Ever since it first started, it seemed like whenever Suzuran, Shamare, and Popukar found some free time, they continuously wandered over to his office to invite him to a game or something relaxing to help him take his mind off the mountains of paperwork. Days later, it certainly cemented itself as a tradition at this point.

At the current moment, he was sitting at his desk, staring at a piece of square paper like it was the most formidable opponent he had faced to date. Suzuran was sitting next to him, folding her square paper and creasing it in deliberate lines to form a crane while he followed along as best as possible.

She had already made three, each one distinguished from the last, and was currently on her fourth one before everyone decided they also wanted to make a paper crane with her. The Doctor would be lying if he didn't say the finished design of the paper crane was delicately stunning.

With a satisfied expression, Suzuran held the paper crane out to the Doctor. It almost felt like she was inviting him to take it from her hand to get a good look at it. The Doctor tilted his head before he slowly and hesitantly reached out to pluck it from her grasp. Suzuran gazed at him, patiently expecting him to say something.

"Oh, your paper crane is wonderful! You're very talented, Suzuran!" The Doctor praised, amazed at her flawless result.

A red blush appeared on her face as Suzuran meekly looked at the table. "Hehe... Thank you, Doctor."

Before the Doctor could request an instructional session with Suzuran, Popukar and Shamare had both roamed over to where the Vulpo was sitting. Their unfinished origami designs were informative as to what they were going to ask from Suzuran.

"Suzuran, could you help us? We don't understand what to do when we get to this step." Popukar asked.

"Oh, you're stuck at that part? It's a little tricky, so watch carefully!" She exclaimed, eager to guide them to fold paper cranes independently.

A little dejected from losing his chance, the Doctor opted to lightly drum his fingers on his desk. It wasn't his fault, since everyone was relying on Suzuran to help them out.

"Are you also stuck on your paper crane, Doctor?"

The Doctor tilted his head toward the direction of someone calling his name. It was Dur-nar, his assistant and by far his favorite, because of all the snacks she provided him. She was standing next to him, snacking on a cookie while her other hand held the half-finished origami.

"Well, yes… Only seeing someone do it once doesn't help me much. Even though I'm a near faultless tactician, I'm having some trouble with a piece of paper and it's not even an important document, no less."

Dur-nar placed her incomplete paper crane next to his and reached over to her pocket. With a smirk crossing her face, she revealed a pack of cotton candy pop rocks in her hands. She handed it to the Doctor, who accepted it into the palm of his hands.

"Paperwork was never my strong forte, but I have something for your troubles until Suzuran can get back to us."

"Don't mind if I do… But shouldn't we be getting back to work?"

Dur-nar's ears twitched, betraying her dissatisfaction with the implied meaning of paperwork. "Aw, c'mon on, Doctor. I already told you, and I'll tell you again. I'm not the best person for this. I feel like there were a ton of operators more qualified for today's assistant position other than me."

"You got this, Dur-nar. I'll slowly guide you with patience and transform you into my best assistant yet!"

Dur-nar deadpanned at his encouragement and put a hand on her hip in disappointment. "You weren't listening, were you?"

The Doctor could only laugh. "Only one person can provide me with the best snacks for my cravings. It's just better if you're my assistant more often than not."

Dur-nar raised an eyebrow as a reaction to his last sentence and lifted her hand to hide her small laugh. "I guess that isn't a bad thing. I look forward to it," Dur-nar agreed, her tone taking on a softer characteristic before she settled on finishing her sweet treat.

The Doctor felt his heart skip a beat. He didn't think he said anything that friendly, but before he could consider the prospect any further, Suzuran popped up from behind the both of them. The Doctor could tell because her fluffy Vulpo ears peered into his vision.

"Doctor, big sister Dur-nar, did you two also need some help with the origami crane?" Suzuran asked.

In her hands, Suzuran held out another origami to them. This time it was a normal bird, but the simple yet elegant design was enough to draw an impressed whistle out of Dur-nar.

"Aww, that's a beautiful one, Suzuran! You're exceptionally skilled at this!" Dur-nar complimented, bending down to get a better look at her creation before she gently ruffled her hand through Suzuran's hair. "And yes, the Doctor and this big sister require your help because we can't seem to comprehend origami. We got stuck in different parts of the process, but you can help us with that, right?"

"Yes, I can!" Suzuran exclaimed.

And so, Suzuran relayed all she knew about paper cranes to the two, carefully keeping her gaze on the two of them as they followed along. Whenever one of them made a mistake or experienced perplexity, Suzuran stopped all progress and tended to them.

At some point, the Doctor purposefully made mistakes to test if she would catch on, but her innocence and compassionate nature rectified his blunders angelically with no hint of exasperation. She was much too gentle and kind for this world.

However, the person who noticed his deliberate faults was his assistant Dur-nar. But it seemed like she was determined to stay silent because of how cute Suzuran's tolerance was to the Doctor. When the Doctor's attention fixated on Dur-nar, she flashed him a wink to communicate her mirth.

The Doctor would have winked back if he didn't have his mask on, but since it was, he nodded instead. This caused Dur-nar to chuckle at his comical reaction.

Once Suzuran reached the end of her instructions, the Doctor looked down at what used to be a square piece of paper now altered into a three-dimensional shape. A sensation of contentment fluttered around his heart as he lifted the paper crane closer to his face in admiration.

"You did it, Doctor!" Suzuran cheered.

"I did, didn't I?"

Suzuran smiled. However, her attention on him didn't last long when she aimed her focus on Dur-nar to see how she did. "It looks great, big sister Dur-nar!"

"It sure does. When I was assigned to be an assistant for the Doctor today, I didn't expect to be folding paper, but it was a nice detour." Dur-nar said with a grin of her own.

Then, the older Vulpo held the paper crane by the tail, pinched between her thumb and pointer finger. Endearing flying noises whistled out from Dur-nar's mouth as she simulated its flight over to the top of Suzuran's head.

Suzuran looked up in wonder, but not too much, so Dur-nar could have enough room to place the paper crane on her head. Unfortunately, the paper crane couldn't prolong the period of respite for long. Suzuran's laughter was enough to shiver it off balance and plummet it to the floor.

Dur-nar shared a laugh with Suzuran. They almost looked like they were siblings for a second. And the Doctor couldn't find the courage to say anything witty to interrupt the bliss between the two of them.

It was just better to stare at the both of them enjoying each other's company. There were some moments in life when everything seemed perfect, and this was one of them.

Author's Note: Origami, my archnemesis when I was really young because I could never figure out how one picture to the next always looked so different. And I'll admit I wasn't the smartest, but I tried to follow the images!

I could have read the words to understand what they were talking about, but who read instructions as a kid? Picture books are so much more intuitive!

With love from your favorite writer, Out4Lunch!