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Mashiro didn't understand.
He didn't understand at all why he was basically being forced and dragged to care for the Bridan General who seemed to have lost her memory.
Annoyed at first with her taking food without paying, that feeling melted away slightly when Bouquet offered him some of her delicious treat. A gesture he doesn't remember ever having before in the past.
In the short amount of time that they're spending together, he had a fondness towards her, almost protective. He was worried sick when he heard her cry of distress from Goodeburn .
When he found out Bouquet regained her memories, he was relieved. Or so he thought. Part of the relief was mixed with uncertainty, a fretful feeling of hurt. What was this feeling?
Knowing now that Bouquet has regained all of her memories, including her unstoppable love for his idol comrade, it made Mashiro feel sad. If it made her happy, that's what matters right?
He couldn't be mad that it was Byakyua Rikuo that made her happy. He was admittedly charming.
He just wished it was him. In passing, he attached his typical invoice slip on her, charging her for having him assist her in her amnesia. It's his typical belief and habit, not wanting to be taken advantage of his god-like hospitality.
But deep down, knowing it'll make Bouquet retract what she initially thought of him and harbor a sense of hatred for his personality and habits, it was for the best that he distanced himself from Bouquet.
"Even a god like me can feel a sense of loneliness, huh?", Mashiro said to himself, sitting on the roof's edge of a building. In his hand, he holds a flower that Bouquet was inspecting with joy earlier.
"Maybe in another time, I'd be enough for her."