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In retrospect, it started when Chihaya asked her what she was doing for Christmas.
"Nothing in particular," Shinobu answered, and that was true. A Christmas dinner wherein she and her mother ate a single slice of cake apiece and sat in silence around the dinner table with Grandmother, her mother's habitual criticisms held back behind her twisted lips only by the idea that it was somehow a "special day," couldn't be described as anything substantial.
"Ehh? Your class isn't having a Christmas party or anything?" Chihaya pestered, with all the oblivious good cheer of someone that actually enjoyed the company of other people. She had even tried to grab them a spot in the tournament hall's lunchroom to take their meal, but Shinobu had refused to subject herself to the stares and whispers of so many other tournament participants and dragged them outside to eat lunch in the brisk autumn air. Plus, it gave her an excuse to put her Snowmaru scarf back on.
"Oh, I'm sure the class representative has planned something, but noisy events aren't good for one's hearing," Shinobu deflected. That was also true. So was the fact that she knew she would only be invited to the Christmas party because she was required to be, and also knew that her classmates would just as soon she not show up.
She couldn't imagine that she would enjoy herself, anyway. A quiet evening celebrating Christmas with her cards and watching the annual Snowmaru Christmas special was much preferable to sitting around and forcing herself to maintain ladylike grace and composure amongst her hormone-addled, idol-obsessed, badly-singing classmates.
She mentally brushed away the flicker of Michitsuna no Haha crooning lying all alone, through the hours of the night in her ear-- poem fifty-three was a love poem, after all, what relevance did it have here?-- and instead let her placid smile quirk a little more deeply at the sudden conflict evident on Chihaya's face at the idea that Christmas parties might be bad for her hearing.
"Ehh, but-- still!" Chihaya managed to rally, literally shaking her head as if she could fling the doubts out of her mind, "There should be something! Hey, are there any tournaments in Kyoto around Christmastime?"
Shinobu's smile faded slightly, both with suspicion over where Chihaya was going with that thought and concentration as her mind automatically sought an answer to the question-- she didn't often bother with too many small-time tournaments herself, but it looked good on camera to show that she did keep an eye on the broader karuta community, even if those tournaments rarely featured anyone that she would actually play in a match.
"The recreation center usually holds one around mid-December, I believe," she answered, the small tournament standing out in her mind only because it was often the last local tournament prior to the new year. The students at the Myojo Society that were still struggling to climb to Class A had brought it up often as their last chance to fulfill their new year's resolution before the clock restarted on January 1st. "There's an unofficial one for children to participate in to practice karuta before the New Year, but afterwards there's an official one as well."
Always overzealous, Chihaya clapped her hands in delight and leaned close enough that Shinobu could catch faint floral traces from her shampoo. The plum blossoms still smell as sweet, Fujiwara no Okikaze whispered to Shinobu as Chihaya enthused, "That's perfect! You should register for it, Shinobu-chan!"
Shinobu's smile dropped into an overt frown as she no longer tried to even vaguely keep appearances for the occasional passing tournament-goer. Her stomach felt slightly knotted from that sweet scent, and she made a mental note to have someone check the fridge for expired items once she was home.
"Why?" She probed, eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion.
"Because! Just do it, Shinobu-chan!" Chihaya insisted, beaming, and then the call went around that the lunch period was coming to a close and the next set of matches were being pulled, and that was that.
---
She should have suspected something when Chihaya texted her a few weeks later.
remember to register for the christmas tournament!! ヽ( ﾟヮﾟ)ﾉ
Pursing her lips, Shinobu tapped out:
And why should I?
I told you just do it shinobu-chan!!! ⋌( >д<)⋋
This message was followed by a string of emoji that Shinobu eventually deciphered were meant to represent a Christmas tree, present, and a very unhealthy-looking reindeer, and though she rolled her eyes at the sentiment-- what did it matter what she did near Christmas, anymore than any other time of the year?-- Shinobu did look up the tournament registration dates.
The tournament was to be held December 17th, nearly an exact week before Christmas. Registration had just opened, and closed December 10th.
She didn't do tournaments like these. But--
Impassionate gods have never seen, Ariwara no Narihira began to sing to her, nonsensically.
...The Queen title match would be coming up soon after that in January, Shinobu reasoned to herself slowly. It wasn't as if she needed the practice in an actual tournament atmosphere to prepare herself, but it couldn't hurt either, after all. And-- maybe Chihaya was right, that it could be nice to have a tidy little win under her belt to get her through her mother's dark looks and grandmother's unwavering silence the following week.
...the red that is the Tatsuha River.
She registered for the tournament.
---
Chihaya texted again the day before the deadline to see if Shinobu had registered after all, and when Shinobu replied that she had, sent another string of nigh-incomprehensible emoji. Shinobu assumed that would be the end of it until after the tournament, when Chihaya would presumably message her to see how things went (as if there were any possible outcome other than first place) and whether or not Shinobu had some kind of new appreciation for the Christmas season from a single low-stakes win (as if there were any possible outcome other than "no")--
But then December 17th arrived, and as she was changing into her slippers at the entrance to the tournament hall, she heard a familiar voice cry out "Shinobu-channnn!!!"
She looked up just in time for Chihaya to fill her entire field of vision before she was bundled into a hug that was absolutely stifling between her many layers, the abrupt warmth of the tournament hall compared to the outdoors, and Chihaya's arms around her.
Held immobile by those arms, Shinobu could only stammer, "Ch-Chihaya," as Fujiwara no Sanekata warbled when I must hide these burning feelings...
Shinobu shook her head to clear it-- was she picking that up from Chihaya?-- and rushed to cut off the poet's musings of bodies on fire with ibuki mugwort, continuing, "You didn't tell me you were coming!"
"It was a surprise!" Chihaya enthused, finally pulling back from the hug and beaming at her. "I had to take out an advance on my New Year's money for the train fare and registration fee, but-- merry Christmas, Shinobu-chan!"
"...It's not Christmas," Shinobu countered, but she couldn't help the slow spread of a smile of her own. Maybe this tournament would be worthwhile, after all.
With Shinobu's habit of arriving almost-too-late to tournaments to avoid as many whispers as possible, they had only a little time to chat before the first match-ups were pulled. But Chihaya's spirits appeared undampened-- and of course they wouldn't be, any given tournament may as well have been Christmas to Chihaya-- and as they went to their separate places for the first match, she chirped, "See you at lunch!"
"Don't lose before then," Shinobu answered with a sharp smile, and giggled privately at Chihaya's expression of outrage.
"Wh-- I won't!" Chihaya vowed, and turned to face toward her actual opponent properly, pouting. It wouldn't be enough to actually distract her from her match, Shinobu knew. Chihaya would have totally forgotten the exchange two minutes into her memorization time, and even if she didn't manage to sink into that state of absolute focus that she could occasionally achieve-- sometimes reminding Shinobu of Arata, sometimes reminding her of herself, and sometimes striking her as something uniquely Chihaya-- she would do fine.
Someone across the room happened to cough, and Shinobu became abruptly aware that her own opponent was watching her in absolute bewilderment. Shinobu schooled her fond smile into her usual placid mask and began to place her cards.
As she placed since I could not hide my love, Taira no Kanemori sang along.
---
Her matches went fine. One by one, her opponents disappeared before her, succumbing to the knowledge that they had no chance, but today it didn't bother her-- as Shinobu methodically reunited herself with her friends in match after match, she kept in mind that the sooner she finished, the more time she had to watch Chihaya in action. She wasn't concerned about Chihaya beating her-- and there was every chance that they wouldn't even meet each other in this tournament, if Chihaya encountered an early loss-- but. She could get there eventually, Shinobu knew. She was her rival, in a way that even Arata and Suou were not.
And she was in good form today, avoiding most of the situations where she might usually commit a fault, and remembering to pay attention to her card sending and placement along with her speed. Shinobu's fingers twitched in anticipation, watching her play. If they got to play each other today--
But it didn't happen before they broke for lunch. They went to record their scores, after which Chihaya grabbed her hand with no modesty at all and started dragging her toward where they had left their things, chattering, "Let's find a spot, Shinobu-chan!"
So Shinobu followed along as Chihaya picked up her (rather oversized, Shinobu thought) bag, and they found a quieter corner to settle in for lunch, the outdoors being too cold now that it was mid-December.
Chihaya was humming happily as she dug through her bag, pulling out first, her lunch, and second-- a red and green giftbag, and third, a small box that Shinobu recognized as being from a local bakery, and Shinobu realized with a shock of mixed dread and affection that this was meant to be some kind of-- Christmas exchange.
"Here!" Chihaya said brightly as she thrust the giftbag in Shinobu's direction, oblivious to her curiously stuttering heartbeat and the prickle of a flush in her cheeks. "Merry Christmas, Shinobu-chan!"
Shinobu took the bag slowly, her fingers brushing the tissue paper poking from the top. She found herself fighting an involuntary smile even as she admitted, "I didn't bring anything for you."
"Don't worry about it! It was a surprise! Open it, open it!" Chihaya insisted, and then paused, drooping a little as she amended, "...Unless you want to wait to open it on Christmas!"
"That would be the proper thing to do, wouldn't it?" Shinobu teased, just to see the conflict between immediate gratification and tradition rage on Chihaya's face, before she began to gently pick through the tissue paper.
Chihaya had gotten her a small box of chocolates, which made her smile, and-- a 2-pack of special edition Christmas-themed Snowmaru stickers that she hadn't even seen before, which made her gasp.
"Where did you get these?!" She demanded, tearing the pack open so she could get a look at the second sheet, which had even more original designs, some featuring Snowmaru's friends that hadn't been seen in any merch for at least two years.
Chihaya beamed in triumph, gushing, "At the flea market! I went with my mom to look for Christmas presents and there was one booth that had all these stationary sets and it was just sitting there! A huge find, right?!"
"I don't even remember this set coming out! Maybe it was a store-only release? They're perfect," Shinobu declared, running her fingertips over the stickers one last time before reverently tucking them back into the giftbag. She turned to Chihaya to thank her, and found that the words stuck in her chest when she took in Chihaya's expression-- smiling, gentle and warm and watching, in contrast to her more-customary sunny and bright and oblivious. Shinobu felt her cheeks prickle again and ducked her head to avoid that warm gaze. She was being ridiculous-- Chihaya smiled all the time, and today was no different.
"Thank you, Chihaya," she said, her voice even from years of practice. "I'll be sure to have something for you at the Queen match."
"Oh, only if you want to!" Chihaya reassured her, and then turned and picked up the small bakery box, presenting it to Shinobu proudly. "And, look! It's not exactly the same as Christmas cake, but--!"
She popped the lid open, and as promised, inside there was an oversized green-and-red confetti cupcake with white frosting and a snowflake decoration on top, along with two spoons.
"I got it to split! And it'll give us more energy for our next matches!"
Chihaya offered one of the spoons to Shinobu, and picked up the other, back to that too-bright smile.
"Let's eat!"
"...Dessert first? You really are shameless," Shinobu said, methodically folding away the warm ache in her chest that wanted to sneak into her throat, but she took the first bite as Chihaya giggled.
They only got a few bites in apiece before Chihaya abruptly fell asleep in that way of hers and she slumped over onto Shinobu's shoulder, Christmas spirit alone no longer able to keep her awake.
Shinobu sighed and shifted so that Chihaya was settled more comfortably on her shoulder, and finished her half of the cupcake to the sound of Chihaya's quiet breaths and Fujiwara no Toshiyuki's whisper of in my dreams, I creep closer to you.
---
And like a dream, they did meet at the finals. The tournament hall felt impossibly, stiflingly hot from the second Chihaya turned away from her defeated semi-finals opponent to meet Shinobu's eyes in the audience instead, and that heat lasted throughout the wait for the final round to be set up, throughout the moment they took their seats across from each other, throughout memorization time and throughout the entire first half of their match as Chihaya shined, shined, shined with the desire to fight. (Against her. Only her.) And then, as the match approached that crucial potential turning point halfway through, the atmosphere instead grew sharp as Chihaya managed it-- managed to slip into that space where she seemed empty of everything except the reader's voice, a beautiful vessel filling up with the rising and falling sound that directed her fingers to the cards she needed. For every one of the cards that Shinobu took, Chihaya seemed to take one back, neither of them allowing the other the breathing room of taking consecutive cards.
It was tedious. It was infuriating. It was perfect.
In the end, Shinobu won by four cards.
Chihaya cried, but she also launched herself at Shinobu and threw her arms around her shoulders, sobbing about how much fun she'd had. Chihaya had proven time and time again that this-- holding Shinobu even closer-- was her response to a loss, rather than pushing her away, but Shinobu wasn't going to take it for granted. She hugged her back.
They accepted their prize certificates, and when Shinobu brushed off all the old men who wanted to talk shop with her by saying that she needed to walk her friend to the station before the last train, she saw Chihaya brighten back into her full-strength smile. Save for a touch of the expected post-tournament exhaustion, Chihaya was fully herself again by the time they'd pulled their coats and scarves and gloves on, and she even took Shinobu's hand as they left the recreation center.
"Hey, Shinobu-chan," Chihaya said with a drowsy giggle as they walked down the light-lined streets, "Did you have fun today?"
"...I did," Shinobu admitted, too tired herself to play coy against the twinkling lights and the gentle pressure of Chihaya's hand in hers. She was, she realized with something like faint surprise, happier in this moment than she could remember ever being before. Even when she had won the Queen title, she hadn't felt so terribly, gratifyingly light.
She bumped her shoulder to Chihaya's, and added, "But I don't know why you had to be so bossy about it."
"Ehhh! I needed you to sign up but it had to be a surpriiise," Chihaya whined, and Shinobu laughed into the crisp night air, and they chatted from there all the way to the station.
They stopped outside the entrance for a moment despite Shinobu's urging that Chihaya was about to miss her train, and Chihaya squeezed her hand and announced, "Merry Christmas, Shinobu-chan! Next year, it's your turn, okay?"
Shinobu privately thanked the chilly night for having already tinted her cheeks red and quickly cast her mind back over their conversation for a clue about what Chihaya was talking about, and when she didn't find one, asked, "My turn to what?"
"Your turn to take me on a Christmas date!" Chihaya answered, and in a flurry of movement, she leaned to kiss Shinobu on the rosy cheek, and then turned on her heel to dash away toward her train.
Shinobu's jaw dropped, and even the Hundred Poets were quiet for the several red-faced moments it took before she managed to shout after Chihaya's retreating back, "It's not Christmas!"
Most other people wouldn't have been able to hear her by that point, over the whoosh of the running trains and the multitude of footsteps, but it was Chihaya, and it was her, and so she swore that she could hear the faint sound of Chihaya's answering laughter linger in the night air.
She huffed a sigh as she turned to walk back the way she had come, but allowed a secret smile to steal its way across her face. Maybe next Christmas would truly be something to look forward to, she thought, and she sang along under her breath as Emperor Youzei's voice kept her company for her walk home.
"Feel the love deepen over time, like the stream widening into a river..."