Maya's parents had left the couple's mansion again as they had a reservation in a fancy restaurant they didn't want to miss out on. They promised to meet each other again soon, though. While they wanted to enjoy their vacation, the two naturally also wanted to spend time with their daughter and her partner. Once they had parted, Maya and Sophia used the portal to go back to Chloe's home, where the fox-girl, Ari and Anna, were currently at, to give them some alone time with the parents. There, the duo gave the loud couple an update on the situation in the castle and assured them that everything would turn out alright when they returned for Kira's birthday. Afterward, the girls finally returned to the mansion.
There, they chatted a little more, mainly about Sophia and Maya and how they had spent the day with the cat-girl’s parents. Once they were done with that, the topic briefly drifted to the previously mentioned toys again. Maya also gave Ari and Anna the address of the shop while looking as smug as possible. The couple only started blushing in response without fighting back, though. After that topic was over, the girls decided to return to their rooms. It had gotten quite late by now, and everyone except Chloe had to head to school the following day as the loooong weekend was finally over.
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“Tiiiired!” Loudly announcing her feelings on the matter, Sophia complained a lot on their way to the academy during the morning.
“I agree…” Her fellow tiger only reacted with a nod and a yawn.
“Why are we up so early again…?” The blonde then faced Maya. “I thought we agreed to only show up during the magic sessions because it makes absolutely no sense for us to be there all day…”
“Mondays always start with magic lessons in the morning," Ari answered her.
“I hate your school.” Sophia had a very clear opinion about it.
“Well, I can’t say I’m very enthusiastic about it either right now…” The jaguar hung her head. “I-I’ll die if the rumors from the castle made it all the way to there, as well…”
“Oh no!” The princess suddenly looked wide awake. “Y-You don’t think the girls in school already know?!”
“I kinda doubt it.” Maya shook her head. “Kira made it very clear what’s going to happen if things get even more awkward. I’m pretty sure the castle staff managed to keep their mouths shut.”
“I-I hope so…” Ari wasn’t entirely convinced about it.
“What are you two going to do, though…?" Sophia glanced at the duo, sticking like glue to each other while holding hands and even having their fingers intertwined. "One glance at that, and everyone will know what's going on regardless. You two look more than a couple than Maya and I do, and we already are official."
"A-Ah…” Hearing that, they let go of each other and put a bit of distance between them.
“That’s just as suspicious, though.” The cat-girl shook her head. “You two were always one clingy and flirty unit, so if you put in some distance now, everyone will notice that something’s up.”
“What should we do, then?!” The duo got loud.
“No idea.” Maya and Sophia simply shook their heads.
“Not helping!” They only got louder.
“We weren’t trying to.”
“Urgh…” Ari and Anna hung their heads in response. “I want to go home…” They already sounded tired.
“Ours or the castle?” The cat-girl was having a great time this early in the morning already.
“Shut up!” The loud duo had other feelings about the matter.
“Ehehe.”
“By the way,” Sophia then faced her cat. “We’re immediately leaving after the magic session is over. I want to get to Ellie as soon as possible. I don’t want to risk any more delays that could spoil her surprise.”
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“Sounds good to me.” Maya only nodded.
“Surprise…?” As Anna was happy to change the subject, she got interested in the topic.
“Ellie wants to give Kira a present for her birthday. She decided on making something handmade for her, and we're helping her with it."
“Ohh!” The princess sounded impressed. “Such a good girl!”
“It’s weird that she’s your sister, huh?” The cat-girl just had to do it.
“H-Hey!” She got loud. “Ari, that reminds me… We have to get a present for her, too…”
“I already bought something for the queen last week…” The jaguar awkwardly scratched her cheek.
“S-Seriously?!”
“Pfft…” Maya and Sophia couldn’t hold back a short laughter.
“Urgh…” Anna’s cheeks turned slightly red.
Thanks to that, the mood of her and Ari relaxed a lot, though, and they arrived worry-free at the academy. Luckily, word of their relationship hadn’t gotten to the school yet, either. Besides some getting suspicious about Anna and Ari being either way too close or not close at all at times, no one actually confronted them during the magic lessons.
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Just as promised, right after the lessons were over, Sophia decided it was enough school for one day, grabbed Maya, and the two left to meet Ellie in the castle.
"You know," On the way, the blonde faced Maya again. "I love the uniform, it looks great, and it's super comfy to wear, but the academy itself is a little underwhelming…"
“I agree with the uniform, but what were you expecting in the first place…?” The cat-girl just tilted her head.
“No idea…” She paused for a moment. “I was kinda hoping for more friends, but… I’m already pretty tight with Ari and on more than good terms with Anna, too. We found Chloe now, too, soo…”
“Quality over quantity?” Maya tried to interpret whatever she was trying to say.
“Pretty much!” She nodded a few times. “Although, now with Chloe… Maybe I should try harder to find someone interesting among the students as a girlfriend for her. The ones in Ari's class are all either 17 or 18. The latter ones especially should be fine for our dear fox, I guess?"
“Well, even 17 should be as it’s only two years, but…” The cat-girl paused for a moment. “The girls in the class are all really nice, and some of them are quite the lookers, too. Still… They are all not the standing-out kind, if you know what I mean."
“Mhmm…" The tiger kept nodding. "Chloe's more of a main character herself while those girls are side characters at best, I see."
“Sure…?” Maya didn't look like she could fully follow her logic, but she still decided to agree with her. "I mean, she said she'd be interested in someone like you. There’s definitely no one like that in the academy. She’d already stuck out a ton, after all.”
“True…” Sophia scratched her cheek. “It’s going to be a major pain to find someone for her, isn’t it?”
"It will also be a major pain if we do find someone, and we suddenly have three of your kind.” The cat-girl saw an entirely different issue with the whole ordeal.
“Hey!” The tiger got loud. “True, though.” She couldn’t refute it, either. “I bet it will also be a ton of fun, though~."
“Debatable…” She wasn't thoroughly convinced about it. "Well, exploring with you was super fun, and Chloe seems to have visited a ton of interesting places, as well. A third exploration-loving girl might be great in that regard. I just fear the day when all three of you go out of control simultaneously. You and Chloe alone are already a force of nature… Screw that, either of you is, but three…" She couldn't finish her sentence and just shuddered instead.
“You worry too much~.”
“…” Maya just stared at her. "Sure..."
“I-It will be fine!” She flinched a little. “Also, there’s still Chloe’s Fey. Even Fennyfenny’s scared of her when she’s angry. I’m sure she’ll be able to handle us.”
"You said the same about Ari, and you still broke her."
“H-Hey!” Sophia raised her voice. “Wording!”
"I have no intention to change anything about how I worded it."
“Urgh…” She paused for a moment. “S-She still can be serious when the situation calls for it! She just got more comfortable with and around us!”
“Well, fair enough, I guess.”
“Good!” Sophia was happy with her reply and continued to walk toward the castle. "Oh?" She didn't make it that far, though.
"What's wrong?" Maya also stopped walking and matched her line of sight. "Oh, that's super cute!" Her eyes fell on a clothing shop for kids that had a few outfits in their window. The one the two were looking at featured a white hoodie with a peach-colored hood and an equally colored cat-like silhouette on the front. It was combined with a light-blue skirt, black leggings, and very warm-looking brown boots.
“Ellie would look so adorable in this!” The tiger’s eyes were sparkling.
“It doesn’t look very princess-like, but you are absolutely right.”
“Who cares about that! She can wear whatever she wants in the castle!” The blonde energetically raised her fist. “I’m going to buy it for her!” Immediately after, she disappeared into the store. “Got it!” It didn’t even take three minutes for her to be back.
“I really love how straightforward you are.”
“…” Sophia suddenly got silent.
“I love how decisive you are when it comes to the things that make you happy…?” Maya changed her wording so that it didn't involve the word straight. She knows her girl that is anything but straight, after all.
“Good!” She started smiling again. "Let's pick up the pace! I want to see Ellie wearing it as soon as possible!"
“Okay!”
Afterward, the couple did just that and arrived at the castle in no time.