It was the scent of something deliciously familiar that drew him to the quaint sweet shop. He walked straight in and found a variety of sweets from the standard cakes, cookies and Western desserts.

But it was the Asian ones that had his attention. Daifuku, mochi, dango, there were even a small selection of Chinese desserts and treats that had caught his attention from outside.

Smiling, he walked up to the counter already mentally picking out which ones he would buy.

The clerk took one look at his features and a broad smile came across her face.

"Ni Hao!" she said pleasantly, surprising him a little that she knew he was Chinese. "Welcome to the White Snow Bakery... what would you like to order?"

It was a shock to hear his native tongue spoken to him, even if he did detect a hint of an accent. His good mood brightened hearing that, even as he slipped easily into Italian.

"I would like two orders of daifuku and manju, miss. And tea, if you have any," he said smiling widely.

"Green, black or Oolong? We also have mixes, but we're out of the Assam and Ceylon at the moment," she said promptly, already pulling out his selections.

"Oolong, please."

"If you want, we do offer some discreet booths so you can enjoy your food and drink in peace without having to deal with the staring," she said.

Well, he wasn't about to turn down an offer like that, and he would love to properly enjoy his tea.

She went to the back and pulled out a proper tea set from Asia. Once he picked his seat, she set it down with a warm smile.

He took a small sip to test the leaves and relaxed completely. It had been far too long since he enjoyed treats like this and a proper glass of tea that was brewed correctly. Best of all he was able to enjoy it in peace, without having to ignore the staring of the Italians or other tourists.

He would definitely be making this his go-to stop for tea and snacks from now on.

The girl from before came back to pick up the tea set, and even gave him some dango to enjoy later. On the house.

"Your favorite customer is back," teased Angelica.

Mashiro blushed.

"Which one?"

"Well it's not Mr. Suave and Mysterious, it's your favorite dragon," she shot back.

"Hello, Mashiro-chan," said the very handsome Chinese martial artist in Japanese.

He only had to hear her name to guess she was of Asian descent as well, and had taken to using Japanese whenever he saw her. Though he was more than happy to correct her pronunciation whenever they used Chinese instead.

Mashiro was the one who made all the Asian desserts and tea. Though she could brew a good espresso, as her other frequent customer (aka Suave and Mysterious according to the girls) could openly attest. He mostly came for her coffee and the sweets.

"Hello, Huo-san!" she replied cheerfully. "I brought some fresh gyoza, though I always seem to add just a bit too much garlic. And I haven't gotten the ingredients for Mapo Tofu yet."

Huo smiled at her, and her heart fluttered...just a bit. He had been coming in for two months already and she knew she had a major crush on him.

He was an honest critic when it came to her food, though thankfully she only needed to make a few adjustments. He seemed to appreciate the gesture, since she at least knew how to make rice correctly.

All the Asian restaurants in town kept getting that simple task so hilariously wrong it was just sad. She would buy the toppings but it was better if she made the rice herself. It always came out too soggy, or too dry.

(A fact he was very quick to agree with.)

Huo took his usual booth behind the potted plants, while Mashiro brought out the tea. The two chatted amicably for about twenty minutes when her other regular came in.

"Hello Dark and Mysterious!" said Angelica with a laugh. "Mashiro is with her dragon friend in the booth near the plants."

Huo chuckled at the description. He found the fact Mashiro openly compared him to a dragon highly amusing...and it was only more so when he realized she was blushing.

His amusement almost stopped cold when he saw who "Dark and Mysterious" was.

He'd recognize that hit man anywhere.

"Well isn't this a surprise?" said Renato Sinclair amused.

"Behave Ren. I can at least trust Huo not to make a scene, but you thrive on too much chaos for me to do the same for you," she said dryly, sitting down his usual cup.

Renato chuckled, before sitting down. Mashiro eyed them both and sighed.

"You two know each other. Not personally, but enough to know who the other one is, don't you?"

"Something like that," said Renato.

Clearly the greatest hit man in Italy wasn't interested in causing a scene. And from the way he acted around Mashiro, he only came in for coffee and snacks... much like he came in for tea and to act as her very happy food tester.

Besides, it was the only way he could get properly made rice and other foods from home without having to worry about being poisoned or owing someone in the process.

The two knew each other on a professional level, but kept their small talk in code so as not to alert Mashiro. A silent truce between them lasted all the way until they were a few blocks from the shop.

"So... you come in for the food and drink as well?" asked Huo evenly.

"Her coffee is one of the best I've had in years. The tiramisu is okay," said Renato in the same tone.

"It's the only place I can get proper food from home, never mind that it's one of the few shops that carry fresh tea to order," admitted Huo.

The two looked at each other for a moment.

"So... we agree not to bring our work into the shop and use it as a quiet meeting place to share gossip?" he suggested.

Huo nodded in agreement. It was so rare to find a 'neutral' spot to speak with possible allies where you knew the other party wouldn't start something.

"A mutual truce between us so long as we're around Mashiro," said Huo.

Renato tipped his fedora in agreement. There was something about her that made it hard for him to want to start anything. Even if it meant losing out on some entertaining chaos.

A few weeks later...

Huo didn't even need to ask. He could tell Mashiro was foolishly trying to work despite her obvious fever.

Angelica kept giving her worried looks, and who could blame her.

"Do you know where her home is?" he inquired discreetly.

Angelica rattled off an address...it was ten blocks away, easy walking distance. She even handed him a key.

"If you can get her to at least rest for a day, you're a miracle worker," she said quietly. "God knows that girl needs to take a few days off every once in a while anyway."

"Hey... what..." said Mashiro in the break room, as Huo calmly picked her up without warning.

Angelica and the other girls stared, but had the decency not to laugh until Mashiro was out of hearing.

"If she doesn't end up with one of those two I'd be very surprised," said Angelica.

The others nodded in agreement, laughing. Mashiro was completely oblivious to the fact that the two handsome men were flirting with her.

With Huo and Mashiro...

Considering her fever, it was only natural she gave up fighting after a few blocks. Instead she merely grumbled in annoyance.

"I'm not that sick."

"I can feel your temperature from here. You should have stayed in bed if you had a fever," said Huo, part sympathetic but mostly amused.

He and Renato had a bet going on how long it would take for Mashiro to realize they were flirting with her, and who would end up with her first.

He could safely say he just made a major victory against the Sun. Renato was going to be pouting for days, he just knew it.

Though she was blushing openly (and not from the fever) from the looks people were giving them. Mostly because Huo was carrying her princess-style to her apartment.

She handed him the key and it didn't take long for him to sit her on the couch while he went to make a pot of tea.

"Did you at least take any medicine?"

"I ran out last week, and I forgot to get more," she said, not elaborating why she ran out. Huo wisely didn't ask... mostly because he could make a general guess. The over the counter medicines that most favored were also highly effective for menstrual cramps.

And by this point it was safe to assume that both the men who frequented her shop knew roughly when it was "that time of the month", if only because she was far less cheerful and a bit more grumpy.

Huo reached into his long sleeves and pulled something out. He always carried a few vials of herbs with him, if only to speed up the healing process or deal with minor injuries. Fortunately he happened to have a few that were mildly effective on fevers as well as general aches and pains.

When the tea started to whistle, he mixed up a small dose of the herbs along with the tea leaves and let them steep.

Mashiro didn't argue when it was cool enough...she drank the entire cup. Within a few minutes she started to feel rather sleepy.

It took a few moments to switch out into her pajamas, and she didn't even consider the ramifications of having a grown man in her apartment.

"Sleep, Mashiro-hime," he said gently, making sure she was covered up. He wasn't about to make any moves on her while she was sick.

Though he did notice with open amusement that she clung to his sleeve and even curled up like a kitten against him when he sat down on the bed next to her.

The girl was really too cute for her own good.

Mashiro felt a lot better when she woke up from her nap... though oddly she still felt warm. She honestly had no idea her water heater had broken down the night before when she took that shower... she had just thought she hadn't turned the hot water up enough, but had been too lazy to adjust it.

Then she smelled something burning and sprang out of bed immediately.

Her poor kitchen.

She stared at the mess on the stove, and couldn't help it. She started laughing.

"This explains so much," she said, unable to restrain her giggles.

Huo had tried to cook something on the stove, only for it to end up completely burnt. He looked rather sheepish about it, actually.

He could mix up medicine from common herbs, but the second anything more than a small fire was needed he was all thumbs.

There was a reason he ate out so much.

"I always wondered why you were so eager to act as my test dummy for my recipes, even going so far as to show up for lunch and dinner," she said laughing. "You really can't cook at all, can you?"

"I can mix medicine well enough, but my original teacher was very much a misogynist. He was of the opinion that cooking should firmly be left to the females," said Huo embarrassed. "And by the time I had a chance to learn, it was too late because I kept making charcoal every time."

Mashiro laughed with some sympathy. The fact Huo acknowledged his teacher was a misogynist was a good sign of his character. It meant he disagreed with his opinion on women. Or at least didn't agree outright.

"Sit down and I'll make a basic stew. I can do that much a least," she said, getting over her laughter at the sight.

"I can make some tea or rice," offered Huo, getting over his own private embarrassment. He did discreetly check her temperature, which had gone down considerably since she took a nap.

The stew was simple, but delicious...and leagues better than anything he could make.

"So... why exactly did you stay?" she asked, lightly blushing.

"Partly to make sure your fever was going down, but mostly curiosity," admitted Huo. He wanted to see if he could learn more about the girl... oddly her apartment was pretty lacking in that department. It was like she hadn't existed until she opened up her little shop three years ago.

The only reason he wasn't alarmed was because she still firmly read as a "civilian" to his trained senses, and therefor was mostly harmless.

"Curiosity?"

Huo smiled...well, it was more of a smirk...wondering when Mashiro would figure out what her co-workers already had weeks ago when they first started this little competition.

"Never mind. So I take it that since you can't cook to save your life, you eat out a lot?" said Mashiro.

"Unfortunately," said Huo. "I can make some basic rice, but the most I can do cooking wise is foraging or hunting for meat and letting it cook over a campfire."

"Which isn't actually practical considering how readily available food is these days," she said with sympathy.

Which only lead to him taking even more jobs so he wouldn't starve. He might be able to survive in the wilds with his hunting skills, but that didn't mean he enjoyed having to forage for food for hours!

It was an endless cycle he loathed.

Mashiro grinned.

"Well in that case, how about whenever you're in town you come by here and I'll make you something? Not that I'm complaining about how much you spend at my shop, but having to eat out because you can't cook is ridiculous."

Huo blinked, before a slow smile came upon his face.

"Are you sure?"

"It's a win-win for both of us. You won't have to eat out as much, I get someone to test my new creations and it means I can get you to bring in some real spices rather than having to substitute or special order it from the shops all the time!"

"I'm pretty sure Ren doesn't bother to cook either," Huo pointed out. "He's something of a flirt so he most likely cons his 'dates' into doing it for him. Knowing him the only thing he can make is that precious coffee of his."

Mashiro snorted.

"Ren's nice enough, but he's on his own for now. Unless he wants to give up on trying to get into the pants of my assistants every time he shows up. I can live with the flirting, but not the blatant way he keeps leading them on."

Huo snorted openly. Ren's reputation wasn't earning him any brownie points from Mashiro. While she found him good company, she clearly wasn't interested in being "just another conquest".

That meant Renato had a lesser chance of winning, not that Huo was fool enough to mention their bet.

He wasn't about to turn down Mashiro's cooking though. It was nearly impossible to find a good Asian restaurant that knew what they were doing when it came to spices.

Seeing her yawn, Huo grinned. He put a hand against her forehead and was rather pleased when she leaned into it.

"You're still a bit warm. I think a bit more rest and you should be fine by tomorrow evening at least."

She nodded, having trouble staying awake with a full stomach and still being so sick.

Huo once again picked her up and carried her into the room... though he noticed she instinctively leaned into his neck and curled into his side. If she had been feeling better she would have been mortified, but for now she was taking shameless advantage of the situation. She even clung to his sleeve again.

Apparently Mashiro was something of a shameless cuddler.

Sadly he still had to put the food up (there was enough for lunch tomorrow if one of them made rice) and clear the dishes away. He was rather pleased Mashiro had some chopsticks as well as the usual cutlery.

He had noticed her preferred pair was an orange set with what looked like a Kirin on it.

"You what?" said Renato in disbelief.

"I have an open invitation to crash her house for food. In exchange I bring her spices that she can use to cook with since she has to special order it otherwise," said Huo rather smugly.

"How in the hell did you pull that off?"

"She had a fever and her co-workers conspired against her. Then she found out I tend to eat out rather than attempt to cook."

"Why bother? Most women would happily warm your bed and cook for you," said Renato dismissively.

"And that's the reason why she hasn't invited you to her apartment yet. It was strange though..."

"Strange how?"

"From the looks of the apartment she's only been in Italy for three years, yet there's no sign of where she lived before or her family. It's like she showed up out of the blue with nothing before she opened her little shop."

"Odd, but not really important."

"She's also a cuddler," said Huo unashamed.

"Now you're just bragging," scowled Renato.

"I'm serious. If you sat next to her when she's half asleep she'll curl right into you without even thinking about it. She didn't even think twice about snuggling against me when I was carrying her," continued Huo, enjoying how annoyed Renato was with him right now.

"I think I hate you right now," he scowled.

Huo smiled serenely, though you could tell he was smug as hell about the whole thing.