Shino SSR: Rainy Birthday

[nyaitsu]

Thanks again to royalquintet for proofreading!

Story Title: Rainy Birthday
Unlock with: SSR [A Present I Am Proud Of] Shino



Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

Chapter 1

[Lounge]

Akira: (Hm? The Eastern wizards are gathered.)
Hello there. Is something happening?

Shino: Oh, it's you, Sage.

Akira: Oh? Shino, I’ve never seen those clothes before.

Faust: Good thing, Shino. Looks like the sage noticed, too.

Nero: He changed clothes and came out here just to show us. Cute, right?

Shino: Chloe made them as my birthday gift.
How are they?

Akira: Wow, these are so chic and fashionable. They really suit you!
And you wear them so well, I bet Chloe’s happy, too.

Shino: There’s no mistaking Chloe’s skill. Naturally.

Akira: Oh, you mentioned your birthday. Is that today?

Shino: Nah, it’s a little later on. On that day, Heath and I are heading back to Blanchette Castle together.

Heathcliff: It seems Chloe heard about it and finished Shino’s present a bit early.

Akira: So that’s it. I bet you’re even more excited to return with new clothes.

Shino: It’s been so long since I had Mistress’ lemon pie. Sage, it’s better than Nero’s pie.

Nero: ... Hey now. Is that so?

Faust: He’s talking like a kid. Don’t get worked up.
Shino, I know you’re happy to be going home, but don’t pick on Nero.

Shino: It’s the truth.

Akira: Now, now....
(That aside, it’s rare for Shino to smile this much. It makes me kind of happy.)

Arthur: Master Sage. And the Eastern wizards are here, too. What are you all talking about?

Heathcliff: Ah, Prince Arthur. We’re talking about Shino’s birthday coming up.

Arthur: Is that so. Hm? Shino, what are those clothes?

Shino: Chloe made them. They’re a gift.

Arthur: I see, so you say it’s almost your birthday, huh?
As you’d expect, black clothes really suit you. You look cool, like a hero.

Shino: Hear that, Heath? Like a hero.

Heathcliff: Mmhm. That’s great, Shino.

Nero: Well, I guess I agree with the prince.

Faust: ... I don’t really get fashion, but I think they’re not bad.

Shino: Right? I can’t wait to show Master and Mistress.

Akira: (Arthur and Shino should be the same age, but...)
(Watching them interact like this, Shino feels just a bit younger.)
(How cute. I bet Shino would get mad if I said that....)

Shino: Sage, what is it? You’re staring.

Akira. Uhm. Was I staring?

Shino: I get it. Are you jealous? Stare all you want, but this is mine. If you want your own, we can go ask Chloe together.

Akira: Seriously? Thank you so much!
(Shino... he really is happy. Please have a wonderful birthday.)

Chapter 2

[Hallway]

Akira: (It’s been raining non-stop for days. And now it’s Shino’s birthday.)
(Shino and Heathcliff were supposed to return to the Eastern Kingdom....)


[Shino’s room]

Akira: Shino, it’s me. Do you have a minute?

Shino: Sage? What’s up?

Akira: I heard you were flying home by broom, so I’m worried about whether you’ll be okay in this rain.
... Huh? You’re not wearing the outfit from before?

Shino: Oh. We called off the trip back to the Eastern Kingdom. I don’t have to wear those clothes.

Akira: What, why?

Shino: It’s this weather. It’d be one thing if it were just me, but I can’t let Heath travel in this.
So don’t worry. Heath and I are staying in the manor today.

Akira: Shino....

Shino: Sage, what’s with the weird face? Are you worried about something else? Or maybe you’re getting sick....

Akira: No, it’s not that.

Shino: Then good. When you’re having problems, tell me.

Akira: Uh, thank you.
(He wound up worrying about me. Maybe Shino is less concerned about his birthday than I thought.)


[Lounge]

Akira: [sigh] What to do....

Arthur: Master Sage. What’s the matter?

Akira: Arthur. It’s about Shino....

Arthur: That’s right, today was Shino’s birthday, wasn’t it? Did he already head back to the Eastern Kingdom?

Akira: No, he seems to have called off the trip.

Arthur: Huh? Why’s that?

I briefly explain the situation.

Arthur: Even so, there are other ways to travel home....

Akira: I said that, too, but he told me it’s fine.
Shino himself didn’t seem to care very much, but I was wondering if we could at least have some kind of celebration.

Arthur: Sounds to me like a great idea. Please, allow me to think it through with you.
For Shino, this is a special day that only comes once a year. I want to celebrate it, too.

Akira: Thank you so much!
What are some things Shino would like...? There’s the outfit Chloe gifted him before, but if there’s anything else on top of that....

Arthur: ... Oh!
Master Sage, what if we did this?

Chapter 3

[Shino’s room]

Shino: ... I’m getting tired of napping and listening to the rain.

[Knocking SFX]

Shino: Who’s there?
Heath... and the sage?

Akira: Afternoon, Shino.

Heathcliff: I thought it must be boring to spend your birthday alone. So starting now, together...

Shino: ... Sage. You showed up again?

Heathcliff: Shino, hey. That’s no way to talk!
Master Sage came because he’s worried about you.

Shino: I’m just stating a fact.

Heathcliff: Ah, of course. Shino is always like this. Since way back, he’s been so weirdly stubborn....

Shino: What? You just showed up here on your own, even though I never asked.

Akira: D-Don't start fighting now?!

Faust: “Satillquinart Mullcreed.”



Shino: This is...

Faust: For crying out loud, you two are always so noisy.

Shino: So it was Faust’s magic. Anyway, why the costume change?

Faust: What do you mean “why?” Because it’s your birthday. Look, your gift just arrived.

Shino: Arthur, Nero. And that smells like... lemon pie?

Arthur: Ahaha, so you could tell. Nero and I made it together.

Nero: You weren’t half bad, Your Highness.

Shino: ... The heck is all this for?

Arthur: It’s because you’re our precious friend, Shino. I wanted to celebrate your birthday, too.

Akira: We all really cherish you, so we wanted you to be happy.
Wearing nice clothes, eating your favorite lemon pie... It's your birthday, so we wanted you to have a good time.

Shino: ...

Akira: (Oh, he took a slice.)

Arthur: How does it taste?

Shino: ... I mean, Mistress’ lemon pie is still better.

Nero: You little.... How about next time I make lemon pie, Shino doesn’t get any.

Arthur: Haha. Well, it’s fine, isn’t it?

Shino: Can I have seconds?

Arthur: Of course! We made a lot, so there’s plenty more where that came from.

Shino: In that case, let’s eat. Sage, Heath, let’s go! Faust, you too!

Heathcliff: Woah, don’t just pull on me!

Faust: Be sure not to eat too fast and make a mess of your clothes.

Shino: Yeah, I know. This outfit’s special, after all.

Akira: (I wasn’t sure how this would go, but I’m glad he’s happy....)
(And the Eastern wizards, who tend to be so unsociable, willingly worked together for Shino’s sake.)
(Getting to celebrate with Arthur and everyone else, I’m sort of happy.)
Shino. Those clothes—they really do suit you! Happy birthday!

Shino: Yeah. Stuff like this isn’t bad every now and then. Thank you, Sage.