"Yes," Kuromaru whined. "I mean, no. I mean--Tsume!"

She spoke from her hideaway in the kitchen, without looking up. "They gave him pills. The pills make him sleepy, so he doesn't like them. Canines deal better with pain than humans do."

"Also, they make me impotent," Kuromaru mumbled sadly, both hands held up but away from his face, as if he couldn't quite bring himself to put them down.

Tsume laughed. It carried a brittle edge. "Not impotent, Kuromaru. Just uninterested. I promise it won't last." She reached up with one hand, slapping the tap off.

"Just be very, very careful," Kuromaru directed to Genma, single eye moving as he watched his own hand come closer to his eyesocket. A noise from the medic stopped him. "I gotta scratch."

"No scratching!" Tsume yelled.

"It tickles!"

"I don't care!"

Kuromaru sulked. "At least it didn't tickle with my hitai-ate on. And it still hurts, too!"