Alya, Nino, Marinette, and Chloe headed home while Adrien sat on the sofa in the living room.
"Why not stay here the night?" Master Fu suggested, he indeed did not look well in fact he looked about ready to keel over right then and there.
Adrien gave a defeated sigh as he replied, "And what excuse should I give my father? 'Oh sorry father, I found out you've been my enemy for the past eighteen months and right now if I looked you in the eye I might try to claw your eyes out?'"
"Tell Nathalie you're staying with a friend. Crashing at his place and it'll be good for your social life," Rin suggested.
She nudged Mamoru, "He could step in and act as the friend you're with. Why not? She's stood up for you against your Dad in the past, right?"
Adrien bit his lip before dialing Nathalie's number.
Rin and Ichika helped Master Fu back to his feet and walked beside him, their arms linked with his towards his bedroom.
"Oh, thank you, young ladies, but I will be quite fine on my own," Master Fu attempted to insist.
The two soul reaper girls both gave him glances that said 'nice try. We're not buying it,' as they continued to walk beside the ancient human to his last sleep.
"Hi Nathalie, uhh yeah I know it's getting late. I was thinking of just staying at my friend's for the night," Adrien began.
"N-no it isn't Nino, or Chloe, or Marinette, it's a guy named Mamoru, he's right here," Adrien replied as he handed the phone to Mamoru.
"Kon'nichiwa—er—hello, deepest apologies," Mamoru fumbled slightly.
"Uhh no, Japanese is my first language, not French," Mamoru confirmed.
"Thank you, I had some time to practice since moving here. No, not many friends. Yes. Uhh they're at work right now. Alright. Of course. No certainly not," Mamoru was evidently replying to the terms and conditions of having Adrien bunking at his home.
"I see, yes alright. I will make sure they're aware however they likely will not be back until early in the morning. They're trauma surgeons. Yes, quite demanding. I'm not sure. Thank you—uh, in Japanese? Arigato," Mamoru replied before ending the call and handing the phone back to Adrien.
Adrien gave him a look almost like a kicked puppy before asking, "Well?"
"You're permitted to stay, however I am not to permit you to consume more than 1,500 calories in one day, you must be fed meals rich in healthy fats and proteins and low in carbohydrates, no more than 50 grams of carbohydrates per day according to her. I'd say we've vastly exceeded that already," Mamoru replied, gaining a playfully devious smirk towards the end.
Adrien smiled and nodded a bit as he shoved his hands in his jeans pockets, "Thanks for covering or me."
Mamoru shrugged it off as he headed to a room, beckoning Adrien to follow him. The blonde haired boy did in fact follow the brunette as Mamoru lead him to one of the smaller bedrooms. It was a much smaller bed than Adrien was used to, a single mattress with a steel bedframe and pine headboard, but not much else in the room.
Mamoru handed Adrien a pair of his own pajamas, "Just promise you'll keep your underwear on."
Adrien burst into a laughing fit and nodded as he made a grossed out face, "That would be a little weird."
"That would be the understatement of a century," Mamoru replied before resting his back against the wall.
"Uh I guess Rin and Ichika are going home soon, aren't they?"
"No," Mamoru replied.
Adrien blinked a little, "But then whose taking care of the mansion? If my father's Hawkmoth we can't just let him do whatever he—"
"A soul reaper has been assigned station for the night. He's being guarded, do not worry yourself sick over it," Mamoru curtly replied.
Adrien stopped fussing and nodded, "I didn't mean it like that, I just—this is a big adjustment."
Mamoru nodded in agreement, "Yes."
'But there are greater adjustments,' Mamoru thought to himself.
"So I'm curious, you and Rin- did you ever have a slumber party with her?"
"Not of an intimate nature, but yes. We've spent the night at each other's homes and even shared a bed," Mamoru answered.
"Were you kids or just not—"
"Both. We've had sleep overs since we were in diapers. There were times her mother would go on a mission. Father would watch Rin and her siblings in her stead," Mamoru responded.
Rin left Master Fu's room and headed towards them, "Well it took some convincing but he's letting Ichika stay in the room with him tonight."
"Why are you guys so worried about him?" Adrien asked.
"A soul with as high a spiritual pressure as his is bound to have will be a magnet for hollows," Rin replied.
"Ahh, maybe I should go stay with him then and—"
"Ichika has it covered, Adrien. Go rest. You've had quite enough excitement to exhaust even the most resilient person," Mamoru ordered.
Adrien hesitated before nodding and heading into the bedroom, "Good night."
"Good night kiddo," Rin called after him.
Adrien closed the spare bedroom door and blinked, 'did she just call me "kiddo"? That's new.'
He quickly began to undress and change into the pajamas Mamoru had given him.
Mamoru and Rin sat on the bed in his room, her head was resting on his shoulder, while his head rested against hers. Their arms were wrapped around each other as they snuggled up close.
"Rin—"
"I know you well enough to know you only wear pajamas when it's freezing cold out," Rin stated in a whisper.
Mamoru smiled and replied, "Yes—but you know I won't."
Rin squeezed him closer to herself, "I know."
"Unless you wish for me to," Mamoru added.
Rin blinked before looking to him, "What?"
"I-I would. It's not like I never thought of it before—if I'm honest I—I probably use that fantasy more so than any other," Mamoru admitted.
Rin stared at him with a blank expression.
"You would excel at poker," Mamoru commented.
Rin let her shoulders sag, "But if I—how would I explain it if –"
"A time master fell in love with you. That's how," Mamoru answered as he cupped the side of her face. Rin gave a small smile as she kissed Mamoru.
"This place is disgusting," Yumichika complained as they wandered deeper into the cavern.
"It's certainly creepy enough, hey, Tama are you sure this is where your intel said she'd be?"
"Why, Lieutenant Hisagi, are you afraid?" Tama teased in good nature as she lead the two men deeper still into the darkness.
Yumichika cringed at the bat poop laying around and covered his nose, "Oh dear, I'll have to burn my uniform after this."
Tama turned, glaring directly at the complaining 11th squader, "Put a lid on it, Aysegawa."
Yumichika blinked a little before wordlessly following her, however he stopped when he heard a familiar roar, the two men drew their blades while Tama hurried off in the direction of the spiritual pressure they'd been seeking out.