Mion could have very well stood in place for the rest of the night, contemplating the fact that she'd been hugged and kissed by Keiichi, but she knew that Shion was waiting for her upstairs to continue the talk she'd run out on. She grimaced guiltily at the memory of all but shoving her sister from her room when she'd heard the rocks being pelted at her window. Shion's terse expression had frightened her twin, and as she stood outside in the crisp night air she whispered aloud, "Wonder what she wants to talk about... She hasn't looked that serious in a long time..."

Her pace was slow and measured as she headed back towards the doorway, but she stumbled on the steps as a sudden thought came back to bite her. She grimaced as she reached to steady herself on the wall, and wondered sourly if the mess she had caused in Angel Mort had caused trouble for her twin. 'It'd go a long way to explaining her mood... I am in so much trouble. I hope she didn't lose her job... She'll probably kill me if she did.'

The thought surprisingly didn't elicit much of a reaction from her, and she smiled awkwardly as she felt the rush of blood warm her cheeks once more. Her feet automatically began retracing the path upstairs, and she giggled quietly to herself, "Dying tonight wouldn't be so bad, considering everything else that happened..."

"What do you mean 'everything else'?"

"Gah!" The voice had come from the darkness on Mion's left, and she almost fell over in her shock at her twin's sudden materialization from the shadows. Whirling on the offending teenager with a hand settled over her racing heart, Mion glared at her as she hissed, "Give me some warning next time, will you?! God, you nearly gave me a heart-attack!"

"You did just say dying tonight wouldn't be so bad." Shion pointed out with a toss of her hair and a hint of a mischievous grin. Despite her annoyance, Mion found herself returning the smile unconsciously, and Shion tilted her head to the side in surprise at the lack of resistance to her charm. Bringing a hand to her chin, the younger of the twins skipped back a step as if to fully take in her sister as she asked, "Something just happened, didn't it? I was looking for you after you didn't come back, and for whatever reason, you had gone outside. Care to tell me what you were doing that made you pretty much bowl me over in your haste to get out?"

"Uh..." Mion's face burst into a furious blush despite her every plea otherwise, and she stared down at the floor guiltily. She did feel bad about running out so abruptly on her sister, but her surprise at seeing Keiichi on their property so late at night, throwing rocks at her window no less, had demanded her attention. While she was glad she had decided to go and see him first, now she wasn't sure if she was embarrassed because of what happened or ashamed that someone else had taken importance over her twin.

Eyes narrowing somewhat, Shion now took a step closer and peered at her fidgeting sister. Mion had a bad habit of being unable to keep up a lie to the people she cared about, and she tended to blush quite easily much to her constant mortification. Arms crossing over her waist, Shion tapped a finger to the side of her face as she repeated, "Are you going to tell me, or are am I going to have to guess? Whatever happened was obviously good, because you were grinning like a moron when you came in..."

"I was not grinning like a moron!" Mion protested hotly, and her ears seemed to burn as her blush crept steadily upwards. Shion simply stood where she was, wearing a disbelieving scowl as she waited patiently for Mion to lose steam and finally cave in. It didn't take as long as she had hoped it would, as Mion turned her gaze to the floor and began pulling on her ponytail in embarrassed nervousness. She answered with a single word as her face heated up by a few more degrees, "Kei-chan."

For a brief moment, Shion forgot every secret she was supposed to be keeping under lock and key. Her lips parted with an audible pop, and her eyes widened to saucers. From Mion's expression whatever Keiichi had come to speak to her about had gone quite a long way in healing her hurt feelings and lightening her mood, which filled Shion with relief and a bit of gratitude. She had been scared she had caused irreversible damage to her twin, but teenage emotions had proved to be more resilient than she'd thought.

Mion's face, if it was possible, now turned even redder. She studied her feet, unable to meet Shion's wide and questioning eyes as she forced herself to explain in a sheepish murmur, "He was pelting rocks at the window, and when I saw him I didn't want you to know, so I kinda shoved you out of my room. I went down to meet him, and I was going to yell at him, but... He started talking, and I had to listen."

"What did he say?" Shion asked quickly as a bolt of fear went through her heart, and she wondered worriedly if Keiichi had reneged on his word and spilled everything to her to explain away his attitude. 'Oh damn, get ready for a lot of apologizing and possibly some running. They'll both kill me...'

"To be honest, half of what he was talking about didn't make much sense." Mion admitted with a slight giggle, and she mused that it was the first time Keiichi wasn't eloquent. Of course, that meeting had been the first of quite a lot of things, so she couldn't mind his awkward stumbling too much. "I came out ready to give him hell, and... He apologized. He said he felt terrible for being such an ass, and he was really sorry. When I said I'd forgive him... He hugged me."

Shion was torn between relief and amusement, and she raised an eyebrow as she noted Mion's fingers touching a spot on her cheek almost unconsciously as she talked about Keiichi's apology. Leaning forward and peering upwards with a laughing smile, Shion pointed to the exact spot as she asked slyly, "That's not all he did, was it? Look at you blushing like a schoolgirl!" With a loud giggle when Mion could only nod in mute pleasure, Shion clapped her hands triumphantly before bounding forward to engulf her twin in the biggest hug she could manage while jumping up and down in excitement. "Ooh, he kissed you! This is great! You're making progress!"

"C-Come on, it wasn't like he–" Mion tried to protest but Shion wasn't letting her, and she felt her insecurities being washed away by her sister's enthusiasm. It was true that she was still trying to digest half of what Keiichi had tried to tell her, but most of her mind was still focussed on the memory of his lips touching her cheek. With a stifled giggle, she smiled at her beaming sister and asked happily, "I guess I am making progress, huh?"

"Oh yeah!" Shion grabbed her sister by the hand before she could protest and starting running down the hall, giggling madly as she went. Mion followed her gamely, and Shion called over her shoulder with excitement, "Come on, we have got to call Rena and let her know! If you tell her in person she'll have you halfway to her house before you even finish explaining, it'll be safer over the phone!"

A sudden resistence made Shion stop, and confused she turned to see Mion frowning at the floor as if she had suddenly become troubled. Eyes narrowing somewhat at her fun being spoiled, Shion let her sister's wrist go and asked grumpily, "Now what?"

"Are you sure Rena is going to want to know? I mean... I've talked to her about Kei-chan a lot, but... I... I always thought she liked Kei-chan too." Mion hugged her arms to her chest now that Shion had released her, and she felt a sharp pain enter her heart at the thought of causing her best friend pain by going over her own delirious excitement. Rena had scolded her somewhat fierce the last time she had mentioned her anxiety over Keiichi, but never once had she thought of asking the auburn-haired girl what she felt about the entire arrangement. "I... don't want to hurt her..."

Shion was silent for a moment, watching her sister fuss over the thought that she could hurt her best friend by being so happy. If she hadn't discussed the same issue with Rena earlier that week, she would have been a little worried and feeling guilty about it herself. The thought made her smile wanly as she mused inwardly, 'It's almost scary, how alike they are in their friendship. Then again... the entire group is like this, isn't it? Worrying and trying to make sure their happiness is divided equally, so no one is ever left out... Even if she joked about it, Sis was always concerned about Rena's feelings, rival for Kei-chan or not.'

Sighing, Shion shook her head as she automatically raised the pitch of her voice to mimic the girl she quoted verbatim. The wiords needed to be said, and while she apologized inwardly for betraying the confidence of her friend, her sister's concern needed to be addressed as she repeated, "'I... I do like Keiichi-kun, but... I love Mi-chan.'"

Eyes widening in surprise, Mion looked up from the floor as Shion stood in the hallway with her arms crossed and her eyes glinting with seriousness. Before she could ask her to explain, Shion did so with a bit of a sigh, "I asked her already, because I was worried about her and you having a falling out over this. Rena was pretty blunt about it, even if she was embarrassed. I... I think she always knew you and Kei-chan were going to dance around each other until doomsday, so she took a step back for you. True, she may have a crush on him... but you were her first friend when she moved here. She loves you, and that's what matters to her more."

Biting down on her lower lip, Mion felt that familiar surge of guilt go through her chest at the admission of her friend's feelings. Part of her twisted in jealousy, hearing that she liked Keiichi, and she remembered well how she despaired when she'd compared herself with the bubbly auburn-haired girl. 'I never thought I'd be able to win against her because of how cute she was... and the entire time she was supporting me. God... I feel like such an ass.'

The distress was clear on her sister's face, and sighing, Shion stepped forward and gave the troubled girl another hug. Patting her gently on the back, she reassured her quietly, "You never hurt her feelings, you know. Plus, if you had, wouldn't Rena had made it clear that you did? If she hadn't been happy for you, hadn't supported you, she wouldn't have done half of what she'd been doing. You know her better than I do, so tell me I'm lying. Would she have championed you like she's been doing if she didn't really want you to succeed with Kei-chan?"

"I got to say sorry to her, though." Mion mumbled into her sister's shoulder, and she returned the hug fiercely, needing the comfort her twin was offering to her. "I have to. I don't want her to think I don't care about how she feels."

Pulling back from the hug, Shion held her sister by the shoulders and said firmly without a hint of supplication in her tone, "Which is why she never told you, because she knew it'd make you upset, and then you would have stepped back to let her at Kei-chan. The two of you are really idiotic that way." She paused, laughed once, and then corrected herself with a shake of her head, "Actually, scratch that. All of us are idiotic that way. It's almost like a game, really. All of us determined to take a bullet for each other because we love each other too much. You, however, are especially bad, Miss Club Leader."

Mion winced a little at the gentle gibe, remembering with a guilty frown how she had stepped in front of her friends when Takano had levelled her gun with a single bullet at them. She'd made the proud declaration that as the club leader it was her duty to protect her comrades, and despite their protests, she truly had been ready to die for all of them that day. It still gave her nightmares, thinking about that bullet finding its home in the heads of her friends. She was only glad that by whatever miracle, Hanyuu had been spared that fate, let alone everyone else because of the lavender-haired girl's courage and ability to trigger Takano's temper so she couldn't shoot straight.

However, she knew her sister and turned the compliment with the sting on its end back towards her twin with a frigid, "If my memory serves me, you and Kasai pulled a similar stunt way before I had my chance to be a human shield. Don't say I'm the only one who has a complex when it's really not true."

Smiling without a hint of apology, Shion took the bitter treat gracefully and with a melodramatic bow. The move earned her a fondly exasperated swat to her ear, but she laughed as she repeated dutifully, "Which is why I said all of us are idiots. Life is fragile... but we still love each other too much to care. Whether it's taking a bullet or stepping aside to give a friend a fair chance at a crush... I think we don't have many limits of what we'll do for each other. All we can really do is accept the kindness and be a good enough friend that we honestly use the chances they give us."

"You're way too wise tonight." Mion laughed with a shake of her head, and she nudged Shion gently in the shoulder as she began her trek back to her room "Are you really my sister?"

"Last I checked."


The Next Day

Club Room

"It's your deal, Shion-san."

"Bah, you guys are all cheating."

"Oh suck it up. You had the worst hand."

"You're my sister, Mion, you should be supporting me!"

"You still lost, you did, you did!"

"Rena has a point, nipah! Right, Hanyuu?"

"Mm, she does. Those are the rules..."

"I will get all of you for this. I know you're cheating!"

"Just deal the cards, already!"

Caving under the pressure of her friends' laughter, Shion took the deck from the centre of the table and started to shuffle it grumpily. Satoko was gloating over her victory in the last hand, suffused with pride now that her losing streak was well and truly broken, and Rika was trying her best not to laugh while Hanyuu tried to straighten out the maid outfit she was forced to wear because of yesterday's penalty game as the defacto loser in Old Geezer. Rena was patiently being restrained by a snickering Mion, but every so often it seemed the girl was almost, but not quite, ready to make a run for it with Hanyuu waving like a flag behind her. Keiichi had supplied a belt to tie the hyperactive thief to her chair, but everyone knew it wouldn't stop her if she really decided to get loose.

As she shuffled the cards, Shion tried to hide a smile as she noticed neither Keiichi or Mion could look at each other without blushing and hastily looking away. She knew Rena had picked up on it, but for their sakes she was saying nothing, instead focussing all of her energy on Hanyuu to save them from embarrassment. If Hanyuu was aware of being the scapegoat she never mentioned it, but rather spent most of the game trying to edge her seat as far away from Rena as possible, which wasn't very far considering Satoko had expertly placed them side by side for added punishment. Rika found the entire situation hilarious, and was constantly trying to stifle her laughter while poking fun at the cat tail and ears Hanyuu was wearing along with the maid dress.

Shion couldn't help but wonder if Rika's good mood was a side-effect of seeing that the trouble yesterday with Mion and Keiichi seemed to have abated. Satoko had also ignored yesterday as a product of Keiichi's bad mood, though she hadn't apologized and was constantly ready for payback just in case Keiichi was still holding a grudge. Shion mused she would eventually tell the blond that Keiichi probably didn't even remember the incident because of his late-night trip to their home, but that could always wait.

"Hey Shion, is it true that Angel Mort is hosting some kind of show the weekend after next? I saw the signs in Okinomiya. Do you know anything about it?"

Blinking in surprise, Shion's hands stopped the shuffling motion to look over at Keiichi who was now staring at her curiously. She sent a baffled look at Mion, who cursed under her breath and whacked herself in the head before answering for her out-of–the-loop sister, "Sorry, I was supposed to tell you two days ago. It slipped my mind. Yeah, they're having a bit of a talent show thingy with the waitresses who work there. The hobby shop I work at is getting involved too. There are prizes for the best act."

Shuffling now completely forgotten, Shion sat stunned in her chair as she tried to digest the sudden weight that had hit her by surprise and fairly knocked her for a loop. Anger quickly followed her shock, and turning her head slowly as her eyes began to glint, she pierced Mion with the deadliest glare she had ever formed as she asked with deceptive calm, "Let me get this straight. You forgot to tell me, that I have to perform at my job two weeks from now?"

Mion summed up her fate in four clear words as the silence of the classroom surrounded her, and she felt the gazes of all her friends lock on her in wait for her eventual death at her sister's hands, "I'm a dead woman."

With a roar that would have made a tiger proud, Shion almost flew from her chair and over the table on her haste to get to her sister. Mion luckily ducked the first stroke, and with her superior agility danced to the left and made a run for the door. Unfortunately, Shion was closer and blocked her escape, leaving the two twins at a painful standoff. "You are so dead! I don't even have words to describe how dead you are once I get my hands on you!"

Keiichi watched the odd dance the two engaged in with a hint of guilt, but he felt a smug sense of satisfaction for upending Shion's world, even if it was accident. She had successfully done the same to his own universe with blase carelessness, though he hadn't reacted with nearly as much fury. Trying to suppress a laugh as Shion got shockingly close to actually capturing her fleeing sister, he asked Rena conversationally, "What do you think she should do for her performance? Depending on how many people know about her and Mion, she could maybe incorporate being a twin into some sort of magic trick."

"I think all the people Shi works with know that she's a twin, or else Mi is really good at being her." Rika shook her head and put in her own two cents before Rena could answer, and as Keiichi looked over to see why she wasn't paying attention to him, he choked on his laughter.

Rena had wisely taken advantage of the twins' distraction to take a hold of Hanyuu and squeeze her in an ecstatic embrace, and the poor girl was squeaking in protest that couldn't be heard over Shion's shouting. Rika was ignoring the two as best she could, but the smile on her lips proved she wasn't completely able to.

Satoko leaned forward and supplied her own opinion as she took the forgotten cards and started shuffling them absent-mindedly, "I don't think that'd work very well. Shion-san and Mion-san are really good at switching positions, but it would be really different on a stage."

"Them doing something together would be cute though, it would, it would!" Rena burst out, and with a big and triumphant smile, she simply picked Hanyuu up and carried her like a doll to be placed in her lap when she moved closer to the others to join in on their conversation.

Hanyuu, now deciding the safest thing to do would be ignore Rena's grip around her middle, chimed in with an embarrassed squeak, "I agree with Rena. It'd be fun to see them both perform something together, though I don't really know what they could–" The young goddess' words ended in a startled exclamation as Rena stood up and swung her in a circle, cheering happily for her agreement and overcome with her love for all things cute. As the spinning picked up in speed, Hanyuu cried out for mercy above Rena's ecstatic laughter, "Eeek! Rena, please stop, I'm dizzy!"

Still trying to ignore them, Rika tilted her head thoughtfully to the side with a single finger pressing against her cheek. She mused slowly, unsure of her words as Mion continued her flight from Shion in the background, "Shi and Mi would probably win hands-down if they both did something onstage. They are pretty talented when they put their heads together." A triumphant shout interrupted her musing, proving that Shion had finally got the upper hand and had captured a very frightened Mion. Rika didn't even bother to turn around as she finished flatly, "And aren't trying to kill each other."

"What do you think they could do together? I can't think of many things two people can do in a talent competition." Keiichi mused with a hand on his chin in a thoughtful pose. He couldn't help but glance over Rena's shoulder to see Shion know trapping Mion in a headlock. She seemed to be squeezing the breath slowly but surely out of her twin, but Keiichi knew better than to intervene, and so he continued as best he could without laughing or sounding worried, "Maybe a scene from a play, or a drama?"

"That's not very cute..." Rena protested with a bit of a pout as she stopped spinning. Hanyuu hung limply from her arms, groaning quietly as her face took on a hint of green from her dizziness. Rena didn't seem to notice, and swayed absently from side to side as she mused, "It has to be something cute if it's the two of them..."

"Well, it's not as if there's a shortage of costumes they could wear." Rika agreed with a hint of a smile, and she glanced almost sympathetically at Hanyuu but made no protest for her good friend's plight. Satoko nodded in agreement to Rika but had no chance to add on her own two cents as Mion somehow managed to escape Shion's hold and was running away again, yelling something about an attempted murder she was going to take to the police.

"That's it!" Rena leapt a foot in the air, and her delighted exclamation put a stop to the chatter and flight in the classroom. Shion, who had been in the midst of grabbing Mion by the ponytail looked up in bafflement, and everyone's eyes went to Rena as she grinned from ear to ear and turned on the twins. Pointing one finger at them, with her other arm still securing Hanyuu to her chest like a doll, she declared happily, "The two of you can sing a duet at the competition!"

AN:

-screams and ducks any incoming fans-

You guys love this fic, don't you? XD It amuses me so much. Well, amuses probably isn't the right word, lol. I swear, I've never gotten so many demands to update a fic... ever.

Anyway, so here is your chapter... and I swear to Oyashiro, I WILL finish this fic before Higurashi no Naku no Koro Ni: Kaku is released! I refuse to be left behind by an OVA... especially if it threatens my ship! (which I doubt, lol).

So, yes, before anyone asks, you will be getting to see the twins sing. What they'll be singing, though... I wonder if anyone can guess? I'll be nice and give you a hint... The song doesn't appear in the anime, but it is associated with it. (It's not just a song I'm pulling out of my ass, essentially. It's got some meaning to the anime, lol) Is that too vague? :3 Tell you what, if I get a correct guess, I'll reward the reviewer with a sneak peek at the next chapter!

PS: Any otome game fans out there? (Yes? THEN RECOMMEND ME SOME GOOD ENGLISH-PATCHED ONES! -desperate weeping-) Ahem... If so, has anyone played one called Yo-Jin-Bo? I'm in love with that game right now. I spend half my time laughing at it, and the other half giggling like a schoolgirl. Seriously, half of the shout-outs are so goddamn random they almost, but not quite, ruin the mood of the entire scenario... but they also make the game very fun to play... I was nearly crying when the boys started singing "Achy Breaky Heart". Ahh, my Jin and Ittosai... :3 Funny that I end up loving the mortal enemies, eh? But Jin's so adorkable, and Ittosai... is so not. Well, he is, but he's also... Well, he's goddamn sexy, that's what he is. (Punish me all you want, Ittosai! -squeals-) Wait, sorry, was that my outdoor voice...? I should shut up. Like, right now. -runs off to replay-

Mood: Intensely Amused

Listening To: "Umineko No Naku no Koro Ni" - Akiko Shikata

PS: I'm seriously starting to consider begging Cherrylin to edit my work. Thank you girl for saving my hide with another one of your correction binges! YOU BE MY HERO.

~ Sky