Once the First Great Kiss Siege of Lowee had finally come to its soggy end, the three young women finally settled down and returned to more pleasant activities for the evening. They still might have had a few things to talk about, Vert knew, but the biggest hurdle was finally past them, and now they could just enjoy the trip down the hill. The rest of the conversation could even wait for another day... Perhaps a warmer day? A warmer day sounded quite lovely. What's more, Vert noticed in amusement that Ram had "subtly" changed the seating arrangements once everyone had sat back down so that there was a twin on each of her sides, rather than Rom having to sit in the middle like a mediator. She might have to start planning out the Second Great Kiss Siege if Ram kept this cuteness up...

For now, though, the CPU decided she would rather just enjoy the peace of having two adorable girls at her either of sides as she finished her warm, chocolatey drink. All things considered, this moment was definitely worth putting up for the freezing cold that the twins had put her through earlier that evening. She wouldn't mind leaving that part out of this when she told Blanc about what had happened between the three of them later on.

"When will Blanc get home?" It was Ram who finally spoke up, at long last breaking the silence that the trio had been enjoying sitting at the table, sipping at their hot chocolate. While this seemed to be becoming the trend for them, considering the change of heart the girl seemed to have finally had towards Vert, the CPU was more than happy to hear whatever the girl had to say — though in this case... unfortunately, even with Rom perking up and looking hopefully in Vert's direction, the goddess just didn't have an answer for them. "I... I, um, I gotta- I mean, I wanna tell her something."

A blonde eyebrow rose in response to the CPU Candidate's words as its owner forced back a smile. Now what could little Ram possibly "gotta" say to Blanc all of a sudden that she hadn't needed to say before, hmmm?

"My, I'm afraid I don't know, Ram. She said she had to leave on business, so it could be longer than just today..." Vert's desire to smile faded somewhat as she considered this possibility. She had since accepted that Blanc hadn't meant anything by leaving, that it had been just a twist of fate that had led to the situation they were in — which had ultimately been for the best, given the situation with the twins — but she too wanted to see Blanc. Nothing she could do about it now, she supposed. "Will I do in the meantime? You don't have to call me sister, unless you want to of course, but I'll be happy to do anything and everything that Blanc would do for you in her stead."

The twins leaned forward, exchanging a look with each other. Clearly some sort of twin communication, silent to the world outside of their own gazes, was happening before Vert's very eyes. How exciting! She wondered if she'd be able to learn how to translate someday... Maybe she should try to practice with the Vert from the other dimension? Oh, but did she count as a twin...? Now that was something to really wonder...

Before Vert could travel down this train of thought further, perhaps for the best considering the sort of chaos she and her counterpart from the other dimension could probably get into when left together for an extended period of time, she felt a tug at her side. It was from Rom's end — an invaluable ally throughout all of this and an absolute doll all around. Not that Ram over there on her other side wasn't too.

"What is it?" The CPU offered a gentle look to the girl, who was looking up at Vert with a sweet, yet somehow... lazy?, yes, lazy sort of look. It was extremely cute, which just made Vert's smile widen as the girl struggled to look at her, out of shyness or... something else. "Have you two decided on what you'd like to do?"

Rom nodded slowly, dropping her head onto Vert's arm in mid-nod, which in turn almost led to Vert picking her up again. Had her cuteness skills spontaneously leveled up somehow...?!

"Um... Me and Ram are getting tired..." As if to accentuate this point, the Candidate opened her mouth and broke out into a yawn at just that moment. Vert's eyes twinkled in amused understanding as she understood where Rom's change in demeanor had come from — the girl wanted to go to sleep, then. She looked to her side, curious, and sure enough, there was Ram, starting to look sleepy herself... though Ram was being much more defiant about it than Rom was. "Can we just go to sleep now...? Maybe... Blanc will be home... tomorroooo..."

Another yawn from Rom silenced the end of her sentence, and she was joined by a yawn from Ram coming from Vert's other side. This one, however, was quickly stifled by the girl making it. It seemed as though Ram had a bit more pep left in her than Rom did. Either way, it seemed like the twins had decided it was bed time. All things considered, this was probably later than Mina or even Blanc let them stay up normally anyway. She supposed it was because neither of them were home right at the moment.

Blinking slowly, Vert realized she had just glossed over something rather important. Since neither of the twins seemed to be in a rush, thankful for this chance, she went over that past thought word for word, and realize...

...neither of them were home right at the moment...

Wait... Did that mean...

Vert got to... got to... tuck the twins in!? My my my, Pongsmas had certainly come early for her this year, hadn't it?

"Then... How about you two pick out a story you'd like to hear and I read it to you before bed? Rom told me Blanc's been having some trouble with it recently, and I believe it's high time you two get to hear the whole thing." Surveying the two girls, who seemed to have perked up a fair deal after hearing the word "story," Vert smiled warmly at the two of them. This was going just swimmingly now, now wasn't it? "Or maybe I could tell you one...? Well, whichever you'd prefer, I'd be happy to do it. What do you say?"

Rom was smiling sleepily up at Vert, which was all the response she needed from her. Ram, on the other hand...

"I... I guess you telling us one could be okay..."

... well, her expression said it all anyway.

"My, then what are we waiting around here for? It's settled!" Standing up, Vert placed a hand on a shoulder of each of the twins and helped them both stand up in turn. Rom let out another yawn, leaning against Vert for support and latching onto the CPU's arm to keep herself steady, while Ram seemed to be debating something. Whatever it was, Vert wasn't going to push the matter, given what it had taken to get this far. Instead, she looked over the two CPU Candidates with a cheerful expression and beckoned out of the kitchen with her head. "Shall we?"

"Okay..." Rom, eyes half-open, managed this much at least.

After a moment, Ram realized that Vert was waiting for her, so she nodded dumbly, shifting her gaze about the room.

"Just..." Ram stopped herself. Even Rom seemed to be curious about what was making the girl hesitate now, for she was peeking over from Vert's other side, sleepily questioning her sister with her eyes. Vert looked down at the girl, eyebrows raised, and waited for her to continue. They weren't in any rush, after all. "H-Hey, stop looking at me like that! Come on already!"

Her cheeks heating up considerably, Ram finally mustered up the courage she had been working on for the past moment or so and grabbed Vert's free hand, which had slid off her shoulder when they had all stood up, in her own. Looking like an adorable little tomato, Ram shyly tugged in the direction of the bedrooms, doing her best to look tough despite her clear inability and unwillingness to meet Vert or her sister's gaze.

"C-Come on I said...! Jeez... You're both being so slow..."

How cute!

Turning from Ram, Vert looked down at Rom, who was smiling affectionately at her sister. The Candidate caught notice of this and looked back at her, her smile widening just a bit in return. This exchange complete — Vert wondered if what had just happened between her and Rom was like what Rom and Ram had done with each other earlier...? — Vert set off, slow to make sure the one twin leaning on her was steady, towards the bedrooms.

It would be a bit of a walk to get there — really, did Basilicoms have to be so large? — but Vert wasn't worried. She had made sure to check the thermostat and fix it as she and Rom had passed it on the way over, so by the time they arrived now, they wouldn't have to worry at all about it being too cold. The more they walked, though... Vert realized she might have something else to worry about if they weren't careful.

"My... This has been quite a night, hasn't it?" She finally commented. Normally, the thought of a little sister falling asleep on her would be a dream come true, but in this case, there was only one Vert here and two sisters — she wasn't sure if she'd be able to get the both of them to bed if it happened here, and heaven forbid she leave them on the floor! They'd catch a cold! Besides... She really did want to talk a little more before bed. "I... I do want to say, though, I... I'm sorry if the past year has been hard on you. I know it wasn't clear before, but Blanc is happy, she does care about you, and I... Well, I..."

Vert trailed off. She hadn't meant to return to that subject, but somehow it had started going there of its own accord. She just couldn't... She cared about these girls too, after all! And...

"You... are being dumb again. Stop being dumb." Ram's blunt voice cut her thoughts off straightaway. Flabbergasted by the accusation, especially considering what it was in regards to, Vert could only bring herself to look at Ram in confusion, which apparently was a funny looking face, as it made the girl burst out into sleepy laughter. "Hahaha...! Now you look it too!"

Now this was certainly off-putting. Was she being insulted? Vert wasn't really sure what to do with this.

Apparently she looked even more confused, because Ram started laughing harder at her, which in turn had Vert puffing her cheeks out in frustration. I-It wasn't like she was bothered that she didn't get it or anything! She just... would have liked to know! That was all!

"Okay okay, fine! Now you just look mad." Sounding disappointed, Ram glanced away. Perhaps she had been glad for the distraction from having to explain herself? That would have been like her if that was the case, but was she awake enough to plot out something like that that far ahead? Perhaps not... or perhaps Vert wasn't giving her enough credit. "You're dumb 'cause you're still saying that stuff, okay? Just... forget about it. I-I was wrong too, so, um, we're even, alright? And you said you'd talk to her about it and stuff, so..."

Ah.

That was what it was.

Yes, she supposed she was being dumb, wasn't she?

"So everything will be fine from now on." Vert finished, nodding in confirmation in response to the questioning gaze Ram quickly gave her in response to her words. Now that she understood what Ram had meant, she found herself smiling affectionately, if also a little teasingly, at the CPU Candidate. If only she had a third arm to poke her in the nose or something like that...! "Has anyone every told you that you have a very nice laugh, Ram? That's very special. You should try to get your sisters to do it more — you might just be the key, with a lovely little laugh like that."

"Wh-Wha!? What are you saying!?" Clearly, Ram hadn't expected such a response from Vert. Perhaps she'd never even heard one like it before, because after the initial outburst, it then seemed to stun her into silence.

Just as well, they were approaching the wing of the Basilicom where the bedrooms were. Vert was still beaming at the reaction Ram had given her all the same, even though in just a few moments, it would be story time. Now what sort of story would she tell them...? Would it be too cliche to tell them about her and Blanc? Oh, it probably would, wouldn't it? What to do, what to do, what to...

"What are you doing? Stop, you're gonna pass it."

Breaking out of her flustered stupor, Ram spoke up all of a sudden, and in that moment, she realized the twins had been trying to slow down for a few moments now — but she had just assumed it was because they were getting even more tired. Since that was apparently not the case after all, Vert obeyed the command, but she didn't understand why the command had been issued in the first place.

"Pass what? The rest of the rooms are further down." Vert nodded in the direction of the hallway in front of them. They had only just gotten to this wing, after all, they still had a bit of a walk — not too much of one, but they certainly weren't in any danger of passing anything. In fact, they'd only reached one room so far, and they certainly didn't have any reason to be going in there. It was sweet — they were confused, that was all it was. "You two must be a little sleepy. It's okay, we just have a little more to go, and then..."

"No... In there..." Rom raised one of the hands she had been using to hold on to Vert's arm to point at the one room that they had just come to. The room that they had been about to pass by, for very obvious reasons.

"Yeah, there!" Ram raised one of her own hands to point at the room as well, before looking up at Vert with a grin, as if this was absolutely no big deal at all. To her, it obviously was not. The problem was, well... The problem with what she and Rom were suggesting was that the room in question was... "We wanna do it in our sister's room. Can't we?"

At this suggestion, at her worst (best?) fears being confirmed, Vert froze. For the first time since this whole episode had begun, she was completely and utterly caught off guard, even more than when Ram had got her in such a way earlier... Not to mention she was without any responses.

Blanc's room?

Her girlfriend's room?

She... She hadn't been in that room in over a year — or more precisely, other that brief moments to greet or snatch Blanc away, the last time she had been in Blanc's room for any extended period of time was before her and Blanc had gotten in a relationship.

Could... Could she do it?

"L-Let's change, first! We can't go to bed in these clothes!" Vert found herself spluttering this sort of excuse out before she knew it — but it was ultimately simply a ploy for time. Once they all changed, they would be coming right back here. She wasn't about to not read to the twins after everything that had happened tonight, which meant one way or the other... This was inevitable. "W-We can, uhm, we can come right back after a quick pit stop to your room. Okay?"

"Ooookaaaaaay..."

Hopefully the few minutes it took changing with the two CPU Candidates would be all she needed to mentally prepare herself...!

Surely, the few minutes it took changing with the CPU Candidates would be all she could possibly need to mentally prepare herself for this...!

Vert swallowed.

The door looked back at her.

It was here to take revenge for the marshmallows. The ones that had mocked her. The ones that she had in turn swallowed with all too much gusto.

This door was out for vengeance.

Unaware of the devious plot of the devilish door before them, the two girls at the CPU's side waited patiently, expectantly, eagerly awaiting a story from Vert.

It was a rather funny story.

Hilarious, even.

A regular laugh out loud, slap your knees riot.

As it turned out?

The few minutes it took changing with the CPU Candidates wasn't all she needed to mentally prepare herself.

It seemed like only a moment ago she had suggested changing, but here they were, back in front of Blanc's bedroom door once again.

"What's going on? Come on..." Oh, there was Ram — all dolled up in her pajamas that matched Rom's. As adorable as that was, the door would not let Vert enjoy it. No it would not. That darn door! The impatience in Ram's voice did not go unnoticed by Vert, and even Rom, sleepy as she was, was giving off a feeling of anticipation from Vert's other side. There... There really was no going back now, was there? Not that there needed to be... I-It was just a room, that's all! Nothing strange about a room or sleeping in a room or sleeping in a room where Blanc changed her clothes or sleeping in a room where Blanc changed her clothes and laid in bed or- "That's it, I'm doing it! Come on Rom, she can get dragged if she wants."

Oh.

So this was how this was going to go.

Now they were going inside.

She followed after the CPU Candidates — it wasn't like she really had much choice here, what with her holding on to both of them (or were they holding onto her now? she wasn't sure which would be more accurate at this point...) — and just like that, they were inside Blanc's room. It looked just like it had the last time Vert had been in here. It had only been a few weeks ago, when she'd come to fetch Blanc for a quest they had planned on doing together. Blanc had been there that time, of course. It hadn't been in the mid of night, with such... intentions like it was now.

Or so Vert thought.

The reality of the situation was actually a bit anti-climactic, in hindsight. There were no belly dancing White Hearts leaping out to greet her, no alarms going off to chase her away for treading on holy Lowee ground while its sacred leader was away, no... nothing. It was just a room. A room with a bed that happened to be the bed her girlfriend slept in every night. A room that Vert had actually seen plenty of times before. For all the buildup Vert had been putting on it... It was the same room. That was all it was. It wasn't that big a deal.

Perhaps Vert's expectations had been a little off...?

"Come on, come on, let's lie down!"

"I want to hear the story..."

With the twins now pulling Vert towards the bed, seemingly unaware of her hesitations, her heart skipped a beat. Maybe her expectations weren't that off after all...? One could hope they would prove to be soon enough.

As she was forced in the middle of the bed by two girls who seemed to have become much more attentive at the prospect of a story than they had been earlier, it finally occurred to Vert. Amidst all of her thoughts of just being in Blanc's room in this situation... With a twin settling down on either side of her now, Rom even going as far as to pull the covers up above the three of them...

"Wait, you want me here too? I thought... Aren't I supposed to be just...?" Was she... going to get to cuddle with the twins...?! She had skipped right from tucking in and leaped straight towards joining the family! She must have done a better job with the two of them than she had thought — that, or maybe Blanc had been doing such an adorably terrible job reading to them that it had gotten to the point that they would go this far for their story? "How can I tuck you in if you've brought me into bed with you?"

Rom seemed uninterested in semantics like that — semantics that happened to be fairly important to Vert at the moment, thank you very much! — but she paid them no mind as she sidled on up next to Vert, latching onto one of the blonde's arms and tugging it around her neck, turning the goddess of an entire nation into little more than a child's means of comfort.

"There. I tucked us in for you... So, um..." The girl trailed off, a yawn cutting her off. Vert found herself smiling despite the ridiculous situation she had found herself in now. It seemed that the bed was having its way with her after all, even though she'd seemed so much more peppy just a few minutes ago. These two girls really were something special, weren't they?

"Start the story!" Luckily for Rom, Ram was there to finish her sister's thought, and she too had gotten herself nice and comfortable next to Vert — albeit not as much as Rom was... but it was evident that it was only a matter of time before the tired girl latched onto Vert as well. With her eyes darting back and forth like that, it was obvious that the idea was at the forefront of her thoughts, if nothing else.

Seeing this, Vert couldn't do anything but grin. At last, she gave in. Did it really matter what bed or room it was? This was such a wonderful moment, perhaps one that was irreplaceable — why ruin it wondering about things that didn't matter? She was sure Blanc wouldn't mind, and getting to be with the twins like this? Well, no need to say it, but she certainly didn't mind.

"My, you two are in quite a rush, now aren't you? Very well then." Closing her eyes, Vert cleared her throat and began her tale. It would be a special one — one that hopefully the girls would not quite soon forget... largely because, well, they were front and center in it! "Once upon a time, there were two queens... A green queen and a white queen. The white queen had two wonderful, wonderful younger twin sisters, but the jealous green queen had none at all, so she devised a plan to..."

Without a pause or page break in sight, she told the twins the story of Blanc, the queen of the land of white, and Vert, the queen of the land of green. Naturally, Vert left the names out, but she had a pretty good feeling the two knew. It wasn't as though she was hiding the inspiration for her tale. There were certain real life "good parts" she made sure to leave out from her version of things, but as far as the story the twins were getting to hear, every "good part" was told without any hesitation (much to Vert's delight when Ram made a face the first time and Rom, who she had been sure was fast asleep, sleepily declared it to be cute).

At some point, Vert forgot where she was or how she had gotten there. The only thing that mattered to her were the two girls in bed with her and making sure they made their trips to dreamland as peacefully and happily as possible.

In the back of her mind, she couldn't help but wonder...

Was this... what having sisters of her own might have felt like...?

Would... Blanc be okay with the idea of this happening again...?

"... and the queen of the land of the green took the white queen's sisters onto her magical ship and flew them back home, where they all lived happily ever after." Satisfied with how she had wrapped things up, the blonde storyteller closed her eyes and sighed to herself, a strange, warm feeling stirring inside of her. In the brief silence she had given the room now that she had stopped speaking, she could hear the sounds of breathing. Steady, peaceful breathing. The quiet breathing of twins who had drifted off to sleep some time ago, but twins who were going to hear a whole story whether they were awake for it or not. "The end."

Opening her eyes, Vert smiled warmly at the two girls sleeping soundly on either side of her. They were holding onto her like they might a teddy bear... Or maybe like they might their sister, were she the one in this position?

Vert supposed she couldn't know. Whatever the case was, the sight simply overwhelmed her, filled her to the brim with emotion. Maybe she would be able find out for herself once Blanc returned...? She'd like that. She'd like that very much — though that would mean her chances of getting to experience this again would be slim to none... Oh well. That was a conversation for another day. For this day, this evening, all that mattered was right now.

"Yes... This was... nice." Letting out a yawn of her own as she finally let her own sleepiness wash over her now that her charges had, at long last, fallen to sleep, the CPU looked over the two girls one more time before closing her eyes to settle down and go to sleep herself.

The two of them had really had nothing to worry about all along, honestly...

If it had happened to anyone in this Basilicom, anyone at all, it most certainly wasn't Blanc or Rom or even Ram getting "taken away."

It was Vert.

And she was more than happy to see just where these three sisters planned on "taking" her.

The End