(Seventeen years Later, Samegawa River)

April always had some of the largest cherry blossoms.

The sun was approaching high noon, piercing through the light fog that hung around the Samegawa riverbed in the spring. The pathway had been paved recently, and a small family of feral cats was busy fishing out minnows for their breakfast. A children's playground sat empty for the moment, most of the children in the still small city getting ready for the first day of school the next day. The pavilion nearby was equally empty, a fresh coat of paint oddly bright against the deep greens and tans of the surrounding area.

Up on the pavilion's roof, however, was a teenage girl. She was lying down and enjoying the sunlight, a rather antiquated portable radio next to her, a pair of equally antiquated wired headphones plugged into it. Long, auburn hair fanned out from where she held her head in her hands, the bangs framing a content face. The girl was wearing a long, dark violet and black longcoat with the kanji for love on each shoulder over a blue and white tank top, a yellow four-pointed star on the chest, and a pair of plain blue jeans. Lace up boots covered the girl's feet, which crossed at the ankles as a crow let out a caw, landing on the unusual perch.

Cawing again, the crow hopped onto the girl's leg. A pale grey opened and peered down at the bird, chuckling. "Hehe, you're here for your food, aint'cha?" Sitting up a bit, the girl grabbed a small satchel that rested next to her, pulling out a small dumpling. "I'm surprised you took this long to find me, Sumizome. You're normally faster than that." Chuckling as the crow just cawed again, she pulled off a small piece of the dumpling, offering it to bird. "Here. It's cold, but that probably doesn't bug ya in the least."

Watching the crow, Sumizome, the girl let out a soft smile. "So how's that wing doin'? I'm just glad I could fix it when I could; those jackasses got a broken arm when I finally managed to get my hands on 'em." Taking a bite out of the dumpling herself, she offered another small piece to Sumizome as the crow polished off what it had already been given. "Well, you must've been flying to look for me, so I guess it's getting better."

"Aiko!" A teenage boy's voice called from the ground, making the girl turn to look as Sumizome let out an annoyed caw. "Aiko, will you get down from there? Dad wants us to take some things to the Amagi Inn when we go grab the twins!"

"Shit, that's Conan …!" Sighing, the girl – Aiko – set the rest of the dumpling onto the roof. "Here ya go, Sumizome. I gotta scram." Grabbing her bag again, she scowled as she crawled over to the edge of the roof. "Pipe down Conan, I'm comin'! Hold your horses!" Grabbing her radio and headphones, Aiko shoved them into the bag before jumping over the edge, landing on her feet with ease.

"Aiko, you know you're not supposed to be up there." The boy who had called for her was nearby, sitting on a bicycle and shaking his head in exasperation. Like Aiko, he was dressed against the April weather, wearing a navy hoodie and blue jeans with his teal shirt. Tennis shoes covered his feet, and an oddly striped tie of blue, green and white hung around his neck, and grey-blue eyes set behind blue glasses and flyaway golden-brown bangs, watched Aiko as she grabbed her bicycle from where she had let it fall to the ground. "Seriously, Officer Dojima has needed to get you down there several times now; you might fall through the roof one of these days."

"I know, Conan, I know." Aiko shook her head as she walked her bike over, satchel swung over her shoulder. "I … just needed to dry off." Conan's mouth fell open in shock.

"Did you try to feed someone to the Guardian again?" He demanded, looking towards the Samegawa River itself. "Good grief, Aiko, its large enough! You don't need to feed people to it!"

"Only because one of 'em came at me with the bench when I got into a fight with them." Aiko shrugged as she kicked off her bike, the two of them heading for the shopping district. "I caught 'em drawing cocks and tits on the slide again, and told 'em to clean it up. They didn't listen until I had to feed a few of them to the Guardian."

"Aiko …"

"I didn't literally feed them to it, Conan! Just threw them in the water and held 'em under for a few seconds!" Shaking her head, Aiko gave Conan a deadpan look. "You really think I would do that?"

"Yes." Conan's voice was full of sarcasm.

"Hey!" Huffing, Aiko shook her head and focused on the road in front of her. "Can't believe my own cousin would think of me like that."

"I'm wracked with guilt." The sarcasm still hadn't left Conan's voice.

"Shaddap." Shaking her head again, Aiko fell quiet for the rest of the bike ride, looking around the historic shopping district. There were a surprising number of people out and about the street, especially for it being early April. Moms were running errands, some kids were playing in the street – more than likely booted off of the computers or gaming systems for the day – and a small number of people were trekking up the stairs to the Tatsuhime Shrine. Cars drove slowly down the center of the road, other bicyclists zipping by and dodging other people. The Chinese Diner Aiya had its doors open for the afternoon rush, teasing smells wafting out over the air.

Passing by everybody else, Aiko and Conan zipped behind the Tatsumi Textile Shop, parking their bikes at a small rack before heading inside. "Dad, I managed to nab Aiko." Conan called out as they entered, sitting down to take off his shoes. Aiko stood there and pulled her boots off, setting her satchel down on the counter. "She was on top of the pavilion again."

"Had to give someone swimming lessons, eh, Aiko?" A deep laugh came from the main part of the room as the teenagers entered, having come from the tall man in the back part of the store. Tatsumi Kanji towered over his son and niece, dark hair spiked back to show a smiling face in spite of the scar next to his left eyebrow. Smirking a bit as he hefted a stack of textiles into a thin box, Kanji gave Aiko a nod. "What for this time? They hurt your birdie again?"

"Sumizome isn't my bird, Uncle." Shaking her head a bit as she swiped a cookie off of the cooling tray on the counter, Aiko watched for a moment as he bundled up more of the textiles. "They were 'decorating' the slide again, and one of 'em came at me with a pavilion bench."

"Ya hit them with your own bench or your bike?" Kanji was laughing again, Conan just rolling his eyes as he darted upstairs to get his bag.

"Bench; didn't want to wreck my bike." Shrugging and taking a bite of the cookie, Aiko grinned. "Gave him an uppercut to the chin with it; he dropped like a rock."

Kanji just laughed harder, shaking his head. "Damn Aiko! If your dad or Aunt Nao find out about that, we're both gonna be in trouble." Aiko grinned at her uncle's amusement. Blowing her bangs out of her face, Aiko looked over to the storefront; Kanij's elderly mother was helping some people with their orders. It wasn't as busy as it got to be around Obon and New Years Eve, where people would come by to get fabric for yukatas and kimonos, but it was still a thriving little store.

"Oh yeah, speaking about Nao, she's gonna be coming home later tonight." Kanji continued, making Aiko's attention snap back to him. "She called earlier today; things in Tokyo are settled for the moment, and your uncle's gonna be coming home from Osaka; he's been transferred to Yasogami High."

Aiko couldn't stop the groan from leaving her mouth. "Great, ANOTHER relative." Leaping up a bit to sit on the counter, she dropped her head onto her open hands, watching Kanji as he sat down at the table. "Guess Dad'll be working overtime then …"

Kanji had to grimace at that; Aiko's father didn't get along with most of Naoto's family, for understandable reasons. "Yeah, Nao told him and said he was welcome to stop over if he wanted to for dinner, but I'm not expecting any miracles." Grabbing a cookie himself, the large man sighed. "Big brothers and boyfriends really don't get along well."

"Speaking from experience, Dad?" Conan had come back downstairs, a small backpack slung over one shoulder. Kanji just chuckled, nodding. "It'll be good to have Mom home again though; even though I know she's good at her job, I can't help but worry sometimes." Sitting down with a small sigh, Conan looked at the boxes on the table. "What all are those anyway, Dad?"

"Eh, just some rugs and curtains that Yukiko-senpai wanted me to fix for her; they've got a big group comin' in next week for inspections, and she wants the place to look as good as it did the day it first opened." Rolling his eyes a bit, Kanji chuckled. "You two'll probably get roped into helping them out a bit before you can nab the twins and have that picnic you five have been planning."

"Ah well, it'll be good to help them get some things in order." Shrugging again, Aiko hopped down and grabbed the boxes. "Let's get going, Conan. Don't want to miss the bus, do we?" Nodding, Conan stood up and darted for the door, slipping into his shoes. Aiko followed him after a second. "Seeya later, Uncle Kanji!"

Kanji chuckled and waved, knowing that the door would shut before he could call out a goodbye after them. "Heh, those two are always on the move."

Outside, Aiko and Conan dashed for the bus stop, dodging around other people as the sounds of the Shrine's bell rang overhead. Someone had made an offering, it seemed, and the sound would echo around the shopping district for a few moments. It was a side effect of living in a small place; sound carried very far, whether people wanted it to or not.

Managing to get on the bus right before it was filled and leaving, Aiko and Conan stood on the back platform, watching the rest of the town go by as the bus sped towards the mountains. "Hard to believe this town hasn't gotten any bigger since Mom and Dad were our age …" Conan mused, leaning against the pole he was holding onto for balance. "Yeah, the buildings have upgraded and more technology has been added, but this place is still so tiny."

"Heh, I like it like that." Aiko let a soft smile cross her face. "I wouldn't like living in a huge city; even with the environmental laws in place now, there's still so little air in those places, and no place to run around." Glancing at the forest covering the nearby mountains, Aiko relaxed a bit. "Besides, we wouldn't be able to get anywhere we wanted as fast as we do here. Those test-stage mass transport thingys in America and China are still having issues with breaking down mid-transport. Nǎinai told me about another accident involving that just yesterday."

"Please spare me the details." Groaning a bit, Conan shook his head. "You think the twins will like the food we're bringing? I know they always like your cooking, but I don't think you've subjected them to seafood yet."

"Subjected?" Aiko gave Conan a look, a corner of her mouth twitching. "You're making it sound like I'm using the twins for food lab rats."

"You use Jiri for that." Conan shrugged in reply.

"Hey!" Scoffing, Aiko watched a flock of swallows flying overhead. "I do not. It's not my fault that the boy eats anything before I can tell him what's in his food." At this she paused. "… It makes me wonder if I should feed him some of that chili chocolate your parent's friend gave me …" Conan let out a chuckle at that himself.

"He'd wolf it down, especially since I think he just had a meet yesterday or earlier today." Pushing his glasses back up his nose, the blond smiled. "Well, we'll all be back in school tomorrow. Let's enjoy it while we can."

"Yeah." Nodding, Aiko leaned against the bus as well, lapsing into silence.

(Train Station, Evening)
Arisato Minato let out a deep sigh, glad that the train had finally reached Inaba station. It had been a long train ride from Osaka to Inaba, and he was just ready to sit down and have a dinner. His navy blue hair was starting to streak through with white, pale grey-blue eyes peering out from beneath his bangs as he looked around the train car. He was dressed in a dark blue coat over his grey slacks and white shirt, a briefcase sitting next to him on the seat. "Ugh, I can't wait to sit down with some tea."

"I told you to get something when we stopped in Iwatodai, Onii-sama." A woman's voice chuckled nearby, making Minato sit up and look at his youngest sister as she took the seat across from him. "Kanji will probably have dinner ready for us when we get there; just hold on a little bit longer, alright?"

"Sorry, Naoto." Smiling, Minato looked at his sister. She looked almost identical to him, just far shorter, her deep blue hair cut to the middle of her neck. Her eyes were also bluer than his, and the suit she wore was a black police uniform with the silver moon and three lines that was the crest of the Raidou. A blue police hat with the same crest was in her hand, and she had a wry smile on her face as Minato chuckled. "It's just a surprise; I haven't been home in so long … it's too bad Ojii-sama had some business to take care of himself and couldn't join us."

"Ojii-sama really needs to relax a bit more than he does." Naoto nodded her agreement. "He's starting to slow down far more than he used to; I don't want him to wear himself down faster than he already is." Shaking her head as she looked out the window, she smiled. "Well, there's the station … I always feel so relieved to come back home in one piece, no matter how many times I do this." Standing up as she spoke, Naoto pulled the suitcase that rested in the baggage compartment, Minato doing the same on his side. "You have plans to get an apartment soon, right? Kanji and I can host you for now, but …"

"Don't worry Naoto, don't worry." Chuckling, Minato hefted his suitcase as the train came to a complete stop, an overhead telecast from the conductor asking passengers to be patient and calm while disembarking from the train car. "Will Conan be home tonight? I wanted to say hello to him before I started teaching tomorrow."

"No. He and Aiko have been planning a picnic with their friends for a few weeks now, and it would be rude to everyone else if they had to cancel so abruptly." Shaking her head, Naoto smiled. "You'll see them tomorrow in class though." Stepping off of the train beside her brother, Naoto let out a small noise and snapped her fingers. "That reminds me; Shinjiro-san will possibly be joining us for dinner as well. If he does, please don't act like he's not supposed to be there …"

Minato let out a sigh at that. "Ojii-sama told me about that already. It … will be a bit weird meeting him again after so many years, and with my first encounter with him had him in a mental breakdown." Naoto nodded, the two siblings walking down the street. Rubbing the back of his neck, Minato couldn't help but ask a question that was nibbling on the back of his thoughts. "Do you and Kanji ever interact much with him? I know you two watched Aiko a lot …"

Naoto let out a small laugh at that. "There were times when people on the street thought we were all homosexuals with one another." Seeing Minato's jaw hit the floor, the woman chuckled more. "Shinjiro-san looked after Conan as much as we looked after Aiko, so it was difficult to tell at times if we lived in separate houses or not."

"I … see …" Minato hadn't expected that at all. "I guess I was in America and Osaka for too long then; I fell out of the family loop. Heck, I still have some issues wrapping my head around Aiko's existence … especially since I haven't met her in person." Sighing at how bad saying such made him feel, Minato fell silent as they approached the small textile shop.

He couldn't really admit that he was debating over the full authenticity of Aiko's heritage; he had a feeling Naoto wouldn't take it well at all. But to Minato, it just seemed a tad too convenient. Why had one of Hamuko's friends had some of her genetic material, and what had made Hamuko give it up in the first place? If it had been her idea, why not mention it to her family at all?

"I'm home, Kanji." Naoto's comment made Minato snap out of his thoughts. "Oh, Shinjiro-san, you did decide to join us."

"Tch, I've been cooking all day. I need a break." The new voice was deep and rough, making Minato stop for a second as he was taking off his shoes. The voice was very familiar, and made him freeze for a moment before looking up.

He knew who Kanji was from attending Naoto's wedding and various pictures he had seen since then, but seeing Shinjiro for the first time in nearly twenty-five years was a bit jarring. The last time he had seen the younger male, he'd been ill and in very poor condition. Now, he was taller than Minato was, but still shorter than Kanji. Dusk brown hair that was starting to grey was cut short across the back of his neck, bangs framing a pair of pale grey – or were they white? Minato couldn't tell anymore – eyes. He was dressed in a pair of slacks and a short sleeved shirt, and was leaning in the chair like his feet were sore while Kanji was busy cooking dinner.

Seemingly realizing that he was being stared at, the other male looked at Minato. "… Huh. Well, I guess being a trap wasn't something you were able to grow out of."

Naoto and Kanji's laughter made Minato blush a bit, not knowing if he'd been insulted or not. Shaking his head, he nodded at the brunet. "It's nice to see you again too, Aragaki-san."

"Tch, I told you before to call me Shinjiro." Shrugging, Shinjiro nodded back, tone losing a touch of its roughness. "I remember you, ya know; just because my mind was shitty back then doesn't mean I don't remember people." Shaking his head, the brunet male took a sip of the drink he had next to him. Minato took the seat close to him, grateful that Kanji had gotten some tea ready beforehand.

"True, true, but you were rarely there as it was; Hong-san was keeping you from fighting so you wouldn't endanger yourself or anyone." Sighing, Minato shook his head. "It still hurts to think she's really gone …" Shinjiro let out a soft sigh in what could only be agreement, and the two men fell quiet for a brief moment. "So, Shinjiro-san … I was wondering …" Nervous, as he didn't know how the younger male would react, Minato shifted for a moment.

"You want to know about Aiko, eh?" Shinjiro's responding question knocked Minato off guard, but he nodded. "What would you like to know first?"

"I would like to know why she was throwing people into the Samegawa earlier today, personally." Naoto's voice cut in as she returned from changing, now wearing a loose oxford shirt and jeans, her hat gone as well. Minato and Shinjiro both looked up at her in shock, making the blue-haired woman shrug. "I received a text from Dojima-san that a group of intoxicated workers came into the station about one in the afternoon today. When a bunch of runkards come stumbling into the police office dripping wet with fish bites, they've pretty much come to expect it's because she threw them in there."

At that moment, Minato felt any hope he had for his niece being like his sister wilt a bit inside.

"From what she said earlier, Nao, she caught them using the playground as a canvas for dicks." Kanji wandered over with food as he spoke, setting it down on the table. "And they wouldn't listen to her when she told them to knock it off."

"And I bet the garbage cans were either empty or had cats in them." Shinjiro shrugged. "'Some assholes needing a lesson aren't worth hurting a cat,' she said once." Seeing Minato's look, he chuckled a bit. "Aiko has a bit of a vigilante streak to her, sad to say."

"No you're not, and neither is Kanji." Naoto countered, shooting her husband a look as he just laughed and brought over the rest of the food. "Mia-san isn't joining us, Kanji?" Looking around for her mother-in-law, Naoto noted that the sign was turned to closed.

"She went out to dinner with some of her friends. 'Give you young ones a chance to talk amongst yourselves without an old woman listening in.'" Laughing in amusement at what was clearly his mother being herself, Kanji took a sip of his own tea while everyone helped themselves to food. "She'll be back in a couple of hours though, and Conan sent a message saying he and Aiko will be back home in an hour at the latest; Yukiko-senpai let the twins go as soon as Aiko handed over the fabrics and turned hawk on some of the lazier staff members."

"And Narukami-senpai's probably working like crazy to get the kitchen in shape." Naoto chuckled at that, amused.

"I said I'd help them out if they needed it. Haven't gotten a notice yet though." Shinjiro didn't seem too bothered by that, and glanced at Minato again as he started plowing through his food. "Slow down, will ya? It's not going anywhere."

Embarrassed at being caught, Minato slowed down a bit, shaking his head. "Well, I bet Aiko-san's gotten table manners beaten into her head." Chuckling a bit, he nodded. "That's good though; I've wanted to meet her and Conan for a while now. It was hard to get vacation time in Osaka, and I couldn't just pop over here from America for the summer while I was teaching there."

"Yeah, I can understand why. Your extended family isn't exactly hospitable either." Shinjiro's voice dropped to a bit of a growl, one that made Minato shiver a bit.

"That's the bad thing about the family being so old and large. A lot of inheritance squabbles …" Sighing, Minato shook his head. "I'm glad Hamuko and I got out of there when we could. I don't know how you manage to put up with them all the time, Naoto." Naoto gave a soft chuckle and shook her head in response.

"Being in the inheritance line for the Raidou title is what makes it so severe." Sighing, Naoto looked out the window. "I'm just glad it's stopped now."

"Heh, and now the kids just gotta get through high school." Nodding at Minato, Shinjiro arched an eyebrow. "Guess you'll have to keep tabs on 'em while they're in class. Hope they and Hanamura don't drive you up the wall."

"… The way you said that worries me …" Sighing and taking a sip of tea, Minato looked up as the back door opened up again.

"We're home!" Conan called out, entering the room. The blond was carrying a bag full of dumplings, munching on one. "Sorry we're back so early, but the twins were tired and Jiri had to look after Rin for a bit tonight." Putting the bag down and finishing the dumpling he was eating, Conan looked over his shoulder. "… And I think Aiko's still throwing that group of thugs into the dumpster behind the old metalworks."

"Did she make sure there wasn't anything sharp in there?" Naoto had slapped her face again. "Or rather, what did they do this time to deserve a fight?"

"They challenged her to a fight. With baseball bats." Conan sighed, the door opening a second later. "Oh, there she is." Minato, curious to see his niece, looked towards the door.

His jaw dropped when he saw her carrying a length of lead pipe over her shoulder, a rather stained shirt in one hand to expose bandages keeping her chest bound.

"The assholes got some rotten food on my shirt and tore it a bit. Managed to get it somewhat clean, but it still reeks and needs to be fixed …" Sighing, Aiko stepped out of her lace-up boots and put the shirt in an empty plastic bag. "I'll wash it first thou- oh …" Looking up, Aiko noticed Minato for the first time. "… Hi?"

Shinjiro was rubbing his forehead; why oh why did Aiko have to inherit his bad habit of getting into fights like this? "How many got sent to the hospital this time?"

"None. Made sure not to hit them too hard." Leaving the pipe with the bag, she stepped into the kitchen. Looking at Minato, she glanced at Naoto and Kanji, clearly wondering if she'd be sent upstairs to get a shirt on or if she should just sit down. When Naoto just nodded at the empty chairs for the teenagers to sit at, the tall girl shrugged and sat down, buttoning up her coat as she did so. "So, you're Uncle Minato, eh?"

Shaking his head a bit to get rid of the last of the shock he had from the introduction, Minato looked at Aiko; she had her mother's auburn hair and general face shape, but apart from that, she was clearly her father's daughter. "Yes, I would be. I didn't think I'd end up seeing you and Conan until class tomorrow." Chuckling a bit, he shook his head again.

"You'll be teaching at Yasogami, Uncle?" Conan arched an eyebrow. "I'll make sure Aiko's in Dere-mode before we get there; don't want to give you too rough of a day."

"HEY." Aiko's eyebrow twitched, getting a laugh from the adults. "Speaking of which, my uniform came in today, Dad. The skirt's long, and the top does fit right."

"Good." Sighing, Shinjiro stood up. "Dinner was nice, but we should be heading home now; I'm beat." Placing the dishes he'd been using in the sink, he nodded at Aiko and Conan as his daughter stood up. "Besides, gotta make these two and their tall friend lunch tomorrow."

"Dad, I said I'd help." Aiko chuckled. "I just need to get a shirt on first." Smiling, she ruffled Conan's hair and nodded at the other adults. "Nice to meet you, Uncle Minato. See you later, Aunt Nao, Uncle Kanji!" pulling her boots on and tying the laces, she darted out the door, grabbing her bag and the pipe as she went.

Shinjiro shook his head and nodded to the adults, leaving quietly. Naoto chuckled. "Well, they're okay with you, Onii-sama. That concern is out of the way."

Minato gave a small smile. "I've met Shinjiro before, Naoto. His older brother was my comrade back in the day, you know." Naoto nodded her head at that, but Minato let out a groan. "Now I'm just praying she doesn't bring that pipe to school too." Kanji's response was a small shrug.

"Eh, if all else fails, look for Labrys; Aiko doesn't mess around with her."

Aiko smiled, walking alongside her father down the street as they headed for their home. It was close to the Samegawa Flood plain and on a small hill, but still close enough to the shopping district for Shinjiro to walk to work. Aiko knew how to get across shortcuts to reach her school on time, and it was nice to have something of a backyard. Smiling at the sight of the two-story house, calmly tucked away under a peach tree, Aiko jogged a bit to reach the door and unlock it. "I did get the fridge cleaned out earlier today, Dad."

"Good; the milk was starting to turn into yogurt." Chuckling a bit, Shinjiro looked at the tree. "It looks like we'll be getting some good sized peaches this year, if the trees in the back are getting fruit as big as this one; that'll make Jiri happy."

"Yeah, that'll make him happy, alright." Laughing, Aiko headed inside, taking her boots and coat off, her waist length hair getting pulled back as she put on a pair of frog slippers. "But I managed to get a few of the blossoms pressed, and there's a small twig I managed to get to bloom through some advice from Amagi-san. I gave it to Mom." Nodding at the small nook in the wall where a large photograph sat, Aiko smiled to see that the blossoms and flowers around the frame were pale pink and white against the black frame.

"Heh, I'm sure she's happy with them, Aiko." Smiling, Shinjiro got his own slippers on before heading into the kitchen. "Go and get a shirt on, and we'll start cooking. I managed to get the stuff for botamochi." Chuckling as Aiko darted upstairs with a whoop, he walked over to the nook, smiling. "She's got your energy, Hamuko. You would love being around her and raising her."

The woman in the picture had Aiko's auburn hair, the copper strands framing a happy face with scarlet eyes. A smile was spread across her face, and she was wearing a bright gold yukata decorated with scarlet and orange butterflies. The picture had been taken at Hachigatsu Bon, and she was holding a small lantern that she was ready to launch in one hand. The other hand was wrapped around a younger Shinjiro's arm, and the young man had an embarrassed look on his face, but he clearly wasn't trying to pull away.

"… I miss you, Hamuko." Sighing, Shinjiro shook his head and smiled. "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to her. I hope you're looking down on her with that big smile of yours …" Chuckling, he walked over to the kitchen, grabbing a couple of aprons as Aiko bounded downstairs, a plain t-shirt on. "Okay, what shall we get started with? The chicken or the Sushi?"

"Start with the chicken; that'll take us longer." Aiko nodded. "The wasabi probably needs to thaw anyway." Smiling up at her father, Aiko got to work, and Shinjiro smiled as well.

Life was good.

Botamochi: A Japanese sweet made with sweet rice and sweet azuki (red bean) paste. They are made by soaking sweet rice for approximately six hours. The rice is then cooked, and a thick azuki paste is hand-packed around pre-formed balls of rice.

Hachigatsu Bon: The summer festival celebrated in August in p3p. One of the three different times to celebrate the festival of Obon (traditionally held on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar), it is usually celebrated on or around the fifteenth of august, typically on a weekend.

Well, here's the first updated chapter. All I really have to say is that one of the major plotholes was how Shinji raised Aiko without her siblings figuring it out, so in this version, she was raised with them from the get-go.

Figured I'd post this a day early since I have work tomorrow night. woo~