Emiko had been training a lot the past few months. She was improving drastically and learning new ways to manipulate her power. Kusuo was a big help in sparring and pushing her limits. During their summer break, she trained with martial artists who claimed how talented she was and how in no time, she surpassed them all. In her down time, she studied technological things hoping to understand them better and learning how she can use her powers to manipulate the currents between wires as she had a hard time scaling down her powers.

When the sun set, Emiko walked up her room after a long day of training with Kusuo hoping to take a nice long shower when her phone rang.

"Hello?" Emiko answered her caller as she opened the door of her room.

"Hi, Emiko! This is Hina."

"Hi, Hina-san! How are you?" Emiko leaned on the nook of her bedroom window and held her phone to her ear.

"Wonderful! You haven't been in the shop lately so I guess I couldn't tell you in person, but, I'm pregnant!"

"Oh my gosh! Congratulations! I'm so happy for you! How long have you been pregnant for?"

"Thank you! I think it's been a month or so. I have to go for a checkup in about a week."

"I should visit you soon then! Do you need help with anything?"

"Well, that's why I called. See, the summer festival is coming up in a week and, well, if it's all right with you, We need your help manning our booth for a few hours while we're in the hospital."

"Oh, I'll be happy to do it! Just let me know the details."

"I knew I picked the right person for the job! Can you come on Wednesday next week? The festival is on Friday."

"Anything for you guys!"

"Thank you so much! We're so grateful. We really wanted to ask you because you had extensive knowledge with our stuff."

"Well, I learn from the best." Emiko said flattering her caller.

"You know, thinking about it, you're so charismatic and beautiful that I think you'll be good for our sales." The pregnant woman said with a smile in her voice.

"Hina!"

The summer festival was finally here and Emiko was excited. She helped the couple set up their stall and display non fragile items. They gave her a list of their inventory, their prices and discounts should a client ask for one. Their doctor wasn't very near the area of the festival so they would be gone for a maximum of four hours, though they said they'd be back in three.

Before the festivities started, Emiko dressed herself in a beautiful deep sea green Yukata with white and silver koi fishes patterned sparingly around fabric, and a barn red obi tied around her waist. She sat on one of two chairs inside the booth and awaited her first client.

Soon, as Hina predicted, Emiko was indeed very good for their sales. She had such a passion for seeing the beauty and history in the items, that she got a varied range of clients. She sold to the elderly who felt nostalgic, remembering their own grandparents in certain objects. She sold a few to people her age and though she knew that most children couldn't afford them, she still indulged them and mananged to garner an audience of kids by telling them the stories behind the antiques of the shop. She told them the stories of the Shinto gods and their powers that were painted on ceramics, she told them about ships that sank in the war and how sea explorers have come to discover the objects. Parents and their children, teenagers and elderly would listen to her and some would buy the antiques with their newfound fascination. Emiko had such a charming and enchanting presence that a crowd soon formed outside of the booth of Hina and Noa.

Kusuo looked around the festival with fondness as he remembered how he and his parents used to go when he was child. It's so noisy and crowded that he cannot use his telepathy. He was alone looking around hoping he wouldn't bump into anyone he knew. He heard the voices of his two friends and walked quickly past Nendou and Kaido. Wouldn't do to be caught and dragged to what they wanted to do. He'd rather enjoy the festival in solitude seeing as to Emiko had to man a booth in the temporary absence of her two friends.

"I'll pay you two-hundred yen if you ask for her number."

"Just two-hundred yen? Come on, dude. I'm not that cheap."

"Five-hundred yen!"

"No! Besides, why should I get her number for you? I want it for myself!"

"What happened to bros before hoes?"

"You tell me!"

He heard two friends arguing at the back of a crowd. Not like he cared enough to know what their business was, but he did wonder why there was a crowd. He walked nearer the booth and stood behind an old couple talking to each other.

"What a lovely young woman! Not many children her age take interest in such things anymore." The old woman told her husband.

"Indeed. It's very refreshing to see a young person teach the children about mythology. Oh, dear, look at that pot over there behind her! It would go so nicely with your flowers."

Kusuo peaked over the couple and saw the reason why the two boys were arguing earlier. Emiko stood behind a low table in an elegant yukata, wrapping a samurai statue before placing it in the box carefully. Though not completely realising his thoughts, he wondered how she could make such a simple task of wrapping an object so mesmerising. Apparently, he wasn't the only one who thought so as he saw the some people stare intently as she did so.

He felt the corner of his lips tug upwards. She was really a sight to behold as she animatedly spoke to people with such expression in her eyes with a few strands of hair loose from her bun to perfectly frame her face. He shrugged and continued walking down the stalls of the festival. For the first time in a long time, he imagined himself in a romantic relationship. With Emiko specifically. His thoughts weren't out of his feelings, mind you, but he couldn't help but think how she made his dull existence full of colour and life, however, he considered how she was the opposite of what he aspired to be. She wasn't average in anything and drew so much attention by simply being herself. He shook his head deciding that a relationship with her might be too troublesome. She was already his best friend, and their relationship was perfect as it is. There was no need to become anything more than what already existed between the both of them.

'Still,' another voice inside him said 'You have to admit how enchanting she is. Almost too difficult to tear your eyes away.'

Before he could give that voice his two cents, he felt the crowd part and saw a group of guys carrying a shrine with Hairo on top cheering his way through without failing to flash his buttocks.

'Maybe I'll leave. This might make me hate festivals.' He thought to himself as he continued to walk onwards.

"We're back!" Noa announced as he carefully navigated his wife through the crowd that formed around their booth. They cramped their way into the tiny booth.

"Quite a crowd you've got here!" Hina said as she winked at Emiko.

"Your pieces are amazing that's why!" She answered shyly.

"Ah, I don't think that's the only reason." Hina continued to tease the girl.

"Whoa! You've made quite a lot of sales in the past three hours! You doubled our expected income for the festival." Noa exclaimed gawking at the sold items list.

"She's our goddess of good fortune!" Hina said joyfully.

"How's your baby?" Emiko said excitedly.

"Nothing much as it's only been a month. But we're both so excited." The expecting woman sighed happily. "Now, shoo! You've done more than enough and we're grateful. We'll give you a paycheck for your hard work!"

"You don't have to! I did this because I wanted to. Raising a baby is no joke when it comes to expenses."

"We'll do well don't worry. Here's a bit of money, now go and splurge in the festival. We won't take no for an answer." Noa said firmly.

"O-Okay! Thank you!"

"No, thank you, Emiko! You've been such a great help to us. Let us know if you need a ride home, all right?" Noa smiled.

"All right! I'll see you both later whether I ride with you or not. Take it easy, Hina-san!" She waved and disappeared into the crowd.

She looked around and saw how beautifully lit everything was. How it was so full of life. She looked for something to eat as she realised she was hungry. Her eyes caught her pink haired friend who was standing by the candied apple stall. She smiled finding how adorable his sweettooth is.

"That's three-hundred yen." The man in the stall told Kusuo.

Kusuo reached for his wallet only to find that it wasn't there.

"Something wrong?" The man asked. Seeing as is customer was paused in thought he asked "Hey, you still buying one?"

"Here, sir!" Emiko handed the man three-hundred yen. "This is for his!"

Kusuo turned around and saw his beautiful friend paying for his candied apple. He stood there for a while just looking at her before he realised he was about to object. Before he could, she cut him off saying

"My treat." She smiled but it morphed quickly into a frown when she saw a trouble look on her friend's face "What's wrong? Did you leave your wallet?"

'I was pickpocked. It's hard to pinpoint the suspect with this many people.' He said as he took the candied apple she handed him. He was quiet for a while as he was having an internal panic about how he of all people was pickpocketed along with that baka Takahashi.

"Hey! Calm down! You're shaking." Emiko said worriedly.

'Festivals are interesting after all.' Kusuo said without context to his friend.

"Huh?"

'I can't find him with telepathy.'

"Okay? How will you find the pickpocket?" Emiko asked "We're talking about him, right?"

But Kusuo was deep in his thoughts. 'How much did I have in my wallet?'

Emiko just stared at his handsome face before realising what he intended to do. "Ahhh."

Without really thinking, Kusuo grabbed her wrist, borrowed money to buy a scary mask and lead her to the dark part of the woods.

"Hey! You're not planning to murder me, are you?"

Kusuo looked back at her cheekily. 'Don't be dumb.'

"Excuse me?" She said before gently punching his shoulder.

'You'll see.'

Emiko peered from behind the tree and watched as Kusuo blocked a man trying to run away from the festival with a bunch of wallets in his arms. After scaring the man out of his wits to the point that he fainted, Kusuo used his powers to tie him up with a sign that said 'I'm turning myself in.'

"So you swapped motorcycle with your wallet because they're of the same value?" Emiko clarified to which Kusuo nodded. "I see. What a useful ability."

'It is. Now I need to return these real quick because you're hungry, yeah?'

"Can't hide anything from you, hm?"

'You didn't block your thoughts.'

"Because I'm tired and hungry."

'I could imagine. You're quite the talk of the festival.'

"Yare yare." She mocked him.

'Let's go.' He smirked at her attempt to say his catchphrase. 'It's yare yare, by the way.'

"That's what I said!"

'No, you said yare yare. But I say it as Yare Yare.'

"What the difference?" She nearly growled.

'You're quite grumpy when you're hungry, aren't you?' He teased.

She shot Kusuo a glare before marching ahead of him to find a good food stall.

Kusuo smirked as he followed her and before he could stop it, the inner voice in his head had to get a word out.

'Adorable.'