On the Seventh day of Christmas Kuu gave to me…

Seven acting lessons,

Six Kyoko Demons,

FIVE GENTLEMANLY SMILES,

Four wax dolls,

Three broken phones,

Two Love Me members,

And a Stalker in a Sakura tree.

12 Showbiz Days of Christmas

December 15th

Kuu lounged back in the booth at the café, two trays of five different flavored drinks and various cookies in front of him. He was wearing blue tinted shades and casual black winter wear, sitting in a popular café in one of the busiest streets in New York during the holiday season. People were so wrapped up in getting out of the crowds and finishing their shopping, he could sit in the store carefree of any one recognizing him. Currently, he was relishing in his holiday from work, his lovely wife Julie was returning from Hawaii that evening, so they could enjoy their time off together. As was often the problem, they were both working in different places that Christmas, so the next few days would be their early celebration. While Kuu was overjoyed for the chance to celebrate with his wife, he knew they would both face that empty room in their home. The continued absence of Kuon was a rift in their relationship, even with his 'message' to them, his absence was noticeable.

It bothered Kuu that he couldn't buy a ticket and fly to Japan that moment, and walk up to his son. But no, he had to respect his son's decision; or go back to the damaged, lost boy he had forced to watch drift aimlessly, as he had six years ago. It didn't help that Boss had called him at one o'clock this morning, when he was enjoying his midnight snack, to order him not to buy plane tickets to Japan, or even think of seeing Kuon, any manner. Adding at the end of the conversation, that if Kuu was a good father, Boss would be sure to send him some DVD's of the dramas Kuon had acted in. Boss was lucky he respected him, and dearly loved and respected his son enough not to ignore Boss. Julie would be happy with the DVD's, at least for a while, until the loneliness of not being able to see Kuon in person got to her. It all came back to their son, in the end.

Finishing the tray of cookies and five hot drinks, Kuu got up, leaving a generous tip, choosing to take a walk through the bustling crowd. Maybe he would go to the local stores to do some grocery shopping. Julie was fond of Indian food, but he thought they could make a traditional meal for their early Christmas. Most likely, they would end up making both. Kuu grinned to himself. It was a little inside joke between him and Julie, from the time they worked together on a movie.

………..........………

Twenty-five years ago, as they were finishing the shooting for Tsukigomori, Kuu's manager had landed an interview for him; the newscast was supposed to advertise the various forms of winter celebration. Kuu had been asked to share details of his family's traditions, since he was half Japanese and half American. A few other top idols were asked to come and share their annual celebrations, also. One happened to be the famous American runway model Julie. It was the first of several incidents where they appeared in front of the camera together.

It was during the show, while the seven idols were discussing their traditions that Kuu brought up that his family generally celebrated Christmas Eve the American way, but celebrated New Years Day in the Japanese tradition. When the interviewer asked him to elaborate, Kuu responded,

"We cook a lot of Western food: turkey, ham and stew with side dishes of sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and stewed potatoes, not forgetting the cranberry sauce, vegetable platters, fresh bread, and best of all the desserts which are pecan pie, peppermint ice cream, cookies and candy canes."

The interviewer laughed a little. Julie looked over at the smiling Kuu rubbing his stomach giving him a mild glare.

"Is Christmas all about the food to you?"

Kuu looked over at her surprised.

"No. We do other things like watch classic Christmas dramas my mother loves from her childhood, sit in a circle opening gifts from one another, and we cook together. My mother gets very distressed if she can't have the family altogether for Christmas, she feels it is an especially important time to be together. How does your family celebrate then?"

He threw her a dashing smile feeling as though she was challenging him.

"Hmmm. My family tries to spend the holiday together with friends. We wake up very early and cook tamales that we give to everyone when they start trickling in about noon. The children play with each other in the yard while the adults hang out talking and playing cards in the kitchen or watching a sports game in the living room. It's usually very noisy and crowded, but everyone enjoys themselves. Around five everyone gathers around for dinner which is generally a pot luck of foods everyone made, along with more tamales. After that it's time to open presents which are separated into the children's and adult's piles and everyone picks a number from a hat, and then they grab the corresponding present that goes with the gift. At seven, we sing carols and people start leaving about nine."

Julie smiled with her eyes closed missing the puzzled glances that were being thrown at her by the other idols. The interviewer leaned towards her asking,

"Could you please elaborate, Julie-san? I think this doesn't measure up to what most Japanese viewers know of the way Christmas is celebrated in America."

Julie looked puzzled for a moment staring at the others startled faces, Kuu among the puzzled.

"Oh, I guess most news broadcasts you would see would emphasize the European styled celebrations, like what Shuhei-san was describing. My family generally lived in Southern California and had a lot of Mexican-American acquaintances, so we tend to celebrate in the Mexican tradition."

"Really? That's quite interesting. It's nice that even though you and Shuhei- san are both American, you celebrate in two different ways. I can't wait to try some of the dishes you both brought. Now might be a good time to tell the viewers but we asked the idols to each bring in a dish that relates to what the traditionally eat for Christmas."

Kuu and Julie just grinned and nodded at the woman, letting her ask some questions of the other idols.

"So would everybody like to try out each other's dish, now?"

The interviewer looked expectantly at the idols waiting for confirmation before signaling the crew to lay out everyone's dish. She cooed over the different dishes commenting on how delicious they all looked, having the idols point out the different ingredients they used.

"Well, I was thinking that it would be nice for everyone to try a bit of each other's dishes, so how about it?"

The interviewer surprised the idols with the suggestion, but they all murmured their agreement. Julie was smiling, but Kuu noticed she looked a little nervous. Kuu was looking forward to the little snack. Seeing everybody dishing up for the more familiar Japanese, Indonesian, Indian and Chinese foods, he decided he would try some of the tamale Julie had brought. Julie had been sitting nibbling at the piece of Indian food she'd grabbed, was looking at Kuu eyes filled with horror. Kuu bit into the tamale feeling the texture of half fried tortilla dough and overly salty salsa. He paused for a moment in which shifted about watching him. Kuu could not distress a woman, especially on television. He ate the entire tamale and proceeded to lick his lips when he finished. Julie and the other idols stared at him speechless. The interviewer laughed.

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't warn everyone but Shuhei-san is known for his appetite. I hope you don't mind Julie-san, but at least it seems that your tamale was very delicious. Now I wish I had gotten to try some!"

Julie just nodded, an unsure smile crossing her lips as Kuu leaned back rubbing his stomach. Later when Kuu was explaining the incident to a mirthful Boss, who had gotten word of what had happened via word of mouth; he claimed that it went against his character to let a beautiful lady be embarrassed whether or not she was annoying him. The Boss asked him how long it would take before he would break down and ask her out to dinner. Kuu threw a pillow at him and said his stomach wasn't going to forgive him that soon, plus she had ran away before he'd gotten a chance to flirt with her. Boss had settled for a smirk and an, "Idiot."

It wasn't until a month later that he saw her again filming a commercial for a new restaurant. She was acting opposite him as the female lead who was to be surprised by his character. He knew within seconds of seeing her that this was the boss's doing. She didn't look all that ecstatic to see him either. Her role didn't require her to say anything because she didn't have a lot of experience in acting. Still, when it came time to record she had problems with the last scene between the two of them. After several retakes the director called for a break while Julie went to the dressing room to try and work on the scene to herself. Kuu just went to rest among the crew, while nibbling on a snack from his director. He listened to the crew talking. His ears perked up when they brought up Julie.

"I wonder why Julie-san is having so much trouble."

"Yeah, she's acted in several commercials before and she hasn't had this much trouble."

"It's weird that this one's getting to her, in the other ones she had lines, so this one shouldn't be so much trouble. You don't think it's because she's acting opposite of Shuhei-san, do you?"

"No, why would she have trouble acting opposite Shuhei-san? She's been in front of plenty of celebrities before."

"Didn't you hear about that incident between Shuhei-san and Julie-san before, on that newscast?"

The murmuring continued, while Kuu got up and came face to face with the director. The director looked down at him, eyebrow raised. Kuu just shook his head and headed towards the dressing rooms. He heard a brief murmuring in American, and knocked briefly before entering. She looked up startled to see him, frowning.

"Is something the matter Shuhei-san? Because if there isn't I would like to continue with my practice."

Kuu just stared at her coolly for a moment before grinning while running a hand through his hair.

"Well, that why I'm here. I thought you might like some help since you don't have a lot of experience with acting."
He said it all in English, which seemed to surprise her. Julie turned her head to look at the wall.

"No, I think I can manage well enough on my own."

Kuu looked at her disbelievingly, before bluntly asking,

"Do you have a problem with me?"

Julie swung around throwing him a puzzled expression. They just stared at each other a moment.

"No, I have no problem with you Shuhei-san. In fact, I…"

Kuu perked up again.

"You what, Ms. Julie?"

"I…I think you're hilarious."

She returned to steadfastly looking at the wall, blushing faintly. Kuu just gaped at her.

"You…find me hilarious…Why?"

"Well, I just think back to that newscast we did together…when you were eating the tamales…the look on your face was so funny…"

She was trying to hold back her laughs while Kuu continued to gape at her unsure whether he was insulted.

"I have a new respect for your acting skills, I'm such a horrible cook, but you just went along and ate the entire tamale. I know that can't have tasted good. I'm sorry, but it's just so funny and I've just been trying so hard not to laugh at you in the commercial."

She sputtered that all out while struggling not to laugh, failing terribly in Kuu's mind. Kuu frowned.

"I was hungry, it was good."

Kuu finally muttered causing Julie to lose all control.

"Ugh. Could you please stop laughing? We have to go out and film the end of the commercial yet, you know."

Julie finally seemed to be calming down, taking deep breaths.

"I don't know if I can make it through the commercial though, the food and you….."

"Hey, I eat all my food like that! If you ever had a meal with me, you would understand that!"

"Deal."

"What?"

"Dinner for the two of us."

Kuu stood open jawed once again while Julie checked her makeup, ensuring she hadn't ruined it laughing.

"What time would you like to go out?"

Kuu still wasn't capable of speech.

"How about I have my manager call yours, so work doesn't conflict."

"Uhhh. Where would you like to go?"

She smiled in the mirror at the shaken Kuu.

"Oh, I'll let you decide that. To make up for the tamale."

She got up walking towards Kuu, grabbing him by the arm pulling him along.

"Don't stand there all day; we have a commercial to finish shooting."

After that they had finished the last scene in two takes.

……………… …………………

President and Kuon later laughed at him when Julie regaled them with the theatrics of the meeting. Kuu was still dumbstruck by the incident to this day. When it came time to celebrate their first Christmas together, Kuu had especially learned how to make tamales, which he served to Julie's entertainment. She responded by telling him she'd rather have that Indian dish she tasted on the newscast. It reminded him of the time Kuon had eaten a bit of the Indian food she made turning a sickly green color. Now that Kuu thought about it was around Kuon's eighth year that he started disliking food. At the time, Kuu had stressed how it was necessary to act like you enjoyed food prepared by others even if it made you sick. There may never have been a better lesson to teach his appetite less son than that. Kuon should really try Kyoko's cooking, if he did, he was sure to start liking food again.

Kuu let out a buoyant smile to the passerby as he left the Indian grocery store and started walking home, gnawing a fresh baguette in one hand, skipping a little as he thought of his wife arriving soon. Hopefully, he could finish supper just in time. They owned a condo near the top floor of a fifteen story building; they always had fun with the different birds that would perch there. Kuu greeted the doorman as he ran up the steps to his floor. He fished out his keys to open the door only to have the door open for him.

"Hi, Honey."

Julie beamed at a startled Kuu. Grabbing one of his grocery bags.

"Oh good, curry! That sounds delicious."

"Sweetheart, when did you get home?"

Julie just looked up at her husband.

"Two minutes already, and I don't get a hug yet?"

Kuu sighed leaning over to give his wife a back-breaking hug, before she would take pity on him.

"I managed to catch an early flight, but when I got home an hour ago you weren't here so I checked the mail. Boss sent some videotapes addressed to both of us, and then you received a package from a Mogami Kyoko. This address is private dear, I don't have to tell you, so who is this woman that you gave her our real address? I don't have to be jealous do I?"

She lifted an eyebrow at Kuu, mischief twinkling in her eyes.

"No one could take your place my most beautiful, beloved wife."

He said dramatically to her amusement.

"Do you remember that time I mentioned adopting a child when I went to Japan?"

"Yes, you still haven't introduced me by the way."

"Sweetheart, I was getting to that. Mogami Kyoko was the name of that child, she's an aspiring actress. She has incredible talent, but still needs help in achieving it. While she was helping me in Japan I gave her a few acting tips. I told her to contact me anytime that she needed it, and I might have told her to refer to me as otou-san. It's so cute she can't quite say it."

Julia just shook her head at her husband's helpful loving attitude. The men in the family could not be mean to a woman if it killed them.

"An actress, hmmm. I was thinking she was a model who was attempting to act…"

"Huh?"

Kuu gave her one of his questioning looks. She couldn't help but laugh.

"Boss sent a couple of DVD's from this drama called Box R, so I started watching it. The female lead reminded me of a runway model very reminiscent of my style. It's funny though I would have expected her to send you one of her dramas, not Boss, if you're helping her."

Kuu shook his head.

"No, she probably thinks it would seem arrogant if she did that. She is kind of old fashioned in that sense. But did Boss really send one of her dramas? I want to see, this must have been the one that she was shooting after I left. Did I tell you she acted as Mio in Dark Moon? She's friends with…Tsuruga Ren."

"No. You didn't tell me that. I really wish I could see Dark Moon now."

Julie looked upset, while Kuu pondered for a moment.

"Did you say Boss sent a package with gifts? If we open them they might have Dark Moon. He mentioned he was going to send us some of the dramas. Wait, Kyoko-chan sent a package? What was in her package then?"

Kuu looked at Julie who shook her head at him, pointing towards a dark brown package. Kuu got up and opened the package find an array of deserts, along with a letter. He paused for a moment to read it.

Hello Otot-san!

How are you? I heard you were very busy, I hope you don't mind my gift then. I wanted to tell you thanks for the acting lesson, I really loved my next character, Natsu, thanks to your help, even though she's a mean, rich bully! I had some trouble getting the character at first, but once I thought about it I came up with a character. I had to ask for some help from a sempai on modeling, and they were hesitant to agree at first but eventually he spent the entire night teaching me modeling on from his favorite female model. I wonder who she is? She has to be amazing if he says she's the best model in his opinion. I'm sorry, if you don't like me sending a package to your address but I've been helping the President with this Christmas project, and thought I might send otot-san a gift, so President gave me the address of where you were most likely staying. I can't thank you enough for your help, and I hope you're doing well!

Enjoy the Kyoto desserts!

Mogami Kyoko

Kuu smiled at her letter, it was just like her.

"She sent traditional Kyoto desserts! I don't think I mentioned it, but she's from Kyoto too! You have to try some of her desserts, Julie, they're the best. I think she needs to be a professional chef. If Kuon were to try some of her food, I don't think he would avoid eating as much!"

"Really?"

Julie reached over and took a bite of one of the desserts. Her eyes widened.

"Mmmm. This is really delicious! I wonder if Boss could arrange to get her to cook for Kuon. I worry about him possibly getting sick from not eating enough."

Kuu chuckled a little. Neither of them knew how their son had come to dislike food so much, when they loved it.

"Boss might have already arranged for it. He's her sempai at LME. Oh, and your hypothesis was correct too. It looks like he taught her how to do the runway walk based on his favorite female model."

He handed her the letter letting her read it, her smile beaming even more.

"How exactly did you meet this girl, Dear?"

Kuu regarded her, finishing eating his desert before going on.

"Before I went to Japan I asked Boss how I could talk to Kuon. He told me he would have this girl come cook for me during my stay, and if I could get her to cry she would run and tell Kuon who would come and speak to me…."

Julie gave her son a beautiful smile that radiated killer intent towards him and Boss.

"I tried, but I just couldn't make her cry. Somehow ended up being her sensei and giving her an acting lesson too, before I told her to call me father. Kuon came to see me of his own accord too! Though Boss told me he kept calling and asking what we were up to. He came to see me off too! She was with him at the time."

Julie sighed shaking her head.

"You know Kuon gets his oblivious nature from you. But at least he has my intelligence. Baka!"

Kuu sat staring at his wife, confused about what had just occurred, while Julie turned towards the TV.

"I want to finish watching our daughter's drama now, and then we can watch Dark Moon. You and Boss will be introducing her to me soon."

I give credit to Julie being more observant than Kuu and believe she would catch onto Ren's attachment to Kyoko before he would. I also think she would be highly annoyed with Lory and Kuu's plan to pick on Kyoko to get Ren to talk to Kuu. She and Kyoko need to meet in the future though, so she can have a reunion with Ren. It would be an interesting arc. This wasn't as entertaining as I originally planned, but Kuu isn't as easy to be funny with as Yashiro is. Maybe it just because Yashiro is more developed in the story.

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False Sourires