Shoko Komi's Ultimate Challenge
by Ulquiorra9000
Communication 31: invitation
On Sunday evening, Masayoshi and Shosuke returned home from their usual fishing trip at the lake, and Shoko stood up from her seat on the couch to welcome them. How did it go? she asked, happy sparkles all around her.
Masayoshi gave a manly thumbs-up, matching his daughter's sparkles with his own. We caught quite a few fish this time. And we saw some exotic birds, too. Didn't we, son? He turned to get confirmation from Shosuke.
Shosuke shrugged and headed for the stairs. That eagle almost tore my head off, dad. He then retreated upstairs to play Counter-Strike: Super Battles or something
Shoko, meanwhile, couldn't help the mental image of a giant eagle swooping down and seizing her brother in its talons, carrying the limp Shosuke to its nest. What else did you find? Shoko silently asked.
Lots of songbirds and some waterfowl, Masayoshi told her. Some of those birds were quite beautiful. I even took a few pictures, see? He showed Shoko some neat photos on his phone, and then Shoko realized all over again how little of the natural world she saw in her daily life. Her life was all about school, paved roads and the mall. Where was the touch of Mother Nature? She had to seek it out. What a challenge!
There it is.
Shoko pumped her fists and went "Hmph!"
Did you get an idea? Masayoshi asked.
I want to build some birdhouses! And put them up in the park!
Masayoshi adjusted his glasses. You'd need permission for that, Shoko. But let me take care of that. You focus on your project, okay?
"Hmph!" Shoko realized something else: she needed tools and high-quality wood to work with! So she asked.
Of course. And I have a friend who owns a workshop not too far from here. We can borrow it, Masayoshi said, and he patted a hand on Shoko's head. How exciting!
*o*o*o*o*
Shoko spent all night dreaming about the lovely songbirds she would attract with her birdhouses, and oh! What if she made a big, fancy birdhouse with stylish paint and cute accessories, like a little bird mansion? When she awoke, Shoko eagerly ran downstairs to ask her father about it before he went to work, and he promised that within a week, they'd get the project done. Shosuke paid no mind, but Shuko did.
"Oh! What's this about a construction project?" Shuko asked, stepping out of the kitchen and sipping a mug of tea.
Shoko and I are going to build a few birdhouses for the local park, Masayoshi explained to his wife. Shoko wants to challenge herself with a hands-on project.
"Ooooooh! My relatives get all kinds of birds and stuff at their homes in the countryside," Shuko said brightly. "Remember, dear, how all those birds would visit my aunt's estate?"
Masayoshi nodded. Ah yes. Meadow buntings, dusky thrushes, rainbow bee-eaters, white-backed woodpeckers, and green pheasants, among other species.
Shuko stared in awe. "How did you know those names?!"
Masayoshi maid a faint smile. I know my nature, dear. I see all kinds of things while fishing.
Things that'll try to take your head off, Shosuke complained from his seat at the dining table.
Shuko beamed at her daughter. "Well, I'll be! What a lovely project, Shoko. Show me the birdhouses when you're done so I can send pictures to my side of the family! We know our nature, too."
Shoko nodded and helped herself to breakfast before school.
*o*o*o*o*
By the next Sunday, Shoko was totally ready! She gladly boarded a city bus with her father and sat with her hands folded on her lap, watching the city go by. She had never been to this area before, but it looked nice, and before she knew it, the Komis arrived at their stop. Masayoshi escorted his daughter to a one-story workshop and swung the door right open. Ah, the place had the scent of fresh wood, paint, and varnish to it. This is a place where you can get your hands dirty!
Then he appeared: Masayoshi's friend, a middle-aged fellow with bright brown eyes and a sweater vest on. He and Masayoshi bowed and silently greeted one another, and Shoko, who could understand mental-speak, was delighted to hear her father talk so warmly with a good friend. At times, Shoko was vaguely concerned that Masayoshi was lonely, but this proved otherwise! What a friendly workshop!
You must be Shoko. Good afternoon. I'm Ryutaro, the man said with a quick bow. Masayoshi told me you're gonna make some birdhouses.
Y... yes. Shoko shyly bowed back. Um... I've never done anything like this before.
That wasn't going to be a problem, as Ryutaro explained. Shoko could pick out a birdhouse design, choose the right wood, then have Masayoshi do the cutting while Shoko can nail, glue, and paint everything else. Using a power saw sounded scary, so Shoko had no objections to the plan. Time for a "hmph!" and some hard work!
Ooooooooh, that one looked pretty. Shoko found a simple design in a work catalog, eagerly pointing it out. Masayoshi nodded, and once Shoko picked some wood pieces and her father cut them just right, Shoko sat on a stool at the workbench and nailed, glued, and hammered everything into shape. What fun! Shoko always got a rush from making things, from origami cranes to dinner to poetry, and this was her most magnificent project yet. What kind of birds would build their nests in these? Would little birdie families be raised in there, with chirping little baby birds and the mom coming back with a worm? Cute!
But as for the birdhouse...
Oh dear, this will never do, Ryutaro said, holding up Shoko's creation to check it out up close. Loose nails, messy glue, misaligned wood... let's try again.
Shoko hung her head. Oh no! What a waste. Well, the challenge wasn't over yet! Come on, make that house...
This time, after Masayoshi cut some more wood into shape, Shoko willed herself to slow down and carefully get everything just right before using any glue or nails. She was a contractor team of one, and those birds were counting on her! Easy does it... align that nail just right, don't apply too much glue there, make sure the wood pieces aren't bent out of shape...
It took almost an hour, but finally, Shoko made another "hmph!" and held up the finished project, complete with imaginary sparkles around it.
This is better, Ryutaro's face clearly said when he looked it over. Great! Shoko checked with her father, and they agreed to make two more birdhouses of different designs before heading home. Three felt like a good number, and besides, Shoko really wanted to push herself with this challenge. She felt braver and stronger every day with these challenges, and the next school year was just weeks away. She wanted to start that year with a bang!
Whew! Two hours and 15 minutes later, Shoko finally finished the next two birdhouses, and Ryutaro agreed to keep them safe here until Shoko and Masayoshi could return tomorrow evening to paint them. That was a fair deal.
*o*o*o*o*
The next day at school, Shoko could barely concentrate in class, her mind drifting to her waiting birdhouses and the ideas bubbling in her mind. Exams were coming up, and between that and the Olympian challenges, Shoko wondered if she was truly entering a new, braver phase of her life. New school year, new Shoko Komi! A Shoko Komi who can do anything. And she could -
"Are you all right, Komi?" Hitohito Tadano suddenly asked.
Shoko gasped in shock and whirled around to face her friend, feeling her face go warm. Very warm! I'm excited for this evening, she explained on her notebook. My dad is helping me make birdhouses at his friend's workshop. I'm going to paint them next.
"Whoa! Cool!" Hitohito said brightly. "Birdhouses? That's a great idea. But where are you gonna put them? There aren't any trees near your house, are there?"
My dad will get permission to put them up at the local park. The one where Nakanaka and I did that group cosplay.
"Oh yeah, I like that park," Hitohito commented. "Next time I go there for a walk, I'll check out your birdhouses! You know, I haven't really made anything lately. Or challenged myself. Hmmmmmmm..."
You can do anything you set your mind to.
Hitohito smiled. "I guess you're right. And just in time for exams! Are you feeling ready?"
I suppose.
That was when Najimi skipped over to invite Hitohito to the class's thumb wrestling tournament, so the conversation ended there. And as she watched Hitohito get his thumb annihilated by Shinobino's, Shoko reflected on what she had said about doing anything you set your mind to. She felt pretty sure that for these last few months, she had been following that advice closely with her challenges. But... and her gut squirmed excitedly at the thought... what if there was something even bigger on the horizon? There would have to be a final challenge eventually, and Shoko gave herself an unofficial bonus challenge to make that final challenge a real whopper. She'd have to think long and hard on that one. But not too hard, and end up overthinking things!
Okay, cool it, girl. Shoko breathed out to relax and decided to focus on painting birdhouses for now. Her super-challenge could wait just a bit.
*o*o*o*o*
At least painting the birdhouses was a blast!
What a marvelous job you did, Ryutaro's face silently said when he looked over the first birdhouse that Shoko painted that evening in the workshop. Nearby, Masayoshi watched with silent approval, his arms folded over his brawny chest.
Shoko sure thought so, too. She had painted the first house eggshell white and added light blue, pink, and yellow details to give it a festive vibe. Then she moved on to the next birdhouse, cracked her neck, then painted it with the same color scheme. Then came the third, which she painted a rich, oaken brown color with gold and green patterns that imitated vines, leaves, and blossoms. Shoko actually felt her heart race with pride over her accomplishment, and she couldn't wait to set these up on the park's trees! But they needed their paint to dry overnight first.
On Tuesday, Shoko and her father traveled to the park, and Masayoshi used his tools to attach the birdhouses to some trees that didn't seem very popular with the birds. Masayoshi reasoned that the birds would ignore these houses on trees that had good spots for natural nests, and Shoko agreed. All done! The birdhouses were just a few hundred feet apart, and from here, Shoko could see all three of them. She stood there for a moment with her hands on her hips, admiring the houses, until it was time to go.
On Wednesday, Shoko rushed right over to the park after school, only to find all three birdhouses empty. That's a shame, but it had been just under 24 hours. The birds needed time.
On Thursday, the nests were still empty, and the same on Friday. Saturday had no birds either, and the houses were still stubbornly empty on Sunday as well.
Then on Monday, after fighting her way through a really tough math test, Shoko half-heartedly visited the local park and checked her birdhouses. One of the two white houses was full! There was a nest, and even if Shoko didn't see the bird or any eggs in there, this signaled the completion of the challenge. It was as though Shoko had sent a silent invitation to every bird in the area, like a gracious host, and a bird had finally accepted that invitation.
Shoko spent a few more seconds peeking through the birdhouse's entry hole to admire the next inside before she checked the other two, only to find them empty. That was okay; if one house could attract a bird, the others eventually would, too. The birds loved Shoko Komi's lovely project after all!
Now to study at home... ugh, those final exams...
