One simple sentence was enough to make me think more of her. To reexamine her more closely. Of course I had been suspicious of her, wondered if she was a demon hunter at first but that was gradually shown to not be true. But that single question had forced me to reconsider most of what I had thought about her. Everyone I had met in school assumed I had a lot of friends because of my popularity. But without even trying she could see through that.

The fragrant, earthy smell of coffee permeated the air, the maker bubbling away as it funneled into the pot.  The scent would likely be enough to rouse Midori shortly, so I stepped onto the patio to tend to my plants. The pleasant smell of lavender and rosemary had steeped into the air and it brought an even deeper sense of calm. Midori had begged me to grow some of our own spices on the patio and the lavender was a specific request from her.

When I finished and went back inside the apartment, my partner was posted in front of the coffee pot, pouring out a fresh mug. Her eyes were still bleary with sleep, movements sluggish as she struggled to pull herself from the grips of lethargy. I couldn’t help but smile, seeing her standing there hazy with sleep, clad in a matching set of fox pajamas. I quietly approached her, settling my arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple.

“Morning Kurama…” she murmured, cradling the hot coffee in her hands closely.

I hummed with soft pleasure when Midori gently leaned into my touch. The sight of her so content in my embrace made me linger longer than I had planned. But she always had a habit of throwing off my plans. She proved that when she had managed to make it to the Dark Tournament on her own. It was reckless. It was dangerous. It was impossibly stupid.

It was so very Midori.

Never once had I ever thought I would find recklessness endearing but she had made that happen. As she shrugged out from underneath my arm and shuffled over to the fridge, I pondered all the times she had been reckless but for the sake of others. Kaoru had been the first one to come to mind when she willingly involved herself with a stalker and broke into the school just to track her down. And then her first encounter with Hiei, a demon she knew that could and would kill her for her interference. 

I couldn’t help but smile faintly. I think she had grown on Hiei even, albeit unwillingly.

“Whacha smilin’ about?” she mumbled, pouring the creamer into her coffee.

“Just some memories.” 

Midori quirked a brow at me over the rim of her mug, “Those old man genes coming out then? You thinking about the good old days?”

“I hardly think you are in any position to accuse me of being old.”

“I’m a spring chicken thank you very much!” she took a long drink of her caffeinated beverage and then gave a pleased groan, “Your coffee in the morning is always the best. Thanks.”

“You don’t need to thank me. It’s the only way I can get you out of bed.”

Midori glared at me but said nothing, still sleepily nursing her drink. It was always so amusing to pick on her because she never failed to rise to the bait, even when she knew I was doing it on purpose. A part of her charm, I would say. With a quiet but playful smile, I eyed her sleepwear.

“Nice pajamas.”

A sleepy smile emerged from her then, “I thought you might appreciate them.”

“I can’t say that I don’t.”

“Good. And now I always have you on me.”

It was my turn to arch my brow at her, amusement coloring my face at her slip of the tongue. Midori blinked at me owlishly, confusion clear in her expression as she tried to interpret my amusement. Then realization dawned on her face and then she rolled her eyes with a groan.

“You know what I meant! Don’t make it weird.”

I decided to spare her and change the subject, “Would you like me to make you breakfast?”

“Oooh ye-wait. No I know we only just moved in together but if you do that I’m gonna start expecting you to do it all the time.”

“I don’t mind. Besides, I’m not entirely certain I trust you to have anything healthy or nourishing in the morning. Or you even having breakfast at all.”

Midori stared at me silently for a few moments, “You know it’s still alarming to see how much you’ve figured me out.”

“I believe we’ve discussed how you aren’t as closed of a book as you would like to believe.” 

“That’s just to you…” She muttered, taking a drink of her steaming cup of coffee.

“I can concede that.” I told her in amusement.

Bright green eyes, still hazy with lethargy, studied me thoughtfully. Her hands still cradled the warm mug, clutching it almost like a life line with slender fingers. Hands that were not afraid to get bloody. Hands that could kill, if she wished. I think I first realized that my feelings for Midori were beyond friendship when she saved me at the Dark Tournament. When she fought that snake demon on her own and nearly died in the process. On death’s door and she was still cracking jokes, albeit weakly.

“Well, I definitely won’t turn down breakfast if you’re offering!” 

I smiled as she shuffled over to the bar on the other side of the counter, hopping up onto a barstool, “What would you like?”

“Hmmmm, surprise me! You know what kind of stuff I like by this point!”

An omelette came to mind immediately, so I started pulling out a skillet, a cutting board and a knife. I could feel Midori’s eyes on me as I moved to the fridge, peering in to search for appropriate vegetables. I brought them all to the cutting board, setting to work on the onion first, ready to chop up enough for both of us. It would be beneficial for me to cook myself breakfast as well. And I couldn’t deny that I would enjoy eating with her.

“Do you see something that interests you, Midori?” I asked in amusement at her staring, making sure to speak with a flirtatious tone to tease her.

She didn’t seem to notice my tone and continued to stare thoughtfully before cracking a wide, toothy grin, “Oh don’t mind me. I’m just trying to picture you in a pink frilly apron.”

“You never change, do you?”

“Would you ever want me to?”

“No, I suppose I wouldn’t.”

Midori gave a playful gasp, slapping her hand over her heart. Her expression was one of mock affront as she pretended to swoon in her seat. I chuckled under my breath, focusing back on the onions I was chopping, eyes starting to sting the more I cut.

“You suppose? Kurama you mean you aren’t sure? What am I to you?”

“As of this moment? A source of amusement.”

Midori scowled at me but it was not in earnest and I shifted the onions to the side and moved to chop a tomato next. She was steadily waking up so that meant that she was almost through her cup of coffee. However I knew it was likely that she would grab a second one as her caffeine dependency had been rising for quite some time. I would have to work on breaking her habit. Or at the very least convert her to a cup of green tea in the morning or something similar.

“We only just moved in together and you are already doing me like this! I’m leaving you for another gorgeous demon!”

“Gorgeous, am I?”

“Oh don’t even play. You’re a very pretty man and you know it.” she waved her hand dismissively at me, “Everytime we go out together I’m pretty sure all of the girls start scheming to have me assassinated.”

“I hope you realize that I get similar looks from men when I’m out with you.”

The shock that washed over her face then was genuine. Midori often spoke and acted like she was so confident of herself but moments like this reminded me that she still had plenty of doubts about herself. Including but not limited to her beauty. It was not an exaggeration to state that she drew attention anytime we went out together.

“Wait, what?”

“Are you really so surprised? You get a lot of looks from men everytime. A few have actually tried to approach us to speak to you.”

“Seriously?! How come I never saw them?”

I gave her an innocent smile, “I guess they simply thought better of speaking to a young woman already in a relationship.”

Midori narrowed her eyes suspiciously at me, “You gave them one of your scary looks, didn’t you?”

“I’m sure I have no idea what you mean.”

Before I transferred the onions into the skillet to carmelize, I caught sight of her smile. She always did seem to like when I got possessive of her. But she also appreciated my efforts because Midori wasn’t overly fond of strangers approaching her to flirt. I cast my eyes to the time on the microwave before looking back to my partner.

“Don’t you need to be getting dressed?”

She huffed, “Fine, fine. I guess you’re right.”

Midori slid off of the stool with a deceptive grace, leaving her empty mug abandoned on the counter. Before going to get ready, she shuffled over to me, turning my face towards her with a single hand. She gave me just a moment to stare at her before pressing a firm but chaste kiss to my lips before leaving to get dressed. I turned back to the vegetables I was cooking as she vanished back into the bedroom.  The distant hiss of the shower kicked to life as I tended to breakfast. Fortunately Midori had developed the ability to shower quickly on her work days, though she used to be pretty bad about getting out in a reasonable time. 

This was never where I had anticipated my life to go. For years my plan had only been to survive in human world and then make my escape back to demon world. Yet now the two worlds were intermingled, demons and humans coexisting regularly. And there I was, moved in with a human woman that I was calling my girlfriend. I still hadn’t quite adjusted to that but mother was ecstatic with this development. She had always been fond of Midori. Domestic bliss was not something I had ever expected to come to my life…