Ashiko had never been so far from her master's side since swearing to follow him. He had sent her out on an errand while he stayed back to watch over one of his experiments, and she was very resolutely tamping down the withdrawal pangs. He sent her because he trusted her, and that was something she should be honored about, case closed.

...that said, however, she was rather relieved that her stay in the little village was coming to a close, and had returned to her hotel with all due haste. She decided to take a bath before dinner, having had to deal with the particularly muggy weather of the village for too much for her taste, and was just about finished undressing when she heard a faint, strange creaking from the ceiling.

And then the unthinkable happened.

In the aftermath, Ashiko found herself rooted to the floor, kimono layers pooled at her elbows and hands knotted in her untied obi as she stared at the man suddenly in her room. She was, from the front, virtually naked aside from a simple white pair of panties, but her mind was still too busy reeling in shock to properly register that. Until, that is, a scroll rolled slowly across the floor, bumping into her foot.

Ashiko shrieked.