I'm so sorry, guys! School sucks, by the way.

Lets get back on track.

Well, whoever he is... he can't be human.

Satori put her hands on her face and moaned in displeasure.

"I can't believe I got talked into something like that by Koishi. I'm slowly losing my mind."

As she contemplated her mistake, Okuu and Orin snuck up behind her...

...or at least they attempted to.

"Yes, I'm going. Unfortunately."

"It'll be fun, Satori-sama!" Orin put her hands on Satori's shoulders for encouragement.

"Yeah! Uh... maybe he'll be so happy to see us that we'll get free appetizers!" Okuu chimed in.

"Okuu, he doesn't even know us." Satori sighed.

"Unyu?" Okuu tilted her head.

"Nevermind. I'll just forget about all this until tomorrow."

At least I hope so...

"Futo, quit acting like that."

"Forgive mine insolence, Crown Prince, but this beith the boy's fault."

"Why is it my fault?" Nigel eyed the two from a distance as they bickered.

For the past hour that they've been walking to the Mausoleum, Futo has been keeping her distance from Nigel due to the incident that happened earlier.

"It's not his fault. You know that we're not an item." Miko flipped her hand nonchalantly.

"I have not the slightest care about whether or not he-"

"He? So now I'm at fault?"

Futo quickly realized what she previously said.

"...I believe I said too much." She blushed.

"... I won't press it any longer," Miko pointed at the Mausoleum. "because we're here."

"Look, Nigel! That's the Mausoleum in the distance." Tojiko gestures towards the Mausoleum as well.

Nigel looked.

"It's about the size of the Myouren Temple," he said.

"Please don't compare my Mausoleum to Byakuren's sham." Miko squinted.

Futo didn't say a word, but nodded in agreement.

"Alright, sorry." Nigel nodded back to Futo instead of Miko, which made Futo blush and look away.

"Quite the flustered one, aren't you, Futo?" Miko elbowed her follower, who jumped in response.

"... nay, I beith not flustered." Futo replied in a hushed tone.

"What was that?" Miko grinned.

"Crown Prince, we're inside."

Only Tojiko had noticed this before Futo spoke up.

"Oh, we are." Miko took her cape off and placed it aside on a table. "Make yourself at home, Nigel."

Nigel flopped down on the floor.

"Man, I'm so tired..."

Tojiko hovered above him and looked down.

"Oh, please. It's only been an hour of walking. Well, for you at least."

"Dang it, I'm trapped!"

"Tojiko, move thyself from above Nigel!" Futo frowned.

"Oh, now you're referring to Nigel by his name again? The Crown Prince must've knocked some sense into you." Tojiko grinned mischievously and looked back down at Nigel. "This isn't a problem, right Nigel?

"Do what I saith and move, or there WILL beith a problem!"

Futo adjusted herself into a fighting stance.

"Eh?" Tojiko looked up to see a plate barely miss her head. "Hey! Watch where you're throwing!"

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Futo threw another plate, missing again and accidentally hitting Miko in the back, shattering upon impact.

"Ouch... alright! You two need to stop arguing." Miko turned around and caught the next plate thrown.

"Oh, you've done it now, Futo!" Tojiko's hands began to brim with electricity.

"A little help, please...?" Nigel waved at Miko, who obliged and helped him out of the way of the fight.

"This is one of the reasons why it's not a good idea to put them in the same room together." Miko sighed.

"Say, uh... how long will this fight take?"

"With them, probably the whole night," Miko said, "why do you ask?"

"It's not too late to take a walk somewhere, is it?" Nigel looked at Miko.

"That depends where you want to go. I would have to tag along so you won't get lost on the way back."

"Well..."

"You wanted to go all the way back to the village..." Miko looked a bit upset.

Nigel and Miko have been walking for almost an hour, so they were almost there.

"Yeah. The evening is the best time to buy from the vendors." Nigel said.

"Oh? And why's that?"

"Because nobody's around."

"I see. I'll be sure to do evening shopping now that I know," she giggled, "although... I'm sure you've done your shopping in the evenings for years."

"You're right," He pointed at the outskirts of the village. "That's where slme of the shady vendors set up. I wouldn't go there if I were you."

"I can take care of myself, thank you."

Nigel couldn't really tell if she was being serious or not, because Miko refused to look at him.

"Well, er... if that's the case, then I'll go on ahead." He rubbed the back of his head.

"No."

This was the first time during the past hour that Miko looked at him.

I'd rather like to have seen her in a good mood, but it seems like she's turned sour.

"I refuse to let you go by yourself, at nighttime, no less."

"W-"

"Don't ask why. Be sensible instead of acting on a whim for once, Nigel!" She forced Nigel to turn around and look her straight in the eyes.

Do you want to die? She mouthed to him.

"Why in the right mind would I-"

"Your mind isn't functioning right. No wonder you make stupid decisions!" Miko crossed her arms, extremely infuriated. "Clearly you need to sit down and actually think about what you're doing."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Well, I don't think you want to get ate by a yōkai tonight!"

Ate... by a yōkai?

Why would she be so concerned about... me?

"But-"

"Stop arguing with me. I don't want to talk about this anymore." She uncrossed her arms and walked in front of me, stopping a few feet away from Nigel. "I suggest you keep up, or you will get ate."

He thought he could see the faintest glimmer of a teardrop slide down her cheek, but he couldn't really tell for sure from the angle she stopped at.

What did I do?

Soon after the ordeal, they arrived at the village in no time flat.

Miko refused to look at Nigel as he negotiated his way back into the village with the guards. She still refused to look at him as he browsed throughout the market.

"Are ya back for more, young man?" A strange looking vendor flashed multiple knives between his fingers.

"No. You carry fruit and vegetables, don't you?"

The vendor rolled his eyes, then pointed behind him at the baskets containing fruit and vegetables.

"NAH, they're just on display with a price tag underneath them," He said sarcastically.

"Well-"

"I want all of them."

Miko finally spoke up, shocking both of them.

"...what'dya say?" The vendor's jaw dropped.

"I'd like to buy all of your baskets." She put a 10,000 yen bill on the counter separating the two of them from the vendor.

"A-Aye, I'll give them to you. But-"

"Keep the change."

"...okay."

The vendor began taking the baskets down one by one and setting them on the counter.

"Why did you buy them? I was going to get them for the café." Nigel murmured to Miko as he took up a few of the baskets in each of his arms.

"There's no reason for you to spend your money other than on the more trivial things." Miko took up the rest of the baskets in her arms.

"Well..." He really couldn't disagree with that. "We don't really have any free arms for anything, so-"

"We can drop these off at the café and come back. Unless you're done shopping, Nigel?" It seemed as though Miko forgot about the events of earlier, because she was back to her usual friendly demeanor.

"Yeah. I'm shopped out."

"Then I guess we'll head back to the Mausoleum after we drop these off."

Nigel and Miko began to walk away.

"Thank ya for your patronage!" The vendor waved. "Man, those two get along really well. It's like they're-"

"I wouldn't say that out loud if I was you, mister!~" Out of nowhere, a certain green-haired satori popped into the vendor's vision.

"Eh? W-Who are-"

"They're both really sick of others saying they look good together," Koishi smiled. "plus, if you think about it, there's this huuuge age difference between them."

She outstretched her arms to emphasize.

"How can I be so sure you're tellin' the truth, missy?" The vendor crossed his arms.

"Because,

I am somebody you should be wary of."

Koishi never stopped smiling as she said those words, which creeped the vendor out.

"Isn't that a reason I shouldn't trust ya...?"

"Believe what you want, mister! I've gotta catch up to those two!"

And just like that, Koishi slipped out of the vendor's vision, and out of his memories.

Miko sat the baskets down and used her key to unlock the door. Nigel made his way inside as soon as the door opened.

"Where are we setting them?" She asked, picking the baskets back up.

"In the back room. Put some sheets over them just in case a few gnats want to land on them." Nigel used his foot to flip the light switch.

"Sounds sensible enough."

They went to the back room and sat all the baskets on the floor. Miko found a sheet on one of the shelves and unfurled it, laying it on top of them.

"Let's take a basket with only vegetables back. I'm sure Futo can find a use for them if and when she cooks tonight."

"Alright." Nigel bent down and slid one of the baskets containing only vegetables out from under the sheet, handing it to Miko.

All of a sudden, the front door closed.

"Was that you, Nigel?" Miko refused to take her eyes off the door.

"No. I'm all the way over here." He had made his way over to one of the tables, sitting down on one of the chairs.

"Then... who did that?"

It then became clear to both of them that they weren't alone.

"Whoever you are, show yourself!" Nigel yelled.

"Sure thing!" Koishi was sitting in the chair opposite to Nigel, her eyes fixated on him. He nearly fell out of his seat in shock.

"Eh? Aren't you Satori's sister?" Miko asked.

"Yep! I know you, too! You're that girl with the funny hair, uh... Miko, I think," Koishi turned her head to look at Miko. "and the human's sitting in front of me!"

"This human has a name." Nigel squinted.

"Yep, I know. It's Nigel," Koishi waved his comment aside. "and I know that cause I've been keeping my eyes on you."

"W-What? Keeping your eyes on him?" Miko wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead. "But why?"

"He's really interesting if you think about it. I mean, he did accept your offer of helping you out with your café, after all. Don't you think there's something off about that?" Koishi smiled, leaning over the table to get a closer look at Nigel.

"Urk..." Nigel instinctively slid his chair back.

"Your eyes are really blue. Did you know that?"

"YES, I KNEW THAT!" Nigel stood up, looking down at the green-haired satori. "What are you implying?"

"You've just gotta be hiding something, mister Nigel!" Koishi jumped up and stood on top of the table, now facing Nigel eye-to-eye. "My big sis'll find out tomorrow. She's really good at reading others' thoughts."

"She's right, Nigel. Satori is one of the most... undesirable yōkai to be around just because of that reason," Miko walked over to the two of them. "but if you put that aside, she's quite nice company."

"I don't have anything to hide, uh..." Nigel had no idea of the girl's name.

"Oh, you don't even know who I am!" Koishi curtsied. "Koishi Komeiji, sister of Satori Komeiji. I doubt you'll remember who I am, though."

"W-Why not?"

"Nobody ever seems to remember me except for Okuu, Orin, big sis, and a few others."

"Wait, then you're-"

"I think I've overstayed my welcome." Koishi jumped off the table and walked to the door, looking back at Nigel when she opened it. "We'll see each other again tomorrow, Nigel. I know I won't forget about you, so please don't forget about me!"

And like that, she was gone again.

"...I'm sure I won't forget about her." Nigel pushed his chair back into the table.

"Huh? Forget about who?" Miko asked.

"Oh, it's nobody." He smiled at the confused Miko, who started to make her way to the door.

"Did we really leave the door open?"

"Yes, we did."

So she really is forgetable.

"Welcome back!" Futo greeted Miko and Nigel at the entrance. She looked at the basket that Miko was carrying. "What dost thou have?"

"Dinner. You can roast-"

"AYE, I WILL- I mean, aye, I will roast those vegetables over the flames." Futo took the basket.

"Thank you. Say, where is Tojiko?"

"She retired for the day. Our fight beith quite exhausting for the both of us."

"I see." Miko looked over at Nigel, who could barely keep his eyes open as it is. "Tired, Nigel?"

"A little bit." He yawned.

"Thou can't sleep yet. We need to fix thine woman problems." Futo looked at Nigel.

"Wake me up in the early morning and you can try then. I'm exhausted... plus, I'm starving!" As if on cue, his stomach growled like a lion.

"I'll start on those vegetables. Cometh with me, Nigel."

"Uh..." Nigel looked over at Miko, who nodded.

"It's fine. She's actually really good at roasting things."

"If you say so..." Nigel followed Futo into the kitchen, where there was...

... a huge open flame burning?

"Is this safe?" Nigel looked a bit skeptical.

Futo nodded.

"Aye. Trust me," she threw some of the vegetables in the flame. "I knoweth what I'm doing."

When the vegetables landed in the center, the flame grew stronger. Futo grinned like a maniac.

"I AM ENAMORED BY THIS FLAME! THE SHEER INTENSITY OF IT MAKETH ME-" She stopped as soon as she remembered that Nigel was standing right beside her. She blushed. "F-Forgive me, I have no clue what cameth over me."

"A pyromaniac, huh? I never took you for one," Nigel smiled. "in fact, I would have never known if I didn't come with you."

Futo took the vegetables out of the fire with her bare hands and sat them on a plate. Nigel took a whiff of them.

"They smell really good." Nigel picked a moderately cool cob of corn off the plate. "How did you keep it from turning into popcorn?"

"That beith my secret." Futo smiled and put the flame out.

"Hmph. I'll find out your secret someday." Nigel took a bite of the corn.

"Pfft. As if." She picked up the plate and took it to the other room, where Miko was eagerly awaiting. "It beith done, Crown Prince."

"Excellent!" Miko accepted the plate of vegetables with a huge smile plastered on her face.

Nigel attempted to grab another cob of corn, but his hand was smacked away by the ever hungry Miko. Futo giggled a bit.

"Nothing ever comes between the Crown Prince and her food."

"Ouch... yes, thanks for telling me beforehand." Nigel plopped down on the floor.

"It was quite hilarious to watch thine reaction. I couldn't help myself."

"Sorry, Nigel," Miko bit into a roasted carrot. "but I usually get feral when I'm hungry."

"Oh, I know that now." Nigel finally snatched a cob of corn off the plate.

"That's pretty corny, you know." Miko smiled at her own joke.

"Well, you're pretty stalky yourself." Nigel nearly choked on his corn laughing.

"Knock it off, nitwits." Futo smacked both of them on the back of the head jokingly.

The three of them laughed as they continued to make remarks about the vegetables to each other.

"Alright, I think it's time to sleep," Miko yawned. "Nigel, there's a bedroom just down that hallway. It's the first door on your left."

"Yep." Nigel stood up.

"Good night, Nigel."

"Night." He made his way to the bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

"...Crown Prince?" Futo's voice echoed through the now almost empty room.

"Yes, Futo?"

"How wouldst thee describe the feeling of love?"

"...what are you implying?" Miko glanced over at Futo, who was fidgeting around.

"E-Eh?!" Futo shot up out of her sitting position. "I be implying nothing! I am asking thine personal opinion."

"Futo, don't lie. You wouldn't say something like that unless you mean something by it."

"Urk... I'm implying that... that..." The words wouldn't come out of her mouth.

"Yes?"

"I'm implying that I, by chance, haveth those feelings for someone."

Done!

What do you think about Miko and her outburst?

What about Futo? She's 'forgiven' Nigel for what he did quite easily. But why?

And finally, Koishi is properly introduced as the stalker she is. Maybe she'll even have a huge role in our little story for the time being.

I hope I didn't portray anyone this chapter poorly. Pfft, I feel like I did.

Please review! Help me to improve the best that I can!

-Author