It was a peaceful, early summer day. Ryuuya had only just come to the shrine, and in his free time, had decided to explore and learn the ins and outs of this place he was supposed to be guarding. It was quaint, and was seemingly a small world, wrapped up in four walls. Almost depressing.

There was a gust of wind, and the sound like a large bird going into flight. Ryuuya turned in time to glimpse what he thought to be a girl with large white wings before he was thrown to the ground, and he wasn't so sure about it anymore.

"Would you care to tell me, what you think you're doing all the way out here?"

"If you have time to talk, then you have time to get off of me too…" Ryuuya groaned. So there WAS a girl on his back, strange.

"If I'm not mistaken, you're not from around here." The girl said as she obliged, letting Ryuuya gain his feet.

"My name is Ryuuya, Assistant Lt. of the palace guard. So what about you? Who might you be?"

"You mean, you don't know who I am?"

"Well no, after all we did just meet…" Ryuuya said, crossing his arms.

"I guess so, I suppose I'm not as well known as I thought I was." The girl sighed, closing her eyes and shaking her head a bit. "My name is Kanna."

"Really?" Ryuuya exclaimed, his eyebrows raising in surprise. "The winged person who ordered me to become a guard in the first place was named Kanna too." Ryuuya said. What he had seen was true then, she DID have wings.

"That's just a, uh, coincidence." Kanna said, seeming slightly nervous. Ryuuya fought the urge to chuckle.

"Yeah, isn't that strange?" He couldn't hold it in anymore. He burst out laughing, much to the displeasure of Kanna, it seemed.

"WHAT ARE YOU LAUGHING AT?" She yelled.

Ryuuya shook his head.

"What are you doing way out here?" The girl asked.

"Mind getting up while you talk?" Ryuuya grumbled. She did, but her attitude was a little haughty, something Ryuuya already didn't like. He kept his gaze even as he dusted himself off and looked at her.

"You aren't from around here, are you?" She asked.

"What was you're first clue? The smell, or the dirty clothes?" Ryuuya grumbled, shouldering his bag. She growled at him as she righted her bike. "My name is Ryuuya." He said. Leaving it at that.

"Not sure. May have been the stupid hair and the vacant look." She said, crossing her arms. "I am Kanna."

"Nice to meet you." Ryuuya said, beginning to walk off, his shoulders slumped. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find somewhere to stay for tonight that doesn't cost me a dime, or will let me work for room." He wasn't in a good mood for several reasons.

1. He had been on the road for weeks, with no idea where he was headed.

2. He hadn't had a proper bath for most of that time.

3. He had gotten in a fight with his mother, and was angry with her.

4. He had no money.

5. He had just gotten flattened by a strange girl, who didn't regret doing so.

What more could happen to him today?

"I know a place where you can stay." Kanna said suddenly. Ryuuya, a good several yards away and nearly to the corner turned, slightly surprised.

"Yeah?"

"Duh, why would I have said anything if I didn't? Come on, this way." And Kanna rolled her bike up a set of stairs she must have been trying to jump before she landed on Ryuuya. He followed her a little reluctantly, but with the promise of a place to stay, he didn't argue.

They paused at the bottom of a large staircase, one that would normally lead to a shrine. Kanna parked her bike, then began to climb, so Ryuuya followed. When they reached the top, Ryuuya stood gaping. Kanna paused at the topmost step into the shrine, and glowered at him.

"What? Never seen an orphanage before?" She asked. Ryuuya shook his head and composed himself.

"Truthfully, no. But I didn't think a shrine would be used as an orphanage."

"So? This shrine was empty for years, so they rebuilt it, and turned it into an orpahange as the number of parentless children grew. And it sort of stayed an orphanage." Kanna explained as Ryuuya climbed the steps. He looked around, seeing a small world within a large one. "I've been here all my life." Kanna said, answering Ryuuya's unasked question. He looked out the windows and at what little of the outside he could see, it was a very small world, all boxed in. like something wasn't supposed to get out, and he wondered if the fence had been there before. He didn't think so, but there was a tiny little shiver in the base of his neck that said it had been.

Ryuuya tried to ignore the feeling and followed Kanna into the Shrine. He had never been in an orphanage, true, but he hadn't even seen one this nice online. It was very well taken care of and the residents seemed to be happy, even though their clothes were less than the best. The only one who didn't look happy was Kanna, Ryuuya noticed.

"Ewwww! He smells!"

Ryuuya growled at the remark made by the young child. Yes, he knew he smelled.

"Where did you find him, Kanna? In the ditch?" Asked another small child. Ryuuya flinched, having been poked in the back with a stick. He whirled around and grabbed it.

"Oi! It's rude to point and stare, you little squirts!" He yelled, since the offenders were running down the hall and screaming.

"Hey, do you want to talk to the house mother or don't you?" Kanna yelled angrily from down the hall. Ryuuya turned to see her looking quite annoyed.

"Fine, fine, I'm coming." Ryuuya grumbled. Kanna glowered at him, seeming to regret her decision to lead Ryuuya to this place. Something had told her too though, and she had found it hard to resist the urge.

They approached a sliding door behind which could be heard a dishwasher and the sound of someone singing softly. Ryuuya suppressed the shivers as Kanna opened the door. The song was eerily familiar.

"Uraha! Uraha, I brought someone." Kanna said as she opened the door with no hesitation. Ryuuya felt the oddest scene of reluctance to enter the room, and hesitated as he lifted his foot.

"Oh really?" came a soft, motherly voice that gave Ryuuya a sense of comfort he hadn't had for years, and was suddenly regretting he had thrown his phone away. It was too late though, he couldn't go back and find it since he didn't know where it was. "Well, then, where is he?"

"I dunno. Take a whiff." Kanna said.

"Kanna, be nice."

Ryuuya glowered at the comment Kanna made, this giving him the drive to go through the door and snap at the small girl.

Ryuuya froze the moment he made eye contact with the woman called Uraha. Her eyes were golden, a color he had never seen before, her greenish hair tied back into a low pony tail to keep it out of her face and the food she was preparing for the orphans. Uraha had frozen too. She had never seen the young man before her, yet for some reason there was a tickle in the back of her mind that told her she knew him intimately.

Kanna gave the two a confused glance, and then Uraha started giggling.

"Oh, you poor thing!" She said, hiding her mouth. Ryuuya scowled, glad something was happening.

"I would greatly appreciate it if you would let me stay on here for awhile, work for food and board. If you wouldn't mind too terribly much, I can work for pay as well. I lost all my money. I'll be out of your hair soon enough." Ryuuya said.

"Oh, pssh. You can stay here as long as you need. I have more than enough food to feed all the little mouths here. Your big one won't make a difference. We get regular donations from the town, and if you start working here, no one will mind in the slightest." Uraha smiled, her giggling finally done.

"Thank you so much!" Ryuuya said, happily, bowing.

"It's not a problem. Really." Uraha smiled. She walked to the door and called out. "Shiro! Shiro can you come here?" there was the sound of pattering feet, and around the corner came a boy about 8 years old, with black hair and eyes. Uraha kneeled down to his level and smiled. "Can you do Auntie Uraha a favor?" she asked. Shiro nodded. "Can you take this nice man to the baths? He's been traveling, and he's tired. You can do that, right?" Shiro nodded, and grabbed Ryuuya's hand. "I'll leave some clothes in the dressing room for you!" Uraha called as she went down a separate hall.

Ryuuya followed the quite little boy, looking around. They reached the baths, and Ryuuya stood dumbly as Shiro grabbed him everything he would need and handed them to Ryuuya. He could only nod is thanks as the boy left, who smiled in return. Ryuuya snapped out of it a little later, and smiled. "Weird kid, cute though." He said.

Ryuuya had to contain his excitement as he got undressed and then entered the large bathing area reserved for the males of the orphanage. He hurried to wash and rinse himself before happily sinking into the waters in the middle of the room to relax. He sighed and looked at the ceiling, remembering Uraha. He didn't suppress the shiver now. It wasn't a chilling shiver, but more of a warm, welcoming one that warmed his heart. It was strange, since he had never had a feeling like that before. As much as it felt good, it unnerved him.

He heard the door open to the dressing room, and then close seconds later, then silence. It had to have been Uraha. His heart picked up it's pace for a few moments, and Ryuuya sighed. Things were getting much too confusing.