“Master, are you okay?” Kira asked with concern, she too had risen to her feet and placed a small soft hand on my back.

“N-no, Kira, I’m not. Something has been stolen from the temple. The necklace of the Buddha. It has always hung around his neck. “I scratched the back of my head. “I just… how could this have happened, when?”

“Master, did you check it recently?” Kira asked.

I thought that over, it was a good question. I hadn’t been in the hall myself since Fenra had gone missing, we had done meditation training together that morning. Could the two incidents be related?”

I began a full search of the hall for clues with Kira tailing me the whole way, no pun intended.

She said little but made a great effort of sniffing and pawing at each corner or wall that I inspected. Had I been less stressed I might have found it cute. She was like a child following me around, wanting to participate but not having much she could do other than mimic my actions. There wasn’t much to see or find anyhow. There were no signs of struggle or breaking and entering. No tools left behind for prying open the door or scaling the statue. There were no footprints on the wooden floor that I could see. In-fact, there was still a layer of dust on the statue itself. It was as if the necklace had up and vanished by itself. I shook my head and slumped to the floor.

“I give up.” I said in exasperation. I wanted a cold beer, I wanted a good night's rest. I was exhausted.

“Master, maybe the bad man who took my sister took the necklace too?” Kira offered.

I looked up at the sexy cat girl who was now standing above me. She had her hands behind her back and her prominent chest, barely contained in the top, was thrust forward. I shook my head.

What was this life?

“Ok Kira, I think it’s time you told me everything you know. Who is this man? How do you know about them?”

Her eyes widened.

“You mean you don’t know? You didn’t feel it? Master… my sister. Didn’t she train your spirit senses?”

I winced at that. Fenra had been trying, but I was much better at combat than I was at the more esoteric aspects of my spirit guardian duties, especially since I’d lost touch with grandpa and great grandpa. I knew that prescience and extra-sensory capabilities were part of my potential powers: the ability to feel changes around me. No doubt this is what Kira was referring to.

“So you felt something was wrong Kira, is that why you came to this world?”

She shook her head.

“No… I mean yes. Kind of. Temple spirits cannot choose our assignments. I was actually sent here… when Fenra was taken. When her link to you was severed. I saw a vision that night, as I was transported here. A man. A bad man. He had a big robe with dark shining eyes and hands that traced red characters in the sky. He took something from here, that is all I know. Then I saw blackness, and I arrived in the woods. I did not know what it meant… I was so scared… I felt lost… I did not know until today what had happened to my sister. I was… so...” She sniffled and I saw her thin body trembling. My anger melted with my heart. I stood and took her in my arms. Her soft body clung to mine.

“Master, I want to rest, can you take me to bed?”

“Yes Kira, whatever you want. You earned it.”

Miku has this girl all wrong. She is a victim here. And I won’t let her or anyone else be a victim.

The man, the robed man. I knew him. Behind the back of the cat girl my hands clenched into fists. This time, I would kill the bastard.

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

***

By the time Hana arrived with dinner, Kira was snoring fitfully in the bed where I’d tucked her in. Hana brought us leftovers. She had, she told me, been going through a western cooking phase and been inspired by a Swedish cooking show. She brought a few plastic tubs with her and began laying them out on my countertop.

While we waited for Miku to arrive we slowly unpacked and began reheating the various foods. When we were done and had laid out dinner the small kitchen table was overflowing with various mouthwatering dishes. There was gravy, two types of meatballs, cranberry sauce, potato salad, smoked salmon, olives and slices of thick black bread. I was already salivating.

Thankfully we were not long in waiting. Miku arrived shortly after we’d set out plates and cutlery. She was in her full officer's uniform and I had not seen her like this in quite some time. She struck a totally different figure than she had this morning in her white dress with the blue button down, black skirt, boots and the cap. She honestly looked quite good this way. Neat. Authoritative. Powerful.

Is this a new fetish? Please no. The list has grown too long

I tried to push the intrusive thoughts from my mind and after greeting Miku I turned to our chef to see if she needed a hand. In contrast to Miku, Hana was dressed casually. She was wearing an apron over a plain white t-shirt and jean shorts, she looked tired and she was not her usual self.

Both girls looked that way honestly. As the two of them took a seat around the table with me I twiddled my thumbs, thinking. This wasn’t how I wanted our lives together to go. I thought it would be idyllic but instead we were just full up with worries. We needed a break, some kind of vacation. But most importantly and first of all: we needed to find Fenra.

Miku coughed and motioned to the bed behind me where Kira lay. “Is your new … um… friend friend still sleeping?”

New friend. She still is treating Kira like the enemy. I tried to ignore it but it stung, by proxy she was insulting me. I wanted to tell her all I’d learned about Kira today but I remembered the tentative truce we had forged. She forgave me, she said she just wanted me to be careful.

“Kira is resting. She explained a bit about what happened to her today. I think we should set aside some food for her but it's important that the three of us talk. What I learned from her was shocking.”

***

As we ate we talked, but mostly it was me, explaining what had happened. The girls just listened. Hana ate voraciously and Miku delicately. There was no doubt the food was delicious but I couldn't enjoy it, I had to get it out, to explain all that was wrong. When I had finished there was, for a while, only the sound of forks and knives on plates. And then… Miku broke the silence.

“And you are sure Ryo? I will ask you this only once more… I do not want us to fight again. I value what we have too much. Are you sure she is telling the truth about all of this?”

I nodded.

“Yes.” I said the words firmly and levelly. Under the table my hands gripped my knees tightly, but above it I remained calm and poised.

“Then okay, I believe her too. But this means we need to consider our next steps. He is powerful Ryo, we may need to reach out beyond the three of us for help. And we need to consider what he wants.”

I heard a fist slam down on the table.

“Wait? We can’t wait!” It was Hana, and I saw her quivering with rage. “Fenra is somewhere in danger, we should leave… tonight.”

Miku shook her head and I could feel her frustration mounting. “I need to reach out, Hana, to my contacts both on the police for a human investigation and my contacts from my parents as spirit hunters. We can’t just act without a plan here! We don’t even know where to start!”

The two girls were glaring at each other. I knew I needed to do something before this escalated, although some selfish part of me was just glad it wasn't me under the microscope at the moment.

MEOW

All three of us turned to see a disheveled Kira rise up from the blankets, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She sniffed the air a few times then her eyes went wide.

“Food! Master, Master!” She bound out the blankets. Her shirt was half on and half off and her skirt was riding up her thighs. She had not a care in the world for how she looked and nearly pounced on the table but stopped short when she saw our gazes. She turned to me.

“M-m-master can I have some!?” I heard her stomach gurgle and saw her practically drooling.

I chuckled then reached over and pulled her shirt down while Hana, from the other side, fixed her skirt. Miku merely sighed from across the table.

“Of course you can Kira, let’s get you a chair beside me,” I said.

Saved by the catgirl.