I'm terribly sorry for the ridiculously long delay. You could say I went on a brief hiatus. Anyway, I'll try to update this more regularly from now on.
"Oh. Great. You again?" Rin snapped.
"Ah, Isuzu-san, you're rocking Mariko-san to sleep. That's so adorable..." said Tohru.
"Shut up. It is not."
"Come on, Kyo-kun. Come see Mariko-san." Tohru went around the corner. When she came back into the room, she was pulling Kyo in by his arm.
"You brought Kyo?" asked Rin. Then she saw Yuki trail in after them. "And the rat, too."
"Why'd you drag us here, anyway?" queried Kyo.
"Good question", said Rin.
Tohru replied, "You mean...you don't want to meet Mariko-san?"
Kyo was embarrassed. "No! It's not that I don't want to! I'm happy to meet her!"
"We seem to be intruding", Yuki pitched in.
"You are", Rin agreed.
"Um, are you the only one home?" queried Tohru.
"No", called Haru from the kitchen, "I'm here." He came into the room carrying a watermelon. "So my ears didn't deceive me. Hello, Yuki."
"Hello", Yuki replied. Haru came up to him and gave him the watermelon.
"For you."
"Um...thank you, but...are you sure you can give this away?"
"Haru..." Rin murmured.
"Oh, sorry Rin. Yuki, Rin likes watermelon."
"Really?"
"Yeah. She likes to eat sweet things."
"It's true! She likes gelatin especially!" said Tohru.
"Sh...shut up!" said Rin, "I hate sweet things, and I hate gelatin!"
"She's embarrassed", said Haru.
"I am not!"
"So, how long are you going to stay?" queried Haru.
"Oh! Um! Not that long! I mean, that is...it's not as though I was intending to impose on you...!" said Tohru.
"If you were that worried about it, then why did you bother coming over in the first place?!" Rin snapped, "And why did you bring these two with you?!"
"This is Shishou's house!" said Kyo, "If you have a problem with me coming over, then move the hell out!"
Haru came up right behind Kyo. "Hush, Kyo. You'll wake the baby."
"Why are you so close to me?" Kyo hissed.
"I'm putting Mariko to bed before you idiots wake her up", said Rin coldly, and left.
...
The three visitors were still there when Kazuma came home.
"Oh? This is unexpected."
"Shishou-san!" said Tohru, "I'm so sorry! We didn't tell you we were coming!"
"It's fine. I don't really mind."
"So do you like having a baby around the house?" asked Kyo.
"It's a new experience", said Kazuma, "I feel like a grandfather. And here I had thought I wouldn't have to worry about that until after Tohru-san married."
Kyo blinked. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Are you really that stupid?" asked Yuki.
"Shut up! He was unclear!"
A look of enlightenment came over Tohru's face. "Oh! I understand, Shishou-san." She held Kyo's hand. "I would love to get married someday!"
Kyo looked frustrated. "What, even Tohru gets it?! What are you talking about, Shishou?"
"Kyo-kun!" said Tohru urgently, "He wasn't expecting grandkids until you and I get married!"
"M...married?" Kyo blushed. "I'm not ready!!" He bumped his knee on the kitchen table as he scrambled away from it, then tripped as he clambered to his feet. "N...no offense, but I don't think I'm ready to take the next step...I'm not ready!! I don't want to get married yet!!"
"Kyo...you really know how to break a woman's heart. It's every girl's dream to get married", said Haru, who stood in front of Kyo.
"Damn, you just pop out of nowhere!"
"You do have a way of sneaking up on people", Yuki conceded.
Haru kneeled down behind Tohru. "Look at her face, Kyo! Telling her you don't want to marry her!" His face was inches from Tohru's. "It's okay. I'll mend your broken heart."
"Should you really be saying stuff like that when you've already been claimed?" wondered Yuki, while Kyo pitched in with a "Stop saying filthy things, you bastard!!"
"It's only filthy if you choose to see it that way", said Haru, "You must have a filthy mind."
"Yes, filthy", Yuki agreed.
"Why do I even bother talking to you people?!"
"Kyo is sulking", said Haru.
"Yes, sulking", Yuki agreed.
"Stop gossiping about me! I'm standing right here!"
"He says we're gossiping", said Haru.
"Yes, gossiping", Yuki agreed.
"KNOCK IT OFF!"
In another part of the house, they heard a baby crying.
There was dead silence.
Then Haru said, "The horse'll run you down. You'd better get a head start."
And that's all. Not to sound demanding, but R&R please.
