[Jedi]

About fifteen minutes passed as they waited. Komo paced in anxious circles as the movie continues in the background. He was definitely stressed about the situation, but perhaps this was the worst it would get this weekend.

This weekend, he remembered, had just begun. It had started as a prospect of bonding time for the pair, but was now crashed by four rambunctious penguins. Perhaps the two would take the birds in, or maybe find a better home for them. Either way, they had to just deal with them for the moment.

When the bell rang, Komo went straight to the door and answered. But rather than seeing a hotel staff member, he saw another face. "Komo dear. I hope you two don't mind if I check in." It was Rebi's mom, and from the looks of it, she'd intercepted the food trolley and decided to deliver it herself. "And my boy, whatever happened to your face?"

[Kitsumi]

The wait seemed to take forever, especially with the sounds of the penguins doing who the heck knows what in the bedrooms. The soft sounds coming from each room could have just been the birds moving around, but it also could have just as easily been the sounds of them tearing apart the sheets, pillows, and blankets. After all, they seemed to have a knack for making messes and destroying things.

When the bell rang, Rebi let out a sigh of relief... that quickly turned to a stifled gasp as she heard her mother's voice. Terrified that the woman would find the birds - and also more than a little peeved that she was 'checking in' on the two of them, when she had explicitly promised to leave them alone - Rebi marched over to stand in front of her mother, arms crossed over her chest.

"Mom, what are you doing here?" she asked. "Aren't you supposed to be at a wine bar or something with the other chaperones?"

The woman frowned. "Rebi, sweetheart, do try to be more respectful. It's very unladylike to speak to your elders in such a way." Turning back to Komo, she grabbed his chin, turning his head from side to side to look at the shallow puncture wounds. "Oh dear, we may need to take you to see a doctor. I wonder if there's an emergency room around here-"

"He's fine," Rebi interrupted. She began pushing her mother towards the door. "But we could really use some privacy. Remember? That thing you promised we could have this weekend?"

[Jedi]

Komo moved aside enough for Rebi to confront her mother. He could have said something to diffuse the tension, but he remained silent. Not only did he want to put himself between their crosshairs, but he trusted Rebi enough to handle the situation on her own.

When she grabbed his face, his cheeks went red. He couldn't tell if he were embarrassed at her thinking him weak, or that she was objectifying him. It was probably a bit of both. Either way made him uncomfortable.

As Rebi shoved her outside the room, Komo immediately felt relief at her departure. "Bye, Mrs. Hollins," he said at least trying to be a little respectful. He didn't approve her methods or motivations, but didn't let that get in the way of his manners.

"Oh, that's right," the mother started. "I did promise that I'd give you time to enjoy each other's company." As Rebi slammed the door shut, Komo could hear the woman's last words, "Have fun-"

[Kitsumi]

"Ugh," Rebi groaned, leaning back against the doorway and rubbing her forehead. "I know my mother means well, but she gives me a headache. The one good thing about having our own room, is that I can kick her out when she tries to intrude."

Turning to the cart that had been left inside the room, she smiled. "Thankfully, my mom didn't check to see what we ordered. I'm sure she would have questioned why we needed so much fish." Lifting the lid from one of the trays, she examined the food. "This should be good," she said. "Let's bring the food over to the area between the two bedrooms, and set it down on the floor. We'll open both doors, and let them eat... and hopefully they'll be too distracted by the food to attack each other."

She looked up at Komo, waiting for his input. "Sound good?"

[Jedi]

He lifted the lid, filling the room with the aroma of fish. Komo didn't like fish. It tasted, smelled, and just looked unappealing to him. He looked back up at Rebi. "Sounds good," he confirmed as he picked up the platter holding two of the salmons.

From the increased volume coming from the bedrooms, he guessed that the birds could now smell it as well. He sat down the platter as Rebi had instructed, then walked over to one of the bedroom doors and waited for Rebi to be ready as well.

When the doors opened, the penguins practically pushed the doors open with a pair of crashes. The birds went straight for the fish. They ignored each other except when they crossed beaks.

[Kitsumi]

It was a huge relief to see the birds focusing on the fish, instead of on each other. Even as they ate their fill and backed away from the now empty plates, they seemed to be in a better mood. They didn't seem to necessarily like each other, but at least they weren't hostile towards each other anymore.

Leaning against the wall slightly, Rebi sighed. "Thank goodness," she said. "I was about ready to pull my hair out if these guys didn't start getting along." Turning to Komo, she offered him a sheepish smile. "So, after a bit of thought, I don't think I'm ready to adopt rapidly growing, multiplying penguins. Which means that we're probably going to need to find a home for these guys."

[Jedi]

The boy leaned against the wall beside Rebi. Hearing her finally conceding, he was relieved. And even though he was glad she was coming to her senses, he was a bit sad to see them go. "It's probably for the best. Maybe there's a zoo or an animal sanctuary." He knew it was a long shot, especially considering that they'd have to sneak the birds out of the hotel without alerting the staff. Or worse, Rebi's mother.

"But, if you want, we could keep them for a day or two. Maybe they won't multiply anymore." He cracked his voice at the end, unsure of what could possibly happen. He looked worried at the pink birds, which were starting to approach the two humans. They seemed relaxed as they cuddled up at the feet of both of them. "Or maybe we could just keep the pink ones."