...We Could...

Fumi Fifty-One!

Preuss finally found the opportunity to corner Zelda. Or, at least, he thought he did. Marching up to his older sister, he ripped off her cloak, exposing her fancy dress for all to see.

"What are you wearing?" he demanded, his cousins and friends falling silent.

"A dress, isn't it obvious?" she replied, unfazed.

"I don't seem to remember that dress in the closet," he stated.

Zelda shrugged, looking away. "Guess you didn't look hard enough."

"This isn't like you, sis," Dastan stated, dropping from the rafters where he had been watching his more “mature” anime on his phone. "What's going on?"

"Late nights, jumpy nerves, and unfamiliar clothing," Preuss ticked off. "Something smells awfully suspicious to me."

Again, the sister shrugged. "You have no proof."

Perisa suddenly appeared, hanging onto the rafter where she had been watching anime with Dastan by her knees. She held out her smart phone, at which Zelda gasped, her face matching her hair and eyes. The little one giggled and smiled a sadistic, close-eyed smile.

"Did you not think that we followed you?" she questioned.

"Give me that!" Zelda cried, lunging for the phone. Perisa stuffed it up her shirt and used her wonderfully developed stomach muscles to pull herself back up into the rafters with one crunch. She swung her legs as she giggled, feeling quite pleased with herself.

"As you can see," Preuss stated, eyes closed and brows furrowed as he leaned against one of the beds with his arms crossed, "we have evidence of your nightly encounters. Now: Just why do you wish Perisa to hand over her phone if we have no proof?"

The sister knew she was stuck. Everyone around her knew that she was guilty of whatever crime she commented.

"Just what were you doing?" Dastan asked, studying his nails as if checking for chips in his polish. Not that anyone would be surprised if he was...

Zelda opened and closed her mouth. "I was taking a walk..."

"Oh, really?" Perisa yawned. "With who?"

"With me," stated a smooth voice. The group watched as Junpei slid across the floor to pull a grateful Zelda to his side. "She has been with me."

"You..." Preuss growled, clenching his arm muscles as streaks of blue magic coursed around his toned limbs.

"Please," Junpei sighed, "I don't wish to cause conflict among family. I just wanted to know--did you notice her hand?”

All eyes shot to the silver ring curling around in the amethyst stone to create rose petals about it. And then all eyes shot up to look at Zelda. And then all eyes shot over to glare at Junpei. He had to admit that the sight of thirty plus pairs of green, red, gold, blue, and black eyes was a bit nerve wracking.

“I will be gone, now,” he bowed out of the room.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Preuss growled, grabbing his wrist.

“Preuss!” Zelda pleaded.

“Yes?” Junpei asked, turning around to look down at the boy.

“Just what have you been plotting.”

Junpei started. “Pardon?”

“I know you’re up to something,” Preuss told him, his eyes flashing. “So why don’t you tell us so then we don’t have to kill you.”

“Oh, Preuss, no!” Zelda pleaded, hurrying forward to break up the two men.

“Stay back, Zelda,” Junpei ordered.