Sister Pri 06

"Rumblkneskin…" Wataru murmured in his light sleep.

The night was almost over, and he'd be waking up soon. Chikage and Karen had the final shift. As a job perk of some sort Aria and Hinako were sleeping nearby with their heads on their laps. Apparently they had dozed off some time into their shifts and not Sakuya or Yotsuba were daring enough to make their move. That or they had fallen asleep too. Either way Chikage and Karen weren't tired, and even though they didn't talk much the time passed quickly for such a boring shift.

"It's morning…" Karen whispered, as she saw the first light out the window.

"That's good," Chikage whispered back. She was leaning against the wall the window was in, so she couldn't just see it off hand, especially with Hinako in her lap. "Are you a morning person, Karen?"

"Sort of."

"I am. The morning is a good time for… things…"

They sat in silence another little while, before Wataru snorted out, "Rumplestiltskin!" and the girls stirred. But they didn't wake up. When they were sure they were still asleep Karen started again.

"Who do you think is going to kiss Wataru?"

Chikage's stare glazed over for a second. Then she came back. "The future is clouded. I can't see…"

"Are you going to kiss him, Chigake?"

"No."

"…"

"It's better that way. Kissing him would be like forcing his hand, and Brother Darling wouldn't want that. I don't think he would."

"…I-"

"I wouldn't kiss him, but I'd let him kiss me…"

"…I feel the same way…" Karen whispered, just as Wataru rolled off the bed.

"What happened," he said in a rush from the floor, trying to figure out first why he was on the floor, second, why were there girls in his room while he slept, and a basic tax overhaul and reform was a distant third. Man that was a crazy dream.

"Big Brother, you're awake!"

"Ohhhhhh!" he said, standing up and rubbing his back, "I feel weird… odd… bad… and just a little amorous. So, three chicks and a chickita, what are you all doing in here?"

"Just making sure everything was all right, Big Brother."

"Brother Darling, you were having a nightmare."

"Any time without you, baby. I mean the next time feel free to jump in and give me a big squeeze, that ought a' help."

"Of course, Brother Darling," she said with a hint of cynicism.

"You're still a little disoriented, aren't you?" Karen asked.

"Disoriented? Me? I've never been more 'on the ball' in my life, sweetlips. Now what time is it? When's breakfast?"

"Sweetlips?" Hinako asked, pushing herself up and wiping the sleep out of an eye.

"Oh, the sunshine's here early this morning. How are you Hinako?"

He got a yawn for a response.

"Glad to hear it. Aria? Are you awake?"

"Mon Frere…" she hummed. In answer to his question she wasn't.

"Oh well, let her sleep, but you're coming with me," he said gently picking Aria up and laying he on the carpet as he grabbed Karen's hand.

"Where are we going?"

"Out to the kissing rock, where else?"

She blushed.

"Just kidding, were going to watch the sunrise. You too Chikage."

Hinako had composed herself just enough to stumble over to 'Bro Bro's' bed and lye down.

"That should be fun…" she said, getting up and walking over to them. He slung his arm around her as they walked outside. It was a glorious morning. So glorious, in fact, they ignored the pry marks on the outside of Wataru's window (which Mami had wisely wedged shut with one of Kaho's batons) or the two sections of rope ladder that still hung from Yotsuba's window. They didn't speak much, just a few random, 'how pretty' and 'wow's until they could hear some of the other's waking up.

"KAREN!" Haruka shouted.

"CHIKAGE!" Sakuya shouted.

"They probably think one of us is making out," Wataru sneered.

"But which one?" Chikage said, hiding a smile.

"Well… knowing me… heh, heh, heh…"

"And what is that suppose to mean?"

"Big Brother!"

"Oh, come on, it's not like Marie is that ugly."

"A-!" they both said, their jaws dropped.

"Man, you two are easy."

Chikage balled her fist as a vein on her forehead stared pulsing, and Karen gave him a little shove.

"Lets go, we don't want them finding the magazines under my bed now do we?"

"What magazines, Brother Darling," Chigake said, with more sarcasm than he preferred.

"Why, Big Bad Wolf Magazine, my dear. All the better to woo you with…"

"Woo?" Karen asked.

He made a woo sound as he blew in her ear.

Her spine went ridged, and her features froze after making a little smile.

"How 'bout you Chikage?"

"I'm all right for right-"

He put his mouth near her ear and did his thing.

"-now…"

"I'm glad we got that settled. Oh look it's Haruka. Allo… HA!"

"Where were you?"

"We were just watching the sunset."

"What happened?"

He looked back to see Karen and Chikage frozen in place. "They'll be fine once breakfast is up. Where's Shirayuki?"

"I zhink she's still asleep, but we'll have to see."

"Haruka, have you lost weight?"

"huh?"

"No, you didn't need to lose weight, but you're looking a little different today? Spiffy even?"

"Spiffy?"

He briefly thought about making a spiffy noise in her ear, but he doubted it'd have the same affect. Just thinking about it made him smile in an inside joke way, which made her look on in even more confusion.

"It's nothing, probably. Nice boots by the way," he tacked on as he walked past.

"DEAR BROTHER!" Sakuya shouted from stairs just as he came in.

"Got tired of all the yelling and MOVED OUT!" he shouted back.

"Har-har, don't be so mean. Where were you?"

"Shooting some fish in a barrel. You're not a fish are you, Sakuya?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I was just thinking…" he said, walking to her side on the stairs, "that if I wanted a challenge you'd be… ready and willing, too… non conform, right?"

"No…?"

"See, you're doing it just there. That's what I like about you Sakuya. That and the fact you can still pinch my cheek into oblivion in spite of the whole 'my name is Sakuya and I weight twenty pounds less than girls half my height' thing."

"You… do?"

"Sure, in face I like it so much I'm going to give something back. Here."

He grabbed her hand, held it palm up, and spat in it.

"It's a swimming pool…" When she looked up not knowing up from down at this point he gave her upturned and moistened hand a few pats (to which I say, yucky-guck) and made for the kitchen to wash his own, now moistened, hand.

"HEY!" she shouted when he started laughing, maniacally, halfway there.

In the kitchen Shiriyuki was halfway through a yawn as he walked in.

"Good morning, honey bunches of oats."

"Morning," she said through her inhaling experience.

"I was talking to the cereal," he said picking up a box.

"Oh…"

"Good morning, my little flower."

"G-" she began, but she saw he was looking at the flower on the window sill as he cleaned of his hand. "Oh…"

"Good morning, beautiful."

"What are you talking to now?"

"We'll if you prefer Shirayuki to beautiful…"

"Oh… Well, good morning at last, Mr. Joker."

"Ho ho… What's for breakfast?"

"I don't know yet, half the kitchen is still missing."

"I think I know where it is. I'll go get it for you."

"Be careful," she yawned. "If you're going to Rin Rin's room, be careful, Elder Brother."

"Careful is my middle name."

He strolled out the door and up the stairs just as Sakuya was coming back down.

"That wasn't very nice," she said, still drying her hand.

"Nice is a point of view, Sakuya…"

"Don't give me that," she said, smiling through her teeth, "I want an-"

On the spur of the moment he took a step up and putting his face almost on hers, blew in her ear. Like the other she froze too, her eyes going wide, her breath quickening.

"Works every time, I guess," he noted to himself as walked on. He knocked on Rin Rin's door and cleared his throat extra loud. "We know you have half the kitchen in there, and we have you surrounded! Give up, Rin Rin!)

Rin Rin opened the door, wearing a low cut/high cut Chinese style dress and more make-up than he had seen anyone wear yet. Well, maybe the clowns at the circus, but not really. And yet, somehow, she had pulled it off. They didn't call her a genius freak (behind her back) for nothing.

"Don't you want to examine the evidence?"

"Oh, trust me, I'll 'examine away' all I can, after breakfast. Now kindly return the kitchen to it's rightful place and we won't have any trouble."

"Kitchen?" she asked, walking up to, and leaning on him. "What's a kitchen?"

"Playing dumb, huh?"

"You're bad."

"If were going to start playing good cop, bad cop, you're going to have to get a badge and a number…" he said pushing her away. "Oh, and Rin Rin?" he continued, pulling her toward him again and leaning her back, like he was going to move in with the lips. "Don't think I wouldn't, but… not on an empty stomach…"

And he dropped her.

"Owww!" she said, rubbing her back.

He stepped over her and marched into the lab.

"A blender. You shouldn't have! And there's the can opener, not in my wildest dreams, a can opener! Speaking of tin cans…"

Mecha Rin Rin had self-activated.

"Over here Mrs. Roboto, you're going to help me lug this down to the kitchen, or else."

It raised a fist.

He raised his own.

It took a step forward.

He took a step forward.

I pulled back for the deathblow.

He took a step forward and blew in its ears. Or where it's ear should have been at least.

Its eye's popped open which had never happened before and it shook a little, then made the sound of a light bulb blowing and deactived.

"I should really patent that," he said to himself a little over confident.

Rin Rin, who had gotten back up, ran over to him and blew in his ear. He felt a shiver run up and down his spine and almost froze, but seeing it done from the outside so many times he broke the spell before the damage was done and shouted in an 'Okay-you-won-but-next-time-it-won't-be-so-easy!' voice, "Don't Dooo That!"

Rin Rin giggled as she grabbed the Can opener and ran outside, hopefully down to the kitchen. He grabbed some of the other labor saving appliances and carried them down after her.

In the kitchen there was a sleepy Aria, a sleepy Shirayuki, and an ornery Mami.

"Well I grabbed what I could, but if the can open isn't here yet then we might just have to buy a new one…" And it wasn't.

"That's all right, just but what you have over-" she yawned again.

"Shirayuki are you tired?" She nodded. "Well we can't have that. Here," he said walking over to her, "put your right hand on my shoulder, and-" he grabbed her left with his right.

She suddenly seemed a lot more awake.

"Why?"

"We're going to dance. You know how to waltz right?"

"No!" she said, toying with the notion of pulling loose and getting started on some eggs or something.

"No better time to learn you mean," he said, taking a step round the corner.

"Yeah, but I-" she said hesitating.

"Shall we dance," he sang, pulling her round with him as he started down one span of the kitchen, "shall we dance on a bright cloud of cloud of music shall we fly!"

"Bud's lost it," Mami said to Aria as she looked on in piqued amusement. He didn't know how to dance, but there he was. Crazy…

"Mon Frere…"

"…Or perchance, when the last little star has left the sky…"

A crowd began to gather at the door, first Marie, then Mamoru, and then the rest of them looking on in wonder.

"…On the clear understanding that this kind of thing can happen!"

The third time round the room he ended by twirling her away as she landed with a thud, short of breath and awake, against the fridge, with a full chorus of, "Shall we dance, shall we dance, shall we dance!"

He then looked to Aria and Mami. Aria pointed at herself and Mami pointed at her too, as she began to piece together to her horror that she was next. He shook his head at the proposition he go with Aria, grabbed Mami's pointing hand and with a hand round her waist, nearly threw her into those first couple of steps as they started.

"Okay think 'bright cloud of music' now," he said, as they started their first clumsy round and he started to sing. The second time round went much smoother and the third was almost like they were an item. But it wasn't until he, for some reason, stopped singing and dancing at, 'and shall you be my new romance?' that the other girlfriend potentates stormed the room for their chance.

"Brother Mine, may I be next."

"I want to dance Bro Bro!"

"Aria was… next… Mon Frere…"

"Hey Bro, where'd you learn to dance, let me try!"

"Big Brother, you can dance!"

"Brother, when can I try!"

"Oh Brother," he growled. Their kitchen wasn't large enough for all of them and any thoughts of dancing flew out the window and onto the lawn, which, by no small coincidence, was where they carried him by force for a dancing party. Round and round they went until they heard a familiar bell that meant they were late for school. In all the hustle no one noticed Mami still standing in the middle of the kitchen with a cold morning stare on her face. She felt odd.