sweetdevil | 65th ♫ | by the look of the sky, i wonder if the raindrops will turn into snow

[ Let Ryoko Have A Nice Christmas Or So Help Me God ]

[ When the weather finally turns, it catches Ryoko by surprise. She's settled into a routine at Bright Sparks comfortably enough that it comes at a bit of a shock to be reminded of just how much time has passed since her arrival. There's some anxiety with the realization but not as much as there might have been, once and that burning drive to leave, leave, leave has cooled into a persistent smoulder. Still present, but not quite as all consuming.

So she doesn't think twice about scraping together some money to make sure she can buy gifts for everyone – it just seems natural to assume she'll be here to see them opened. And with as kindly as they've taken care of her, she feels like she needs to show them some appreciation.

So off she goes, with just Akira in tow to help. She mostly knows her way around the town now, but it's just cold enough to have started snowing a little and Akira's bike will make travelling a little easier. Besides, having an extra pair of hands will make things easier. She's got a list, she's got a budget, she's fully prepared. ]

Where do you think we should start? I have some ideas, but I don't want to settle on anything just yet...

[ She's all bundled up as they head out of Bright Sparks, the full hat scarf and gloves combo. It might prove to be a mistake once they actually start heading in and out of shops, but she's not risking catching her death of cold on the back of Akira's bike. ]

[Akira, for his part, is nothing if not committed to the bit (and the poor fashion sense he inherited from Matsu), and being a teenage boy, has decided it will surely be fine if he goes out in the snow dressed the way he usually does.

That is to say, he's still not wearing a shirt under his jacket.]

If you're asking me, I think we should make sure we get Kaori's presents first.

[He might as well get gifts for the kids at Bright Sparks too—and with a third list and some money from Taeko in his pocket, there's a lot to do today. It's the first Christmas at Bright Sparks without Matsu in some time, and all the preparations that he'd take care of have ended up getting split between Taeko and Akira this year.]

Taeko wants to get her some games she can play with the kids without needing to get out of bed, and I'm getting her some new pillows. The ones she's got aren't comfortable enough anymore.

[The pillows themselves are fine and will be well suited to being given to someone else, but only the best for his little sister.]

So I guess maybe the department store? There's all kinds of shit there. Might help you solidify some ideas, too.

[ the only mystery more enduring than How Does Taroimo Make Taiyaki... Why Does Akira Only Wear A Shirt In Bed ]

Games... card games are still popular, aren't they? Then again, I don't know if it's a good idea to get them all addicted to trading card games... [ She knows the havoc those run in any group of small children and she can only imagine siblings are even worse. ] But I'm sure there'll be something they can all have fun with.

[ Ryoko's still not entirely sure herself – she was an irritatingly practical child (or so she remembers) so she's never been given a gift she wanted more than one she needed. But something Kaori can do while she's stuck in bed, but she could take with her when she's feeling better... it's a good place to start from. ]

After the department store... is there anywhere else that might be worth looking at?

Hey, yeah, that's a good idea. Even if we stay away from trading cards, there's gotta be some other ones.

[They won't let him play card games with them anymore for perhaps obvious reasons. Even if he promised not to cheat, there'd be no way to prove he wasn't if he happened to win a round.]

There's some other shops here and there...I know the kids all love snacks if you can't think of something, and if you get anything with Misawa on it Yuki will go nuts for it. I dunno where to find wrestling merch though...

[Quietly, almost like an afterthought:]

Gotta hit up the jewelry store too, but that can come later. I wanna get something nice for Taeko. The kids all pooled their money, though it's not actually enough to get anything...

[Still, he promised he'd use it for that purpose, so he will, even if it's like 700 yen combined.

He's still not sure what to get Ryoko for Christmas either—his furtive peeks into her head hadn't been especially helpful in that regard, since she's not too sure of what she wants herself—but maybe he might be hit by some inspiration too.]

I'll pitch in for Taeko-san too. [ said so casually, like it wasn't even a question. ] I'd like for her to open something nice with everyone else, after everything she's done for us.

[ For Ryoko in particular. She knows it can't have been easy to suddenly have another teenager to feed and clothe and worry over but Taeko's been nothing but kind and generous – Ryoko wants to make sure she thanks her, properly. It's not usually her forte, but if it's true what they say that the thought is what counts then hopefully the sentiment will get across. ]

That's a good place to start, though, I think. Kaori-chan, then Taeko-san... and from there, if we haven't gotten anything for the others already we should at least have some ideas.

[ She's about to make her way onto the bike when a thought strikes her and she turns to Akira with that wry little smile of hers. ]

Come to think of it – should we be getting something for Taroimo as well?

Lord knows she deserves the world. Shame I'll never be able to give it to her, though I'm not ever gonna stop trying.

[And her first Christmas after her boyfriend died, too. Akira's got to make sure the gift this year is the best one she ever receives in her life.

Akira gets onto the bike, a similar smile on his face.]

Taroimo is still my little sister's pet, so if I forgot him, she'd be sad, and I won't let that shit slide. Though I don't know what to buy a turtle for Christmas. Seaweed? Do they eat that?

[Come to think of it, he sees Taroimo putting things in his mouth and eating them all the time, but where does all that stuff go? It's not a problem since he's still clearly fine months later, but it's worth asking Doc Tobei about to satisfy his own curiosity, if nothing else.]

...Maybe we should go to a pet store...?

[For a robot. It's fine.]

... now that you mention it, I have no idea what turtles even eat in general. But if he's eating taiyaki and whatever else he gets his hands [ ??? ] on, then... just about anything should be fine, shouldn't it?

[ Actually, getting Taroimo some sort of traditionally Christmassy sweets box might be a nice present... again, it has to be the thought that counts, right? ]

Well, we can make sure to keep a look out. Knowing Taroimo, I think he'd be excited just to be included.

[ Which is cute, in its own way. Taroimo's surprisingly precious for, you know, a giant robot turtle. ]

Right? I don't know what they eat at all. I'll ask Kaori about it later, I guess...the big guy deserves something he likes, even if he probably would be happy with something he doesn't.

[He may be Kaori's pet, but Akira considers him a friend too. It's a weird thought, that his best friend is a turtle robot.

With an action plan, or at least something resembling it, Akira revs up the bike and heads off to the department store, but when they arrive and he dismounts...]

Goddammit, it's freakin' freezing.

[In a shocking twist, going down the road at high speeds in both an open vehicle and an open shirt has done him no favors, temperature-wise. He's holding his jacket shut, looking petulant, halfway between knowing he should've known better and determined to dig in his heels and say this is fine.]

[ Does Ryoko look a little smug as she climbs off the bike? Perhaps. ]

It is the middle of winter. It makes me glad I wrapped up warm. [ You know. Like he didn't. ] Did you know it's forecasted to snow even more later?

[ It's extremely tempting to just let him suffer the consequences of his own voluntary actions and she does let him dither for a few moments before huffing a laugh to herself and starting to unwind some of her scarf. ]

Here. It's your own fault for dressing so lightly, but...

[ She's sure as hell not giving up her own coat but if he borrows some of her scarf and they huddle in a bit, he'll survive. ]

Tch. Weathermen are wrong sometimes.

[He really doesn't have any defense for himself here so he's just going to act like a brat about it for a few more moments.

He certainly feels a little warmer already at the suggestion Ryoko's making, though, glad that his face is already red from the cold wind on the drive here. He wraps the scarf around his neck—which means now he's wearing two, but it's worth looking a little silly given the circumstances, he thinks. He closes the gap between them, resisting the urge to just kind of drape himself over her shoulders and warm up that way.]

Besides, we'll be indoors for most of it. We'll see how bundling up treats you then, huh?

[Though he already knows how it's going to go down. The only possibility is she just hands him her stuff and he carries it.]

I can still take my scarf back, you know.

[ She's just kidding. ... she's probaby just kidding. She isn't taking it off him yet at least. Besides, with his face all huffy like that and the scarf bundled up around him, it's a little cute. ]

If you are too cold, though, we can get something warm to drink before we get started.

[ Though knowing Akira, he's stubborn enough that he might just try and power through anyway... ]

I didn't say that!

[Sure enough, he's taking the stubborn road here. He said it was cold, not that it was TOO cold, and there is somehow a difference between these two concepts large enough that Akira seems vaguely disgruntled at the assertion.]

If you wanna get something, I'll treat you, but I don't need anything. I'm feeling warmer already.

[It's a primal instinct in all teenage boys to want to look tough around the person you're sweet on and Akira is no exception.]

Ryoko Shinonome | 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim

@outpsyder

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