Work Text:
Prelude
“Hey Tsuki, can I sit with you? ” Yori asks, Tsuki was sat on a table at Momo’s tea shop. A half-full cup of jasmine tea resting between his paws.
“Sure, take a seat”.
The weather was pleasant, as always, in Mushroom Village. It was late afternoon and the sun was beginning to set. Tsuki watched birds glide back to their nests while Yori ordered his tea.
“So, I wanted to ask you something. “ Yori said when they were alone. ”You know I have you like a son and I wouldn't ask you if it wasn't needed”.
Tsuki nodded, signaling to Yori to continue.
“Next week I will have to go to the city for a couple of days. I usually bring Pipi with me when I travel, so she can have a good time, but this time I'm afraid I won't have time to do anything with her. I'll have little time to work on some bureaucracy and paperwork related to the store, go to the bank, notary's office, all this type of old people's responsibility.” Yori gave a sheepish smile.
“I was hoping you could take care of Pipi while I'm gone. I know it's a lot to ask but you're the one I trust the most for this task”.
“Yes, of course,” Tsuki said without hesitation. Pipi was a wonderful kid and it would be an honour for him.
- - - - - - - - -
On the morning of Yori's departure, Tsuki walked to the train station to meet them. The sky was just beginning to lighten and the station had a few early travelers waiting for the first train of the day.
Yori wore his black fedora and stood beside a single suitcase, which rested on the ground as he hugged Pipi tightly.
“It's okay, sweetie. I'll be back in no time. You'll have so much fun with Tsuki that you won't even miss me. You'll see.”
“I don't want you to go.”
The train pulled into the station, with a long whistle. Floyd stepped out of the ticket booth to begin checking tickets as passengers lined up.
“I'll be back, I promise.”
“You promise?”
“I do. And I'll bring you a lot of presents, alright?”
“Okay.”
“I love you,” Yori said, giving her a gentle kiss.
“Love you too.”
Yori let her go and picked up his suitcase.
“Thanks for doing that for us. Here’s all her stuff” Yori said, handing Tsuki a pink backpack.
“No worries. I'll take good care of her.”
“I know. She's in great paws.”
The rain's whistle blew again, calling the remaining passengers aboard.
“Well, I better go. See you in a few days.”
Yori gave Pipi one last hug, then boarded the train. Tsuki held her paw as they waved goodbye until the train disappeared down the tracks.
They returned to the treehouse in silence, a mix of the emotions and the sleepiness of the early morning. Tsuki had set up a cozy corner for Pipi near his bedroom on the second floor, using the spare furniture he had in storage. He made her bed with pink sheets and pillows, her favorite color, and added Kate’s plush, the same one she had given him last Christmas, to give it a touch of home.
- - - - - - - - - - -
"Tsuki” Pipi called while poking his face.
Tsuki opened his eyes, checking the clock on his night stand. It was past 9 a.m.
“I'm hungry.”
“Alright, let's make something for you.”
Tsuki worked hard on the farm the day before to make sure he could spend the next two days with Pipi.
“What do you want? I have some leftover rice, fish, eggs…”
“Hmm… Omurice!” Pipi looked at him with big pup eyes.
“Omurice? For breakfast?” Pipi nodes eagerly.
“Isn't that a bit heavy for the morning?”
“Please, Tsuki! It's my favorite in the whole world!” Her shining eyes kept glaring at him.
“I guess one day won't hurt.”
Tsuki took the cold bowl of rice from the fridge and began preparing the dish.
He added it to a hot pan along with peas, finely chopped onions, and diced carrots. The ingredients sizzled as he stirred them together, seasoning the mixture with a bit of soy sauce and a generous squeeze of ketchup. The rice turned golden and slightly crispy, filling the kitchen with a sweet and savory aroma.
In a second pan, he poured in beaten eggs, swirling them gently to form a thin, even sheet. Once the omelet was set, he spooned half of the warm fried rice into the center, then carefully folded the edges over into an oval shape.
He repeated the process to make a second plate for himself. Choosing the best-looking one, he grabbed a bottle of ketchup and drew a little rabbit face on top of the omelet. As he placed both plates on the table, he noticed Pipi already bouncing in her seat, eyes sparkling with excitement.
Pipi took a big bite making a happy face. “It's sooo good.”
“Better than Pops?”
“Hmm… Not this good.”
“What do you want to do next?” Tsuki said as he took the plates to the sink. He noticed that Pipi ate the whole thing, it was a big portion for such a small child.
“Can I watch cartoons?”
“Yes, go ahead.”
Tsuki watched Pipi throw herself at the couch, turning on the TV.
Fated cleaning the kitchen, Tsuki took a place at Pipi's side. She was watching reruns of Anima Rangerz.
After a few episodes, Tsuki got up, grabbed a book, and sat on the chaise where he could still keep an eye on her.
It remembers him from his own childhood, wanting to spend the whole day in front of the TV. His grandpa didn't let him, and insisted on taking him to work on the farm. It paid off, Tsuki could now run the farm on his own.
Now he no longer had the patience to stay hours staring at a screen, he would rather spend his time with a good book and a nice cup of tea.
He brewed a fine genmaicha he brought on Hirago and offered some to Pipi but she would rather have a bowl of ice cream.
He lost himself reading The Great Ratsby, a history about young and curious rat Nich Cheddarway that moves into a cozy borrow next to the mysterious carrots millionaire Remy Ratsby, a wealthy rodent known for throwing the wildest tinned parties east of the sewer line.
Eventually, his stomach started to growl.
“Want to go to Bobo's?” he asked.
- - - - - - - - - -
“I want a big bowl of curry ramen with extra noodles” Pipi asked as she sat on Bobo’s Ramen cart.
“Isn't that too much for you?”
“No! I have it all the time! Curry ramen is my Favorite!”
“Okay, you can have it, but no extra noodles. And I'll have miso ramen with extra carrots please,” Tsuki ordered.
“What are we going to do after we eat?”
“More cartoons.”
“You watched cartoons all morning, what about a book. I'm sure I have something that you'll like.”
“Books are lame. It's just words.”
“I got some comics. Just give it a try.”
Their bowl arrived quickly. Pipi's eyes sparkled with delight as she tasted the thick curry broth. Slurping it without chewing her noodles.
Halfway through, she winced.
“I'm not feeling good. My tummy feels funny, I want to go home.”
Tsuki looked at her closely. Her face was scrunched and uneasy.
Tsuki had almost finish his bowl and decided to take her back to the treehouse.
“Okay, let's take you home. Can you walk?”
She nodded. They started walking back, but Pipi grew agitated.
“No, Tsuki! I want to go home.”
“We're going home.”
“No, not your home, my home!”
“Pipi, you're staying with me, remember?”
“But I want to go home, I want Pops!”
“He'll be back tomorrow.”
“I want Pops!” Pipi's eyes filled with tears “I want to go home… I want Pops!”
Tsuki knelt at her side “I know you want to go home, but I'm taking care of you. Pops will come back tomorrow and we'll welcome him at the train station.”
“Okay” Pipi sniffed.
“Want me to carry you?”
“Please.”
Tsuki carried her to the treehouse, laid her in bed, and gave her a glass of water.
Maybe he'd been too permissive with her, with the Omurice, cartoons, ice-cream, and curry ramen. It's natural for kids to push the limits, especially when their parents aren't around. But Yori had trusted him to care for her and that was what he needed to do.
After a nap, Pipi started feeling better and Tsuki thought it was better for them to stay inside.
“Just give the comic a try.”
“It won't be about fishing or any boring grown up stuff, right?”
“Nope, no fishing.”
“Good” She took the comic “But don't tell Pops I said that.”
“I won't,” Tsuki laughed.
The sun setted outside as they stayed inside reading, Pipi ended up devouring his collection of spider-cat, the story of Puff Parker, a cat who was bitten by a radioactive spider and uses his gained spider powers to defend his neighborhood from the activity of the rat gang.
For dinner, Tsuki prepared Okayu. He simmered the rice with a lot of water until the grains became a soft porridge. He then added a pinch of salt and topped it with chopped green onion.
“Here” Tsuki brought the food on the table “I made something soft for your tummy, eat slowly this time.”
Pipi took a small bite and savored it. She didn't complain and it makes sense that it was something that she was used to.
When she finished her plate, her eyes were heavy. She washed her teeth by herself and went to the second floor. Tsuki was about to go too when she approached.
“Can I sleep with you?” Pipi asked before tugging herself at his side. “I miss Pops.”
- - - - - - - - - -
Tsuki woke up with Pipi tangled around him. He gently slipped out of the bed without waking her up.
Downstairs, he tidied the living room, putting cushions back and stacking his comics. Then he leaded to the kitchen and tied on his carrot-print apron. He had one missio: to make today different.
He started selecting a few vegetables: carrots, radish, spinach, and green onions. With careful hands, he cut the carrots and radish into flower shapes, the same way his grandfather used to. He placed them in the steamer along with a small bundle of spinach, letting them cook gently over the rice.
In a small pot, he put the miso soup. Once the broth was warm, he added cubes of tofu, strands of wakame, and a sprinkle of chopped green onions.
Next came the tamagoyaki. He beat the eggs with a touch of sugar and soy sauce, then poured the mixture into a rectangular pan, rolling the layers slowly and steadily until they formed a soft, sweet omelet. He sliced it into neat pieces and tried his best to shape them into little hearts.
When the rice finished cooking, he opened a can of tuna and mixed it with come mayo. He formed mini onigiris, shaping the rice into little triangles and tucking the tuna inside, then wrapped each one in a strip of nori.
He placed the carrot and radish flowers in a small bowl and seasoned the spinach with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.
When he looked at the table, warm with steam and full of color, he felt a quiet pride rise in his chest. This was the kind of food that a child could start the day with, feeling full and cared for.
He ran upstairs and shook Pipi gently.
“Time to wake up.”
Pipi rubbed her eyes. “What's that smell?” she asked, her snout twitching.
“I made a healthy breakfast for us. Come.” Pipi jumped out of bed rushing to the first floor.
“No running on the stairs” Pipi stopped just before the first step, walking down carefully.
“Wooow, did you make all of this?”
“Yes, for us”
“It's just like the ones Pops makes me.
” she climbed onto her seat and staring at the food ”But he doesn't make this funny shapes”
“When I was your height, I only ate carrots if they were shaped like flowers, I thought they tasted better that way.” Tsuki gave a bowl to Pipi and helped her to serve herself.
She devoured the food, tasting everything while telling him about the dreams she had.
“Can I watch cartoons now? “
“No, you're helping me to wash the dishes, then we're going to play outside” Pipi's face fell as she got out of her seat.
“Have your father taught you how to make a kite?”
“Are we making kites?”
“Only after we finish the cleaning.”
- - - - - - - - - -
“I'm going to make the biggest kite ever.”
Pipi said as they approached the pier, where Chi and Moca were already waiting. The colorful paper sheets were spread out, held down with a rock to keep them from flying away. Moca had brought ink and brushes from his personal stack, while Tsuki carried the crayons and pencils Yori had left on Pipi's backpack.
The first step was to make the frame: Pipi, Moca and Chi chose to make a traditional Edo-dako (rectangular kite) and Tsuki opted for a more modern delta-style kite (cylindrical). Working together, they glued the structure and attached the chosen paper.
Tsuki picked an orange sheet, he wanted to make a carrot kite. Pipi chose pink and Moca and Chi went with the white. After the glue dried, it was time to decorate.
Tsuki cut and added green paper to form the leaves and drew horizontal lines to complete the looks.
Moca’s kite looked like a samurai, it had a turtle face and used a kimono. It had a fierce expression and carried a katana in the waist.
Chi opted for a rectangular traditional one. She drew some waves curling across the paper, like the river's flow and put a red circle on each side representing the sun.
Pipi drew some hearts and stars on her and tried to glue rectangular shapes on the top to make ears.
The last step was to add the bridle string, and they were ready to fly. The colorful kites flew in the sky, each reflecting its owner spirit. Moca struggled the most to make his kite fly. Chi gave Pipi a little hand, putting the little fox on her shoulder to make her kite fly the highest.
After all the running, they were starving and went straight to Bobo’s for a steaming bowl of ramen.
They sat on one of the new tables that Bobo had set up, his cart had become small for all the animals that wanted to eat his food.
“We'll both have the shoyu ramen bowl with vegetables and a soft-boiled egg on top, a small one for her and a medium bowl for me” This time, he ordered for both of them.
After their stomachs were full and their bowls were empty, they returned to the pier.
The afternoon was hot and a swim sounded perfect. Chi and Moca decided not to join them, Moca mumbled something about how Pipi had almost drowned him once and Chi claimed she had an appointment. Tsuki knew she'd just lock herself in her room reading for the rest of the day.
Tsuki didn't let Pipi run straight into the water, they needed to wait 30 minutes before swimming. Instead, he showed her how to skip rocks in the water.
“You need to find the right rock, they need to be like this one,” Tsuki says, showing her the flat rock that looks almost like a pancake. “Then you hold it like this…” Tsuki holded the rock with both of his paws “and threw it sideways.”
Tsuki swung his body to throw the rock and make it fly. It skipped three times across the water.
Pipi tried but couldn't get her to skip. After a few more attempts she got distracted and had more fun throwing big rocks to make big splashes.
They swan, dove, and floated on their backs for a while, until they were tired and fell asleep under a tree.
Tsuki woke up with the sun setting.
“Pipi” He called “Wake up, Pops is coming!”
“Huh?” She rubbed her eyes, until sleepy.
“The day's almost over. Your dad is almost here.”
They ran to the train station, arriving just as the clock neared 7 p.m. and the train was just pulling in.
“You came back!” Pipi shouted, spotting her father. She ran and jumped into his arms.
“I told you I would,” Yori said, hugging her tight “And I brought you a lot of gifts.”
“Hey, kiddo,” he said to Tsuki once he managed to loosen Pipi's grip. “Did she cause you any trouble?”
“Oh, no, she was great,” Tsuki said not wanting to mention the day before.
“So, tell me, what did you two get up to? I saw a photo on Chi's parsnap of you making a kite.”
“We did it!” Pipi exclaims excitedly, “And mine was the biggest and the highest.”
Tsuki walked with them until the path split off toward their home.
When he returned to his house, it felt strangely empty without Pipi. It had only been two days, but he’d so much fun even if it was also a lot of work. Tsuki respected Yori even more now for the way he was reading her.
When he got up to his room he saw her pink backpack where he had left it. He'd return it tomorrow, along with the pencils and crayons that Chi had taken to her house with the kites and the rest of the materials.
But that was a problem for another day.
Today he had completed his mission.
And tonight he would only rest.