"Wow! This hot spring is huge!" Yukari's excitement was infectious as Kotone, Fuuka, and Aigis also stepped over the threshold into the massive open-air bath.

"So, this is an outdoor hot spring," Aigis observed, looking around with keen interest. "Unfortunately, its therapeutic healing benefits will be of no use to me."

Yukari gave her companion a look that expressed a kind of... tired exasperation.

"Don't say that, Ai-chan," Kotone said from beside her, wrapping an arm around the robot girl. "Curative items work for you, so there's no reason to assume this won't."

"She's right," Fuuka concurred. "You're more than just a machine, after-"

A loud splash emanated from deeper into the bath. The steam and massive rock in the centre of the water made it impossible to see where exactly the sound had come from.

"Who's that!?" Yukari called out, immediately on-edge. The girls has chosen this late time specifically so that Aigis could join them without fear of being exposed as a robot. As such, the likelihood of encountering anyone else was very low, which made the girls grow concerned. "Is someone there!?" she called when she received no response.

"What's the matter, Yukari?" Mitsuru asked as she joined them from the changing room.

"Did you... hear that just now?" There was a hint of hope in her voice, as if she hoped she was just imagining things.

"Hear what?" Mitsuru asked obliviously.

"There was a loud splashing over there," Kotone explained.

"You heard it too, huh?" Yukari said, her tone now filled with determination. "Fuuka, could you check over there? I-It could be a ghost."

"Um... but... I, uh... Okay..." Fuuka said in a tone of either defeat or fear.

"There's no such things as ghosts," Mitsuru insisted calmly. "There are probably just other guests in the bath."

"A-At this hour?" Yukari asked, unconvinced.

"We're here at this hour," Kotone offered with a shrug.

"S-Sure. But even so, we should investigate. You know, just in case."

"Just in case what?" Mitsuru asked.

"You know... perverts," Yukari whispered uneasily.

Although she seemed unconvinced, Mitsuru relented, if only to help reassure her friend. "Very well. Consider this an official operation. Aigis, wait here and guard the exit. Yukari and I will go around to the right. You two go left." With their orders given, they split up.

"What if it really is just another guest?" Fuuka asked Kotone with concern. "Wouldn't we just be causing trouble for them?"

"There's one way to find out," Kotone replied. "Hey! Is anyone there!?"

Although startled, Fuuka had her answer when no one replied. "Another guest would have answered."

"Exactly. If you're scared, you can head back to Ai-chan. I can take it from here."

"O-Okay. I'm sorry about this.

"Don't worry about it. Go on."

"Th-Thank you..."

"No one answered," Yukari whispered, concerned. "Was it really a ghost? Haha, who am I kidding?" Her defeated worry was evident in her voice.

Mitsuru placed a gentle hand on her friend's shoulder. "If you're worried about what we might find, you can go back to Aigis and leave this to me."

"N-No. I can do this. I've faced down worse than a peeping tom in Tartarus."

Mitsuru smiled warmly. "Then, let's go."

Kotone left Fuuka to investigate the small opening where the hot water was pumped into the bath from the top of the central rock formation, like a river of magma from a volcano. Even only a few paces from where she'd left Fuuka, Kotone could barely see her through the thickening mist. Turning back to face the opening, she found the source of the noise.

She spotted Junpei, whose eyes met hers and grew wide with fear. Something in his expression told her there was more to this than first appeared. Plus, having seen how devoted he was to Yoshino-san made her doubt he was the type to peep like this. Not anymore, at any rate. She was sure there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for this, but if the boys got caught, she was doubtful Mitsuru and Yukari would give them a chance to explain.

Junpei was about to exclaim something, but Kotone crossed the gap between them and placed a hand over is mouth, holding up a finger over her own lips to keep him quiet.

"What was that!?" Yukari called from somewhere in the dark mist.

"Sorry, Yuka-chan!" Kotone called over her shoulder. "I slipped on the stones. I'm okay though." As she said this, she quietly lowered herself deeper into the water to make her lie more convincing when she regrouped with the other girls. "I assume you have a very good explanation for why you're here, Junpei-kun," she told the cap-clad boy, "and you're going to explain it to me later. Are Ryoji-kun and Akihiko-senpai with you?"

He nodded.

"Where?"

He pointed further across the spring, toward the wooden wall at the end. Right where Yukari and Mitsuru would be investigating.

"Wait here."

She made her way over to where she could hear the other two searching to her right. Behind a rock at the edge of the enclosure crouched Akihiko. If she had to guess, she'd assume he'd taken charge and was trying to find a way for the three boys to retreat. He seemed to hear her approaching, sheer terror on his face as he turned to face her. No doubt, he thought she was about to call for Mitsuru. She glanced to her right, gauging whether or not the other two might be able to see their position through the steam. It seemed likely, but she had a plan.

She held up a finger for Akihiko to indicate for him to wait a moment, then pointed towards where Junpei was hiding. She then approached the other two girls.

"Anything?" Mitsuru asked as she approached.

"Nothing so far," she lied. "It might have just been a raccoon or something." They didn't seem to buy this, but they didn't have to. With both girls facing her, she stepped past them so that they faced away from Akihiko's hiding spot, then 'slipped' on the wet stones under her feet again. The splash was loud enough to serve as Akihiko's signal to move while Mitsuru and Yukari were distracted helping her up.

"Are you okay?" Yukari asked with enough worry to make Kotone feel guilty for lying like this.

"I am now," she said as she spied Akihiko clearing the gap back to Junpei's side.

Yukari gave her a quizzical look.

"Thanks, girls. I'm such a klutz sometimes." Kotone knocked on her head and stuck her tongue out.

"You should go and get a fresh towel," Mitsuru commented. "That one is too wet to do you much good."

"Oh, haha, you're right. Actually, I think the same can be said for you two." Only now did Mitsuru and Yukari notice that their own towels had also gotten drenched in helping Kotone to her feet. Not quite what she'd intended, but she could use this to her advantage. "You guys go get fresh towels. I'll wait here to make sure any potential intruders don't try to escape."

"Are you sure?" Mitsuru asked concernedly.

"Positive," Kotone replied with a determined expression.

"Very well," Mitsuru replied. "Come, Yukari."

As the other two girls departed, Kotone snuck her way behind the rock to find Junpei and Akihiko waiting.

"Where's Ryoji-kun?" she whispered.

"Over there," Akihiko whispered back, pointing to the opposite side of the bath from where he had been hiding. Up what appeared to be a decorative tree was Ryoji. It looked as if he had been trying to climb over the fence and gotten stuck. There really was no way anyone would believe such an obtuse hiding spot wasn't being used for perverted means.

"The other girls will be back in a second. I'm going to bring them over here from the left side. You two get over to Ryoji-kun, get him down and get to the exit, okay?"

Both boys nodded.

Kotone returned to the other side of the rock, just as Yukari and Mitsuru returned, calling out to ask where she was.

"I was just checking out the other side of the rock again," she said, technically not lying. "Still nothing. I guess it really was just a raccoon or something."

Yukari let out a sigh of relief while Mitsuru passed Kotone a fresh towel. This put Kotone in a bit of a bind. If she changed now, out in the open, there was a chance Ryoji would see her nude. If she didn't, the other girls would question why. If she went into the changing room, the boys would be left vulnerable. Looking at the rock, it occurred to Kotone that she could simply change with the rock between herself and Ryoji without having to worry about any of them. Stifling her own sigh of relief, she did exactly that.

With her fresh towel clinging to her body, she called Aigis and Fuuka over to join them. As long as she remained on the opposite side of the girls from Ryoji and the other boys, she was confident she could keep them distracted long enough for the boys to escape.

By the time the girls got to the other side of the rock, the guys had moved. It was difficult to grasp what was happening from her position, but Ryoji was eventually helped down (almost losing his towel in the process) and the boys presumably escaped without further incident.

Kotone let out a deep sigh of relief and sank deeper into the water.

"Looks like our leader's got a lot of stress to let out," Fuuka giggled.

"I can relate," Mitsuru replied, smiling. "We've been through a lot recently."

"Yeah, it's nice to have some girls-only time," Yukari nodded. "No boys in sight."

Aigis tilted her head. "Akihiko-san, Junpei-san and Ryoji Mochizuki were in here just a moment ago."

Kotone slipped as she tried to scramble into a sitting position, wide eyes stinging as the hot water washed over them. The other girls were confused.

"Aigis, what are you talking about?" Yukari demanded, instinctively reaching for her towel.

"Kotone-san spotted them and helped to cover their escape. It seemed she had good intentions though. Perhaps, I should not have mentioned it?"

The other girls turned their gazes to their leader.

"I... See... *Sigh* Dammit, Ai-chan..."

The girls soon left the bath to confront the boys and they and Kotone were made to explain. Mitsuru seemed alarmed by their assumption that she would inflict harm on them without giving them a chance to explain themselves. Kotone had never felt like her efforts meant so little in her life.

I don't have a particular issue with the FemC version of this scene that's unique from the male version, but I like how the player can sabotage the search if they know the results of the choices, so this is a somewhat more direct take on that idea. I just thought it was a neat idea, I wasn't going for a big fix like with the others.