Precis Admittance

The setting sun colored the sky a mixed hue of red, orange, yellow and pink. The buildings in the small town of Linga cast long shadows along the ground. Atop one of the buildings lay a young girl, her chocolate-brown hair still in its familiar purple hairband. Next to her stood a small machine.

Wow, look at all the colors, she thought to herself. A voice rang out below, catching her attention, and she sat up. "Precis, we're almost ready!" The inventor called out, "Okay!"

She put the machine on her back, then slid off the roof. In front of her stood Claude Kenni, the leader of the group of 12 heroes who had recently saved the universe from destruction. "Hey. Is everyone here?" Precis asked. "Almost. Bowman is fetching some herbs for seasoning, and Rena is out picking flowers." the human replied, "Oh, and Leon still has to get here as well. Come inside and get ready."

Precis nodded, and the 2 headed inside. She saw 9 of the group sitting or standing around the living room. They were 3 of the 5 Expellians (Dias Flac, Ashton Anchors and Celine Jules), the 2 Tetragenes (Opera Vectra and Ernest Raviede) and 2 of the 3 Nedians (Noel Chandler and Chisato Madison). Precis then perked her head up and smelled the air.

"Sniff sniff, is something burning?" "Gasp! My steaks!" Claude sped into the kitchen. Precis giggled.

Oh Claude, never leave cooking alone, she thought. "Hi everyone! We're back!" a male voice called. In came the last 2 members of the group, the Expellian pharmacist Bowman Jean and the 3rd Nedian in the group, Rena Lanford. "Hi Precis." Rena said to Precis, smiling at her.

The inventor felt her face go warm. "Oh...uh...h-hi Rena." she stammered. "Hey Rena, looks like Leon still has to arrive." Bowman said. "Perfect! That means we still have time." Rena replied.

Claude came back. "Phew, saved them." he said in relief. "Hi Claude." Rena said. "Hey, you're back. We still have some things to do, and we're short on time."

"What still needs to be done?" "You first need to find a home for those flowers, then I need you to head outside and keep an eye out for Leon. Bowman, I need your help in the kitchen." "I thought you'd need help." Bowman said, smirking. "Bowman, save it, and come on."

Claude dragged the pharmacist into the kitchen. Rena put the flowers into a vase, then headed outside. Precis watched her go, confused at what had happened with herself. Man, why did I just act like act? Rena just smiled at me!

She shook her head and sat on the floor, waiting. Claude and Bowman reappeared a few minutes later. "Thanks Bowman. I haven't tried cooking in a long time." "Anytime Claude."

Rena came racing in a few seconds later. "Leon's coming! Everyone hide!" The group hurriedly chose hiding places, Precis ending up next to Rena. There was a knock on the door a few seconds later, followed by a "Hello?"

"Come in!" Precis called. Leon walked in. "Where is everyone?" he asked. His question was answered when the group (yes, even Dias) jumped up and yelled "SURPRISE!"

Leon was speechless. He looked up at the "Congratulations Leon" banner on the wall, then back at the others. "What's all this for?" he asked. "This is just to congratulate you passing that entrance exam for the University." Rena explained, hugging the Fellpool.

Leon blushed and returned her hug, smiling. "Well, it wasn't that hard. You didn't really have to do this." Rena pulled him up. "Oh, come on Leon. You deserve it." she said, smiling.

Soon, the 12 were seated around the dining-room table. Precis kept looking over at Rena, who was talking to Chisato. Claude noticed this, but kept quiet. "Precis sweetheart, pass the salt please." Celine said.

Glad for some sort of distraction, Precis passed the salt over. Soon after, the group was sorting out sleeping arrangements. "I don't think that one room in the inn can accommodate all of us." Claude said.

"Precis and I live in Linga, so there's no need for us to sleep at the inn. I also have 4 spare beds at home." Bowman said.

"I sleep in a double bed, so I could possibly squeeze someone in with me. Or I could find a mattress and they could go on the floor." Precis offered. "So, out of the 12 of us, 5 can stay at Bowman's place, 2 at Precis', 3 at the inn... that leaves 2 people." Rena calculated. "I guess they'll have to sleep on the floor." Noel said. "Actually, I have 2 couches they could use. It would be more comfortable." Bowman reminded them.

"Now the big question is, where does everyone sleep?" Opera asked.

The group talked through and made their decision. Bowman would sleep at his pharmacy, along with Opera, Ernest, Ashton, Noel, Dias and Chisato, Precis would share her room with Rena, and Leon, Celine and Claude would stay at the inn. Later on, it was time for bed.

Precis and Rena were getting ready and talking about the day. "... and he went 'Gasp! My steaks!', and sped to save them." Both girls laughed at this. "Hee-hee, I've told him several times to pay attention." Rena said, while brushing her hair.

Precis switched Bobot (the small machine) to sleep mode, removed her goggles, gloves and shoes, then climbed into bed. "Say, how long has it been since we beat the 10 Wise Men, just out of interest?" she asked. Rena climbed in next to her, which made Precis a bit nervous, but she hid it from the Nedian. "I think a few months now. Wasn't exactly easy."

"Got that right. Neither was the Cave of Trials. Well, goodnight." "Goodnight." They both soon headed off to Dreamland.

Rena's dream...

"Contestants, you have 30 minutes remaining!" the m.c. announced.

Yikes, I've gotta hurry!, Rena thought. She quickly checked on her fondue, then returned to her trifle. Her friends in the audience cheered her on.

"You can do it!" "Stay calm and focus." "You go, girl!" The Nedian smiled.

She was in the finals of a cooking contest. Rena and her opponent had to come up with the best desserts they could make. "25 minutes!"

Rena pulled some plates and bowls out of a cupboard and placed them on the counter. The oven dinged and she donned some oven gloves.

She pulled her crumble out, then put it next to a plate. Rena placed the trifle and fondue, along with some fresh strawberries, on the counter. "20 minutes!"

Rena smiled in her sleep as the dream continued. Precis was dreaming differently.

Precis' dream...

Precis was sitting under a large leafy tree in the Shingo Forest. The inventor had her eyes closed and was enjoying nature. The person next to her placed their hand in Precis'. She opened her eyes, looked at her partner and smiled.

"I love you, Rena." "I love you, Precis." The 2 then met in a passionate kiss.

Precis' body tingled pleasantly. She woke up, then realized what had just happened. Precis was so glad she wasn't a guy. She then looked over at Rena's sleeping figure.

The Nedian had the blanket down to her waist. She lay on her stomach, one arm in front of her face and the other facing downwards by her side, and with a large smile on her face. Precis marveled at Rena's peaceful position. Wow, she has a great smile, and she's so cute... Wait, I didn't just think that, did I? I must still be tired.

The inventor tried to go back to sleep, even facing away from Rena, but Rena's face still appeared in front of her eyes, and she could still hear Rena's quiet breathing. She then decided to take a short walk, thinking that would help. Forgetting that she was so close to the side of the bed, Precis moved herself over the edge too far. She slid off with a small "Woah", but managed to grab the edge and clamped her hand over her mouth.

Rena stirred, and Precis held her breath. The Nedian however just shifted her position slightly. Precis quietly breathed a sigh of relief, dropped the last few centimeters, got her shoes on, and tiptoed out.

She walked to the bridge near the pharmacy.

Precis sat down by the stream, admiring the reflected moonlight on the surface. She thought about what her body and mind were doing when she was around Rena. I wonder what's wrong with me? There was earlier, when Rena smiled at me. I blushed and stuttered. Then when we getting into bed, I felt weird when she climbed over me. And that dream. I wonder if... No that can't be! She's a girl and a friend, just a friend. Nothing more

.

"Precis?" The voice shook the Expellian from her thoughts. She looked behind her and Rena standing a short distance away, hesitant to come closer. "Can I join you?" Rena asked.

"Sure, knock yourself out." Precis replied. Rena came and sat by the inventor and looked at the stream. "Gorgeous, isn't it?" she asked.

"Yeah." Precis agreed.

"Anything wrong? I woke up and saw that you weren't in bed." "Uh, no. I just woke up from a dream and couldn't get back to sleep." "You seemed pretty deep in thought just then. Can I ask what you were thinking about?"

"Well, nothing terribly important..." "What? If something's troubling you, then say it. You can tell me anything, Precis." Precis struggled for an answer. "No, it's nothing. Just forget it." "Oh. Okay."

Both girls were silent. Precis noticed how Rena seemed to shine in the light of the river. Mmm, she looks so nice. I wonder if I could kiss her... What? I must be going crazy. Rena caught Precis staring at her.

"Um, what are you looking at me for?" she asked. Precis snapped out of her trance and quickly looked away, her face reddening and her heart racing. "What's wrong? You looked all flushed." Rena asked.

"Uh... I, um..." Precis couldn't think of an answer, so she did a runner.

"Precis, wait!" Rena called. But the inventor didn't stop. She sped to her house, but when she skidded around the corner, her body was on too much of an angle, and she slid off her feet onto the ground. "Oof!" she felt the wind get knocked out of her slightly.

Precis tried getting back up, but felt pain shoot through her foot. "Aah!" "Precis, are you alright?" Rena came running, having heard the fall. She knelt by the Expellian, worried.

"I think I may have sprained my ankle. I can't get back up." Precis said, clutching her foot. Rena helped Precis lean against the fence.

"Here, let me see." She gently removed Precis' shoe and peeled her sock down, Precis wincing slightly.

Rena checked the severity of the damage for a minute or two. Precis spotted a stick on the ground, grabbed it, and stuck it between her teeth. Rena gently ran her thumb over the sprained area, checking the rate of swelling. Precis bit down on the stick, trying to keep quiet.

She was in too much discomfort to feel anything for the Nedian at the moment. Rena then shifted her feet, but lost balance. Her one hand flew down behind her, catching her fall, but her one foot came down on Precis' bad ankle. The inventor screamed and bit the stick, hard.

"Precis, I'm so sorry!" Rena said quickly. Precis felt tears start to fill her eyes from pain. She looked at Rena silently. The mage then used her Heal spell, and quickly headed inside.

Precis spat out the stick and sat on the spot for a few seconds, then got to her feet slowly, testing her foot. The spell had completely healed the sprain, so Precis got her sock and shoe back on, then headed back inside. Outside her room, she heard Rena talking, so she stayed quiet and listened. "Way to go Rena. You try to help Precis, but instead you go and hurt her! Dammit..." Precis heard Rena hit her head with her hand, "... how is that gonna make her like me? Then again, when I looked at her by the river, she got pretty freaked out. Does she like me or not? I just don't know what to think."

Precis was stunned at what she had just heard. She heard Rena start to climb back into bed. Making a split second decision, she marched into the room and said, "Rena, wait!" The mage saw her and hopped back onto the floor.

"Precis, what's up?" she asked. Instead of answering, Precis walked up to Rena, grabbed the sides of her head, and pulled her face to hers. Rena's eyes widened, then closed as her arms slid around Precis' slightly smaller figure as she returned the kiss. They stayed like this for a short while, then parted.

Both girls looked into each other's eyes. "I love you, Rena." "I love you, Precis." The 2 then climbed back into bed, but knew that they wouldn't get back to sleep for a while, so they just lay there and talked.

"So, just how long have you liked me?" Precis asked. "Well..." Rena thought hard, "...I guess it more or less sparked after our adventure. When I first met you, I just saw you as kind of annoying little sister, no offence. But, as the time went on, the feelings I had for Claude started shifting away from him, and onto you. At first, I merely dismissed it, and thought that it wouldn't last. But, I was wrong. Now, since our quest ended, I've been trying to figure when and how to tell you."

Precis was quite surprised. "Wow, so these feelings have been around for quite a while, huh?" "Yeah. Basically." "You certainly kept it well hidden though. I didn't even notice."

"Hmm-hmm. Yeah, I guess so." They looked at each other for a few seconds, then Precis took Rena's hand. "So, you have no problems or regrets about being a lesbian?" she asked. "None at all. As long as 2 people love each other, who cares if they're gay or straight?" the mage answered.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." She tucked her finger under Rena's chin, then pulled her face forward and kissed her. They soon fell asleep in each other's arms. In the morning, Claude came to see if they were awake and saw the scene.

The human smiled. Looks like my hunch was right. They love each other. He left the room and headed outside.

THE END