Like every week, Kimihito called his parents, letting them know he was okay; like every week, they worried over how tired he sounded, and, like every week, he came up with a lie or excuse. Unfortunately, this routine was not to last.

"Darling, where are you?! Papi flew off again!" shouted Miia as she entered through the side door.

"Who is that?" asked Mrs. Kurusu. Kimihito's brain stalled; he had been avoiding telling them about the homestays, mainly because Smith was never around for it. Unfortunately, it looked like the jig was up.

"Well, you see, it's, ah, a neighbor. She's hosting a harpy, but she keeps running away."

"Sweetie, you can't lie, let alone to me. Who is she, really?"

"Damn it… she's a homestay. The local agent accidentally brought her here, then forced me to become her host family. Then she kept bringing more and more liminals to stay here, and now our house is a mansion. Aaand the government expects me to marry one of them despite barely knowing them."

Mrs. Kurusu paused for a moment before responding, mental fatigue stressing every word.

"Sweetie, I love you, but please, please tell us next time. As of now, your father and I are coming home. We'll be there in fifteen minutes."

"Wait, what?! I thought you and dad were across the Pacific!"

"We are. We'll explain when we get there."

Mrs. Kurusu hung up, leaving her son standing there in a confused daze. Miia, exasperated, went to get Cerea, the centaur still having some level of autonomy.


"Hey, I'm afraid my husband and I need a teleport back home. Can you do that for us?"

The powerful and skilled mages currently relaxing in a staff break room noticed the murderous gleam in her eyes and readily complied.


Five minutes later, the elder Kurusus teleported into the living room, breaking all known 'laws' of physics and the current improvised long-distance teleportation record. Kimihito was still limply standing in the kitchen, his eyes glazed over and his mouth a strained smile. Rachnera walked in, grabbed a glass of water and a snack, noticed the tension in the air, and left.

"Sweetie, would you mind telling us exactly how many liminals are living here?" asked Kimihito's mother. The boy looked at her and held up seven fingers.

"And how many of them are larger than most humans?"

He held up three fingers.

"And how many of them are dangerous?"

Seven fingers.

"How often do you get hurt?"

Papi flew in through the window, tackling Kimihito into the living room and demanding to play. Miia and Cerea ran inside after her and extracted the bird from their potential husband, Miia wrapping her coils around her darling in relief, all but strangling him. The three then noticed the two unfamiliar humans standing next to them and went off to their rooms.

"I see."


"Miss, I understand that you are upset, but I'm afraid I can't help you; legally, your son is the host family."

"I don't care about that, 'Smith', I just want to know why my son was forced to be a host family and legal guinea pig. He doesn't even own a home, he's not even old enough to drink, but you made him a host family and the first Japanese citizen able to legally marry a liminal without consulting his parents or even allowing him to get to second base without being jailed. Just who the hell do you think you are?!"

"Miss, again, your son is legally the host family, and there is nothing I can do about it. However, if my answer does not satisfy you, I can make an early home visit."

"You're damn well right that doesn't satisfy me! I am the most powerful witch in the world and head organizer of Mage-con, which is still going on by the way, and I managed to teleport across the Atlantic Ocean in five minutes. In case you didn't know, that breaks the current record for fastest component-free teleport by ten minutes. If you don't give me some real answers and do something tofix this, I will use all the power at my disposal to make sure you will never again work in all of Asia."

She was bluffing… right? Either way, Smith promised the Kurusu matriarch she would visit sometime within the next week. She was not placated by this, however, and Smith corrected herself, promising to come that evening. The angry witch accepted and hung up.

Smith had just promised to do a home visit after hours, during the brief period where she typically had actual free time. She called MON; she would need backup, especially if Mrs. Kurusu was indeed that powerful.