[ic] Inbox

[diffidentive]

"You've reached Saihara Shuichi, leave me a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

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Comments

[diffidentive]

[Yes, actually. That does make it even nicer, and brings a weird sort of swooping sensation to his stomach. He's just going to ignore that odd felling for now, because he's not sure what to make of it.]

Um...well I'm not very artistic but...I can try and make one. It doesn't have to be good, right?

[slieght]

[Don't ignore that, it's a good feeling!]

Mm! What matters most is the feeling you put into it. There's no grading or judging or anything.

[diffidentive]

M-mm, alright then.

[He will try his best! To make an ornament! For the tree!!]

[Lead the way, Kokichi. Not that...he can't plainly see the tree and therefore knows exactly where they're headed.]

[slieght]

[Lead the way he does! Predictably to the tree, where tools to carve ornaments are set up. Kokichi looks over their options, then turns to the detective.]

There are a few places to sit it looks like! Do you wanna sit closer to the tree you think?

[diffidentive]

Um...wherever you want to sit is fine with me. I don't...really have a preference.

[Wow this tree is even bigger up close. Like. He knew it was huge, but there's just something about standing RIGHT FUCKING NEXT TO IT that makes it seem all the more colossal. Perhaps because he has to crane his neck back to look at it. And even then, it's impossible to make out the top.]

[slieght]

[Humming, Shuichi's tugged over to sit closer to the tree, Kokichi picking two chairs side by side.]

Let's sit here then!

[diffidentive]

Alright. Though... Don't we need to get...tools and such first...?

25th

[hxppythxughts]

[A messily-wrapped box, with Shuichi's name written directly on the colorful paper. There's a handmade card on top, decorated with stickers and doodles of wintry images like snow, gingerbread men, etc. It's not properly signed, but the signature isn't necessary. On one side of the interior:]

Tall green trees in lights twinkling bright,
Sparkling strands of tinsel and snow pure white,
The smell of hot cocoa and apple cider too,
A very merry Candlenights, from Sayori to you!
[And then on the other side:]

I hope you like the book! I figured since you're like a super detective that you might like that kind of story. I don't know if it'll be challenging enough but I did my best! I made sure to read it too, so we can talk about it when you're done if you want! I think it'd be fun.

[Inside the box is a nice pair of gloves and a mystery novel about a jewel theft.]

audio; 25th!!

[gotyourbach]

[Presumably, Shuichi is rather busy the day of the 25th. Kaede is pretty busy herself, what with as heavily as she's involved herself in the New New Aspen preparations! So she'll give him a call sometime during the day.]

Saihara-kun! When you have time, can we meet up in the music room? I have a Candlenights gift for you! It's not a big deal, but... there's something I'd really like to give you.

present!

[feytality]

[ shuichi will find a book on botany, a handmade ornament of him, and a card from maya wishing him happy candlenights! the card is full of doodles of him in various posing, for example: him with kokichi, him watering yggdrasil, him shooting lasers out of his fingers, and etc. the card details how smart and compassionate maya thinks he is, how she's happy to have him as a teammate, and wishes him happiness and safety. ]

audio;

[diffidentive]

[Apparently Shuichi was pretty busy on Candlenights as well, because it's nearly seven o'clock in the evening before he finally calls Kaede back. But since the pianist was in New New Aspen...it's entirely possible that she has at least some idea of why it took him so long to respond. Because he'd spent the afternoon and early evening with Kokichi, and it's entirely possible that Kaede saw them while they were eating dinner, shopping in a little bookstore, or carving ornaments at the tree.]

[Weirdly though, Shuichi doesn't mention this fact when he finally DOES call Kaede back.]

Ah, I'm sorry. I just got your message, Akamatsu-san... [Not a lie, technically. He hadn't checked his voicemail while he was out with Kokichi since that seemed like kind of a rude thing to do on a date?] But I'm free right now, if it's not too late.

[gotyourbach]

Presents don't expire, you know...

[There's a hint of a pout in her voice, though. She had seen him out with Kokichi, and she's a little hurt she wasn't invited along! He hadn't even checked his phone to invite her, otherwise he'd have seen her message!

Well, as long as her friends had fun, she guesses that's the most important thing.]

I'll meet you in the music room in a couple minutes, then! Oh, wait... maybe in half an hour? I want to practice a little...

[diffidentive]

[Yeeeaahhhh...it would have been incredibly awkward to invite you along though, Kaede. Literally a third wheel situation.]

I know! I just...didn't want to interrupt if you were in the middle of something with Arisato-kun. That's all.

[Because Candlenights is Christmas and Christmas is for couples, so SURELY they are doing something special together. Surely.]

But sure, I can meet you in half an hour.

[Though she has now kind of given away what the present is by saying she wants to practice. She's going to play something for him, surely.]

[gotyourbach]

[She snorts, then giggles. Being in the middle of something with Minato, more like Kaede incessantly nagging him to do something other than just nap in his room.]

I already gave him his present first thing in the morning, Saihara-kun. And I've already told you, you're never interrupting us!

I'll see you there!!

[When Shuichi gets to the music room, Kaede is of course already there, reviewing some handwritten sheets of music in front of the piano. Asking him to meet her in the music room already kind of ruined the surprise to begin with, but it's not like she was expecting it to be too much of a surprise, anyway.

Entirely focused on the sheet music, while she hears Shuichi's footsteps, she doesn't think to turn around and acknowledge him just yet. There's a chair set beside her piano bench, though, which she's intended for him to sit at.]

[slieght]

You sit down, I'll get them! Don't worry about a thing.

[He knew they needed tools, but he'd apparently planned on doing that part of the work himself.]

25th.

[protegge]

[Happy Candlenights! Shuichi receives: Packets of vegetable seeds (cucumber, tomato, carrot — you know, the most basic vegetables). One enormous sugar cookie (cookie cake?) that looks like Kaede's face.]

[diffidentive]

[Okay, that's a little odd. Not giving him his present first thing, that totally checks out. But wouldn't they do more than that?? Or are they fully celebrating Candlenights, rather than Christmas? Since that doesn't actually seem to be a couple's holiday at all, but something closer to the Western version of the holiday.]

[Weird.]

[Anyway, he shows up in half an hour as promised, walking slowly and quietly towards the piano...he doesn't want to startle her or anything.]

Um...A-Akamatsu-san?

[diffidentive]

Erm...o-okay.

[He'll just. Sit down then. And wait. Yup. Okay.]

[gotyourbach]

Oh! Right.

[She sits up straighter and hastily grabs the sheet music. She gives him a bright smile and clutches the paper close to her chest, as if 1) he doesn't know there's music involved and 2) it would somehow spoil it if he saw the notation. Neither of which are true in the least.]

Sorry, I lost track of time... are you having a good Candlenights, Saihara-kun? It's pretty different, huh?

[diffidentive]

[Yeah, Kaede, he can't read music. Most he could read is the title, if you wrote one of those. Silly.]

Ah...y-yeah it's...very different. [That's one way to put it. He scratches the back of his head.] I didn't realize it was so much closer to the Western version of Christmas than ours. I uh...wasn't expecting presents...

[A beat.]

How has yours been?

[gotyourbach]

Oh! Yeah... I guess I should have explained better, huh? I mean, last year when I had my first Candlenights, it was kind of the same for me. Oh, but we'd just finished our first mission, so it's not like I'd had any time to get presents for anyone then anyway..

[She's rambling, a little nervous, hugging the music close to her chest.]

It's been good! Everyone's gotten me really nice things... Mista-kun got me more hairpins, and Sayori-san and Wash-san got me brooches, and Aragaki-kun got me a music box... ummm...

[Notably missing is Minato, who got her exactly nothing for Candlenights. She trails off, takes a breath, fingers tightening around the edges of the sheet music, and then abruptly hands it over. Almost smacks him with it, really, as she blurts,]

I've been working on this for a really long time, and I wanted to give it to you! I'm sorry I didn't wrap it or anything...

[It's handwritten sheet music, penned in neat script. It looks like it was originally written in pencil, some pieces smudged out or erased, and then later traced over a final time with pen. There's no title, just a roman numeral I at the top and Akamatsu K. underneath. On the right of the title page, it reads For Saihara Shuichi.]