Marisa, Patchouli, Koakuma, and Yuuka were all waiting. The two magicians and little devil had moved their chairs back to their original position while Yuuka sat on the sofa.
"I can't believe someone this young managed to bypass Alice's security," commented Patchouli. She gently stroked her familiar's hair as she slept.
"Honestly, it's not all that surprising. I've snuck in here over a hundred times and haven't been caught once," answered Marisa. "And don't let her looks fool you. If she could break into Yuuka's house, no doubt, she can get into Alice's with no problem."
Yuuka remained quiet and continued to wait for Alice to return. As far as she was concerned, Medicine still needed to be punished for her actions. The damage done was irreversible and it would be months before her home could be restored back to her previous state.
Moments later, Alice came down while holding Medicine in her arms. The little doll youkai had been cleaned up and was now wearing one of Alice's old childhood dresses while her companion, Su-san, had been dried off for her to carry around. Alice tried to put her down but the tsukumogami refused to let go of her arm so Alice brought her back to her chest before she had Shanghai and Hourai bring her one of the doll chairs. Using an enlargement spell, the chair size was increased so Alice could sit in it. Unfortunately, just like the previous chair, the spell only enhanced its size and appearance, not its capabilities. The moment Alice sat down on it, the chair's legs snapped and Alice was on the floor.
Both Marisa and Patchouli held back the urge to laugh while Yuuka gave her an amused look. Afterwards, Alice opted to stand and carry Medicine as there weren't any more chairs left for her use unless she wanted to enlarge and break another one of her dolls' chairs. After a bit of silence, Medicine spoke first.
"I'm sorry."
Yuuka got up while Alice, sensing danger, shielded the young doll youkai.
"Yuuka-"
"I know."
Yuuka sat back down before asking her question.
"Why? Why did you do this?"
"She was scared and had nowhere to go," answered Alice. "She never meant to break into our homes."
Alice paused to comfort the tsukumogami who was silently crying in her arms.
"For you, Yuuka, she was only curious about your home and the dolls working inside. She thought they were sentient like she was and wanted to free them," continued Alice. "She didn't mean any harm."
"So why did she run?" asked Yuuka.
"Your reputation precedes you," answered Alice. "And it just so happens that Shiki judged her and taught her to be more docile and friendly towards others. Hence why she didn't attack you and instead, ran away."
"Still what are we going to do about my home and the mess she's caused?"
Alice called Shanghai and Hourai over. The two dolls came over while carrying a bag of pills from Eientei.
"She's going to help us fix your home and clean up the mess she's caused. Afterwards, I'm going to talk to Eirin and the Eientei crew and tell them to take her back," said Alice. "What they did is wrong. No child, regardless of their kind, deserves to be thrown out for a prank like that."
"And if they don't?" asked Koakuma.
Everyone looked at Alice.
"I'll take her in. Every child, youkai, doll, or human needs a caretaker and it's clear, she's more comfortable staying with me over anyone else," answered Alice. "Tonight though, she will be staying with us."
"So, uh, where's she gonna sleep in?" asked Koakuma
Alice waved her hand and several of her dolls brought in some blankets and a pillow.
"She'll sleep here tonight. Yuuka, if you want I'll see if-"
"No worries, I'm going to head home and check on the fairies. I'll come by in the morning."
Yuuka got up and left while Marisa, Patchouli, and Koakuma went up to their beds. Alice remained behind to help Medicine clean up the mess she had made before fixing up her couch so Medicine could have a place to sleep.
"If you need anything, I'll be upstairs okay?"
Medicine nodded while Alice went up to her room with Shanghai and Hourai.
"Well then, goodnight. I'll see you in the morning."