[MillietheWarrior]

Snowflake quickly shook herself out of her (decidedly disturbing) thoughts, leaping to her feet so suddenly, she nearly knocked her head into his chin. His quick reflexes were all that saved her from a killer headache as he jerked his chin back and reached out to steady her. Snowflake’s blush intensified as his hands gripped her upper arms, but he quickly yanked them back, a blush of his own rising up on his cheeks, though she was sure his was out of embarrassment. What a strong grip, the little voice taunted again. Imagine what he could do with those hands-

[MillietheWarrior]

Snowflake instantly slammed the door shut on that train of thought before she keeled over from the images the her mind was conjuring up. “S-sorry,” she managed, wincing when her voice stuttered of it’s own accord. “Uh, I was just admiring your plant.” Smooth. ‘Admiring your plant’? the voice mocked. Why not just tell him he has nice shoes? It’d be the same thing. Gritting her teeth and ignoring her own thoughts, Snowflake continued, trying to salvage the situation by asking him about said plant. “I’ve never seen anything like it before; what is it?” She pointed down towards the strange duo-colored plant, and the man’s eyes traveled down to follow the direction of her finger.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Ah, yes. It’s a personal hybrid of mine, actually. A combination of foxglove and morning glories. It hasn’t bloomed yet, but I imagine when it does, it will bear some remarkably beautiful flowers.” He turned to regard Inari with a thoughtful look. “You know a bit about plants?” he inquired kindly, motioning to the rows of flowers lining the walls.

[MillietheWarrior]

“Um, well, a little,” Snowflake admitted, rubbing the back of her head nervously and babbling on in what she was sure was a foolish fashion; she just couldn‘t stop herself. “I actually was planning on majoring in floral design and ornamental horticulture in college but I actually decided to move out here to take care of my grandmother‘s old temple. It‘s pretty remote, though so there‘s not much chance to go to college unless I want to spend half my day driving….” She trailed off, mentally smacking herself in the face. He asked if she knew about plants, not her life story. He really didn’t need to know all of that.

[MillietheWarrior]

Way to go, the inner voice chided, sounding less mocking and more amused. Snowflake wasn’t sure when that voice inside her head had gotten so loud and so annoying, but she needed to find a way to shut it up. Her thoughts were beginning to run away with her. If she’d been paying attention to the man and not to her own mind, however, she’d have seen the surprised look on his face when she mentioned a temple.

[4]

[MillietheWarrior]

Kurama regarded Inari curiously; she’d mentioned a temple and Kurama knew of only one such temple in the area. Genkai’s. But he’d never heard of the old psychic having a granddaughter. Then again, Genkai hadn’t told them everything about herself; she liked to keep things in the dark. If Kurama didn’t know any better, he’d say the old woman enjoyed being mysterious.

[MillietheWarrior]

Caution, he decided, was best in this case. He had no idea if this woman was related to Genkai, or if she was, how much if anything, the old psychic had told her about the people who would frequent the temple for visits. He was a bit worried that she had no idea what she was getting into, agreeing to watch over Genkai’s old home. There were still demons who roamed around the forests there from time to time, and while Kurama was sure they wouldn’t give her too much trouble, there wasn’t any guarantee that they’d keep their distance.

[MillietheWarrior]

“So you live at a temple nearby?” he asked kindly, his shrewd gaze keeping a close watch on the emotions flitting across her face. She seemed to be waging some kind of internal battle against her own thoughts, if the annoyance, embarrassment, and anger that danced across her features was anything to judge by. Kurama wondered what it was she was thinking that could cause such a display of emotions.

“Oh!” Snowflake seemed startled when he spoke, and if Kurama didn’t know any better, he’d say she’d forgotten he was standing there. “Well, yes, I do. It’s not really…nearby, per say. It’s actually a good distance from here. Maybe a couple hours drive?” She placed a finger on her chin, looking thoughtful. “I only just got here yesterday so…I’m still pretty new to the area.” Snowflake rubbed the back of her neck, laughing lightly. “I actually came into town for some groceries, but…I saw your shop and couldn’t resist.”

[MillietheWarrior]

Kurama seemed surprised at her statement, but masked it with a smile. “Really? If I may be so bold as to ask, would you by any chance be living at Genkai’s temple?”

Kurama knew he guessed right when Snowflake’s face slackened with shock. So she was staying at Genkai’s temple; how interesting. Why, he wondered, hadn’t Genkai told them anything about a family while they’d known her? He supposed it made sense to keep it in the dark; they hadn’t ever asked, after all. Maybe if they’d thought to, Genkai would have told them more about her past.

[MillietheWarrior]

“W-well, yeah, I do, actually. But how did you…how could you know that?” Snowflake seemed puzzled, so Kurama decided it would be best to enlighten her.

“I was a friend of Genkai’s,” he began slowly, trying to gauge what would be safe to say and what she would be best kept in the dark about. “My name is Shuichi Minamono.” Then, thinking that it would be best for her to know his real name, since she’d most likely hear it in the future (and it would save him a lot of explaining) he added; “My friends call me Kurama. It’s…kind of a nickname.”

“Kurama?” Snowflake repeated, then seemed to brighten slightly. “My name is Snowflake. I’m Genkai’s granddaughter. She, uh, she never made any mention of you in her letter.”

[5]