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Hoojiro couldn't help but be impressed with her own ingenuity. She had picked out the perfect gift for Aoji's birthday: a pet goldfish. Aoji had always liked animals, especially ones that lived in the water. Unfortunately, the Shitodo family never had the extra income to spare on a pet. (Though Aoji had managed to accrue some "pets" of their own, those weren't exactly something they could show off.) But fish were cheap. You could even buy multiple for 100 yen. They lived in a cheap bowl and ate cheap food for a couple of cheap years.
Aoji would be happy with Hoojiro getting them such a thoughtful gift, Kuroji would be happy it didn't cost much, and Hoojiro would be happy with a job well done.
This fish itself cost about 500 yen. It was your typical goldfish, orange with a couple of white and black splotches. It reminded Hoojiro of a calico cat. With it, she purchased a goldfish starter kit that included a bowl, some gravel, and some food which cost around 1,500 yen. In total, about 2,000 yen. That was cheaper than a new video game, or going out to eat, or seeing a movie. Truly the perfect gift.
Hoojiro was by herself in the apartment, with Aoji and Hooaka at school, and Kuroji at work. She had elected to go in late to prepare for Aoji's birthday. Hoojiro thought Aoji might want to set up the fishbowl themself, but Hoojiro didn't want the fish to stay in that small plastic bag any longer. So she decided to get it all set up before Aoji got home. First, she poured the gravel into the bowl. It was made up of an assortment of neon-colored pebbles. Not very realistic, but Hoojiro thought it was cute. Then she held the bowl under the faucet until it was most of the way full. She hovered the plastic bag containing the fish over the bowl and slowly encouraged it out. Hoojiro let out a sigh of relief as it plopped into the bowl, thankful she managed to do it without dropping it on the floor.
Now all that was left to do was wait for Aoji to come home. Hoojiro watched the fish swim around the bowl in unpredictable circles. It may have been Aoji's gift, but Hoojiro found herself enjoying its presence as well. The movement and color helped liven up the tiny apartment. It was a shame that goldfish were only reputed to live for a few years.
Hoojiro's idling was interrupted when she heard the shout she had been anticipating.
"I'm home!"
She got up to greet Aoji, trying to hide her excitement.
"Aoji! How was school?"
Aoji shrugged. "The usual."
Hoojiro had hoped Aoji would have something to share about how their classmates had made a big deal of their special day, but at least they had their family.
"I got you something for your birthday."
"Oh, you didn't have to, Shiro."
"Come look!"
Hoojiro tried to motion Aoji towards the kitchen where their birthday gift was waiting. Aoji seemed reluctant, as they often did, but followed along.
"Happy birthday!"
Hoojiro gestured towards the fish bowl they had set up earlier, smiling. She waited for the praise and thank yous, but when she looked towards her younger sibling she saw a much different reaction than she was expecting.
"Shiro, what is wrong with you?"
Hoojiro winced. How had she managed to mess up this time?
"What do you mean?"
"We don't have the money to take care of it."
Aoji had picked up on some of Kuroji's money anxieties, even though Hoojiro told them to try not to talk about finances in front of their younger siblings.
"But fish are supposed to be cheap pets, aren't they?"
"A fully grown goldfish is around 30 centimeters long. It'd probably need at least a 60-centimeter tank, just to start out with. But honestly, a pond would probably be best."
"We don't even have a yard..."
Every goldfish Hoojiro had ever seen had been in a bowl or a small tank, so this came as a surprise to her.
"I guess I should return it, then," Hoojiro sighed in defeat. She really did think she had picked out the perfect birthday gift this time.
"Don't bother. It'll end up the same either way. It'll either live the rest of its life in an overcrowded pet shop before dying from disease, or be sold to another family like us that can't take care of it."
"Fish sure have it rough, huh?"
"Yeah. They're treated more like decorations than a living thing. They're sold as low effort pets to people who don't know about their care requirements. And when it inevitably does die an early death, people don't care since it was so inexpensive anyway."
"Sorry."
Despite the situation, Hoojiro couldn't help but be impressed by Aoji's knowledge.
"It's okay. It's not your fault that fish have this kind of reputation."
"Well, I need to go help Kuroji now. Later I'll take you out for ramen to make up for it." Hoojiro laid out her escape, but it was also the truth.
"Okay. See ya."
Hoojiro was dreading going home and having to face Aoji again, but obviously she couldn't run away. This resulted in her taking her time walking the halls of the apartment complex.
"Stop stalling."
Kuroji was tailing close behind her, probably annoyed with their older sister's procrastinating.
"You're overreacting. We're used to you doing things we don't want you to for our birthdays."
They could really be harsh sometimes...
"It's different this time! It's a living thing."
"Maybe we can keep it over at the lab. Of course, it'll probably end up getting eaten over there."
"Don't joke about that."
Hoojiro wasn't actually sure that Kuroji was joking.
Hoojiro approached the door to her family's apartment and braced herself. She entered silently, so Kuroji decided to take the role of announcing their presence.
"We're home!"
"Yo."
They were greeted by Hooaka, who had probably arrived home sometime soon after Aoji.
"Oh, you're home Hooaka. Aoji is still here, right?"
"Last I saw them they were still in the kitchen sighing over that fish."
"Ah, thanks..."
Hoojiro took in a deep breath, steeling herself before heading towards the direction of the kitchen.
"Aoji?"
Hoojiro turned the corner and found Aoji next to an empty fishbowl.
"What happened to the fish?"
"Ah, well..." Aoji scratched the back of their head and smiled nervously.
"I fed it to Leviathan."