EE Chapter 12

# Chapter Twelve - "A Nice Romantic… Huh?"

### Junko

    Our second dinner at the Aihara ryokan was remarkable for two reasons. Firstly, the food was somehow even more delicious and plentiful than last night's feast. Megumi's father was able to join us and entertain us with stories about past visitors and quite a few famous actors, talents, or politicians who've stayed with them, going all the way back to names none of us, save Megumi, had any hope of recognizing. The room Kanon and I were sharing, it turns out, had previously been occupied by at least two movie stars, a gameshow host, part of a baseball team, a handful of local politicians, and that was just the names I could make sense of. Given it was hundreds of years old though, I have to imagine it was many more than that, and the weight of that much history in this small space could have felt oppressive if dwelled on for too long. Secondly, I managed to limit my indulgence to a single cup of sake as an aperitif, and so was able to enjoy the rest of the meal in a much more lively fashion. It also meant that I was completely clear headed tonight now that the meal was over, if not just as tired. Which was a good thing, because what I was seeing now was extremely confusing.

    "Junko, we need to talk to Megumi…"

    "Yeah. We probably should. Before she starts a rumor or something…"

    Our room as we found it upon our return was essentially the same as we had left it, with a few key alterations. Our futons had been laid out for us, just as we had expected they would be. However, instead of how they had been arranged last night - one on either side of the floor with a generous space in between - they were now placed together in the center of the room to form a single larger bed. True to her earlier word, Megumi had made sure that we had extra blankets - one folded and placed on either side of the nest that had been created for us. The room smelt sweeter than it had previously, and a quick survey revealed a small cone of incense burning on the small table under the window. Most obviously though, there was a scattering of flower petals leading from the room's entryway directly to the futons. Recalling the state of the garden outside, it seemed unlikely that they came from the inn's own supply, meaning someone had gone to the effort of sourcing fresh flowers this time of year just to do this. An effort which was very sweet and, yes, quite romantic, but also one which was wasted on this room's current occupants. I briefly wished I had indulged more at dinner. That way there was a chance I may have seen this as humorous rather than deeply embarrassing.

    Kanon didn't even respond outwardly to what we were seeing. She just turned around and exited into the hall. I heard the quiet sound of a sliding door opening and closing before she walked back into our room.

    "It's only our room…"

    "Right. So what should we do? Do you want to go get… um… or maybe…" Kanon gave me a look I was starting to know well. The look that meant *"Junko, what are you talking about?"*

    "I'm gonna get ready for bed..."

    Kanon went about the process of preparing to do just that, digging in her bags for her evening kit. I followed her lead, primarily because I didn't know what else to do, and if I didn't remove my makeup two nights in a row I'd undoubtedly end up regretting it. Why I was letting Kanon take the lead if I'm supposed to be the big sister, I don't know. She seemed to have a singular motivation - namely, getting to sleep - and it seemed easier to just get out of her way and follow in her wake. We ended up next to each other as we scrubbed our faces and did our bedtime skin routines, and she didn't show a hint of awkwardness. She even crawled under the covers like this was nothing unusual, taking the spot closest to the window.

    "Are you staying up?"

    "Ah, no… it's just…"

    Kanon rolled over and looked at me, trying to figure out the reason for my hesitation, once again making that face.

    "Isn't it a little strange?"

    "Not really… I share a bed with Chiyo most nights. Just don't kick too much and we'll be ok…"

    "You… share a…"

    "Momo needs space to run in her ball, and the futon is a pain to put away every morning…" She yawned and rolled over to face the wall, curling up in the blanket like a tiny, delicate porcelain doll. "And sometimes she has bad dreams and needs help calming down during the night…"

    "But isn't it… Don't you get…"

    She rolled back over again, now looking confused and annoyed in equal measures.

    "It's just sleeping… Nothing happens when you're sleeping…" Nothing happens when you're sleeping… an oddly sage statement from a very young girl. And one that impressed me quite a bit with its maturity. "I'd sleep next to anyone in the group… Even Eimi…" The yawns kept coming. I've never known anyone to sleep as much as Kanon, and even with an afternoon nap she was still fading fast. "I bet Eimi's really soft actually… probably really comfy… and it's just sleeping…"

    It was hard to argue with that sort of confidence, and I'll admit that I felt somewhat silly being so frazzled over such a basic human activity as sleep.

    "You can move yours if you want, but I'm going to sleep… 'Night…"

    I know it seems silly after what happened last night, but not everyone has the sort of cavalier attitude toward physical closeness that Kanon possesses. Sleeping that close to other people… really just letting my guard down that much at all… If not for the liquid enticement, I don't think there's any way I would have ended up in that position last night, and really there's no reason to be this embarrassed over just sleeping near another person…

    Given that, my hesitation seemed to be driven by rather absurd fears, even if my body didn't quite agree.

    I slid under the covers - why did they have to overlap the blankets like this - and tried to get comfortable. The sheets and blanket were pleasantly chilled, but I imagine that even on a dreadfully rainy night like this they'd warm up quickly. A hunch supported by the edge nearest Kanon already being noticeably warmer than the rest.

    "Stop being weird and go to sleep…"

    "S-Sorry."

    As I yawned, I became aware of the girl next to me just barely snoring. The small, shallow sound reminded me a lot of Artemis, and I thought about the last time I'd visited home - if I can even call it that, since it's been half a decade since I've lived there. Maybe it would be more precise to say that I miss the place that used to be my home, though I have no doubt that if the need arose I would always be welcome back in my old room with my old cat.

    Kanon's hair is white like Artemis'. I wonder if that's significant. She's not all that different, really. She sleeps a lot, she's particularly small, and she's awfully cute. Her "fur" is white as snow - at least the parts that aren't dyed, though I never even entertained the possibility of dying my beloved kitty, no matter how many times Rinko suggested he and I would look adorable in a matching pink - and she seems to adore cuddling. If I think about it like that it doesn't seem as strange. I guess a "little sister" isn't all that different from a pet cat. As I stared out the window, through the mostly bare branches and up at the crescent moon, the peculiarity of the situation I'd found myself in melted away and was replaced by a calm warmth of contentment. Even when Kanon rolled over and intruded on my mattress, I didn't mind. Nor did I recoil when she snuggled up next to me in her sleep so closely that we were sharing a pillow. Life was too complicated to be worried about something as sweet and innocent as this. Fate had seen fit to give me this new responsibility, even if neither of us had asked for it, and who was I to argue that it had made a mistake.

    If Kanon and I were meant to be sisters, it seems more haughty than I'm comfortable with to insist that I know any better.

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