As she said this, her pager buzzed, and on it was a message from Hiro: "Heading there right now. ZT's with me."

"Who was that?" Yuzu asked, her bright eyes illuminated with curiosity and her arm around Mei. "Oh, it was Hiro," said Ichigo, looking up at them. "He said he's coming here." ****************************** In the meantime, Ryūko was lying on the bed she and her sister would be sharing that night. Suddenly the door opened to reveal Satsuki, fresh from the bath and with a towel draped over her hair (which, I neglected to mention, she had grown back out again). "Have you taken a bath yet?" she asked. "Hmm?" said Ryūko, opening her eyes. "No, why?" "For goodness' sake, Ryūko," Satsuki began, "I want the bed to be clean and free of dust, tonight of all nights." "Aw, come on, sis," the younger one replied, "who needs to take a bath when you're all blown out? I'll do it in the morning." The elder Kiryuin wasn't exactly used to not having her orders or requests denied at will, and needless to say, she was not that pleased either. But a sudden thought entered Satsuki's mind. Oh, well, she said to herself with a wry smile, I guess I should be just a little more lenient to her. After all, Ryūko's the cute younger sister I thought was long dead. I wonder how she'll react to my acting as the big sis she always calls me now. Ryūko had now closed her eyes again and turned on her side, and Satsuki felinely climbed onto the bed so as not to disturb her, and slowly approached the sleeping spitfire. Here goes nothing, Satsuki inwardly told herself. She very quietly crawled her way to Ryūko's side, and lovingly cuddled her sister. Now, for the punishment. Suddenly, Satsuki dug into her sister's shirt and aggressively tickled her belly. Almost immediately, Ryūko began to giggle, try as she would to remain stoic. In vain she strove to keep a poker face, until her big sister yanked a single strand of hair from her head and began to tease her ears with it. Soon enough, Ryūko's face opened up to a wide grin, but couldn't find it in herself to resist. At last, her efforts all collapsed as Satsuki leaned in and licked her neck with the smoothness of butter itself. "You like that?" she sensually whispered. "S-stop it, sis," Ryūko gasped between fits of laughter. "Please stop it!" "Not until you get out of bed and take a bath first," Satsuki countered. She was bent on getting her sassy sibling to clean herself, and she was determined to bend Ryūko to her will. "All right, all right, I'm getting up now," Ryūko said in surrender. She rolled over to face her sister and kissed her cheek. "Y'know, Satsuki," she said with a smile, "I never knew how much I wanted a sister, until now." "And I wanted my sister back," Satsuki replied as a smile also lit up her face. "Well, it finally looks like I proved good old Senketsu wrong about something, doesn't it?" "And what is that?" Ryūko inquired instantly, with a look of surprise at her sister's words. "You do have a cute side," Satsuki returned. "Ya don't say!" her little sister insisted. "I do say," the big sister fired back. "Just look at you, Ryūko! You fought against me, the Elite Four, COVERS, and Ragyō herself, and yet you fall prey to some tickling from a girl who you didn't even know was your sister until recently. You definitely have a cute side to your character." "Still," Ryūko insisted, "just because I'm ticklish doesn't necessarily mean I'm cute." "Then how do you explain the fact that you're so adorably clingy to me these days?" Satsuki asked, putting her arm around her sister's waist and bringing their bodies even closer and more intimate to each other. "I was quite the definition of your mortal enemy at the time." "Ugh.." Ryūko's face turned a ruddy red as she couldn't fire back anything in response. Satsuki giggled. "Admit it, Ryūko," she said in quiet triumph, "you're cute." With that she kissed her sister's lips. "Now, go take a bath so we can both sleep," Satsuki whispered. "You're not the only one who's tired." She got under the bedcovers. "I'll be waiting for you." "Well, all right," said Ryūko, getting out of the bed. She had let herself been beaten to having to take a bath, but she had no ill thoughts as she headed to the bathroom. I have to admit, Satsuki's incredibly cute, too, she said to herself with a smile. I'm really glad she's my sister. ******************** Hiro and Zero Two now came into the room where Yuzu and her friends were, and he was the first to speak as the door opened. "You were calling us, Ichigo?" "Yes I was," Ichigo beamed. "These girls you brought back with you, they want to ask you about Zero Two and your um, relationship with her." "Darling's in the spotlight!" Zero Two chirped with her PROTECC-worthy smile. "Don't be embarrassed to tell everyone about how you're in love with Zero Two!" Hiro's face reddened, but his reply showed his resolve. "There's no need to be ashamed of love, Zero Two. Especially when everybody around us sees it first-hand all the time." Yuzu blushed at the happy couple, and she spoke up. "I must say, Hiro," she began, "you have a really great lady for your girlfriend." "Why, thanks," he replied with a smile. "Look, I know the first question on your minds is that why she has horns. It's because she's part klaxosaur, which, by the way, are the enemies we'll soon be fighting on the battlefield. But she's really pretty anyway," he continued, fondling Zero Two's horns that since childhood he had found so alluring. "And what's more, she's very timid around other people when she doesn't know if she's accepted or not. But deep in her heart, Zero Two is a very kind and gentle person who loves other people, and especially her darling." Her response to this last statement was very pleasant to see. She pressed her horns on his forehead with a lovely smile, before engaging their lips together in a brief but passionate liplock. Zero Two then spoke. "Darling's a pervert," she teased. "He's always looking at my horns when he thinks I'm not watching, and I know his member can attest to that. But," she said, all signs of joking vanishing from her face, "Darling is everything to me. Whether it's doing things together, or talking to each other, or just being by each other's side, it all makes my heart flutter with joy. I want no one else to marry." Even Mei couldn't help but smile at the horned girl's words. To her sister's surprise, she was the first to speak. "I'm jealous of you, Zero Two, if that's what your name is," she began. "You and Hiro get to be heart to heart, without judging what everyone else thinks of you. I really wish I could have the same mind when it comes to being with Yuzu, here," Mei tapered off as her chestnut-haired girlfriend blushed heavily. Ichigo's eyes widened. So the two sisters are in love with each other? Mei continued, pouring out her innermost thoughts. "Where we come from, I'm from a wealthy family that runs a school. My dad married Yuzu's mom not long ago, and since our first meeting, the two of us have struck up a very close-knit bond of love for each other. It's just that-" here a tear flowed down her face- "I'm really scared of what other people would think if they saw us together in public." Zero Two's face softened. "Is that so?" she murmured. "Perhaps you need a boost of confidence."

