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Shibuya was a naturally busy place. Every spot you went, you were bound to find at least a few dozen people going in and out of the seemingly endless shops that filled every towering building. Be it going to get some food, seeing what its assorted stores had for sale, or just trying to find a place to duck out of the scramble, Shibuya was a place that was always alive at every single moment of the day. Of course, during the Christmas and holiday rush, the kind of crowded chaos that could be found there was doubled, or in most cases tripled, with everyone trying to get the big fashion and items of the season at a hopefully more reasonable price. This kind of chaotic crowded nature being made even worse meant that trying to actually get into any of the bigger store brands at a reasonable hour was going to be a lot of standing in line and having an idea on what you were going to buy. Just going in to try stuff on and have a good time wasn’t going to be seen as a fisable option.
That was, unless of course, you owned the company itself.
“Are… you sure it’s OK for us to just go in like this? I mean, I can’t even really stand getting stared at randomly, even less glared,” Rindo asked aloud and he and the others made their way into Gatto Nero. He could hear some of the surprised and angry gasps of other customers and people outside, who had likely been waiting for a good amount of time to try and get in. Being in a decently sized group like this and just walking in… it wasn’t exactly a good image to spread.
“Oh, don’t you worry about that. This is just us treating all of you to a nice day out shopping, so focus in on any clothes you want!” Shiki said, smiling at him. “I mean, after all the work that you’ve done for saving Shibuya, I think it’ll be OK if you cut in the line at least once or twice,” she continued, before glancing around the shop. “Now if you’ll just wait here, I’ll try to see where Eri is. She said she’d be helping us out,” she said before heading towards the door that led to the back.
As she headed off, the rest of the Wicked Twisters glanced around. “You know, it feels weirder being in here now that we’re not playing for our lives and stuff,” Fret commented as he glanced at some of the items on display. “When we were facing other players, I probably woulda begged Rindude to get a whole bunch of these at once, but now? I’m worried I’ll break something if I just look at it wrong, heh heh…”
“I don’t think I would ever even consider coming in to a shop like this, much less buy something from it, if it had not been for my time with the rest of you.” Nagi said in agreement, her body shifting to keep itself as tightly packed together as she awkwardly waddled around the store.
“Seriously? I’m the only one here who shopped her regularly?” Shoka asked, seeing the bevy of blank stares and nods coming back to her. She softly huffed, chuckling. “I swear, it’s like I’m the only with taste around here. Even if the two running this place can’t help, I’ll make sure you all come out with some piece of Gatto Nero merch on you,” she explained, before looking to Rindo, Fret, and Nagi. “Alright, for now. You three with me. We start with accessories and move up from there. Promise I won’t laugh at the stuff you pick unless it’s hilariously wrong,” she said before walking away.
“I don’t really get the big deal about alla this, it’s just clothes ya know? Even the stuff I got on, I ain’t breaking my bank open for em,” Beat remarked as he, Neku, and Rhyme continued to wait for Shiki to return.
Neku shrugged. “Lotta work goes into them. And we’re supporting our friends, so no complaining from me. Though I’m still not used to Shiki running her own shop. Feels like time’s moving too fast,” he said with a sigh, looking aside. It had been months, but he still felt the surreal kind of jet lag that came with being in the UG for so long. It was nice to be back with all his friends again and spending time with them, and all he could hope for was that things would go back to some degree of normal. His distracted thought was cut off as he was pulled into a surpringly tight hug. “H-huh?”
“So this is the Neku that I’ve heard so much about over the years!” Eri said, giggling as she looked him over. “Shiki’s played you up so, so much you’d think she was dating you instead of me!” she explained, before putting him down and turning to the others. “And you two must be Beat and Rhyme. I really do need to give you thanks for all the stuff you’ve done, you’ve really helped Shiki here out of a funk that I could never even dream of approaching.”
“E-Eri, don’t talk about it like that! You really did help too!” Shiki said, running back to the ground and patting the red head on the back. “It’s just, I didn’t want to risk getting you involved in the UG or anything like that. Now come on sweetie, we’re here to get them all some nice outfits for the holidays, not constantly worship them!” she said, before walking over to one of the nearby racks and coming back with a set of clothes. “I think we’ll be able to get you all leaving today with at least one piece of Gatto Nero clothing, if not a full set!”
“You’ll be totally cute and warm for the winter!” Eri added, giggling before going to get her own sets of clothing. She giggled seeing the eager, but also not too eager expressions that Beat and Neku were showing.
“Thank you for the kind offer, and we’ll be more than happy to help try stuff on, but I can’t exactly say if we’ll all be walking out of here with a lot,” Neku tried to explain, being cut off as both Eri and Shiki wrapped their arms around his shoulders.
“Oh, of course we know that you won’t be walking out of here with a lot this time! But you know, it’s the holidays and all,” Eri said, smiling. “We not only want to extend all the holiday sales to you and the others, but a special friends and family discount as well.”
Shiki nodded along to all of this. “You won’t get these kinds of deals anywhere else Neku. Most stores wouldn’t dream of reaching the discount numbers our holiday sales give, and even for a loyal customer they wouldn’t consider you anything more than a buyer,” she added, tugging on his Jupiter of the Monkey winter jacket. “All we care about right now is making sure our dearest friends don’t get swindled by all the non-caring competitors this Christmas.”
“Really looking for some high sales numbers to close out the season, huh.” Neku replied, forcefully chuckling as he saw both girls nod. He made a mental note to always wear whatever he bought today whenever he would have to come back here.
And so it began, with Shiki, Eri, and Shoka getting a whole bevy of Mr. Mew themed shirts, pants, skirts, hats, and more for the others to try on. Did it matter if it didn’t match their general vibes or aesthetic? Of course not, that just meant they’d have to give new looks a try! “Oh wow, didn’t think this was the kind of store to sell boots!” Rhyme remarked, softly swinging her legs in the pair of pink and black platform boots she was trying on. Due to her height, her legs were almost completely covered by them. “You know, I’ve tried these kinds of shoes before, but I always feel so wobbly in them. Moving more like a robot than a normal person,” she said, before getting to her feet and trying to walk around normally only to awkwardly wobble around.
Meanwhile, Nagi was nervously looking over all the accessory items that were available. “I highly doubt any of these are going to be for my types of… interests. And since I already have a vast number of ita bags and holders, adding another one would likely be pointless… and I can already hear my wallet screaming to me that any purchase made here will likely damage me financially…”
Shoka just scoffed as she stood next to her. “Don’t be like that. There’s gotta be another pocket bag or the like that you can use. They got pins here too, you could get those.”
“The pins I collect are not the same as the pins here and you know that, Lady Shoka,” Nagi replied, though still glancing over to the section dedicated to them. “Perhaps if they merch of Lord Tomonami to be sold here, but in a place such as this…” she trailed off and gasped as she saw more than a few pins displaying her illustrious gacha husband. “It is a Christmas miracle!”
Meanwhile, Rindo watched as Fret came out wearing a connected black top and skirt. “Thought I’d just give it a try out, ya know? Saw it was on sale, thought it was something Kanon might’ve worn and though ‘eh, why not?’. Feels pretty comfy actually, but what do you think Rindude?”
Rindo looked it over, before shooting him a thumbs up. “Yeah, I think it works for you. Though honestly, most stuff does.”
Fret shot him a big grin. “Aw, hell yeah man! You wanna try it? Pretty sure they had this in your size too, Rindude!”
“Uh… think I’ll pass. No way something like that could work for me.”
“Nah, man! You never know unless you try!” Fret then motioned Shoka over. “Shoka, come on, don’t you think he should at least give it a go?”
Rindo could feel himself start to sweat as he saw a mischevious grin crawl onto Shoka’s face. “I… I’m gonna have to no matter what I say, huh…”
“That’s the spirit, Rindo! It’s called having fun,” Shoka said, snickering as she ran to get him the outfit.
From afar, Beat and Neku watched everyone continue to shop. “Don’t think I’m ever gonna get a lick of this fashion stuff man…”Beat lamented.
“I usually just go with whatever looks cool, personally. Even during our Reaper’s Game, a lot of time I’d only buy something because Shiki would tell me off otherwise for what I was originally gonna go with,” Neku admitted, laughing as he rubbed the back of his neck. “But still, it’s nice seeing this sort of thing, you know? Everyone coming together like this and getting a moment to just be friends. No worries about the end of Shibuya or not being able to go home…” a warm smile came to his face. “It’s nice. It’s really nice.”
Beat smiled at him and patted him on the back. “It’s real good to have you back, man. And yeah, guess I kinda see what you’re talking about. I mean Rhyme’s having the time of her life trying a lot of this stuff on, so I guess it’s gotta be worth something if that’s what it’s doing, right?”
“Exactly.”
The two shared another smile before they felt chills run down both their necks. Behind them loomed Shiki and Eri, who had their own pair grins… though theirs were much more sinister. “I see you two are having trouble finding something that are more your taste? Well, don’t you worry. I’m sure we can be the ones to find things for you! Think of it just like the old days, OK Neku? Who needs all that Jupiter of the Monkey when you can have a Mr. Mew on you at almost all times?”
“And I promise you, we’re sure to have just the thing for all that skating you do too, don’t you worry, we here try to have outfits for all types of girls and guys!” Eri added, looking at Beat.
Both boys knew screaming would have no effect here, gulped as they accepted their fate.
A few hours later and the ladies watched the others head out, all having at least one bag full of merchandise on them. “Bye bye! Tell all your friends! Share those coupons you got! Happy Holidays!” Eri called out after them, waving.
Shiki giggled before kissing her girlfriend on the cheek. “It really is nice, getting to have everyone together when you’re around. You really fit in no problem, you know?”
Eri blushed, softly waving her off. “Oh, don’t be like that babe. You all went through your own stuff, I’d hate to barge and force my way into that sort of thing. Just seeing you so happy like this, so energetic. It makes my whole world,” she explained before pulling her into a passionate kiss.
The Christmas season in Shibuya was chaotic, and it was crowded. But even among all that, for the people that took part of the everyday life that made up the scramble, moments like this could still be pretty magical.