Work Text:
“That is all the business we have to attend to today. You are all dismissed.”
With those words, Oyakata-sama ended the pillar meeting, allowing each of the pillars to go their separate ways. Most stayed behind in order to chat with their colleagues, whom many hadn’t had a chance to talk to in months.
Shinobu, however, prepared herself to leave. She wouldn’t have minded spending some time talking with her fellow pillars, but she had lots of business back at the Butterfly Estate and couldn’t afford to waste any time.
Before she could leave, Shinobu was stopped by a timid, breathy voice.
“Shinobu-chan?”
Shinobu turned around. Mitsuri, the ever gorgeous and cheery love pillar, was standing behind her. Her head was slightly bent, and her clasped hands fidgeted down by her waist.
“Yes, Mitsuri-chan?”
“I was wondering if I could, um, ask you something, if that’s okay?”
Shinobu smiled. Mitsuri was always a bit insecure and timid, but she seemed even more so today. Shinobu found herself a bit intrigued by her behavior.
“Of course. What is it?”
Mitsuri scratched the back of her neck. Her eyes looked everywhere but Shinobu’s face.
“Um… this weekend there’s a festival happening nearby, and I was wondering if you would, uh, want to go with me?”
Surprise flickered in Shinobu’s chest, but she kept her face composed. Mitsuri’s face grew red and her hands began to flail.
“It’s totally fine if you don’t want to! I just thought it might be fun, and I like spending time with you so I thought I would invite you, but it’s totally up to you, and uhh—”
Shinobu grabbed Mitsuri’s flailing hands. Mitsuri froze. Her eyes widened, and her mouth flopped open like a dying fish’s.
“Mitsuri-chan, I would love to go with you.”
Mitsuri stared blankly for a moment before coming to her senses. Her eyes brightened and a smile broke on her face.
“Really? Then how about we meet at 7 tomorrow?”
“That sounds perfect. I’ll see you then, Mitsuri-chan.” Shinobu waved and set off back towards the Butterfly Estate. As soon as Shinobu’s back was turned, Mitsuri leaped up in glee, oblivious to the confused and curious stares of the conversing pillars.
-------
Although the festival wasn’t a particularly big one, Shinobu still decided to go all out and wear one of her favorite kimonos. It was colored the same deep purple as her eyes and hair, with bright white swirls and clusters of light pink and purple flowers decorating the sleeves and bottom. She had a long, elegant scarf draped around her shoulders, bearing the same butterfly pattern as her haori.
Perhaps she had dressed a little too formally for the occasion. This was the first time Shinobu had ever gone to a festival with Mitsuri, however, and even though they had talked and gone on missions many times, she still felt like she had to make a good “first impression.”
“Shinobu-chan! Sorry to make you wait!”
Shinobu looked up to see Mitsuri scurrying towards her. Her hair, fastened in its usual three thick braids, bounced jauntily as she ran.
What really drew Shinobu’s attention, however, was Mitsuri’s outfit.
She, too, was wearing an elegant kimono. It was light pink, just like her hair, adorned with darker pink vertical stripes and lovely large red flowers. She wore a pure white haori on top, which matched the obi tied around her stomach. A length of thin red fabric was fastened on top of her obi and tied together at the front, forming a heart-shaped knot.
It suited her perfectly, and Shinobu couldn’t stop herself from staring.
“Uwahh! Your kimono is so pretty! You look gorgeous, Shinobu-chan!” Mitsuri exclaimed.
“Thank you. I could say the same thing about you.”
Mitsuri blushed. “Ahh, you’re too kind, Shinobu-chan. Come on, let’s go take a look at the stands. I’m ready to eat!”
Mitsuri linked her arm with Shinobu’s and walked towards the festival. Shinobu suppressed a shiver at the sudden contact. She often found herself being swept away by Mitsuri’s energy and zeal, as if caught in the current of a raging river, but she was perfectly happy to be washed away by its flow.
The rows of stands emanated a soft yellow glow under the darkness of the twilight. The scents of various foods wafted through the air, sweet and salty and sour and bitter all intermingling and dancing together. The sizzling of grease, the scuffing of feet, the murmur of voices, the clanging of tools all mixed to form a pleasant background of white noise.
“Ah! A mochi stand! Let’s go over there!” Mitsuri said.
Shinobu followed Mitsuri along, sucked in by her boundless exuberance. Mitsuri went from stand to stand, trying all of the foods that she could and never seeming to get full. Shinobu had some food here or there, but she spent most of her time feasting on Mitsuri’s presence. The way Mitsuri’s eyes sparkled when she saw food, the way her mouth would curl up when eating something tasty, the way she looked like a princess in her kimono under the light, the way happiness just seemed to vibrate off of her—Shinobu drank it all up.
Somehow, they managed to make it through all of the stands. They stood together as Mitsuri finished her final plate.
“Ahh, that was delicious! All the food here was amazing! What do you want to do next?”
“Whatever you want to do, Mitsuri.”
To be completely honest, Shinobu didn’t have anything in particular she wanted to do; she was perfectly content just following Mitsuri around. Shinobu was an aimless explorer, and Mitsuri was the light guiding her through the world.
“Well, in that case… Let’s climb up that hill and look at the stars!”
Mitsuri grabbed Shinobu’s hand and skipped over to the hill. Her hand was warm and comforting, like a thick blanket on a cold winter’s day.
The two were too preoccupied to notice the clouds rolling in. As soon as they reached the top of the hill a sudden rain began to pour down on them.
“Oh no, what a shame. It looks like we won’t be able to stargaze,” Shinobu lamented. She looked over at Mitsuri. Mitsuri stayed silent, her face tilted back to look up at the sky. Her hair covered her face, masking her expression.
“Mitsuri?” Shinobu said, worry creeping into her voice.
Mitsuri turned to face Shinobu. Her eyes gleamed with excitement, brighter than the stars that were now hidden by the clouds, and a wide smile graced her face. Water poured over her hair and dripped down from her bangs, but she didn’t seem to mind.
“It’s a summer rain, Shinobu! Isn’t it beautiful?” Mitsuri beamed. She held her arms out as if embracing the rain.
Shinobu was swept away once more. How could she not be, in the face of such pureness, such delight, such joy at the simplest things? The rain was so beautiful to Mitsuri that she didn’t even care that they couldn’t stargaze or that her lovely kimono was getting soaked.
In the presence of such blinding light and warmth, Shinobu found that she didn’t mind her kimono getting soaked either.
“It is beautiful, Mitsuri.”