When Stella asked the young boy if he wants to have something sweet to eat together, there was a small yet awkward silence between the two of them.

  The only thing that can be heard was the footsteps and murmurs of the people passing by them and are talking to themselves.

  “Who in the Netherworld asks a stranger to eat something sweet with them?! I definitely messed this up!” Stella was panicking on the inside.

  Although she was panicking on the inside of her mind, she still managed to barely contain her calm image somehow.

  “Deep breaths, Stella…. Deep breaths… Just wait for them to respond and try to steer the wheel from there.”

  The young Foxian girl waited patiently for the young boy to respond while keeping eye contact with him. The boy was nervous around her since they don’t know each other and it would seem that the pressure to answer is getting to him.

  “I… I’m…”

  The boy shook his head before he took a deep breath and exhaled it deeply.

  “S-Sure… I’d love to. I… I don’t have a lot of things to do today anyways… So I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have something sweet to eat.”

  Stella felt relieved when the young boy responded with an agreement and she let out a small smile before nodding her head.

  “Alright then! Thanks for accepting my offer! I promise you, you won’t be disappointed with hanging out with me! Come with me, I’ll lead you to a stall where they sell a lot delicious sweets!”

  The young boy nodded his head and followed right behind Stella as they two walked forward. The foxian girl took a single glance behind her to see if her “brother” was still talking to the young silver white-haired maiden.

  And when she did, the two were still talking to each other all alone before the young maiden seemed to suggest something and left the stall with Steely following right behind her.

  “It seems like both me and bro are going to be a bit busy before we can head home together.” Stella mused.

  “Well, no matter. I’ve already got myself into this situation, so I might as well try and make the most of it. I did promise this boy that I’d treat him to something sweet. I won’t break that promise!”

  Stella turned to look at the young boy behind her before she slowly asked a question.

  “Hey, do you mind if I ask what your name is?”

  “I’m… I’m Darsh. Darsh Garuda of the Garuda Clan.” The young boy answered.

  “From the Garuda Clan? If I remember correctly, it was said in the books that the Garuda Clan is a powerful clan that helps with the Tengoku Clan. You’re from the same clan as them?”

  Stella was really curious, so she asked immediately. What she was expecting, however, was the reaction from the young boy—who now had his arms slumped and a discouraged look on his face.

  “I don’t look the part, do I?” Darsh asked.

  “I admit that as a child of the Garuda Clan, I am supposed to have a mighty courage and a brave personality in order to show my clan’s prowess. But it’s just that…”

  Darsh trailed away for a bit before he let out a small sigh and shook his head.

  “I was never a fan of flaunting our strength so carelessly. The rest of the people from my clan are all brave and have loud voices that can terrify even the greatest of beasts.”

  “But I was just never a fan of that. I always preferred to stay quiet and be humble. Being prideful with our great strength and braveness can become a double-edged sword for us. That’s what I think at least.”

  Stella hummed at that information, processing it in her mind for a while before speaking.

  “You seem to be having a tough time in your clan, huh? I can’t really relate to that since my family treats both me, my Onee-chan, and my bro all equally—despite a few hints of favoritism here and there, but they still treat us siblings all equally.”

  “Oh! My name is Stella Akane, by the way. Sorry for not introducing myself earlier, I hope you didn’t mind.” She apologized with a nervous smile.

  “It’s alright, Stella. I don’t mind at all.” Darsh responded.

  “So… Why were you running earlier? Did something happen between you and your family?” Stella asked with a hand in her pocket.

  Darsh became silent when that question was asked. It was clear that he didn’t wanted to talk about it and that if it was forced out of him, he’d become uncomfortable sharing this information.

  So when Stella noticed this, she quickly tried to defuse the situation.

  “Y-You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, Darsh!” She waved her hands in front of her.

  “If this topic is way too sensitive for you to share and talk about to other people, I won’t pry into it any further! I may be a curious person at times, but I know when lines aren’t meant to be crossed.”

  “T-Thank you, Stella…” Darsh let out a sigh of relief.

  “I hope that I didn’t offended you because I didn’t answer your question. It’s just that… It’s really a sensitive and personal topic between me and my parents. So I don’t really want to talk about it.”

  “H-Hey! I already told you that you don’t have to share it to me if you don’t want to! It’s fine, really! I won’t pry if this topic is really as personal and as sensitive as you describe it to be!” Stella responded.

  After a while, Stella sighed and shook her head before lightly tapping her cheeks with the palms of her hands and huffed.

  “Anyways, back to the topic at hand! Darsh, what do you want to eat? There are a lot of sweet stalls open during the Nine Fox, Nine Tails Festival, so there are a lot of options to choose from. Any specific ones that you want to eat first?”

  “I’ll go for the dango stall please.” Darsh responded.

  “I heard from the locals here when I was running around that the dango and mochi of the Akane Clan are one of the best and sweetest delicacies ever, being second only to the clan’s famous ramen.”

  Stella grinned from ear to ear before she grabbed the young boy’s arm and dragged him towards one of the dango stalls open in the Festivity District.

  “Then follow me, Darsh! I’ll take you to the place where the best dangos and mochis of the Akane are located! So hold on tight on my arm and try to keep up!”

  With Steely…

  “I appreciate you taking a bit of your time to have a talk with me.” Tenshi nodded her head in appreciation.

  “Shiroi told me about your condition—no, “predicament” would be a better suited word for your situation, right? It must be hard for you, considering that you’re blessed with immense beauty yet it bothers you.”

  “So my little Shiroi has told you that much about my situation, huh? You’d be correct with those words, Steely. My situation right now is… something that I never really asked for.”

  Tenshi let out a small yet tired sigh out of her mouth as she kept walking side by side with Steely with her head down.

  “I know that this may be insensitive of me to ask: but do you really hate the way you were born?” Steely asked

  “You’re blessed with immense beauty, you could get everything you want with your looks, or perhaps even attract the person that you love the most. Is it really that bad of a situation that your blessing seems to look like a curse in a hidden disguise?” He added.

  “I appreciate your worry for me, Steely. But you don’t know what I’m going through right now, so you wouldn’t understand.” Tenshi answered with clenched fists.

  “I know my little Shiroi has told you a bit of my situation but all the things that she told you are probably only the surface of it. I told my dear little sister to not share most about my situation, so I know she only told you the minimum of it.”

  Steely became silent, processing and pondering about the words that Tenshi have told him right now. It was clear that he shouldn’t pry into this situation anymore since this topic is an extremely sensitive one. So of course, he stopped prying into it anymore.

  “I see… Then I won’t try to force you to say anything anymore if that’s what you want.” Steely replied casually with a wave of his right hand.

  “Thank you… For understanding my situation, Steely…” Tenshi’s face showed a small smile as she thanked the young, yet-to-be Foxian, boy.

  The young Akane Noble himself nodded his head in acknowledgement.

  As the two kept walking to a place that Tenshi had suggested that they should go to, Steely wondered where she was taking him and couldn’t himself to ask her.

  “Where are we going anyways?” He began before continuing.

  “You said that you want to take me somewhere, a place that you say is your current “safe haven” during your stay here in the Akane Clan.”

  “However, I’m finding it hard to believe that the only reason why you want me to go there with you is to merely have a small chat with each other. So is there a hidden motive behind your actions or is it really just that?”

  “You’re getting anxious because I haven’t been clear on the reason why I want you to go to “that place” with me, is that what you’re trying to tell me?” Tenshi asked and Steely nodded his head.

  “It’s my fault for not being clearer on my reasons, so I humbly apologize. But please understand that I want it to be kept a secret for now until we do manage to get there.” She informed.

  “Then why the tight secrecy? Is it really necessary for it to be a complete secret even though we’re going to go there anyways? Why not just say it to me now?”

  Despite Steely asking those questions, Tenshi merely let out a small smile on her face before she leaned forward a bit and said in a slightly teasing tone.

  “It’s because I want this to be special just for the two of us.”

  Before Steely could say anything, the silver white-haired girl interfered immediately.

  “Now don’t get the wrong idea here, Steely. This isn’t a “love confession” type of special since we aren’t that close just yet. It’s more of a… “Thank you for being my friend” type of special.” She informed.

  “I want to have a place where I can be remembered by you as a friend since there are only really two other people like you who aren’t attracted to me in THAT way. So I’ve scouted around most of the beautiful places of the Akane Clan to find a perfect place for us.”

  “Did you do this to the other two people before me as well?” Steely asked with a raised brow.

  Tenshi giggled before she placed her hands behind her back.

  “Yup! And those places continued to become a place where we would find each other whenever I visit them. So I want this to be like that as well. Again, forgive me for being so secretive about this.”

  She clasped her hands together and had an apologetic look on her face which left Steely to shake his own head and place a hand inside the pocket of his hakama-style pants.

  “Fine… I won’t ask where this place is going to be. If this is a place where you want to go back to remember when our friendship started, then I guess it won’t hurt to keep it a secret until we get there.”

  “Thanks for understanding, Steely. I really appreciate you for being patient with me about this.” Tenshi thanked him in a solemn tone.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Not like I really have much of a choice. But as your new friend, I’ll try to keep it in check.” Steely replied calmly.

  “And for that, I am more than grateful!” Tenshi replied back.

  Back with Stella…

  After a few minutes of walking around through the Festivity District, both Stella and Darsh managed to get three pieces of dango each and are now eating them slowly to savor their desserts’ taste.

  The taste of sweetly caramel glazed dango wasn’t new to Stella since she usually gets one or two from time to time whenever both she and Steely ever decide to play outside or if there are any special occasions.

  But for Darsh however, it was a different story.

  “So this is what dango tastes like! It’s so sweet and the caramel glaze adds a bit of stickiness to it!” Darsh exclaimed ecstatically.

  The young boy seemed to be having the best dessert in all of his life and if the drooling look on his face wasn’t much proof of that, then his face stained with caramel glaze would be another proof.

  Stella couldn’t help but giggle at the sight of the young boy’s reaction, which she tried to suppress when she was caught by the boy but she just couldn’t help herself.

  “W-What’s so funny, huh?!” Darsh shouted despite stuttering.

  “S-Sorry. It’s just that your reaction was so funny that I couldn’t help it! You really enjoy eating that dango, don’t you? Remember to eat the mochi that we bought earlier too. And make sure to eat slowly, your face is covered with caramel glaze.”

  Stella giggled once more with a small cheeky grin on her face when she pointed the caramel stain on Darsh’s face.

  The young boy just pouted before wiping the stain off his face with a tissue paper that he got from the time he ordered the dango that was on his hand.

  “I can’t help it, alright? It’s my first time ever eating something as good as this that I couldn’t help myself but to exclaim in joy.” Darsh informed.

  “Is it so wrong that I’m enjoying it a bit TOO much?” He asked as he took another bite.

  “Nothing’s wrong with it, I’m just giggling because I haven’t seen someone react like THAT when they have their first dango before. I’m sorry if you find that offensive.”

  Although Stella apologized, the grin on her face still showed that she was only a slight bit apologetic as she was still trying to suppress any more of her own giggles coming out.

  “You’re still trying to laugh at me.” Darsh observed as he narrowed his eyes.

  Stella let out another small giggle before she finally stopped.

  “Sorry, sorry. I’ll stop now. Well I’m glad that you enjoyed the dango though. If you enjoyed it that much, I can only imagine how much you’ll enjoy the mochi that we bought. I’ll buy you a bowl of ramen next time from a famous ramen chef of our clan!”

  Stella grinned before doing a thumbs-up with her right hand. The mention of buying ramen made Darsh’s eyes shine with a bit of sparkle before he cleared his throat and tried to act professional.

  “W-Well, I guess I’ll have to take you up on that offer then. Although I’m sure when we’ll meet again, I’ll hold you to it.” He replied.

  Stella’s grin lowered into a toothy grin before she patted Darsh’s back with a slight bit of force that made him arch forward.

  “You can count on me, Darsh! I won’t forget about this, I promise you that!”

  Stella’s joyful personality was a bit infectious to those around her as they would instantly feel at ease whenever they were in close vicinity with her which is a different matter compared to Steely’s.

  The reason being was because the adopted son of the Akane Nobility looked a bit more indifferent and cold on the outside that those who aren’t close to him or try to get close can become frightened to even approach him.

  The only way for a person to get close to Steely and become friends with him would be when he’s showing his true emotions and personality when he’s either doing something he likes or is together with the people he cares about.

  So despite the fact that the two of them are known as “The Akane Twins”, the two of them are still quite different from one another. That, however, doesn’t remove that fact that the two of them have grown close to each other and are nearly inseparable.

  “Thanks again for inviting me to eat dangos and mochis, Stella.” Darsh took the last bite of his second dango.

  “I really enjoyed our time together so far. It’s not often that I get to enjoy something as peaceful as this considering my clan’s way of doing things is a lot different.”

  “Hey, it’s not a problem at all. In fact, I’m really enjoying our time right now! So I’m really grateful that you decided to join me!” Stella replied.

  “Why did you decided to invite me anyways?” Darsh asked with a cocked head.

  “Well… Let’s just say that my bro seems to be busy with something and when I saw you again, I just couldn’t miss the chance to get to know you.” The young Foxian girl answered with a nervous giggle.

  “You’re quite sociable, I’ll give you that. No one usually wants to get to know someone they haven’t even seen in their whole life.”

  Despite Darsh’s harsh comment towards Stella, the Foxian Noblewoman just giggled it off with a huff of her chest and a proud smile on her face.

  “I’ll take that as a compliment towards my personality, thank you very much!” Stella replied proudly.

  “That wasn’t much of a compliment though—.”

  “Darsh! There you are!”

  When a man’s voice called out to Darsh, the young boy suddenly stiffened and his face grew frightful and the shaking of his hands were very noticeable by Stella.

  “Darsh… Are you okay?” Stella asked in a worried tone.

  “Stella… Please leave me…” Darsh ordered in a frightened and stuttering voice.

  “What do you mean? If there’s something wrong, you can tell me.”

  “No! T-This is something personal. S-So please—.”

  “Hey, Darsh! Can you hear me! Come now, my boy!” The man called out to him once more.

  Darsh immediately jumped in place and suddenly spread his black feathered wings at everyone around them. This action made Darsh become look even more vulnerable than before and his shaking intensified.

  “Darsh…”

  Although Stella was surprised by the sudden revelation that Darsh wasn’t a normal human boy, she still tried to keep a solemn and calm tone towards the boy when she called to him.

  “P-Please, Stella… J-Just leave for now…” Darsh requested once again.

  “I… I really enjoyed our time together… I-I just wished that we could spend it more together… I’m sorry.”

  “No, Darsh… I’m the one that should be sorry…” Stella said before she gave Darsh a small hug.

  “Let’s meet each other whenever we get the chance. I’ll see you again when I see you.”

  Stella then ran away to the opposite direction where Darsh was facing and never looked back towards the boy. All that the young foxian maiden can do now is hope that the young raven boy can handle the situation himself and that he returns safely.

  Back with Steely…

  After walking for a long while, both Steely and Tenshi have reached a flower field that was hidden in one of the places that was overgrown by a lot of trees. And from the looks of it, this place seems to be still inside the clan’s walls.

  “A place like this was hidden behind by all the grown trees…? No wonder no one has ever found this place before…”

  Steely was astonished by the sight of the massive flower field. It was like a small yet beautiful garden with all of the blooming flowers and the fragrance emitted in the air made it even more relaxing.

  “I managed to find this hidden garden when I was scouting the popular places around the Akane Clan.” Tenshi informed as she walked through the flowers.

  “See all these flowers here? All of them are of different colors varying from red, blue, violet, yellow, white, and pink. Yet from the garden’s location itself, it would seem that no one has ever came here before. Meaning—.”

  “The flowers bloomed by themselves thanks to the rain and sunlight.” Steely finished the angelic maiden’s sentence.

  “Unbelievable…” He muttered as he walked through the flowers.

  “As unbelievable as it is, it’s the truth. The flowers here bloomed by themselves thanks to the water from the rain and the light from the sun. I was astonished myself when I learned of this.” Tenshi admitted.

  The winds suddenly gave the two of them a gentle breeze which made the flowers sway from left to the right in turn as well as some of the leaves on the trees started to fall and float on the wind’s direction.

  Steely closed his right eye and let the wind blow through his hair but he still kept a close eye on Tenshi.

  The way that her silver white hair swayed with the wind along with the flowers right beneath her… It was a beautiful sight indeed. The different colors of the flowers, the pure look on her face, and along with the way her hair flows with the wind…

  “If anyone else were to be here other than me, I’m pretty sure that they would’ve already fainted at the sight of Tenshi’s beauty…”

  Steely couldn’t help but be impressed by how she really compliments the scenery that they are in right now. She was truly like an angel at this moment.

  “How can a person with beauty like hers suffer so much from her own appearance?” He couldn’t help but pity her.

  When Tenshi noticed his gaze of pity towards her, she let out a gentle smile and clasped both of her hand together tightly.

  “There is no need for you to pity me oh so much, Steely. I have come to terms with who I am and what I was born with already.” She said as she spread her arms.

  “Although my beauty does seem suffering for me, it is one that I have accepted as part of who I am. Whether or not I’ll suffer even more in the future, I’ll only have to find that out for myself. And please…”

  She walked closer to him and her pure smile gave Steely’s heart a small pound.

  “Do not worry about me anymore, for I too have friends whom I can rely on.”

  When the winds stopped blowing, it was then that Tenshi suddenly revealed her white angelic wings for Steely to see. The sudden revelation left Steely’s eyes go wide as Tenshi spoke once more.

  “I believe that it is time for us to part ways for now, my friend.” Tenshi said in a solemn tone as she flapped her wings.

  “I truly appreciated the small talks and time that we spent together, no matter how small there are. I only hope that one day, we’ll see each other once again in a more peaceful occasion.”

  When Tenshi flapped her wings once more, huge gusts of winds occurred which made Steely close his eyes and as the winds died out, he opened his eyes once more to see that Tenshi was no longer there.

  All that remained were the broken flower petals that were all scattered on the ground because of the winds and a small circle on the grass on where Tenshi was once standing on. This meeting became one of Steely’s core memories of her.