AN bleuxe: Unfortunately I've been gone cause my dad passed away...nothing prepared me losing him, so I wrote to help me feel better. I always have a plan for chapters just need to shake them out of my head. If i'm gone for again just know I am writing and know where I want to go in this. Enjoy, thank you for staying and happy reading.

Lydia couldn't believe Daki was making her do this after the horrible night that she just had. She didn't understand her mindset at all because the demoness knew that she almost died from illness or was almost killed by crazed demons and then again by a demon slayer. She acted like such a bitchy princess, especially when she wrenched open the door to nearly throw a sack of coins in her face. All while growling lowly right back at her.

"It's Yatamahime! You forgetful idiot!" before slamming the door back in her face again.

Lydia exited the building and made sure to look up at Daki's windows to give it good glare, wanting to go back up there to give her a piece of her mind. She was the one who was the idiot for not giving her the money in the first place!

"L-Lydia?...Are you sure your not from the house of Kyogoku?" Heiwa asked, surprised to see her here again.

He didn't expect to see her because he hadn't seen her in awhile and thought she left Yoshiwara all together.

"It's nice to see you again Heiwa and nah I'm just visiting again,"

He frowned because one doesn't just visit Kyogoku because it was a prestigious and luxurious house. Anyone who came here had to have money and spent a fortune to even enter this place. He thought maybe it was the house that was inquiring about her for whatever talent she might have.

"Well, have you seen Omitsu?" he decided to ask because he had been waiting longer than usual for her.

"Oh she is busy with D-Yatamahime this morning,"

"Is she in trouble?" Heiwa immediately worried because that was unheard of. Omitsu usually says that Yatamahime Oiran hated to be bothered first thing in the morning.

Lydia could tell he was nervous for his friend and did her best to reassure him that she was fine. All while in the back of her mind she needed to tell Daki to lay off on being cruel towards Omitsu because clearly there was fear in this boy's eyes.

"I-It's just I usually run errands with Omitsu it feels strange without her..."

"I'll run them with you, I have to pick out furniture for Yatamahime anyways!" she said wanting to not only cheer him up, but to not do this task alone.

"Then we should do Yatamahime Oiran task first since it is a special request,"

"You should most likely lead the way because I don't have the faintest clue where a carpenter lives or works at?" she smiled while thinking yet another thing Daki didn't inform her about.

After a while of only the sound of footsteps on fresh powder snow Heiwa noticed Lydia shivering a bit while rubbing her hands together. He usually saved this for Omitsu because she was always in such a hurry to get her chores done that she would run out the house without it.

"Here this will keep you warm," and handed her a smooth yet round stone similar to the kind that would be skipped across a lake.

"Ooo thank you this is really warm!" she held onto it like it was a coffee mug. He looked at her with expectancy and then frowned again as she just held it in her hands.

"Lydia umm you are supposed to put it in your obi so it keeps the rest of you warm," he pointed out.

She felt embarrassed that a child had to point out something so obvious. Heiwa suddenly had the urge to ask her where she was from and he always wanted to know. He never encountered someone who was a foreigner before and curiosity was getting the better of him.

"I'm from the Valley of the Sun,"

"Hmm never heard of that place, it must be far from here?" he wondered out loud because he only heard of the Land of the Rising Sun and that was only referring to Japan as a whole.

"It's super far from here! In America actually. Well technically it doesn't exist because it is the 1850's...Phoenix Arizona isn't even established yet," Lydia bemoaned as Heiwa was completely lost on what she was talking about.

But she couldn't go back to America, not in these times because she would felt the need to liberal her ancestors from slavery and go after slave owners or die trying. This constant thought of her desert-like home in the future, suddenly reminded her that she forgot to ask Gyutaro about her phone. Feeling anxiousness in her heart because what if he did have it or didn't know what happened to it? How would she see her loved ones then? She wanted to go running back just to find out.

"L-Lydia are you ok...y-your crying," he replied feeling uncomfortable.

Usually he would ignore other people's sadness because everyone usually ignored his sadness back at the house he serves at. But with Lydia, she was actually nice to him and didn't treat him like he was nothing, but a nuisance. Especially when he took that cool book from her, not once did she raise her hand or voice when he did give it back.

"I-I am huh?" she said and touched her face because it was indeed wet. She really wished wasn't going toward this emotional rollercoaster in front of this kid and thinking maybe she wasn't ready to do something so simple as get a table. Then again Lydia didn't have much of a choice in the matter thanks to Daki.

"You shouldn't cry in this type of weather...you'll sooner catch your death," he turned his gaze away feeling bad for her.

Lydia couldn't help, but laugh at the irony of his words. She caught her death many times than she could count being in this newfound world. Her life was hilariously messed up at this point.

"Aww don't worry for me Heiwa!" as she patted his head with glee until he stopped her.

"This is why I questioned if your a drunkard when I first met you," he muffled underneath his breath, she still heard him perfectly clear.

"What did you say you snot-nosed brat?" As an angry mark appeared on her forehead.

"I-I said we are here!" Heiwa gulped, surprised that she actually heard him.

Entering the shop Lydia her eyes auto adjust from being outside in the bright sun. It was kind of nice to not actually need her glasses anymore, even though she was still trying to understand what it meant being a hybrid. They were surrounded by beautiful polished wood artwork up against the wall and different furniture set up for display. She pulled out a small bag of coins, Heiwa's eyes wide like saucers for a fraction of a second looking and hearing the weight of the coins.

He couldn't help it because he grew-up on a poor farm with his father and older sister. Then he ended up here at five now he was twelve years old, still stuck in this horrible town trying to repay this impossible debt. Lydia being constantly seen at a ritzy place like Kyogoku, her being from a foreign land he never heard of and must have cost her a lot to come here. Her just being in close proximity to Yatamahime Oiran just showed him how rich she really was.

Old owner of the shop was still in the back room working on something. Is when Heiwa had a brilliant idea.

"Tanuma-san can be known to up-charge new customers. Might even charge you an arm and leg for the table, just for not being from here," he said in a hush tone making sure the owner was still in the back.

"Wow that sucks, but not really surprising," Lydia sighed, not too happy about the situation she was in.

She really wished there was a machine that converted her money . Then she would actually know how much money she had on her. She also hated being the only damn foreigner in Yoshiwara because it meant yet another thing to worry about which was being scammed.

"I'll make sure you can get a deal because back in my village I used to sell a lot of crops with my father," he tried to not to have the quiver in his voice with beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

"Oh you must be a pretty good haggler...ok Heiwa I trust you to get me a decent deal!"

Lydia willingly gave him the money with no questions asked, it bothered him how trusting she was because she hardly knew him. In the end Heiwa felt too bad to actually steal from her. He kept thinking how she was treating him like she was his friend. He thought Omitsu was the only one who was capable of being that kind to him.

"Thanks to you it was practically free!" she laughed the most cheerful lift the sack of coins because there was barely a dent in it.

"..."

"Heiwa the great haggler and for that you deserve payment!"

"...Wait wha-" his sentence was cut off with all the money in his hands.

"B-But I-l don't deserve this!" he tried everything in his power to give it back as she easily speeded up in the snow to avoid taking it.

"Don't be ridiculous it for everything you did for me,"

"No! I tried to rob you!" Heiwa suddenly shouted at her. Making her slow down her stride, but she never stopped walking ahead.

"And you lied to me as well, but seeing the despair in your eyes I could tell you really wanted...no needed the money more than me," he was speechless not realizing she was watching him so closely in the shop.

Lydia remembered what Daki said about children being an burdened here and it saddened her to know Heiwa was suffering for debts that weren't even his. If she could help him, she would regardless, suddenly she thought of that poor little girl and her dog from long ago.

"I don't know why you would...do that?..." Heiwa asked as tears flowed freely from his eyes. Before he knew it he was being pulled into a hug by her.

He felt so ashamed in this moment because he betrayed her, yet still she hasn't beaten him nor called him nasty names like so many others would have. This hug reminded him of his older sister, but he also wished it didn't either. Quickly he pulled away and wiped his face.

"I-I thank you I don't know if I can ever repay you for this... It's just so much, "

"Don't worry about it, just think about taking care of yourself," she only hoped to help plus the money technically wasn't hers.

Heiwa merely nodded, tucking the money safely on his person. This money would definitely help with his debts and he could possibly send some of it back to his father. But there was something that was bothering him ever since he saw that book in her unconscious hand.

"Are demons real?"

Lydia stopped in her tracks as pure shock ran throughout her body. She shuttered not only from a gust of wind blowing in her direction, but from the realization he read the book. But why should she be surprised any child his age would have read that colorful looking manga when seeing it. The last thing she ever wanted was to drag an innocent child into any of this horror.

"Pfft of course n-not that is just a fairy tale!" she chuckled slightly, waving her hand in a dismissing manner. "I hope it didn't scare you too much. Sort of a tragic and bloody tale to read!"

"It didn't..." Heiwa said lowly because he could tell he said something he shouldn't have.

He only hoped it didn't make her not want to be his friend anymore. He dare not mention it again as she already agreed to do his errands now that they were done with hers. But the entire time he felt the tension of Lydia's staring at him. The best way Heiwa could describe it was that it was very mother hen-like. And again it reminded him of his older sister.