Chapter 19: Ayeka emerges

Elsewhere, a door slid quietly open allowing Ayeka to then glance carefully along the empty hallway from her room.

"This is so childish!" She sniffed to herself. "Skulking in my room!" Never the less, it took her another few moments to find sufficient steel before being able to finally emerge. Crossing hesitantly over, Ayeka knocked lightly on the door to Sasami's adjacent compartment with the back of her hand, pausing tensely for a moment before releasing a despondent sigh.

She had hoped their next confrontation would be in private. It was beginning to look increasingly, that was not going to be the case. Knowing however, she simply must apologize for her own 'boorish' behavior. It would have been nice not to share the scene with the entire household!

"Might as well get this over with." She thought at last, heading toward the stairs. "Maybe I'm reading more into last night than was actually there." She mused, then snorted, Pausing on the second floor landing.

"With the way Sasami was dressed and what she did?" Ayeka's mind supplied. "I should say not!" Steadying herself on its rail, she looked forlornly downward. "It's indecent!" She thought angrily.

How dare Sasami take such liberties? Having succeeded making herself angry yet again Ayeka stood stiffly, was just about to turn on heel with full intention of returning to her room, when Ryo-ohki crossed beneath the lower landing. There was a brief moment when Ryo-chan paused looking up, staring into Ayeka's eyes. She then laid back her ears and hissed before turning and disappearing.

"How unpleasant!" Ayeka snapped, not at all surprising however. Ryo-ohki was Sasami's special little friend, the one she told all her secrets to. No small wonder she was now officially on Ryo-chan's 'S' list. "This is absurd!" She said to herself. Finally turning around, Ayeka headed back to her room.

She had just opened its door when the familiar sound of the houses front door sliding open caught her attention, as did the successive noise of running footsteps. Turning in the direction of the stairs once more, Ayeka saw Mihoshi sprinting up from the first floor.

"Hi ya!" Mihoshi brightly quipped, shooting past to the door of Noboyuki's old room, where she and Kiyone now slept. The sound of its door closing barely managed to fade when the princess heard the front door slide open again, heralding the appearance of Kiyone charging up the stairs moments latter.

"Mihoshi! Wait just a damn minute!" Key swore at almost a dead run. "You don't know any of those people!" Skidding to a halt in front of the door, Kiyone began pounding. "You!" bang! "Open!" Bang! "This!" Bang! "Damn!" Bang! "Door!" Bang! "Right!" Bang! "Now!"

"Constable?" Ayeka asked, slightly dazed from all the sudden commotion. "Is there something the matter?" Giving her knuckles a rest, Kiyone glanced over as if just noticing the princess.