Pika318: And I'm back with chapter 2. Thank you all so much for a warm reception to my first chapter. Like I stated in the summary, this chapter would be what I think possibly happened with regards to how Kubinashi became Rihan's attendant, or right hand man, if you prefer that term.

Disclaimer: Nurarihyon no Mago belongs to Shiibashi-sensei.

Chapter 2: Attendant

"Are you sure about this?" Aotabou asked, with a rather serious look on his face.

"Hmm, sure about what, Ao?" Rihan asked casually.

Both of them were currently in Rihan's room, and Aotabou had just finished reporting to Rihan about their regular patrols as well as anything that could be of concern, which was why Aotabou asked the question in the first place.

"About the two newcomers." Aotabou elaborated.

"Oh you mean Kejorou and Kubinashi? Of course they will join our family. I have already exchanged Sakazuki with them after all. Why? Are they causing trouble? You need to be patient with them at times like this." Rihan answered.

"Well, they aren't causing trouble, not exactly…at least the girl isn't. She's willing to learn and helps around the house. Even Setsura likes her."

"Then what's the problem?"

"It's the guy, Kubinashi. He's foul tempered, foul mouthed and well…a loner. And worse of all, the rest of the family don't trust him, since they more or less heard that he killed other youkai indiscriminately."

"Really? I can't have my family members not trusting one another. Have you talked to them about it?"

"I did try…but given that guy's personality right now, the rest, well…they aren't all that convinced, you know?"

Rihan was deep in thought when he heard Aotabou's answer. Then he asked,

"Do you trust him, Ao?" Rihan didn't sound particularly serious when he asked that question, but Aotabou could sense the underlying seriousness to his question.

There was a pause. Then Aotabou said,

"You exchanged Sakazuki with him, and I trust your judgment. But he doesn't seem…to be returning that loyalty to you…"

"So, you don't trust him then."

"Yeah…" Aotabou finally admitted in defeat, his shoulders slumping.

"Maybe that's why your persuasions don't work. The other youkai probably sensed that you have your reservations about Kubinashi too." Rihan concluded.

"Sorry."

"You don't have to feel sorry about it. It's a totally natural reaction, especially considering his past history. I'll do something about it." Rihan said, standing up.

"You…will?" Aotabou kind of felt bad that they had to trouble their leader in order to handle a member who couldn't fit in.

"Of course, isn't that what a leader is for?" Rihan answered, smirking.

It took some time, but eventually, Rihan found Kubinashi on top of one of the many roofs in the Nura Gumi mansion.

Of all places, a roof? Couldn't he have picked a tree or something? Well, nothing I can do about that.

Rihan nimbly got onto the roof. His actions did catch the attention of the neckless youkai, but the other party only glanced at him before turning back in the direction where he had been staring before.

Ignoring me, huh? Might as well take the initiative.

Rihan walked up to Kubinashi and plopped himself a short distance away. He didn't get any reaction. Well, not that he was expecting one.

"So, what are you doing up here?" Rihan asked, trying to get Kubinashi to talk.

"…"

No answer. In fact, Rihan thought that the other youkai was stubbornly trying to ignore him.

"What do you think of this place then?" Rihan asked again.

If it's a battle of wills, I won't lose.

A long silence passed between them. Five minutes passed, maybe ten, before Rihan finally heard an answer.

"…It's noisy."

Rihan resisted the urge to smirk at his victory. He can't risk offending the other youkai now, not when he had the advantage.

"The view is good from up here, no wonder you like this place." Rihan commented. While waiting for an answer, he had taken his time to admire the view of the towns of Edo.

"…"

As expected, he didn't get any answer, but glancing over, he saw that Kubinashi had relaxed significantly, compared to how he was when Rihan first got on the roof. He was on the right track. Maybe he could really get an answer this time.

"I know you joined my family because your friend wanted to, but…are you happy here?

Kubinashi had been intent on ignoring RIhan, who had unceremoniously barged into his personal space, but found himself thinking about Rihan's latest question, whether he liked it or not.

Yes, it was true that he joined because Kejorou wanted to. And knowing her, if he refused, she would have changed her mind as well. And he knew, even if he refused to admit it, that he couldn't protect her on his own. Given what he had done, other youkai will hunt him down sooner or later, and he could only do so much to protect her while defending himself. So he agreed. Because he didn't want to lose her…not again.

Was he happy here? Surely he was grateful that he could finally get Kejorou off the streets into a more stable environment, a protected environment. She was happier here, he could tell. What did he feel about being here? Nothing, to be honest. And before he knew it, he found himself answering.

"I don't know."

Rihan couldn't help but show his surprise at the answer he heard. After all, he fully expected to hear a "No."

Perhaps this might be easier than I thought it would be.

So Rihan decided to get straight to the point. It's not like him to beat around the bush after all.

"I heard that you aren't fitting in. Is my family giving you trouble?"

"…Not exactly."

"Not exactly?" Rihan repeated. Given how Aotabou had described Kubinashi, he had expected the other youkai to be more direct about his answers. But that wasn't the case at all.

Kubinashi seemed to have interpreted his repetition as a request for elaboration, because he continued speaking, "It's not as if they are giving me trouble on purpose, just that…they tend to avoid me. Not that I blame them."

It took Rihan some effort, but he sensed it eventually. Regret. If Kubinashi had been more expressive, Rihan swore that he would have heard dry laughter by now. Kubinashi seemed resigned to his fate that he will never be accepted here, and to Rihan, that was unacceptable. If he did nothing about it now, then there was no point in accepting Kejorou and Kubinashi into his family.

Rihan stood up abruptly, surprising Kubinashi slightly.

"I know what I need to do now." Rihan declared and as he turned to the other youkai, he announced,

"From now on, you're going to be my attendant!"

There was a pause. Then,

"What?" Kubinashi asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

"Eh? Did you not hear me the first time? You're going to be my attendant." Rihan repeated.

"I'm not asking you to repeat, idiot! I mean, what do you mean by 'being your attendant?'" Kubinashi asked again, agitated.

"Exactly what I said. It's not as if you have any important tasks to do right now. You could start with things like serving me tea, carrying my things, keeping my schedule… besides, I just noticed that you actually look a lot like my human self. You could be a good decoy and I could actually benefit by keeping you close by. So, it's settled, okay?" Rihan answered, smiling.

"Hey! I haven't agreed yet!" Kubinashi protested, but Rihan had already walked to the edge of the roof and jumped down. As he landed, he turned to Kubinashi, who was still on the roof.

"So, I'll be counting on you from now on, Kubinashi." Rihan said, smiling broadly.

Kubinashi really wanted to reject him, but to be honest, he couldn't say no, especially not after seeng that expression. It was an expression of total trust, like there were no barriers between them.

If I am to fit into this family, together with Kino, he could be my only lifeline.

And so he stayed silent, and Rihan, taking it as a sign of acceptance, said, "So are you coming? There's a lot of work for both of us to do."

There was some hesitation at first, but eventually, the neckless youkai jumped off the roof.

And that was how Kubinashi started his frustrating days as Rihan's attendant.

One week later

"So, how's Kubinashi?" Rihan asked Aotabou during one of their routine discussion sessions.

"I see why you made him your attendant now, Rihan-sama." Aotabou answered.

"Really? You were so shocked when I first told everyone though."

"Of course I was surprised, since you announced it so suddenly. But, you know? After you gave him such a big responsibility and even entrusted him with your life, everyone started to think that he could be trusted after all. And during the past week, everyone started seeing him differently because even though that guy complained a lot, he did all his duties properly."

"Hmm, I'm glad it worked. Well then, Ao, please continue guiding him."

"Yeah."

Pika318: And that's the end. Thank you for reading! And well, Moko-chan is too lazy nowadays to comment on my fics here, so I'm relying on you readers to tell me how you felt about this. Did I make Kubinashi or Rihan too OOC here? Because the setting in this story has never been talked about in the manga, I find it hard to envision their personalities. If you ask me though, Kubinashi's relationship with Rihan is pretty much like Tsurara's relationship with Rikuo, excluding all the romantic elements.