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[X] Hold her in a tight embrace.
[X] Custom

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Suddenly, the door swings open. A familiar nekomata girl comes inside carrying a tray full of tea and snacks. She takes a worried glance at Keine and Komachi before looking at Vincent. The girl smiles brightly when she sees that he is alright.

"I brought snacks!" cries Chen. "Let's eat them together, big brother!"

Vincent blinks stupidly for almost ten seconds as he stares back at her. Again and again, a single thought repeats in his mind. He can see and feel no one else as he watches this girl cock her head curiously at his blank expression. That single thought occupies his whole existence, becoming more real than anything else. Before he realizes it, his body has already gotten up from the bed and is walking over to Chen.

The girl carefully puts the tray down on a nearby table before turning back to him. She gasps audibly in surprise when she notices that he is only a few steps away. Her face forms a small frown, as if puzzled. Then, before she can speak or react, he grabs on to the girl. Vincent holds her in a tight embrace.

Forget about surprising her. Forget about doing this in front of the others. Forget about causing misunderstandings. There is only one thought in his mind as he hugs the surprised girl.

She is still alive.

"I'm just... so glad..." he whispers.

For the next few moments, Chen simply stares at him in shock. She seems to be thinking about whether she should do something to get away. Then, to his surprise (and to everyone else's as well), she slowly closes her eyes and returns his embrace. The two of them stay together like for several minutes.

...

A little bit later, after some tea and snacks, they all went down to the living room. Chen immediately sat herself on his lap. Of course, that wasn't completely appropriate, so he gently lifted her up and seated her beside him. Chen opened her mouth to argue, but after he started brushing her hair, she just giggled and started leaning on him with her eyes closed. Komachi and Keine took seats opposite the odd pair. He immediately explained the dream he just had to everyone.

"Sorry about earlier," says Vincent sheepishly. "That must have been only a bad dream. None of it really happened, since Chen is still here. Thank goodness."

"So that's it," says Komachi. "I was wondering if you were turning into some kind of pervert. But I guess I was wrong about that. You aren't like a bad person at all - just a little messed up in the head. Right, Keine?"

The teacher looks up at him, her expression serious. She takes a few moments to contemplate before speaking.

"Not all of it," she whispers.

"What do you mean?" asks the shinigami.

"Not all of it was a dream," says Keine. "That much I am sure of. What you described partially matches what I saw when I examined your history."

"W-wait!" cries Komachi. "Does that mean that he really -"

"I don't know," admits the teacher. "But I have a small theory on it, if you would hear it."

"Please tell us," says Vincent.

"This is just a guess, mind you," says Keine. "But I think that the gaps of your memory are only created recently. The human brain doesn't like having these gaps, so it often tries to complete the picture by filling them up with anything that can 'fit'. Since Chen is a little sister figure to you, she took the place of your partner in the dream. Youmu might have similarly replaced your superior in the dream before that."

"Hmm, that sort of makes sense," says Komachi. "But what about you? He said that he never met you before."

"I'm not exactly sure," says the teacher. "When you think about my own appearance in his dreams, then it makes even less sense. We haven't met before, and he hasn't seen me transform."

"This is getting confusing," says Vincent.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't much help," says the teacher. "Maybe you can find the answers someplace else."

"Thank you very much, Ms. Keine," he replies. "I don't really understand any of it yet, but I think that you gave us some important clues."

"Anytime," replies Keine. "It's my duty to watch over humans, after all."

...

"Hey Chen," says Vincent. "Can you let go of me a little?"

"Eh? But why?" she whines.

As they walk by, several of the townsfolk cast second glances at them. To his right, he can see a couple of middle-aged women whispering among themselves. To his left, an old man is frowning in disapproval at him. He can't really blame them. Ever since they left Keine's place, Chen started clinging closely to him (those tails are even brushing on a sensitive place). Perhaps a little bit too close.

"I'd like to avoid attracting unnecessary attention," he says.

He gently parts Chen's hands, but she just looks up at him sadly.

"W-well, I guess I can hold your hand, at least," mutters Vincent.

At those words, the girl immediately takes hold of his left hand and starts walking cheerfully. Komachi walks a little bit to his right, smiling at their antics.

"She's become really close to you now," the shinigami says. "If Ran sees you two, she might get jealous~"

"Who's Ran?" says Vincent.

"She's my master," cries Chen. "She takes care of me and teaches me all sorts of things. I really like her a lot, but she's been very busy lately."

"Ah, I see," he replies.

The three of them soon find themselves at the center of the village.

"So, where should we go next?" says Komachi.

Vincent pauses. Youmu and Yuyuko might be worried about him, so they should probably head back. On the other hand, this is the first time he visited the Human Village. Maybe he can find something interesting here. Chen or Komachi might know other places to visit, as well.

[ ] Head back to Hakugyokurou.
[ ] Take a walk around the Human Village.
[ ] Ask Komachi where she wants to go.
[ ] Ask Chen where she wants to go.
[ ] Wander around aimlessly.
[ ] Custom