Hisoka Mikage/Goodnight to you

be connected

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2Part 3

Hisoka	August's store was unexpectedly busy, with customers coming and going endlessly. It wasn't just children who visited, but men and women of all ages, and as soon as they came through the door, the first words out of their mouths would always be, "where's Misha?". I got into the routine of repeating time after time that Misha was away on business, and explaining why I was tending the shop for him. Honestly, it was super annoying. I wish I hadn't agreed to help. Just as I was beginning to get fed up, I remembered something that August and I had talked about before. "Why did you decide to run a candy shop out here?" "Because it's easy to blend in as part of the town, and nobody's that guarded when surrounded by candy. That means I get to collect all sorts of intel from the locals." At the time, I'd been impressed by his forethought. But now running the shop myself for once, I realized that he'd definitely been lying. From old people's hygiene habits and housewives' complaints about their husbands, to even the children's nonsensical chatter, there wasn't a single piece of useful intel to be heard. I listened to all of this while half dozing off, and at long last, when the flood of customers finally petered out, fell into a proper sleep. My last waking thought was that, I'd definitely be complaining to August once he got back.
Hisoka	... Hwaah.
Cat	......
Hisoka	... Who is it?
Cat	Meow~
Hisoka	... A stray? Or someone's pet?
Cat	Meow~
Hisoka	... Well, alright then. Bye bye.
Cat	......
Hisoka	... What're you following me for?
Cat	Meow~
Izumi	Oh, it's Hisoka-san. What're you doing?
Cat	Meow~
Izumi	What a cute cat.
Hisoka	... Looks like it got lost looking for a place to nap.
Izumi	Ahaha, seems like something that you'd do, Hisoka-san.
Cat	Meow~
Hisoka	That settles it, I guess. Let's help you get back home.
Izumi	Which direction did it come from?
Hisoka	... Dunno. It came up to me while I was napping.
Izumi	Hm... In that case, let's just walk around. Maybe it'll see somewhere it recognizes.
Old Lady	Mike?
Izumi	?
Old Lady	So this is where you wandered out to?
Hisoka	... Are you its owner?
Izumi	(This old lady, I've seen her somewhere before...
Old Lady	Yes, are you the ones who brought her here?
Hisoka	... Yep. Looks like she got lost.
Old Lady	Thank you so much for your help.
Old Lady	If you have the time, I'd love to have you over to show my thanks.
Izumi	Ah! This store is the one close to Tsumugi-san's house!
Hisoka	It really is.
Izumi	We've been here before.
Old Lady	Ah, now that you mention it...
Izumi	I thought that you looked familiar, and it hit me just as we got here.
Old Lady	Fufu, I wouldn't have noticed if you hand't brought it up. Please wait a moment while I go fetch some tea.
Izumi	Sorry for the trouble.
Hisoka	... Now hiring?
Izumi	Ah, you're right, they've got a poster up for it.
Old Lady	That's right. The doctor actually recommended I get a surgery.
Old Lady	But I don't want to leave the store empty if I can help it, and someone needs to take care of the cat. So I was thinking of hiring help for the period of my hospital stay.
Old Lady	But one week is such a short period of work that it's been hard to find anyone.
Old Lady	Well, it's not like many people visit this shop, so it probably wouldn't cause anyone too much trouble if we were to close down for a bit...
Hisoka	But you still want to keep the shop open if you can.
Old Lady	Exactly... Though I'm not quite sure why myself.
Hisoka	... I'll take the job.
Old Lady	Eh?
Izumi	Hisoka-san?
Hisoka	I've had experience running a candy shop, and I'm good at taking care of cats.
Izumi	It's true, you do get along well with cats.
Old Lady	Really? If that's the case then, if I may, thank you.

Izumi

Example 2. Remove if no part 2.

Izumi

Example 3. Remove if no part 3.

Carp