A Dangerous Friend

19

Ears Looking At You, Kid

"Well, that was fun," Yeji said brightly, as they made their way home.

"For you, maybe."

"Don't be such a grouch. I like your dad. He makes me laugh."

"Yeah. At my expense. I told you he'd embarrass me."

"Oh, come on. You know what dads are like."

"Well I do now," Ryujin muttered. "Mine's a sarcastic, middle aged sadist, and yours is a sports- obsessed maniac who wants to use my ass as a dartboard."

"He was only kidding."

"And thank God for that."

"I mean, he doesn't even play darts," Yeji said. "He's more into baseball. He wouldn't need your ass for that." She scrunched her face up, thoughtfully. "Although I guess he could use it as a giant pitcher's mitt, maybe, or-"

"Hey ! What do you mean, 'giant' ?"

"-or a bat rest, or something-"

"Look," Ryujin shush her off, "Much as though I love discussing the use of my body parts as sporting equipment, I think you should shut up now." Yeji fell silent. "And stop looking at my ears."

"I wasn't !"

"Yes, you were. I could hear you."

"Wow. Is that how you track your prey in the wild ?"

"I was not raised by wolves."

"Okay, okay. Down, girl. Heel."

"Stop that. You know, it's kind of difficult maintaining an effortlessly cool persona when you and my dad keep talking about ears. Ears aren't cool."

"Wolf ears are."

"Shut up."

"Anyway, why do you need to maintain your effortlessly cool persona ? There's no one here."

"There's you."

The brunette stopped walking. "Me ?" She said in surprise. "Why would you need to keep up a persona around me ?"

Ryujin stopped too, and realized with a start that she couldn't actually think of a reason. "I don't know," she said, lamely. "Practice ?"

Yeji sighed, and carried on walking. "You know," she said, "Sometimes I despair."

"You spend too much time on the internet."

"I mean of you," she said. "You are allowed to have emotions, you know."

The blonde bridled. "I have emotions."

"Really ? Name two."

"Okay, uhm, angry and... horny."

"Horny' isn't an emotion."

"It is so," Ryujin argued. "It's like angry, only with more sex."

"Great. So angry and horny are your top two emotions."

"What do you mean, 'top' two ?"

"All right, your only two." Yeji surrendered.
"Well, I guess that explains why you're angry all the time."

"What's that supposed to mean ?"