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“To think we’d be staying at one of the Shimotsuki family’s famous onsen in Kyoto during a rare work break during Christmas, it almost feels like a dream,” Haru said as they arrived at a traditional hot springs resort.
“Fufu, that’s because I, shiro maousama, wanted to make sure we could enjoy a nice relaxing holiday before work piles up during new years,” Shun declared.
“Was arriving in a horse drawn carriage really necessary?” Hajime had to ask as he stared at the horses that brought them to the resort.
“It wouldn’t be much of a break if Kai had to drive,” Shun pointed out.
“I wouldn’t have minded driving, but I guess Shun has a point,” Kai agreed. We all got to enjoy the sights on the way!”
“I can imagine Kai riding on a horse too,” Haru commented. “It suits his energy and spirit.”
“Oh yeah! Maybe I should try it sometime, like Jones!” Kai said.
“Jones?” Shun was confused.
“It’s a adventure movie,” Kai said. “Ask Harupedia about it later.”
“It’s too bad only the four of us could go,” Haru said as servants were already helping them unload and carrying their luggage inside for them. “Everyone else seemed to have work scheduled in different places.”
“We’ll be sure to bring them home souvenirs,” Kai said.
“Don’t worry, Kai, I already arranged holiday excursions for our younger members to go on after they’re all done with work,” Shun told them. “All under the utmost care of Shimotsuki.”
“Just how many resorts does the Shimotsuki family have?” Haru wondered. “Then again, I suppose the same could be said for the Mutsuki family as well, right Hajime?”
“Yes, they’re already making preparations for the New Year's celebration,” Hajime said. “I’m a bit relieved they haven’t called me over to help them.
“Our dear kuro ousama deserves much needed rest after all, that’s why I made sure to tell the servants to prepare the best room at the resort!” Shun announced as he guided them down the halls.
The servants bowed and opened the sliding doors for them.
“Wow, it’s really spacious here!” Kai observed the enormous room with tatami flooring, floral patterned screen doors, and traditional style Japanese decorations mixed with a few holiday decor.
“We could fit both Procella and Gravi members in this same room,” Haru commented.
“Do we really need all this space for ourselves?” Hajime questioned.
“Of course! But if you’d like to make your space a little smaller, we can move some screen doors to divide the rooms,” Shun said.
“Speaking of divide, how are we doing the sleeping arrangements?” Kai asked.
“I want to sleep with Hajime!” Shun already volunteered.
“There’s more than enough space for us to sleep separately, Shun,” Hajime reasoned.
“But the protective barrier won’t work if I’m not within arms reach of Hajime,” Shun whined.
“Barrier…?”
“Shun, this place isn’t haunted-I mean occupied by any supernatural spirits?” Kai questioned.
“Don’t worry, Kai! I made sure the servants put up the protective talismans. And they’re well hidden so you don’t have to worry about seeing them in plain sight.”
“Seeing them isn’t the main worry here.”
“Then at least have your futon next to mine separately. We won’t fit on one futon,” Hajime said.
“That’s Hajime for you, always cool and collected in any situation!”
“What are you saying, Haru?”
“Okay, so Hajime and Shun are sleeping together-I mean next to each other,” Kai confirmed. “Haru, I guess we’re sleeping together too!”
“NEXT to each other, Kai. I’ll kick you if I find you invading my futon in the middle of the night,” Haru corrected Kai.
Shun giggled. “They’re playfully bickering like an old married couple! How nice!”
“Who are you calling old, Shun?” Haru questioned.
“We’re not a married couple either!” Kai denied.
“See, Hajime?” Shun smiled at Hajime.
Hajime ignored their usual antics and picked up his bag to unpack. “Let’s calm down and head to the onsen bath.”
Since it was a private onsen resort, the four of them had the whole bathing area to themselves. There were also several different kinds of baths to choose from.
“Aromatherapy, outdoor, indoor, saunas, relaxation,” Haru read down the list of baths available. “That’s the Shimotsuki family for you.”
“Shall we try them all then?” Kai wondered.
“We’ll get pruny if we take that many baths in a day!” Haru said.
“We’re here for a few days, so we can pick one for each day. Look, there’s even a matchmaking bath!” Kai pointed at the list.
“It’s very popular with soon to be couples,” Shun explained. “But Hajime and I won’t need to dip into that one. Our fates and destinies are already tied together!”
“Isn’t there a normal bath?” Hajime asked.
“That would be this one right here!” Shun pointed out. “It’s well known for relaxing tired muscles and soothing the stress far, far away!”
“Let’s go then!” Kai took the lead, his towel in hand.
“Kai, it’s not a race!” Haru quickly followed after him.
“They sure have a lot of energy like Kakeru and Koi,” Hajime observed.
Shun giggled. “Shall we follow them to the baths, Hajime?”
“Yeah. Hopefully Haru won’t drop his glasses in the water.”
The relaxing bath that Shun recommended was one of the outdoor baths surrounded by smooth stones and arranged zen gardens. Even though the early evening air had a bit of chill, the steamy bath kept the coldness away.
“Haaah, this really feels great!” Kai relaxed in the steamy onsen bath with a small wet towel over his eyes.
“Kai, you sound like an old man,” Haru teased.
“Well I am the oldest out of the four of us,” Kai reminded him. “Unless you count Shun’s age in maousama years.”
Shun splashed Kai a little. “Excuse me, Kai, but I’m still pretty youthful even with my extra years if you count in the other timelines!” Shun countered.
“Other timelines…?” the other three wondered.
“What do you think we should do when Kai reaches 40?” Haru tried to imagine. “Is there anywhere you’d like to go?”
“Hmm, I think I’d be perfectly fine going anywhere as long as we’re all together,” Kai honestly said. “We can even bring the other members with us next time.”
Shun giggled, “That’s a very Kai like answer.”
“I’ve still got plenty of time to live in the present, so I’m not really in a rush to do everything,” Kai said confidently.
“True, somehow I can still see you climbing mountains and exploring the sea even after you’ve turned 40,” Haru imagined.
“I think Kai would make a great father,” Hajime commented.
“With all the younger members I’ve had to look after plus Shun, I’ve gotten quite a lot of experience,” Kai reminisced.
“Then does that make Haru the mother?” Shun wondered.
“Why am I the mother?!” Haru looked confused.
“Because you’re really smart!” Shun pointed out.
“You’ve also grown up with your sisters too,” Hajime recalled.
“Ah, that’s right, Haru and I both have siblings compared to Hajime and Shun,” Kai said.
“It must be nice being an older brother. If I had a sibling, I’d want an older brother like Kai, a younger sister like Haru, and a younger brother like Hajime!” Shun wished.
“Why am I the younger sister?” Haru was even more confused.
“Because you’re cute, but not as cute as Hajime would be as a younger brother!” Shun explained. “I would still lovingly dote on both of you though as your older brother, and Kai could take care of us all!”
“I take care of you guys anyway, so there’s not much of a difference being related or not,” Kai laughed.
“True, Kai is very much a reliable onii-san!” Shun concluded.
“More importantly, what are we planning to do after we enjoy this onsen bath?” Hajime asked.
“There’s still plenty of time before they’ll serve dinner. How about we do our gift exchange?” Kai suggested, since per Shun’s instructions they had all brought gifts to exchange.
“Great idea, Kai! I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of a present my Santa-san has brought!” Shun was excited.
“I’m a bit worried about who gets Shun’s present,” Haru admitted quietly.
“Oh don’t worry, Haru, it’s safe! I made sure since i accompanied Shun when he went out to buy his gift,” Kai reassured Haru.
“Kaiii! Don’t spoil the surprise!” Shun pouted.
“Yes, yes.”
After a relaxing steamy onsen bath and tasty regional Kyoto onsen milk afterwards, they gathered back in their resort room for the gift exchange.
“Hm? Was this big decorated tree here before?” Kai wondered as he noticed a large fir tree already prelit and decorated with white, purple, blue, and green decorations.
“Ah, I had requested our family butler Sakaki-san to set it up for us while we were in the bath. After all, it’s Christmas time so we definitely need a tree!”
“It’s really pretty. Aren’t these ornaments from overseas?” Haru recognized the different styles.
“That’s right, Haru! There’s different ornaments from Norway, England, Germany, France, and Belgium!”
“Wow, a tree like this would look really nice in our dorm room too so everyone could see it,” Kai said.
“Don’t worry, I’ve already made arrangements for Sakaki-san to deliver and set up a similar tree back home at our dorm too!” Shun was prepared.
“Either Shun is really psychic or he already had everything planned all along,” Haru commented.
“Now we’ll start the gift exchange with the help of our dear friends Nakai-san and D-kun!!” Shun declared, as a little tiny reindeer and familiar tangerine cardboard box suddenly appeared next to Shun.
“Nevermind Nakai-san, but where did Diablo pop out from?!” Kai questioned.
“He was in my bag of course,” Shun answered obviously.
“Was that why your bag was so heavy and kept moving about when you asked me to carry it?” Kai asked.
“D-Kun is lighter than an actual tangerine box,” Shun answered. “It was probably my giant Hajime tsukiusa that made it heavy.”
“Nevermind the weight, how did you fit the giant usagi in your bag?” Haru was more curious.
“Fufu, that’s a secret!” Shun’s lips were sealed.
“Isn’t it dangerous bringing Diablo here?” Hajime asked something more important.
“Actually, it’d be more dangerous leaving him back at the dorms unsupervised without Shun,” Kai figured out. “Who knows what Diablo would do around the other members without Shun.”
“Speaking of weight, Kuroda didn’t sneak into your bag again, Hajime?” Haru asked.
“No, I made sure to leave him in Aoi’s care,” Hajime confirmed.
Haru was relieved. “Phew, my glasses are saved.”
“Anyway, I hope you children have been all good this year for Santa-san to deliver presents!” Shun continued.
“So we’re all considered children now?” Hajime asked.
“Do you want to be?” Shun asked excitedly with a sparkly gaze.
“Shhh, careful Hajime! Shun will turn us all into kids!” Haru warned.
“Then let’s not go that far,” Hajime decided.
“Booo, you guys are no fun. But I follow whatever the black king decreeds, so I’ll hold off on the magic fun for now,” Shun changed his mind.
“For now…?”
“So who’s going first?” Kai asked, taking charge.
“I want to go first!” Shun raised his hand and quickly dug out his unusually wrapped present covered with various bows and stickers from under the tree. “D-kun, this goes to Haru-san!”
Shun placed his wrapped gift on top of Diablo and the other three watched as Diablo shifted its way to Haru.
“T-Thank you, Shun, and Diablo,” Haru expressed as he nervously picked up the gift. It felt soft and a little heavy.
“Open it! Open it!” Shun encouraged Haru.
It took Haru a few tries to find the right corner to unwrap the gift. To his surprise, inside was a green and white patterned hanten with little green birds on the pattern.
“It’s a hanten!” Haru was surprised. “The quality is really nice too!”
“It’ll keep you nice and warm during winter! Handmade by one of the best shops in Kyoto!” Shun explained. “I had it custom designed too. I thought the little tiny birds looked similar to Hokekyo-kun!”
“Thanks, Shun!”
“See Haru? Even Shun is capable of giving perfectly normal gifts,” Kai said.
Haru shook his head. “Haha, very funny Kai.”
“Alright, so Haru goes next to give his gift!” Shun said.
“I had Hajime.” Haru picked up a neatly wrapped gift from under the tree. He saw Nakai-san was ready to deliver it and carefully placed it on Nakai-san’s back. “Please deliver it safely, Nakai-san!”
Nakai-san wobbled a little, but he safely delivered the gift. Hajime picked it up and gave a thankful nod to Nakai-san. When he opened it up, he saw Haru had gifted him a pair of designer sunglasses and earrings with purple gemstones.
“I really appreciate the gift, but why sunglasses and earrings?” Hajime wondered.
“I figured they’d be great accessories to wear while working!” Haru winked. “You always have a cool aura around you, so I tried to find something that would fit your style.”
“I see, thank you, Haru.” Hajime smiled.
Shun held his chest. “Hajime! That smile should be illegal! My heart is overflowing!”
“And there’s Shun’s hardcore fan mode turned on.” Kai laughed. “Okay, Hajime, you’re next!”
Hajime found his gift wrapped in a simple gift bag with tissue paper under the tree. It was too big for Nakai-san to carry it, so he put it on top of Diablo.
“This is for you, Kai,” Hajime said.
“Thanks!” Kai picked up the gift bag and found a nice canvas crossbody bag was inside. “Oh, sweet! I needed a new bag like this! How’d you know?”
“I heard from Yoru that your last one broke during your last work trip. I tried to find the same exact one, but the store was out of stock so they recommended a similar bag,” Hajime explained.
“That’s really thoughtful you tried to look for the same one, but I’m really happy with this new one! I’ll be sure to take good care of it while I use it, thanks again Hajime!” Kai was really happy. “Alright, I’m last, so it’s no surprise who I had.” Kai brought out a small gift bag from under the tree and gave it to Nakai-san.
Nakai-san brought the gift bag to Shun.
“Thank you, Nakai-san.” Shun delicately opened the gift bag as if it was a delicate treasure box. He suddenly gasped. “K-Kai! This is-!”
Shun held up a decorative cosmetic gift set up high so that everyone could see it, and it seemed to glow and sparkle when he did.
“The limited edition Myth X Kiss Mutsuki Hajime gift box!! Kai, you meanie! I thought you told me they completely sold out!”
“Ohh, the limited collaboration set that they only made a hundred of and sold out in an hour at the Myth X Kiss release event in Tokyo,” Haru recalled. “I’m surprised you managed to get one, Kai.”
Kai laughed. “I asked Kurotsuki-san in advance to reserve one for you since I knew you were going to be too busy with work to make it to the release event,” Kai confessed.
“I love this so much! Not as much as the real Hajime of course, but this is definitely going front and center at my Hajime shrine at my family’s home!” Shun was so delighted.
Kai grinned. “You should read the card too, Shun.”
“The card..?” Shun noticed there was a heart shaped card attached to the box with a satin purple ribbon. “To my dearest fan, love…Hajime! You kissed the card, right?? Right?!” Shun noticed the lip shaped mark on the card with Hajime’s signature.
Hajime frowned at Kai. “Kai, I thought we agreed you weren’t going to tell him that.”
“You know Shun would have found out eventually, so why not tell him when he got his gift?” Kai seemed to be having fun.
“I’ve got to find a way to preserve this card forever! Maybe I’ll seal it in a glass case!” Shun decided.
“He’s getting carried away.” Hajime sighed, but he couldn’t be upset.
Haru giggled. “It’s Christmas after all, so it’s good to keep the happy spirits up.”
As they were chatting about their new gifts, there was a soft knock and a servant appeared at the door.
“Pardon my interruption, honored guests, but dinner is ready to be served,” the servant announced.
“Just in time, I was starting to get hungry!” Kai was relieved.
“Kai, don’t race to the dining room,” Haru reminded Kai.
“Yes, Mama Haru!”
The four of them headed to the separate dining room. There were four cushioned floor seats around a large polished wooden square table filled to the brim with a banquet of dishes.
“Wow! Look at all this food! There’s even a hot pot!” Kai was amazed.
“Crab, lobster, mackerel, vegetables, soups, and high quality meat!” Haru was amazed too.
“Isn’t this a bit too much for us to eat?” Hajime asked Shun.
“Hmm, I told the chefs to prepare all the best dishes in Kyoto,” Shun recalled. “Maybe I went a little overboard? Tee hee!”
“A little overboard huh? Well no problem! We can’t turn down such tasty food in front of us! We can always exercise to get rid of the extra calories after!” Kai wasn’t bothered.
“Kai, I thought we were supposed to relax on this trip?” Haru questioned.
“There’s a ping pong table in the game rooms, we can exercise after we eat!” Kai said.
“Don’t forget to save room for dessert too. I ordered a two tiered Christmas cake!” Shun announced.
“A tiered cake?! What is this, a wedding?” Kai asked.
“We’re definitely going to need to exercise afterwards,” Hajime said.
A few hours later…
“Then since Haru lost the ping pong competition, he gets to have a drinking contest with me!” Kai announced.
“What do you mean by a drinking contest?! That’s the first I’ve heard the loser has to do!” Haru complained.
“It was the best punishment Shun came up with,” Kai explained. “It was either that or going into the makai temperature hot spring.”
“This place has a makai hot spring too?” Haru questioned.
“I wonder which one of you two will get drunk first~?” Shun sang.
“Don’t overdo it, you two,” Hajime advised.
“Shall we start with the strong stuff first or build our way up?” Kai asked.
Haru groaned. “It’s going to be a long night, isn’t it? Fine, let’s do this, but not taking pictures or videos! I don’t want the younger members to see this!”
“Okay, ready, set-!”
Shun pushed open the glass door to step outside onto the veranda outside. The night air was colder than hours before, but Shun felt really warm inside anyway with all the fun the four members have had all day.
“Enjoying the view of the stars, Hajime?” Shun asked as he spotted Hajime alone outside.
“It was getting a bit too lively in there, so I’m taking a short break,” Hajime answered. “How’s the other two?”
“You don’t need to worry. Despite how much they’ve drunk, Haru-chan and Kai are under the best care of my family servants,” Shun assured Hajime.
Hajime smiled. “I’m glad they’re making the most of their time off, but I’ll have to scold Haru a bit later for getting too heated up and agreeing to a drinking contest with Kai.”
“You should scold me too, Hajime!” Shun almost begged.
Hajime looked perplexed at Shun. “Why would I scold you?”
“Because you always look so cool and serious when you scold Kakeru and Koi, I’m jealous of the attention they get!” Shun pouted a little playfully.
Hajime sighed. “It’s not a competition, and I wouldn’t scold you when I have no reason to, Shun.”
Shun dropped the playful act and smiled. “I know, that’s what I really love about you, Hajime!”
“Yeah, you tell me that all the time,” Hajime knew.
The two of them enjoyed a peaceful silence together gazing at the stars before Hajime turned to Shun.
“You planned this whole sudden Christmas break for Kai and Haru, didn’t you, Shun?” Hajime guessed.
“What do you mean? I planned it for all four of us.” Shun looked confused.
“I heard from Kurotsuki-san and Tsukishiro-san that Haru and Kai were especially stressed the past couple of weeks in between work. Even though they’re always working so hard and smiling, there were times where they didn’t get any sleep or made a few small mistakes due to overworking and stress.”
Shun smiled in defeat. “That’s our Hajime, you’re very perceptive about others.”
Hajime shook his head in denial. “You’re the perceptive one, Shun. All I did was ask our managers for the details.”
“True, but you wouldn’t have asked Dai or Kanade anything if you had thought everything was perfectly normal,” Shun pointed out. “The fact that you asked them about Kai and Haru means you noticed that something was wrong too.”
“Well…I guess,” Hajime agreed.
Shun smiled as he looked up at the night sky. “As the senior group of our units, and as Tsukino Music Idols, our work is only going to get busier towards the new year. That’s why I thought it would be nice to take time away from all of the busyness of work to enjoy making fun memories together. Especially at this time of year.”
“I guess you deserve a little reward then,” Hajime commented.
“Really? Will you give me a kiss, Hajime?” Shun teased, but he also sounded quite serious.
“Er…that’s a bit much, Shun.”
Shun giggled. “I’m teasing, but it would be nice to have a real kiss someday and not one we just do for work or the fans,” Shun said.
“Shun.” Hajime shook his head again. “Hold out your hands.”
“My hands?” Shun obliged and held them out.
Hajime reached into his jacket pocket and placed a small square box in Shun’s hand.
“What’s this?”
“A little Christmas gift to you, Shun, from me,” Hajime explained.
“But we already exchanged gifts earlier.” Shun tilted his head confused.
“That was for the party. This is something completely separate. Open it up.”
Shun carefully opened the box and his eyes lit up when he saw what was inside.
Inside the velvet cushioned box appeared to be a set of earrings with silver gemstones. In fact, the earrings looked like they matched the ones that Hajime got as a gift.
“Hajime, could it be? Matching earrings?!”
“Yeah, although I had no idea before that Haru had gotten me a pair too when we were at the jewelry shop,” Hajime admitted. “I thought they would suit you.”
“Hajime, I love them! I can’t wait to wear them!” Shun was so happy.
“Just don’t tell Haru that I bought them at the same time he was buying his gift, or he might think I saw him buying mine,” Hajime mentioned.
“If you kiss me, my lips will be sealed!” Shun joked.
“Shun.”
“Sorry, Hajime. I’ll try my best not to let the fact slip, but you know Haru is very smart!”
“Well, knowing Haru he won’t get too upset. In fact he’ll probably tease me if he finds out I got you a matching set.”
Shun giggled. “We can’t keep secrets from our dearest friends after all.”
“True. Speaking of, we should head inside to check on them,” Hajime said as he started to head back inside.
“Mm! Ah, but before that, Hajime! I have a gift for you too!” Shun told Hajime.
“For me? What is it?” Hajime turned and looked at Shun.
Shun smiled as he raised his right hand and snapped his fingers. As if on cue, all of the outdoor decorative Christmas lights turned on, bringing a bright and sparkling winter wonderland to life all around them.
“Merry Christmas, Hajime!”
Hajime looked at the sparkling lights around them before looking again at Shun, who in his eyes seemed to be sparkling the most at the center.
Hajime smiled.
“Merry Christmas, Shun.”