Summary: Yuu had been innocently sitting there, patiently waiting for Yukari to get ready for their first date in a while. He didn't expect to have to deal with his date's younger brother... and having to answer the questions that he was presented with.

Pairing: Yuukari

A/N: When this idea struck me, I couldn't resist immediately typing it up. I rather like it, although I don't expect many views or reviews. I hope y'all enjoy, though!

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Answers

Yuu didn't bother looking at his watch. He knew from when he had previously dated Yukari that she would make him wait at least half an hour after he arrived at her house. If he had been an hour late, she would still make him stay there for the same amount of time. One advantage of this knowledge was that he'd reserved their table for half an hour later than it otherwise would have been.

Sometimes he had to ask himself why he was dating the uptight control-freak (not that he'd ever say that to her face) of a woman that Yukari was. She was as obstinate as a mule, had a mind sharper than a knife, a tongue sharper than her mind, a temper more deadly than a nuclear explosion and a glare to fit. Not to mention being a somewhat pushy career woman who was used to getting her way all the time. In short, she was completely insane. The feelings he had for her were completely inexplicable and unreasonable.

He sighed, standing up to stretch before a long wooden stick not unlike the ones they use in the dojo swung to his face and halted barely an inch from his nose. Yuu stumbled backwards, his glasses falling askew and his hair, which he'd spent an hour trying to tame in front of his bathroom mirror, messed up once more. Thankfully, he'd managed not to fall flat on his backside. His gaze travelled along the stick and rested on the face of Yukari's ten-year-old brother.

"What," said Kairi, "are your intentions towards my sister?" His eyes flashed dangerously behind the frame of his glasses. What Yuu found most unnerving was how steadily the boy wielded the weapon pointed at his face.

He gulped. "Uh..." was the best he could manage. The stare directed at him grew a fraction colder. Yuu was at a loss for what to do or say. Kairi had always been a fantastic student. He was quiet, concentrated hard on his studies and was always serious. For him to suddenly threaten the teacher was much like having a fluffy bunny rabbit you'd owned and loved your entire life, rearing up and biting you nose.

"Well?" asked Kairi impassively.

Yuu's mouth opened and closed several times before he decided that indignation was the most favourable way to proceed. He was, after all, an adult.

"What are you doing?" he said. Unfortunately this came out weaker and more nervous than he'd planned. It was odd, but with his glasses on he was much less of a confrontational character than without them.

"Asking you a question which you will answer to," he replied unwaveringly.

"You're ten years old!" Yuu exclaimed incredulously. He felt that kids that young should not try to interrogate an adult about anything, much less something like this.

Kairi nodded. "Exactly," he affirmed. Seeing Yuu's confused expression, de decided to elaborate. "Last time you dated my sister and broke up with her, I was much too young to understand what was going on exactly. This is my duty."

Unwisely, Yuu started to protest. "But..."

The reason that this was unwise was because the stick was raised very threateningly in response. "What are your intentions with my sister," he repeated.

"I... I think I might have feelings for her," he said hurriedly.

Kairi looked even more unimpressed at this. "You think you might have feelings for her?" he enunciated slowly. "Does this mean that there is a possibility that you might not feel anything for her?"

What Yuu desperately needed was time. He needed time to navigate through the minefield that was presented before him. However, time was one thing that he wasn't allowed to have. At his silence, Kairi's eyes blazed and the stick snapped down, grazing the teacher's nose.

"Answer me!" he ordered.

This time, Yuu really did slip and fall to the floor. Kairi now stole the only advantage Yuu had had left: height. The wooden pole was pointed at his face again as Kairi now loomed over him. The entire situation was ridiculous. Here he was, a grown man, cowering before a mere boy.

"Um... no?" he squeaked.

Kairi's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Was that a note of uncertainty I detected?" he inquired, eyebrows raised in expectation.

"No! Definitely not!" shouted Yuu.

"Why are you dating her?" demanded the boy. This time Yuu actually mustered up enough courage to be outraged.

"Why can't I be dating her?" he yelled back. "I'm dating her because I like her!" He was too caught up in the moment to realize that he was now admitting things he never had before, even to himself.

"What do you like about her?" he asked forcefully, jabbing the stick at Yuu to emphasise his words.

"Well... I..." he stuttered, eying the weapon warily. He knew that if he didn't answer this satisfactorily, he'd end up with a large bump on his head... if he was lucky.

"Yes...?" prompted Kairi slowly.

"Um..." This awarded him a blow on the head. "Hey! What're you hitting me for?"

"Hesitating," he stated calmly.

"What?!" he said disbelievingly. "But you..."

Kairi hit him again. "Hesitation means that you are uncertain about your answer. To protest means that you are avoiding one. In both cases, it is clear that you are not honestly fond of my sister," he said by way of explanation.

"That doesn't mean you should hit me!" he complained, rubbing his head. This reminded him of how Yukari dealt with him if she was annoyed. He was a regular punching bag, not to mention a renowned doormat.

"If you are not fond of my sister then that means you will eventually hurt her again. I am simply making sure," he replied coolly. The stick was hovering above Yuu's head now, ready to strike if he made the smallest mistake. Yuu racked his brain quickly, not looking forward to being hit once more by his date's brother. This had been one complication that he hadn't needed to deal with in the past.

"Okay! Um... I admire the way she's always so confident," he said loudly. At Kairi's gesture to keep going, he looked around the room uncertainly, wildly trying to think up another reason. "And... I like... how she's always so straightforward and how she knows what she wants to do and just does it."

"Is that it?" asked Kairi, unmoved.

"Well... she's always enthusiastic and wholehearted at everything she does," he added. Yukari was usually very wholehearted when she smacked him upside the head for being some kind of idiot or other. "And she... she cares about people in her own way. I like how she's prouder than a peacock in some ways but in others, is really quite shy."

"Is she?" Kairi furrowed his eyebrows. He hadn't known that his sister was ever shy.

"I love how she always challenges me and even how she can just walk right over me. She's ten times smarter than me and yet ten times more obtuse. I love her sharp mind and her hidden heart." He was flying now, barely aware of what he was saying. No, he was too busy thinking about Yukari and that rare smile of hers.

"R-really?" said Kairi faintly. First it had been 'admire', then it was 'like' and now it was 'love'. The Yukari that Yuu was talking about sounded somewhat like the sister he knew but still more like a stranger.

"I love how overprotective and loyal and determined she can become," he continued. "She's not afraid to say what she's thinking and she tries so hard so that the people she loves can have the best she could possibly provide."

The more Kairi heard, the more he was sure only applied to Utau. Yukari had the biggest soft spot in the world for that girl.

"She's dynamic. I love... I love her," he ended simply. Kairi stared at him. It took a while for what he'd said to sink in for the both of them. Yuu's eyes widened in horror and mortification as Kairi allowed his jaw to drop down.

Finally, the arm brandishing the stick was lowered as Kairi accepted these words. He was now more than convinced of Yuu's good intentions and true feelings, although it looked as though the man himself had yet to process it all. He sat there, motionless, staring at the wall uncomprehendingly. Kairi wondered if he should not have been so forceful when demanding those answers from the poor man. Still, he couldn't resist one more comment.

"After that speech, I expect you to be my brother-in-law now. If you fail to meet these expectations..." He grinned down at him evilly before straightening and walking over to the door before exiting the room altogether.

Yuu gaped after him blankly.

The door to Yukari's bedroom opened at last. The sound caused his head to turn towards it automatically.

"Ah, I'm done!" Yukari shouted exuberantly. She stopped short when she caught sight of him sitting on the floor.

He gave her a feeble wave. "Hey," he said in greeting.

After a pause, Yukari decided to ignore the fact that her boyfriend was randomly seated on the floor for no apparent reason. She marched up to him and smacked him on the head. Needless to say, thanks to her brother's treatment beforehand, this was more painful for him than it would usually have been.

"What'd you hit me for?" he yelped in frustration. What was it with the Sanjou family group and using his cranium as a punching bag?

"This is the part where you're supposed to compliment me," she snapped.

Yuu stared at her for a while, thinking about what he'd said before. Admittedly, she had innumerable faults but... he loved this woman, imperfections and all. It wasn't an ideal love any more than he was an ideal man, but he was sure about one thing; he would never feel this way about any other woman.

Yukari waved a hand in front of his face. "Hey! What's wrong with you?" she asked, puzzled.

He grinned back at her suddenly. "Nothing," he said cheerfully, "nothing at all, Yuka-koi."

Again, he was smacked in the head. "Idiot," Yukari sniffed, trying to hide her blush.

Now if only he could get her to call him Yuu-koi...