Faded Lines and Future Signs
A Sauce Project Production
By: Aviantei and Chronic Guardian
}Hybrid::Mixed Feelings x Muse{
[Shibuya Operation – Story Storm]
-Chapter 4RG: Who Do We Trust?-
The WildKat Café had never been known for its business. In fact, you could say that the WildKat Café had hardly even been known at all. Even the holiday bustle in Shibuya couldn't make up for its particular inactivity, but that was just fine. The obscurity made it a great fit for finding a little peace and quiet, especially when you were meeting with someone important.
Kiryu Rueban took a half-hearted bite from his muffin. While the pastry tasted as good as always, he had been hoping to share the set while it was still warm. He sighed and glanced towards the counter, where Uncle H was wiping down the display case. Yes, it was a holiday, and, yes, Amber had long since proven her tendency to sleep in when permitted, but Rueban had at least hoped she would have been awake by now, considering they had agreed to meet the previous evening.
In spite of the fact that he had been left waiting for her in less certain conditions—or perhaps because of it—Rueban tended to feel nervous when Amber didn't show up where expected.
Pulling out his phone, Rueban scrolled through his contacts and selected Amber's number. The call would serve as a rude awakening, and she'd probably start out a bit crabby because of it, but he had been waiting for nearly an hour. They could easily trade off apologies and move on their way. Rueban took a sip of his coffee as the phone rang.
No answer. Rueban sat his cup down with a frown. Amber liked to set fairly loud music as her ringtones. Surely she couldn't sleep through that racket.
"Hey, you've reached Hanekoma Amber. Sorry I missed your call, but leave me a message and I'll get back to you when I can. Have a nice day!"
Rueban was tempted to just hang up and call again, but that wasn't really his style. He waited for the rest of the automated message system to finish speaking, more than ready for the beep that signaled his turn to talk.
"You're late, dear partner," he said, more teasing than annoyance. This sort of thing was so normal with them that Rueban couldn't be upset about it. In a way, it forced him to slow down a bit, to appreciate what was going on around him. "I know it's vacation, but you should try to remember your promises better. I'll be downstairs when you finish up getting your beauty sleep. Try not to keep me waiting too long, alright?"
Satisfied, Rueban sat his phone aside, already imagining Amber's protests—"You're the one who needs beauty sleep, buddy." She had become quite expressive since the Reaper's Game, and could easily give his wit a run for its money. It was all the proof Rueban needed that, despite her origins, Amber was human. She belonged on this plane, enjoying life to the fullest.
Of course, she still had her stumbles—test scores were one of them. But she tried her best and had become a part of Rueban's life, like she had always belonged there. For the first time, he had a friend he could look forward to seeing, study with, invite over to his house. It was a completely different experience from the artificial "friendships" he had had with his fans before. Well, they had yet to completely subside, but at least Rueban tried to play down their affections more.
Through the Reaper's Game, he and Amber had both become more real.
Now if only we could get past that sleeping in habit of hers… Minutes slowly trickled by, dragging into another half hour. Uncle H had long stopped his cleaning, instead taking up a seat in the café, a sketchbook propped up on his knees. It was really just another ordinary day at the WildKat, save for the fact that Amber was nowhere to be found.
Rueban cleared his throat. "Uncle H?"
"Hm?" the older man grunted, eyes not moving from his work. Uncle H was capable of intense focus while drawing, but he could also multitask fairly well. Certain that the barista's pencil wasn't going to stop moving at any point soon, Rueban continued:
"Have you seen Amber this morning?" Despite expectations, Uncle H stopped drawing for a moment. The hesitation was enough of a cause for concern. "I know it's Golden Week and all, but…"
"She stepped outside when I was opening up the café this morning," Uncle H said, tapping his pencil against the table. "I let her go ahead since she asked for the day off." He looked to Rueban with a shrug. "I figured she would've let you know and you just came to hang out because you enjoy my charms."
Rueban smiled wryly as Uncle H broke out into boisterous laughter. While it would have been nice to know Amber was out, Uncle H had probably assumed Amber would only be out for a little bit. The barista understood their bond as Partners, and wouldn't hide it from Rueban if Amber was in trouble. It calmed him a bit, but concern still tugged at him.
Rueban stood up, the scrape of his chair sounding far too loud in the empty café. "Well, I'm sure whatever walk she's on could use some company," he said. Checking his phone again, there wasn't any sign of Amber contacting him. Well, there was only so much distance one could cover on foot in Shibuya. Finding her shouldn't be too difficult. "Thanks for breakfast, Uncle H. I'll be sure to bring Amber back before it gets too late."
Uncle H gave a nod before turning back to his sketchbook. "Stay safe out there, Kid."
Making sure to first clear off his dishes to their appropriate bins (Amber would definitely scold him if he left a mess, even if it was to check on her), Rueban exited the café. The early morning chill had since worn off, though the wind kept things from getting too hot. The upcoming summer would probably be a scorcher. Too bad Amber wasn't the type that could be satisfied with sitting under an air conditioner all day.
Well, he could handle that hurdle later. Worrying about overheating on a half-though misadventure was something that required having Amber around, so he would have to find her first. Making sure his phone was on max volume just in case she decided to call him, Rueban set off down the street.
Only to see a piece of paper fluttering towards him. It wasn't quite as important as finding Amber, but it was close enough to the ground that he didn't have to exert much effort to catch it. The paper collided against his palm with a sharp smack, the edges still attempting to follow the breeze. Rueban secured his grip on it, looking the writing over.
It was a mess. Not the handwriting—that was fairly precise, a much needed change from Amber's lazy scrawl at times—but the content. If anything, it looked like nonsense, words scribbled across the page, lines drawn between them at times, arrows pointing as if to direct the traffic jam into something readable. He considered discarding it, but surely somebody was looking for it. Even if the chances of finding them were minimal, keeping it could work out in his advantage.
Carefully folding the paper into quarters and tucking it into his jacket pocket, Rueban continued forward. He had passed through Miyashita Park on the way over, but that had been hours ago by this point. Amber could easily be on her way back. Rueban forced himself not to rush, keeping an eye on his surroundings. Bright orange assaulted his peripheral vision, the color adorning a girl's shirt on a bench as she flipped desperately through a folder of papers.
Well, then.
Based on her state of panic, she had probably lost something. She pressed her hands to her eyes, letting out shaky breaths. Rueban frowned. While he knew how to comfort, he had become more aware of how insincere his motivations could be—it was one of the many ways Amber balanced him out. On the contrary, leaving her be could be wasting a resource. And even if the girl wasn't able to be helpful, leaving her to cry by herself wasn't a move Rueban favored either. Reaching for the paper in his pocket, he took a step forward.
"You wouldn't happen to be looking for this, now would you?" he asked as the girl looked up, surprisingly normal brown eyes contrasting with her dark green hair. She was still distressed, tears bubbling up, but her expression was replaced with one of shock.
"Y-Yoshiya-san?" she stammered, and Rueban moved to contain his own surprise. That wasn't a name he often heard from strangers. The girl gave Rueban a closer look and shook her head. "No, sorry, I mistook you for someone else!" Her eyes flickered to the paper in Rueban's hand. "Um, that paper there…?"
"Oh, this?" Rueban unfolded it, smoothing out the surface best he could. "I assumed it was yours based on that folder there." He nodded to said object in the girl's lap and cleared his throat. "You look like the poetic type anyways. Though I couldn't make heads or tails of it…"
The girl snapped her folder shut and shot to a standing position, swiping the paper from Rueban's grip. "It's not finished yet!" she protested, a blush on her face. Amber could be equally protective when she was playing around with music and melodies, so Rueban let it go. Seemingly realizing what she had done, Poet Girl quickly dipped her head in apology. "Sorry, I should thank you for finding it for me. The wind picked it up and I couldn't find it…"
Almost in response, a fresh gust of wind went through the park, sending a shiver throughout the trees. Poet Girl pressed the paper protectively to her chest. Once the wind subsided, she tucked it away in her folder, the whole package stowed away in her messenger bag. She even took extra care with snapping the buckles shut.
"You're welcome," Rueban said. Poet Girl continued to stare at him, looking uncertain. She definitely wasn't the outgoing type. Kyasako would have had a field day drawing her out of her shell. "You didn't happen to lose any other pieces, did you? I heard we're due for strong winds today."
Poet Girl bit her lip, eyes casting downward. Jackpot. "Um, well…"
"Want some help looking?" Rueban quickly offered. Poet Girl stared at him again, her mouth slightly ajar. "I mean, I'm looking for something, too. Shibuya's a pretty big city. Two pairs of eyes are better than one, right?"
Poet Girl didn't look too surprised by the fact that he was trying to gain something out of the situation. At least, judging by her initial response, she didn't know who he was, so it wasn't like he had a bad reputation or anything. "I appreciate the offer," she said, "but I don't want to be any trouble. I'm sure you're busy."
Rueban brushed his bangs aside, shaking his head in the process. "Like I said, I'm looking for someone, too. You could call this a mutually beneficial partnership."
"Who are you looking for?" Poet Girl asked, fidgeting with a small pouch hanging from her neck in the process. Definitely a nervous tick. She probably had some sort of talisman inside that comforted her. "I mean, if you don't mind me asking."
"Not at all," Rueban allowed. If he expected any help from a total stranger, he would need to give at least some show of trust. "My friend is running very late for a meeting, and I was hoping to figure out where she ran off to. She hasn't been answering my calls, either, so I'm in a bit of a jam."
Poet Girl nodded in understanding. "I don't know how much help I'll be, but I can try my best." She ducked her head again, this time in a more formal bow. "Tsukiko Hotaru. I look forward to working with you!"
"Kiryu Rueban," he reciprocated, "it's a pleasure." Hotaru's brow furrowed a bit at his introduction, but she didn't press the issue. It didn't seem that it would cause any trouble, so Rueban didn't either. It wasn't like his family was obscure or anything. "Now, I'm not entirely certain where my friend might be, but you surely can remember where you were when you lost your…"
"Poetry," Hotaru supplied, a bit defensively. Whether she was still sore over him reading her draft or ashamed that she had lost the papers was anyone's guess. "I started at Molco, and came here past Towa Records." Rueban nodded. Amber preferred that path, so there was a chance they could pick up her trail along the way. "I lost a lot, so thank you so much for the help."
Rueban put on his best smile. "Not a problem." Hotaru seemed to ease up a bit. "But we're not going to find anything just standing around. Let's get going." The word dear stopped short on his tongue. He probably needed to start talking to more people than Amber on a regular basis if the nickname was stuck in his speech pattern.
They set off together, taking their time to look through the Underpass. They didn't find anything, and Hotaru didn't seem to give much conversation other than the necessary responses. While boring, it did give Rueban time to think. If Amber wasn't answering his calls, hopefully something important had happened. The question was why she hadn't at least texted him before disappearing. He wasn't a fan of the method, but it could serve its purpose in a pinch…
"No luck here," Hotaru reported, looking downcast. The short locks of hair held up by her hairclip seemed to droop in response to her mood. "The wind really whips through this tunnel sometimes, so I'm not surprised."
"Let's try Towa Records, then," Rueban suggested. At this point, the holiday crowds were sure to have picked up. A pain to navigate, but providing more witnesses regardless. Hotaru nodded, still clutching her pouch. Despite the nervous tick, her eyes gazed forward with determination, and she even stepped ahead of Rueban, leading the way. The boy followed, scanning through the crowd for someone who might just be able to provide a hint. With most people on their phones, it seemed unlikely anyone had enough attention span to even recognize there was a world outside them. "I'm gonna go check inside the shop," he called to Hotaru. "Want to come with?"
Hotaru glanced at the record shop doors then shook her head. "I doubt anything got blown in there," she said, which was a logical conclusion. "I'll check around outside."
Rueban nodded his approval and stepped inside. While he didn't listen too much to what was considered popular music, Amber liked to stop by the shop on the way home that they were pretty much regulars at this point. Yoji raised his hand in recognition from the counter. "Hey, Rue-kun," he said. "Trying to pick up something for Amber?"
Rueban offered a wave of his own, shaking his head. "I'm afraid not," he said, but Yoji wasn't too perturbed. Amber bought enough CDs that she probably could have loitered in the store all day and no one would say a word. "Though I was wondering if you saw her today. I'm afraid I missed her in passing."
Yoji concentrated for a moment, but ultimately shook his head. Rueban stopped his frown from deepening. "Sorry, man," Yoji said, scratching the back of his head. "I've been on duty all day, but I haven't seen her. If she stops by, I can tell her to give you a call, though."
"Much appreciated." Rueban glanced over the shelves, as if Amber would suddenly appear. Not that it was likely. He would have to settle for leaving Yoji to cover this base. "If you don't see her today, I'll send her your way later this week. Heaven knows that she burns through CDs like firewood."
Yoji grinned, clearly anticipating a good sale in the future. "Thanks! Hope you find her."
They traded off a few more pleasantries, and Rueban brought a hand to his chin in thought as he exited. There was a chance Amber had chosen to go to AMX for a change of pace, but Yoji was usually more than happy to order in anything more obscure at the girl's request. No, she probably hadn't gone out album shopping—that sort of task wouldn't take so many hours.
So what in the world is she doing…?
"Rueban-san, any luck?" Hotaru trotted towards him, a pleased smile on her face. Even though his own endeavor had failed, it seemed the poet had been successful.
"If nothing else, we're making progress in the deductive sense," Rueban answered. Hotaru's expression flickered, but her happiness didn't completely falter. "Judging by that smile, though, I'm assuming your gains were less… theoretical?"
Hotaru nodded. "Yeah!" She patted her bag, but kept the clasps shut. "A couple papers got stuck in a trunk. This boy practically jumped up it to get them for me. It was really cool!" Well, her mood had certainly improved. It would hopefully make the rest of this endeavor easier. "I took a shortcut to her from Molco, so I figured we could head back around that way next."
"About that," Rueban interjected, "it would be nice if we could swing down by Cadoi City first." Hotaru pursed her lips a bit, but waited. Good thing she wasn't the headstrong type. "Amber's most likely to go that way. We can check around there, then swing up to Molco afterwards. How about it?"
"Okay." Hotaru wasn't the argumentative type, either, or maybe she just understood that this was a give and take situation. A smaller breeze than earlier passed by, and Hotaru tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "What does your friend look like, anyway? I realized I didn't ask."
And Rueban hadn't bothered to describe her, either. Being concerned to the point of distraction was not a favorable state of mind. Rueban pulled out his phone, finding a picture of him and Amber together from their entrance exam, and Hotaru leaned close to look it over. "She might be carrying a black cat plush, but I'm not sure if she has it on her." Mewt at least hadn't been in the café this morning.
"Gotcha," she said afterwards, scanning over the crowd with a renewed vigor. Rueban did the same, focusing on the groups passing over the crosswalks, though there were plenty of jaywalkers, too. Cars didn't often come through Shibuya streets anyway, but the amount of people made that a near impossibility now. Even a biker would have a hard time navigating in this mess. Amber didn't spend nearly as much time here as in any record store, so the shopkeepers were less likely to be helpful. Still, an observant loiterer might do the trick.
"Hey, it's Mido-san!" the voice of a young boy called out. Rueban and Hotaru exchanged glances, neither of the recognizing the name. A redheaded boy nearly collided with Hotaru in excitement, beaming up at her in recognition, though she stammered in bewilderment.
"M-Mido-san…?"
"'Cause your hair's green!" the boy insisted. Hotaru subconsciously raised a hand to her head, while Rueban watched on.
"That would make you 'Aka-kun,' then?" he suggested, causing the redhead to perk up in excitement.
"Yeah!" He squinted at Rueban, the gaze ultimately ending in eye contact. "You can't be Murasaki-san, though, 'cause—"
"Hiro!" a girl's voice protested. While Hiro was dressed more scrappily (Rueban was reminded of Pokoni's own looks and energy level), the girl seemed to have a more elegant look—a Natural Puppy shopper, no doubt. Her glasses and a bangle around her wrist flashed in the sunlight. She seemed a bit older than the boy, but not by much—they were probably both still in elementary school. "Don't just run off on me like that. You're gonna get lost in the crowd!"
The girl propped her hands on her hips, though worry swam in her eyes, marring her stern expression. Hiro still looked abashed by the scolding, though. "Sorry, Onee-chan," he apologized, before perking right back up. "But I found Mido-san!"
Hiro's sister seemed to finally recognize Hotaru's presence, a hand flying to her mouth. "Oh," the brunette girl said before digging in a small purse at her side, just as white as the dress she was wearing. "I'm glad we saw you again. Here, we managed to grab these before they got too far…"
Hotaru gasped in excitement, receiving the papers from Shiro-chan. Unfolding and flipping through them, there seemed to be at least three sheets there, though Rueban realized he didn't have any idea how many Hotaru had even lost in the first place. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," the poet said, securing her works away. "Really, I really appreciate it, Hiro-kun, ah—"
"Koushi," the younger girl supplied.
"Koushi-chan," Hotaru finished. "I'm really grateful." At this rate she would cycle through every form of thanks in Japanese before the conversation concluded.
"You're very welcome," Koushi returned, equally formal. She was clearly the reason that kept her younger brother in check. "We tried really hard to grab what we could, but I'm not as fast as Hiro was and a lot of them blew away."
She slumped at the admission, though Hiro grinned with pride. "We grabbed every piece of paper in Molco and Tipsy Tose Hall!" he reported. "Some of them blew off towards the Crossing, but Onee-chan needed a break, so we had to stop."
Koushi offered an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I'm not very athletic," she said. Her attire wasn't really fit for it, either, not with those sandals.
"No, no, you did great," Hotaru said, though she glanced to Rueban for support. He smiled and addressed the siblings.
"I'm more impressed that you managed to collect as much as you did," he said. Hm, maybe that was laying it on a bit thick, but for kids, they had really outdone themselves. "You must've been quick to keep up with them, especially in these winds." Hiro cheered in response, and even Koushi blushed a little from the praise.
"Oh, but if you don't mind me asking, have you seen a blonde girl about our age walking around?" Hotaru asked. Rueban took advantage of her initiative, showing off the same photo as before. The siblings looked at his phone, but neither seemed to recognize Amber's image.
"Nope!"
"She's really pretty, though…"
Well, that was to be expected. Rueban tucked his phone away, and Hotaru gave him a concerned look. He shrugged it off, but her expression didn't change. What a case of overextended empathy. "No worries," Rueban said to all of them. "We're just glad you found some of, ahem, Mido-san's poetry."
Hotaru blushed at the nickname, and the kids both gave smiles. "We can keep an eye out if you want," Koushi offered, looking eager to help.
"Yeah, we'll let Amba-san know she needs to see her friends," Hiro added. While Hiro's pronunciation was off, it seemed he was able to associate her with the color easily enough. "No need to worry, the Tetsuyou siblings are on the case!"
"Well, since Aka-kun and Shiro-chan have covered west of here pretty well, let's head south, then, Hotaru-chan," Rueban said. Hotaru nodded, eyeing the path towards Shibu Department Store. She thanked the Tetsuyou siblings once again, and they gave their wishes of luck. It was only once they had surpassed earshot that she let out a grumble.
"How come you're the only one that got out of that situation without a weird nickname?"
"It's clearly because I can't be Murasaki-san. Though you can pick out a color for me if you like. Momo? Niji?" Rueban teased. Hotaru gave him a slightly annoyed look, but it didn't hold much power. "To be fair, you seem perfectly at home using my given name."
"Sorry, jut calling you Kiryu would be awkward," Hotaru said, clearly wanting the conversation to be over. Was that so? Passing the department store, she looked over the cluster of people bustling at the door, posters promising sales plastered across all windows. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but Amber-san doesn't seem to be the type of rush to holiday discounts."
Despite no real logic to support that statement: "You would be correct." She didn't have the budget for anything in Shibu Department Store, either, even at reduced prices, but Rueban kept that fact to himself. "Let's see if we can find any of your papers before checking out the Scramble."
Hotaru agreed, and they scoped out the area the best they could, though the search ultimately came up empty. The success with the Tetsuyou siblings kept Hotaru's mood buoyed, though, and she plowed on quickly to the Scramble without much need for encouragement. She did balk a little at the size of the crowd, though, which Rueban couldn't blame her for. Either she wasn't from around here, or she spent most of her time indoors.
It was edging towards noon, and people would be venturing out on their holiday in search of lunch. Rueban had bypassed breakfast at home in order to eat at the WildKat, but a single muffin wasn't very long lasting sustenance. Hotaru had presumably been out and about for a while since she had run through several districts in pursuit of her draft. Eating was in order.
"How about lunch?" Rueban said. Hotaru blinked in surprise, but there was a moment of recognition in her eyes. Food probably wasn't too far from her mind, either. "You can't go forward into Shibuya on an empty stomach. Plus you could probably use a rest from walking so much." Though the same was just as true for him as well. His shoes were comfortable, but not built for chasing your Partner all around Shibuya. Not that he needed to admit that out loud.
"Alright," Hotaru allowed. "But most places are gonna be pretty crowded at this hour. We should probably get something quick…"
"No need to worry." Rueban veered just a little north from where they entered the Crossing, en route to the Outback Café. Despite being in central in Shibuya, it only received moderate foot traffic at best, much like a slightly more popular version of WildKat. He and Amber had gone there a few times out of curiosity, but hadn't made it a regular hangout. "Things don't get too crowded in here, so we should have some room to breathe."
Hotaru stared at the building, her eyes flickering down to the faded Reaper's Sigil on the storefront that had prompted Amber and Rueban to even go in the first place. She bit her lip once more.
"Okay," she breathed out. Hotaru still clutched to her pouch, and Rueban faced forward to open the door.
[CGs In-Between-Assignments Notes]
Oh my, what could these characters be doing all in one area? Aside from the well-loved Rueban (or at least, I'm told he's well loved), Avi also managed to pull in Koushi and Hiro from X-Days -Marked-. As we've already said, make sure you check that one out; Hyoxjnn really did a bang-up job with it, as they say.
Although I did offer a few pointers, I'm still surprised at how well Avi captured Rueban's character for this chapter. He plays a funny nuance between cold analytics and dogmatic honor. In fact, at this stage of development, I'm beginning to realize that Rue is kind of my take on a reformed Byronic Hero. The most difficult part of this portrayal was showing how Rue's been affected by the Reapers' Game without giving up on hallmark hold-ups of his character. Much like Airhead259's The True You, I feel like Rueban still has a lot of growing left to do, even if he's come out a better person. There are still years of "flaws in character" that he's getting over at this point. With a little work, Avi got those aspects spot on.
I also really like the outside view we get on Hotaru in this chapter because Rue asks a lot of the same questions I would ask about Hotaru's motivations. To that end, this totally fulfills the "setup hype for Muse" objective that we set out with in a way that builds interest without giving too much away. As an author who usually lays too many cards on the table, I feel like Avi handled this very artfully.
Anyway, that's it for me this time! I'll see you again next week when we head back to the UG and revist another familiar face from Hybrid. Until then!
-CG
16.1.2017
[Avi's "This-is-what-I-have-the-Energy-for" Notes]
This chapter was interesting to write. Rueban is decidedly my favorite character from Hybrid, so I was glad to get the chance to write him! Admittedly there have been a few moments where I slipped into writing another certain Kiryu instead...but CG has been super patient with me and gave me lots of notes to correct myself on. Hopefully Rueban's character in the rest of my chapters will be accurate and enjoyable.
It's also interesting to write an outside character's perspective on Hotaru. How much is he right, and how much is he wrong? We shall see (one day).
But even with that in mind my favorite part to write for this chapter was...
[Character File: The Tetsuyou Siblings in Hybrid/Muse-verse]
As CG mentioned, Tetsuyou Koushi and Hiro are characters originally from the delightful Hyoxjnn's X Days -Marked-, which you should totally read. That being said, Avi was [grumbling about spoilers], so she decided to bring them into the Hybrid/Muse-verse instead. While the Tetsuyou siblings are a vital part to Katy's Reaper's Game in the home fic (and I suspect will continue to be once X picks up the main X Days again), they aren't nearly as central in this universe (at least yet).
One of the things CG and I like to talk about is the multiple-universe capability of TWEWY. Since Another Day pretty much makes every AU (and thus, fanfiction) canon, there are any number of possibilities for the characters to go through. In Another Day, we see the main TWEWY cast not as a bunch of kids in the Reaper's Game, but instead a bunch of kids going on wacky Tin Pin adventures. While stories like X Days, Hybrid, Unsealed Fates/A Fall into Honor, and Muse aim to expand on the canon TWEWY verse as close as possible, that doesn't mean there aren't differences.
In that vein, you have the Tetsuyou siblings. Instead of being kids that end up in the Reaper's Game at way too young an age, I like to think there are universes where they aren't Players, but simply kids. The Hybrid/Muse is meant to be that place now. While not a whole awful lot is known about their pre-Game life in -Marked-, I hope it's at least a happy one they enjoy living in. Regardless, their bond as siblings is a strong as ever, and they seem to be enjoying their holiday, even if it means chasing around poetry for Mido-san here.
Oh, and we also have to thank our wonderful friend EeveeGen9988 for following this story and leaving off reviews, to boot. We appreciate your enthusiasm Eevee, and I'm especially looking forward to her next chapter of The Fallen! Keep an eye out on that one-it's gonna be good!
Next week, I'll take the side role while CG heads us back to the UG! Oh, just what is that Yoshiya up to this time?
Please look forward to it!
-Avi
01.21.2017