~One Hour and Thirty Minutes Later~

 

Reiki folded the last yatsuhashi as he placed it onto a plate that had them neatly fanned out, he said. “I’m finally done…” He stood up from the chair he was sitting on and did some stretches while staring at all the plates filled with kuri daifuku and yatsuhashi. He turned his head in the direction of the couch as Shiro, Mio, and Yuki were sitting on the sofa while holding onto a plate that had both daifuku and yatsuhashi. He thought. Onee-chan put all the meat in the freezer in her pouch to make room for the ice cream mochi and tokyo bananas… Along with the rest…

 

Ketsueki walked out of the kitchen and made her way toward the living while using her left hand to hold a plate of daifuku and yatsuhashi. Floating beside her was a pitcher she refilled with ice-cold water and an empty glass as she ate a yatsuhashi with her right hand. Reiki watched her older sister slowly stop walking as she stood near him, he said. “Onee-chan… What happened to no magic in the house?” Ketsueki finished chewing and gulped down the food in her mouth, she said. “My house, my rules.”

 

She moved her left hand that was holding onto the yatsuhashi closer to her little brother, Ketsueki said. “Want a bite?” Reiki shook his head sideways and said. “Onee-chan, thanks for the offer but I’ll pass.” Ketsueki moved her hand closer to her as she stared at the generous red bean paste filling, she said. “I never knew tokyo bananas used sponge cake and needed plastic wrap to shape them.” She made her way to the living room while her little brother walked beside her. Ketsueki sat down on the armchair near the TV as the floating pitcher and glass gently landed on the coffee table.

 

Reiki stood beside the chair his older sister was sitting on as he moved his gaze onto the girls sitting on the couch enjoying their food. He smiled at them and said. “The tall glass should be dry by now, anyone who wants another glass of mango lassi, raise their hands.” Shiro, Mio, and Yuki quickly raised their hands while holding onto half-eaten daifuku or yatsuhashi. Shiro was in the middle of chewing as she smiled at something behind her older brother.

 

Reiki turned his head sideways and saw Ketsueki was also raising her hand, he let out a soft laugh and said. “Four, give me a couple of minutes.” He made his way to the kitchen while Yuki placed her plate on the coffee table, reached for the pitcher, and poured some into her glass. Yuki took a sip of water and said. “There was more? I searched the fridge when no one was looking and couldn’t find any.” Yuki placed the pitcher on the coffee table while Mio gulped the food in her mouth and said. “Yuki… you can’t just search the fridge of someone else’s house.”

 

Ketsueki placed the plate she was holding onto the armrest of the chair she was sitting on, she said. “It’s fine, I did the same thing when you three went to the sink to help Reiki wash the hand towel.” Yuki sat back down on the couch as it slightly bounced and placed her glass beside the plate placed on the coffee table. Shiro picked up a daifuku on the plate she was holding and said. “It was my first time seeing Onii-chan cook in the kitchen.” Mio placed her plate on the coffee table, she said. “Talk about multi-tasking.”

 

Yuki quickly picked up her plate on the coffee table while Mio reached for the pitcher and poured water into a glass. Ketsueki glanced at the show the girls were watching and said. “Using a wooden spatula to make custard while simultaneously making whipped cream and coffee cream…” She thought. It makes me wonder how much effort he puts into our meals. Reiki was walking toward the living room while carrying a tray of tall glass filled with thick light yellow liquid. He started placing the tall glass of lassi on the coffee table within reach of them.

 

Reiki pinched the circle tray between his armpits as he picked up the pitcher and topped all the glasses with water. While he was placing the glasses of water beside the glass of lassi Yuki grabbed a yatsuhashi on her plate, she said. “Reiki, how come you didn’t buy souvenirs instead?” He placed one of the glasses of water near his little sister, she said. “Thank you, Onii-chan” Reiki gave her a small smile, he said. “Don’t mention it.” He placed one of the glasses of water near the glass of lassi and continued. “It was either a maid figurine or a shirt that says I love… Anime…”

 

Ketsueki picked up a yatsuhashi on her plate that was resting on the armrest of her chair, she said. “You made the right choice, I would have these any day of the week rather than a shirt.” She thought. I can practically see the looks on their faces when I bring out the snacks for tomorrow. Shiro reached for the glass of mango lassi as she took a big gulp of it and moved the glass away from her mouth as she had a mango mustache on her upper lip.

 

Yuki let out a chuckle while Mio pointed at her own upper lip as Shiro had a hint of confusion on her face.  Ketsueki’s lips curled into a smile, she said. “Reiki, can you?” Reiki nodded at his older sister and said. “I’ll grab a few napkins by the kitchen counter.” He made his way to the kitchen as he took the circular tray pinched between his armpit and spun it on the tip of his index finger. Yuki watched Reiki spin the tray on the tip of his finger, she thought. That’s so cool. Mio gently elbowed Yuki’s side which got her attention.

 

Yuki moved her gaze onto her, she said. “What?” Mio picked up her plate on the coffee table as she picked up a daifuku and showed it to her. Yuki rolled her eyes at her friend and said. “If you want ice cream mochi ask Reiki or aneki.” She picked up a green yatsuhashi on her plate and ate half of it in one go, she thought. Matcha mochi… Pretty good. Reiki made his way to the living room as he was holding onto a few napkins, he said. “Onee-chan, I’ll be resting in my room for a bit. Call me if anyone needs a drink or food.”

 

He reached the couch and handed Shiro one of the napkins and started handing them out to everyone. Ketsueki took a napkin from her little brother and said. “Reiki, Mio wants ice cream mochi.” Mio jolted on the couch as she applied too much pressure on the daifuku she was holding onto using her thumb and index finger as it slightly burst out some red bean paste and revealed a golden chestnut inside. Shiro used the napkin to wipe the mango lassi on her mouth while Reiki handed the last napkin to Yuki as she gave him a nod and said. “Thanks, Reiki.”

 

Reiki leaned on the side of the couch, he said. “I mean, they are ready. I just placed them in the freezer so that the ice cream and red bean paste don’t mix.” Shiro’s eyes lit up as she looked up at her older brother, she said. “It also has red bean paste?!” Reiki quickly stopped leaning on the couch as he felt the glare Ketseuki was giving him, he faked a cough and said. “They either have ice cream with chestnut or red bean paste, or all three. That’s the main reason why I filled them in the kitchen alone.” Reiki did a half turn, he continued. “Alright, I’ll be in my room.”

 

Ketsueki kept her gaze on the show on the TV as she held onto a half-eaten yatsuhashi and said. “Before you go to your room, give me the pitcher in your pouch.” Reiki stopped walking toward the staircase as he turned around and made his way to his older sister. Mio ate the slightly burst daifuku she was holding onto as she used the napkin to wipe her fingers clean while Reiki took out a tattered pouch from his pocket. Mio thought. … I’ve always wondered… How did someone manage to enhance a pouch stitched together with space magic? It should’ve failed with the slight gaps.

 

She picked up a slightly orange yatsuhashi and took a bite out of it and saw that it had some melted dark chocolate and red bean paste. Reiki took out a large see-through plastic pitcher as it was filled with thick yellowish liquid, he handed it to his older sister and said. “Here, Onee-chan.” Ketsueki placed the yatsuhashi on her plate that was resting on the armrest of the chair, she took the pitcher off her little brother’s hands and said. “I keep forgetting we have that plastic one.” Ketsueki placed it just above her pocket as it was sucked inside and smiled at her little brother, she said. “I’ll be sure to leave a glass or two for you.”

 

Reiki let out a yawn as he covered his mouth with his hand and said. “Yes, Onee-chan.” He walked toward the staircase as the girls watched the show on TV while the sound of Reiki’s footsteps got farther away. Ketsueki moved her gaze onto Shiro, Mio, and Yuki sitting on the couch. Ketsueki said. “You three want some tokyo bananas and ice cream mochi?” The three girls simultaneously spoke in unison, they said. “Yes.”

 

Ketsueki picked up the plate on the armchair and placed it on the coffee table, she stood up from her seat and said. “Let’s go.” The three girls quickly placed their plates on the coffee table while Yuki was the first one to stand up and catch up to Ketsueki. Yuki said. “Why are the tokyo bananas in the freezer?” Mio and Shiro quickly caught up with them while they made their way toward the fridge. Ketsueki glanced down at her and said. “Reiki said they taste better when chilled. You three want to try a specific flavor?”

 

She opened the fridge and squatted down while Shiro’s eyes were immediately drawn to the freezer at the bottom. Shiro said. “I want custard.” Mio brushed some hair behind her ear and said. “Whipped cream for me.” Yuki placed her right hand in her pocket, she said. “I wanna try coffee cream.” Ketsueki opened the bottom drawer revealing it was filled with tupperwares, she said. “I have bad news.” She took out a couple of see-through tupperwares from the freezer as you could see the mochi and tokyo bananas inside. Ketsueki used her knee to close the bottom drawer and used her foot to close the fridge.

 

Shiro gave her older sister an odd look and said. “What’s the bad news?” Ketsueki was about to pass one of the tupperware to her little sister but paused for a moment, she said. “Yuki, Mio. Can you hold these for a minute?” Shiro stared at her older sister with a hint of disbelief in her expression, she thought. Why did she pause while staring at me? Yuki held out her hands and said. “Sure, aneki.” Mio held out her hands, she said. “I don’t mind.” Ketsueki handed a tupperware each to Yuki and Mio as she took both the lids off revealing ice cream mochi in one.

 

In the other tupperware were tokyo bananas as they were individually wrapped in plastic wrap. Ketsueki said. “Bad news being, we can’t tell what filling these have.” The disbelief on Shiro’s face quickly vanished as her eyes shined like stars while Yuki had confusion on her face. Yuki said. “How is that-.” Before she could say another word Mio had a serious look on her face as she interrupted her friend and said. “Then I guess we’ll have to eat until we get what we want, nee-san.”

 

Ketsueki smiled at Mio and said. “I think we should kick our feet up and sit down on the couch.” She made her way to the sofa while Shiro and Mio carried the tupperware filled with ice cream mochi. Yuki looked down at the tokyo bananas in the tupperware she was carrying, she raised her left leg and balanced the container on top of her thigh. She picked up one of the tokyo bananas at random, unwrapped half of the plastic covering it, and took a bite. Yuki thought. Delicious as always. She moved her gaze onto the couch as she saw Shiro and Mio staring at her.

 

Shiro was peeking over the backrest of the couch, she said. “Yuki, what flavor did you get?” Yuki grabbed the tupperware that was balancing on her thigh with one hand and said. “Whipped cream.” She made her way to the couch as Mio took a couple of tokyo bananas from the tupperware and passed one to Shiro. The two quickly took off the plastic wrap while Yuki placed the plastic container on the coffee table beside the other one.

 

Ketsueki glanced at the coffee table as she stared at the half-eaten bag of potato chips, four small plates with kuri daifuku and yatsuhashi, a pitcher, four glasses of water, four glasses of lassi, and the two tupperwares. She thought. … At this rate, I’m going to need a bigger coffee table… Ketsueki moved her gaze onto Yuki who finished a tokyo banana, Ketsueki said. “Better chilled?” Yuki nodded while pocketing the plastic wrap, she said. “From now on, I’ll chill them in the freezer.” Ketsueki picked one randomly as she peeled half of the plastic wrapper off and took a bite.

 

Yuki made her way to the couch while Ketsueki gulped down the food in her mouth. Ketsueki said. “How about we give the potato chips to Reiki so we can make some space on the table?” Shiro was in the middle of chewing as she gave her older sister a nod. Mio covered her mouth using a hand, she gulped down a mouthful of food and said. “I think it’s a good way to free up some space.” She turned her head to Yuki who picked up a single ice cream mochi as Mio moved the hand away from her mouth.

 

Mio continued. “Yuki, what do you think?” Yuki moved her gaze onto her friend and said. “I’ll sacrifice the bag of chips over something else falling on the floor.” Ketseuki stood up from the armchair and snapped her fingers as the bag of potato chips that was wide open slowly levitated off the table. She said. “I’ll be back in a moment.” She made her way to the staircase as she ate the rest of the tokyo banana while the floating bag of potato chips followed her. Shiro finished the tokyo banana as she placed the plastic wrap in her pocket.

 

She wiped some custard on the corner of her mouth using the napkin, Shiro said. “Which store did you buy them this time?” Yuki carefully ripped the mochi in half revealing vanilla ice cream on top of a layer of smooth red bean paste, she said. “I bought it at a convenience store on my jog over here. It’s the first time I’ve seen consomme flavored potato chips, it tasted nothing like it.” Mio took plastic wrap off the tokyo banana, she said. “I highly doubt someone will put all that effort into making potato chips taste like soup.”

 

Shiro placed the plastic wrap in her pocket, she had a surprise look on her face and said. “Consomme is a soup?!” Yuki was holding onto half an ice cream mochi in each hand, she said. “You didn’t know Shiro?” She slightly leaned forward and saw the surprised look on her face while Mio finished off the tokyo banana. Mio thought. One knows consomme as a flavored snack. She glanced at Yuki and continued her train of thought. While the other one knows it as a soup… I could explain it to both of them but I think it’ll be funnier to watch it unfold.

 

________________________________________________________________________________

Reiki’s Room

 

Reiki was sitting on the bed as he was nearly finished with assembling a drill. Lying on the bed was a nail gun which was already assembled, he twisted the front piece of the drill on and placed it beside the nail gun. Reiki thought. Done. He took out a tattered pouch from his pocket and continued his train of thought. Now I need to fold the plas-. Before he could finish his thought the sound of knocking came from the door, he quickly placed the drill and the nail gun in the pouch as the voice of his older sister came from the other side of the door.

 

Ketsueki said. “Reiki, is the door open?” He placed the tattered pouch on the bed beside him, Reiki said. “It is.” The door opened revealing his older sister as the open bag of potato chips was floating in mid-air beside her. Ketsueki made her way toward the bed as the bag of chips followed her, she said. “We needed to make room on the coffee table.” She grabbed the floating bag of chips and placed it on the bed, Ketsueki continued. “If you want any tokyo banana or ice cream mochi just go down.”

 

Reiki grabbed a chip and said. “I will, thanks Onee-chan.” Ketsueki made her way out of the room as she closed the door behind her. He ate the potato chip, picked up the pouch on the bed, and placed his hand inside. Reiki took out a pack of disposable nitrile gloves, placed the pouch on his thigh, opened the box, and put on a pair. He thought. … Why didn’t they have black… He stared at the blue nitrile gloves he put on, he shook his head sideways and picked up the pouch on his thigh.

 

Reiki thought. I feel like I’m going to sabotage an operation again. He took out two boxes of flip phones, two boxes of lithium phone batteries, two packs of black zip ties, two five thousand yen prepaid sim cards, a small rectangular plastic container, a disposable razor that had a couple of extra razors in the packaging, a hammer, three packs of nails in different sizes, two large light bulbs, two metal baseball bats, two baseball gloves, and two baseball balls. He stared at the neatly organized stuff on the bed, he started opening the boxes for the flip phones which were the same model. Inside was the phone alongside a charger with a large charging brick.

 

Reiki picked up one of the chargers and thought. I wonder how much I could sell these to a second-hand store. He stacked the empty boxes on top of each other and placed them on the side along with the two chargers. Reiki picked up the flip phones and removed the backs, revealing the inside. He placed the two phones on the bed, picked up the boxes containing the lithium batteries, and opened them. Reiki thought. I forgot which one exploded. Was it li-ion li-po?... He shrugged his shoulders and placed the box with the others to the side.

 

Reiki placed the battery near the exposed back of the flip phone and let out a sigh, he said. “Shit… I stole the wrong size…” He threw the battery on the bed as it bounced a couple of times, Reiki continued. “Looks like I need to bring one of these with me to the electronic store.” He placed the flip phone back on the bed and reached for the two small prepaid boxes. Reiki opened both of them, set the boxes to the side, and placed a sim card in each of the flip phones.

 

He reattached the backs of them and placed the flip phones on the bed, Reiki stared at the small pile of boxes and thought. All that waste from a handful of items… He placed the boxes one by one in the pouch and continued his train of thought. During my run around the neighborhood, I need to offload the boxes in someone else's trash bin. Reiki picked up the plastic rectangular container as he opened it revealing an assortment of drill bits inside. He thought. At least Mister was nice enough to offer me a small discount for this.

 

He closed it as he placed it on the bed and picked up the package for the disposable razor that had extra blade cartridges. Reiki thought. I wanted a straight razor but I doubt I would find one here. He tore the packaging and started placing everything in the pouch but kept one set of baseball equipment on the bed. Reiki took off the nitrate gloves and ate the rest of the potato chips as he stood up from the bed while he placed the gloves in the pouch.

 

He pocketed the pouch and did some stretches, Reiki said. “I hope the next time Yuki and I play catch. It doesn’t rip a few layers of skin on my hand.” He stopped stretching as he picked up the bat, glove, the ball, and pocketed the empty bag of potato chips on the bed as he made his way out of the room. He closed the door behind him, walked toward the stairs, and made his way down. Reiki said. “Yuki, any chance you’re interested in base-.” Before he could finish his sentence Yuki was blocking the bottom of the staircase as she looked up at him with stars in her eyes.