When Xelus came to, he wasn’t quite certain how much time had passed. At first he wasn’t even certain where he was or why he had decided to take a nap in the castle’s dungeon, until his memory caught back up and he realized exactly what had happened.

There was no sign of Precious Silver. That thought sent a spike of panic into him, dragging him back up to his feet, even if he still felt pretty dazed. But this… this was bad. It wasn’t just a matter of failing in his task; it meant that one of the Precious Elements was loose and wandering around the castle. And he wasn’t even there to protect Lady Yume!

He tried to shake off the dizziness and made his way as quickly as possible down the castle halls, simultaneously cursing the maze-like path back to the throne room while also hoping desperately that Precious Silver would be completely lost herself. If that bought him enough time to return to Lady Yume’s side… That was all that mattered.

By the time Xelus stumbled back into the throne room, the combination of pushing himself to run through the castle and the lingering dizziness from being knocked out meant the whole room was spinning. Thankfully, though, his prayers were answered: Lady Yume was still safe, with no sign of Precious Silver. Seeing Yume sitting sideways on the throne, legs thrown over its arm as she idly flipped through the Tome, he could finally let out a breath of relief. And then he collapsed.

With a gasp, Lady Yume was at his side. “Xelus! Xel! Are you okay? Oh darkness, did Precious Silver do this to you? You’re… you’re bleeding!”

He was…? He touched his chest, and sure enough his fingers came away sticky. But… he was pretty sure his blood wasn’t supposed to be pink. 

“The potion!” he wailed.

“Wh-what?”

“It must have broken in my pocket...” There must have been a lot more of it in that tiny vial than expected, because the whole front of his uniform was soaked through. Probably ruined too—that stain was never coming out. He felt worse than ever. “My Lady, I have failed you again.”

“I don’t care about that,” she said, fluttering around him anxiously. “You’re more important than any plan. Stay still, I’ll get you a pillow. Oh, where’s that alchemist when you need them!” 

“I’m okay,” he said, struggling to his feet once again despite her protests. “I was just dizzy. I… I let my guard down and Silver overpowered me and escaped. But I’m here now, I can protect you!”

“You’re hurt, Xel. I can protect myself. And you.” Negative energy crackled in the air around her, as Lady Yume’s expression turned dark. “And trust me, when I find her, she will pay for this.”

“Do not trouble yourself, My Lady.” Xelus shook his head. “I truly am fine! I can still capture her again. She has to be somewhere in the castle, and if she tries using her magical powers, we’ll be able to sense it. I’ll hunt her down, and then we’ll get another potion, or figure something out, or— I don’t know. I’m not ready to give up yet. If… if she is the one you want, I will stop at nothing to make that happen.”

Yume looked positively murderous. “Absolutely not. I will never marry someone who would do something like this to my best fr— my butler. My best butler.”

“I mean, I did lock her up in a dungeon,” Xelus said. “I can’t blame her for trying to fight back.”

Yume pursed her lips. “I suppose. But still! How rude!” She shook her head firmly. “Unacceptable. Not wife material.”

“Then…” Xelus felt his heart leap. “You’re giving up on finding a bride?”

“Oh.” Yume hesitated. “No. I still want to do that. But I will simply have to find someone else. Someone more suited to ruling at my side.”

Xelus sighed, his excitement fading as rapidly as it had arrived. Of course his Lady would not be so easily discouraged. They were right back to where they started. Perhaps even worse off, because who else was out there? Xelus felt confident that no one in this dimension or any other was truly good enough for Lady Yume. But at the very least, he knew that she should be with someone who recognized the immeasurable fortune they had in being able to be with her, and knew how to treat her with the utmost respect and love.

“I wish that could be me,” he whispered. And then he froze, realizing that he had just said those words out loud. Maybe Lady Yume hadn’t heard though? Maybe…

“...What?”

Uh oh.

“What did you just say, Xel?” Yume repeated, sounding more than a little surprised.

Xelus swallowed. Okay. No problem. He’d just push his feelings down, lie about it, and they’d move on with their business. “I said I wish that could be me,” he said again, and then he blinked. He opened his mouth again. “I mean… I was saying… I was saying that I wish it could be me that you marry.” The panic set in, and he hurried to try and explain. “B-because I’m hopelessly in love with you.”

This was when Xelus realized that the truth potion that had been in his pocket, the one that had broken and spilled all over him… Apparently it worked rather well.

Yume stared at him, completely speechless. “Xel… I… You…” She took a breath. “Really?”

“Yes,” Xelus said, and then clasped his hands over his mouth.

Yume kept staring, as if she had been frozen by some kind of magic, and Xelus grasped for something that felt safe to say, some way to explain that she didn’t need to worry, that he meant it, but didn’t really mean it.

“I’ve never brought it up before because I don’t think I’m good enough for you,” he finally said. At least he could articulate that: it was certainly the truth. His shoulders slumped, and he couldn’t quite meet Lady Yume’s eyes. “And because I know you do need a bride. I’ve seen the specific kinds of romance books you sneak into your room when you think I’m not paying attention.”

“Wh-wh-what?” Yume said, her face turning beet red.

“There’s nothing wrong with that!” Xelus said hastily. “Even if your father might not understand, I support you completely and wholeheartedly. Honestly, on some level, I totally get it.”

Yume swallowed. “...Really? You’re okay with that? With me?”

“Of course. All I’ve ever wanted is for you to be happy. And you’re right: maybe that involves a queen.” He sighed heavily. “But that’s why I know I don’t have a chance with you, because you don’t know that I’m a girl.”

A moment of stunned silence passed.

What?! That was not what Xelus had meant to say. His words had gotten twisted around!

“I-I-I mean… I’ve always wanted to be a girl.”

No, not that either!

“I… I don’t mean to be telling you this!” he wailed. “It’s the truth potion! I normally just lie to myself!”

“Xelus…”

He just kept babbling, certain that he was making it worse but unable to stop. “I pretend that I’m fine with being seen as a guy, because I’m convinced that no one could possibly see me as a girl.” He buried his face in his hands. “And I’m terrified that if you found out the truth, you’d no longer want to be around me. Aaagh, I hate this!”

“Xelus!”

He finally shut up, but kept his face hidden behind his hands. He couldn’t look at her, not like this. Not after saying all of that. Maybe Castle Tenebrae would just open up a pit of darkness beneath him and he could be buried deep down in the foundations or something, because this was too embarrassing.

Or maybe Lady Yume would just leave. She would walk away, and he’d know that she had dismissed him from her service, and then he could slink off into the darkness. Sure, he’d have to find a new job… and a new home… and a new friend… But… It would be for the best.

He heard Lady Yume’s footsteps, and trembled, hoping she’d at least make it quick. He couldn’t suffer any more like this.

And then, to his great shock, he felt a pair of arms encircle him and pull him close. Lady Yume was hugging him. Ironically all he could think about was: oh no, her dress was going to wind up stained too.

“Xel,” she said softly, one hand gently rubbing up and down on his back. “It’s okay. You don’t have to say any more if you don’t want to. But if you do, I’ll listen okay? And I’ll always be here for you, no matter what.”

“Really?”

“Really.” She pulled back a bit, just enough that she could look him directly in the eyes. “You’re not just my butler, or my evil general or whatever. I’ve never thought of you that way. You’re my friend. My most important friend.”

Xelus found himself tongue-tied, and all he could do was blush, trying not to shake in her arms. This was not what he expected. Even having learned his greatest shame, she still thought of him as… as a friend? That was more than he could ever hope for.

“Xel…” Lady Yume smiled, but then she hesitated, chewing on her lip. “Can… can I ask you a question? I don’t want to take advantage of the truth potion and force you to say something that you’d rather not, but…”

“Go ahead,” Xelus said, feeling a bit out of breath at having her so close, paying attention only to him. “I’ve already revealed my deepest secret. I… I’ll tell you anything.”

“Okay,” she said, but she still took a moment to find her words. “What’s your name?” she finally asked. “What would you really like to be called?” She saw his eyes widen and hastily added, “But you only have to answer that if you want, remember.”

“I-it’s okay.”

He took his time to think about names, to consider who he was and who he wished that he was and who he could allow himself to be, but as a thousand doubts suddenly fought with one another in his head, he stopped, cleared his mind, and opened his mouth. In this case, maybe the truth potion could actually be of some use.

“It’s… Xelissa,” he said.

Lady Yume gave the biggest smile, her eyes crinkling in that all-too-familiar way that made one’s breath catch. “That’s a beautiful name,” she said. “For a beautiful person.”

“But I… I don’t look the way that I want to. I can’t…” The words died out. Accursed truth potion! “I don’t know how to let myself be her.”

“I may be able to help with that,” a voice said from the shadows, and both of them let out a scream. Cupell appeared out of nowhere, wearing the same mysterious smile as before.

Xel sort of expected Lady Yume to pull away, to retreat to a more respectable distance such as to not be seen hugging someone like this. But she just clutched even closer, bristling protectively.

“Don’t just appear out of nowhere like that!” Yume snapped. But then curiosity won out. “You can help, though? Really?”

Cupell nodded. “I can brew a potion to change one’s body. It’ll take time for its full effects to bear fruit, and you’ll need to regularly keep taking it afterwards, but trust me: it will work.”

“I… I can be her? I can be Xelissa?”

“Seems to me you already are,” Cupell said, grinning. “It’s just a matter of letting your outside catch up to the inside.”

Tears suddenly pricked at his—her—eyes. Maybe that too was something that she couldn’t lie about any more, not even to herself. “Thank you,” Xelissa said. “Thank you so much.” And then she was sobbing, and Yume was squeezing her close again, whispering comforting things.

She cried and cried, letting out what seemed like a lifetime of feelings. When she finally stopped, she felt exhausted, but in a way, kind of renewed too. She sniffed again, trying to collect herself.

Yume pulled back a bit, but her hand reached out to cup Xelissa’s cheek. She kept gazing at her, her expression shifting into something complicated that Xelissa didn’t recognize at all.

“Thank you, My Lady,” Xelissa said. “Thank you for everything.”

“Shh,” Yume said. “Can you… can you do one more thing for me?”

“Anything.”

“Can you just call me Yume? Not like mistress and servant but just... two girls who are… friends?”

Xelissa blushed. “I-if that’s what you wish, My—” She shook her head, giggling. “Sorry, force of habit. It’ll take some getting used to, but I can do that if it’s what you really want, Yume.”

Yume’s cheeks grew pink. Her eyes kept flitting around, looking first into Xelissa’s eyes, then darting down to stare at her lips, and then floating off to the side. But Xelissa was so overcome with the euphoria of getting to be herself that she hardly registered Yume’s increasing agitation.

“I wonder how long it will take for the potion to work,” Xelissa said obliviously.

“Mmm.”

“I hope at least some things will happen pretty fast. Oh, I wonder if I should get a new uniform? Can you imagine me in a maid dress? Haha. I mean clearly not. But what if…?”

“Oh. Um. Y-yeah.”

“Are you okay? You’re looking kind of flushed, Yume.”

“I-I. I just…” Yume took a deep breath. “Xelissa, before all the stuff about being a girl, there was something else you said.”

“There was?”

“Yeah. About you. Um. And me? And… feelings? Did… did you really mean that?”

Xelissa froze, as all of that came crashing back. She had said she was in love with Lady Yume. ...But only because of the truth potion. But because of the truth potion, she couldn’t exactly deny it now either. Particularly since having Yume treat her this way only confirmed the obvious: Xelissa was head over heels for her.

“Yes,” Xelissa said. “I meant every word. I don’t expect anything from you, though. I am fine with just having a one-sided crush. I won’t bother you with it. Besides, no one should have to love someone as confused and a mess as me.”

“Hush,” Yume said with authority. “Don’t talk about yourself that way.” But then she immediately looked nervous and uncertain again. “Anyone would be lucky to get to date you. In fact. Uh… I…”

Xelissa stared at her as Yume trailed off, somehow managing to blush even harder than before.

Yume swallowed. “I…”

Both of them were shaking a little now. On some level they both recognized the line they were about to cross, and wanted that more than anything, but it was still terrifying too.

“I—”

“AIIIIIIIIEEEE!” someone screamed as part of the ceiling collapsed, and a shrieking girl tumbled out of a vent to fall right into the throne room.

Yume and Xelissa immediately leapt to their feet, particularly once the dust cleared and they saw who had just so rudely interrupted them.

She was dressed in a shimmery, silvery outfit, with a poofy skirt and knee-high boots. Her long hair was dark blue in color, pulled back into a wavy swirl that somehow held its shape perfectly. Around her neck, waist, and along her fingerless gloves, sparkly gems completed the look, incredibly gaudy but ultimately fitting the aesthetic.

“Precious Silver!” Xelissa cried out, stepping in front of Lady Yume while raising her fists in a battle stance.

“You!” Lady Yume cried out, fire blazing in her eyes, as she stepped in front of Xelissa, her hair crackling with dark energy.

For a moment, they both struggled a bit, trying to decide who should stand in front and protect the other, and coming to no real resolution. Awkwardly, they wound up standing side by side.

Silver coughed and coughed from the dust in the air, but when she saw that they had settled into a semblance of a fighting stance, she hurriedly jumped up and struck her own pose. “Halt, evildoers! Though my heart shines like the purest silver, I’ve had it up to here with this!”

A dramatic flash of light behind Precious Silver matched the looming darkness behind Xelissa and Yume.

Xelissa prepared herself. Though Precious Silver was alone, she was still plenty of a threat by herself. Precious Gold was the sporty one—she played soccer, or softball, or lacrosse or possibly all three—and thus was the best in physical combat, but Precious Silver’s intellect and cunning made her even more dangerous. Xelissa would have to be extra cautious.

They waited, until the moment stretched out long enough to become uncomfortable.

Silver lowered her fists slightly, looking suspicious. “...Aren’t you going to summon a big monster now?”

“That’s in the human world,” Xelissa explained. “There’s not really anything suitable here to turn into a MidKnight. I… guess we could fight normally?”

“Oh.” Silver frowned. “I guess.” She started to raise her fists again, but then blinked as if another thought had distracted her. “Hey, um, by the way, how are you feeling? Are you sure you’re good to do that? If you need to rest a bit more first, I can wait.”

“...What?”

“Well, I hit you pretty hard when breaking out of the dungeon earlier… Sorry about that.”

“You should be sorry!” Yume said hotly. “You could have killed her!”

“Oh. Oops.” Silver had the decency to look sheepish. “I’m used to punching MidKnights and they’re a lot more durable.”

“And you interrupted us right when I was about to…” Yume cut herself off, blushing hotly.

“Yyyeah, sorry about that too.” Silver winced. “Look, I want to be clear that I was just trying to sneak out of the castle, but everything here is super confusing and I don’t think the ventilation system I was crawling through even maps to Euclidean space. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop on you two, I swear.”

“You were eavesdropping?” Xelissa choked out.

“But not on purpose!”

“Okay,” Yume said, and she raised her arms, darkness swirling around her. “Now you definitely are going to pay.”

“H-hold on!” Silver squeaked out. “Look, can’t we talk about this?”

“What’s there to talk about?”

“I don’t know. Everything?”

Yume lowered her arms, still glaring suspiciously. “What do you mean?”

Silver let out a light sigh. “I just don’t get it. Why do we have to fight all the time? Why are you all always causing chaos?”

Xelissa and Yume shared a look. Xelissa cleared her throat. “Well, that would be because we’re trying to gather negative emotions and bring about eternal night.”

“Wait, really?” Silver stared.

“Did you… did you not know that? I thought that was pretty clear.” Xelissa looked to Yume, who shrugged. “I guess we’re usually here in the Darkness Dimension when we make dramatic proclamations about it though.”

Silver looked aghast. “But why?”

Yume rolled her eyes. “What do you mean why? Because my father expects me to, and I’m unhealthily desperate for parental affection despite recognizing that it’s ultimately a toxic relationship.”

A silence stretched out.

“Um…” Silver started. 

“H-hold on,” Yume said. “I didn’t mean to say that. I meant to say because every time I send Xelissa to the human world, she always looks so happy, and I don’t know any excuse to go see it myself unless we conquer it. No wait, I didn’t mean to say that either! Agh!”

Xelissa’s eyes drifted down, and she and Lady Yume realized at the exact same time that since they had been hugging so much, the potion of truth had splashed all over her as well.

“Oh, crud,” Lady Yume said.

Silver started giggling.

Xelissa stepped forward, her face growing stern. “How dare you treat Lady Yume like this!”

“No, no, I’m not laughing at you,” Silver insisted. “It’s just funny. Really? That’s it? That’s your reason? You know you could just come visit.”

“Things don’t work that way,” Xelissa insisted.

“Why, though?”

Xelissa hesitated. She was cautious; Silver could be trying to trap them while they were still under the effects of the truth potion. She had to be exceedingly careful with her words.

“Because it’s scary,” Yume said, before Xelissa could intervene. “Oops.”

Silver smirked, but her eyes were kind. “It doesn’t have to be.”

“What do you mean?” Xelissa asked cautiously.

Silver shrugged. “I mean, maybe we could work out some kind of deal here. You can come over to the human world and I’ll show you around. But you have to promise not to summon any giant MidKnight monsters or overwhelm anyone with the power of despair or anything.”

“Really?” Lady Yume said, still sounding suspicious. “That’s too easy though. What do you get out of that deal?”

“Besides not having to deal with rampaging monsters? Well…” Silver suddenly seemed really interested in the floor, scuffing her foot across the stone. “I also heard the part about there being some kind of… body potion? In return maybe you could let me, uh, borrow some of that? For, um. A friend. Of mine. Yes.”

Xelissa blinked. “But… oh. Oh. The, um, magical girl transformation magic doesn’t take care of that?”

“Not… exactly…” Silver said, blushing furiously. “It’s more of just a clothes and super strength thing.”

“Procuring extra potions shouldn’t be a problem,” a voice said, as Cupell made their presence known again.

“Aaah!”

“Eek!”

“Don’t do that!”

Cupell sighed. “Okay, I’ve been standing here the whole time, I don’t know what you all expect of me.”

Silver swallowed, wringing her hands together. “Wait, and the body potion, does it work, um… in just the one direction?”

“Not at all, it is magic after all. It reshapes your physical form in the way that your deepest heart desires, whatever that may be.”

“Then… maybe... two of them? Is that too much to ask?”

Cupell grinned. “Not at all.”

“Oh my gosh,” Silver said, her shoulders sagging. “That would be such a relief.” She paused, glancing over at Cupell again. “Also, hey, do you happen to know Vermeil, the mysterious guardian of the Crystal of Hearts who gave us cool powerups a few weeks back? For some reason, your voices sound really similar.”

The smile dropped right off of Cupell’s face. “No. Um. Anyways, I can make plenty of body-change potions, but I better go get on that right away, bye!” They waved their arms hastily, and disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

Lady Yume blinked, but she turned back to Silver, shrugging. “Okay, so we’ll arrange for delivery of the potions, and in return you’ll really show us around the human world?”

“Sure!” Silver said, smiling hopefully.

Lady Yume narrowed her eyes as she looked at Precious Silver. “I think you’re getting a better deal than us here.”

Silver bit her lip. “M-maybe.”

“But...” Yume said. “Perhaps we can still come to an arrangement. However, I don’t just want a tour. You will provide a more suitable opportunity, something unique to the human world that I wish to experience.”

“Um. Maybe. If it’s not anything too outlandish.”

Yume grinned, looking devious. “I want to try the thing that you humans call… a double-date.”

Silver turned bright red. “Wh-wh-what? But… With who?”

“With you and Precious Gold,” Yume said very matter-of-factly. She glanced over at Xelissa, who nodded. 

“You don’t have to pretend on our behalf,” Xelissa said. “I mean, every time you two do your most powerful move, you hold hands and stare into each others’ eyes.”

“Th-that’s just how the magic works!!”

“Suuure,” Yume said, clearly relishing the chance to finally have one over on her foe.

“Look,” Silver said hotly, “the two of us haven’t exactly had a conversation about our feelings yet. Sure, maybe… um. Maybe I have certain feelings about Gold. But there’s no guarantee Gold feels the same way! What if Gold doesn’t like me?”

Xelissa and Yume shared a look. “Do you need to borrow some truth potion too?” Xelissa offered.

“No! I just…” Silver sighed. “Okay. Deal. We’ll work something out. How about next weekend?”

Xelissa produced a thin notebook from her jacket pocket. Luckily it had mostly escaped getting soaked by truth potion. She flipped to Lady Yume’s schedule, and then looked up and nodded. “That works for us.”

“Great. And no monsters.” She paused. “Though there’s this piano recital coming up that I’ve not had time to practice for, so if you really need an opportunity to show up and unleash a MidKnight, I think— Actually, we’ll talk about it later. I think we can work something out.”

Lady Yume nodded, and stepped forward, holding out one hand. Silver gingerly stepped forward as well, and they shook hands. It wasn’t as if things were perfect. They both seemed plenty tense, and more than a little suspicious, but it was something. 

It was a start.

And then the side of the room blasted open in a huge explosion.

“Get your hands off her, evildoer!” a voice shouted out. A figure struck a dramatic pose, silhouette outlined by bright light shining in. “The weight of justice has a value beyond compare! It’s Precious Gold!” 

As they stepped forward, the ridiculous outfit became clear. It served as a perfect counterpoint to Silver’s clothing, with a flared jacket and shorts tailored in polished gold rather than Silver’s billowy skirt and blouse. The jewelry was less ostentatious, but still obviously showy, with a crystal clip pinning back Precious Gold’s close-cropped auburn hair. Most of all, Xelissa recognized the heavy gauntlets, having seen them demolish more than a few MidKnights.

And now they were pointed right at Lady Yume. Xelissa once again sprung forward, dropping into a fighting stance. She was stopped by a hand on her shoulder, and she looked back to see Lady Yume shaking her head.

Gold didn’t even hesitate. A swirl of color enveloped the room. “Take this, fiends! Precious Gold Aurum Annihilation! ~ The fires of righteousness shall refine the—”

“WAIT!” Silver yelled out, and Gold came to a sudden halt, midway through some kind of complicated super-move windup that was spilling glitter everywhere.

“Wh-what?” Gold blinked. “Natsuki? What’s wrong?”

“Hold on,” Silver said. “We, um, we don’t need to do this.”

“Really?” Gold looked skeptical. “Are you certain?”

Silver nodded, smiling. “I talked with them and… I think we’ve come to an arrangement. Things are going to be okay. More than okay.” 

“But… No fighting at all?” Gold looked kind of disappointed. “Do you really think we can trust them?”

Silver smirked a bit. “Yeah, I have reason to believe they're telling the truth. So no fighting for now,” she said firmly. She walked over and took Gold’s hand, and as soon as she did, Gold visibly relaxed, expression softening into a dopey smile. She helped Gold climb down from the pile of rubble.

“I was just so worried!” Gold wailed.

Silver smiled, and ruffled her partner’s short hair. “Yes, yes, but we’re together again now.”

Xelissa rolled her eyes. “Yeah,” she muttered to herself. “‘What if Gold doesn’t like me?’ Psh.”

Silver thankfully didn’t seem to hear. She and Gold were just staring into each others’ eyes, smiling bashfully. Lady Yume eventually had to clear her throat, lest they stood there all day, and both of them jumped slightly, looking away as they blushed. 

“Right, so, let’s go back to the human world, and I’ll explain everything,” she said to Gold. Then she frowned. “Uh. If we can figure out how to do that.”

Lady Yume snapped her fingers, and a foreboding set of doors appeared. “That should take you back.”

“Thanks,” Silver said. “And we will see you next weekend.”

“Yes. But I expect this to be a real double-date,” Yume said archly. “With all the things humans normally do.”

Gold’s eyes went wide, glancing from Silver to Lady Yume and then back again. “Wait. Wh-what?”

“Shh,” Silver said, squeezing the hand clasped in her own. “We, um, have a few things to talk about.” She shot Yume a glare. “But trust me, it will be great. I have spare tickets to an amusement park.”

“Hmm. Acceptable.”

And with that, Silver dragged Gold through the door and back to the human world, leaving Yume and Xelissa alone once again.

Xelissa’s shoulders slumped. Wow, it really had been a day, huh? Her head was still spinning a little. It seemed like everything in her world had suddenly been called into question. But… in a good way. Hopefully?

She glanced back at Yume, who was looking newly nervous.

“Ah, um, where were we?” Yume said.

Oh. Right. There was still… whatever was going on here. Xelissa gulped. 

“You… were going to tell me something?”

“Oh. Um. Yes.” Yume drew closer, and reached out to take Xelissa’s hands. “So. Uh…”

Xelissa’s heart was beating so loud that Lady Yume had to be able to hear it. They stared at each other, both momentarily frozen. Should Xelissa say something more? Yume was the one who had wanted to speak, but now she looked tongue-tied, and Xelissa wanted to jump to her rescue. But she didn’t know how. Maybe that was okay though. Maybe the two of them would just hold hands and stare uselessly for an hour or two. That could be nice, too. It worked for Silver and Gold, right?

There was a creak as the door to the human realm opened back up again. Precious Silver stuck her head through. “Oh hey, one more thing, you know, for the sake of planning the date… Xelissa, what’s your favorite thing about Lady Yume?”

Xelissa blinked. “I can’t possibly pick one thing,” she said, without really stopping to think about it. “She’s kind, and smart, and more beautiful than anyone else in the Darkness Dimension and the human world put together. But if I had to pick, maybe it’s her lovely hair, which always makes me want to run my fingers through it?”

“Uh huh, uh huh, and Lady Yume, what do you think about Xelissa?”

“She’s brave and loyal and so incredibly hot in that butler’s uniform that the thought of her getting any cuter makes my head feel like it’s going to explode. If I don’t figure out a way to kiss her I am going to literally die.” Yume’s eyes went wide and her hands flew up to cover her mouth.

“Perfect, thaaaanks~!” Silver said, ducking back into the human world now that her vengeance had been successfully enacted.

Yume and Xelissa kept staring at each other.

“Well…” Xelissa said carefully. “It is my duty to make sure that no harm comes to you. So, um, if it keeps you from dying, then I… I wouldn’t be averse to…”

“Oh, shush,” Yume said, as their lips met.