"This is for your own good, Anna," Pilika said. She and Tamao hefted her suitcase and dumped all of its contents on the floor.

"Hey, I need that stuff," Anna protested. "Put my clothes back or I'll rip your lips off!"
"Ah-ah-ah, it's ours to sort through now," Pilika said. "Anna, as your friends, you can trust us to sort through these things properly."

"Anna, your dresses are all black," Tamao said. "Except this one. It has an apple on it. Didn't you wear that the time you visited here, when you were eleven..."

"Give me that!" Anna growled, snatching the jumper back. "I don't grow much, all right?"

"I can see that," Pilika said, holding up one of Anna's personal items. "Your chest is tiny."

"Pilika!" Anna gasped. "Put those down!"
"Make me!" Pilika mouthed off, sticking out her tongue. She opened the window and tossed it outside. "That thing is old. You need all new clothes."

Anna plunked down in a sulk. "Fine. Be that way," she groused. "I'm keeping my black dresses."

"Too much of a good thing is a bad thing," Tamao reminded her. "You need some more color in your clothes."

"Says you," Anna retorted. "I do just fine in the color department."

"Ooh, black, red, and blue," Pilika said. "Leave out the red and you'd just be one giant bruise!"

"Whatever," Anna said. "I, quite frankly, don't value your opinions, Pilika."

"I know," Pilika grinned. "Which is why I'm doing whatever I want."

Suddenly a voice startled them. "Hey, Ponchi, look what I found!"
"I guess those things really do grow on trees," Konchi said. "Can I keep it?"

"Well, it's not very big..."

The three girls leaned out the window to see the fox spirit and the tanuki running around with the item of clothing Pilika had thrown out just moments earlier.

"It's Pilika's!" Anna hollered. She ducked back into the room.

"Ooh, Pilika!" Ponchi and Konchi called.

"I'm going to make you pay for this, Anna Kyoyama," Pilika snarled.

Anna faked a curtsy. "Thank you, thank you very much," she said sweetly.

"Okay, this our list," Pilika said, thrusting the piece of paper into Anna's reluctant hands. "We are going to buy at least one of every item on here."

"There's too many things," Anna said flatly, handing it back. "No. I refuse."

Pilka grabbed her by the wrists and dragged her, while Tamao got behind her and pushed. "Too bad, so sad," they chorused.

"Cry us a river, build us a bridge, and get over it," Tamao added.

"Nice one."

The shopping trip was...eventful. Anna was forced to try on more clothes than she had ever tried on in her life- actually, never, since she had either worn hand-me-downs from Kino's wealthier students or made her own clothes. All in all, she came out with more clothes than she had ever owned before. They were down to the last item- the swimsuit.

"Anna, you have to buy one. You and Yoh are going to Hawaii, for crying out loud," Pilika said.

"I have a swimsuit and it'll do quite well, thank you very much," Anna said.

"It's black."

"So? I like black. It's very classic and basic."

"You need colors, Anna."

"You've used that argument already. That's how I ended up with a bright yellow top, a pale blue skirt, a pair of green sneakers, and that one extremely orange sundress."

"You like that orange sundress and you know it," Tamao said.

"True," Anna admitted. "But I'm not going to like these bathing suits."

"Just try on one of them," Pilika pleaded. "Like this one!"

Anna's jaw dropped. "I am not wearing a bikini," she said flatly. "Never, never, never."

"Yoh wouldn't mind it," Pilika grinned.

"I would!" Anna snapped. "I'm never going out in public like that."

"Who said anything about public?" Tamao said slyly.

Ears burning, Anna grabbed the pile of swimsuits her friends had chosen. "Fine! I'll try them on," she said. "But I'm not promising anything."

While Anna was in the dressing room, Pilika rifled through the racks. "Perfect!" she said, pulling out a black and red bikini. "C'mon, Tamao. We're going to buy this and hide it in Anna's suitcase when she leaves on her honeymoon. It'll be the ultimate joke!"

By the time Anna came out with the batik tankini she'd finally chosen, the secret present had been safely hidden. The innocent little bride didn't suspect a thing.

Or did she?

"So we have the logistics," Anna said. "Most of them, at least."

"Let's see," Pilika said, picking up the notebook. "Mikihisa-san is officiating, Tamao, Jeanne, and I are bridesmaids, HoroHoro, Lyserg, and Ren are the best men..." She glanced up. "Anna, who's going to give you away?"
Anna rested her chin on her knees. "I don't know," she said softly. "I don't have any family at all." She looked up at them, her dark eyes soft and sad. "All I know about them is that they cared so little for me that they would give me up. Technically, they've already given me away."

Tamao put her arm around her. "We'll find someone," she promised. "I know we will."

"It's the only thing I'm worried about my wedding," Anna said. She smiled slightly. "It sounds so funny. My wedding." Her smile brightened.

Someone knocked on her door. Anna rolled over onto her stomach and set down the magazine she was flipping through. "Come in," she called. As soon as the person entered she jumped to attention. "Kino-sama..."

"Calm down, little one, calm down," Kino said. "This isn't official sensei business. More of grandmother-to-granddaughter business." She held out a small pasteboard box. "I've been meaning to give this to you for a long time, but I just never quite seemed to get around to it. These are the things that you brought to my training hall when you were just a toddler."

Anna took the box reverently. "Thank you, Kino-sama," she murmured.

Kino patted Anna's cheek. "Don't you mean Obaa'san, child?" she said.

"Of course," Anna smiled. "Thank you, Obaa'san."

The old woman kissed her. "I'll leave you to look through them on your own. I'll see you in a while, Anna-chan."

Anna lifted the lid carefully. The contents of the box were carefully layered with tissue paper. Beneath the first layer was a small blue-and-white check dress, well-worn and faded. Anna slowly spun one of the plastic pearl buttons around with her fingertip. The dress had been handmade.

Under the blue dress was a tiny, delicately embroidered white kimono. Anna gasped. It was perfect in every minute detail, from the silky obi to the embroidery along the hem to the pale pink collar. She touched the silk fabric against her cheek for a moment.

The box held a few more little surprises- a battered yellow baby blanket, a doll that was missing an eye, a torn picture book.

Last of all, there was a little pair of scuffed old shoes. Anna grinned and slid her fingers inside of them. They were so small she could barely fit three fingers in them. She frowned. Something was inside the left shoe. She dug inside the shoe and pulled out a pretty little locket on a thin gold chain. The locket itself was simple, with just a small etched scroll and a little clear gem on the front.

And inside it was empty. Completely empty. A little disappointed, Anna leaned back against the wall and regarded it. But at long last she smiled and fastened it around her neck.

"Anna, these dresses are gorgeous!" Pilika gushed, spinning around to make the skirt of the red dress flare.

"I'm glad you approve," Anna said, turning her head a little.

Keiko turned her back around. "Hold still, dear, or you're going to get a handful of pins in your skin," she chided.

"That's such a pretty wedding dress, Anna," Tamao said, a little wistful.

"It's a pretty unusual choice, I think," Pilika said. "You've never struck me as a cute kind of person, but that's a really cute dress and you look good in it."

Anna smoothed an imaginary wrinkle out of the skirt. "To be honest, I was a little wary when I saw it," she said. "I've never worn anything pretty. To me, everything has to be practical."

"That's the nice thing about weddings, dear," Keiko said. "They're almost never practical."

"I wish I knew about my parents' wedding," Anna sighed. She regarded herself wistfully in the mirror and placed a finger on the gold locket. "I wonder what my mother looked like." Without warning, her vision started to cloud.

Keiko stopped sliding pins into the hem of Anna's wedding gown and put her hands on the little bride's shoulders. "Don't cry, little one," she said softly, smoothing Anna's rebellious hair. "I'm sure your mother and father will be watching you on your wedding day." Anna nodded, unable to speak. "Besides, Mikihisa and I are your parents now." This time Anna smiled when she nodded, albeit a hesitant and quasi-fearful smile. Keiko kissed her daughter's cheek. "And now, we have to finish pinning this up, or people will wonder why a tent is in the middle of the wedding!"

Author's Note: Aw, poor Anna. No mommy or daddy to be at her wedding. But don't worry...I think I know who's going to walk her down the aisle...

And...should the bikini come into play later? I really don't know...I wrote that randomly...

Two things: go to , search for KeitorinAsthore, and review my poor pictures.

And tell me what you think should happen at the wedding! Mishaps, interesting things, romantically inclined moments...it is a wedding, after all. Fluffly fluff shall RULE. THE. WORLD.

--Keitorin Asthore laughs a Gigglepie giggle—

Isn't that CUUUTE?!