2. Goodnight (2/2)

ema looked surprised by the outburst, but then she smiled. "thank you, wataru-kun. when i feel better, we can play together."

"yay!" he cheered. "sis needs to eat and sleep! eat and sleep so she can feel better!" he declared, before turning and running back the way we had come.

i snickered and arched an eye

ow at her. "you heard the kid," i stepped into the room and placed the tray down on the nearest flat surface, by that i mean one of the boxes. "eat up! i put lots of milk in it for you."

ema crawled back into bed, and i perched on the edge to eat. we talked about the day, our

others, and i handed juli the sugar cube i'd pocketed from the kitchen for him. while we ate, we could hear the voices of our new family through the ceiling and walls. it sounded pretty lively. so this is what it's like to live with loads of people.

it was noisy, but the good noise that meant companionship and friendship, and not simple chaos. i could get used to this kind of noise. "you don't have work tomorrow?" ema asked me.

"i asked my manager for a few days off so we could get settled in here properly," i replied, scooping the last of my porridge into my mouth. ema was about th of the way done with her bowl and slowing down. "not finished?"

she pouted and took another spoonful. "you don't even really like rice porridge."

i didn't, but i could eat anything as long as it was doctored with enough salt or sugar. "you don't have to finish it all. you've eaten most of it anyway."

in the end, she did finish it, and i gathered up everything to wash while ema lay down again. "ame-chan, are you going to take a bath?"

"yeah," i nodded. "i'll probably have my bath upstairs though, since i want to explore the house a bit more." kaname had drawn two maps, one for each of us, and had left them on ema's table. i grabbed one and stuck it in the pocket of my jeans. "try to get some more sleep, okay?"

"alright, ame-chan," her response was nearly drowned out by her yawn. i shut the door and returned to the kitchen to wash up.

most of the

others had retired by now, leaving only azusa, tsubaki, kaname, who were watching something on tv, and ukyo, who was cleaning up in the kitchen when i walked in. he smiled at me, taking note of the empty bowls. "how is ema-chan?"

"she's fine," i replied, coming to stand beside him. "she's sleeping right now so she'll probably be better by tomorrow morning." i hoped. ema was delicate, in my eyes anyway.

he had already started washing the dishes, so i decided to rinse and dry them. "ame-chan, you don't have to-"

"too late," i sang, and then i turned to him with a sincere smile. "besides, i don't mind. you were so kind and helpful, so please let me help."

ukyo stared down at me for a few seconds, and then nodded. was it just me, or was his face just a bit flushed? "ah, ukyo-nii, stop stealing all of my little sister's time!" tsubaki whined, walking into the kitchen. he wrapped his arms around my shoulders from behind. "ame-chan, smile for me too!"

quick, before something happens! i twisted around and returned the hug. i caught sight of azusa's surprised face over tsubaki's shoulder. he looked like he was just about to smack his twin again. even ukyo looked surprised by my reaction. "ame-chan?"

whoops, that was probably too weird. i quickly pulled away from tsubaki, my face pink. "s-sorry, i just really like hugs and i don't get too many of them, so...i'm sorry if that was strange..."

a hand landed on the top of my head. "well you'll get plenty of those now," azusa said, smiling softly. "just don't indulge him and kana-nii too much, or they'll never let you rest."

"hey!" i giggled at how affronted tsubaki sounded, and he looked pleased that i had. "when you're done here, come spend some time with us."

"i will." once ukyo and i were done in the kitchen, i walked into the lounge quietly, sticking near the wall. "what are you watching?"

"fuuto's on tv again," ukyo replied. kaname shifted a bit and patted the space between him and azusa. i squeezed between them to watch the interview, which looked like it had only just started a few minutes ago. instead of the flashy clothes from earlier, fuuto was dressed in informal but stylishly designer clothes.

unlike onstage, where he had carried a smug, near cocky aura, he now looked cheeky, playful, and almost sweet, like butter wouldn't melt in his mouth. "ema and i haven't met all of you yet," i cocked my head to the side. "what's he like?"

tsubaki snorted, looking slightly disgruntled. "he's a

at."

"tsubaki," ukyo scolded, although he didn't dispute it. "fuuto's rather...difficult to get along with at first, but i'm certain you'll be able to handle him, ame-chan."

well, one of them had to be the one to give us trouble. i could ignore any rudeness directed at me, as long as he didn't treat ema in the same way. "so that's...ten of you? who else haven't i met?"

"hikaru-nii and natsume," kaname replied. "they don't live here. i'm sure you'll get along with both of them, don't you think ame-chan?" he used the arm that he'd rested along the back of the couch to pull me closer.

"i hope so," i sighed, and stifled a yawn. it was getting late, and today had been tiring to say the least. "i'm should go back to my room now."

kaname rose as well. "i might as well turn in as well." ukyo followed our lead, but the twins stayed sitting on the couch.

"we have to practice for our next job assignment," azusa explained, pulling my attention to a booklet i hadn't noticed was even on the table.

"we're voice actors," tsubaki told me, seeing the curious look on my face.

oh. oh! "wait, have you guys heard of this show uta no prince-sama?" please say yes, please say yes!

azusa and tsubaki blinked at me, and then smirked. "ame-chan, you watch anime?" the darker-haired twin asked.

"yes! so, if you have, were you...by any chance...i mean..."

they took pity on my stumbling, stuttering self, and tsubaki chuckled. "we were voice actors for two of the main characters in the show."

i think i was glittering by this point, just staring at them in awe because i was related by law to two voice actors from one of my favourite reverse harem animes to exist. "ame-chan, weren't you going to bed?" kaname asked,

eaking me out of my thoughts.

"oh, right. goodnight, azusa-sa-...azusa-nii, tsubaki-nii!"

ukyo wished me goodnight when he reached his room, but kaname insisted on escorting me all the way to my room. "how was your first day, little sister?"

"it was great," i skipped ahead a few feet, and spun on the tip of my toes. "you've all been so kind to us. thank you for caring for ema-chan, it really means a lot to me."

"of course. you're our darling little sisters." we reached the door of my bedroom. "you can come to big

other for anything, ame-chan." i nodded. "well then, goodnight, little sister."

with that, he leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. it wasn't the casual, familial peck i expected, it was the kind of kiss you might give someone at the end of a first date. however, considering kaname's naturally flirty personality, i was pretty sure it meant nothing, and i didn't want to make a fuss about it. "goodnight, kaname-nii."

once i was in my room, i spent some time skimming through the boxes of my things. i pushed a few of them to the sides, and then grabbed the bag that held my pyjamas, towel, and toiletries. "okay, i have a map, so even i shouldn't be stupid enough to get lost."

luckily i didn't, since the diagram and instructions were really clear. painfully aware of the fact that the house was full of boys, i made sure to lock the bathroom door behind me. i took a quick bath, washing the sweat and dirt of the day with liberal amounts of berry-scented soap and shampoo, and lingering only to revel in the steady stream of warm water.

someone tried to open the door as i started to change into my nightclothes. "i'm in here!" i called.

"ah, sorry ame-chan!" that was subaru. i dressed quickly in an oversized blue shirt with sleeves that went way past my wrists – it had belonged to papa before i appropriated it – and a pair of fa

ic shorts.

subaru was hovering a few feet from the door when i unlocked it, and he flushed when he saw me. "sorry to make you wait!" i smiled a bit shyly, stepping out. "also, sorry if i made the bathroom smell a lot like strawberries."

a small smile twitched at his lips. "it's alright," he told me.

the smile surprised me, and i spoke without thinking. "thank goodness." he blinked in confusion, and i lifted my shoulders in a nervous shrug. "no, it's...you were so quiet all day, i thought you didn't like that we were here."

"i-it's not that!" he replied, his forceful tone telling me he was being sincere. "i'm just not used to talking to girls..."

i shrugged with a smile. "i'm not experienced at talking to boys either," i told him. "so this is going to be a learning experience for both of us, huh?"

he chuckled at that. "i guess so."

i shifted aside so he could step past me and into the bathroom. "goodnight, subaru-nii!"

at least he doesn't seem to hate us, i thought to myself, drying my hair as much as i could with my towel before it dripped all over the floors. my hair was a few shades darker than ema's, and longer as well. this was mostly because when i was fifteen, i was obsessed rapunzel and the idea of having crazy long hair, and spent a lot of my allowance on hair care products whose instructions i followed to the absolute last letter.

i was over that period in my life, thankfully. my credit card wouldn't be able to take it.

finding my room was a bit harder than i thought it would be, but i eventually found it. before i went to sleep, i fired off an email to my boss to tell her i'd be back at work on tuesday. after clicking through, and deleting a few more messages, i rolled onto my side and curled up with my stuffed teddy bear.

for those of you aware of it, i have been working on my hellsing fic and i plan to update by tomorrow. please review!