saudade; raiden ei

xʟᴠ. hotpot

"Hehe, you came, Y/n!"

She slid into the chair beside Ayaka, eyes glued dejectedly to the ominously bubbling pot between them. Her smile was strained. "Oh, joy."

"Are you sure this is edible?" Kazuha, on the other hand, held naive scepticism. His voice remained soothing even when uncertain, like the temperate hum of a purring feline. She wondered whether it was fixed that way.

Thoma chuckled in disbelief. "Kazuha, my friend, you can't seriously be implying that you're a hot pot virgin."

The soldier placed one leg over another, her fingers grazing her chin whilst she moved to rest it on her palm. "Leave him alone. He's blessed."

Ayaka giggled beside her whilst the blonde boy pouted, but he made a point to explain the rules again anyway: "Our version of hot pot is an amusing game for all types of players! I mean, excluding the wet blanket over there, but you'll learn not to worry about her opinion; she's just a rotten soul. Each player drops an ingredient in the pot, and then we mix. You close your eyes whilst tasting the soup to figure out which belongs to whom, and whoever guesses correctly gets another turn. Whoever finishes their meal with the most points is declared the winner; doesn't that sound fun?"

The soldier kicked him under the table for his remark, but he acted as though he didn't notice.

Carefully, Kazuha looked at Y/n. She stared back blankly, so he looked at Ayaka, who eyed him with pity. The rules were as clear as their attitudes; he was about to withdraw from the game when Thoma clasped his hands before him. The 'fixer' rose sharply to his feet with a brief but customary bow. "May the God of Hot Pot smile upon us."

The two girls didn't rise but quietly mimicked his actions and echoed his words. With that, the round had begun, and the four of them took turns mixing their components into the pot of indigestion. Ayaka was the first to taste the blend; she grasped an ingredient with her chopsticks and took a small bite out of courtesy. Instantly, she covered her mouth with her sleeve, coughing a few times.

"Dendrobrium... The blood flower from the battlefields. It's scorched and tasteless but unpleasantly damp from the boiling. Surely they're inedible?"

"If so, how would you recognise their taste?" Kazuha tilted his head.

"It's as foul as their scent," the girl shuddered. "Commemorated death."

"Unfortunately, that's incorrect, hehe." Thoma smiled at her encouragingly when she opened her eyes. "It's Naku Weed; Kazuha brought it from his travels. Keep trying, though, milady. You'll get it next time; I'm certain."

Ayaka only smiled at him kindly, not sharing his enthusiasm. Just Thoma remained oblivious to the intention behind this loss. "Ah. It seems I'm cursed with misfortune, but you have my thanks. It's your turn next, Y/n."

She hesitated as their eyes fell to her expectantly. Y/n exhaled upon closing her eyes, and slowly but surely, she brought an ingredient to her lips. "Seagrass!"

Three pairs of eyebrows shot up when she called out almost immediately.

"Y/n! You didn't even taste it!" Thoma whined.

"You can't prove that," she huffed. "It touched my lips, and I tasted salt."

"Did not."

"Did, too. Are you suggesting I'm a cheat?"

"Thoma," Ayaka interrupted with a sigh. "She guessed correctly, right? She must have tasted it if even a little."

"What?" At this, the soldier's eyes snapped open. Indeed, wrapped around her chopsticks was an innocent blade of seagrass; somehow, she was entitled to another turn. "F—"

✧:･ﾟﾟ･

The moon was high by the time their game came to a close. Y/n and Ayaka had defected into a private competition of who could pretend to participate most convincingly, and the boys had kept each other too occupied to notice. Kazuha had proved to be a strong competitor and made Thoma step up, at least for a short while.

The 'fixer' had been delighted to see a genuine spirit and began to take the game seriously. Naturally, Kazuha didn't last this way for long, and he'd emerged victorious. The shorter boy had excused himself in pale remorse after biting into a Lizard Tail; Thoma remained seated at the table, giddy with adrenaline and eternally unreflective of past experiences.

The princess and the soldier gazed patiently at him from across its surface, the former with her lips hiding behind her palms. Ayaka rested her elbows on the table, and Y/n was similar, her posture much lazier as she supported her head on one of hers. As expected, their friend quickly surrendered to a groan when his excitement subsided.

"You never learn, do you?" The soldier was unsympathetic. "How many more times must we play this hot pot game before you're convinced to stop?"

"It's g- good training for my stomach, haha..." He whimpered. "I think I see Celestia..."

"Thoma..." Ayaka sighed. "Your logic is confounding. Why don't we play a safer game next time?"

Y/n agreed: "We could always watch a film."

"Ugh... Yeah, yeah. You choose; I need to lie down..." He quickly scurried away in Kazuha's footsteps, and the pair were alone again. Ayaka and Y/n remained in steady silence, taking a moment to breathe. When they made eye contact again, they laughed.

"Men are always so competitive."

"No, I think it's just Thoma..." Y/n recalled her friend's face and erupted into a fresh fit of giggles, concealing the laugh behind her hand. Gazing at her filled Ayaka's eyes with light; she hadn't seen her soldier like this for a long time. "Oh, my memories didn't do this game justice..."

"It's better?" The Kamisato princess smiled at her gently.

"Archons, no. It's so much worse," the soldier responded, conjuring further amusement before they lapsed into comfortable silence again.

"I'm glad you're back, Y/n," her friend told her calmly, "even hot pot has become bearable."

"Mhm, I can see that... You must be serious to say such a thing."

"Hehe, yes, I suppose you only see the value of something when you're shown how easily it can be lost. Lifelong friendships are easy to take for granted, but it was even easier to feel your absence," she paused, reminiscing, her conflict clear from her expression: "I know that... Thoma must have felt it, too."

"Perhaps it would be good for us all to be stabbed then."

"Y/n!" She covered her mouth in horror, "that's so obscene!"

The soldier rose from her chair, her eyes glimmering and lips curling with entertainment. The Mini Shogun, which had followed her into the room, did the same; it attempted to stack each of their bowls onto the next, but it struggled to balance their weight and stumbled along the table until it was made redundant by a better-equipped maid. Ayaka and Y/n watched it offhandedly as the latter gently patted the former's shoulder. "I jest. You know I wouldn't let harm come to you or Thoma."

"All too well," she sighed. "Are you headed to bed?"

"No, I'll check on Kazuha first. The peace negotiations between Sangonomiya Kokomi and..." she wavered at the next name, apprehension building on her tongue, "...Kujou Sara start tomorrow, however, so I should probably do so after that."

Ayaka nodded. "I see. Then, rest well, Y/n."

"You too, princess. Goodnight." She then turned and left the room, skirts swaying and a puppet trailing at her feet. The girl watched her go, now accompanied only by the darkness dim lights worked to keep at bay.