Ren, cooperate! You made me up the rating, and you're difficult to keep IC! If I owned SB, I wouldn't have these problems… *sighs* Why can't you be more like Natsuko and Sebastian, who are easy to write for and for whom I harbor a very deep love?

Thank you to all my lovely reviewers! You are wonderful – this is probably the quickest and largest response I've ever had to a story. I hope that this lives up to your expectations, and that you enjoy it!

Lory, still snickering slightly, led them into a prop-filled room and had all except Sebastian (who is Sebastian and therefore exempt from such things) sit in a circle on the floor. Natsuko opted to sit in the center. Lory stroked his snake, and an idea struck him. "For this portion of the game, Natsuko will choose who is being asked! Natsuko love, just point at whomever you want to go next!"

Natsuko gave Lory a serpentine wink, indicating that she was on board for causing maximum chaos for everyone involved – not just Ren and Kyoko, as that gets dull after a while – and pointed her snout at Maria, hissing happily.

"Me?" Maria squeaked, a bit surprised when Natsuko flicked her tongue at her to confirm this. She'd assumed that Grandfather and Natsuko would want to simply alternate between Ren-sama and onee-san, so as to achieve maximum awkwardness and matchmaking potential. Apparently, she had been wrong. Perhaps they were trying to lull them into a false sense of security…. "Truth."

"What would ya do if ya found yourself in a soap-bubble-filled field of dandelions?" Annabel inquired, a bit of Kyoko slipping through in her innocence and oddity.

To the amusement of the two men (Sebastian had no time to be amused, as he was taking photographs), Maria deliberated this before answering thoughtfully, "I'd probably run through the field, popping as many bubbles and making as many wishes on the dandelions as I could. Then, when I got tired, I'd lie down in the grass and blow on the dandelions to make more wishes, or pop bubbles with my toes in the air."

Annabel nodded, equally serious. "Wise. The boss Kyoko wants me to tell you that, after that, you could also make dandelion chains."

"Oh, I've never done that!" Maria exclaimed.

"Never?" Annabel gasped, scandalized, jumping to her feet. "This must be amended at once! Oh… but it's raining…." She deflated slightly, and returned to the floor with an undignified little flomp. "Next time it's nice and the dandelions are out, we should make chains. Or we could use daisies."

"Okay!" Maria chirped.

The two would have doubtless continued in this chain for quite a while longer had Natsuko not deemed it time to move on to the next person. This time, she poked Ren's knee with the tip of her tail. He raised an eyebrow questioningly, and the snake poked him again, confirming that it was his turn. He sat back thoughtfully, and then announced to the group that he would follow Maria's example and take a Truth.

This time, Maria asked the Truth. "Did you enjoy dinner, Ren-sama?" Her tone was somewhat anxious, as she was afraid that she'd somehow messed up despite onee-san's watchful eye.

To her utter relief, Ren smiled (sans sparkles). "I did. I don't generally enjoy eating, but meals like that are an exception." Maria beamed in response, and Annabel smiled, sprawled on her stomach and propped on her elbows as she was – a far cry from Kyoko's usual seiza sitting.

"Yeah, ya usually just eat onigiri. It makes me feel bad for the Yashiro guy," she giggled, swinging her feet in the air and pretending not to notice when Ren's eyes followed her cowboy boots. She tossed him yet another wink, mentally laughing about the fact that he was still wearing the cowboy hat Sebastian had put on him before dinner.

Ren shrugged gracefully, and Natsuko gently butted her feather-bedecked head against Lory's similarly decorated arm, choosing him as the next in the game. "Dare!" Lory decreed, spreading his wings widely to punctuate his decision.

Maria, Ren, and Annabel – who was turning back into Kyoko excruciatingly slowly, in Ren's opinion, little bits peeking through here and there, but never enough to be her completely – put their heads together to debate their choices. Eventually, Ren commanded, "Remove your feather-socks without using your hands." This was somewhat tame, but Maria had wanted to see if her grandfather was capable of such a strange feat of feet.

"But of course," Lory smirked, lifting his feet into the air and slipping off his house slippers with his toes. Then, carefully, he hooked his toes into the sock on his other foot and slid it off, and then repeated this amazing feat of feet with his other foot. He raised his feet higher, and wiggled his bare feet triumphantly. "What do you think of that?"

Maria giggled, pleased.

"But aren't ya supposed t'be a swan, prez-oh-ma-prez?" Annabel inquired.

"I am a swan," Lory replied, one eyebrow raised. "Do you question my costuming?"

"Well, it's just that ya have the feet of another animal," she grinned. Then, upon seeing the confusion on their faces, elaborated, "Ya have the feet of a bear – bare feet!"

Even Natsuko groaned at that pathetic pun (Sebastian did not, as he is Sebastian and therefore immune to such puns); perhaps that was why she chose Annabel as her next victim in the game of interrogation and humiliation.

"I've been doin' mostly Dares, so I'll do a Truth," Annabel decided, nodding. Her hat bobbed with her, and the spurs on her boots clinked against each other as her feet brushed together – she had yet to stop swinging her feet. All of this was playing beautiful, casual havoc with Ren's mind – not that she realized it, of course… at least, Kyoko didn't. Whether Annabel did or not was anyone's guess – though Natsu probably knew from her vantage point in the Kyoko meeting room. (Kindly take a moment to pity Ren in advance for the next time Natsu emerges around him. She would be sure to wreak intentional havoc, which is much worse than Kyoko's unintended havoc by a long shot, in Ren's mind.)

Lory smiled, and went in for the kill; his voice remained light. "What information did you need for the loophole you mentioned earlier?"

Annabel froze, and for a moment Kyoko peeked through the cowgirl's mask, afraid; then she vanished. "Well, it's not really ma place t'say, but from what I can tell from the meetings, it's his," she nodded at Ren, "name." Before Ren could properly begin mentally freaking out, she continued, "But th' boss Kyoko told me t'mention that she knows that he doesn't want people t'know yet, so don't feel pressured or anythin', cowboy."

Ren blinked, and nodded slightly in appreciation of her consideration. How much did she already know? Did it even matter at this point? …Yes. Yes, it did – because he could only tell her when he could tell her everything, including the thing which she so desperately avoided. He could only confess when he'd prepared himself to tell her absolutely everything. Was that cowardly? Perhaps. Necessary for his sanity? Yes… but why did she need this for a loophole in the first place?

Natsuko rested her head on Lory's knee.

"Joint Dare!" he beamed, bringing Ren out of his musings.

Annabel spoke before any deliberation could occur, desperate to lighten Ren's suddenly heavy mood. "Do a joke battle with me!"

Lory nodded. "Are you sure that my jokes won't make you shutter?" He tapped on a nearby window shutter.

"Nah, they just might be a pane," she shot back without missing a beat.

"But it is a rather shady subject," he insisted.

"Really? I can see right through the act."

"It's curtains for these jokes, right?"

"Not yet; they're still transparent to me!"

"Are you sure you haven't been blinded by them?"

"No, we're not in Italy – I'm only every blinded by Venetian blinds!"

"I see that you took that window of opportunity!"

"Nah, it was all closed up – just like this pun battle!" Annabel grinned. "See? Our audience is groaning. I do believe that they've been critically joked."

Ren looked at them and asked weakly, "Are you done?"

"Please be done," groaned Maria, cringing from the jokes.

Natsuko answered for them, and placed her head on Ren's knee. The cowgirl reached across herself and began petting the large snake. Ren found himself feeling quite pleased to be sitting next to the girl, and not across from her – heaven only knows what kind of chaos might've been wreaked in his mind before this. Even now she was almost leaning completely on him – he elbow was propped on his thigh as her fingers stroked Natsuko's scales.

"Dare."

"Do a voice for someone named Pretentious Van Snooty!" Maria squealed suddenly, the image too amusing to keep in her mind. She'd had something else planned, but that could wait 'til later, right?

At this, Ren stretched his face slightly, and his eyebrows rode high on his forehead. "Nah-hon-hon! But of cahse," he sniffed, adopting an extremely fake and overly pompous accent, "whyevah would I naht? I ahm, aftah all, a true gentlemahn, and so –"

The rest of whatever he would have said went into nonbeing (that is to say, everything) when Annabel let out a rather large guffaw and crashed entirely onto his thigh, her elbow having slipped in her laughter. Ren froze; the girl was draped across his thigh, one of her hands resting on the knee opposite her, lost in a fit of hysterical laughter. Lory raised his eyebrows, fighting back a laugh himself – for more than one reason. Maria was giggling both at Ren's false accent (honestly, something like that should not come out of the Tsuruga Ren) and his abrupt expression change when onee-san's elbow gave out.

"Th-That was awesome, cowboy!" Annabel choked, her hand slapping his knee, getting an awkward little jerk from his foot in response. This redoubled her hysterics, and he decided to be content, rather than bemused, that she was comfortable to laugh at him – and on him – like this. Perhaps, when Annabel left, some of this overly wonderful familiarity would stay. He grinned down at her, not caring that Sebastian was taking photographs, or that Lory would tease him endlessly the next time the two were alone, or even that Maria was gaping as if blinded by his smile. No, all he cared about was that Kyoko – in one of her forms, at least – was happy in his presence, and that he was the cause of her happiness. That was all he could ever hope for, and it filled him to the brim with a happiness of his own.

There was also the fact that she was in physical contact with him – she was almost completely on his lap – and not having a major mental breakdown. As her laughter gradually died down and she attempted to regain her breath, she rested the side of her head on his leg. His fingers went, almost subconsciously, to her hair, and began gently twirling one of the pigtail braids of her wig. Lory's grin became a full-on smirk. Sebastian took more photos, some of which would be sent to Yashiro for shipping and blackmail purposes (mostly used to get Ren to eat, and to appease Yashiro when he grew impatient with his favorite prospective couple). Natsuko slithered over to Maria and nuzzled against her, breaking the young girl out of her spell – she'd been melting, and was all too aware of the fact that had she not already accepted that Ren-sama and onee-san were in love, her heart would have shattered into pieces because of this scene. She had to wonder exactly how much of Annabel was in Kyoko at the moment (to be perfectly honest, there was just enough Annabel present for Kyoko to rationalize leaning so casually on Ren without feeling guilty for enjoying it).

Natsuko, unhappy about being ignored, nuzzled more forcefully against Maria, and let out a rather loud hiss. As lovely as this fuzzy, fluffy moment was, everyone's favorite anaconda was bored. It was time for the game to continue, and Maria was the next victim.

"Eh?" Maria blurted, and then realized what she'd done.

Ren and Kyoko were therefore abruptly and most unceremoniously jerked out of their happy daze by Maria's exceptionally loud shriek. Kyoko slipped back into Annabel and sat up, nearly smashing the top of her head against Ren's chin in the process; Ren's hat fell onto the floor, unnoticed by all but Sebastian, who quickly put it away. Ren sighed, and removed his hand from her wig, taking care to trace it along her back as he moved it back to his side.

"S'matter, Maria-chi?" Annabel asked, re-adjusting her hat.

"My Dare," Maria explained. "I said one of the three sounds."

"Oh, right. I forgot!" the cowgirl laughed, and then crossed her arms on Ren's thigh and settled her chin upon them. "So it's your turn again?"

"Looks like it," Maria giggled.

Ren was silently rejoicing, yet his voice was somewhat strangled when he asked, "What do you choose?"

Maria cocked her head to one side, wondering what could spice things up a little. Her heart had not been shattered by the scene she'd witnessed – she was happy for them, really she was – but it still ached, as a young girl's love is powerful and pure. She quickly ruled out Truth; that might be slightly odd, and she didn't really have many secrets at this point in her life. Join Dare was also out, as onee-san and Ren-sama seemed unlikely to willingly move any time soon. "Dare."

After a moment of deliberation, Lory proclaimed, "Your Dare is to touch your nose with your tongue! If you are unable to do so, you must wear an outfit of my choosing!"

Maria winced; her grandfather had a taste for putting her in extraordinarily frilly outfits, as she was his favorite (and only) granddaughter, and he was loath to see her grow up. He also knew that she couldn't touch her nose with her tongue. "But Grandfather –"

"No buts! You chose Dare; accept your fate, my lovely Maria!"

Maria sighed, and attempted to touch her nose with her tongue. When her initial attempt failed, she grabbed her tongue with her fingers and pulled it upward (those costumes were so cumbersome); amazingly, this worked. She wiped her fingers and nose off, and beamed triumphantly at her grandfather. Annabel giggled, and sat up; she was in danger of falling asleep if she leaned against Ren any longer, so crisscross applesauce was her next best bet. His scent was intoxicating to almost all of the Kyokos (the exceptions being Mio and the Kuon boy).

Natsuko curled up in Annabel's lap, and nodded to Lory that she would not move anytime soon. Lory, noting this, beamed at the opportunity. "Until Natsuko moves, it shall be your turn over and over!" he beamed at Annabel, who rolled her eyes with a smile.

"Ya can interrogate me all ya like, but I don't know how much longer I'll hold out. The boss Kyoko is starting to come back."

Lory grinned. "That's quite alright. When that happens, we'll alter the questions accordingly."

"Alright. I'll take a Truth – don't wanna upset missy here by movin' around too much." She gestured to, and then began petting, the snake in her lap.

"Do you know if the – er – 'boss Kyoko' trusts me?" Ren inquired softly, not aware that his voice betrayed his nervousness.

"Yup. Implicitly," Annabel stated simply, not missing a beat; there was no hesitation or uncertainty in her voice. Ren's heart experience a series of loop-de-loops, and a new strain of hope blossomed. If she trusted him… did that mean he had a chance?

"Dare next?" Lory suggested. When Annabel nodded in a comfortable sort of way, he continued, "Then please kiss Ren on the cheek."

Ren was not certain whether he should be glaring at Lory or thanking him. Yes, he would like it, but for a Dare?

"Oh, I couldn't do that," Annabel stated calmly, her eyebrows raised. "Ma boyfriend wouldn't like it one bit. He's kinda the jealous type, you know."

A moment of blank silence followed these words, mostly filled with questions and utter disbelief. This was Annabel answering, right, not Kyoko? Because there was no way Kyoko would ever talk so casually about… about a boyfriend, if she did have one – but she couldn't, she was Kyoko. That was impossible…. Ren continued to spiral, to the point that he almost missed Maria's next words.

"What do you mean?" she asked weakly. "You didn't mention him before."

"Well, ya didn't ask!" came the laughing reply. Ren caught her syntax, and realized that this was Annabel talking. It did make sense, after all, for a girl like Annabel to be in a relationship; she had none of the worries or inhibitions that saddled Kyoko.

"Tell us about him!" Maria prompted, coming to the same conclusion Ren had. Perhaps Annabel had used Ren-sama for a basis? It was obvious, after all, that onee-san was in love with him. Kyoko's even considering giving Annabel a boyfriend when she herself claimed to be so against love was testament to this.

"Well, why not?" Annabel shrugged, smiling, her eyes light and her fingers tracing over Natsuko's scales. "For starters, he's blond—" she gave a slight pause, letting the torture in Ren's eyes seep through before continuing, "—but he looks pretty much like cowboy here with a few major differences. At least, he did the last time I saw him."

"Oh?" Ren inquired, fighting to keep his voice steady. For one horrible moment, he had believed that she'd start describing Fuwa. "What differences?"

"Well, for one, he's blond; for two, he's got green eyes, and for three, he's not 'zactly human," she gave him a roguish grin, as if they shared a secret – which, he realized, they did. "He's a fairy, you know, with th'most beautiful wings – even if they aren't 'zactly physical, and he's not 'zactly a fairy. I hope that he'll take me flying soon, once he realizes how nice they are. Y'see, he still thinks that they're all mucked up, 'cause the only ones he can see are the ones he needs to clean himself, not the ones closer to his back – the ones I cleaned up with ma spell. He likes nature nearly as much as I do, and we like to take walks by the water." Her eyes were soft as she continued quietly, and her gaze dropped to the snake in her lap, "I hope that he realizes soon that his wings will be fit for flying as soon as he can give himself permission to fly free."

Ren swallowed, and ducked his head. It was a coincidence, just a coincidence, that she chose to use Corn as a reference for Annabel's boyfriend. It was just a coincidence that she mentioned that he wasn't really a fairy, and that he didn't realize that his wings were fit for flying, if only he allowed himself to fly. It was just a coincidence… just a coincidence that she chose a part of him to be the one whom part of her loved. It was just a coincidence that she'd said that she'd help clean his wings… and that she knew he could fly.

It was just a coincidence, right?

The game continued with Maria and Lory asking Kyoko innocent questions and having her do funny – yet scarily accurate – impressions of people they knew. Ren sat quietly, attempting to come to terms with what she had said – how much she knew, and what she could possibly mean. Could he hope? No… it was just a coincidence… right?

He was pulled sharply from his thoughts by a flicking feeling in his left ear. He jolted, and realized that Natsuko had, in her attempts to get him to realize that it was his turn, simply stuck her tongue into his ear. He shuddered slightly from the odd sensation, and spoke without thinking. "Dare."

Maria grinned in a way that made him realize that this was a mistake. Next to him, the elder of the two girls shifted; she was now sitting on her knees, in seiza. The younger girl giggled, and said, "I Dare you to whisper something sweet but true into Kyoko-onee-san's ear." She knew that it was necessary to address the elder girl thusly, so she could not argue that Ren's words were meant for Annabel, not her.

He weighed his options. Yes, one of the conditions of the Dare was to be truthful, but he doubted that she would believe him if he told her how deeply he cared – and that needed to be said only when he was ready to offer her all of him, including what he hid from the world. He had an opportunity to say something, and possibly have her believe it… but what to say? What did he dare say to her that would get his point across without really revealing it all? He shifted tentatively closer to her, placing one hand on the side of her away from him so that he engulfed her without trapping her. He swallowed and leaned close to her, eyes shutting when his lips nearly brushed against her ear. He murmured to her, softly, so that none but she could hear what he said.

Lory and Maria watched, intrigued. Kyoko – who had fully returned while Ren was in his stupor – sat, slightly stiff, in Ren's almost-embrace. While at first downcast from something she refused to name, her eyes were soon lit with curiosity at his murmur. "Of course, what of them?"

Ren murmured softly once more, his lips now brushing against her earlobe. Kyoko's face grew pink – though from his words or his touch, the observers could not be certain (except for Sebastian, of course, who is Sebastian and therefore hears all). But even they could not miss the look of absolute longing that she gave him as he drew away, one that nearly snapped his control and completely melted Lory's heart – a look of longing tinged with something she refused to name, a dark something broken only by the purest light… a something that he could not yet give her, and a something that she was not yet ready to receive. Lory stood abruptly, grabbed Ren by the scruff of the neck, and promptly dragged him from the room for a thorough yet fruitless interrogation. (Of course, had he thought to ask Sebastian, he would have found out instantly, but he did not, so Lory's curiosity was doomed to remain unsatisfied for several months.)

Back in the room, Maria snapped Kyoko out of her daze, wisely choosing not to question what Ren-sama had said. She could ask Sebastian later; he'd undoubtedly heard everything, as he is Sebastian and therefore hears all. "Do you want to play in the bubble room, onee-san?"

Kyoko's mouth dropped open at these words. "There's a bubble room?"

Maria nodded excitedly. "It even has colored bubbles! They're new, but Grandfather managed to get some in every color of the rainbow! And the colors wash out really easily, so you don't really have to worry about stains!"

The elder girl gasped excitedly and jumped to her feet. "Can we go there? Please?"

"Yes, come on!" Maria grabbed her honorary onee-san's hand and dashed from the room, startling a very serious-looking Lory and Ren. "We're going to the bubble room, Grandfather!" Maria called as they passed them, Kyoko's face an image of childlike glee.

This image, combined with the rest of her accursed cowgirl outfit, played such lovely havoc with Ren that he was forced to put a hand to his forehead. It had been bad enough for him when she had been Annabel and wearing that outfit… but now she was her true, innocent self, and she was still wearing something straight out of the one fantasy he had been unable to quash prior to meeting her again. He felt almost guilty for the images running through her mind… and what Annabel had told Maria earlier was not helping in the slightest… The boss Kyoko could [teach you how to lasso things] too, if ya like, since it was technically her jump rope. And then, to make matters even worse, her words to him only moments prior to that rang through his mind: Next time I'll ride you for sure, okay? It's a promise!

She had said "you," not "ya," he realized with a jolt. Had that been just a slip of her getting used to her new character, or had she actually reverted to Kyoko to make that promise to him? And, if so… what did that mean?

Lory watched, amused, as Ren stared down the hall long after the girls had disappeared into the bubble room, Sebastian following them silently to take more photos. Honestly, the boy should've outgrown that fantasy by now… but then, the boy was in love with a girl who still firmly believed in fairies, so he supposed that certain allowances must be made – and it made for such wonderful fodder for slow torture. Really, he was amazed that the boy's restraint had lasted this long…. He shook his head, and decided to let Ren off the hook for the moment, vowing to find out later what he had whispered to make Kyoko look at him in such a way. He began walking, paused, then turned back and beckoned to Ren. "To the bubble room they have gone, and so shall we! Away!" Ren followed, amused, as Lory mimed flapping down the hall, with Natsuko slithering along with her non-functional wings flapping in her wake.

There followed much fun among the bubbles – including the special bit of soapy chaos that followed when Maria inquired of Ren, "Did you know that onee-san is really ticklish?"

Ren paused, and turned Cain's sideways grin on Kyoko. He'd have to keep that in mind for when the Heels next came out to play. "Oh, really?"

"Yes!" Maria's eyes gleamed. "If you don't believe me, we could test it out…."

And in that moment, Kuon's lighter side broke through Ren's exterior, causing a mischievous grin to plaster itself across his face. His eyebrows quirked. "How so?"

Maria motioned for him to step on one side of Kyoko, who was happily popping the soap bubbles and dancing among the soap fairies. The young girl took the other side. "Like… THIS!" she squealed, lunging at Kyoko and beginning to tickle her sides. The elder girl, pulled from her fairy trance, shrieked with laughter.

Ren grinned, and took up his portion of it – pulling Kyoko against him with one arm so that she could not escape Maria, and began tickling his love. She shrieked and squirmed from laughter, and would have fallen from weakened knees had he not been holding her up… but was not fighting to get away.

"Please… mercy…" she panted between laughs, one hand finding his shirtfront and gripping it for support. Abruptly, his mind switched gears.

Maria, oblivious, continued tickling her onee-san, and Kyoko, also oblivious, continued laughing helplessly, unable to escape or tickle in return. Lory, aware of the change, swooped in as the ever-majestic swan and tactfully broke up the tickle-fight. Kyoko sank, giggling, to the floor, and hugged Maria. Maria hugged her in return, and a soap bubble popped on Natsuko's snout when she joined them. Their laughter redoubled, and they all stayed in the bubble room until Maria, exhausted, fell asleep in Kyoko's arms. She then volunteered to take the sleeping girl up to bed, and only protested slightly when Ren insisted on carrying the young girl. Lory watched, heart melting, as the two carried her up to her bedroom like young parents with their first child. He grinned as Kyoko ushered Ren out of the room so she could change Maria into her pajamas… and then failed to come out.

Lory poked his head into the room, and was amused to find Kyoko sitting on the floor, now wearing her own pajamas, fast asleep and leaning against Maria's bed. Maria slumbered contently under the covers, her hand in her onee-san's. He motioned to Ren (Sebastian had already taken a picture), who peered cautiously around the doorframe. Lory stood to one side and allowed Ren to step into the room; Ren padded soft across the carpeted floor and gently lifted Kyoko from it. He then pulled back the covers with one hand – careful not to disturb either girl in her slumber – and laid his beloved next to her younger sister. He pulled the covers over both of them, dared to place a kiss on Kyoko's cheek (she slept as if she were a tree, after all), and exited the room.

"You are really a hopeless romantic at heart when she's involved, aren't you?" Lory smiled as the younger man exited the room.

Ren merely chuckled softly in return, and nodded, Natsuko slithering past him to join the girls in slumber.

Only Sebastian, as he is Sebastian and therefore sees all, was aware that the balloon from the girls' game of balloon Ping-Pong had finally chosen to detach itself from the ceiling as Ren moved Kyoko… so only he knew that it had awakened the girl in time to feel Ren's kiss and hear Lory's words by landing on her exposed hand…. So only he saw the soft smile that graced her face as the door closed, and she slipped once more into the lands of slumber.

The girls had no way of knowing that they would be abruptly awakened the next morning by a mariachi band of pumpkins, led by Lory, bursting into Maria's room; nor did they have any way of knowing that the okami-san and taisho of Darumaya would take an instant liking to Maria when she hugged Kyoko goodbye the next morning, an impression that would only improve when Kyoko gushed about her honorary little sister. Nor did they know that Ren would sleep very little that night, or that he would relent the next morning and tell his manager that Kyoko had almost ridden him – only to add that she'd not wanted to get his trousers dirty by crawling around on the floor, playing horsey; nor did they know that his manager would inflate and then deflate with excitement and disappointment, respectively, and these words. They had no way of knowing these odd and happy things; instead, they slumbered on happily, adrift in la-la land and the field of dreams.

That night, Kyoko slept especially soundly, truly aware for the first time in her life that someone loved her – and that someone cuddled up to her elder sister happily in her sleep, glad that her onee-san was on her way to recovery, through love and laughter, from the pains of her past.

I hope that you enjoyed the story! :D It was fun, if a bit odd, to write. ^^

FYI, colored bubbles actually exist. I have purple ones that I bought at Target. They are awesome!

Please review! Do you have any guesses for what Ren whispered to Kyoko?

…Do you want me to write a one-shot sequel, for you to find out? ;)

Also: Do the categories of this story seem accurate? Should they be changed to Romance/Friendship, or does Friendship/Humor work? I'm highly indecisive.