"GOOD MORNING, KA GA MI KUUUUN!"

Kagami smiled up at the cheerful girl. He was getting used to her energetic greetings each morning. She had been watching over him for the past few days.

"Good morning, Jyuka-chan. Ah, traditional breakfast today? It looks great."

"Of course!" she responded in a playful manner. She was getting more confident since she'd started practicing cooking. It was mostly simple things, but she was getting better and better each day. Kagami was only too happy to be her test subject and he appreciated her visits before and after school. Really, she shouldn't have to fuss over him. She was a young girl. She should be hanging out with her friends. When he had told her as much, she'd replied that somebody had to make sure he was healing up properly, since her elder brother had gone missing.

When Kagami had mustered up the nerve to inquire about Tendou (in a totally indifferent way, of course) she had told him simply:

"Onii-chan's been really busy lately! I wonder what he's been doing! You must be really lonely all day, Kagami-kun!"

A bit flustered at her observations, Kagami had reassured her that he was fine. Really, he was getting better everyday. His curiosity over Tendou's whereabouts was more over how busy the Worm must be keeping him. He couldn't help but worry. But, surely, if he were needed, Gatack Zector would have found him?? Still, neither he nor Jyuka had seen hide or hair of Tendou for the past few days. Not since the other night when he'd awoken…diagonally…to a nightmare. Dr. Hirofumi had been up to visit him the next morning, apparently at the request of the now absent Tendou. That had been a somewhat awkward conversation.

"And how are you feeling this morning, young man?"

"I'm fine, Hirofumi-sensei"

"I hear you had a rather nasty spill last night?"

"Ah. It was…just a few feet, really." The incident hadn't lessened in its embarrassment factor the next morning.

"A few feet is all that's needed to further damage your ribs and give you a concussion" And then the doctor had padded his hands along his sides asking, when he pressed here or there, if it hurt. There was a large knot on the back of Kagami's head, and he still had a bit of a head ache. At least he hadn't done anything worse to his ribs. The doctor had given him some aspirin and asked him if he thrashed in his sleep often.

"Not to my knowledge" He was the type of person to roll and hug pillows, but he hadn't actually fallen out of bed since he was little.

"Well, until you are fully recovered, perhaps it'd be best to take the precaution of sleeping more towards the middle of the bed." Kagami had the vague impression the doctors eyes were laughing at him from behind the shiny spectacles.

"You know, I was quite surprised when I received a call so late at night. When I got here, you were in pretty bad shape, young man!"

Self-conscious by the attention, Kagami had bowed his head a bit and apologized for any inconvenience the doctor had endured because of his recklessness.

"I'm a doctor, dear boy, it's what I do. Besides, it is actually quite unusual that Souji ever calls me."

Of course, thought Kagami glumly. The man probably had enough training to be a doctor himself. He recalled a certain incident when he'd been worrying over Tendou for hours only to find him giving his own doctor an examination!

"That boy has always tried to be self-reliant. He has been since I met him as a lad. One time, his little sister caught a cold and I was asked to come over. I've never had such a dedicated assistant! He even used to help me out at the clinic. I once tried to convince him to be a doctor, but he always replied that he had something else, something important to do."

"Something important" Kagami echoed. That's right. Tendou had said he'd been waiting for a long while for his Zector to find him. But how had he…

"I wonder what that important thing was. Might you know, Kagami-san?"

Kagami glanced at the probing expression of the doctor. It was natural to be curious about such a thing but why would the doctor believe he would know anything?

"I…um…I'm not that…close…to Tendou." And he really wasn't, when he thought about it. When he thought about the things he didn't know about the man versus what he did.

"I see." He seemed a bit deflated. "I had thought that you were involved as well. He was quite mysterious when I inquired about how you received such odd injuries. The most I could get out of him was that you were mugged near his house."

"I suppose you could say that." Kagami wasn't very good at lying, but then it wasn't wholly untrue. Worm attacks were somewhat like muggings. Except instead of his wallet, the would-be thieves had been after his form. And his life. Still, it was just like Tendou to put it in a way that revealed nothing important.

The doctor had looked intently at him for a bit after that, probably hoping to coax him into revealing a bit more. Kagami had looked at him tiredly wishing the man would let up a bit on the inquisitive stare. Finally the man snapped out of it and seemed to realize his rudeness.

"Ah, please forgive my line of questioning, Kagami-san! It's not my business to question the hurts, only to heal them. It's just…I have known him for a long while. His grandmother is a dear friend of mine. I am concerned that he has gotten himself into a troublesome situation."

Kagami hadn't been able to prevent himself from chuckling a little at that. At the doctor's scrutiny, he grinned and said.

"Is it really possible for a guy like that to be in a 'troublesome situation'?"

The doctor had blinked at this before laughing as well.

"You're right! He is quite a dependable young man!" And with that, the doctor had left.

Pulling himself back to the present, he watched as Tendou's little sister set about collecting the empty dishes. At least Dr. Hirofumi had changed his bandages for him as well, he mused. He couldn't bring himself to ask a young girl to do something like that. She had told him he was being silly, but he had managed to convince her that his injuries were much better and required less attention. He had placated her by letting her change the smaller bandages on his hands, arms and legs. They were shallow to begin with and no longer needed gauze to protect them; which is why he currently had various animal and happy vegetable glittery band-aids dotting his limbs. Well, the pajamas covered them, at least. He had even humored her by letting her put one on a small scrape on his cheek.

"Well! I'm off to school, Kagami-san! Feel better today, okaay?!" Jyuka smiled at him as she carried the tray out the door.

"Ah, thank you! Have a good day at school." It didn't even hurt to say that too-familiar phrase anymore. How many times had he said the same thing to Ryou as he'd left their home?

Stretching a bit, Kagami rotated his shoulders inquisitively. He was feeling a lot better since he first arrived. He was also able to walk the short distance to the bathroom without feeling dizzy with weakness. He still had to take it easy though. But he was getting a case of cabin fever. There wasn't anything to do but lay about be nagged by the thought that, somewhere, the other Riders were doing his share of the fight against the Worm. The further bothersome thought was that they must be doing just fine without him. Lying back, Kagami resolved to be patient and recuperate properly.