/jp/ - Otaku Culture

As if to puncture his airy words, Seiran immediately spun around and sneezed over the canal. Sniffling, she turned back. "J-Just doing a d-day's work." She stammered. The man watched her for a few moments. "Um, s-something on my f-face?" She asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Hmm? Oh, no, not at all. Rather, I just so happened to be heading out to get rid of this old cloak, you see." He raised his arm, the one that had been holding something, and it unfurled to reveal a thick cloak that I was surprised you could even get in the village. Perhaps it had come from somewhere else. Muenzuka, or somewhere. "But, now that I'm here...Would you like it?" He raised it toward Seiran. It was deep blue, close to the same shade as her hair. "Suits you rather well, I think." He wasn't wrong. "Ah, and before you say that you can't, you'd be doing me a favour. Only so many places in the village that I could take this, and I don't much fancy traipsing through the cold, either. I'm nothing like him, you see," He stuck a thumb back in my direction. I blinked, then thought for a moment and decided that he wasn't exactly wrong.

"Y-You're sure...?" Seiran asked. Personally, I was getting a little worried about the shivering. She didn't look very good. "Er, W-Well, uh...T-Thank you for your g-generosity." She muttered, taking the proffered cloak. Cautiously, like she was afraid of damaging it, or rather, afraid of it entirely ,she pulled it on, and her eyes widened just slightly. "O-Oh, that's g-good..." She mumbled, but I could already see that she was warming up. "Oh, the dango!" She cried, hurriedly getting back to turning it over before it could burn. "Hands aren't shaking anymore..." She mumbled. "Um, thank you." She said again. "I'll - Er, cherish this." A moment later, she pulled the dango from the grill and offered it to him. "Um, you can have this one for free. As, er, payment."

He looked up, his hand already in his wallet. "Free, Miss Seiran? Seems a mite too generous, don't you think? I might just start making a habit of asking for free dango." He smiled. "Only joking. I do insist on paying, though. I'm up to my gills in coins. Have you got notes?" Seiran blinked, then crouched under the counter of her stand, her ears still sticking up. Finally, she responded in the affirmative. "Ah, all's well. Here, I'll give you five more." He counted out his cash, took his note, and bowed deeply. "Thank you, Miss Seiran. Pleasure as always."

"Er, thank you for the cloak. It's - Um, warm?" Seiran replied, looking like she was grasping for an answer.

"As it should be. Hoping already that I'll see you again soon." The man stepped back and bowed again, then turned to me. "Which way are you going?" He asked. Blankly, I said that I was going to the Shrine. "Ah. Matter of fact, I live in that direction. Would you mind terribly if I accompanied you?" I shook my head. It was fine for as long as it took to get out of the village. "Perfectly fine." He replied, nodding and setting off. I walked next to him, and he ate one of his dango. "Ah, these are rather delicious. How were the ones you had at the Hakurei Shrine?" Er...Good, I replied. They'd, in truth, been okay. "As I thought." He said with an easy smile.

Unable to contain my curiosity any longer, I finally burst out and asked if he and Seiran were...Together. "Together? As in, like you and your Miss Yamame?" I nodded. "Well, I-" And then he cut himself off. "Ah, my apologies, but I'll have to leave you here." He was looking at an older woman who was waiting at one of the somewhat large houses down on the other side of the canal. I stared at him for a moment. You did that on purpose, I accused. "Did what?" He asked with what seemed to be complete sincerity. "It appears that my dear mother has grown impatient." I asked him what exactly he did. "Accountancy, you could say. I balance the books for my family's business." Hard work, I asked. "Oh, it can be. When the weather's getting worse, the orders come in fast. I've hardly had a moment to breath for most of Winter thus far." Finally, he bowed. "It's been good talking to you. Do take care." I told him to do the same, then bowed back before getting back on my way.