“No fair, Ling! He should come with me instead!”

  “Now wait right there! Was it not my idea to begin with?”

  “No, it was mine. I can’t let my bride wander off alone.” Laura nodded to punctuate her insistence. Above the insistent demand, though, one person came up with a compromise.

  “Why don’t we all go to different places? I mean, we were supposed to split up into groups of two anyway,” Charlotte suggested.

  “I guess? I don’t mind.”

  Charlotte chuckled, “If it’s fine with you, Mr. Cameraman.”

  “I just hope I do my subjects justice.” Their banter, though, was cut short by another round of ‘Me! Me!’

  “You can take a picture of me, Ichika.”

  “Get me, Ichika!”

  “You know I was a model in England.”

  “Ah, Ichika. I’m sure whatever you choose will be wonderful.”

  “Ichika... Don’t forget me...”

  The pressure of hearing his own name over and over was beginning to get to him.

  “Okay, okay, fine, I get it! Just pair up!”

  As Kanzashi frowned, Charlotte wrapped an arm around her.

  “I’ll go with Kanzashi.”

  “Ah... Thanks...”

  Everyone was impressed by her concern for Kanzashi’s difficulty in pairing up.

  “Then I’ll go with Ling.”

  “The childhood friends team, huh. Works for me.”

  Houki and Ling.

  “Which would leave myself and Laura.”

  “Looks like it. Let’s enjoy ourselves.”

  Last but not least, Cecilia and Laura.

  “Anyway, we’ll head out after we decide on our spots. Ichika, you can go ahead, we’ll text you.”

  “Got it. See you later, then.”

  As Charlotte and the others waved goodbye, Ichika ambled down the road. This being autumn in Kyoto, there were throngs of sightseers around.

  “Well, this is a mess. Guess I should take a detour.” Ducking down an alleyway between two houses, Ichika spotted a white cat staring at him. “......?”

  It mewed as if beckoning him to follow, and he did, almost as if entranced. I wonder where it’s going to lead me. Passing out of the alley, he found himself following a narrow back street, then climbing a flight of stairs. Before he’d noticed, 30 minutes had passed.

  Okay, that’s about enough. Charl should be texting me any minute. Just then, the cat leapt into the air.

  “There you are, Shiny.” A woman, who must have been the cat’s owner, called out what must have been its name.

  Her appearance was striking. Over one eye, she wore the handguard of a katana in the same way as Date Masamune. Her kimono was peeled back from her shoulders, open so low as to be nearly indecent. And attached to her right shoulder was nothing but a scarred stump. The one-armed, one-eyed woman puffed from a long pipe.

  She’s not Japanese, is she? Not with hair that red. That much was obvious. Her height, which would have been unbelievable for a Japanese woman, was only accentuated by the stiletto heels which provided a counterpoint to her kimono.

  “Well, well. You look like trouble.”

  “Huh?”

  Another deep puff, purple smoke swirling around the mature beauty. Ichika was at a loss, having never been in a situation like this.

  “Mmm. How should I put it? Woman trouble, usually. With a chance of bullets. It’s written all over your face.”

  “...Huh?”

  “Take care of yourself, you hear? Anyway—”

  The cat perched on her shoulder, she spun around her kimono, as red as her hair, and made her exit.

  “What the heck was that?” The sound of an incoming text stirred Ichika from his reverie.

  [Ichika, we found a patisserie and it looks absolutely scrumptious. See you there!]

  The included map, complete with ‘Here!’ circled in red, was definitely a Charl touch.

  “All right, now to type that into Maps...” With cell phones what they were now, all he had to do was feed it the address and it would find the quickest route. Watching the projection display out of the corner of his eye, Ichika set off.

  “Hmm... Ah, that’s some beautiful foliage.”

  Snap. As he made his way there, Ichika snapped landscape after landscape on his film camera.

  ◇

  “Hey, Ichika! Over here!” Charlotte waved her arm energetically. Next to her, Kanzashi tentatively raised her hand.

  “Oh, wow!”

  What caught Ichika’s eye was their kimono— Charl’s a bright orange, Kanzashi’s a cool, relaxing pale blue. Each was printed with the crimson leaves of autumn, Charl’s hanging from branches as Kanzashi’s floated on the ‘water’ of her outfit. Each had a matching, calming beige belt.

  “Ahaha, awesome! The guy selling candy was giving out free samples to girls wearing kimono! Thanks so much for picking one for me, and doing my hair to match.”

  “I... I mean, everyone probably knows that much...” That kind of self-deprecation definitely marked her as just as much a Sarashiki as Tatenashi was.

  “Really, though. I can’t believe how well it works on me. Mind if we get a picture?” Charl giggled. “Mr. Cameraman. If you don’t mind.”

  “I’ll do my best...” Embarrassedly, Ichika raised his camera. “All right, here I go. Say cheese!”

  Charl looked confused as the shutter snapped and said, “Cheese?”

  “Huh?”

  “Why is it cheese, anyway?”

  “Why? I dunno, but she probably does.” Even Kanzashi was a little confused when Ichika made her think about it.

  “I’m not sure. A tradition, I guess?” she replied.

  “I thought the Japanese didn’t really like cheese though.”

  “I mean, uhhh...” Charlotte didn’t mean anything offensive by it, but that was still a pretty awkward comment for Ichika and Kanzashi. If only because it had them wondering about why, exactly, ‘cheese’ was the word.

  “I mean, I guess since you’re French, you’d know more about cheese, but...”

  “Wait, really? I mean, I’ve made it before, but...” Charlotte cupped her chin in a palm.

  “Wait, Charl, you know how to make cheese?”

  “That’s amazing!”

  As the Japanese duo lit up, she awkwardly tried to wave them off.

  “No, no, it’s not like you think! I just did something in Home Ec, it’s not like I’m an expert or anything!” Charlotte just couldn’t stand both Ichika and Kanzashi looking up at her, their eyes twinkling, and she tried to change the subject. “What’s that compared to being able to tell which fish are good? I guess all Japanese people can do that.”

  “Eh?!”

  Their sweetfish skewers must have given her the wrong idea.

  “N-No way! We can’t really do that, right, Kanzashi?”

  “Well, umm... I mean, I can...” Kanzashi awkwardly flashed a V-sign. “Can’t you, Ichika?”

  “Uh, I mean, I can’t do it like an expert, but I guess I can pick out good things for dinner.”

  “What do you mean ‘like an expert,’ Ichika?”

  “Umm... Like, blowfish and stuff?” Ichika was just waiting for the ‘oh, you mean someone who literally needs a license’ from Charlotte or Kanzashi.

  “Anyway, why don’t we try out some of the desserts? The mochi dumplings look great.”

  “They looked absolutely mouthwatering.” All else aside, Kanzashi couldn’t be wrong about something like that, and Ichika ducked under the red curtain of the cart selling them before sitting down.

  “Hey, let me get a picture of the two of you eating them.”

  “Really? Of that?”

  “Yes, Charlotte. It’ll be a way to remember our trip.” It was rare for Kanzashi to be so insistent, and Charlotte nodded.

  “Well, what if I said ‘please,’ Mr. Cameraman?”

  “Okay!” Ichika lined up the two of them in front of a grove of bamboo in the viewfinder, then looked up.

  “Wait, what’s wrong?” Charlotte looked at him quizzically.

  “I... I just think it could be more striking.”

  “Striking?”

  “Like, you mean...” She tilted her head as she waited for Ichika’s answer.

  “I know! Why don’t you feed each other? It’d be really cute!” Charlotte and Kanzashi weren’t quite sure what he meant, but the implications were enough to make them blush.

  “Oh, really, you’re into that, Ichika?”

  “Are you sure we’re not overthinking this?”

  “Nah, it’ll be perfect!” Ichika tried to distract them from what they were thinking about his motivations with a pair of dumpling skewers, dripping with sauce.

  “Ichika, you pervert...”

  “You’re a creep. Not that I mind.”

  Blushes from both sides.

  “Okay, here goes.”

  “Hold on a sec!”

  “Charlotte, if you keep waving that around you’re going to get sauce—eek!”

  The sauce from Charl’s dumplings went flying onto Kanzashi’s face. Seeing his chance, Ichika hit the shutter.

  “Oh, wow, this one’s great!”

  “What?! No, no! Delete that one, Ichika!”

  “Uh, I mean, it’s a film camera... He’s gonna have to at least have it processed...”

  “And a couple more!”

  Snap! Snap! Snap! The lens of the camera gleamed as he shot over and over. Whether he was serious about it or not, though, Charlotte and Kanzashi weren’t enthused about being the butt of the joke.

  “C’mon, Ichika, did you really have to?”

  “That’s pushing it.”

  Angrily, they stuffed each of their skewers into his mouth. If nothing else, it gave new meaning to ‘verbal abuse.’

  “Gwmph?!” With two skewers in his mouth, Ichika could barely breathe. “I can’t breathe! Agh!”

  “Whatever.”

  “Serves you right.”

  Charlotte and Kanzashi both spun away, disgusted with Ichika. All he could do was put the camera away.

  Chapter II: Double Classic! Sometimes Traditional, Sometimes Elegant

  “That was so mean...” Ichika was still coughing as he walked with Ling and Houki. Houki on the left, Ling on the right. Flowers in both hands, indeed.

  “If you managed to annoy Charlotte and Kanzashi, of all people, you probably deserved it.”

  “Yeah. Ichika, you really need to learn to keep it in your pants.”

  “Hey, all I did was take a picture! I’m the victim here!”

  Yeah, no one was buying it.

  “.........”

  “.........”

  “You don’t have to give me the silent treatment! C’mon, don’t be so mean!”

  It was, of course, his own fault.

  “Anyway, where are we going?”

  Ling was kind enough to answer Ichika’s change of subject, “We’re in Kyoto, right? So we’ve gotta go to Kamogawa!”

  Ling pointed a finger dead ahead—toward the banks of the Kamogawa river, otherwise known as the hottest date spot in town. It was sure to be swarming with couples.

  “Yeah! Definitely Kamogawa!” Houki nodded in unison.

  “Mhm. So— I can get the pictures now, then?” Ichika rounded the viewfinder on Houki.

  “Wait, hold on a minute! You’re just trying to get away from us as quick as you can, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah, Ichika! Don’t you want to have some fun?”

  “I guess. Hey, there’s an open spot over there, why don’t we sit down?” Ichika let the camera hang around his neck as he sat down. “I’ve only got one handkerchief, though. Houki, Ling, which one of you wants it?”

  “Oh, I’m fine.”

  “Me too.”

  Both of them were happy just with Ichika thinking of it.

  The three quietly sat, listening to the murmur of the river. Flower in each hand or no, nothing rose to Ichika’s tongue.

  “C’mon, say something, Ichika!” At Ling’s prompting, he suddenly managed to come up with a topic.

  “Oh, right! Didn’t we roast sweet potatoes in the fallen leaves once? That’s a really fall thing.”

  “Ichika...” The more enthusiastically he spoke, the more Houki’s face clouded. Not least because of her memories of roasting sweet potatoes in fallen leaves with him at Shinonono Shrine. Whether or not it was a good idea for the two, with Chifuyu and Tabane and her parents gone, to be tending a fire together.

  “It’s not hot enough, we should put in more leaves!”

  This did not turn out as they planned. Ichika was officially banned by Chifuyu from ever roasting sweet potatoes again, in fact.

  “Huh? What happened?”

  “Oh, whatever! Stop bringing up stuff from back then!”

  And it was a given that Houki wouldn’t want to hear about it. Chifuyu may well have been a demon, with how angry she got. Houki would certainly never forget her face.

  “Wait, that mess when we tried to roast chestnuts wasn’t your first time?”

  “Ahahaha...”

  “‘Ahaha’ isn’t an answer!” Ling blanched as she thought back to it. “Chifuyu was piiiiiiiissed, too. I don’t think I’ll ever forget her face.”

  That was in sixth grade. It was Ichika’s idea, when he found a pile of wild chestnuts while they were raking up outside their elementary school.

  “These are tasty if we roast them!”

  Ling hadn’t disagreed, per se, but the fire was definitely Ichika’s idea.

  “It’s not hot enough, we should put in more leaves!”

  After that, Chifuyu had banned Ichika from fires, completely, for life. And Ling would never forget her face then, either.

  “Yeah, not a lot of good memories about bonfires.”

  “Agreed.”

  Good kids should never light a fire without an adult present.

  “It’s pretty chilly along riverbanks at this time of year.”

  “Should we go somewhere else, then?”

  “No, wait! That’s not what I meant...”

  “......?”

  Ling and Houki kept Ichika from leaving as they opened up a private channel between each other.

  “What the hell are you doing?! This is our chance to get Ichika for ourselves!”

  “I know, I know! But... I just, I’m just a little nervous...” They each glanced over at Ichika.

  “It is chilly, isn’t it.”

  “Yeah. It is,” they intoned, as if trying to make a point, as Ichika stood up.

  “I know! Hold on a sec!” Suddenly, he ran off toward the nearby shopping district. Ling and Houki could only watch in shock.

  “What the hell is he doing?! Where’s he going?!”

  “It wasn’t my fault!”

  “Then whose was it?!”

  “Grrrrr...”

  “Grrrrrrrrrrrr...”

  As they glared at each other, Ichika came trotting back.

  “Sorry about that. Here you go.” He plopped matching hats on their heads. Berets, to fit over Ling’s twin tails and Houki’s ponytail.

  “That should warm you up.”

  Ling and Houki weren’t sure how to react to the sudden presents.

  “Umm...”

  “How much were they?”

  “It’s no big deal. I have a budget from the student council, it’s more than enough.”

  They had no answer to Ichika’s gleaming smile.

  “Th-Thanks, I guess... I really needed one of those.”

  “Yeah. I’ll have to wear it on weekends. Yeah, that’ll work.”

  “Hahaha, oh, and— Lemme get a picture!”

  Unenthusiastically or not, Ichika managed to get Ling and Houki to line up in front of the river.

  “Say cheese!”

  As the shutter snapped, an awkward smile floated to each of their faces.

  ◇

  “All right, Laura and Cecilia, you two are up next. Where are we going?” Ichika had no sooner sent the text when a rickshaw skidded to a halt in front of him. “Whoa! What the—”

  He couldn’t help but yelp in surprise. As he did, voices from inside called out to him, “We’ve arrived to pick you up, Ichika.”

  “Get in!”

  Two young blonde ladies in full regal gowns, their smiles glimmering as brightly as tiaras, looked out at him. The violet of their dresses was as vivid as the red autumn leaves beneath the shawls wrapped around their shoulders.

  “Hey, you look great. Dresses in Kyoto are a nice contrast. Hold on, lemme get a picture.” Ichika snapped the shutter, trying to capture the image of the two in a rickshaw as Cinderellas in a carriage... And then, suddenly realized something.

  “Huff... Puff...” The man gasping for air between the poles of the rickshaw had a suspiciously-familiar shock of red hair.

  “Hold it, Dan? Dan, is that you? What the hell are you doing all the way out here?!”

  “Oh, hey. I got a job that took me out here... Had to because of, you know... Well, you remember from your birthday party. Can’t believe my past is already catching up with me, ahahaha.”

  “Don’t just laugh something like that off! C’mon, we need you around to keep an eye on Ran. She’s growing up fast, you know?”

  “You’re the last guy in the world I wanted to hear that from.”

  A third mouth opened, about to interject its own opinion in the two boys’ half-argument—the muzzle of a ‘meter’ Mauser C96 with a jaw-droppingly elongated barrel.

  “You’d think you were happier to see him than us. Hurry up and get in, Ichika.”

  “Okay, okay, fine! Just, where did you get that huge thing?!”

  “Oh, this? I just did a fashion shoot in Germany the other day, and they gave me it to use then. It’s fully-operational, of course.”

  “‘Fully-operational, of course’?! Don’t you mean it’s just a prop, of course?!”

  “Hmm. It may as well be, I guess. I’m not a fan of anything this long. It’s less functional.”

  “Oh? I rather like it. After all, it’s got such a history behind it.”

 

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