Chapter Text
kôyô
Her mother used to mainly dress traditionally, at least that Kyôka remembered, and so she already had a point of reference when finding out that was Kôyô’s usual modus operandi too.
To her, Kôyô was a paragon of elegance, and not because people at the Port Mafia didn’t try. Maybe it was because she was the woman closest to her in that organization, maybe it was because her attires of choice were mostly a yukata with every single accessory picked out to match like her mother used to, maybe it was because that was a style Kyôka not only admired in others but even from a very young age had come to like for herself too. Maybe it was a bit of everything.
Point was, whenever she took her in stride for shopping trips during off-work hours, Kyôka tagged along… not happily, because during that time she had never been really happy, but moments like those surely became one of the few sources that brought some smidges of comfort before actually leaving.
That was why, upon being invited again several months after joining the Agency, she ended up accepting. But not everything ended up being like it used to.
“I think this would look lovely on you, Kyôka-chan.” Kôyô saying so, while holding out a piece of clothing and waiting for her verdict, was something which had happened countless times. Kyôka’s choice, though, turned out to be different.
She assessed the attire, a white and pink yukata with cherries all over it, as well as both past and present.
Kyôka had never doubted Kôyô held genuine affection for her, but she also tended to go with what she thought was best for her in quite the intense way, back in the day. And Kyôka herself, being more of an empty shell than a girl those days, had never questioned the woman until she did. Now, Kôyô wasn’t imposing her views (and, to be fair, she had never treated her like a straight-up dress-up doll either), and she had grown back into herself.
“I’d rather get that pink with green or blue.” Was Kyôka’s response, and Kôyô smiled as she left the yukata back where she had found it.
Kyôka had never doubted Kôyô held genuine affection for her, but such love had been suffocating, until she agreed to let her go. Until now, where the both of them being where they wanted to made things easier.
yosano
Very much opposite to Kôyô, Yosano tended to pick traditional clothes more for specific occasions than everyday life, where she favored shirts and skirts or sometimes pants.
That didn’t mean she was any less excited when Kyôka asked to join her in an already scheduled shopping errand meant to find something new for the upcoming summer festival. Quite the opposite, she didn’t doubt the doctor was more than ecstatic to hear so; it may not be their first time shopping together, but most of the other times, if not all, were Yosano’s suggestion instead.
“I’m thinking about purple.” She was saying, grinning from ear to ear.
“Dark or more like lavender?” Kyôka quickly replied, scanning their closest surroundings with a trained gaze. “Lavender would look nice.”
“You’re absolutely right.” Ever since they met, Yosano had always made a point of getting her input, and directly or indirectly encouraged her to get anything she wanted. Not like Kyôka had any issue with it when that was reachable, but that didn’t mean she didn’t appreciate such behavior.
“I might try light orange. Or yellow. Or both.” Rather than being indecisive, her options list made it so the chances of leaving the current store satisfied higher. And, if not, the shopping errand at least.
“Oh, I can lend you some cherry earrings to go with that.” Something like that had been news when Kyôka joined the Agency, but had become a nice constant over time. Not only did Yosano have no qualms about letting people borrow accessories (and clothes too, but it tended to work more seamlessly with accessories) but she also offered so with incredible ease, the only exception being her butterfly hair clip. She understood, though, even before knowing why it was so important to her: it was clear how Yosano held onto it in a similar way Kyôka held onto the phone her mother had given her.
haruno
Haruno tended to favor outfits that went accordingly with the situation she was in while never renouncing to being comfortable. She was also a knitting expert, said to have taught every single Agency member who could now knit, the president included (and most notable example).
So, when she appeared with a handmade wool sweater for Kyôka’s birthday, pink with a white bunny drawn on the front, its origin was obvious.
“Thanks.” Kyôka’s eyes lit up upon seeing it, and they stayed like that as she ran her hand through the fabric admiring the stitching. The sweater’s texture made it so she would have to wear it with something else underneath, but that was a given since that was clearly more meant for the toughest part of winter. “I love it.”
“I’m very glad.” Haruno replied, smiling with more than evident pride. And, honestly, how not to? If she were that skilled, Kyôka would be too.
And, speaking of being skilled at knitting, that might as well be the most perfect moment for asking precisely about that.
“By the way, would you mind teaching me like you’ve taught others?” She had barely finished speaking when now it was Haruno’s turn to beam, as if about to reply with a ‘I thought you’d never ask’ on top of that.
“Of course.”
naomi
“It should be around– OH!!!”
“Careful.”
The box that fell was clearly not what Naomi had been looking for but, once Kyôka helped her to prevent it hitting the floor or any of them, became a central point of focus as the older of the two started rummaging through its content.
“Oh, this is my middle school stuff!” Given how every single other box that rested on that high shelf from the closest looked very much the same, Kyôka wasn’t surprised about how not even Naomi was sure of what was inside before checking. “I gave away the rest, but kept my last year’s uniform and other things, like trinkets from my friends and so on.” As she spoke, the girl took said uniform out, holding it in front of Kyôka with the same look as if she was assembling a puzzle.
At least for a second, since right after her expression turned into the one of someone who was up to something, had already sort of predicted the immediate, future, or both.
“Wanna try it on, Kyôka-chan?” Even before the question was fully finished, her gaze moved from the attire to Naomi, and then Kyôka nodded.
“Thanks.”
She had mentioned liking Naomi’s current school uniform once or twice, because she did. In fact, it wasn’t just about finding it cute, but also everything it entailed; her own academic journey shined for its lack of consistency in terms of having had a formal one after her parents’ death. Sure, Kyôka hadn’t been deprived from chances at learning, but a normal school life wasn’t exactly in store for her anymore. Sort of.
“Then here you go.” Said and done, for Naomi instantly handed her both the top and skirt, grinning wide, a gesture which only got brighter when she took them. “Bet you’re gonna look so damn cute in it!”
Also, while Kyôka was already standing up to make her way to the apartment’s bathroom and change, a mischievous hue flashed in Naomi’s smile.
“By the way, maybe I could arrange a visit to my school, if you wanna…”
lucy
Once the two of them entered Anne’s Room and Kyôka was fully aware of her surroundings again (it had been just a split second, though), she set the bags on the floor with care. Most of their contents may be fabrics, so there was no risk of damaging anything, sure, but still.
“Lemme tell you a lil’ secret.” Lucy then said, placing more bags beside the ones Kyôka had just put down. “I really wanted you to be my first model. At least from the Agency, ‘course.”
“Who was your first ever? Anne?”
“Yeah, Anne.” As if she had been summoned (or maybe that had been the exact case), the doll approached them, taking all the bags in her arms to reposition them in the biggest table of the room. Likely the one designated as Lucy’s main workshop desk, by the looks of it. “Even when I had nothing or no one else, I had Anne, so obvi she had to be the first.” That sounded more like her giving Anne a homage than it being Lucy’s only resort when she started making clothes, and Kyôka smiled.
Knowing what she knew now, she wished her relationship with her own ability could have always been like that. But, well, better late than never.
“Why me, by the way?” From all the Agency members, Kyôka knew for sure she wasn’t Lucy’s favorite, since Atsushi had that spot covered. And others, like Haruno, Yosano or Kunikida could offer more feedback by virtue of knowing more about sewing than Kyôka herself did as still a newbie.
“We’re friends.” Lucy replied, linking their arms together and guiding her through the same ‘path’ Anne had taken levitating.
“Oh.” Kyôka’s smile, now on the verge of leaving for a moment, embiggened.
“Besides, you seem like you already know what you wanna get for the costume party, so we can give the indecisive lil’ dum-dums more time. That’s why Yosano-sensei’s next. Well, that and ‘cause I owe her a solid.”
“I know, yes.” What Lucy was referring to, but also what she wanted. “What do you think about a black and purple dress? With ribbons and a witch hat.”
“Amazing. Get the hat when you can, and we’ll give it the retouches it needs to match the dress when it’s done. You don’t have to search much, though, it’ll look amazing when I’m done with it.” She had barely finished speaking when Kyôka nodded, though she did wait for Lucy to finish before adding a verbal reply too.
“Got it. Any accessory-related things you need?”
aya
“Kyôka-chan?” Aya asked right away when Kyôka opened the door. She didn’t seem in distress, so her going there due to an emergency could be quickly discarded. “Can I borrow some pajamas? Kuni-chan’s shirts are nice and all, but so long I’m trippin’ every now and then. Besides, bet yours are prettier.” There was no need for flattery, since Kyôka was more than willing to help her out already, but she would be lying if she said Aya complimenting her clothes (and thus, her taste too) didn’t have an effect.
“Of course.” Moving aside to both let her enter and go search for something that would fit her the most, Kyôka quickly made her way to the closet. After all, the dorm rooms weren’t that big to begin with.
“Thanks!!!” And so, the search started, with her kneeling by one of the closet’s drawers and Aya leaning down right beside.
Despite mostly going for traditional garments when it came to picking what to wear for bed, after joining both the Agency and Yosano’s shopping trips, Kyôka already had gotten herself a bunch of some Western style pajamas as well, which she assumed would be more of Aya’s taste. A pink two-piece which consisted in a long shirt and matching pants, a couple of blue and yellow nightgowns quite suited for summer time, and the cutest bunny onesie she had ever seen formed her current ‘collection’, and she wouldn’t deny how getting a few more sounded pretty good.
“There you go.”
Leaving the drawer open, she lined all of those up over it; even if Aya didn’t pick the onesie, likely given how it could be the most difficult to wear due to their height difference, Kyôka might as well use it that night.
Or maybe Aya wasn’t picking it just because she had something else in mind already.
“Can I take the yellow nightgown?” When she nodded, Aya took no time in grabbing it, and glancing in her direction revealed a very enthusiastic smile. “Thanks!!!” She repeated, almost running to the bathroom to change. “Mind if I try it on here? So if it’s still too big I don’t have to come and go for somethin’ else.”
“Oh, no problem.” Though, maybe she wouldn’t have to come and go at all. “Do you want to stay for a sleepover, by the way? I doubt Kunikida-san will say no since you’re going to be close by, and we have enough space since Atsushi-kun isn’t here tonight.” He had gone to have his own ‘sleepover’ with Akutagawa, something she didn’t mention explicitly for just a simple reason: Aya definitely knew already, or at least would quickly consider the possibility.
Either way, she didn’t show any signs of being surprised, as Kyôka expected. Instead, Aya took no time in nodding with enthusiasm.
“Say no more, Kyôka-chan!” She instantly replied, before closing the bathroom door on her way in.