Grave
Note: Grave is a tempo word meaning very slow. I didn't want to make people freak out over the name and think I've killed off a character! XD
It was just another day at the Kotobuki Cuiseur Douce. The small, but flourishing, sweet shop saw many different types of people wonder in, all looking for the sweets that the town couldn't stop talking about. There were many types of sweets to be found in the shop from things as small as chocolate bites to large decorated cakes.
Of course, not only where the sweets good but the owners of the shop were very pleasant people as well. They always were willing to help out in their shop and it was a wonderful way to end the day to come into this small sweet shop and have your cookies or cake handed to you by either the blonde owner or her brunette wife.
Like all shops though, this one closed during the late evening and as the two women put up the sign that said closed they couldn't help but keep the lights on a little longer.
Today was a special day after all.
The two really hadn't changed that much in the last ten years, but Ui did opt to grow out her hair a little longer and still kept it in a pony tail most of the time.
Tsumugi didn't change a thing about herself other then the fact that she was now a shop owner and wore her shop outfit almost twenty-four seven.
"Mugi, can you help me take out the cake? It's pretty big…"
"Ah, of course, Ui. I'm sorry I got a little distracted…I can't wait to see everyone today." Mugi replied as she walked over to help her wife wake out the rather large strawberry cake from the back room. They had decorated it and made it earlier that day for this very occasion and as they sat it on the table the front door opened, signaling someone walking in.
"Welcome!" The two owners said out of habit, but both gasped when they noticed who it was.
"Oi, is that how you welcome old friends?"
"Ritsu, we're not that old…"
"Ricchan! Mio-chan!" Tsumugi yelled happily as she quickly made her way over to her two friends, throwing an arm around both of them before hugging them tightly.
Ritsu laughed as she put an arm around Tusmugi, she didn't look much different in the last ten years, and she did, however, get rid of her headband and went with a more casual look. Mio didn't mind the change, she always fancied Ritsu a little more with her hair down, always telling her it made her look charming and less devilish.
Mio herself didn't look different either, but she was maybe an inch taller and dressed a little more formally for her job. But as Tsumugi hugged her she couldn't help but smile brightly as she hugged her long time friend.
"It's good to see you too Mugi, sorry we're late…well not as late as some of the others apparently." Mio said as she and Ritsu pulled away to walk over to the table in the back with the cake on it and Ritsu stared at it in awe.
"Holy crap, Mugi! This thing is huge…is it for all of us?"
"Of course! We wanted to make you all something special since today is special…"
"Not only that, but it's been a while since all of us were in the same room." Ui chimed in as she took off her apron and walked over to the older girls, giggling softly as Ritsu pulled her into a hug.
"Oh, there's the youngest Hirasawa…Oop! I guess I should be calling you Kotobuki now shouldn't I?"
"W-We're not married yet! But if we were wouldn't you want me to call Mio by her new last name…Tainaka?" Ui asked as she eyed the new ring on the raven-haired girl's left hand, making her blush deeply while Ritsu beamed and put an arm around her.
"I honestly think we beat everyone in waiting the longest before I asked this silly woman to marry me!"
"Mou, Ritsu, don't brag."
"Excuse us?"
"My, looks a bit bigger then the last time we came in…"
Two new voices called out as they walked in through the front door as well. It was Ui's turn to get really excited, she quickly walked up to the two women and pulled them both into a hug, earning a small gasp from one and a giggle from the other.
Jun had gotten slightly taller as well as kept her hair out of the two puffy pigtails, keeping her hair down and neatly trimmed.
Lynn's hair had grown out an inch longer and she kept it in a low ponytail while she was still much shorter compared to Jun thanks to her small stature, but she didn't seem too bothered by it.
"Ui? Is that you? I didn't recognize you without all the flour on your face." Jun said with a smirk as Lynn grinned at the playfulness of her girlfriend.
"Mou, Jun-chan! Oh…Ritsu-san, here's someone that has you beat in the longest waiting time for not getting married."
"They don't count!" Ritsu yelled defensively while Mio pushed her back down into her seat before glaring at her.
"How do they not count?"
"C-Cause…they are technically part of Azusa's group…"
"So they're not our friends too?"
"No! I didn't mean it like that!"
"It's okay Mio-san, we didn't take it the wrong way, did we Jun?" Lynn stated as she tugged on Jun's arm and lead the woman over to the table and sat down together. Ui smiled brightly as she walked behind the counter and grabbed some cups to pour some of Tsumugi's tea into before taking it to the four who were already here.
"But on a serious note, did you guys make this shop bigger?" Jun asked as she took the cup and began to sip it's contents while putting an arm around Lynn's shoulders.
"Actually, I'm glad you noticed. We added a living portion on the back so Ui and I can live here."
"Wow, so…a bedroom, living room and bathroom sort of addon?"
"Yes, all connected to the kitchen of the restaurant." Tsumugi stated happily while Ui sat down to chat while she continued to clean up the restaurant while they talked.
"So, how's the working for the manga business working out for you Jun-chan?" Ritsu asked, causing the violet-eyed woman to beam.
"Oh, it's so great! It's the prefect job for me! I get to draw all day, read manga, and the boss even told me if I keep it up I'll have my own manga to work on and have published soon." Jun said as she pulled up her bag and reached in for her sketchbook she kept with her and handed it to Ritsu who began looking through it while Mio looked over her shoulder.
"Wow, these are pretty good…is this a naked picture of Lynn?"
"W-What! I don't remember d-drawing-"
"She's joking Jun-chan." Mio said firmly, giving Ritsu a flat look making the woman laugh softly.
"It's a joke, give me a break Mio-sama!"
"Uhm, not that I'm not having a lot of fun right now, but…where are Yui-san and Azusa-senpai?"
"Good question, those two should have been here by now…after all don't they just living a few blocks away from you two Mugi?" Mio asked as she looked over the counter. The blonde looked at them curiously before shrugging her shoulders.
"They should have been here by now…I don't know what would be keeping them…"
"Maybe they wanted a quickie before coming here." Ritsu mused making Mio thwack her on the head hard.
"Don't be a pervert…"
"Why is it always just me!"
"Because it is just you."
The door suddenly opened and two people stumbled in panting heavily while looking down.
One of the two people had very long, silky black hair and the other had short brown, both seemed very out of breath.
"Onee-chan!"
"Whoa, did you two run here or did you have a-"
"Ritsu, shut up!"
"O-Oh, everyone got here before us…" Yui whined out as she finally caught her breath, she looked up and grinned widely while she stood up fully. She hadn't changed much at all, still kept her same hair style, yet got rid of her hair clips and seemed to be slightly taller, but not by much. She looked over at her panting wife and helped her up slightly, giving her back a gentle rub before the black-haired woman finally caught her breath.
"It's y-your fault for making us late, you just had to give that gift one more glance over before wrapping it didn't you?" Azusa said irritably while frowning slightly at the woman beside her. Azusa's hair was the only major difference that everyone could see, it was still long, but Azusa chose not to put it in twin tails anymore making her appear much more profession.
"Mou, Azusa~I wanted to make sure it was perfect!"
"Will you two stop bickering like an old married couple, oh wait, you are an old married couple! Come here!" Ritsu yelled as she got up from her seat and walked over to her two friends and gave them hugs while Mio and the others followed.
After all the hugs they returned to their seats and began to chat away.
"How's the guitar shop Azusa?" Mio asked as she gave the younger woman a large smile.
"Pretty good, I still miss my parents a lot, but they were needed else where…I'm just happy they gave us that shop so we would have a better source of income." The rhythmic guitarist said sadly as she gave her senpai a small smile. "You know, they were very supportive of us, I'm glad they took my…coming out pretty well. They also seemed to have fun at the wedding."
"Yeah, I'm happy we got to be there for you even if it was small."
"It doesn't matter how small it was, what counts is that you two now have the rest of your life to be together!" Ritsu stated firmly while crossing her arms. "And I couldn't be more proud of you Private Yui!"
"C-Commander!" Yui cried out as she bowed respectfully.
"Still doing the whole commander/private thing are you?" Azusa asked as she raised an eyebrow at her friend's antics. "Oh, Lynn, I haven't got to ask you, how's the club business coming?" Azusa asked, turning her attention away from the two brunettes grinning a little as Lynn blushed.
"O-Oh that?...You told her Jun!"
"Well, I was happy when I found out you were getting a job as a DJ mixer at a club. What was I suppose to do? Brag to you?"
"W-Well n-no, but still."
"Maybe Yui and I will come see your club sometime this week, after all I think I've only been to a club once." Azusa admitted.
"The one I took you to your sophomore year of college?" Lynn asked as she chuckled softly, remembering the night very well making Azusa blush more.
"Y-Yeah…that one time…"
"Can we skip that memory…?" Jun asked, blushing deeply as well.
"No, I thought it was sexy how well you danced…even if you did get drunk again."
"Are we talking about that club we went to my junior year? That was fun, let's do that again, but Azusa, next time stop me from drinking so muuuch, I had a headache for a good two days after that~" Yui purred as she clung to her wife's arm before nuzzling her shoulder affectionately.
"You're not the only one who had a headache…and I didn't even drink that much…"
"What you went to a club without us?" Ritsu whined out before looking over at Mio with a big puppy dog pout on. "Why did we go?"
"Because you were working at the restaurant…I didn't tell you so you wouldn't take off more days because I knew you'd go wild with it." Mio replied as she rolled her eyes.
"Aw…no fair."
"Anyways, are we ready to begin this party?" Jun asked as she looked over the counter at Ui.
The youngest Hirasawa smiled and nodded as she dimmed the lights while everyone turned to Azusa, whose eyes went wide when she finally realized what day it was. The cake was lit with a few candles and as Tsumugi and Ui sat down to sing along with everyone, she couldn't believe she had forgotten such an important date as this one.
I've been so busy…I forgot my own birthday.
Azusa's surprised garnet eyes shot over to Yui, who was singing loudly while holding up her present while smiling ever so innocently.
"Happy Birthday, Azusa." She whispered as she and everyone else got out their small gifts and placed them in front of their friend.
"We're the same age again, just for a little bit, but we wanted to make this day special since it was the only day all of us could get together…I know you forgot your own birthday with everything that's been happening, but that's why you got me. I'll remember something as important as this…" Yui whispered as she pulled Azusa close and gave her a quick kiss before leaning in to whisper into her ear. "Later tonight, I'll give you my real present, this one is just for everyone to see what I got you…can't exactly show them what we do in the bedroom though now can I?"
Azusa's face went bright red at this, but she nodded firmly before looking over all the presents.
"T-Thank you everyone…I can't believe I forgot what today was…"
"Yui told us about how you've been struggling with finances since your parents left-" Ritsu said as she cut a piece of the strawberry cake and gave the slice to Yui who put it in front Azusa while Mio started to speak.
"We know how hard things can get when your parents just…stop trying to help-"
"So, because not all our parents are helpful, we've decided to help you out a little by starting up the band again." Jun said as she smiled brightly.
"We might not be the Houkago Teatime, but we can help in any way possible. Jun can design the logos they use as well as the ads. I can remix songs that you want to put on CDs…" Lynn stated as she leaned against Jun's shoulder.
"But most importantly, Azusa-chan, we want to do this so we can always be together, we've let life get in the way of our friendship so many times, but an opportunity arouse last week that I simply had to take." Tsumugi said as she smiled warmly towards their young friend. "Sawako-sensei said that there are some music producers that are looking for the original Houkago Teatime…"
"And since they want the original, that means everyone will be able to see each other more often since we're all family…even when you guys are working on new songs or recording old ones, we can still be there for you and it'll help bring in some money that you need Azusa-chan." Ui said while she patted the stunned girl on the back, trying to soothe her out of her state.
Yui reached out to grab her wife's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze before smiling more.
"I'm sorry my job can't bring in what we need, but if this works…which I know it will, we can do all the things we wanted to do after we got married…we can go on that honeymoon. Things like that, but I'm not upset that we can't do all the things we want to do, but I want you to stop stressing over bills and let's play music like we did in the old days."
"Y-Yui…we're not that old yet…" Azusa whispered as she felt tears in her eyes. "But y-your right, I miss playing with everyone so much…but what if this doesn't work?"
"It'll work, we're Houkago Teatime after all, we'll wow audiences with out sweet and itchy lyrics written by the wonderful Mio Akiyama!" Ritsu yelled happily, and flinched when Mio raised her fist to punch her, but instead put an arm around her and hugged her close while laughing.
"Yeah, and they'll dance to your rushed beat, baka."
"Like I said, for this to work…we all have to be there, because I know for a fact, even if we have sweet lyrics, the rushed beat of the drums and the soft soothing bass and keyboards…we are nothing without our two guitarists." Tsumugi said as she watched Yui throw her arms around Azusa and hug her tightly while saying "That's us, Azusa!"
The garnet-eyed woman chuckled heartily while she nuzzled into Yui's embrace before she smiled at her friends.
"It…sounds wonderful. All of this sounds just…amazing…you waited this long to tell me this?"
"We figured telling you on your birthday along with all these presents would be a good surprise, plus you didn't even know it was your birthday, so double surprise!" Yui replied while nuzzling her wife's head affectionately.
"Well...thanks I really do appreciate it all…now, how about we get to finishing up this cake. After all, since I started dating Yui, it became my favorite type." Azusa whispered suggestively, causing Yui to blush heavily before Tsumugi placed a slice in front of her.
"Y-Yeah…let's continue to have cake like this always!"
"Hai!"
"Ne ne, Mio, hand me another slice!"
"You already finished yours up Ritsu?"
"Ui, quick go get my camera, I want to remember today."
"Okay Mugi, I'll be right back-"
"Oi oi, when did we have so many friends, Lynn?"
"I think it's sweet Jun! Here, want another piece of cake?"
Azusa smiled as she watched her friends eat and chat away, talking about all that had happened in the last few years of their lives. Sure, it wasn't like high school anymore, they had responsibilities and jobs now, but at least they could still interact with each other like the good old times. And as the young guitarist leaned in to kiss her wife's cheer, she knew there would be many more years like this to come.
Author Notes: And finished. Sad to see one of my works come to a complete end. And longest might I add, over 50k words…wow…broke a personal record fanfiction wise. I'm quite proud of how this turned out and I am happy you guys agree. Oh for those wondering Kotobuki Cuiseur Douce is French for Kotobuki Sweets Cook or sweet cook I don't remember…I just wanted a French sounding restaurant name for Mugi and Ui.
Thankfully it's not my last work, as you saw last chapter, I have more stories in the works as well as ones I'm working on when I have the inspiration to work on them. Again thank you for all your kind words and for following this story as well as Cold Days. I'll start uploading K-On Virus here in a bit and Frozen as well. See you guys then! ^_^