In the days that followed, Haru helped to find the Baroness, just as she said she would. She would tell Baron everything she found out and told Seiji and Shizuku everything she could without giving away her secret.
Mr. Nishi was very appreciative of Haru's help. He, Seiji, and Shizuku doubled their efforts to find the missing cat figurine and the woman who owned it, but they still came up with nothing.
After a few weeks, Shizuku and Seiji began to get a little worried about Haru. She was putting a lot of effort into finding the Baroness. Yes, they wanted to find her, but Haru was becoming obsessed with it. She also kept talking about the two cat statues as if they were real, which greatly confused them. Another thing was that whatever story she told them about how she found her information didn't seem accurate. Something just didn't make sense. Her story kept on changing, not by much, but there were different details, and she seemed to have to stop and think sometimes before answering.
One day, Haru thought she had a lead on what might have happened with the Baroness, but it turned out to be a dead end. She threw a fit; shouting how reuniting two loved ones shouldn't be this hard.
It soon became obvious to both Shizuku and Seiji that there was more to Haru's reason for finding the Baroness than she was letting on. Either that or this was a very unnatural obsession. Whatever it was, they intended to find out, for Haru's sake. So one day when Haru had come over, they decided to confront her.
"Hey, Haru, can we talk to you a minute?" Shizuku asked.
Haru nodded. "Sure thing." She said, sitting down. "What's up?"
Shizuku and Seiji looked at each other, wondering how to say what was on their minds. Seiji spoke up. "We're a little worried about you."
"Huh?" Haru looked confused. "Why?"
Her friends looked uncomfortable. "We really appreciate your help with the Baroness, but you seem to be becoming a little... obsessed with it."
Haru blinked. "I am?" She hadn't noticed.
Shizuku nodded. "We all want to find the Baroness, but you're acting like she's a missing person. Don't take this the wrong way! We're just concerned."
Haru didn't reply. She thought about what they were saying. Was she becoming obsessed? Maybe a little. Ok, maybe more than a little.
"Don't worry, I'm not upset." She said. "I appreciate the concern. I guess I have been going a little overboard. I just really want to find her."
Shizuku and Seiji relaxed a bit, knowing that she wasn't taking offense. But they still had more to say. "That's not the only thing that's bothering us." Shizuku continued. "You also keep talking about the Baron and Baroness as if they're real."
"Ah!" Haru's mouth dropped open. Had she been that obvious? She had tried not to be. Apparently, she hadn't tried hard enough. "I... am?" she said lamely.
She was lying again and they knew it. "And when are you going to stop lying?" Seiji asked.
"I'm... not... lying..."
Shizuku crossed her arms. "Well there's something you're not telling us." She said. "I thought we were friends. What aren't you telling us?"
Haru tapped her fingers together nervously. She tried to think of some sort of excuse, but she was drawing a blank. "I can't tell you." she muttered.
Seiji raised an eyebrow. "Why? Did you do something bad?"
Haru shook her head. "No, you just wouldn't believe me."
"Sure we would!" Shizuku cried. "But you have to tell us the truth."
Haru sighed. 'Yeah, you're saying that now, but once I tell you you'll think I'm crazy.' She thought. She didn't see any other way. They knew she had been lying and were waiting for an explanation, and she was fresh out of lies.
Sighing, she decided to just give it to them straight. She was tired of lying anyway. She just wished that Muta were here to back her up. They would most likely believe her story if they saw a talking cat.
"Ok, but keep an open mind about this, and think outside the box of the world as you know it." She said. Shizuku opened her mouth to say something, but Haru held up her hand to stop her. "And please hold all questions until I've finished." She took a deep breath and began her story. "It all started a couple of years ago when I saw this strange cat walking out of a store..."
And she proceeded to tell them about how she had saved Prince Lune and how the Cat King had decided to reward her by having her marry Lune. She told them of how Yuki told her to find Muta, or Moon as they knew him, how she met the real Baron at the Cat Bureau, how she had been 'catnapped' and brought to the Cat Kingdom where she was turned into a cat and then rescued by Baron.
"...So now I want to repay Baron by finding Louise. It's the least I can do." She sat back and watched the stunned expressions on her friends' faces. "You can freak out anytime now."
Shizuku and Seiji remained silent as they tried to find some way to respond to the tale Haru had told them. Shizuku seemed to pull herself together first as she said, "Wow, and I thought I was good at telling stories."
"Huh?" Haru hadn't expected that type of response. She expected them to either laugh or act like she was crazy.
"Yeah, that was a great story." Said Seiji. "How did you think of it?"
"I didn't." Haru cried, waving her arms. "It really happened."
The others gave her sly looks. "Sure." They said in disbelief.
"It's true! You've got to believe me!" Haru cried, knowing they wouldn't.
Now they were giving her that strange look she had expected. "Haru, no offense, but how can you expect someone to believe a story like that?" asked Seiji.
Haru just growled in annoyance. She couldn't blame them for their doubt. Heck, she hadn't believe it when it was happening to her, how could she expect someone to believe a story as strange as this.
"I can't." she said. "All I can do is ask for your trust." Shizuku and Seiji looked at each other. They wanted to believe her, but they couldn't. The story was just too crazy. Haru sighed and got up. "Fine, I guess I have no choice. Come on, follow me."
"Huh? Wait, where are we going?" Seiji asked.
Haru smirked. "To the Cat Bureau."
Shizuku and Seiji looked at each other, each wondering the same thing. 'Is she serious?'
As if she read their minds, Haru said, "Yes, I'm serious. Now come on."
She ran happily up the stairs. Shizuku and Seiji shared another look. "What's this all about?" Seiji asked.
Shizuku shrugged. "I'm not sure."
"Hey, are you guys coming or what?" came Haru's voice from upstairs.
Shizuku and Seiji went upstairs and followed Haru outside. They walked for several minutes in silence. Shizuku and Seiji were wondering what Haru was really up to. The story she told them just couldn't be true. Could it?
Haru was lost in her own thoughts. She hoped she was doing the right thing. She had actually been debating on whether or not to tell them the truth for a while now. True, she wasn't supposed to tell anyone about the Bureau unless they really needed help, but Shizuku and Seiji were her friends, she could trust them. Baron and Toto probably wouldn't have a problem with them knowing, but Muta was another story.
"Haru, why are we going this way?" Shizuku asked, as she and Seiji struggled to keep up with their friend.
"Yeah, we could have gotten here going a much easier way." Seiji added.
"Here maybe, but to get to the Cat Bureau we have to go this way or the doorway won't open." Haru explained. "It's to protect the Bureau so not just anyone can find it."
Shizuku tripped and Seiji quickly moved to catch her. "Careful." He said.
"Sorry." Shizuku replied. She looked back at Haru. "Why is she doing this?"
Seiji shrugged as he set Shizuku down again. "I don't know, but she better have some reason for bringing us all this way. She's obvious taken this path several times. You don't think this is a big joke, do you?"
"Hey, you slowpokes, keep it up!" Haru called behind her. "We're almost there!"
"Almost where?" Shizuku muttered. "There had better be a point to all this."
As it turned out, there was a point to it. Haru continued to lead them down the difficult path that Muta had first led her down until they came to the entrance to the Cat Bureau.
"I've been over here before." Seiji said. "But I don't remember these stairs being here."
Haru chuckled. "I told you, you have to go the right way or else the door won't open for you. Now come on, it's just up here."
Shizuku and Seiji followed Haru up the narrow stairs until they reached the very top. Haru stood waiting for them with a big smile on her face.
"Guys, welcome to the Cat Bureau!" Haru cried happily.