To the Hotsprings! – III

Rin threw her bag in the back of Alphy's black BMW and then hopped into the backseat.

Asako sat in the passenger side and then raised an eyebrow. "What's got your panties bunched up?"

Rin crossed her arms and said, "I don't wanna talk about it."

"...If you say so, Sis."

Rin shook her head and then glanced over to the side. Alphy was talking to Sakura about something at the doorway. And from how both Alphy and Rin's mom were glancing back at the car, Rin could guess what it was about.

Rin purposefully looked away and then pulled her phone out. Better to pretend that she didn't know what was happening than acknowledge the embarrassment and give Aneue an opening to tease her.

Especially since they'd be stuck in a car together for the next eight or so hours...

With that thought in mind, Rin opened up Twotter to see what the Ohana were up to.

Fan art, memes, more memes... And then a long Twotter thread about Hana's lore.

Skimming that one, Rin shook her head and said, "I think the Ohana might have a bit too much free time on their hands..."

It was already over 900 replies and tagging people like @loreowl and Mister John trying to sort it out.

And speaking of Mister John...

'Did he do another interview recently?'

He was trending again... Unless there was another John Smith?

...Nope. Those were screenshots of Mister John talking with Poppy Gloria. And there were more screenshots of foreign news channels talking with experts and trying to figure out who Mister John was.

The driver side door opened, and then Alphy sat in the car. "Sorry for taking a while." She giggled and said, "Apparently, I became famous and Sakura wanted to talk to me about it."

Asako raised an eyebrow and said, "Is that all?"

Alphy glanced at Rin and giggled again. "Well, there were some other things too... but we have a long car trip, so we can embarrass Rin later."

Rin pouted and said, "Tch. I knew Mom was going to say something."

Alphy smiled and then started the car. "Well, should we get going then?"

Rin rolled her eyes and said, "Just start driving, Onee-chan."

Alphy laughed and then nodded. "Okay!" She shifted the car to drive and said, "To the hotsprings!"

Asako pressed the switch to lock the car doors and said, "It's 'onsen', Alphy."

"They're the same, aren't they?"

"Technically, the onsen includes the hotel and stuff around it too, so not really?"

Alphy nodded. "I see. So like how marrying you includes getting Rin and Sakura as family too?"

Asako blushed and then started stammering. "T-That's not the same! And stop joking about that!"

Alphy shifted her attention back to the road and said, "I'm not joking though? Papa said it's legal these days and I have the paperwork already... Unless you don't want to?"

Rin rolled her eyes and said, "Don't take it too far, Onee-chan. Aneue might think it's just a bluff and call it."

Alphy puffed her cheeks and said, "Rin~! You aren't supposed to help Asako! Don't you like your Onee-chan?"

"I do. But if I have to deal with you two flirting the entire car ride, I might do something I regret." She paused and said, "Honestly, I'm already starting to regret it."

It was fun when Onee-chan and Aneue were acting awkward around each other, but Rin underestimated how aggressive Onee-chan would become after just a single night with Aneue...

...Oh. It was going to be worse when they got at the onsen, wasn't it? The private residence all to themselves, warm hotsprings, refreshing sake that the 'grown ups' could enjoy while Rin had to figure out stuff to do on her own...

"Oh." Alphy shook her head and said, "I'm sorry, Rin. If it bothers you, I can stop. Seeing Asako flustered is cute, but I don't want to make you mad." She glanced back at Rin in the rearview mirror and said, "We can hang out and talk together without Asako when we get there."

"Hey! No making the moves on Sis!"

"Hm? What do you mean? I'm just treating Rin like my younger sister. A big sister should spoil their younger sisters every now and then, right?"

"..." Asako covered her face and sighed. "You have the weirdest thought processes, Alphy."

"And you have the cutest sighs, Asa-chan!"

"Whatever." Asako fiddled with the radio and said, "Let's just play some music or something-"

*It's a pleasure to have you on our talk show, Mister Titor!*

*The pleasure is all mine, Kadashi-san. I have to say, I didn't expect for Japan's biggest radio show to ask for an interview.*

"Huh?" Asako blinked and said, "Titor's on the radio?"

*Of course we would ask! After all, rumor has it that the beta test for World Line will begin in Japan, will it not? Is there a reason why you chose our humble nation?*

*It's a long story, Kadashi-san. One involving swords, lands, swordlands, and a cheeky little brat who likes using dual blades who married a girl famous for flashing people.*

*P-Pardon?*

*It's an in-joke. If you know, you know.*

Rin tilted her head, staring at the radio before saying, "I guess Mister Titor is promoting his new game?"

"Looks like it." Asako leaned back and then glanced at Alphy. "Did you know about this, Alphy?"

Alphy shrugged. "Uncle Titor is weird. He does a lot things these days just to try and annoy Papa and keeps a lot of things secret. Oh! But I do remember hearing that he wants us to try streaming the beta test when we get back. I think he also said he has a few headsets and game copies we can give away too so that some of our chat members can play with us."

"Ohoho." Asako smirked. "Looks like I'll finally have some leverage on those guys to stop the nude calendar deal."

Rin looked over at her older sister and said, "You do realize that even if you don't do it, a full calendar of pin-up art will show up the next day, right? Especially with how much Orca-san and Foxy-chan make?"

"...Dammit."