Chapter 14:

Harima waited outside beside his motorcycle. He was wearing his usual leather jacket over a plain white shirt and he was pleased that the weather today was temperate. The cool breeze of spring was still around so he might as well enjoy it while it lasted. Leather jackets were cool looking but could be uncomfortable as hell when worn on a very hot day.

He looked towards the house he had now been staying in for more than a month already. He would have never in his life thought that he would live in such a house - more so that it was the Tsukamoto's. When he first stayed here, he felt he had gone to heaven and was now living the dream. Waking up to be greeted by Tenma at breakfast? Never.

Every good thing ends someday but he didn't realize that it would be so fleeting.

Harima looked at the pavement where he had once woken up to find himself bound up like a maggot. For the blunder of mistaking Yakumo's room for Tenma's, he was evicted and beaten senseless by young brats before he could even explain his actions to Tenma.

Fate was always like that in his life: giving him a taste of heaven and then kicking him back out to whatever nightmare he had come from.

However, fate had been on the move and had given him a chance to live again in this very same house, at the cost of giving up the girl he loved the most to his bitter rival.

Or was it really destiny? It was more like luck that things had happened the way they had. He could still be living with his cousin, or he might be living with that Rich Girl, or he might have ended up on the streets. But he had ended up here.

Still, with all that had happened, he can say that he was... satisfied, relieved even. He couldn't really compare it to the heavenly feeling he felt the first time but it was way better than the alternatives.

If he still lived with his cousin, he could have gone insane with the amount of sermons (or bullets) he would receive from Itoko every day just to force him to go to school.

If he lived with that Rich Girl, every day would have begun with an argument and he might end up working there as Nakamura's apprentice just to pay for his lodgings. True, he was acting as Eri's "fiancé" but he was not the type of person to feel entitled to what wasn't really his. It was just in title and Eri would not take it well if he threw the word around recklessly. He was "Kenji Harima" in that house, and not "Eri's fiancé." That word had lost any meaning to him now since it was a title rich folks flung around just for the sake of appearance.

This place, however, was different.

Everything was calm and peaceful here. He felt more welcome to move around and do his manga. He had always felt that simplicity was best and that was a big reason for why he preferred this place. Or was it because of the people he was with? Yakumo kept his secret safe and she now helped him in a lot of ways. He was more open with her, knowing she wouldn't tell others what he had told her, even to her own friends. Sarah was also the one who had vouched for him to stay here so it couldn't be seen as too dubious. She was a nun who appreciated solitude and tranquillity - unlike Tenma who kept testing or questioning him on some weird initiation.

Along these past weeks, he had started seeing himself as a father figure or an older brother to Sarah and Yakumo. Sarah would always joke about how he was like a good housewife but maybe there was a grain of truth in those words. He couldn't help but see them as someone to protect, someone to look after.

Of course, those two were very capable on their own but they were still girls, and it was a man's duty to protect their dignity from any low-life who dared to mess with them – particularly with Yakumo. The shy girl was pretty reserved when it came to boys, Harima noticed. Any unfortunate fellow would be meeting the devil himself if they dared to mess with her.

Something at the back of his mind reminded him that he had indeed acted as a father once – only for one of his "daughters" to pin him to the ground with a suplex. He wondered what happened to those two, especially the one he had desperately slapped to shut up. Because of that, he didn't want to slap a girl again in fear of a painful retaliation.

I wonder what happened to that grumpy girl, Harima thought.

"I'm sorry Harima if I took long." Yakumo said emerging from the gate.

"No, that's okay, Imouto-san." Harima looked at Yakumo and he paused. His mind started making comparisons but the evidence was contradictory so he couldn't make something out of it.

No, definitely not her, Harima thought with finality.

"Umm, Harima? Something wrong?"

"No, no." Harima quickly said. "You just look lovely today." Yakumo was wearing a low-collared cerulean sweater over a white polo shirt that popped out the collar and sleeves nicely, and dark blue jeans. There was a purse slung over her shoulder which Harima assumed was a necessity to every girl when going out.

Yakumo bowed slightly and replied softly, "Thank you."

"Well, let's go. Can't keep Pyotr and company waiting can we?" Harima said as he mounted his bike. Yakumo followed suit and the two went to their destination.

x-x-x

Their ride was uneventful. Well, not for the one sitting at the back.

"You just look lovely today."

Yakumo couldn't help a blush from forming on her cheeks at those words. But how could a person say such things without a hint of admiration? Those words should have popped out from his head right before he even said it. It hadn't been a lie since Harima was not the type to lie about something so trivial, though she did prepare to look presentable. Also, it felt like he was thinking about something when he was staring at her. He was definitely thinking but it was something she couldn't read.

Or was it because of his powers? That animal mind thing.

If that was the case, then she should at least have seen a fragment of thought.

But no. It was like always. Silent.

Yakumo leaned her head on Harima's back and realized she was now technically hugging him. This wasn't an awkward move to her anymore, especially in this situation. She had ridden on Harima's motorcycle before when he first asked her to help with his manga. And it was because they had been seen on his motorcycle together that the whole misunderstanding thing had started.

This gesture reminded Yakumo greatly of her father. Harima and her father were strangely similar. Whenever she would see Harima doing his manga in his room, his back facing her, she could imagine it was her father writing his novels. The two had quite a similar physique and stature, and similar occupation to boot. Tenma had even accidentally called him "daddy" in her sleep when she had slept between the handcuffed Yakumo and Harima during the walking festival.

She was comfortable with him because of this growing familiarity. Or maybe it was because she was closer to him that she had begun to see these aspects?

Whatever it was, she was content in this fleeting moment, bringing long-lost memories back to life with a simple hug.

The rumbling of the motorcycle engine and the cool breeze of the day passed through her senses with surprising calm. The simple contact gave her a feeling of comfort and security that she had never felt with anyone other than with her dad. She could feel the warmth of his body and faintly hear his heartbeat. She felt a connection and she wished that this moment would last forever.

Yakumo tightened her grip and closed her eyes.

x-x-x

They arrived at the Yagami Zoo. Yakumo was relieved there were few people today. The ticket booth had no line and there weren't many people walking around the premises. It was much more peaceful here compared to the malls or city streets. There were no boys hunting for girls in this kind of place. It was mostly a place for young families, friends, and… couples.

"Sup, Harima. It's been a while." The employee stationed at the ticket booth greeted them.

"Hey, man." Harima greeted back with a casual wave of his hand. "I haven't visited for a long time. Two tickets please."

Yakumo was about to open her purse when Harima stopped her. "No, it's okay," he quickly said. "I'm the one who asked, right? So I'll pay for it." He took a few wads of bills from his wallet and handed it to the ticket vendor.

She thanked him with an appreciative smile and looked at the employee. As expected, upon making eye contact, thoughts floated out from the man's head.

'Woah Harima! She's cute! So that's why you were gone, you sly dog!'

Yakumo resisted the urge to hide behind Harima, feigning that nothing unusual was happening like always.

After they wrapped their admission ribbon around their wrists, the two entered the premises.

First, they went to the giraffe's pen. It was a deep pen that accommodated the long neck of a giraffe. As soon as they went close to the pen's railings, a giraffe awkwardly galloped towards them.

"Hey, Pyotr! Nice to see you, buddy!" Harima greeted with enthusiasm. He started reaching towards the animal's face but to his surprise, Pyotr drew his head back and snorted.

"Seems he doesn't like that I haven't seen him for a while." Harima remarked.

Yakumo silently watched the two. There were no strange occurrences happening between them. It looked very normal. Was her theory even close to being right?

She went beside Harima and greeted the long-necked mammal. "Hello, Pyotr. I missed you."

Pyotr lowered his head to gently stroke Yakumo's cheek, to her surprise.

"That's new." Harima said in surprise. "Looks like he missed you more than me."

Yakumo began to stroke Pyotr's face in return and replied, "This didn't happen when I first saw him. He actually ran away from me and Sarah to pick you up from the bridge."

Oh, yeah. How could I ever forget that, Harima thought grimly. "Here Pyotr, you can't just escape whenever you feel like it."

The giraffe kept his distance from Harima, his big black eyes half-lidded. Yakumo was in the middle of two and it felt really awkward.

Harima crossed his arms. "So that's how it goes, huh? We'll visit from time to time but remember, no running off again, understood?"

Yakumo blinked a few times. 'We?' She thought in confusion - more so when he instructed the giraffe directly.

Harima seemed to notice her reaction and continued, "Uh if it's alright with you, Imouto-san. If you're not busy, that is."

"It's okay. I... I don't mind at all."

"It's just every other week. Pyotr here might run away if we don't visit him every now and then."

The giraffe nodded much to Yakumo's surprise. It beggared belief, but the animal actually seemed to understand Harima's instructions.

All of a sudden Pyotr pushed her towards Harima. She was still so astonished by what had just transpired – whether it was about Pyotr understanding Harima or that she was going to be visiting the zoo on a much more regular basis with him – that she clumsily stumbled sideways.

Yakumo bumped into Harima and she quickly balanced herself by clinging onto him. She looked up and both of them stared at each other's eyes. It was like a cheesy setup for some romantic story but Harima seemed not to notice it.

"Woah there, you ok?" he asked, helping her to keep her composure.

"Yes, thank you. He just surprised me." Yakumo replied a little flustered, her head bowed.

"Hey Pyotr! That's rude! Don't do that to Imouto-san again!" Harima scolded the giraffe. In response, Pyotr tried to pry Harima's headband off whilst he tried to shield his head. There was this weird scuffle between them that managed to make Yakumo stifle a laugh. It all seemed like such a natural thing with those two that it wasn't strange anymore.

After spending a couple more minutes with the giraffe and reassuring him that they would return, they went to the other animals.

Harima had a unique privilege in the zoo - that aside from the animal handlers, he was allowed to get close and personal with the animals there. Most of the animals in the zoo were friendly to humans but, for obvious security reasons, not all animals could be permitted to being close to people. However, Harima could simply say to the employees that Yakumo was a friend and he would be escorting her around.

As expected, the thoughts of those employees from Yakumo's perspective were about a "date" and how "lucky" Harima was.

After getting authorization, they went first to the gorillas' pen, which was closer.

"This here's Igor." Harima said as he touched the gorilla's big shoulder. "He looks very intimidating but he's really nice deep down. He's shy despite his size. Careful there, big fella." He assisted in opening a banana and gave it to the burly animal.

Just like you, Yakumo thought with a small smile.

It was a different experience to be with this kind of animal up close. Harima let her touch the gorilla and she had a feeling that the animal was indeed shy because he was avoiding making eye contact.

There seemed to be no spoken communication between Harima and the animals, Yakumo noticed. This was not what she was expecting. Perhaps it would be better to just ask.

"How do you know if an animal needs something?" She asked.

Harima handed another fruit to the gorilla and turned to her. "What?"

"Umm, well, I... I wanted to know how you knew there was a thorn in Iori's foot last year."

Harima looked up as if thinking. "I simply knew. There are subtle clues an animal shows whenever they need something. I remember that you tried to bribe him but that doesn't always work."

"Do... do you understand them sometimes?"

"Of course." Yakumo was slightly stunned with such a direct answer. "I guess I've been around them so much that I started to pick up their habits and mannerisms."

That was not the answer she was expecting.

"So you're, like, able to read their minds, right?" Yakumo said with slight humor in her tone.

Harima laughed. "Don't be ridiculous, Imouto-san. I'm not a mind reader like you, you know."

Yakumo stood still, dumbfounded. Did he actually believe that this whole time?

"Let's go now." Harima said. "Igor is starting to feel awkward from having people near him."

Yakumo sighed at her failed attempts. It might be better not to test that theory anymore. It was only making her feel disappointed and dejected.

It's just ruining our date –

"Hey Imouto-san? You coming?"

"Y-yes!" Yakumo quickly went in step with him, a blush across her face.

Date? I should enjoy it even if it's not a real one, Yakumo thought while walking.

The next pen they went to was empty. "Hey, Anastasia!" Harima shouted. After a few seconds, a penguin emerged from a cave and waddled towards them. It was strange for Yakumo to find that animal here in the zoo, after once seeing wild penguins from aboard Eri's luxury cruise, which had gone awry after hitting a stray iceberg.

"Anastasia here is kinda old now but she still looks healthy." Harima said as he stroked the sleek back of the penguin, its flippers wagging like Tenma's pigtails.

Looking at the small bird, Yakumo couldn't help herself from thinking of Akira dressed in a penguin costume. The Christmas trap Akira set up for both her and Sarah (and an unwitting Tenma) was still fresh in her mind. If Harima had not been nearby and helped them, they would have been stuck there for who knows how long. But really, her senior did have a strange fixation with dressing up as mascots whatever the occasion.

As they walked towards their next destination, Yakumo began to talk. "Harima? I just noticed." Harima glanced at her. "Do you use Russian names for the animals?"

"Russian what?" Harima asked, confused.

"I mean... Pyotr, Igor and Anastasia," she said while pointing to her fingers. "You also have a pet frog named Alexander if I recall?"

Harima's face scrunched up in confusion and he scratched his head. "I don't know any foreign names but I do have Alexander." He shrugged. "I just felt like naming them that. I think they like those names."

"Oh."

"So where did you get Iori's name?"

Yakumo blinked. "I just... thought of it."

"See? It's just coincidence."

The animals they met afterward were a lion named Caesar and a tigress named Joan. Yakumo pointed out that he named them after famous leaders, including his pet pig Napoleon. Again, Harima said he didn't have a clue who they were. The coincidences were getting a bit strange but coming from Harima, she could make an exception.

They had almost circled the entire establishment when they saw a new site they hadn't seen before.

"Whoa. Now that's something new." Harima observed. The two looked at the big dome of a structure. It was huge; they could see fully-grown trees and shrubs inside.

"It says here it's a newly built aviary." Yakumo said reading from a notice. "Since it's still new and it doesn't have many birds yet, there's no fee."

"You know what that means." Harima said walking to the entrance. "Let's go in."

There was no arguing with Harima if it involved something free.

As they entered the new aviary, the two could almost immediately hear the chirping of birds and the flapping of wings. There were many birdhouses perched from the high and long tree branches. The structure was relatively new so there weren't that many droppings to avoid yet.

Yakumo gazed out to every branch that hosted a bird. There weren't that many but they were quite noticeable in their colorful feathers, and the way they looked while flying overhead was beautiful.

They arrived at the center-most location. There were benches for resting and telescope stands that pointed at several directions. They sat on a bench for a quick rest as they had been walking for quite a while now. A few seconds later Yakumo heard the flapping of several wings and she gazed up. To her surprise, some birds had started circling them. She looked at Harima and was startled to see some birds sitting on Harima's shoulder, and he even had a little red-breasted robin perched on his outstretched hand.

"Amazing." She said absently. "You're like Saint Francis, Harima."

Harima's face scrunched up into another confused expression. "What? Who?"

"Oh, I'm sorry." Yakumo said sheepishly. "I guess that was what Sarah would say if she was with us."

"So who is he? Like a great person or something?"

Yakumo eyed the small bird with wonder in her eyes, "According to Christianity, he was very friendly to animals, birds in particular. The birds usually surrounded him when he was preaching. He's a patron saint of animals because of that."

Harima became silent for a few seconds and said, "I'm no saint, and I'm not a preachy guy." He held out his hand towards Yakumo's shoulder and the robin hopped onto it. "I guess that title suits you more than me, right?"

Yakumo bowed and nudged him gently with her arm. "Hey, I'm not that preachy, am I?"

"Well, I guess Sarah then." Harima laughed.

"She won't take that tease lightly, you know." Yakumo glanced at her shoulder, feeling a little wary. "The first time I met her was when she scared away a stray dog. She can shout really loud."

I'll agree with that, Harima inwardly thought with a grin.

They started to feed the birds with the complimentary bird seeds they got upon entering. Harima even let some birds eat directly on his palms. Soon enough, there was a small crowd of birds in front of them. An audacious long-tailed sparrow perched on top of Harima's head. Instead of him shooing the bird away, he simply stayed still as if it was perfectly natural.

A former delinquent who is so peaceful with animals, now that's a sight, Yakumo thought fondly.

"I think this is the first time I've shown my friends to someone." Harima began talking.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't really have that many friends to begin with."

Yakumo felt a little pity from hearing his words. "How about Akira, Sarah, Shuuji, and Ms. Osakabe? They have seen them before, right?"

"They have seen them but the animals stick close to me during that time. They're still wary I think." Harima explained, scattering some bird seeds. "I think they like you, especially Pyotr. I guess they sorta feel comfortable with you around. They usually don't show up at all if someone's with me."

Yakumo looked at the flock of birds pecking away on the ground. "I also had a hard time befriending Iori. He seemed hostile at first but then he started to become friendly once I got to know him."

"Ain't that the story of my life." Harima said under his breath absently. Yakumo didn't catch what he said and she stared at him. He leaned back on the bench and continued, "I don't really have that many friends but I can say you and Sarah are good friends. I can safely say you're my best friend now! That's a lot coming from me!"

It was a bittersweet feeling. Still, Yakumo was glad that Harima himself had disclosed this to her without any pretense. It was a step forward, not a leap, but it was still better than nothing.

Before they left the aviary, Yakumo bid goodbye to the robin perched on her shoulder. It flew away and was gone from sight.

"It seems you made a new friend." Harima remarked. "We'll see him again next time."

"Yes, next time." Yakumo softly repeated to herself.

x-x-x

The two went back home not long after. It was late afternoon and the sun was slowly setting. Yakumo was surprised at how fast the time had gone by. It was now the second time that Harima had to remind her they'd returned home.

Harima slid open the front door and saw Shiba was already waiting for them. The dog sat, his fluffy tail wagging back and forth. Harima went to Shiba and ruffled the dog's head, much to the delight of the big dog. When he looked back, he noticed Yakumo kept a distance from them.

He was about to ask her what was wrong until something occurred to him.

Oh, wait. I got an idea.

"Imouto-san. Could you please wait here for a second?"

Though confused, Yakumo agreed. Harima quickly went inside the house and when he got back, he was carrying a small pouch.

"I've been concerned about this since I first noticed." Harima said. "Imouto-san, are you afraid of dogs?"

Yakumo looked surprised at such a direct question. "Well, I... uh, I'm not that... very fond of them."

"Hey now. It's okay to admit if you're afraid." He took a few steps towards her. "I'll try to help you overcome that."

Yakumo took a step back as she realized what Harima was planning. "No, it's okay, Harima. Really. You don't have to do that." Her voice trembled slightly and Harima noticed it.

He quickly took her hand and said, "You won't get over it until you face it. I'm here to help. That's what friends are for."

'Friends?' That single word held a lot of meaning for her.

"Do you trust me?" Harima asked.

Yakumo nodded. "Of course."

"Then let's get started." Harima held her hand palm up and gave her a bone-shaped cookie that passed as a dog's treat. "This is about trust. Here, feed the treat to Shiba from your hand."

Yakumo's anxiety came back in full force. "What? Isn't that a bit too quick? What if I get bitten?"

Harima smiled in amusement. "I'm not teaching the dog. I'm teaching you, right? Shiba is well trained and will never do that. You must first trust the dog."

Yakumo stretched a trembling hand towards the dog. When the dog came close, she quickly retracted it away out of instinct.

"Here, I'll help you." Harima went to Yakumo's side and held her hand - in a half embrace. Yakumo's heart started to beat fast but she was unsure if it was because of Harima or the dog.

"Don't be nervous." Harima chided her. "Dogs can feel if you're afraid of them."

Yakumo took a deep breath and she nodded.

With Harima guiding her hand, Shiba came close and began sniffing it. The dog then began licking her fingers. Yakumo felt revulsion spread throughout her body as she felt saliva on her hand. She involuntarily closed her eyes.

"Hey. Open your eyes. You're doing great." Harima assured her.

Yakumo opened her eyes and saw a cavern of fangs closing in on her hand. She quickly began to tug her hand back but Harima held it tight.

"You're doing fine. Take it easy."

The dog nibbled the treat and soon he finished it.

"That's a big improvement." Harima said. "See? Not that hard, right?"

"Is that all?" Yakumo asked quite uncertain.

"Well, at least Shiba now knows you're nice since you're feeding him. One step at a time, I say."

"Should I feed him again?"

"If you want to. I actually didn't know if that method would really work. I just thought of it now."

Yakumo made an uncertain expression at how she might have lost a finger in this ordeal. Harima gave her another treat and assisted her once again.

x-x-x

The two sat on the veranda, watching the golden horizon after their impromptu training. It was so relaxing sitting here instead of inside the house at this hour that they hadn't even entered the house yet. They had also walked around the zoo earlier so they were feeling somewhat tired.

"Harima, when did you start to like animals?" Yakumo asked.

"I'm not really sure." Harima replied. "They started to like me so I started to like them."

"You told me that before." Yakumo said in a low voice.

"Oh? Really?" Harima replied embarrassed. He put a hand on his chin and started to think. "I remember my parents didn't like pets in the house. They always said they were only a burden to take care of, but I disagree. Pets will only be a burden if you let them be that way. If you treat them like a proper living being, they'll respect you. And they don't judge you: what you look like, what talents you have, rich or poor. Give them love and they'll love you in return."

Yakumo just listened quietly. Harima's flashes of insight never ceased to amaze her.

"I think I'm close to them because they don't complicate things. If people would somehow see a person for who they truly are and not of outside appearances then I'm sure they'd start to like them."

Somehow, bullseye. Yakumo continued listening. He had just stated how she had fallen for him. Whereas some people saw him as scum of society, she saw a different person who had characteristics that most people did not have or they simply pretended to have.

"Aside from manga, you could be a good animal trainer if you wanted." Yakumo said, feeling a little sleepy because of the soothing environment.

"You think so? Well, I guess, but just because they are friendly to me, I wouldn't start ordering them around. They're my friends and –"

Harima felt a weight on his shoulder. He looked to his side and saw Yakumo leaning on him. He felt like he had been in this situation before.

"Imouto-san, are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine." Yakumo softly answered. "I'm just... tired, is all." Her voice trailed and her head lulled.

"Can't blame you. I once slept here without me noticing." Harima glanced at her again and to his surprise, she was already asleep. It wasn't like when she had fainted before and it gave him relief. She had simply fallen asleep from getting tired.

She's asleep already? Sarah did say she sleeps at the drop of a hat.

When he noticed Yakumo was starting to slide off towards his back, he quickly wrapped an arm around her shoulders to correct her posture.

There was some part of him that feared she might throw him or pin him to the ground, but instead, Yakumo slept quietly, leaning on his shoulder.

Now that he thought about it, how did she do it? Some girls he knew at school were quite like monsters given their hidden physical prowess. Tenma can do an inescapable chokehold; Mikoto is a black belt master on par with Hanai; Eri can deliver a deadly blow that makes boys cringe; Karen and Lara are master wrestlers who can lift ten times their own weight; and Akira, well, if she did show her true strength, no one would be able to tell the tale. They were far more capable than people would think and that caused some of their male classmates to fear them.

He couldn't see this strange phenomenon with Yakumo, however. She was very reserved and wouldn't hurt anyone unless it was really needed. Harima could understand Yakumo fighting Hanai back out of self-defense but he wondered why she didn't do this whenever the eager boy was chasing her.

Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, the fragility of a girl's frame made him overlook those absurd facts. She was still a girl no matter what she could do. Tenma and Eri had slept beside him in this manner before but he felt a gap with them because he had been keeping parts of himself from them at the time, especially from Tenma to stop her from recognizing him as "that" pervert.

But with Yakumo, it was noticeably different.

He knew he could say and share things with her and she would keep them a secret. She would even sometimes go out of her way to protect it, even lying to Tenma once when he asked for her help. He was confident that she wouldn't blackmail him as Itoko does, and she wouldn't keep a list of "IOUs" like Eri does.

She sometimes asked weird questions like what it means to be steady with someone. He couldn't deny her of something she wanted to know even though he himself had no clue what he was talking about. It just... came out.

He couldn't imagine saying that kind of baloney to anyone with a straight face. He still had a delinquent's image and it was not a question a delinquent like him should answer. But he had answered her question.

Maybe I should carry her to her room now.

He wanted to do that but for some reason, he wanted to stay like this for a while longer. It wasn't because he might disturb her or he might collapse again after putting her in her bed. Currently, he was feeling something he just couldn't understand. It wasn't a bad feeling, he was sure.

He couldn't put a finger on it. He wasn't overjoyed and heartbroken like with Tenma or freaked out like with Eri. This time, it felt normal for him. There were no conflicting emotions in his mind and it felt rather relaxing to be this off guard with someone else.

If he could put it into words, he was... at peace. He was confused himself, using that term. Maybe it was because he didn't feel awkward with Yakumo's company and he wasn't struggling to gain her attention. Or maybe it was because her calm nature was starting to rub off on him. He was acting less of a delinquent with her around and he couldn't say that was a bad thing. Perhaps that was the reason why he answered her question about being steady.

Anyway, he stayed still for her sake.

The ringing of a wind chime, the cool breeze, and the feeling of peace within him gave him even more reason to be glad he ended up here instead of any other place.

Harima released a deep, contemplative sigh and looked up to the twilight sky.

Author's Corner: This is a very long chapter and I hope I didn't bore someone with this. I don't have any beta readers so it might be longer than necessary (how many times have I complained about that, seriously?).

Harima's thoughts are one of the most down-to-earth things to write about. The 3 characters have different styles of thought if you have noticed. It's just that you need to read between the lines (or should I say thoughts?) to make sense of the whole picture. The progression seems slow but it will all fit together.

As always, reviews are appreciated. I sometimes re-read them for a boost on motivation.