The next day passed by pretty quick, I got things done pretty damn quick if you ask me. Mopping first thing was a breeze, and I had bento boxes done in a heartbeat. I marked the old ones on sale and when the inventory arrived, I had a big smile on my face while I led the big, hulking delivery guys to the back room where stuff was to be stored.

It felt good to see a full inventory, just bunches of boxes of everything from basic convenience store food to drinks to the little everyday items that people depended on.

The hasty sewing kit, the detergent, the little snacks that would keep them going… Shinjai did not have a lot of stuff, but it did have a lot of personality, and a surprising amount of natural beauty. Though to be honest, I’d had so much ‘natural beauty’ on the job, I reveled in my isolated NEET existence too much to care about parks and the outside.

With all that done, I settled into a very quiet day. Nothing happened of note, I borrowed a magazine from the rack and just sat behind my register reading it while people came and went. A few people wrote down notices of what they were taking, and I discounted a couple of items, which felt surprisingly good to do, if I’m being honest about it.

The next thing I knew, Jin was walking in and saying, “Thanks again, Kayobi, but you can go.”

He was a little later than usual, but I could only assume he’d gone to visit Suki first.

“How’s your mother?” I asked.

He scratched his head, “She looks bad… real bad.” He said, “But… she says an angel promised her she’d be alright, so her spirits are up. Funny thing though, she had a blanket there the hospital staff on that floor swears they didn’t give her, and a couple of people swear up and down they saw an angel in her room. Weird stuff.” He said with a shake of his head, “I hope she’s right, but I’m not holding out much hope.” He came over to me and to my surprise, reached out and gave me a hug.

“Thank you, thank you really, I mean it… if it weren’t for you handling all this, I’d have had to quit school or we’d have had to sell the place or… you really did save my life… thank the spirits you’re our neighbor.” He said with a smile on his face.

I’d never really hugged anyone before, so I wasn’t sure how to properly do it, but I did my best, putting my arms around his back and giving him a little squeeze.

“It’s fine. Everything will be fine.” I said, it was all I could really think to say right then. I won’t deny I had to suppress a laugh about the angel story, but I was just glad Jin was holding up. I could hardly tell him that I’m an alien with access to technology that would look like magic from his perspective.

So an angel would do.

I made my departure as fast as I could after that and returned to my apartment. I heard the television going inside and, true to my expectation, I found Celian Norn lying on the couch with a plate full of cookies. “This is really good.” She said and gestured toward the screen. A girl on screen was inviting someone to try dying, and then haunting music began to play. She was then on a lake, taking them in a slow boat over the water, carrying them to Hell as they wept helplessly for their inescapable fate.

“Oh, yeah that’s a good one.” I said as the credits rolled. “I love the drama and horror genres when they’re well put together. Good to see you, by the way.” I said and sat down. Celia didn’t get up, but what she did do was shrink herself down to half her previous size so that she took up only a quarter of the couch instead of almost all of it.

“Chibi-sized Celia is pretty damn cute.” I quipped and flopped down, I put my feet up and reached for a bag of chips to set them on my lap.

“Thanks… I think. Are children called ‘chibis’ on this planet?” She asked.

“No, not usually, but… you just look chibi to me.” I said and chuckled a little.

“What’s a chibi?” Celia asked.

“Toss me that remote and I’ll show you.” I said and held out one hand.

Celia did as I asked, and I began flipping through shows, “This one is about people from four different shows all getting trapped in the same world, I was in mid episode for this one…” I started it up again.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

“...Go on, soldier, strike me with that whip because I know you love to…”

The poor guy on screen was in a panic of denial, blushing red, full of shame, and onlookers watched him with disgust and disbelief while the one to pull him into that position egged him on.

“Basically the art looks like that. They’re cartoon versions of cartoon versions with disproportionate bodies. Playing up the ‘cutesy’ look for comic effect.” I explained.

“Hmm… that’s more like… this.” Celia said as she looked at herself and then ‘readjusted’ her proportions.

She now had large round eyes and a rounder head, shorter limbs, and stubby fingers.

“Alright, that’s fair, and damn you’re cute that way.” I acknowledged with a teasing little smile.

“Thanks… I think.” She said and popped a cookie into her mouth.

“I got the thing for you, by the way,” she pointed over past the back of her head toward the table, “it’s on the table there. When are you going to use it?” She asked.

“Well, as far as you know, I’m not, but if I were going to use it, I would do it when it’s late, after a few hours of snacking.” I suggested, and just then there was a knock on the door.

Celia needed no prompting, she reverted to more ‘normal’ proportions, and I shouted, “Come in, it’s unlocked!”

The door opened and Asahi was there, his expression blank for the most part, but his eyes went to Celia a moment later and I caught a hint of curiosity.

“My niece is staying with me for a little while.” I said, “Her name is Celia, but you can just call her…” A wicked impulse came over me, “Ce-cekins.” I bestowed upon my companion her new nickname, and for a moment she all but glared at me.

It was her own fault, really, for reverting to a child size instead of growing back into her adult disguise, you cannot give a trickster like me the chance to do something of this sort and not expect me to take it. Besides, I am older than her anyway.

“Right ah… Ce-cekins…” Asahi gave a tentative, nervous wave toward her, “nice to meet you, I’m Asahi.”

I reached into my wallet and took out some cash I’d drawn out of the machine at the store. “So, there’s no cleaning to be done right now,” I said hastily, “but if you could pick up some stuff for us, the rest of the money is yours. Pick up two pizzas, six bags of chips, and four containers of cookies… also I’m about out of paper plates, so get a big pack of those.”

He’d be left with about ten thousand yen after making that supply run, two or three days work for a kid his age, and all it would cost him was about an hour.

Alright, I was overpaying him, but so what? I could do that.

He seemed to have run the numbers in his head already, then opened his mouth to speak, “Hurry up, we’re hungry and running low on snacks and I have no dinner. You don’t want poor little Ce-Cekins to have nothing but cookies for dinner, do you?” She gave him a longing blinking stare, and when I closed the door, there was no way for him to protest.

“Should I have stayed as a chibi?” Celia asked.

I snorted. “Just… pick something to watch.” I said, and we settled in for a few hours of binge watching.

We went on to watch a wolfgirl flirt with a traveling merchant in her most imperious manner for the next two hours after Asahi returned and went home clutching the wadded up bills in his hand like they were sacred relics that would disappear if he relaxed his grip even for a moment.

He was all but sobbing over them.

“How come you’re making him work for it, if you want to give him money, just give him money, right?” Celia asked when I finished off a slice of pepperoni pizza.

I was licking my fingers clean while thinking of how to answer her, and came up with the best explanation I could.

“It’d be like if I offered to do your jobs for you if you’re struggling. It’s one thing to help, it’s another thing to say you might as well not even be there.” I wasn’t sure about using that as an example, Celia wasn’t the very best on our team, but she was one of the hardest workers.

I felt kind of guilty using her own sense of insecurity this way, but it was the only thing I could say that I thought might penetrate her stubborn way of thinking.

“I… s’pose.” She mumbled, but her little cheeks turned a soft shade of rose.

“It’s like that. This way he saves face, he’s not a pathetic beggar. He’s doing a job. People hate to be burdens, it’s a big part of their ego, feeling like they matter, like they’re an asset somehow.” I explained, “It’s one reason why I’m glad I’m not actually human.” I shook my head, “The NEET way is the best way!” I proclaimed from on my back on the couch, thrusting one hand skyward with the force of my declaration.

“Uh huh. But weren’t you going to go out about now?” She asked, and I checked my phone, it was around midnight now, late enough.

“I suppose I should. There’s no reason to keep her waiting any longer.” I said and stood up, stretched, then went to the table and snatched up the little vial of purple liquid.

“See you in an hour-ish.” I said, and Celia waved.

“See you then!” She said, and closed her eyes so I could walk past with it and her being able to claim she never saw a thing.