Episode Six

 A new embarrassment~

“Ughhh Mrs. Bevwren’s class is so hard!” announces a rather bubbly voice. Appearing from the door, Hyori enters the Sweet Spot Bakery with puffed out cheeks, looking back.

Following behind her, Vonni and Xander nod their heads in unanimous agreement. “Yeah, I hate that class. The only upside is being there with my Vonni~” Xander pokes her cheek, gazing at the demi-rabbit lovingly. 

“Aww, youuu” She waves a hand downward, holding Xander’s playful hand with the other. As Vonni is distracted by his admiration, she bumps into the now still Hyori staring straight ahead. “Oh! Sorry hon- ..Uh?” With a puzzled face plastered on, Vonni peers over her head, trying to see what the twin heart-bunned human is looking so intensely at.

She’s.. She’s here! Why is she.. Hyori thinks to herself, stunned. 

The two polar opposite beings stare at each other from across the room, both in awe as the sun shines through the bakery windows. From the open door, a breeze passes by along with the sound of rustling leaves, breaking the calm quiet. 

I can’t believe it.. She actually came! I thought I had… I thought she wouldn’t— Hyori snaps back from her silence, shaking her head. “Juuzou!” She yells, practically leaping towards the silent girl with enlarged eyes as she sits at some booths near the far wall. 

Xander calls out, confused as well. “What?! Juuzou’s here??”

Ignoring his questions, Hyori proceeds to interrogate Juuzou. “Are you okay?! What’s going on?? Did I upset you? I’m so sorry if I did, I—” she pauses, noticing the now surprised succubi’s left arm. “What.. You’re hurt! What happened?!!” Hyori’s eyes well up with small tears, her concern growing.

Realizing that's their cue to head back to the kitchen, Stella leaves the group to their devices, turning on their heels while taking Juuzou’s plate with them. “Hey darlin’! I’ll be in the back if ya need me.” 

Hyori stands adjacent to Juuzou’s booth as Stella walks off, giving them a small wave with full focus still on the bewildered demon girl in front of her. 

“I.. fell out of the sky..” Juuzou utters in a serious tone, holding her arm dramatically. 

“Oh dear!” Bringing her free hand to her mouth, Vonni covers it slightly, bemused. 

SHE WHAT?!

“you WHAT?!?” Hyori’s eyes appear as if they’re ready to bulge out of her sockets. 

Juuzou bursts out in a hearty laugh, amused by Hyori’s reaction. “Aahaha! You know.. We just met.. and you’re already this worried about me!” She states, wiping tears from her eyes. 

“You fell out of the SKY!” Pouting, Hyori puffs out her cheeks again and holds her hands to her hips. “How could I not be worried??!” 

Xander walks up to the two of them, interjecting at an immense volume with Vonni hugging his arm right behind him. “Actually, it was more of a tumble!” Trying to avoid further concern for Hyori.

Agreeing with him, Juuzou nods her head a bit, feeling a little bad about worrying the poor human girl. “Yeah.. don’t worry, Hyori.. I’m okay now, I just got a few light scratches.”

Why is it so easy.. talking to her..? To joke..? Juuzou sticks to the thought for a moment. I’ve never.. Talked like this before.. Yet..

Her heart beats with an unfamiliar flutter, skipping as light and airy as the crepes she devoured earlier, like if the recipe was imbued with a magic she’s never encountered. 

“Do.. you guys want to sit down?” She asks the group of three, getting a bit more comfortable with the idea.

Still playfully annoyed by the teasing, Hyori huffs as she sits down next to Juuzou, allowing Xander and Vonni to take the booth seats in front of them.

Didn’t expect to be this close.. A little flustered, Juuzou avoids her eyes, scooting to make room and moving her tail out of Hyori’s way. 

Relaxing a bit, the cute, bubbly human turns to her and questions “I’m glad you’re okay but.. What brings you to the bakery? At least let me make you a treat, as an apology!”

“Apology? What for..?” Juuzou faces her, puzzled, but then realizes what Hyori meant. “Oh, that..! N-No no, I’m not upset at you.. It was.. Something else...” Her voice trails off as the succubus looks to the display windows of Sweet Spot Bakery, feeling her anxious thoughts slowly creep up again. 

“OH THANK SWEETNESS!” Hyori exhales, extremely relieved by Juuzou’s words. “I was so worried—!”

“Worried is an understatement, Yori.” Xander interrupts, allowing Vonni to take a seat first in the booth then sitting himself afterwards. 

Vonni chimes in, chuckling. “No kidding! Hon, you were a mess!” She rests her elbows on the table, still having a straight posture. 

Hyori furrows her brows, slightly embarrassed. “I wasn’t that bad! …was I?” 

“Oh yeah, you were.” He crosses his arms, relaxing back.

“Mhm, it was bad.” Vonni agrees with Xander, giving a buck-toothed grin at Hyori’s disbelief.

Chortling, Juuzou looks at the pink-faced girl who’s upset once again. “Heh.. Anyways, what were.. you saying earlier, Hyori?” She questions, enjoying the banter.

This is.. really pleasant. I think.. I like this..

“Right! I wanted to make you something! As.. an apology– but I guess that’s not needed now, hehe!” She giggles, her displeased demeanor quickly dissipating. “I could still make you something though, if you’d like! We’re on lunch break right now, so I could whip up some food real fast for us” Hyori states gleefully, beaming with excitement to bake.

Juuzou places a hand on her stomach “T-Thank you.. But I.. already had a taste of your sweet stuff—” She stops mid-sentence, her face blushing a pink hue as she realizes how that sounded. “A-AH..! That's.. not what I meant..” 

“Wuh..?” The confused human tilts her head to the side.

Covering her face with her hands, Juuzou melts down in her seat, sliding down a bit under the table. “N-Nevermind..” 

The demon man across from her shakes the room with a booming cackle. “AAAAAAHHAHAHAHAHA!! MAN, Juju, that was good!” 

Vonni giggles along, watching the chaos unfold.

“Sh-Shut up! And don’t call me that!” Muffled, she snaps back at him as Juuzou slides down further in her seat.

Stella appears seemingly out of nowhere as the group is distracted with conversation, chiming in. “Hey kids! I made some sandwiches for y’all since ya been talkin’! Didn’ wanna take my sweetie pie away from er friends.” They say, holding three servings between a hand and their straightened arm. 

“Ah! Babs, where did you come from?!” The startled Hyori, still confused by the interaction earlier, jumps up. 

“The kitchen, of course! Heh heh. Oh, and Juuzou, hon, I made ya a servin’ to-go! I overheard what ya were sayin’ earlier.” They wink, smirking as they set the plates on the table then turning to grab Juuzou’s box.

“YOU DID?! Ughhhnnnnn” The flustered succubi’s face reddens even more as she hides under the table.

I can’t believe I said that.. I can’t believe they heard that! Juuzou’s heart pounds in her chest, a new type of embarrassment overcoming her. 

“Uh.. Juuzou?” A light, concerned voice asks from beside the ‘hidden’ demon girl. 

“Y-YES! Ow..!” She jolts in response, bumping her head on the underside of the booth table. 

“Are you alright..? I'm confused.. My.. Sweet stuff? Oh, did my Ba make you somethin’?” Hyori peers under the table, stretching out her hand towards Juuzou.

“U-Um.. yes…” She looks at the confounded girl’s hand, reaching delicately towards Juuzou. She takes up her offered help, climbing back up into her seat. Her hand.. was so soft.. Juuzou shakes the thought off quickly, trying to calm and clear her head. “I had.. A recipe of yours, for crepes..” She looks to Stella, now returned with Juuzou’s to-go box as they hand it to the timid crimson-eyed demon. 

“Here ya go, darlin’!” Stella hands off the box with a warm smile.

Juuzou returns the grin with one of her own. “Thank you! The food was delightful.. Here..” She pries open Xander’s coin bag, paying Stella what she owes.

“‘Preciate it!” They pause, looking at their hand. “Ah, hon, this is five silver coins more than whatcha owe! I can’t accept extra!” They frown, getting ready to separate the coins.

Juuzou waves her hand in a stopping gesture “N-No no, please, take it as a tip! You deserve it..” She gives a small, shy smile again, returning the coin bag to its rightful owner. “And.. you can take this back, Xander. Thank you.. For lending me coin.”

“Well, thank you!” Stella beams, clutching the coins.

“Of course, Zou!” Taking the bag, he leans back in his seat, addressing Stella. “Hey Stell, can we get some boxes too? We should start heading back to the school soon.” Xander calls out, ruffling his hair. 

Stella spins around yelling “On it!”, already across the room. They place Juuzou’s tip in a jar with a wide grin, trying not to show off their giddiness. 

Xander goes to stand, turning to Juuzou. “Want us to walk you back? We’re gonna pass by the apartments anyway.”

“Sure.. I don’t mind.. Oh!” Juuzou bashfully asks the group. “Can.. you guys recommend.. Some stores? O-Or.. shop with me later..? I uh..” She looks down, pulling on the shirt she’s wearing. “I need my own clothes..”

Hyori jumps out of her seat, already beaming at the thought of group shopping. “Ouuu! That would be fun! Let’s do it!!” 

“For sure! I would personally love to, I've been meaning to grab a new skirt!” The bunny girl hops out of her seat, readying her sandwich for taking. 

Scooting out from the booths and grabbing her to-go box, Juuzou smiles wider, enjoying her time with these three odd beings. “Thanks, you guys..!” 

“Got yer boxes! Had to grab some packaged ones, sorry ‘bout the wait.” Stella emerges from the kitchen and calls out to the four of them, all standing around their booth. They make their way over, packing their sandwiches into their own respective boxes. “There we go, all set!” Stella places their hands on their hips, smiling with closed eyes.

Hyori gives the middle-aged human a big hug. “Thanks, Babs! I bet it’s delicious!”

“Hope so! Heheh. Y’all have a good day now! I gotta wash some dishes.” They return their daughter’s warm embrace, leaving back to the kitchen with Aozora. 

“Great! Thanks Stell!” Xander calls out, waving. 

Each grabbing their boxes, the group walks together as they make their exit. The bakery door says goodbye with a ‘Ding!” of the bell. Xander holds the door open, letting the three girls pass before him. “Go ahead” He says with a sharp smile. 

“Thank you, love!” Vonni heads outside, Hyori and Juuzou following quietly behind.

The heart-eyed succubus inhales, swinging her tail by her side as she smells fresh air again. An awkward silence falls upon the four while they walk, Hyori quickly breaks it. “Sooo.. what’s your style, Juuzou? You seem like a rocker kinda gal!” She skips along the road, avoiding cracks. 

“My… style?” Juuzou thinks for a moment, entertaining her question. “I guess.. That fits? I-I’m not entirely sure..” 

Hyori walks normally now, tilting her head as she glances at Juuzou, still focusing on the cracks in the road. “Hm? What do you mean? 

Vonni and Xander walk ahead as they banter lovingly with one another. “No you’re cute!” and “No you are!” fading further in the distance while Hyori and Juuzou hang back, trees swaying along with the now faster breeze. Leaves blow into the street, crunching beneath Juuzou’s feet. “Well.. I never got the chance to.. You know.. Experiment, I guess..” Her negative thoughts start to swell again, thinking back on how constraining Uroth was. 

“Oh! Well, when we go shopping, let’s experiment! What do you think??” Hyori shoots Juuzou with a big bright smile, accentuating her puffy round cheeks. 

Seemingly forgetting those pesky thoughts, Juuzou perks up at the idea, smiling bigger than she’s ever been comfortable for. “That.. That would be nice! Thank you, Hyori..” 

The human girl giggles, something Juuzou has begun to like the sound of; having been used to a devastatingly loud quietness. “I’m glad! It’s gonna be so fun, I just know it!” Hyori twirls with delight, gleefully laughing.

This human.. She’s so.. Bubbly! It’s.. kinda refreshing..

“Oi, Zou! We’re here.” Stopped in front of the doors, Xander calls Juuzou’s attention to him as he noms on his already half-eaten sandwich. “Mm, alsho can you check my mail for me? I’m waiting for shum shoes I ordered on Gemazon.” He asks her with a full mouth. 

Juuzou walks up to the front doors of Moonblight Apartments, nodding her head. “Oh, sure.. I don’t mind.” She turns on her heels, giving a small wave. “Guess.. I’ll see you guys later..? U-Um.. this.. was fun.. Thank you.”

“No need to thank us, hon! Xander don't talk with your mouth full!” Vonni smiles at the succubus, then quickly scolds Xander for his bad manners, pointing a finger.

He devours the rest of his sandwich, throwing the biodegradable box away at a nearby gem machine for composting materials. “Shorry” 

“If you wanna look around without us first, I recommend checking out the clothing store across from the bakery!” Hyori returns Juuzou’s wave with a speedy hand. “It has some good stuff!” Her eyes glimmer under the sunlight as her ribbons and heart buns bounce with her bobbing head. 

“Oh! Of course..! Th-Thank you..” Juuzou stammers, bowing slightly. “G-Good luck with your classes!” Flustered, she turns around to head inside. 

The three beings say their goodbyes, continuing to walk along the road back to the school to finish off their day. 

“Alright.. Mail.. I think I remember his code..” Making her way to the big metal box containing various lockers, she swipes at the small blue gem user interface screen on Xander’s mailbox. The gem illuminates with each beep of her tapping the number pad, a small ‘click!’ indicates Juuzou got the code right. “Hmm.. no package.. Just some envelopes..” she mutters to herself in the quiet empty lobby. Sifting through the letters, Juuzou’s eyes widen when she notices a lilac letter addressed to her name. 

Is this..?