Haruhi didn't see much of Nekozawa the next day, so she busied herself with the animals. She had put on the dress she wore out to town yesterday because she thought all of her new clothes looked to clean and pretty to be ruined. In the barn she discovered that he had quite a few chickens – some of them hanging dead from the ceiling – two cows, and a very old goat. The smell disgusted her, but throughout the day she cleaned their droppings, exchanged their hay, and fed them. After milking the cows she brought the buckets into Nekozawa's house and dropped them off in the kitchen. The wizard was still nowhere to be seen.

Then, feeling fully disgusting – the smell radiating off of her backed her up – she grabbed her nightgown and a towel and made her way into the bathing area. She filled the tub and scrubbed every speck of dirt off of her body. Only when she was convinced that her body smelled entirely like lavender did she step out of the tub and dry off. Haruhi pulled on her nightgown and shoved her dirty clothes in the hamper so she could wash them tomorrow. When she re-entered the main room she could smell dinner wafting from the cast iron stove and, instead of seeing Nekozawa, she merely heard him moving about in the bedroom. She remained standing in front of the blanket door she came out of, unsure if it would be appropriate to either sit down or approach him. The wait wasn't long, though, for Nekozawa came walking out of the bedroom shortly after.

He was dressed in crimson and crème attire, and he looked devilishly handsome. Haruhi blushed and opted for twiddling a piece of wet hair rather than looking at him. She missed his smile and was startled when he placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I haven't been good company, today. I've been preparing for my ritual. I saw what you were doing in the barn, though. I'm impressed you've worked so diligently. I never thought I'd see the day when I'd meet a girl who isn't afraid to get dirty," he said, "This'll be fun."

"I'm glad that I could please you," replied Haruhi.

Nekozawa frowned. "Is that how you really think?" he asked her, "I know generally the status of women isn't very elevated, but I'd rather have a woman walk beside me rather than behind me."

"I've been thinking about your offer, you know."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes," she said, "and…I've decided to accept the position as your apprentice, provided that you will help me with furthering my conventional education; I want to learn what the boys are learning, too."

Nekozawa was ecstatic with her response and his whole face brightened up. Shocking Haruhi he pulled her into a full body hug so that she fit snugly into his torso. Haruhi blushed and let her hands rest on his chest since she couldn't really move them. He buried his face in her hair. "Oh, of course! You won't regret it, Haruhi! I'll be the best teacher ever!" He held his grip around her small form and Haruhi could feel his body shaking from adrenaline. When he pulled away his face practically radiated with pure happiness, and Haruhi couldn't help but feel happy as well.

'It'll be better than shoveling manure every time I turn around,' she thought.

"I'm still a little wary of magic," she reminded him, "so we'll have to take it slow."

"I promise," he said, "Are you hungry?"

"Very," she replied sheepishly.

"Well, good. I've been saving this salted meat, and I had a feeling tonight would be a special occasion. Welcome to the ranks of sorcery."

"…Thank you..." she said unsurely.

"Now, after we eat you must go directly to bed. I can't finish placing the seal until you're inside of the circle." Haruhi nodded and the two of them sat down to dinner.

When Nekozawa tucked Haruhi into bed, he gave her a kiss on the forehead and stepped back to look at her.

"One thing you need to remember about this circle is that you have the power to get out, but nothing else can get in. I'm not quite sure what Bereznoff thinks of you, yet, so if he tries to coax you out of the boundary lines, I highly recommend you ignore him. It will be my body, but his mind, and I don't want you to get hurt. Understand?" Haruhi slowly nodded. "Very well, I trust your judgment." And with that Nekozawa ran his hand over Haruhi's eyes and closed them. She immediately fell asleep. He looked over her peaceful form and drank in her features.

He gave her another kiss – this time next to her mouth – before he stepped back and completed the seal. Nekozawa then ventured to his room full of relics and began the ritual.

Haruhi had been asleep for a few hours until her eyes fluttered open in response to a bad dream. She yawned and rubbed her eyes. It didn't take her long to notice the nearby presence. When she turned over on her right side she saw Nekozawa standing five feet or so away with his head cocked to the side, blankly staring at her.

Haruhi silently gasped and was transfixed in his gaze. After what seemed like an eternity, Nekozawa – or Bereznoff, as she eventually remembered – seemed to get bored and walked away without saying a word. Haruhi's hammering heart calmed down after a while, and for the first time in two days she fell asleep of her own accord.

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Naraku's Phoenix: Don't be afraid to review, people! Feel free to critique, give suggestions, or guess about future events. I want to know how this story is appealing to readers. Also, I admit it! I'm as review hungry as the rest of you. XP