Kouyuu stood there frozen, looking at Miyu. She DID NOT just ask him to sleep with her. He must be hearing things.

Miyu didn't look at Kouyuu, but she knew he must be staring at her as if she was crazy. Well, she couldn't blame him. Houjuu had given her the same reaction the first time she asked him too. However, Houjuu was easier to ask this favor from as he is more or less related to her. But Kouyuu is a different story. He was practically a stranger to her. No matter how scared she was, this just isn't a good idea after all. She should just tell Kouyuu that she was joking and laugh it off. She can stand it for one night. As she was about to open her mouth to talk, a guest of icy wind brushed against her neck making her forget everything.

Kouyuu watched as Miyu suddenly yelped, and the next thing he knows, she was trembling in his arms.

"M-Miyu?" He asked looking down at the girl who is currently buried against his chest.

Kouyuu didn't know how it happened. Maybe it was because of how scared she looked, or maybe it was the tears, but somehow, Kouyuu ended up letting her inside his room and sat her on the bed. He offered her a cup of water, hoping it would calm her down.

"Are you afraid of the storm?" Miyu shook her head. "The dark then?"

"It's…not that." She said quietly staring down at the cup in her hands. "If….I…...hear something scary…I….can't sleep alone at nights." She's had this problem since she was a child. Every time she hears or reads anything about ghosts or spirits, she would not be able to sleep by herself.

"Is…that…so…." Kouyuu replied. She had heard him mumbling about Shuuei and ghosts earlier and it had triggered her fright. No wonder she had wanted to go home even in this weather. There wasn't much of a choice then, he'll just have to let Miyu stay with him tonight. Sigh. Women were such a pain.

"Fine. You sleep on the bed tonight. I'll take the floor."

"No. I'll sleep on the floor. I'm already causing you so much trouble."

"Don't worry about it. But, um Miyu? Can you let go of my hand for a sec? I need to go get some spare pillow and blankets."

Miyu looked down and finally realized that she was still holding onto his hand. She flushed and quickly let go. "I'm sorry!"

For the next few minutes, Kouyuu went about the room setting up a place to sleep on the ground. Then he rummage through the closet for a spare sleeping robe and tossed it to Miyu.

"Here, change into this."

Kouyuu was about to leave the room to change in another room when Miyu grabbed him again. Kouyuu turned around. "Don't tell me…you want me to change here with you?" Miyu nodded.

'Really. Does this girl have no sense of danger?'"Miyu." He said, trying to sound calm. "Do you realize I'm a guy?"

Of course she realizes, but what can she do about it? She doesn't want to be left alone. "Please?" She pleaded him teary eyed.

Kouyuu flinched. If it had been Shuuei who saw her making that face, he would have jumped her. But he wasn't Shuuei, so there was no way he should be affected by this. If anything, he's getting really agitated.

"Ugh. I give up. Do whatever you want."

He turned to face the other wall and started stripping out of his clothes. "Be grateful that I hate women." He muttered. Looking straight at the wall, Kouyuu can see that Miyu too, had turned around and started changing. The silhouette of her body as she undressed danced along the walls. Kouyuu drew in a sharp breath and looked away. 'Yeah, be really greatful.'

The robe was a little big on her since it belonged to Kouyuu. Miyu had to knot it extra tight to prevent it from falling apart. When they were both finished changing, they climbed into their respective bed.

"Goodnight. Kouyuu-sama."

"Nn. Good night."

Kouyuu blew out the lights. For a short while, there was absolute silence in the room except for the whooshing sound of the wind outside. No sound came from Miyu and Kouyuu assumed that she had already fallen asleep. He too was about to drift off when he suddenly, he became aware of a source of warmth behind him.

Miyu thought that she'd be fine. She had already demanded so much from Kouyuu and he was nice enough to relent. She couldn't possibly ask him to do anymore. Partly, like Kouyuu had reminded her earlier, he was a man. She convinced herself that it was good enough that he was willing to be in the same room with her. Everything should have been okay. But it was not okay. The wind outside sounded like the wailing of spirits taunting her. She tried to cover her ears up and curl herself into a ball in order to avoid hearing or sensing anything. But the wind was too loud, and when the windows started clattering, Miyu immediately jumped out of bed and found herself once again, hugging onto Kouyuu. A snapped twig picked up by the wind hit against the window, making another loud noise.

"Kyaa!"

"Miyu. Calm down!" Kouyuu said as he held onto the frantic girl. "Shh. It's okay." He whispered to her, patting her head.

He continued to stroke her hair until her sobbing subsided and eventually, she fell asleep in his embrace.

"Miyu?" He called softly.

No response. Her steady breathing tells him that she had already fallen asleep.

'Sheesh. This girl. She makes a big ruckus and falls asleep just like that.'

Slowly, he picked her up and carried her back to the bed.

"Oh no."Kouyuu muttered as he noticed that Miyu's right hand has a death grip on the front of his robe. Gently, he try to pry his poor robe free so he can go back to sleep on the floor, but to no avail. He finally gave up, not wanting to risk waking Miyu up and have her cause another commotion. So this is what she meant when she asked him to sleep with her. He gave a tired sigh and looked at the girl now sleeping peacefully. 'Troublesome girl.' He thought.

During all the fuss, the girl's robe had come loose, and in the danger of falling off her shoulders. The night light bathed against her skin creating a translucent glow. She looked even more beautiful. Involuntarily, he reached out to stroke her cheeks.

'So soft.'

Captivated, he continued to caress her, sliding his fingers slowly down to her neck, and tracing the outlines of her shoulders, enjoying how warm and smooth her skin felt. His hand continued to glide downwards, just stopping short her on partially exposed chest before he pulled away, startled.

'What was I doing? I'm touching her like a pervert. Even Shuuei would have more decency than to attack a girl in her sleep.' He mentally scolded himself. More roughly he should have, he grabbed her robe and fixed it so he wouldn't see anything below her neck. Reluctantly Kouyuu slid into the bed, trying to separate himself as far from the girl as possible. That proved to be ineffective when Miyu cuddled against him and sighed in content. Kouyuu groaned. This is going to a long night. Staring up in the dark and talking to nothing in particular, he repeated the words once again as if trying to convince himself. "Yeah. Be grateful."