A/N: This chapter is was near thirty pages long, so I've split it into two for ease of reading

Chapter Nine: Secrets at the Beach: Part One

Ryu stretched lazily and looked out of the window of the oversized personal coach Mizuki had provided them all with as the streamed down the highway, counting signs out of shear boredom.

He had been a resident at the Hinata Sou for a few months now and his search had turned up absolutely zip, nil, nothing, zero to the power of itself.

It wasn't through lack of trying on his behalf, he had scoured that building from top to bottom on multiple occasions and every time he had come up dry.

He was beginning to wonder if his information was false, perhaps the informant had been mislead or the data was simply outdated and the sword had been moved to another location…

No, he couldn't allow himself to believe that, otherwise it made this whole 'adventure' a pointless and distracting waste of time.

Looking around he spotted Kanna, perched on the edge of her seat next to a small table, a number of heavy looking textbooks in front of her as she scribbled down notes on a black piece of paper, her look of pinched concentration rather…cute, after a fashion.

Ryu had long since given up trying to deny he found Kanna attractive. It was a fruitless endeavour and required far too much mental energy to pull off even vaguely successfully.

Besides he was only human after all.

Even dressed in a fairly unspectacular fashion, you could tell what lay beneath, Kanna just had one of those bodies that defied attempts to hide or minimise her curves.

As he had a number of times since this trip began, he found himself idly wondering what she would look like in a swimsuit…

A sharp rap to the skull cleared the image; only to have it replaced seconds later by an upset looking Ayu.

He still couldn't think too long about one girl without finding thoughts of the other intruding at some point.

He swallowed as a picture of a delicately blushing Ayu, clad in a bikini fluttered into his mind for a second.

Now just where had that come from, he wondered, casting a glance further back to where Ayu sat next to Chii and Yui, the former trying her best to keep up a conversation with the blue haired girl, not because Ayu was talking to quickly, but because she was still getting used to verbalising her thoughts beyond one or two word sentences.

On her lap, Chiho yapped and keened in time with his mistress' responses, as if offering encouragement or supporting what she said.

Ryu had to stifle a grin when he saw Yui. The tanned older woman was sitting as far back from Chiho as her chair would allow, eying him as if he would lunge for her throat at any moment. Needless to say it was a pleasantly amusing image to see Yui acting nervous for once.

His eyes came back to Ayu.

She was pretty after a fashion he supposed, and unbelievably cute and sweet, though set along side the other residents she would seem rather plain to the casual observer.

She noticed him watching and blushed, looking down at her lap for a moment before offering him a shy smile.

Even in her current state, such things failed to pass by Yui, and she grinned wickedly, whispering something to the younger girl that had her hiding her face from him.

Yui yelped and shrank back as Chiho barked at her, mistaking her suddenly relaxed and open posture as meaning she wanted to play with him. Ryu shook his head, turning away to find Kanna looking at him pointedly.

"What?", he asked when she didn't break gaze.

"Don't you think you have more important things to do than drool over us, pervert", she said, jabbing at her notes with the end of her pencil.

He scowled, reminded now of the small mountain of catch up assignments he still had to plough through. Yet another thing that was taking up precious time he could have been using to search for the sword.

"If you recall, I didn't want to come here in the first place", he reminded her, and it was true.

When Ema had first suggested it, while the girls had been ecstatic, he had politely declined, offering the excuse that someone had to stay behind to feed Chiho-chan.

Ema had shot down that outlet by informing him that they were taking him with them, much to Yui's dismay and Chii's reserved happiness.

He had argued briefly with them, but seven to one odds are favourable to no man, especially in these circumstances, and they had worn him down bit by bit.

If he was honest, it was Yui's veiled hints that Kanna had brought a new swimsuit just for this trip that finally swayed him, but his dignity refused to allow him to acknowledge that consciously.

All thanks to Yui, he had found many a night before they had left, spent musing over just what Kanna had brought as best as his limited knowledge in the area would allow, and picturing how it might luck.

Of course come morning he would feel thoroughly sickened with himself, as if his teenaged body had betrayed him, but such is life.

Add these new dreams about Ayu into the mix and his nights were becoming increasingly restless.

Returning to the present he found Kanna giving him another of those looks. Not her familiar 'I'm going to make you wish you'd never been born' looks, but something new that had surfaced over the past month. A sullen, resigned kind of look, tinged with hurt and sadness.

He had been treated to this new expression in place of shouting and threats of violence on a small number of occasions, and now, as it had then, it never failed to leave him feeling guilty and uneasy.

Without another word passing between them, Kanna returned to her studies, her silence the final nail in the coffin as far as conversation between them was concerned for the remainder of the ride.

Ryu sighed, a popular pastime since he had become a resident at the Hinata Sou, allowing himself to roam around the suddenly limited space of the coach, settling upon the little gathering he could just make out at the front of the vehicle.

Mizuki and Natsuki were sitting in the front passenger seats under the pretence of keeping Ema company as she drove, but really it was just so Mizuki could hang out of the window in case her travel sickness kicked in.

He wondered how Ema felt about taking yet another vacation. The female landlord had gone with Natsuki to visit her family in Okinawa not too long ago, and had returned with a host of stories regarding the many, many times she had mistaken Natsuki for either her Mother, or older sister.

Natsuki's mother, or "The Baby Machine", as she had been referred to by Ema, had a rather large family, and within that group, an unusual trait had developed amongst the women.

That is to say, that if one were to meet Natsuki, her mother and sister without ever having been previously introduced, one might mistake them for sisters, triplets in fact.

According to Ema the only way to tell them all apart was by their hairstyles, and it didn't help that Mutsumi would often mimic her mother's hairstyle, and occasionally her clothes as well.

The matriarch of the Otohime line might as well have cloned herself when it came to the girls she had given birth to, each one of the many sisters growing up to match her almost identically in figure, complexion and even personality by the time they hit their twentieth year.

Ryu couldn't even begin to fathom how one woman could give birth to the number of children he had been quoted, let alone retain the youthful looks and superb figure she passed along to her daughters.

Despite a number of misadventures and having to put up with unwanted attention of Mutsumi's husband's bachelor best friend, Ema had seemed to enjoy her time off, so that might have been why she had decided a similar round of R and R was just the thing for he and the girls.

When he had finally agreed to come along in the end, Ema had informed them all that in addition to the travelling expenses which were being taken care of courtesy of Mizuki, money in and of itself would not be something they had to greatly concern themselves with over the course of the trip, and not only this, but she had personally guaranteed that they would not be lacking for things to do once they reached their destination.

It was true that Ryu was a rather cautious man by nature, but surely anyone would have been wary of such a 'once in a lifetime' offer.

When he had attempted to grill her on the specifics however he had been shouted down by Kanna, who was all to eager to get going then and there if it had been possible.

He supposed it did seem a little odd that he should keep trying to poke holes in such an unexpected and potentially benefical offer, but still…

If everything was fine, and they seemed set for a carefree vacation in the sun…

Ryu turned back to the window, counting one more sign as it streaked by.

If everything seemed so wonderful, then why did he have such a deep sense of foreboding?

This, this would be why, he thought as the baggage-laden group drew to a halt in front of a weathered old single story structure that had obviously seen better days.

There was an unmistakeable vibe of suspicion in the air, radiating toward their sweating manager as she spotted the questioning looks being sent her way.

"Please tell me we're not staying here", Yui was the first to voice what the others were too polite to say.

"No, no, not here", Ema assured them, though it would have worked better without the nervous head scratching, "We are definitely not staying here…".

"Right…So, what are we doing here?", Kanna asked, noticing the pause the older woman had left that indicated there was more than she was telling.

"Well, um, you see, the thing is…", Ema began unconsciously playing with one of her hair ribbons.

"Yeeeessssss", Kanna had to stop herself from tapping her foot impatiently.

"Remember how I said money wouldn't be an issue on this vacation?", she was sweating heavily now as everyone leaned in a little closer.

"I think we recall words to that effect, yes", Ryu had the feeling he was about to be proved right about something, but he wouldn't like it when he was…in fact, he didn't believe any of them would.

"Well, you see, this place is owned by a member of the family who gave me control of the Hinata Sou, since both places are owned by the same family, they said they'd pay for this trip, but in return…", she paused, eying all the intent faces, her throat suddenly feeling very dry, "…in return we are all going to work here over our vacation".

There was a brittle silence.

"Work?", Mizuki and Yui said as one, their deadpan tones identical.

Chii and Chiho looked at each other, the former shrugging and getting a firmer grip on her backpack while her pet wagged his tail, oblivious to the souring mood around him as he took in al the strange new smells.

"What kind of vacation is it when you have to work", Kanna added, adopting the hands on hips pose that Ryu was all too familiar with.

It was interesting viewing it from the outside, rather than being the one it was directed at…

I knew this was too good to be true, he lament, wincing as he felt the weight of his assignments tugging at the strings of the bag over his shoulder.

Now he would have even less time to complete them. 'Fun' he could shrug off like ducks do water, but if Ema had signed them all up as employees, his personal sense of ethics probably wouldn't let him off the hook so easily.

He folded his arms to watch the situation between Kanna an Ema play out, while Yui and Mizuki sulked and Chii played idly with Chiho, showing a complete lack of interest in the proceedings.

"I don't think it will be so bad", Ayu spoke up, shrinking a little when everyone turned to look at her with varying expressions, "Ano…I, mean…well we're still going to be one the beach all day…technically".

She had a point, the structure was located at the head of the sandy shore, and probably served as a café for the beach goers, so in one way, they would still get their time in the sun with all the others, just not in the way any of them had envisioned.

Unfortunately for Ayu, though the others were all thinking the same thing as Ryu, save perhaps Chii who was playing fetch with Chiho with a piece of drift wood, she had just made herself out to be a co-conspirator, and thus public enemy number one in her friends' eyes.

She shrank back behind Ryu; smiling out from behind his back in what she hoped was a placating fashion.

Eventually everyone went back to their own private thoughts, though Kanna's eyes seemed to linger on him and Ayu a moment longer than the rest, something indecipherable churning behind her brown orbs before she resumed what was basically dressing down Ema with respectful overtones.

He cast a glance back at Ayu who was still absently clinging to the back of his white t-shirt as she watched the group more or less degenerate into chaos.

A shrill whistle had everyone in the area clamping their hands over their ears, and Chiho whimpering with his paws over his head for a moment.

When the ringing sensation faded, Natsuki clapped her hands together, her disposition deceptively sweet for someone who had just used a rather unconventional method of gathering attention.

"Ara, gomen minna-san", she apologised, smiling brightly.

"Are you really sorry?", Ryu asked, still trying to clear his head.

"Awww, don't be so grumpy Ryu-kun", she chastised him, her choice of words setting both Kanna and even Ayu giggling behind their hands as he snorted and folded his arms again, relaxing into a disinterested pose.

"Oh, I know!", Natsuki said, her hands clasped together in front of her chest as if she had just had the most wonderful idea, and Ema had the disorientating triple vision of three Natsuki's only the other two didn't look exactly like the girl in front of her, "How about I introduce you all to the manager to get you used to the idea of working here".

Kanna was of course the first one to voice the question they were all thinking, "Um, Natsuki, I thought Ema was going to be in charge?".

"Actually, no", Ema admitted sheepishly, "I just got permission from the current manager for you all to help out while we're here".

"Well, if it's not you", Yui said, one arm draped across her waist while the hand of the other was perched under her chin, "Then who is in charge of this dump?"

Kanna shivered as a number of nightmare scenarios went through her mind where the manager was a small, greasy man with a wandering eye and similarly afflicted hands.

She almost choked when one of those imaginings ended in Ryu riding to the rescue like some sort of fairytale hero.

"Kanna?", the boy in question asked, having moved up to the front of the group with Ayu in tow while she had been distracted.

She turned slightly away from them, hoping neither would notice her sudden blush.

"Oi! If you're not going to come in them clear off! You're scaring away my customers!", a loud voice saved her from having to answer.

Standing in front of the wooden structure, an apron on that identified her as a staff member and a long toothpick clasped between her teeth like a cigarette, was a fairly attractive blond. Perhaps one or two years younger than Ema, she was more developed than the older woman, but shared her weakness for childish indulgence, her hair tied up in two bunches high on either side of her head.

He pose was slightly tomboyish, but it fit the overall air she gave off, and her eyes reminded him of Yui's for some reason. Not in shape and certainly not colour, for they were closer to his own in that respect, but that calculating look as if she were evaluating them all and judging how best to make use of them.

He stiffened a little as her gaze swept over him without even pausing, and lingering on Yui and Chii as if the older woman had seen something she didn't expect, or run into someone she had thought dead, before finally settling on Ema.

"Yo! Washboard chest?", Ema smiled sickly and waved half heartedly while the girls and Ryu looked between her and this new woman as she jogged over to them.

"Heh, it really is you, I wasn't expecting you when I got a call from the Dork saying the new manager wanted to bring the newbies down here on vacation", the blond was clearly a gaijin now that he could see her up close, but her Japanese bespoke of someone who had lived in the country for a great portion of their life.

"That's right, I'm the manager of the Hinata Sou now", Ema responded.

"Really? You?", the newcomer asked, clearly not expecting that answer.

"Please don't say it like that", Ema whined, unknowingly fiddling with one of her ribbons again.

"Yeah, my bad. So, did you get into Toudai in the end?", she asked as they carried on a conversation like the others weren't even there.

"Well, yeah, but I never did figure out what to do with my degree in the end, so I sort of fell into managing the dorms", Ema admitted, unaware that her confidence rating amongst the group had gone both right up, and way back down during the course of that sentence.

Finally she seemed to remember that she and the other woman weren't the only ones present, flustering for a moment before regaining control of herself and clearing her throat, gesturing to the others.

"Everyone, this is Sara Noriyasu, she owns and runs this place, she's the person I was talking about before, she was adopted into the family that owns the Hinata Sou and this place when her adoptive father married the former landlord's aunt", Ema said, seeing their confusion as to just how many times Sara had been adopted into varying families.

"I guess that explains why she doesn't look it but has a Japanese surname", Kanna thought aloud, gulping as she realised she'd said something that could be considered rude or even offensive by the recipient.

"Don't worry about it kid", Sara replied, waving off her apology, considering Kanna as if she was trying to place her face in her memory, her expression flickering with recognition as something clicked, "Families are about more than blood".

Ryu noticed the way her face tightened for a second as if remembering something painful. Just when and why had she first been adopted? And why did she look at Kanna and Ayu meaningfully as she had said that?

Neither girl seemed to have noticed but it tickled at the back of his mind, something about Ayu and Kanna together…

"Sara, this is Mizuki Sekata", Ema said, beginning the second round of introductions, the girl in question bowing.

"Sekata?", she looked the girl over, particularly noting her slit like eyes, "You mean Konno actually-"

"Moving on", Ema said, wondering how Sara managed a business without picking up at least a little tact, "The two tanned girls are Yui and Chii Su".

Sara's eyes seemed to light up and she grinned in a way that left Yui wondering if she was having an out of body experience, "They're Kaolla's kids?"

"Chii is", Ema said, smiling as Chii bowed with Chiho held loosely in his arms, the young puppy not seeming to mind that his legs were dangling down unsupported as his mistress held him beneath his armpits, "Yui is Amala's daughter".

Sara scrutinised the older of the pair, "Yeah, I see it now, she has Amala's hair, that weird silvery colour".

"Sara!"

"What?"

Ema just shook her head, "Nothing, moving on we have-"

"Ayu and Kanna, am I right?", she had to resist the urge to laugh when both girls gapped at her like she was some sort of psychic.

"H-how could you?", Ayu stuttered.

"I read your mind", Sara said flippantly, finding it really hard to hold in a smile.

"What?", Kanna asked incredulously.

"I'm kidding, jeez, I see you got your old man's brains", she directed this at Kanna, a noticeable undertone of disgust present that Kanna didn't care for. Before she could respond, Ema whispered something urgently in her friend's ear.

"You've got to be kidding me!", the volume of Sara's response shocked them as much as the intensity but a few more words from Ema seemed to quiet them even if they did nothing about the anger that seethed behind her blue eyes for a moment before she composed herself.

"…Right, ok, sorry about that crack kid, lets just say I'm still mad at your dad about something from a while back and leave it at that, ok?", Kanna wondered why she had glimpsed at Ayu as she spoke, but agreed.

If they were going to be working for this person, ill will would only make the time drag and take away any fun they experienced.

"Oh, and I know your mom in case you're wondering", she added; now addressing Ayu directly.

"And this is Natsuki Otohime", Ema said, realising she had forgotten to introduce the other girl.

Sara did a double take, "You mean she's not Mutsumi?"

Ema smiled weakly having recently experience the same sensation as her friend was going through.

Sara shook her head; Mutsumi had one hell of a big and very weird family.

Finally she realised that they were still waiting on one introduction, typical of Ema to miss the person who stood out the most.

The only male in the group, with bright blond air atop clearly Japanese features and icy blue eyes, he certainly stuck out in a crowd.

Her recent thoughts still fresh in her mind, Sara stared down at him like a new and particularly slimy species of insect, which didn't seem to faze him much beyond a slight narrowing of the eyes.

"Who's the dork?", she asked, pleased when he jerked a little, glaring over his back when Kanna sniggered.

"Ah, this is Ryuuya Kisame, he joined us a few months ago looking for somewhere to stay when he transferred schools", Ema explained.

"What is it about that place that attracts a guy only when there are a large number of girls living there alone?", Sara mused out loud.

"Pheromones?", Yui guessed idly, winking at Ryu and blowing him a kiss when she noticed both Ayu and Kanna stiffen in response.

"Please don't tell me this is going to be a repeat of what happened with the Dork", Sara whispered to Ema, to which the other woman could only shrug and remind her that she hadn't been there when all that had been going on.

"Ok, Spike listen up", she said, deciding on a random nickname to use rather than his real name, "While we're here, I expect you to be a perfect gentleman around these girls, you got that? Anything funny and I'll put you into orbit myself".

"Whatever", he said, staring back at her evenly.

"I mean it junior, just one foot out of line around me an pow!", she snacked her hand with her fist, "You got me?".

"Don't flatter yourself", he smirked as she gaped for a second.

"Ok, I think those are enough introductions for today", Ema interrupted as she saw her friend building up to something, Ayu and Kanna each giving Ryu silent signals to 'Shut the hell up', in their own fashions, "What's say we go in and get everything else sorted so we can check into our hotel…ok?".

The sound of playful female laughter rang like a clear morning bell in the warm air, carried away without a care on a gentle breeze.

Water splashed and trickled across the bare skin of bikini clad beauties as the frolicked and chased each other amongst the surf, occasionally tossing a beach ball or Frisbee between them.

Further back their boyfriends watched the whole proceeding with interest, occasionally one of them leaving his fellows as he was called over to assist in the play.

It was a happy, carefree time for all concerned…

Inside the Beachside Café, Ryu and co sulked in silence as yet another wonderful day passed them by, able only to watch, but never to partake in the fun.

They had been shocked to learn that their work schedule had already been drawn up in one night by Ema and Sara, the former of which it seemed was to be co-manager during her stay, which was another way of saying she didn't actually have to do anything.

The assignment of positions worked thusly; on the shop floor, would be Kanna, Mizuki and Yui, all acting as waitresses, bussing tables, taking orders, and generally acting cute and cheerful for the customers, even if they all wanted to strangle Ema.

At the cash register were Chii and Natsuki, the former ringing up the charges and coping with the bills, while the later, in Sara's words, took the sting out of the charge, and finally, there was Ayu in the kitchen, with Ryu relegated to acting as her assistant and trash collector/disposer.

Kanna had liked this set up when she had first heard about it, mainly because it would serve as a humbling experience for Ryu, and that stuck up jerk needed humbling. However, shortly after she had also realised that it would mean he spent all day around Ayu, the small blue haired girl who Kanna was nowadays more or less convinced liked him but was too shy to act on it…but if they were alone together all that time…

)))"Ayu-chan", Ryu whispered as he held Ayu's mit clad hands in his own, leaning closer.

"Sempai…", the blue haired girl closed her eyes, pursing her lips…(((

"Gah! Nooooooo", Kanna blushed when she noticed the strange stares she was receiving from her patrons, bowing quickly and heading off in the other direction.

Why the hell should she care if the big jerk liked Ayu back, wasn't like he was her boyfriend or anything right?

Right, Kanna agreed with herself, wondering why she still didn't feel any better.

It was just because she had been able to relax properly yet; she assured herself, that was all. It had nothing to do with Ayu, and certainly nothing to do with that big moron.

Still, out of concern for her friend, she had argued against the current assignments in the end, but Sara had vetoed her, claiming she didn't want Ryu out in the open scaring all her customers, and as Ayu was the best cook amongst them all, that left only one real choice of who was going to end up back there with him all day.

Kanna had reluctantly agreed to the logic of it all, but there was one thing she still didn't really get.

"What…The …Hell, was she thinking with these outfits!", Kanna grumbled, looking down at her bikini top and bottoms covered by a sarong and a small apron with the Café's logo on it.

"Hey! Less talking more working!", Sara shouted from the table she and Ema sat at, the landlord offering her tenant an apologetic look for the other woman's behaviour.

"Stupid old witch", Kanna muttered. She had liked this woman when she had been taunting Ryu, but she was a stern taskmaster…no, perhaps slave-driver would be more accurate.

She took one more look at her waitress attire. Yui and Mizuki seemed to have no problem with it, though in Yui's case that might be because it wasn't all that different from what she usually wore, in fact with the apron covering her mid-rift it actually concealed her body more than her day to day wear did.

Well, at least on the plus side Ryu hadn't seen her dressed like this.

No, because you want to surprise him on the beach don't you?, a snide voice in the back of her head asked, almost causing her to deposit the milkshake she was carrying straight into the customers lap.

That just wasn't true, there was nothing out of the ordinary about her bikini she had just needed something new this year, that was all.

Sure, cause you've always had a thing for tiny red bikini's when it came to your choice in swimwear haven't you, the voice continued to taunt and Kanna felt herself turning almost the same shade as said garment.

To drive it's point home, it replayed her memories of her former choices, all of them drab and functional, and all of them one-piece's.

Kanna froze as she felt something brushing against the back of her thy.

Her embarrassment was quickly ushered aside by her old friend anger as she gripped her serving tray tightly between both hands.

A groper

THWACK!

The boy responsible saw stars before he passed out, his head now sporting a rather colourful bruise and a large lump.

"Oh dear, clumsy me", Kanna said with a disarming laugh as his friends looked on at her in horror, "Now, what was your order?"

When no one answered, she told them she'd give them some time to decide, moving on to the next table and feeling a whole lot better than she had in days.

Trust Ryu to get the easy job, she thought, but with a whole lot less venom than she might have a few minutes ago.

Ryu rubbed his world weary eyes as they blurred, trying to focus himself on the task at hand…or rather, the tasks, plural.

He was chopping up a head of lettuce for whatever Ayu planned to do with it, while next to the chopping board he had an open history textbook, a piece of paper and a pencil resting on the opposite page to the one he was reading.

Every now and again, he would set down the knife and jot down part of the answer he was currently working on, before going back to the first task as he scanned the text for more to reply with.

Hopefully he wasn't holding things up too much, and Ayu hadn't complained yet, but it was either this or doing it after they finished for the day, when no of them particularly felt like doing anything.

Not exactly an attitude conductive to study.

Between the hours spent doing shifts, travelling to and from the hotel, and the more mundane things such as eating and sleeping, not to mention doing these blasted assignments, even he was beginning to lament the lack of fun taking place on this trip.

When his vision threatened to blur once more, Ryu resigned himself to the fact that this was all he was going to get done today, so he might as well focus on his actually job.

He wondered if he should put on some music.

Kanna had presented him with a small personal radio made by Chii he guessed as he couldn't find a logo, and didn't really see her going out of her way to buy him something without a reason.

The why of it still eluded him, as did the reason she had been blushing like a tomato the whole time and had taken nearly twenty minutes since she had called him up to the laundry annex to give it to him.

She had told him that Kei had informed her of his 'love of music', whatever that meant, and so seen as how he didn't have anything like that she was aware of, she had gotten it for him.

He had accepted and thanked her, to which she had told him not to read anything into it and then contradicted herself in his by giving him a quick kiss on the cheek and telling him to take good care of it before leaving him standing up there alone, radio in hand.

As he lifted the earphones to his ears, he spotted a slither of blue out of the corner of one eye.

Ayu was looking at him through slightly glazed eyes, her lower lip caught in between her teeth as if she were thinking hard on something.

She had been doing that a lot recently, staring into space around him, or hovering nearby as if she wanted to ask something, but never actually doing so.

"Do you need any help?", he asked, breaking her trance.

"Hmmm? Oh, no sempai, just thinking", she said, returning to her duties without another word, but occasionally casting glances at him and blushing furiously, although that was probably just from the heat of the kitchen.

Shrugging to himself philosophically, Ryu donned his earphones, allowing the music that issued forth to carry him away from the tedium of his task like the tides of the sea.

"Ah, now this is more like it!", Yui sighed as she immersed herself in the wonderfully refreshing water of the outdoor hot spring. She rested her arms on the cool stone of the almost amphitheatre like structure that surrounded the bathes, briefly wondering what kind of cash she could make if she sold tickets for those ancient seats right now.

"Yeah, I was thinking we'd never get a chance to do anything fun with blond and bossy in charge", Mizuki agreed, slipping in next to her friend.

"Come on give Sara a break, she's actually a nice girl once you get to know her", Ema voiced from over where her and Natsuki were sitting.

"I'll believe it when I see it", Yui called back, looking around and spotting Ayu and Kanna sitting together, an awkward silence prevalent between the two friends.

Now that just wouldn't do, this was a holiday after all, even if it didn't really seem like one.

"Why so down Kanna-chan", she asked, sidling up to her younger friend and throwing an arm around her shoulders big sister style, "Upset that you still haven't gotten a chance to show off the goods for Ryu-kun?"

"Yui!", she shouted indignantly her cheeks flushing.

"What, we all know that's why you brought that bikini, am I right? No shame in it, he is cute", she continued, ignoring Kanna's attempts to get out of her grasp.

"Better be quick though, never know when so other girl might swoop in while you're still dithering around…", she warned, unable to keep her comment serious however, "…right, Ayu-chan?".

"Me? I…that is…sempai…", she sunk lower into the water so that the bottom of her face was submerged and thus covered.

"You see what you've done now?", Kanna saw her chance to break away from Yui, putting comforting hand on Ayu's shoulders, "Leave her alone, no one is interested in that pervert".

But sempai isn't a pervert, and I am!, Ayu shouted in her mind, saddened that she couldn't bring herself to come to Ryu's defence out loud and sinking a little lower.

Misinterpreting her behaviour, Kanna gave Yui a dirty look that she simply shrugged off, standing in the shallow water and striking an impressive pose, seemingly oblivious to the fact she was naked and that this place didn't offer much in the way of fencing.

"It has become clear to me that this little party is lacking in the vacation spirit!", she declared, Mizuki and Natsuki cheering her on, while Ayu, Kanna, Ema and Chii just watched in silence.

"And we all know who is to blame! That witch has been driving us like her personal task force ever since we got here!", Ema seemed a little relieved that she wasn't the one being blamed, while Natsuki and Chii just watched Yui's escalating antics and Mizuki, Ayu and Kanna seemed to somewhat agree with her, the former more openly than the other two, "I say it's time we strike back, who's with me!".

"Yay! Go Yui-chan!", Mizuki called, whistling and clapping as Yui took a bow.

"Surely she's not all that bad"

"Bad, you have no…", Yui trailed off as they all turned to look as the steam lifted to reveal Sara leaning back against a rock a little further into the hot spring, her arms folded behind her head as she grinned at Yui's slack jawed expression.

"Hi kids", she said with a wave, standing and splosh-ing over to them and finding a new seat while Yui just stared, "Mind if I join in the conversation? Please, carry on".

"I…erm…", Yui seemed at a loss for words for once, something which had her cousin smiling to herself as it did the others that weren't still shocked by the older woman's sudden appearance.

"What? My dad always taught me that reconnaissance is the most vital part of any undertaking, ironic seen as how he was one of the most clueless men I've ever known at times. If his heart wasn't usually in the right place I think mom would have off-ed him years ago", she smiled to wistfully, "I still miss him at times, it's been far to long since I last visited them".

Kanna was a little surprised, she couldn't figure out why that description sounded so familiar to her.

"I suppose I need to take a break for a while…speaking of, you girls should be happy to know I'm assigning you all two days leisure time in about a week or so, you can thank Ema for that, she reminded me of all my stories about this place from when I was a kid, and how much I enjoyed myself, so I suppose it's only far seen as she didn't actually tell any of you what you were getting yourself into before hand", Ema smiled sheepishly and apologised once more, "Anyway, spend your time however you want, I'll sort out your wages for the time you've worked so far ready for then, just come by the café at the start of the first day and I'll hand everybody what they are owed. Just remember to come quickly, I don't want to waste any of my time off either, there's a stretch of sand with my name on it out there somewhere and I intend to find it as soon as possible".

That had a number of the girls smiling, even Yui now that she had finally recovered.

Ema frowned as something occurred to her, "Sara, what about Ryu-kun?"

"Someone needs to watch the shop I guess", she replied trying to sound casual.

"Sara!"

"Fine, fine, I suppose he can have the time off as well", Sara, mock grumbled as if she were making a huge concession, carefully keeping half an eye on Ayu and Kanna's expressions.

It was clear they were both thinking about the young man who had caught their eye, probably trying to plan out a day or two with him, completely unaware that the other was doing exactly the same thing.

She wondered if they knew how much they were alike in some ways.

"It's not the same thing Sara", Ema whispered when she noticed where her friend was looking, "Besides, that was all resolved in the end, everyone is happy now".

"Can you really say that when they don't know?", Sara answered seriously, looking once more over at where Yui was mercilessly teasing her younger friends with Mizuki's aid and even Natsuki's unwitting commentary.

"Don't know what?", an inflectionless voice asked, startling both women.

"C-Chii-chan! How long have you been there?", Ema asked.

Despite her advances in communication and her growing relationship with all of the members of the Hinata Sou, Chii still had a tendency to fade into the background unless she wished otherwise.

"Not long", she answered, her voice solemn but her emerald eyes inquisitive.

"Do you mind going and playing with the others for a moment kiddo, me and Ema need to talk about something", Sara asked, rather surprised when the young girl only stared at them silently for a moment, as if she could pull their thoughts to the surface and read them, before nodding soundlessly and joining in the fray.

Sara had not expected the daughter of her oldest friend to give in to a request to ignore new information so easily, but a quick check revealed no hidden mics in the area like Su might have left behind.

"Strange girl", Sara murmured.

"Yes, but she is getting better", Ema offered, having heard her anyway, "…Sara, they're both happy, and both in love, so why not leave them alone for now ne?"

"…I suppose I can do that, it still makes me a little mad at times you know? I once thought they were just like each other", Sara sad, still feeling foolish for having ever made that comparison.

"They were, and still are…don't give me that look, they are. No one could have predicted what would happen under those circumstances and you know it", Ema said in hushed tones.

"Everyone makes mistakes right?", Sara said a little bitterly.

"Yes, they do…and if you're lucky they'll spend an entire life time trying to make up for them, just like he did"

"So…they're still in love?"

"Very much so last I heard? You should know that nothing is going to separate those two for long", a profound quiet settled upon the two women as they watched the younger generation laugh and play in the soothing waters of the hot spring.

"…So", Sara was the first to break the silence, "Tell me about the new guy".

You know how when you are particularly looking forward to an event, the time seems to drag on and on forever, each second becoming a minute, every minute an hour and so forth?

Well an interesting thing occurs when your dream 'event' is tempered by nervousness, or the possibility that it could all turn out miserably. As the days pass and the number of possible mistakes or failures on your behalf multiples within your imagination, the reverse of this effect begins to assert itself.

Hours fly by so fast they should have been issued speeding tickets, and the day ends before you can fully agree it has begun.

This effect is universal, a unique quirk of the human perception of what we call 'time', proof perhaps of its factious or irrelevant nature in the grand scheme of things.

Regardless, it applies to all of us, no more so than two young women, each with a plan that would come into motion far faster than either expected, arguably faster than they believed themselves ready for.

Of course, the universe is under no obligation to assist and has every right to intervene.

As was the case here.

Ayu was nervous, more so than she had ever been. Even for such a timid girl, she managed to get through the average day without shaking, even with Ryu around on a good day.

Today however was different, today was the day she was finally going to ask him about the date she had been fantasising about for nearly a month now, the one that she had previously kept telling herself she would ask him about 'tomorrow'.

Well no more. She would never get a more perfect chance than this, and she wasn't about to let it slip through her fingers this time.

Swallowing the bile that rose in her throat, she schooled herself to calmness as best as she was able, walking up to the door of Ryu's hotel room at a steady, even pace.

You can do this, she told herself, reaching out to knock his door with one trembling hand, Just knock and…

"Ayu-chan?"

Ayu spun to fast, almost falling but being caught by the person who had called her name.

"Are you ok Ayu?", Kanna asked as her friend found her feet again, still seeming a little shaky.

"Y-yes, I'm f-fine, ahem, just fine Kanna-chan", she replied, praying that for once Kanna would just believe that and leave.

"Uh-huh", it was clear she didn't, "Well, I'll just wake the big jerk up and we'll go find somewhere for you to sit down for a while".

"You came to see sempai?", Ayu found herself asking before she could stop herself.

"Eh? No, no, I just came to make sure he's up, that's all. Sara said we have to come by as early as possible after all hahahaahaha", she hoped Ayu didn't notice how much she was sweating. In truth she had come to see if she could cajole Ryu into spending the day at the beach with her… just to be sociable, that was all, Ryu wasn't exactly the most tanned of boys and his idea of fun… come to think of it, she didn't know if Ryu understood the concept of 'fun'.

"I see…", Ayu said slowly.

"If you're looking for Ryu-kun, he already left", a smug new voice interjected, causing both girls to jump.

"W-what?", Kanna managed to get out when she realised who was talking.

"He's already gone", Yui repeated, watching both girls lest they betray their disappointment.

Kanna was doing a passable job, but Ayu looked positively crestfallen for a moment.

"Why so early?", Kanna asked, gulping when she realised she had just reminded Yui that they were here rather earlier than normal social visiting times would suggest polite or appropriate.

"No idea, he said something about wanting to get everything taken care of as soon as possible, because he had things he needed to do, and then he took off, that was a little while ago", Yui explained.

"Oh", both girls looked a little disappointed this time.

"Wait, how do you know all this?", Kanna asked.

"Well now", Yui said, stretching in a way that showed off her every advantage, especially in the light morning robe she wore, "That's between me and Ryu-kun now, isn't it?"

Ayu paled while Kanna worked her mouth without any sound coming out.

"I have to say though, he's kind of rough in the morning…not that that's a bad thing mind you", she smiled as if remembering something, keeping half an eye on her captive audience.

"Y-you, and s-sempai…", Ayu could bring herself to finish that sentence for which Kanna was grateful.

"She's just joking…right?", Kanna wasn't as sure as she was trying to sound.

"Hmmm, could be…", Yui trailed off mysteriously, managing to make it back to her and Chii's room before breaking down into peels of laughter.

Across the room, Chiho stirred on Chii's bed, lifting his head long enough to watch the rolling Molmolian woman, before returning to his slumber alongside his mistress.

Humans were strange.

--- Author Notes---

Part One complete