The telephone kept on ringing. Kasumi and Kotone stopped and stared at each other. Suddenly, they both lunged for the phone. Kasumi quickly got it and turned away. "Mushi mushi, Daiteikoku Gekijou - Kasumi speaking."
"Aa, the Teigeki!! Sou ka!!" said the voice on the other line, "I seemed to have found a purse lying on the street with your phone number. Perhaps it belongs to one of your employees... a Kikunojou-san??"
"IIE!" Kasumi hissed, "There is nobody of that name here."
"Sou desu ka... It must have been a misunderstanding. Sorry to have bothered you. I will turn this in at the lost and found at the police station."
With that they hung up. Kasumi then turned towards the anxious looking Kotone. "W-Who was that?? Was it Kiku-chan??"
"Wrong number," she replied, going to walk to the other side of the room, "If you're not going to talk to me about 'you know what’, then I'm not going to talk to you at all. I hate all men for now on."
Kotone sighed and rubbed his head, going to pull Yokohiko inside by the ponytail. "We'll get out of your way then. Ja na, Kasumi-chan."
After they left, Kasumi fell into her chair, feeling worse than ever. Sadly covering her face, she cried the afternoon away.
* * * * * * * *
Upstairs, the girls gathered around the table in the center of the Salon. "K-Kouran..." Maria stammered, she and Kanna both looking pale in the face at the Kansai-speaking Chinese girl in front of them, "Y-You're not serious are you??"
Kouran paced around the salon, nodding her head. "Sou ya! I have formulated a plan on making Oogami-han stable for the rest of his days!! The answer is in this bottle!" She took of the small bottle from the front part of her dress. "TA-DA~!"
Sumire grimaced a little. "A love potion?! Can't you get any more creative than that?? Chuui is already in love with all of us!"
"Sou yo," Maria uttered, "And there's a growing population of those falling in love with him. I don't see how this is going to get any better."
"Don't you see!!" Kouran said, excitedly sitting up onto the table, "If Oogami-han is permanently - and I mean, forever and ever - in love with one person... this will cancel out all the other lovesick girls from the scoreboard! We won't have to worry about him playing around ever again, because he is too madly in love with that one person!"
Kanna crossed her arms and sighed, "Now can't a NORMAL human being fall in love with one person?? It seems we're going to all this trouble for Taichou."
Sumire shoved her out of the way to try and snag the bottle. "I say we get Chuui to look a very hideous woman and condemn him to a life of misery! Ohohohoho~!"
"Chotto!" Maria got in front and took the bottle into her own hands. "This should be the last resort. After all, I agree with Kanna that Taichou's love-life shouldn't be a concern of ours and we should let nature take its course."
"Of course you agree with Kanna-san," Sumire grumbled, crossing her arms, "You should just admit you love her and get it over with."
"Na-Na-NANI?!!?" Maria went red in the face and instantly grabbed Sumire and covered her mouth, "D-Don't say such things out loud!!"
While Kouran giggled, Kanna popped up. "Naa?? What's going on? I was cleaning my ears so I missed it. What did the cactus-woman say now??"
"Nothing!!" Maria exclaimed, still struggling with the squirming girl, "She didn't say a word! Pay no attention to Sumire!"
"Cheh, do you think that's so easy," Kanna sighed, rubbing her head, "The little vamp prances around like she's got an itch or something - I swear she gives children nightmares..."
"NAN DESETTE!!?" Sumire had broke out of Maria's hold and started to storm at Kanna with her fists ready, "WHY YOU...!!"
Suddenly the door flew open and a panting Tsubomi crumbled to the floor. "Tsubomi-han?" Kouran uttered, going to check on her, "What happened??"
"Somebody!!" Tsubomi cried, grabbing onto her arms, "Please help!!!"
* * * * * * * *
Downstairs in the infirmary, Oogami lowered Kaede onto the bed. Kaede, still in a strange daze, looked helplessly up at him. "Oogami-kun..." she whispered, "It hurts..."
"What does?" he asked, leaning down to her. Both of their faces turned red. Oogami rubbed his head and laughed a little, "Daijoubu. I'll make it stop."
"A... arigatou..." Kaede sighed, closing her eyes. Slowly, Oogami unzipped her uniform jacket and then moved his hand to hers, trying to check her pulse. All the while, Kaede was trying to breathe - the air had gotten rather thin and hot that she couldn't find a good breath. Panting a little, she lifted a hand to his shoulder. "Thirsty," was all she could muster.
"OH!" Oogami's face went extra red. It took him a good ten seconds to finally realize that she was dehydrated and desperately needed a drink or water, and NOT something else. 'Get your mind out of there, Oogami!' he scolded himself as he rushed to the sink and filled up a cup of cold water, 'I'm dropping at the tough gauge since I've always been weak with women... even with Kaede-san, who belongs with my best friend...' Oogami slowly turned around and faced her. 'But, Kayama isn't here now...'
Kaede stole the cup away from him and gulped it down immediately. 'What's happening to me? I feel strange... ever since that fish whacked me in the head.' She peered over at the eager-looking Oogami, her heart going doki-doki. 'Why do I feel like this...?'
"Kaede-san," Oogami said, putting his hands on her arm. "I need to check you for injuries. You had a pretty bad fall. If we don't catch anything before it becomes serious, then I’d fear the worst. Please bear with me while I examine your body."
Kaede went frozen. 'EH?! HOW DARE HE!!! If I didn't have this strange condition, I'd smack him silly and then have him court-martialed! Demo... why aren't I doing anything?? Why am I letting him...!'
Oogami was busy unbuttoning her shirt. "Daijoubu, Kaede-san... it's going to be all right. I just going to take a little peek." he said softly.
Kaede just sat there, feeling weak and dizzy. "Oogami-kun..."
"OOGAMI-SAN, DAME!!!" exclaimed Tsubomi bursting through the door with Maria right behind her, "Stop it right now!!!"
Oogami quickly backed away from the bed. "I-I wasn't doing anything!! You've totally misunderstood the situation!! I-I was just...!"
Tsubomi glared at him and held up the manly-gauge; it was entirely on the weak side. Maria blinked and stared at the board, "W-What is that??"
"A-Anyways," Oogami stammered, walking towards the door, "I better get back to work! After all, the opening night is in two days! S-See you all later!!"
"Chotto matta!" Maria called after him. She looked really reluctant, but after taking a peak at the scoreboard and saw that Kaede had hopscotched over her place, she had to bring him back a notch. "Could I see you in my room? There's something I need to discuss with you, Taichou."
"H-Hai."
From around the corner, Kanna and the others were watching. "TEME!!!" Kanna hissed, clenching her fists, "To think he was going after Kaede-san and now Maria has to sacrifice herself for the Hanagumi's sake. Dammit, this pisses me off."
"This is getting interesting," Sumire said into her fan, "Ohohohohoho~!"
"Demo na," Kouran uttered, "Opening night is in two days and we're not doing anything..."
"Daijoubu desu wa!" Sumire insisted, "With me as the lead, the show will be a success no matter what! OHOHOHOHOHOHO!!"
"Didn't you say you were going to get the Teigeki Sannin Musume to cooperate?? No tickets sold - no show ya."
Sumire's laughter faded and turned into a scornful face. "Damn you."
* * * * * * * *
Maria led Oogami into her room, making a dying face. 'Why me?? Just because I'm the most reliable!! If the pervert tries to touch me, at least I have my gun with me.' She then sweetly turned towards him and offered a chair to sit down. "Douzo."
"Aa, sumimasen," Oogami uttered, smiling up at her as he sat down into the chair and folded his hands together. 'Not good - I need to cool down right away! I still feel hot from that time with Kaede-san...' Instantly he found himself staring at her chest, 'Not good, not good.'
'Oh Kamisama, he's staring at my chest AGAIN.' Maria thought, gripping the handle of her gun in her coat, 'Look away now, you bastard, or you're going to have a big hole in your pants.'
'Aa… Of all the girls, I have to say that Maria is the most mature...'
Maria's face twitched. His eyes were still focused on her breasts. "Taichou!" she said, lifting her voice and turning around, "Why don't we do what we came here to do!"
"H-Hai!" Oogami gasped, wiping the sweat off his forehead, "A-and that was...?"
"I have something to talk to you about, remember??"
"Aa!! Of course, of course!"
While Maria sighed and paced the room, trying to get started on her lecture, Oogami's eyes moved to the bed. It was nicely made and a fairly good size. He had to admit, it was slightly bigger than his own. It looked so soft and cozy.
Maria stopped and saw what he was doing. Before she could call him on it, the door was kicked open. "OI!! KNOCK IT OFF, YOU PERVERT!!!"
"K-Kanna!" both Maria and Oogami cried, very surprised by her angry entrance.
"Taichou, you stay away from Maria!!" Kanna snarled, grabbing him by the collar, "If you want to mess around with someone, why don't you do it with that sleazy broad over there!" She pointed out the door where Sumire was standing.
"ARA!!" Sumire exclaimed, raging, "Sleazy?!? Never in my life have I been so insulted!!"
Kouran patted her on the shoulder, "You're still young."
"Kanna, calm down!" Maria exclaimed, pulling the raging girl to her, "This isn't going to get us anywhere. Let me handle this."
"Ara," Sumire uttered, blinking her eyes, "Chuui wa...?"
"He's gone!" Kouran gasped, realizing that Oogami had slipped past when they weren't looking.
"DAMMIT!!" Kanna exclaimed, waving her fists in the airs, "That bastard got away from me again!!"
"Minna-san!!" Tsubomi stood in the doorway, holding up the scoreboard. Kaede had now moved in front of Kanna. There was only Sumire and Kouran left. "Please do something!!!"
* * * * * * *
Oogami was still jogging down the hallway when he ran into Yoneda. "Oogami!!" the old guy exclaimed, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him into his office, "Have you done anything about the striking Teigeki Sannin Musume?! We need tickets sold!!"
"H-Hai!! I'll get on it right away!!"
"By the way," Yoneda uttered, rubbing his chin, "Have you seen Sakura-kun anywhere??" Oogami frantically shook his head. "Dammit! Did that girl disobey me!! She'll be grounded for a month!!"
"Uwah! It's not my fault!!" Oogami cried, backing out of the room, "I'll get back to what I was going to do!!!" He then ran off before Yoneda could say anything. But he skidded to a stop when he saw Yoko in Sakura disguise. "What in the hell...?!?"
"Atashi wa Shinguji Sakura de-su!" Yoko chimed, running a hand through her long black hair and shaking her hips, "Ichiro-chaa--- I-I mean, Oogami-saaaaan!! How about a biiiiiig hug!!"
"UWAAAAAAH!!" Oogami quickly ran the other way, screaming for his dear life. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!!!"
"Don't you like your Sakura-kun anymore~!!?" Yoko cried, chasing after him with her lips puckered, "Oogami-san!! Matte~!!"
Tsubaki and Yuri peered out from the corner in alarm. "Now it's role-playing??" Yuri uttered, "Something kinky is going on here..."
“Yuri-san! Enough scandal for today!” Tsubaki replied and dragged her along, “Let’s go back to the baiten and gaze at those hunky bromides I got. Hehee!!”
“Hai hai!” Yuri sighed, going with her. As they passed the hallway, the promotion poster for “Love of Asagao” fell off the wall and fell on the floor.
* * * * * * * *
Meanwhile, Sakura had just arrived in an empty parking lot outside a city park. She happily went up to the man waiting for her by his car. “Sumimasen, Kazuhiro-san… I’m so late.”
”Iya, no problem at all.” he replied, trying to smile. ‘I had a hell of a time getting here – with that broad in the back of my car. At least I handled that problem by stuffing her in a trunk.’ He suddenly grabbed hold of Sakura’s hands. “Let’s take a walk. I’m a little low on gas.”
”Eh, zehi,” she uttered, looking at him closely, “Ma-Masaka…” Her eyes widened and she broke away from his hold, “You have lipstick on your sleeve. A-And, you smell like perfume!”
Kazu’s face went pale. ‘Shit!!’
Sakura sadly stared to the ground. “I knew this was a match-made, but I honestly felt that we could develop some feelings between us. Demo… we’ve only been engaged for one day and you’re already cheating on me… D-Doushite? Why do I always fall these types of guys??”
”I-I don’t know!” he frantically gasped, worried that she might start crying, “Maybe you’re stupid or something!”
Sakura’s eyes narrowed. But good for him, she let it go. “I suppose now our engagement will have to be called off. My family will be very disappointed, but it can’t be helped. I can’t possibly make a commitment with someone like you.”
“Dammit!” Kazu grumbled, losing his patience and grabbing her by the wrist, “I went through a lot of trouble to make this work! I’ll have your family’s fortune either way!!”
”KYAAA!!” Sakura gasped as he opened the large trunk in the back seat and threw her in, immediately shutting it and locking her in. In the darkness, she heard the car start and felt it speed out of the lot. She also felt that she was lying on something warm and soft… and living. “KYAAAA!!?”
“Sa-Sakura-san…?!”
“K-Kikunojou-san?!”
A long pause followed. The two of them calmed down and said in unison, “Ko-Konichiwa…”
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Sakura sighed, “The engagement is definitely off!”
”Daijoubu desu,” Kiku replied, “I’m sure that Oogami-san will save us.”
”Demo… there is something at my hand… ano… something spongy…”
“Oh, that’s one of my breasts… It fell out when that ruffian threw me in here.”
”S-Sou desu ka… I hope someone saves us soon.”
* * * * * * *
Moments before all this happened, Dandy and his gang were strolling down the street. They had seen Sakura throw aside a short brown wig and continue on her way. They quickly went to retrieve the wig. “Kyaa!!” Dandy exclaimed, “This is Sakura-san’s!!”
”Boss,” Takeda the little guy sighed, “What are we going to do with a wig?? It can’t get us any money. And it doesn’t look good on any of us.”
”Baka yarou!” Dandy snapped, “Don’t you see!! This wins us a trip to the theater so we can return it! Maybe they’ll even invite us backstage!”
The big guy, Nishimura, replied, “Boss, I don’t think she wants it back if she threw it in the trash just now.”
There was a moment of disappointment hanging in the air. Dandy finally shrugged it off. “Let’s catch up to Sakura-san and ask her!!” With that he led his gang after the girl who had just entered the parking lot. “EEH?! Sakura-san is meeting with a man!!” Dandy turned away, feeling heartache, “I cannot believe it!”
”B-Boss!!” Nishimura and Takeda gasped, trying to get his attention as they watch Kazu throw Sakura into the truck and then speed away, “BOSS!!! Sakura-san… was just kidnapped!!”
”EH?!!” Dandy turned around and walloped them both. “Why didn’t you tell me??!” He then started chasing after the car, “SAKURA-SAAAN!!”
“BOSS!!!” his gang cried, chasing after him, “Wait for us!!”
“N-Nan da?!” Kazu cried, staring in his rear view mirror, “Dammit! I got someone on my trail. Better lose them!!” He took a sharp turn into another street.
“UWAAAH!!!” the trio gasped as the streetcar passed in front of them. When it finished passing, the car was already to far to chase. Dandy stood in the intersection, his calls echoing down the street as cars honked their horns at him, “SAKURA-SAAAAAAAN!!!”
Nishimura and Takeda had found a ramen stand and decided to get lunch. “Cheh, we can’t bring this guy anywhere…”
* * * * * * * * * * *
Special Alert -> Airisu & Reni’s French Getaway Part 2
Reni was getting ready for sleep in the drafty chateau when she decided that she wasn’t sleepy and wanted some company. So she left the guest room and went searching for Airisu. “Airis…” she uttered, peering through the door to her room.
”O-NI-I-CHAN!” Airisu happily chimed into her kinematron, “It’s so good to talk to you. Ne ne, how are you??”
”I really miss Airisu,” Oogami replied on the other side, leaning his hand down onto his hand, “It just doesn’t seem the same.”
”Ehihihi! Oh, Onii-chan!” Airisu gasped, her face blushing, “Do you really really mean it when you say you miss Airisu!”
”I really really do.”
Reni backed away from the door, feeling sick in her stomach. She too had thought about calling the Taichou on her kinematron, but her conversation was going to be nothing like this.
“Airisu, I had a dream about you.” Oogami suddenly said, “I dreamt we were on a date together.”
”Honto?? Jaa… maybe your dream will come true. Let’s go on a date when Airisu-tachi comes back, ne?”
”All right! I’m up for that!” he replied, smiling slyly, “And maybe you can spend the night in my room again.”
”Onii-chan!! You’re so bad!!” Airisu laughed, “Just because Airisu has become a 'real woman', Onii-chan can be more ‘adult’ too. Ehihihi!!”
Reni fell to her knees, clutching her stomach. ‘Gaaah!’ She suddenly noticed the teddy bear just sitting in the middle of the hallway. “What are you doing out here, Jean-Paul??”
”Get me out of here,” said the bear, much to Reni’s surprise, “Bring me to your room and I’ll explain everything.”
“R-Ryokai!” Reni gasped, carrying the bear to her room. “So, what’s going on? Why are you talking??”
”Didn't you know? I’ve always been talking!” snapped the bear, “I just really don’t like that guy flirting with MY Airis!”
”YOUR Airis?!”
”You think I ENJOY being trapped in this body!?” snapped Jyan-Paru, “Oh nevermind… a person like you wouldn’t understand.”
”Iya… I do… Boku wa…” Reni sadly looked into the mirror, “I wish I was a little bit prettier.”
”Come on!!” the bear replied, “You’re pretty! Airis had said so many times!”
”Really?!”
Suddenly the door flew open and Airisu came running in the room. “Ne, Reni!” she said, latching onto her arm, “Airisu isn’t sleepy! Let’s go for a walk!”
”H-Hai!” Reni stammered, unable to keep from blushing. She quickly grabbed the bear and put it under her arm, “Don’t forget Jean-Paul!”
“Sou da yo!” Airisu happily hugged the two and led them outside. “Tomorrow, Airisu will show you France…!”
