It's been three years and a half since I created this. I know I have the skills and mind to finish it, but somehow I found myself stalled, so I must apologize for how much it has taken me to reach this point. There were many PMs and reviews in regards to my whereabouts, and I tried answering them as honestly as I could; I stopped being so enamoured with this particular fic and concentrated on other things, other ideas.

I cannot promise I won't stall again, but I intend on keeping the promise I made about finishing this.

Chapter 17: When A,B and C don't work, there's Shizuru.

"I'm telling you. She thinks I'm even worse than before now!" Nao slammed her palms on her knees and growled in frustration. "I'm not taking advice from anyone again!" At her side, her cousin crossed her legs and smiled in amusement at the redhead.

"It's not our fault you have terrible karma, Spider." Natsuki barked a laugh after her girlfriend smacked her arm, but not strongly enough to tell her off. She too was enjoying Nao's bad luck.

"Ers! It's not what it looks like!" Nao waved her hands frantically as she peeled the maid off of her. The blonde had barged in as soon as she heard several vases breaking and a girly squeal coming from her bedroom.

"I can't believe you!" She kicked Nao and the maid out of her room, not for a second listening to the redhead's explanations as to why she was inside Erstin's room with another woman lying half naked on top of her. Because, well, there shouldn't be a logical explanation for that!

"She just came onto me when I was waiting for Ers in her room. I don't even remember her name, for crying out loud!"

Shizuru smiled kindly at her, but offered no advice or consolation. Nao should have seen it coming. You could only play so much with people's hearts before there was some kind of divine intervention that bit you in the butt. "I believe it was Mira," She took a cup of tea offered by the flight attendant.

"How do you even know, Fujino?" Nao's question remained unanswered. Natsuki smiled and caressed her girlfriend's hand with her thumb, humming along the song playing through the speakers of the plane. The sign to put on their belts lightened up. They would arrive home shortly.

"You are disgusting..." Erstin fumed as the redhead presented her the two dozen roses she had especially had made for the occasion. Unfortunately, the man who had made the bouquet had made two terrible mistakes.

One: the card, which was specifically meant to say 'Be Mine?' got switched with a card that belonged to a guy who had a platinum membership of a very exclusive BDSM club. Said guy's card implied a very naughty, bad-written poem in which thong, tongue and thorn were mentioned more than once.

Two: By far the worst mistake; he didn't cut off the thorns.

So, when Erstin threw the bouquet back at Nao's face she literally felt all the love the BDSM couple felt for each other every saturday night at the Howling Owl.

"This place sucks," Nao sulked as she dragged her luggage behind her.

"It's an airport, Spider. Not Disneyland."

Nao skillfully ignored her. "All I ask is a little entertainment."

"Would a strip club suffice?"

"Kitten!"

"Don't even, Nao." The blonde quickened her steps, leaving a very frustrated Nao.

Nao shuffled her feet on the ground and huffed. Her plans to confess were all going to Hell. Every day was worse than the previous one, and Erstin was losing all faith in her. She felt like she had the worst karma ever. She knew she could just stand her ground and confess, but she also felt like Ers deserved more than that. And now that Nao was making the effort, it was thrown back at her with the same ease she had erased numbers and names from her address book.

"Nao?"Juliet came from around the corner and stopped on her tracks. She put her hands on her pockets and smirked at her daughter's pathetic state. She found her situation far too amusing.

"What?" Was the moody response from the redhead as she glared at her mother.

Juliet waved a hundred dollar bill in her face.

"Whore cruising!"

"I wanted to tell her, you know?" Nao whined as she leaned on the rather good-looking hooker her mother had hand-picked for her. Medium-sized blonde with eyes clear as the sky and a fake innocent aura. She probably worked as a loli one too many a time.

"Yes, honey. Now open the door. Or not. The hour is paid anyway. Do whatever you want." However, Nao was not finished with her rant. Had the blonde known she'd be working as a psychologist she'd have charged more. Judging by the size and luxury of castle they were in, the money could have easily been spent on her.

"She's just so pretty! Like you, but prettier!" She grabbed the blonde and hugged her tightly. "So pretty I'd squish her like this!"

"Oh my f- God!" The blonde screeched as the small redhead asphyxiated with the bone-crushing embrace. "Just tell her, dammit!"The blonde finally peeled the redhead off. "I'm leaving! So not worth the money that stingy woman gave me..." She grabbed her purse and stomped away, grateful that they hadn't wandered further into the place.

"Eeeeeeeeers!" Nao wailed as she wobbled her way into the castle. "Eeeeeeeeeers!"

"Oh my- Nao!" Far from being the blonde, Chie walked briskly to the falling redhead and held her in her arms. "What the Hell, woman! You look like crap walked over!"

"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeers!" Her throat was getting raspy. It was three o'clock in the morning and Chie was far from happy, having been woken up by the hollering of a drunktard and what suspiciously looked like a hooker leaving the castle. Either way she had to shut Nao up.

"Eeeeeee-" Chie put her hand on the redhead's mouth and growled, having lost her patience. She threw her friend into a nearby room and closed the door behind.

"Gotta find Natsuki..."

"She was here! I swear!" Natsuki rubbed her temple as Chie explained the tale of Nao and the hooker's retreating back. Unfortunately, it did sound like something that may happen, her cousin being involved.

"We have to find her quickly before she-"

"Eeeeeeeeeers!" Natsuki darted off as fast as her legs would carry her, Chie following closely. She just hoped that Erstin was safe from Nao's clutches. The redhead was just too unstable to be left alone when intoxicated.

"Natsuki..." The blunette stopped cold as Erstin appeared around the hallway, vein popping and heavy puffs of breath. "Leave it to me, please." She marched ahead in the direction Nao's screams were coming from. Natsuki debated herself what to do.

Then she walked back to her room and nuzzled Shizuru until she fell asleep again. Fuck Nao.

"I thought you solved it that night!" Natsuki argued as Nao mumbled under her breath.

"I passed away before she could hear my confession," She sighed. "And then the next morning Chie's big mouth ran the rumor of my nightly meetings and everything went to Hell again."

"Yuuki-san should be clear with her feelings. Erstin will not wait any longer, and somebody is bound to fall for her." Shizuru meddled as they approached their school. Nao tsk'd and turned her head away from the brunette, unable to admit she was wrong.

"But I don't know how to..."

"Ara... Maybe I can help."

Hell yes! Told you I wasn't leaving this alone. Told you!

I do apologize for the wait. And, again, I cannot promise when I will update any time soon, considering I have to edit and re-edit the previous chapters of this fic. I'm just dropping this little thing here to show you that I care, to a certain extent.

Read and review, please.