As dawn alerted the residents of Hinata to awaken and begin the day, Haruka Urashima was doing something she didn't normally do on most days: she was taking a long drag from her cigarette the first thing in the morning.

Usually, whenever she engaged in such an act as smoking at the crack of dawn, it was because her mind was somewhat rattled at the start of her day, and thus she needed something to take the edge off and calm her nerves.  Given the events of the past twenty-four hours, it would be understandable as to why Haruka would feel the need to light up in order to lighten up her mood (pun intended).

After all, her cousin-made-nephew Keitaro just had a brush with death in the marketplace only a few hours ago and was awarded a gunshot wound to the torso for his troubles.  Given how much he meant to her (and not just in the familial sense), Haruka was rattled upon seeing his condition when Amalla and the others brought him back from their shopping trip.  While a part of her wanted to stay by his bedside and watch over him during his recovery period, Haruka trusted that Amalla and Kaolla would do well enough in her place, given the seriousness of the situation at the time.

So Haruka settled for a consolation prize of drinking a generous amount of sake alongside Kitsune and several of the other women in the baths while Keitaro recuperated in Kaolla's bedroom.  While the liquor served a decent enough job of easing Haruka's mood (after several shots worth of it), she wouldn't be quite appeased until she saw Keitaro for herself, just to know that he was alive and in good health and spirits.

But while all of that was certainly lingering in Haruka's mind, the main reason that she was engaging in her nicotine-based vice was something more pressing - something of a more "growing concern" as it were.

Upon waking up and getting out of bed (which Haruka noted felt much smaller than the night before), Haruka could tell that her surroundings had become noticeably smaller in scale.  That confirmed what Haruka had suspicions of since waking up: She had enlarged once more, by several inches overnight.

‘It was bad enough being seven feet tall,' thought Haruka.  ‘Hopefully I'm still under eight feet right now, but until I get exact measurements, I can't be certain.'  Haruka looked up towards the nine-foot-high ceiling, glad that she had not yet grown to the point that her head would bump against it if she stood upright.  Yet given the rate of growth that she was going through (along with all the other women at Hinata House), Haruka figured that it would only be a few more days at most before that hypothetical scenario became a reality.

That realization drew a shiver down her spine, a combination of worrisome concern mixed with absolute awe at such a thing becoming real.  Haruka instinctively took another long drag from her smoke as a result which she noted felt much, MUCH smaller as she held it between her fingers.

‘Another fun little inconvenience,' pondered Haruka as she looked at her cigarette.  She figured that as her body continued to grow, she would have to use up more cigarettes than she normally would otherwise.  Just like with food, clothing, alcohol, and other resources, Haruka's physical needs (alongside the other ladies at Hinata) would grow alongside her body.  If she ended up being ten feet tall or more, chances were good that Haruka would end up using an entire pack in one day, just so that she could satisfy her nicotine craving.  And if she kept growing, chances were good that she would end up smoking multiple packs a day, depending on how big she ended up getting.  That realization was enough to make her sigh, hoping that things wouldn't get to that point and that Kaolla would have some kind of antidote to help stop the growth spurts occurring among all the female tenants (if not outright reverse it and shrink them back to their original sizes).

"Well," muttered Haruka to herself, "best enjoy it while you can, girl.  Especially if things keep up at this rate."  Haruka followed through with another drag, finishing off the cigarette down to the filter, before rubbing it out in the ashtray.  She then had to proceed with an immediate, more pressing concern of hers.

With her latest round of growth, all of her clothing was inadequately undersized for her now.  She initially tried to put on her bra and panties, but they were rather constricting upon her enlarged frame, squeezing tight against her substantially swollen bosom and giving her quite the wedgie, nearly disappearing into her buttcrack and becoming something closer to a thong.

"Guess it's back to bedsheets and towels for now, at least until Kaolla makes us all a new round of clothing for the day," Haruka thought out loud.  "I should probably bring up the idea of having her make clothing in even larger sizes, as a back-up plan for whenever the next growth spurt occurs."

As Haruka finished her cigarette, she looked about her bedroom, taking in the sight of how everything around her appeared to be much smaller than it was the night before.  Of course, that wasn't really the case.  It wasn't the world that was shrinking, just the opposite.  It was Haruka and all the other girls who were enlarging, day by day, every few hours it seemed, all because of Kaolla's little experimental concoction.

Of course, Kaolla wouldn't be so brazen as to simply dump her little bottle of growth hormone into the baths and turn everyone (including herself) into human guinea pigs.  Most likely one of the younger girls was behind the bottle somehow making its way into the baths, and Haruka had a pretty good idea as to who would be the most likely culprit behind such an act.  Out of everyone currently staying at Hinata House, Sarah McDougal was the first one to come to mind when it came to mischievous behavior and underhanded actions.  While Haruka wasn't sure as to why the young girl would empty the bottle into the baths, she had a pretty good hunch that Sarah was somehow behind the bottle making its way into the baths in the first place.

"Might as well hammer the nail while she's here," thought Haruka out loud.  "Figured that we'd have to have this little talk sooner or later anyway."

As the old saying goes, "Speak of the Devil, and He shall appear."  Just as Haruka was finishing her cigarette, the younger of her two fellow roommates was making her way out of the bathroom after getting her morning shower.

Under normal circumstances, if Haruka were her original height, the sight of a tall, blonde-haired, blue-eyed young woman having to bend to clear a bathroom doorway would have made Haruka stop dead in her tracks and drop her cigarette out of pure shock.  Of course, the circumstances being anything OTHER than normal, Haruka merely sighed upon witnessing Sarah enter the bedroom from the adjacent guest bathroom.  Given that Sarah was among the shorter of the Hinata women, the fact that even SHE was now too tall to walk under a seven-foot-tall doorway standing upright most likely meant that now ALL of the Hinata women were over seven feet tall now.

Until Kaolla had updated information as to EXACTLY how large each woman was, Haruka only had rough estimates to go by.  She figured that information would be revealed soon enough once everyone was out of their dorm rooms and properly dressed once more.

"Enjoy your shower, Sarah?" asked Haruka.

"Well, the water was certainly warm enough," replied Sarah.  "It's just a pain having to bend down so much to get my hair wet, you know.  How high are those faucet heads again?"

"I've never taken exact measurements, so I can't give you an accurate answer," answered Haruka.  "If I were to guess, I'd say that they're around six-and-a-half feet from the floor, give or take an inch."

"Well, when I was standing upright, the water was only able to hit my chest.  I also had to watch how high I raised my arms when I was in the shower.  While I was shampooing my hair, I ended up stretching out one of my arms and bumped my knuckles into the ceiling for a moment."

"Did you hurt yourself?"

"No, not really," replied Sarah.  "It was just kinda ‘out of this world' to actually have that kind of thing happen, you know?"

"Sad to say that I do," muttered Haruka, given that she was looking down at Sarah when the two women stood upright.  If she were to make an educated guess, Haruka had a good six inches or more in height over Sarah, so showering was an even bigger hindrance from Haruka's point of view.

‘I suppose I could try taking a bath instead, but other than the hot springs, there wouldn't be a tub big enough for me to stretch herself out and relax in,' thought Haruka in self-reflection.  Haruka would have to bend significantly at the knees, hips, and neck in order to fit in any of the bathroom tubs; otherwise, her arms and legs would be lying far out over the edge, probably resting her hands and feet on the floor while she lay in the tub.

‘Hell, even my torso would start to feel constrained lying in the tub,' Haruka continued her line of thought. ‘Bathing and showering have started to become more of a chore than something to relax to.  Hopefully Kaolla gets an antidote made soon, or else that problem is only going to get worse.'

"Ugh," groaned Sarah as she fiddled with the towel - or in this case, PAIR of towels that she had wrapped around her torso.  Whereas one towel would have been enough to cover her torso prior to the growth spurts, Sarah now had to use two towels to manage the job - one to cover her top from the collarbone to her belly button, and another to cover her waistline down to her knees.  Of particular difficulty were the enhancements Sarah had to both her breasts and her buttocks.  While the gentle swelling of both certainly made Sarah happy for the seductive properties they gave her, their increase in size made wearing even towels somewhat bothersome as a result.

Of course, your average run-of-the-mill pervert would be drooling at the sight of a towering, 7 foot plus teenager with a body that elicited lust (along with twelve other women with equally alluring bodies).  Aside from the increased elevation over the past few hours, Sarah's body was indeed a sight to behold, same as the other Hinata women.  Even Haruka had to admit that she was becoming a striking sight to behold, something of a mix between her mother Julia and the cartoon character Jessica Rabbit in terms of charm and sex appeal.

"Well," said Haruka, "you better find something to change into.  Though to be fair, it's probably going to be bedsheets again until Kaolla makes us new sets of clothing."

"Ugh" groaned Sarah once more upon hearing Haruka's statement.  Truth be told, she already figured as much even before Haruka opened her mouth.  It was abundantly clear that every bit of clothing she had made for her was already undersized for her newly enlarged frame, as was the case when she awoke that morning to find her pajamas and underwear reduced to tattered shreds.  Such a sight was as amazing as it was alarming to Sarah.  She wasn't sure whether to be in awe of just how big (and developed) she was getting, or if she should feel nervous at the idea of growing too big, too fast.

After all, she had yet to encounter anyone aside from the residents of Hinata House.  Assuming she decided to return to school after the weekend was over, she could only imagine the looks that would come her way when people saw her, and that was still a good twenty-four hours from now.  If Sarah kept growing at the rate she was, she figured she'd be a good eight or nine feet in height by then, and what would the students and teachers say when they saw her?  Would they say anything or simply stare in awe at such a towering young lady (alongside four other towering young ladies if Shinobu and the others also joined her on the way back to school).  Would someone call the cops the moment they laid eyes on her, simply out of fear?  What Mei told Sarah yesterday in the hallway was playing over in her head, with all of the guilt and worry that came with the reminiscence of that little chat of theirs.

And there was another topic that Sarah considered in her moment of self-reflection: ‘What is Dad gonna think the next time he sees me?'

Given Sarah's early childhood experience, she didn't have much in the way of father figures.  Her own biological father ditching her and her mother early on, Sarah held a strong sense of distrust of older men, figuring that they were mostly self-serving pigs who only viewed women as something to screw before they ended up getting bored and leaving.  So when Noriyasu Seta came into her life, Sarah ended up having her worldview altered greatly after a few weeks of getting to know the man.  In a relatively short amount of time, Sarah went from giving Seta the cold shoulder to glomping onto him in joy and genuine childish glee, calling him "Daddy" on numerous occasions up until she entered high school.  Alongside her mother, Seta was one of the two main pillars of Sarah's emotional support, and Sarah grew even more emotionally dependent upon Seta after her mother's near brush with death years back.

In short, if Seta ended up rejecting Sarah or fearing her because of her newly enlarged size, then Sarah's emotional well-being would most likely go to pieces as a result.  The thought of such an outcome put an unpleasant feeling in the pit of Sarah's stomach, like a stone that was making itself at home in her lower bowels and not planning to leave anytime soon.

Of course, there was one other man who Sarah had started to rely on more and more over time: Hinata House's dorm manager Keitaro Urashima.

While Sarah initially held a negative view of Keitaro, as the weeks turned into months, she started to see him in a different light.  Whereas Sarah first thought of him as something of a mix between a weakling and a closeted pervert, she afterwards began to see Keitaro as generally reliable, good-hearted, earnest, and good-intentioned.  She might have been highly reluctant to show gratitude for all the hard work that Keitaro put into his duties as dorm manager, but Sarah wasn't so thick-headed and stubborn as to not acknowledge that Keitaro was a hard worker and wasn't deterred so easily from either seeing a task completed or helping out someone in need when it was within his power to do so.

Such character traits were somewhat similar to Seta's in some ways, and this little comparison between Keitaro and Seta wasn't lost upon Sarah, who found herself blushing a bit at the realization of such a comparison.  While Keitaro was shorter and somewhat doughier than Seta in physical comparison, his drive and the earnestness of his character was charming in and of itself.  The way he threw himself into the marketplace scuffle to protect Tsuruko from being harmed was proof enough to confirm that.  Of course, even before that occurred, Sarah knew that Keitaro was more-or-less reliable when it came to helping others, so long as it was within his power.

"Sarah," said Haruka as she watched the blonde-haired girl lost in a sort of trance from her point of view, "Hello...Earth to Sarah.  Please come in.  Can you hear me, Sarah?"

After blinking rapidly in response, Sarah shook her head side to side before turning back to Haruka.

"Uhhh...yeah, I'm fine.  Umm...what were you saying, Haruka?" replied Sarah with mild confusion in her voice.

"I was telling you that you should find something to cover yourself for when you leave the bedroom," replied Haruka.  "Of course, it'll most likely end up being bedsheets for the time being until Kaolla has larger clothing prepared for us.  That's what I'm going with anyway, though I suppose you could use the towels you're wearing at the moment if you prefer.  But I imagine that you'd want something more dry to wear while you wait."

"Uhh...y-yeah, good point there," replied Sarah, her head not fully focused on what Haruka was saying.  This got Haruka's attention in turn.

"Sarah, are you alright?  You seem a little...off.  Something on your mind?" asked Haruka.

Upon hearing this line of questioning, Sarah found herself at a crossroads of sorts, with her conscience deciding on where to go on this fork in the road she found herself.  Down one path, Sarah considered keeping her part in what happened with the bottle of growth hormone that night a secret, at least from Haruka.  She figured that the older Urashima woman would be somewhere between upset and furious with Sarah for the part she played in this series of growth spurts that had befallen the lovely ladies of Hinata House.  Who knows what Haruka would do to Sarah if she ended up confessing what she did which ended up with all of them turning into evergrowing amazons day after day?

On the other hand, there was the option of confessing to Haruka what Sarah did that night.  From what Mei told her that time they were in the hallway, Sarah pondered as to whether the old saying that "honesty is the best policy" held true in this case.  While Sarah usually didn't like having to lie (either outright or via omission), there were times she felt that in order to avoid serious punitive consequences on her part, it was best to do so from time to time.  However, under the current circumstances (which were far from what would be considered normal), Sarah's conscience was nagging at her rather fiercely into trying to own up on her actions and do the right thing.

"Ugh...I hate having to be the bigger person when it comes to these kinds of things," muttered Sarah as she prepared to spill the beans on herself.

"What was that?" asked Haruka, not fully catching what Sarah was muttering.

"Umm...Haruka," began Sarah, "I know this is a kinda weird thing to ask, but can I tell you something on one condition?"

"Ohh?" replied Haruka with a raised eyebrow, "And what exactly would that condition be?"

"W-well," Sarah continued as she struggled to maintain eye contact with Haruka, "if I tell you something about what's been happening to us, do you promise that you won't be too angry with me...or hit me?"

Haruka's eyes fluttered in surprise at this question.  It was rare for Sarah to open up to someone like this other than her mother or Seta, so the fact that she was doing so in front of Haruka was surprising enough.  Haruka was also curious as to what Sarah would confess so long as her terms were honored, since it pertained to the growth spurts that all the Hinata women had been experiencing since that night in the hot springs.  After closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Haruka responded.

"Alright then, Sarah," began Haruka, "I promise not to hit you or get too angry with what you have to tell me, okay?  But I cannot promise you that I'll like what I hear or that I'll approve of what you did either, understand?"

Sarah merely nodded her head in agreement.

"Okay then, well why don't you tell me whatever it is that's on your mind, and I'll simply hear you out until you're done and I promise not to yell or hit you while you're explaining things.  Deal?"

"D-deal," replied Sarah.

"Very well then.  So why don't you start at the beginning with your explanation then?"

So it was that Sarah told Haruka everything that happened that night, from the moment she eyed the bottle of growth hormone in Kaolla's room to the scare she had in the hallways from Amalla's pet alligator, right up to the chasing after said bottle as it made its way out the front door and into the dark of the night.  During the entire explanation, Haruka simply sat on the bed and quietly took in everything she heard.  Beyond the simple "Go on" or "Please continue" from Haruka, the Urashima woman remained silent while Sarah recalled the events of that night to the best of her memory.  During that time, Sarah was somewhat emotionally shaken, expecting Haruka to lash out or make a particularly angry-looking face as Sarah told what occurred that night.  And yet, not once did Haruka show visible anger, either in her facial features or in her tone of voice during the whole time she sat there.  She simply sat there, pensively taking it all in from the young lady.

"And that's what happened," finished Sarah.  "The bottle bounced out the front door and into the darkness.  The other girls and I tried to look for it, but none of us could find it.  I SWEAR to you, I don't know how that bottle made its way from out the front door and into the baths.  It doesn't make any sense at all.  If anything, it should have bounced down the steps and all the way to the bottom of the hill."

"I see," responded Haruka, "though to be fair, if you hadn't taken it from Kaolla's room in the first place, then chances are that none of this would be happening right now."

"W-well...I mean..." Sarah was at a loss for words, trying to explain her way out of things.

"Am I wrong?" interrupted Haruka.  "If you had left that bottle back in Kaolla's room that night, would any of us be growing day after day?  Would we have to concern ourselves over things like food, clothing, or sleeping arrangements if you had left that bottle alone?"

Silence from Sarah, as she simply looked down at the floor.  Clearly she was at a loss for words.

"Look at me, Sarah, not the floor," said Haruka in a slightly sterner tone of voice.  A moment later, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl did just that.

"Alright," replied Sarah, "you're right, okay?  You're right about it all.  If I had just left that damn bottle where it was, then yeah, none of this would be happening right now.  I just wanted to have a nice body is all, and I was gonna share that stuff with Shinobu and the other girls too.  I never thought things would be like this, okay?"

"Don't hide behind Shinobu and the others to lessen your part in all of this," replied Haruka.  "While I suppose one of them could have made an effort to stop you from taking that bottle, the plain truth is that you decided to take something that wasn't yours without permission, as well as not knowing just what exactly that something was capable of until it had already taken effect.  I would say that between an act of theft and not knowing what you were handling, you erred on two counts right there, Sarah."

Once again, being at a loss for words, Sarah merely huffed as she stared at Haruka in response, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.  Haruka caught onto this and figured that she shouldn't push much further in making Sarah feel guilt over her actions.  She could tell that the girl was beating herself up on the inside over what had happened, and thus she felt that it wasn't necessary to berate Sarah much more than she already had.  After taking another deep breath, Haruka continued.

"Look Sarah," began Haruka, "out of respect, I'm not gonna lie to you or sugarcoat what I think of the situation.  What you did was wrong for the reasons I just told you.  And what it's led to has certainly caused complications for everyone here at the dorms.  That much is clear."

"Fine," replied Sarah, "you're right.  You're right about everything.  It's all my fault.  Everything.  Blame me for all of it.  Throw me outta here and tell me I'm never welcome back here ever again.  If that's what it takes to show that I really am sorry for all of this, then- [flick] oww!"

Haruka decided to end Sarah's rant of self-loathing and interrupted her with a flick to the forehead.

"What'd you do that for?" asked Sarah as she placed her hands upon the fresh wound upon her forehead.  "You promised that you weren't going to hit me!"

"I said I wouldn't hit you while you were explaining things and at this point, you've pretty much explained everything to me," clarified Haruka.  "And besides, a flick to the forehead isn't going to do any serious harm to that thick skull of yours.  I just needed you to get out of that ‘blame me for everything' rant you were getting sucked into, that's all."

"But weren't you saying that EVERYTHING was my fault?" responded Sarah.

"I'll admit that you have at least some of the blame in all of this, Sarah.  I won't sugarcoat it.  If you left that bottle alone, things would be very different than where they are right now.  But I'm also not going to kick someone while they're down either.  I can see that you feel guilt over what you've done, and in a way I'm happy about that."

"You're happy that I feel bad about what's happened?" asked Sarah with some confusion.

"I'm content that you feel genuine guilt over your part in all of this," explained Haruka.  "It shows that you have a conscience and aren't so selfish or self-centered that you don't feel a sense of shame or regret for the things you've done.  While I wish you hadn't done so in the first place, I'm glad that at the very least, you came forward and owned up to what you did.  That shows character, you know."

"So...you're not mad then?" asked Sarah.

"Of course I'm mad," replied Haruka.  "Well, maybe not mad so much as upset or disappointed.  Those would be more accurate words for how I'm feeling about all of this.  But even so, I'm a tiny bit happy that you've confessed to what you did to me, and for that you have my respect."

"Th-thank you...I guess," replied Sarah as she wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes.  She was startled at what happened just a moment later.

Haruka came forward and wrapped her arms around the girl in a warm embrace.  Sarah wasn't expecting something like this, and certainly not from Haruka of all people.

"Thank you for being honest with me," said Haruka.  "I'm guessing that you were on the fence as to whether or not you should confess to what you did that night, so I'm glad you decided to own up to what you did.  And I hope that you've learned something from this whole experience as well."

"A-and what is that?" replied Sarah.

"Well, it's really something you'll have to figure out on your own," answered Haruka.  "The best thing I can impart on you from this whole little incident is the simple truth that actions have consequences, so you should always consider them whenever you are about to make a decision like the one you did that night.  Fortunately, nobody got hurt or worse, so this whole situation hasn't turned out too bad overall...aside from these growth spurts we're having every few hours."
"Again, I'm sorry," responded Sarah, "Really, I am."

"I know you are," said Haruka, "I just want you to learn from this moment, that's all.  It's a part of growing up, you know.  You have to know that the choices you make and the actions you take will have effects down the road, even if you don't see them at the time."

"Okay, I get it...at least, I think I do."

"Good girl," Haruka said with a smile.  "Now, let's get something to wear and go see Kaolla.  I don't know about you, but 'd rather not be lounging about wearing nothing but towels or bedsheets the whole day."

"Agreed," replied Sarah.  A moment later the two of them had fastened spare bed sheets around their impressive figures and made their way out the door towards Kaolla's bedroom, making sure to duck under the door frame as they did so.

"Well, sister?" asked Motoko as she gently stroked and petted Shippu as she sat on her bed.

"I'm afraid it's as I've feared, dear Motoko," replied Tsuruko as she held and examined her clothes in the mirror, which she was bent over significantly in order to look into as was much too tall to look into it standing upright otherwise.

Really, the same could be said for both of the Aoyama sisters, given that the full-body mirror was around 6 feet 6 inches in height.  And since neither Motoko or Tsuruko could look at themselves in the mirror while standing straight up, they could only conclude that both of them were now well over 7 feet in height by this point.  Obviously, they had grown substantially as they slept, given how cramped that bed was feeling as they awoke.

"Ugh...this is really becoming a rather tedious everyday occurrence, I must say," declared Motoko, who was adjusting her chest wrappings at the moment.  Before she and Tsuruko went to bed, both sisters had untied their chest wrappings and placed them in the laundry bin.  Upon waking, each sister grabbed a new set of wrappings and noticed that there was less fabric to work with compared to yesterday.  Given that the wrappings were all the same length, width, and thickness, the only logical conclusion was that given the growth spurts the sisters had been going through, there was less bandaging to contain their tremendous bosoms (which had swollen to a larger cup size overnight as they grew).  Chances were good that both Aoyama sisters - as well as the rest of the Hinata women - had gone up another cup size, given how tantalizingly big their bosoms appeared to be, whether looking straight down upon them or viewing them in the mirror.

"I'm inclined to agree with you, dear Motoko," replied Tsuruko.  "I must say, when I decided to visit Hinata, I wasn't expecting to end up having a second round of puberty along with the visit.  I imagine that I must be a solid 8 feet tall by now.  I'm just grateful that your friend Kaolla has a workaround solution to the problem regarding clothing.  Otherwise, I imagine that we'd be confined to wearing bed sheets, blankets, and whatever else we could find to cover our bodies, given our current size and all."  Just like Motoko, Tsuruko was gingerly petting the other pet crane she brought along - Hayate - who she (like Motoko) could not help but marvel at how much smaller they appeared in their presence.  As the sisters grew, the cranes - like everything else around them - became shorter, lighter, and all around smaller as the size difference increased day by day.  They appeared almost infantile in the presence of both Motoko and Tsuruko, which was rather odd given that Shippu and Hayate were fully matured adults by this point in their lives.  Just another reminder of the change in scale that came with growing larger and larger as the days passed.

"Yes, dear sister," responded Motoko, who was in something of a confused state where things stood.  While she certainly was concerned about the predicament of growing larger and larger as the days passed, she also had another thing on her mind that morning.

From what Motoko could recall of the previous night, Tsuruko was in a rather high emotional state.  It wasn't like her to simply dart off like she did upon hearing that Keitaro was awake last night when all of the women were gathered in the hot spring trying to relax.  That alone was enough to grab Motoko's attention, hence why she felt the need to follow after Tsuruko when she bolted towards Kaolla's bedroom to check up on Keitaro.

‘Perhaps she felt some degree of guilt for what ended up happening to Keitaro from those thugs in the marketplace,' thought Motoko, both at the time in the hot springs and in that very moment of reflection.  ‘But even so, it was rather something to watch her embrace Keitaro like that, not to mention...that kiss.  And the way she made him caress her bosom...is she by chance...could she be...falling in love?'

"Tsuruko," began Motoko.

"Yes, Motoko?"

"Some things I've been meaning to bring up with you from last night?"

"Yes?  What would they happen to be, dear sister?"

"Well, a few things have come to mind.  One of them happens to deal with our little growth spurts."

"Oh, what in particular?" Tsuruko asked with a raised eyebrow.  "From what I understand, Kaolla and Amalla have taken measures regarding food and clothing, so resource consumption shouldn't be too big a concern, at least for now."

"Actually," replied Motoko, "I was referring to our sword training specifically."

"Really now?  Please, continue." replied Tsuruko with intrigue.

"Well, while you're visiting us here at Hinata, I imagine that you'd want to keep up with regular sword practice.  Wouldn't want to get rusty with your sword skills, especially as the current head of the Shinme-Ryu sword school."

"But of course," replied Tsuruko, "Don't want the new recruits to look down upon the teacher and all."

Motoko couldn't help but inwardly chuckle at Tsuruko's choice of words.  It would be hard to look down upon somebody who towers over you by a good two feet or more.  While Tsuruko was speaking figuratively, the way she worded things was humorous because of its very irony.

‘Chances are the next time the recruits see Tsuruko, they'll be in awe of her sheer size alone, and that's assuming she doesn't get too much bigger than she already is now.' thought Motoko.

"Well, regarding our swordplay and practice, we might have a little problem in one key area," continued Motoko.  Given how close the sisters were, Tsuruko had practically read Motoko's mind with the response she gave.

"Our swords you mean," said Tsuruko.

"Y-yes," replied Motoko, surprised her sister had deduced correctly on what she was getting at.  "By now, you must have realized that our katanas have felt remarkably smaller when we grip them.  They feel more akin to wakizashis or tanto blades in terms of length, and it is becoming somewhat more difficult to grip them as our bodies enlarge over time."

"Quite right," Tsuruko commented in agreement, "the handle does feel thinner, so managing an effective grip on it is becoming a bit problematic, and I imagine it will become even more so if we continue to grow at the rate we are going.  In a few days, our swords will feel like butcher knives I'd wager."

"Or toothpicks, if we end up getting THAT big," muttered Motoko in concern.

"Well, I may have come up with a roundabout solution to that problem," replied Tsuruko.

"And what would that be?"

"Well, before we went to bed, I sent a carrier pigeon back home with an urgent message regarding our little sword problem.  Hopefully, by this time tomorrow, we'll have the remedy to the sword concern.  Until then, we'll simply have to make due with what we have, though perhaps Kaolla could be of assistance once more as well."

"How do you mean, exactly?"

"Well, given that she has a machine that can ‘print' clothing for us like a 3D printer, perhaps she could do the same for other objects, if she's the creative little science type I think she is."

"Like a sword for instance," replied Motoko, understanding Tsuruko's logic.

"Exactly.  When we meet her next time, let's ask if she could come up with a pair of substitute swords that are more in line with our current size.  While I'd prefer good old fashioned Japanese steel, any material will do for me so long as it is sturdy enough for training use."

"Sounds like a plan," replied Motoko.  "We can ask her when we go to get our measurements and some proper-fitting clothing."  Motoko paused before another topic came to mind - one of a very different nature.  The look on her face must have said it all, because Tsuruko proceeded to ask a question.

"Motoko, is there something else on your mind?"

"Y-yes, there is...though I'm a little hesitant to bring it up."

"Please, my dear Motoko.  We're sisters, so I like to think that we can confide in one another on most topics.  After all, you were there for me when I was going through my divorce.  You were a shoulder for me to cry on and hear me out on my self-loathing recollection of things.  So please, I hope you'll open up to me about what else is on your mind."

There was a pause lasting a few seconds, where Motoko took a gulp and a deep breath before responding.

"Are you sure you want to know what's on my mind, dear Tsuruko?"  The serious tone in her voice caught the older Aoyama sister's attention.

"Well now, Motoko," replied Tsuruko, "after hearing that response from you, I am only too curious to know what you're thinking about now.  I'd have to all but insist you tell me what's on your mind."

"Alright then, I suppose I'll just ask plain and simple:  Tsuruko, are you in love with Keitaro Urashima?"

There was another pause, this time on Tsuruko's part.  After closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Tsuruko opened them once more before staring Motoko straight in the eye with her response.

"I believe I have fallen for him, yes."

"When exactly?"

"I think I started having feelings for him during our time in the marketplace, once that scuffle broke out between us and those thugs.  The way he jumped into the fray to protect me...that ignited something in my heart.  It's that sense of putting others before himself that I find...rather charming."

"I know what you mean," replied Motoko.  "He was a pillar of support for me after that little scuffle you and I had."

"The one where you said you were going to marry Keitaro, am I right?" replied Tsuruko with a smirk.

"Y-yes, that one," Motoko answered with a blush.  "After I had lost my way and was ready to give up on being a sword practitioner, Keitaro was there to pick me up and help me find my way once more.  In spite of everything I had done to him up to that point, he never stopped being nice to me, or helping me out in whatever way he could.  It...touched my heart.  I ended up falling hard for him in the process, and I'm still in love with him even now, even with him and Naru as a couple."

"It would seem we have similar tastes in men, dear sister," said Tsuruko with that smirk still on her face.

"So then, what are your intentions regarding Keitaro, if you truly are in love with him?"

"Amalla's proposal," replied Tsuruko.

"Wait...you mean...a...a h-h-har-" Motoko stuttered with a growing blush.

"A harem, yes," said Tsuruko with a calm demeanor.

"You're serious?"

"Yes."

"You're willing to share Keitaro with Amalla and who knows how many other women?"

"I'm willing to share Keitaro with everyone here at Hinata - Amalla, Naru, the other women, and of course, you dear Motoko?"

"M-me?"

"You are in love with Keitaro, no?"

"O-of course I am, but..."

"Then it's settled then, we're going to become both sisters and wives, both to Keitaro and to one another."

"B-but Tsuruko, this is all moving a little too fast.  Shouldn't we talk this out some more and think this through more logically?  I mean..."

"Sorry, dear Motoko," interrupted Tsuruko, "my mind is made up.  I'm with Amalla on this little harem plan of hers.  The way I see it, it's the best way for everyone to be happy.  You, me, Naru, Keitaro, everyone at Hinata.  After that little get-together in Kaolla's bedroom last night, I made up my mind there and then.  I have fallen in love with Keitaro Urashima, I intend to carry the name Urashima as his betrothed, and I have no qualms with bringing other women into the fold, especially such beautiful ones with good hearts to match.  And of course, I'm going to rope you into this as well, my dear sweet Mo-chan."  Tsuruko finished with a giggle.

"M-M-M...Mo-chan?" asked Motoko with a flushed face.

"Yes, Mo-chan for you and I suppose it would be Tsu-chan for me.  Has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

"W-well, I mean...that is to say...I..." Motoko was clearly at a loss for words.  Hearing that her sister was not only in love with the same man as her, but now was also on board with forming a harem between Keitaro and EVERYONE else at Hinata House...it was simply too much too fast to take in at once.

"I think I need to sit down," said Motoko.

"I couldn't help but notice that you didn't say you were against the idea," replied Tsuruko with a grin.  Motoko's blush intensified upon hearing that.

"W-well, maybe we can pick up on this topic at a later time," responded Motoko.  "What say that for now we focus on finding suitably fitting clothes and breakfast, as well as checking to see how Keitaro is managing?  I'd also like to find out how much we've grown since last night too."

"Sure thing, Mo-chan," replied Tsuruko.

"Please stop teasing me with that nickname."

"Oh alright, I'll let up for now, but I'm not giving up on the harem plan, just so you know.  Consider me one of Amalla's ‘partners-in-crime' on moving this thing forward.  And it's not just my love for Keitaro that I'll be pushing ahead on, so you know.  I'm going to assist where possible on improving EVERYONE'S relationships with that wonderful little man, including yours, dear Motoko."

"Let's just get going, please," replied Motoko as she secured the bed sheets around her impressive figure before ducking out the bedroom door, with Tsuruko following (and ducking) right behind her.