The moon hung softly above Narukami, casting silver light across the Grand Shrine. Inside, Raiden Ei sat cross-legged in quiet thought, her eyes narrowed as she pondered an unfamiliar emotion.

—"Yae," she murmured, "what is love, truly? And these... 'relationships' people speak of—what are they meant to be?"

Yae Miko blinked at the question. Of all things the Shogun could ask, it had to be this one. Her tail twitched, and for once, her teasing smile faltered.

—"Love?" she echoed, pretending to ponder. "Well, it’s unpredictable. Wild. It makes fools of wise men and poets of the silent. It’s… complicated."

Raiden turned her gaze to her.

—"That is vague."

Yae’s eyes drifted to the courtyard below.

There you were—laughing with Aether and Heizou, sleeves rolled up, clearly just returning from a case that left all three dusty and exhilarated. Your laughter rang out like wind chimes, light and warm. You wiped a smudge from Heizou's cheek, then nudged Aether playfully.

Yae’s smile returned, softer now.

—“If you must understand love, then look there,” she said quietly, almost more to herself than to the Shogun. “It’s not just about romance or grand gestures. Sometimes it’s just… choosing someone, over and over, even when they don't see you back.”

Raiden followed her gaze, watching you twirl a piece of evidence in hand while laughing at some joke Aether made.

—"You are fond of them," Ei observed.

Yae didn’t deny it.

—“Yes,” she said, almost inaudibly. “Very much so.”

Then she turned back, tails curling around her like a quiet shield.

—“But for now, I remain the storyteller. Not the hero.”