Hayate had not seen Chris for days on end, and it was beginning to worry him. It was not like Chris to fail in her visits or to at least inform him by letter of where she was or what she was doing. The lack of her presence grated against his nerves, making him more irritable than usual. Just two days ago, he had gone to her cottage in the forest to see if she was there; however, upon his arrival, he found no one and nothing there at all. Anger struck into the Hayate's chest as he tore through the house, looking for any sort of clue. He wondered where she had gone or what had happened to her and the family who occupied the cottage with her and her sibling, but he found no traces of either. The cottage had been wiped clean down to the last crumb on the countertops.

It unsettled him enough to inquire of her whereabouts with some of the neighbors, but the only thing they could tell him was they saw the family moving out. No one knew their destination, and some even said those within the house went their separate ways. Hayate was not sure what that meant or what had caused the disruption in Chris's home, but he wanted to find her and he couldn't. His fury over the situation grew for the last two days, but he kept it well hidden.

Still, he had not heard yet from Chris.

Then, he was leaving the café today with a cup of warm blood in his hands when he looked up and spotted her in the distance. So shocked was he that he could have dropped the cup in his hands and gone after her, but she was glaring at him. Chris was glaring at him. The temporary shock was replaced with his own anger as she stared at him in such a way, and he shoved the cup into a random stranger's hand and went after the girl.

"Chris," Hayate called, and he did not at all sound happy.