Chapter 5: Onee-chan, The Bottomless Pit
Hey everybody, sorry for the month long wait, I just realized that Luckier Star hadn't been updated in three and decided to focus mostly on that until I had it finished! Hope this was worth the wait!
Silence, I'm glad it entertained!
Redlerred, I've been told that about my references at times, but I can't stop making them. Unfortunately, after doing it for over a decade, it's been hardwired into my brain. I can't even speak with making references now. I am glad that you enjoyed it though! It's a joy to type!
CJM80, I hope you got notified about this one! I'm glad it even turned out better than your expectations! I hope this one turns out similarly!
Ah, Nomutant! I consciously made her say Me and Tsukasa rather than Tsukasa and I (as in, typed Tsukasa and I and backspaced it to Me and Tsukasa) because she's the little sister. Tsukasa isn't always grammatically correct when she speaks (though, neither are a lot of people...), so Kagami unconsciously started being incorrect. I put too much thought into this stuff, is what I'm saying. And Tsukasa isn't used to saying Kagami's name, so I'd imagine she would just adopt Imoto rather than Onee-chan. So, really it was just embarrassment. Plus, Matsuri usually calls them Imoto (I've seen it romanized both ways, but if it's easier on the eyes, I'll change it to Imouto. Kind of like Sojiro and Sojirou, I guess.), so Tsukasa just went with it. Do I mind you pointing out stuff like that? Oh dear god no. I love it. That you pay so much attention to something I made makes me super happy! Besides, constructive criticism or showing me where I mess up is how I get better! Luckily, unlike Luckier Star, I have a lot of this planned. Well, a lot closer to where the story is now. Miki is actually one of my favorite parents to work with. That's part of the reason she gets parts! You can never smile too much! Every one makes me smile bigger! I AM hoping to give Miyuki a bigger part in this than she has in Luckier Star. She's probably had more lines already... I hope you keep reading, I'll keep writing!
WingofSeyfert, I've played a few visual novels, but I'm no where near Konata's level. Their conversation was fun to write, though who knows if it really is reading too much in... Maybe it is?
Z-kun! Stop being depressed, it makes me depressed! I hope things are getting better for you, maybe a new chapter will at least make you smile? Hopefully?
Dave, that review made me smile so much. I think I wrote a good two thousand words on that review alone. And that's an interesting idea! I've seen Yuruyuri (not a lot, my manga app was messing up and didn't get most of it) and I only just remembered that part! That's an interesting idea that I may have to look at...
Anyway, woohoo! Next chapter is GO!
The Hiiragi House
Miki walked back into the house with a bag in her hand. Tsukasa had texted her with a request for her to pick up a few items for their day. She was a little surprised, because Kagami had also asked her to do things like this when she had been the big sister. Of course, Kagami's texts were quite a bit more... legible... given Tsukasa's affection for emojis, but it was mostly the same sort of text. She walked into the kitchen and put the bag down, looking over to the stove. She took off the pot's lid and looked inside with a smile.
"That girl is something else..." She smiled. "Even I wouldn't be able to time something like this." She said. She replaced the lid and left the kitchen. She didn't mind running such an errand, since she had gotten the day's newspaper and the dinner for the next day while she was at the store. She walked out to the living room with her newspaper, replacing the previous day's paper. She sat down and began reading again. She guessed the twins would be arriving any time now, due to how the pot's contents looked.
Walking Down the Street
Kagami followed her twin quite excitedly. After all, if this had been the first thing that Tsukasa had planned, she couldn't wait to see what else the girl had in store for them. She knew she would probably hate herself the next day for indulging in so many sweets with the buns, but she simply couldn't bring herself to care. She and her older sister were having fun together and she knew she would likely never have this opportunity again. She honestly hadn't thought that she would have this much fun today.
"Onee-chan, where are we going?" Kagami asked, knowing she wasn't likely to get an answer.
"We're going home, Imoto." Tsukasa said. Kagami kicked her head to the side.
"Aw... Didn't you say we had more to do?" Kagami asked, almost let down. She grasped to the hope she had though!
"Yeah! It's at home!" Tsukasa said. Kagami nodded.
"Alright." She said. Tsukasa smiled. It was something else she had gotten ready in the hour before the two had left. She couldn't wait for Kagami to see what she had planned. She did her best to stifle a yawn. "Onee-chan, are you okay?" Kagami asked. Tsukasa nodded.
"Yep! Don't worry about a thing!" She said, scolding herself for being able to be seen through. Though, Kagami was much more perceptive than she was anyway, so she couldn't be too hard on herself. Their house came in to sight. "Ready Imoto?" Tsukasa asked. Kagami cheered.
"Totally!" She said.
Miki sat at the table and folded her newspaper. She had finished with the current events and not a lot interested her after that. She sighed and put the paper down before turning the television on. However, the opening and closing of a door took her attention away from the news on the television. She looked to the hall to see Kagami and Tsukasa walking in, much like she had assumed.
"Welcome back you two. Did you have fun?" Miki asked. Kagami nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah! Like you wouldn't believe!" Kagami shouted. "Onee-chan is the best!" Kagami hugged Tsukasa, who blushed. Miki giggled a bit.
"What did you do?" She asked, almost as if she already knew. Kagami broke her hug with Tsukasa and started explaining excitedly.
"Onee-chan brought us a bunch of places! We went to a ton of bakeries and she just mentioned our name and she got a bunch of free packages! They were all new kinds of buns that I had never heard of!" Kagami shouted. Miki giggled at the twin's unusual exuberance. Though, given that the topic was food, it was at least part way understandable. "Tsukasa was super smart about it, too! We each had some really awesome tasting buns! And some... not so much, but that's beside the point! Those were ones that weren't part of it!" Kagami said. Miki gave her a sly look that told Kagami she messed up. Kagami calmed a bit and thought about what she had said. Then she realized that she had called Tsukasa by name in her excitement. Miki smiled.
"Just wait until you see what she's got next for you." Miki said. Kagami looked over to Tsukasa, who smiled proudly.
"Wait here Imoto!" Tsukasa said as she started walking to the kitchen.
"Tsukasa." Miki said. Tsukasa stopped and turned around to see her mother.
"Yeah Mom?" Tsukasa asked.
"When Kagami was the older sister, she never called you Imoto." Miki said. Tsukasa blinked a time or two before she caught her mother's meaning.
"Um..." She looked around, suddenly trying to not look at her twin. "Wait here... Kagami." She said shyly before she ran into the kitchen. Miki looked over at Kagami to see her twiddling her thumbs while adamantly looking at a single spot on the table. Miki giggled.
"I knew it would embarrass her. That's why I never pushed it." Kagami said after a moment of silence, seemingly fascinated with that one spot on the table.
"But wasn't she cute?" Miki asked. Kagami sighed.
"Well..." She mumbled. "My sister is pretty cute." Kagami had to admit. Miki nodded.
"She'll probably be done in a moment..." Miki said. Kagami shook her head to get herself out of the "Kagami Stupor" and looked to the kitchen just as the door opened. Tsukasa poked her head out.
"Come on... Kagami!" Tsukasa said, blushing in embarrassment. Kagami almost shrunk again from Tsukasa calling her name. She stood and followed Tsukasa into the kitchen. Miki giggled again.
"Those two..." She said, turning the news back on.
Kagami walked into the kitchen with Tsukasa to see their biggest pot on the stove. Tsukasa had put it on a very low heat and asked her mother to stir it on occasion. She had guessed the right temperature to slowly melt the chocolate over the amount of time they would be out without burning it. She, in fact, quite proud of herself. On the counter next to the pot was a number of disposable chopsticks and an assortment of different snacks. There were marshmallows, sandwich cookies and graham crackers. Next to those were fruits like strawberries, orange slices and pineapple chunks. Kagami blinked.
"You didn't." Kagami said. Tsukasa beamed with pride and nodded.
"I did!" She said. Kagami walked over and looked inside the pot to see it was full of melted chocolate. A bowl set to the side had some as well, undoubtedly taken from the pot for easier access. "Have you ever had cookies dipped in chocolate?" Tsukasa asked. Kagami blinked again, entirely dumbstruck.
"... Surprisingly, no." She said. Seven. That was at least seven new sweets today she had never had before. Not to mention she hadn't even counted the other chocolate covered delights. Tsukasa had to be one of the smartest people on the planet. "This is awesome. I am gonna have such a tummy ache later." She said. She knew she would absolutely hate herself the next day in terms of weight, but little sisters didn't worry about weight! Tsukasa never did, so she wouldn't either! Kagami skewered a pineapple chunk and dipped it in the bowl of melted chocolate. She looked under the bowl out of curiosity to see a small candle keeping the chocolate melted. When she went to bite the pineapple, however, Tsukasa snatched it out of her hand. "O-Onee-chan?" Kagami asked.
"The chocolate has to harden on it. I dipped some earlier so that they'd be ready." She said. She held out a cookie sheet with a couple of each sweet dipped in chocolate. They shined brighter than gold to the Tsundere. She picked up a pineapple chunk that Tsukasa had dipped before and bit it in half and melted more than the chocolate. "How is it Kagami?" Tsukasa asked. Kagami moaned.
"It's tangy and sweet and the chocolate goes amazing with it and it just makes me feel happy inside..." Kagami said. She ate the other half as Tsukasa smiled.
"I'm glad you like it so much." Tsukasa smiled. She picked up a marshmallow and bit it off the stick. Kagami picked one up as well. She ate it and sighed.
"The hard chocolate mixes with the spongy marshmallow. It makes a really awesome texture that tastes great..." Kagami said. She was starting to doubt her "Sweets Gourmet" title if there were this many things she hadn't tried before. It really made her wonder just what the limits of Tsukasa's knowledge of food were. She had only tried two of the chocolate covered confections and she was already having a near existential crisis as far as her reputation was concerned. And there were still four more things to try. Kagami was going to have fun with this...
In the Izumi Household
Konata sighed and leaned back in her seat. Route complete in record time.
"Tsunderes are so awesome." Konata sighed. A knock came at her door.
"Konata?" Sojiro asked.
"You let her Dad." Konata said.
"I do? But... With a sword?" Sojiro asked.
"Don't worry, her mom stops her right as she's about to hit you." Konata said. "She gets her sexy on right after." Konata said.
"Oh! Finally, this has been a long route! I've been waiting for THAT scene!" Sojiro said.
"It's not there yet Dad, she's just flirting." Konata said. Sojiro sighed.
"Man. I was looking forward to that. When is that scene coming?" Sojiro asked.
"Not for a long time Dad." Konata said. Sojiro sighed again.
"Alright..." He mumbled. Konata smirked. She got up from her seat and walked over to her bed. She laid down and began basking again. The Tsundere route was certainly a very long one, but it was indeed rewarding. She went from normal school girl to getting swept up into a whole Dragon Ball Z-esque plot. It could have been written better, but it wasn't a bad one.
"O-Onee-chan..." Konata heard at her door.
"Man I'm popular." Konata smiled under her breath. "Come in Yu-chan." Yutaka entered meekly.
"Um... I had another question... about Minami-chan..." Yutaka shyly asked. Konata smiled.
"What can I help you with?" Konata asked, sitting up in her bed. Yutaka shuffled around a bit, as if trying to find a good way to word her question.
"Um... How do I give her my present?" Yutaka asked. Konata hummed.
"What do you mean by how?" She asked.
"Well... I mean how do I bring it up?" Yutaka asked.
"You could just give it to her." Konata said. Yutaka shook her head violently as she waved her arms around.
"No no no no! That's way too embarrassing!" Yutaka said. "I can't just... give her a present for no reason..." Yutaka mumbled. Konata hummed again.
"Oh! How about this! You just say you had an extra and you thought you'd give it to her!" Konata laughed.
"Do you think that would work?" Yutaka asked excitedly. Konata stared at her for a moment.
"... No." She said. Yutaka sighed.
"This is hard~! Why does being in love have to be so hard?" Yutaka complained.
"It's hard Yu-chan, but it's totally worth it in the end." Konata said.
"Onee-chan, have you ever been in love before?" Yutaka asked. Konata looked surprised at the question.
"Hm... That's kind of a difficult question to answer..." Konata chuckled.
"It's okay if you don't want to tell me..." Yutaka's demeanor dropped.
"Well, it's not so much that I don't WANT to tell you, it's just that it'd take a long time to explain." Konata said. Yutaka scrunched her face up cutely, trying to think about how such a question could be hard to answer. "So, how to give Minami your present..." Konata hummed. Yutaka nodded and mimicked her surrogate sister. "Are there any events where giving her a present would trigger a flag? Something she likes?" Konata asked.
"Like what?" Yutaka asked.
"Like her birthday or anything." Konata said. Yutaka shook her head.
"No, her birthday isn't until September..." Yutaka said. Konata sighed and crossed her arms in thought.
"Hm... I'll think about it, Yu-chan." Konata said. "I'm sure I'll come up with something!" She said with a determined look. Yutaka couldn't help but have confidence in that look.
"Thanks Onee-chan." She said with a smile. "I'm gonna go think about it too!" Yutaka said, getting determined as well. Konata took a heroic pose.
"Yes! Fight, Yu-chan!" She cheered.
"Right!" Yutaka turned on her foot and took off. Into the door. She stayed standing with her face to the door for another moment.
"... Um... Yu-chan?" Konata asked.
"... Ouchie..." She mumbled as she rubbed her head. She opened the door and left the room. Konata giggled.
"She's just too damn moe!" She complained loudly. Then, she decided to leave the basking for later and went back to her game, wondering about her little cousin's dilemma all the while.
The Kitchen of the Twins
Kagami patted her belly.
"God that awesome..." She said. "Are the others hardened yet?" Kagami looked over to see the tray gone. "Wah- Onee-chan? What's going on?" She asked. She found Tsukasa putting the rest of the sweets in the refrigerator. While she was hidden by the door, she stifled a yawn.
"Kagami, you were right. You're going to get a tummy ache if all you eat is sweets!" Tsukasa tried her stern big sister stance again.
"Gah! I ate the pepper omelette this morning, didn't I?" Kagami protested.
"Yes, but that was one meal and you've had two snacks." Tsukasa said. "You haven't had lunch yet!" Tsukasa said. Kagami groaned and held her stomach.
"I can't even think about eating right now..." She mumbled.
"Then you don't need these." Tsukasa finished putting everything into the refrigerator. Kagami stared at Tsukasa for a moment.
She's really taking this seriously. She couldn't help but think. "So what are we gonna do with the left over chocolate?" Kagami asked. Tsukasa looked proud.
"I was planning on keeping it melted so that everyone could take from it." Tsukasa said. Surely thinking of the entire family was a big sister thing to do! Kagami hummed.
"Actually..." She looked at the rather large pot of chocolate still remaining. "Onee-chan! Could you go in the living room for a bit? I'll come get you when I'm ready!" Kagami said with a look of determination that impressed Tsukasa. It was rare to see such a determined Kagami in this room of all rooms. Tsukasa nodded.
"Just let me know when you're ready Kagami." Tsukasa said as she left the room. Kagami couldn't help but be surprised with how quickly Tsukasa got over her embarrassment with calling Kagami by her first name. Kagami smiled as she eyed the chocolate. She really hoped this worked...
Suddenly, a Wild Idea Appears!
A light bulb shone above Konata's head. That was it. That's what Yutaka could do!
"Yu-chan~!" Konata shouted as she got up and ran from her computer so that the idea wouldn't leave her. She ran to Yutaka's room and threw the door open, half hoping to come in at the wrong moment since that had only happened with her Dad and she wanted to see the miniature moe ball get flustered. Unfortunately, Yutaka was simply doing her homework. Until Konata dashed in, that is. "Yu-chan!" Konata shouted as she ran through the door. Yutaka fell out of her seat from the sudden surprise.
"Ouchie..." She rubbed her bottom as she stood back up. "What's up Onee-chan?" Yutaka asked. Konata giggled at her little cousin. She was even cute while she was boring. The world just wasn't fair.
"I know how you can give your gift to Minami." Konata said. Yutaka jumped to attention as stars filled her eyes.
"You do? How? How?" She asked twice for emphasis.
"The Bookworm character in my game actually gave me the idea." Konata gloated about how her game saved the day.
"How can I give it to her?" Yutaka asked.
"It really is quite an ingenious idea, if I do say so myself..." Konata put her hand on her chin as if to look thoughtful.
"Onee-chan~!" Yutaka whined. Konata giggled.
"You just say you're giving it to her as thanks for always taking care of you! She's always helping you out because she's the nurse's aide, so it's the perfect excuse! It would be better to just give it to her, but if you need a reason, that's probably your winner." Konata said. Yutaka jumped for joy as she ran over and hugged Konata.
"Yay~! Thank you so much!" She cheered. "That's a great idea! Minami is gonna love it!" She said. Konata smiled.
"Glad I could help! Let me know how she reacts!" Konata said, as if she wouldn't read about it in a week in one of Hiyori's doujin. Yutaka broke the hug and nodded fiercely.
"I will! Thank you again!" She said happily. Konata smiled and left the room.
"Any time!" She said as she left. She sighed. "Alrighty, back to the game. Can't keep the future missus waiting..." She said as she hurried back to her own room.
Back with the Hiiragis
"Onee-chan~!" Kagami called out. She poked her head into the living room to see Tsukasa had just looked over to the door.
"Yes?" Tsukasa asked. Kagami pushed through into the room with her hands behind her back.
"I've got something for you~!" Kagami chimed. She moved her hands from behind her to reveal a large chocolate heart. "I made this for you!" She said cheerfully. If thinking of the rest of the family was a big sister thing to do, then surely thinking mostly of her big sister was a little sister thing to do.
"Kagami!" Tsukasa giggled. "I was saving the rest of the chocolate for everyone else to have some."
"There's still some!" Kagami protested. "I didn't use all of it!" Kagami said.
"Is there enough for everyone?" Tsukasa asked. Kagami looked away.
"... Enough for you, Mom, Dad, and Inori." She said. "I only used Matsuri's portion." Kagami said.
"Kagami." Tsukasa said sternly. Kagami seemed to become fixated with an area on the ceiling. Tsukasa sighed. "Matsuri can have my portion." She said. Miki raised an eyebrow and whistled.
"I'm impressed, Tsukasa. You're really starting to get into the whole 'Older Sister' role. You even just older sistered Matsuri." Miki said. Tsukasa smiled and fidgeted.
"I'm just trying to be a good big sister..." Tsukasa said.
"Well, you're succeeding." Miki said. Tsukasa smiled a bit wider. That praise was worth way more than the chocolate. Not that she was going to turn down the chocolate heart that Kagami had worked so hard on. She took the heart and saw it also had candy letters on it.
"I found the letters in the pantry!" Kagami said proudly. The heart read 'I love Onee-chan!'. Tsukasa blushed as she read it and fidgeted again. "I made it with love!" Kagami made a fist with determination. "I know that you made the chocolate, but I hope that you like it!" Tsukasa nodded and broke a piece off. She popped it in her mouth.
"..." Tsukasa froze. What. She made this chocolate. What. How did it taste different? What. Was that salt? What was that? Tsukasa was an S ranked Kitchenmancer, how could she not tell what was in this chocolate? She MADE this chocolate, how could she not know? "It's delicious, Kagami!" Tsukasa lied, smiling. "Did you add anything to it?" She asked. Kagami shook her head.
"Only the candy!" She looked incredibly happy. She was almost literally jumping for joy. Tsukasa liked her chocolate! Tsukasa knew what good food was and she liked it! Was this what making good food was like? Sure, she hadn't actually MADE it, but this was as close as she'd ever come, so it counted damn it!
"This is really good." Tsukasa said. Miki smiled over at her.
"May I try some?" Miki asked as she reached over. Tsukasa suddenly put her arm around the chocolate.
"No, this is mine!" Tsukasa said protectively. She wasn't exactly protective over the chocolate, however... Miki smiled.
"I understand." She nodded. She looked at Kagami. "You made something so good, even Tsukasa doesn't want to share." Miki said. The happiness that Kagami felt was so large, Kagami was surprised that she didn't explode. She made Tsukasa selfish. Tsukasa was the exact opposite of selfish. She was the epitome of selflessness. If Tsukasa had something that you needed, you had it. But she had just kept the chocolate heart to herself when their Mom wanted some. Kagami wanted to dance.
"Onee-chan, I'm so happy that you like it!" Kagami shouted, cheering quite loudly. They heard a groan from the doorway.
"Why are you being so loud so early in the morning?" Inori asked, squinting.
"It's no where near the morning." Kagami said. Inori took out her phone, looked at the time while ignoring the clock on the wall, and returned it to her pocket.
"Why are you being so loud so early in the afternoon?" Inori asked.
"Onee-san, I made an awesome chocolate heart and Onee-chan totally likes it!" Kagami said excitedly.
"Kagami making something edible? This I gotta taste..." Inori mumbled. She shuffled over to the heart, but Tsukasa put herself between her sister and the heart.
"Mine!" She said. Inori put a hand on her little sister's head and moved her before picking up the heart.
"Let her taste it, Onee-chan! See what happens when you doubt me!" Kagami said proudly as she held her head high. As Inori started to bring it to her mouth, Tsukasa jumped up and bit the candy before taking off with it. Inori glared down the hall as Tsukasa ran away. Kagami ran over to the door and looked down the hallway. "Onee-chan?" Kagami asked.
"Mine!" Tsukasa shouted from down the hall. Kagami chased after her down the hall.
". . . Onee-chan?" Inori asked, as if it just ticked in her head. Miki giggled.
"It's a long story." She said, though the fact that she turned back to the news on the television caused Inori to sigh. Inori stumbled over and sat down across from her mother, laying her head on the table.
"Onee-chan?" Kagami asked as she walked into Tsukasa's room. Tsukasa jumped and turned around to see Kagami. Tsukasa started fidgeting again. "Why did you do that?" Kagami asked. It was unlike Tsukasa to do something like that to her mother, but to rip it out of her older sister's hand and run down the hall. It was definitely not a very older sister thing to do, nor was it something Kagami would expect of her younger sister.
"It's... It's just that you made it for me..." Tsukasa said as she held the candy heart. "It's just something that doesn't happen a whole lot, so I wanted to savor it, ya know?" Tsukasa tried to think up something convincing. In truth, if Inori had tasted it, especially in her hangover, she would have almost definitely said it wasn't good. Which Tsukasa still couldn't understand. Kagami smiled and averted her gaze.
"I... I didn't know that you thought so much about it..." Kagami smiled. "So, did you have any other ideas of stuff we can do?" Kagami asked. Tsukasa sighed in relief at the topic being dropped.
"Of course!" She said. She picked up her bag and went to the door. "Go out to the hall and wait a minute. Then come back in!" Tsukasa said. Kagami nodded.
"Okay Onee-chan!" She said, her excitement practically palpable. Tsukasa nodded as Kagami left the room. Kagami walked into the hall and, leaning against the wall, smiled. She was genuinely excited about whatever Tsukasa had planned next. She had never realized that her sister was so good at this kind of stuff. Tsukasa being able to put together a day like today was honestly a skill she had never shown. Of course, Kagami never really gave her the opportunity to plan their day before. It had always been Kagami to plan their days out, so not worrying about it was actually kind of nice. She looked around for some clue as to what Tsukasa might have planned. However, she found none. She sighed as she looked at the time. It had to have been long enough, right? She waited another minute before she decided it indeed had been and got up off the wall. She walked through the door and into her sister's room to see Tsukasa sitting at the desk with two notebooks and a few textbooks.
"It's time for homework, Kagami!" Tsukasa said. Kagami took a moment to process what she had just been told.
"..." She sighed. Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry. She repeated to herself. Well, isn't this a switch. Does Tsukasa usually have this much fun that she dreads homework like this? Kagami wondered. "Onee-chan, do we HAVE to do homework?" Kagami legitimately complained. "I don't get it at all~..." Kagami sighed, though not so legitimately this time. Tsukasa's eyes widened.
"Come on!" Tsukasa gestured to the table. Kagami sighed and sat down at the desk.
"I don't wanna do homework." Kagami complained. Tsukasa smiled and ruffled Kagami's hair, much to the surprise of the Tsundere.
"Aw, you're hopeless. I'll help you out!" Tsukasa said cheerfully. She began explaining the work the two of them had with an understanding that, quite frankly, shocked Kagami. When did Tsukasa get good at math? No one was good at math. "And~, here's the answer!" Tsukasa said with a smile.
"Wow Onee-chan, I didn't know you knew this stuff. That's... really cool." Kagami said. Of course, she had known it herself, but she was quite impressed with Tsukasa's work. Tsukasa smiled at Kagami.
"I have to be smart so I can help my cute little sister!" Tsukasa said with a smile. Kagami blushed at the praise.
"I'm not..." She bit her tongue before she continued too far, knowing that her ordinary "Idiot" moniker would follow the statement.
"You are." Tsukasa said. In truth, she had spent most of last night studying the material and doing her very best to commit it to memory. She had to cram almost the entire night, but this moment, where she got to mostly live out her daydream from the previous day was way more than worth the days exhaustion. "See, and you do this here and subtract from both sides." Tsukasa explained. Kagami smiled. Her sister was being book smart. Though, she supposed that she would expect something so insane considering that she had just made something edible.
The House of a Meganekko
Miyuki sat in her living room alone, simply waiting for her friend. Her mother was in her room, working her online job and having pie. Miyuki held the tickets in her hand as the door opened.
"Onee-chan, did you want to talk?" Minami asked in her nearly monotonous voice.
"Ah, Mi-chan. Yes, I wanted to give something to you." Miyuki said. Minami walked into the living room as Miyuki gestured towards the chair. Minami sat down and smiled a very small smile to surrogate older sister.
"You have something for me...?" Minami asked, tilting her head to the side a bit. Miyuki nodded.
"Recently, I entered a contest where the prize was a mystery. I was chosen as the winner and got these." Miyuki held out the two tickets. Minami smiled a bit wider.
"Are you asking me to go with you?" Minami asked. Miyuki put on a sad face.
"Unfortunately, I have a dentist appointment on the day that they're redeemable, so I won't be able to go." Miyuki sighed sadly, hoping her act would fool her friend. She hated lying, but this was hopefully for Minami's later happiness.
"Mm." Minami looked at the tickets and back to Miyuki, the Meganekko recognizing that Minami wanted her to continue. Minami was far too polite to ask for the tickets, but Miyuki knew her little sister was smart. She would know what Miyuki meant.
"I was wondering if you'd like the tickets, and maybe you and Yutaka-san could go together?" Miyuki suggested. Minami, contrary to what Miyuki expected, seemed surprised. Her eyes widened as if she hadn't even considered taking Yutaka.
"But..." She mumbled. "How could I invite her?" Minami asked. Miyuki hummed as she put her brain to work.
"Hm..." She thought. "You could perhaps say that you simply had extra tickets." Miyuki said. Minami fidgeted a bit.
"How... would I have extras?" Minami asked. Miyuki hummed again as she thought.
"Hm..." She wondered. "Why don't I get us some snacks and we can think about this over them? I have pie if you would like." Miyuki suggested. Minami smiled and nodded.
"That sounds nice." She said. Miyuki stood, bowed out of reflex, and walked to the kitchen.
In Tsukasa's Room
Tsukasa and Kagami closed the books they had. Finally, the two had finished their homework. Kagami stretched as Tsukasa yawned.
"Hey..." Tsukasa mumbled. "Onee-chan." Tsukasa addressed her sister. Kagami could tell she meant that she wanted to break roles for a moment.
"Yes Tsukasa?" Kagami asked.
". . . I really like being the older sister and all, but I don't want you to get a bad grade because of me... If you want to go back and redo all the ones I got wrong, I don't blame you." Tsukasa said, adamantly looking at the desk and not her sister. Kagami smiled.
"I had actually thought something like that." Kagami said. "But you did really well. I think you got most, if not all of them, right." Kagami said. Tsukasa looked up and stared at her.
"... Really?" She asked. Kagami smiled and nodded.
"Really." She said. "Onee-chan is so smart!" Kagami added quite cheerfully. Tsukasa blushed a bit and smiled, shifting as if she were nervous.
"Thanks Kagami." Tsukasa said, picking up her role again too. "So, you worked really hard Kagami! Now that we have our homework done, we have the rest of the day to do whatever we want!" Tsukasa said.
"What do you wanna do Onee-chan?" Kagami asked. Tsukasa thought. She knew what she wanted. She wanted to do the one thing that the two were always equal in, the one where Kagami and Tsukasa would usually act around the same.
"How about we go ahead and take a bath. That way, we won't have to take one later!" Tsukasa suggested. Kagami nodded.
"Sure! Since you're the older sister, you can go first Onee-chan!" Kagami said. Tsukasa smiled.
"I was thinking we could go in together!" Tsukasa said. "That way, we don't have to go in separately and take up the bath if someone else wants to get in!" Tsukasa said. Kagami hummed.
That's pretty well thou... Together. She thought. Somehow, that idea was incredibly embarrassing. It didn't make sense though. The two took baths with each all the time. Well, not recently, but they had just had a bath together during the beach trip they had gone on with Konata and Miyuki a while back. Then again, there was some kinda sorta embarrassing talk then, so maybe Kagami was just associating that talk with baths together? "That's... well thought out..." Kagami blushed as she looked away.
"Well your Onee-chan is super smart!" Tsukasa beamed with pride. Kagami was legitimately unsure if it was part of the act or if she was really proud of thinking that much about it. She was pretty sure this was the first time she had ever heard Tsukasa compliment herself, even repeating a compliment about herself she had heard. It just wasn't something Tsukasa did. Kagami nodded.
"Let's go take a bath!" Kagami said. "I get the rubber ducky!" Kagami chimed as she ran out of the room. Tsukasa smiled as she followed her sister out of the room. Yes, in the bath, the two were equals.
The House of the Meganekko
"Ah!" Miyuki said, causing Minami to look over to her just before she brought her bite of pie to her mouth.
"Did you think of something Onee-chan?" Minami asked as she placed the pie back on the plate. Miyuki nodded quite cheerfully.
"Yes! Perhaps you could say you're inviting her to cheer her up after she's gotten sick? Or perhaps to thank her for being such a friend to you." Miyuki said. Minami hummed.
"I would rather avoid telling her it's because we're friends." Minami said. "It may give off the impression that I see us as only friends." Minami said. Miyuki nodded.
"A good catch. I hadn't thought of that." Miyuki said.
"And what if these expire before she gets sick again for me to cheer her up?" Minami asked. Miyuki hummed.
"You could say they're to cheer her up from being sick as often as she is." Miyuki said. Minami nodded.
"That sounds like it would work. Thank you Onee-chan!" Minami said with relative excitement. Miyuki smiled with her eyes.
"I'm glad that I was able to help." Miyuki smiled. Minami held up the tickets and looked at them.
"These... These are going to help me..." She said with an uncommon gleam in her eyes. Miyuki giggled a bit.
"Although, I would say that it's more of a gentle nudge." Miyuki said. Minami looked at her.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"It's my opinion that even if you weren't to give these to Yutaka-san, I do believe that she would eventually, if she has not already, fall in love with you." Miyuki said. Minami blushed.
"Yu...Yu-chan..." Minami put her hands on her cheeks as her gaze became distant. After a moment, however, she shook her head. "Wh-Why do you think that, Onee-chan?" Minami asked as seriously as she could, although her face still had a deep blush on it. Miyuki giggled.
"For exactly the reason I told you yesterday. Yutaka-san is the kind of person to look up to a person who cares for her as deeply as you do." Miyuki said. "And I know just how deeply you care for her." Miyuki said. Minami smiled as she seemingly relaxed in her chair. It was a rare thing, even for Miyuki, to see Minami drop her composed expression and look so easy-going. It was clear that she had been thinking quite strenuously about this and now she could finally be at ease.
"... Thank you Onee-chan..." Minami smiled. Miyuki nodded.
"It's my pleasure." She said. "If you'll allow it, I'd like to continue to support you and Yutaka-san." Miyuki said. Minami nodded.
"Please." She said. Miyuki sighed in content. This felt nice. She was happy to help where she could, and maybe Minami could help return the favor some time...
The Hiiragi Bath
"Ha ha!" Kagami laughed an evil laugh. "There's no way your silly ship could ever stand up to my AWESOME rubber ducky!" Kagami said as Tsukasa's ship slowly sank beneath the tub's water. The two of them had first washed themselves, though Kagami refused to wash properly as the younger sister, and Tsukasa had insisted, before washing Kagami herself as the older sister. Tsukasa had initially gotten quite worried about Kagami, since her face had turned beet red as the two stripped. However, after multiple insistence that she was, in fact, okay and Tsukasa feeling her temperature, which didn't actually help her worry, Tsukasa decided to let it go. Kagami's face only got redder as Tsukasa washed her, which concerned the faux older sister again, but Kagami seemed okay. Tsukasa decided to observe her to see if she fainted or anything, but decided that she would continue. So then, they began their age old game with tub toys Kagami hadn't seen in years. Tsukasa regularly played with them, but that was her secret and no one else had to know about it. They would each take turns taking their tub toys and bashing the other's until it took in too much water to stay afloat.
"No~!" Tsukasa cried dramatically as her ship lightly tapped the bottom of the tub. "How could you do such a thing? Have you no heart?" Tsukasa put her wet arm to her forehead dramatically.
"Of course I don't! I'm super evil!" Kagami said. Tsukasa giggled in her head. She knew that Kagami wasn't acting as the little sister anymore. This was all her.
"Then I'll have to beat your ducky myself!" Tsukasa shouted as splashed water at Kagami and her duck.
"Ack! That's cheating!" Kagami shouted as she shielded herself from the devastating blast. However, her champion stayed floating, always the rock she knew it to be. "My ducky's revenge!" Kagami grabbed her duck and splashed Tsukasa with it.
"No~!" Tsukasa shouted as she splashed back.
"This means war~!" Kagami shouted as she started splashing her sister. The two laughed as they fought. And though Tsukasa's defense was indeed valiant, her power was simply not to be compared to the unbeatable strength that was Kagami's splashing.
"I-I give! You win!" Tsukasa laughed as started trying to shield her face to stop water from getting in her mouth too much more.
"There is no surrender~!" Kagami shouted as she splashed under her twin's arm. "The price of war is DEATH!" Kagami said. Tsukasa focused her hands more around her mouth now.
"Bleh~! I'm dead." Tsukasa fell back and laid on the edge of the tub. Kagami cheered.
"Victory~!" Kagami shouted. Although she had been extremely aware of her naked sister at first, which still baffled her, and it had only gotten worse when Tsukasa had washed her, which was... weirdly enjoyable, once the two had begun playing their game, Kagami had gotten over it. Kagami began breathing a bit heavier. Their game had left her unexpectedly tired. She looked over to see Tsukasa was in a similar state. "I'm tired Onee-chan..." Kagami panted.
"Yeah, it's probably not good to stay in the hot water when we're tired." Tsukasa stood. Kagami averted her gaze to avoid getting so aware of her sister again. It only worked a little as Kagami blushed again. This was getting ridiculous. Tsukasa and Kagami began to dry themselves as Tsukasa noticed Kagami constantly avoiding looking at her. Tsukasa looked down at her body to see if there was anything wrong. She was remarkably plain, but she didn't exactly think she was awful enough to look at that her sister would work so hard to not look at her. She fidgeted as she got dressed. It couldn't be that. Kagami had never seen Tsukasa and looked away like that. She always saw Tsukasa and smiled. Tsukasa nodded to herself. That's right. There's no way that Kagami would look away from her because she was bad looking... Right? The two got dressed and left the bathroom. Kagami instantly smelled food and groaned a little.
"I smell dinner. Saba yakizakana, fried rice with egg in it, and miso soup with tofu." Kagami said. "I am so not hungry right now..." Kagami groaned as she put her hands on her stomach. Tsukasa smiled and rubbed her sister's back.
"I guess I'm also to blame, so I won't scold you for spoiling your appetite on sweets earlier." Tsukasa said. Kagami sighed.
"But we must have been in there for a while if she's already this far into cooking it." Kagami said. "It should be close to finishing soon, right?" Kagami asked. Tsukasa sniffed the air.
"It smells like she's about to start cooking it. Probably fifteen or twenty minutes, though probably more on the twenty to twenty five minute side since she's gonna be feeding the whole family with it. So it's going to have to be thick." Tsukasa started. She sniffed again. "The daikon is going to be a little sharp. She didn't remove the outer layer of it." Tsukasa said. Kagami looked at her sister. By now, she shouldn't be so surprised, but damn it it was just so impressive that Tsukasa could tell something like that with her nose.
"Onee-chan is really awesome." Kagami said. Tsukasa blushed and smiled, losing her cooking concentration. "What do you wanna do while we wait for dinner?" Kagami asked. Tsukasa sighed and thought. Frankly, she had run out of her intended ideas for the day. She scratched the back of her head. Something Kagami would like...
"We don't really have time to do much until dinner, so why don't we just go watch T.V.?" Tsukasa asked. Kagami nodded.
"That'll work!" Kagami smiled. Tsukasa sighed. She had time to come up with something else. Wait... After dinner, they could play some video games! Kagami would definitely like that since she liked first person shooters so much! That was what they would do after dinner then. That in her mind, the two of them walked into the living room, where the rest of the family save Miki were seated.
"Hey guys..." Tadao waved, though they could see he was suffering from a hangover just like their two older sisters.
How much did these guys drink? Kagami wondered.
"What are we watching?" Tsukasa asked.
"Ah, Tsukasa." Miki walked into the room shortly after the twins entered. "Are you guys in the mood for fish?" Miki asked.
"I'll have it if Onee-chan is!" Kagami said cheerfully, hoping her stomach would settle down before it was time to eat. Tadao looked at the two.
"... Onee-chan?" He asked, looking at them, then at Miki, who seemed the least surprised. She gave him a sympathetic look.
"Sorry honey, not telling the story again." She said as she reentered the kitchen. Tadao sighed as he shrugged and, seemingly deciding it wasn't worth the headache, looked back at the television. Tsukasa and Kagami both sat down and watched with their family.
Konata's Room
Konata sat, staring at the seemingly impossible choice. She groaned, looking at her choices. She could say yes, and possibly get something good, or she could say no since the situation was a bit... sketchy. The girl was scared and almost a sort of intoxicated, but probably not enough to affect her judgement. However, if she said yes, and the girl WAS intoxicated to the point of having her judgement impaired, she would be taking advantage of her. If she said no and her judgement was fine, then it could be beyond insulting to her and Konata may lose her route. She hadn't saved in a long time and saving was disabled. With no skip feature, it was take her a long time to get back here. She fidgeted nervously. The loli route was unexpectedly difficult. Her father might be able to do it, but even Konata was having difficulty with it.
"Man... What on earth do I do?" Konata frazzled her hair. "I gotta choose one!" Konata moved the mouse up to her choice.
"Wait!" She heard Sojiro shout from the other side of the door. Her hand hovered over the 'No' option. "She's fine! You can totally go with it!" Sojiro said. Konata sighed as she started shaking. She had almost made a grave mistake. She clicked the 'Yes' option.
"Thanks Dad." Konata exhaled a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
"Any time Konata." Sojiro said. Konata continued down the route to be rewarded with the loli scene.
"A loli is nice too." Konata commented. There was a knock at the door. "Yes?" Konata asked as she switched to the pause menu to hide the scene, knowing that since Sojiro had already been by, it could only really be one person. Yutaka opened the door. "Need more help with Minami?" Konata asked, turning. She smiled at seeing she was wrong with Yutaka shaking her head.
"No! I think... I think I can do it! But you've been in here all day, I just wanted to make sure you had something to eat!" Yutaka said, holding up a tray of food. It was rather simple, since Yutaka wasn't really known for her cooking ability, but it was still a nice little meal.
"That actually sounds really nice. Thank you Yu-chan." Konata smiled. Yutaka scurried over and gave her the tray.
"I hope you like it!" Yutaka said.
"I'm sure I'll love it." Konata smiled as she bit into the first piece. "It's really good!" Konata said. Yutaka looked quite happy with herself.
"Yay~!" She cheered as she jumped. "I'm glad you like it!" She said.
"You're gonna make Minami a good wife." Konata said. Yutaka suddenly blushed very deeply.
"I don't... know about... that..." She mumbled.
"Of course you are. Without any prompting, you just went out of your way to make me a meal because you were worried about me. That's a great quality in a wife!" Konata said. Yutaka blushed.
"..." She fidgeted.
"Ah, you're speechless I see! Another fine quality in a wife." Konata smiled a cheesy grin. Yutaka giggled.
"Onee-chan..." Yutaka said.
"Thanks a lot for the meal." Konata said.
"It's no problem. You're always helping me out! I just wanted to help you for once." Yutaka said.
"Well now I don't have to go out and make myself something. You were a big help." Konata said. Yutaka smiled wider.
"I... Gotta go do more homework!" She said, the embarrassment getting to her.
"Thank Yu-chan!" Konata waved.
"Any time Onee-chan!" Yutaka said as she left the room. Konata smiled as she took another bite, resuming the scene.
"Yes, a loli is nice too." She commented.
The Hiiragi House
"Gah..." Kagami laid back after finishing her plate. It had been quite difficult and she had had to force most of it, but it had been a good meal. She groaned quietly.
"I hope you enjoyed it." Miki smiled.
"It was tasty." Kagami breathed, trying her best not to let anyone know how much her stomach hurt.
"It was really good Mom." Tsukasa said.
"Thanks Tsukasa." Miki smiled. "To tell the truth, since you've been handling the kitchen duties, it's been a lot easier to find everything to cook with." Miki said with a smile. "Any chance that you'll keep it up after today?" Miki asked teasingly. Tsukasa smiled and kicked her head to the side.
"Sure! If it helps!" She said with a happy smile. Miki nodded.
"It really does." Miki said. Tsukasa sighed. Her exhaustion from earlier was starting to take effect. Not to mention her staying up so late last night. She would stay awake though. She wanted to be there the whole time Kagami was awake so that she could continue to give her little sister an amazing day! Miki looked over the table.
"Hey... Wake up." Matsuri poked Kagami, who snorted. The vast amounts of food she had consumed that day all taking her energy away, she was in her food coma, sleeping peacefully. Tsukasa looked down and smiled. As much as she wanted the day to continue forever, she knew it would have to end eventually. Just as well end it after dinner, like their previous day had been ended.
"I'll take her to bed..." Tsukasa said as she did her best to pick up Kagami.
"Hmph..." Kagami huffed in her sleep.
"Good night, Tsukasa." Miki said. "You did a really great job being the big sister today." She said. Tsukasa smiled to her mother sleepily.
"Thanks Mom. It was a lot of hard work, but it was really fun!" She said. Miki giggled.
"You sound a little like Kagami." She said. Tsukasa blushed lightly and giggled.
"Good, then I'm sure I sound really smart!" Tsukasa said. "Good night everyone!" Tsukasa said as her arms began to ache from the strain of holding her sleeping sister.
"'Night Tsukasa..." Inori said, a little sour she hadn't seen her sister that much that day, though not too sour.
"Good night you two." Tadao said.
"Hurry up and go to bed." Matsuri said. Tsukasa giggled. She knew it was said with love.
"Good night." Tsukasa walked down the hall. The room was silent for a moment.
"... They switched roles?" Tadao asked. Miki nodded.
"I knew I didn't marry you for your rugged good looks." Miki giggled. Tadao beamed with pride as the family continued watching the television.
Rejoining the Twins
Tsukasa walked down the hall, carrying Kagami bridal style. Her arms strained under Kagami's... um... generousness. Tsukasa knew how sensitive Kagami was about her weight, so she wouldn't complain. Once she got to Kagami's door, she did her best to open it. When the door opened, however, she stared at Kagami's bed.
"Hiiragi..." Misao slept, the room dark. "Imoto..." She said. She sounded confused, even as she snored. "Hiiragi's not... Imoto..." She mumbled. Tsukasa walked in enough to close the door again. Her arms trembled as she walked to her own room. She opened the door and rushed as quickly as she could to her own bed. She put Kagami down on her bed and rested her arms.
"Whew..." She sighed.
"Hm... Tsukasa..." Kagami mumbled. Tsukasa smiled before yawning loudly. She climbed into the bed with Kagami, deciding it had been a long time since the two had slept together and getting their guest futon would be too much work for her at the moment. She snuggled up to Kagami.
"Onee-chan... Thank you so much for today." Tsukasa said. Kagami's arm swung around, hugging tightly onto Tsukasa.
"Mm... Welcome..." She mumbled. Tsukasa sighed. She never felt safer than when Kagami held her. Like that, she drifted off to sleep quickly.
After Section
Damn. Is it just me or are these chapter getting longer and longer? I swear I had no intention of turning these chapters into Luckier Star length chapters. Seriously. Oh well. I guess we'll all just have to deal with it, I just can't write a lot of small chapters. Maybe I'll try to later. Who knows? Thanks for reading everyone! See you next chapter!