Volume 11 - Building Up, Chapter 75 - Hard Choices

A human, a harpy, an arachne, a centaur, a gargoyle, and a mimic were all sitting around a large rectangular dinner table. The exotic mix of species was socializing and casually enjoying one of Yuisu's delicious home-cooked meals. Quess and Iormu would have joined too, but Pwess was at that age when she wanted to play and roughhouse all the time. That made mealtimes a little too chaotic and messy, so they usually ate on their own in the cabin.

Chione turned to Haru and asked, "Hey, Haru, did your mom leave already?" Chione was alert and fully dressed even though she had just woken up for the night a few minutes ago. "I was hoping to talk to her again tonight."

Haru bit her lip and pondered how much she should reveal about the fact that her mother was out on a date with Agent Will. She decided to keep things quiet. "Um, she's still visiting us, but she's down in town tonight," she said as she reached for another helping of meat.

"When do you think she'll be back?" Chione asked, but she wasn't trying to pry. She was just hopeful to spend some more time with Kohaku.

Haru fidgeted and said, "Uh, I don't know. She might be back before morning, but I'm not sure." Whether her mom was staying the night with Agent Will was something that Haru would rather not ponder too closely.

Chione frowned but nodded in acceptance. "Oh, okay."

Mimi saw Chione's reaction and leaned forward in her chair. It was rare for her to be fully outside her chest, but her strange flesh-like hair still trailed down the side of the chair and connected her to it. She made eye contact across the table and said, "Chione, I'm free tonight… Maybe you and I can hang out after dinner?"

Chione immediately broke into a broad smile. "Of course! I'm always up for some more quality time with my bestie!"

Mimi tried to smile back but it was apparent on her face that something was off. For the rest of the meal, her mind wandered and worried.

Is this really the right decision? I have good friends here… Mimi's thoughts drifted to her newest friend, Actia, and then to the mothgirl's relationship with Chione. Mimi made a mental note to make sure to thank Actia for that. Chione's happier than ever now that she's in a relationship, and Actia is also the one that got her to open up to me.

Ever since Chione and Mimi's late-night talk, they'd tried to be open and honest with each other, and they became even closer friends. However, that only made what Mimi had to do next all the more difficult.

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After dinner, Mimi rolled into Chione's room. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of the glow-in-the-dark stickers on the walls and ceiling. "I heard Actia likes these things. She's got you on it too?" she asked, half teasing.

Chione waved her right arm and wing in unison, gesturing at the cosmic scene that spanned the room. "They're so cute! Seeing them up on the ceiling makes me feel like a little kid again," Chione said, making a very rare reference to her childhood. Even Mimi didn't know much about Chione's life before puberty had revealed her true nature and she'd ended up at the liminal-centric boarding school.

As she spoke, she danced around the little room, smiling happily. "It's also a good way to memorize constellations, which could be very useful if I ever get lost flying at night, since I can use them to navigate."

"Oh, yeah. That makes sense," Mimi replied half-heartedly. She took a deep breath and gathered her will. It's like ripping off a band-aid. Just gotta get it done and over with already, she thought, then she said, "Chione. I have something I need to tell you…"

Chione stopped dancing and turned to look at Mimi. "Oh? Okay, what's up, Mimi?"

"I've decided to move to Tokyo."

Chione sat down on her bed. She blinked a couple times, then stopped moving entirely. The gargoyle went as still as a statue as she tried to process what she'd heard.

Mimi had seen Chione in this state before so she knew it was best to wait and let Chione figure it out on her own. But the waiting wasn't easy. Mimi's knuckles went white as she nervously grasped two of the large teeth that ringed her treasure chest.

Eventually, Chione looked down at the floor and said, "Oh… I guess you were bound to move out eventually. After all, the original plan when we smuggled you into Japan was for you to sneak off and live in town…" She looked up at Mimi, moisture gathering in her eyes, the emotion of the situation finally sinking in. "Why Tokyo? Why so far away, Mimi?"

"Hajime is moving to Tokyo for university, and I'm going with him."

Almost immediately, Chione frowned and slouched her shoulders in defeat. It felt like she was losing her best friend to someone else.

Ah, shit. Wrong thing to say, Mimi thought, then quickly added, "But that's not the only reason. I want to live in the big city, in a place full of people and life and activity. This little mountain town is just too sleepy for my tastes, and I can't even get to town without someone driving me."

When Chione only nodded slowly, Mimi continued, "You're an urban liminal too, so you understand, don't you? That desire to be where the people are."

Chione nodded again and said, "Yeah, I have that same feeling sometimes. Gargoyles are natural protectors, but there aren't a lot of people out here to protect, or much to protect them from…"

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Chione said, "I understand, but I don't like it." A tear broke free and ran down Chione's face. "I'll miss you, Mimi. You'll be so far away…"

"You know I'll stay in touch, girl," Mimi responded, trying to keep a hopeful attitude. "And you're welcome to call me any time."

Chione forced a little smile and asked, "Even in the middle of the night?"

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Mimi stood up inside her chest and took Chione's rough stone-like hands in her own. She smiled broadly and said, "Especially in the middle of the night."

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The next day, Yuisu got home from work and had barely removed her boots and winter coat when the phone started to ring. She guessed that the call was for her, since the other girls all had cell phones. Yuisu had one too, but she didn't use it much, since she wasn't supposed to bring it to work.

She darted forward and grabbed the ringing cordless phone from the cradle then put it to her ear. "Nakahara residence, Yuisu speaking."

A chuckle came over the line. "So formal, Yuisu! You're not at work, so a simple 'hello' would suffice."

Yuisu instantly recognized that pesky voice. "Hello, Agent Will," she said with a half smile. She liked Agent Will well enough, but she'd found that his phone calls usually brought more complications into her life. Is he adding another girl to the house? she wondered.

"Much better," he said with a grin nearly audible in his voice. "I know you're probably thinking that I'm sending another girl to live with you, but hear me out."

At least he's pretty self-aware, Yuisu thought, then said, "Okay…"

"I'm actually removing one!" he proclaimed.

"What? Why? Who?!" Yuisu asked frantically.

"It's Mimi. She'll be moving out this weekend."

Did I do something wrong? Yuisu slumped against the wall and lowered herself to the floor, her back sliding against the wall. With worry in her voice, she asked, "Why? Does she not like it here? Is it because she's straight?"

"Whoa, relax. It's nothing like that. She just wants to experience the big city, and she'd prefer a place where she can get around on her own more. The remote mountains aren't a great place for an urban liminal like her. Urban liminals have a symbiotic relationship of sorts with human civilization, so they're naturally drawn to cities."

"Huh," Yuisu said. The news was taking a while to sink in. I guess the girls are all bound to move out eventually. I need to be able to deal with this kind of thing. Finally, she asked, "So I assume she's staying in the exchange program? Who's her new host?"

Agent Will cheerfully answered, "Oh, I met with him already and he's a great kid. He just moved to Tokyo for university, but I'm confident he can handle both school and being a host. His name's Hajime Fujita."

"Hajime, huh?" Yuisu pressed a palm to her forehead and sighed. "Agent Will? Did you know that Hajime and Mimi already knew each other?"

"Yep! They told me they'd met before, which is why we matched them up in the Exchange Program."

"And did you know that they're dating? And uh… intimate?" Yuisu asked carefully.

"What?!" Agent Will blurted. After a moment of silence, he sighed and said, "Ah, whatever. I'll just pretend I never heard that, since I already approved all the paperwork."

"But isn't that—" Yuisu started, until Agent Will cut her off.

"Eh, it's no different than you and Haru. I'll pester their new coordinator and make sure she turns a blind eye like I do. Mimics need that sort of thing, after all."

Yuisu let out a breath and shrugged. "I guess that makes sense. On that topic, have you made any headway on that interspecies relationship amendment? I hate feeling like a criminal for dating Haru."

"I think so, but the government moves slower than a turtle on tranquilizers, so it may be a while before we see any real results. The Harpy Nation's new laws and international treaties certainly gave us some momentum though. From what Kohaku was telling me over dinner, we've got Haru to thank for that," Agent Will said, unsubtly mentioning his date with Haru's mom.

"That's overselling it a bit. She just got the ball rolling," Yuisu said, though she was really proud of Haru for standing up for what she believed in, back when she left the harpy military. It was also the reason that Haru came into her life. "I'm glad that harpies are allowed to find mates on their own now in so many countries."

Since Agent Will had brought it up, Yuisu decided to ask a question she might regret, depending on how much he felt like sharing, "So how are things with you and Kohaku? Keeping in touch on the phone since she returned home?"

"About that…" he started.

Oh dear, was all Yuisu could think.

"She hasn't actually returned home yet. She's been, uh, crashing at my place."

Yuisu smirked. "Uh huh. So you're saying things are going well?"

"Yes, things certainly are. For a species without hands, Harpies sure can do a lot, as I'm sure you know…"

"Ugh, too much information!" Yuisu cried out. "You just had to go and make things awkward, didn't you?"

"Sorry, sorry!" he said, but it sounded like he enjoyed messing with Yuisu. "I'll let you go for now. I'll call later with more info about Mimi's move once I have it."

"Hold on," Yuisu said quickly. "What about Chione? Has anyone talked to her about all this? She's really close to Mimi, and she might even want to move out too."

"Hmm, good point. I guess I'll call and ask her later tonight. Thanks, Yuisu. Seeya!"

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Hours later, on Actia's apartment balcony, Chione hung up her phone and let out a sigh. She turned around and slid the glass door open then stepped inside, out of the cold night air.

"So what was that call about?" Actia asked. She was sitting cross-legged in the center of her bed, wearing baggy pink and grey pajamas and eating grapes from a bowl. Her face was calm as always, but her leaf-shaped antennae twitched with curiosity above her white hair.

Chione didn't answer. She just closed the door behind her, stepped slowly up to the bed, and sat down heavily, lost in thought.

Actia put her snack aside, crawled closer, then sat down next to Chione. She looked tiny compared to the younger, taller winged girl. She grabbed Chione's arm, wrapping it in the fuzzy warmth of the furry natural 'sleeves' that covered Actia's forearms, then she looked up and asked, "What's up, Chione? You alright?"

Chione was slow to respond, finally whispering, "I thought I was okay with Mimi leaving… but now Agent Will offered for me to move to Tokyo too. Mimi and Hajime already agreed, too…"

Actia patted Chione's hand reassuringly. "And do you want to?" she asked, trying to keep her own opinion from showing in her voice

Suddenly, Chione's wings sprang open wide and she shouted at the ceiling, "Argh! I don't know! I want to go with Mimi, and I kind of want to move to the city, but I don't want to leave my friends here." She paused and turned to face Actia directly, then added, "I don't want to leave you, Actia."

Actia met Chione's gaze and firmly said, "Then don't. M-Maybe I'm being selfish, but I don't want you to leave, Chione. Stay here with me." She blinked her big, red, adorable eyes and snuggled up closer to Chione's side.

Chione smiled and her tension eased. "That makes my decision easier. I'll stay."

Actia grinned mischievously. "Good. Now kiss me, Chione," she said, before pouncing at Chione. She climbed across Chione's lap and straddled her hips, but even like that she was still shorter than Chione and had to stretch to meet her lips. Because they both had wings, it would be tricky to lie down comfortably, but this particular position was excellent for making out.

As they passionately kissed, Actia wrapped her arms around Chione's neck and Chione ran her arms around Actia's back. Actia let out a little EEP! as Chione suddenly slid her hands inside Actia's pajamas and grabbed her wonderfully perky butt.

Through Actia's panties, Chione squeezed Actia's rear and lifted her light body up until they were nose to nose. They looked into each other's eyes, giggled, then continued to make out. Actia planted her feet at the sides of Chione's thighs and stood up so she could get the height advantage, but as soon as she did, Chione grabbed her pajama bottoms and tugged them straight down.

"Whoa, you're getting frisky, Chione," Actia said, already stepping out of the stripped PJs.

Chione blushed bright red and said, "I think I…" She swallowed heavily and tried again, "I think I want to go, uh, further, tonight."

Actia blushed too and her fuzzy antennae twitched with excitement. She asked, "H-How m-much further?" Actia's stutter returned whenever she got nervous, and this situation had her very anxious indeed. Actia wasn't a virgin, but she knew that Chione was, and Actia didn't want to ruin this moment for her.

Chione's bright red cheeks stood out sharply against her bright cyan hair and her wide, eager eyes. She swallowed hard, then confidently said, "All the way," then immediately dove back into a deep kiss.