Yao saw how Kiku's little legs were trying to keep up with him. "Do I need to carry you?"

"No. Ah! Nya-nya!" Kiku ran off, leaving the road.

"Kiku!" Yao chased him into an alley. "Aiyah! Again?"

He was enthusiastically petting a cat. "Nya-nya!"

"Kiku! Are you coming?"

He picked the cat up and carried the confused animal along.

"Leave the cat here."

"Kitty come with us!"

"I think he lives here. You don't want to take him from his home, do you?"

Kiku pouted and put the cat down. "Bye, bye, kitty!" he said, waving. The cat ran off and disappeared around the corner.

Yao held out his hand. "Are you coming?"

Kiku grabbed his hand and they continued on their way.

"That one, please." Yao paid for the cabbage and turned to grab it, but it wasn't there anymore. "Where… Oh." The cabbage had grown two little legs. "Kiku, why don't you put it in the basket with the rest of the vegetables?"

"No."

"It's too big for you to carry."

"No."

Yao sighed. "Alright, then. Don't fall over."

Kiku toddled away with the cabbage, not possibly able to see around it.

"Careful…!" Yao walked beside him, guiding him with a hand on his back now and then to keep him from bumping into things. "Here, a tea house. Do you want some tea?"

"Chea!" Kiku took a sharp turn, making Yao nearly trip over him. He followed the walking cabbage inside.

"Come, sit down."

"Kitty!" Kiku dropped the cabbage and chased after a cat that had sneaked inside the tea house.

"Oh, sweetie..." Yao picked up the cabbage and placed it in his basket. "Come sit, little one."

Kiku carried the cat along to their table.

"Sweetie..."

"Kitty like chea."

"I don't think so."

"Kitty live in chea home, kitty like chea."

"Just don't pinch him." He poured some tea for them both. "Have you finished reading the story? The one I wrote you for practise?"

"Yes!"

"What was it about?"

Kiku looked at him with big eyes.

"Mm?"

"No!"

Yao nearly dropped his tea. "Excuse me?"

"Nii-nii write, nii-nii know!" He tapped Yao's head. "Nii-nii forget?"

"No sweetie, I'm just checking if you know what the story's about. Of course I know. Why don't you tell kitty the story?"

Kiku looked at the cat with a very serious face which made Yao hold in a chuckle. "Man go fish, but big fish mean, and then share foods and fish happy."

The cat meowed and tried to get away.

"No scary, fish happy!"

"Put the cat down, sweetie."

"Kitty chea."

"I'm sure kitty has his own—"

"Chou!" Kiku jumped up, dropping the startled cat.

"Kiku?"

He started chasing a butterfly around the tea house. "Chou-chou!"

"Sit down, you're not allowed to run here."

"How adorable," the old lady said, putting their small snacks on the table. "Children have so much energy. One would almost envy them."

"He'll come down again. Darling, there's food."

Kiku stopped dead in his tracks. "Foods!" He nearly jumped onto the pillow.

"I have something..." The old lady disappeared in the back and came back with some sweets. "Here you go."

Kiku's mouth dropped open.

"What do we say?" Yao urged.

"Thank you!"

The lady chuckled. "You're welcome."

Kiku ate the sweets with his bare hands, making a mess of his face.

"You're getting spoiled, young man."

"Kiku cute!"

"Oh, you're dangerous." Yao licked his thumb and wiped over Kiku's chubby cheeks, making him whined in protest. "You've made a mess."

He pressed one of the sweets against Yao's lips.

"Darling, it's yours."

"Nii-nii hungry, nii-nii scary. Nii-nii fish."

"Am I like the fish from the story?" he chuckled.

Kiku nodded earnestly.

"The sweets are yours." He popped a piece of fruit into his mouth. "Here, no more scary fish."

This seemed to satisfy Kiku, who started babbling in himself while playing with his chopsticks. The lady came back and Yao chatted with her, until he noticed the sun climbing the sky in the distance. "We need to go or we'll be gone all day. Kiku..."

Kiku had fallen asleep at the table.

"Oh dear… Told you he'd come down..."

"Will you manage?" the lady chuckled.

"Yes, it happens more often. Come on, dear." He picked Kiku up, then the basket, thanked the lady, and headed out.

Kiku slept the whole way home, murmuring now and then and stirring a little. At some point, Yao had to untangle his hair from where Kiku pulled on it with his sticky hand.

When they were home, Yao put him in bed and stashed away the vegetables. He did some cleaning, until half an hour later Kiku came toddling in again, fully recharged after his nap.

"I think I saw a cat in the garden."

And Kiku was out in a second.