Persona - Chaos Butterfly 15.2

Chapter 15: King's game! Again?! (Part two)

From the looks of the Investigation Team's faces, one might think they had just seen the scariest thing in their lives. The SEES members eyed them with curiosity rather than confusion.

"WHAT?!" Chie shouted.

"Are you crazy?! No way I'm going through that again!" Yosuke protested.

"Umm… Have you guys played that game before?" Fuuka asked.

Rise and Yukiko lowered their heads. Recently, they were told about what had happened in Escapade and needless to say both were rather embarrassed about it.

"I refuse to take part in that nonsense again!" Naoto said, trying not to lose her calm.

"Damn right!" Kanji agreed. He clearly looked uncomfortable about that idea for some reason.

Souji sighed. "Sorry, Teddie, but I don't think anyone is willing to try that game again…"

Teddie's eyes became all teary. "No fair! Nobody wants to play with me..." he whined, shedding crocodile tears. "Teddie never gets to have any fun…"

Metis and Minako felt sorry for him. "Aw, c'mon guys, let's give it a try." Minako said. "I mean, it can't be that bad."

"I want to learn more about that game too. It sounds challenging." Metis added, looking excited.

The rest of SEES murmured in agreement. Souji sighed in defeat. He and his friends couldn't say no to them after being so kindly treated with this trip. "Fine, we'll play..." he begrudgingly agreed.

"Yay!!!" Teddie squealed, jumping up and down. "We just need some music and drinks!"

"I'll arrange those." Mitsuru said. "I'll ask the maids to bring us more fruit juice."

Before she could leave, Kanji shyly tapped Mitsuru's shoulder. "Umm… Senpai… There will be only fruit juice, right?"

Mitsuru raised an eyebrow at that. "Why, of course, Tatsumi. Why do you ask?"

"N-No reason…" Kanji said looking down. He looked relieved and so did the others.

"Dude, what's with the paranoia?" Junpei asked Minato.

Minato shrugged. "Dunno..."

"So, how do we play this game anyway?" Shinjiro asked.

"Well… If you draw the red marked chopstick, you become the King, while the other chopsticks have numbers on them. The King then chooses a number and says the dare that person has to do." Yosuke explained. "No one knows who has which number until the King gives the order and no take-backs are allowed. You can't refuse doing a challenge either."

"Heh, I ain't the type of guy to back off from a challenge anyway." Akihiko said, now interested. "Let's do this."

"Before we start…" Souji looked at Teddie with a serious glare. "I'm setting some extra rules for this game."

The rest of the Investigation Team sighed in relief, knowing Souji would ensure things wouldn't go crazy like last year.

"Why of course, Sensei." Teddie nodded in agreement, not wanting to anger Souji.

"If the King chooses a dare that involves more than one person, the person who has to do the dare must do it with either their lover or a very close friend in order to avoid jealousy or any awkwardness." Souji decreed.

The rest glanced at each other. Most couples blushed at that, but agreed it was fair. In no time everything was set, they were sitting on the couches while drinking juice and listening to music. It was time.

"So…" Rise started. "Who's the King?"

Yukari stood up. "That would be me." She looked around, thinking. "I choose number 6!"

Junpei jumped out of his seat. "What the hell?!"

"Oh yeah…" Yukari grinned evilly. "Junpei, your challenge will be… Put an ice cube in your pants, and keep it there until it completely melts!"

Junpei cringed at that. "You gotta be kidding me…"

"The King's word is the law!" Yukari winked at him. "Minato-kun, can you help him?"

Minato felt bad for Junpei but nodded. "Sorry, man, but the King's word is absolute." He handed Junpei the ice bucket. "Go ahead."

"Just my luck…" Junpei whimpered before he shoved an ice cube in his pants. At first it didn't feel that bad, but soon enough the cold feeling got to him and he started pulling all sorts of weird faces, making everybody laugh. "C-C-Cold!!!"

"This ain't bad at all." Yosuke grinned. "Onto round two!"

"Looks like I'm next," Minato smirked. "I choose…Number 11! I dare you to moonwalk across this room."

Yosuke stood up. "Piece of cake," he grinned.

"Pfff…I bet you can't even get across half," Chie teased.

"Oh yeah? Watch me!" Yosuke walked to one end of the lounge and pulled off the moonwalk magnificently. He faced the others and smirked at his girlfriend. "Any dancer worth his salt should be able to bust that move."

Chie was speechless. Yosuke looked…cool…and totally irresistible. She went to him and planted a kiss on his cheek. He blushed.

"Alright, next!" Teddie announced.

"I'm next!" Yukiko giggled. Souji and Chie tensed, wondering if she's drunk already. "Number 15 must imitate someone in this room, and the rest must guess who that person is." They were relieved when that wasn't the case.

Rise got up and struck a masculine pose. "Watch where you're going, dumbass. I'm walking here!" She was scowling, her voice deep and rough. "Get the hell out of my way before you regret it!" She shook a fist in front of her. And then she acted bashful for some reason. "This ain't nothin'. It's not like I'm thanking you or anything…"

"That's totally Shinjiro/Shinjiro-senpai/Shinji!" SEES shouted.

"That's totally Kanji/Kanji-kun!" the Investigation Team shouted at the same time.

Suffice to say those two weren't pleased. "Why are you comparing me with this moron?!" they roared in unison, and glared at each other. "Quit copying me, dumbass!"

Their friends laughed until their stomachs were sore. Rise grinned. "Actually, I was gonna imitate Kanji, but I guess you two are rather similar in the trash-talking and tsundere department."

Before the two could start a fight, Junpei intervened. "Okay, next round!"

Akihiko didn't waste any time when he got chosen. "Number 4 must do a handstand and last for one minute."

"What?!" Chie shrieked.

"You heard me," Akihiko smirked. "Or are you chicken, Satonaka?"

Chie growled. "Fine! You're lucky I can't Galactic Punt you right now. Thank god I'm wearing shorts," she mumbled the last part to herself. She had to use the wall for support, but managed to last more than a minute. "Beat that!" she exclaimed in victory.

It was Shinjiro's turn as King. "Let's see…" he pondered. "Number 9, I want you to get off your ass and cartwheel across the room."

"Are you insane?!" Akihiko shot up, scowling at his best friend. "The floor is slippery in here. How do you expect me to pull it off?"

"Hey, I don't make the rules here. The King's word is law," Shinjiro smirked sadistically. The others watched him in anticipation.

It was Akihiko's turn to growl. But he had no choice. Taking off his shoes and socks, he attempted the dare on the slippery floor. At the last turn, his hand slipped. Shinjiro laughed at his misery.

"Shinji-kun, that's not nice!" Minako scolded. "Senpai, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Akihiko groaned in pain. "I almost twisted my kneecap. Damn it, Shinji, you owe me some beef ramen."

"Okie-dokie, it's time to choose the next King!" Rise said, shaking the chopsticks in its cylinder container. No one noticed that her cheeks were getting a little red.

Mitsuru pulled the red chopstick. "Umm…I've never played anything like this before," she said nervously. "Number 3 must be moved from one end of the lounge to the other by their most worthy adversary, by any means necessary." She said it in such a formal manner that the others had to sweatdrop.

"A worthy adversary, huh?" Naoto mused. "Well, I would say Souji-senpai, but that would be breaking the rules. However, I had a fun chess match with Aigis-san just now…so I guess she'll be doing the honors."

"The pleasure is mine, Naoto-san." Aigis said.

It wasn't difficult for a robot to carry a human of Naoto's size. However, Aigis carried the detective like a sack of potatoes over her shoulder made it funny to watch.

The next King was Minako. She looked around the room at her friends before choosing her target. "Number 5 must tell us where they are most ticklish, and their best friend will do the tickling!"

Fuuka began to panic. "Minako-chan!"

Minato remembered the secret video he and his sister watched at the dorm. 'I'm glad she picked Fuuka. Judging from that video, her reaction will be hilarious!' he chuckled in his mind.

"Umm…I'm q-quite t-t-ticklish at my m-mid s-s-section," Fuuka stuttered, wondering if Minako planned this beforehand, because it doesn't seem like a coincidence.

Yukari flexed her fingers. "Don't hate me, Fuuka. King's orders!" she smiled, and began tickling. The scanner was convulsing so hard after Yukari was done that the others wondered if she needed medical attention.

"I-I'm…I'm okay…" Fuuka heaved, trying to get her heart rate under control.

The game picked up after that. Seeing how most of the challenges were rather harmless, the Investigation Team let their guard down. The next King was Kanji, who told number 16 to rest their head on their lover's lap. Number 16 happened to be Metis, since she didn't have a lover, laid her head on Aigis' lap. She looked quite content, feeling much closer to her sister as she stroked her hair. Aigis herself seemed quite happy at cuddling her younger sister.

Souji was next. He ordered number 13 (Yosuke) to give a piggyback ride for anyone they wanted. No surprise, he chose Chie who blushed, but did enjoy the ride.

Chie smirked when she was next. She commanded number 7 to give her a shoulder massage, which happened to be Kanji. "Heh, someone big and strong. I picked a good one for once. What are you waiting for? These shoulders aren't gonna rub themselves, ya know!"

Kanji felt awkward while massaging Chie's shoulder, especially with Yosuke glaring at him every now and then. Yosuke knew he shouldn't feel jealous at Kanji since they were friends and both had girlfriends, but he wasn't happy with the idea of another guy touching his girlfriend.

When Kanji was done, he walked by Yosuke and whispered to him before sitting down. "Dude, King's orders and are King's orders… I didn't wanna get kicked…"

"It's cool, man." Yosuke whispered back to him.

Metis came next, who challenged number 2 (Souji) to rub noses with their beloved, which Yukiko was more than happy to do. Her innocent mind was quite endearing to say the least.

Not wanting to be left behind, Fuuka told number 1 (Kanji, again) to hug someone. Kanji being his awkward self, decided he should man up by hugging his girlfriend, and silently congratulated himself when he didn't get a nosebleed. Naoto was also pleased with that.

Aigis took it up a notch by daring number 10 (Yukari) to sit on his/her lover's lap. Yukari was embarrassed at first, but Minato didn't mind. In fact, he enjoyed it as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

When it was Naoto's turn as King, she blushed. "As revenge for spying on me and Kanji-kun kissing before the Summer Festival, I dare number 8 to kiss their very special person in front of everyone!" she rushed, looking at her shoes.

Silence.

Much to her dismay, Teddie jumped out of his seat and declared, "But everyone is my bear-y special person. It's your lucky day, Nao-chan, because I choose you!" He closed his eyes and puckered his lips, making his way towards Naoto.

"Like hell you are!" Kanji roared. Using his quick reflexes, he pulled Naoto onto his lap. Teddie tripped on his own foot and landed on Rise.

Rise's eyes bugged to the fullest when Teddie's lips fell on hers. Her brain disconnected for a while, wondering what on earth was going on. When the blonde boy started to wrap his arms around her, she snapped. With all her might, she punched him in the gut, earning a loud wail as Teddie fell on the floor.

Kanji laughed out loud at Teddie's predicament, before Rise changed targets and kicked him in the right shin, hard. He howled in pain and stood up, forcing Naoto off his lap. "What was that for?!" he hollered.

"For letting that perverted bear kiss me!" Rise glowered, and gave him another kick. He did a good job of holding back his cries of pain, but panicked when Rise began to cry.

"Hey, what's wrong with you!?" Kanji was making weird gestures with his hands, unsure of what to do. He did notice that her face was rather red though.

Rise abruptly pushed him aside and went to hug Naoto. "Naoto-kun, I'm so proud of you~" she slurred, swaying back and forth while pulling the young detective with her. "You remembered *hic* the rule about how the next *hic* dare should be more daring than the last. I never thought that you'd come up with *hic* something like that!"

This was the perfect time for one of Yosuke's 'Oh shit!' moments. "Nobody was supposed to know about that!" He waved his arms in denial as SEES looked at him strangely.

The looks on Naoto and Chie's faces were akin to that of horror.

"Wait a minute…is she drunk again?" It was Souji's turn to panic. He turned to his girlfriend and sure enough, she started to hiccup and giggle uncontrollably, her cheeks a rosy red. 'Damn it, I shouldn't have let my guard down!'

"What the hell?" Shinjiro snatched a glass off the coffee table and sniffed its content. "Doesn't smell anything like alcohol…Oi, Mitsuru, are ya sure this is juice?"

Mitsuru frowned. "I personally made sure. What's going on here?" she demanded.

"Was this room used to entertain and serve alcohol?" Souji sighed, dreading the answer.

"My late father used it to entertain his clients in the past. But that was a long time ago. Why?" Mitsuru said. She was surprised when Souji, Yosuke, Kanji, Chie and Naoto face-palmed themselves.

Akihiko raised an eyebrow at the bizarre turn of events. "Has this happened before?" Before anyone could answer his question, Teddie shot up from the floor and laughed like a hyper child on sweets.

"Let's get on with the game!" he cried, snatching everyone's chopsticks and jumbled them up it the container. Just like that, the situation went from harmless fun to awkward. Everyone hesitantly took a chopstick as Teddie passed it around, the members of SEES still confused at what was happening.

Yosuke was the next King. He was sweating profusely when Rise and Yukiko glared at him with scorching intensity, promising him pain if he screwed the game up or broke the rules. In his state of panic, Yosuke blurted the first thing that crossed his mind. "Number 14, you are to take off your partner's shirt!" he gushed, and crossed his arms in front of his head in a defensive stance.

Everyone except the drunkards and Metis blushed.

"Yay! I'm the lucky one again!" Yukiko cheered, waving her chopstick. "Not that it's something I haven't seen." She winked at Souji.

Rise fell asleep in an upright position on her seat, snoring lightly. Souji was relieved. 'One less person to see me topless,' he thought. With a last sigh, he faced Yukiko. "Ready when you are."

It was agonizing torture for Souji as Yukiko slowly unbuttoned his shirt. The heat between them was growing uncomfortable that he had to grit his teeth. Yukiko didn't notice any of this, as she was still tipsy. When she finally unhooked the last button, she pushed to fabric off his body to reveal a well-toned chest and muscled arms. If possible, the sober girls blushed even harder. Even Metis had a pink tinge on her cheeks.

The sexual tension was getting unbearable and Yosuke had to scream "LET'S CHOOSE THE NEXT KING!" to get everybody's attention, including Rise who woke up with a start. Souji quickly put his shirt back on before Yukiko could do anything else.

"I thought I would never get chosen!" Junpei smiled widely as he showed off the King's chopstick. His grin twisted into that of a pervert's as he gave the order. "Number 3 must transfer all of the juice in this glass…" he said, refilling an empty glass goblet, "and have their partner drink it…" pausing for effect, "…without the use of any utensils."

Rise and Teddie clapped for the unfortunate victim, which happened to be Shinjiro. "How the heck am I supposed to do that?!" he questioned irritably.

"I dunno, Senpai. Figure it out yourself." Junpei grinned, waggling his eyebrows. "King's orders."

Shinjiro was tempted to punch Junpei in the face, because he knew what that idiot was implying. "I'm not doing anything like that!" The second those words left his mouth, he was subjugated to the same scathing stare that Yosuke got, along with Teddie's whines of disappointment, which in his opinion, was a lot more annoying.

"Just do it, Shinji," Akihiko grunted, covering his ears. "I'm pretty sure he's not gonna stop until you do."

Minako was looking at the floor, her entire face strawberry red with embarrassment. 'Junpei-kun is so gonna get it later!' She glared at him for good measure.

"Minako," Shinjiro's voice cut through her thoughts. He pulled her up from her seat so that she was standing in front of him, the glass of juice in one hand. "Let's get this over with. That bear is starting to annoy the hell outta me," he told her, rubbing the back of his head.

She noticed the slight blush on his cheeks, and giggled a bit. 'He's just too cute sometimes…'

Tilting the glass to his mouth, Shinjiro drank about half of its content but didn't swallow. He gently grabbed Minako's head with a free hand and placed his lips on hers. Understanding what he was doing, she parted her own lips and accepted the liquid, letting it flow slowly down her throat as she gulped. In Minako's opinion, the juice that had been warmed from his mouth tasted so much better than drinking it cold from a glass. After three rounds of mouth-to-mouth transfer, the dare was complete.

Both were still in a daze after they parted. Minako gave him a blinding smile, which Shinjiro returned, albeit a small one.

The rest of SEES gaped; they had never seen the beanie-wearing teen act so lovey-dovey in front of them before. Yukiko and Rise giggled with delight. "They lllllooooovvvee each other!" both of them chorused.

Minato and Souji stared dumbly. It wasn't like they haven't seen their sister kissing her boyfriend before; but seeing it this up close was rather mind-boggling.

"How come Mina-chan gets to kiss but I don't?" Teddie griped, crocodile tears starting again.

"Maybe we should stop here…" Souji began. His intention was for the game not to get awkward, but the next dare is sure to go beyond that.

"NO!" Teddie stopped crying and snatched all the chopsticks, furiously mixing them up.

"Stupid bear is getting way too serious." Yosuke muttered, wishing that Teddie would pass out already. Too bad that wasn't happening anytime soon.

Everyone waited with bated breath for the King to announce his/her identity. Rise gave it away when she started to chuckle rather loudly. "I'm the King…the King~" she sang. She stood up and did a little pirouette. "As King…Queen…whatever…I decree that number 5 must lay on top of their lover!"

Mitsuru spit out her drink, her face the color of her hair. Even Junpei had the decency to look embarrassed. Kanji was pinching his nose, and the others were right there with him.

"I take it that it's you, right, Senpai?" Rise asked, pertaining Mitsuru. "I think that *hic* came out wrong. What I meant was, you have to *hic* sit on top of Akihiko-senpai for say…seven minutes?" She giggled some more and flopped back on her seat like a true drunk.

"Th-that's highly inappropriate behavior!" Mitsuru almost shrieked.

"No take backs~" Rise slurred before falling asleep once more.

Akihiko got up. "S-so…how do you want to do th-this?" he asked his girlfriend. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get rid of his blush.

"Umm…just lie down on the floor, and I'll s-sit on your b-back…" Mitsuru stuttered. "Arisato, p-please take note of the t-t-time." Minato gave her a thumbs up as Akihiko placed himself on the floor, lying on his stomach. He supported his head with his forearms.

Just like Souji, this was the worst possible torture for Akihiko. He was sweating with anticipation, waiting for Mitsuru to sit on him. When he felt something soft touch his hard back, his body temperature skyrocketed. He placed his forehead on the cool floor, hoping to gain some control over his traitorous hormones. 'At least the floor is clean…' he thought sarcastically.

Mitsuru was a little hesitant to place her entire weight on Akihiko, but she constantly reminded herself how strong he was and fully placed herself on the middle of his back. 'I hope he's alright…'

If Akihiko thought that his situation was unbearable, the sober ones felt downright frustrating. They scrunched their faces in discomfort as wave after wave of sexual tension slapped them in the face. Minato was silently berating his watch, wishing it would go faster and get them out of this mess. Even Shinjiro felt sorry for his friend and remained quiet. Only Rise's snoring could be heard.

Unsettled about the silence, Mitsuru softly asked Akihiko if he was alright, twisting her torso a little to place both her hands on his shoulders, lightly pressing the tense muscles there. Despite hiding his face in his arms, Akihiko's face grew redder than humanly possible.

Junpei was the first one to break the silence, unperturbed by the scene at all. "Hahaha! Dude, check out Akihiko-senpai's face…it's as red as Mitsuru-senpai's hair!" He nudged Minato in the ribs to get his attention. "No wonder he likes that color so much, eh? Look, he's almost glowing in the dark!"

Metis giggled at Junpei's joke, and the others were slightly amused. The couple on the floor tried to ignore the snickering.

3…2…1

Minato finally announced that their time was up, earning relieved exhales from the rest. If that went on any longer they would have fled the room!

Rise finally woke up, and realized that she didn't get to watch her dare. "Huh, it's over already?" she whined sleepily.

By now Souji saw that things were spiraling downhill. 'Shit, this is even worse than last year...' Then a sudden thought hit him. 'Oh crap… Teddie didn't become King yet… If he does, we're all screwed…'

Quickly scanning around the room, Souji noticed the other guys were silently praying that Teddie wouldn't get the red stick. 'Guess I'm not the only one worried…'

Teddie was watching every round unfold with great anticipation, hoping to finally get his turn. 'Well, he is behaving so far. But Teddie is innocent one minute and devious the next,' Souji thought.

"C'mon! One more! One more!" Teddie laughed, shaking the container while Yukiko and Rise cheered.

The sober members of the Investigation Team were close to panicking while those from SEES seem to be confused as hell at the weird scene as well as a tad uncomfortable at how things were developing. Minako and Minato were starting to wonder if they should interrogate Souji about the previous King's Game some other time.

"Draw your chopsticks!" Teddie ordered, passing them around. "Choose your destiny!"

They hastily did so, hoping things wouldn't get any worse.

"Who's the *hic* King?" Rise asked.

Silence. The atmosphere was a mix of dread and suspense until…

"Teddie's red! Red!!!" he cheered, jumping up and down. "I'm the King!"

A small wave of groans and protests echoed among the group. Souji sighed in defeat. "'Better get this over with already…" he told the others.

Teddie stood up before making a regal like pose. "I, the King, hereby declare that all commoners present in this room must do everything that I, King Teddie, order them to do for the next entire hour!"

Everybody's jaws dropped and their eyes widened. Even Yukiko and Rise sobered up after hearing that.

The silence that fell at the karaoke lounge after Teddie made his order as the current king was such that only the breathing of those present could be heard.

"What? A King's order cannot be denied!" Teddie crossed his arms and stomped his foot, snapping the group out of their stupor. He was being serious and didn't seem drunk anymore.

That caught the group off guard. Sure they expected Teddie to take advantage of the King's game, but not like this.

"Tell me this ain't happening…" Kanji groaned.

"How the hell did we let this happen!?" Yosuke almost shouted, attempting to rip his hair out. "He planned it all along! You conniving sack of honey!"

"Whoa, smooth move, dude!" Junpei praised, immediately receiving hateful glares from the others. "What? Gotta give him some credit for planning this out."

"Thank you, Junpei!" Teddie puffed out his chest, holding his chopstick as if it was a scepter. "For your loyalty, you shall become my champion knight!"

"Sweet! This is even cooler than those MMORPG's!" Junpei grinned before bowing. "I mean, thank you, Your Majesty."

The others sweatdropped. "You're actually enjoying this?" Yukari said in disbelief. "That's Stupei for you…"

"Lighten up, Yuka-tan. It's just a game of roleplay, like those TV dramas you girls like to watch."

Seeing that the gang was hesitant in playing along, Teddie started throwing a tantrum like a crybaby that doesn't get his way, forcing everybody to cover their ears.

Minato rolled his eyes and pinched his nose bridge as Teddie's whining was giving him a headache. "Let's just amuse him, okay? The sooner we do what he wants, the faster this is over."

Without another option, the others agreed. Teddie squealed for joy. "Yay! This calls for a celebration!" At the gang's confusion, Teddie's grin got wider. "Fear not, my loyal knights and fair maidens for King Teddie has already provided the perfect outfits for all of you!"

'This can't be good...' everybody but Junpei thought.

Teddie pulled several bags from behind a couch and handed one to each person in the room. "Wear this! I'm sure you all will love it!" Teddie said.

Mitsuru glanced at the bags. There was something familiar about them. "Now where have I seen those before?" she asked herself as Teddie gave her one.

"Try it out! Try it out!" Teddie was barely containing his excitement.

Having no choice, the girls went to another room to change while the guys did so in the nearby living room. The karaoke lounge's lights were off, to set the mood for the King's Game and Teddie insisted to keep it that way, so the others couldn't see what they were wearing until he was ready.

When they opened the bags and saw what they had to wear, all of them, except for Junpei, thought the same thing: 'I'm going to murder that bear!'

Despite not wanting to, they put the clothes on anyway and headed back to the lounge, where they found that the couches had been moved forming a heart shape by Teddie, donned in his bear suit and was sitting on the most comfortable armchair wearing a paper crown on his head and a red blanket with star patterns all over it as a cape. The only dim light source in the room was a tall lamp he placed behind his chair, giving him a look of faux superiority.

"Welcome to King Teddie's Heart Table, my loyal subjects." Teddie said with a sly grin. "I see that I have chosen the right outfits for all of you." He clapped his hands twice and the lights flickered on.

The girls gasped. The guys' eyebrows twitched. All of them were dressed as butlers and maids. Needless to say, it was an awkward situation for most present. Save from Metis and Aigis, the girls were blushing with different intensities while out of the guys, only Junpei seemed comfortable with his outfit, even taking off his top hat and bowed to the girls and Teddie

"Teddie, where did you find these?" Rise asked, sounding rather annoyed.

"In one of the bedrooms." Teddie chirped. "Found them when I got lost looking for the kitchen to make a snack before dinner."

Yukari looked at Mitsuru. "Senpai, why did you keep these outfits?"

Mitsuru looked down. "I… I didn't have the heart to throw them away…"

"What's so bad about these outfits? They are rather comfortable." Metis cutely spun around making some of the guys blush and Kanji's nose almost burst.

The girls exchanged glances. "M-Metis, you see, maid and butler outfits aren't something you can use all the time…" Fuuka tried to explain.

Metis didn't seem convinced. "Why not? My sister said you used those outfits several times while exploring Tartarus."

At that the Inaba girls' eyes widened while the older girls blushed some more. "W-Wait, you guys had to use weird outfits too?!" Naoto flustered.

Yukari sighed. "Those were Minato-kun and Minako-chan's idea." She glared at the twins. "Sometimes I think they misuse their position as leaders to get us to wear those…"

Shinjiro grunted in agreement. Minako always managed to make him wear the weirdest outfits thanks the her secret weapon: the 'puppy eye.' How Shinjiro kept falling for that was beyond him.

"Same with Souji-kun…" Chie threw a dirty look at the silverette.

The Wild Card trio smiled sheepishly. "Hey, we only found those outfits. You can't blame us for their creation or being effective armors," Minato reasoned.

Kanji ran a hand through the lapels of his suit. "Damn, you're right," he said, sounding impressed. "This is some really good fabric here… It's strong material, good enough to be used as armor and yet light enough not to hinder in battle…" Everybody gave him a weird look. "What?! I live at a Textile shop! I gotta know this stuff!"

Minako giggled. "Kanji-kun's right. They do work as armors. Besides, when we were short on money, we had to improvise."

"Yeah. We often found unusual outfits during our explorations. Some could be used underneath our uniforms, some couldn't." Souji rubbed the back of his head.

"Enough idle chatter!" Teddie said getting the others' attention. "Your King has orders!"

"And what do you want, your 'M-ass-jesty'?" Yosuke spoke with a hint of sarcasm that Teddie failed to notice.

"The King is hungry and thirsty!" Teddie looked at Minato, Souji and Shinjiro. "I order you three to make me a tasty snack and a delicious drink!"

"How 'bout a big knuckle sandwich, ya little…" Shinjiro trailed off when Souji grabbed his shoulder and shook his head. The older teen was disgruntled to say the least. "Tch, whatever, 'King'."

The trio left for the kitchen to make the King's meal although some could swear they heard Shinjiro muttering several expletives along the way. Teddie looked at Rise and Yukari. "O fair maidens with beautiful voices, entertain King Teddie with some singing." He then turned sharply at Yosuke and Kanji. "As for the two of you, I order you to dance lead by Sir Junpei!"

"Dance?! So much for my pride…" Kanji hung his head in shame.

"Or what's left of it after last year…" Yosuke snickered.

"Shut the hell up before I punch that mug of yours!" Kanji glared at Yosuke.

Luckily for Yosuke, Junpei came to his rescue. "Guys, cut it out! We're here to have fun, not punch our buddies! Even the toughest of men gotta know when to get their groove on every now and then."

Kanji cocked his head in thought. "I…guess…?"

Junpei grinned and turned to Yosuke. "C'mon dude, you said you were good at dancing, didn't ya? You can nail this just fine!"

"Fine…" Yosuke smirked a bit. "Try to keep up with me."

Rise and Yukari sweatdropped at them as Yosuke taught the other two some dance steps. "What a bunch of idiots…" Yukari face-palmed.

"It's a guy thing… No point in trying to understand them, Senpai." Rise shrugged.

"Ahem! The King said he wanted some singing!" Teddie tapped his foot.

Both girls glared at the bear before sighing and making way to the karaoke machine. Once it was up and running, they started to sing one of Rise's hit songs while Yosuke, Junpei and Kanji acted as backup dancers, making it quite a sight to behold.

"Ugh… how did it come to this?" Chie rolled her eyes.

"Now this is some high-quality entertainment!" Teddie clapped his hands in delight before he turned his glance to Fuuka. "Oh, Fuuka-chan, can you give me a shoulder rub, please? Being a king can be so tiresome..."

"Hm… O-Okay…" Fuuka said shyly, but she still walked over and stood behind Teddie. In his bear suit, he was the only one Fuuka could loom over, and she looked a bit pleased by that. "Ah...where are your shoulders, Teddie-kun?" When Teddie didn't answer, she continued, "Hm… Where does it hurt? Where should I massage you?"

"Oh, anywhere you like, Fuuka-chan," Teddie said, blushing in a way that didn't look innocent at all. After hesitating another moment, Fuuka placed her hands just below Teddie's head and began making light, circular motions with her fingertips. She looked quite uncomfortable at doing that though.

"Ooooo, Fuuka-chan… This is even better than that chair at Junes!" Teddie purred, eyes closed in content before he looked at Yukiko. "Say… It's kinda warm in here… Please cool me, Yuki-chan."

"Fine…" Yukiko drew her fan and started fanning Teddie. In her mind she was scheming several ways to get back at him for this. 'When I get my hands around his little neck…!'

"Ah… This is the life…" Teddie sighed contently, enjoying the cool breeze before he turned to Chie and Mitsuru. "The King now wants some patting! Can you and Mitsu-chan do the honors, Chie-chan?"

Chie cracked her knuckles with an evil grin on her face. "It'll be my pleasure…"

Mitsuru was confused at Chie's real intentions, but walked up to Teddie nonetheless.

Both girls started patting him, Chie harder than Mitsuru, but Teddie didn't seem to mind at all. "Oh, Chie-chan, Mitsu-chan, you have angel hands…" Teddie cooed. 'Good thing I got my suit on before being patted,' he added in his mind.

Chie growled in frustration. 'Grrr… When this is over, you're so gonna get it, Teddie…!'

Souji, Minato and Shinjiro returned with a tray of sandwiches, a bowl of grapes and strawberries and a glass of smoothie. They sweatdropped at the scene before them. 'On the bright side, Ryoji isn't here to screw things up even further…' Minato thought with a sigh.

Souji cleared his throat to get Teddie's attention. "Sorry to interrupt, but your meal has arrived, Your Majesty."

"Ah, great! Thank you, Sensei!" He looked at the four girls. "You may stop for now. Just sit beside me and look pretty like you always do." He giggled like a little kid. "I feel like a hot stud already!"

Fuuka blushed deeply, Chie growled, Yukiko hissed and Mitsuru held back a frustrated groan and the bubbling desire to execute the blue-furred creature for his behavior before they all sat down close to him.

Teddie looked at Aigis and Metis. "After a good massage, the King's fur must be brushed to become extra shiny and fuzzy! Ai-chan, Metis-chan, please brush me."

Without saying a word, both sisters obeyed and gently brushed Teddie's fur. None of them seemed annoyed at doing such a task.

"Ah… This is even better than those spas they show on TV…" Teddie closed his eyes. "Bring me my meal!"

The trio walked up to him, but they were stopped by Teddie. "Not you!" He turned to Minako and Naoto. "Them! I want Nao-chan to serve me my drink and Mina-chan to feed me!"

Naoto fought the urge to shoot Teddie while Minako sweatdropped. "I knew we wouldn't be let off the hook so easily, huh?" Minako said. "C'mon, Naoto-chan, let's feed His Majesty."

"Fine…" Naoto let out an exasperated sigh and took the tray with the glass from Minato's hands.

Minako took the tray of sandwiches and the bowl of fruits from Shinjiro. "It's okay, it won't take long." She whispered to him while winking.

Minako's cheerful attitude managed to calm Shinjiro a bit, though he wasn't comfortable with their situation at all.

Naoto and Minako then made their way to Teddie to feed him, but he was having trouble getting in a comfortable position. "Ngh… This isn't working…" Teddie said as he fidgeted around his seat. He then looked at Akihiko. "Sir Akihiko, come here!"

Disgruntled, Akihiko did so. "Yes?"

"On fours!" Teddie ordered.

"What?" Akihiko was confused.

"I said, on fours!" Teddie repeated.

Akihiko growled, pissed, but got on his hands and knees. Next thing he knew, he felt some weight on his back. Akihiko's eyes widened; Teddie was using him as a foot stool! "You gotta be kidding me!" He felt humiliated. "If it was Mitsuru I wouldn't be complaining that much…" he grumbled under his breath.

The other guys felt awful for Akihiko. Their situation was bad, but his was so degrading that not even Junpei found it funny.

"Ah, that's better…" Teddie said, ignoring Akihiko's predicament. "Please, ladies, my meal."

Minako decided that she didn't like the game anymore, but was powerless to stop it. She frowned as she handed a sandwich to Teddie's hungry mouth, while Naoto held up the straw for the smoothie. He slurped noisily.

"Is it just me, or does the food taste even better when you're feeding me, Mina-chan?" He winked at her. "Ooooh, I'd like some grapes now."

Not far, a certain butler was trying his hardest to suppress the need to strangle Teddie as he watched his girlfriend serve fruit to the stupid bear.

"Nao-chan, lift the straw higher. A king of my importance needs not bend down like a petty commoner!"

Kanji was seeing red. 'One of these days, I'm going to dress that fuzzball in a maid outfit and see how he likes it!' he promised himself. He smirked when an image of Teddie cross-dressing as a French maid being surrounded by hormonal teenage boys came to mind.

"Ahhh, this is the life! A bear can sure get used to this!" Teddie grinned, crossing his short legs on Akihiko's back. "Ladies, be a dear and sit quietly like Yuki-chan, Fuuka-chan, Mitsu-chan and Chie-chan. Let the boys take away the dirty dishes." He waved a hand lazily to emphasize his order.

Souji, Minato and Shinjiro growled, but complied. They took the dirty dishes back to the kitchen and returned a minute later right when Yukari and Rise finished their singing.

Teddie got to his feet, relieving Akihiko of his shame. "Now, for the highlight of the hour!" He went behind his 'throne' and pulled out more bags. "My faithful subjects, you have proven yourselves worthy of the great King Teddie. In order to prove yourselves even further, all of you are to put on a fashion show in my honor!"