Garuru was panting heavily, his hand against his forehead. He was on his knees, shivering at the painful after affects of the weapon in Kururu's hand.

"…That didn't go quite as planned. K-ku…"

The Keronian-turned-Pekoponian glared up at the scientist over his black sunglasses, sweat dripping down his face.

"Though you do look very attractive, ku," Kururu said, throwing in a compliment to hopefully appease the irritated Lieutenant. He knew it wouldn't work, but it didn't hurt to try.

"J-just proceed," Garuru muttered, diverting his eyes away.

"Ku. Can't." Kururu put the weapon down and went back to his laptop. "First of all, your Pekoponian body can't take it; it's already reached its limit, despite the fact this is your first time using the gun. Hm." He looked a bit troubled. "It also seems that you may have to stay in that form longer-"

"No matter," Garuru said dismissively, running the back of his hand across his mouth. "It will only be a better excuse to let you experiment on me."

Kururu raised an eye ridge at him, irritated at his chivalry. He's no fun at all.

"…Secondly…" Kururu continued, "I need to see what else is wrong with the gun, ku. Ku-ku. No use blindly tugging at straws, Lieutenant. I might make your condition worse if I don't include exclusive research."

"…Very well then," Garuru finally began catching his breath, taking deep, relaxed swallows of air. "I shall…" His words stopped short as he abruptly lost consciousness, falling on the floor.

Kururu stared at him dully. "Hm. How unfortunate."

Natsumi, 5:15 pm
hey how was ur brothr?

Rio, 5:20 pm
happy 2 c me

Natsumi, 5:24 pm
thats nice! Im glad he came ovr

Rio, 5:28 pm
yea… same here

Natsumi, 5:30 pm
wanna come ovr for dinner?

Rio, 5:36
sure

"Natsumi, Rio's here," Fuyuki called out over his shoulder. He gave the blond-haired man a friendly smile and allowed him entry. "You can come in if you want."

"Thanks," Giroro said, realizing that he was only partially used to being called a different name. He went inside, bumping into Natsumi. "O-oh! S-sorry!"

"It's fine," The girl said gently. "C'mon. Dinner's on the table."

Giroro nodded awkwardly and followed her to the dining room, where the entire table was furnished with her infamously delicious foods. He grinned to himself, wondering if she had done it all for him.

"Help yourself," Natsumi said when he seated himself. "Um…" She looked off to the side. "Mom's not going to be here, and the stupid frog's supposed to be here but isn't, so…" She fidgeted slightly.

"It's fine," Giroro said with a warm smile. "Don't worry about it."

Natsumi stared idly at his choker, and then glanced at the glass door where Giroro's tent was positioned outside. Giroro nervously cleared his throat, returning her attention toward him.

"S-so…" He stammered, rubbing his neck. "Um. How's Giroro?"

Natsumi's eyes widened at the question. "…Giroro? …You're…. asking about Giroro?"

"Was that rude?" Giroro bit his lower lip. What in the name of Keron am I doing…!?

"Giroro?" Fuyuki repeated.

The corporal jumped, startled at the younger boy's interjection. He had completely forgotten he was there.

"What about him?"

"U-uh… y-you said he was still… missing?" Giroro stuttered, flickering his eyes down to his empty plate.

"…Yeah, he is…" Natsumi murmured, watching him a bit… suspiciously?

Giroro felt sweat run down his face, but quickly wiped it away as he said, "Th-this looks good! Can I try it?"

"Hm? Oh! Oh, yes," Natsumi nodded. She served him a platter, carefully avoiding any droplets on the white tablecloth.

This isn't going to be easy, Giroro thought, distraught. She's catching on.

"Ms. Koyuki?"

The female ninja looked up from her homework. "Yeah, D?"

Dororo played with his hair. "U-um…" He cleared his throat. "Would… you like to do something with me tonight?"

"Sure!" Koyuki beamed, closing her booklet. She sat up. "What do you want to do?"

"I… don't know."

If Koyuki didn't know any better, she'd think that her friend's face turned all red. All red in the face, like he was having a devastating fever.

"Like a date?" Koyuki asked with a cattish smile.

"…Yeah. Like a date."

Koyuki's smile faltered for a moment. His… response sounded strange, at least in comparison to the other times she suggested the very notion of a date.

She examined him for a moment. "…D? Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Dororo inquired, staring at the ground.

"You just seem sick to me," Koyuki gently placed her palm against his forehead, and was startled when she felt his skin glow even warmer with unexplained heat. "I think you're catching something, D."

"I know. I already did." He laughed nervously, as if there was a joke somewhere in his words. "But I'm fine. I'm completely fine."

"…Sure?"

"Yes, I am."

Koyuki took her hand away from his face. "Um… so… where did you want to go, D?"

"Why don't we just walk around the forest until it gets dark? We could watch the moon; it's supposed to be a lunar eclipse, isn't it?"

"It might be blue tonight," Koyuki mused, remembering. "Or red, or orange. But I think I like blue best."

"…Really."

"Yeah," She hugged her knees. "It's very rare and apparently really pretty; I've only ever seen it when I was really little."

"I've never seen a blue moon before," Dororo said, trying to picture it. "It sounds lovely."

"Mmhm. I think they look like your eyes." Dororo flinched, and she giggled. "What? It's a good thing; I promise."

Dororo watched her evenly for a moment before turning away. "Thank you."

"No problem, D!" She hopped to her feet. "Ready to go?"

The male ninja swallowed, looking for just a bare second that he wanted to reconsider, but he threw the thought down and stood up. "…After you, Ms. Koyuki."

"Rio, I need to talk to you."

Giroro jumped, the plates slightly clattering in his hands. "W-what?"

"I said I need to talk to you," Natsumi said with a slight frown. "Are you okay? You seem a little spacey-"

Giroro ignored the horribly-induced pun that the author had written down and gulped. "…I-I'm fine. What… what do you need to talk to me about?"

Natsumi took the empty dishes from his hands. "Just…" She cocked her head slightly to the right. "…Something. You'll know when I bring it up." She looked just the slightest bit troubled as she added, quite under her breath, "…Maybe."

She spun around and went in the kitchen before he had any time to react.

Giroro sighed, exhausted. He knew what it was about.

"Hey, Rio?"

The corporal turned toward Fuyuki. "Yeah?"

Fuyuki glanced hesitantly toward the entry way where Natsumi was busy cleaning, and he lowered his voice. "…Not to sound weird or anything, but, um… you're Giroro, aren't you?"

Giroro felt his heart pound faster than it had ever had before. His legs wobbled in weakness, and he wasn't able to stop himself from falling back on the sofa.

"C-careful…" Fuyuki said with a small smile. "…So I was right?"

"H-how?" Giroro croaked, his eyes dilated.

Fuyuki gave a short laugh, stopping quickly when he took notice of the only other person in the house. When he was satisfied enough by the fact that she probably wasn't listening, he said, "I figured it out a long time ago, at the beach before we got kidnapped by the Ningyo."

Giroro blinked at him in disbelief. "…What?"

"'Giroro' has a blond afro, gray eyes, and his voice stayed completely the same as…you," Fuyuki said, counting them down with his fingers. "…Not only that, I noticed you two have the exact same thing on your neck, and your belt looks the same…" He made a tiny grin. "And I'm guessing that the guy with Koyuki was Dororo, right?" Giroro nodded wordlessly, and the boy continued, with a dry chuckle, "I guess I just wasn't paying too much attention to really come to that conclusion until a bit later."

Giroro was staring at him in utter disbelief. He gazed hard at the ground. "….Does… Natsumi know?"

Fuyuki shrugged a shoulder. "I don't think so, but I think she's catching on. If it's any assurance, I won't tell her."

"You… won't?"

Fuyuki shook his head negatively. "I have a feeling that you should be the one to tell her instead."

Giroro watched the kitchen for a moment, as if he was expecting Natsumi to walk in on them any second. He wondered if she was eavesdropping without their knowing. Something felt tight in his chest, and he doubted that it was from the ridiculous amount of love he had for her. Such a heavy burden on his shoulders…

"How do you think she'll react?"

"Eh?"

Giroro swallowed. "…How do you think Natsumi will react, Fuyuki?"

Natsumi's brother sat down on the sofa in front of him and wrung his hands together.

"I don't know."

Will Giroro confess his real situation, and above all, confess his true feelings to Natsumi? Will Dororo tell Koyuki how he really feels about her? Will Garuru pummel Keroro to a nonexistent prune? Will Miss Furbottom ever get fed? Will the tuna fish ever invade the earth? Tune in next time on…..

…Wait. Wait, it's not over…

Who's messing with other people's scripts now?

…Hey!

The doorbell rang.

Natsumi snorted as she clambered out the kitchen, whipping the towel over her shoulder. By her complete nonchalant attitude, Fuyuki nodded in confirmation that she didn't hear a word of their conversation, much to Giroro's absolute relief.

"It's probably the stupid frog," Natsumi said, rolling her eyes. She unlocked the door and opened it with a chink, already preparing a full speech about how because he missed dinner he wasn't going to get any and was now going to eat from the dog bowl. Her mouth dried up in bewilderment, her hands twitching at her sides.

"Is Rio here?"

Fuyuki perked up, his eyes widening. He mouthed, nervously, "Garuru?" to Giroro.

The corporal gave him a wry grin and dropped his head into his hands, groaning.

"H-hi!" Natsumi finally managed to say, her words garbled and half understood. "U-um… R-Rio? Your brother's here."

Fuyuki furrowed his eyebrows in confusion before joining Giroro to the door. Glancing at the boy's face, Giroro deduced that Fuyuki figured out who was really behind the dark brown eyes of the young man outside.

Garuru had his hands in his pockets, his sunglasses folded neatly on a chest pocket. He clicked his tongue against sharp teeth, his eyes staring right into Giroro's.

"Um…" Natsumi looked extremely confused, her head moving to and fro of the young men. "…D… Do you want to come in?"

Garuru nodded absently, stepping in the house and moving aside to let her close the door.

"I-!… I-I'll get us some dessert," She stammered, rushing into the kitchen.

Giroro could feel the heat radiate from her face. His mouth practically unhinged at a particular thought that made his stomach curl with envy. …What.

"It's nice to see you again… little brother," Garuru said, his lips twitching slightly.

Oh, yeah. Laugh at my pain. "Nice to see you too," Giroro said, forcing the words out.

Garuru settled himself onto the couch in front of him, watching him carefully.

"So…" Giroro nervously shuffled his legs slightly. "…Why are you here?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

I hate you. "Lots of reasons. Don't make me list them all."

"What happened?" Fuyuki intercepted after taking a brief look toward the entryway of the kitchen. He lowered his voice to a whisper, "You're… Lieutenant Garuru, right?"

"Sharp one," Garuru noted. He nodded. "Yes. I am."

"…Wh… why?"

Garuru leaned against his seat. "G-…. Rio is in this form rather permanently; Sergeant Major Kururu was in need of a…" He frowned slightly. "…what did he call it, Rio?"

"Guinea pig," Giroro said in explanation, rolling his eyes and folding his arms as he leaned against the couch.

"…Oh!" Fuyuki nodded in understanding. "I get it-"

"H-here," Natsumi said, her cheeks tinted pink. "I-I made some strawberry shortcake. H-hope you enjoy it."

"Thank you." Garuru nodded and accepted the plate, balancing it on his knees.

"Natsumi?" Giroro took his own slice and looked up at her. "…Did you say you needed to talk to me about something?"

"…Hm?" Natsumi pulled her attention from Garuru to the younger brother. "Oh. Um…" She looked… conflicted. "…Never mind; it was… nothing."

The darkness had descended; the stars winked cheerfully on the black sky. There was a waterfall near, but its usual roar made a quiet whisper due to the amount of distance between the lake and the two ninjas. The ex-assassin and the school girl leapt across the trees, stepping gracefully onto each branch and keeping their balance despite the gravity that persistently tried to pull them down.

"You alright, D?" Koyuki asked, holding on to the branches of the tree above her.

Dororo landed next to her. "Yes, of course. Why do you ask?"

"You just seemed to be having a little trouble back there," Koyuki observed. "Really, it's nothing too big of a deal. You're probably still adjusting and struggling to navigate your body, right?"

Dororo nodded meekly. "Yes, I… I suppose you can say that." He waved his hand dismissively. "Th-though I'm fine. I really am."

Koyuki smiled charmingly and climbed up the tree. Dororo watched her briefly, then deciding to go up after her.

"Isn't this a nice spot, D?" Koyuki asked with a quiet sigh. She was sitting on a rock that the thick tree was leaning against, looking up at the milky white moon.

"…Yeah, it is." Dororo settled next to her, a little closer than he would have been comfortable before.

Koyuki saw this, but didn't mention it. "I hope we weren't too late."

"I greatly doubt it," Dororo said, hands sliding back. "I'm sure we would have noticed it."

"True." Koyuki tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Dororo seemed troubled for a moment, as if he was debating something, or even waging a great war inside of himself. His eyes would flicker to her hands that lay daintily by her side, and then glance over to his own.

He really didn't like the idea that his mind was currently encouraging.

"S-so," Dororo said softly, changing the subject in hopes of getting rid of these thoughts. "Why don't we, um… play a game?"

"A game?"

"…Yes." He lost. His hand fell softly over hers, startling her slightly.

"…Dororo?"

"It's turning blue," Dororo said, his own pale eyes widening at the sight.

"Wow…" Koyuki murmured. Her fingers relaxed under his touch. "…D?"

"Mm?"

"Would you like to live on the moon, just to see what it was like?"

The ninja was silent for the moment, tilting his head slightly while he watched the marvelous display, as if he was earnestly considering her question.

"…No."

"Really? …Why not?"

He found himself gently leaning against her, dearly hoping she would do the same. "Because then I would be too far away from you."

"Something about this isn't Sgt Froggy," Keroro said with a small frown, rubbing his chin.

"You mean all the romance and drama?" Tamama asked him.

"No, I mean… there's a complete lack of-"

"-Narrator?"

"No, no! Nobody cares about him!" Keroro flashed something from behind his back and held it above him proudly. "Bananas!"

"….That joke got old a long time ago, sir."

"No, no!" Keroro said again, shaking his head at his idiocy. "There's one thing we haven't tried yet!" He issued a black permanent marker and drew a face. "There. Now everyone will laugh at this banana for eternity until it gets all brown and gross and needs to be thrown away."

Tamama stared blankly at him. "You drew on your fingers."

"NOOOO NOT MY BEAUTIFUL FINGERS!"

"This show is trying too hard," Tamama said with a sigh to the screen, shaking his head.

"Kururu? Kururu, what's wrong?" Mois walked over to the sergeant major, who was typing rapidly on his keyboard. "Do you need help with something?" She kneeled down and examined him worriedly. His face had ultimately darkened to a serious look, his glasses reflecting the white computer screen heavily. The only response she got from him were the clacks of the board against his fingers. "…Kururu-?"

"The DestructuBug is gone."

Mois jumped. "W…what?"

Kururu paused for a mere second to push up his glasses before he leaned back over his computer. "The DestructuBug. It's gone."

The girl turned and saw an enormous gap in his room… where his invention had once been positioned to the side. She gasped slightly, putting her hands over her mouth. "…Wh… what happened?"

"…I don't know." He wouldn't turn away from his monitor. "That's what I'm trying to find out."

What's going on?

She thought that it was him… it made too much sense.

Everything fit too perfectly together.

She was in denial for a while, but… it couldn't be possible.

He was Giroro.

He was Giroro, she was sure of it. But… how?

Natsumi gazed over at the older man claimed to be Rio's brother wearily.

Is he a robot? she thought, wondering if she should pour water over him. He seemed so real, though. He even looked like Rio; just an older, slightly darker version of him. Real, and… insanely attractive.

She wondered if someone paid this guy to pretend to be his brother. Hm.

Question time.

"You know, Rio's told me a lot about you," she told Garuru.

Garuru gazed over at Giroro lightheartedly. The blond-haired man hid his face with his hands in embarrassment. "…I was aware of that."

"Do you remember the time when you took Rio to the Amusement Park?" Natsumi asked nonchalantly.

"Yes." Garuru leaned back against the couch and crossed his foot over his knee. "It was only once, regrettably; I had won him a mutant pig."

"Oh." That was extremely specific. This guy… was Rio's brother. But then…

"I think we better go… bro," Giroro said suddenly, standing up and yanking his brother up with him. "It was nice seeing you." He cringed at his forcefulness. "Err, it was very nice, um, letting me come over." He pointed at the cake. "The dessert was delicious, thank you."

Natsumi noticed his plate; completely empty.

Giroro didn't like sweet things…

"Yes, I do believe it's getting late," Garuru nodded. He nodded his head politely. "Thank you for the dessert. I appreciate it."

Natsumi blushed slightly. "…Y-you're welcome."

She didn't say 'you're welcome' to me, Giroro thought, horrified. She isn't falling in love with my brother, is she?!

Well, he does look less girlish than you do, you know. You know how girls love them muscles.

….And here are Giroro's weird thoughts of his brother and Natsumi getting married again. It's so heartwarming to see that I have contributed to such a traumatizing mind.

"Giroro," Natsumi said. She stopped, and turned even redder.

Garuru shot her a startled look. "…What did you call my brother?"

"N-nothing," Natsumi stammered. "N-nothing at all." She looked down and squeezed her arm in humiliation.

"…Rio," Garuru gazed at his brother. "Aren't you going to treat her to a goodnight kiss?"

"W-…what?!"

Objective, the sandy-haired man mouthed, slipping on his sunglasses.

Giroro bit his lower lip, absolutely embarrassed, as Garuru nudged him toward the pink-haired girl.

"S-so…" Giroro muttered, scratching the back of his head. He nervously bent down to kiss her.

…And all she could see was Giroro's face- red face, slanted eyes, scar and all.

"Goodnight!" Natsumi yelped, slamming the door. It met with his forehead, tumbling him backward. A somewhat muted, 'sorry!' was heard through the other side.

"…Well," Garuru said slowly, walking off the front porch as Giroro followed morosely behind, his hands on his nose. "…That could have gotten better."
Giroro snorted. "You think?"

"Yes, I do."

The Keronian-turned-Pekoponian shivered. "I think she knows, Garuru."

"She seems more conflicted to me," Garuru mused. "I believe that it's a good thing that I have…" he looked at his hand. "…turned into a Pekoponian."

Giroro held back a snarl and instead grinned wryly at his brother, noticing the lieutenant's stare at his unfamiliar appendages. "It's weird, isn't it? How long did it take you to walk?"

"Not very long. Admittedly, it was troublesome, but I managed to learn eventually."

The corporal rubbed his nose and winced. "Okay."

"Like I was saying before," Garuru continued, "she seems conflicted to me. I think it's because, even though she was suspecting you to be… yourself… she never expected-"

"-for you to be in the picture," Giroro finished. "…Hm."

"Perhaps it's a good thing you told her about me," Garuru said with a small smirk, making Giroro redden again. "At least now I could validate all those memories you shared with her. Did you by any chance make any of it up?"

Giroro shook his head.

"Good. Perhaps there is some hope for you yet."

Sure, Giroro thought sarcastically, casting a subtle side-glare to his brother. If Natsumi doesn't fall in love with you instead, that is.

In the distance, two pairs of glowing blue eyes watched the two young men walk down the road from behind a tree. They stared with great vibrancy, great irritation and anger. Long, delicate fingers clawed at the bark it hid against; water dripped from its skin. A small frown outlined the impatience sketched upon the woman's face, her eyebrows furrowed, her nose wrinkled slightly. The young man beside her watched them with greater calm than she did; lax against the tree, his arms folded, his legs crossed. He displayed better patience than she did upon surveying the blond-haired man's activity, though when his eyes glided onto her own, they sparked briefly with bitter frustration, before softening into something resembling more of the emotion of want.

So many years of servitude. So many.

He had hoped she would get the picture; who else would willingly stay and put up with her? The Ningyo pronounced her as their queen, because they loved her. Because they were unable to rule themselves.

But he… he could easily leave. He didn't need her as much as his relatives did.

But these feelings have been what had kept him near her all this time.

How…? How could you possibly not notice me?

How could she not see he's been hurting for so long?

"How long?" she whispered suddenly, disrupting his thoughts.

The man settled comfortably back into his tree, successfully making his voice sound as cool and unaffected as he always did. "…Soon." He forced his eyes to stop looking at the woman in front of him to the man walking away, disappearing from their sight. He sighed silently to himself. This heartbroken cycle was beginning all over again, and again, he was unwilling to put an end to it to please the woman that he had desperately fallen in love with. "…Soon, My Queen."

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