To-Love Ru: Troubling Times

Episode 0.1 ~ Tough Love ~

A/N: This one-shot is set some time after the main ending of Darkness, but before my story To-Love Ru: I Struggle. Lala learns that Momo has crossed the line with Rito one too many times, and finally snaps at her youngest sister.

Edit: It is also recommended you read Chapters 9,12, 16, 19-21, 25, and 28 of 'To Love-Ru: I Struggle' for deeper backstory, and chapter 2 for how this connects to the main story.

Also, I do not own To-Love Ru.

~ 1. Spring of your Discontent ~

Yuuki Household
Deviluke Sister's Residence

Lala Satalin Deviluke had seen what Rito could become, she saw what he could do. He could turn instruments of peace into weapons of war, he could turn the warmest hearts cold. With a simple twist of fate, Rito could become the cruelest tyrant ever, just as much as he could be the kindest King of Deviluke, the savior of Earth. And it had all started with her.

She had returned from a horrid future with foreknowledge that Rito would gain incredible power of, and lose his sanity to, the same demon that had hunted down her ancestors for their blood, and made the Charmian race all but extinct, with her mother as the last pureblooded member of said race. Drinking that in after returning to her fragile present, no one would blame her as she isolated herself from her sisters and love of her life until it all sunk in. Lala was now curled up in the corners of her old lab, hugging her knees to her chest as she was overrun with another panic attack, remembering the stinging orichalcum tail aiming for her heart like an arrow. Seeing Peke alive and well did nothing to comfort her now, knowing full well that unless drastic measures were taken, proving the future was not immutable , she herself was destined to die after gaining Rito's love, sending him into a spiraling depression and causing the slippage of his sanity. She had thought by creating some machine, some trinket or tool to help her ease her nerves and get her mind off of the future to focus on the present, that she could do something that could help Rito from breaking down so easily if it came to be that the future could not change.

Sighing as she looked at the disassembled Animal Change-Kun, which had been a mess to try and fix even after drying out the delicate interior and washing off sticky watermelon juices, she didn't even know if this invention was salvageable, much like her deteriorating relationship with Rito. Looking up at her discarded All-Mighty Tool laying on the floor while she was surrounded by scraps and bits of half finished technological doodads that did nothing to ease her worry, she realized that sitting and mopping on the floor did nothing to help her situation. Getting up and looking over to her basket of precious treasures, where the scary-cute purple rabbit sat among the items she collected that represented precious memories of her family and friends, she realized that even if he did not realize it, they both were meant for each other. And then Lala remembered that Rito's heart currently belonged to another. If she could even change one simple detail, like getting Haruna and Rito together, then she could prove the future was malleable, meaning that she could still have a happy future with Rito despite what she now knew. Rito was troubled by feeling like he was splitting his love between Haruna and Lala, if she could get him to accept the Harem Plan, then that meant that Rito could also have someone else to trust in, to love, even if she was the one fated to die. Smiling, and formulating a new plan, she grabbed her almighty tool from the floor and placed it on the nearby bench. She had to go see Rito, she had to tell him what she knew, so he could accept it and face the future together with her.

Leaving her room and passing by her sister's rooms, she found Nana studying and doing her earth homework, while Momo's room was curiously empty. Thinking nothing of it, and expecting her sister to be playing with Celine while Mikan was bathing, she teleported out of their shared rooms and back into the Yuuki house proper. Momentarily taken back by the setting sun, Lala checked the time of the clock on the wall, which confirmed is was quite later than she had anticipated, yet she knew she still had to talk to Rito. Smiling as she trotted over to Rito's door, she found it slightly ajar and she could hear voices from inside the room. "No, Momo, I won't hear it anymore!" Lala hears Rito argue from inside, much to her surprise, "Haruna and I have promised each other we'd try and date when she gets back from staying with her parents over the summer, this thing you have with me, trying to make everyone happy, I can't betray your sister's confidence in me by not choosing someone..." She widens her eyes as she realizes that she is hearing Rito argue over loving Haruna, or loving herself. Lala doesn't hear anything else, at first, but then she hears Momo reply back.

"Rito... I know you think Haruna loves you, I know you feel you love her too, but can't you see..." Lala was surprised that Momo was defending her so, and she felt a swell of pride that her sister wished to defend her so, "...I love you too?" Those four words cause Lala to slump to the floor in surprise as she feels her knees weaken and give way.

'My sister, sweet, caring Momo, in love with Rito?' Lala thought to herself, 'Why does this... why does this cause my heart to hurt knowing this, more so than learning Haruna loved Rito?' She sits there, feeling a wetness on her cheeks caused by a feeling that she has no name for, as this realization hits her. Lala moves to peek through the doorway, where she sees her sister's back through a semi-translucent nightgown, no bra but black silk panties and her tail curling around her body in a suggestive manner that seems to cover her breasts from the front. Suddenly filled with a burning sensation in her stomach, as if wanting to throw up, she grips her hands in an aggravated manner and goes to stand up in front of the door. Not even giving a moment's hesitation, she knocks on the door as softly as forcefully as she can without forcing the door open in her seething rage, which she masks with practiced self-control. "Momo!" she chimes cheerfully as she can muster, "Oh there you are, I thought it was odd that I couldn't find you in your room at this late an hour!" The youngest Deviluke sister freezes, before crossing her arms with a blush and turning back to face her sister in surprise.

"L-Lala, I- I didn't expect you to be up so late, you usually don't leave your workshop until late in the evening," she stutters out in surprise, causing a satisfactory grin to come upon Lala's face as she reveled selfishly in the discomfort, "Usually y-you don't come to Rito's room until he... um, I mean, I- I think I forgot Nana wanted help with her earth homework!" Rushing past her sister out of embarrassment, Lala smirks as she watches her sister retreat to their apartment in the attic. Lala then turns back to Rito with a look of concern on her face, as Rito matches her look with one of blushing surprise.

"Rito, has- has Momo been bugging you too much?" Lala ask tepidly, searching his face for the slightest reaction, "Ha- have I been... bugging you too much, climbing into bed with you, so late at night?" Rito is blushing furiously at Lala's questions, covering his face as he squeaks out a reply.

"N-no, no, I mean y-yes to M-Momo, but n-not y-you," he says looking out between his fingers, "But t-thank you for showing up, Momo was starting to... well, thank you Lala, I appreciate you stepping in." The sincerity of his words made Lala smile, and she forgot the anger she had directed towards her sister like that, cooled in a flash by Rito's shy demeanor. If he had seen what she had glimpsed from her sisters provocative sleepwear, it was no wonder he couldn't look at her straight without remembering every time he's ever seen her in all her naked glory. Giggling, Lala waves goodbye and closes Rito's door forcefully, before taking two steps and collapsing against the wall in a heap of fresh tears.

She had seen her sister try and seduce her fiance, she had heard him reject Momo, reject the Harem Plan in favor of dating Haruna, and it killed her just trying to pretend she was alright with it. Her heart had all but shattered at putting Haruna before her in his love life, which she could have managed if Rito didn't also reject the Harem Plan and all hope he truly wanted to try out polygamy between herself and Haruna; keywords, could've managed. Now she was crying in the middle of the hallway, hoping she was far enough from Rito's room that he wouldn't come searching for her, and pleading that neither Nana or Momo returned through the transporter to see her like this. Instead she found herself covered with a blanket, looking up in confusion as she sees a sympathetic Mikan staring down at her, before she got on her knees to hug the elder girl.

"My brother's stupid, but he'll come around Lala," she murmurs into the fuzzy wall of warmth that began to stop up the dam of emotions threatening to burst, "Momo is baka, my brother is baka, but you aren't, so don't forget that." Lala figures that Mikan must have been on the stairway as Lala was peeping on Momo and Rito, and had likely heard the same conversation she had from the closed door. She knew that Lala had been hiding her emotions towards Rito heavily since she got back, it was probably very easy for her to read the Princess' body language as being tense after having spent enough time with her as a guest, no as an intruder, in their house. In truth Mikan had always been wary of Momo's intentions, if she was being honest with herself she had read them easily as well, but had chosen to ignore them thinking it was merely a phase, or exaggerated to a degree. "Come on, let's go to my room," Mikan states, helping Mikan up and dragging her slowly behind her as she brings her into her room, where Celine is already asleep, "You can crash here for the night, Momo wouldn't even dare come back out after that embarrassing talk with her, so you feel free to stay as long as you want until the morning." Unlike Rito's room, which Lala had tread and tread often to get to her original room, Mikan's own room had been sacred ground, a place not tread by the three sister's, each knowing a girls room was important to her and a safe place away from the world.

Smiling as she lay down next to Mikan, she felt the warmth of the soft bed beneath her, as the two squeezed into the same bed together, just barely. It was safe, it was secure, and it was familiar, something Lala had begun to doubt that Rito felt about his own room. As she began to let her tired mind drift, she could already see plans for her next invention, her newest innovation unfolding before her like they were already written out. Something new, something safe, something familiar. And if she got working on it, and utilized Nana's help with programming virtual reality, she could have it done as a surprise for Rito that coincided with the earth holiday known as christmas. He wouldn't even know the real reason she would build it for him, nor would she hope he ever figure out, truthfully, because then that would defeat the purpose of it being a place of safety away from the chaos of the outside world. Rito's own virtual home away from home.

~ 2. Summer of Change ~

It took some work, most of her monthly allowance during those intervening weeks, and tiptoeing around Momo with Nana helping her out as a distraction. Now Lala was smiling as she looked at her finished invention, which to the unaware observer looked, felt, and behaved like a wall mounted mirror. Testing it out one last time, to ensure it worked properly and contained everything she and Nana had programmed into it, Lala places her hands against the reflective surface and waits. The blue, glowing hand print that is left over as she pulls her hand from the mirror, fades away to be replaced with the portal into the virtual space she and Nana had crafted without Rito, Momo, or anyone else being the wiser. That was no small feat considering her lab was open to both of her sisters, and Rito was known to seek her out occasionally when something of hers goes wrong around Sainan. Creating a virtual version of Rito's house was difficult without raising Mikan's suspicion, and getting Nana's help to ensure a living ecosystem would be sustainable within the pocket of folded space was difficult. Thankfully Rito had decided to go off with Zastin to train for the summer, much to the surprise of everyone, and the frustration of Momo, which made it even more impossible to work on her secret project without Momo stumbling upon it and making a complaint.

Lala hadn't realized how much Rito took up the time in all of their lives, his romantic antics were the center of Momo's attention, while Lala indirectly felt herself pulled along in Rito's social gravity well, splitting her time between her inventions, and Rito, whether at school or the Yuuki house, and while Nana isolated herself, she found herself drawn into his antics in one way or another. Now that Rito was away for the summer, they still had fun around Sainan, but the three sisters seemed to be hanging around the Yuuki household more often than not, since everyone else had plans over the summer with friends or their families, something neither of the three sisters had without Rito. Thankfully Mikan had been spending most of her summer between breakfast and lunch hanging out with her friends this summer, bringing Celine along when appropriate, but mostly leaving her behind for Nana and Momo to alternate days watching her when she wasn't there, so there was some distraction from tedious boredom. That didn't mean watching a two year old Plantasian was any less difficult than it sounded, when only one of the sisters could automatically understand Celine's every word. It took Nana constantly harping on Momo to help Celine learn more than one word, that she had succeeded in getting the youngest to be distracted starting a summer school for the plant child, giving Lala breathing room and help from Nana to finish off the important details while Momo was acting as Celine's teacher.

Once the major modifications and bugs were fixed, Nana had graciously stepped back to provide more distractions for Momo, while Lala tirelessly worked to relieve her boredom by finishing the project and implementing the virtual/realspace transition. When Lala had finished the skeleton, she worked on the muscle, deciding to create a substance that acted like a mirror until it was activated, revealing an active gateway into the virtual space behind the mirror, so to speak. Unfortunately she had hit a snag in getting the mirror to not open up for just anyone, so she decided to install a genetic decoder, which when programmed with a certain D.N.A sequence, would recognize the user and allow the substance to phase out of sync and open the portal. The problem was getting stuck once inside the virtual reality, a problem which forced her to install an emergency shut-off button from the inside, requiring her to use her own genetic template as the 'master key', though she had hoped Rito would have been the only one, besides Mikan of course, who would have access to this virtual reality. This invention was meant to be a haven for Rito to spend outside of reality, a place he could relax without Momo, Nana, or herself crashing in upon him carelessly; so being the master key was something she felt was an intrusion on Rito's personal space, just because she had the ability to use it.

Lala steps back from the glowing portal, as the mirrored substances returns to cover the portal once more. She looks at her hand, sighing as she goes over to sit on her bed to think. The moral quandary before her was one that she had been bothered with ever since she realized she had to implement it. By having herself as a key, she could open it from the outside if anything within the virtual world failed, and the emergency access was cut off from use, and neither Rito or Mikan were available. Equally if she were to not tell Rito that she was a key, and he were to react poorly, his trust in her would plummet, as it showed that she had the ability to enter and leave his virtual world at whim and without his permission. And yet... Lala had seen how reserved Rito had become in the past couple of months, ever since Sairenji had up and disappeared without a word, breaking Rito's heart and Lala's hopes of ever really winning him over as her fiance in his current moody state. While she knew he was not depressed enough to go that far, nor would Mikan ever let him go that far, having her there for him if Mikan wasn't available and things were dire...

She would keep it to herself, then, and pray she would never have to use it. With a smile and determination renewed, she began to wrap the present for Rito, before sneaking it downstairs latter in the night to put it with the others. Lala would wait for Rito to be hers, forever, if it took it. She knew there wasn't much time left for that to be true...

~ 3. Renewal in Winter ~

Lala slid down against Rito's closed door, not daring to go in as he explored his virtual home after having informing everyone where he was going to be. Momo had given up trying to sneak into his room after finding out the genetic lock couldn't be hacked, so she was off somewhere helping Mikan with Celine down below today. Nana had offered to help Mea with homework that day, before they both went out shopping for new spring clothes, leaving Lala alone with Peke and her laboratory. Giving Peke the day off by switching into her normal clothes after school, the android had freed her schedule to people watch for new clothes herself, leaving Lala alone. Wandering over to Rito's bedroom, with nothing else to do and no inspiration ever since Rito's mood kept its plateau between depressive and moping, Lala found herself wishing to comfort the other boy and help him move on. Sighing as she placed her head in her knees, she stayed like that for a while, before the door opened up behind her, and she tumbled backwards. While not easily embarrassed by nudity, staring up at the deceptively young body underneath the black kimono standing over her, was unexpected to say the least.

"Princess, we need to talk," Nemesis states, as Lala rights herself and stands up to look into the Trans Weapon's face, "I think we both know about who, what, and why." She grabs onto Lala's hand and pulls her into the room, closing the door behind her and pushing the Devilukean princess onto the bed.

"Nemesis, you can't just break into Rito's room, especially when he's not in here," she states, confused that the living weapon was even in Rito's room, "What if he were to come back in here, you being here would violate his trust!" The living weapon raises an eyebrow at that.

"You mean like how you are registered as the master key for Rito's private little other world?" Nemesis retorts, surprising the princess, "Yes, I know you are registered on that little device, I interfaced with the device and saw you were registered in its databanks... even though you told him you had no access to it." She waves it off, as if realizing she was getting off track. No matter, the discussion I wish to have with you is of an entirely different nature, surrounding of course, Rito Yuuki," Nemesis states, "While you are all aware of Rito's current love life, but have any of you considered your individual emotional states as well?" Lala wonders what the girl is talking about, but she keeps listening. "Everyone is being thrown off by Rito's impassive demeanor, Golden Darkness has started to become reserved, Mea has become distracted by Rito's moping, Momo-chi has become discouraged since Rito has begun hiding himself away from the world even while at home, and you, you are the worst of them all!" She steps back, wondering why Nemesis was being so direct in her observations. "You, Lala, have lost you desire to create, your spark of innovation, your luster has dulled, and your joy, your zest for life, has even been dragged down just by being in Rito's presence..." Nemesis steps back and looks to the mirror, its swirling surface showing the portal to the other world within it active.

"I hate stagnation, I was born to sow chaos, create change, bring disaster wherever I walk, yet I cannot even do that because of MY connection to Rito!" Nemesis whirls on Lala, growling slightly as she does so, "Now this is your mess to fix, Lala, because you are merely enabling him to ignore his problems and allowing him to hold on to the dream that Haruna Sairenji is going to walk through those school doors one day with an explanation for everything... and she won't be doing that anytime soon!" Lala raises an eyebrow at that.

"What do you mean I'm enabling Rito?" she ask quizzically, "He's enjoying himself without all of us in his life!" She starts to get angry now, at this patronizing weapon throwing accusations out. "Rito had peace and quiet in his life before we came, he had people he loved, friends who cared for him, and we have brought him nothing but more problems to deal with; some you have personally caused might I add," Lala states, raising her voice as she stands off of the bed, "You caused Yami to become Darkness, you, my sisters, everyone has been forcing Rito to confront his feelings, with me, with Haruna, with Momo..." She stares down at the defiant weapon as she rants. "What good is it for me to do anything to help him, when he can't hang up his feelings for Haruna, he doesn't have closure!" she yells, "Don't you think its killing me, just waiting here for him to wake up one day and realize he loves me; I can't do anything now, with Haruna gone and Rito in denial of himself!" Lala whirls and impacts her fist into the wall, leaving a dent in the wall of Rito's bedroom. Growling as she realizes that she had just caused more problems, she angrily turns back to the living weapon. "He's ignoring his need to express himself, whether it be sexual, desire, or whatever, he can't see the pressure building in his wake, just waiting to spill out into the real world," she yells at Nemesis, "You think his aura is just bringing everyone down, it's causing stress to build up between him and everyone, and one day it will go off on one of us and cause irreparable damage to the point he may cut off all ties with everyone!" She collapses and begins crying into her hands, and Nemesis realizes that something more is behind this sudden change in Lala's demeanor.

"What do you mean?" Nemesis asks, stepping closer with a curious gaze locked onto the pink haired princess, "Do you... do you know of something happening that I am not aware of, Princess?" Not getting any answer from the crying princess who is too preoccupied in her self-pity, that she doesn't even notice Nemesis sit down awkwardly next to her. "Th-there, there..." Nemesis awkwardly pasts the crying princess back with clear discomfort on her face, not being very empathetic, but trying if only to get answers, "I'm sure we can divert the pent-up stress building up in Rito... perhaps by forcing him to face reality?" Lala slows down in her tears, turning to peek up from her arms to stare at Nemesis. "It is true that Rito has been ignoring the facts that Haruna Sairenji seems to have disappeared without a trace, but I cannot believe that he is so far lost that we cannot avert whatever disaster it is you think will occur," Nemesis states, placing her arms on her own lap and staring at the mirror located on the closed door across from the bed, "It is true Rito has locked himself away, but you still care for him, his sister and your friends care for Rito, would it not be too hard to believe that they would do whatever it takes to help Rito?" The Devilukean princess wipes the tears from her face, before sniffling and focusing on the mirror as well.

"No- they can't know, Rito cannot know what I know, and neither can you, or else the future will spiral out of control," Lala states quietly at first, before gaining confidence, "I must help Rito realize that there are more women in his life than just Sairenji, if we must force him to face those women, than so be it regardless of the consequences!" At that note, Nemesis grew a wicked smile on her face, inspired by Lala's phrasing.

"Well then, Princess," Nemesis states innocently as she turns to meet her gaze, "How about forcing him to choose?" She steps of the bed with glee, her hands crossed behind her back as she leans forward to grin at the seated princess. "So Rito Yuuki doesn't want a Harem, force him to choose a girl, any girl..." she states, twirling around to stand closer to the mirror, "Like you?" Lala's heart skips a beat as she realizes that she would not have it any other way. Though Haruna held his heart now, while Momo pined fruitlessly away for his over, Yami held him in her heart like he was her one and only target, it was she who had truly come to love him first, regardless of knowing him or not. "So, I'll take it by your silence Princess that you agree?" she doesn't wait to hear and answer as she turns around to focus on Lala, "Very well Princess, let us begin our Harem deconstruction, beginning with a most willing proponent that could still sway Rito towards this goal: Kenichi Saruyama!"