Bound Together by Corinn Heathers Page B

eight.”
    “My former Ma—the Relic's previous wielder only traveled here two years ago. Until then, we were assigned to temporary mission areas in cooperation with servant Houses. Before I came here, I was in Brazil at such a house on a long-term assignment.”
    I felt a swelling in my chest at her words. She intentionally corrected herself to avoid referring to the previous wielder of the Relic as her Master. I knew it was something to be happy about, but just how happy I felt was a little worrisome. My mind threatened to start digging up Thought Three, but I managed to beat it back and keep my attention focused on my immediate surroundings.
    “Let's go to the park,” I suggested, trying vainly not to think about the way Misaki's joyful smile sent a pleasant shiver through me. “It's just across the plaza, so we won't even need to go get the car out of the parking deck.”
    “Okay.”
    The two of us walked for a few minutes in companionable silence, which was pretty unfortunate, because this left me more or less alone with my thoughts. I filled my head with ideas on what to make for dinner rather than that other thing, but it was becoming increasingly difficult.
    Conversation, I told myself. Make some.
    “W-what would you like to eat tonight?”
    Either Misaki didn't notice the tremor in my voice or she chose to ignore it. She placed a slender finger against her chin as she considered various dishes. I'd already resolved to handle tonight's meal myself. The last thing I wanted her to do was to start slipping back into the servant mentality.
    At least it was easier to change mindsets for an immortal spirit; a human subjected to the same shit Misaki had gone through would have needed years and years of professional counseling to even approach something resembling stable. Obviously her mind was built to be as resilient as possible.
    “Usually I ate rice, tofu and steamed vegetables with the maidservants.” Misaki glanced at me and her brow furrowed. “What sort of meals are you used to eating?”
    “Well, I've been sort of lazy when it comes to cooking, but I'm not half bad,” I told her as we walked through the decorative wrought-iron arch that led into the small park. The concrete sidewalk gave way to a narrow inlaid-brick path that winded through small rolling hills covered in grass that was a little faded in color.
    I had a thought: why not introduce her to my favorite meal? “Well, we could just order a pizza and some good beer.”
    Misaki's eyes lit up at the suggestion. “Ah! Pizza! I've heard of it, but I've never actually tried it myself. I've never tried beer, either. I was only permitted to drink water and occasionally sake during ritual meals.” She made a face. “I didn't like the sake . It was very pungent.”
    I laughed. “I'm not much of a hard liquor person, either. Maybe an occasional vodka cocktail, but nothing straight. Beer is my poison of choice.” I reached into my pocket and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it and blowing a plume of smoke up into the air. Cold as it was, the smoke appeared to billow out and multiply as the water vapor from my exhalation condensed into a white fog.
    I felt Misaki's hand brush against mine. Her fingers were slender, soft and felt delicate but strong. The tingling numbness of the cold started to fade as she pushed gentle warmth through her hand and into mine. Recalling exactly how proficient she'd been with throwing fire all around, it wasn't a surprise to me that she could carefully modulate her power for the mundane task of warming my hand.
    And, not incidentally, warming my cheeks. I hoped the blustery weather would mask the blush that was spreading rapidly. Misaki either didn't notice those kind of cues—that would be understandable, considering her circumstances—or chose not to comment on them for my sake.
    “Pizza is pretty customizable,” I continued, babbling on just to keep my brain from going into places I wasn't ready to go. “You can get