"It's done!" Bankotsu cheered as he was surrounded by bowls and burnt mushrooms. He failed a couple of times and some of the mushrooms weren't even edible anymore. He managed to find bunches that were still fresh. "Yuya, come inside, it's cold tonight…come sit, I think this soup is perfect!" Bankotsu began pouring the soup into two bowls. They didn't need a spoon, since the mushrooms were cut up into small chunks. Yuya made her way into the shed carrying some firewood. Her mouth could almost taste the soup already; it was indeed delicious. Lowering the firewood, she hopped over to where the fireplace sat, and she kneeled down next to Bankotsu. "Where'd you learn how to cook?" she asked as she lifted her bowl of soup and began blowing on it.
"I learned from an old lady who lived here. She died, so I buried her in the back yard." Bankotsu explained while gulping down a mouthful of soup. He chewed the mushrooms while his eyes were lowered. The old lady must've been like a grandmother to him.
"She died of old age, huh…" Yuya whispered, feeling sympathy for him.
"No, she didn't. She was killed by the village chief." He muttered, eyes blazing with hate, "He killed her because she was a half demon…they said she was hideous…I didn't care what she looked like. She was the only person who cared about me."
Yuya didn't think the loyal villagers would conduct such atrocious behavior without it being known to her father, or even herself. Now she was ashamed of even helping the villagers. That whole time, she thought they were humble humans, but now she views them as greedy group of savages. She couldn't wait to have a conversation with the village chief.
After finishing their meal, both of them were so full that they felt their bellies ache. "I better teach the chefs how to cook this." Yuya muttered and began burping a few times.
"You really act like a boy, you know that?" Bankotsu eventually said through muffled burps, "Maybe you were supposed to be born a guy…man it would be nice to have a brother."
"Does that mean you don't want a female companion?" Yuya asked with her voice abnormally hardened. Bankotsu faced her and wondered what the problem was. Her lips were curled into a frown and her eyebrows were arched low, Bankotsu decided not to say anything because he knew his words probably wouldn't comfort her.
From Yuya's point of view, she thought he didn't care. He didn't even pat me, she thought sadly, maybe he doesn't really like me like that. He probably sees me as a friend. Disappointed, Yuya stood up and dumped her bowl into a bucket filled with other dishes. "I'll wash them." She offered, trying to sound neutral.
"Are you sure you know how to do it?" Bankotsu asked, unaware of her grief, and this had offended her even more.
"Yeah, don't underestimate me. Here," With her back still turned, Yuya extended her arm towards him while reaching for the bowl. Bankotsu thought her behavior was strange, but handed the bowl to her anyway. Realizing that it was going to be pretty windy tonight, he decided to go outside and bring all the clothes back indoors. Yuya was having a bit of trouble with the dishes, but she was careful enough not to break them. After a couple of successful attempts, she managed to clean her first bunch of dishes…but resulted in a lot of puddles. Just as she was going to wipe away the evidence, Bankotsu had come to check up on her.
"I'll do it," He smiled down at her and pulled out a cloth from behind him. Crouching down, he began wiping away the puddles.
It was almost midnight and the both of them were growing tired. Yuya made sure she slept on one side of the shed and Bankotsu was to sleep on the opposite side. "You better stay over there too. I didn't care last time because you were too hurt to move." Yuya commanded, pulling her blankets up to her chin. Bankotsu had allowed her to sleep in his bed, which could only fit one person anyway. He chose to sleep on the floor, using layers of clothing as a mattress, bundled up clothing as a pillow, and one of the thick blankets they had gotten from the village. It was an extra cold night, so he used two instead. Both Bankotsu and Yuya were engulfed in silence, with only the sound of crackling flames in the fireplace. The wind could be heard brushing itself along the branches and leaves. Soon enough, the fireplace blew out leaving the two in darkness lit only by the moonlight.
"Bankotsu?" Yuya called, not wanting to admit that she was actually afraid of the dark, and always made sure a light source was within the room. She wanted to see everything around her and make sure she was safe while awake.
"Hmnn..?" He grumbled, partially awake and rolled around to face her, "What's wrong?"
"Can you light the fireplace again? It blew out…" she whispered, not wanting to get off the bed, just in case something was lingering around on the floor.
Bankotsu stared at her as though he were saying 'seriously?'
"Please?" she whispered once again, eyeing the fireplace and the darkest corners in the room.
Getting up, Bankotsu felt the cold air engulf him once again as he pushed away his blankets. Making his way over to the fireplace, he began lighting it up again. Once the fire was brought back to life, he held out his hands, warming it up in the process.
Yuya gazed at the back of his head and she began to imagine how his life must be living in the shed alone. He probably had to do this every night despite the fact that the weather is icy cold. She felt that pinch of sympathy again, and didn't like it one bit.
"I'll let you sleep on the foot of the bed." She suddenly blurted out. Yuya didn't know that humans of opposite genders weren't supposed to sleep on the same bed unless they were old enough. She was never taught proper sex education and adult behavior.
Bankotsu rotated his head in a 90 degree angle and watched her from the corner of his eyes, "Are you sure about that? I take up a lot of space…with me moving everywhere and all." He asked, surprised by her sudden generosity.
"That's fine, as long as it isn't summer time where people would get all hot and sweaty. Since it's chilly; the more cramped, the better." Nodded Yuya, feeling like a good person again as the guilt lifted.
"Sure, scoot over." Bankotsu commanded, swatting his hand to show her how far. Each time she moved back and inch, he'd tell her to scoot again. Now she was literally against the wall with barely enough space to turn.
"You're just messing with me now aren't you?" She murmured, unamused.
Crawling over the bed covers; Bankotsu let out a wide yawn and ignored her question. Lying down, he let out a satisfied sigh and reached for a blanket which happened to be sprawled out on the floor. Covering himself with it, he did this because he didn't want them accidentally touching each other underneath the covers, so he decided to use a separate one without being with her under the same sheet. Now she could relax and not worry about him doing anything funky to her under the blankets.
"Night." He grumbled before dozing off in a comfortable position. Yuya was still literally pinned to the wall and facing the back of his head. Oh how I hate being the nice one here, she thought to herself bitterly and slowly closed her heavy eyelids.