>>7218 Sorry. Patchwork is a Slowpatch. This time you can blame my shitty ISP, whose service is fluctuating so wildly at the moment that I can hardly load anything.
***
[X] Call out to her. Maybe you can clear up her melancholy, too.
***
You may have been able to shake off your funk on your own, but that's no reason to leave Youmu hanging.
"Youmu!"
Shaken out of her daze, she looks down at you and smiles, offering a small wave. With a surprisingly dainty hop, she drops from the roof and lands in front of you, kicking up a small cloud of dirt. She dusts off her dress as she straightens up.
"Welcome back."
Her voice sounds a little distant, and her eyes seem dimmer now than you've seen them before. You acknowledge her with a slight bow, and close the distance between you just a bit, keeping her at arm's length while observing her reaction. She crosses one arm over her chest to massage her shoulder, and shuffles her feet, apparently distracted by herself.
"Something on your mind?"
Your voice comes out more quiet and low than you had expected, but it seems to be enough to rouse Youmu from her preoccupation. With a start and a shake of her head, her posture relaxes. She gives you a more genuine smile, and her voice regains its usual sharp and crisp quality.
"Yes. I felt compelled to stop and reflect, and it seems I became caught up in myself. I should thank you; if you hadn't disturbed me, I may well have remained outside for the whole night."
"You're welcome, then. I have to say, though; isn't disturbed a rude word to use if you're thanking me?"
"If you dislike my words, then I'll simply take them back."
"Youmu! So mean!"
Her smile is quite honest, now, a certain degree of mirth visible in her eyes. Her hand and arm fall away from her shoulder, and instead come to rest lightly on the sword slung at her hip. She's quite at ease. At least she appears to be back to normal, although you have to wonder what it was that had to think so hard about.
"To be honest," Youmu closes her eyes for a moment, "I'd like to apologize as well."
Oh?
"For what?"
"I reacted rather poorly to your earlier teasing. It prevented me from rendering my assistance with the cleaning duties, and I was rather curt with you after that. There is no excuse for being rude, much less for shirking my responsibilities."
Is she really the one who should apologizing, then?
"Don't worry about it. I should be the one apologizing for teasing you in the first place." On a sudden impulse, you reach out and ruffle her hair. "What can I say? I like that side of Youmu."
Youmu's cheeks light up again, but instead of acting flustered, she fixes you with a playful glare of accusation.
"A fair attempt, but I will not be showing you that side of me again tonight."
Damn. You sigh, and withdraw your hand to clutch theatrically at your heart instead. But, having ruffled her hair... you frown a little.
"No offense, Youmu, but you're covered in sweat."
"Ah, that's right, after lunch I spent my time..." She trails off and terminates her sentence with a cough. "At any rate, I intended to take a bath before I went to sleep. I should thank you yet again for reminding me of what I need to do. I'd like to continue talking, but... you will understand if I would like to get to that bath quickly?"
You nod.
"Then I will excuse myself before the night grows too chill."
Youmu turns her back and walks away into the manor. The way the light plays off her sweat is really quite... my, and her clothing is positively sticking to her, isn't it? Her dress clings to her behind well enough that it's apparent just how cute her butt is. And with her hair mussed from your ruffling, it almost looks like she just got finished...
Living with good looking girls is wonderful, isn't it?
As Youmu disappears around a corner, your mind wanders. A bath, huh? Well, the only thing left to do tonight is turn in, but you're not exactly tired. Maybe a nice soak would help lull you to sleep.
[ ] Nah. Might as well just hit the hay and get to sleep early.
[ ] Why not? A late night bath is always nice, even if ghosts don't require them to get clean.