Two mornings later, after sleeping more than he thought possible, Takeyoshi Aragaki took a deep breath and knocked on Emiko's door. She frowned deeply when she opened it. "I thought that we should talk," Takeyoshi said calmly. Emiko rolled her light brown eyes at him, pushing her wispy bangs out of her face.

"I'm pretty sure your shadow said it all, so we don't really need to do this, do we?" Emiko said, sounding more irritated than Takeyoshi expected.

"That's the thing, though, he really didn't. He only said all the bad stuff." Takeyoshi took another deep breath. "I like you, Emi-chan. I like you like crazy and I always have. I like how open you are with your feelings, how nice you are to pretty much everyone, how much you always get me without me having to explain."

"Evidently I didn't catch the part where you like my best friend and weren't man enough to tell me," Emiko said in an emotionless whisper.

"It - that doesn't even matter!" he shouted, changing course when he saw how angry she looked. "Look, I felt something for Nanako-chan, sure. The three of us have always been really close. But the things I felt for her were different. They were just enough to be really confusing, so I hesitated with you. I shouldn't have. Because it's always been you, Emi-chan. Always."

Emiko sighed. "I want to believe that. But I think it's going to take some time for me to trust you completely again. Ok?"

Takeyoshi flashed her a huge grin. "Yeah. That's more than ok. I just… can't lose you, alright?" He said the last part so softly that it made her shiver. She nodded in reply, unable to say anything back. "So… would it be alright if we went and got a soda together or something? Just as friends… for now…"

Emiko smiled gently. "Yes, that would be alright." She wanted to refuse when he took her hand as they walked, but she didn't have it in her. Even if how they got to this point hurt, this is what she'd been wanting all along.


Nanako woke on Sunday morning from yet another dream of the Velvet Room. The dreams were always foggy once she woke, but she remembered Margaret handing her an ornate key and telling her to make sure she visited soon. She leaped out of bed and gasped as she saw the key sitting on her nightstand. How did she do that? That place is super weird. She quickly got dressed, grabbed breakfast and headed out the door. She wasn't sure where she was supposed to go, until she saw a shimmering blue butterfly in front of her. It seemed to be guiding the way. Ten minutes later, Nanako found herself in the shopping district, facing a translucent blue door. Has this… always been here? She had never seen it before. Nanako took a deep breath, placed the key inside the lock and turned it slowly. The door opened, and she stepped inside meekly. Her eyes widened as she took in the impossibly blue sky over a meadow full of blue flowers. The sunlight made the flowers seem to shimmer as the gentle breeze made them sway. In the middle of the meadow was an ornate couch. On one end sat the long nosed man, Igor, and Margaret sat at the other end with a large book in her lap.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room," Igor said with enthusiasm. "Come, take a seat." He gestured to the open space before him, and a blue armchair manifested before Nanako's eyes. She shook her head in disbelief as she sat in the chair.

"Why… how are we outside if we're in the Velvet Room?" Nanako asked.

Margaret smiled but said nothing. Igor said, "The room changes due to the content of a guest's heart. Your heart in particular is rather lovely."

"Oh… th-thank you," Nanako said, blushing slightly.

"Now then, " Igor said, "we have some things to tell you."


It felt like she was there for hours, but when Nanako left the Velvet Room, only a few minutes had passed. I don't think I'm ever going to get used to this stuff, she thought. She passed by the Shiroku Store, and felt relieved when she saw Emiko and Takeyoshi sitting on a bench together, talking and smiling. She smiled and waved as she continued on towards the Textile Shop. She figured Miusagi might be working, as he had mentioned being there on Sundays before. She had completely forgotten what else happened there on Sunday mornings, and stopped in her tracks when she opened the door to the sight of Teddie standing on the craft table, pouring a bucket of glitter on himself while the children laughed. "Who wants to sparkle?!" Teddie shouted happily. Kanji yanked him off the table, taking him to the corner to have words with him about his behavior. The kids were still giggling.

Miusagi walked up beside Nanako, whose mouth was still hanging open. "He's something else, huh?"

"I… don't even have words for this," Nanako replied.

Kanji pulled Teddie towards the front of the store and pushed him towards Nanako. "Take him. Please, I beg you."

Nanako nodded, grabbing Teddie's arm and pulling him outside. "Nana-chan! I'm so happy that you're here!" Teddie exclaimed cheerfully.

"What on earth were you doing in there?" she asked.

"It's craft day, Nana-chan," Teddie answered, looking confused.

"You can't make a mess in there like that. It's going to take Kanji hours to clean that up."

"O-Oh. I hadn't thought of that," Teddie said, looking ashamed. "Oh, I know! I should go and help clean up!"

Nanako grabbed his arm. "No, Teddie. Not today. Let's get going. You can help next time."

They had lunch together at Junes before Teddie's afternoon shift. "I'll miss you, Nana-chan! Text me when you're heating up your dinner!"

Nanako laughed. "I'll do that."


Nanako decided to stop by the shrine before going home. She was surprised to find Maika again sitting there talking to the fox. "Oh, Nanako-chan!" Maika said cheerfully. "Do you want to sit and chat with us for awhile?"

Nanako looked at the fox and giggled. "I would like that. Hello, Mr. Fox."

"Yip!" replied the fox.

"I saw this really pretty meadow full of flowers that you would have loved, Maika. Oh, in a dream, I mean."

"Really, Nanako-chan? What colors were the flowers?"

"All the same. The flowers and the sky were both impossibly blue, in different shades."

"Ooohh, that sounds beautiful! Don't you agree, Mr. Fox?"

"Yip yip!"

Maika laughed, shaking out her wavy, caramel-colored hair. Nanako couldn't help but smile at her friend. "You two get along really well, don't you?"

"Yip!"

"Yes! We certainly do," Maika said, smiling back.

The fox got up, walked in front of Nanako and sat. It was as if he was trying to get her attention. "Yip yip!"

"He says that he can help you," Maika said.

"What?" Nanako asked. "Help me with what?"

"Yip!"

"He says… he used to help your cousin… inside the TV?" Maika translated.

Nanako gasped. Maika stared at her. The fox yipped. "I… may take you up on that Mr. Fox."

"What's going on, Nanako-chan?" Maika asked. "None of that made any sense to me."

Nanako sighed. If she was going to work with the fox, she was going to need a translator. "I have a really long story to tell you. Want to go have a snack at Aiya? We can sit in the back and I'll fill you in."

"Ok, Nanako-chan! That sounds delightful! See you later, Mr. Fox!" The two girls headed to the restaurant. And I was trying so hard to not get anymore of my friends involved, Nanako thought.