|Beth's House|

"Would you say you are average for a human female?" Pai asked her, peering into her open mouth as he did so.

"I woun't saa tha I no." Beth replied, unable to form exact words thanks to the device Pai had placed in her mouth to ensure he would be able to examine her without losing a hand. So far the examination reminded her of an average dentist visit. The alien seemed to have the same inclination as them to ask question when the other person could in no way reply.

She watched as the pale alien wrote something on a piece of paper before he removed the metal from her mouth. She wriggled her jaw around, happy that she was still capable of that action. "Anything else you need to know?" she asked, rubbing her cheeks.

Pai hummed something, an unknown ditty that might be alien in origins, or just something he had picked up from the radio. "Would you say your body mass is average?"

Beth looked down on her body, shrugging. "I dunnow, would you?"

"I'd say it's marvelous." Kisshu whispered in her ear as he passed by. Beth froze, but before she could retaliate he had already passed her, grabbing an apple from the table as he walked. Taking a bite he winked at her, going round the corner into the kitchen.

"Average, write down average." She mumbled in between gritted teeth, trying not to blush. Sadly enough this was a body function that didn't take orders, leaving her with a tint almost corresponding with her hair color.

Pai tapped one of her cheeks with a pencil, writing down some more. "This color you turn… are there events that trigger it? Is there a way I can research this?"

"I think Kisshu is already working on that research." Beth mumbled, excusing herself before more strange questions popped up. Where did that idiot get the nerve to harass her like that? She plopped down in the sofa, turning on the television. Trying to find a channel that didn't air cheesy romance – she didn't need any of that stuff right now in her life – she bit the knuckle of her middle finger. If she kept up behaving like this she'd end up making Kisshu think she actually did want him.

She nearly dropped out of the sofa when an apple appeared in her field of vision. "Want a bite?" a familiar voice asked her. "No?" Kisshu withdrew the apple, but didn't bite in it just yet. "Oh, that's right. What do you want to give me?"

"What are you talking about?" she asked, resuming her original sitting position.

"Well, you allowed Pai to examine you and you're taking Taruto on a playdate tomorrow, both as a reward for doing as you asked." He said, referring to the lot of them using doors and walking around like humans while they were in the apartment. "So I was wondering, what's my reward? That's how it works, right?"

Beth really wanted to tell him to shove it, but he seemed so excited that maybe, perhaps she would also do something he wanted to do. Still, giving Kisshu his way would be tempting fate worse than she had ever imagined. She leaned on the arm rest, looking him straight in the eye. "Well, what would you like as a reward?"

"How about a kiss?" he asked with a big grin. "I joke, I joke, calm down." He cried out when she threatened to chuck a pillow at him. When she put away her weapon he continued. "I don't know, how about a date?"

"A date?" she repeated, incredulous. "Do you know what a date entails?" For all she knew dates were something like a wedding proposal on his planet, or a consent to feature on the next menu.

He nodded, smiling again. "Of course I do. I've seen plenty of them on your television, and they look very interesting." He took a small bite of his apple, a twinkle in his eyes. "So, now that we've established me knowing about dates, what do you say? It's not a kiss. Only you and me spending some time together." He waggled his dark eyebrows suggestively. "Unless, of course, you're scared."

"Scared?" she let out a snort at that. "Scared about what, exactly?"

His grin turned mischievous as he ran his tongue across the apple. "You might discover you like spending time with me. Wouldn't that be horrifying?"

Beth felt taken aback with the comment, for a moment doubting how smart being alone with Kisshu was. So far she had been able to out-bluff him, but they had never been truly alone together. Like, so alone that he could very well take a kiss or whatever he wanted from her. Not that she thought it might actually be the case, but still…

"You can keep Ichigo on speed-dial during the entire evening." He told her, spotting where her problem could lie. "I cross the boundaries, you call the girl squad to kick my ass." He opened his free hand as if to emphasize how good he could be. "I won't do anything you wouldn't want me to."

Beth took a deep breath through her nose, weighing her options. Saying no now would probably send the green-haired alien in another fit, and his next request might not be so innocent. She grabbed his hand, sticky with apple juice. "Fine. One date. We go to the movies, maybe a walk afterwards. Any objections?"

He pulled her closer until his breath tickled just over her face. "None. I promise I'll be a very good boy." He kept up the closeness for a few more seconds, then released her as if nothing had happened. "Until you want me to be something different, that is."

Steam practically fumed out of Beth's ears when he said that. What had happened to him just running after her and Ichigo without actually doing something like this? Thankful he walked away after that comment she hid her face with her hands, taking deep breaths. She wasn't used to guys making these kinds of moves, and here Kisshu was just blatantly blurting out everything she could have wanted to hear.

She was saved further embarrassment when a call from the office Zakuro had referred her to came. Slightly out of breath she flipped open her cell phone. "Hello?"

"Miss Ashford, we have a slight problem at the moment in scheduling. Would you be so kind to come in in half an hour or so for your audition?" the secretary on the other side of the phone informed her.

"Yes." Dear gods yes, anything to get her away from Kisshu who was pulling out all the stops. "Certainly. Where would you like me to come to?"

"Just the main office would do fine. Try to dress up a little bit, dear. We're going to ask you to sing a duet with another hopeful." The secretary informed her, voice already trailing off as she thought about the next phone call she would have to make.

|Half An Hour Later|

Beth arrived precisely on time, after having waited outside for five minutes to make sure she wouldn't seem overly eager. She was sent up by the secretary – or one of the many secretaries, who could know – to a small reception room. Sitting there was a young man with long blond hair, and eyes of such a clear green they almost appeared to be see-through.

He stood up, advancing towards her with a smile. She stretched out a hand to greet him, only to have him lift it up and bring it to his lips. "You must be miss Bethany, non?" he asked her, the vague French accent only haunting on the sides, making her doubt she had actually heard it. "My name is Vincent, and I shall be your duet partner for the day."

"Hello…" she replied, not sure what you were supposed to do after someone gave a kiss on the hand. What was the protocol for this kind of thing? "It's nice to meet you." she finally brought out, suddenly very aware of how her ripped jeans probably wasn't 'dressed up' in the way it people would have been expecting her to.

Vincent followed her glance down, smiling once more to put her at ease. "The pleasure is all mine, I am sure. Please do not fret, that green color is a wonderful complement to your hair." This coming from the guy with almost too white teeth. Beth found her sharp tongue lost all function at being confronted with someone who's behavior was somewhat like Kisshu, but with the main difference that Vincent had never heard of Ichigo before.

After that they were both suddenly rushed into the recording studio by a tall man who seemed like he always had three hours too little on a day. Having a microphone in her hands Beth felt a lot more secure about everything. This was what she had been born to do. The soul and passion of her parents that had flowed down into her own veins, making her love music with all her heart.

The song they had to sing was slow and not too overly sugar sweet. It spoke of loss and sorrow, and of hope. She found herself liking it, despite it being nothing like the songs her parents performed. She had to start somewhere after all, and perhaps someday she would find a genre where she felt completely comfortable.

Half an hour later the manager was finally satisfied, both of them being invited back to his office. He looked at them with a smile, not noticing how sweaty they were after being locked up in that booth for so long. "Wonderful, just wonderful. Oh, how right they were when they recommended the both of you to me. Vincent, I had no idea a man could have such a sweet, tender voice."

Vincent shrugged, not too sure about what he should say to that.

"And miss Bethany, such a slow, sultry voice you have. Why, any man listening to that would melt right on the spot." The manager continued, nodding and smiling. Before Beth could do anything to recognize the compliment he continued. "Well, I have an offer for the two of you. We were thinking about having a pair of singers, something different from all the boy bands and girl groups. How would the two of you like to kick off your singing career together?"

Both of them looked at each other, neither too certain about just how the other would react. Sure, Beth wanted to make a name for herself. But if she had to sing with Vincent, there was no way she could be sure she would evolve in the way she wanted to.

"I like the idea." Vincent said, his accent once again only skimming the edges of the words he spoke. "Miss Bethany is a wonderful artiste, and our voices are a wonderful match. If later on we were to decide we are not suited for each other, I am certain arrangements can be made."

The manager nodded, assuring the both of them that that was certainly the case. Beth looked back and forth, left to wonder just how the men could seem so sure about the current state of affairs. Still, she had to admit that this had been the best shot she had gotten at an actual career. If only she had been not so proud, then she could have just used the contacts her parents had.
"I suppose a deal with mister Vincent wouldn't be so bad, at least for a little while. But if I were to get tired of it, I can always get out of it."

The managed pulled out some contracts. "Well, we would need at least half a year time to finish up any other contracts we were to make for the two of you together, but our top priority is keeping the artists happy. A happy artist makes for excellent performances, so it would be a shame if two such promising talents were to perform any less than the best of your abilities."

He slid both of them a pen with a smile, encouraging them to read over everything to their hearts content. "Miss Bethany, I am fully aware miss Zakuro was the one to reference you to us. Which is why I want to make sure you will never have anything to complain about. Please make sure miss Zakuro knows this too." The strained smile on his face showed that he indeed had met Zakuro's legendary temper.

"As for Vincent, I'm sure you will be able to inform your custodians that everything has been arranged according to liking." He accepted the forms, signing them himself. "I'll make sure the both of you get a copy of this. And I would like to begin recording in about three days, my secretary has the details. We'll need to get started with marketing, so drink lots and get a good amount of sleep to make things easier on the make-up team. Taking pictures can take a lot out of people so we should start with a full battery. Smile, my stars, smile."

Ten minutes later the two of them found themselves outside, blinking into the harsh sunlight. Beth felt elated at one level, but also oddly the same at yet another level. Vincent was smiling as well, obviously feeling less conflicted about this.
"What a good fortune I have to be able to sing together with someone as talented as you, miss Bethany." He grabbed her hands, squeezing them together. "Let's both work our hardest, shall we?"

Beth nodded her agreement, unaware of the spy watching them from above.

Kisshu ground his teeth together, not happy with what he was seeing. Red had only agreed with him to a date this morning, and now she was holding hands with some other guy? And she had the nerve to tell him he couldn't chase two girls at the same time?

He watched as she detached her hands from the blond, laughing nervously like she usually did when something was making her uncomfortable. Now that was interesting. Maybe she wasn't that much into mister blond?

She nodded to something the guy said, stepping back when he moved towards her, all the while smiling. Kisshu wondered if this had something to do with that 'job interview' she had just had in that building. It could be, which would make this guy something of a co-worker of her. He had seen enough movies on the television in this place that that was possibly worse.
Those movies always started with one of the two being annoyed with the other, only to have them both fall madly in love by the end of the movie. Which. Was. Not. Okay.

He floated down into an alley when she said goodbye the guy, pulling her in when she passed by. At once she started to flail about, attempting to escape his grasp. "Red, relax! It's only me!"

She stopped momentarily, though Kisshu could have sworn he saw several violent options pass in her mind on how to deal with him. When she didn't attack him immediately he took a deep breath, happy he wouldn't have to sport another black eye for a while. Pai had been getting annoyed with him for that. "Look, I just wanted to check on you. You didn't seem too happy with that one guy just now."

She relaxed, pulling her hand away from him but not, he noted with a sense of satisfaction, stepping away from him as she had done with the other guy. "Oh, him. His name is Vincent, I'm supposed to be working with him from now on. Not exactly the amazing start of my career as I had envisioned it, but it's not like I had much of a choice."

"You do know you're going to fall in love with him, right?" when she looked surprised at this statement Kisshu carefully explained to her everything the romance movies had thought him. He was surprised when she pressed her hand against her mouth, keeping in the laughter.

"I'm sorry, Kisshu. I shouldn't be laughing at this. It's just that those movies aren't documentaries or something. Someone made them up, because people like watching movies that go like that. It's not because you work with someone that you're going to fall in love with them." her eyes twinkled a little bit when she spoke.

"Well, then how does it work?" Kisshu asked, not happy now that his info had turned out to be completely wrong. How was he supposed to know how romance worked around here anyway?

She stopped her sniggering, rubbing the back of her head instead. "Well, it's not like I am an expert. But let's just assume for the moment that it's not because you work together. It's more… the more time you spend with another person, the better you get to know them. And then there might be a spark, something that makes you think the other person is cool to hang around with." She blushed, thinking about the subject. "And then… well, maybe you'll end up discovering that the other person is very likeable, and you might want to kiss them… and stuff."

Ah, now this was interesting information. It wasn't so much the work setting as the spending time together that made humans more romantically inclined to one another. Well, this made things a whole lot of easier for him.

"So, this mean we still going on a date?" he informed, creating a portal next to him.

She rolled her eyes, not quite as annoyed as she could have been. "We're still going on a date. Tomorrow evening work for you?"

He grinned. Pai might have had plans for him, but he could cancel those in the name of 'research'. "Tomorrow is great. Can I choose the movie?"

"Knock yourself out. That means, go ahead." She clarified when she saw his confused gaze.

Kisshu let out a sigh of relief. At least he would have a lot more chances than that Vincent guy. After all, who of them actually lived together with Beth?


I'm sooo tired... I hope this chapter made sense, because right now my eyes are drooping like nobody's business. Also because someone decided to report me for mentioning breasts in one of my fics, please don't be alarmed if my account one day has been deleted. It wasn't me, I promise. And if it does happen, I'll just post this story on Archive of Our Own. I'm already moving my bigger stories there, once I caught those up I'll start adding the ones that are still below the 50 000 word mark.

Love all of ya, have a nice day!