Page 60 of Kimiko and the Accidental Proposal
She slid open the door and gaped.
“Good morning, Kimi!” chirped Isla, looking neat and fresh in her school uniform. “Please, pardon our dropping by unannounced.”
Never in her life had Kimiko been more conscious of her shapeless tracksuit, her windblown hair, or her unwashed state.
“Miss Kimiko Miyabe.” At Isla’s side, Hisoka Twineshaft executed a small bow. “Would it be too much trouble if we were to beg entry?”
Suuzu was suddenly behind her, an arm sliding protectively around Kimiko’s shoulders.
And then Akira was thudding downstairs, his hair a mess but his eyes alight. “Sensei! How did you know we needed you?”
“Do you?” inquired the cat, all innocence.
Akira’s grin showed no trace of doubt. “You’re here, aren’t you?”
The implication was clear. And Kimiko was duly impressed by the staggering clarity of her classmate’s conviction that Hisoka Twineshaft would always be where he was needed. Akira beamed at their uninvited guest, as if they could rest assured that everything would be okay.
“I am undeniably present.” The cat smiled pleasantly, patiently.
Isla lightly cleared her throat, eyebrows arching.
Kimiko recalled herself, for hospitality to the Amaranthine was every reaver’s duty and delight. She set a light hand on Suuzu’s encircling arm, silently confirming the phoenix’s claim. He was her guide and go-between, and she needed him already.
With as much poise as she could muster, she said, “Kikusawa Shrine is my home, and the Miyabe family welcomes you. I can vouch for the width of our hearth, for the freshness of the fish, and for the loveliness of my sisters. Which my mother is sure to mention to you with an excess of hopeful enthusiasm. Please don’t take offense?”
Right about then, Kimiko’s mother poked her head out the kitchen door to see why her guests were congregating in the entry … and shrieked for her husband.
Hisoka didn’t even flinch. With a gracious nod to Suuzu, he ushered Isla inside, ruffled Akira’s hair in passing, and offered his palms to an astonished Akio Miyabe.
Kimiko darted upstairs to change, then joined her sisters in the kitchen. “What can I do?”
“You wash, I’ll dry,” said Sakiko. She was pulling out their nicest set of dishes from an antique cabinet—delicate nested bowls and dainty plates with gilt edges, all in shades of ruby and jade, with an elegant pattern of chrysanthemums. “They might be dusty, and that won’t do for our esteemed guest.”
“What did youdo?” Noriko asked.
Kimiko busied herself filling a basin with soapy water. “I didn’t know he was coming any more than you did.”
“You must have donesomethingif Hisoka Twineshaft took notice.” Sakiko deposited a stack of plates on the counter. “Too bad his apprentice isn’t a boy. Is she anybody important?”
“Well, she’s Hisoka Twineshaft’s apprentice.” Kimiko wasn’t in the mood for gossip. “Is Mama behaving?”
Sakiko tiptoed to the door and listened for several beats before scampering back to the sink. She whispered, “We’re saved. Daddy’s going to give them the grand tour until breakfast time.”
A moment later, their mother whisked through the door. “You’ve done very well for us, Kimiko! If connections lead to contracts, you shall have the best husbands the world can provide!”
Kimiko could have pointed out that knowing the Spokesperson didn’t actually improve their pedigree, but Noriko looked so hopeful.
“I wonder if I have time,” Mama mused, already lifting her shawl from its hook beside the back door. “Ten minutes, girls. Twenty at most.”
Kimiko turned from the sink. “Where are you going?”
“Just down the hill.”
“But I bought everything on your list.”
Her mother peeked in the little mirror on the wall, patting at her hair. “What’s the point of having Mr. Twineshaft here if I cannottellsomeone? The ladies of the Neighborhood Improvement Committee will have to agree this is a triumph!”
Not good. “Spokesperson Twineshaft is hereprivately. We need to be discreet, Mama.”
