Sorry this one is so long, there was really not a good place to break it up. I hope you enjoy it.

Note: I do not own Skip Beat!

Catherine showed up later in the morning then she usually did. Kyoko had agreed to Catherine's slightly selfish request to sleep in, so Kyoko had offered to help the Okami with the breakfast crowd. She was just finishing up the dishes when Catherine arrived to pick her up. To Kyoko's surprise, the woman looked comfortable in her yoga pants, a t-shirt, and tennis shoes with her hair pulled up in a ponytail.

"Come on, we have a lot of stuff to get through." Catherine bowed a greeting to the owners of the restaurant before leading her charge away. "I have already had two more shipments of stuff sent over by Sawara-san this morning."

You could have knocked Kyoko over with a feather when she entered her manager's apartment. Catherine had not been kidding when she told her they had a lot of stuff. The collection of gifts had increased almost five times and took up most of Catherine's living room. Catherine brushed past the stunned girl and went into the kitchen to put on some tea. Not knowing where to start, Kyoko followed her manager to the kitchen to find there were more flowers sitting on the table there. Unlike the bouquets in the other room, this one had been arranged on the table with care. Kyoko wondered why these twelve red roses had warranted such a special place. Kyoko went over to inspect the flowers. A card was lying loose on the table with what Kyoko recognized as Catherine's silver anklet resting on the envelope. Kyoko looked form the arrangement to the anklet and then to the woman humming as she ladled lose tea into a pot.

"What is this?" Kyoko's curiosity was getting the better of her. Catherine looked over her shoulder to where her charge was pointing.

"Oh, that." Kyoko could almost see the spring in her step as Catherine crossed the room and picked up the card. "They took my anklet off in the hospital and someone was keeping it safe for me." Catherine flipped the card open and looked inside before closing it and slipping it back in the envelope with the anklet. "They sent it back to me this morning with these." Catherine waved at the flowers. Kyoko stared at her with wide eyes as the woman disappeared into the other room with the card. There was only one person that she could think of that was in the hospital for the nurse to give her jewelry to. Catherine choose to ignore her shocked guest when she came humming into the room. It took Kyoko a good long while of processing to rejoin the human race with a giggle as she finally but all the pieces of the puzzle together.

"Are you and Yashiro-san going out now?" Kyoko was so excited she bounced. The sigh that slipped from Catherine was heart wrenching.

"No, we are both too busy to attempt anything like that." She admitted the problem. Kyoko's heart sank as she realized that it was her schedule that was keeping the two apart.

"What about going out for dinner in the evening after work?" Kyoko tried to come up a way the two could spend some time together.

"I can't take the time off to chase a boy, your safety comes first. Anyway Ren's schedule keep's him hopping." Catherine smiled slightly, a hint of meddling slipping into her voice. "He only gets time off when Ren is busy, but that is the life of a manager." Catherine carried the tea things into the living room so the two girls could get to work on the deliveries. Kyoko thought about this for a minute.

"I could arrange for Tsuruga-san to be taken care of so that Yashiro-san was free." Kyoko offered. Catherine stopped and looked at the girl.

"You would be willing to invite Ren to dinner?" Kyoko blanched at the implications of what she had just offered sunk in. She would have to spend an evening alone with the man that she had just discovered may love her. She was starting to accept his place in her heart, but her adjustment was going slow. She thought about taking the offer back, but she really wanted to see the two managers happy together. She steeled her heart and gave her answer.

"Yes. I can take Tsuruga-san to dinner so that you and Yashiro-san can have the night off." Kyoko's determination made Catherine smile before she placed the tray carefully on the couch and sat on the floor at the edge of the pile of presents.

"Thank you." Catherine accepted gratefully before motioning for Kyoko to join her. "But let's worry about that later. Right now we need to get this taken care of. "

The two girls worked for several straight hours dividing, opening, and cataloging the gifts. After about 20 minutes of Catherine humming the same snatches of a tune over and over again, she finally decided that the tedious work needed real music and set up her laptop. There were only so many times that one sing 'Danny Boy' before needed something new. This addition made the work go faster.

"We are nearly halfway done, you want to stop and break for dinner?" Catherine pulled the girls attention away from the card she was reading.

"Ya, that sounds great." Kyoko pulled one more box from the pile into her lap.

"How about I order something to be delivered?" Catherine really did not want to stop long enough to cook, this was turning into more of a job then she first thought it would be. "Pizza?" Catherine asked when Kyoko nodded.

"That's fine." Kyoko agreed and Catherine went to get her phone while the teen looked at the strange box in her lap. She could have sworn the weight just shifted as she looked over the box for a return address. Not finding one, she careful pulled the string and lifted the lid off the box.

Catherine dropped her phone when she heard Kyoko scream and dashed back to the living room to see Kyoko standing on the couch, she was pointing at the toppled box on Catherine's Persian rug. The box had landed completely upside down hiding whatever had scared the actress. Catherine went to see what was causing the problem.

"It's a SNAKE!" Kyoko yelled as her manager placed her hand on the box. This made Catherine pause. She was not afraid of snakes, but she was not having a very safe month, so she decided caution was prudent. She pulled back and picked up a heave brown vase from her entertainment center and placed it on top of the box so that the snake could not escape. Once the animal was secure, she went to get something to catch it in. As she went in the room, she picked up the forgotten phone and canceled her order with the promise to call them back as soon as things settled down.

Catherine scoured her room trying to think of what would be good to confine the serpent in. Her thoughts turned to the large plastic box that was filled with her fair clothing. Dumping the contents on the bed, she carried the bin out and discarded the pottery before dropping the clear bin over the box coving the snake. After a little coaxing, Catherine got Kyoko off the couch to help clear the rug so they could lift it up and turn the entire thing over so the snake fell into the container. On the count of three, the two women flipped the rug over and they hear a thump and loud hiss as the box dropped into the bottom of the clear bin. Catherine had Kyoko hold the rug so that she could get the plastic top that would clip on securely. Again the women counted to three and Kyoko moved the rug as Catherine slipped the top on and clicked it in place.

The two women looked at the dark olive colored snake as it curled in the bottom of the bin. As Catherine came closer to the box side, the snake struck madly at the woman, only to hit the plastic.

"It did not bit you?" Catherine looked at her charge in concern.

"No." Kyoko shook her head. She had dropped the box as soon as she saw the scaly tail of the snake.

"We need to call the police." Catherine pulled out her phone and started dialing. "I think that is a Black Mamba." Kyoko looked at the agitated snake again. She could clearly see the large fangs in the black lining of its mouth where the snake was warning her off. She fell backwards as the snake struck out again to bang into the clear plastic box. Catherine hung up the phone and suppressed a laugh as she saw the actress fall on her butt. "Leave the poor thing alone. It's probably terrified."

"IT'S terrified! What about me?" Kyoko looked up at her manager as Catherine reached down to help the fallen girl up.

"Well yes, but you weren't shoved in a box, shaken up, dropped twice, and trapped in a bin to be ogled by larger creatures." Catherine made the poor snake's plight sound horrible. Kyoko couldn't help up feel sorry for the stresses out creature. "Let's head to the kitchen till the police get her. I am going to need some fresh tea before I call Lory on this one."

It was 30 minutes later when the police showed up. Catherine has spent most of that time explaining to Lory about the creature and how it was found and captured. After reassuring him that no one got hurt, he informed her that he was going to call Ren and Yashiro. She sighed as she agreed; Ren would never let her live if they did not call. She promised to call Lory back when she heard the police knock on her door.

"Good afternoon." Catherine opened the door for the two people standing at her door.

"Good afternoon," The female returned her greeting. "I am Detective Sato Miwako and this is my partner Detective Takagi Wataru. I understand that there has been an incident here today."

"I am glad you are here." Catherine invited the detectives in. "You may keep your shoes on it you like. My name is Catherine Saunders and the problem is over here." Catherine led the two detectives into the living room. Kyoko stood in the doorway to watch the police officers work. Detective Takagi knelt down next to the box and looked at the snake curled up in the corner.

"We were called out for a rampant snake?" It was obvious that this man did not understand the situation.

"This snake was delivered in that box to Mogami Kyoko." Catherine pointed to the actress still standing in the doorway. Recognition hit the male officer when he saw the up and coming actress.

"Aren't you the actress from 'Darkmoon' and 'Box R'?" The man asked. Kyoko nodded and stepped into the living room for a proper introduction. After the pleasantries were done, the man turned his attention back to the snake and the packaging that it was sent it. He pulled out a pair of rubber gloves and went to remove the packing from the bin. Catherine stopped him with a hand on the lid.

"I would not do that if I were you." The detective looked up at her.

"Why not?" He asked.

"As far as we can tell this snake is a Black Mamba." Catherine explained. When the man did not recognize the name, Catherine turned her focus to the female detective. "It is a very aggressive and deadly poisons snake." This brought understanding to both detectives and they stepped away from the bin. "I was sure that I informed the lady on the phone about this issue properly."

"That would explain why we are here." Detective Sato explained. "We work homicide in the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department." Catherine nodded her head in understanding.

"I apologize for any confusion, but I think this is an attempt on her life." Both of the detectives agreed before calling someone from animal control that could handle the creature. Catherine offered them tea while they took statements.

The group sat in Catherine's kitchen sipping tea and talking about Kyoko's work, the gifts in the other room, and the accident that had caused the outpouring when they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Expecting it to be animal control, Catherine excused herself to get the door. She was very surprised when she opened the door to find Ren and Yashiro standing in the hallway.

"You didn't have to come right away." Catherine sighed as she invited the men into the apartment.

"Ren finished early and decided that we needed to come here instead of dinner before his model shoot this evening." Yashiro explained as he followed the taller man into the living room. Ren stopped to look at the snake in the box. The creature had gotten use to its new environment and was curled up ignoring the world.

"By the way." Catherine's soft words drew Yashiro's attention from his charge. "Thank you for the flowers. That was sweet." The bespectacled man blushed and cleared the embracement from his throat.

"You're welcome." Yashiro tried to turn his focus back to his charge, but his eyes were drawn to the woman heading back into the kitchen.

"It was not animal control." Catherine informed her guests as she pulled two more cups from the cabinet and poured tea for the new arrivals. The two detectives found their feet when the tall actor and his manager finally pulled themselves away from the snake and into the kitchen.

"Detective Sato, Detective Takagi, I would like to introduce you to Tsuruga Ren and Yashiro Yukihito." Catherine calmly introduced them as she handed them cups of tea. The guest bowed to each other before Ren joined them at the table. There were not enough chairs, so Yashiro stood leaning against the counter as Catherine pulled a cake out and sliced a piece for everyone. Ren eyed the bouquet of roses pushed to the corner of the table before turning his attention to the actress.

"Good evening Mogami-san. Takarada-san called me to tell me what happened." Ren tried to sound as calm as possible in front of the watchful eyes of the detectives. There is no telling what he would have done if they did not have an audience. "Are you ok?" Kyoko's mind has short circuited when the tall man had walked through the door. Catherine's words had washed over her again and she had frozen in panic. The cool tone he took with her now cleared her head and she answered in as normal a tone as she could muster.

"Yes. I am ok, just a little shaken up." Kyoko admitted. She was doing a lot better than when she first discovered the snake. Catherine slid the pieces of cake in front of her guests as they talked. Kyoko was glad to have something to put her attention to instead of the tall man plaguing her heart. The actors chatted lightly with the detectives as they ate their treat. Catherine returned to stand close beside the man leaning on her counter. Yashiro was in heaven, not only had Catherine ensured he had SOMETHING to eat, but he was relishing the feel of her warmth by his side.

The conversation was interrupted when another knock sounded from the door. Catherine sighed and pushed away from the counter, brushing against the man that was standing close by her side. This time it was animal control and it only took the man a few minutes to collect the snake and pack it up for transport to the Tokyo Zoo. It looked to be a beautiful specimen and he was sure that they would love to add it to their collection. Kyoko smiled and waved good bye to the little animal. Although she was not fond of snakes, it made her happy that the creature would be given a good home and not killed outright. Ren was about to grab up the cute girl and kiss her soundly when the two detectives addressed the actress and her manager.

"We will take this and your statement's down to the station and have trace ran on it to see if we can determine where it came from." Detective Sato placed the box that contained the snake in an evidence bag. "Please be careful and let us know if you need us again." The two officers bowed their way out and left the actors and managers alone.

"We need to be going too." Yashiro informed Ren. "We only stopped by to check on you between jobs." He explained to the women.

"Then don't let us keep you." Catherine led the way to the door. Ren turned to look at his kohai.

"Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help." Ren's gentle face and kind words made Kyoko's heart flutter. She was sure that she could hear deeper emotions in his words. She swallowed hard before answering him.

"Y-y-yes." She stuttered a little under the weight of his warm brown eyes. She walked him to the door that Catherine opened for them. As Yashiro followed the actors into the hall, his heart leaped as Catherine reached up and patted his upper arm tenderly.

"Have a nice night." It was all he could do to stop himself from scooping her up and stealing a kiss, and if they did not have an audience watching him, he would have. Instead, Yashiro reached out and touched her side at the waist and wished her a good night. The girls watched as the boys disappeared down the elevator.

"Come on Kyoko, it's getting late and we still need to get something to eat before I take you home." Catherine ushered the young woman back into her house where they ordered that pizza that they had decided on earlier.

As they sat around eating, Catherine came up with an idea.

"I think we need to arrange for a temple visit in the near future." Kyoko was shocked by this suggestion.

"I did not know that you were religious." Kyoko inquired.

"I'm not really, but with all of the poor luck we have been having lately, I think it would be a good idea." Catherine laughed. "We can use all the help we can get."

Ren turned to his manager as soon as the elevator doors closed.

"I saw that." He teased the older man. Yashiro blushed lightly as he popped his glasses, but refused to let himself be flustered by the man. Seeing that he was not getting a rise out of his friend, Ren tried again. "And those roses were very nice." This finally got a response out of the man.

"You really need to ask Kyoko out."