I think I may be the only person who ships Shiori/Tamako, but it would just be so cute. Also quite disappointed in the fandom that this is only the second Tamako Market fic on FFN...
Shiori tucked the few loose strands of her hair behind her ear, studying her reflection in her bedroom mirror. "I like you. I like you! I... like you," she told the mirror, varying her intonation on each repetition. She couldn't help but recall the first time she'd practiced saying something to Tamako, thanking the restroom mirrors for supper.
Her elocution was interrupted by a flapping noise at the window, followed by Dera's characteristic thud as he landed on the ledge. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes; it would only egg him on, she thought.
"Thinking of me, my darling?" Dera crooned.
"No," she said curtly.
"Oh, you needn't deny it," the bird wheedled, fluffing his feathers. "You are hardly the first to love me."
Shiori considered simply ignoring him but decided that doing so would prolong his stay. "I've never loved you, Dera-chan," she said bluntly.
Dera chuckled importantly and flew over to her dresser, catching himself just before his weight caused him to crash to the floor. "You can say so," he said as he drew himself to his feet, "but I know the truth. After all, who could you be speaking of, if not I?"
The hairbrush sitting on the dresser was beginning to look like an attractive weapon against the conceited bird, Shiori thought. But again she resisted the urge, instead holding herself aloof as normal. "I was speaking of someone else I know," she said vaguely. "A person."
"Hmph." Dera refolded his wings and made himself comfortable on Shiori's nightstand. She suppressed a frustrated sigh; would she ever be rid of this irritating bird? Midori and Kanna never seemed to mind him, and most of the time she could tolerate him, but at times like these, he was supremely frustrating. Even so, she had to admit that she was thankful to him for helping her befriend Tamako... Her mind returned her to the matter she'd been considering before Dera had interrupted her.
"I have to go," she murmured as she slipped on her shoes. She knew she was being brusque, but she reasoned that if she allowed Dera to delay her any further, she could lose the nerve she'd worked so hard to build up. Dera observed her with a wry expression as she left the room without any further speech, then flew back to the windowsill when he heard her shut the outside door.
He kept his gaze on her as she crossed the street and began walking toward the shopping district. "Poor girl," he reflected aloud. "She can try to project, but she can't stop her feelings for me." And it was with this self-assured air that he flew after her.