Finally, the day of the party was here. Neko slipped on her brand new black evening gown, twirling around in it to show it off for Mi-chan and Hoshi.
"It looks great," Mi-chan complimented her. She was also wearing black, though her dress was a little older than Neko's was.
"Hai. You're sure to get the guys' attention in this," Hoshi said with a wink.
Neko blushed and glanced away. Since Tenshi wasn't going to be there, she really didn't care whose attention she received, but it was still a nice compliment.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The evening so far had been pretty uneventful. The host had said something about some music and dancing before the ceremony started, but first they were all to have dinner. Neko picked at her food, not extremely excited by the fish entr�e they were having.
"Ne, Neko-chan, you feeling alright?" Hoshi wanted to know.
"Yeah, just a tiny bit bored."
"Well, I'm going to get something to drink. Do you want anything?"
"You know, maybe I'll get some punch too." Anything was better than sitting around here doing nothing, she figured. "We're getting some punch," she whispered to her sister, as they got up from the table.
Hoshi grabbed her friend by the arm and led her to the refreshment table. "Maybe a cute guy will see us and want to make your evening a little more exciting," she suggested.
Neko giggled. "You really never give up, do you?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mi-chan was facing the door when Haruka and Michiru walked in. Haruka was wearing a black tuxedo and Michiru looked stunning in her light blue dress. As they walked in, petals flew across the doorway. *How do they do that?* Mi-chan wondered.
Haruka held the hand of Puroko, who was in a bright purple party dress. She looked very excited to be here at an adult party, but Mi-chan didn't think that that would last very long. The evening would probably not be very entertaining for an eight year old.
*Wait a second!* Mi-chan suddenly came to a realization. Neko had said that Tenshi was going to an event with her parents. So she would be here too.
Sure enough, the very next second Tenshi walked into the ballroom. "Oh. My. God," Mi-chan said in surprise.
Jian-wa, who hadn't realized that Mi-chan was no longer listening to him until now, stopped talking and turned to see what she was looking at. He did a double take and then gave a low whistle.
There was Tenshi in a gorgeous light pink evening gown.
*Wow, wait until Neko-chan sees!* Mi-chan scanned the room for her twin. There she was, still chatting with Hoshi over by the refreshment table.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Neko got a strong feeling that there was something she was missing. She looked up and her eyes met a heavenly sight.
"Tenshi," she breathed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Hoshi stopped talking and looked up from the punch she was serving herself. Neko's eyes were filled with stars. She had obviously stopped listening to Hoshi at some point. Hoshi wondered what angelic thing she was looking at. She followed Neko's gaze.
*Oh, it's her.* Hoshi couldn't believe that Tenshi had shown up at this party. "What? Is she like stalking you now?"
"Huh?" Neko's attention snapped back to Hoshi.
"Nothing. It wasn't important."
But Neko could tell it was. Hoshi had apparently seen Tenshi and was now glaring in her direction. "Hoshi-chan?" She put her hand on Hoshi's arm.
Hoshi looked at her. "I thought you said that Tenshi-san couldn't come." Neko could still sense Hoshi's tension, even though her friend's expression had softened some since turning towards Neko.
"I- I didn't know she was. She came with her family." Just then, as if to give emphasis to Neko's point, Puroko spotted her and waved. Neko gave a little wave back.
She turned back towards Hoshi, who still looked a little miffed. Even after all this time, Neko hadn't thought that Hoshi had figured out that she and Tenshi were a couple. She knew she didn't like her much, but why was she so upset now? "Hoshi-chan? Doushita?"
Hoshi noticed Neko's concern. She let her face relax some so she wouldn't worry her so much. Hoshi was overreacting, and she knew it, but she couldn't help it. She still felt threatened by Tenshi's presence, and she had thought she was going to have Neko all to herself tonight. "Nothing. Don't worry about it. Ne, let's go back to the table."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The host stood up before his guests. "Ladies and gentlemen, I'm pleased to introduce our esteemed musicians for this evening. Kaiou Michiru-sama on the violin and Tenoh Haruka-sama on the piano." The room burst into applause. When they had finished, he continued. "Please feel free to use the dance floor," he said with a wink.
Jian-wa looked at his beautiful girlfriend and smiled. He stood up and bowed. "May I have this dance?"
Mi-chan took his hand. "Ara, I'd love to!"
Neko's eyes shone as she watched them walk onto the dance floor together. Finally, after two months, Mi-chan and Jian-wa were finally really going to get their dance.
Hoshi tapped Neko's shoulder. "Ne, Neko-chan? You see that cute guy over there? The brunette?" Neko looked in the direction Hoshi's head had just cocked and saw the guy she was talking about. "He is so checking you out."
Neko blushed. She quickly looked away to avoid eye contact with the brunette, but it was too late. He began to make his way over.
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