05:00 in the morning, Totsuka Saika awakened from his deep slumber. He yawned and stretched his body a little bit before quietly sliding from his bed. His foot stepped on the floor with a soft thud. He raised his hands near his eyes and dropped them lifelessly, because he had been indoctrinated to stop his bad habit of rubbing his eyes whenever he feel itchy, and that managed to stick very well.

"Okay, first, let's go with the warm up."

He ditched his set of loose-fitting pajamas for his usual tracksuit, and then shoved on a pair of earphones to hear some music. Cheerful a song of young idols echoed within his head, stimulating his mind to work faster. He began his daily workout with a little bit of stretching to avoid injury, followed by forty push-ups, sit-ups, and squats.

After that it was time for a nine kilometer run outside.

The air was still thick and hard to breathe. Nonetheless, the oxygen concentration was the best around this hour and there was less pollution around.

As he managed his way to a nearby playground, he hopped on to the tallest bar of the jungle gym set(which admittedly not that high) and proceed to do eighty pull-ups before continuing his journey back home. Forty more basic exercises done.

And he didn't even hold a breath.

"It seems to be working well." He clenched his hands in confidence, "Perhaps I can increase it to ninety by tomorrow."

He entered his shower after he put all his laundry into the washing machine, warm water washed his body and helped his tense muscles relax. "This is going to be a good day!"

He proceed to hang all his wet clothes, already being dressed in his uniform by the time the clock hit 6:30. His mother was already there in the kitchen, cooking for everyone.

"Good morning, Mama."

"Доброе утро, Sai-chan!" The youthful Russian mother replied as she waved the ceramic knife in her hands, "Finished your workout?"

"With flying colors!" Saika declared with pride.

Honestly, eighty sets of basic exercise was not much for average boys of his age, almost pathetic even. But still, compared to the old him, he could feel his body growing a whole lot. Saika was hardly strong, literally the second shortest boy in his class (Ooka being the shortest) and his body had a major inability to build extra mass.

In fact, when he was fully clothed it was downright impossible to distinguish him from a normal girl. He also unable to stand the scorching sun of Japan, despite born half-Japanese himself. Can't even go out in the summer without sunproofing.

Mrs. Totsuka turned off the stove and affectionately rubbed her one and only son on his hair, "That's my boy. Never stop trying to improve."

"It's... it's okay, Mama. Please go back to work!"

It might appear that he had some sort of mother complex, but really, that was because Saika had been rather spoiled in his seventeen years of life by his parents. But mainly his mother. And thus, a lot of her feminine mannerisms had rubbed off on to him as well. Saika realized that he was literally on the opposite end of a manly man archetype. And while he didn't mind it as a child, he no longer had the luxury of being innocent.

"By the way, Saika, a relative will be coming to stay here for the time being. Please be nice to her."

"Who?"

"Your cousin from Russia."

"EH? ANYA'S COMING?!" Saika shouted in disbelief.

Mrs. Totsuka tilted her head in confusion, "Why? I thought the two of you were really close, but I guess things change when you're teenagers."

"I don't mean it like that, Mama." Saika sighed, not being able to stop himself from unleashing the widest grin he could show. "Anya-chan huh, how many years has it been since she left Japan..."

They exchanged a lot of letters over the years, but still, for her to come here and stay, it made him somewhat excited. After all, Saika had always seen his first cousin as his own younger sister, or at least something close to one.

"If you don't mind could you pick her up at the Inage-Kaigan Station? She should arrive there by 7:00."

"Sure enough, I'll be going."

But before Saika could stand up, his mother stopped him. "Breakfast first, Sai-chan!"

が いる - ロシアより愛をこめて

I Exist - From Russia with Love

Disclaimer:

Original Story by Watari Wataru

Namco/Bandai

Chapter 01: My cousin can't possibly be this cute

Anastasia 'Anya' Romanovskaya couldn't help but feel exasperated at the large crowd that accompanied her out of the train. If there was one thing she always disliked about Japan, it was the crowded trains of the morning ride.

Even after years of living in Hokkaido, she couldn't help but dreadfully hate this aspect of the crowded mainland of Japan. Plus, she had brought one too many bags with her...

"Unghhhh!"

Literally.

But she couldn't help but bring it everywhere, it was very important to her, even if it was not as important as her clothes. As such, she was struck dragging two massive briefcases with her relatively short, diminutive body.

"Извините! Извините!" She apologetically muttered as she tried to get away from the station through the busy swarm of Japanese with her baggage swinging left and right. As long as she could reach a certain restaurant then...

But alas, she actually managed to trip on her own two feet and would have to kiss the road if not for a pair of gentle, yet surprisingly firm hands catching her.

"Большое спасибо!" She shamefully exclaimed, but then she realized that average Japanese wouldn't know Russian, and corrected herself soon after. "I mean, thank you very much for helping me."

"Пожалуйста." Came the friendly reply, "Are you alright, Anya?"

"Eh?"

Anya looked up to see the face of her savior. Pale white skin surpassing her own, a soft and tiny pair of lips, and clear blue eyes reflecting her surprised face. She could feel her heart thump. This person's cuteness was totally out of this world. She knew this person but...

"Sai...chan?" She muttered, half-guessing.

"Long time no see, Anya." He nodded, "Mama told me to pick you up in her stead, it seems that she forgot to tell you."

"A... umh, I suppose I shouldn't call you that anymore." She embarrassingly said and stood up, "Saika-nii?"

"You don't have to be so formal." Saika gently patted her head and smiled, before giving a friendly bear hug. "Welcome to Japan, Anastasia."

Even though he was still the cutest boy she had ever seen, Saika had grown up a lot, easily one head taller than her. She could feel his well toned body from the hug alone, and that made her blush. "What were you thinking, Anya. He's a relative!" Her conscience berated her for being so conscious about her own cousin, especially when they were raised like siblings until five or six years ago.

Even with his beautiful face and feminine streak, Totsuka Saika was really a young man.

"Uncle wasn't here with you?" He chuckled as he nonchalantly pulled the two giant briefcases like they weighed nothing, a testament of his improved physical strength.

"I insisted he should stay, it's... not like I'm a kid anymore." She winced a little, "Besides, Japanese kids are always supposed to be really independent."

Saika didn't say anything about that, but he really did know why everyone would be worried about it. It wasn't really a matter of independence, Japanese kids were raised with 'crowd reliance' mentality. Japanese kids learned early on that, ideally, any member of the community could be called on to serve or help others. They were here to help, and to be helped.

Japan had a very low crime rate, which was surely a key reason parents felt confident about sending their kids out alone. But small-scale urban spaces and a culture of walking and transit use also fostered safety and, perhaps just as importantly, the perception of safety. It was very common for foreigners to experience cultural shock when they first arrived to Japan, and it took time for them to adjust.

For someone with the crippling issue of shyness like Anastasia, he could see why her Russian father was very concerned.

"We're going with a taxi, is that fine with you?"

"Maybe it would be better if we walked...your house isn't that far, right? I'd like to memorize the route, just in case."

"You're not tired?" Saika inquired. It was not that he underestimated her constitution, rather, he was concerned if jet lag and the long transit time was getting to her.

She shook her head. "Saika-nii doesn't mind?"

"Not at all."

That was just an excuse, really, she just wanted to spend more time with him. It had been so long since they had lest seen each other, and even though they had always exchanged letters and sometimes even phone calls, there were so many things she wanted to know no amount of letters would be enough to satisfy her thirst.

For example, things that were happening with him right now.

Saika's eyes locked firmly on to the massive LCD screen on top of the tallest buildings, famous idols singing and dancing happily on the screen. All of them weren't that much older than her or Saika, some even clearly younger, and yet, they bravely showed their talents with utmost confidence.

Something that Anastasia probably wouldn't be able to do.

"They're really pretty." She mumbled, "Saika-nii likes Idols too?"

"Well, I like their song at least." Saika chuckled, "They made a good company for physical exercise. Youthful, lighthearted and fun. That's what it means to be an idol."

"Heee..."

From what she read on the internet, a lot of idol fans were just plain perverted and weirdos. But she guessed that it was only because casual fans never talked much about it, on the net or in real life. Saika-nii must be one of the silent majority, hmm. She concluded.

"If it's me I'd probably run away before I could even sing the first verse." She jokingly said.

"I don't know about that." He mysteriously smiled in her direction.

What does he mean by that? She wondered. Still, she awkwardly grasped the corner of his tracksuit and followed wordlessly after him. Even if it was just a single inch, she made a step forward to fulfill her own wish with her own hands...

..."Я так сильно скучалa." When they arrived at the Totsuka residence, Mrs. Totsuka greeted her niece with three kisses on each cheek. "You must be tired. Sai-chan, can you bring her luggage upstairs?"

"No problem."

In panic, Anastasia quickly stopped him. Well it wasn't like she could reject their hospitality, but at least she wanted to help. "Et-to, Я могу вам помочь?"

"Не за что." Saika said to calm down his young cousin, and dragged one of the briefcases carefully, and he did it with ease.

"Sometimes I wonder what I should do with that boy." Mrs. Totsuka sighed, "It might be my fault that he grew to be so effeminate, I just don't have it in me to be more strict with him. Until he became a high school student, he was always being teased about it and as such, he didn't have many boy friends. Thankfully, seems like Saika has picked up something good since then and has grown to be more and more like a man."

"I see..."

"Another one!" Saika said as he pulled the other piece of luggage, "Since it has a 'breakable' sign on it, I'm guessing this contains your personal telescope, right?"

He remembers!

If there was something she truly always liked, that would be the sea of stars. It was beautiful, magnificent, and served as a proof to how tiny and meaningless humans were when compared to the vast universe of the untold trillion planets. If anyone asked what her hobby was it would be none other than stargazing. And her dream was to become a female Cosmonaut and to name an asteroid of her own.

That part of her had never changed as long as she could remember, and Saika hadn't forgotten her fascination with it either.

It made her a little happy.

"Saika's such a smooth natural, I heard he's really popular with the ladies." Mrs. Totsuka chuckled when she saw how her niece had been captivated by her son's charm as well. That did not bode well with Anastasia, of course. "Saika-nii... is popular?"

"And with boys too!"

Anya held her mouth to avoid yelping, popular with girls AND boys?! "Saika-nii is amazing." She muttered under her ragged breath.

"I wonder why he still can't find a girlfriend though, I'm rather worried really." The silver haired young mother crossed her arms, pondering. "Anya-chan, how about you? Interested?"

The half-Russian girl perked up and took some distance from her aunt, "AH, UH? ME?"

"Stop teasing her, Mama." Saika shouted from the second floor, "Anya-chan, your room is ready!"

"H-hai!"

Anastasia quietly climbed the stairs, Saika already waiting her and pointed at the door beside him with the biggest smile she ever seen from him.

Anastasia slowly pushed the door open, to find a sizable room almost completely sterile of anything feminine but otherwise perfect. A medium sized, bare white bed, a big wardrobe, and a couple of wooden and plastic lockers. A clean, light brown desk for studying and a blue, comfy rolling chair sat in the corner of the room opposite the bed. Both the bed and the desk were located near the glass door that lead to the veranda.

"Will this be alright for you?" Saika asked.

"It should be fine, thank you."

"Well, if you need help I'll be in my room next door." Saika nodded before shortly leaving.

Slowly, Anastasia crept closer and faced the wall that separated her and Saika's room. Slowly, she touched it and rubbed it, silky smooth high quality paint covered the wall rather than cheap paper. It would be a waste to damage it so she needed to find a way to hang all her space related posters there.

She opened the door to balcony, and an autumn gust gently flowed through every inch of her skin and silvery hair.

Starting today, she would be live in Japan. She couldn't wait to experience all surprises waiting for her here.

This is a companion fic to Mountain of Lies, and will be a lot more cheerful and optimistic than the main story.

Dedicated to my Oregairu fics' Beta/Editor, GoukaRyuu of forum Spacebattles. It does not in any shape or form faithfully follow the real Idolmaster storyline, though some elements may be included. It's mainly slice of life, though the overarching background plot already prepared.