The walk back to the Kagari estate was uneventful enough as things stood, which from Honoka’s point of view was actually MUCH appreciated, given what had occurred not so long ago.

At the moment, Honoka Takamiya was being carried ‘bridal style’ in the arms of one eleven-foot-tall Ayaka Kagari, with her acting as if nothing was out of the ordinary, while a plethora of other highschool-aged young women walked behind her on the way back home.  Of course, it would have been easy enough for Ayaka to carry Honoka in her arms before being elevated to such a height, but now it was even easier than before, given that Honoka stood at less than half of her full height now.  Given his size relative to her own, it would have only been too easy to pick him up and haul him around as if he weighed no more than a few pounds at most, given Ayaka’s monstrous strength hidden beneath her feminine form.

“Ayaka-chan,” said Honoka, “this really isn’t necessary.  I’m perfectly capable of walking on my own.  I know that I’ll have to pick up the pace a bit to keep up with you, but I’m willing to do that, so there’s no need for you to resort to this sort of thing.”

“It’s not a matter of necessity or resorting to things, Honoka-kun,” Ayaka replied.  “I want to do this, understand?  This is no inconvenience on my part whatsoever or anything of the sort, so don’t fret or needlessly worry yourself over such a thing, okay Dear?”  While Ayaka’s tone of voice was quite sweet and endearing, she was making it clear enough that she would hear no argument from Honoka on the matter.  For the rest of the walk, she planned on carrying him securely in her arms and pressed somewhat against her bosom as she walked home, just to let him (and everyone else) know just how much he meant to her.

“O-okay then,” said Honoka, resigned to his fate for the rest of the walk.  Ayaka simply smiled and then leaned down to smooch him on the lips as she was doing with growing frequency and intensity.

“Glad to hear that, Honoka-kun,” she said.  “Did I tell you that I love you today?”

“I think you just did,” replied Honoka, appreciating the humor in the question.

“Well, I love you, Honoka-kun,” Ayaka replied, finishing up with another kiss, making sure to smooch him for as long as possible before needing to come up for air.

“Geez,” muttered Tanpopo at what she could pick up between the two lovebirds in front, “if I have to hear anymore of this sweet talk between those two, I swear I’m gonna get a toothache or something.”

“They definitely talk like a pair of newlyweds, alright,” added Kanna.  “It seems like ‘Hime-sama’ has no qualms about expressing her feelings, at least where it concerns Takamiya-kun, that’s for sure.”

“Tell me about it,” added Mei, feeling a bit jealous that it was Honoka being carried in Ayaka’s arms and not her.  Even though she and Ayaka were technically enemies in the forever clash between workshop witches and tower witches, she couldn’t help but have lingering desires (be they romantic or purely sexual) for Ayaka.

“Did you say something?” asked Ayaka as she looked over her shoulder down at the tower witches muttering behind her.  That got all five of them in a rather alert state, shaking their heads rapidly and anime-style sweat-dropping in response.

“Very well then,” Ayaka added before turning back to face forward as she walked.  Truth be told, she picked up enough on the banter going on behind her.  She just acted like she couldn’t quite hear what they were saying.  From Ayaka’s viewpoint, it was of no significance.  She figured that with both her size and her increased power level, she could handle all five members of the KMM Gang with very little effort.  It would be only too easy as far as Ayaka saw it, and that was assuming that Kasumi wouldn’t jump into the fight and assist Ayaka, given that they were both workshop witches.  She figured that it was a fairly safe bet that the Ivory Quintet had been largely brought to heel at this point, with only Tanpopo Kuraishi being the only one who might put up any kind of resistance.

The group continued on their way to the Kagari estate, with Ayaka deciding to switch things up and scoop up Kasumi with one arm while holding Honoka in her other arm.

“H-Hime-sama!” declared a flustered Kasumi, “what in the world are you doing!?”

“I feel like holding the two of you in my arms,” replied Ayaka rather matter-of-factly.  “Now stop making a stink over this and just enjoy the moment.  You should know by now that I’m simply not one to be said ‘no’ to, and besides…I seriously doubt that you aren’t enjoying this.”

As much as Kasumi wanted to say “You’re wrong!” to Ayaka, she had to admit that being secured by Ayaka’s arm against Ayaka’s gigantic bosom was rather comforting, like a small child being cradled in her mother’s embrace as pressed against a soft, warm, and large pair of breasts.

“F-fine,” grumbled Kasumi with a distinct blush on her cheeks.  “At least I get to be closer to Onii-chan during the rest of the walk.”

“You see?” replied Ayaka.  “It’s a win-win situation.”

“She is definitely not shy about being so forward,” Kotetsu whispered to her comrades.

“That’s certainly an understatement,” added Kanna.  Rin silently nodded in agreement.

Ayaka looked over her shoulder for a moment back at the KMM Gang, letting them know that she could hear them chit-chat behind her back.  If she focused more intently, she could pick up on literally each and every word they said, but her main focus was on the two people cradled in her arms at the moment.

Soon enough, the group reached the Kagari estate, with Ayaka ducking her way through the ten-foot-high doorframe into the grand hall, which still remained one of the few rooms in which Ayaka’s hair didn’t brush against the ceiling.

“Greetings, Ojou-sama,” said several of the maids in unison, bowing forward in a sign of clear respect.  Ayaka simply nodded in turn as her way of expressing thanks.

“Would you like us to prepare dinner, Milady?” asked one of the more senior maids of the bunch, staring up high at the eleven-foot-tall beauty as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

“Yes, please do,” Ayaka answered directly, yet also politely.  “Have Okaa-san and the others arrived already?”

“Indeed they have, Ojou-sama,” answered the maid.  “They await for you in the main living room.  I imagine that they’re expecting the three of you.”

“I’ll head there right now,” replied Ayaka before turning to the KMM Gang (making them sweat-drop instinctively).  “You five are free to head to your room or do whatever around the house, as long as you’re not up to anything nefarious or anything even close to it…and trust me, we’ll know if you’re up to no good, understand?”

The KMM Gang nervously nodded in response, with some of them gulping as they did.

“Very good,” Ayaka continued.  “For the time being, stay out of the living room, as we have important business to discuss.  Don’t bother trying to snoop around or listen in either…like just said, we’ll know if you are.  That is all.”  And with that, Ayaka made her way off to the living room with both Honoka and Kasumi in her arms.

A minute later, Ayaka made her way into a rather spacious living room.  The feel of it all was perhaps a little ostentatious, just to let any guest know that the owner of the building wasn’t hurting in the wallet in terms of grandiosity or decorative splendor.  Still, whatever one’s sense of aesthetic tastes, the room was immaculate all around if a bit…much.

Inside the living room sat Kazane Kagari, who Honoka was quite certain was the same size as Ayaka.  It seemed that whenever Ayaka grew in size, Kazane grew to match her inch-for-inch.  In the room with Kazane were Touko Hio, Rinon Otometachibana, Atori Kuramine, Natsume Mikage, and (to Honoka’s surprise) Kanae Hozuki.  The reason Honoka wasn’t expecting Kanae to be present was because (1) she wasn’t included in the original group of newly arrived transfers earlier, and (2) he figured that she was neither a witch nor cared much for Honoka’s company in general (she showed a LOT of animosity towards him early in the school year).

“Good of you to join us,” stated Kazane.  “Please, take a seat.  I’ll try to keep this as short and to-the-point as I can.”

Ayaka took a seat on one of the large couches (fitted for her larger frame), with Honoka secured in her laps with Kasumi seated to Ayaka’s left, with Ayaka’s left arm draped around Kasumi in a rather intimate fashion, basically letting the younger girl know not to drift away from Ayaka’s embrace.  The sight of such a thing made some of the other girls blush at how intimate was acting in the sight of others, but the black-haired beauty took it all in stride.

“Very well,” said Kazane.  “Let’s get this kicked off then, shall we?”

“What are we discussing, Madam Chairwoman?” asked Touko.

“Something which involves each and every one of you here,” Kazane answered.  The rest of the group waited with bated breath, figuring that whatever Kazane would say would be of heavy significance.

“Initially, I considered talking about this after dinner, but the way things are developing, I figured the sooner the better.  To get to the long and short of it all, every woman here is to be paired up with Honoka-kun.”

There was a momentary silence before someone in the group decided to speak up.

“Umm…when you say ‘paired up,’ Madam Chairwoman,” began Natsume, “what do you mean by that exactly?”

“Each and every one of you here will enter into the contractual arrangement with Honoka-kun, just like Ayaka-chan and I already have.  You will effectively be joined with him via the sealing process, in order to help keep Evermillion’s power in check.  At first, I thought of just using five witches in total, one for each seal to keep things simple.  But later in the day I figured that it would be best to have more witches entered into the contract in order to better the odds.  As they say, “the more the merrier,” right?”

Another pause among the group before someone else spoke up.

“So…” began Touko, “if you want us all to be…paired up with Takamiya-kun…then, does that mean that you wish for us to…to…”  Touko started blushing somewhat, having a hard time trying to get the words out as her mind started wandering into more ‘adult rated’ territory.

“Frankly speaking, Touko-chan,” said Kazane, “that’s exactly what I’m getting at…at least if I’m fairly certain as to what you’re pondering at the moment.  I know that most of you here have relatively good rapport with Honoka-kun already, especially Kasumi-chan here for obvious reasons.  Once the bonding process is complete, it would be beneficial if all of you could interact with Honoka-kun the way that Ayaka-chan does.  It’s just a theory, but I’m guessing that if all of you share a deep emotional connection with Honoka-kun, then that’ll better our chances of keeping Evermillion sealed within him.”

Upon hearing Kazane’s explanation of events, several of the other girls (mainly Touko, Kasumi, Natsume, and Atori) started blushing rather distinctly.  Given what Kazane was implying, she was essentially telling every woman in the room to form into a relationship akin to that of Honoka and Ayaka…pretty much telling them all “Hey, you’re gonna be paired both magically and romantically to Honoka now, okay?”

“B-but, Madam Chairwoman…” replied Honoka, feeling the need to object.

“Just Kazane-chan will suffice, Honoka-kun,” she replied with a smile.  “I am one of your partners, after all.”  Hearing that made Honoka’s eyes widen significantly, given his gut feeling as to what Kazane was implying.

“W-when you say ‘partner,’ Madam…I mean, Kazane-chan,” Honoka continued, “what are you getting act, exactly?”

Without missing a beat, Kazane got up from her seat, made a beeline towards Honoka (still seated in Ayaka’s lap), bent down at the waist to the point of being in a 90-degree angle, gently captured Honoka’s chin in her thumb and forefinger, and leaned in for a kiss on the lips.  It lasted perhaps ten seconds or so, with Honoka going wide-eyed as he felt Kazane’s lips against his and breathed in the perfume she was wearing through his nostrils.  Once the kiss broke off, Kazane pulled back a bit and gazed into Honoka’s eyes.

“Does that answer your question, Honoka-kun?” she asked with a smile.

“B-b-but…I thought…I thought that you and my okaa-san…that the two of you were now…I mean…” replied

“First off, you’re right in that assumption, my dear Honoka-kun,” said Kazane, “and secondly, what’s to say that I can’t have you both?”

“I’m sorry…what?” asked a rather flabbergasted Honoka.

“I’m sorry…allow me to explain further,” Kazane continued.  “This is where magic and some explanation will help out a little bit here and there, regarding your situation regarding you, me, and your mother in all of this.  To begin, after taking Komachi into my home and explaining a lot of things regarding magic, workshop witches, Evermillion, and other things, she was ecstatic and quite literally threw herself into my arms.  Once I had gotten her to calm down somewhat, I told her about the plan to try and contain Evermillion once more, given the weakening of the seals and all that.”

“Okay, but how does that figure into you hooking up with both my okaa-san and me?” asked Honoka.

A moment later, there was a knock on the door.

“Perfect timing,” said Kazane.  “Come in,” she called out towards whoever was on the other side of the door.  Seconds later, it opened up to reveal both Komachi Takamiya…and an eleven-foot-tall Kazane Kagari standing alongside her.

That’s right, Kazane Kagari was facing literally herself - a perfect duplicate version of herself in every conceivable way (size included) in the living room.  Most everyone else (except for Ayaka, Komachi, and of course Kazane) couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed and slack-jawed at what they were witnessing.

“Glad you can make it here,” said the seated Kazane (we’ll call her “Kazane 1” in this scenario).

“No problem,” replied the Kazane (we’ll call her “Kazane 2”) standing alongside Komachi, who stood no higher than the woman’s hipline.  “Though we won’t be staying for very long.  Koma-chan and I will be leaving shortly.”

“That’s fine,” said Kazane 1.  “I’ll try to keep this as short as I can.”

There was a momentary pause before somebody broke the proverbial ice.

“Okay…what is going on exactly?” asked Rinon.

“It looks as though the chairwoman cloned herself,” answered Natsume.

“That’s not a particularly accurate way of putting things,” answered Kazane 1.  “Both of the versions of me you see are the real, bonafide Kazane Kagari.”

“I’m afraid I don’t follow, Ma’am,” said Touko.

“Please, just “Kazane” or something along those lines,” replied Kazane 2.  “Being called “Ma’am” or “Madam” makes me feel old.”

“Well, to be fair, I…or I suppose I should say we…are a few centuries old,” chuckled Kazane 1.

“Even so, I don’t consider us to be old women,” replied Kazane 2.  “Would you agree with me on that, Koma-chan?” she asked the smaller woman hugging against her hip.

“Not at all, Kazane-chan,” cooed Komachi as she nuzzled her face against Kazane’s hip lovingly.

“I can’t get over how weird this is,” muttered Rinon.

“Anyways, back on topic,” said Kazane 1.  “To keep this as short as possible, I had a conversation with Komachi shortly after moving her in.  I know that she’s always carried a torch for me ever since we met, and I confess that some part of me…reciprocates those feelings of affection.  Though given that I had already partnered myself to Honoka in part to help with sealing Evermillion, I didn’t want to make things awkward between Honoka and Komachi.  So I gave it some time to think it over and decided to come up with a workaround solution.”

“And you cloned yourself?” inquired Natsume.

“Again, not cloning, Natsume-chan,” answered Kazane 1.  “I call the process “magical replication.”  Think of it like cellular division.  If a cell divides perfectly down the line, then is there an “original cell” and a “cloned cell,” or are the two cells equal in their originality?  I perceive the same concept, only in this case, I did it to an entire organism, the organism being myself.”

“Why would you do that, Madam Chairwoman?” asked Kanae.

“So that I can give Komachi all of the love and attention she deserves…while at the same time keeping to this…arrangement, so to speak.”

“Arrangement?” asked several of the others.

“As one of Honoka-kun’s…partners, to put things simply.”  While everyone was reluctant to ask what Kazane was implying, the kiss she gave Honoka earlier was an easy enough indicator as to what she was getting at.

“Okaa-san,” said Honoka, “you know, you REALLY don’t have to be okay with this.  If you and Kazane want to be together, that’s fine with me.  You don’t need to…to share her with me.”

“Don’t you see, Honoka-kun?” replied Komachi.  “In a way, it’s not really sharing.  Thanks to Kazane-chan’s magic trick, I can be with her and she can still be with you so that it doesn’t become weird or make you uncomfortable.  This way, everyone can be happy.”

“But this…all of this…it’s just so odd and so…so out there,” replied Honoka.  “I can’t help but feel…weirded out by all of it.”

“Let’s see if we can do something to correct that then, Honoka-kun,” said Kazane 1 as she came forward and planted another smooch on Honoka’s lips.  As this went on, Kazane 2 simply smiled in response before leaning down and giving Komachi a brief smooch on the lips as well.  Once the kissing sessions were over, both Kazanes (1 and 2) stood upright once more.

“Okay then…” said Rinon, speaking in a tone of voice that clearly indicated that what she was witnessing was rather odd - a sentiment shared among everyone else (again, minus Ayaka, Komachi, and Kazane of course).

“Look, I know this is certainly odd from mostly everyone’s perspective,” said Kazane 1, “and I’m not expecting all of you to embrace this wholeheartedly right from the get-go.  If it’s any minor consolation, the me you see alongside Komachi will be heading out shortly alongside her for some time away.”

“For what purpose?” asked Touko.

“Our own little honeymoon,” cooed Komachi as she clung against Kazane 2.

“Beg your pardon?” asked Natsume.

“You heard her,” grinned Kazane 2.

“I…didn’t know the two of you got hitched,” commented Natsume.  “I didn’t think that sort of thing was legal in Japan.”

“It’s not,” replied Kazane 2, “but I could care less about the laws and customs of one nation or another.  As far as we - myself and Koma-chan here - are concerned, we’re already “joined at the hip,” so to speak.  And we felt that it would be best to have some privacy to ourselves and see the world for a little bit, so we’ll be away for a few weeks…maybe a few months.”

“Won’t people freak out at the sight of an eleven-foot-tall woman wandering around in public?” asked Honoka.

As if to answer his question, Kazane 2 started to shrink down inch-by-inch, foot-by-foot all the way until she was around her original height of ‘only’ 6’7’’ or so, making everyone stare in wide-eyed disbelief (again, minus Kazane 1, Komachi, and Ayaka).

“Wait, so…you can shrink yourself whenever you want?” asked Rinon.

“For a few hours here and there,” answered Kazane 2.  “I can probably go up to 24 hours tops before I end up having to revert back to my regular size.”

“Regular?” asked several of the others in unison.

“You know what I mean,” replied Kazane 2.  “My size ever since the seals started coming undone, the same one as Ayaka and my other self.  In any case, I wouldn’t worry too much over things.  Whenever we’re out in public, I’ll make sure to keep to the size you currently see, and if someone happens to spot me at my regular size, I can use a little knockout magic to erase their short-term memory if it comes to that.”

“I love you no matter what size you are, Kazane-chan,” cooed Komachi as she hugged firmly against the (still) taller woman, rubbing her face against Kazane 2’s bosom.

“I know you do, Koma-chan.  Believe me, I know,” grinned Kazane 2.

“So…where do you two plan to travel to?” asked Natsume, deciding to steer the conversation in a more upbeat direction.

“All over the world,” answered Kazane 2.  “I can think of plenty of sights for the two of us to witness:  The Great Wall of China, the pyramids of Egypt, the Scottish highlands, the beaches of Fiji, the Colosseum in Rome, the waterways in Venice, and so many more.”

“I’d love to see Paris, personally,” added Komachi.

“Of course, Love,” replied Kazane as she leaned down and kissed Komachi on the lips.  “For you, we’ll see all the places you wish to see.”

“So then when are the two of you leaving?” asked Touko.

“Once this meeting is adjourned and all of you are ‘in the know’ regarding the sealing process and everything, though I imagine that you’ve all gotten the general rundown by now,” Kazane 2 turned her gaze to her (currently) larger counterpart.

“It’s still surreal seeing two of you like this,” muttered Kasumi.  “And you’re really telling us that you didn’t clone yourself?”

“Like I mentioned earlier,” said Kazane 1, “it’s not really cloning.  When a cell divides perfectly down the line into two cells, aren’t those cells both the ‘original,’ as people refer to it?  Or to put it another way, who here has seen the Matrix movie series by chance?”  A few hands raised up among the group.  “Good, well the one villain, Agent Smith, he attains the ability to replicate himself over and over and over later in the series.  Is there an ‘original’ Smith and all the others are simply fakes, copies, or clones?”

“That’s one for the philosophers to go over, in my opinion,” replied Natsume.

“Well, as far as I’m concerned, the two Kazanes you see before you are both the original Kazane Kagari, just multiplied by a factor of two now,” Kazane 1 continued.  “We both have the same memories, temperament, abilities, mood, and everything else that makes us…well, us.  It’s basically “one soul, two bodies,” to keep it simple.”

“Is it also “one mind” as well as one soul?” asked Rinon.  “Are the two of you always in sync in terms of things like thought processes and the like?”

“We are basically two consciousnesses sharing the same soul,” answered Kazane 2.  “We can think independently of one another, yet our personalities are essentially the same, so I suppose we are something along the lines of one soul/two minds/two bodies, to try and simplify.”

“This is all a LOT to take in,” muttered Kanae.

“No need to worry yourself, Kanae-chan,” replied Kazane 1.  “As mentioned earlier, the ‘me’ you see with Komachi will be heading out shortly to spend some quality lovey-dovey time with her, while I stay here with the whole lot of you in our home, so that should make things less awkward in the near future.  Now then, as to the matter of joining all of you alongside Ayaka-chan and myself in the bonding process regarding the seals on Honoka-kun…”

“Hold on a second,” Honoka interrupted.  “Forgive me for cutting in, but I assume that you’re including Kasumi-chan in this arrangement?”

“Indeed I am, Honoka-kun,” Kazane 1 answered matter-of-factly.

“She’s my sister,” Honoka emphasized.  “And you plan on having her paired up with me in the same way as Ayaka-chan?  I’m sorry but…that’s just wrong.”

“I had a feeling that you’d take issue with that, Honoka-kun,” replied Kazane 1.  “I assume it’s over the whole blood-relation thing, correct?”

“Isn’t that obvious?” Honoka responded.

“I thought so,” said Kazane 1.  “Well then, you’ll be relieved to know that you and Kasumi aren’t blood related, so there’s no need to fret on that account from here on.  Okay then?”

“I’m sorry…what?” asked a bewildered Honoka.  “You’re gonna tell me that Kasumi isn’t related to me.”  For her part, Kasumi simply sat wide-eyed at this revelation, too much at a loss for words to respond.

“It’s the truth, Honoka-kun,” said Kazane 2.  “I wouldn’t lie to you about this sort of thing.  While Komachi-chan IS your birth mother, she isn’t Kasumi’s birth mother.  You were very young when it happened, but Kasumi was adopted by Komachi not long after you yourself were born.  You probably don’t recall much if anything from those days, I assume.  If you’d like, I can arrange a DNA test between you and Kasumi just to verify if what I said is true.”

“Okaa-san?” Honoka asked Komachi, “Is this true?”

“I pondered a good long while if I should ever tell you the truth, Honoka-kun,” Komachi responded.  Only a year or so after you were born, Kazane came to me and asked me to take in another infant.  At first, I was unsure, but Kazane said that she would provide all the money and care needed to help look after her.  And since it was Kazane asking me to do it, I just couldn’t bring myself to say no to her.  So I ended up taking Kasumi in and raising her as a daughter.”

“So then…who is my birth mother then?” asked Kasumi.

“I’m sorry, Kasumi-chan,” answered Komachi.  “We don’t know who she is or even if she’s alive today.  From what I remember, Kazane-chan came upon you, all alone out in the woods by a small stream on one of her journeys.  She heard you crying, scooped you up in her arms, brought you to me, and the rest is history.”

Kasumi took a moment for all of this to set in.  Hearing that her original birth mother most likely abandoned her not long after being born…it felt like a blade in the gut to her.  She sat in silence, eyes shut tight, the faintest of tears forming along her eyelids.

“Kasumi-chan,” said Honoka, “I’m sorry that you have to hear all this.  And I’m sorry that…that your mother…”

“Komachi is my okaa-san,” said Kasumi bluntly.  “She is the one who raised me, not the woman who happened to birth me.  I’ll reserve holding a grudge against whoever it was that birthed me.  For all I know, she’s already dead.  No point in holding bitterness over it all.  And while Okaa-san can be a little too acquiescing to the point of being an outright doormat…I’m grateful that she took me into her home and treated me like family.  I’m also thankful to the chairwoman for finding me when she did.”

“Just Kazane-chan will do when we’re in private, Kasumi-chan,” answered Kazane 1.  “No need for titles or anything like that when we’re at home.”

“Sorry, Miss Chair-...I mean, Kazane…-chan,” replied a blushing Kasumi.  “That sorta thing is gonna take some getting used to.”

“Perfectly understandable, Kasumi-chan,” chuckled Kazane 1.  “In any case, back to the broader issue at hand, now that you know that you and Kasumi-chan aren’t blood-related, Honoka-kun, you no longer need fret over getting to be with her in the same way as you are with Ayaka-chan and myself.  Frankly speaking, the sooner you accept this, the better, given that this arrangement includes all of us…well, everyone here minus Komachi and the other ‘me,’ of course.”

For a moment, all that Honoka could do was simply sit there in silence, taking in everything that he was hearing.  Things had gone from odd to EXTREMELY weird in the span of a few minutes, and he simply wasn’t sure how to respond to ANY of it.

First off, the mother of the young lady he was dating had decided to replicate herself and have that replication effectively elope with his own mother for an extended honeymoon getaway.  Then it comes out that his little sister is not related to him by birth, but an adopted little sister.  Of course, Honoka didn’t care in the slightest whether or not Kasumi was related to him by blood or not.  As far as he was concerned, she was his little sister, and he loved and cared for her accordingly as such, given the many years they had spent together up to this point.  Of course, now that it was revealed that both he and Kasumi weren’t blood-related, he imagined that had set off a fire within Kasumi as to her romantic pursuits towards Honoka.

He got his answer soon enough as he looked over at Kasumi and saw that she was looking at him with a particularly dreamy look in her eyes at him.  It was at that moment that he knew that Kasumi was only TOO ecstatic to hear this news, knowing that she could now pursue Honoka with pretty much no reservations at all from a societal standpoint.  If this were some kind of shoujo manga, he would have wagered that Kasumi would have had classical neon-pink, heart-shaped icons glowing in her eyes, such was the amount of affection she carried for him.

“Okaa-san,” Honoka asked Komachi, “are you REALLY okay with this kind of arrangement?  Doesn’t it strike you as odd to say the least?”

“I admit that it’s rather…unorthodox, to say the least,” Komachi confessed, “but honestly, as long as I get to be with Kazane-chan, I don’t really care for too much else.  I know that she only wants what’s best, not just for you, but really for everyone, both here and in this city.  I’ve known her long enough to have made up my mind about her, and while I admit that this whole ‘magic and witchcraft’ thing is a lot to take in, it doesn’t change how I feel about her or how much I love her.  And while I’m sure it must seem odd…the two of us having a Kazane to ourselves, I mean…I’m fairly confident that she’ll make you fall in love with her like she made me fall in love with her.  And since we each have a Kazane to ourselves, there’s no need for things to feel too awkward.  Like she said, we’ll be heading out shortly, so you all will have the place to yourselves.  We’ll check in from time to time, of course.”

For his part, Honoka simply couldn’t help but sit there with his mouth slightly ajar and his eyes wide open.  Apparently, his mother had effectively given her blessing in allowing things to proceed accordingly, given that she had a Kazane all to herself to abscond with on some love-riddled escapade all over the world with.

“This…this is…this is all just so…I…I think I’m gonna need to lay down for a while,” muttered Honoka, obviously overwhelmed to the point that he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  In response, Ayaka simply tightened her hold on him, as if she instinctively knew that he was unnerved by these latest developments.

“Honoka-kun,” said Ayaka, “I know this is a lot to take in and all.  Just take a few deep breaths.  Everything will be okay, I promise you.”

“But Ayaka-chan,” countered Honoka, “we’re talking about a…a…”

“A what, Honoka-kun?” asked Ayaka teasingly.

“You know…an arrangement involving you, me, Kasumi-chan, and…other women.  You know…a…”

“A harem, Honoka-kun?” grinned Ayaka.  The young man couldn’t help but blush as he stared downwards into his lap, too embarrassed to make eye contact with Ayaka at that moment.

“Well…yeah,” replied the young man.  “You can’t honestly tell me that you’re okay with this sort of thing, Ayaka-chan.”

“If I’m being frank, Honoka-kun, I’d rather have you all to myself, ideally,” replied Ayaka.

“Then DO that!” replied Honoka.  “It’s okay to be selfish over this kind of thing, you know.  I get the importance of sharing when it comes to certain things in life, but not this!  It’s perfectly fine for you to want to fight back and stake your claim when it comes to something as…intimate as this, Ayaka-chan.”  Ayaka simply tightened her grip on Honoka all the more, nuzzling her nose into his scalp as she snuggled him against her larger body like some kind of prize teddy bear she had just won at a county fair game.

“Hearing you say that makes my heart grow and swell with happiness all the more, my darling Honoka-kun,” replied Ayaka.  “But for the good of maintaining the seal over Evermillion, there simply is no other way, Sweetie.  As strong as Okaa-san and I are, we aren’t likely to keep her sealed without growing into outright titans in the long run, well over a hundred feet tall if not more than that.  Perhaps hundreds of feet tall…maybe even over a thousand or so…not right away of course, but in the weeks and months to come.  It would certainly take a LOT of mind-altering magic on our part to keep literally everyone on the planet from freaking out at the sight of us once we got to that size.  Therefore, in order to keep things from getting to that point, the next viable option would be to have more witches bonded to you through the sealing process, in order to lighten the load for Okaa-san and myself.  The more witches who are bonded to you, the better the chances of keeping the seals from breaking and Evermillion from being free, understand Darling?”

“There’s really no other way?” asked Honoka.

“If there was a way which I was aware of, I would have implemented it already,” answered Kazane 1.  “To my understanding, with all of the research I have perused over, there is currently no other means I could conceive of that would keep the seals intact.  To her credit, Evermillion is stronger than even I originally pegged her for.  Therefore, in order to help keep her in check, I decided that it would be best to bring in more workshop witches into the fold in order to serve as a counterweight to her power.  I initially thought about bringing in even more than what you see present, but I felt that seven women might be adequate enough to do the job.”

“And ALL of you are okay with this?” asked Honoka to the other workshop witches.  “You’re all honestly fine with this arrangement as she is suggesting?”

“I’m pretty sure that you already know my opinion, about his whole matter, Onii-chan…I mean, Honoka-kun,” replied Kasumi with a grin.  Honoka couldn’t help but inwardly groan at her reaction, knowing that Kasumi would be romantically pursuing him with even MORE drive now that it was revealed that they weren’t blood-related.

“And the rest of you?” asked Honoka to all the others.

“Takamiya-kun…I mean, Honoka-kun,” began Natsume, “I’ll confess to you that…well…I was originally arranged to be your…your…”

“My…what, exactly?” asked Honoka.

“Your…caretaker, guardian, and…fiancee, so to speak…”

Honoka’s eyes went wide and his breathing seized up abruptly upon hearing this.  Ayaka gingerly rubbed his back and shoulder in order to gently goad him to breathe once more.

“You see, it was an arranged marriage of sorts years in the past, before we were even introduced,” Natsume further explained.  My family flat-out told me that I was to look after you, protect you, and…marry you when the time came, due to your position as Evermillion’s vessel and whatnot.  When Hime-sama made her intentions clear not long after meeting you in high school, I was relieved that the task no longer fell on my shoulders.”  Natsume paused afterwards, trying to gauge Honoka’s reaction to what she just said.

“But please, don’t misunderstand, Honoka-kun,” she continued.  “I don’t find you dislikable at all…far from it.  While we haven’t known each other for a particularly long time, I’ve found your company to be rather enjoyable.  I don’t have anything against you, nor would I be against the idea of…dating you.  Initially, I felt that being forced into such an arrangement might end up being highly undesirable, but once I got to know you, I had a change of opinion on the matter…though I don’t intend to compete with Hime-sama for the title of “top partner” or anything even close to that, I assure you.”  Honoka couldn’t help but blush slightly at what Natsume was inferring.  It seemed pretty obvious at this point as to what Ayaka’s relationship to Honoka was at this point.

“Even so,” Natsume continued, “I don’t have a problem with this setup as it currently stands.  I am willing to do my part in this…arrangement, so to speak, in my duties as a workshop witch most certainly, but know that it’s not done solely out of a sense of duty, Honoka-kun.”  Natsume finished with a calming smile as she gazed at Honoka.  He took in the sight of her, particularly her larger-than-average irises (which showed almost none of the whites of her eyes in the process) and figured that she was being genuine in her declaration.  The only time she acted deceptively in his presence was back when she (along with Rinon and Atori) incapacitated both Ayaka and himself during the Weekend situation, and that was done out of their duties as workshop witches, mind you.

“To try and summarize everything I just said,” continued Natsume, “I like to think that in time, I’ll come to find you rather charming, Honoka-kun, and that I’ll want to be in this relationship for its own sake, rather than simply being compelled by duty or something like that.  I hope I’ve helped clarify as best as I could.”  Honoka simply stared at her somewhat dumbfounded, somewhat flabbergasted that Natsume - while somewhat reluctant at first - was apparently ‘all in’ on this arrangement.  He then turned towards the other young women in the room.

“I’ll be frank with you,” said Rinon, “I wasn’t initially up for this little setup, being bonded to you and all that.”

“Then don’t be,” answered Honoka.  “I don’t want to have anybody forced into this kind of relationship against their will, especially if they’re gonna be unhappy being paired up with me.  Sense of duty or not, it’s not right to have somebody-”

“Let me finish,” Rinon interjected somewhat forcefully.  Honoka seized up in immediate silence, giving her the go-ahead to proceed.

“That being said,” continued the green-haired workshop witch, “apart from a sense of duty in my job as a workshop witch, I confess that I do this for a somewhat selfish reason.  You see, with Hime-sama getting bigger and bigger, I find that it’ll be somewhat tricky in order to keep up with our regular sparring sessions.  The greater the size difference between us, as well as the growing gap in raw power to boot, the matches between Hime-sama and myself would undoubtedly become lopsided in her favor as time wears on.  Therefore, in order to keep things interesting, I accepted this little setup in sharing the burden with the whole sealing process.”

“So…you’re doing this only to become stronger then?” asked Honoka.

“Partly, yes,” answered Rinon, “but it’s more than just that.  Like I said, I do this partly out of a sense of duty as a workshop witch, partly to become stronger so that I’m not left behind in Hime-sama’s dust, but also…”

“Also…?” asked Honoka.

“Also because…well…I’m curious to know what it’s like, I guess…”

“What what is like?” asked Honoka.

“Being with someone,” replied Rinon with a small blush.  “People like Kasumi-chan, Natsume-chan, and Touko-chan tell me that it might do me some good to try out dating, that it might make me less combative and confrontational.  While I don’t see a problem with being the way that I am, I figured that I would take a crack at spending time with a boyfriend, just to see if I’d like it or not.  I confess that I see you as a bit of a powder puff as far being manly goes, but apparently Hime-sama has taken a liking to you in spite of that…or perhaps because of it, who knows.  In any case, I’m not backing out of this arrangement, and that’s that.  Of course, don’t expect me to throw myself into your arms and cry out “Oh Darling, I love you so much!  Let’s get married and start making babies right away!” or anything like that.”

“Rinon-chan, you really don’t have to force yourself into this arrangement,” said Honoka.  “Something like this shouldn’t be forced onto anyone.  If I’m gonna be with someone, I wanna do it for love, not mere obligation…”

“Look, I’m getting paired up with you, and that’s that,” grumbled Rinon, the blush on her cheeks becoming more prevalent.  “So stop with the whole “You don’t have to do this,” schtick, because it’s getting tiresome, okay?”

‘Wonder if she’s something of a tsundere deep down,’ thought Natsume at that last outburst.  The sentiment was shared among Kasumi, Touko, Atori, and Kanae.

Figuring it would be a waste to continue any further with Rinon on the issue, Honoka turned to the other remaining workshop witches, focusing on Touko.

“And you, Touko?” asked Honoka.  “You’re okay with this setup as well?”

“I don’t find you dislikable at all, Honoka-kun,” replied the blue-haired, busty workshop witch.  “In the time I’ve known you, I’ve learned that you’re very kind, considerate, and well-meaning.  After all, there was that incident where Hime-sama fired Seito Kaichou and you asked Hime-Sama to reinstate her, as well as trying to get along with the rest of the student council rather than force them to submit to you.”  Touko slightly sweat-dropped when Ayaka turned her gaze towards her, feeling that she had to be very careful with her choice of words so as to not incur any potential wrath from Ayaka as a result.

“And to boot, during that fistfight between you and Rinon-chan, when you had the chance to deliver the striking blow, you held back rather than take it.”  Rinon grumbled when she gave Touko a look of consternation, making the ice-themed workshop witch nervously chuckle and sweat-drop once more, trying not to get on anybody’s bad side.

“In any case,” Touko continued, “I don’t have any problem with this setup, Honoka-kun.  I’m certainly not going to fight with Hime-sama nor Kasumi-chan for the title of…top woman or anything like that, but I don’t mind being…with you, to put things…maturely, so to speak.  So therefore, you don’t need to worry on my account about this little relationship of ours…Darling.”

That last part made all of the other women perk up, given Touko’s choice of words (and in turn make Touko sweat-drop once more as she nervously chuckled).

‘Great, another love rival in the making,’ thought Kasumi, inwardly groaning at the competition that was being stacked before her.

“Well then, that just leaves two others,” said Kazane 1, gesturing to both Atori and Kanae.  “Who among the two of you would like to speak up next?”  In response, Kanae walked forward until she was standing directly in front of Honoka (still seated in Ayaka’s lap all the while).  The mop-haired highschooler proceeded to take a knee and lower her head in penance, as if she were a knight kneeling before her king.

“Forgive me,” said Kanae.  There was a momentary pause, given that Honoka was at a loss for words as to what he was seeing.

“For what?” he asked, genuinely confused.

“For how I treated you in the beginning,” said Kanae, keeping her head bowed the entire time.  “I looked down on you, badmouthed you, told you to stay away from Hime-sama, even ordered you beaten and threatened more of it if you came near her.  Back then, I was acting in what I thought was best for Hime-sama as one of her caretakers, trying to keep low-down perverts and bad-faith actors from getting close to her.  But now I see that I was wrong, that I overreacted, and that I erred greatly in my actions…and for that, I am sorry.  Truly I am.  So I ask that you…that you punish me and perhaps one day forgive me for my transgressions.”

“This really isn’t necessary,” replied Honoka.  “While I’m glad that I don’t have to worry about any further beatings and that we’re no longer enemies, you really don’t need to prostrate yourself before me like this, Kanae-san.  I’d rather that we just move on and-”

“That simply isn’t good enough!” Kanae interrupted.  “I…I feel genuine guilt for what I’ve done and how I’ve treated you, and so I feel it is only just and necessary that you punish me in some way for what I’ve done to you back then.  I simply cannot let this go until I’ve paid for what I did.”

At this point, Ayaka gingerly set Honoka to the side and stood up, casting Kanae in her shadow.  The young woman looked up at her precious Hime-sama, craning her neck far back to look at the veritable goddess who stood before her.

“H-Hime-sama?” asked Kanae nervously.

“You desire punishment?  For what happened in the past, correct?” asked Ayaka in her usual flat tone of voice.

“Y-yes, Hime-sama,” replied Kanae, tilting her head back down in reverence.  “I’ll take whatever punishment you deem worthy, no matter how degrading it may be.  I owe you and Takamiya-kun that much, at the very least.”

“Very well then,” said Ayaka bending down so that her head was closer towards Kanae’s.

“Ayaka-chan, please don’t do anything harsh to her,” interjected Honoka.  “I don’t want her being harmed or punished on my account.  I’m not angry with her at all, so please, don’t hurt her for what happened in the past.”

“Don’t worry, Honoka-kun,” replied Ayaka as she turned her head to look him in the eye, “this won’t take long, nor will it be as bad as you may be dreading.”  She turned back to Kanae and spoke again.  “Kanae-san, close your eyes and lift your head.  That’s an order.”

“Y-yes, Hime-sama,” she said, her voice trembling, nervous as to what Ayaka was going to do to her.  Perhaps slap her hard across the cheek, or maybe even punch her square in the face…or maybe something more severe like briefly choke her with one massive arm, or throw her clear across the room in a show of pitiful humiliation in front of everyone.  Whatever it would be, Kanae would take it all without any fuss, strong in her desire to show genuine guilt and shame for her previous behavior.

A few seconds passed as Kanae lifted her head, her eyes closed, waiting for whatever it was that Ayaka had planned for her.  A moment later, she got her answer.

FLICK!

“Ow!” said Kanae instinctively as Ayaka’s middle finger flicked her forehead, the giant beauty holding her middle finger and thumb into a circle before letting the digit smack Kanae squarely in the forehead.  The sensation certainly stung for a bit as Kanae reached her hands up to rub the spot where she was just struck.  Part of her expected something more severe, but it never came.  Ayaka simply knelt down, wrapped her arms around Kanae, and hugged the smaller girl against her body, pressing her large bosom against Kanae’s smaller frame.

“Consider your punishment doled out,” said Ayaka.  “Just don’t ever do that again, understand?  Honoka-kun forgave you long ago, and I don’t want to upset him or make him feel guilty over this, so I forgive you too, now that your punishment has been carried out.  But if you still feel guilty or responsible for what you’ve done in the past, then consider this to be your sentence:  Simply be there for Honoka-kun, as a protector and caretaker as you were for me.  You are even free to love him like I do, if that ends up being the case.  At the very least, act like a vassal to him and watch over him and keep him safe from harm, understand?  You may think of that as your punishment, if you so desire.”

“Of course, Hime-sama,” replied Kanae.  “I will do so without question.”

“This really isn’t necessary, Kanae-san,” said Honoka.  “You don’t have to go through with this.  Getting involved in magic and witchcraft isn’t something to be taken lightly, after all…and I don’t want you feeling like you have to partner up with me just because you feel some sense of guilt.  As far as I’m concerned, you’re already forgiven, so there’s really no need for-”

“Takamiya-kun, I appreciate your intentions, however good they are, but I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist on this,” Kanae interrupted.  “I’ve been a servant of the Kagari Family for many years, so I simply cannot bring myself to say no to such a request, especially from Hime-sama.  And like the others here have said, I intend to see this thing through, plain and simple.  So I ask that you no longer request me to opt out, as I have absolutely no intention of doing so, no matter how much you insist or plead.  Like it or not, you’re stuck with me.”

“Kazane-san,” Honoka said to the two Kazanes (both of them still in the room), “is this sort of thing really even necessary?  Is she even a witch?”

“Kanae-san has known about magic for quite some time now, going back to her middle school years,” answered Kazane 1.  “Her family has served the Kagari Family for decades, with Kanae-san herself serving as a personal retainer to Ayaka alongside Touko back during their elementary school days.  While not a witch herself, Kanae-san is trusted among my family, including Ayaka.  That is why I decided to bring her into this relationship.”

Sighing in defeat, Honoka turned towards the quietest member of the group.

“Atori-san,” he said, “are you really okay with this.”

The cat-eared workshop witch simply beelined across the room towards Honoka.  Normally, she would be speaking through the hand puppet she would pull out when communicating with others, given her rather shy personality.  This time though, she simply decided to do without the puppet and speak through actions rather than words.

The moment she got right up against Honoka, she turned to Ayaka, as if waiting for the taller girl’s approval for whatever it was she was about to do.  Ayaka simply nodded, giving Atori the proverbial green light, upon which Atori gently cupped the sides of Honoka’s head, leaned in, and gave him a tender lick upon each of his cheeks, followed by a long smooch on the lips (no tongue involved though, mercifully).

Taken aback by the forwardness of the silent workshop witch, Honoka seized up briefly, fearing that Ayaka was about to thrash Atori for making a move on her man.  To his surprise, Ayaka simply rubbed the top of Atori’s head, gently scratching both her scalp and her cat ears, as if to say “good girl,” to the feline-type workshop witch.

“Atori-san,” said Honoka, getting ready to voice his reservations.

“Atori-chan,” she quietly replied, at little more than a whisper.

“What?” asked Honoka.

“Call me…Atori-chan…from now on…Honoka-kun,” she said, clarifying before coming in for three more smooches, one on each cheek and another on the lips.

“This really isn’t necessary,” Honoka started before Ayaka interjected.

“Honoka-kun, Atori-chan is joining the family and that’s that.  As you know, she isn’t particularly talkative, so I’ll speak on her behalf over this.  Like Kanae-san and the others, she’s not gonna back down, partly out of duty as a workshop witch, but mainly because she likes you, plain and simple.  I’m fine with this, so make peace with it and accept her into our family already.  You have a big enough heart for it, after all.”  Honoka could make out the slightest smirk on Ayaka’s face, as if she were declaring that his fate was sealed and he was getting a harem whether he wanted it or not.

“You’re sure about this, Atori-chan?” he asked the cat-eared girl staring directly at him.

“Mm-hmm,” she quietly nodded in response, a faint blush on her cheeks.

Honoka simply sighed in resignation for a moment, then looked around the room before speaking once more.

“Well, I get the feeling that there’s nothing I can really say or do to dissuade any of you all from going forth with this kind of thing.  I mean, I get that it’s important to keep Evermillion from breaking free and all but…I just wish that there was some other sort of way than resorting to this kind of thing.  It feels like…like I’m basically roping you all into this against your will, and…that I’m being unfaithful to Ayaka-chan in the process to boot.  I just…I wish there was another way…”

“Alright, Honoka-kun,” said Ayaka as she scooped up the young man in her embrace once more, “first off, you’re not being unfaithful to me, so understand that perfectly clear, got that?  It’s not cheating if I’m in on the whole thing, after all.  And besides, I could think of much worse things than having a group of pretty girls in our family, Darling.  And secondly, it’s not like anyone here has a gun to her head or is getting her arm twisted into going along with this.  While it is important to keep Evermillion from breaking out, we do this for more than just that.  Everyone here likes you, Honoka-kun, even Rinon-chan despite her rough-and-tumble exterior.”  Ayaka shot Rinon an amused look as the green-haired girl puffed her cheeks and broke eye contact, clearly too embarrassed to face either Ayaka or Honoka at that moment.

“So please don’t needlessly burden yourself with unnecessary guilt, Honoka-kun,” Ayaka continued.  “This arrangement is the most viable option to keeping the seals intact, and besides…do you not like the idea of getting to be with each and every one of them?  Are they not pretty enough or lacking in some kind of character trait?”

“It’s not like that,” countered Honoka.  “I’m sure that they’re all fine and good people, even someone as rough-around-the-edges as Rinon.”  The green-haired girl grumbled at that analysis, while Kazane couldn’t help but chuckle in amusement at Honoka’s assessment of Rinon.

“It’s just…I don’t know…I feel like I’m some kind of ball-and-chain to everyone here minus Ayaka-chan, that’s all.  If it weren’t for the seals weakening, this wouldn’t even be necessary, and all of you could go be with whoever you want to be with, rather than being saddled with me out of necessity.  It just makes me feel kinda low and rotten, that’s all.”  Honoka paused before continuing further.  “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to sound pathetic or anything like that, really I don’t.  I just can’t help but feel responsible for all of this, and mfph!”

Before he could get another word in, Honoka was lifted up and French kissed by Ayaka right there and then, making some of the other girls blush at how passionately intimate she was being.  After a good thirty seconds or so, Ayaka broke off the kiss, still holding Honoka in her arms before speaking.

“No more of that talk now, okay Darling?” she said, more as a command than a question.  “I don’t want you feeling guilty, sad, or anything along those lines, understand?  You are not responsible in any way over this, plain and simple, and I’ll not hear anymore putting yourself down like that.  And if you keep doing so, then we’re gonna have to take this conversation into either the bathroom or the bedroom, got that?”  While the tone in Ayaka’s voice came off as intimidating, she was basically threatening Honoka with waves of passionate ecstasy, with equal parts love and lust during the whole episode, no doubt.

“Well then, if that concludes things,” said Kazane 1, “then I believe the meeting is adjourned, now that everyone here is up-to-date on where things stand.  What say we head to the dining hall before taking a nice, long soak in the baths?”

“All of us, Kazane-san?” asked Natsume.

“But of course, Natsume-chan,” she replied.

“Well then, we’ll leave the rest of you to get acquainted,” replied Kazane 2 as she and Komachi took their leave.  “We’ll be heading out now and will be out of the country within the next few hours.  Feel free to notify me if things require my attention.”

“But of course,” grinned Kazane 1 to her doppelganger.

With that, the women began making their way out of the living room and towards the dining hall (with Ayaka and Kazane 1 bowing under doorways as they walked).  The maids had prepared an exquisite spread for the group to partake of, as was to be expected in a place as lavish and luxurious as the Kagari estate.  Not long after everyone sat down, the KMM Gang was notified that dinner was ready and they were to join everyone else if they were hungry.

Needless to say, they joined the group at dinner.  Hard to turn down a high-quality meal, especially when it is free.

Dinner consisted of typical smalltalk among the women of Honoka’s newly-formed harem with most everyone having something to say here and there (minus Atori, being the quiet type that she is).  Once the meal was finished, the women in Honoka’s harem took their leave and headed off towards the baths, leaving their dishes at the sink for the serving staff to tend to.

The KMM Gang was told that for the time being, the bathing area would be closed off to them.  Should they need to wash themselves, they could use the standard bathroom connected to their bedroom.  Figuring that it wasn’t ideal to raise a fuss about that arrangement - especially in the presence of two eleven-foot-tall women no less - they accepted that declaration without the slightest objection.

So it was that Honoka’s harem made their way off towards the baths for some quality bathing time with Honoka and one another…