As the clock reached midday, the four left Sanae's bed in varying orders of reluctance. Shinka was the first to get up; Sanae, predictably, was the last. She cosseted herself in the emptied bed, pulling the duvet tight around her as the warmth from the other three evaporated from the surrounding sheets.
Yuuta grimaced as he levered out of bed, a tense look on his face.
"Are you alright, Yuuta?" Rikka inquired, seeing his expression when he stood. She looked him up and down uncertainly, his naked form less appealing than usual as she considered his pained reaction.
He chuckled nervously, rubbing his neck with a free hand. "A night and morning of sex has done a number on me," Yuuta replied, gesturing below his waist vaguely with the other. "How are you doing?"
Rikka's mouth curled at the side, the girl chewing it over. "A bit sore," she said, "but not as bad as when you- when we, uhm, did it for the first time. So it's fine. I can still walk this time."
Over in the corner, Shinka was leaning over, rummaging the distant pile where their nightclothes lay mixed and scattered. She pulled on her own top, before walking over and offering Rikka and Yuuta their borrowed ones. Yuuta stretched his limbs, letting the t-shirt fall over his head again; when his head emerged, he saw Rikka doing up the buttons on hers.
The ensconced Sanae had had her clothes thrown underarm over her face, and the blonde girl pushed them off indignantly. "Hmpf," Sanae complained. "Such barbaric treatment for your host…"
"Host, lover, general annoyance," Shinka said, hands on her bare hips. "Come on, Sanae. It's rude to make guests wait on you." She looked at the others. "If you want to go and get dressed so we can go out, I'll pull this idiot out of bed and do the same."
"Yeah, that's fine," Yuuta said. "I'm not exactly thrilled at the idea of not having some clean underwear, but…" He tailed off, noticing the withering stare Shinka was giving him.
"How awful, Yuuta. It's not like I had to do the same thing yesterday. At least yours won't be full of someone else's cum," Shinka said, before her eyes narrowed, "unless you do something with them I don't want to understand."
Yuuta shook his head. "Fair point, well made," he replied hastily, "I'll tough it out for a bit."
Nibutani looked at Rikka. "I can probably get you some clean underwear, Rikka, if you don't mind wearing something of ours. Probably Sanae's stuff would fit you the best. I think my hips are too wide for mine to fit you comfortably."
Rikka nodded, grateful. "Thanks, Shinka."
Shinka walked over to the dresser, looking through it as if it were her own; her hand found the right drawer instantly, her experience with the surroundings obvious. She pulled out a pair of blue-and-white striped panties and handed them to Rikka. "This looks about right. And there's some socks, too."
"Thank you," Rikka said. "Yuuta and I shall return shortly. Good luck rousing my servant in the meantime."
From the bed a muffled voice rose up through the duvet. "I'll get up," Sanae complained.
"Good," Shinka sighed, running her hands through her hair. "Ugh, this needs straightening. We'll be ready in a bit."
"Alright, see you in a few," Yuuta assented, turning to Rikka, "time to go fish our clothes back out of the bathroom."
"Life is suffering," Shinka said, unsympathetic, before she cracked, tipping Rikka a wink. "I'm sure it was worth the hassle."
Rikka smiled widely back at her, as she reflected that it really had been.
Yuuta wiped the remnants of the morning off himself as best he could. "Sanae is a real handful," he said, rinsing the cloth under the tap in the sink. "At least she's jumped both of us now…"
Rikka blinked. "I don't think it was really so bad, I mean…" Pink crept onto her cheekbones. "I mean… She made me feel really good yesterday… well, her and Shinka both have… as well as you, Yuuta… so all of you have, actually, I mean... "
Yuuta wrung out the flannel and smiled. "It's fine to talk about this stuff, you know. It's kind of odd to think about, but we all wanted this, so..." He looked at Rikka. "It's like Shinka said. It's not about the sex, but the sex has definitely been good."
Rikka blushed harder, staring at her toes. "Yeah," she smiled, embarrassed. "I mean, I started to think about doing it with them after all the videos we shared… but the real thing has been - well, much better than I expected."
Yuuta smiled weakly. "Yeah, it has. Though I think I've been, uhm. Wrung out for... at least a day."
"My servant is indeed enthusiastic."
"Any more enthusiastic and there won't be anything left of me."
Rikka jutted out her lip, genuinely concerned. "I can ask her to be more gentle…"
"It's fine," Yuuta said, shaking his head. "Sanae's… energy is something I really like about her. I'm sure with some getting to know each other and, uhm, regular practice… we'll all have a better time together."
Rikka smiled. "I hope so."
The two of them helped each other dress in their school clothes from the day prior. Yuuta stared jealously at Rikka's clean underwear before shrugging, resigned, and put on the ones from yesterday. "The others are going to look clean and cute and we're letting the side down," he lamented. "At least our places are reasonably close to here."
Rikka wiggled her hips. "Am I not cute as I am, Yuuta?"
He looked at her. Her blue hair was tousled from the bed, the usual yellow ribbon tied in the side doing little to improve the situation. Rikka's shirt was untucked, her tummy peeking through the bottom of the shirt tails as she had only got halfway through buttoning it, and under her red-and-white skirt, a pair of bare legs stared back at him, loaned socks barely covering her feet. She looked at him expectantly with her hands on her hips.
Yuuta whistled. "You look amazing," he said, "really sexy and cute. But not quite suitable for going out."
"Oh, I know," Rikka nodded, "but that's fine. This is the me only you get to see." She swallowed. "Well, you and the others too, I guess. But you're the only one here with me now." She moved forward and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you, Yuuta."
"I love you too," Yuuta said, smiling, embarrassed. "Come on, let's get finished up here."
A few minutes more of dressing and self-tidying - papering over the cracks, Yuuta thought - and the two looked modestly presentable, with an emphasis on the modest. Rikka had been staring intently into the mirror as Yuuta pulled his socks on. He stood up, moving behind her and putting his hands on her shoulders as she looked into the reflective infinite.
"See anything nice?" he joked.
"I was thinking about whether to put my contact lens in or not," Rikka muttered, reluctantly.
"Don't you want to?"
"I... " Rikka stared at herself, struggling. "I do, but if I do, I have to put the eyepatch on, as well. And…" She tailed off.
".. And?" Yuuta prodded, gently. Rikka kept staring at her eyes in her reflection, an internal battle of the pros and cons going on in her head.
"Why not tell me what you're struggling with," Yuuta suggested.
"It's… well, wearing the eyepatch is cool. Like, really cool," Rikka explained, slightly downcast. "But... it makes it hard to see things. People. All of you… and if I have one contract partner and two lovers instead of one contract partner… I want-" She shook her head. "No, I need to see you all more... I want to put it on again, but I have the feeling that when I'm with all of you, I don't particularly want to wear it."
Yuuta worked his mouth. He didn't know what to say, settling on squeezing her shoulders whilst his brain worked. "You don't have to do it because you have to pretend to be proper, or adult," he said, after a moment. "This isn't like last year where not wearing that stuff made you miserable?"
Rikka shook her head. "No, it's not like that. I don't feel like I have to do this. I just… I think I want to. I'll still be the same without it, won't I?" She looked at him in the mirror, a pair of teal eyes staring into his uncertainly. "Won't I?"
"To me, you will always be Rikka Takanashi," Yuuta said, "the girl I love. I'm fine with whatever you decide, so long as you're fine with it too. And the others will feel the same, right? We're all so close because we spent the last two years doing nothing but having each other's backs. So don't let uncertainty come into it."
Rikka nodded, folding her fingers over the lens case in her hand, slipping it into her pocket, her hand reaching round for his once she had done so. "Alright," she resolved, "I'll try without it today."
Yuuta nodded. "You've still got the same powers inside you. Not putting in a contact lens or not wearing a bandage doesn't make you any weaker, okay?"
Rikka thought for a moment, then nodded shakily. "Okay," she decided, blinking as if the visual feed from having two eyes available had just kicked in, unfamiliar. She span round and gave Yuuta a sudden hug, putting her head against his chest. "Thanks, Yuuta."
He patted her on the back. "Any time, Rikka. Shall we go and rendezvous with the others?"
She took his hand once more. "Yeah."
They opened the door to find Shinka scowling, eyes shut as Sanae ran a pair of straighteners through her hair. Shinka was sat on the edge of the bed, the other girl on her knees behind her as she worked with deft hands. Sanae's usual grin found her face as the door opened, the other two standing in the doorway observing her handiwork.
Rikka nodded, impressed. "Wow, Shinka, you let Deko do your hair? That's cool."
Yuuta snorted. "More like brave."
Shinka opened one eye, looking at them. "She has her uses," she said, sanguine. Sanae pulled the hair straighteners through the last strands of hair, the distinctive heated smell filling the room. Sanae jumped off the bed, handing Shinka her usual pink hairclip.
She reached up and clipped her fringe back. "Thanks," Shinka said.
Sanae unplugged the device, laying it on the heatproof mat. "You are very welcome."
Yuuta saw that the two girls had dressed in their preference of casual clothes. Sanae's striped leggings caught his eye. "Nice tights," he muttered.
Sanae folded her arms. "They are not tights. They are leggings."
"Same difference," Yuuta shrugged. "You both look good. Better than either of us."
Shinka smiled up at him, fastening the hair at the back of her head. "I don't believe you've ever complimented how we look before," she said. "Who knew all you have to do to get compliments is to sleep with someone?"
She kissed him on the cheek as she stood up, his response not forthcoming. "You're too easy, Yuuta," she suggested. "Are we all ready to go out into the wide world?"
"The sooner the better," Yuuta replied, "I want something clean to wear."
"I'm ready," Rikka assented.
Sanae rolled up the hair straighteners in their holder on the floor, bundling the plastic plug in with a hollow thunk. She quickly closed it and tossed it on the bed.
"Don't you want us to make the bed before we go?" Yuuta asked.
"Not a chance," Sanae smiled, standing up, before her smile disappeared as her face turned in shock. "Master! Y-Your eye! Have you been assailed by assassins from the spirit realm? I-"
Quickly Rikka threw up a hand to placate Dekomori's rambling. "Peace, my servant. All is well. I have… I just decided not to invoke my powers today."
Sanae looked nonplussed. "But what if agents of the Bureau take it for weakness? We would be less capable, Master… if there comes a battle in the streets, you would leave us less defended?"
"She hasn't been wearing her contact lens all night, Sanae," Yuuta pointed out. "Why are you surprised now?"
"I expected Master to recommit herself to the Wicked Lord once we left the Fortress," Sanae frowned.
Rikka fidgeted with her metal crucifix. "I... " Yuuta reached out and squeezed Rikka's hand, reassuring her. "I just chose not to wear it today, okay," she managed, weakly. "I need both my eyes available to hold visual communications with my contract partner and my… newly acquired lovers."
Sanae looked lost. "But, Master, such sentiment - to choose us in favour of your powers…"
Rikka looked at her. "I still have the power of the Tyrant's Eye, my servant. It is imprisoned eternally within me. But when I am with all of you... I feel like I'm filled with an alternative source of power."
Sanae traded glances with Shinka, who gave her a small, subtle nod back. Dekomori seemed to relax a little, a slight look of confusion still on her face as she looked back at Rikka. Rikka pressed her case. "I really don't know, Deko, but I want to try it this way for once, okay?""
"Okay," Sanae decreed, uncertainly. "If you think it's alright, Master…"
Yuuta watched as Shinka's shoulders just perceptibly lowered after Sanae's placid agreement, the girl flashing his eyebrows at him. Had she been expecting a fight?
Shinka cut off any opportunity for him to follow it up; they were all out of time, anyway. "Alright, if we're all ready, let's get going, before we set on each other again," she suggested, hair finished.
Sanae's unconfident look wavered on her face, before her normal, energetic self re-emerged. "Indeed such a move would be prudent," she mused. "Let's get going."
The four filed out of her self-appointed Fortress, before the twin-tail led them downstairs to the door. Yuuta kicked on his shoes perfunctorily whilst Rikka took more pleasure in pulling the velcro straps of her heelies open and shut.
Shinka slid into her own shoes and picked up her bag, opening the house door onto a grey midday. It was pouring wet, the late summer rain warm and steady, water pooling on the concrete steps.
"Damn," she remarked, mildly. "Well, that's fine, I guess. If we share an umbrella, that should keep the worst of it off." Nibutani looked at Rikka, who had been doing small slides on Dekomori's marble floor with her heelies. "Try not to slip over in those when we go out, Rikka. It's pretty wet outside."
Rikka nodded. "Thanks. I won't."
Shinka nodded, not completely convinced, but to say otherwise would have been churlish.
"Okay," she said, pulling a clear, foldable umbrella out of her bag. "Do you want to share with me or Sanae?"
"I'll go with Master," Dekomori was quick to interject.
Rikka smiled. "I didn't have to pick, huh? As you know, my servant, I have my own elemental shield, but I can go with you just as easily."
Yuuta held out his hand towards Shinka. She looked at his palm for several seconds, blank.
"I'll carry it for us, if you like," he offered. "I thought since I'm taller, it might make sense…"
Nibutani blinked. "Ah," she said, "yeah, that makes sense. Sorry, I'm used to having to carry it. Let alone Sanae's tendency to muscle me out from underneath."
"I would never do such a thing," Dekomori muttered.
"Sure you wouldn't." She passed the umbrella to Yuuta, who stepped through the doorway and flung it open, the clear plastic immediately fogged by the incident rain. Shinka stepped out next to him. Yuuta lifted the umbrella up over her head as she joined him, offering a bent arm. Shinka looked blankly at him again.
"I mean, you don't have to take it," he said, feeling awkward.
Shinka frowned. "How gallant," she said, drily. "Jeez, Yuuta. You almost had me convinced you were just a boring dork. Who knew such a dark streak of romanticism ran through you?" She smiled as she allowed herself to take his offered arm. "Thanks," Shinka said, not unkindly. "It's just a change in dynamic. I'm not trying to make it awkward."
"It's fine," Yuuta said, staring at the gates to the courtyard a few metres away, the wrought iron black and shiny. "We won't get there overnight."
Inside, Sanae and Rikka had been playing rock-paper-scissors for supremacy of umbrella. Sanae, apparently winning, marched triumphantly through the doorway after Rikka, pulling the door closed and locking it shut. Sanae handed Rikka her umbrella, Rikka tentatively opening it next to the others'. Sanae's umbrella was a hemisphere of absurdly yellow plastic, almost offensive to the eyes.
"Why am I not surprised," Yuuta muttered, looking up at the monstrosity.
"It's Sanae's," Shinka said, simply.
Rikka held her pair's umbrella, smiling across at the others. "I guess I get to be the tall one here," she laughed. Sanae ducked under the umbrella, tucking the end of her twintails into her pockets. "I don't want them to get wet," she explained.
After a quick last check that everything was satisfactory, the four of them began their trek to the train station, retracing the steps they'd taken just yesterday. The wet weather subdued the worst of Sanae's usual impulses, the girl seemingly quite content in the downpour to walk alongside Rikka and chat instead of anything more dynamic. They began to talk animatedly; from the words that crept across the divide between the pairs, it was about some action anime or something.
We spend the last twelve hours sleeping together and they're as happy as ever. Yuuta was secretly pleased. For all the worry Rikka had espoused to him earlier, this kind of behaviour was immediately Rikka-ish. I guess this might work after all.
"I could get used to this," Shinka suggested, striking up their own conversation.
"Rain?"
"Walking with you. It's quite comfortable not having to carry the umbrella."
"I aim to please," Yuuta said, evenly.
Shinka squeezed his forearm. "You could sound a bit more pleased, then."
Yuuta allowed himself a smile. "You've already heard my best appreciation for you."
"I guess I have," Shinka allowed. "And you mine, too."
"Shinka… Do you really think this will work?"
"Well… I'm glad it hasn't turned out quite as awkward as I was expecting," Shinka said, thinking about it. "I was… not exactly scared that we would fall out, but I was worried about it. I'm sure in an alternate timeline we all fell out massively yesterday and never spoke to each other again. And the idea of that sounds lame."
"I'm glad it didn't end like that, either," Yuuta agreed. "I mentioned to Rikka earlier, when we were alone. The four of us have spent the last two years doing nothing but helping each other out. When you look at it that way, it's like you said yesterday. This kind of thing was inevitable."
"If I was someone close looking at the four of us, I'd probably wonder what the hell we're all doing. I'm still surprised at how quickly we've all taken to this. But it's good, I guess…"
"Right. We've already worked through one set of problems together," Yuuta said, quickly continuing before Shinka could retort. "I know what you want to say, I'm just making the point, there'll be a thousand more issues to come up before the end. Ones of our own making and ones of others'. So I guess there'll be a lot more occasions where we all help each other out."
Shinka chewed on this as they walked a little further. "Jeez, Yuuta. For ages I think of you as lameness personified and then you come up with this kind of stuff."
"I'm still your friend, Shinka. In the same ways I ever was. Just.. with all this new stuff on top of it."
"Oh, we're not friends anymore, remember," Shinka said, smiling roguishly. "Friends don't do this kind of thing. We're…" she tailed off, considering candidate words in her mind. "We are lovers."
"We can't be boyfriend and girlfriend?" Yuuta asked. "Not that it would really describe what we are, I guess."
"Boyfriend is a stupid word," Shinka muttered, darkly. "Lovers is much more adult."
"Is that why you and Sanae always call each other that?"
"Partially," Shinka admitted. "But it was her idea in the first place. For a girl that cleaves to the Mabinogion like it's some holy scripture, you'd have a hard time convincing her anything closer than friendships shouldn't contain the word 'love'."
"That's fair," Yuuta nodded. "You know Rikka and I are 'contract partners'. Don't be surprised if she comes asking you and Sanae to sign up to that way of thinking some time soon."
Shinka blinked. "Huh?" She looked up at him. "Does that involve stamping an actual contract, or…"
Yuuta shook his head. "Not that I remember. But Rikka is so possessive, I suggest you don't give her that idea. She'll be preparing the documents as proof we're hers."
"If I end up doing that, I'm dragging you into it with me," Shinka muttered.
"Come now. None of us would want to disappoint her. Besides, I'm already under contract with her."
The image of Rikka wearing a downcast, disappointed face came into Shinka's head. "Jerk," she said, shaking her head to clear her imagination. "I guess I'd do it if she wanted. I've given up on any hope of avoiding embarrassment with you three."
"That's the spirit," Yuuta replied, cheerily, guiding them to the edge of the pavement to allow a group of pedestrians past. "You'll survive us yet, Shinka Nibutani."
Nibutani glowered back. "I have your measure fine. The other two.. Well, we'll learn from each other, I guess."
"Fine by me," Yuuta assented.
The two were quiet for a little after that, walking along in the weather, the rain sliding off the umbrella every so often with a clattering of droplets hitting the concrete.
Despite the rain, their train was on time, and the four of them filed on without fuss. Rikka had been talked down from doing wheel tricks on the platform, joining the others instead to stand under the awning and escape the rain until the train came.
The journey to Togashi's place wasn't long, and the group were soon walking towards his apartment, umbrellas quickly unfurled again against the unabating rain.
Yuuta began to get fidgety as they rounded the corner to his residence. Shinka could feel his fingers moving through her sleeve.
"We might have been at this only for a day or so but already I can tell when you're nervous," she said. "What is it?"
"Ah, nothing major, really," Yuuta replied back. "I just don't know if my family is at home. I sent them a text last night, but I don't know if they're around or not. I mean, I'm not expecting them to be for a while, I was just thinking about if we had to be careful about how we walk in."
"Sorry Yuuta. I'll just take off the pin badge that says, "New Romantic Foursome" from my jacket. I know it's going to sound insincere considering how I lashed out earlier, but relax, won't you?"
"I guess I should," he replied, his fingers steadying. "Doesn't having you hanging on my arm rather than Rikka look a bit strange, though?"
Shinka sighed. "It's an umbrella, Yuuta. This isn't the most romantic thing anyone will ever do. Or share for that matter." She looked away, into the rain. "As you should well know..."
Memories of Shinka's eagerness to share certain things aptly came flooding into his mind. Yuuta coughed. "Ah, yeah."
The girl on his arm smiled, enjoying his embarrassment. "Memories are free, Yuuta. Enjoy them. In any case, 500 yen says we won't be getting any questions about walking together."
Yuuta shrugged with his free shoulder. "I guess. Sorry, I'd just rather not have to explain any of this to my family, at least not today."
Shinka sighed. "Yeah, I know how that feels."
Soon they reached the interior steps to his apartment, gladly moving out of the weather into the stairwell. Rikka and Sanae caught up with them after a minute or so, lowering their umbrella to reveal both girls looking pleased with themselves. Yuuta looked back at them as he rummaged for his keys, the girls trying and failing to hide a pair of sly smiles. "What have you been plotting now," he asked.
"Nothing important," Sanae said. "Open up so we can dry off already."
The boy eventually got the door to his apartment open, the inside still and quiet. As the four of them slid inside, umbrellas got stowed and shoes kicked off. Yuuta palmed the lightswitch, and the apartment lit up.
"I hate walking in the rain," Sanae complained. "My toes always get wet…"
Rikka looked at her servant's socks. They were soaked through at the tips.
"Yuuta, my servant has been beset by the aquatic plague!"
"Okay… Sanae can dry her socks whilst we get changed," Yuuta said. "Help yourself if you want a drink or something," he gestured to Nibutani, "Rikka and I won't be too long." He held out his hand to Rikka, who allowed herself to be led away, raising a hand blindly in goodbye as they left the others.
Sanae was pulling her socks off, holding them in front of her with a mournful expression. "He didn't say exactly how I was supposed to dry these," she sulked.
"I don't really feel like poking around his apartment to find out," Shinka said. "I doubt very much Togashi has a dryer. You'll have to hang them up."
Sanae looked sadly at the rain outside. "Hnf. Very well, I shall set them to dry somewhere." Shinka watched as Sanae moved dramatically over to one of the dining chairs, laying her socks over the back. A small smile hit her face as her eyes slipped down to look at Sanae's bare feet.
"What are you deathly smiling about," Sanae asked thunderously, appearing in front of Shinka, who was quite taken by surprise.
"Ah, nothing," Shinka lied, "I was just spacing out."
"Well, pay attention. We're on our own here until Master and Yuuta reappear."
Yeah, that reminds me. Rikka. Shinka sat down on the sofa in the living area, waving Sanae over to join her.
"Speaking of Rikka," Shinka started as Sanae sat by her side, her tone careful. "What was that about earlier? You looked like you were about to fight shadows when you saw she wasn't wearing that bandage she usually keeps over her eye. What's up?"
"You think to probe my thoughts?" Sanae scowled. "Well, I was concerned about my master's judgement. I thought she might be abrogating her deathly responsibilities."
"And?" Shinka continued. "Is she?"
"... I don't know," Dekomori confessed, "She assured me again on the trip over that she was still keen to carry on our strong bond. So I'm quite confident on her feelings, but to abandon the marks of her power in favour of mere mortal sight… I don't quite understand that…"
Shinka took Sanae's hand and squeezed it. "Some of us might have to change things about ourselves if we are going to be together like this," Shinka explained, "little changes to get closer with each other. Were you listening to why Rikka said she wasn't wearing it earlier?"
"I might have been a little distracted," Sanae admitted.
"Good start," Shinka chided. She grit her teeth. "Let me tell you something from the infinite wisdom of Mori Summer."
Sanae scowled. "Invoke her name and make it more confusing, why don't you."
"Listen to me, Sanae Dekomori," Shinka said, poking the blonde girl in the forehead with each syllable. "Rikka took that eyepatch off because she's full of feelings for the three of us and she wants to spend some time dealing with that. If you feel seriously for her like the rest of us do, you need to accept her choices."
Sanae hesitated, then nodded reluctantly. "I love her just as she is, though," she said, downcast. "How do you know she wants this and it's not some terrible Enemy scheme?"
"Because we've both seen what happened when Rikka felt she had to change. It was in the first year, remember? Rikka wants to change because of the new relationship she has with the two of us. It's our responsibility to help her rather than criticise her, like we always have helped her.."
"Why are you always right," Sanae grumbled, "Why do you always know this stuff…"
Shinka smiled, pushing her fingers through Sanae's, holding hands. "Because I'm not an arrogant dimwit and I listen sometimes." And then, before Sanae could interject, "I love you, but you have to realise that Rikka does as well. Right now she's trying to get those feelings sorted and it's throwing her chuuni side off. Do you understand?"
"To think that I would not support my eternal master," Sanae said, not meeting Shinka's eyes. "I… you did clear it up, Fake Summer."
Shinka sighed. "I tell you all about the mysteries of love and you still insist I'm the fake one. No wonder you get confused, Sanae."
Sanae kneeled up on the sofa and kissed Shinka on the cheek. "Oh, I know you're the real one, Shinka," she said, laying her head on Shinka's chest. "Maybe I should make admitting that my deathly little change." She purred as her lover touched her bare, sockless legs, Shinka's soft fingers never failing to feel nice. "Mmmm."
"Ugh, don't get too comfortable," Shinka said, dismissive. "Besides, your feet are all clammy. I'm not touching those."
From behind them, Yuuta's voice came. "I'm sorted, now," he started, "Rikka will be done as soon as she picks out some clothes. When she's done, do you want to hang out here, or in my room?"
"How romantic," Shinka joked. "You already want to revisit the scene of our first date…"
Yuuta started. He'd forgotten about that, two years ago, almost. "It's crazy to think that was years ago," he said, his mind working. "We've all known each other for a tenth of our lives. It seems crazy."
Shinka raised an eyebrow. "Counting the days is usually done for something you don't like," she said, "but that said, I hope we get a lot more in."
"Now who's the sickening romantic?"
"Oh, whatever. You like the idea, too."
"Sure," he conceded. "So…"
"I'll come see your room, if you like. I doubt it's improved in the years since I was last in it."
The three of them padded down the hallway, a knock on the door met by Rikka waving them in. Her choice not to wear the eyepatch hadn't affected her choice in casual clothes, the girl cutely dressed with a mess of dark skirts. She tilted her head as she saw them. "Hey."
"Hey," Shinka smiled back. Then she shook her head, surveying the room. "I like you, Yuuta, but as predicted, your bedroom is still a dump. It's just as well we have Sanae's place to sleep at... I'm surprised this room even fits you and Rikka together, let alone Sanae and I."
Yuuta frowned. "Don't hold back, Shinka. Tell me what you really think."
"Sorry. I didn't mean to be curt." A sigh passed her lips, her look frustrated. "I've just been running over in my head how all of this is even going to work, logistically. Between the four of us and four places to stay, I'd hoped we could co-opt your place some times."
"Didn't we all stay here before that napping competition last year? If you want us to stay here, we could pull some futons out."
"Futons are fine, I guess. How do you and Rikka normally manage?"
Rikka spoke up. "He and I… we usually sleep in his bed…"
"Ah," Shinka observed. "That's almost kind of cute, together in a single bed. But no good for four of us. Unless you want to squeeze in super tight."
"No," Yuuta replied. "There's also a more pressing issue rather than bed space about using this place more than occasionally."
"All that porn under your bed isn't going to put anyone off," Shinka said, dryly.
"I rather meant the girl who lives upstairs," Yuuta said, pointedly, gesturing to the ceiling and reflexively dropping his voice, continuing more quietly. "It was awkward enough dealing with Shichimiya last year until she decided to give up her feelings for me. Feelings that might not even be fully gone."
This response to her question wrong-footed the girl entirely. "Ah," Shinka said, somewhat unsure how to respond. "I thought it was settled now, though? I mean, she's still a…" Shinka looked sideways, as if the word she wanted to say would cause trouble. "She's still a chuuni, right? I'm not expecting that to change any time soon. But I thought you and her had sorted things out."
"Well, we had. But if she finds out that I've fallen in love with the three of you when she specifically claimed to give me up so I could be only with Rikka, how does that look to her?" Yuuta ran his hand through his hair uncertainly, as if he would find an idea there. "If she found out about the four of us, she would be… well, I don't honestly know how she would react. There were enough tears last time."
Shinka chewed on that for a moment. "That doesn't mean we can keep it from her, or that we should."
"I'm not particularly ready to tell anyone about us," Yuuta said quickly. "I think of Satone as a friend, but she's not the kind of close friend I am - well, was? - with all of you. It's the kind of friendship where she would probably rate us closer than I would. So, no, Shinka, I have no idea when or even if to tell her. Because delaying that conversation… when she finds out, at best it makes her feelings look pointless, at worst it makes all of us look needlessly deceptive. I like Satone well enough, but I'd rather not ruin her life by having the four of us waltzing into my place every day and rubbing it in her face."
Dekomori was on the bed, her head on her arm, a plaintive look on her face as she had been listening to the conversation. "Maybe we should battle her for supremacy in the territory."
Nibutani looked unimpressed. "No."
Rikka kicked her heels, not sure what to say. "Can we really keep this a secret from Satone, or anyone else? This is so much more complicated than being only with each other."
The tone in Rikka's words was plaintive, almost pained. Yuuta span around, reflexively wanting to give the girl a hug, only to find Shinka moving past him instead, beating him to the punch. Shinka's arms wrapped around Rikka, Shinka tossing her hair back and tipping Yuuta a wink.
"It's going to be tough," Shinka said, as Rikka's head hit her chest, Shinka rubbing her back reassuringly. "I might have accepted this against every rational bone in my body, but I don't have the first idea about how it's going to carry on." Her voice dropped. "My parents probably already suspect I'm going out with a girl; over the last weeks I've been thinking about how to deal with that conversation at some point. In comparison to what I would have to tell them now? I have far fewer ideas."
Sanae was quick to offer another suggestion. "Master and I could invoke the spirits to cover our tracks. Rumours and gossip would surely fly in the face of ethereal backup."
"The spirits will be about as effective as us going round school telling everyone about this," Nibutani scowled. "It sounds like we're damned either way, so I'd rather not do either."
Yuuta sat on his bed, arms folding as he thought. "I mean… If we don't want anyone to know, we just don't tell anyone, right? Though, I guess that means we have to be careful at school about how we act, too. Doing stuff like that in the clubroom again is going to get us caught. If you think chuunibyou is embarrassing, let's think about how it compares to being caught in the act with each other."
Sanae smiled wickedly, her teeth bared as she grinned up at him. "Perhaps you doubt your own subtlety, Yuuta? Fake Summer and I have undertaken numerous carnal acts there in your absence before."
Yuuta looked over at Shinka, who merely shrugged. "This shouldn't be news to you. We even sent you the video."
"Ah." That was true. It had only been days ago. Yuuta shook his head, feeling stupid. "With all the stuff that happened since then, I've forgotten half of it already."
Close against Shinka's chest, a noise of dejection passed Rikka's lips. "So we'll have to pretend."
"We're all still friends, Rikka," Yuuta pointed out. "People in our class know that. They can go on thinking that, I guess. Just, we'll all know the real truth. Wouldn't you like to know secrets that regular people in the mortal plane can't fathom?"
Rikka allowed herself a weak smile. "Yeah, I guess that doesn't sound so bad."
Yuuta smiled back, encouraged. "I'm sure we can sneak some kisses or something in when the four of us are alone in the clubroom."
"The irony of you talking with Rikka about sneaking kisses in public is staggering, Togashi," Shinka observed, her tone laden with sarcasm. "I guess Sanae and I must be good influences."
"I like the sound of that," Rikka said, moving her head up from Shinka's chest, now sufficiently comforted. She looked up at Shinka. "It might be hard to be with you all between classes now I know what we can all do together," she said, trying to stop her smile widening in embarrassment. Shinka smiled back, finding this endearing, taking Rikka's hand. Rikka's fingers immediately meshed into hers.
Sanae propelled herself from the bed, twintails trailing as she launched to her feet. "Hnf," she sighed, "I'm disappointed that none of you have faith in a magical solution, but leveraging our bonds as a secret over everyone else at school?" Sanae's eyes were shiny and amused, her mind running over this proposition. "Yes, I can agree with that." The fierce grin came back to her face. "Forbidden love has its charms."
Yuuta looked at her, unsure. "Don't blow our act by acting too smug at school."
Sanae waltzed over to where he was sat on the bed, standing in front of him. In a flash, her knees were by his hips as she leaned in and straddled his lap, her striped thigh-high socks highlighting her splayed legs.
She smiled wickedly in his face, her blue eyes staring into his close and urgent. "I like you, Yuuta," she said. "I'll keep our secrets."
The boy looked over Sanae's shoulder, eyes cast past her to look at the other pair, holding hands. "Is this the plan, then?"
"Seems like it for now," Shinka replied. "I don't really like it, but I can't think of anything better. I guess until the whole thing gets blown open or we think of something better, we keep it a secret."
"I'm worried about Dekomori here being too energetic and spill-"
Sanae's hand shot up, and her fingers held his jaw, surprisingly gentle for such a quick reaction. "I meant what I said, Yuuta." she said, quietly. "Even I can tell this isn't a game. I'll have an easier time, anyway, because I'm your underclassman. So I won't get as much questioning about it."
Yuuta nodded, Dekomori's earnest words convincing. "Alright," he said. "We're agreed; let's see how it goes on Monday."
Dekomori jumped off his lap, twintails trailing behind her again. She span on a dime, casting out a hand, the fingers on her other hand splayed in front of her face dramatically. "I'll maintain our cover from the masses, don't you worry. But if any of you give us away… then Master and I shall invoke the spirits."
Rikka nodded, free hand fiddling with the edge of her skirt. "I don't know if it's the best approach to keep this quiet," she said, "but given the grilling my contract partner has had from the Priestess and my other family, I don't think I'm ready for that to get any worse, let alone put the rest of you through it."
Yuuta swallowed nervously, a hand reaching for the back of his neck. "Yeah… the day that Touka finds out about the four of us, we are all toast."
"Ah, yeah, Touka," Shinka said, blowing air out of her mouth, the name itself stressful enough. "She's got enough going on now though, right? After the wedding and all?"
"You underestimate the Priestess," Rikka said. "She would probably fly from Italy just to hit us with her deadliest weapons. Remember what she made you do all summer even when she wasn't angry? This would be way worse. "
"I don't know about that," Shinka said, "she's so far away now, it seems to me like our school is the more immediate problem. Even on top of any of our class finding out, Nanase is going to chew us out first thing on Monday morning."
"You may well be right, Shinka," Rikka agreed. "With the teacher or not, we are taking the same approach of saying nothing."
"Right." Shinka looked around, her expression neutral. "If that's the case, can't we go and get some food? I'm regretting not having any breakfast already, let alone that it's lunchtime."
A smirk crossed Yuuta's face on the other side of the room. "Now who's thinking solely about food?"
He received little in response but Shinka rolling her eyes, the girl too hungry to argue. "See you in the kitchen," she called, walking off, leaving the room with Rikka in tow.
Sanae turned to march off behind them, before Yuuta had a thought. "Ah, Deko- Sanae. Can you hold on for a minute?"
She spun around on him, thrown off by his request. "Huh? What do you need?"
Yuuta shifted his weight, not entirely sure how to ask the question in his mind. "This is going to sound really bad," he prefaced, "but I don't mean it to. I'm just.. a bit unsure with you?"
The girl looked blankly back at him, tilting her head. "How do you mean?"
"With the others, it's much clearer. But with you, Sanae; I like the stupid stuff you get into sometimes, and I like your personality - that's despite myself and despite you, sometimes. I like you a lot. I suspect…" Yuuta's cheeks burned. "I suspect I'm even starting to love you," he said, "I - I just wanted to check that you're fine with that, before we get too far into it. "
"We already took part in the energy rituals," she said, straightfaced.
Yuuta shook his head. "No, I mean, like. Doing that with you is good, too. I mean, feelings wise. I want to know you want to be close with me feelings-wise, as well as the others; that you're not just close with me because you want to please your master."
"I'm not a child," Sanae pouted, dismissively. "I know what I want, Yuuta. I want to do all this with you because I want to be close with you like the others. Whatever bond I previously had with the self-proclaimed Summer, I consider expanded to you and Master now, as well."
"I'm glad, then," Yuuta nodded. "I always felt like our relationship wasn't really well described, before. Seeing how Shinka and Rikka love you… It seems completely irrational given how you act most of the time, but I think I'm getting there, too."
Sanae laughed warmly. "Whoever said love had to be rational?"
"You mean it isn't prescriptively written in Shinka's stupid book," Yuuta scowled.
She shook her head. "Even with my lover's ego, she refrained from describing just how each person had to find their own love." Her lips wrinkled as she chewed on a thought. "As good as the teachings are, if she was really prescient she could have written some more advice in it for the four of us..."
Yuuta laughed. "Yeah, don't suggest that to her though, we'll all be dealing with the fallout."
He walked over and took Sanae's hand. "If we're on the same wavelength, I'm glad."
Sanae looked down at her hand, raising her face back up and grinning. "Well, there's still a bit of divergence. See…" She pulled her hand out of his, before tugging at his shirt sides, standing on her tiptoes and kissing him on the mouth, her lips pressing into his for a few seconds.
She pulled away, baring her teeth as she grinned at him. "That's better," she said, her hands still attached to him where they pulled at the fabric of his shirt.
Yuuta looked her in the eyes, the face grinning back at him quickly and easily eliciting his own smile back. He leaned in and kissed her again, longer this time, their lips bleeding warmth into each other for some seconds.
Reluctantly, he pulled back, looking away, his face flushed, his own hands unsteady.
"That'll have to do for now," he said, "we should probably go join with the others and get some food."
"Fine," Sanae pouted back, "don't think I won't get more out of you later, though."
The two of them wandered out of the bedroom into the main part of the apartment. In the kitchen, Rikka was watching whilst Shinka was adroitly cutting up some vegetables.
"Hey," Yuuta announced himself.
"Hey, you two," Rikka waved back, one foot up against the worktop door. "The rice cooker is going. It'll be a quarter of an hour, or so. Shinka's making some soup too."
"I'm making do with what you had left, but it'll be better than instant meals," Shinka said, not looking up. "I hope you two weren't misbehaving back there whilst we did all the work."
"Not really," Yuuta said, shrugging. "I was just making sure Sanae and I were on the same page when it comes to this whole thing."
Shinka suppressed a snort. "You were having sex less than two hours ago."
"Turns out that we are," Yuuta continued, "it was nothing to worry about."
"Right," Sanae replied, jumping next to him. "The Dark Flame Master and I were ensuring our alliance."
"It sounds like you were making out," Shinka said.
"Well," Sanae looked away, "only a little bit."
"What are we going to do this afternoon, after lunch?" Rikka asked the rest. "I don't think the rain is stopping any time soon."
"Get some clean weekend and school clothes, buy some food to feed four until Monday, go back to Sanae's, watch some films or something as we struggle to keep our hands off each other again," Yuuta suggested. "We'll have to brave a little more rain doing all that, though."
"If it's nice tomorrow we should do something more proactive," Shinka said, "Sanae's rich enough to cover the rest of her new love square, so if you want to go out for the day, we could travel, do a couple of things and then head back."
"That doesn't sound objectionable," Sanae folded her arms, as she thought about it. "But I want ice cream, if we go out."
Shinka shrugged. "No complaints from me. For now though, it's savoury food only. Could you set the table, Rikka?"
After some more minutes, and the usual ritual thanks, the quartet were eating food at the table. Rikka's eyes were wide as she ate the first few bites, the pleasant flavours of the food sating her unexpectedly deep hunger.
"Yuuta is good at cooking for the two of us, but it seems like you're just as good, Shinka," Rikka marvelled, a genuine smile on her face. "This is really good. Thank you."
"Eh?" Shinka blinked, before shrugging, and firing back her a cautious smile. "Well, Sanae gets annoying when she doesn't eat. And she's not much good at it, so I've picked up a few things I can make. Preparing some miso base isn't too hard, but thanks, anyway."
"I think between the two of you my servant and I will be in excellent hands," Rikka nodded.
"I do not get annoying," Sanae muttered between mouthfuls. "Presumptive Summer…"
"Eat up before you prove me right."
