When the snowflakes fell, the New Year arrived as well.
To welcome the New Year, the Arisu family began preparing early.
They placed Onbashira at the entrance, hung up Shimenawa, warding off evil spirits and inviting the New Year’s God.
“No matter how busy work gets, you can’t forget the importance of ritual,” the Arisu couple bustled about the kitchen, making Osechi Ryouri.
Yoriko Arisu leaned at the doorway, curiously watching, and was even fed a leftover tempura shrimp.
She chewed, swallowed, and closed her eyes in happiness.
“Delicious!”
This year, both the Arisu family and the Kotsume family didn’t return to the Capital for the New Year.
Instead, they gathered together, ate Soba Noodles, and watched the Kouhaku Uta Gassen.
Yoriko Arisu felt that watching people sing and dance on the Screen was much more boring than watching cartoons.
As she watched, she kept yawning, but she was looking forward to the Fireworks they had bought earlier, so she forced herself to stay awake, even to the point that her eyes teared up.
She wiped away her involuntary tears and squeezed next to Kenma Kotsume, her voice soft and sleepy, “Kenma, if I fall asleep… huuah… you have to wake me up, okay.”
“I still want to… mm… set off Fireworks.”
“It seems our Little Princess can’t resist the invitation of the Crown Prince of Sleepiness,” teased Shota Arisu, who happened to witness the scene.
He picked up his daughter high, then held her tight when she squealed in surprise.
Miwako Kotsume made a show of getting up, “Then let’s go set off Fireworks first. The sooner we go, the sooner we’ll be back, and Yoriko can sleep a little more.”
Yoriko Arisu protested, “I’m not going to sleep! I still want to hear the bell ring!”
Yurihana Arisu tapped her on the forehead, “You said the same thing last year, but you fell asleep even earlier than usual.”
Yoriko Arisu grumbled and hid in her father’s arms, muttering in a small voice, “This year’s different. I’ve grown up.”
Kentaro Kotsume smiled and said, “It really is different. Yoriko managed to stay up until the Kouhaku Uta Gassen started.”
Laughter filled the air.
“It’s late, and it’ll be cold outside. Kenma, come here, let me wrap a scarf around you,” Yurihana Arisu called him over, pulling out this year’s New Year’s gift and putting it on Kenma Kotsume.
The Pikachu-style scarf was a bright yellow, with long ends that could be used as gloves, and a hat with Pikachu’s smiling face.
Yurihana Arisu carefully put the hat on his head, and—biu—the two ears stood straight up.
“Wow, Kenma, you look so cute!”
Yoriko Arisu wriggled out of her father’s arms, ran up to Kenma Kotsume, and stared at her childhood friend in his Pikachu outfit.
“Can I touch your ears?”
Kenma Kotsume warily took a step back and instinctively touched his own ear, “…Ears?”
“Pikachu’s ears! Go look in the mirror.”
Yoriko Arisu simply took his hand and led him to the bathroom.
Kenma Kotsume looked in the mirror.
The little boy with center-parted black hair stared at his reflection with a blank face.
On his head sat Pikachu, grinning with red cheeks, making even his usual cool expression look cute.
Yoriko Arisu: “Can I touch them?”
“Go ahead.”
Kenma Kotsume nodded, and the ears on the hat wobbled as well.
Being touched on the ears felt strange—it was part of him, yet not really his own body.
Especially since Yoriko Arisu kept exclaiming “Ooh wow!” as she patted them, Kenma Kotsume started to feel shy for no reason at all.
He shrank his neck a little.
“Where’s your scarf?”
He figured Yurihana Arisu wouldn’t only buy one. He was curious what Yoriko Arisu’s looked like.
“Wait a second.”
Yoriko Arisu pitter-pattered away.
“Mom! I want to wear my scarf too!”
When Yoriko Arisu came back, two pointed ears had appeared on her head as well.
They were Eevee’s.
The long brown ears looked a bit like a rabbit’s.
Kenma Kotsume curiously touched her ears, and Yoriko Arisu imitated the Pokémon’s voice, “Eevee~”
Kenma Kotsume jumped back in surprise and let go, “Why’d you do that all of a sudden!”
Yoriko Arisu touched her own face in confusion, “Didn’t I sound like it?”
Kenma Kotsume thought: That’s exactly why it was cute.
Kenma Kotsume: “It’s nothing.”
A voice called from outside the door, “Yoriko—Kenma—it’s time to go out.”
Yoriko Arisu turned her head, “Got it—!”
She grabbed Kenma Kotsume’s hand again, and dashed out, “Let’s go, let’s set off Fireworks!”
“Oh right, let’s call Kuro too?”
After stepping outside, Yoriko Arisu said, “It’s more fun with more people.”
And so, the group gained +1.
The yard was too small for Fireworks, so they went to the nearby Park.
It was late, and cold, so there wasn’t another person in sight.
The warmth and excitement was all theirs.
Miwako Kotsume laughed, “Feels like we have the place all to ourselves.”
Setting off skyward Fireworks was forbidden in the residential area.
All they could use were hand-held and fountain-type.
The adults huddled in the open space, figuring out how to light them, while the children kept their distance and waited.
For some reason, Tetsurou Kuroo didn’t seem very enthusiastic tonight.
His usual smile was gone, and he responded slowly when spoken to.
Yoriko Arisu worriedly touched his forehead, then her own, “No fever…”
Kenma Kotsume kept both hands in his pockets, firmly refusing to let any skin except his face be exposed to the cold air.
“Maybe he’s got something on his mind?”
After being stared at by his two childhood friends for a while, the distracted Tetsurou Kuroo suddenly snapped back to attention, “Wh-what’s wrong? Why are you staring at me?”
Yoriko Arisu imitated Kenma’s tone, “Kuro, do you have something on your mind?”
Tetsurou Kuroo gave an awkward laugh, “N-no, not at all. Hey, the Fireworks are starting, let’s watch!”
Very suspicious.
Yoriko Arisu and Kenma Kotsume exchanged a glance, but decided to let it go.
In the dark, the whistling Fireworks soared like rising Christmas trees, the tiny sparks they scattered looked like golden snowflakes, quickly disappearing.
The dazzling gold gleamed against the night, constantly shifting shape.
After the Christmas tree, the pearl tree, the golden tree, and another Christmas tree, darkness returned.
“Fireworks are really beautiful,” Yoriko Arisu said, completely satisfied.
Yurihana Arisu made the same expression, “Are there more? Should we go back now?”
“There are still Sparklers, want to play with them?”
Miwako Kotsume shook the bag in her hand.
Yoriko Arisu & Yurihana Arisu: “Yes!”
Yoriko Arisu excitedly grabbed three Sparklers and rushed back to her friends.
Kenma Kotsume eyed the bare sticks, “We don’t have fire.”
Yoriko Arisu let out an annoyed “Ah!”, but Shota Arisu noticed and came over, smiling, with a box of Matchsticks.
The three little ones squatted in a circle on the ground, tiny flames blossoming at their fingertips.
Tetsurou Kuroo finally spoke up, “Do we just watch it burn like this?”
Yoriko Arisu thought for a moment, “Then let’s make a wish!”
Yoriko Arisu: “I hope I’ll be able to write essays someday!”
Tetsurou Kuroo: “I hope I get better at volleyball.”
Kenma Kotsume: “…I hope I can grow taller.”
Yoriko Arisu & Tetsurou Kuroo: “Eh?!”
Kenma Kotsume huffed, “What?!”
Yoriko Arisu: “Didn’t know you cared about your height so much… Sorry, I was wrong, don’t be mad!”
After the three Sparklers burned out, Yoriko Arisu was still a bit unsatisfied.
She quickly picked up a bag from beside her feet, “Let’s do it again!”
Kenma Kotsume was startled, “Where’d you pull that from?”
“Dad gave it to me when he helped light the fire. I’ve got Matchsticks too.”
She quickly produced the Matchsticks.
Kenma Kotsume: “No, my hands are freezing.”
Just one Sparkler and his hands were already numb from the cold.
Yoriko Arisu: “You should’ve said so sooner. I’ll give you one of my gloves.”
Kenma Kotsume: “Then let’s set off one more.”
That night, they played with Fireworks to their hearts’ content—even their dreams were filled with golden little snowflakes.
When they woke up the next day, the world outside was covered with white snowflakes.
On the ground, rooftops, trees—everywhere the eye could see was blanketed in thick snow.
It was a world of pure white.
Yoriko Arisu pressed against the window, her palm leaving a foggy patch on the glass.
She stared wide-eyed at the transformed world and let out a cry of wonder, “I want to build a snowman!”
It was the first time she’d ever seen so much snow!
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