Disclaimer: I, AJ, am neither an exorcist, nor the master of the shiki known as Natsume Yuujinchou.

Note: this is a short, simple, fluffy, four-part story exploring the platonic intimacy of Natsume Takashi, Tanuma Kaname, and Taki Touru from each of their perspectives and an outside perspective (the collective student body).

When Natsume was asked, he would get red and flustered and let out a string of stuttered, high-pitched denials. When Taki was asked, she would break out into hysterical giggles, between which could be heard snippets like 'us three?' and 'could you imagine?'. When Tanuma was asked, he would get such a look on his face that it would make the person feel stupid just for having the thought and flatly say 'no'.

And so for a short while everyone would go back to their own business. However it wouldn't take long for everyone to be reminded why they asked in the first place. After all, the trio honestly seemed romantically involved.

It wasn't unusual that duos and trios of friends would spend so much time together in and out of school. It also wasn't weird the amount of time spent at each other's houses. After all, no one was accusing Kitamoto and Nishimura of dating. But there was more to this particular trio than simply hanging out.

It was the long, weighted looks they would give each other, like they were the only people in the world. It was the way they would pale and cling to each other desperately if one of them so much as looked too tired, or – kami forbid – had a headache. There were always little touches; passes of the fingers across hair, face, shoulder, arm, or hand. If any were in proximity with another, they were almost always standing much, much closer than casual conversation accounted for.

No one could count the number of times Taki had brought little presents for both of the boys, nor how many times she had been seen taking a quick nap during lunch on the shoulder of either one. Tanuma had been caught a few times either laying with his head in Taki's lap or with his face pressed into the crook of Natsume's neck. The blond boy himself had been seen carrying Taki back to her home alone, and everyone saw the too-long-to-be-appropriate hug that the boys shared when Natsume returned to school after a few days absence.

That just left the question of why the three of them refused to admit to their relationship. One of the more believable theories was that all three of them were too shy to admit their feelings for the other two, fearing rejection, and so they were all just dancing around the issue without resolving it. Another possibility was that they were hiding it because they knew their families would not approve. One of the more ludicrous options ascribed their behavior to the fact that all three were part of a cult that did not allow romance, yet they persisted in their forbidden love anyway. And Ritsujima would swear up, down, and sideways that it was all an elaborate ruse to distract from the real relationship between Natsume and Natori Shuuichi.

Of course, no one had any real answers. The one time someone had suggested stalking the trio to find out the truth, Nishimura had found out. Despite being energetic, excitable, and a bit of an idiot, no one could deny that Nishimura was one of the most loyal friends a person could have defending them. The moment the boy had heard about the plan to invade Natsume's privacy he had loudly and publicly declared, 'Natsume's business is his own, and if he wants to pretend that he isn't in a threesome with Tanuma and Taki then you are going to respect that!' Natsume had spent the entire rest of the week red in the face and unable to look Nishimura in the eye. Misunderstanding the reason for the embarrassment, Nishimura made sure to frequently reassure Natsume that he wasn't mad about him stealing Taki's affection, but he still reserved all rights as a friend to tease him to death about it.