Today was the 13th of December. A very special day.

Hamuko's birthday.

I was lying comfortably on my bed, staring at the ceiling. But my mind wasn't at much peace. I didn't have anything to give her. Neither did I THINK about what to give her.

It didn't help that Friday the 13th is like, the second unluckiest day ever.

The first being January the 31st, but that's another story.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand.

I, Minato Death-Blocking Arisato, of the Universe Arcana, can't think of anything to give as a gift to save my life. And that's saying something, since I managed to save myself from the incarnation of all human malice, but that's besides the point.

Somehow, Junpei, and even Koromaru, I repeat, KOROMARU got her a gift. KOROMARU. I don't even know how that's possible. I swear to Nyx that Koromaru is a cursed ninja that was magically transformed into a dog. Never doubt that dog. Ever.

Madness aside, maybe I should ask Akihiko for some advice. Wait... if I ask him, maybe he'll get the wrong idea and think that I'm trying to make a move on her. I mean, with a girl like Hamuko, even I'd sleep with one eye open in case someone tried to make a move on her. She IS his girlfriend, after all. But then again, he trusts me... or at least I hope so. Maybe he wouldn't get the wrong idea. But then again, AGAIN, it's Akihiko. He probably doesn't know what to get her, himself, and even if he did, he probably wouldn't have a spare idea for a birthday present. Hell, I'd be surprised if he even has a Christmas present for her. Although I, myself, am lacking a Christmas gift for her, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I mean, I even have a Christmas gift for Aigis, and she's a ROBOT.

I'm getting off track, here.

Maybe I should ask Shinjiro. I mean, he probably knows her the most. Because he's the only member of SEES that she hangs out with as much as she does with Akihiko. It probably helps that Shinjiro and Hamuko share some kind of brother-sister relationship. Said brother sister realtionship that is even stronger than my own with her. Some people think that I'm actually her brother. Probably because of the last name. Anyway, maybe I really should ask him what to give her. Also, he won't think any less of me. Because he realizes that everyone needs help, eventually.

It probably doesn't help that I told him how I truly feel about her.

I mean, I like her, but probably not as much as Akihiko, and I don't want to ruin what they have. I would tell Akihiko, making so there wouldn't be any secrets between us, but I can't seem to bring forth the courage to tell him, and I don't want his thoughts on me to change.

But the one persona that will never know how I feel, is Hamuko, herself. Not because I think it may wreck her relationship with Akihiko, but because, well, being rejected by her is my worst fear. And I don't want her thoughts about me to change, even more so than Akihiko.

Still, I can't decide what to get for her.
Finally deciding what I was going to do today, or more accurately, whom I was going to ask for help, I got out of my bed. It was 6:30am, so I guess nobody should be up except for Shinjiro and Koromaru. Those two are usually up by 6am. I don't know how they do it, and I don't even know what Koromaru does when we're at school, but they get up this early.

I left my room and descended the stairs in the hopes of finding only Shinjiro and Koromaru, but alas...

It was Friday the fircking 13th. Of course Akihiko and Junpei would be eating breakfast this early. Akihiko, I could understand, because he sometimes he gets up really early to go for a jog, but Junpei? Really? He loves his sleep almost as much as he loves Chidori, and that's saying something. The only people that can HOPE to rival his funky sleep schedule are me and Hamuko. That means, if he's up, Hamuko might probably be up, too.

I took a seat on the table and started eating Shinjiro's heavenly cooking.

Bacon, bacon, bacon, bacon, bac-

"Wow, you're up late today." Akihiko interrupted my bacon trip. "Even Junpei is up earlier that you."

Late? "What do you mean?" I asked.

"It's 8 o'clock, now. Is your clock broken, or something?" Akihiko said with a raised eyebrow. Then I, myself raised an eyebrow and looked at the clock. Sure enough, 8am.

Oh!

Shit! Damn that stupid bet!
Last night, I made a bet with Junpei. He said that if he woke up earlier than me, I'd have to buy him lunch. I only accepted that bet, because Mitsuru has been scolding him about waking up late, and that he should always get up at the same time as me. I dunno why ME, of all people, but I just rolled with it.

That's when I looked at Junpei, who was grinning mischievously. I do not have time for this. I might have to skip school because of that. Then I shot him a glare that would have ripped his soul. If Chidori haven't done that already, that is. He raised his arms in defense.

"Calm down, man. I just moved your clock back an hour and a half, is all. The bet was that I had to wake up before you, and there's no way that I'd be able to get up this early, dude, it's just insane." He said in his defense.
I intensified my glare.

"You did that because of some stupid bet. Do you know what you've done?" I said, trying to hide the anger behind my voice. Not that it worked.

"I'd apologize if I were you, Junpei." Akihiko kind of deadpanned before going back to eating. How could he be so calm, today? It was his girlfriend's birthday, after all.

"No, I don't know what I've done. Hopefully it's not anything important." Junpei said as he scratched the back of his head. "Right?"

I tightened my grip on the chopsticks that I WAS going to use to eat breakfast.

"I don't know about that, Junpei. He looks like he could annihilate you, right now." Shinjiro deadpanned just like Akihiko, though it came out as some kind of warning. Not that it could save Junpei, now.

I flicked both chopsticks at Junpei's face. One narrowly missed him and got stuck on the wall, and the other hit him square on the nose, making him trip his chair back.
"Ow!" He chimed, as he rubbed his now bleeding nose. "What was that for?"

"It's Hamuko's birthday, and I couldn't get her a gift." I said as I got up from my chair. "Now, I won't have the time to go buy one." I yelled. Then I heard Akihiko dropping his chopsticks, and someone else dropping their bag at the staircase. I glanced at Akihiko, and he sure was surprised. Well, nobody really sees much emotion from me, so that's to be expected. Then I looked at Shinjiro, and he was still eatig his breakfast, like nothing's happened. That's when I turned around to see Mitsuru, Fuuka and Yukari. All three were as shocked as Akihiko. At least I'm glad that Hamuko didn't see me like this.

I sighed. "You know what? I'm out." I grabbed my bag and walked to the door. Then I heard footsteps following behind me. Must be either Akihiko or Mitsuru, trying to ask about what transpired. But I was surprised that no one tried to stop me, or grab my shoulder.

So as soon as I got outside, I looked behind me, only to find Shinjiro with his hands in the pockets of his coat.

"Hey senpai."

"I told you not to call me senpai. Just call me Shinji, idiot." He said, threatening playfully. Well, as playful as Shinjiro-sen- Shinji could get.

"Okay... So, what do you want?" I asked. But he said nothing. Instead, he just tried to reach for my bag. I was faster, though.

"I want your bag." He calmly stated.

"Why? I need it for school." I deadpanned back.

"You're not going to school today. You're buying Hamuko a gift." He said flatly.

"But I'll get in trouble if I don't show up to school. I don't wanna get executed by Mitsuru." I stated my fears. Gods were easy, but Mitsuru...

"Don't worry about it. I deal with Mitsuru later. Besides," Wait... is that a smirk? Shinji's smirking? "She owes me a favor, and I don't want to see you beating yourself over not getting her a gift."

A favor? Whatever. Probably stuff I shouldn't mess with. "Ah. Thanks, Shinji."

"Now, go. Cause I got a feeling that you're gonna take your time choosing something." He said.

"Alright. See you later." I said as I ran off.

It was 12:17, and I still didn't find her a gift. I decided to go to Paulownia mall and get myself some some coffee. Then I took the time to think about what happened before I got here:

First, I went to Book-On to see if there were any Bakuman manga. And there were some, but the cashier spilled coffee on the comics when I was going to pay for them. They were wet beyond recognition. I asked if there were any volumes left, but there were none at the moment. After that, I went to Bookworms to wee if they had Bakuman manga, but when I got there, there was note on the door saying that "The owners are taking a vacation in France."

I passed by the other shops, but all of them were being refurbished, suffered some freaky accident, or were closed due to some weird reason.

But luckily, when I got to Paulownia Mall, none of the shops were closed. Now, I'm taking a break in Chagall Cafe, takin' a sip of my-

PFFFFFFFFFFFT!

What the hell?

I took the lid of the coffee off to see if there was any milk or sugar, and sure enough, just straight, black, and cold coffee. Who takes coffee with an ice cube, for Thanato's sake?

Well, I sure don't.

Then my cell phone vibrated. A message from Akihiko.

"Hey, can you buy a gift for Hamuko, for me?
I got her something, but Junpei managed to get his hands on it, and you might know what happens when he touches something. It would mean a lot if you did, and I'll be sure to pay you in double later."

Great. Now, if I do find her something, I'll have to give it to Akihiko. I would curse Akihiko, but it's kinda not his fault, so I curse Junpei. Damn you, asshat! I typed back a 'sure'
and left the cafe. Then I received another message this time, from Shinjiro...wait... how did he get my number?

...

Does Shinjiro even have a cellphone?

I can picture him smashing his cellphone on the wall, because he can't use the touchscreen...

I'm getting off-track, here. Anyway, the message was:

"You don't know what to get her, do you?
Well, I'm not telling. But with the amount of time that you spend with her, you should have figured out, already. Later."

Of course Shinjiro would rub that in my face. But alas, he is right: I should know what Hamuko would want, already... then I facepalmed.

She plays the guitar.

On to Power Records!

And to Power Records I went, and spotted this beautiful, black Gibson acoustic guitar, which had the roman number 22 as markers on the fretboard. Even the tuning pegs were a soft red. This will be perfect!

Or it would. When I asked the clerk to get for me, since it was pretty high on the wall, an EARTHQUAKE shook the place, and some guitars fell and crashed on the ground.

One of them being the guitar that I was looking for.

After some seconds of looking at the broken work of art in disbelief, I asked the clerk if there was another guitar like that one stored. And nope. Apparently, it was customized by the owner of the store, cause he seems to really like this kind of stuff, and since this was the best he's ever made, he put it to sale. It would be expensive, but it'd be the perfect gift. I sighed, then excused myself from the shop. Then I looked around to see the damages that the earthquake caused.

None, whatsoever. It was ALMOST as if the earthquake only happened inside of the store.

Fuck my life...

Then something tackled me to the ground.

"MINATO-KUN!"

Oh, hey Elizabeth. "It's nice to see you, too. But what are you doing here?" I said. Well, I tried to say, but having an avatar of power tackling you to the ground does not help you speak. Or breath, for that matter.

"Master Igor said that I would find you here. I did not believe it, but now I see that I was wrong." She said, and hugged me even tighter.

Now, she reaaally needs to get off me. So I gently pushed her to the side. And thank Heaven, she oblidged.

"I have something from Master Igor for you." She reached for her purse, that probably contained a billion yen, but alas, what came out was...

"A Raiho doll?" Why did Igor want me to have a Raiho doll? You don't know what a Raiho doll is? You know Jack Frost? Now dress him like Raidou Kuzunoha the 14th. You know, that detective from that game.

Well, it was indeed rar- oh. OH! I remember Hamuko saying she wanted one of these, but I couldn't find it anyfreakingwhere! Now, THIS will be a gift!

"Thanks, Elizabeth." I said as I hugged her out of gratitude. And because, well, it's Elizabeth. She deserves hugs. I could feel she was surprised, but that didn't matter. I broke the hug, and her cheeks were a bit pink.

"Anyway, I must get back to my duties in the Velvet Room. But come see me anytime~" she sang.

"Wait, you're still an attendant? I went there like, one month ago, but you weren't there.

"Nee-san informed me that you were freed from the seal recently, so I went back to my duties as soon as I could. But alas, it seems there was some sort of delay in communication..." She put her finger under her chin in a thoughtful pose. "But as Master Igor says, 'Time marches on'. I must bid you farewell for now, Minato-kun." She said, as she hugged me again, and after I said my own 'see you soon' during the hug, she broke away and literally just ninja vanished in a blue mist.

Then I looked at the Raiho doll that I had on my hand. I FANALEH got something to give her!

... wait.

I have to give it to Akihiko, don't I?

I mean, he's my friend, and it kinda wasn't his fault that his gift, whatever it was, got smashed by Junpei. And I don't want to make him seem like a terrible boyfriend for not having a gift.

Sigh... I guess I gotta buy another gift. I looked around, trying to decide for which shop to go next, and I ended up choosing Shinshuodo.

When I got there, the shop was open, but the shopkeeper wasn't in there, so I started to look through some of the items that she had on sale. I couldn't find a single thing that would be a good gift for her. Crap...

"Excuse me, young man."

Aaah! Freaking ninja store owner! I regained my composure and turned to face her.

"May I be of service?" She asked.

"I am, uhh, looking for a gift for my friend." I stuttered. I guess I didn't fully recover from the jumpscare. Hmmm... funny. Only now I realized that I don't know anything about this woman. I mean, the shopkeeper.

She raised an eyebrow. "Friend, or love interest?" She asked, to which I couldn't help but blush. Dammit! I can't really answer that question... I always seem to stutter, or blush whenever I think of Hamuko that way.

"I see. She must be more important to you than the others." She mused aloud.

I tried to keep my composure after that scarily accurate remark. "Others?" I asked.

"In every other time that you came here to buy something for others, you were always direct, and barely spent time choosing. At first, I thought that you did not care whether the receiver of the gift liked it or not, but as time passed, I saw that you were only confident about your choices, and knew them well enough to know what to give them. That alone, was already a special trait that I found in you. But now, you're insecure, afraid, even timid. Your care for her exceeds even your confidence. I think I have just the thing for you." She literally talked to herself, before taking her temporary leave through the backdoor. And I was left wondering: was she observing me all those times that I've been here? Like seriously? Who the heck is she?

Oh, she's back.

With a white gold ring, encrusted with a huuuge ruby that had the roman number 22 engraved on it.

Just looking at it makes my wallet cry.

"Legend has it that whoever is gifted with the ring, falls in love love instantly with the one who gave the ring." She said, with an evident grin on her face.

Huh. Is this really true? I doubt it. The ring is pretty, though. But alas... "I probably can't afford this ring. It must cost like, one billion yen..." I said with a sad look on my face.

"Worry not, young man. I give you this for free." She said with a smile.

Huh, what? "Why?" I asked.

"Because it belongs to her." She said as she pointed towards the XXII engraved in the ruby.

Or rather, at the Arcana it represented.

Then she took off her glasses and put a hand on my shoulder.

"And because you prevented the Fall, Minato-san." She said with a solemn tone.

Alright, that does it!

"Who are you?" I asked. I mean, there much wrong going on here, it's not even funny.

She just pushed the box with the ring on my hand, and pushed me out of the store. "That is a story for another time. Now, go, or else, you'll be late." Then, she walked back into the store.

I stared back into the shop in disbelief for some seconds.

I knew there were ninjas underneath my bed.

Then my cellphone vibrated in my pocket. A message from Shinji.

"Try to keep Hamuko busy until some 5:30. We're preparing a surprise party. Laters"

I looked at the time. 3:45. By the time I get to Gekkoukan, it'll be like, 4:00, so I'll have to look after Hamuko for an hour and a half without Akihiko. Huh. I typed back 'sure. I finished shopping for a gift, btw.' And made my way to Gekkoukan.

When I got there, I waited for a while in the lobby, but seeing as she wasn't there, I looked all over the school. And still didn't find her. I went back to the lobby, I found Yukari there. Then she came over to talk to me.

"Hey. What happened this morning?" She asked.

I sighed. Good afternoon for you, too, Yukari. "You know that bet I made with Junpei?"

"The one where he had ro wake up before you? What about it?" She answered.

"You see, I had a lot of stuff planned for this morning. Like buying a gift for Hamuko. I nearly killed Junpei with chopsticks." I recapped this morning's events for Yukari.

"Oh, that stupid... I'll kick his ass if Chidori hasn't, already!"

I sighed. I've been doing that a lot today. "By the way, have you seen Hamuko around? And I think Shinjiro-senpai needs your help with the surprise."

"Yeah, she said that she needed to go upstairs for some reason, but I haven't seen her since. And surprise? What are you talking about?" She asked.

Hmmm... I already checked upstairs. Maybe she's at the dorm already. That'd be just great. Not. But she could be on the roof. Small chance, but a possibility nonetheless. "Uhh, didn't you know? Senpai and the others are throwing a surprise birthday party for Hamuko. Did you buy her a gift?" I asked.

"Oh, I didn't know that. Yeah, bought her a gift, but I still didn't take the time to wrap it... I gotta go do that now. Later." She said as she rushed off.

After that (I didn't even get the chance to wave Yukari off), I got upstairs on the roof, and sure enough, I saw no one there, at first glance. But then I heard something.

Someone crying.

I looked over at the benches further in the back, and I found the unexpected source of the sound.

Hamuko.

I had no idea why she was crying. She should be happy today. Anyway, I hid the Raiho doll in one pocket and the Crimson ring (I call it crimson ring because of that huuge ruby) in another one. Then, I tried to walk towards the bench without making any sound, sat close to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" I asked, worried. Then she turned towards me with those puffy and sad red eyes of hers. That almost made me tear up myself, and I had to resist the urge of hugging her, but I had to keep being only the Best Friend. It'd be for the best.

But then SHE hugged me, and started crying on my shoulder, without saying a word.

I couldn't really do anything against it (even if I could, I wouldn't), and returned the hug with one hand and started stroking her hair gently with the other. After some loud sobs, she broke away and turned towards me.

"What's wrong?" I asked again, as softly as possible.

"Do you know what day is it, Minato?" She almost pleaded for me to get it right, but no way in Tartarus that I could get that wrong. I smiled slightly and answered.

"It's Friday the 13th." She looked like she was about to hit me, but I didn't finish yet, so I took a breath to signal that I wasn't done yet. "It's supposed to be the unluckiest day in the universe. But now, it's your birthday." I said, as my smile widened slightly.

Then she punched me on the shoulder. I wasn't expecting that.

"Oww... what was that for?" I asked.

"That's for making me think that you forgot my birthday like everyone else." She said, and a smile finally appeared on her pretty face. Smiles fit her sooo much better. Then she hugged me again, and I went back to stroking her hair.

"Well, now you know that that's not the case. Besides, I'd never forget your birthday, Hamuko. You're special to me." I said.

"I mean, I remember everyone's birthday... Shinji's is on August 11th, Aki's is in September 23rd, Mitsuru's is on May 8th, Fuuka's is in eleven days, Aigis' is on September 10th, Ken's is on June 24th, and yours is on..." She trailed off. I wasn't expecting her to know Koromaru's, or my birthday. I mean, I haven't told anyone my birthday, and Shinjiro is the only who knows Koromaru's birthday. Somehow. Heck, even I forget my own birthday, sometimes. There's no way for her to know it-

"April 31st. Three months after you prevented the Fall, and the day when you woke up." She said.

What? "How did you find that out?" I asked, surprised.

"The nurse told me, when I went to visit you in the hospital." She said.

"Also," She paused. "How special am I to you?" She asked while tilting her head to the side slightly.

I, uhhh... I said that, didn't I? Now, to get out of this situation. Uhhh "I see. So that's how you found out about my birthday. Your just special to me... like everyone else." And that hurt a bit for me to say... but eh. At least I avoided the question. She didn't push any further.

But alas...

"You do realize that only Akihiko strokes my hair, right?" She said.

More like pushed me against the verbal wall. I was stroking her hair this entire time, and I barely even noticed.

If Akihiko was here right now, he'd have every right to knock me out. Now, stay calm, and answer, Minato.

"Do you want me to stop?" I asked calmly. As calmly as I could, that is...

"No. It's okay. It's very comforting, actually." She answered. I was going to protest, but who doesn't feel in need of some comfort when everyone forgets your birthday? I didn't find the will to deny her that, so I kept stroking her hair.

"Also, did you get me anything? I mean, it's not like that... I just wanted to k ow if you went through all the trouble when no one even remembered my birthday..." she asked. I guess it's time to give her one of the gifts. I thought about giving her the ring, and thus, leaving the Raiho doll for Akihiko, since she actually said that she wanted one, but then I remembered:

The woman that gave me the ring knew about me and the Fall...

What if the legend behind the ring is true?

I reached for the pocket where the ring was in, and sure enough, it was abnormally warm... like, really, really warm.

It could be true... if so...

Hamuko could actually fall in love with me...

Again, who IS that woman?!

Anyway, now I have a choice. A very important choice... do I give her the Raiho doll, or the Crimson Ring?

Author notes: Me and my collabrator Raidou are going to post the ending up soon (We are planning on doing two different endings depending on what Minato gives her so stay tuned)