FEVERDANCE

“Katakuri,” Nene said quietly, “Why did my assistant come to you?” The tall man twitched, smiling at her, “I’m not allowed to say,” “Ka.ta.ku.ri.” She stared up at him with a frown, “What. Did. He. See.” “Even if I knew, I wouldn’t tell you. You know this. I don’t look into the dreams. I just help them find the information they need.” “You know what he wanted, tell me that much,” “I can’t,” He looked down at her, his body shifting uncomfortably at the sight of her knife, “I won’t. It’s not my place, ask the kid.” She huffed, “I—“ “Honorable No. Seven, please understand my position. I can’t just go around telling people’s business.” “You realize how contradicting that is, right? Your whole thing is showing people things they shouldn’t see.” “It’s part of my rumor, I can’t change that,” “That still doesn’t change the fact that you can and will tell me why he came to you.” He shook his head, looking away from her, “I’m not going to say. You should really respect the kid’s privacy,” Nene let out a sharp scoff, “Right, right, cause he didn’t want to snoop into other people’s lives,” “He’s a good kid.” Katakuri scratched at the back of his head, “I think you should try trusting him, Honorable No. Seven,” “I do,”  “Clearly not,” He flinched away from the glare she shot him, “Look— you don’t trust him enough to go to him and ask what he saw or what he wanted to know. And you’re so sure he went behind your back to see something about you,” “I didn’t say that,” Nene stepped back, surprised by his accusation. “You don’t need to. You threatened me to tell you what he wanted. That’s enough to show that you don’t trust him.” She shrugged, “You don’t know him like I do. He’s…” Nene knows Hanako-kun would snoop behind her back and find some way to mess up the world she made for him.  Blinking, Nene tries to find the words, trying to find a way to explain her suspicions without suggesting anything bad about Amane, “… He’s… Amane. He’s always curious and loves learning about everything, you know? And since… Since we…” We’re friends. That’s all she has to say… but the statement itself felt strange. She had gone a long time with no friends. Her fellow mysteries don’t know this part of her. They only know the mask and character she portrayed to get this far. They don’t know the Nene that was alive. They don’t know the girl who held her heart on her sleeve. “We’re friends.” She can barely scrape it out of her mouth. It felt wrong. She felt so much more than just platonic. This feeling for him ran much deeper than the surface. It was…  A small chuckle left the other male, “I’m glad he’s your friend. I just think you should have some more faith in him,” Nene sighed, looking down to the floor, “I know I should. I… I’m trying, I really am, Katakuri.” He walked towards her, placing a hand on her head, “It’s okay. I know you haven’t had the best life, just… As long as you’re trying…” A long sigh left him, “I dunno, kid, I worry for you,” “Yeah, yeah…” Nene pushed his hand away, tugging on her hat, “You worry too much,” “Well, someone’s gotta, either me or Tsuchigomori, and I know you don’t like him nagging,”  She rolled her eyes, turning away from him, “I’ve got things to do. See you around,” Katakuri shook his head with a laugh, “Alright, Honorable No. Seven,”