FORTY-ONE
"Okay, so we agree for certain that we're not bringing lunch, we'll just stop by wherever we feel like?" Maria taps her pencil against the paper, frowning. "In that case, we should allow more time for that, because of traffic and who knows about how long the wait lines are, since it's right at noon—unless you think we should eat earlier? Brunch actually sounds like a good idea, now that I think about it…."
She is just about to interject, but Maria beats her to the punch.
"That gives her a chance to sleep in, and we can use the extra time in the morning to talk with the matron—oh! Or we could eat out for both meals, breakfast and lunch, and then have her back before dinner time. There's a really nice café by the museum… unless she would rather eat at home…?"
Rolling her eyes, she nabs Maria's soup; she is pretty hungry today after sparring with Genjuurou, and if Maria's not going to eat, then why let it go to waste?
Except, of course, Maria notices.
"Hey!"
She dunks her sandwich in the soup, smirking at Maria, who scowls indignantly at her.
"You were saying, dear?" she prompts, gesturing for Maria to continue.
Maria shakes her head, saying, "You owe me lunch now."
"How about I make it up to you on your birthday?" She takes a bite of her sandwich and winks at Maria.
"Oh! That's right, my birthday! I completely forgot." And Maria completely disregards the last few minutes of their exchange.
It is just as well, however, since Maria needed to slow down a little.
"Indeed," she says, "though I hope you do remember that this year we have… more guests than usual."
Maria blanches. "Tell me your entire family isn't coming," she asks fearfully.
She cannot lie; Maria, seeing this, buries her head in her arms, wailing, "Nooooo."
Leaning forward, she pats Maria's soft hair. "Don't worry," she tries to reassure her, "the guest list only numbers forty-one," Maria wails even louder, "and that is including your numerous college friends, several colleagues, and our family's friends. The clan is only… about three-fifths the total."
"That's still three-fifths too many! And I can't believe there are going to be so many people coming to the party…." Maria raises her head to look at Tsubasa. "Are you sure you will be okay?"
She shrugs. "Probably."
Maria sighs. "This Saturday, huh?"