Kindlewood

In Eastern True Cross Town, on the corner by the fountain, there’s a café run by three friends.

The interior mixes the cute with the traditional and somehow manages not to look cluttered despite the many decorations that inhabit the small, cosy nooks. That is Shiemi’s handiwork.

All items on the menu are made with loving hands at the café itself. The aroma of freshly baked chocolate chip cupcakes is the morning music of passers-by on their way to work, and many of them have become long time regulars. The Kitchen Queen is Noriko, who tailors all the recipes herself.

“Morning~!”

You can never tell that Shiemi just got up. Her hair is always combed, her kimonos are always neat, her face is always glowing. The first thing every morning is to water the plants, but she never misses going into the kitchen to steal a kiss from Noriko. She’s not supposed to come there with her earth-stained fingers, yet Noriko forgives that quickly when Shiemi’s breasts press softly against her back.

“Morning”, she replies, dotting Shiemi’s nose with a flour-white finger before she leans in to kiss. “Where is our little raspberry?”

“I let her sleep, she was up so late yesterday. But all papers and accounts are in order now. Can I help?”

Noriko shoots her The Look and they both chuckle knowingly. Shiemi has many talents but baking isn’t one of them.

“You can help me wake Izumo. She can go to sleep again afterwards but it’s not healthy to miss breakfast. The scones will be out of the oven in five minutes.”

They look at each other again, like people do when they are close enough to have become telepathic.

“Just enough time.”

“Just enough time”, Noriko agrees.

Watering cans are left sitting at tables and aprons hanging from shelves, and they both head upstairs to the apartment above the café. The bedroom is small and the bed is huge – they would never have gotten the mattress up there if not for Izumo’s familiars. She lies snugly nested in the butterfly patterned bedclothes, surrounded by a horde of napping fox cubs small enough to sit in one’s palm. One opens an eye lazily, wondering what all these creaking floorboards are about. Seeing Shiemi and Noriko tiptoeing for the bed, it yawns, stretches, and plods away to a resting spot that won’t be disturbed.

Raspberries are a bit surly but hide a rich flavour of sunshine: you just have to kiss them until they surrender.

More fox cubs move out of the way as Izumo is surrounded from both sides and sprinkled with kisses and giggles.

“One minute!” Noriko laughs triumphantly – Izumo is wide awake and a her face is a wonderful shade of, well, raspberry. “Is that a new record?”

“M-mh”, Shiemi confirms, face beaming. She and Noriko are stretched out fully on the bed, feet dipping off the edge on either side. In the middle is Izumo, who just might begin to give off steam.

“Y-you idiots! Can’t a girl get some sleep after working all night?!”

“Not all night”, Noriko points out with a smile and a quirked eyebrow that says Izumo could hardly have forgotten that. “Come, sleepyhead – just some breakfast, then you can go back to bed.”

Izumo makes a good effort to look sceptical, but then she sniffs the air.

“Scones?”

“Uh-huh”, Noriko hums.

“With blueberry jam and cream cheese?”

“Uh-huh.” This time it’s Noriko and Shiemi in unison, and Izumo’s resistance crumbles audibly behind the sceptical façade.

 “…alright, alright. But I’m going to sleep afterwards and don’t you dare wake me before noon.”

They just laugh and kiss her once more, one kiss on each cheek.

In Eastern True Cross Town, on the corner by the fountain, there’s a café run by three friends.

That’s what people think, anyway.