View source for 3687/Just a little fever

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2019/03/01
|Location=Manor De Crima
|Synopsis=Unmei is just a little bit sick(dying), and is visited by some of her best friends! And despite her misery, she gets to have a bit of fun... That is... Until Kotomi accidentally confesses her feelings. And Unmei gives a... not so easy confession of her own. Hopefully this can end up without sad tears...
|Cast of Characters=190,238,160,141
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama was laying in bed. She felt like death and it was probably a good thing she didn't actually go to school today.<br /><br />I mean, she'd tried but well... After mentioning something about meeting with the goldfish and how she had a spear for the great war at breakfast, barely touching her eggs and her face red, for reasons OTHER than blushing for once, Lacrima had noticed something was off. And after taking her temperature, she KNEW something was off and that Unmei going to school was a bad idea. Of course, Unmei had tried....<br /><br />And been tricked. And by tricked she meant she had walked into the door because she had momentarily forgotten how to unlock it and after falling on her butt and staring at it for a few moments, she'd taken Lacrima up on her suggestion.<br /><br />Now? She was laying in bed, staring at the roof, and miserable. She was borrrrrred. And felt crummy. And kept having to blow her nose. And her lips hurt. And her nose hurt. And she'd told Lacrima to let her know if there was a youma, because if she was lucky, it would finish her off.<br /><br />Suffice to say, she wanted her mommy. But that wasn't an option, so instead she pulled another tissue to her face and blew. Oh well. At least no one but Lacrima could see her like this. And Lacrima, crush or no, was entirely off limits.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>At that moment, Unmei's phone buzzes with a couple of texts from Kotomi:<br /><br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&gt;&gt;&gt; hey uh got a minute to talk?<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&gt;&gt;&gt; its about magical girl stuff<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&gt;&gt;&gt; also something important about lacrima-san which id rather talk about in person<br /><br />Kotomi's usually very shy about reaching out; it's probably something important! (Although it's in reference to something from two weeks ago.)

:'''{{#var:160|Lacrima| (160)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Lacrima is jealous of sick people. They can get sick. Lacrima cannot get sick. Lacrima misses being sick. It's really dumb to be jealous like that but she is. Regardless, has mostly been playing attendent, providing chicken soup when asked--- or when Lacrima says that she needs to eat because ''you do'' and ice water.<br /><br />Sometimes toast with light butter. You don't wanna eat too much when you're sick that'll screw your tummy up. She sighs a bit and gently peeks in on Unmei again.<br /><br />"Feeling a little better?" she asks as she comes prepared!....with Ibprofeoun! Okay it isn't magical medicine but it'll work.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama glanced at her phone. Who...? She fiddled wkth it for a bit and... Started texting back.<br /><br />'Hey okay come with the lettuce and stuff. Sorry, drying on the bed. Ate the coach and the wall didn't open.' She slipped as she fiddled with the phone, not noticing when she added kukai to the message and... Sent that.<br /><br />Then lacrima. She smiled up ag her. "Yeah. O... I feel fine. Is there a... Could i..." And then she trailed off. Looking dazed as she laid her phonr down. "Can i... I think I'm fine. I just need a... I have to get to school, I'll be late..." .... School ended hours ago.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi furrows her brow at the message. "What?" she mutters. Several worrying possibilities immediately rush through her mind, but even her anxiety can't really do much with something that ''weird''. Okay. Okay, okay, she said she could come over. Probably. B-but now she'll be ''expecting'' her and she can't just no-show ''now!''<br /><br />Fortunately, she lives reasonably close to the manor in Uminari, and after quickly letting her mother know where she's going ("Unmei-san's new place" -- naturally, she's left out any and all magic), she hurriedly gets on her bike and starts heading over at a fairly high speed!

:'''{{#var:160|Lacrima| (160)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Lacrima sighs. "Unmei, school ended a bit ago. Just relax. No school until you feel better." she says as she coaxes Unmei to take the Ibprofeoun. "Here, this'll help with the floaty head feeling and the fever." she says as she sighs and closes her eyes and shakes her head.<br /><br />She can hear her phone ding and then Unmei texts back. She head tilts. She isn't reading her screen. (That's rude!) but she wonders. "Trying to get some company over?" she asks. "I'll go get the face masks..." she says as she leaves the room momentarily.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>when Kukai's phone buzzes he's getting finished with today's basketball practice, and he picks up the phone, investigating it. Seeing Unmei's weird message, though, he blinks, stepping out of the locker room and heading for the door while tapping out a response. <br /><br /> TXT to Unmei Tama: Unmei? Are you all right? Do you need some help? <br /><br /> Kukai hmms and begins making his way towards Lacrima's place in any case, tapping out another message to her, hoping she sees her phone. <br /><br /> TXT to Lacrima: Hey, is Unmei at home? Did she get into the wine or something? I got a weird message from her...

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "It did? I am? But the teachers..." she mumbled. She took the drug and nodded, downing it. "I don't feel like I'm floating..." she mumbled. "Head hurts... nose hurts... all my stuff hurts..." she whined. "Magical girls aren't supposed to get sick. Like. We're supposed to be special... and sexy and stuff... I look like a lobster..." ... How in the world did she look like a lobster?<br /><br />She then kind of zoned out. Then... "Wah?" Why did they need masks? Who was getting a mask? Were they having a part--<br /><br />She was jarred from the thoughts by another sneeze. She blew her nose and tossed it to the quickly filling bin, before collapsing back.<br /><br />"I wanna dieeeeeee..." she whined. "Or... can't you just like... Why can't I like, henshin and punch the cold?" she mumbled to herself, whining randomly in a daze.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi arrives at the manor! She's dressed in her usual lavender dress and navy-blue coat, with her trans-flag pin affixed to the label, plus a pink bicycle helmet. She frowns and pauses at the door. Whatever's going on ... well, let's just find out now, ''ugh Unmei is expecting her!''<br /><br />Oh well, come what may. She knocks at the door. And then even after her 'come what may' thing, she thinks to herself: please let Unmei be the one to answer the door and not Lacrima, and if it ''is'' Lacrima (because of course it will be), please don't let her lose control, there isn't any Pretty Cure around here to punch her if need be ...

:'''{{#var:160|Lacrima| (160)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Lacrima returns with somne surgical masks and replies. "Because others don't need to be sick too~" she says softly as she blinks and looks at her phone. Huh? She looks at Unmei and then at the phone and texts back: 'She's really sick, Kukai-kun. It's possible she sent a fever text? What did it say?' she says. 'I think it's a flu or a cold really. Nothing magical.'.<br /><br />She then blinks as the door knocks and she hurries downstairs to answer the door. "He---" oh. Ohhhh.<br /><br />She shifts. Dammit, that girl still smells like a good source of energy. Luckily.... She also 'ate' last night. The temptation isn't so strong right now to try to touch her and drain her into unconciousness. "Ko--kotomi-san, hello. Unmei is sick. Are you... here to see her?" she asks helpfully offering a surgical mask.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai huhs and slows his pace, still heading towards Lacrima's manor in general, although he could get there much faster on a bus, or by henshin'ing and flying. <br /><br /> TXT to Lacrima: 'It was... just a bunch of stuff. Is she ok? Do you need someone to come over and help you out? I could pick some stuff up for you or her if you need it.' <br /><br /> Kukai thinks for a minute, looking around, spying a nearby convenience store..

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama grumbled softly, pulling her blanket up and...<br /><br />And oh my gosh. Why was it so HOT?! The girl blinked a few times and shoved her blankets off and...<br /><br />Moments later, there'd be a loud THUMP, then a lot of softer thumps, a lot more thumps, a crash, another thump and then one more final thump.<br /><br />When someone went to check on her, they'd find... She'd fallen out of bed, gotten tangled in her blankets... Tried to get up and scattered her homework, books and all, along with one of the drawers, onto the ground, along with the pen holder. Then opened a window... And then fallen on her butt, shaking. She was wearing a simple blouse and a short skirt. Of course. Sick or no, they'd NEVER see unmei in anything but a skirt. She was shaking, and covered in sweat as the cold air flowed in from the window, rocking back and forth as if dazed.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi frowns as she steps in. "Sick!?" she says, instantly concerned. She quickly takes the surgical mask and puts it on, then transfers the trans-flag pin to the lapel of her dress as she takes off her jacket. "Oh, jeez, if she's ''that'' bad, no ''wonder'' her phone message was so ..."<br /><br />She hesitates. She hasn't really had many close friends until now, and she isn't used to feeling so concerned about someone else outside of the anxiety nonsense.<br /><br />And then the thumping sounds happen, and she quickly tries to hang up her jacket -- it falls to the floor -- and she runs upstairs as fast as she can. "Unmei-san!" she exclaims, almost before she reaches the room. "A-are you all right!?"

:'''{{#var:160|Lacrima| (160)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Lacrima sighs and picks up Kotomi's jacket and hangs it as she follows after and then moves to help as she moves past Kotomi to open the door and gently helps Unmei back up... get untangled from blankets, sheets or whatever and helps her back to bed.<br /><br />"Unmei-chan, Kotomi-san is here." she says.<br /><br />"What do you need? Just laydown for now." she says softly.<br /><br />To Kukai she replies: 'Orange Juice.' she replies. 'Anything for sick really.'

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai's phone buzzes and he scans the quick message. "Aha. OK." Into the convenience store he goes, grabbing a basket and practically attacking the aisles at top speed! It takes him only a minute to grab a box of orange juice, several cans of chicken noodle soup, some tissues, and a bag of cough drops, bring them to the counter, and dash back out of the door. Then it's... onto a nearby bus and heading towards the manor. He's not going to run the whole way. It's not a long ride, anyways.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama glanced up and stared. For the longest time. Her eyes widening as she saw Kotomi...<br /><br />And unmei looked horrible. Her hair was a mess. Her nose was drippy. Her cheeks were red. Her eyes were puffy. And she just... She shrieked and tugged a blanket down and over herself, letting the vampire help her into bed.<br /><br />"I-I was too hot! K-Kotomi what a-are you doing here? Y-you're not supposed to, to see me like this! I look ugly and... and..." She just kind of laid there for a long moment, once again overcome with tremendous fatigue. Wrapped up as best she could be in the blanket. "I don't want you to see me nowwwww... I look pathetic and icky and gross and I hurt and everything is why is it so cold in here? L-lacrima, can i have another blanket?" BECAUSE THE WINDOW IS OPEN! And now she was shaking/

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi sighs. She's not relieved, exactly; or, well, she's ''trying'' to be relieved, but she's just very concerned. "Unmei-san," she says softly. "Like, you don't have to worry about ''that'', I mean ''nobody'' looks good when they're sick! I mean you just ... can't help it if it happens!" She nods, as if this was all self-explanatory.<br /><br />... She almost wants to hug Unmei, but Kotomi's anxiety has several kinds of "no" to say about this, and her common sense informs her that this might run the risk of ''her'' getting sick as well.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai arrives at the manor and makes his way inside - he knows Lacrima will probably have the door open, and is pretty sure Unmei's upstairs in one of the guest rooms. The sound of voices inside helps too. He stops before the door and knocks on it without entering. "Hello? Everyone in one piece in here? I brought supplies..." He peeks just a bit around the corner, not sure who'd be inside. "Are you decent?"

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama groans and then... Kukai. "Ahhhhh... why are all the sexy people invading my room? Noooooo. I look horrible! I look like... like a goat tried to eat my face!" ... I mean... not really? "And if I look even half as bad as I feel then I look like a corpse!" she whined, curling up into a little ball of shame and misery...<br /><br />And then she sneezed and had to grab another tissue, appearing only for a second to whipe her swollen nose and... She looked as bad as she felt, to be honest.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi jumps slightly and turns around as Kukai arrives! "Um, yes?" she calls back to him, sounding oddly defensive. "Unmei-san is ... she's just really feeling like a mess right now!"<br /><br />She tries to settle back down as she turns back to Unmei. "Hey, you don't look ''that'' bad!" she says. "You just ... look really really tired! And, and sick!" And then she blinks, and does a double-take. Her cheeks start to redden. "W-wait. 'Sexy'!?"

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai eyes Unmei for a minute, then nods to Kotomi. "Hey. I'm Kukai - I'm a friend of Unmei's and Lacrima's. Unmei sort of fat-fingered a text to me and I was worried, so I came over and brought some stuff." He holds up the bag. "I'll go get her some orange juice - here." He takes the cans and the OJ out, handing the cough drops and tissue box out to Kotomi. "Unmei? You think you could eat anything?"

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nods and finally pokes her head out and... he can see her and... Oh gosh she looked like a mess. She sniffled and looked out at him. "W-what?" she asked, wiping her eyes.<br /><br />"Y-yeah. I'll eat." And then, because she was unmei... Well... Her mind went straight to almost every anime she'd seen where the protagonist got sick and their 'friend/love interest' had to feed them and she quickly vanished under the covers again. "N-nothing too dry, please, my throat really hurts..."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi frowns, trying to get her nervousness and weird defensiveness under control. "Kotomi Kobana," she says. "I'm a friend of Unmei-san and ... Lacrima-san."<br /><br />She looks between Unmei and Kukai. She isn't sure if he's in-the-know about all the magical business. (Her anxiety is too busy spinning her wheels to actually consider that he's probably in-the-know if he knows the name Lacrima.) But then she blinks. "Oh, wait, are you the ... the ..." She snaps her fingers. "... Seiyou. The Jack! Kukai Souma-san! I ''knew'' I'd seen you before!"<br /><br />She frowns at Unmei. "Um. You ... probably can't ... eat stuff if the, if the sheets are pulled up like that," she says nervously.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai grins at Unmei and nods. "OK. I'll get it fixed. It's all good. It'll be soup for now." He turned back to Kotomi and nods to her, smiling. "It's nice to meet you Kotomi-san." He watches her be nervous and unsure looking, before she snaps her fingers. "Yes, that's me. I'm the Jack of Guardians for Seiyou Public School, Kukai Souma." He grins at her, giving her his patented Jack's Grin, that calming, morale-boosting grin, and nods to her. "OK. I'll be back in a minute. Keep an eye on her?" He nods and heads back towards the kitchen. Spending a few weeks living in this manor had familiarized him with its layout.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Uh huh... He's a jack..." she mumbled, holding the blankets tightly around herself. "And he knows about me. And she knows about me. So there's... knowing... going on. Here," she said a bit groggily. "He was one of the ones who helped save me when I was all.... grrr.... and trying to do the thing with the sins and stuff..." she mumbled. "i miss Pin and Win..."<br /><br />She huffed. "A-and I'll come out to eat. But... you can't watch me... I look horrible... I'll eat at my desk. I can--EEK!" And there was a thump as she tried to demonstrate she could get to her desk.... and tripped on the blanket, falling out of the bed. "O-ow...."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi nods along with Kukai's explanation. "Okay, I will!" And, okay, he seems to know about Unmei's magical stuff at least! (Her anxiety tries to tell her she can't be ''sure'' about that; she ignores it until such a time as the topic actually becomes relevant again.)<br /><br />She jumps slightly as Unmei falls over. "Oh, jeez, Unmei-san!" she says. Now only slightly reluctant about the possibility of spreading germs, she goes over and tries to help Unmei back onto the bed. "I think it would be best if you just sat in bed for now, Unmei-san," she says in a quiet voice. "I, uh ... maybe Souma-san can get you a breakfast-in-bed sort of tray ... if they have something like that here."

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai looks back over his shoulder as Kotomi goes back to help Unmei, nodding towards the room, and then heads towards the kitchen, finding a pot and the stove and the rest, digging out a serving tray as well, and a glass for the orange juice. <br /><br /> If and when Kotomi looks back at the door, where Kukai had been standing there's now a tiny green-haired figure in a tennis outfit, hovering in midair about shoulder height, watching over the two of them.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded as she was dropped back into bed and whined. "Everything hurts... all my muscles hurt... my nose hurts... I can't breathe out my nose.... I feel weak and miserable and helpless and and ugly and stupid and useless.... how'm I even going to go on patrol? What if I fall behind on classes now? what if I never get better?" Oh yay, letting her own anxiety take over!<br /><br />She burried herself under the blankets, making herself a little nest. "I didn't want anyone to see me so lame.... either...."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi frowns, and puts a hand on Unmei's shoulder. "Hey, hey," she says. "You're gonna be okay, all right? It feels bad, but, like, it gets better! No one, like, just gets the flu forever for no reason! I mean, not without any sign of it happening before. Your anxiety isn't 'you', it's just a big jerk that's trying to mess with you!"<br /><br />She glances around. And then she does a double-take at the tiny figure. "Um ... hello?" she says cautiously. This is pinging her 'new magical thing' anxiety, which is distinctly different from and vastly less intense than her 'new person' anxiety.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Daichi waves back at Kotomi and grins, hanging in midair. "Hii! Are you a friend? What's wrong with Unmei? What's with your pin? Is she gonna be ok?" He hovers forward a little, looking over at Unmei, innocently concerned. "Kukai went to make her some soup. That'll make her feel better, right?" He looks back up at Kotomi, blinking.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama blinked a few times and then her eyes, and the top of her head popped out from her blanket nest. "W-what? Why would... my anxiety be a... what? Why's it a person now?" she asked. "Is... is it a youma?" she asked. Her eyes then glanced to the flying guy. "Hey Daichi..." she mumbled.<br /><br />"She's a friend. I'm sick and dying. Pin was my mascot, remember? Lil bird? Kind of a bastard? Kept saying things like 'Give in to your sin' and stuff?"<br /><br />She shrugged. "And I don't know. I hope it makes me feel better. It can't make me feel worse... I hope..."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi just ... openly stares at Daichi now. "Uh ... she's sick," she says. "I dunno the exact details, but she's just pretty awful right now, she needs a lot of rest and the chicken soup will help, and then she'll be ''fine''."<br /><br />She glances at Unmei. "I mean, I just sort of 'externalize' my anxieties like that, and ..." She stops. "Y'know what, I think I should wait to have this conversation until after you can think clearly," she says.<br /><br />She glances back at Daichi. "And ... I think he meant this pin?" she adds, pointing at the pin on her dress. "My transgender pride flag pin," she says, addressing Daichi directly. "I'm transgender." She pauses, letting Daichi handle it if she's wrong. Or, indeed, if he wants further clarification. "Um, if you don't mind me asking ... what ... are you?"

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Daichi zips past Kotomi and hugs Unmei. "Don't be dying! You die when you're dying! That's bad! You shouldn't do that! Get better!" He clings to Unmei's cheek with a hug for a moment, before releasing her and looking up at Kotomi. "We'll give her all the chicken soup! Right?" <br /><br /> Daichi gives Kotomi a thumbs up. "I'm Daichi! I'm Kukai's Guardian Spirit! He's my Bearer!" He hovers up and looks over to the door, where a few moments later Kukai enters, having found a medical mask, and having the chicken soup heated, in a bowl, with a few saltine crackers, and some orange juice. Kukai glances over at the three of them, then nods to Kotomi. "Hey. Can she sit up? Er, if she can't, we can help her..." He moves over to set the tray on Unmei's desk, watching, as Daichi flies over to him. "Kotomi says we have to feed Unmei all the chicken soup or she'll die and she's got a transatlantic pin and we can't let Unmei die." The little figure crosses his arms seriously, nodding at Kukai, who suppresses a grin. "Right. We can't let Unmei die. But first, let's get her up.."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Oh. Externalize... right. Yes. That's better. It helps. I guess?" she offered. And then she yelped as DAICHI! One hundred percent and worried about her! "W-what?"<br /><br />"O-oh. No. I'm not actually... going to die. I just feel like death and--"<br /><br />Another sneeze that rattled her entire body. She reached out for some tissues and emptied her nose again, grumbling. "It's just... sick, Daichi. I won't die. From this. Promise. Probably."<br /><br />She then glanced up at Kukai and sighed, eying the face masks. "Although, I can't help but wonder if maybe I am and you all plan to put me in isolation when you wear masks like that," she said with a soft chuckle, then a whimper and cough. "Ow it hurts to laugh..." she mumbled with a whimper, wiping her eyes. Slowly she sat up and let the blanket's fall around her shoulders. "F-fine. I'll eat. Jsut give me the soup..." she mumbled, reaching out with shaky hands. Well. This would end well.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi actually giggles a bit at Daichi. "''Transgender'' pin!" she says. "It means I ... well, for lack of a better way of putting it, I was born with the body of a boy, but I'm actually a girl, so I'm getting medical help for that and stuff." One might notice that her voice is not the girliest, but still obviously feminine. Sounds like she's been transitioning for quite a few years!<br /><br />She does look curiously at Kukai. "So, um, you're a magical ... boy?" she says. "Or however that works? I mean I could swear I've never seen, um, Daichi before ..." She pauses. "... of course, I don't think we've ever been in the same room before, especially after February third ..."<br /><br />Okay, Unmei's handling the reassurances. But ... Kotomi side-eyes her. "You are not going to just grab a bowl of soup while you're sick and your hands are shaking like that," she says, more firmly than ... well, than she can really remember ever speaking in recent memory, actually. She isn't entirely sure what to think about this. "Um, Souma-san, do we ... I mean, should we help her ...?"

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Daichi oohs and nods at Unmei. "Well.. ok, if you're not gonna die." He looks at Kotomi and oohs, then nods. "Oh! OK! We've known lots of those. Nade~" Kukai cuts him off. "I dunno, Daichi, we can talk about that later." Daichi shrugs, then plops down on Kukai's shoulder, who seems to show no weight from Daichi. <br /><br /> Kukai's mouth crinkles behind the mask and he shakes his head. "No but I don't want to spend a week in bed myself either. I'm perfectly happy to be in good health." Kukai nods back to Kotomi and smiles. "Yeah, magical boy. That's how it works. And ... maybe? It's possible." He shakes his head as well, then picks up the tray and moves it over to besides Unmei. "I'll hold the tray, you use the spoon." He nods to Kotomi. "Yeah, we'll want to help her, and maybe try to keep her from coughing enough to shake the tray off onto me, or us."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama shuffled a bit nervously in her seat. Yeah, she knew that the other girl was trans... But hadn't... really... ever told her that SHE was trans. So... she really hoped the others didn't accidentally out her. "Yeah, he's one of the best magical boys," she said a bit groggily. "A-and I can do it myself, watch!" And reached out and...<br /><br />... Dropped the spoon. She picked it back up and sighed, wiping it off on her blanket.<br /><br />"Okay yes I'm pathetic. I'll be a good girl and use the spoon..." she mumbled, her cheeks burning. "Ugh, I hate this..."<br /><br />"You know... when this kind of stuff happens in anime it's usually less... messy..." she grumbled. "Totally not fair. Magical girl, I'm not supposed to get a runny nose and look like a mess of... of..." And she had to take another tissue and blow. "A mess..." She had a small coughing fit before, slowly, eating some of her soup. She had about five bites before.... "I think I'm good... I just wanna lay back down and rest...." she mumbled.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi blinks. Oh! Okay, there's trans magical girls running around, too! She wonders when she'll get to meet any. She nods to Kukai. "I was just thinking ..." She shakes her head. "Well, um, anyway, I'm Dream Defender Kotomi, but I can only transform while I'm in the dream world ... and I think I became a lot more magical when she attacked me. But also, now ..." She hesitates. She's ''right there in Lacrima's manor.'' But there's nothing for it now, really. "... now I apparently smell delicious to creatures of darkness."<br /><br />She frowns, and almost reaches out to Unmei. "You should probably eat more, y'know," she says quietly, but her usual uncertainty and lack of firmness is back in full force. "I mean yeah you ''should'' definitely rest, but, like ... you also need to eat and stuff!"

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai awws and holds the tray for Unmei. "Nah, I mean. I'm just a 'pretty good' magical boy. Not the best or anything." He rolls his eyes as Unmei complains. "And I'm not supposed to fall into a diner, have it blow up around me, and go into a coma. We're tough, not invincible, Unmei. And it's good to have a cold every so often. Reminds us we're still human." He nods as she lies back. "You sure? OK..." <br /><br /> Kukai aahs and nods to Kotomi. "It's nice to meet you! Well, there's a few other dream beings I know. Ariel, for instance. She's a sweetheart, and really strong in dreams. Aaand... oh, boy." He shakes his head. "Am I gonna have to hold Lacrima off you or something?" <br /><br /> Kukai hmms. "Well... she drank some of the orange juice and got some of the soup. If she wants to sleep now, that's ok. If she wakes up hungry, she can eat then..." He stands. "But I'm gonna leave the soup on your desk on the tray. Just in case."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Oh? You have magic now? That's cool! I had a feeling you would since... you know. Magic. And all that," she said with a smile. "It's... better than nothing, right? Maybe you can help get rid of some of my nightmares," she joked, smiling to the girl.<br /><br />Then paused. "Wait... attacked? Who attacked you?" she asked as she got comfortable in her blankets. "And they make youma attracted to you?"<br /><br />"Ad... I will. It just... it kind of hurts to move. Everything aches. But... ummmm... And I'm tired. But.... C-can you two stay a bit longer? I'm not... I am tired... but I can't sleep... it just.... aches too much.... you know? If that makes sense... too tired and hurts... to sleep..."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi shakes her head. "Lacrima-san mostly seems to have it mostly under control," she says. "But, like ..." She shrugs. "... it has not been doing anything good for my anxiety and stuff." She shrugs. "Mostly it's just been making stuff more ... awkward here."<br /><br />She actually giggles at Unmei's joke. For some reason, she finds it easier to laugh at Unmei's jokes. Hmm ... Well, anyway, she shrugs. "Well, uh ... I dunno if I can find 'normal' nightmares that aren't magical, but, like, I'll see what I can do!"<br /><br />She sighs softly as Unmei questions about the attack. "She was ... a nightmare-catgirl. A catgirl who is a nightmare," she says. "I didn't get her name, I'll have to ask Ariel-san if she got it. I have ''absolutely'' no idea what her deal was, but I think she ... ''maybe'' had one of the Nightmare Prince's shards?" Another shrug. "Lacrima-san said I smell 'delicious', and then this sort of fog-youma tried to drain me. But then she used her bracelet to become a magical girl, and there was another kind of magical girl called Cure Shield, and they fought it off. And then Lacrima-san ran away because she didn't want to drain me." She inexplicably looks slightly guilty about that.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai nods and sets the soup off to one side, finding a place to sit near Unmei's bed without taking up all the places for Kotomi, too. "Sure, I can hang out for a while." He huhs, then shakes his head, looking at Kotomi. "So Lacrima... wants to nom on you? Shades of Sachiko, all over again." He rubs his neck, frowning. "No wonder she bounced. She's probably really embarrassed." <br /><br /> Kukai blinks, then hmms. "I thought most catgirls were dreams, not nightmares..." He coughs, then nods. "Oh, so you ran into other people who protected you? That's really good. It sounds like you encountered a lot of people."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "O-oh. That's... not so good. Being so nervous. OH! And um. No. D-don't try to see my dreams. Please. Trust me. T-there's nothing good about them. I-I mean, they're not BAD! They're just not, I mean, they're normal dreams, definitely normal, but they're not, I mean, you know, there's not anything there worth seeing. T-trust me!" she said quickly, her cheeks burning woth embarassment.<br /><br />"O-oh... Yeah. I uhhh... You can trust Lacrima. If she can't... if she doesn't know she can handle a thing, she'll leave. She's good like that. So... don't worry about her. Okay? She's a really great person. And heck, if she gets that hungry, I've always told her she can eat off me a bit," she said with a shrug.<br /><br />"And shades of Sachiko? Is that a book? And nah... I hear a lot of cat girls are dreamy... but end up being nightmares," she joked, before giggling, then sneezing, then coughing, then,... "I hate life..." she whined.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi nods. "I ... haven't known Lacrima-san very long," she says, "but, like, I kind of feel like she's just ... I dunno. Being a vampire like her ... can't be fun." She has read enough vampire stories to know that if Lacrima ''did'' try draining her, this could have even worse results.<br /><br />She blinks at Unmei's panicked ranting about her dreams. "Um, okay, I won't," she says simply, in the manner which she wishes more people used with ''her''.<br /><br />She shrugs, and looks between Kukai and Unmei. "... who ''is'' Sachiko?" she says. "Um. D-do I want to know?"

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai nods. "Lacrima's gotten really good about putting herself out of a situation where she might lose control. I'm really proud of her." He shakes his head to Kotomi. "No, being a vampire like her is very un-fun. I know, we switched bodies for a little while." <br /><br /> Kukai sighs. "Sachiko was a little girl that smelled a lot like cinnamon rolls to Lacrima. She... sort of lost herself around Sachiko and drained her too much, and she went into a coma for a while. She's out now, but she's not quite the same. So I think Lacrima's really guilty over it, and that's part of why she controls herself more now."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Yeah, it probably... sucks?" she said. Glancing to Kukai. "You and Lacrima... switched... bodies?" she asked.<br /><br />And her cheeks flooded red as she quickly looked away. She was the worst friend....<br /><br />"O-oh... That's... horrible. Poor Lacrima... that must have been terrible for her. Especially if she's still not over it...."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi's eyes widen slightly. "... wow," she says quietly. "Um. Yeah. I'm, I'm glad she's starting to get better now ..."<br /><br />She sighs softly. "Man, I wish I could ..." She shakes her head. "I don't even ''know'' what I wish I could do. I don't even know what to say, it's like ... wow." On impulse, she puts a comforting hand on Unmei's shoulder. ... She ''hopes'' it's comforting somehow.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai nods. "Yeah. We hit one of the Cards - Double, I think? - and it swapped our bodies. It sucked being in her body for a while, but it gave her a chance to feel normal and do things for a while." Kukai coughs. "And it's not like people didn't smell good around me too. I was just glad I had friends when it got too hard to hold back." He sighs. "It ended ok, though." <br /><br /> Kukai reaches over and pats Kotomi's shoulder too. "It's ok. She's really safe to be around now."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "yeah... I mean... like.... All the time there are.... things I wish I could.... take back and undo. You know? To accidentally do something like that..." She shivered. "I don't know I could forgive myself. I mean, when I was draining people, like.... I knew they'd get their strength back, so it wasn't so bad. But..."<br /><br />"To completely damage someone? I... poor Lacrima... Life is so unfair to her like... all the time..."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi nods. "Right ... she said she couldn't drain me at all while she was being that other kind of magical girl with the talking bracelet, and there was also Cure Shield there, too ... so ... I guess ... yeah."<br /><br />She nods to Unmei. "Yeah, I ... me neither, really," she says. "I've ... never had to hurt anyone, so I don't even ''know'' what it would be like ... and it's all really weird to think about that this whole thing happened." She frowns. "... Poor Sachiko-san, too ..."

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai nods. "Yeah. Yeah. So far I think I'm ok. I wish I could make Utau less angry at me, but that's about it for regrets. And yeah, Lacrima's good about that sort of thing." He sighs. "Yeah. Sachi-chan. I miss her. She's around, but I haven't seen her for a long while." He rubs the back of his neck, then nods. "Well. This is a dark topic for a sickroom. Um..." He thinks, then nods to Unmei. "Oh. Unkai bugged me about you the other day. He was saying you should come back around at some point, you were fun." He nods to Kotomi. "Unkai's one of my brothers. Unmei came over for dinner a week or two ago."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Yeah... Just... Lacrima is great. And a wonderful person. But ummm... Don't tempt her," she said softly. "She has to be stronger than--" And then broke into a coughing fit, followed by a sneeze and blow. "Stronger than most of us ever dream so... Best not to make it worse for her than we have to. I'd like... just text me when you're coming over. In case I'm like... well... When I'm feeling better...."<br /><br />And she perked up. "He is? He does? He wants me to?" she asked, a grin on her red face. "Hee hee. So does this mean I've got a chance, then? He was... your.... third brother, right?" she asked. Oh gosh... Poor Unkai.<br /><br />"Errr.... please... don't tell your brothers how I looked... okay?"

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi nods. "Right!" she says. "I'll ... I mean I'll ''try'' to text you and stuff, but, uh ..." She giggles nervously. "''You'' know how it is, Unmei-san!"<br /><br />And then ... the subject of Unkai comes up.<br /><br />Kotomi frowns. "Oh, so you're ..." She looks between Unmei and Kukai. "Un''kai'' ... and Un''mei''. That's ... that ... almost ... sounds cute in a way," she says, sounding ''really weirdly defensive'' for some reason. "I mean. That's. It's not like I'm ... weirdly bothered by that ... for no reason I can figure out ..." She looks away in a red-faced huff.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai nods, then hums. "Well. It's not like we didn't have to drum on her head for a few months before she got to that point, so..." Kukai leaned back, then laughs, nodding. "Yeah. The thing is you may be in line behind a few other girls if you don't hurry. Soo.." He smiles. "So no photographs?" <br /><br /> Kukai laughs. "It is kinda cute but for real he's like 3 or 4 years older than her so I don't even know what she's doing. Swinging in the dark, I think." He eyes Kotomi for a moment, then rubs his chin, considering. "That being said, in the long term, that's not a bad time split..."

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Yeah, exactly. Just try though, okay? I mean... you can text her, if you need to. Since like... that way she has warning, too?" she said.<br /><br />She gave a little giggle. "Yeah, I guess it would be cute," she said with a giggle, then groaned and... "Oh don't you dare. Because if you ever take a picture of this and try to show it to anyone, I WILL find a way to go ahead and 'release your sin' a few dozen times," she said, glaring mockingly. "Don't make me go dark magical girl on--"And then she hacked a bit, into a napkin and groaned, laying back.<br /><br />"Or maybe I'll just cough on you... this is punishment enough... ugh..." she grumbled. "And eh... why not? No one else has ever expressed an interest in me. I'm sixteen, have had all of... one girl friend, like. Ever. And no one has expressed even the slightest interest in me. Besides, I imagine I'd probably date someone up to... oh.... ten years older than me before it got weird. Three or four years isn't a big deal," she said with a light chuckle.<br /><br />Then sighed. "Well.. I mean... if you don't mind, Kukai. I mean, he is your brother and... you are my friend. One of my closest and... errr... I know after... our history...." she mumbled.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi actually shrinks back slightly from Kukai's sudden scrutiny. "Uh. W-well, I mean, uh ... I mean I'm ... fourteen and ..." She just shrugs and looks away from Unmei, completely red-faced now. "... have ... literally never really been able to make friends with anyone much, I mean before the magic stuff happened, let alone dating, so, like, uh, ''I have absolutely no idea why I'm talking about this''," she finishes with more force than necessary.

:'''{{#var:141|Kukai Souma| (141)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kukai nods. "Right. Let her get kinda ready for it." He then looks over at Unmei and chortles a little bit, bowing his head. "I wouldn't do anything like that, Unmei, really. You should look at least as good as a half drowned kitten, you know? Right now you just look... well, sick." <br /><br /> Kukai hmms, then looks at Kotomi and Unmei for a second. "Well, I don't mind, but... y'know, I just had a thought. If you're feeling better, and Kotomi's going to stick around for a bit, I'm going to get outta here. I've still got training to do today, and she seems like she'll take good care of you." He grins at the two of them. "Kotomi, it was really nice to meet you, get my number from Unmei or Lacrima or something, if you need some magic contacts, I'm always up to help. You take care of her, ok?" He nods to Unmei, then heads for the door. "Kbyeseeya!" And he's gone.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama blinked and turned scarlet. "O-oh gosh. I forgot about that. I spenjt like. TWO HOURS preparing for that, you know? Not many people want to like. Introduce me to their families. I can't believe I got caught in that storm, that was humiliating..." she muttered, shaking her head.<br /><br />And then the Kotomi gush. She blinked a few times and opened her mouth, but was cut off by Kukai. "Oh... ummm... thanks," she said with a weak smile. "I don't really feel better... but... it's nice to have company. Thanks for the visit--" And then another coughing fit and a groan as she rolled onto her side. "Visit... kukai. See you... tell your brothers I'll come by again... on a SUNNY day..." she mumbled.<br /><br />And once they were alone, she smiled at Kotomi. "Hey... don't worry. I understand..." she said softly. "You're like. Fourteen, you're scared you won't find like... well. I assume right guy, but maybe girl, I don't know. Whichever you like. But--"<br /><br />And another coughing fit, then another nose blow.<br /><br />"But hey, you can't look half as bad as I do right now, and like... I wouldn't worry so much... finding people is hard. If liek.... you need to. If you find someone you like, just tell them. 'Hey, I like you'. Or like. Kiss them or something. But. Err. Not in front of their girl friends. Because oh my gosh I literally almost died. She may not be a villain, but that girl was terrifying. But yeah. Just don't wait around, jump at it. You'll find someone eventually. Probably.... maybe..." Well... it really wasn't working for her. "Though, I'd be careful..." she mumbled.<br /><br />"Most magical girls are kind of... god... baggage... you know? The whole fate of the world stuff. And possible romance with either past live's people, or even anti-heroes so... just be a bit careful when falling for one of our people. You know?"<br /><br />And it was obvious it was REALLY ahrd for her to get that whole speech out because once she finished she just collapsed and groaned. "My head hurts...."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi's head jerks around towards Kukai. "Eh?" She actually looks like she's about to panic as he leaves. ''"Ehhh ...!?"''<br /><br />She sort of shrinks in on herself as Unmei gives her whole speech. She tries to listen, but she's also struggling to deal with her own anxieties, ''this is good advice, why am I just getting annoyed with this'' ...<br /><br />She slowly turns back to face Unmei. "W-well first of all I'm a lesbian," she snaps back. "Like just the trait of 'you like boys' is just not related at all to 'actually a girl' for people who were designated male at birth. A-and also 'just kiss them' sounds like a ''really bad idea'' especially when they're ''sick'' --"<br /><br />And then she just goes pale and freezes up.

:'''{{#var:160|Lacrima| (160)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Lacrima walks in to deliver fresh bowl of chicken soup and a pitcher of ice water. Hears what Kotomi says then almost seems to magically sliiiiiiiide backwards back out the door. Nope. Not getting involved when Unmei's super sick. Not meddling with the 'awkward donut'. Nope.<br /><br />There was probably worse points to try to slide into the room anyways earlier. But probably less awkward, too.<br /><br />Lalalala, just putting the soup back in the pot.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama sighed. "Yeah, I know. I know. Trust me, I know better than--"<br /><br />When they're sick. When they're sick. WHEN THEY'RE SICK! She didn't notice Lacrima. She. Just. Stared. Finally....<br /><br />"You want to kiss ME?! Why? What's wrong with you? How could you possibly have a crush on me? I'm terr--"<br /><br />And then a hacking fit, gripping a few more napkins and coughing her face as she tried to stifle them, tears in her eyes before finally... just.... collapsing.<br /><br />".... You like ME though? I mean... Why? Like... That's a terrible choice. E-err. No offense. I mean, but I'm a mess, why would you--" And now her voice was actually cracking, as if she was going through a brand new puberty. Apparently her throat wasn't handling outbursts so well when she was sick, causing another coughing fit.

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi's anxiety: triumphant. Now there's an ''entirely new'' scenario it can think of as the worst possible situation she can be in: she accidentally let slip about her crush, ''to'' her crush, whom she hadn't even consciously ''known'' she had a crush on, and said crush's reaction is to criticize her for doing so. Even her ''anxiety'' hadn't predicted that things might go ''that'' badly!<br /><br />As it is, she begins to panic. "Th-that's not ... I-I mean you're, you're a cool magical girl and I haven't even ... I mean you're prettier than me, e-even if you're sick right now ... a-and you know what it's like to be a panicked wreck about everything ever ... a-and I-I'm just a trans girl ... or like I mean I ... I ... I ..."<br /><br />Error: Kotomi.exe has stopped working. Although it looks like she's about to start crying.

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama stared at her, her mouth open. She almost objected. Then... stopped. And looked flustered. She rolled over and put her back to the other girl. "O-oh. I didn't think... You'd feel... Okay.... I mean... I just...." she whispered.<br /><br />"I haven't... actually... been honest with you... about all I...." she gulped a little bit... Slowly pulling herself up into a little ball.<br /><br />"... But if you... feel ike.... that about me... you should... know... uhhh..."<br /><br />Deep breath. "I mean... I knew I should have told you but... like... I mean... I panicked at first and... I got scared and... then the time wasn't right and... I mean... I didn't think you... I mean..."<br /><br />"So... errr.... I'm not... my body is kind of... artificial. Err... when I got my powers... I got a wish...." She gripped the clotho gem against her chest.<br /><br />"I... wished to... be a beautiful and... breath taking... girl..." she mumbled gentle.<br /><br />"So... I... was.... am.... kind of trans too... but ummm... I found a... magical... solution... and all... so... err.... s-sorry... I just... I mean... I don't know if you still.... are interested of...."

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi just stares at Unmei for a moment, taking in the revelation. Which probably isn't doing anything good for ''either'' of their anxiety, but Kotomi's having trouble putting her own feelings in order.<br /><br />Still, one thing stands out. "D-dummy!" she blurts out. "That makes you even ''more'' awesome! Like, ''wow'' you're even luckier than I imagined! Like I wish ''I'' could do that too!" She hesitates. "O-outside the dream-world, I mean! My dream-self is ... all girl, but that's ..." She shakes her head. "But like, that's just the ''best thing ever!'' It makes you even ''more'' ... uh ..."<br /><br />She groans. "S-sorry, I ... think ... I am about to ... sort of run out of, of social energy," she says. "I don't think I can handle, um, all of this at once. Can, uh ... can we ..." She blushes deeply. "... t-talk more seriously about this later? When you're not ... um ... having a headache and needing to rest and all that?"

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded. "Yeah... that was... part of it. I know I'm lucky to have this. I mean, it was this or like... not existing at all. but uhhh... it's kind of like..." She sighed and shook her head. <br /><br />"It's why my family will have nothing to do with me so... like... I mean, I know you are, too, but ummmm.... I mean... it's not like I can really share the cure so like.... I didn't wanna rub it in or... yeah.... let's.... t-talk later.... okay?" she mumbled. "Maybe... if you want... and if you want... okay?"

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi's anxiety tries to strike back, producing a million different ways this could go wrong. She shoots it down and just focuses on the ''gosh darn positives''.<br /><br />"O-of course!" she says. "I just ... need to, um, recharge, or whatever you wanna call it." She manages a weak smile. "So, um ... y-yeah. Um. Talk to you later, um ..." She decides to just take a single leap forward and adjust her use of honorifics. "... Unmei-chan!"

:'''{{#var:190|Unmei Tama| (190)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Unmei Tama nodded and... then.... was quiet. At first. But.... as she went out the door. "Though... Ummmm... Kotomi... if... you wanted..."<br /><br />".... Sick or no, I might not mind if you decided to tell me with a kiss."<br /><br />.... What? To the directness goes the... war... machines. Or something. She didn't know. BUT FORWARD! And how better to show she was maybe kind of interested?

:'''{{#var:238|Kotomi Kobana| (238)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Kotomi just ... ''giggles'', blushing bright red, and then hurries back downstairs and out the door as fast as she can without another word!<br /><br />... And then she rushes ''back'' in to throw away her flu mask. "Um sorry goodbye I'll see you later!" she says on her way out.
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