"Winter in Winter" is a travel story written by Hokkaido-born poet/novelist Chie Kato.

Related link: Part 2 of our tour of Sapporo, Hokkaido: "Reasons for Becoming an Adult"

When I saw my sister for the first time in a while, I immediately knew something must have happened. I had thought the same thing from the moment she invited me on the trip.

Rather than saying he was thin, it would be more appropriate to say he looked haggard. However, I hesitated to say it like that, so he raised one hand toward me and said, "Oh." I raised my hand to about half his height and said, "Oh."

"This is the first time we've met at an airport."

After we finished the baggage inspection and sat down next to each other on chairs near the departure gate, the girl said as if she had just realized something. I had been thinking that since I got the message about the meeting, but I agreed.

It was the first time we met at the airport, and the first time we went on a trip together. I'm not on bad terms with my sister, who is four years older than me, but we rarely meet without a reason. Since my sister got a job two years ago, we've both been living alone in Tokyo, but we live on different train lines, so we've never really talked about meeting up.

There were many things I wanted to ask. I felt it was not a good idea to ask questions over LINE or the phone, so I had planned to do so when we met in person, but somehow, sitting next to me, the older sister had an aura that made it difficult for me to ask questions.

"Oh, that's right, just watch it on the plane."

My older sister took out a piece of paper from the large black bag she had on her lap and handed it to me.

"what's this?"

He took it as he said this, then lowered his gaze. On the first line of the A4-sized paper, "★ Hokkaido Trip Asahikawa & Sapporo ★" was written in large letters. Below that was the date. Further below that, the itinerary for today was written as Day 1.

According to the plan, they would travel from Haneda Airport to Asahikawa Airport, then take a bus from Asahikawa Airport to Asahiyama Zoo, stroll around the zoo for a while, have lunch there, and then take another bus to the station in the evening, check into a hotel, and eat at a nearby restaurant called Daikokuya.

On the second day, we plan to move to Sapporo by JR in the morning. There are many bullet-pointed lists of sightseeing spots in Sapporo. The Red Brick Building, the TV Tower, the Clock Tower, etc. How enthusiastic is he to have made and printed them out?

"Did you make it yourself?"

When I asked, he nodded with an expression that said, "Of course."

"Oh, I forgot to mention that you should drink consommé soup on the plane. It's delicious."

After telling me all that, Onee-chan yawned, muttered that she was sleepy, and closed her eyes. Surely she hadn't stayed up all night making the itinerary, though.

While I kept mumbling how cold it was, my sister was saying in an excited voice, "I'm glad we made it in time." When I asked her if it was cold earlier, she said that it was normal for Hokkaido to be cold. I knew it was cold, but I was careless because it was March. I didn't realize there was still so much snow on the ground.

"Ah, look, he's walking over, oh, so cute, ah, he's looking at me, so cute!"

Although not as much as my sister, the word "cute" just came out of my mouth naturally. The sight of the penguins waddling along on the snow, led by the staff, was certainly endearing to the sight of them.

"It's good, I got to see it."

Crouching down outside the marked line and taking pictures of the penguins with her smartphone camera, my older sister said. I had heard on the bus from Asahikawa Airport that the penguin walk is only available in winter, that it may not be held depending on the amount of snow, and that it only takes place once a day in March. It seems that my older sister has done a lot of research on Asahiyama Zoo.

"I want to take you home."

I say this while taking pictures of the penguins with my smartphone. Compared to seeing them with my naked eyes, it's not so easy to take good pictures. They're often blurry, and I only get a glimpse of their backs.

"There's something good about winter."

My sister said slowly. I didn't think she was just talking about penguin walks, but I answered "yes" for now.

The lamb meat still retains its warmth in my mouth. It's hot. I wash it down with beer. In the warm room, the cold beer goes down my throat pleasantly. I can't help letting out a sigh. It's delicious.

I reach for the second piece of lamb. It's cooked just right and smells delicious. Onee-chan grins.

When I found out that "Daikokuya" was a restaurant specializing in Genghis Khan, I said I didn't want to go. I don't like lamb. I was persuaded to eat more vegetables instead, so I reluctantly went, but the smell of grilled lamb that filled the restaurant whetted my appetite. I believed him and tried a slice, and was surprised at how delicious it was. It wasn't fishy at all, and the amount of fat was just right.

"The polar bear was big."

I was frustrated that my likes and dislikes were easily overcome, so I tried to change the topic. The polar bear house, which is apparently one of the highlights of Asahiyama Zoo, has an elaborate display method, and you can see the polar bears from a very close distance. Their diving and swimming were impressive.

"You wanted to see the polar bears, didn't you?"

Before I could ask who, the answers came flying one after the other.

"I was supposed to come with my lover. Or rather, my fiancé."

"Oh, big sister, are you getting married?"

"I don't do it. Or rather, I stopped. Because I found out he was cheating on me. He cried and apologized saying he was breaking up with the other guy, but how could I trust him? He was cheating on me on four dates. And it's not like it's cool or anything. It's just normal. It just made it even more unacceptable."

When she suddenly called me and asked me if I was on spring break at university and if I wanted to go to Hokkaido, I wondered if something had happened, if it was something to do with love. But I never imagined there was such a background to it. In fact, it was the first time I had heard about my sister's love life.

My sister suddenly put down her chopsticks, propped herself up on her elbows, and covered her eyes with both hands. A breathy voice escaped. Even if she burst out crying in a place like this. As I desperately searched in my head for words of comfort, I noticed that something was wrong. This is... She's not crying. She's laughing.

"older sister"

When I called out to her, my sister removed her hands from her eyes and tried to cover her mouth. She was still laughing. I wondered if she was shocked and had lost her emotions, but that wasn't the case.

"Yonmata has an amazing ring to it, doesn't it? It sounds like a monster."

When she finished speaking, she laughed again. "What's that?" I muttered in amazement, but I couldn't help but laugh when I saw her laugh. "It would be nice if Yokai Yon was exhibited at Asahiyama Zoo again," I said, and she laughed even more. I picked up some lamb from the iron pot with my chopsticks.