Persona 4 Golden: Yu and Yukiko's Full and Happy Life Part 9

It was fortunate that it was so early in the morning or the assorted Persona users would have caused quite the commotion in the sleepy little town. Not only had the same entourage from yesterday returned, but now they had an actual Phoenix Ranger accompanying them and several of the group seemed on the brink of collapse. The gentle calm of the town only amplified these feelings of exhaustion.

"*Yaaaawwwwnnn* can we have the party later? Like at 3? I could really really use a nap." No group was more exhausted than the Shadow Sluggers who had experienced the effects of the energy draining fog more than any other group. Junpei thought he would have been used to this kind of thing by now, but a two year break with a properish sleep schedule wasn't conducive to staying in tip top shadow fighting shape. "Now Iori," Mitsuru was quick to say, "sleeping in will only throw off your biological clock, what I would suggest inste-"

Her lecture was interrupted by a big yawn of her own and she fell silent. Seeing the expectant looks her Operatives were giving her, she sighed. "The helicopter is fully equipped with a convertible sleeping quarters. I'll have Kikuno pick us up *yawn* here." Yosuke made to protest but thought better of it. If Ms. Kirijo was even half as tired as he was, she would probably get cranky if he started complaining. Besides, it's not like his dad could blame him for a government helicopter landing on the store could he? He'd probably find a way but that was a "later" problem.

"Thank god. I know the only thing I want to do right now is get some shut eye? Right team?" Kanji and Rise nodded at the coach wearily, dead tired and yet seeming much livelier than they were a few minutes ago, holding their heads higher and more proudly than they had all night. One person did not look at him so kindly. Before he even turned around, Junpei could feel the hole Yukari was burning into his back.

The scowl on her face was nothing new to Junpei and he could only roll his eyes. "Look Yuka-tan, I said I was sorry. What more do you want?" But that only made her glare at him harder. "Stupei, aren't you forgetting something important?" Seeing that he was completely lost, she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Your phone!" Junpei pulled the thing out of his pocket. "I'm not sure what's so important about this. The battery's completely dead. It can't even receive any...messages...uh oh." The man's face paled as he realized what Yukari was getting at. He had told her he would be home late but this...this wasn't just pushing it, this was straight up shoving her goodwill and understanding nature down a flight of stairs. She'd probably been up all night worrying about him. He slowly looked around to the surrounded group who had begun to go their separate ways "H-hey, any of you have some kind of phone charger on you? Aigis? Labrys?"

Aigis looked regretfully off to the side. "My sister and I do not run on electricity and I believe that charging a phone with a plume of dusk would void the warranty. I'm afraid that for once, I can not be of any assistance" Junpei felt his heart sink and immediately afterwards a hand clasp him on his shoulder. It was the brown haired boy, Captain Ressentiment. "Look, I could just take you to the aisle. Just...stop making that expression, you're making me feel like crying." Yosuke didn't even have time to remove his hand before he was pulled into a bear hug that could give Teddie a run for his money. "You're a lifesaver, captain. And don't worry, I'll pay for it myself." Yosuke didn't like the way he said that last part but he decided to let that go too. At the end of the day, being someone's hero felt pretty good. He looked towards his partner with an embarrassed "what can you do?" look and Yu grinned back knowingly.

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The "feeling" of the town waking up around him was not altogether foreign to Yu as he'd always been a bit of an early riser, but working at the Amagi Inn had only made that feeling more and more familiar to him. The sensation of the old building slowly coming to life as the staff and guests began the hustle and bustle of their day was a sensation he would consider one of the many many perks of working and living there. Although that may have just been because he had somebody to greet the morning with now.

But today was something special. Every chirping bird and every barking dog was a sign that they had won. They had protected their precious town and everyone in it once again and it seemed as if nature itself was rewarding them. A pleasant breeze blew through their hair and the gentle rays of the morning sun kissed their skin softly. As they passed through the flood plain, Yu could feel himself give off a breath of relief when he saw a familiar old man taking his morning walk on the riverbank. He smiled wordlessly at the young couple and gave them a wink making the two lovers blush. There was a reason they had avoided the shopping district after all, if the two were caught arm in arm far from the inn at such an hour, scandalous rumors would spread all throughout the town. After his wink, Yu expected Yukiko to loosen her grip on his arm a bit but instead she surprised him by wrapping herself around her man even tighter. "It's really a lovely morning for a walk, isn't it sir? It feels like I could dash right to the inn, although that's probably a bit beyond me at this point." She gave her belly a meaningful pat with a small giggle. Yu instantly catching on, placed his hand over hers and kissed her on the cheek. "My Yuki has been doing everything she can to ensure a healthy birth. It makes me proud to be her husband." While Yukiko had been expecting something like that, it still flushed her cheeks and made her grin spread across her face

Now it was the old man's turn to be bashful. He couldn't help but feel guilty assuming something illicit was going on here when really it was just a young couple enjoying each other's company and getting some fresh air away from that stuffy inn. If he had to use one word to describe the image in front of him, the young girl happily leaning against her husband looking like she could fall asleep standing up with both their hands cradling her bump lovingly, it would be "wholesome." It brought to mind memories of days long in the past and a smile crept on to his face.

"Well just remember to hang on to that energy. You'll be needing plenty of it once the baby's born. Thanks again for that lantern Mr. Naru- *er* Amagi." And with that, he went on his way with an extra little spring in his step. Seeing Yu's questioning yet tender gaze, Yukiko gave an embarrassed little smirk. "I don't mind people knowing we're intimate but I feel like when people are able to see us as a family instead of just lovers, I'll be glad." Yu had to smile at a statement like that and began to rock the three of them back and forth. "Well next time, we go on a morning walk together, we can go right through the shopping district. Do some shopping for the inn, maybe even see the ideas Kanji has for baby clothes. And we'll do that so much that eventually five years will have passed and people will find it hard to remember a time when we weren't a family. How does that sound?"

A gentle hum was all the answer he needed but she went beyond that and turned around to bury her face into his chest. That ended quickly when his knees nearly buckled and she backed off. It was true she was quite a bit heavier but that had never been a problem for him before, and thinking about it his voice had gained a tired dream like quality to it when he was whispering to her. He must have been far more drained than he let on.

"Don't worry about it," he said after catching sight of her concerned expression. "You just caught me off guard is all. I can make it to the inn." When Yukiko still continued to fix him in her gaze, he gave her a comforting smile which served to quell her worries. "Okay, but if you need to rest, please say something. You deserve it after all." Yu nodded but he had no intention of taking advantage of that. He didn't wish to deprive his wife and son of their rest anymore than he absolutely had to. Unfortunately for Yu, it was quite hard to keep that promise; it was as Kagutsuchi had said, he was drained to his very core. Honestly, even though he was moving, he was having difficulty keeping his eyes open and the only thing that kept him going was wanting Yukiko and the baby to be nice and comfortable in their warm bed.

Yukiko knew immediately that he was pushing himself. How could she not when he didn't have to correct the speed of his stride once to match hers? In fact, as they ascended up into the mountains it was less like she was leaning into him and more like they were leaning into each other. She had to admit it was quite nice, walking side by side with the man she loved and not having to feel like she was slowing him down. It was quite lovely how they could take in just how beautiful their town was in the early morning as her heart swelled with affection for him with every little sound of life that reached her ears. But most of all, it was quite wonderous having her baby boy slowly increase his stirrings as their walk progressed. With the way she was cradling her belly, it was almost like he was waking up in her arms.

It was much more enjoyable than the way down, that was for sure although part of that had to do with Yukiko being allowed to maintain her lazy waddle although she couldn't help but let out little puffs of air every once in a while. Moving up an incline at a slow ponderous gait could really take a lot out of a girl!

But in a way, it was almost a blessing that her body forced her into such a slow speed, otherwise she never would have been able to savor the moment. As a slender lithe schoolgirl she most likely would have dashed past all this beauty, thinking about where she was going to be instead of where she was right now. Plus it gave her time to turn her thoughts to the long term future instead of the immediate one. "The gods make mothers slow and fat for a reason, it's to help us not hinder us." She sent a quick prayer to thank them for helping her learn patience and humility, qualities not only important for the okami she was to be become, but the mother she already was. Although that could just be her aversion to strenuous exercise talking, a thought which made her giggle.

That virtue of patience was being heavily tested by her husband who repeatedly insisted he was fine even as he became increasingly wobbly and unfocused. When she caught sight of a bench, she slowly maneuvered them over to it. If he was fully awake, he would have stopped her but even as she sat him down, he seemed to almost not realize that he wasn't still walking forward and blinked around in confusion.

"Take. A. Break." She said it in a stern but kind tone similar to the one she used on Ken. Yu rubbed his eyes and sighed. "I'm sorry. Those last few fights really took a lot out of me. I'll just be a minute and then we can get you some breakfast okay? You must be starving." He smiled gently at her and her belly even grumbled a bit but she couldn't accept that. Sometimes it was like he thought he should be the only one undergoing any kind of hardship. He'd been getting better about it but it still flared up from time to time. She sat down gently beside him, pleased that there was no wet slap of her heavy sweaty bottom against the bench this time around. "That's okay, we're making good time. I'll wait as long as you need, besides we still have that basket."

A wry grin crept across Yu's face as he hefted the basket over to her. She had been picking at it throughout the evening, Ken and Koromaru had certainly not held back either. He couldn't hold back a chuckle as Yukiko's face fell. There was only some kind of creamy pasta, some dumplings and what Yu had called a "Monte Cristo." Things that were far too filled with salt butter and fat to be appealing to the rest of the group but combined would only make a mid meal snack for Yukiko now, truly the contents of the box appealed to no one. But she couldn't go back on her word now. She began to gently scoop the pasta into her waiting grumbling belly, only serving to whet her appetite. It really was tasty though, rich and heavy just how she liked it. Her tongue lapped up the butter around her lips and she dove back into the basket. She was only able to truly relax and lose herself in her eating when she felt a gentle hand shifting her tummy around underneath it. Subtly urging her on, telling her to just follow her instincts and enjoy herself, a pleasant tingling began to cover her from head to toe. "You can do it Yukiko. Grow nice and fat for your husband. For your baby. You're already doing so well," she thought to herself almost in a trance from the rubbing. When the rubbing stopped, her thoughts were cut off and she realized she had finished off both of the remaining items in the bag instead of just the one she had reached for. Everything was nestled inside her belly and she wanted more. A big filling breakfast and then a party catered by the Kirijo group, she would more than make up any calories burned and then some.

Immediately she took a few cleansing breaths. Did Yu realize how effective his touch was on her? Did he even want her to be fat? Yukiko still wasn't quite sure and it wasn't like she was trying to intentionally fatten up, but the thought of growing softer and more nurturing with him spurring her on was a very appealing one.

But was he really okay with that? She had been so slender when they met. After the pregnancy it would be like someone had replaced his nimble little girlfriend with a pillow soft princess while he wasn't looking. He had only positive things to say about her changes, but she still wanted to make absolutely sure of what he wanted...so she could do an even better job pleasing him. That thought made her blush but it was the truth. Why couldn't he just come out and say it? It would certainly make things easier on her she pouted to herself. But there had to be a reason for that, she just had to figure out what it was. She nuzzled in close and hummed happily to herself. "Before the party, I'll ask. He doesn't need to worry about anything but resting right now." The more she thought about the events of the day, the more her heart soared.

"If you press into me like that, I really will fall asleep Yuki." His wife responded by planting a big wet kiss right on his cheek. "Does that help at all hubby?" She knew what he would do and met his lips with hers. Her fingers traced over his chest after they broke apart. "You really did it Yu."

"We did it," he corrected. "That's what I hope Sho took out of this anyway." Yukiko shook her head. "Don't be so modest! You and Labrys did the hard part. The rest of us just cleaned up the trash."

"What you mean Kagutsuchi?" Yu let out a laugh. "You can't imagine my relief when he transformed into a demon. I was worried for a second I'd have to hurt Sho to win. No, punching a big dumb monster in the face IS the easy part Yuki. I wish everyone's problems could be solved that way." Yu smirked and shook his head. "Man I am tired, I sound just like Kanji."

"*pfft* *snrk*"

And so the laughing fit began but this time around it was hard to tell which one of the two was laughing harder. Eventually, the two settled down and looked dotingly down at Yukiko's belly.

"I wish he'd gotten to see you fig-" Yukiko clamped her hands over her mouth before she could finish that sentence. "No no I take that back. I'm just thankful we all made it back safely." Yu watched the heavy girl play with the fabric on her dress a bit as if she was deciding what she wanted to say. "I think I understand what you mean. I love how safe I feel when I'm with you and I love knowing you can protect me and our son and of course your amazing in the TV World, but when I think about why I love you, the things about you that really make my heart soar, those things don't really come into it. It's more...knowing you'll do the right thing no matter what." Yu suddenly pressed his hands together as if he was deep in thought about something. "What's wrong?"

"Huh? Oh I was just thinking about that. I'm not sure I'm quite worthy of that praise just yet, but I will be." He nodded to himself like he had come to a conclusion and Yukiko gave off a happy titter. "Let's get you to bed. You're all loopy."

They arrived at 7:00 in the morning, earlier than the majority of the guests even woke up and the way the couple carried themselves without a hint of wrongdoing kept the questions at bay. They were just a young married couple going for a walk together after all. On the way to their room, Yu hadn't stopped his attempts at sweet talking Yukiko into making her breakfast.

"Cooking's in my blood. I can work through a little fatigue." Yukiko puffed out her cheeks in annoyance wishing he would just stop being so stubborn before she gained a sly little smirk. "Okay hubby. You can make everyone breakfast, just promise me you'll lie down for five minutes." He crawled into bed promising that after the five minutes were up, he'd make her a breakfast that would make up for all of last night.

He was out like a light in two.

Yukiko pumped her arm in victory in a similar manner to Kanji although his probably didn't jiggle and wobble about.

Her bravado quickly faded when she took in the sight of her sleeping husband. He had worked so hard and now he was sleeping so peacefully. As if on instinct, she sat herself down on their shared futon, deciding to take how much she felt her bottom sink in as neutral for right now. She scooted herself over and planted a soft kiss right on his forehead, pressing herself into his chest as his arm subconsciously draped itself on to her tummy. He was probably too tired to even be woken up by anything but least of all something as natural as this. Feeling his warm breath lightly tickle her neck would probably have kept her awake some time ago, but now it was no different from him rubbing her belly or stroking her hair. Their little boy was being quite rowdy right now, but Yukiko was tired as well. Not to the extent of her hard working husband, but she could feel her overworked muscles sigh in relief as she lay with Yu. She liked the feeling though, it made her feel like she and her husband had earned the right to sleep peacefully. A thought that comforted her as she drifted off.

Peaceful sleep was not a luxury she was afforded however. Before long, the exhausted mama could feel a gnawing hunger that kept pulling her out of her rest. She really didn't want to have to get up, it was so comfortable in bed and she was so tired. Normally at times like these, Yu would go but he deserved far more rest than she did. She'd eaten not even two hours ago so maybe it would be okay if she just tried to get some rest. Mama just needed a little shut eye...

Immediately she shot awake and slapped at her cheeks to wake herself up. If her baby boy was crying in the middle of the night, what kind of terrible mother would she be if she just ignored him? And with the way her belly was audibly begging for sustenance and the baby was fussing, that was probably what he was trying to do.

"Shhh shh shhh. Mama will get you what you need." It may have just been wishful thinking, but Yukiko thought she could feel her hunger simmering down to a low craving instead of a ravenous desire to feed. Such a patient understanding boy. Her affection spread through her body like a jolt of electricity, keeping some of the sleepiness at bay. Splashing some water on her face, she was reminded of the fact that visible milk stains still covered her chest. Her fake had been right about one thing, she couldn't go out with a dairy drenched dress. Not only would mother be quite cross, but the modest girl wasn't quite sure if she was entirely comfortable with drawing that much attention to her breasts.

But changing into her work kimono presented other problems. While it was nowhere near as bad as two highly visible stains right on her mammaries, but around her hip area it certainly left little to the imagination. The worst part was that she was wearing a looser fit to accommodate her loaded belly and still the fabric clung to her like spandex. The way it tapered off from the bottom of her cheeks down into her legs made her feel like an especially plump ice cream cone. Her stomach dropped as she slowly turned around, taking an experimental waddle only confirmed her fears. Every bounce and wobble of her cheeks was perfectly visible, unable to be hidden by excess fabric because there wasn't a single thread of it left. Is that what she'd been walking around the inn like?

The work kimonos of the Amagi Inn were supposed to last till the very last months of a pregnancy when they wouldn't be needed anyway. No tummy belts or extra adjustments necessary, yet here she was having grown plump to the point that, without her sash, her belly would push the flaps of the kimono far apart. Now that she was aware of just how big she had become instead of vaguely being aware she was growing, she found herself observing these kinds of things more easily.

Another benefit of her restricted movement came to mind after observing her bottom. If she didn't need to squat down just to bend over, she would have bent at the waist and all that added pressure from her fluffy butt on her strained seat would have resulted in...

The young mother clapped her hands to her buttocks just thinking of such a thing happening. Honestly, how could she have missed herself getting too big for both her school and work uniforms?

Looking into the mirror of her room brought with it memories of the other day and Yu's sweet whispering in her ear after a similar bout of insecurity. "I didn't get too big, they just got too small," she mused to herself with a little grin. A gentle burbling from her gut brought her out of her vanity and she flushed red but not in embarrassment. Her little helper had just reminded her what all this extra heft was for.

"Oh, Yuki-chan! Have you been enjoying your vacation?" The mid morning was the time when the rooms were cleaned and readied for the new arrivals. Normally the head waitress wouldn't have to clean a section of rooms herself, but they were a tad short on staff. Kasai looked tired as well, Yukiko realized. "Just this last day is left. Hubby and I will be back to work tomorrow so please just hang in there a little longer." The older woman shook her head in bemusement. "I didn't ask how much was left, I asked how it was going. I heard you went on a nice little walk this morning. You know they say this part of the pregnancy is when you feel most energetic so I'm glad you're taking advantage of it. I was worried you weren't getting enough exercise." The waitress reached forward and gave her future boss a little tickle on her tummy and smiled when the girl laughed and playfully batted her hands away.

"I am too! I do my maternity stretches every day! Maybe I need to tell mother to give you extra shifts if you have time to gossip about my exercise habits?" Both women laughed at that.

"I have been enjoying it actually. Very much so. It's been...a wonderful learning experience." Just thinking of the events of the past few days filled her with a confidence in her impending motherhood that frankly was almost overwhelming for the once timid girl.

"You're supposed to relax on vacation Mrs. High Achiever. Especially your honeymoon." Yukiko pursed her lips in thought. "Perhaps, but I think it's also a period of deep reflection before you and your husband truly begin your married life together." The other woman was staring at her wide eyed which perplexed Yukiko. "Did I say something wrong?"

"N-no not at all. Sometimes it just seems like you're growing up faster than I can keep up with." Kasai had the sudden urge to pull the girl into a hug but she held herself back. Even as her belly grew heavier by the day, the servant could never quite forget the image of little Yukiko with her braided hair falling down her back timidly attending to her first room of guests, nervously looking back at the door after every step to where she and Mrs. Amagi were watching. Kasai even remembered the little thumbs up she had given the girl without her mother noticing. Honestly she felt she might cry.

"Kasai-san?" She must have zoned out, she realized. Yukiko was looking at her with a mixture of confusion, worry, and guilt. "If you need help with the rest of your shift..." with her shoulders straightened and her face stern but caring, it was hard to remember that Yukiko was still just a teenager. Even for Yukiko herself

"Yuki-chan, the other workers and I can handle ourselves. We're adults you know, we know what we signed up for. Do you think your parents would force us to cover your shifts if we didn't agree to it?" This was a new piece of information for the girl. "You didn't have to do that. But thank you."

"We've all had our time to take it easy and be kids but right now it's your turn okay?" Yukiko nodded firmly.

"Right! But I will pay you all back for your kindness someday. In a way that only I can do." Kasai gave her belly one final pat. "Two ways," which seemed to elate the heiress even more before she looked to the side embarrassed. "*Um* actually it's not entirely about just this honeymoon." Her rubbing speed had increased and she seemed to be shifting around uncomfortably as though she had just been reminded of just how tight that uniform was on her. "It's just that...I'd like to be able to do as much work around the inn as I can, because pretty soon I'll be a bit too *er* gravid to be of much use in that area." She gave her hip a meaningful rub and smiled down bashfully bringing out her double chin. "Even last week cleaning a room took a few minutes extra and scrubbing's already out of the question. And I worry that during mealtime when I'm in the kitchen, I take up a bit too much space..."

The nakai gave her a gentle smile. "I understand. I'll talk to your parents about it, but I know your mother has been thinking about phasing you out of maid work regardless so don't hesitate if something gets too uncomfortable." Yukiko did a little bow and smiled more genuinely. "Thank you so much. For everything. I'll make all of you proud." And with that, she went to go do just that by ensuring a happy healthy birth.

Kasai took one last glance as Yukiko was about to disappear around the corner. As she did so, she saw in her mind the sullen downcast expression the girl had worn so comfortably when she thought no one was looking. That image grew hazier and hazier by the day, and now especially it was like it never existed at all. Yukiko walked with her head held high and a full smile on even fuller cheeks. The only time she looked anywhere but straight ahead was when she glanced down lovingly at the life growing inside of her.

"We know you will. Our little Yuki-chan."

It did take the girl quite a bit to turn that corner though. A kimono would normally force her legs much closer together than they usually were, forcing her into a speed that matched her fat laden maternity waddle even when she was thin as a rail. Now her porky thighs were mashed together by the tightness of the pink cloth, like two overstuffed sausages in a casing. Normally her thighs would only rub together on the upper part that hid under her skirt but this ensemble pressed them together nearly down to the knees, a cautionary portent of what might become an ordinary occurrence.

Yukiko had lived in a kimono for probably a third of her life, and being allowed to wear soft slippers meant she was in no danger of tripping but still after a long day her hips ached something fierce. It's one of the reasons why she didn't care how ridiculous waddling around made her look. It just felt so much better to let her hips spread out, lean back, and totter around to her heart's content. But it did allow her more time to muse over Kasai's words.

"My time to be teenager, huh?" Her parents had said something similar a few days ago. She took a deep breath and remembered how happy she felt when she was given the holiday with her hubby. Someday, it would be her turn to do that for her own child. She just imagined her son standing there with the same bright smile, being told to relax on his Golden Week.

"Thanks mom," he would say and give her a quick peck on the cheek before running off to go have fun with his little friends. And then Yu would place a gentle hand on her big belly and remind her of when they were his age, then they'd kiss and he'd help her to her feet. Yukiko was so tickled by the visions of the future that she didn't even notice her mental image of herself was quite a bit fatter than even right now. With a much roomier robe to wear of course. Her son might not be able to say thank you yet, but his small little flutterings would do just fine.

As breakfast had already passed and it was still quite a ways until lunch, Yukiko didn't need to worry about getting in the way, in fact as she approached the kitchen, it seemed the chefs had a bit of free time of their own as a rather loud argument reached her ears.

"It's pointless is what it is. It gets washed off anyway when we strain the konbu? Why do we have to wipe it off separately?"

"If it was pointless, they wouldn't have bothered putting it in the recipe book. I think you're just being lazy. Again."

"Well I think you're just using the book as an excuse not to think about things. Look, there's no way to rub it without rubbing off some of the extract. I bet it would taste way better if we stopped."

"If you want to be responsible for somebody being sick just so you can experiment, be my guest. I'm sticking with the book." The two had started the conversation wiping off dishes side by side but now they were glaring at each other fiercely. "Hey boss man, what do you think?" A gruff looking fellow who stood tall over the other two, the head chef was not amused by this. "I think you should be careful with what you're saying about my mother's recipe." The chef gulped nervously while the other grinned smugly. He was the youngest of the three non part time workers and hadn't been trained as an apprentice like his coworker so he was something of an outsider, usually leading to these uneven two on one arguments. Lately though he had backup, something he was reminded of as soft foot steps sounded outside of the hall. As the future boss man, Yu wasn't someone the head chef could just shut down, and he had a way of phrasing things that made the other two far more willing to listen than when he said it. "Well if you're so sure, let's ask him. Hey Yu! What do you think?"

The gathered crew turned to see a very confused Yukiko cocking her head quizzically at them.

"M-Ms. Yukiko! *Er*, we were expecting your husband."

"I thought he deserved a break today and I wanted to try making my own breakfast for once. It seems like it would be fun." The two younger chefs looked between each other, unsure if they should tell Yukiko exactly what she was getting herself into. "O-oh well you know we're not that busy. We could lend you a hand if you need it." But the slightly spacy girl didn't seem to take the hint. "Oh no, I'm sure I can handle it by myself. I'll never grow as a chef if I don't push myself." The younger cook thought she'd certainly done enough "growing' but he bit his tongue. Maybe today would help curb that appetite of hers a bit but then again it probably wouldn't. She still had that hubby of hers after all.

"Well just call us over if you need anything." A maid came in with a fresh pile of dirty dishes courtesy of the newly cleaned rooms. "Please," the younger of the two implored but a glare from the head chef sent him right back to work. A glare that immediately softened as he turned his eyes towards the Amagi princess. Young Yu was by far the most responsible for her explosive weight gain followed closely by Fuyuhiko but he couldn't help but take a tiny share of the blame as well. The head chef was the one who had given Yukiko a little treat every time she had helped out in the kitchen after all. It had given her a bit of a sweet tooth that had always prevented her from being quite as slender as she could have been, those five or so indulgence pounds never quite wanting to leave. Now they had been buried under a wave of baby weight and love dough. The man chuckled to himself, despite all that though, it was probably for the best. The melancholic girl somehow seemed much more chipper and energetic except after a big meal and her cooking had improved ten fold. And, personally, he thought a chubby Yukiko was adorable. It made him want to pull out a sweet from behind his back and watch her portly face light up.

So that's exactly what he did. While the others were talking, he made his way to the fridge and took out one of the assorted wagashi meant for tea snacks. "Ms. Yukiko, hold out your hands please." The girl obediently did so, stifling a happy giggle knowing what would come next. A chilled dessert was placed right in her palm and as she opened her eyes she was delighted to see it was one of the jelly filled ones coated with lots of cinnamon and sugar and her face did indeed light up. She daintily brought the treat up to her plumpened lips and delicately took a nibble. It wasn't quite enough for her to move her other hand from her belly to her cheek in a taste fueled euphoria, only Yu's cooking did that, but it was enough for her to close her eyes and softly utter a "yummy."

One of the other chefs was looking over his shoulder and gave the head of the kitchen a look as if to say, "should you really be feeding that girl anymore?" This made the older man chuckle. Both of the others would constantly rib Yu about it too. When they were older, they'd understand.

Yukiko meanwhile had finished off the thing in three bites and while it was delicious, with the feeling of satisfaction that came with a tasty dessert there was also a craving for more. "You know what would be great? A nice big bowl full of those and maybe some chocolate to dip them in. Oh I can just imagine each and every one melting on my tongue!" She was just about to open her mouth to ask for more when she snapped out of it. Even one of those took quite some time to prepare, she'd probably created at least a half hour of extra work just by eating the one. She shouldn't push someone's kindness like that. Besides, she couldn't just fill up on sweets, her baby needed something substantial

"Yu would do it. You know he would." Before her growing appetite could overwhelm her reason she searched frantically for something to comment on and her eyes fell to the nicotine patch on the head chef's arm.

"Yamamura-san you really did quit smoking!" The man looked at the patch and smiled. "Yep. Pretty hard to justify smoking with a baby around. Didn't really have a choice." He was downplaying it, but Yukiko was still filled with gratitude nonetheless. The normally dour man let a small smile peak out on to his face. "The kitchen's all yours till lunch."

"Oh, I won't need it for that long but thank you," she said with a flippant wave of her hand. A sudden wave of chuckling went up throughout the kitchen, even the head chef couldn't hold himself back. Yukiko puffed out her cheeks and put a hand on her hip. "I don't move that slowly!" But that only brought on another chuckle. "Oh no don't get me wrong, you've gotten much better at moving around the kitchen. But when was the last time you cooked for yourself?" The young man was shushed by a prod right on the back of the head from his superior but the way he said that made Yukiko drum her fingers on her belly nervously. A belly that still had not stopped it's periodic growling. She didn't eat that much, did she?

Well she could worry about that later. Right now, her baby boy needed to be fed. Usually she'd leave things up to Yu and he'd wow her every time...

What sounded good? Something filling that she could really sink her teeth into. Rich and heavy to make up for that long trying night. Bacon, she thought, but no that wouldn't be enough. It made her mouth water and her belly whine but it wouldn't fill it up. Omelets, omelets were filling and you could put meat in those. Like a big tender steak with a layer of melted cheese. No, cream cheese! She could cut the steak up and spread it throughout, it would be like a really fluffy wrap. Every bite would be smooth and gooey yet filled with juice and flavor and it would leave her so heavy and full she'd have no trouble falling asleep next to hubby. She unconsciously licked her lips as her stomach begged her to stop teasing it.

"How does that sound?" She could actually feel the ensuing vibration across the fabric of her kimono. "Well, it won't be quite as good as daddy's, but mommy will try her best." Yukiko opened the fridge and rummaged around in Yu's side. If she hadn't been so focused on breakfast, she probably would have reflected that while the side for the customers was full, Yu's side for just her and the baby was outright straining the available space. Decadent foreign foods of all kinds to meet her ever expanding palette, not a single item there was under one hundred calories. It was like a veritable grocery store and as the saying goes, one should never shop while hungry.

"You know, this would go really good with some onions. And there's a half empty package of bacon from yesterday. It would *mmm* really be a shame to let that go to waste. Just a little something to nibble on. Maybe some cheddar on top of the omelette..."

And somehow Yukiko had managed to talk herself into nearly doubling her breakfast. A stack of pancakes had been added and she'd talked herself into making a three egg omelette. Although after she put her haul on the counter she was struck by just how much it was. "I don't have to eat it all right now," she reasoned. "There's nothing wrong with leftovers."

Bending down to retrieve all the pans and bowls she needed had her quickly puffing a little for breath. Maybe it would be better to make everything separately? Giving her belly a thoughtful rub, she became contemplative. "Yu has been doing this for us every day. I think it would be fair to him if I put myself in his shoes. And since he makes it all at once to feed us in a timely manner..." not to mention it would get her one step closer to being able to feed her family without burdening anyone else. She nodded her head in determination.

She was glad the bacon would be done first though. Even if she screwed up everything else, her son would still get fed. And it was nice to snack while working

And so she got to work, whisking up a storm, melting and mixing the butter, and cracking egg after egg into various bowls and pans. She had to be at so many stations at once. Chopping, stirring, cooking, taste testing a quite scary moment happened when she accidentally turned too quickly to the left and nearly knocked one of her pans to the floor when her belly knocked against the handle. "Look at what you almost made mama do," she scolded teasingly. However, when she turned around, her round peach of a bottom nearly did the exact same thing to the pan on the right. "Look at what mama almost made mama did," she said with a much more embarrassed tone. Having to keep up with four meals at once wasn't just physically draining, but mentally as well especially for someone who was so sleepy to begin with. She felt herself letting out yawn after yawn and rubbing at her eyes. Her feet ached and her arms were starting to get a bit sore especially after chopping up the steak. The bacon stimulating her taste buds certainly helped but the sizzle and pop from that pan reminded her of another problem.

Working in a busy kitchen was hot.

She could feel her kimono sticking to her in places she wasn't entirely comfortable with. The refined young woman would pick at the fabric when she thought no one was looking and once even opened up the kimono around her cleavage, letting her overheated chest meat breath. Her own relative inexperience with cooking and her need to lean on the counter and take a breather meant what would have taken Yu a mere twenty minutes took her over an hour. At least everything came out looking good. Several times she had been tempted to call the whole project off and just eat some rice until she was full, but always a quick squeeze of her belly reminded her that it was all worth it.

She barely got everything plated and set on the table before she collapsed in a nearby chair, trying to ignore the creaks from her flopping her weight on to it.

Her hands clasped down hard on her gut and she let out little huffs and puffs to try and catch her breath. The growing mama was almost laying down in her chair, her feet splaying themselves out eager for a chance to rest. "I...I hope it turned out okay."

A round of applause went up throughout the kitchen, surprising the overtaxed beauty. "Alright Yuki-chan! I knew you could do it!"

"This looks pretty good. I can see at least someone was listening to Yu's advice."

The head chef was a bit more subdued in his praise but he gave the girl a small smile. "It looks good, but how does it taste? Go on Yuki-chan, tell us how you did." She wiped a heavy arm across her sweat covered forehead and slowly sat up. Somehow, she already knew the answer to that question. Yukiko took a forkful of the omelette she'd been looking forward to all morning and let out a happy coo. But this time it wasn't just due to the taste, it was the fact that she had made it taste this good, with lots of sweat, hard work and the most important ingredient of all, love.

"It's delicious." And another cheer went up. This time, no one felt the urge to criticize her for digging in to her hearts content. She was ravenous. Still keeping her manners, the young mother ate fast enough that she wouldn't have to worry about anything getting cold. The omelette really was everything she hoped it would be. Richly marbled meat nearly cooked to perfection mixed with a delectable cheese covering all over a soft melt in your mouth egg base? She'd have to remember this one. Sure maybe the meat was a bit too tough in some places and there was a slight imbalance in the filling, but she honestly felt satisfied with her performance.

"This was really far tougher than I thought it would be. But mama doesn't mind. Don't hold back okay?" Yes you'd really have to love someone to do this for them day after day but that's how she was fully prepared to do so.

A thought occurred to her in that moment that made her drop the fork right out of her hand.

"Yuki-chan?" A bright red blush spread across the girl's face but it wasn't one of embarrassment. With the big smile on her face, it was like the love in her heart just couldn't be contained inside and had spread out across her cheeks. When she noticed the others staring at her in concern, wondering if perhaps she had a fever, the love struck girl calmed a bit. "Sorry, I just remembered something. Something wonderful." At the urging of the head chef, they decided break time would be now. It was clear the girl had some things to think over.

When they had left, she felt the blush coming back in full force. She had remembered something. It wasn't her who had been doing this every day, no, every meal for her and the baby. It was Yu. It was true that it was a bit easier for him than it was for a pregnant woman just exiting the intermediate stage of her training but that didn't take away from it in her mind in the slightest. Every day he would wake up bright and early and prepare two big meals for her, every day he would never complain. When they got home and her parents didn't have him elsewhere, he'd get right to work again and he'd great her with a big smile, never complaining, ready to go right back in there and fetch her anything she might ask for.

She picked her fork back up again and took yet another delectable bite. Such doting behavior had turned the heiress into what she was now, a tubby constantly hungry milky mama. "This probably didn't need to be a double cheese omelette, but it certainly tastes better" she joked to herself. Whether it was Yu's intention or not, she had grown fat with an appetite to match. But if all he wanted was a heifer of a wife, would he really go through all this trouble? Work himself to the bone everyday? No his cooking came mainly from a place of love, and her weight gain was just a by product of that. She was certain now.

Her hand began to start its rubbing to spur herself on as she thought about his love. Cooking for a fat mother was hard work and yet he had never once forced her to eat anything she hadn't wanted to. He was gentle and coaxing and it made her want to make him happy by eating his food, but he had never forced her. In fact, there had been times where she hadn't eaten everything he'd prepared for her and he'd been completely fine with that. No, he'd still love her even if she was too wide to fit through doorways and even if she was too thin to safely bear a child. They had told her parents and Yu's parents and everyone they knew that their love was one pure and true so many times and here she was wondering if Yu had some kind of secret plan to make her more ideal, and no matter how hard she tried to picture Yu secretly injecting butter into her rice balls or other underhanded things she just couldn't.

"He loves me and I love him and that's all there is to it. Everything else is just extra. Except for you of course, my darling baby boy. Your father is a wonderful man you know. He always puts others above himself." It wasn't long before her fork clinked against the empty plate and she moved on to the pancakes. Drenched in butter and syrup, pillowy and thick, they were everything she could have ever asked for just warm enough to melt the butter and make the syrup warm and dripping instead of cold and soggy. She could feel her own stomach beginning to tighten but she could also feel her baby still asking for more. Her rubbing increased and she imagined Yu there with her, encouraging her, helping her give their child everything he needed. As her belly was packed fuller and fuller with fluffy bread she had to reach forward over the stuffed sphere. She scooted forward in her chair and pressed her tummy right into the table, even as packed tight as it was, the layer of softness covering it still molded itself around the wood.

Eventually, she managed to down every last bite. Her mouth was covered with sticky syrup despite her best efforts and she had to reach under the table to rub at the bottom of her gut. Just like before, she sat almost lying down in the chair except this time her belly bulged up like a tight balloon pressed firmly underneath the table. Too full and bloated to scoot her chair back, she just wanted to lie there for a little while. The small jolts of pain were enough to keep her awake along with her sore feet and hips.

Despite everything, she wore a proud grin on her face. Yukiko had indeed done everything she had said she would do. Although with her gut pinning her down like a rock, "go take a nap with Yu," probably would go unfulfilled, at least for a little while.

"My husband loves me," she murmured out laughing softly afterwards. "The staff loves me, my parents love me, my friends love me and I love all of them just as much." Her gut gently burbled again and she took solace in the fact that it was not from hunger. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to eat another bite! This full figured lady certainly hadn't lost any weight today.

"And...I love me too." She smiled gently to herself. "There's...a lot to love." If she wasn't so overladen with food, she'd have burst out into a laughing fit at her unintentional pun but as it was, she merely softly chuckled until a small burp interrupted her. "But most of all, I love you honey. And so will everyone else." That line of reasoning was one of the primary reasons she'd decided to keep the baby, but she'd never spoken it aloud before. At least she thought not.

But...even if she had said it before, it was definitely worth repeating. With nothing better to do but wait for her feast to digest, she said it again and again and again.
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"Welcome to the Velvet Room"

Yu had known the instant he fell asleep that Yukiko had tricked him, but the gesture was so kind he didn't mind one bit. And he had been wanting to visit anyway. After all, if he waited until the evening to thank Marie, she'd probably be pretty upset with him.

There she was, sitting up straight and trying to pretend like she didn't particularly care whether he was there or not. "Oh, I was wondering if you were going to show up. I guess I should congratulate you for saving the town again so...congrats I guess." Her usual shortness and lack of manners wasn't just her being impolite this time around. Like the others, she too looked to be on the verge of closing her eyes. It may have just been Yu's imagination, but he swore her cheeks looked rather gaunt and her uniform appeared to be fitting a little bit loosely. Even her hat was sliding off the top of her head.

"I wish I had known how hard you were fighting, I would have done more if I did."

"Heh. I didn't really do much...just got my butt kicked for a couple of hours. Besides, what more could you have really done? Rushed up there without your friends and get killed by Sho? Don't...say stupid things." Even though her golden heart was hidden beneath a thorny exterior, it still shone through despite her harsh words. "Well thank you for keeping our loved ones safe. We couldn't have done this without you. You make a fantastic goddess." Immediately the girl's face lit up like a Christmas tree and her lost energy seemed to return to her. She stamped her foot in annoyance, "I thought I told you not to say stupid things! You...you stupidsweettalkingloveydoveybabyfeverjerkface! You know, one day your habit of pulling people back from the brink is going to get you into serious trouble. I can't believe you fought a master swordsman with no Persona just to make a point. You're going to make my blessing go to waste if you keep showboating like a jerk."

And so on. Yu let the wave of ranting wash over him and smiled. Really, it was just an incredibly long winded way of saying: "I was worried about you and I'm glad you're okay." Seeing his smile, Marie groaned. "You're impossible." But she did stop her griping and a thin smile of her own tugged at the corners of her lips. "Though that's what I like about you," she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

A loud throat clearing drew both of their attentions to Margaret who slowly opened her eyes and lowered her hand. "I believe one final round of congratulations is in order. But no more than that, we wouldn't want you to get a swelled head and have trouble moving after all." Her deadpan expression created doubt as to whether she was joking or she seriously believed that. "This brings an end to this third and final ordeal of yours. I'm sure you'll be delighted to learn the future holds no such trials, at least that's what my modicum of precognition tells me."

"But you mustn't allow your blade to dull." She caught Yu in a mischievous gaze. "Whether intentionally or not, you've built yourself up as a pillar for many in your life, friend and foe alike. I know my sister has quite a bit of vested interest in you and I don't know how long it will be until I can keep her curiosity at bay no longer."

Yu surprised her though by laughing gently. "You told me she was searching for something important. I appreciate your concern, but she can come see me any time she needs to." Margaret chuckled softly at this. It seemed she didn't have to worry about this guest one bit. "Such confidence. Well who am I to doubt one such as you? I am merely an attendant after all." Here she fixed Yu in an analytical gaze as if she was testing him. "Now begins the next chapter in your journey, a chapter of peace and prosperity. Where you will not be looked upon as a glorious hero but a humble inn owner and no one will know of your exploits outside of those in the outside world."

"You understand what I am getting at, yes? I bring this up not as your attendant but as your friend." It was probably unnecessary, but Margaret felt a compulsion deep within her heart to say something. It would be such a shame if all this hard work got wasted years down the line if he ever lost sight of what was important.

"That's not quite right though."

"Oh?"

"My lovely wife and I will own that humble little inn together. There, we'll raise our children and make a little place for our friends to come to whenever they need to clear their heads. I understand what you're saying, and it's a lesson I'll be sure to pass along to my son as well. Thank you Margaret."

The statuesque woman raised her eyebrows in surprise. She had been expecting at least a little hesitation, but it seemed as if he had thought this issue over carefully beforehand. One particular word choice caught her ear but before she could comment on it, Marie jumped in. "Children huh? Aren't you confident! Although knowing you, it'll probably all work out." The normally pouty girl had a sly grin that suggested she knew something that the others in the room were unaware of, but to be fair, Margaret was keeping one little secret from her as well. Marie couldn't help but chuckle inwardly knowing the state of his wife right now. Sleeping like a log with a filled up belly, pleasant positive sensations spreading throughout her body, not overtly strong but just enough to let her know she was doing a good job. Marie had thought her blessing would have helped him win over Yukiko's parents, a little coax here, a little moving their hearts towards him there, but he had done that on his own. And his own parents were too far away for it to affect them. Honestly it could be kind of frustrating at times since his hand on Yukiko's belly and his voice whispering in her ear were far more effective than any magic. To make no mention of when Yukiko thought of the baby.

Oh well, at least she could deliver him a true dairy cow of a wife that he'd never get otherwise. When she had begun to see his desires take shape, she thought she would have been repulsed, but honestly she could see the appeal. That wife of his could bare him many children, and provide each and every one of them with a belly full of her milk with even some left over. They'd grow up to be strong and capable with a soft nurturing mother like Yukiko, fully prepared to till the land and offer prayers for their bountiful life. Although all of that may have just been the Izanami in her talking. Speaking of which...

"Hey! For someone who wants kids so bad, you've been awfully stingy with your offerings to yours truly. What gives!?"

"What?"

"And don't say you're 'too busy' either! Your wife waddles her big butt down to that shrine every single day and yet you only stop by once a month if that!" Yu was quite confused. He knew as the patron goddess her life was tied directly to the health and well being of the town, but it was weird to think he needed to offer prayers to the poetry writing, mood swinging, mini skirt wearing, teenager complaining in front of him. As if to answer his question, Marie let out a gentle hum and smacked her lips. "See? Even some old dude remembered. Maybe I will make your back feel a little better." Already, Marie was looking much more lively than she had been. The shadows were gone from under her eyes and her cheeks returned to their normal slightly rounded shape. Marie brushed her hand past one of her breasts to subtly check if they were back to their normal heft. Yep everything was indeed in working order.

Prayers really were wonderful though. Getting them felt like she was getting a nice bowl of warm stew. Well that wasn't entirely true, different prayers gave her different feelings. The more self centered, the less they satisfied. But the more she granted someone's prayers the more self centered they became. It was all balance.

But the ones that tasted truly delectable were the ones from Yukiko and the people like her. Every day when she'd kneel down in front of the shrine, hands rubbing gently on her belly, and eyes closed in contemplation, she'd say something like "I don't have anything else to ask for that you haven't already given me. But thank you for everything, I'll always be thankful." Sometimes she'd come with her father, sometimes with her mother, sometimes with Yu and sometimes alone but always her prayers of pure gratitude filled Marie with a delectable warmth like nothing else. Way better than crummy fsteak fsure. She could feel herself licking her lips just thinking about it. Yu's would probably be just as good...

A light tittering brought her out of her daze. Margaret seemed to find something quite amusing for some reason. "What's so funny?" Margaret gained a completely neutral mask. "I was just thinking how ironic it was that Hi-no-Kagutsuchi was the entity that almost spelled your demise considering you and Izanami are one and the same now. History truly does repeat itself, or perhaps not I suppose." Marie glared suspiciously, she had a feeling that wasn't what the mysterious woman in blue was giggling to herself about, but honestly talking to that woman gave her a headache sometimes. She decided to just drop it. At least Yu was semi-reasonable.

"Seriously thought, that inn of yours is the life blood of this town so if it ever went under I'd be in some serious trouble. I really will smite you if you screw up!" Yu shook his head. "I'd hope you'd do much worse than that if I ever let something like that happen." The sound of a book closing echoed throughout the room. "Well no matter what happens, I'm sure it will be quite the spectacle as it always is with you. But it is time you returned to the waking world, it is not our place to keep you here overly long."

As Yu drifted back into consciousness, he swore he heard a girl whisper, "thank you."
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Sleep didn't come easily when you were filled with anticipation. Yukiko had been hoping her big and filling meal in addition to her tired body would be enough to keep her sleeping soundly. But she couldn't quite get rid of those niggling little doubts.

"Fat, slow and helpless is okay when you're building a life inside of you but would he really be okay with a wife like that afterwards?"

"Hey said he liked my hips but there has to be such a thing as 'too much hip' right? Should mamas take up just as much room as their husband and child combined?"

"And most of the weight goes to my big belly anyway. The only reason hubby doesn't sink in completely is because of the baby nestled in there. He could probably use it as a pillow if he wanted too."

That last thought caused her heart to beat a little faster in longing. And so it went, hidden in every string of doubt was an unbelievably enjoyable mental image. Thoughts of Yu leaving her panting and gasping for breath after even a light jog easily led into him sinking in to her after his workout. Being unable to fit into anything below a size extra large for quite a while brought to mind her forgoing things like brittle buttons and tight straps and just letting maternity dresses flow over her curves like a waterfall of fabric. The pinnacle of sophistication and comfortable living. Eventually of course, sleep did claim her but it wasn't long until she found herself stirred awake again.

"A-are you really still hungry?" Yukiko was baffled. She had spent her morning slaving over a hot stove on her aching feet and yet her gut had begun to rumble again. Any trace of fullness had faded and now all that was left was a flabby pregnant belly growling with hunger. And it wasn't like her consumption could spike in such a short period so that could only mean this is how she'd been eating for weeks. "O-oh my. If this is what your papa has been going through...I just hope we're not demanding too much of him."

She realized immediately what she implied and let out a distressed gasp. "N-not that you're doing anything wrong sweetie-pie! Ohhhh I just want both of my men to be happy." Yu would never ever complain but surely there was a limit right? Maybe that was just her projecting her own low stamina on her husband though. She shook her head before she started beating herself up too much. She may have been far less inclined to break out into a jog than ever before but at the end of the day she had made sure her son was fed and that's what really mattered. And she'd do it as many times as it took!

She took a look at the time on her phone and reconsidered. Ten minutes after two which meant the part was in a little less than an hour. Mitsuru Kirijo was a woman who oozed class and beauty Yukiko was hoping her food matched her image, "class and beauty" of course being replaced with cheese, meat, and frosting. Teddie would probably do something to draw all the attention towards him and everyone would be drawn to Rise, Labrys and Feather Pink anyway. And that meant she could indulge her appetite, feed her baby properly AND give Yu a nice break all at the same time. Yet another meal she'd get to end on that utterly euphoric feeling of absolute fullness, knowing her son was satisfied and every spare calorie was helping her prepare herself for his arrival.

"And making it even harder to turn back afterwards."

That thought surprised her because it had been so frequent at the beginning of the pregnancy but it had lain dormant for so long. Every time she sat down and ate her fill, she grew a little bit further from the almost idol thin girl she had been all her life.

Yu was still sleeping soundly, but knowing him he probably had set an internal alarm and would wake up any second now. He'd wake up and they'd walk arm and arm to the party...but before that she'd ask him straight out and settle her doubts once and for all

She heaved herself up off of their shared bed, thank to a handy nearby dresser, and began to pace around the room. Images of the fake Yukiko began to flash through her mind. The nervous girl found herself parked in front of the mirror again. Such a pliable soft body she had now, from her chubby cheeks all the way down to her fatter calves.The questions from before ran through her head again, she rather liked her big belly, she did indeed think her hips were perfectly fine and she had been enjoying her slower paced lifestyle quite a bit in fact.

"How could someone hate all this cuddle fluff honestly?" She asked aloud while lightly gripping her flabby lower belly. Even though she had been gasping at him to stop, Yukiko really got a kick out of him tickling her. It made her feel so big and bouncy, like even just exploring her body was an enjoyable activity for the two of them. Experimentally she slapped the side of her gut and giggled as it wobbled even within the tight confines of her kimono. How much could she see if she took it off?

Removing her arms from the sleeves, she couldn't help but notice their wobbling too. The easily amused laugh box just couldn't resist giving her doughy biceps a quick pat. "*Pfft* L-looking strong there *ahaha* b-been lifting weights *ahahahaha!" She flexed for the mirror and started giggling even harder when not even a hint of muscle popped up through the arm flab. "I-it's my- i-it's my new routine. Doughnut - d-doughnut curls *pfthahahaha*" The top half of her robes fell around her fully exposing the upper half of her pale marshmallow body. The mother's belly hung lazily over the front, greedily taking up the new space looking even bigger than it had in the kimono. How did she hold the rest of the outfit up? By holding the fabric inside of the flab folds on her hips, of course, a solution that brought on the laughter once again, nearly dislodging the robe due to all the jiggling of her body.

The bouncing of her belly sent her breasts bouncing along with it. A thought occurred to her then, what if after their son was born he saw his mama bouncing about like a bowl full of jelly? He'd probably think it was more entertaining than peek a boo! She could just imagine him sitting on their bed, laughing and clapping at her little performance, making the happiest cutest little noises. Her hands clasped down to her belly, for once not for rubbing, and took two handfuls of her well fed pudge right where the fat from her hips flowed into the fat where her washboard stomach used to be. Then with a joyful grin, she began to flop and jostle her slightly sagging belly like a tarp. There was so much belly jelly to shake there, she could move it up and down without disturbing her precious cargo in the slightest as long as she was careful. It was no different from when she'd have to shift her gush around when the waistband of her skirt got a bit uncomfortable.

As fun as it was and as much joy as her body was bringing her, she couldn't help but think "I wish it was Yu playing with my fat like this. Then we could all enjoy ourselves." He would squeeze a roll or jiggle her belly a bit from time to time, but nothing that couldn't be explained away without him being into it. He could have just been grasping the butter on her hips when he meant to knead the cushions of her ass. Her hands crawled up to her breasts and gave them a tentative squeeze, quite sore from all the bouncing. Bouncing that had gotten her quite worked up after a while. "*Ahh* It doesn't matter where the fat goes because it's all beautiful. It's where mommy's milk comes from after all. *Ahh* I have enough here to feed our son for years to *mmm* come. I h-hope hubby can see that."

Her hands caressed her ripe curvaceous body, giving it the proper fondling she craved,and she imagined they were the much firmer hands of her husband. "I-I hope he sees h-how enjoyable a *mmm* a chubby wife can be."

She could feel herself growing weak at the knees as she thought of growing even fatter, even softer, even more capable of bearing Yu's children. "I just want a body that makes Yu want to put another baby in me as soon as this pregnancy is over." But she kept that thought to herself. It almost seemed taboo to voice that desire aloud. But she did let out a cry of pleasure, tweaking her teat as she did so.

"Y-you...you can't just...feed a woman delicious food every day, w-whisper *ohhh* in her ear how beautiful she is, c-caress and love her body even as s-she turrrrrns into a butterball m-*muh*-make l-love the hardest when she's eaten every b-bite of your cooking, t-tell her what a great mom she's *hah* being and then e-expect her not to love her body and *mmf* feel confident about it. M-maybe...maybe I want to be much much fatter than my husband and child now thanks to you. *Muh*m-maybe I, maybe I want to smother my husband and son with softness now."

The panting, perspiring, portly mama felt a firm form sink right into her softened one, powerful arms wrapping around her vulnerable fleshy body. "And maybe that's something I've been wanting to hear for quite a while now."

"Y-Yu!" She had been so lost in her little world that she'd forgotten he was actually there. The kind hearted girl wanted to apologize for waking him up but there was only one thing on her mind; she had wanted to sit down and have a nice earnest discussion about all of this, but with her heart pounding in her ears, the blood rushing to her cheeks and what he had just whispered into her ear, she felt like she was about to burst.

With a show of force that surprised her husband, she whipped around in his grip and placed her delicate hands on his chest, unconsciously gripping the fabric of his shirt. "Hubby, do you truly enjoy all of this?"

"Yes."

Yukiko shook her head a bit and leaned forward further into him. They probably would have gone tumbling to the ground if he wasn't so sturdy. "N-now hold on. I-I'm talking about all the weight I've put on." She made sure her fat was pancaking across him as much as possible, soft milky chest pressing up against his hard solid one. "Not just the weight but this...this fat, I mean. Yu...do you like my fat?" He could feel her little heart pounding against his, anyone could tell she was nervous but Yu felt another emotion there, excitement.

That hopeful little note right at the end of her question, her big brown eyes trying to not show too much, yet that small plea for him to say what she was hoping for still making its way to the surface; it was just like when she had asked him why he had been spending so much time with her, on that fateful day at the shrine where he had confessed his feelings. And he knew exactly how to handle that.

"Yes. I'll say it again, you only grow more beautiful by the day. My lovely wife." The formerly slender girl broke apart from him and slowly stepped back. Her face showed complete shock at first until other emotions began to flood on to it: relief, embarrassment, confusion, but sheer and utter happiness most of all.

She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out at first, all she could do was give her belly a nice pat, a contemplative look on her face. "O-oh is that...is that so?"

"Is something the matter my big sexy cream puff?" The girl's face became redder than one of her dresses and she shot up straight, too surprised to chide him for his teasing. "N-no, it's just, I didn't think big girls were a thing you liked." Or something any guy really liked, she added inwardly to herself. Yu gained a smirk and stepped forward, he was so confident it made Yukiko want to step back but she stood her ground curious as to what he might do. To her surprise his fingers teased her blubbery haunches and made her breath come in short little puffs. She let out a whimper of arousal as his fingers danced their way under her muffin top, where he proceeded to yank out the bunched up fabric making the rest of her kimono fall to the floor. "H...hubby?" She gasped out in breathy confusion. A thin strip of white panties were all that separated her from complete nudity.

"That's not quite right. The only girl I've ever wanted to see get bigger is you. I mean, how could I possibly turn down having more of you to love?" It was almost too good to be true for Yukiko. But...if she was to describe her life for the past few months it would also be almost too good to be true so really what was their to doubt? She turned her blushing face away and held it in her hand, Yu's compliments making her feel like they were on their first date all over again.

"Oh, hubby. You really do know how to make me feel like the most beautiful girl in the world." Confusion laced her beautiful features and she found herself turning back towards her husband. "But...why didn't you say anything? If you wanted me to get fatter for you...I would have done it." The frankness with which she said it surprised even herself. If he'd said anything, anything at all she'd probably be thirty pounds heavier by now.

"Because you're such a perfect wife."

Yukiko let out a joyful little hum but Yu could tell she was still a bit lost. He cupped the side of her face and made sure she was looking right at him. "Because you're such a perfect wife, if I had asked you to do something for me, you'd feel like it was your obligation to do it even if it meant throwing away your slim figure. Every moment you weren't giving me what I wanted, you'd feel guilty even if you yourself didn't want it."

"So I thought I'd just let things progress naturally and just let you decide how you wanted to be, showing you the same love no matter what your size." He gave off an embarrassed smile. "That has been getting pretty difficult though," the silver haired boy said, giving her fat body a meaningful glance up and down that sent her heart beating just a little bit faster.

"Yukiko, it's true that I prefer you fat, but what I really wanted was for you to love yourself and be happy with who you were. So why didn't I ask you to get fat? Because when you look in the mirror and you give off that bright beautiful smile of yours and you say 'I love how I look', that's worth far more to me than anything else. So Yuki, do you like how you look?"

He spun her around so that she was back to facing the mirror. It was the same view she had just witnessed only now she could take in all of herself. The last time she had done this, she'd only been about five pounds lighter but somehow she felt she had changed much more than that. And just like back then, Yu was embracing her gently from behind looking not at her body, but at her face in the mirror. She was actually wider than her husband was, even her blubber laden chest was larger than his. If she turned to the side, she'd probably be wider than him that way too. Thoughts that would have once horrified her only served to help her finalize her decision

"Yes! Oh Yu, I love being so soft a-and big and squishy. I just feel so...so voluptuous."

The usually submissive girl took both of her hands and grabbed Yu's face. Her plump pink lips mashed against his and she kissed him as hard and as long as she could until the two of them ran out of breath. The young couple stood, panting and wrapped in each other's arms. "Most of all though *huff* *hah* I feel loved. Very *hah* very loved. Yu...you've really been holding yourself back just for my sake?"

Yukiko knew the answer to the question, she just wanted Yu to do or say something else that would make her heart go pitter patter. What she didn't expect was what he actually did. For the first time, his hands sunk deep into her belly flab. He wasn't just squeezing her close to his body, his hand had firmly pressed itself right on to her belly and was now mercilessly squeezing and kneading it like it was pastry dough. Rubbing his hand around it, he'd randomly find spot after spot to smoosh around, demonstrating that no matter where he grabbed, there was only blubber and softness. Then he loosened his grip on her and applied a soft touch with only his fingers and proceeded to shake and jostle her belly up and down with only a light touch.

From the first squeeze, Yukiko had felt that weak feeling in her knees returning only this time it was far more intense. Her whole body was like soft pliable putty in his strong well worked hands. He didn't even have to touch her breasts, just him working and fondling at her butter was enough for her tongue to hang out of her mouth as she moaned and when he showed just how easily he could shift around her well fed pork, she soaked right through yet another pair of panties. Her belly didn't hang nearly enough to cover her crotch and with the mirror in front of them Yu bore witness too just how easily she melted into a puddle when she knew she was satisfying him.

"Good, let him see," the once timid girl thought to herself through her lust addled mind. "It's true after all. I'm his fat pampered wife. Nothing but gush."

Best of all though, she could feel his erection pressing firmly into her back. Eager for a love making session after only that brief fondling. It was like it was urging her to throw off her drenched panties and spread her legs. "Hubby works so hard to help you stay fat and well fed. The least you could do is let him enjoy his plumpened cow he's worked so hard on," she reasoned to herself. All thoughts of the party were forgotten, the only thing she wanted right now was for her husband to plow her fat ass and prove her mommy body was something that drove him wild.

Yu had just wanted to make a point but before he knew it, his Yukiko had hooked her fingers into the waistband of her panties and dropped them to the floor, well more like yanked with how much they desired to cling to her hips. The newly confident mama moved over to their bad with an exaggerated waddle, making sure to look as fat and cumbersome as possible for her hubby. If he wanted a cow, she'd give him a cow.

She crawled onto the futon and gave a little pout when she realized her belly wasn't quite fat enough to brush against the sheets. Bucking up her hips was the obvious solution and her feed bag easily pressed itself into the mattress. "Looks like I'll need to eat a little extra at the party. I don't want to look underfed after all~" She didn't want people getting the wrong idea, her husband was keeping her very well satisfied! Her voice came out sultry and confident which surprised her. But it was only fair, she didn't want him spilling his heart out to her to go unrewarded and she knew exactly how to please him, there'd be plenty of time for gasping and stuttering when he turned her weak at the knees with his rugged hands and firm grip. Remembering the feeling of his shaft pressing into her back spurred her on to reach behind herself and open up the lips of her womanhood for him to enter her whenever he pleased.

Yu had been trying his very best to hold on to rational thought. If they did this now, they would most likely be late, but as soon as she spread apart her plump cheeks to expose her lips, all rational thought left his mind. He moved forward as if in a trance, not helped by her swaying and jiggling her bottom left to right, cheeks clapping together enticingly. If she didn't already have a baby nestled in her belly, he would swear she was begging him to plant one in her. She was already slick with her own juices so Yu had no trouble sliding himself right in

Instantly, she shot up straight bringing her belly off of the bedding and letting out a long lusty moan. It hung fatly, like an especially fecund udder joining her breasts in flopping and quivering with every powerful thrust Yu gave her. One advantage of her belly not hanging all the way down was that Yu could easily reach down and fondle it like the pudding bag of indulgence that it was. He scooped it up in one arm as if he was attempting to lift Yukiko up by the waist letting his muscled arm cut through her blubbery waist like a butter knife. He couldn't be quite as rough with her mammaries as he would have liked, but being able to interrupt his fondling of her belly for merely a second to pinch at one of her plump pink cherry buds made him groan from arousal, they were just that heavy with milk and adipose that he could quickly move his hands between her belly and tits with no effort whatsover. To think she once worried she wasn't busty enough for him! And her hips...oh god her hips, They'd never tried this position before but now he'd have trouble going back. Every thrust was met with a powerful smack from a fleshy bottom that sent her fattened cheeks wobbling like jelly on a plate. When he'd give her tits a fondle, she'd arch her back into him making the sensation even more pronounced. She was just so flabby and doughy, every clap of her rump against his own toned core was like a reminder of that.

"*Mmmmm* f-feel *ah* do you f-feel how warm I am? The fat k-keeps me waaarmmmm and weeeettt and tiiiiggght *ahhhh*!"

"Oh fu-, oh god yes, Y-yuki! It's like I just slide right in. J-just thinking about the *ha* about the fact you warm my bed makes me want to never leave it! Y-you're a soft pillow of a woman and I love it so much!" Yukiko tried her best to tease and help her husband to climax but she was simply overwhelmed by the pleasure. Her tongue would periodically loll out of her mouth and she'd just lose herself in the sensation of being taken from behind while her fat was fondled relentlessly. This was what he'd been wanting to do to her all along, he really had been holding himself back for her sake! And that thought brought her to her climax, closing herself around him.

But Yu was not finished. He clamped his hands down on her flanks and let the fat gush through the gaps in his fingers. There was so much to mush around that he had trouble choosing a spot but in the end he decided on right where her saddlebags were developing. He squeezed as hard as he could and unloaded into his blubbery beauty as she let out yet another cry of pure pleasure and clutched the sheets of their bed beneath them.

When he had regained his senses, he found his wife still face down on the mattress letting out pants and gasps of pleasure and exertion. She had a look of absolute happiness on her face as if she'd fulfilled some kind of great task, eyes closed in dreamy bliss and cheeks rosy with love and exertion.

"You r-reallly *wheeze* you really love having a *huff* a nice ample wife hubby. I'm glad *puff* because I like being one. S-so take care of your weighty baby mama, b-because then mama will take good care of you." She felt a little embarrassed saying something like that, but with the way his chest was rising and heaving and the sheer force at which he'd unloaded into her, she knew she had completely satisfied her man.

"I'll keep that in mind *hah* my pudgy little angel cake." The girl opened her eyes and her expression shifted to an innocent look of curiosity although Yu could see mischief brimming behind her eyes. "I do hope they have lots of food choices at the party. It'll be nice to graze." And despite everything Yu found himself stiffening again.
---
A nice cold shower was the obvious solution to that problem but it gave rise to another one. If they had gone in the shower together, they would have been all over each other in an instant so they had to go separately. Even going quickly still took away time from their dwindling window they had to get to Junes. If there was one thing Yu hated, it was being late but he was willing to make an exception just this once.

"Still though, it's nice to have everything out in the open," he mused to himself as the sound of the hot water in the shower came to a stop. "Like Yukiko's big belly." It meant he could give even more to her, every fondle of her tubby tummy would take on a whole new meaning for the two of them, every little squeeze to her blubber would give him a happy little coo or purr from his beautiful bountiful wife and then he'd squeeze in a little deeper and plant a big kiss right on her cheek. Then she'd do that cute thing that she does where she almost closes her eyes all the way from a mix of embarrassment and joy, then she'd lean her head against his shoulder while he'd rub her belly, all three of them taking immeasurable joy in her warm padding. He loved his fat fertile wife and he didn't care who knew it, and that would only make that smile of hers in the mirror spread even further. "Just like Yukiko's wide hips"

Although thinking about her hips...she had seemed quite vigorous in her attempts to entice him, spreading her plump thighs so he could easily see how fat and low her belly hung. He'd never seen her so aroused before, it was almost like she was in heat. Could his Yuki have an interest of her own? In fact, the last time their love making had been that animalistic and raw was when she had spurted milk in the shower. Like they both had lost control of themselves and acted purely on instinct.

Quickly he slapped himself before he could continue. He had just cooled off after all.
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Yukiko stepped delicately into the elevator of Junes and let out a huff as she leaned against the wall. Light perspiration broke out on her forehead and she hoped it wasn't too visible. Her options were fairly limited as she'd milked through one and she didn't want to wear the pink one Ai had bought for her with Feather Pink herself there! In the end, she settled on a sun dress with white flowers scattered across the fabric. It also exposed her chunky arms quite a bit. It was so airy and comfortable, she'd be reaching for this one long after the pregnancy.

"I *hoh* hope we're not too late. Yu...I've never been late before! Do you think they'll be upset?" Yu placed a reassuring hand on her belly that had begun to rumble fiercely from their brisk walk across town. "They can wait. And I don't think they'll be upset at a mother wanting to be careful with her precious cargo."

"Oh hubby!"

The ding of the elevator doors wasn't enough to stop the couple's passionate embrace nor was the cough from Chie to grab their attention. Yukiko had even begun to put her arms behind Yu's head.

*AHEM* Teddie cut in much more loudly. "Such uncouth behavior and in front of a cub no less!" That got their attention, and the two quickly broke apart. "R-right, sorry. Lost track of where we were." Ken shook his head indignantly. "Honestly, I'm not in elementary school anymore. I've seen people kiss," but despite his claims, a hot blush touched his cheeks. Before Yukari could say anything, a now familiar presence encroached on her personal space. "You see? It's just like I said. Sensei just can't control himself, why, he even tried to kiss me one time!" Yu was thankful that the story of the boy who cried wolf existed, or else his friends might have actually paid mind to Teddie's words and noticed his blush.

"A real gentlebear like moi would never stoop so low! So why don't you and I go somewhere a little more classy?"

Yukari just rolled her eyes. "This coming from the guy who's been making passes at me for the past ten minutes. Sleazy pickup artists are the furthest thing from classy you know." Teddie grasped at his chest as if he had been pierced by one of her arrows. "S-sleazy," he turned to Ken for backup but the boy only fixed him with a stern glare. "You shouldn't throw stones when you live in a glass house Teddie-san." Even Koromaru seemed to be regarding him with pity. "Ahh Teddie's harmless," Chie piped in, "he's like a dog chasing a car, *er* no offense Koromaru."

"Chie-chan, you'd really stick up for me like that?" the bear said with his eyes watering. Yukari just let out a sigh and mumbled something about "worse than Junpei and Kenji combined." She turned to the newcomers in hopes of a less headache inducing conversation but the Yukiko girl seemed to still be laughing about her friend comparing their failed pickup artist bear for a dog.

"Hahahahaha he c-could fit the whole *pffft* hahahaha bumper in his m-mouth hahahahaha." Suddenly, a delectable scent caught her attention and she shot straight up. Her mouth began to water and she licked her lips a bit. That's when she saw a team of maids hard at work on the grill preparing pork, beef, chicken, any meat the girl could name was all being painstakingly roasted on incredibly expensive looking grills. "I-is all that for us?" She asked hopefully.

"Hah I wish!" Yukari's own flat stomach let out a sad little grumble of its own and she gave it a pat. "We already tried going up there but they just said 'Lady Mitsuru ordered that no one be allowed to eat until everyone arrives'" she said giving them her best snooty upper class impression. Chie let out a cry of agony. "Are we suuuure we're not still in the TV World?! This is toooorturreee *uggggh*!"

"I-I wouldn't go that far but still would it have killed them to set out appetizers?"

Looking around, it quickly became clear that the rooftop was a bit sparser than they had been anticipating. Every member of Yosuke's little group was there, although Yosuke seemed to be in the middle of a heated argument on the phone with someone, but out of the rest of the groups, only three had actually made it on time. Aigis was currently holding her arms parallel to her body like she was modelling for a dress. Someone was running their hands around her joints and examining every inch of her metal exterior from the guns in her fingertips all the way down to her makeshift legs. That someone was Naoto.

"Fascinating. Truly fascinating." Her hands traced along Aigis' arms until they reached her delicate fingertips. Yu honestly couldn't believe anyone had gotten on his and Yukiko's case for their PDA. "The perfect balance between mobility and firepower. The capability to produce 27735 psi of force and yet you look so sleek..." Aigis however did not seem to mind at all, in fact she seemed quite thrilled to talk about her parameters. "That is only a functional limit. I can produce well beyond that at risk to my structure. You seemed quite interested in my flight capabilities earlier Shirogane-san. Would you care to see them in action?"

"YES!" The detective almost cried out in joy, but a quick pleading gaze from Yosuke helped to settle her enthusiasm a bit. "M-maybe some other time. Here, I'll give you my address, but oh it's already in your data banks isn't it? Please feel free to stop by anytime."

Yosuke seemed to be at the tail end of the conversation with the person on the phone who the others quickly realized was his father. "C'mon, dad is that really important right now? Think about how much the store will make from this! Look, grill me after I've smoothed over the customers and made us rich okay?"

"Yes, yes I promise nothing will get damaged," he said giving both Naoto and Teddie an equally strong glare. "Thanks dad you're the best!"

As soon as Yosuke hung up, he scoffed. "Geez, hasn't that guy ever heard the phrase 'don't look a gift horse in the mouth' before? Well, whatever. Party's on guys!" Scattered cheering went up across the rooftops but their excitement was tempered by the fact that the party wasn't really on until everyone showed up.

Suddenly, a large crashing echoed across the venue. The door to the roof slammed open and there stood a very sweaty Akihiko Sanada still dressed in his ridiculous get up from last night; was that how he normally dressed? It was distressing to think about. "Sorry I'm late. This town's a bit bigger than I thought it would be." Despite this he barely looked winded at all, a fact which made Chie beam. "Wow! You recovered fast, master! It's like you were never tired at all." The man let out a soft chuckle, "that's because I never skip a workout. I haven't been sick in years because whenever I start feeling like crap, I sweat it all out of my system." Chie took out a notepad and began to furiously scribble, "work out even when sick." Akihiko could only smile, it was really nice to have someone who actually listened to his workout advice. Whenever he'd given it to Fuuka, Junpei, or even their leader they'd all just kind of blow him off and nod their heads. This must be how Mitsuru felt when she gave out study tips.

"Alright! Let's eat!" but even he was stopped by a dutiful duo of maids who shook their heads in unison when he made a grab for some of the meats. "You don't understand! Protein loses its benefits after thirty minutes, it's an emergency!" Yet still they would not budge.

"You can have one, one, of my topsicles if you want Aki-baby!" Akihiko took one look at the sugar stick being offered to him and shook his head. "I'd have to be starving to put one of those in my body. Besides, Mitsuru will be up soonish so maybe she can talk some sense into these girls."

That was certainly good news. The elevator dinged again and everyone turned towards it in excitement. "Oh, it's only you."

Junpei frowned. "Well that's not very nice Yuka-tan. And besides, it's not 'just me' I met up with the rest of my crew on the way here" Kanji and Rise stepped out of the elevator looking peppier than ever. In Rise's hands was a thin package, wrapped neatly in pretty pink and white covering with a bright red bow on top. Her eyes went wide as she entered, even an idol like her wasn't quite used to so much luxury for such a small group of people. "Woah. Forget dessert cart, that's like a dessert truck!" It was true, a veritable cornucopia of desserts were all laid out in two truck bed sized boxes one for hot and one for cold. Everyone there with a sweet tooth had done there best to block that section of the roof out of their minds for the sake of their sanities and Yukari blushed in embarrassment when her belly grumbled just as loud as the tubby girl next to her. "Please don't talk about sweets right now. Please."

Before the new group could be met with the same disappointment that had affected everyone else, the door to the roof crashed open yet again except this time a sweaty panting Mitsuru was the one who came out. Her luxurious well kept hair was just as immaculate as ever except for one strand out of place falling across her forehead. "H...here," she eventually managed to heave out. "I-I'm *haff* here *puff*."

"Woah I got here before Mitsuru-senpai! Guess I didn't sleep in as much as I thought. So, how does it feel to be the tardy one for once?" Mitsuru could only bite her lip in shame. She was already in a bowing position from her rushing. "T-there is no *huff* no excuse. I am truly *hah* sorry for my tardiness." It was difficult to tell if her face was redder from exertion or from embarrassment. "Hey don't be that way senpai, I'm late for things all the time it's no big deal," and Mitsuru could only groan from Junpei's words.

"But man, did you really run all the way here? And why did you run up the stairs? You know we have an elevator right?"

"Ele- *huff* elevator...went up. No *huff* time to wait." In truth, Mitsuru hadn't ran all the way to Junes on account of her high heels making such a thing impossible but she wasn't about to correct their assumption. Honestly, should she really have been this winded just from a brisk jog across town? She hadn't exactly been on Akihiko's level went it came to sticking to her workout routine, as an executive in a major corporation and head of the shadow operatives, she had just been so busy...

"I-It must be because of the events of last night! I'm simply exhausted and my body just needs time to properly recover," she quickly rationalized.

The door crashing open a second time and all of Mitsuru's ruckus was finally enough to pull Aigis and Naoto towards the rest of the group. The android analyzed her boss carefully, it wasn't visible to everyone else especially with the compressive properties of her catsuit but there was an extra little "jiggle" with every heaving breath in and out. Could she be getting ready to settle down with someone? Aigis would have to remember to ask.

Yukari could only grin at Mitsuru's disheveled state. Truthfully the actress had wanted to wake her friend up on time, but Mitsuru had rolled over in her bed and mumbled something about "five more minutes Kiko we can play later" it was so cute that Yukari had simply left her snoozing away. Of course, if she had known about her order that nobody could eat until everyone else got there, she probably would have flung the drowsy woman out of bed herself. "So how did things go?" She asked Junpei with genuine interest. Yosuke piped up with a loud laugh that made the baseball coach lower the brim of his hat. "Oh ho ho man, she was pissed but like in that way where she's not shouting so you know you're in even more trouble. Dude, I would not want to be you right now!"

But to Yosuke's surprise, Junpei began to chuckle right back. "See, that's why you're still a kid. The fact that she got so mad just means that she cares and you ran off before the second part of that conversation anyway." It was true, after the girl had given him a thorough scolding about keeping his phone charged, she had sighted and simply said that she was glad Junpei was alright. The warm smile the bum looking man was giving off was making Yosuke feel bummed out which he hadn't been expecting. The usually boisterous Junpei suddenly grew pensive, however. “You’re thinking pretty hard there, careful you don’t hurt yourself.” Normally he’d fire back with a “which one of us is still single again?” and they’d bicker and tease each other until the cows came home but Junpei didn’t even respond to his tsukkomi.

“Hey, you okay?” but he still didn’t answer. Yukari followed his eyes to where they were focused. He was looking right at Yu and Yukiko who were currently talking with Teddie about something. The tall silver haired boy had his wife firmly attached to his arm, her glimmering golden ring flashing in the sunlight periodically, her sundress making her look the picture of newly wedded housewife. Her hand rubbed in slow circles on her belly and while she currently looked annoyed about something, it couldn’t complete overpower the sheer joy that radiated from her eyes. Junpei snapped to attention, “Oh, sorry Yuka-tan. Did you say something?” She just didn’t have the heart to call him Stupei right now; for what he was planning to do next, he needed all the confidence he could get. “It’s not important, don’t worry about it.”

“For the last time, I’m not going to eat it so would you just give me the topsicle!” But Teddie refused to budge. “Noooo way! This is my last one and I need to save it for the untaken ladies at this party! Sensei called dibs on you a long time ago.”

"Teddie, may I have a topsicle?" Rise asked, blinking her eyes sultrily at the poor bear. "Oh ho ho. Now everyone suddenly is interested in little ol me. I hope you're prebeared to pay the fe-" Rise planted a kiss on his cheek and left him a red blushing mess and swiftly snatched the dessert from his paws. "Here you go Yukiko-senpai. It's on the house." Yukiko clapped her hands so happily, everyone watching swore she suddenly seemed five years younger than she actually was. "Fat people sure get excited around food..." Akihiko thought to himself. But the portly mama surprised everyone by waddling her way over to Ken who had been eyeing the dessert carts as discretely as possible. bending over to hand the boy the treat with a hand on her pregnant belly and a smile on her face, she looked five years older than she actually was. "Here you go."

"O-oh Yukiko-san you don't have to do that. I can wait."

"They're not normal popsicles," Yu chimed in. "Actually they're made from frozen tofu so it's actually quite good for you. They're delicious and I know for a fact it's hard to find them in the city." Naoto nodded in agreement. If there was one thing that she'd always come back to Inaba for, it would be topsicles. "Hubby and I thought you should get to try one since you might not get a chance for a long while." Yukiko had actually wanted to give it to Labrys before having to be reminded by her husband that wouldn't quite work out so Ken made the next best choice, he was so cute the way he could barely contain his excitement!

"Well...if you insist then...thank you very much." He was hooked from the first bite and before he knew it the whole thing was gone. For a second, he blushed in embarrassment at letting his enthusiasm for sweets show but when he saw how happy his happiness made the girl, he just couldn't do that. "Those are good. Do they have strawberry ones?"

"They do if you stop by my grandma's tofu shop," the boy nearly jerked back in surprise. Now two ladies were kneeling towards him with hands on their knees. "I would love it if you stopped by, you can pick out anything you want." The boy hadn't had this much charity thrown his way since his time in the SEES dorm but he couldn't say he minded it too much. "Oooh and then we can stop by Tatsumi Textiles and get him some clothes, he is a growing boy after all!" Rise squealed at the thought. "That sounds perfect Yukiko-senpai!" Kanji smiled broadly. "Yeah I could do that, although we're really more for formal wear. No point in making a bunch of things he'll shoot right out of before they're all done."

"N-now hold on, you all don't have to do all this," the boy stammered out.

"Yeah guys, give the kid some space." The three Investigation Team members looked at each other and blinked. "O-oh I'm sorry Ken-kun, I didn't mean to make you feel pressured."

"Yeah I don't know what came over me there. Sorry man." But before Ken could recover, Chie said something that made his predicament even worse. Looking at him with his long slightly unkempt hair falling around his face and his well groomed school uniform on such a thin frame, Chie began to have second thoughts. "I kind of get it, I mean he does give off an aura of someone you want to take care of. Hey, if you're going to be master's pupil, you need plenty of meat in your diet. A rival's no good if he collapse so you are eating enough right?"

"F-for the last time I'm not-" he was cut short by a slick hand wiping down a strand of his hair that was sticking out, the last remnants of bed head that he had missed. "Honestly Ken if you're going to wear your hair long like that you have to make sure its well-kempt. You can't let it stick out like that!"

"Y-Yukari-san hold on a moment." The girls and Kanji had begun to crowd around him with some new faces in the fray.

"*Um* I know a good tailor near Iwatodai actually. I could give you the address...if you would like." Ken smiled thankful that someone wasn't fawning all over him and acting professional but Naoto immediately shot that down. "A-actually I do think a haircut might be in order as well." The boy desperately looked to a recovered Mitsuru for help but she too had knelt down to look him in the eye. "Actually I have wondered if you're eating enough myself. Is there anything you feel you're missing out on? Anything at all, I do hope you haven't been subsisting on Wild Duck," she said sternly.

The gathered girls continued to coo over and dote on Ken each in their own ways. "Can't they see they're smothering the poor kid? I just don't understand women sometimes." Akihiko grumbled aloud. Yu just chuckled to himself. He had a feeling the boxer would be a lot more open to it when he had kids of his own someday.

Ken was slowly coming to embrace his fate. "It is kind of nice though. I mean, I am still just a kid after all." The ringing of the elevator brought him out of his epiphany as Fuuka and Labrys finally had arrived. "Finally! What took you so long!?"

"Oh I'm sorry Yukari-chan, you try doing a makeshift repair job on an anti-shadow android in the back of a helicopter while running on six hours of sleep." The normally quiet girl snapping was enough to make Yukari back away instinctively. "Sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to snap like that. *Um* Labrys is here." The green haired girl awkwardly stepped to the side to allow Labrys to take center stage. Her long silver hair flowed down her back straightened and a red hair band sat atop her head. "H-hi everyone. Sorry I'm late." She looked around at all the decorations and delicacies all topped off with a big bright sign that said "thanks Yu and Labrys!"

All eyes were on her and every single person was looking at her with admiration, kindness, but most of all like she belonged, like she was one of them. "I *uh* oh man there's so many of you guys, gee I r-really *erm* don't know what to say." The poor girl was not used to this much fondness and affection coming at her all at once. She hadn't even prepared a speech or nuthin.

"Wha- hey Yuki you don't need to push!" Yu was forced to center stage by his wife as soon as she saw Labrys locking up from being put on the spot, he was going to go up there anyway! Immediately, Labrys felt a little bit more relaxed. "I wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for you, thank you Labrys." The mechanical girl giggled. "Guess that makes us even now, huh? 'Sides you were the one who clobbered that thing, I just buzzed in his ear a little bit."

"Are you kidding? If I had to focus on defense, that fight would have been a stalemate. You were the deciding factor."

"No way you were way more..."

"Yes but you..."

And so on and on their mutual modesty continued with Labrys growing more and more at ease by the second. Mitsuru picked up a glass from a glass resting on a nearby table and clinked the edge with her nail. "I think we can all agree that you both did amazing things out there. None of us - no, this entire world would not be here if it was not for your valiant efforts. It may not be much but as acting leader of the Shadow Operatives, on behalf of the entire world, thank you." She had wanted to respectfully bow, but a loud metallic clanging rang through her ear drums.

"Congratulations!" Aigis had begun clapping and from the ecstatic look on her face it was clear she wouldn't be stopping any time soon. One by one the others began to clap too and Mitsuru chuckled and brought her own hands together.

"Congratulations!"

"Congratulations!"

"Congrats guys!"

"*Bark*"

It was like their relief at surviving the ordeal was coming out all at once.

"Thank you all!" Labrys cried out with tears brimming at the corners of her eyes. The party hadn't even started and yet everyone already was laughing and smiling and just having a good time. Yu's thoughts however leaned more towards the future. Aigis had just given him an idea for his son's eighteenth birthday party after all. Slowly, the sound of clapping began to peter out and eventually stopped. "Would either of you two like to say a few words?" Mitsuru asked.

Yu looked across the crowd at the expectant faces. He was never one for long speeches to an entire crowd preferring to save those for his one on one sessions. So he simply began to clap. The gathered Persona users cocked their heads in confusion, the team sometimes forgot their leader could be a bit of an oddball at times. Labrys clapped along with him simply because she didn't know what else to do and Aigis quickly followed suit. What followed was a much more awkward and scattered applause.

"You *uh* you want to tell us what that was about?"

Yu smiled broadly acting as if what he had just done was the most normal thing in the world. "I wanted to thank you all for doing everything you could to protect this town. I think this day belongs to everyone here just as much because I couldn't have done it without you." And with that he gave a graceful bow like he was still on duty at the inn. The touched looks that his friends gained made the minor embarrassment all the more worth it. If he had just said it normally, they would probably have brushed him off but this way, they'd truly take it to heart. "*Uh* what he said pretty much. You guys are the best!" More laughter went up through the group with even Naoto joining in this time.

Mitsuru could only grin ear to ear. Yu had stolen the second part of her speech, but that was okay, she quite enjoyed the spin he had put on it. "And on that note, let the festivities begin."

She barely had time to blink before the stampede of hungry teenagers ran over to finally eat. Naoto chuckled at their enthusiasm, Chie and Teddie fighting over some ribeye, Akihiko absolutely loading up two plates, Yukiko doing the same in a much more composed manner as she consulted her belly before every choice, but surprisingly Kanji wasn't in the middle of the fray. She would have thought he'd be right at the front. A hand on her shoulder made her jump and Naoto turned to see a pensive looking Kanji.

"You're...you're leaving again tomorrow right?" It wasn't a condemnation but a genuine question and Naoto could only nod a bit sadly. "Yes, I have some business with the Public Safety department that needs to be done in person. After that, I'm not quite sure." Kanji swallowed nervously for a second but that was all it took for him to gather his nerve. "Then...could you stop by my house later tonight? Before you leave? There's something I need to give you." The detective knew that he wouldn't tell her even if she pressed and that piqued her curiosity. Even if they weren't dating, she'd have to go now. Their friends were still perusing the various buffets and selections and Naoto realized why Kanji had asked her now of all times. He didn't want to put her on the spot, he had wanted to give her a choice and the girl found herself being awfully touched by that little gesture and smiled.

"Of course. My train leaves at 9:00 so let's say...8:00?"

"Alright, It's a date!" Kanji blurted out without thinking and Naoto did blush at first but to his surprise she then chuckled. "Yes, I suppose it is. My first date...goodness." Her fluttering heart was calmed by Kanji's grip tightening a bit. "Mine too. We should go get something to eat before all the meat is gone. I'm starving!" And he walked off with a spring in his step, to Kanji all that mattered was Naoto had said yes with a smile on her face and that was good enough for him.

Naoto honestly found herself almost as excited, from the way he was acting, it wasn't just some piece of jewelry or other callow trinket. "He probably made something just for you," the thought made her smile grow a little bit bigger as she grabbed a plate of her own.

Today was a day where no one worried about their diet, today was a day for celebration. There wasn't a salad in sight and even Yukari and Rise had decided to take a little extra. "I just hope there's no freak with a camera up here, the last thing I need is my agent on my case." Rise gave a sympathetic nod. "I know right? Like can't a girl just eat in peace without it making headlines?" Speaking of making headlines, it began to occur to many at the table that there was an actual Featherman among them. "Look, I didn't have time to change and it's just us up here anyway. Can we please not make a big deal out of it?"

"I'm sorry Yukari-san it's just you really are impressive. I mean, you're actually the one in the costume!" When Ken saw some of the others staring at him, he clarified. "Well usually in shows like Featherman, even if one of the rangers is female, they'll still be played by a man. The fact that they let you do your own stunts is amazing actually." The girl's face turned as bright as her outfit. "Stop, you're making me blush." Junpei's face had taken on a much paler color. "Wait...you mean those were guys in those suits...oh man."

"Actually Pink being in a leading role hasn't been a thing since Featherman Goranger in the early 2000s. Usually she's relegated more to the side so the fact that they have such faith in your abilities speaks highly of them." Naoto blushed at the reaction her observation had gathered. Her friends knew she watched the show but they hadn't known her knowledge was quite so in depth but she mistook their reaction. "I'm not wrong you know! You can look it up if you don't believe me!"

>>18261877
"That must have been the one I watched when I was younger. The Feather Pink in that version was probably my favorite character and I think you've been a great follow up. The other kids at school always made fun of me for that but I never cared, she was just that cool to me." Something about the way Yu said that touched Yukari. If she could get people who hadn't watched the show in years back into it, that just meant she was touching the hearts of all ages. But wait a minute, what did he just say? Yukari went through a binge watch of all the most popular Featherman seasons in order to prepare for her roll and if she recalled correctly the Feather Pink in Goranger was a tall raven haired beauty with pale skin who was regal and composed but had a bit of a softer goofy side. Naoto seemed to have caught on to that as well and the two looked at each other and back at Yu who currently had his arm wrapped firmly around his wife, gently stroking her side as she ate. "I always liked Featherman Red from that one. He was so brave and strong but so gentle and kind. Chie used to tease me about having a crush but that's just silly right? I mean how could you fall in love with someone who isn't real?" Despite her words, she unconsciously leaned in to her husband's embrace a bit more.

"Should we tell them?" Naoto's eyes seemed to ask. But Yukari shook her head with a wry grin. There was nothing wrong with having a type after all. It was actually kind of cute in a way. "I don't know about how the show was in the past but your performance certainly is the highlight for me." Yukari's jaw nearly hit the floor when Mitsuru said that and Akihiko looked close to doing the same. "M-mitsuru-senpai, you actually watch Featherman?!" Mitsuru cocked her head as if the question was completely bizarre. "Well of course I do. My best friend is in it after all."

"Senpai..." Akihiko just sighed. "Am I the only one here who doesn't watch that show? Really?"

Fuuka tentatively raised a finger. "I really only watch it because Yukari-chan has a big role, I never saw the appeal I guess. I mean, do they have to be so violent?"

"I hear the American version is toned down a little, there's not even any blood in that one." The disappointment with which Chie said that made Fuuka pale. "W-well that may be true but they're still hitting each other right? Shouldn't we be teaching kids to use their words instead of their fists?"

"Yeah but there's some people out there who won't learning nothin' unless you rough 'em up a little first. I mean, you saw who we went up against last night." As if to prove her point, Teddie decided now would be a good time to try his hand at Labrys. "Very well said Labby-chan! But you're way too cute to be beating people up, you should let me do it for you, I'll be your knight in fuzzy armor."

"Wha- wait, I don't..."

"But you'll have to pay me in smooches!" Teddie puckered his lips and went in for a kiss. He felt a firm metal hand wrap around them and opened his eyes to see a very irate looking Aigis. "Oh no you do not! I saw you attempting to flirt with Yukari earlier, I will not let you take advantage of my sister's innocence."

"Geez sis, he was just fooling around a little, he didn't mean anything by it. It's just how he is." But Aigis still did not remove her hand despite Teddie's increasing flailing. "Fooling around? Sister, men like this are only after one thing, our Papillion Hearts. Once they steal that, they're gone the next day leaving us without power." Yukari sighed. It seemed as though Aigis had misinterpreted something she had said again but at least it had stopped that annoying furball from yapping. She was probably squeezing him a little too hard though...

"It's probably because you are wearing your skirt shorter than the average length of 15 centimeters compared to other girls in the area. We'll have to get you a longer one once we return to headquarters."

"B-but..."

"No buts young lady. You will be a representative of the Kirijo Corporation and as you are more human in appearance than I am, people will say that you are a 'hussy' unless you dress the part." She finally released Teddie and he fell back onto the bench with a thud. "Are you ready to behave yourself now?" Teddie thought for a moment and then broke into a smile.

"Wow two fiesty robo babes! And they're sisters too! How lucky can one bear be?"

"Activating Orgia Mode." Teddie still wore a smile still remembering Aigis' joke from earlier but he seriously started to sweat once the droid actually began to glow blue. "*Uh* you know you shouldn't repeat the same joke twice a-and physical comedy is the lowest of the low especially when it's against me!"

Yosuke tapped Aigis on the shoulder. "Hey what did I say about not breaking anything? That includes our mascot you know." Immediately Aigis looked shamed. "I did not realize he was company property." Yosuke gained a smirk filled with mischief. "Aaaactually only the suit is company property so if you wanted we could remove the head and-" Teddie flung his upper body on to the table. "No wait! I promise I'll cool down, I'll be a good bear! I won't even make one single comment about Mi-chan's tracts of land!"

"M-my what?"

"He's obviously talking about your money, c'mon Mitsuru use that big brain of yours." Akihiko said with a roll of his eyes.

With a firm promise from Teddie, Aigis decided to let him off with a warning and went right back to lecturing Labrys about the importance of the alarm system installed in her body. Fuuka looked down at her plate solemnly and nibbled on a bratwurst. "I suppose violence is sometimes the answer after all." The majority of the party goers finished their food quickly, wanting to just lie back lazily for a while. Even the normally energetic Rise was no exception. Koromaru was feeling so sleepy, unused to such rich fare, he looked around for a place to rest.

Immediately, his eyes locked right on the most ideal target.

"Oh, hubby look!" The dog had hopped right into her lap and nestled itself firmly against her gut. Soft warm fluffy, these were the only things going through the canine's head at that moment. Truthfully though, if he had hoped right on to her lap like a normal person, he probably would have headbutted her tummy so he ended up having to jump up to the seat next to her, crawl around her hips and onto her lap and then slink himself right at where her pregnant belly ended. Ken laughed cheerfully, "looks like he's really taken a liking to you, you can pet him if you want." Yukiko did not need to be told twice and slowly began to stroke the dog's back. "You have such pretty fur, Chosokabe. Your owner takes such good care of you." That was actually enough for the dog to lift his head and give off a confused whine.

"Please don't give my dog weird nicknames Mrs. Amagi."

"It's not weird, it's proud and regal just like him. Oh but he really looks more like a Nobunaga, don't you think?" Koromaru gave a bark of assent and nestled in to a more comfortable sleep. "Great, now he's going to get a swelled head." Ken looked at Yukiko very sternly. "You better not be one of those parents who gives their children ancient history names. Those kids get bullied you know." The mother to be let out a shocked gasp. "I-is that really true?" Ken sadly nodded, he didn't feel good about giving her that bitter pill to swallow but it had to be done.

She let her lip puff out in a pout. So many name possibilities cut down in an instant! A finger lifted her budding double chinned face and turned it to her right, to her husband who looked at her with sympathy. "Isn't it better this way? I mean that way his name is his own and no one else's."

"Yeah! Yeah, you're right. He'll be a trail blazer like his daddy." She gave Yu a peck on the cheek and went right back to petting Koromaru like she was never worried at all.

A kick from her baby disturbed the piece she was feeling for the first time in her life. She couldn't see him but she could feel Koromaru grow distressed as her son had kicked him right in the head. "Sweetie, don't be rude. Mommy needs you to share her lap right now okay?" She stopped her eating to bring both her hands down for rubbing and for a time that seemed to work but eventually the hunger pangs began to return. The growing mother had thought she'd done a great job clearing off three hold plates pilled to the tipping point with roast beef dripping in fat and juicy tender pork loin that was just bubbling with calories. But apparently that wasn't quite enough. A bead of sweat crawled down her neck as she thought of something.

"Could my baby boy be trying to make his mama so fat just so that he doesn't have to share her lap with anyone?" He wouldn't do that, would he? She looked to her newest plate of food and gulped. "I think he's just saying hi," Fuuka giggled and Yukiko smiled right back. Yes that was right, her baby was a good boy. "He's just helping mama get a new lap, one closer to her face." Even now, she had to strain a little to properly bet Koromaru. If her belly was big enough he could crawl right up under her bosom. And when her baby was born she'd be more easily able to cover him with kisses. He was already planning so far ahead.

"Chie are you STILL eating?" Chie finished slurping down some extra brothy noodles and nodded. Everyone had been expecting Akihiko and Yukiko to eat their fill and then some but they'd never seen Chie quite this ravenous. "I haven't eaten anything in twelve hours! I'm starving!" Rise giggled a bit. "Oooookay but just be careful."

The girl looked up slightly more annoyed this time. Flecks of meat dotted her cheeks taking away some of the impact of her scowl. "If you have something to say, just come out and say it already! Geez."

Rise narrowed her eyes and gained that teasing smirk that she was known for. "You're gonna get fat if you keep eating like that." Watching Chie nearly spit out the dumplings she had been shoving into her mouth made Rise giggle louder. "W-wh-wh-where the hell did that come from!? Mind your own business!"

"I'm just saying, we're not running around the TV World anymore so you can't eat like you did when we were." Rise had grown more serious all of a sudden. The minor amount of food on her own plate seemed like a heel of bread in comparison to the lavish multi course meal that Chie had given to herself and the martial artist found herself growing a bit self conscious. "I put on about five pounds during retirement so I know where I'm coming from with this. I mean you've seen what happens when you just eat whatever you want all the time." Their eyes turned to Yukiko who was in the middle of popping a delectable morsel of fatty beef into her lips. Even just eating required the tubby woman to hold her belly in with her hand and lean forward a bit awkwardly. Every time she took a bite, Chie could see the jello in her friend's butt cheeks shift and wobble around. Yukiko swallowed and cocked her head, "she did? What happens?" Rise smiled kindly. "Don't worry about it Yukiko-senpai, you just keep on doing what you're doing." The raven haired girl nodded firmly and gave a thumbs up which Rise found adorable. What the others didn't see though was Yu giving her bare thigh a teasing pinch under the table that made her face light up briefly and spurred her on to eat a bit faster. She wondered to herself what eating what you wanted all the time would be like, Yukiko only ate what the baby wanted after all...even if there was a lot of overlap. "Probably not that fulfilling. What's the point of a full belly that's not satisfying your husband and son with it?"

Chie, however, got Rise's message and stopped her eating for a moment.

"Why do you have to bring that up now? A party's supposed to be a time for relaxing you know!" She clamped her hand over her mouth after she said that and looked to her master. Would he be okay with such a line of thinking? But Akihiko seemed to be deep in thought about something and was smirking to himself, Chie hoped it wasn't about her.

"Because I have to leave tonight, Chie-senpai. And I'm worried I'll come back to see you just as big and waddling as Yukiko." The martial artist felt a chill crawl down her spine even thinking about that. How could anyone take her seriously as a cop if she became just as portly as her friend? Too out of shape to even jog two blocks without panting for breath, a belly that lazily flopped over her pants and strained the buttons on her shirt, and wide cumbersome hips that made her seem more like a tubby penguin than a respected officer of the law. Rise's voice was filled with genuine concern for her friend which made Chie more willing to listen. She was an idol after all and probably knew more about this sort of thing than she ever would. Was she really on the path to fatness?

"Actually Chie-senpai, I've been meaning to say something about this myself. I know I'm the last person who should be giving advice on this sort of thing, but I'd hate for you to do so well only to fail when your metabolism slows down due to never having to curb your eating habits when you were younger." Naoto adjusted the brim of her hat over her face as she continued. "After high school you won't have the same amount of time to dedicate to exercise, long nights spent at the station with your only option for healthy food being preparing it yourself. I mean, you've seen how Dojima-san lives, maybe you won't be quite that tired but you certainly won't be rushing to the flood plains like you do now." The girl self consciously brought a hand to her stomach, still flat and trim as a board but ready to billow out any day according to her friends.

"Hey come on girls, you'll give the poor thing a heart attack," Yukari crooned in a sympathetic voice. "I think it's fine to treat yourself every now and then, right Mitsuru-senpai?" The redhead peered up from her third burger of the day and swallowed. "*Mmph* absolutely. Everything in moderation. As long as it doesn't interfere with your duties." Yukari felt a twinge of unease from her friend's answer to that question. Like the answer was almost unconscious, it would certainly help Mitsuru justify the patty melt she was working through to herself. Yukari sighed and decided just to drop it, the Kirijo heiress still looked as fit and trim as ever after all and watching her somewhat uptight friend truly enjoy herself through something so simple was kind of adorable too. "Is there something on my face Yukari?" Mitsuru quickly dabbed at her cheeks with a napkin as Yukari giggled. "Yeah you got it."

"It's not that we don't believe you can cut back, it's just that there's no time like the present, you know?" Naoto nodded in agreement. "Rise's right, we'd be remiss as your friends if we kept quiet about this."

"I think you guys are being too hard on Chie, she's always kept on top of her diet and exercise for as long as I've known her and I don't see that stopping." The athlete turned to her friend with a touched expression on her face but that was cut short by Naoto. "Well Yukiko-senpai, things change. After all none of us expected for you to...never mind."

"Expected me to what?"

"Well that is...what I mean to say...Rise could you..." The idol snickered. "What Naoto means is you were as thin as a reed until a few months ago. One baby later and *poomph*" The girl stretched her arms out in an exaggerated motion. Several of the seated group looked wide eyed at the starlet, had she just called another girl chubby right to her face? They were just waiting for the claws to come out now. Yosuke instinctively hid behind Kanji who seemed a tad confused.

Instead, Yukiko gave her belly a pat and cooed as Koromaru sank himself deeper into her softness. "And I'm still not done! If the little one has any say in it, I won't just be *poomph* it'll be more like *bwoosh*" she said stretching her arms out even wider than Rise. Collective relief went up throughout the table but also a sense of confusion. Those from Iwatodai thought "people from the country are a bit odd," and those from Inaba thought "Yukiko sure is a bit odd," either way though her response raised more questions than answers, questions many there were not entirely comfortable knowing the answer to especially considering her husband was sitting right there.

"Yeah exactly. And maybe something will happen that will make Chie go *bwoooosh* too. You never know." Yukiko still didn't know if she believed that, Chie's future husband seemed to be quite into fitness even more than her own hubby was. But...she had never expected Yu to be into her heftier form so who could really say?

"I think it's something worth rolling over in your head a bit is all. I mean you say this is just cutting loose at a party but this is how you eat normally. It's just important to be mindful of how much you're actually eating. I don't mean to embarrass you but if it's something you're embarrassed about maybe it's time to change it, you know?"

"All the exercise in the world won't help you if your diet is poor"

Chie looked down to her plate. She was still a smidge hungry and that food looked so good but maybe those two were right, she had certainly been exercising less lately without shadows to fight and exams to study for. What if she broke her leg and wasn't able to stop eating her customary three daily steak skewers or her weekly beef bowl? The fat would just pile on. Slowly, she began to push the plate away.

"That's enough of that. Don't tell me you're actually going to listen to these girls over your own gut?"

Heads whipped towards an irate looking Akihiko. "M-master?"

"The reason girls obsess about their diets so much is because they're lazy. They limit themselves because they know they don't have any willpower."

"E-excuse me!?" The detective stuttered out; Rise was also glaring at him quite fiercely. The bear of a man just shrugged and took another large bite out of a chicken breast. "You mwow I'm mrite *gulp*. What's the point of a temple if a burger or two is all it takes to knock it down? If you can't eat an entire pork loin in one sitting, then how could you possibly be prepared for the dangers life throws at you. If you're going to be a cop, function is far more important than fashion, you could have a body that's meant for strutting around on stage or you could have one that could lift a tree off a child in danger, so what's more important to you Chie? Looking pretty or doing your job?"

If there was one word that could describe the state of Rise right now, it would be deflated, she had been all set to slam her hands on the table and start shouting but honestly everything the muscle head was saying made sense. A cop probably shouldn't look like an idol and Chie was looking at him with such awe, like he'd opened up a whole new perspective she'd never even thought of. "I'm not sure her career will be quite so dramatic."

"But it could be. I mean is everything you study relevant to every case? Nothing's more important than being prepared." Naoto raised a finger to argue but quickly lowered it. That was...a good point actually. Akihiko turned to his starry eyed pupil who was waiting with bated breath. "S-so is it really okay?" The man chuckled, she just couldn't hide how much she wanted to eat but that was fine. She'd probably been told all her life she was going to get fat some day and "no amount of exercise would help her," limiting herself because of it. "Yeah, dig in." The smile she gave could light the sky and she dug in with gusto. All this time, she'd actually been doing the right thing!

"You should listen to Akihiko on this matter, when he has his sights set on something, he approaches it with an exhaustive thoroughness that stuns even myself at times." What Mitsuru had just said was enough to stop Chie in her tracks. "What do you mean?" Mitsuru gestured towards her subordinate to explain and he shrugged. "After our battle the other day, I started to do some serious thinking. What's the point of having power if you can't actually use it? Criminals of all kinds slip through the cracks every day causing people to suffer and no matter how strong you get, even as a Shadow Operative you have to turn a blind eye to a lot of it. I want to have the power to affect meaningful change in the world no matter how small that is and...to protect the people important to me."

Chie could feel her heart pounding incredibly quickly. It almost sounded like she had helped him reach that conclusion. "A-and you're saying I helped with that?" Her master nodded. "Of course. I guess you could say your heart touched mine. Hey who knows? If you keep at it you'll probably get a whole bunch of kids who want to follow in your footsteps." Chie's eyes were like shimmering pools. "M-master!"

"So that's why he doesn't seem bothered by all that 'master' stuff." Ken mused to himself. It wasn't just some fan girl clinging on to his coat tails, they had both learned something from each other that day they had fought and probably would continue to do so. And if they were both becoming cops, it would be like they'd be keeping each other in check, neither master nor apprentice willing to let the other down. Actually the way they were happily gazing at each other now kind of reminded Ken of two other people who had touched his own heart quite deeply.

"Well we tried," Rise said with a shrug "Looks like we'll be the only calorie counters huh Naoto?" Naoto grew a bit sheepish. "I actually don't do that either. I just never eat unless it's necessary."

Rise decided not to mention that her own diet was all meticulously planned out for her. Actually thinking about it the only one of them who had any experience dieting at all was Yukiko and if she ended up like that...

Well there was no point in thinking about it now! Besides, Rise's mind was filled with thoughts of a much firmer yet still fat Chie. She could just imagine her senpai flexing beefy toned arms while her flabby belly flopped out. It seemed as though Yukiko was having the same thoughts and was giggling a bit.

"I'd be happy to have you working under me one day Ms. Satonaka." Yosuke quickly turned to Teddie hoping he would make a crack but the bear had been thoroughly cowed biting his lip to make sure he didn't blurt out what he wanted to say. "Although I do hope you'll be a little more sturdy when you are." Instantly the smile on Chie's face died and the air of authority and coolness Akihiko had built up dissipated in an instant. "W-what the hell!?"

"I mean come on, you look like a stiff breeze will blow you over. What have you been doing, nothing but cardio? There will be male criminals you know, that's not going to cut it anymore. Eating more is one thing but you need to start strength training as well. They're called police women, not police girls."

"I think the sumo wrestler look will be great on you Chie! Good luck!"

"Y-y-yukiko! I don't eat that much! Geez." She turned to Akihiko trembling a bit. "You freaking jerk! You want a police woman! I'll give you a police woman!" And with that she went over to the buffet and piled another plate full of the most calorie rich meats she could find. She plopped herself down and began shoveling the food into her mouth. Akihiko let out a loud laugh. "That's the spirit! Maybe next time I won't have to use the kiddy gloves when we spar!"

"*Gulp* Trust me, next time we meet I'll be more than even you can handle, master!" Teddie looked like he was about to explode from holding his jokes in.

Aigis seemed to be nodding to herself about something like what she had just witnessed had helped confirm a theory of hers.

"Chie-senpai I'm not sure if spite is the best motivation for-"

"Alright Chie-senpai! Hey maybe we can go to the gym together sometime! It'll be nice to have a spotter for once!" Chie excitedly nodded her head to Kanji's proposal with a mouthful of food still puffing out her cheeks. "I could spot you," Naoto thought to herself a bit enviously but she quickly shook her head. Where had a thought like that come from? It just made logical sense that he would choose someone who was A. around all the time and B. actually had interest in going to the gym. Yes it simply made sense. "He still could have asked though..."

Chie's face paled as she realized something. "Awwww but I don't have a job! And my parents already complain about the food bill! How am I supposed to eat big and get big!? Come on! It's not fair!" She wailed.

"I'll cook for you." Chie turned to Yu with astonished eyes. "Really!?" Her friend gave her a gentle smile. "It's the least I could do. You're the one who got me in shape in the first place, it's only fair I return the favor." The first time they had gone out training, Yu had been a hot and sweating mess. He had expected the girl to be in shape but she had ran circles around him even with his TV conditioning. But every time she had offered him a hand up and a bottle of water and helped him get right back in the game. "I couldn't possibly do that! It wouldn't be fair to you, but thanks really. That means a lot, Yu."

"I don't know if you should make such a drastic lifestyle change right now though." The way Yosuke had said it wasn't mocking, it was more like he was trying to remind her of something. When she looked to him in confusion he explained. "Well we do have midterms coming up next week after all." Chie nearly choked on a meat bun. She had forgotten all about that!

"Woooh man am I glad I don't have to take those anymore!" Junpei said with a cheer. "Sucks to be you guys I guess, hahaha!"

"Yosuke! Why did you have to bring that up now!? We were having a good time!" The boy shrugged, "hey if I hadn't told you, you would have yelled at me for not saying anything." Chie had to admit he was right, but she wasn't happy about it! "Maybe you can give your little apprentice there some study tips Akihiko-senpai." Yukari teased. Chie felt any respect lost from his earlier crudeness creeping back in. "Wait were you good in school or something master?" He rubbed the space under his nose and grinned. "I wasn't just good, I was the best. Top of my class," Mitsuru cleared her throat, "second from the top," he murmured a little more quietly. "A warrior should be sharp in both mind and body after all, don't tell me those easy high school tests have been giving you trouble?"

"N-no," she lied. "I just forgot about them, because they're so easy!" Yosuke opened his mouth to speak but she gave him a glare that promised great pain at a later date if he didn't keep it shut. "That's great to hear since these are nothing compared to the exams in the police academy." He gave the girl a very meaningful glare. "Honestly if you can't even get through these without difficulty you should just give up am I right?"

"R-right."

Kanji cracked the joint in his shoulder. "Man, I just wanna pass honestly." Naoto wondered if she should chastise him for his blase attitude but then he started grinning. " 'Cept Home Ec. I'm gonna kill it there just like I promised." The girl smiled to herself, after all it wasn't like she passed PE with flying colors either. Yu could feel his wife glaring at him and when he turned she had a foxy grin on her face. "I'm not going to lose to you this time hubby! It's time for me to make a comeback! There's just barely enough exams to do it but I'll take back my throne!"

"*Uh* Yukiko I think your math's off, he's only up by two so you have plenty of time." Yukiko shook her head. "I wish, but he claimed absolute victory over me in all three of the Midnight Trivia Miracle Quizzes. I can't allow that to happen again!"

"Considering what the grand prize of that whole waste of time was, I wouldn't exactly call it winning..." But such a thing did not matter to Yukiko and her face held a look of fierce determination. "Well you've certainly never made it easy for me Yuki. But I can't complain things would get pretty boring without my gorgeous rival." He gave her a touch on the nose making her laugh happily. "Thanks sweetie," but she quickly regained her bearings. "I mean...don't think sweet talk will make me go easy on you! I intend to win!"

Yosuke gained a smirk. "You can count me in on that competition as well. Since I'm going to be going to college too I need to actually start trying." Yu couldn't help but give his friend a look of pride. "You finally decided what you were going to do huh?" Yosuke rubbed the back of his head. "Not quite yet, so that's why I'm going to broaden my horizons a little bit. It's not a big goal but it's my goal."

"I think it's a great goal. And knowing you, I'm sure you'll do well at whatever you decide to do one day. Just keep your mind open" Yosuke could feel a smile creep on to his face. He'd actually been feeling a little embarrassed that he didn't quite have a big dream to shout from the rooftops like everyone else but that really made him feel better. He hardly doubted Yu had been expecting to be the owner of an old inn when he first came to this town after all. "You can count me in that competition too! I'm gonna crush these exams!" Chie shouted with the utmost confidence.

Yukiko brought her fingers to her lips. "Oh well I think it's great that you two are getting motivated but I don't think you understand, hubby and I are competing for first and second place."

Yosuke and Chie felt like an icicle had just been stabbed through their hearts. "She doesn't even consider us competition," the wage slave cried out mournfully. "But I'm sure you guys can get in the top ten. You're just nowhere close to being a competitor is all," and with a bright smile on her face she went right back to her eating, completely unaware she had just trampled all over their bravado. "Wow this girl really is like Mitsuru," Yukari thought snidely to herself. That must be where the "thorn" part of her title had come from, but she seemed so cuddly and sweet most of the time. Maybe she thought being extremely honest was being nice?

A brief period of silence fell over the table as the three remaining people who were still eating began to put the finishing touches on their meal. The one odd thing is that from time to time, Yukiko would lift her eyes from her plate before looking right back down. She'd been periodically glancing his direction since he had stuck up for Chie but with no conversation to distract him, Akihiko began to become annoyed. The final straw was when she actually started blushing a bit while looking at him. "Can I help you with something miss?"

Mitsuru gave an exasperated huff. "Just look at how you're dressed! Can you really blame anyone for starring?"

"I believe you and I have lost the right to criticize others for such things Mitsuru-san." Yukari had a different conclusion. She jabbed Akihiko in the side of his forehead. "What the hell was that for?"

"Would you put on a shirt already you idiot? The poor girl is..." she looked around and took on whisper, "she's pregnant, her body is going crazy with hormones right now."

The girl's face turned redder and she actually seemed to be mad at Yukari! "N-now hold on a minute! I have absolutely no interest in that man whatsoever and my hormones are perfectly in control thank you very much!"

The Featherman star held up her hands defensively, the last thing she wanted was to be on the receiving end of a Mitsuru level tongue lashing. "S-sorry, didn't think you'd be able to hear that," she mumbled. Akihiko gave a curt nod. "Good I'm glad to hear that. Don't worry, I have no interest in you either." Yukiko nodded right back and gave off a smile. It seemed that while the two brutally honest people offended others quite easily, the same did not happen when you put them together. "Don't misunderstand me though, Akihiko-san, I think you're a good person and you'll make a wonderful husband to Chie someday." This caused the two people in question to blush heavily. "Lady, you can't just go saying things like that out of nowhere!"

"Yukiko!" Chie was honestly starting to get annoyed, her friend kept not thinking about what she was saying and humiliating Chie with her comments! What was the expression? Even the Buddha lost patience when embarrassed a third time? Well she'd show her friend a thing or two...

Yukiko was off in a little world of her own. Now that the record was set straight, she could get right back to thinking about what she was musing about. Would it be fair to hubby to mention she'd also like him to change a bit for her? He worked so hard and he was already a complete adonis, perhaps she should just bring it up. Yes, sitting down and discussing it seemed to be the best option.

Suddenly she felt a sharp finger right inside of her deep navel and let out a yelp. Her whole body seemed to jump out of her seat and she came crashing back down on to the bench sending all of her soft mounds into a fit of jiggling. Her breasts nearly popped right out of her sundress and it was enough to make Koromaru leap off of her lap in a panic. "Hubby! Not. Right. Now. Laterrrr." She cooed to him like the verbal equivalent of a finger beckoning him towards the bedroom, as embarrassing as it was, her heart was fluttering.

"Hm? Did you say something Yuki?"

Yu was standing behind her with yet another plate piled high with fattening morsels balanced perfectly in his hand. In fact, judging by how high it was piled he must have gotten up a few minutes ago. She turned to see that the culprit was actually a very flustered Chie who had just recovered from the shock, slowly retracting her finger from her friend's belly button. If Chie had known THAT was going to happen, she would have controlled her temper a little bit better. All she had wanted to do was get back at Yukiko a little for embarrassing her but instead she had ended up flustering herself and several others at the table as well. Yukiko looked around the table growing increasingly more distraught as everyone looked down away from her gaze out of awkwardness. Even Rise's eyes were as wide as dinner plates. The girl couldn't help but look down to her lap and that's when she realized she couldn't feel that warm fuzzy weight resting near her tummy. Righteous anger replaced any self conscious feeling and she slowly rotated towards Chie who waved at her with an nervous smile. Yukiko returned the look with a sharp glare like the ones she gave Teddie when he brought up "scoring"

"Chie, you scared Koromaru away. That wasn't very nice." The usually confident girl could only gulp nervously. "Did something happen?" Yu asked as he resumed sitting next to her. The way Yu confidently swaggered over and pressed his tubby wife right against his body only served to worsen how flustered those at the table were getting.

"Yukiko-san your internal temperature has increased by several degrees. Is the human belly button that intimate of an area?" the robot was silenced by a smack from Labrys. "Geez louise we really gotta get a filter on you." Yukiko could honestly feel herself getting a bit indignant. She and her husband had sex? So what? The big blubber gut she was sporting was more than enough evidence of that.

The only one who was unaffected by the sense of awkwardness was Junpei. "Is that what you kids are into nowadays? Man you know I actually tried that once with my girlfriend and she-" Mitsuru loudly cleared a throat. "Iori, this is not appropriate conversation to be having at this time or any time. Please refrain from sharing tales of your *ahem* exploits."

Now even Yu was blushing hotly having pieced together what was going on. "I'm really really sorry Yukiko!" Chie stammered out. "I didn't know you were so sensitive there and...*oh* I'm making it worse aren't I?" A cold glare from her friend confirmed her doubts and now Yu was looking her over. "It's not your fault Chie," Yu suddenly said, surprising everyone. "It's mine. I just can't stop teasing my cute wife so she gets all wound up." And before she could react, he tickled her love handle making her start giggling uncontrollably. "*Hahahaha* hubby stop it! I'm serious!" She turned herself to scold him but he gave her a kiss right on the nose as soon as her head moved. Slowly the stunned red faces of the others began to morph into smiles. Yukiko jerked back after his second assault and tried to hide the smile on her own face. He saw his hand dart forward like a snake right towards her belly button and cradled her hands around it protectively but his true target was actually her right hand that held her wedding ring. He clasped his own hand around it and began to gently rub it between his fingers. Any remaining part of her flustered state disappeared and Yukiko could only gaze lovingly into her husband's eyes. When he brought it up to kiss it, she felt she could swoon right there.

Seeing the girl so bubbly and happy, it was hard to remember what they'd all been so worked up about just a minute ago. Fuuka even seemed to be off in a world of her own with a hand over her forehead. Whatever she was imagining, it must have been pretty intense.

"Oh my goodness, this puppy is so cute! I hadn't noticed till now but look how adorable he is!"

After being evicted from his previous spot, Koromaru had made his way to a new target. Someone who would lavish him with the same affection as Yukiko. That someone was Kanji although Koromaru may have miscalculated a bit as he was currently being doted on a bit too much for his tastes. "Who's a good boy? You are, yes you are." And past that point it just kind of devolved into babbling noises. Koromaru placed his paws on the boys chest and barked to get him to start the petting already and Kanji took the hint beginning to scritch and scratch behind his ears and down his neck. "This dog is so fluffy, I honestly can't even believe it! You guys have to try this, it's awesome!" Awesome was certainly how Koromaru was feeling, this kid certainly knew how to really dig his fingers in there. "Naoto! Pet him!" The detective nervously reached out a hand and placed it on the top of the dog and gently began to scratch. A small smile appeared on the girl's face, "he's very well behaved. And...very soft." Kanji began to furiously rub the dog's belly until he rolled over in his lap and Naoto couldn't help but join in. It was a very cute dog after all.

"Quite a lively group you have here," Mitsuru teased Yu. "Yeah. But I wouldn't have it any other way." Eventually even the bottomless pits in the group were completely satiated. Akihiko gave his firm a core a bit of a pat and stifled a belch in his fist. Chie pulled the rim of her jogging shorts down under her stuffed gut a bit more. "*Urp* happy!?" She glared at Akihiko with a bit of a smug sneer and slapped her tight gut wincing in pain afterwards and immediately regretting it. "It's a good start I suppose. Now let's see how you do when it isn't handed to you on a silver platter." Chie wanted to open her mouth to argue but all that came out was a pained moan and she got right to work massaging her gut.

Mitsuru couldn't help but be a little jealous. As the prestigious Kirijo heir, she couldn't be seen slouching with her belly pooching out. Instead, she had to sit up straight and try to discretely rub at her abdomen when no one was looking, letting out periodic puffs of air. "This is no good Mitsuru, this is no good at all," she scolded herself. "That was three burgers you ate today. Three!" Part of it was that she hadn't had to get up each time, every time she felt like having a little more, there was suddenly another calorie bomb sitting right in front of her, it made it all to easy to just take it for granted and keep on eating. She was sure whatever servant was doing it was just trying to be nice, but Mitsuru still found herself cursing them as her feast hit her all at once, dropping down like a lead weight right in her gut. Unbeknownst to her, idle snacking was starting to become a real issue for the poor overworked empress and if she wasn't so stuffed, her fingers would have easily brushed against the small layer of flab that now coated her once completely trim abdomen.

But fortunately, her and Chie were not alone. In a bit of a compromise between the tomboy's lazy slouching and the blue blood's straight posture, Yukiko leaned back a bit with a hand combining Mitsuru's occasional slow and gentle strokes with her athletic friend's constant rubbing and patting; it had the effect of making her look much more accustomed to this kind of indulgence than either of the others which to be fair, she was. Yu still had not let go of her hand even after her embarrassment had passed and continued to stroke it gently. "That's a lot of plates," he whispered to her.

Yukiko looked down to the table and that's when she noticed, there were four cleared plates of food in front of her. She had been wondering why he had gotten her a new one every time. It was so silly but she honestly felt an odd sense of pride bubbling up in her.

"Yeah..." she murmured. Mitsuru was quite happy to see someone so pleased with the cooking abilities of her staff and even forgot her own painful fullness for a moment. "Was everything to your liking Mrs. Amagi? Oh I'm sorry, I meant to ask was everything to both of your liking," she asked glancing meaningfully at the other woman's belly. Yukiko waved a hand over the remnants of her feast and giggled. "Oh absolutely," she blushed and leaned in a bit as if she were telling the other heiress about a juicy secret. "But I'm glad it's only for today, if I had this much food available for me whenever I wanted...oh I probably wouldn't fit through the doorway by the end of the month." Surprisingly, Yukari returned her smile. "Trust me, I know the feeling. Whenever Mitsuru and I would hang out at her place, I felt like I was being smothered to death." She looked around to make sure no one was looking and leaned in close so that only Yukiko could hear. "One time I spent the weekend over and when I got back I put on three whole pounds!"

Yukiko had to stifle an eye roll at that. She said it like it was some huge deal and the mother assumed that for her it probably was. "I probably gain that much every week if not more...but I shouldn't be so judgmental. I was like that too until I became a mama." Actually this whole group was being pretty understanding of her, probably because of how much her gut was growling beforehand or maybe Ken vouched for her, he was a good boy like that. The actress even said she was willing to give her some autographs, and Mitsuru had rubbed her belly and Labrys was a sweetheart of course. It was probably because they were all so mature and well lived, Yu's constant affection helped stave off the worst of the gossip but the snickering in the halls and whispering of "bloated cow" and "ditzy slut" could still be a little hurtful at times. Something dawned on Yukiko then, the older everyone got, the more normal her pregnancy would become.

She already felt so comfortable and loved but that feeling would only increase once her friends started having children of their own. Chie seemed to be heading down that path already. It would be so nice to have someone around "in the know" so to speak. Someone to just talk about their changing bodies and embarrassing little things she even felt weird telling Yu. Someone to rub bellies with, gently of course, oh they could even breast feed together! And then when the others started to join in...

Bonding over the joys of motherhood together...she could hardly wait. And by then even the shrews at school would start having husbands and children to take care of so they'd have no time or energy to bully. And she'd be able to help her friends so much with her experience, instead of everyone helping her all the time it would be the other way around! "Everyone here is so good at making others feel like they belong, I think Labrys will be in good hands,"

She looked towards Labrys for the first time in awhile, it was clear that while Labrys was enjoying herself, she was still a bit detached only really speaking when spoken to and overall having her head in the clouds. "I don't have to wait to help my friends," Yukiko thought to herself with a smirk. She beckoned Yukari and Mitsuru forth and began to whisper to them. "My helmet? Sure I have it right here but why...oh. You know that's not a bad idea actually."

Yukari stood up and made her way around the table while Mitsuru clinked her glass again. "If I may have everyone's attention please," her voice carried such an air of authority that it even got Kanji to stop doting on Koromaru for a minute. "I believe it is time to officially induct our newest member into the Shadow Operatives." Labrys looked up from twiddling her thumbs in astonishment, a faint blush visible on her cheeks. "O-oh no that's okay you all don't need to make a big fuss about me. We can just do it back at HQ."

"Aw come on you don't really mean that."

"Sister, do not be so modest, the sign clearly says the party is for you."

"Yeah I know but..." Yukiko clapped her hands together making Labrys jump a little. "You don't have to be embarrassed, I mean you did save everyone after all. In fact, you were almost like a super hero." Before Labrys could ask what she meant, she felt the world go black for a brief instant and something press around her head. "A real paragon of justice. Come forth to protect the innocent, Feather Starling!" Mitsuru snapped her fingers and immediately a maid brought forth a mirror to present the android with.

The obscuring mask plus the long silver black hair that flowing down her back made her feel like some sort of masked biker vigilante. She...really liked it actually. "I knew it would look great on you! You are a hero after all." Yukari brought her hand to her chin in thought. "Hmmm not bad, I think white would be more your color though," but Labrys was too busy striking stylish poses in front of the mirror to pay attention. "It is pretty sweet ain't it? Student council president by day, hero by night like a bullet of justice streaking across the sky sending fear into the hearts of evil doers everywhere." The girl deployed her metallic wings and brought her hand around herself in a circle before thrusting it down near her legs, her other hand placing itself on the hilt of her axe.

"Wow you look so platonically gorgeous Labby-chan! You're just like a real Flighty Roaring Flower Changer!"

"Dude we've seen like fifty episodes of this show, how can you still not get the title right?"

Labrys was like a kid in a candy store jumping up and down. "Mitsuru-san! Mitsuru-san can I really get my own costume?"

"If you're good." Labrys didn't know what about the costume was making her so giddy, but hell if it wasn't doing a great job at it.

"I do need that helmet back though, it comes out of my paycheck if it gets lost."

"Yo pass it over here!" Akihiko shouted. Labrys gladly obliged and the boxer put the gaudy pink helmet atop his own head. "Hmmm yeah this is what I've been looking for. Perfect for low visibility training. It's a little small though..." He tossed it to Chie who despite her sluggish state was able to catch it perfectly much to his satisfaction. "Here, I think you'll get more use out of it."

"What the...? Hey! Akihiko you moron! Don't go giving my stuff away without my permission! Now could I please have that-" A sudden barking interrupted her ranting and a dread settled in her stomach. "Dwoos the cute wittle puppy want a cool helmet? Yes he dwoos, yes he dwoos," and Chie felt Kanji pluck the helmet right off of her head and crown Koromaru the new Feather Pink. "Now Koromaru, be a good boy and give Yukari back her helmet." If dog's could smile, Koromaru would be wearing a smirk full of mischief, taking off across the food court.

"Bad dog! Ooooh when I get my hands on you..." Yukari took off at a speed that would make even Chie blush. "I needed a post meal workout anyway," and he too got up with his apprentice trying her best to keep up with him on a stuffed tummy. "I should probably help, he is my dog technically." A fuzzy blur whizzed past him dragging a very irate youth with it. "Teddie, what the hell are you doing!?"

"Don't worry Yuka-chan! Your knight is coming! With bait!"

"I thought I told you to behave yourself you naughty bear, you must have 'rubbed off' on Koromaru when you were petting him earlier." And with that Aigis was in pursuit with her sister following closely behind. Even with all that help, it still took a good fifteen minutes to finally corner Koromaru. With the dog dodging and weaving all around them, between their feet, over and even on their heads and under and around the tables it was like the world's silliest soccer match. Ken couldn't help but laugh when Kanji tried to tackle him on the slide only for the dog to hop sideways.

The dog's energy was infectious and it was impossible not to start having fun. Even Yukari's periodic shouts of "you just wait you mutt!" became more and more good humored as the chase went on. "Are you sure this will work Naoto?" They had finally managed to corner the beast on top of one of the tables. He was surrounded on all sides but the second anyone made a move he would bolt like he had so many times now. "Positive." While the helmet limited visibility, Koromaru's other senses were so sharp that it didn't really matter. But what if they could turn his sharp senses and instincts against him? If the two robotic sisters could output a frequency at a high enough pitch that it only affected Koromaru and they each stood at opposite ends of the table, it would disorient him and if they briefly flashed lights when they started, Koromaru wouldn't be able to see the signal due to the helmet! It was the perfect plan all communicated in writing of course.

Everything was going so so perfectly until the critical moment. All someone had to do was grab him but that's where the error came in. Everyone wanted to be the one who could say, they caught Koromaru so all the plan amounted to was four young men and two girls all rubbing their heads in pain with Koromaru getting away yet again. "I suppose I should have accounted for human error," she was surprised that Kanji wasn't one of the ones who had jumped in and when she asked why he simply replied, "I didn't want it to end just yet, I'm having way too much fun here!" Somehow he and Ken ended up looking the most mature out of everyone there.

"You couldn't have just let me grab it!? It's my helmet you know!"

"I thought it was finder's keepers," Akihiko mumbled to himself earning a glare from Yukari. "You should be more grateful we're even helping you at all, I mean it is your helmet like you said."

"What did I tell you about whining? Honestly."

"Argue later! He's getting away!" After many dives, grab attempts and other failed plans, they had finally finally cornered him for what felt like the final time. His panting could be seen inside the helmet making Yukari groan in annoyance. She was going to have to air it out for weeks after this! Koromaru growled a bit, he was backed up against the fence and everyone was spaced far too tightly together to run between their legs without getting scooped up anymore, besides he could tell this game had run its course so might as well go out with a bang.

"Alright boy, that was fun and all but now I think it's time to..." the moment Ken outstretched his hand, Koromaru raced up it like a rocket using the boy's shoulder as a spring board. "Uwaaah!?" he heard behind him but he had no time to pause using Kanji as his next stepping stone. Before anyone knew what had happened he was soaring through the air.

"I got him." What he hadn't been expecting was Aigis jumping up to catch him with a precision far above that of a normal human. But luckily for him, he wasn't the average dog. He twisted sideways through her grip right in between her arms and swore he could hear a surprised gasp come from the robot. But luckily Junpei had a plan, he would use Aigis' head as a jumping off point of his own and then-

"Got you."

A silver figure came in out of nowhere and gripped the dog and pulled the helmet right off of him. "I was wondering what was taking so long, so I thought I'd lend a hand." Yukiko's happy clapping could be heard across the food court but many of the others couldn't help but feel dissatisfied with the outcome. They had spent all that time chasing the dog around only for someone who wasn't even a part of it to take the win at the last minute? "T-thanks," Yukari muttered not seeming particularly grateful much to Yu's confusion. Koromaru seemed kind of bummed at the ending as well.

"You know...I'd be up for another round, if all of you are that is." A smattering of "alrights" and "sounds good" met Junpei's proposal as well as a happy bark from Koromaru who Yu gently placed down. "Okay but you have to use something else besides my helmet," Yukari said, taking it back with faux annoyance. As much fun as that was, she should probably stop, Junpei and Akihiko may be able to run around like children without any embarrassment but she had to have some standards for herself.

"Alright, and with all of us working together, we're bound to win for sure." The Investigation Team looked to each other awkwardly unsure of how to tell their leader what they were all thinking. "Senpai...maybe you should sit this one out. Not that we don't appreciate your help of course!"

"Yeah, we know how you like to go right for the jugular on things and maybe that's not the best approach to a game like this." Yu was completely baffled. "But if you have me on your team you'll win in no time."

"That's the problem!" they all wanted to yell at him but they weren't sure how to go about it without being rude. Seeing their still reluctant looks he nodded his head. "Well alright, but call me if you need help," but they ran off before he could even finish his sentence. Yukari had to stifle a laugh watching the boy be utterly puzzled by something for the first time she had seen him. "What's the matter, hubby?" He shook his head and sat back down at the table. "They didn't want my help." Mitsuru raised a brow at this. "But we all saw how quickly you completed the objective, what reason could they possibly have to not want your help? Perhaps they're more exhausted than I thought..."

Yukari was trying to hold back a fit of laughter. "You guys are too perfect for your own good sometimes. Don't you know that winning all the time isn't any fun?" She couldn't hold it in anymore when Mitsuru, Yu, and Yukiko all looked at her incredulously.

After a moment, Yukiko brought a finger to her lips. "Maybe...they're just feel that way because they couldn't do it? There's this story about a fox and some grapes..." Yukari could only gape in shock while Mitsuru and the girl's husband began to nod more and more while she told the fable. "Yes, I suppose that does make sense. Certainly more than intentionally handicapping yourself."

"I don't think they were doing it on purpose, maybe they've tricked themselves somehow?" Yukari just groaned in annoyance, watching these three try to understand this concept was like watching aliens try to understand why people walked dogs or something. She was honestly thinking about jumping back into the fray, even Fuuka had joined in once they started playing fetch. But then she saw Mitsuru look around furtively. "I'm glad that ones such as you have found love in each other. Too many people simply don't understand the importance of excellence, I'm sure your child will grow up to be an outstanding young man. Can I...could I perhaps...say hello again? Just for a bit of course." A light dusting of blush appeared on her cheeks when she asked and if Yukari didn't know any better, she'd swear Mitsuru actually sounded nervous. "Of course Kirijo-san, he's always happy to see you."

It took Yukari a moment to realize "saying hi" meant placing a hand on the young mother's belly and starting to rub. "We just ate a big meal so he might be a bit sleepy today."

"That's quite alright. I'm sure he's very comfortable, but oh my you're certainly quite warm. This is normal, yes?"

"He's been keeping his mama nice and toasty since the beginning. I like it though, it feels like we're snuggling under a blanket together." Yukari gave off an "aww" at that thought. "It's very fitting I think," Mitsuru continued. "It certainly feels like you're just brimming with life." The woman gave Yukiko a firm pat right on the top of her tummy. "A brand new life and it all begins right here."

The regal woman paused a bit, hoping what she just said wasn't too odd but Yukiko looked pleased as punch at her remark. "It really is beautiful isn't it?" Yes beautiful was the perfect way to describe it in Mitsuru's opinion, not only that but it was so soft and inviting like it was just begging to be rubbed. It was like the baby was sharing the contentment he made his mother feel right into Mitsuru's fingertips, it was like she always imagined it would be. "When one of the servants got pregnant...I was always so tempted to give them my well wishes but father said it was unbecoming of a lady to be so forward and would stop me before I got the chance." Mitsuru gave off the closest thing Yukari had ever seen to a pout on her pretty face. "Not even if I asked politely."

"That's just not right! I'm terribly sorry to hear that Kirijo-san. But you can give my baby all the well wishes you want." Mitsuru gladly took her up on that and even got a kick or two out of the little bundle of joy. Despite everything though, Mitsuru still subconsciously hesitated a bit, she didn't really dig in deep with her rubbing with her palm or go much beyond her fingers at all really, not like Yu who really got in there when he'd belly rub even before his preferences had come to light, even back when she was a skinny mini. Hubby's style was rubbing in deep slow circles trying to cover as much as he could, but Mitsuru had a habit of periodically giving her tummy a nice double pat, like the woman was telling her what a fine job as a mama she was doing. Naoto was still so shy when she would do it but still couldn't help herself, Rise loved to almost "weight it" with her hands and was always willing to give teasing tickle, Chie didn't rub too much but when she did she'd always get in little poke matches with the baby.

"I wonder what kind of belly rubber Yukari is? Or Ai," She giggled quietly to herself. "I never thought I'd be thinking about something like this."

"Wow senpai, I never knew you were so passionate about motherhood." Mitsuru paused in her rubbing and looked at Yukari like she couldn't believe she'd say something like that. "Of course, children are the future after all. With even our government encouraging child birth, I would say it's our civic dut-"

"You can just say you like to rub pregnant bellies senpai, you don't need to dress everything up like that." Yukari took some amount of pride in the fact she was probably the only one who could turn Mitsuru's face red and get her to stammer a bit. It was like a testament to how close they were. That smugness was quickly wiped out, however. "Would you like to rub my tummy too, Yukari-san?"

"W-well *uh* t-that's I don't know...is it really okay? I'd feel a little weird if...you know." Yukiko nodded. "I don't know about 'civic duty' but it makes me happy when people do it. Like, they wouldn't do it if I wasn't really showing how well the baby is growing and how healthy he is so it tells me people notice and people care. And I want those positive feelings to flow to my baby. That probably sounds a bit odd..."

Yukari thought she would say something to reassure Yukiko that she agreed with her sentiment but her husband was faster. He gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek and wrapped his arms around her. "Yuki hasn't complained once you know. About any aspect of her pregnancy. So believe me when I say she'd love for you to wish our baby well even if that means touching her belly to do it." Yukiko slapped at Yu's shoulders lightly. "Oh stop. I'm sure I've complained about something. I don't like how sweaty I get sometimes and *uh* my feet hurt a little after a long day and *um*" the girl pressed a lip to her chin in thought thinking as hard as she could about possible complaints which made Yukari laugh. Notably she hadn't mentioned the large amount of weight she put on which was usually at the top of the list for any growing mama.

But god they looked so happy together. He gave her another kiss and the pudgy girl looked like she was trying her best not to melt into a giggly flustered puddle. And that pregnancy glow made her so bright and sunny despite her pale skin and dark hair. Honestly, even the fat kind of...suited her almost? Like the black haired girl would make Yukari and the rest of SEES a tray of cookies if she asked. Actually with that sundress on, she looked more like a cookies and lemonade type of mom. Yukari shook her head, she was getting distracted. Tentatively, she reached out and pressed her open palm on the girl's tummy. "Hey...you. How's it going in there ahaha...ha."

"You're pressing in too much, Yukari and your rubbing form is all wrong. Don't go in such tight circles."

"Senpai, you literally just said you didn't get to do this until recently." Yukiko insisted that she didn't mind but she did subtly move the other girl's hand on top of the swell. Once she did that, Yukari began to rub like she was stroking the baby on its' head. It seemed she was more of an overhand rubber! "Hey, Yukiko I know what you said about good feelings and all but doesn't this feel weird? Like at all? I can stop anytime."

"Well it tickles a bit but it's not really 'my' tummy anymore. It's more like a baby carriage." An epiphany suddenly hit the girl and she looked towards her husband. "Hubby, can we go out sometime next week and go shopping? We haven't actually gotten a carriage yet." Yu nodded. "We can get a stroller too if you want. One that lets people see his face so they can tickle under his chin." His wife looked like she was about to burst with joy at the thought and Yukari felt her heart moved greatly towards the younger woman. "I think you'll be a great mom, Yukiko-san."

"O-oh. Thank you. Thank you...very much. *Um* would you like to listen to his heartbeat? Everyone else is a bit preoccupied so I think it might be okay if you really wanted to."

Yukari had to decline, that was probably a bit too forward even to someone who didn't really mind. Mitsuru however was a little more reluctant, "It's just a brief listen," she mumbled to herself. "Is it really so crass? Oh if only the maids weren't here." Yukiko gave an understanding nod but she still looked a smidge disappointed but it faded when Yu took the initiative. "Mitsuru-san, how often do you get to see pregnant women in your line of work?"

"W-well never I suppose but I don't see what that has to do with anything."

"When will you ever get the chance to hear a real baby's gentle heartbeat? Do you really want to miss out on that?" Mitsuru opened and closed her mouth before smirking. "No I suppose I don't." And with that, she knelt down and pressed her ear firmly against the girl's belly making sure to keep it as high up as possible. After a few seconds of adjusting, she immediately felt glad that she did it. A slow rhythmic thumping met her ears and she could swear she felt it pulse within her ears, but of course she knew that was impossible. Not even the mother could feel the baby's heartbeat after all.

...

It was still nice to think about though.

"Is my baby boy nice and relaxed?" At last, Mitsuru detached her ear from the girl's stomach. "Yes. It's strong but at the same time there's a calmness behind that strength, Healthy, yes that's the word I would use. You're baby appears quite healthy." Yukiko smiled and looked down while Yu started rubbing. "You know, that's how I'd describe it too. And the doctor, and your father and Rise and Nanako and-" Yukiko waved her hand. "I get it, I get it. But...thank you hubby. And thanks for always doing it for me."

"If Mitsuru had refused, I would have..." Yukiko pressed a finger to his lips. "I know." And they kissed once again. Yukari let out a coo. Listening to the baby's heart beat while his wife waited with eager anticipation? Damn that was cute. It was honestly so cute she could hardly stand it.

"Alright, alright fine. Move over Mitsuru," Yukari said with faux exasperation. If even her uptight friend was doing it, there wasn't really any reason not to. Yukiko gave off a happy titter when she pressed her ear against her tummy which made her feel even better about doing it. Yukiko could hardly believe it, THE Feather Pink wanted to check on her baby! She was having trouble sitting still. However, Yukari probably should have expected how much her face mushed into the marshmellow gut the mother was sporting. "Y-yukari-san that t-tickles hahahaha! D-don't press in like that!" The starlet would have to remember that this woman was soft and doughy enough to lose half a finger in. But even under all of that, there was the baby just resting soundly in there. "Peaceful..." she whispered almost to herself.

"Excuse me?"

"He's very peaceful," the girl almost seemed on the verge of tears. "Sorry, it's just...I'm happy you both love your kid so much."

"Here, let me give you that autograph you wanted. Mitsuru do you have like a pen or something?" Her friend immediately pulled out a writing utensil and a notepad. "You don't?" Yukari gave a roll of her eyes. "No I forget them in my other costume." When Mitsuru nodded in understanding, Yukari had to roll them again. What a dork.

Despite being a Featherman, she hadn't really done a major convention yet so her autograph technique was a little underdeveloped. She thought long and hard about what to write, she didn't just want to give her a name and something generic. She was worried the girl might get annoyed at waiting, but actually she only got more and more excited.

For a second she thought about teasing a little and putting down "to my biggest fan" but thought better of it. Suddenly it came to her. "Two parter," she said with a smirk. "Keep that good heart of yours and you'll always be a Featherman - Yukari Takeba (Feather Pink)" she wrote. The younger girl seemed a bit confused trying to parse what she meant before it dawned on her. "Are you saying that I'm a Featherman too?"

"Of course, as long as you take care of those who are important to you and stay on the side of good, that's all that really matters. Everyone's a Featherman in their own way." Mitsuru smiled as wide as Yukiko did in that moment. She knew that had been what her friend was trying to get across in her performance and in her interviews. Such an easily digestible message, it was really no wonder why she was chosen as Feather Pink. "You really have changed, Yukari."

"O-oh well you know just doing my part of what we all promised is all." A thumbs up was thrust right in her face and Yukiko nodded firmly. "I will not let you down. No evil shall ever flourish in our home! Right hubby."

"Right."

"Well in that case, how about a picture?" Yukiko looked about ready to start screaming her head off. "You too leader." Yu looked surprised which made Yukari snort in derision. "Well yeah, I mean you are the big hero so it would be weird if you weren't in the picture. Plus you know," she gestured her head towards his wife. "I...I think the picture would be much better with all of us in it," and Yu understood immediately. Mitsuru took their picture with Yukiko right in the middle, one of her idols placing an arm over her shoulder and her loving husband cradling her tummy all the while she wore a smile that looked like it was about to explode off her face. It was enough to distract one young man from the game but even though there were three people, Junpei was only focused on two of them.

That long hair that flowed down her back like a river, that flawless pale skin, creamy and soft and just begging to be stroked, the way she still looked stunning even in something as simple as a sundress or a smock, it was clear that this Yu Amagi had fantastic taste in women. After the picture, his wife even did that cute thing girls do where they lock their fingers behind your head and pull you down for a kiss except in their case that soft baby belly was nestled right between them. He could see the sunlight glimmering off the wedding ring too, damn he was getting nervous. But this high school kid nutted up and did it so that meant for him there was no excuse. But then again...they clearly had the same taste in women, give or take a few pounds, and he wanted it to go perfectly so maybe asking for pointers wouldn't be a bad idea.

"If you want an autograph of your own, I'm sure Yukari would be glad to give it to you." Fuuka stepped up behind him like a ghost causing him to nearly jump out of his skin. "Uwaaah!? Fuuka! Don't sneak up on people like that!" The navigator bowed her head in apology, people always accused her of sneaking up on them but it's not like she was trying to. Was she really that quiet? "Well whatever. I wasn't doing anything important anyway, just...thinking a bit." Fuuka followed the path of his eyes and realized something. "Oh. You were looking at them. They're very cute aren't they?" Yukiko had begun trying to stand up with Yu there to attend to her, not rushing his wide baby laden wife in the slightest. "Were you thinking about how they met too?" Now this Junpei hadn't been expecting to hear. "What?"

"I remember reading that she's an innkeeper. I bet she was sweeping the floor one day when he came right into her life. I bet he was an apprentice chef at the inn, and she was the owner, she took a tumble while doing her usual chores but the mysterious stoic servant was there to catch her!"

"She had been sweeping the lobby, but he swept her off her feet and from there begin a romance that became the talk of the town!" Junpei looked at his friend with great concern, it seemed like she was getting into those trashy romance novels again. "I bet they cook together all the time now too, there's nothing more romantic than a young couple cooking together," at this she let out a deep longing sigh that made Junpei pat her on the shoulder.

The Shadow Operatives weren't the only ones who were lost in their own thoughts. She was so quiet that it was hard to notice, but Rise of all people had broken off from the rest of the group and seemed to be in deep concentration about something. She was drumming her fingers on the table periodically and she seemed to be humming something. Yu didn't normally like to bother people when they were deep in thought, but he was just too curious.

Sho was like a hurricane, never letting up for even an instant, blows constantly buffeting Yu and not giving him a second to breathe but her senpai had managed to take it all and give it right back. "I can take whatever you can dish out...no no no that's not what he's trying to say." After Kagutsuchi had met his end, Rise had been able to watch the final battle in another "tab" and it was one of the most exhilarating things she'd ever seen in her life. It would be a total waste if such a passionate battle was forgotten by time, so what else could she do but try to immortalize the clash in the best way she knew how, through song.

When Yu had managed to get a couple of hits in, Sho actually went on the defensive. His cautious almost analytical fighting was a complete contrast to how he fought before, almost like he had decided to take a page out of Minazuki's book. When he had caught Yu's blade in between his own and flipped it up in the air, she had thought that was the end. But senpai was faster, getting in too close for Sho to do anything and giving him a clean uppercut.

But was that really necessary? She knew what Yu was capable of; he could have easily flew back and buffeted him from afar with magic, lord knows there were plenty of blasts and spells whizzing around in that battle, but he had gotten right up in there which was something Sho absolutely was not prepared for, as seen by how he'd been sent flying across the stage. When he sprung back up, he seemed even more ecstatic than he already was, that Yu was willing to truly scrap with him. The way that battle had ended, with their two Persona clashing together one black as night and the other pure and white, they both had charged a blast in their hands and slammed them against each other until Yu's power had won out. Like senpai wanted to make the victory definitive and final, like he wanted Sho to have no excuse to avoid doing what came next? And what came next?

"Break out of your head," she clapped her hands together. That was it, that was exactly it! That's what he'd been trying so hard to get across with every punch, every attack! Every single sword strike was like a plea to Sho to remember the love for others buried deep down in his heart. It was like a debate waged through battle! "It's time to take a step up, no more cruising alone." She had the perfect tune to go with it too. One of the perks of being a solo artist is that sometimes, she was allowed to be quite involved with the song writing process, she used to get bullied into doing whatever the execs and writing committees wanted but she wasn't the same old Risette anymore. She'd make sure the message she wanted to get across got put in there.

"But I think it would only be fair if Sho's side of the argument got represented too. But senpai is so gentle and kind, and Sho is so harsh and violent. Maybe it needs to be a duet? A male and a female. Yes that would help bring out the duality of the piece even more." She began to furiously scribble notes to herself. This was going to be excellent.

"What's up Rise?" The idol was removed from her thoughts by Yu with a curious looking Yukiko standing right behind him. "Oh senpai...s just the people I wanted to see." She shot up from her seat and began to pace about the two taking wide yet delicate steps. Her hands were behind her back and she was clearly holding something in them. "I've got something here for you. Want to guess what it is?"

"Is it my birthday present?" Rise put her hands on her hips in a pout. How was he so good at seeing right through her? But then she smirked a bit. "Yes but you'll never guess what it is exactly until you open it. Soooo open it!" She thrust out the package in front of her and smiled when he took it and actually began to tear off the wrapping paper. "Sorry this took so long to get to you but I think you're going to love it."

"It's a CD," Yukiko said in awe. "Rise...did you make an album for us?" Their friend looked pleased as punch getting to explain her gift in detail. "Wellllll...yes. But! I'm definitely going to be taking some of these around the country on my next tour so it's kind of like a sneak peak. Some of these are special mixes that only you guys will get to hear, I had a free evening or five so I just went down to the recording studio and got to work." The young couple could only gaze at her in gratitude. "Aw come on, it wasn't that big of a deal. I just started thinking about our adventures over the past year and the lyrics just came to me. All the songs are based off of the things I learned and the people I met. Two of them are even about you Yu-senpai." The CD had come with a track list and Yu could only hope the one "Heartbeat Heartbreak" had nothing to do with him.

"I like to think of it as a photo album only I can make. And this way, in the future, you two can 'flip through it' with your son. And if there's one you really like, I can...well I could sing it at your wedding."

"You'd do that for us?"

"Of course! And I'll do it for everyone else when they get married too but right now it's your turn to have the spotlight. So happy belated birthday senpai and good luck with your wedding!" She exhaled in relief, like she had been planning how to make that announcement for weeks. But she bounced back to her peppy self immediately as Rise was wont to do. "I can sing at the wedding though right? Like your parents would be okay with that?" Now it was Yukiko's turn to start beaming. "I actually asked them about it after Yu's birthday party, when you made that wonderful little dance number. The reception is pretty open to discretion for hubby and I, so we discussed it and thought you'd be perfect." Yu gave Rise a nod. "If you're up for it, we'd be happy to have you."

"Geez sometimes it's like you know me better than I know myself but I guess that's what good friends are for. Ooooh I love you guys so much!" And she flung her arms around Yu with her usual Teddie like enthusiasm but this time, Yukiko was pulled along for the ride. When they pulled apart, Yukiko was looking at her with a knowing expression. "I can't wait to return the favor when your own wedding comes, our inn is the perfect place for a reception oh or a honeymoon." The usually forward girl was left blushing at that statement but recovered quickly. "Well let's not get too ahead of ourselves Yuki."

"Oh you're absolutely right! We have to plan for Chie's wedding first!" The other two decided to just let that one go, and Rise actually took comfort in it. It would be nice to have someone to turn to when the time eventually came. Yu put the CD in his breast pocket assuring Rise they'd listen to it together as soon as possible and they both thanked her deeply. "I'm the one who should be thanking all of you guys, everyone I mean. They've given me such a deeper insight into who I am and what I want to do."

"And I'm sure that'll show in my art."

Eventually, the rowdier group settled down and conversation resumed. The topics shifted as they usually did and everyone broke off into their own little groups. Naoto lectured Ken, Fuuka answered Yosuke's questions about college, Rise and Yukari bonded over the celebrity life style and Kanji and Koromaru were nearly inseparable. "So Mitsuru-san, you *uh* seeing anyone?" Yukari and Fuuka whipped their heads around so fast that the Investigation Team swore they were going to pop off. Was this idiot wage slave really trying to make a pass at Mitsuru? But his near colossal blunder was cushioned by one Aigis. "Yes Mitsuru-san, I have been wondering that myself. You seemed quite interested in speaking to the newly weds." Mitsuru seemed to give her answer a lot of thought before eventually speaking. "I would be lying if I said the thought wasn't pleasing, but first I would need to find someone worthy."

"Yes, I once danced with the sun, but now it seems all that's left on this Earth are embers," she mused to herself. But she'd move on someday and find someone new, that's what he would have wanted after all. "So you're 'on the market' as they say."

"In the market, Aigis and yes I suppose I am. I had taken a long break but in light of recent events, perhaps it's time to start looking again. I feel a newfound enthusiasm." Yukari was...less surprised to hear that than she thought she would be. Primarily because she was getting those same urges. "I see, then I will do my best to assist you." Mitsuru nodded her head, not really listening, that was probably going to be something she'd have to put a stop to eventually but Aigis had a habit of either being extremely useful, infuriating, or both, best to see which one this was before making any decisions.

Eventually though, there was one girl who came to stand apart from the others, taking in the sight of the peaceful town and letting the wind blow through her long silver hair.

"Enjoying the view?"

"Oh! Yu-kun! Yeah, I guess I was. It's the first time I've really been able to drink it all in ya know? There's really been a lot of firsts for me lately and if I'd stayed in my shell, I'd never have got to experience any of 'em." The two looked down to the rest of the group, it was like age and status didn't matter at all, right now they were all just friends having a good time. "I don't know about the Shadow Operatives but I know it's exactly the same with my team. But now that you've started, it's going to be hard to stop." Labrys giggled at that. "I don't wanna stop though, I wanna keep on connecting and growing and improving myself. And...I'm sure Sho feels the same." The outgoing girl became pensive and bit her lip. "I think after all this, I'm going to go see my mom."

"The base for my personality I mean," she clarified when Yu looked a bit confused. "I want to thank her for giving me this life of mine. And everything that makes me, me. She's...not around anymore, but that don't matter. I'm gonna tell her all about you guys and my hopes and my dreams and all that other stuff."

"I think she'd be very proud of you."

"You always say the cheesiest things, but somehow that makes em even better cause it means you're speaking from the heart. Your cute wife's kinda like that too." She waved over to Yukiko who cheerily waved right back, the android running her fingers through the locks of hair around her ears in a manner very reminiscent of her pregnant friend. "And someday, I'm gonna be there for someone like you two were there for me when I needed it most and I'll be saying these same hokey lines too. But I've got a lotta learning to do in the meantime."

"I think you're closer than you realize Labrys, you've made so much progress already."

"And I'll have Mitsuru and my sister to hold me accountable if I ever start straying just like you have everyone here. It's a little embarrassing but...I'm glad I got to be a hero."

"There's no shame in that, but being a hero isn't a one and done thing. Sometimes being a hero is as simple as giving someone an ear." Labrys gave him a light punch on the shoulder and he gave her one right back. "When I have a daughter, I want her to be like you." Labrys blushed, she wanted to yell at him for saying something like that, but for some reason the only reaction she could muster was a happy smile. "I can't wait to meet her."

When Yu went to rejoin the rest of the group he suddenly felt an arm grabbed Yu by the shoulder and pulled him in close. "Sup dude? Couldn't help but overhear some of that stuff you were saying about being a hero. So, could you lend 'ol Junpei an ear?" The grey haired boy was at a loss for words, had they even spoken once before this? But it wasn't like him to turn down a request for help no matter how odd, he was the guy who killed monster tables for their wood after all. "Sure go ahead. What's on your mind?"

"'What's on your mind' you sound like a therapist or something but I guess that's exactly what I'm looking for right now anyway." Honestly it was pretty difficult to remember this kid was actually younger than him. He was so tall and he carried himself with such confidence, not to mention his sharp sense of dress. He looked like a young up and coming director for some firm, not a high school kid soon to be inn keeper, but it really made him seem like he had his life together. "So that wife of yours she's *uh* she seems pretty nice. Soft spoken, prefers being indoors, does she like to paint?"

"Not painting specifically but she's always enjoyed decorating. Probably gets it from her dad," Yu chuckled like he was sharing a private joke with himself. Junpei asked a few more questions like that and Yu gave him an answer every time, part of him wanted Yu to lose patience and ask him flat out what was on his mind but the patient youth seemed to be willing to wait as long as it took.

It started to get a bit ridiculous. "So *uh* natural grey or do you dye it?" That was the first time in the conversation that Yu got visibly annoyed. "Silver," he quickly corrected. "R-right. My bad hahaha...haaa." It was like if he actually asked, that would be like saying he was going to do it, and then he'd have to do it but eventually he decided to nut up, for her, for Chidori. "You seem like you have things figured out, you got a sweet gig, loving wife, baby on the way so you seem like a good person to ask, that is *er* how do you *uh* pop the question?"

"There's this girl who I've liked for a long time and I've been rolling it around in my head for weeks now, I've even started dreaming about doing it. I just need some advice, man. I don't wanna screw this up."

"Sounds like a wonderful girl if you're this certain." Junpei lowered the brim of his hat and gained a big grin. "Oh man she's the best. She's the only girl I've ever met who doesn't always treat me like a punchline, she listens to what I have to say, and she always seems so happy to see me. She learned how to cook for me you know? Isn't that amazing? Man she was freaking terrible when we first started dating hahaha!"

"Well there you go, you already have everything you need." Junpei was stunned, he had asked for help and all he was getting was...nothing! "H-hey wait hold on. That's it? I thought you were supposed to be like a genius or something with the way Mitsuru-senpai's been talking you up. If I wanted to hear 'just be yourself bro' I would have asked one of my coworkers on the baseball field." The second Junpei calmed down he immediately started rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry, I shouldn't blow up at you like that. I'm just- no you know what, there's no excuse. Sorry man." But Yu was just standing there as unfazed as ever. "Have you asked her how she wants to be proposed to?" The man's jaw flung itself open, "that's something you can do? Man I didn't even think of that!"

"Of course, if you already know the answer then you don't really need to. I didn't and I don't think you do either." Junpei squatted down with his hands clasped together in front of his face, but to his surprise, Yu squatted down right along with him. "Just think of it like you're telling this girl that you love her and you want to spend the rest of your life with her. I'm sure you've done something like that before," the scruffy man chuckled a bit. "Well when you put it like that, it sounds like the easiest thing in the world. Even I can do something that simple." And with that, he hopped to his feet and pumped both of his arms. "No wonder that idol was so starstruck over you. Although she did say I was the second funniest guy she knew so I've got that going for me." Yu didn't have the heart to tell him that Rise probably didn't mean that as a compliment. But even if he did, he seemed like the type of guy who even if he was hurt, he'd be right back in the game. "I do have one piece of advice though," he said making Junpei turn around. "Make sure you go over your speech a little beforehand. You want her to feel like you've thought long and hard about this and that you have no hesitation or doubt. She'll really like it."

"Dude I didn't need you to tell me that! This is gonna be the first time this guy isn't flying by the seat of his pants!" And just like that, he was back to his usual cheerful self, but why wouldn't he be? He had an actual game plan now and with his nerves gone he could start thinking logically. As long as his feelings got across, he was sure she'd accept. They were basically married already after all. "You should charge money for this gig, you'd probably be a millionaire by now."

"I thought about it actually, but then I realized I'd feel better if I could do it for free. Oh post proposal sex is amazing by the way so look forward to that." The easygoing man nearly choked on his gum, this kid really did have a leg up on life!

Out of the corner of his eye, Yu caught Labrys watching him. When she realized he had noticed, she smiled and gave him a nod.

Like all good things though, the party eventually had to come to an end. It started with Yu checking his phone, he nudged Yukiko who was in the middle of a pleasant belly rub from Fuuka. "It's 5:45, we should probably get going to Dojima's." His fiance let out a gasp, "oh you're right! I'm sorry Fuuka-san but I really must be going." In her hurry, Yukiko forgot just how weight she was now and ended up right back on her bottom, but luckily the green haired girl was a helpful sort and assisted her in rising to her feet. "It's no problem. I should probably be getting back too since I have a lab in the morning. It was very nice meeting you though." At that instant, Mitsuru snapped her fingers and the assorted maids began to clean up all traces of the party. "I should probably do my second baggage check to make sure I have absolutely everything I need for tomorrow," Naoto said.

"I didn't know Dojima-san got today off, guess it's because the case has been solved?" Yu nodded. "Yeah we talked about it weeks ago, a nice family dinner." Even though Yukiko had been there for setting the date, she could still feel her heart beat a little faster. If it wasn't for meeting Labrys and the others, this would have been the highlight of her week by far. "Hey, Mitsuru-san, we have some part time workers who could help...out..." when Yosuke turned around, he saw Mitsuru's fleet of maids had already cleaned up everything; it was like the party had never happened at all. "Yes I do believe it is time things came to a close. Thank you all once again for your help in resolving this incident, and you can be assured that a party isn't the end of my gratitude." Never one to belabor a point, Mitsuru Kirijo made her exit, her entourage trailing behind her.

"Well that was abrupt. Wonder what she meant by that?"

"She's obviously talking about giving her knight a big smooch! I did save her from that shadow you know!" It was true, Teddie had in fact, helped Mitsuru out when she was overwhelmed by shadows, but what he neglected to mention was he was so busy celebrating he had to be saved by her immediately afterwards. By this point, he had taken his costume off exposing his sleek pretty boy form to the rest of the group, it was enough to prompt Yukari to speak up even though she knew she was opening herself to more harassment. "You know Teddie, you're not bad looking. If you calmed down a little, you could probably have all the *ugh* 'smooches' you wanted." Teddie wagged a finger right in her face and she was honestly tempted to bite it. "Of course I know that, I am a bearitable genius after all. But that's not who Teddie is. Ladies should actually be thanking me." That comment was enough to draw everyone's attention, it was clear no one was willing to let him go without explaining that last little comment. "Tsk tsk it's very simple. There's no false advertising here. I lay myself bear before everyone, what you see is what you get, so take it or leave it! I want a hot mama who likes me for me, not just my devilishly handsome face and charming mannerisms."

"Okay! Okay! I'm sorry I asked. But...it's not like that's a terrible outlook to have I guess. Good for you." The last thing anyone expected was to gain an extra modicum of respect for Teddie today but that's exactly what had just happened. "Geez, I'm even starting to warm up to your mascot. If I ever need a break from it all I know what sleepy town I'm coming back to." She gave the young couple a wink and with that she shouted after Mitsuru to wait up.

"I'll come check on your progress over winter break. But that doesn't mean you can slack off over the summer."

"I'll write as often as I can master! But you better not slack off either, got it!" The two bumped fists as hard as they could and Akihiko left too.

Aigis seemed to be in a discussion with one of the maids. "Mitsuru-san's tastes have evolved quite a bit and her needs of changed, see to it that 'all the fixings' are put on to every burger that you make from now on." The maid dutifully bowed her head, they had all seen the enthusiasm with which their mistress tucked in to her burger and it was her duty as a maid to provide her with that satisfaction. "I shall inform the kitchen staff immediately." Aigis smiled and went on her way. "Sister, it is time to go," her sister had Yukiko's hand firmly gripped in her own two. "I'm gonna miss you, you 'ol so and so. Next time I see ya' you'll be a proper Missus Amagi." Yukiko blushed at the thought and began to rub her bump a little bit faster. Looking at her friend's shining innocent eyes, she was honestly tempted to throw a western style wedding just so Labrys would have a chance to be a bridesmaid but the logical side of her brain regained control at the last second. "Just remember that you're always welcome in our home. You too, Aigis."

"Truly? Yukiko-san, thank you." The cybernetic sisters wracked their brains on how best to thank her looking at each other in thought, both grinning in tandem as it came to them. Each sister reached out one hand to pat one side of her belly at the same time and put their other hands together over her swell. "I'd wish you a happy birth, but it's pretty much guaranteed at this point huh?"

"Yes, this is a task that you are clearly prepared for. You are 'built for breeding'" Yukiko's face turned as red as Aigis' bowtie but she kept her mouth shut. She wasn't going to deprive her son of a belly rub and she knew the android meant well. "Besides," she mused to herself, "it's not untrue." Aigis smiled at the blushing girl, Yukiko was so modest even though she was clearly the perfect heifer but that must have been from the docility brought about by the little calf in her belly.

As they descended the stairs, Labrys scoffed. "She's not a freaking cow you know even if she is a little big. That's not very nice you know" Aigis tut tutted as if she were an expert in this field. "One day you'll understand."

Yukiko had just come down from the pleasant tingling that the two had caused. It wasn't the same as the one Yu caused in her, it was more like the sensation she felt whenever she released her milk. Something about it was making her feel kind of...hungry? They must have stirred the baby awake and now her and her baby needed to be fed. "I mean, get something to eat," she corrected herself.

Eventually, the rest of the group said their goodbyes with Junpei firmly shaking Yu's hand and Ken giving Yukiko a quick hug that delighted the mother greatly. And then, the Investigation Team went their own way. "You better keep your eye on that TV, cause next time you see me that's where I'll be" Rise sang with a musical tilt to her voice.

"And I will see you all at school tomorrow. Have fun with the Dojima's."

"I'll tell Nanako you all said hi. Study hard." And for once, Yosuke and Chie didn't groan like children but instead nodded firmly. Kanji was a bit beside himself, should he remind Naoto about what he said earlier or would that be desperate? She was so busy he honestly couldn't blame her if she forgot but maybe she'd get mad at him implying that she did forget? But looking around he realized that she had already left. "Well if she doesn't show up, I'll just have to chase the train down!" He pumped his arm and ran home to put the finishing touches on his little surprise. Things got way easier when he thought about how much time and effort he spent on the freaking thing!

The Investigation Team all went their separate ways but the others all gathered in one place out in a remote field to prevent drawing too much attention. As the members of the Shadow Operatives finally settled into their helicopter, Mitsuru found Junpei fixing her with a determined gaze. "Yes, Iori? Is there something that I can help you with?"

"I want an advance on my next paycheck." His boldness surprised the heiress who considered him with cold eyes. "Why? Don't tell me there's some new game console coming out because if so then the answer is no."

"Hey come on senpai, this is really important, honest." That was enough to gain Mitsuru's attention, usually a short reprimand was all it took to dissuade him from nonsense, if he was continuing to press then it must be quite important indeed. "Very well, that could be arranged for...next week." Junpei's face fell. "Next week!? Ah man, well...thanks anyway Mitsuru-san." All sorts of things could happen in a week, he could get in a car wreck, he could lose his part time job, he could chicken out, but if that's the way things were then there was no use complaining about it.

"Here," Mitsuru whipped out a pen and a check book and handed it delicately to Junpei.

"I won't pry, but if you really need the money this badly I see no problem with assisting you this once. Just...promise me you won't make a habit of this." The noble woman felt her hands pulled tight by Junpei's as he shook them up and down in gratitude. "Oh thank you thank you thank you senpai, I won't forget this! I'll even polish your boots if you want me to!"

"T-that won't be necessary, all I ask is that you be a bit more responsible with your finances from now on. Perhaps Akihiko isn't the only one who should be beginning university this coming semester." Junpei shrugged, that was fine by him. First comes love then comes marriage then comes something something baby carriage so he'd need to start earning more. No more part time jobs. He'd been expecting his first Shadow Operatives pay check to be enough to finally start saving up while he studied for entrance exams but when he actually looked at the amount he was shocked.

"Tw-tw-twah-twe-twenty five m-muh-million yen." That got the attention of all the others aboard the helicopter. "That's our paycheck!" Mitsuru raised an eyebrow. "Well yes, it is a little small but I would hope the job itself would be reward enough. You all are employees of the government so there are regulations about this kind of thing but if you're frugal I'm sure you can make even that amount work." Junpei almost fainted right there and some of the others weren't far behind, it was almost like a dream come true. Ken had been wanting to tell Mitsuru he was going to quit the Shadow Operatives to focus on living life as a kid but maybe he could wait until after the paycheck to make that speech. "Oh that reminds me, as Ken is a minor he will not be able to receive payment for his services, especially not when we're being investigated by Public Safety," he sighed, should have known better than to get his hopes up, but then again having that much money that young would probably do more harm than good.

"Iori, are you even listening to me?" But the boy had entered into a state of shock. "Someone wake him up when we land, I swear sometimes it seems like he doesn't take anything seriously." Yukari chuckled a bit to herself, for once Mitsuru was painfully wrong.

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It certainly felt good not being rushed for one reason or another for the first time that day. Yukiko had said that she wanted more chances to walk through the shopping district as husband and wife but she'd forgotten she'd get such a chance this soon. Yu could definitely see the appeal even though it was slow going, just a pleasant little stroll with the family like he'd done with Nanako and Dojima plenty of times before. In fact, the last time they'd been to Dojima's house it hadn't been this easy even though Yukiko had only gotten heavier and the days had only gotten hotter. It was enough to make Yu pause in his steps, something was missing. Something...

He slapped his hand to his face in annoyance. "*Aggh* I knew I forgot something! I left the food back at the house!" He had made it last night in preparation for today but with everything that had happened Yu had honestly forgotten about it. "I'm sure Nanako has prepared something nice for everyone, you don't need to worry. She's very understanding." Yu rubbed his arm a bit awkwardly unsure of how to broach the point he wanted to make. "I'm sure she did but I don't think it'll be enough." His darling cocked her head quizzically and pressed a finger to her cheek in that cute way she did. "Oh? Did she not have time to go grocery shopping today? Poor thing, she must be fretting herself sick..."

Yu cleared his throat deciding it would be best just to be honest. "Feeding five people is pretty difficult, so I told Nanako to only worry about her and her father but she insisted that she get to cook for her big sis and little nephew. But Nanako hasn't ever actually cooked for you two before so I worry it won't be enough." The plush mama guiltily rubbed her tummy and looked down, her baby needed to eat but she didn't want to cause trouble for others especially not her husband and Nanako. Today she had learned just what her appetite took to sate and imagining poor Nanako just as tired put a frown on her face.

Yu looked at the nearby bus schedule and clicked his tongue. "Ah the last bus was five minutes ago. It'll be faster if I run." Before Yukiko had a chance to protest, he gently squeezed her arms and kissed her on the cheek. "Wait right here, I'll be right back." And just like that, he was off like a bullet. The girl placed a hand on the kissed cheek and let out a content sigh, it was like all of her self consciousness had instantly melted away. Needing an entire meal all to herself while everyone else shared was a little embarrassing but the fact that Yu went about doing it like it was so natural, like it was perfectly normal, really helped out. "I hope he doesn't get all sweaty though, that would be a shame if he looks all disheveled because of me," she sat her fat bottom down at the nearby bus stop bunch while her husband sprinted to the inn. Then again, knowing hubby he'd probably enjoy the fact his muscles were aching and he was panting for breath while she sat nice and pretty. She had to admit that she enjoyed it quite a bit too, it was like he was taking responsibility for making her a fat and hungry baby mama.

The Yukiko of last year might have been a bit bored sitting there all by her lonesome but the new Yukiko had quite a bit to entertain herself with. A baby to talk to and a nice squishy body to poke and prod at while she waited, there was no way she could be bored. "Did you hear what daddy said? He called the inn 'the house'" she giggled softly while stroking her belly, "and he did it without even thinking about it too. Like breathing." Her hands began to pat and drum along her belly and she couldn't help but wobble her budding bingo wings a bit, thankful that there were no people around besides the woman at Souzai Daigaku who was quite preoccupied at the moment. Unfortunately for the poor girl, sitting so close to a meat shop meant the smells drifted over to her delicate button nose which twitched in delight as her tummy began to grumble.

Her drumming increased in speed as she tried to take her mind off of her hunger. "Daddy will be back soon so just wait until then, okay?" But as the seconds stretched on, her will power began to fade little by little. "We shouldn't *mmph* spoil our appetite," she whimpered trying her best to fight against their cravings. Images of all the delicious food she stuffed herself with flashed through her head and she began to realize that spoiling her appetite would be a bit more difficult than eating a few steak skewers. The periodic kicks were starting to feel like he was tugging on her dress to get him something to eat. "Well, you certainly know what you like. Oh Yu, I'm sorry! The call of fast food is just too strong right now." If the gnawing hunger that she felt right now was anything like what her baby was feeling, she couldn't let that stand. She begin to shift and wiggle her pelvis into its proper position for standing up and placed one hand on the back of the bench. "Up we go," she chirped to herself, utterly unbothered by how much more cumbersome the process was now. Yukiko felt a pang of worry when she saw a young couple walk off with two skewers of their own, concerned there wouldn't be enough.

When the owner saw the plump mother rubbing and nervously kneading at her tummy flab, she knew exactly what she was about to ask. "Sorry Yukiko-san, I only have two left in stock, busy day today," she chuckled a bit and Yukiko tried to chuckle along but hers was a lot more hollow. Only two? Well it would have to do for now. The girl carefully took the skewers from the woman's hands and bit into them gratefully, making sure she didn't spill any of the juice on her expensive dress; it was quite difficult since she couldn't help but take full deep bites into the fatty beef. "It's just a little something to take the edge off, like those nightcaps mother takes before bed sometimes. Just a little treat for being a good boy. Ohhh but I love the gristle!"

She had thought that the constant demand to eat was confined strictly to meal times but it seemed like her body was being changed into one that was expected to be constantly eating. Even as she tried to tell herself otherwise and calm down, she still couldn't quite shake the feeling that her appetite was growing once again. In light of recent events though, she couldn't quite tell if she was trying to calm herself down out of nervousness or to temper her excitement. "A girl who can't stop grazing in the same house with a world class chef, goodness he's going to have a fat wife on his hands. Or in his hands." She immediately chomped down on her skewer to calm herself.

Eventually the ravenous raven haired beauty had enough calories and fat bubbling inside of her to quell the debilitating hunger and she made her way back to the bench while happily patting her belly. "*Er* Yukiko-san? Aren't you forgetting something?" The girl turned around puzzled, she had gotten her food, her tummy wasn't rumbling so much so what else was there left to do? Her face became redder and redder as she realized what it was. Sheepishly, she pulled some yen out of her purse and quickly apologized to the storekeeper who waved it off as a mistake anyone could make, but Yukiko knew that wasn't true. She had honestly gotten so caught up in the taste of it all that she had forgotten to pay, she hadn't had to pay for a meal for herself in so long to be fair. She parked her butt back on the bench, burning a hole in her lap to avoid making eye contact with the store owner. It was so embarrassing that the poor hormonally charged girl could feel her nerves flaring up and that of course meant that before long she felt herself growing hungry again.

"Ooooh I hope your papa comes back soon. It's almost dinner time," she complained forgetting all about the two skewers she had just devoured. Maybe she should stop in Aiya's? Just a quick little nibble...

But just when she was seriously starting to consider having two dinners in one day, the tell tale sound of the bus rolling in met her ears. Her husband had actually managed to catch up with the bus, grab what he needed from the inn and then got back to the bus stop, "hope you didn't wait too long," he said. "That's what I love about your daddy, he's so amazing but he doesn't brag about it. So strong and fit but it's all hidden under that coat." But looking at him, he looked perfectly made up as always not a single strand of hair out of place nor was there a single wrinkle on his clothes; either he was simply that impressive or he had spent time changing and grooming himself. If it was the latter, Yukiko would be quite cross, wasting time to look cool while he had a hungry baby mama waiting on him. But she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt on account of the delicious smelling pot he had cradled in his hands. "Oh I see you had a little snack while you were waiting." She let her surprise register on her face; she still had the sticks clutched in her hands, forgetting to toss them in the bin. Or maybe she'd held onto them on purpose? She honestly wasn't sure.

"Just a little something to nibble on while I waited for dinner, I hope that's okay. I get so hungry thinking about your food that I can't help myself sometimes." Yu had to sharply intake breath, the way she said it would sound perfectly normal but she added a slight upward tilt to her voice to indicate that she knew full well she was riling him up. She looked at him with big brown perfectly innocent eyes, with a slight mischievous squint to them that he almost didn't notice. All of her earlier trepidation about her appetite had faded, now there was only a desire stoke the fire's of Yu's passion a bit. "But don't worry, everything's all nice and empty for dinner, only your food can really fill me up."

"Yukiko could you bend over for a second?" She did, curious, and received a forehead kiss.

That simple kiss was all that was needed to forget about her goal to tease him a bit and she leaned against him in content silence as they walked. "There's a bag of meat buns that I'm holding up if you want some," was all he said. Sure enough, in between the pot and his shirt was a brown paper bag filled with meat buns. After the confrontation with her fake, Yu had a feeling her appetite was going to spike again even if Yukiko herself wasn't aware of it quite yet. He was glad she was growing more confident, but that titillating fake innocence act she was putting on made him want to spank her hard right on her bottom and take her on the bench like the naughty glutton she was. "It's like she knows how to push buttons I didn't even know I had." She tentatively reached out for the meat buns but her hand stopped short right at the last moment. "I could wait," she murmured hesitatingly, no trace of mischief in her voice now. He leaned to his right and pecked her on the cheek again, "enjoy yourself Yuki. If you don't think our son should have to wait, then eat. But snacking between meals, oh Yuki you're going to get so fat," he made sure to almost bite at the word "fat" to remind her he had absolutely no problem with that. He could see the instant the hesitation died on her face and she snatched up the bag. "I've never been much of a snacker, guess that's another thing I'll have to learn."

He thought Yukiko would bite slowly and sensually into every meat bun to further entice him but instead she munched away normally, a happy fatty enjoying her snack. Somehow though that was enticing in its own way. With one hand clutching a meat bun and the other laid vertically down her belly with an open palm, it made the process of her chowing down look carefully planned and deliberate like she knew every bite was doing its job to nurture her growing pudge. In their fifteen minute walk, she had eaten half the bag but she took that as a point of pride.

It was odd to think that just a few short months ago, Yukiko had thought of this as "Yu's house." If she wanted some alone time with her man, this is the place she'd have to go to. Now, it was hard to think of it as anything but the Dojima's house, where they were simply coming for a temporary visit. Already it looked less familiar despite the fact she had last been there in March. Yet there were still so many memories made in this cozy little home that it would never be able to fade entirely; she'd have to be careful not to glance at the living room couch too often with an ace detective like Dojima-san around. Delicately popping each of her fingers into her mouth, she finished off any traces of her pre-dinner snack as they stepped on the porch except for the bag dangling at her side.

*Uuurp* she covered it up just enough so that only Yu could hear it but didn't acknowledge it beyond that. Yukiko could tell from the calming breath he took that her little act of the oblivious yet happy fatty was riling him up far more than if called attention to it. It felt empowering to be able to keep her husband on pins and needles like this, but the fact he could turn it around in an instant if he wanted made it even better. They were going to have so much fun after she crushed him in the midterms.

"It'll be nice speaking openly with Dojima-san, he's always so quiet that I can never quite suss out what his thoughts are on things," her excitement was tempered by a slight nervousness, like she was about to be introduced to her boyfriend's parents. Yu chuckled softly when he thought about it, in his opinion she had absolutely nothing to worry about yet she was doing one last check of her hair and makeup, making sure there wasn't a single crumb visible anywhere on her person. While she was in the middle of making herself presentable, he rang the doorbell making her pout. "Hubby! I-I'm not ready yet!"

"Relax. Dojima's always liked you, he just wants a chance to get to know you a little better." His easy confidence washed over her like a comforting blanket and she alowed herself to calm down a bit. It really was taking a while for the door to be answered though, causing Yukiko's eyes to wander. They really had such a pretty garden, Nanako hadn't been exaggerating one bit, it was the best looking one on the block by far. Yukiko wouldn't admit it, but she thought with Yu gone it would have declined a bit but it had been maintained perfectly and was looking livelier than ever due to the lovely springtime weather. Yu seemed to be mentally debating whether or not to ring the doorbell a second time when it was flung open and a small seven year old girl sized missile launched into him. "Big bro!" Her shout could be heard from every corner of the town and Yu felt like he had just been punched in the gut. "*Oof* hey...Nanako. Have you gotten taller?" She paused her nuzzling to beam with pride. "Yep, one whole quarter inch. Dad says I'm like a beansprout," Yu couldn't resist ruffling her hair a little bit and Nanako's happy bubbly laughter filled the neighborhood. "You'll be as tall as your big sister in no time," the little girl's attention was brought over to the dark haired woman standing next to her big bro and the heavy protruding maternal mound attached to her. Nananko nodded happily in approval at that and placed a small hand on her big sis' bump, but frowned as the baby still seemed to not want to come out for her. Her enthusiasm quickly recovered and she took the older woman's hand in her two tiny ones. "I made a big meal for everybody to enjoy so I really hope you like it, it's got a bunch of meat and cheese and it's really really good." The girl could barely contain herself from hopping up and down in excitement and talking up her food like that was starting to make Yukiko hungry, it was enough to make her tummy grumble again.

Nanako's face scrunched up in intense purpose as she began to tug Yukiko along behind her. "That's no good. You have to eat up right away, cause the baby's saying it's ur-gent," the girl mouthed the unfamiliar word to herself a second time, making sure she got it absolutely right. She was going to be a big cousin soon after all and needed to know these things. "Well hello to you to Nanako," the young mother said with a gentle titter; it wasn't the greeting she was expecting but it was certainly one of the best ones she could ask for. Nanako turned around with a beaming smile, "I know you and big bro work so hard at the high school and the inn so this is my treat today," she chirped. Just then the generous child noticed the pot that Yu was holding. "Big bro, it was 'sposed to be my turn to cook for you. Don't tell me you forgot." Her pout almost made him wish he had left the pot at home but just then a masculine chuckle sounded from upstairs. "I wouldn't worry about it Nanako. You know how this guy is sometimes," that seemed to resonate with his daughter and she solemnly nodded her head before returning to her usual chipper self. "Yep! He's a *um* he's a charity case!"

Yu could feel a bead of sweat collecting on his brow, "I don't think that's quite right," he thought to himself while Dojima had to stop from howling with laughter. "No no no, Nanako. Yosuke is the charity case," she said it so matter of factly that the little girl couldn't help but nod in agreement. Yu worried thought that Dojima would make a crack about the time he had arrested the two of them but instead he was strangely quiet, like he had just been reminded of something by Yukiko speaking so frankly. Looking at Nanako, she seemed bubbly and excited but there was something more. She kept trying to stifle a big grin and was swaying her arms around like she was just waiting to tell him something big.

"Did something happen Dojima-san?"

His uncle actually jumped a little, surprised right out of whatever he was pondering. "Well...you could say that, I guess." He turned to Yukiko and his daughter and rubbed the back of his head a bit. "Hey, would it be alright if we held off on dinner for a bit? I know you're probably starving but it is important." Yukiko allowed the surprise she felt to show on her face and although she was a tad disappointed, she was still a guest in his home so there was nothing else she could do but nod politely. Nanako was a bit less receptive though, putting her hands on her hips and scowling. "It's going to get cold, I thought you said you didn't have any work today. You promised." He rubbed a hand over his face and sighed, "it's not about work," but he couldn't say anymore without getting her involved in drama that she really had no part in. Of course such a lacking explanation would not help his standing with his daughter.

Now she had her arms folded firmly over her chest with an even deeper scowl, refusing to budge an inch. This problem required a more feminine touch clearly, so he spoke to the heiress next. "Hey, sorry to ask this out of the blue but could you maybe-" his request was cut off by Yu.

"There's someone else here." Instincts trained by a year on the battle field were sharp enough to pick up on the slight creaking of the floorboards above, instantly his body tensed and he could feel his heart beat a little faster. But when he heard Dojima sigh, he realized that the person upstairs and his uncle's strange behavior were in fact connected. "Ohh, It was supposed to be a surprise! You're really amazing big bro!" Dojima just sighed again as the floorboards let out another creak that even Yukiko heard this time. "I wanted to break it to you gently but I guess that can't happen now."

"Hey! You can come on down now! He's as ready for you as he'll ever be..." he shouted up the stairs, a slight feeling of apprehension visible on his face.

Nanako had returned to her gentle swaying and had even started to hum a bit, the only person in the room who was acting like nothing was wrong. Somehow, Yu knew exactly who it was and his oerwhelming feeling of caution and unease was picked up on by his wife who had begun to cradle her belly protectively although she hadn't quite identified the mystery guest. Even as she came down the stairs, one soft slow footstep at a time, Yukiko did not immediately recognize who it was. With her plain face, nondescript style of dress, short brown hair, and generally withdrawn posture, she didn't stand out too much. But the moment the woman adjusted her glasses along the bridge of her nose, her identity came to Yukiko in an instant.

One thing that made it quite difficult was that Mizui had her head down and eyes facing the floor for the first few seconds that she was downstairs. Slowly, she lifted her eyes up and met her son's gaze; it was intense and filled with all sorts of conflicting emotions but she did her best to meet that gaze of his. "H-hello Yu. I hope you've been keeping well."