After parting ways with Rei Ao, Vignette and Satania walked side by side back toward the park. Vignette finally seemed to have shaken off the whole Zelel episode and her head was clear again. Something suddenly occurred to her.
She tilted her head, curious, and asked the girl beside her, "By the way, Satania—come to think of it, you didn't come back to the apartment the night before last, did you? Where did you go? I remember you said you were going to challenge Gabriel."
Satania, who'd been looking down, froze like someone had hit pause. The bright red hair on her head practically stood on end. The faint pink that hadn't quite faded from her cheeks flared into a full, apple-red blush in an instant—she was practically steaming.
Her eyes darted everywhere but at Vignette. Both hands nervously twisted the hem of her school jacket. After squirming forever, she finally stammered in a voice as thin as a mosquito's buzz, like it might give out at any moment:
"W-well… I—I was with Gabriel a-and Master at a… h-hotel, we, um… s-spent the night…"
"A h-hotel?! Spent the night?!" Vignette stopped dead. It sounded like sheer fantasy. Her violet eyes went wide as she stared at Satania, who was about to curl up into a ball from embarrassment.
It felt like her brain had been split by an ultimate lightning spell straight from the demon realm—blank. A disastrous, chaotic guess slammed into her mind like a runaway infernal train, shattering the peace of her pure little demon heart.
"W-what exactly… did you do at the hotel?" Vignette's voice trembled on its own, shaking with shock and a hint of impending meltdown.
Satania's face was so red it looked like it might start bleeding. She wished she could bury her head in the ground. Her voice got smaller and smaller, barely more than breath: "J-just, you know, regular s-sleeping. R-really, we didn't do anything… special…"
The more she said, the guiltier she sounded, and the last words all but died in her throat. That "nothing to see here" act only smashed the last of Vignette's wishful thinking like a sledgehammer.
She felt like she might actually faint. It was too much information, too much impact—way beyond the comprehension of a lawful-good little demon like her.
"Oh heavens… by the Demon King…" Vignette pressed a trembling hand to her woozy forehead. Even the street seemed to spin. She needed to calm down—desperately.
…
Elsewhere, after saying goodbye to Vignette and Satania at the corner, Rei Ao didn't head straight back to his own place. Instead, he strolled over to the neighboring Yukinoshita apartment.
Moving with easy familiarity, he rang the doorbell. A crisp chime echoed down the quiet hallway.
Before long, the door opened from the inside. Standing there was Yukinoshita Yukino. She wore a simple house dress with a cardigan tossed over her shoulders.
When she saw Rei Ao at the door, a clear flicker of surprise crossed her exquisitely cool features, but it faded quickly back into her usual composure. "Rei Ao?" she asked in her clear, cool voice, head tilting slightly. "Coming by at this hour—did you need something?"
"What, I can't drop in just to see our adorable Yukino-chan?" Another voice—more lively, teasing—floated out from behind her. Yukinoshita Haruno leaned out with a smile, her bright eyes lighting up the moment she saw Rei Ao.
Without so much as asking, she slipped her arm through his and, half tugging, half guiding, drew him into the warm apartment. "Why are you standing in the doorway? Come on in! Perfect timing—Mom's home today too. She was just talking about you!"
Watching her sister practically drape herself over Rei Ao, Yukino's fine brows knit by the faintest degree, a soft blush creeping up the edges of her ears. But she didn't say anything. She simply stepped aside, leaving more than enough space for the two who were practically joined at the hip to come in.
Haruno all but towed Rei Ao into the living room. The Yukinoshita place was arranged with an elegant coziness now, full of lived-in warmth. The scene in the room added a strangely harmonious touch: on the wide, comfortable sofa, Mabel lay sprawled like a lazy cat, blissfully using their mother's lap as a pillow.
Their mother's smile was gentle enough to melt snow as she ran a delicate wooden comb slowly, tenderly through Mabel's long blue hair, glossy as moonlit ice.
"Ah, it's Rei Ao," their mother said when she heard them, looking up. Seeing Haruno leading him in, her smile softened further. "Welcome."
Haruno pouted at the sight of Mabel melting into their mother's lap, jealousy plain in her voice.
"Honestly, Mom—these days you only have eyes for Mabel. You treat her better than your own daughters. Look at her—she's about to start purring!"
Their mother chuckled and, with her free hand, gently pinched Mabel's cool, soft cheeks. "She's so adorable, and she's our honored guest. Of course I'm going to dote on her a little." Mabel let out an even more contented little "mii~~" from deep in her throat and nuzzled against her lap.
Yukino watched quietly from the side. She didn't speak, but something like a faint warmth flowed through her cool gaze. Ever since their mother had moved in, the house that used to feel a bit too austere and rule-bound had gained a kind of lively bustle—and, yes, more noise (mostly whenever Haruno and Mabel started bouncing off each other). But it had also brought much more warmth.