Then which one is it? You're confusing me, nee-chan!" The ten-year-old Fubuki had her fingers latched in her hair to emphasize her point. "It's both, stu—"
"Swear Jar, honey." Fubuki Shirou stood from his crouched position to walk towards the kitchen, which was the other reason why he left the balcony in the first place. Twelve-year-old Fubuki Shiranai marched past him, fists swinging dangerously by her sides as she headed for the Swear Jar.
"Kaa-chan swears a lot too!" The gray-haired daughter pointed to the Swear Chart; both she and her mother had quite the tongues just by looking at the chart that took note. "Let's not point fingers, Shiranai. Just drop the yen," Soothed Fubuki as he heated some water.
There was a small grumble, a clink of metals and thumping footsteps that responded to the married man.
"Too-chan?" A younger, milder voice pulled on the hem of his shirt. "How did kaa-chan know you were the right boy to like?"
(A/N: I would just like to say I started writing this chapter the moment I read sempai's review.)
"Well it wasn't easy, that's for sure," Shirou mixed the crushed beans with the hot water as he spoke. "Your mother was very hard to get."
"Is that what she meant when she said that to me?" Shiranai's eyebrows furrowed in thought. Her father could not have been more in shock. 'Yusa-chan…what are you trying to teach your children?'
"Eh? How come kaa-chan didn't tell me that?" Atsune looked just like her father: horrified; but they both had different reasons. Shiranai straightened her scarf. "That's because you're not entering middle school yet." To make it seem like an advantage, the older sister stuck out her tongue.
Fubuki Atsune was beyond devastated.
"Now, now, children," Setting aside the rejuvenating cup of hot liquid aside, father Fubuki bent down to soothe his crying daughter while at the same time trying to get the older one to apologize. "Shiranai? I believe you have something to tell your sister?"
The older sister pouted in irritation. "…Sorry,"
"And Atsune, you can't always believe the things your sister says unless I confirm their validity."
"Sorry…"
"Now run along, enjoy the snow. But don't go too far." Fubuki grabbed his cup of coffee once more and decided to finish reading his book in the porch, where he could still be able to watch over his angels.
"I thought it was pretty harmless."
"That's what you also said when you taught Atsune the headlock."
"Well she had to learn self-defense some time, Shirou." Yusaburu was laughing for justification. "Do you really think your daughters will find their own kind of Fubuki Shirou?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you're teaching your daughters to be like their mother. That's basically making them look for a man that's like their father then." Fubuki took a sip of his coffee as his two girls screamed at the contact of the snow-ridden soccer ball. "Am I not right, Yusa-chan?"
The other line, save for Rika's loud banter and Ran's snorts, was silent for a while. "With a mother like me and a father like you, their strengths only hit average. I'm not even sure if they're emotionally capable either."
"Behold, my wife, a worrywart."
"I don't want them to grow up the way we both did. We both have horrible pasts, Shirou. I don't want my daughters to go through the same thing."
Fubuki Shirou smiled at the sound of his wife's voice. "They've got us to make sure that doesn't happen, haven't they?"
"Hey, Atsune," Shiranai was bouncing the ball on her knee as she spoke. "Yeah?"
"You ever wonder how kaa-chan and too-chan met?"
"Now that you mentioned it," Atsune caught the ball with her chest and bounced it on her head. "Not really." The older sister fell face-first on the ground. "W-why not?"
"When I asked kaa-chan about how Gou-san met Nayujin-san, she just told me they met through soccer. I asked too-chan how En-san met Natsumi-san, and he said soccer. So if we ask either of them how they met, they're probably going to say through soccer too. So it kinda gets boring."
"But those aren't your parents! Besides, during PTA meetings, my classmates always talk about how their parents met each other. But I wouldn't know about mine. And neither would you!" Shiranai explained as she tried to dry her precious scarf.
"Nee-chan, why do you want to know so badly?" Atsune whined as the two of them entered the house to dry off. "Know what so badly?" Their father echoed as he shut the door. Before Shiranai could hush her sister though, the words had already escaped the youngster's lips.
"How you and kaa-chan met!"
Fubuki smiled at his two freshly bathed children. "There's hot chocolate for both of you so you don't get bored while I tell you the story."
At eleven hundred words, my usual chapter limit (the previous chapter almost reached 2k), we're closing the book at the beginning of a new story (Shirou's tale of how they met)! Of course, I'll be making a poll as to whether to continue this chapter or leave it as is, so don't forget to visit my profile!
Answer the poll and/or leave a review onegaiiii~
-Strawbeariiis