It was near sunset.

A long day had passed. Emma had been forced to ask if Dr. Hang would be willing to abbreviate their brownie-making in order to make sure she showed up on time to Ayane's hotel room. The researcher had gotten straight to the point and asked Emma to sign up as a research subject for her work.

"I'm interested in the way magical girls think about problems," Dr. Hang had said with a serious expression. "The trouble is that older girls all have established ways of thinking that are totally unique to themselves. Younger girls tend to grasp more for general rules of thumb, or at least that's what I hypothesize. I would be extremely interested in having a chance to watch you work some problems to see what the difference is, if anything."

Emma had tentatively agreed. She wanted to doublecheck with Anna, but everything that Dr. Hang proposed was eminently reasonable. The interaction with Emma's redeployment date made things a bit strange, but Dr. Hang was more worried about getting good data as opposed to getting a lot of it.

"Apparently she thinks that I'll just settle into a pattern if she keeps me for too long, anyway, so it doesn't really matter," said Emma as she waited outside Ayane's bathroom for the other girl to finish getting dressed.

"That makes sense," said Ayane from inside. "You get the same issue with testing animal intelligence. Did you do anything else before coming here?"

"The last thing I did was visit the Knights of the Goddess again to apply for initiation," said Emma. "In theory, the Soul Guard doesn't play any favorites, but it sounds like in practice they really like seeing that you're part of the Knights on your application."

"You know, that sounds a lot more questionable than I'd have thought," Ayane said. "But I guess that's not really fair."

"Well it's just a resume thing," said Emma. She ran a finger thoughtfully over her soul gem ring. "It's not like I'm magically going to get in just because I applied for initiation."

"Yeah. What're you going to do in the Soul Guard if you get in?"

"I dunno. That's part of initial training, though I'll probably do some reading too."

"That's fair." Ayane poked her head out the door. "How do I look?"

"What, you mean your makeup?" asked Emma, raising an eyebrow. "It looks fine?"

Ayane pouted. "Jeez, Emma, you could be a bit better at this sort of thing."

"Hey, all I know is how to put on lip gloss and eyeliner," said Emma, raising her hands in a sort of helpless gesture. "What do you want out of me?"

"What I want is to spend the night with you," said Ayane, ducking back into the bathroom. "But, alas, I must meet your boyfriend."

Emma followed Ayane in to watch as her girlfriend fixed her hair. She had put on a very fetching maroon dress, the neckline pulled up tight to her throat in a halter top and leaving her back exposed. The skirt swished distractingly around Ayane's legs, holding Emma's attention just long enough to bring the conversation to an awkward pause that had Ayane giving Emma a very particular look.

"A-anyway," Emma coughed, looking away with a blush. "I mean, we've talked about this before."

"I know," said Ayane. Emma didn't fail to notice the pleased little smirk she had, nor the way that Ayane suddenly seemed to be making her skirt swish a little more than was entirely necessary.

"Emma?"

"Huh?" Emma said.

Ayane rolled her eyes. "I said that I'm honestly surprised by how interested I am in this plan of yours. I've never thought of boys romantically."

"Well, you don't need to be involved romantically, really," said Emma, looking down at her hands to avoid getting distracted again. "As long as, like, you're not actively trying to kill each other…"

"As if Ryouta could do anything to me."

"Technically he could call in some Shizuki assassins or something," said Emma, fiddling with her soul gem ring. "I dunno if that's real, but I wouldn't be surprised."

Ayane made a little humming noise as she slipped on her heels. "Honestly, he doesn't seem like the type. Maybe Sayaka-san would in his name though."

"You know the Shizukis do treat their men weird," Emma said thoughtfully. "There's so many rules…"

"If I had to guess, that's the reason he wants to date you and not someone more 'proper'," said Ayane. "You're pretty much just interested in getting the job done."

"That's true for both of us."

"Yes it is," said Ayane. "How do I look?"

"Distractingly beautiful," said Emma in complete honesty. "Or at least, your legs are."

Ayane giggled and stepped over, slinging her arms casually around Emma's neck and pressing her body up against Emma's. "Distracting huh. If I could I'd distract you some more…"

"I'd totally be down for that," Emma murmured, pulling Ayane closer and rubbing their noses together. "We do have a few minutes before Ryouta's supposed to—"

Ayane's doorbell rang.

"And, ever the gentleman, he's early," said Ayane with a laugh. She kissed Emma very briefly and stepped away, smoothing out first her dress, then Emma's, as the hotel room's door clicked open in the background. "Come in, Ryouta!"

The sound of footsteps on carpet heralded Ryouta's arrival at the bathroom, just enough time for Emma's TacComp to flush her system of any evidence of Ayane's flirtations and focus her attention on the situation at hand.

"Ayane," Ryouta said as he came to a halt at the door, dressed smartly in a tuxedo and shiny leather shoes. He clicked his heels neatly and bowed.

"Ryouta," said Ayane, extending a hand and looking slightly perplexed. Ryouta took her hand in his and kissed Ayane's knuckles very gently. Ayane flushed lightly as Ryouta straightened. "I— uh. This is very unexpected."

"My brother says that I'm a sappy romantic," said Ryouta, pulling Ayane towards him very gently to lead her towards the door. "But the truth is that I'm only good at terribly cheesy romantic gestures. I even borrowed my family's personal aircar for the occasion."

Ayane blinked. Aircars were rare in Mitakihara. "I— I see. And do you do this to all the girls you meet?"

"No, only the ones I'm interested in a long term relationship with," said Ryouta with a bright smile. "Actually, I haven't done it to Emma yet. It's a terrible failure on my part."

Ayane flushed further. "I uh— I mean— Emma's mentioned surely—"

"Oh, of course, but I didn't mean in that sense," said Ryouta as he paused to hold the door open for Ayane. "But you know, it's allowed to be in a long term relationship that's only emotional. And since Emma is interested in you, it'd be foolish of me not to see what all the fuss is."

Ayane covered her face in embarrassed despair. "That— you— I've never heard someone say that like they mean it. Do you get all your lines from cheesy old romance movies?"

"Yes," said Ryouta blithely, "but don't tell anyone. I'd lose so much credit with my cousins."

Ayane peeked at him between her fingers. Ryouta gave her a wink.

"Goddess, you two," sighed Emma fondly as she swept both of them up in her arms and ushered everyone out the door. "You're terribly cute."

Ayane slapped her arm weakly.

Ryouta really did get most of his lines from cheesy old romance movies. He hadn't really been sure it would work, but, judging by the amount of teasing he had received as a kid, it was probably something that he could sound natural attempting. In Ayane's case, it had worked brilliantly, and by the time they'd entered the aircar, he and Ayane were having a perfectly normal conversation. By the time they reached their destination, Emma was feeling quite left out.

Still, that was sort of the goal, wasn't it?

"So, as a photographer, I'm naturally drawn to museums and things," said Ryouta as he helped Ayane out of the aircar. "But I didn't want to take you somewhere boring. Have you visited the Mitakihara Botanical Gardens?"

"No, though I was thinking about going there eventually with Emma," said Ayane as she stepped onto the curb. The Mitakihara Botanical Gardens indeed stood before them, with the adjacent Mitakihara Zoo, Aquarium, and Natural History Museum. "Is there something happening this evening?"

"The Botanical Gardens have a very interesting special event tonight," said Ryouta. "Typically it's a bit of an affair, seeing as it's widely regarded as quite romantic."

"How did you learn about it?" asked Emma as Ryouta helped her out of the aircar.

"My family has a lot of tips for wooing girls," said Ryouta. He chuckled to himself over a past memory. "A *lot* of tips. Who knew I'd be using it so soon?"

"Romantic walks in gardens are one of those then?" asked Ayane. "I suppose it's not so bad. You'd think a family like the Shizuki would have more extravagant advice though."

"A lot of people think so," said Ryouta. "But really, it all comes down to paying attention to the girl you're interested in. At least, that's what I was always taught."

Conversation paused as an attendant appeared and asked if they wanted anything to drink. This set off a small whirlwind of events that left Emma and Ayane thoroughly bewildered, but which Ryouta handled with an aplomb born out of long experience. They ended up ensconced in a nook of the gardens with glasses of champagne, blinking under the bowers of a wisteria tree.

"Wisteria is typically grown using a strong frame capable of supporting the plant's twining stems," Emma read off of her implants. "In the 20th and 21st centuries, wisteria became popular among amateur gardeners and frequently pulled down inadequately strong structures once it reached large size. The wisteria in the Mitakihara Botanical Gardens is a Japanese Wisteria, native to Japan and considered the most spectacular of the wisteria family. This wisteria was planted just after the Unification Wars and has since become a dominating member of the plant community in MBG."

"That's a pretty old tree," said Ayane. "It smells like grapes."

"Wisteria is weird that way," remarked Ryouta, taking his seat and looking up at the blossoms overhead. "The hanging tendrils you see are called racemes. They're often found on mustard and radish family plants."

"Does that mean I can put wisteria on my steak?" asked Emma jokingly.

"Technically the seeds are poisonous, but our implants would take care of it," said Ryouta. "That being said, wisteria is a type of flowering pea, not a mustard or radish."

"Aww."

"What are we here for, though?" Ayane asked. "I mean, it's very pretty and romantic, but you said there was a special event?"

"Ah, yes, well, it turns out that the Mitakihara Zoo collaborates quite heavily with the Botanical Gardens," said Ryouta, sipping his champagne. "A particular favorite is when the Zoo sends its newly-emerged butterflies over to do a bit of pollinating."

Ayane's eyes went wide. "You're joking."

"If I recall correctly, they're bringing some of the tropical butterflies out—"

He didn't finish his sentence as a butterfly fluttered past to land on a raceme of the overhanging wisteria. Then another appeared, and another, and then suddenly the entire garden seemed to be filled with the brightly colored wings of butterflies, flitting from some unseen entrance towards the flowers that blossomed throughout the garden.

Ryouta cleared his throat quietly.

"Would you like to take a walk?"

"So I told him I wasn't into boys since, you know, I was a boy too, and he gave me this look like I'd hit him in the crotch," Ryouta said, gesturing expressively as the trio walked slowly down a quiet lane in the Gardens, "and after a second he goes: 'What do you mean, you're a boy?'"

Ayane laughed and took a sip of her champagne. "Seriously? He didn't even check his nomenclator?"

"I don't know, he must not have," said Ryouta with a shrug. "I mean, you'd think it was obvious, but my voice hadn't changed at the time, so…"

Ayane gave Ryouta a considering look. "You are pretty cute. I could see it."

Ryouta flushed. "T-thanks?"

"Maybe if we got you into a skirt," said Ayane thoughtfully, tapping her champagne glass against her lips. "Yeah, that could work…"

From a few strides back, Emma struggled not to laugh as Ryouta attempted, with no great success, to dissuade Ayane from the idea.

It was good that they were getting along. In terms of first impressions, at least, neither had put the other off, and Ryouta was apparently a lord and master of over the top romantic gestures. Maybe if either Emma or Ayane had been older that wouldn't have worked as well, but, well, there was a reason why teenage girls were still their own particular demographic.

Emma allowed herself a quiet chuckle as she sipped at her champagne and looked around at the Gardens. After the initial burst of brightly colored insects, the event had quieted down to "merely" an even dusting of butterflies across the flowers, just enough to be amazing yet not enough to risk any of the butterflies getting squashed accidentally underfoot due to overcrowding. Some plants had it better than others, of course. Emma spotted a poor climbing vine straining to cling to its trellis as butterfly after butterfly alighted on the petals of its blossoms. A small drone flitted in as Emma watched to tie a string around the vine, securing it more tightly to the trellis while hardly disturbing the insects.

She paused to watch as the drone made its way to another weak point. That was sort of impressive.

"What do you think, Emma?" asked Ayane.

"Sorry?" Emma asked, blinking away from the butterflies to look at Ayane and Ryouta. Her TacComp filled in the blank a second later. "Oh. Uh."

"See, I told you she'd like the idea," said Ayane as she twirled Ryouta around as if to show off a skirt he wasn't wearing. "I've got just the thing in my hotel room. It looks cute, right?"

Emma blinked at the image that Ayane sent over, then blinked again as she imagined Ryouta wearing it.

"That's— Goddess."

"Come onnnn," Ayane cooed into Ryouta's ear. "It'll be fun! And who knows, if you look enough like a girl, I might even give you a kiss."

Ryouta flushed bright red.

"This is scandalously short."

"Only a little," Ayane called out to Ryouta. "I bought it for a date with Emma some time, so it's to be expected."

"How do you even walk in this?" Ryouta called back from inside the bathroom of Ayane's hotel room. "It feels like it's going to fly away!"

"You get used to it," Emma replied. "More champagne, Ayane?"

"Yes please," said Ayane, holding out her glass. The two of them were lounging on Ayane's bed after changing out of their formal wear into more casual clothes. A small cart of snacks stood next to them with a bucket of ice for chilling their champagne.

"Make sure to put on the stockings too," said Emma as she poured Ayane another glass of champagne and put the bottle back with a rattle of ice. "And the panties. Those are very important."

Ryouta stuck his head out the door and glared at them. "No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Awww, alright. Stockings though, right?"

Ryouta flushed. "I— fine. Stockings. But no more!"

"Yay!"

The door to the bathroom shut with a click.

"We're having way too much fun with this," Emma giggled as she scooped a piece of runny brie onto a slice of bread. "We really owe Ryouta— whoop—" Emma juggled her piece of bread to try and catch the cheese before it ran off the edge, nearly failed, and managed to save it just in time for Ayane to inhale both the bread and Emma's fingers. "Hey, that was mine!"

"Anowimin," Ayane mumbled around Emma's fingers.

"I can't understand you, Ayane."

Ayane pulled Emma's hand out of her mouth, swallowed the morsel of cheese, then said: "I said: and now it's mine!"

"Well, I mean, clearly," said Emma. She made another bite and popped it into her mouth before Ayane could steal that one too. It was really surprising how well it went with the champagne.

"Anyway, I wouldn't say we necessarily owe Ryouta anything," said Ayane as she lay back and looked up at the ceiling. "I'm pretty sure he's having fun."

"Oh sure," said Emma around the piece of cheese. She swallowed, then continued: "I'm just saying. Especially if he's as cute as we think he's going to be."

"It's weird, I've never actually tried this with anyone before," said Ayane. She tapped her champagne glass against her lips thoughtfully. "You'd have thought that I'd try putting cute boys in girls' clothes sometime just to see what would happen, but…"

"I mean, that would have required you to date extensively before you turned twelve," said Emma dryly. "This is a bit of an ask, don't you think?"

Ayane laughed. "That's true. One girl back when I was eleven doesn't really count, does it?"

"You didn't try kissing any boys after that?"

Ayane shrugged. "Never had any interest. Like, it just wasn't a thing. Girls were always more…" She paused, then waved her hand. "You know. More."

Emma blinked at her. "That's completely unhelpful."

Ayane rolled her eyes. "Well today we'll find out more about my lesbianness and see how far it goes then. Who knows? Maybe I was secretly bi!"

"Maybe," said Emma, chuckling and leaning in to peck Ayane briefly on the cheek. "We have time to find out."

"Oh we absolutely—"

Ayane was cut off by a knock on the bathroom door.

"Um, I'm finished changing," said Ryouta.

"Ooooo, good!" said Ayane, sitting up attentively. "Come on out then, let's see!"

Ryouta peeked shyly out from behind the door.

"OhmyGoddess you did your hair!" Ayane squealed, clasping her hands to her mouth. Ryouta retreated. "No wait come back! It's cute!"

"I'm not sure I want to be cute," Ryouta muttered from behind the door.

Ayane frowned, then hopped to her feet and stepped over to the door. "Ryouta? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," said Ryouta. "I'm just— I guess I'm just nervous."

"You don't have to come out if you don't want," Ayane said. She slid her hand through the gap of the door and searched until she found Ryouta's. "I know I'm… enthusiastic about it, but if you're not comfortable…"

"It's not that," said Ryouta. He grasped Ayane's hand and twined his fingers between hers, slowly working his way forward until he was gripping her hand tightly. "I'm… it's— I'm glad you like it. It just— it's a little scary."

"Mmm."

"I guess I'm a little freaked out by how well it works? I've never tried on girls' clothes before and, like, I just did my hair a little and it works *really well*."

"Mm. It's still you though."

"Yeah."

"Like, I mean, I like girls, right, but I like you too, Ryouta," said Ayane. She ran a thumb over Ryouta's knuckles comfortingly. "I'm not just trying to push my kinks on you, y'know? I mean, I am, because I'm pretty sure you're going to be hot, but—"

"No, I get what you mean," said Ryouta, laughing a little. "I— thanks. I feel a little silly now, but… but thanks. I needed the talk."

"No problem. Do you want to come out?"

"Yeah."

Ryouta pushed open door as Ayane stepped backwards, keeping a hold on Ryouta's hand as she backed away.

"S-so, how do I look?" Ryouta asked.

It was true, what Ayane had guessed: Ryouta was extremely cute. The implants in his hair had let it grow out a little in the short time that he'd been in the bathroom, giving Ryouta the ability to let his hair come down to his chin and be pinned just to the side with a barrette. The shirt that Ayane had given him didn't quite fit and was a little long, but the skirt was exactly the right length to leave a thin gap of bare skin between the bottom of the skirt and the top of the stockings. Each stocking was an opaque white, barely decorated, and held up with a garter-belt whose straps led enticingly up beneath the skirt. If only he had some cute shoes…

"I take it from Emma's silence that she's pleased," said Ayane. She pulled Ryouta towards her to kiss him on the cheek. "Cute Ryouta is cute."

"S-stop…"

"Are you sure?" asked Ayane as she wrapped Ryouta in a hug. "I could tell you more about how cute you look. Emma thinks so too."

"D-do you, Emma?"

Emma nodded dumbly, then cleared her throat. "I mean, it works really well."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Come here?"

Ryouta stepped tentatively over to Emma, tugging the skirt down in front of him in nervousness.

"You really are very cute," Emma said quietly as Ryouta stood in front of her. She took his hands and tugged gently. "Don't be nervous. I really like it."

"Thanks," said Ryouta, fidgeting a little. "Can I sit down?"

"Oh, yeah, of course," said Emma, scooting backwards on the bed so that Ryouta could sit on the edge.

There was a pause while Ryouta situated himself, trying his best to grasp modesty in a skirt, before Emma came up behind him and cuddled him to her chest.

"Sorry, Ryouta," Emma murmured into his ear. "We're putting you through a lot aren't we?"

Ryouta closed his eyes and leaned back against Emma. "It's okay if it's you two."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Ryouta grinned. "I mean, as a guy, I'm obliged to delight in two girls throwing themselves at me, right?"

The triad dissolved into giggles as they contemplated the fact that, yes, indeed, Emma and Ayane had been spending the last half an hour doing exactly that. After a few minutes, Ayane knelt in front of Ryouta and put her head on his knees.

"Are we making you more comfortable, Ryouta?" asked Ayane, looking up at Ryouta with bright doe eyes. "What can we do to help?"

Ryouta sucked in a choked breath. "I— uh— that's— this is fine."

"You sure? Nothing else we could do?"

"I'm not gonna lie," said Ryouta breathlessly. "This is pretty much everything any guy could ever hope for."

Emma looped her arms around Ryouta, running her hands up and down his chest. "Really now."

Ryouta made a choked noise.

It was later.

Ryouta had managed to get some of his own clothes delivered and was sitting on the edge of the bed while Ayane sat at his feet, humming quietly. Emma was taking the last rotation of Ayane's shower, which despite everything remained too small to fit three people all at once.

"How are you feeling?" Ryouta asked as he ran a brush through Ayane's damp hair.

"Hmm?" Ayane asked. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," Ryouta began, before pausing thoughtfully. "I guess I'm just a little worried. Obviously I had a good time, but..."

"Are you worried that you neglected me?" Ayane asked, looking up at Ryouta with a bemused expression.

"Well..." Ryouta said, running the brush through a portion of Ayane's hair. "I mean, you are supposed to be lesbian."

Ayane snorted. "Some lesbian I am."

"Well I mean, I dunno, I just want you to be happy. Be honest with me, please?"

Ayane sighed and looked down at her hands, fidgeting. "If... if I'm honest, I probably would have still preferred it if you really were a girl," she said. "That, uh, that one moment was a bit of a shock. And I really like boobs."

"Oh..."

Ayane grimaced and twisted around to take Ryouta's hand. "Hey, don't feel bad okay? It's my fault, not yours."

"I get that," said Ryouta, giving her a crooked smile, "but it's still disappointing."

"I really do think you're super cute," said Ayane. "Like, I dunno, it's really confusing. It's sort of a combination of the way you act and sound when I tease you?"

"...are you saying I act and sound like a girl?"

"No! Well..."

"Oh Goddess you are," Ryouta groaned, flopping backwards onto the bed. "aaaaa"

"I'm sorry!" Ayane said with a guilty smile. "I don't- I don't really mean it like that!"

Ryouta sighed and sat up again. "It's fine. I guess it can't be helped. I just... I guess that still means that it doesn't really work, for you and me."

Ayane set her chin on Ryouta's knees. "I dunno. It seems really early to say that."

"I guess."

"Emma makes it a lot easier though," Ayane mused, tracing the pattern in the fabric on Ryouta's leg. "Like, right now, just you and me, it feels different."

Ryouta made a noise and returned to brushing Ayane's hair. "Different how?"

"I dunno," said Ayane, shrugging. "I don't have that much experience with relationships. I guess warm, but not tingly? I want to be with you but I don't want to be with you. Does that make sense?"

"Mm, I guess so," said Ryouta. "Like you can trust me and drop your guard?"

"Yeah."

Ryouta smiled and ran the brush through Ayane's hair again. "Ah. I'm glad, then."

They both paused. In the background, the shower shut off.

"Emma is super hot," Ayane said randomly. "You know what I mean?"

Ryouta snorted. "No, I've no idea."

"Like, really though."

"I mean, obviously I agree with you."

"She has the best boobs."

"Goddess, Ayane, are you just listing off things that attract you to Emma now?" Ryouta asked, bopping her gently on the head with the hairbrush. "I mean, really."

"Bleh. What do you want to talk about instead?"

Ryouta made a neutral noise and contemplated Ayane's hair. He wondered if he could braid it...

"Oh, by the way, you do look really cute in girls clothes, just to be clear," said Ayane, causing Ryouta to splutter. "I mean genuinely though. Like if you want to keep doing that, I am totally down."

"I am totally not," said Ryouta, bopping Ayane gently again. "...Maybe for special occasions."

"I'm holding you to that," Ayane said, grinning, then faltering. "Er, I mean, I don't want to imply that you're only cute when you look like a girl."

Ryouta sighed huffily. "I mean, you totally do mean that though. It bothers me, a little, but I guess it's fine."

Ayane frowned up at him. "Are you sure?"

"...no, but well, I guess if Emma likes it too, it'll be okay," Ryouta said after a moment. "Ish."

"What do you mean?"

"I wouldn't do it just for you," said Ryouta. He immediately winced. "Er."

Ayane blinked and didn't really like how that made her heart squeeze.

"I didn't mean it like that," said Ryouta quickly. "I- I'm sorry."

"Go on," said Ayane, laying her head on Ryouta's knees again.

"I- I just mean that... that I'm not a girl, and I don't want to be," said Ryouta softly. "That's all. I wouldn't want to play make-believe for someone else."

Ayane pursed her lips. "I get that, yeah."

"But Emma likes it because it's fun, you know? So..."

"Yeah, I get it," said Ayane with a deep sigh. "...Sorry to suck so much."

"You're fine," Ryouta said, patting Ayane on the head. "I didn't mean to be that harsh."

A thud from the bathroom made both of them look up.

"I'm okay," Emma called out.

"What did you do?" Ayane asked.

"Uhhhh... I slipped?"

"You're a magical girl, how do you slip?"

"Magic?"

Ayane and Ryouta looked at each other, then to the door. "What does that mean?"

The door clicked open sheepishly, Emma sticking her head through the gap, head suspiciously soaked. "I uh, I was trying to do a trick with my magic and squirted water into my face so that I hit my head against the wall when I flinched."

Ayane and Ryouta blinked and stared at her.

"A-also, the bathroom is slightly flooded."

There was a beat where Ayane and Ryouta both took in the absurdity of the situation, then began to laugh, much to Emma's consternation. In that moment, as they got up to help Emma dry out the bathroom, it seemed as if things were going to be okay. They weren't going to be perfect, but of course, nothing ever would be.