Liz was on edge all day, waiting for a chance to bolt and find Maka. Kid, if he noticed her unusual behavior, said nothing about it and instead called Blackstar and Soul and suggested a guy's night. Maybe this in itself was Kid's way of giving Liz what she wanted, which must have been transparently obvious. Kid left shortly after that phone call, promising to be back before midnight.

"Yeah, right," grumbled Liz. "If Blackstar's gonna be there, he'll be lucky to get home before the sun rises." Then she turned to her sister. "I'm leaving for a little while, Pati. You've got run of the house."

She felt only a slight twinge of unease at the way her sister grinned and laughed manically, and she left, all but sprinting to Maka and Soul's apartment. However, she was at the front door, ready to wrap on the solid wood, when a loud purr sounded behind her. Turning, Liz fixed her blue-eyed gaze on the violet cat in the witch's hat, perched on the railing.

"They're not home, nya," said the cat. "They left about an hour ago and told Blair not to burn down the house."

"Do you know where they went?" Liz demanded.

Blair raised a dainty paw and gave it a swipe of her little pink tongue, amber eyes fixed on Liz.

"Blair thinks they went grocery shopping, nya," the cat answered. She rose to all four paws and leapt onto the landing, twining around the weapon's ankles.

"Do you know when they'll be back? I really need to talk to Maka."

Blair shook her head and stretched. "Anytime now. They said they would be home soon. An hour does count as soon, doesn't it?"

Liz ran her hand through her hair and sighed. An hour, huh? So how much longer would she have to wait? As if on cue, her phone rang. She picked up on the first ring. The most welcome voice in the world spoke first. Well, second most voice, actually.

"Hey, Liz, Kid called and invited me to a guys' day," said Soul. "I'm dropping Maka off at the flat and heading out. You wanna come over and keep her company?"

"I'm already here," she grumbled. "I need to talk to Maka. Are you on your way?"

"Yeah, we'll be there soon" he answered, then hung up without so much as a goodbye.

"Hmph, boys," Liz sighed, sliding her phone back into her tight jeans' pocket and shaking her dirty blonde head.

True to his word, Soul and Maka showed up within ten minutes, in which Liz entertained herself by asking Blair the cat all about what it was like to be able to change into a furry feline at will. The growl of the motor cycle preceded them, and Liz's first thought was grocery shopping on the bike? Really? Really, who would do that? You'd think that Maka would've talked Soul out of something so stupid. But, when Liz looked down over the rail, the pair weren't burdened by bags; they were grinning hugely, Maka's skinny arms wrapped tightly around Soul's waist, chin resting on his shoulder.

"Hi Liz!" called Maka when Soul cut the engine off. Liz waved, and Blair stood and stretched, swiping a paw over one ear.

"No one ever says hi to Blair…" she mewled.

"Hey, cat," said Soul noncommittally, slouching up the stairs to the landing.

"Hi, Blair," Maka said, with a little more gusto.

"Blair said you were grocery shopping," said Liz, "but I don't see any bags. So, where were our darling Maka and Soul?"

Soul rolled his eyes and unlocked the door, pushing it open for Maka and Liz. "I gotta head out. See you guys later."

He planted a quick, sound kiss on Maka's lips, then he was back down the stairs. Maka shook her head, grinning wryly.

"Always so private," she muttered. To Liz, she added "You want something to drink?"

Liz shook her head, unease settling in her stomach.

"No, I really need to talk to you though."

Maka frowned, cocking her head to the side like a puppy at Liz's tone. Her emerald eyes flashed as she studied Liz's soul, and she nodded with understanding.

"Something's wrong with Kid." A statement, not a question. She gestured to the loveseat in the living room, and Liz collapsed onto it, with Maka perching on the arm.

"Remember how I told you I was going to take him out to the fair? For a change of pace?" she began. Maka nodded, and Liz swallowed. "Well, I did, and he started getting all OCD on me, and…"

And she proceeded to explain everything to Maka; how he had began freaking out about the sporadic lights and colors and erratic placement of prizes, how they had been walking around when those guys showed up with the drugs, how Liz had coaxed Kid into trying some, and how he'd gone even more crazy. Most importantly, Liz informed Maka that Kid had no memory whatsoever of last night. By the time Liz was done, Maka was staring at her, open-mouthed.

"You gave…You gave drugs to Kid? Of all people in the world, you gave weed to Kid? What the hell were you thinking, Liz?"

Liz shrugged helplessly. "I guess I was thinking that he would loosen up a little. And I was right, he did, but too much. And I couldn't…I couldn't bring myself to tell him this morning. I should have, I know that, but I just couldn't."

Maka closed her eyes, sighing softly. When they opened, they were bright and fierce.

"Liz, you have to tell him. It may wound your pride, but that's better than having him forget something as important as that. It'd be wrong to hide that from him, and you know that'll eat at you for a long time if you try."

Liz sighed. "Yeah, I know. I was hoping you could help me with that, though. I don't know how to start that."

She made a face at just how she thought that would go down. Hey, Kid, so remember when you said you couldn't remember what happened the other night? Yeah, well, that's because you smoked some pot that I coaxed you into trying… Yeah, Liz really wasn't good at these types of things.

Maka blinked and leaned back against the couch. "Tell him you're sorry. You can't say you didn't think it would hurt, because you more than anybody should know better. You can't say you didn't mean to, especially after he protested at first. All you can say is that you're sorry about what you did and it'll never happen again. If that's true, of course."

"Of course it's true!" Liz exclaimed. "I'll never go down that road again!"

Maka smiled. "Well, let's work on your presentation so that you've got it ready when guys' night is over."

…

This was why Liz went to Maka for advice. That girl might have some big faults—hell, who didn't?—but the guidance she gave was sound and accurate. When guys' night had ended, Kid had come to pick Liz up. They'd driven home in uncomfortable silence—uncomfortable for Liz; she didn't know about Kid. When they'd reached Gallows Manor, and Kid walked her inside as always, she asked him to come up to her room. He did, not sure what was going on. They both sat on her bed, and Liz told him what happened last night, everything, not even excluding the tiny, high kiss, or how she wished that it had been legitimate; now that had been awkward and embarrassing for her. She apologized profusely. She expected shouting, or at least angry words. Maybe he would just storm out of her room without saying a word.

What she did not expect was a hard, fierce kiss.

Kid pulled back, taking her face in his hands and making her look him in the eyes. For a moment, they just stared at each other, blue to gold, and then he admitted that he already knew this. He hadn't lost his memory of that night, although some of it was a blur. He'd been hoping that Liz would be able to tell him herself, though. And when she had, he had to kiss her. Simply had to.

And now Liz was curled against Kid's strong, hard chest on her mattress, with his arms around her, and his nose buried in her neck. His warm, even breaths fanned her throat as he slept. When had he gotten taller than her, that he could completely encircle her body?

That night, Liz fell asleep with a smile on her face.