Chapter 1: One Year After

"Tamao?" My head peeked into her tidy pink and white room, my eyes running around the room until I found the person I was looking for. She was still lying on her bed, eyes shut.

My brows knitted in concern. "Flower, it's already past nine in the morning. What are you still doing there in bed?" I let myself into her room and sat down beside her, ruining the perfectly made bed of hers. She was the only one I knew who could make beds the way those freaky but sexy nurses do in hospitals.

"Horo Horo-kun?" she whispered hoarsely. "I didn't ask you to come in. You have to wait outside the door before a lady permits you into her room."

I had to smile. It was one of the subtle reminders that a year had already gone by since Tamao and I became friends. She could already call me by name without the –san suffix, and yes, she had more guts now, enough to tell me casually that I was the epitome of hentainess and vanity…and yes, she does tell me already to go to hell. It was a big improvement, indeed. However, she could still be a little nervous when it comes to Yoh Asakura. Ah, indeed, first love never dies.

But that isn't my business anymore.

I tried to take her blanket away when she pushed me awkwardly.

"Tamao?" I asked, frowning.

Her face turned pink- when Kami-sama showered the giggly females with blushes, Tamao sure caught the lion share of them. "Horo-kun, onegai. Wait for me outside."

"Make me leave," I said, deciding to pester her a little.

Her face turned pinker. "Iie...you don't understand…"

"Hontou ne?" I was amused by the panic in her face. She must be hiding something from me- one year was enough for me to memorize her gestures, especially the signs of her discomfort and panic.

"Come on, Horo-kun, please wait for me outside. I'm going to get up already-" She stopped talking and instead tucked her knees under her chin, wincing in pain.

And it was then that I turned serious. "H-Hey, Tamao, what's the matter? A-Are you sick?" I ran my hand on her soft, rose-colored hair. "Hey, Tamao!" My voice was soft, but urgency radiated in it.

"J-Just my abdomen…" she whispered.

"T-The left or the right?" Panic rose in me. Was it appendicitis? Please Kami-sama don't let it be so! I placed my hand on her stomach and pressed it firmly. "It hurts here?"

She gasped, and I realized why- no one touched her in there before. I could have laughed at her, but concern whether it was appendicitis or not took over me. "Tamao, where does it hurt, left or right?" I asked as I tried to remember whether the appendix was placed on the left or the right.

"Everywhere," she whispered, voice breaking.

"I-I'll take you to the doc-" I stopped talking when I saw the telltale red drops on her blanket.

My eyes widened. "T-Tamao?"

She bit her lip.

"Did I press on your stomach too much?" I asked fearfully as I looked at the blood.

"Horo-kun no baka!" She threw her pillow at me. "I have a period! My first period!"

"F-First?" I was confused at first, then I realized what she meant. I grinned. "What a relief! Back there I thought I caused you to bleed-"

"Horo-kun!" she cried, scandalized.

"Hey, hey, it was just a joke!" I raised my hands in surrender.

"Well don't make fun of it!" she yelled. "It is a sign of my formal entrance to womanhood! It's a proof that I'm a virgin! It testifies that I am capable of childbearing! It means-"

I placed my hand on her head and pressed her face onto my chest. "Okie-dokie. That will be enough, Tamao."

She was about to protest when her hands went back to her abdomen again. I released her immediately. "If it really hurts, I'll take you to Faust-"

"Anna-okami told me about this already. It hurts at first, but if I succeed in bearing the pain, it will be like heaven-" Despite her pain, her eyes narrowed at me, who was smiling a little. "You are so perverted, Horo-kun. You're thinking about hentainess again."

"Of course not!" I cried in mock indignation. "Anyway, I'll go ask Faust what else can I do for you. Just hang on, ok?"

As I shut the door, I couldn't help but smile.

She was now a lady, hopefully no longer the crybaby.

Later, I was pressing a hot compress on her abdomen while chatting animatedly with her about the latest joke Chocolove gave us. Lately, his humor was improving- it was centering on Ren Tao more and more.

Tamao seemed to be forgetting her abdominal pain. She was giggling at my Ren Tao impersonations.

This inspired me more to give my award-winning performance. "Kisama…do not laugh at my height! When I defeat Yoh and I become the shaman king, the first people I'll extinguish are those who created those futile calcium formulations in my milk drink! Those liars!" I hissed, and she doubled over, laughing.

"H-Horo, t-that's mean!" she said in between giggles, as she wiped a tear from her eye.

"Then I'll slaughter that salesman who offered me elevator shoes!" I said, still in my Ren Tao mode.

"Oh god," she laughed some more, and at the same time, she looked like she was praying that Ren won't pay us a visit and overhear me saying these.

Just then, the door opened, revealing Faust. He sweatdropped. "I thought the patient was in pain."

I grinned proudly. "Let's just say that I'm a better doctor than you are, for I gave her the best medicine."

"Laughter?" the necromancer guessed.

"Something much better. My good-looking face."

Tamao slammed her pillow at me, face red. "Horo-kun, you are so cocky!"

Faust smiled, then sat down beside her. "So were you cured by his, uh, medicine?"

She was still blushing. "I-I feel much better."

"Good." He turned to me. "Now go buy your friend some pads."

"What?!" I looked at him as if he just suggested that I dye my beautiful hair in that murky blue violet color like Ren Tao's. "Pads? Like, sanitary napkins?"

"Yes, Horo Horo. N-A-P-K-I-N-S," the doctor spelled out for me.

"What will the pharmacist say when I go to her and buy pads?" I squeaked.

"Why, she'll ask what brand will you buy, of course," smirked the doctor.

"Iie! Horo-kun, I'll go buy." Tamao sat up. "Y-You don't have to embarrass yourself-"

"He's used to it, quite frankly. He always embarrasses himself anyway," laughed Faust VIII.

I rolled my eyes at the doctor. Geez, it was a bad idea to let him hang around Chocolove too much; his humor was getting sick. I waved my hand dismissively at the prophetess. "No need. I'll go get you your pads."

She looked reluctant. I grinned at her reassuringly. "Hey, I can't pass up the chance to meet girls. I mean, the pharmacist might be cute…"

"Pervert!" she cried.

Faust looked surprised. "Really? You don't know Horo Horo so well then."

I blinked; was Faust trying to redeem himself to me?

The doctor smirked. "He's actually a *total* pervert."

I groaned. Maybe I should have his just-acquired medical license be revoked.

A quarter of an hour later, I returned to her room, clutching a pack of n-a-p-k-i-n-s, as Faust puts it.

Tamao looked at me apologetically. "If your sister was here, or even Ms. Anna, I could have asked them to-"

I grinned. "Don't worry. The people don't care that I was buying napkins. Their attention was on the seven-year-old boy buying a strawberry-flavored condom."

Her eyes widened, and I nodded. "Really!"

She laughed softly. "Arigatou, Horo-kun, for going out of your way just to help me."

I turned solemn. One year had passed since I swore to protect her the way I care for the mimosa plant. Everyday, that resolve only gets stronger, even if it was evident that she's toughening little by little everyday too.

The moments of silence that followed started to make me feel awkward. I managed a feeble grin. "That is what the best of friends are for, right?"

"Right," she agreed, smiling.

I sighed, relieved that the awkwardness I was feeling awhile ago had gone away. I sat down beside her and messed her hair fondly. "So you're already a woman now, huh? You shouldn't cry too much anymore."

"Right," she said again.

"And you must try to contain your nervousness."

"Hai."

"And you must start acting like a lady already."

"Un."

"Start by baking me a chocolate cake."

She blinked.

I grinned affably. "A lady must be learned in domestic arts, like cooking."

"I-I know…but bake for you?" It dawned on her. She threw her pillow at me again. "You're teasing me again!"

"Hey, I should at least be compensated for my trip to the drugstore!" I laughingly caught the pillow. "And oh yeah, a lady doesn't play rough games with boys anymore."

"Hmp! You started it!" She then winced. "Er…Horo-kun, I…I have to change."

"Oh." I stood up. "I'll wait for my cake in the kitchen then."

"I didn't tell you I'll bake you one!" she protested.

"You will, because if you won't, I won't leave your room." I grinned at her, then left her room.

I was seated in the kitchen when Lyserg Diethyl arrived. I blinked, then waved. "Hey Mr. Dowser!"

His emerald eyes lit up. "Horo Horo! What a relief. I thought I got the wrong address."

I motioned for him to sit. "Glad you found time to visit us. How are London and its girls?"

"Typical of you, Horo Horo," he said dryly, noting that I didn't even ask how his trip was. "The girls are fine and London is still London-"

"Tough," I said sympathetically. "No lovelife then?"

He blinked, perhaps wondering how the topic shifted to that forbidden matter. I grinned affably.

"I'm too busy studying," he admitted. "I want to form my own detective agency."

"Cool!" I said. "And I'll visit you! As long as your refrigerator is always fully-stocked…and I won't interfere in your lovelife."

He sighed exasperatedly. "Why does it always end up with my lovelife being discussed?" He slammed his hand on his forehead. "Oh yeah, you're Horo Horo after all. Ren told me that even before you learned how to walk, you already knew how to annoy people."

"I'm very good at it," I smirked. "As good as I am in breathing. But heck, why are you changing the topic?"

"Wait, do you have a lovelife?" asked Lyserg, narrowing his green eyes at me.

"Yep," I said. "I'm in love with casseroles and roast beef and clubhouse sandwiches. I'm also in love with my snowboard, and if it was a girl, I would marry it at this instant."

Lyserg sighed. "Oh."

"And you?" I asked, smiling. There was already an idea forming within my mind. "I'm not counting on Morphine though, and only one significant female person figured in your life so-"

"She's just a child!" he said defensively.

"I wasn't naming names!" I was enjoying this thoroughly. Nothing much cuter than secret love.

"Well, you're obviously pertaining to her-" He stopped when he realized that he was just digging himself his own hole.

"Her? As in Jeanne-specific?" I said gleefully. Man, I could make a fortune out of being a terrorist in my friends' love stories…well, save for Ren Tao, whom I knew no girl in her right mind would crush on.

The telltale blush sprawled in his pale cheeks. "W-We have long parted ways…" Sadness shook in his eyes, and I quieted down. I had this feeling that there was more to this than the secret love thingie.

"Horo-kun, why are you so noisy-" Tamao stopped when she saw the guest. "A-Ah, Diethyl-san! W-What a pleasant surprise! I-I'll call Master Yoh and Anna-okami. They must be in the forest, training right now-"

"Training?" Lyserg was bemused. "But the shaman fight is no more."

I answered for Tamao. "The itako says Yoh couldn't rest on his laurels, although with the way Yoh is training constantly, his laurels could have long withered off already."

The dowser laughed. "Ah well, if they say change is the only constant thing in the world, they should meet Kyouyama Anna." He looked around the kitchen. "Your sister, Horo Horo?"

"Playing with Kororo, probably," I shrugged. "And I think Ryu is in Funbari. Ren is in China while Chocolove is in…who cares?"

Tamao giggled and slammed her hand on my back. "Really mean, Horo-kun." She then noticed Lyserg's puzzled gaze. She blushed, then mumbled something about looking for Yoh and Anna.

Lyserg smiled at me- a smile that seemed familiar to me. I then realized that I was wearing that smile awhile ago when I was teasing him about his lovelife, which meant…

Oh no, the great interrogation starts again.

"You and Tamao-san seem to be pretty comfortable with each other," he said casually.

"Of course. We're close friends," I said smoothly. I was used to these kinds of questions. People always asked me what was the real score between me and Tamao, as if our friendship was a basketball game.

"Friends?" He looked skeptical.

"Friends," I said, nodding. "If you guys just take some time out to talk to Tamao, you'll see that she's a very nice person."

"Very nice," nodded the dowser.

"Uh-huh." I nodded once more.

"She's pretty," he smiled.

"I know." I blinked when I realized that it was the wrong reply. "I mean, yeah, she is…but she's well, shy. Not a girlfriend material." I halted. OK, so what made me say that? Maybe I was a little alarmed- Lyserg sounded as if he was interested with Tamamura Tamao!

Lyserg smiled at me- the Eureka smile. "You look good together."

I cleared my throat nervously. "I told you, she's not a girlfriend material. Sure, she's pretty…but she's not my type."

He shrugged, and I sat back, relaxed. I convinced him good, didn't I?

tsuzuku