Eramis8: Glad to know that you liked it! This chapter is also a light hearted one with some humor as well. :)
Riska Kuruta404: First off for the 'how the war ended?' question. As we know in this fanfiction, Asseylum never went with Klancain, hence most of the stuff at the end of the first season didn't happen. In this version, the forces of Earth were able to overcome the Orbital Knights and capture their leaders. As for your second question… let's just say we'll be seeing Slaine quite soon. :)
Chapter 9
"Do you think they even ship up here?" The question that Calm had asked was one that each occupant in the room was thinking but didn't want to voice.
"Well… I mean they ship supplies up here so a package shouldn't be too hard, right?" Asseylum turned to look at her friend, confusion on each of the girls' faces.
It was a puzzling question, what Inaho could get his sister that had also been his teacher as well. All of them had come together to try to find the perfect gift, which took long hours of planning and searching the Internet, before they had finally settled on one that she would like.
At least I think she will… Inaho does know her best after all…
She glanced over at the boy in doubt, not quite used to the idea of giving presents and one such as the one they had decided to get Yuki.
"There's only one way to find out…" Inaho trailed off before submitting the order. He glanced behind him to look at his friends. "It should send me an email telling me if they can process the order or not."
They all nodded, before Calm asked another question that they had all been thinking of.
"So… how long do we have before her birthday?"
Inaho glanced at everyone in complete seriousness, glancing back at the tablet momentarily.
"About two days or so."
The present had arrived the next day, which did after all answer the question about whether or not people from Earth shipped items other than supplies into space. The more that Asseylum thought about it though, she wondered whether or not Inaho's sister would actually like the present.
I mean… I trust Inaho's decision it's just… it is an unusual present…
A tap at her door alerted her to the person waiting outside her room, as she quickly made her way to allow them access inside. Upon pressing the button, which caused the door to slide open, she was felt surprise run through her at seeing Inaho, who was carrying a medium sized package.
"Inaho! What are you doing here?" She didn't mean to sound as panicked as she must have, but seeing him here without him letting her know he was coming was a bit startling. Not an unwelcome surprise by any means, it was just that she would have prepared more if she had known he was coming.
She stepped back a bit to let him in, which caused him to do so a minute later. He surveyed her room a moment, before turning to face her, showing her the contents of the box as well.
"I figured that we'd test Yuki-nee's present out." Asseylum felt confusion run through her at Inaho's statement, but she nodded anyways.
Don't people normally give the presents before they're used?
She moved to help Inaho empty the box and the gift up, wondering slightly how they were going to do this.
I mean… why didn't he go use the kitchen instead? It has everything he would need there… When she inquired about her question, Inaho merely replied with,
"She could easily come into the kitchen, as well as my room. She wouldn't expect me to come here…"
Asseylum wasn't too sure how true his statement was but shrugged it off in favor of helping him with his gift. When she glanced at the clock however, she started, remembering one other important thing going on today.
"Um… Inaho?" She started, watching as he paused in his work to glance at her before she continued. "Did you tell Inko that you were coming here?"
The other girl would have been heading to his room about now to give him his lunch since it was her scheduled day…
And if he didn't tell her where he was going…
The boy paused to think for a moment before shaking his head.
"No, and to be honest, I didn't really think about it." With his answer said, he went back to work, changing different settings on the machine. Worry instantly filled Asseylum for her friend.
Who knows what she's thinking right now…
Asseylum looked over towards Inaho when she heard a click come from his direction. The machine seemed to be done and Inaho was inspecting his present, or at least the part that he had just finished. She was confused, however, when he moved to put the machine back inside the box, the other half of the present inside.
"Um… Inaho?" He glanced at her confused face before down at the box again. "Aren't you going to put the other half in another box?"
The boy continued with his task of packing away the machine, instead shaking his head before sealing it back up with tape.
"It'll be more interesting for her this way."
Asseylum didn't quite understand how this way would be more interesting, if anything she was more worried about how the present might get broken but she nodded, instead helping him wrap it in the paper he had brought.
As long as she likes it I guess that's what's important…
Asseylum tried hard not to feel like she was invading in something personal, after all Inaho had invited her to watch as Yuki opened her gift, but she felt like this was something that was meant for family members.
Most of the time when I would open my gifts, it would just be my family and I'm technically not part of Inaho's family…
She glanced over at her friend to see a small smile on his face as Yuki stared at the box in confusion. She had just unwrapped the package and was glancing at the words on the cover that stated what the present was.
"A… waffle maker?" She glanced over at Inaho in confusion, causing him to nod towards the box, indicating that she should look inside. "This was really sweet of you but, any reason why?" A small laugh escaped the woman as she pulled out the small contraption, its color a light blue with black as the metal.
"Penivia." Inaho stated, causing Yuki to look up in confusion, almost as if she hadn't heard what he had said.
"What?" She asked, confusion back on her face while Asseylum felt a small smile blooming on her own despite her own confusion. She didn't understand the joke, or at least that was what she was assuming it was, that Inaho had just made but she knew she could always ask later.
"Nothing." He stated, and Yuki gave him a glanced for a moment before she turned the waffle maker's handle, opening the end with Inaho's other present in it.
"You made me a waffle?" She asked, glancing over at her younger brother again, causing Asseylum to wonder what Inaho had been planning originally. She hadn't paid much attention to what he had put inside the waffle maker but originally it had looked like a piece of paper…
"Crack it open." Inaho stated, the small smile still on his face. Asseylum felt confusion enter her once more at his words.
Crack the waffle… open?
Clearly Yuki was also confused but she complied with his wish. A moment later, confusion gave way to a small smile. From what Asseylum could see, there was a small piece of paper about the size of a bookmark inside the waffle, completely undamaged. She glanced over at the red-eyed boy in wonder.
How did he know how to make that…?
She now understood his statement the day before about it being more interesting for Yuki.
Had he just given her the piece of paper, it would have seemed like less work had gone into it but now…
Confusion hit her, however, when tears started to stream down Yuki's face as she looked at the slip of paper.
She's… crying?
Before either of them could react, Yuki suddenly leaned over the table that was in front of them all and grabbed Inaho in a hug, surprising the boy as well. The light blush on the boy's face was the only indication that he was embarrassed, causing a light laugh from Asseylum.
"Nao-kun! That was so thoughtful of you!" The paper was still clutched in the woman's grasp, in the middle of the hug. Inaho sent Asseylum a look, as if silently apologizing for the display, the blush slightly more prominent on his face. She pointed towards the door, a smile on her own face despite her own sadness at the memories this moment brought up, before making her own way towards it.
The least I can do is give them some time alone…
The door slid close behind her as silent tears fell from her eyes, memories playing over in her head. They were slightly foggy due to the age that she had been, about five or six, of when she had given her mother presents like that one. Little beads made of clay that were strung in a necklace.
She had the same reaction, I'm sure of it…
Taking a deep breath, she wiped away the tears and started back towards her room. That was all in the past, nothing that she should be dwelling about at a time like now.
So this one's slightly longer as well (and I was going to add a bit more) but then I didn't want to ruin the mood. The part that I took away from this chapter will be released next, even though it will be short, and should hopefully be out by the end of this month. Just a heads up for all of you readers as well, college will be starting back up for me and as much as it pains me to say this, I might not be able to update once a month now (although I feel bad about not updating more than once a month as well). I'll try my best to get chapters out, but I don't want to disappoint you if one doesn't come each month. Question of the month: What do you all think happened with Slaine? I'm curious to see what you all come up with. With that note, please let me know what you all thought of the chapter! Until later this month, have a nice week!
P.S.- So some of you might remember back whenever I wrote my "Learning to…" series that I said it was going to be three parts. So far I have the part with Inaho and the part with Slaine posted but the third part, the one with Klancain, is a lot harder to write than I thought it would be. The more I look back on what I wrote; I'm not very satisfied with it. I just want to know whether anyone actually cares whether or not it gets published on this site, or whether I can scrap the idea for now until I get something more concrete.
-AnimeWolfGirl16