Dragon Valentine’s Day Pt. 1: Show Me Your Love!

The beautiful silver moon shone brightly in the clear night sky. Its brilliance signified the end of yesterday and the beginning of tomorrow. But the brilliant full moon also foreshadowed the inception of a change that will affect the hearts of those in love. Ever wondered where the term lunacy comes from? This very moment was the catalyst for such a term to exist.

Standing atop the roof of a house in Tatsuya’s neighborhood was a mysterious figure that kept their identity hidden in the darkness by having their back to the moon. They had their gaze fixed upon a particular household. “Hmm. I can feel a very amorous atmosphere coming from there,” they said in an intrigued tone.

Hard at work cooking in the kitchen, Aika glanced up at the bright full moon in the sky and smiled. “I can’t wait for tomorrow!” she squealed to herself. She returned to focus on her dish and continued with her cooking. ‘I know I’m not that good at cooking, but I hope I can make up for it with this dish,’ she thought happily to herself. The image of a happy Tatsuya enjoying her dish with a big bright smile on his face and later declaring his love for her played in her mind, causing her make a very love-sick expression complete with her tongue lolling out. Realizing that she was distracted again, she shook her head and focused on preparing her dish.

Aika poured all of her love and soul into this one dish. She prays that Tatsuya will love it and praise her. This was the symbol of her love for him. Furthermore, tomorrow was an important day, which was another reason why she decided to do this. In order for tomorrow to succeed and her love to be reciprocated by her Darling, Aika must make this dish the best she can. Although she is a complete failure when it comes to cooking, Aika has complete confidence in this single dish that she is making. She grabbed a handful of dragon fire peppers, which she previously had Ingrid procure for her a few days ago, and added it to the dish. She took a sniff and could tell that the dish was indeed coming together. After a few more minutes of stirring, Aika turned off the heat and took a little taste test of her efforts. “Perfect,” she said with a smile.

The mysterious figure, who had watched and listened to the entire thing from their position, was impressed by the dragon princesses dedication. “I guess it’s my turn to see for myself just how great he is,” said the figure.

Tatsuya, slowly waking up for the day, felt a very heavy weight resting on his right arm. He tried to move it but found it quite hard. And the thing that was resting atop his right arm was something soft and smooth, like a baby’s bottom. Actually, it felt very much like naked human flesh. He curiously lifted up the blanket to take a peek inside. “Oh, it’s just a naked woman,” he said with a sigh of relief. Those words suddenly processed in his mind and the realization hit him hard. His entire body began to sweat and shake as he reached out for the blanket with trembling hands. ‘This can’t be happening, right? That was just an illusion, right? I can’t have a naked woman in my bed, it’s impossible! This has to be some sort of mind trick. Maybe I was still a little sleepy and I imagined it,’ he tried to rationalize to himself as his hands grabbed the blanket.

With the blanket now in his hands, he swiped the entire cover off the bed in one quick motion. What awaited him behind the covers was indeed his worst fear confirmed—a naked young woman whom he had never seen before! She was sleeping next to him without any shred of clothing, baring her entire nakedness for Tatsuya to see. She had voluminous silky layered and wavy platinum blonde hair that reached down to her waist. Her skin was an immaculate milky white and glowed brilliantly like a freshly cut diamond. Her naked body was also perfectly proportioned—her slender legs with full thighs that came together to form a perfectly ample bottom; her ideal small waist that was layered between full and luscious hips and a delicate yet lean, curving abdomen, the perfect example of the ideal hourglass figure; her slender and delicate arms that were like the beautifully dainty frames of flowers; her perfectly molded bust that was perfectly in the middle of the size spectrum, like a pair of juicy ripe round watermelons topped with tantalizing freshly-picked cherries, and appeared soft like a pillowcase worth of marshmallows. She also had full, luscious red lips that appeared to be softer than cotton and warm to the touch, as well as a small and beautiful mole just under the corner of her bottom lip. In conclusion, the woman was like Aphrodite incarnate!

Tatsuya felt his body frozen in fear and his entire face became redder than the reddest thing in the world right now. He couldn’t believe his situation. His voice left him and he can’t make even a little utterance right now.

Suddenly, the woman woke up and sat up on the bed. She stretched her hands and yawned. Tatsuya found himself drawn to her alluring body as his face followed in unison to her bouncing breasts once she brought her arms back down. Blood streamed down his nose like a river of pervertedness. The woman opened her eyes to reveal a pair of beautiful amber brown jewels with purple-pink heart-shaped pupils. Upon noticing Tatsuya’s eyes on her, she smiled and said, “I greatly enjoyed our sleep together.”

Her words brought Tatsuya’s voice back to him and he utilized it the only way one could in a situation like this. He opened his mouth and let out an earth-shaking scream that could be heard throughout the entire neighborhood.

“My,” said the woman, crawling forward to Tatsuya and placing a finger on his lips, “scaring off a woman is bad for your reputation as a man.” She removed her finger from his lips and moved her face closer to his until their lips were only a few centimeters away. “You wouldn’t want to do that now, would you?” she asked him in a sexy whisper. She then moved to his right ear and softly blew on it. Tatsuya’s face grew hot and red like a firework ready to go off. The woman then caressed Tatsuya’s chin with her slender and sexy fingers. “I can tell by your movements that you don’t have any experience,” she said with a naughty smile. “Yet you already have six healthy young women going at it for your heart.” With a tilt of her head, she curiously asked, “Are you perhaps thinking of becoming a monk? Or did you take some sort of vow on celibacy when you were younger?”

“W-W-What are you talking about?” he asked her fearfully.

“Well, you’re a healthy young boy but you haven’t put your healthy body to use yet,” she told him with a disapproving shake of her head. “How can you expect to love someone if you can’t even show it with your body? Don’t you know, little boy, that sex is the ultimate expression of love? If you’re stuck on being a virgin, then you can never experience the joy and pleasure that is true love!”

Her words only made Tatsuya’s condition worse. His face became hotter and redder than a bomb ready to self-destruct. He didn’t know what the hell the woman was talking about, but the things she said made his body feel ashamed and worthless. Coupled with the surprise of her sudden appearance in his bed and her extremely provocative and forward character, Tatsuya found himself reduced to an insignificant fragment of his identity as a man.

The door to his room quickly flew open and the princesses and Mika ran into his room. “Darling/My Love/Oniichan/Tatsu-kun/Tatsuya!” they all exclaimed in unison as they entered. They all froze in surprise and disbelief at the sight before them: a naked woman whom they had never seen before was having her way with their loved one.

“W-W-Who is that?” asked Aika.

“Ladies!” exclaimed the woman happily. “My, how romantic of you all to come answer the terrified scream of your loved one?” she praised them. “Although, it’s typically the other way around, but sometimes an inverted trope brings about some needed fresh air,” she added with an approving nod of her head.

“Who are you?” repeated Aika.

“I’m here to grant you all your wish today,” she told them with a wink.

“O-Our wish?” asked Arashi.

“Don’t you girls want a chance to do this with the person you love?” asked the woman. She smiled lasciviously and grabbed Tatsuya’s head and pulled him deep into her cleavage. She gently caressed his hair and cooed like a gentle mother. Tatsuya found himself warmed and soothed between the woman’s breasts. What little resistance he had tried to build up was quickly demolished by this woman’s aura. His mind and body easily surrendered to her will and he let himself be comforted by her soft and supple bosom. It was as if he was being charmed by a divine being, a celestial angel, a literal goddess. At the same time, he could feel a strange yet familiar feeling building up inside of him. Blood rushed down to in between his legs and certain hormones were being released inside his body. “My, aren’t you a lively one,” she gently said to him in a naughty voice.

While this was happening, the girls could only stand there speechless and frozen in disbelief and terror. It was like watching a stranger holding your baby with the intention of stealing him! The girls couldn’t let their baby be stolen away by a new woman just because she has a more mature and sexy charm about her.

“Stop!” screamed Aika at the top of her lungs.

The woman complied with the order and released Tatsuya from her grip. She then turned to face the girls and said, “So? Want to try?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” said Sunaji angrily. “Our love is pure and not perverted like yours!” she told the woman boldly.

“Ah, really,” said the woman slowly.

“Yes!” agreed Aika with a nod. The other girls nodded too.

“Interesting,” said the woman with an amused smile. “Then prove to me that your love is true, ladies,” she told them. She snapped her fingers and a bright pink wave emanated from her and gradually grew in size to become an ever growing ripple that spread throughout the entire room. When the wave hit the girls, their bodies glowed a bright pink color before returning back to their usual color. On the other hand, the wave did nothing to Tatsuya at all.

“Good luck,” announced the woman. “Show me the kind of love you believe in, ladies.” She turned to wink at Tatsuya and then disappeared in a glittery shower of pink sparkles.

Once the strange woman was gone, Tatsuya’s body felt relaxed and free again. He let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you girls for trying to come and help me,” he told them with a kind smile.

“Darling, do you know what day today is?” asked Aika in a soft voice. The girls all had their heads hung down, hiding their faces from him.

“What day?” asked Tatsuya.

The girls suddenly looked up at him in unison with weird, creepy, love-struck expressions and crazy, lustful eyes, their faces red as if they just drank a gallon of hard liquor. “It’s Day of Amora!” happily announced Aika. “This is our Valentines Day!” The girls then all jumped into the air together straight for Tatsuya.

Tatsuya instinctively jumped out of bed to avoid them. They all turned their heads to him with determined love-struck smiles and sparkling eyes. Tatsuya backed away from their crazed faces and quickly escaped from his room. Not a second sooner, the girls got up and chased after him. “What the hell is going on?!” he screamed out in terror.

As he ran down the stairs, he came across Ingrid. “Owatatsumi-sama, what is going on?” asked the maid.

“I don’t know!” he told her. He heard the footsteps of the girls exponentially getting closer and told Ingrid, “Can you please do me a favor and stop them? I’ll owe you!” Before the maid could choose to accept or deny his offer, Tatsuya quickly left her and headed straight down the hallway and into the bathroom. He shut the door and locked it. He let out a sigh of relief and leaned with his back against the door.

“Huh? Owatatsumi-sama?” spoke a voice from inside the wash room. The door slid open, revealing Sylphie wrapped in a towel around his waist.

As a force of habit, Tatsuya closed his eyes and covered them with his hands. He was surprised by the sound of someone in the wash room and immediately did whatever he could to preserve that person of their dignity. “I’m sorry!” he cried out. “I didn’t see anything, I swear!”

“Although it’s nice to know that, you do know that I’m still a boy, right?” said Sylphie with a laugh. “It’s not like I have anything that you don’t have for yourself.”

After realizing just who it was, Tatsuya removed his hands from his eyes and opened them. He let out a sigh of relief. “Sorry about that,” he apologized. “It’s just, this morning has been pretty crazy for me.”

“Is everything alright?” asked the maid.

“I woke up with a strange woman in my bed and the girls have become lunatics,” Tatsuya told him.

“My, that sounds pretty rough,” commented the maid.

Suddenly, the sound of heavy pounding coming from the other side of the restroom door made Tatsuya jump. He quickly turned around and scooted back to where Sylphie was. “They’re here,” whimpered Tatsuya fearfully.

“Darling!” shouted Aika’s excited voice from behind the door. “We know you’re in there!” she said in between knocks.

“O-Owatatsumi-sama,” said Sylphie in a fearful voice.

“Get out here, you malapert mooncalf!” ordered Sunaji.

“I can’t go out there,” Tatsuya told Sylphie.

“Tatsu-kun, let’s go eat ramen together!” suggested Shurai.

“What are you going to do, Owatatsumi-sama?” asked Sylphie.

“I-I-I don’t know,” admitted Tatsuya.

Suddenly, the pounding stopped and there was silence. Tatsuya didn’t know if he should be relieved or fearful. The sudden silence kind of made him a bit more nervous and tense than before. It was like those scenes in horror movies where the zombies leave you alone once they realize that they can’t get you out only to begin attacking you from the sides and back once they discovered another opening. Tatsuya swallowed a gulp and waited for what’s going to happen next.

“My Love?” came Kanjomizu’s voice. Tatsuya caught his breath and stayed very still. He expected something like that to happen, but was still surprised by the suddenness of the comment right after that instant silence. “My Love,” repeated Kanjomizu. A pause. “The others are gone,” she finally told him. “May I come in?” she asked.

“I, uh, I-I don’t know,” said Tatsuya with sweat dripping from his forehead.

“Owatatsumi-sama,” whispered Sylphie, nudging him to move closer to the door with a head gesture.

Tatsuya gulped and did as the maid said. “Are you sure you’re alone?” he asked her cautiously.

“Yes, I am,” she replied to him.

“Okay, I’m going to open the door on three,” he told her. “One…two…three!” He unlocked the door and opened it. Outside, Kanjomizu was the only one there. Tatsuya peeked outside and looked left and right to confirm that the others weren’t hiding nearby. She was telling the truth, no one else was there except for her. Tatsuya let out a sigh of relief and gestured for her to come in.

Sylphie greeted the princess and then bowed out of the bathroom, leaving Tatsuya and Kanjomizu alone together. There was silence between them. “My Love,” said Kanjomizu, breaking the ice, “I apologize for my behavior.”

“Oh, uh, it’s alright,” replied Tatsuya. “I wonder what came over them,” he said with a shake of his head. “Seriously, it’s crazy, the way they’re acting.”

“Yes, you are right,” agreed Kanjomizu with a small chuckle. “My Love, may I ask you a question?” she asked him in a more serious tone.

“Sure,” said Tatsuya.

“Do…Do you…Do you love me?” she asked him bashfully.

“Excuse me?” responded Tatsuya with a confused smile.

“Do you like me,” said Kanjomizu, quickly exchanging one of the words to make it easier for her to say.

“Oh, um, of course,” answered Tatsuya with a smile. “You’re one of the people closest to me. Of course I like you, no questions about it.”

Kanjomizu became silent and her head was hung down to hide her own embarrassment. “T-That’s great to hear,” she told him. And then, as if possessed by some spirit, she pushed her body against Tatsuya’s and the both of them fell down to the floor with Kanjomizu now on top of him. She looked at him with a red face filled with, not bashfulness, but lust. “My Love, I’m glad to hear that you like me,” she told him with a lascivious smile. “Please, let me show you my affection for you too. I like you, My Love. No…I love you!” Her breathing became ragged like a dog in heat. “I love, love, love, love, love you!” she told him with a giant love-sick smile.

“Wait a minute, Mizu, what are you doing?!” he asked her. Tatsuya hadn’t realized it before but the pupils of her eyes became pink hearts, the same eyes as that woman from before.

Kanjomizu sat up and started to unzip her dress. “My Love, please accept me, body and all,” she told him. As she was undressing herself, Tatsuya quickly grabbed her hands to stop her from going any further. “Stop this, Mizu,” he told her.

“My Love, I can’t,” she told him. She rubbed her bottom against Tatsuya’s lower body, her body squirming in pleasure. Realizing that it was futile for her to continue stripping, Kanjomizu leaned forward and came face-to-face with Tatsuya. “At least accept my kiss,” she told him lustfully.

“Stop!” ordered Tatsuya sternly. His voice made Kanjomizu stop from going any further at this moment. Tatsuya let out a sigh with a frown and said, “Listen, Mizu, I don’t like you like that.” He then smiled softly. “Even if I did, I can’t do anything that you want me to do, like accepting your body, at this moment. This is because you’re not in your right mind right now. If I were to do this…I’d rather do it when you’re you. I don’t want to do this when you’re not yourself, because it will feel like I’m taking advantage of you. I want to do this with you. That is my final answer.”

Kanjomizu heard his words and closed her eyes. She then silently got off of Tatsuya’s body and her head was hung down. Tatsuya took this chance to run out of the bathroom and get away. Once he was gone, Kanjomizu stood very still in her spot.

“Well, that was a fail,” said a familiar. The woman from this morning appeared before Kanjomizu; she was dressed in a flowing pink dress that reached past her knees with a beautiful image of a dragon embroidered in diamonds on both sides of the dress, long white elbow gloves, silky black stockings, pink heeled pumps with big pink bows, a pair of rose gold thin framed glasses, a large-brimmed pink sun hat with a large purple ribbon bow around the middle, a heart shaped earring hanging on each of her ears, and a silver heart shaped necklace. The woman shook her head and said, “My little lady, your love will never be reciprocated like that. You’ve always been fighting against yourself to try and build up courage so that you can fight against your rivals on an equal footing. Sure, taking the initiative is a good method for most people, but not everyone is cut out for it. At least, not if you force yourself to grow instead of taking it at your own pace. Nothing good ever comes out of doings things at a higher level if you’ve never even gained the necessary experience yet, and that includes love.” She walked over to Kanjomizu and patted her head. “Listen, little lady, you have to approach love your own way. If you want to take the initiative, then do it at your own pace. Don’t be afraid to lose the one you love. If you let that fear control you, then you’ve as good as lost the entire war. I recommend first building your relationship with him at a comfortable pace for both of you. That, little lady, is your love.”

Those words sent a shock through the Naga princess. But she also realized that what the woman said made sense. Tears streamed down her eyes as she accepted the woman’s words. She raised her head and said, “Thank y—,” but stopped when she noticed that the woman wasn’t there anymore.

Tatsuya ran down the hall and made his way to the kitchen. He hadn’t come across any of the other princesses and hid underneath the dining table. While he was catching his breath, he could hear someone humming a song near the stove. A very alluring smell infiltrated his nose and drew his head out to peek at what was cooking. He saw someone wearing a yellow apron ladling something out of a pot and into a bowl. When the person picked up the bowl and turned around, Tatsuya quickly ducked his head back inside. They brought the bowl over and set it down on the table.

Not wanting to push his luck, Tatsuya decided to safely wait until the person finished their dish. Although the aroma of the dish called out to him and tempted him to come out, Tatsuya knew better than to obey the commands of what could very well be a very delicious trap. He covered his nose with his right hand and willed himself to stay still. Suddenly, the sound of a spoon falling to the ground made Tatsuya’s body tense up in fear. The person bent down to pick it up. Tatsuya hoped that the person didn’t notice him. When the person’s hand grabbed the spoon, Tatsuya could feel his heart beating a mile a minute. It all appeared to be going according to plan when the person retrieved the spoon and appeared to be going back to their dish.

“Whew,” uttered Tatsuya in relief. In a quick twist of fate, Tatsuya suddenly found himself caught in the most frightening situation since his younger years watching horror films. His eyes were now staring right into the very eyes of the person from above. His voice had caught their attention and they were looking straight at him. This surprise almost sent Tatsuya straight into cardiac arrest and he let out a barbaric scream of terror.

When his scream died down, the person reached their hand in and grabbed Tatsuya by the arm. They forcefully pulled him out; Tatsuya didn’t really put up much of a fight since his body was spent from releasing all of his pent up energy into that previous terrifying scream. “Geez, why were you hiding down there?” scolded Sunaji with pouting lips. “Do you know how I long I waited for your appearance?” she asked him with a huff.

“Hey, Sunaji,” said Tatsuya slowly with an awkward smile. “Sorry about that. It’s just, well, things have been kinda crazy lately, know what I mean? Heh heh.”

“Well, as long as you’re here, we can dispense with the past,” she told him. “Now, sit down,” she ordered with a frown. Tatsuya obeyed her order and sat in front of the dish. Sunaji wore a smile to put Tatsuya at ease and said, “Why don’t you try my dish? It’s borscht.”

“Ah, borscht,” repeated Tatsuya with an uneasy laugh. “Why the sudden desire to make a Russian soup, may I ask?”

“It’s Day of Amora, a special holiday of the dragon realm,” said Sunaji. “It is similar to the Valentines Day you humans celebrate. It’s to celebrate love and is held in honor of the Celestial Dragon of love, Amora. According to tradition, women and girls give gifts to the person they like or are in love with. The gifts can be anything, although it is said that anything red is guaranteed to bring luck and fortune to lovers.” She placed a hand on Tatsuya’s shoulder, causing him to shudder in his seat, and told him, “Enjoy your gift, Tatsuya.”

Tatsuya nodded his head with a forced smile and swallowed a gulp before dipping his spoon into the soup and taking in a spoonful. The flavors of the soup exploded in his mouth and made his taste buds dance with joy. This was one of the best dishes he had ever tasted in his life!

“How is it?” asked Sunaji.

“Delicious,” Tatsuya told her honestly. “You’re cooking is always on point,” he added with a smile.

“D-D-D-Don’t say stupid stuff like that, you malapert mooncalf,” said Sunaji, crossing her arms across her chest.

“I was only telling the truth,” Tatsuya told her. “Sheesh, you don’t have to always be so testy about it,” he muttered to himself.

“What did you just say?!” challenged Sunaji. Furious about the last comment, she quickly grabbed the dish and took it away from Tatsuya. “Looks like I was wrong about you,” she announced snobbishly. She placed the dish on the counter and began to walk off.

“Wait a minute,” said Tatsuya getting up. He grabbed Sunaji’s arm when his left leg struck the table, tripping him and causing both him and Sunaji to fall to the floor. Tatsuya found himself crouching on top of Sunaji with the latter pinned to the floor. Her face became a bright red color, except it wasn’t full of anger at all, but another strong feeling. “I-I-I’m sorry!” apologized Tatsuya. He was about to get up when Sunaji quickly grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

“It’s fine,” she told him, her eyes averting his. When she did turn her face to look at him, Tatsuya noticed that her pupils had become pink hearts. Her breathing began to become ragged. “Say, Tatsuya, can I ask you something?”

‘I feel like I’ve heard this before,’ thought Tatsuya dangerously to himself.

“Would you be willing to love all of me?” she asked him bashfully. “Including the part of me I am not proud of?”

“I-I-I…,” was all Tatsuya could say in reply.

“Well?” she asked him with an impatient frown.

“Um…sure,” he answered her a little too forcibly. He closed his eyes to collect his thoughts. “You’re one of the people closest to me,” he told her, “There’s isn’t a part of you that I don’t like. Some parts to change, possibly, but I will never dislike you for some imperfection. You are who you are, which is someone who I will treasure always.”

Sunaji smiled and said, “That’s great to hear.” The Python princess closed her eyes, smiling happily and contentedly to herself. When she opened them again, her entire being became consumed with lust. “Ya wanna know some’in, lover-boy?” she said, dropping her usual speech for her native accent. Now that she had received his answer, Sunaji became more confident about her real self and wasn’t afraid to show it. “Ah been always takin’ a likin’ to ya since dat time Ah saw a new side ta ya at da beach,” she told him. “So, dere’s jus won thin Ah gonna say lef. An dat’s Ah gonna make ya mine fo shore.” Without another word, Sunaji pulled on Tatsuya’s collar to bring his face closer to his.

As the distance between their lips got smaller and smaller, Tatsuya screamed out, “Wait a minute! Wait a minute!” Sunaji stopped. “Don’t you think this is going a little too fast?” he asked her.

“Fas?” she asked him. “Yer right,” she told him. She released him from her grip. Tatsuya let out a sigh of relief. When he opened back his eyes, he saw the princess taking off her apron and slowly uncovering her bare shoulders to him. His face turned a bright red as she kept on bringing the dress downwards until the sleeves were off her arms and her chest was on the verge of being exposed.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, this isn’t going fast anymore, this is reaching light speed!” shouted Tatsuya hysterically.

“Please, be gen’le wit may,” she told him with crimson cheeks.

“Stop,” he told her firmly. “Sunaji, this is not the right thing to do. I can’t possibly follow you into doing something that we might regret later. You are a woman and you hold yourself to the highest esteem as a prim and proper lady, right? What you’re about to do right now is going to undermine everything you’ve done to build up this image of yours. And I don’t want to be the one responsible for destroying something important to you. Furthermore, I don’t want to do anything that I will regret later. If one of us is not in our right minds while doing this, then we’re both at fault for taking advantage of the situation for our own benefit. This should only be done with the person you love. And it should only be done when you have a clear head, when you yourself choose to do it.” With those words said, Tatsuya pushed himself off of her and left the kitchen.

Sunaji laid there, frozen still by the words that were said. Now alone in the kitchen, she took the moment to reevaluate herself. Just what was she doing anyway?

“Looks like we have another failure,” said the woman from this morning, appearing before Sunaji and shaking her head in disappointment. She sat down in the chair nearest to the lying princess. “Listen here, little lady,” she began, “my advice to you is to drop that little act of yours. Playing hard to get is so overdone and that tsundere effect will only carry you for so long. You already know in your heart your feelings for him, right? You’ve already came to term with it, so why are you so afraid to express it? You’ve heard him. He will love you for who you are, hick and all! Be confident in your feelings and stop trying to put on a tough façade. Now, I understand that you two will clash, and there’s no way to stop that, but those who fight have more in common than you would think. He’s a very nice guy with a pure heart, and I’ll tell you now that you won’t be able to find another guy like him in a million years. If you don’t want to push him any further, be more transparent with your feelings. Don’t expect the guy to pick up on your feelings. You can keep the tsundere aspect for all I care, I don’t think it’ll do you a lot of harm— actually, I think it’s pretty cute—but don’t overplay it. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable when the time calls for it. That, little lady, is your love.”

The woman’s words struck a chord with Sunaji. They made her want to deny it and just cry her eyes out, but she can’t argue against the truth and weight that they held. She couldn’t help but to acknowledge the woman’s words. She turned her head to tell the woman thank you but she suddenly disappeared.

Tatsuya ran up the stairs and sought refuge in his room. He went inside and then he locked the doors. Thinking he was safe, he let out a sigh of relief. Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms wrapping around his body from behind. “I got you,” said Arashi from behind him.

“A-A-Acchan!” exclaimed Tatsuya.

“Tatsuya, can you let me hold you for a bit?” she asked him, her face resting on his shoulder. Tatsuya could say nothing but stutter nonsensical noises in protest. “We’ve known each other since we were children,” said Arashi with a twinkle in her eyes and a longing smile. “Say, do you think it’s weird for childhood friends to develop feelings for each other?” she asked him.

“W-What’s with that question suddenly?” asked Tatsuya.

“I—,” Arashi stopped herself and dipped her head under so that he couldn’t see her bashful eyes and reddened cheeks. “It’s a hypothetical,” she told him.

“Hypothetical?” inquired Tatsuya.

“Just answer the question,” she told him impatiently.

“Um, well, I don’t think it’s weird,” he answered her. “Especially if they both have the same feelings for each other.”

“So you’re saying it’s possible for their relationship to advance to the next level?” she asked him.

“Sure, if that’s what they want,” answered Tatsuya honestly.

“Would you be willing to do that too?” she asked him bashfully.

“I guess,” he answered. “That is, if we both possess the same feelings for each other, I don’t see why not.”

That was all Arashi needed to hear. She immediately grabbed Tatsuya by the back of his shirt and threw him onto the bed. She then quickly jumped on top of him to prevent him from escaping. Her face became red and filled with lust. Tatsuya had only just noticed now that Arashi’s pupils were pink-shaped hearts, just like Kanjomizu’s and Sunaji’s before. “Tatsuya,” said Arashi with a very lewd expression on her face, “please accept my love for you.” Before Tatsuya could say anything in protest, Arashi unzipped her dress and brought it down to her waist to reveal a red bra. “Do you like it? Today is Day of Amora, and it’s tradition to present a red gift to your lover. That’s why I wore this today. Because my gift to you is me.” She leaned down and was about to plant a kiss on Tatsuya’s lips when he stopped her by grabbing her shoulders.

“Acchan,” said Tatsuya with a serious expression. Arashi stopped upon seeing how serious he was with that look on his face. “Don’t do anything you’ll regret later,” he told her. “This shouldn’t be taken lightly. If this is what you want then you must want it for yourself with a clear head and not because your mind is being forced to do it against your own will. I’m not one to take this type of thing lightly either. Don’t do this on a whim, it won’t benefit anyone that way. This should only be reserved for someone whom you truly love, and only when that person accepts your feelings too.”

His words stopped Arashi from advancing further and forced her to rethink her situation. She rose back up and hung her head. Without a word, she got off of Tatsuya, allowing him to escape. Once he was gone, she simply sat down on her knees on the bed in silence.

“Well, well, well, that boy is tougher than I thought,” spoke the voice of the woman from this morning. She appeared right next to the bed, behind Arashi. “Listen, little lady, that was one of the biggest fails I’ve seen today. Actually, all I’ve seen today were fails. Listen, why are you acting so flustered for? Why are you afraid that he won’t accept you as a lover just because of your history with each other? Shouldn’t it be easier for you to advance to the next level because of your history together? Don’t think too much about the unnecessary stuff. Yes, you two are childhood friends, but what’s so hard about that? Just so you, your change in character is so out of character for you that you’ve been pushing him way farther than you’d think. All you’ve been doing is let your enemies win. Just because you realize that you love him now as a man shouldn’t do anything to change your character and your relationship with him. The way you’ve acted before was actually the right way in drawing his attention to you. Don’t change yourself just because you think that that is the right way to win his love. Stop being embarrassed and accept it. Be yourself and do what you need to do to draw his attention to you. That, little lady, is your love.”

The woman’s words hit the bulls-eye with Arashi. Everything that she had said was right. Arashi closed her eyes and let out a huge sigh. She turned her head to express her gratitude to the woman but she suddenly disappeared from the room.

Meanwhile, Tatsuya ran down the stairs and made the decision to leave his house for better or for worse. He had reached the front door when Mika attacked him behind and pinned him to the ground. “Oniichan!” she squealed happily.

“M-M-Mika,” stuttered Tatsuya.

Mika quickly turned Tatsuya over and wore a very lustful expression on her face with an equally lewd smile. “Since everybody is doing it with Oniichan, I want to do it too,” she told him.

“M-M-Mika, stop this right now,” Tatsuya told her with a frown.

She leaned down and planted a kiss on his neck. “Why?” she asked him naughtily. “This is my chance to have Oniichan to myself.” She then proceeded to suck on his earlobes.

“S-S-Stop it,” begged Tatsuya, his cheeks turning a bright red color like a cherry tomato. “P-Please?” he said in a weird high-pitched voice.

“I like that voice of yours, Oniichan,” said Mika. She moved down and sucked on neck. “Say, Oniichan, how about we get married, huh?” she asked him in between suckles. “I love you very much, Oniichan. My love for you is greater than the vast expanse of space itself!” she added like an excited little school-girl.

Tatsuya suddenly stopped struggling once he heard her say that. He didn’t know why, but the way his sister said those last two sentences seemed weird…not, not weird—they were actually very much like something she would totally say. That’s right, the weird thing was how not weird his sister was being. It was as if she wasn’t affected by the same kind of spell that the other three princess were under. The other three princesses were overcome with lust and became basically love zombies whose main objective is to do it with him. But Mika seemed different from them. She wasn’t acting like a zombie at all, but rather her usual self—a little sister with a massive brother-complex. And the way she was putting the moves on him too seemed tamer than the other princesses—she was aware enough to enact some foreplay rather than going straight into strip-and-get-to-business mode.

Tatsuya quickly pushed his sister away and stood back up. “You’re not affected by whatever spell the others were under, aren’t you?” he asked her.

“I wonder what gave that away, tee-hee,” she said with a sheepish smile.

“Mika!” screamed Tatsuya in rage. He quickly left the house and slammed the door shut behind him.

“Geez, Oniichan is so uptight sometimes,” said Mika with a pout.

“I applaud you for your bravery, princess,” said the woman from this morning. She appeared right next to Mika. “It seems that he still sees you as his little sister,” she pointed out.

“Well, we can’t help that now, can we,” said Mika with a sigh. “Anyway, your surprise this morning was very bold of you. You should’ve given me a heads up next time,” Mika told the woman with a smile.

"Of course," said the woman with a bow of her head.

"Still, I wished that I could've been affected like them," said Mika longingly. "That way, I would have an excuse to finally have Oniichan to myself!" she added with a squeal.

“It’s not my fault that my spell doesn’t work on you,” said the woman. “At least not with the same concentration I used on the others.”

“Right, right,” responded Mika with a wave of her hand, “Well, I see that you’re enjoying yourself.”

“Indeed,” agreed the woman. “After all, today is a very special day.”