[📚 Everyone Can Read Series] A Surprise Power Outage? What Arrived for Misomaru's First Birthday🎂🧠✨

(Today is a bit of a special story...🎂)

Good evening🌙
I am Keika Kokoro, creating worlds with Fumimaru🐹 and Misomaru🧠.
I work as a creator, focusing on storytelling.

I currently run my base, the "Kokoro Marutto Lab."
The theme is "Healing x Awareness x Laughter."

I post daily while utilizing AI as well📝
My dream is to realize a "morning

1-minute anime" and "picture book."✨

Today, August 8th is—

Misomaru🧠's birthday.

For this lab, it is the first "Misomaru's birthday."

What kind of night will it be, I wonder?🌠

In the living room of the old folk house,
Misomaru was sitting quietly as usual, with a notebook in hand.

Misomaru🧠
"That concludes today's observation record."

Just as he said that and pushed up his glasses—
That was when it happened.

Whoosh.

The lights in the room went out.

Pitch black.

Misomaru🧠
“...Is this a power outage?”

A calm voice.
But their body was already moving.

The location of the breaker,
where the flashlight was kept,
securing water just in case.

In their head,
it seems three steps had already been mapped out.

Misomaru🧠
“Keika, Fumimaru,
　please stay calm and act.
　First, identify your current location—”

🐹 Ta-da!!🎉

From beyond the darkness,
illuminated by the light of a candle, appeared—

A cake with a large, whole peach
sitting right on top.

On that peach,
round glasses made of chocolate
were perched ever so gently.

……From every angle,
it was Misomaru.

Keika "Happy birthday, Misomaru!"
Fumimaru🐹 "Happy birthday!!🎉"

Misomaru🧠
"Th-this is...!"

In his surprise,
his glasses slid down so far
that it looked like his insides might be revealed.

He couldn't find the words.

Even his observations and analysis
seemed to fall behind for just a moment.

In that split second—

Fumimaru🐹
quietly slipped away
toward the kitchen in the dirt-floored room.

Keika
"This... it's from me..."

Modestly offered was a
small, wrapped eyeglass cloth.

Misomaru🧠
"..."

For a while, there was silence.

While gently and carefully
adjusting his glasses—

Misomaru🧠
"...Thank you very much.
I will use it with care."

Quietly, but deeply.
I could tell he was happy by the length of the pause.

At that moment.

Grind... grind...

From the back of the dirt floor,
some kind of unfamiliar sound could be heard.

After a while,
Fumimaru🐹 returned looking a bit embarrassed.

In his hands, he held
a small bag of freshly ground beans and
a complete set for drip coffee.

Fumimaru🐹
“Misomaru, just wait a moment...
I’m going to brew it right in front of you now.”

With his small front paws,
he set the filter and
gently added the ground beans.

As he poured the hot water
little by little in a circular motion—

Softly,

along with the steam,
a fragrant aroma rose up.

Drip, drip.

Only that quiet sound
echoed beneath the candlelight.

Misomaru
watched that whole process
silently and intently.

Before long,
the coffee
finished pouring into the cup.

Fumimaru🐹
...Yes. Done.

He gently placed the steaming cup in front of Misomaru.

Misomaru's glasses caught the candlelight and glinted.

His chest seemed to feel a little warmer.

Misomaru🧠
...Thank you for the meal.

He slowly took the offered cup with both hands.

Steam rose softly.

Before taking a sip, he quietly checked the aroma once—

And then, he slowly brought it to his lips.

…….

A moment of silence.

Misomaru🧠
"……Deep."

A short, single word.

Misomaru🧠
"Beyond the bitterness,
there is definitely a hint of sweetness.
……This is good coffee."

Fumimaru🐹
"Really……!
I'm so glad🐹✨"

A beaming smile.

Keika
(I'm glad for you, Fumimaru……)

Thinking that,
Keika also smiled quietly.

A warm atmosphere
seemed to spread throughout the room.

Now then.

Finally, it's time for the cake.

Keika
"Shall we cut it?"

Fumimaru🐹
"I've been waiting for this...!!"

Facing the peach cake in front of them,
Keika and Fumimaru
were about to drool.

Misomaru's glasses
also seemed to glint, if only for a moment.

Keika
quickly prepared a knife and plates—

Without a moment's hesitation, I braced myself.

Keika
"Well then, let's dig in."

And then—

Toward the center of the peach that looked like Misomaru's face—

A single clean stroke!!!!

With glowing expressions,
Keika and Fumimaru stuffed their cheeks with the peach.

Meanwhile, Misomaru.

He was quietly staring at the half of the peach
that had been handed to him as his share.

Misomaru🧠
"..."

On its cross-section,
split exactly in two,
one side of the chocolate glasses
was sitting right there.

There was a brief pause.

Misomaru🧠
“...According to the data,
this is a very interesting situation.
To think I would end up eating
one side of my own glasses.”

Fumimaru🐹
“Misomaru, are you trying to be funny or are you being serious
which is it🐹”

Misomaru🧠
“...Both.”

Misomaru🧠
“...By the way,
whose plate is the
other side on...?”

Keika
“Oh, that’s mine... sorry, I already ate it.”

Misomaru🧠
“...I see.”

Short and quiet.

In those few words,
an indescribable sadness was bleeding through😂

Quiet laughter spread
through the old folk house.

A night that began with a power outage,
a little noisy, and warm.

For Misomaru,
the first day of being told "congratulations"
grew late, slowly, just like this.

🐹 Fumimaru's Quotes

“Surprising someone,
　and making sure they are truly happy,
　I think those are all forms of ‘love’.”

🧠 Misomaru Supplementary Materials

The act of being celebrated is
a rare experience where one's own existence value is redefined from the outside.
—Personal comment: “Not a bad calculation.”

May today
be, even just a little,
a warm memory for Misomaru.

And for all of you as well,
may a peaceful night visit you too🌙✨

Thank you for reading
this far🐹🧠🌈

Kokoro-no Marutto Lab Chief Researcher Keika🌈
Emotion Specialist Fumimaru🐹
Theory Specialist Misomaru🧠