We Are Family

Filming

The four boys watched the filming of their mother's cooking show eagerly, each of them excited about being able to see the behind-the-scenes details. Their mother, too, was very excited to have her babies on set with her.

Yuya was watching Mieru warily, but she seemed to have matured a little since their elementary school days. She clearly still had a crush on the tomato-head, but at least she wasn't chasing him around trying to kiss him anymore. She was, however, talking about Yuya whenever the camera was on her.

"Yuya's so sweet!" Mieru said dreamily. "When we were in elementary school, he was always trying to make people laugh when they were sad, even if they were mean to him! Plus, animals love him too! There was this time in fifth grade when a farmer brought baby goats to show the school, and the baby goats just would not leave Yuya's side. They chased him around and played with him. He's just so sweet!"

The camera crew came to Yuya and his brothers to get their input, and Yuya grinned. "Yeah, I don't know why, but animals really do seem to love me a lot! Not just domesticated animals either! Wild animals seem to love me too! I remember when our family went camping once, and there was a bear and it sniffed me a bit but didn't attack me or run away."

"Oh man, I remember that!" Yugo said, eyes wide. "The bear wouldn't leave you alone, either. It's like it thought you were one of its cubs! The park rangers had to get involved!"

"It's true," Yoko told the camera, shaking her head at the memory. "That was actually the day we realized that animals' love for Yuya was greater than we initially thought."

"So... what's Mieru making?" Yuya asked, more curious than he cared to admit. Mieru immediately replied, "It's a surprise! But I just know you're going to love it, Yuya!"

"Not even a little hint?" Yuya asked, pouting a little. Mieru blushed at his unintentional cuteness and relented, "It's got apples in it!"

"Well, that's helpful," Yuri said, rolling his eyes. Mieru chose to ignore him and began grating a Fuji apple. "Oh, I can't wait for Yuya to taste my cooking!" she said happily.

* * *

A little over an hour later, whatever Mieru was cooking seemed to be done. Yuto nudged Yuya and nodded toward the girl, who was ladling the food onto a plate of rice. "Looks like she's done!" the eggplant murmured to his youngest brother.

"Looks like it," Yuya agreed as Mieru approached him with the plate. She handed it to the tomato-head, and smiled at him. "Tada! Apple Curry!"

"Thanks!" Yuya said, taking the fork in hand and scooping up some of the curry. He took a bite, and lit up at the flavor. "This is really good! Who would've thought apples would go well with curry!"

"I knew you'd like it!" Mieru said, beaming with pride. "You were always snacking on apples when we were in school together!"

Yuya blushed a little. "Well, I do love apples a lot!" he admitted, taking another bite of the curry. "Mmm, it's got the right amount of heat too!"

Yoko smiled as she watched her son eat the curry. "Yuya's not the kind of person who'll say something tastes good just to spare the chef's feelings," she told the camera. "Not even mine! If he's saying Mieru's curry tastes really good, then I have no doubt that it's true! I'm looking forward to trying it myself!"