Chapter Text
"Hey Dad, can I ask you something?"
Kakushi looked up from the letter he was skimming to find Hime standing next to the kitchen table. She was wearing her most solemn and earnest expression, large sincere eyes unable to hide her yearning. He smiled encouragingly. "You can always ask me anything."
She smiled tremulously and wrung her fingers together. "Um..." She reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a folded piece of orange paper. She held it out.
"What's this?" He unfolded the paper and looked it over curiously. It was a flyer for Usami Land that offered half off admission ticket prices for anyone bringing the flyer during the month of May.
"Oh, so you want to go to Usami Land?" he asked.
She nodded, her hair slipping over her shoulder.
"Hm." He thought. "We'd have to ride the train. It's several hours away. We'd be better off staying in a hotel overnight so we can go to Usami Land for a whole day."
She began smiling, eyes gleaming with growing enthusiasm. She rocked on her heels. "So we can go?"
He nodded. "Yes. I'll have to put in for time away from work, but yes. We can definitely go."
She grinned and threw herself into his arms. He breathed in the sweet scent of her shampoo and the sweeter scent of his baby beneath it.
"Oh thank you, thank you! I really want to see the Puri Puri Moon show." She squeezed her small arms around him as tight as she could.
"You like Puri Puri Moon?" he asked.
"My friends all watch it," she said. "It's really fun. I watch it when Nadila's here. We even made full moon cookies once!"
"Full moon cookies? What do those look like?"
Hime giggled. "Like circles, of course."
"Of course."
She leaned back to look in his face. She bit her lip. "We can really go?"
"I told you we could," he said. "In two weeks, you and I will be at Usami Land."
"Yay!"
"You want three days off?" Satsuki asked.
Kakushi nodded. "Hime wants to go to Usami Land and I really want to take her."
"You'd have to get ahead of your deadlines," Satsuki said.
Kakushi shrugged. "If I must, I must." He held up his hand determinedly. "My sweet Hime wants to go to Usami Land. So Usami Land is where we'll go. Anything for my darling daughter. She deserves it all."
Once he'd gotten his editor to clear the time off if he met his deadlines, he set to work with a vengeance. The most difficult thing was dealing with the whining of his assistants. Right up until they came to the realization that they would get the time off as well.
Their enthusiasm grew with the plans they made, and soon the completed pages were flying. He kept himself motivated with thoughts of Hime's excitement.
He came home from work three days later to find Hime dancing in the living room. He stood watching her from the doorway until she did a twirling spin and spotted him. "Dad!"
He smiled. "Having fun?"
She blushed but nodded. "I'm going to do so good when it comes time for the group dance." She ran over to grab his hand and pull him into the room. "You should learn it too, Dad. We've gotta dance when it's time for the Puri Puri Moon group dance. Come on. Dance with me!"
He might have been embarrassed if there was anyone around to see. But he couldn't deny Hime anything she really wanted. And she wanted him to dance.
"I'll be Diamond. You be Ruby. Come on..."
Her voice was thin and high-pitched when she sang, but he thought it was the cutest. He let her prod him into position and followed along with her instructions on the dance moves. By the time it was time for dinner, he was even singing along:
"Puri Puri Puri Moon!
Sparkle, shine!
My smile is my gem!
An innocent girl's heart is a full moon.
Every day!
Heart!
Spread your arms wide and you can fly all the way to the moon!
Puri Puri Puri Moon, tomorrow we'll also be Puri Puri Puri Moon!"
"Wow, we're so good!" Hime cheered and clapped her hands. "By the time we go to Usami Land we'll be the best!"
"We sure will," he agreed, leading her into the bathroom to wash their hands. "And now we better eat the dinner Nadila made. We don't want it to go to waste."
"I helped her make it," she said, letting him roll her sleeves up. "It tastes so good. You're going to like it."
"I like anything you cook," he said.
Hime giggled and scrubbed her hands with the soap.
And so, every day after work, he practiced the Puri Puri Moon dance with Hime. And after buying the anime collection, they would watch episodes together after dinner.
She would snuggle at his side in her pajamas, occasionally jumping up to dance or take one of the Puri Puri Moon poses. She would beg to watch "just one more" episode, and he would end up having to carry her to bed when she fell asleep on the couch.
He treasured every moment with her. She was growing up so fast. He dreaded the day when she felt too old to hang out with her dear old dad anymore.
So he happily tucked her into bed, kissed her forehead or cheek, and would watch her peacefully sleeping face awhile before seeking his own bed.
She was his inspiration to work hard. And each day he watched as she gleefully marked off another date on the wall calendar until the circled date arrived.