"Hmm? Sure Fajardo-san! I'll have some of th- aaaaaaaah!"

And just like that, they started and ended a road trip that was more akin to high-speed road chase than a controlled outing. Akihiko clung to the bottom of his seat, nails digging into the material, body tensed, and eyes widened, staring at the windshield with a slight twitching motions. Well, at least it was over for now. Nevertheless, he made a mental note to prepare a shielding or stability spell for the return trip. He'd survived [i]this[/i] round, but better safe than sorry. His body slowly relaxed as Akihiko reached for his seatbelt, unbuckling it before a sudden grip was felt on his shoulder. He tensed up again before turning his head behind him at the Arabic artisan staring at him. 

Akihiko blinked.

Amjad-kun stared.

The moment of silence was defeaning.

Amjad-kun nodded and brushed past Akihiko, who blinked once more.

[i]'...That was weird,'[/i] the Japanese theurge thought before following the peculiar child out the door and towards the Western mansion. Honestly, he would've expected more of a traditional Japanese household, what with the name of Daidouji and being an old, big family. Then again, a traditional Japanese house wasn't all that good comparatively in the security department, so it made enough sense to him. The doors opened to reveal a girl that gave off the same vibe and acted quite like someone he knew from his old school. A guy that sat in the mid-back, studied diligently, and wasn't too good with class presentations. Of course, she was obviously much cuter than him, but the point stood.

As they were guided through the mansion, Akihiko had to note how obviously large it was - surely bigger than his modest former home- as well as the omnipresence of maids running about. Akihiko let his thoughts wander, since not much was really happening. 

[i]'...Maybe one of the maids did it? There was always something weird in those mystery books[/i] ("budget mystery solving theory/training") [i]from the library about butlers and crimes. Could this be a case of gender inversion?!'

'...No wait. That was a dumb idea.'

'But wait! Perhaps these were all mundane maids who didn't know much about magic, and thus were susceptible to the effects ofwhattheheckisIwajima-kundoing?'[/i]