Chapter 24

I can't believe that Grandpa didn't tell me that Ren-sama was bringing Onee-sama home this weekend. Maria mentally groused to Tsuki.

You did have school today. He countered. He did say that you could see them over the weekend, and that they should be home during that time. He comforted.

Maria glanced at Lory, sitting across from her in the limo and sighed. I know… It's just…

It's okay. I'm sure they'll understand. They're probably still tired from the flight too. He told her.

I suppose you're right. It wasn't exactly a short flight, and he did say that she would be moving into her new apartment over the weekend too. It was reasonable to think of it that way.

"You made you're flight okay?" Kyoko asked into the phone.

"Mo, of course I did or I wouldn't be talking to you on the phone right now." Kanae complained.

Kyoko giggled. "Sorry, I wasn't really thinking when I asked that. How's your hotel room? Is it a nice one?"

"Ugh… Well, at least it isn't another roach trap like the last one the studio footed the bill for." She groused. She hated that she was still on the lowest rung of the ladder, even though that wasn't the case in Japan.

"Don't worry, it'll get better. I know you can do this, Mōko-san. You have to start somewhere." Kyoko encouraged.

"Mmm…" Kanae grunted begrudgingly. "So, how did that thing go that you had with Takarada?"

Kyoko sighed out a little.

"What?…" Kanae prodded.

"After we left you, Sho popped up and followed us up to his office." Kyoko told her.

Kanae growled. "That ass didn't make another embarrassing scene, did he?"

"No… no, he didn't. It was really strange. Dare I say… He actually behaved like a human being. He apologized and then…" She paused.

"And then, what?" Kanae snapped a little.

Kyoko grimaced at the memory. "He confessed to me…" She whispered.

"Oh my god, Kyoko! I told you! I told you that's why he kept acting like that!" Kanae scolded with a smirk. She always loved it when she was right about something.

"Yeah, yeah… I know. Four, maybe even three years ago, I probably would have jumped for joy at something like that, but now it's just… I don't know, creepy?" She confessed.

"Yeah… I suppose if one of my brothers confessed to me I would be really weirded out too." Kanae gave a little malicious giggled. "Of course unless his name was Cain." She jabbed.

"That is completely different." Kyoko groused. "Wait… How did you find out about that?"

"Hmm…" Kanae hummed. "I have my sources."

Maria huffed in frustration. "Still nothing yet." She glanced at her companion as she closed the large book.

"I'm sure something will appear soon. You've almost perfected everything you've learned so far." Tsuki comforted.

"I don't know." She sighed out, resting her head on the large tome, and gently stroking his little back with her small fingers.

"The book did say that a big part of it all is patience and perseverance." He reminded.

"Haahhh…. I know. I know." She sat up, and pushed the book away. "Hmmm…" She pondered some of the solutions that the book had suggested, that she'd recently read through again. It really wasn't anything new, but for some reason it did catch her attention this time. Probably because it had been at least the tenth time she'd read it. Love confirmation through consummation. That had been one of the solutions, but she wasn't sure if something like that would work on them.

She was pretty sure, from the way they behaved, that Kanae and Yukihito had something serious going on and it wasn't like Ren and Onee-sama were kids anymore, so didn't they already do things like that? It was so frustrating. She couldn't just walk up to them and ask them about their sex lives, and she certainly wasn't going to spill the beans about how she was involved in their Halloween predicament. She was certain they'd hate her forever if they found out. Then there was her grandfather who acted like what was going on with him was the most natural thing in the world. Not once had he really noticed that things changed the way he wanted them. Well, except for the Love Magic. He was just as clumsy at that as he'd always been. Fortunately she'd fished his grimoire out of the garbage before it truly got tossed or destroyed. She had a feeling that he would eventually find it interesting or at least get curious about what it said.

She really didn't take the time to look around her new apartment until after she got off the phone with Kanae. She was amazed with how dialed in on his charges that Lory was. Certainly it was just as big as Kuon's apartment, but it was perfectly decorated to suit to her tastes. She thought for sure that there would be LoveME Pink everywhere, but it was in light blues and other pastel colors. Her bedroom was brightly lit with a beautiful queen-sized canopy bed decorated in satin and lace, and felt like she was laying on a cloud when she'd tested it.

Now that she had the time, she noticed that her kitchen was fully stocked with a variety of fresh, quality ingredients and she couldn't have asked for more when it came to pots, pans, knives, and various other essential items. She knew for certain now that Lory hadn't done this alone once she found a note on the counter signed by him as a gift from him, Juli, Kuu, and Maria. The thought that they had all done this for her brought tears to her eyes. She finally felt like she actually had a home of her own. Not that she didn't before, but when she was living with the Taisho and Okami at the Daruma-ya, she still felt like a guest or a paying tenant. This was something of her own. Not that they actually made her feel that way, it was just that even though they tried their best to make her feel like family, she just never really felt that, that small room was entirely hers. Now, she had her own kitchen that she didn't feel she needed permission to use. If she wanted to do naked yoga in the living room, she could… not that she would do that, but she could if she wanted to.

Most importantly, she could freely use her cat-form without worrying about anyone walking in on her. She only needed to make sure that her nails didn't ruin the carpet or flooring… or anything else for that matter. It had been so long since she'd been able to indulge herself in such a way. When she was with Juli and Kuu, she had to be careful not to expose her secret, so she'd only changed when she was in the bathroom for short periods. Not fun at all.

BZZT… BZZT…

Her brow furrowed. I wonder who that could be? She thought after realizing that it was her doorbell. She looked through the peephole to find her boyfriend holding up two bags of take-out with a big smile. She giggled. Okay, he looked really cute that way. He looked his age without the brown wig and contacts, but at the moment he looked super cute with green eyes and his dyed-brown hair in jeans a loose shirt and loafers. Oh forget it. He looks hot as hell. She groaned inwardly and wondered if he knew what he was doing to her by dressing like that or if he was just trying to be casual and comfortable and she was just overthinking it.