I Got Married To A Girl Who Hunt Poltergeists

Serena stared at the young girl standing beside the dining table.

For several seconds, she couldn't find the words to say.

The girl's short green hair, gentle expression, and familiar eyes had awakened memories Serena hadn't thought about in years. Looking at her now, Serena could almost see a younger version of herself running through the temple grounds, laughing without worrying about training, family expectations, or the dangers that came with being a Geist.

Those memories felt impossibly distant.

Yet the person standing in front of her was proof that they had really happened.

Then, suddenly, the girl's name came back to her.

Serena's eyes widened.

"Himari..."

The girl's face immediately brightened.

"You remembered!"

Before Serena could say anything else, Himari stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her.

Serena stiffened in surprise.

She hadn't expected the sudden hug.

For a moment, her arms remained at her sides as she processed what was happening. Then the familiarity of the moment finally reached her, and she slowly returned the embrace.

"It's been so long," Himari said happily. "I'm really glad you still remembered me."

Serena smiled faintly.

"Of course I remember you. It's just..." She glanced around the dining hall. "I didn't expect to see you here."

Himari finally pulled away.

She looked Serena over carefully, as though comparing the girl standing before her with the childhood friend she remembered.

"You've changed so much."

Serena raised an eyebrow.

"So have you."

Himari touched a strand of her short green hair and smiled awkwardly.

"I hope that's a good thing."

"It is."

Serena's answer came immediately.

Himari's smile became brighter.

"I'm glad."

The warmth between the two girls didn't go unnoticed.

From beside the table, however, Stud had been watching the entire exchange with growing curiosity.

He had remained unusually quiet throughout the reunion, his little body hovering beside Serena as he observed Himari from head to toe.

Eventually, his curiosity became too much to contain.

Stud floated toward them and pointed one of his tiny tentacles at Himari.

"You there, grass-head girl."

Himari froze.

Serena slowly turned her head toward Stud.

Her expression immediately became suspicious.

"...Did you really just call her that?"

Stud nodded without hesitation.

"Yes."

Himari looked at the strange little Poltergeist hovering in front of her.

Her smile disappeared slightly.

Although Tamayo had already explained that Stud was harmless, Himari had never encountered anything quite like him before. He was a Poltergeist who casually floated around the temple, argued with Geists, complained about training, and apparently considered the absence of a television to be a personal tragedy.

It was difficult to know what to make of him.

Stud tilted his body to one side.

"So, what's your relation to Ms. Attitude?"

Serena's eyebrow twitched.

"Who are you calling attitude?"

Stud looked at her.

Serena placed both hands against her hips.

"I'm nice."

Stud stared at her.

He remained completely silent.

Serena's confidence slowly began to disappear beneath his stare.

After several seconds, she narrowed her eyes.

"...What?"

Stud continued staring.

Serena's eye twitched.

"Say it."

"I didn't say anything."

"You were thinking it."

Stud paused.

"I was."

"Stud!"

Himari covered her mouth.

A small laugh escaped before she could stop it.

Serena turned toward her.

Himari quickly lowered her hand, but the smile remained on her face.

The tension that had briefly appeared when Stud approached her had disappeared.

Still, Himari remained somewhat cautious.

She glanced at Stud again.

Even though he seemed ridiculous, he was still a Poltergeist.

Serena noticed the hesitation in her expression.

She stepped slightly closer to Himari.

"Don't worry about him."

Himari looked at her.

"He's really harmless?"

"Yes."

Serena sighed.

"He's annoying, but he won't hurt you."

Stud immediately gasped.

"Rude."

Serena pointed at him.

"He's rude."

"Uncalled for."

"And he talks way too much."

"Defamation."

Serena ignored him.

Himari looked between the two of them.

The way they argued seemed strangely natural.

It was obvious that this wasn't their first argument.

Himari's expression softened.

Stud gave her an awkward little wave.

"Hello."

Himari hesitated for a moment before giving him a small bow.

"Hello."

Stud's eyes seemed to brighten.

"So we're friends now?"

Himari blinked.

"I... suppose?"

"Excellent!"

Stud proudly floated in a small circle around her.

"I've made another human friend."

Serena shook her head.

"Don't get carried away."

Himari smiled.

Stud floated closer to Serena.

"What's wrong with making friends?"

"Nothing."

"Then why are you complaining?"

"Because you're you."

Stud placed a tentacle against his chest.

"Because I'm extraordinary."

"Because you're weird."

"Those are basically the same thing."

Himari couldn't help herself.

She giggled.

Serena looked at her and smiled.

For the first time since arriving at the temple, Serena felt something she hadn't expected.

Familiarity.

She had spent so much time worrying about training, Poltergeists, and everything waiting for her outside the temple that she had almost forgotten what it felt like to simply sit with someone from her past.

Himari finally took the empty seat beside Serena.

Serena looked at her.

"I still can't believe you're here."

Himari rested her hands on the table.

"I could say the same about you."

She tilted her head slightly.

"I heard you were coming back to the temple, but I didn't know when."

Serena glanced toward Tamayo.

"She brought me here."

"I know."

Himari smiled.

"Tamayo told me."

Serena paused.

Something about that statement caught her attention.

"Wait."

She turned toward Himari.

"You said earlier that you've been here for a while."

Himari nodded.

"Yes."

"But..."

Serena studied her carefully.

"Why?"

Himari looked confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Your family isn't a Geist family."

Serena remembered Himari from their childhood.

Her family had never belonged to the Yuuki bloodline. They weren't Geists, and they didn't possess the traditions or inherited techniques that had shaped Serena's own family.

So why was Himari living at the White Fox Temple?

Serena leaned slightly closer.

"What are you doing here?"

Himari smiled.

"Training."

Serena blinked.

"Training?"

"Yes."

"With who?"

Himari looked across the table.

Her eyes settled on Tamayo.

"Her."

Serena's eyes widened.

"Tamayo?"

Himari nodded.

"I'm her student."

Serena slowly turned toward her sister.

Tamayo had been quietly eating throughout their conversation. She calmly set down her chopsticks and looked at Serena.

"What?"

Serena pointed toward Himari.

"She's your student?"

"Yes."

"Since when?"

"Some time ago."

Serena stared at her.

"You never told me."

Tamayo shrugged.

"You never asked."

Serena's mouth fell slightly open.

She stared at her sister as though trying to determine whether she was joking.

"How many secrets are you keeping from me?"

Tamayo smiled.

"Quite a few."

Serena sighed and rubbed her forehead.

"That's not reassuring."

Himari laughed softly.

"I started training under Tamayo because I wanted to learn how to protect myself."

Serena's expression became more serious.

"But you're not a Geist."

"I know."

"Then how are you able to train here?"

Himari looked down at her hands.

For the first time since she had approached Serena, her expression became more thoughtful.

"That's what I'm learning."

She slowly raised her eyes toward Serena.

"Tamayo said that being able to protect someone shouldn't depend entirely on their bloodline."

Serena became quiet.

Those words sounded exactly like something Tamayo would say.

Tamayo had always approached strength differently from most Geists.

She didn't believe that power belonged exclusively to people who had inherited the right bloodline or been born with exceptional abilities.

Himari smiled.

"She's teaching me how to understand Spiritual Energy."

Serena's eyes widened slightly.

"The same thing I'm learning?"

"Yes."

Himari nodded.

"We're both beginners in different ways."

Serena glanced down at the leaf still resting near her place at the table.

The exercise from earlier suddenly felt different.

She had spent hours trying to understand Spiritual Energy while believing she was following a path that was uniquely hers.

Now she had discovered that someone from her childhood was learning the same thing.

Stud floated between the two girls.

"So..."

He looked at Serena.

"You're both students now?"

Serena gave a small shrug.

"Apparently."

Stud slowly looked from Serena to Himari.

Then a mischievous smile appeared on his face.

"This is going to be interesting."

Serena immediately became suspicious.

"Why?"

Stud pointed toward the two girls.

"Because now there are two of you."

Serena frowned.

"Two of what?"

"Two people who can yell at me."

Himari covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.

Serena sighed.

"You're unbelievable."

Stud floated back toward the table.

"And yet, somehow, you keep me around."

Serena opened her mouth to argue.

Then she stopped.

She glanced at Stud.

Despite all his complaining, his ridiculous behavior, and his constant demands for entertainment, he had become part of her life.

She couldn't deny it.

Serena looked away.

"Don't get the wrong idea."

Stud smiled.

"Sure."

Himari watched the exchange with an amused expression.

She had only just returned to Serena's life, yet she already felt as though she were seeing a side of her old friend that she had never known existed.

Serena turned toward her.

Her expression softened.

Her childhood friend had returned to her life in the most unexpected place imaginable.

The White Fox Temple had already brought Serena face-to-face with a sister she had barely seen for years.

Now another familiar face from her childhood had appeared.

And perhaps most surprisingly of all, Himari wasn't here simply to visit.

She was here to learn.

Just like Serena.

Serena smiled faintly.

"Then I guess we're training together."

Himari returned her smile.

"I'd like that."

For a moment, the two girls simply looked at each other.

There was something comforting about knowing that, despite how much time had passed, they could still sit together and talk as though the years between them hadn't completely erased the bond they once shared.

Then, from the other side of the table, a familiar voice interrupted the moment.

"And I would like a television."

Serena slowly closed her eyes.

Of course.

She should have known.

"...There he goes again."

Stud raised his tentacles indignantly.

"It's an entirely reasonable request!"

Himari burst into laughter.

Serena could only sigh as the dining hall once again filled with the sound of Stud's complaints.

For the first time that evening, however, Serena didn't mind.

After everything that had happened since returning to the temple, perhaps this was exactly what she needed.

Not another battle.

Not another difficult lesson.

Just dinner, an old friend, and a ridiculous little Poltergeist who refused to accept the fact that the White Fox Temple didn't have a television.