Disclaimer: I don't own Flame of Recca.
Claimer: This story is mine.

This story picks up from one year after the anime ended, and presupposes that the subsequent events in the manga did not happen at all.

The Law of Attraction and Repulsion

"We're so meant to be," Miki said dreamily.

The school bell rang, making the students in the Calculus class groan in frustration. They were having their first long exam, and almost everyone felt like the given time wasn't enough. Their young professor, a genius when it came to numbers, smiled fondly at the frowning faces of his students. "All right, time's up! Pass those papers before going out of the room. Don't worry; I'll give partial points for the effort!" he cheered them.

Tokiya was the first to hand in his paper, his face as impassive as always. Unlike his classmates, he uttered no complaint about the exam.

The professor's smile widened. "Aced it again, Tokiya?" He looked at his student's paper, nodding as he quickly scanned the answers. "Looking good," he commented.

"Thank you," Tokiya only said, having no apparent change in his serious expression. He gave a polite nod to his professor and made his way out of the classroom, indifferent to the mixture of jealousy and awe in the glances that his classmates threw in his direction.

It was a beautiful Wednesday afternoon, and he had the next one-and-a-half hours to himself. He had earlier planned to grab a quick lunch in the lunchroom, and afterwards proceed to –

"Tokiya!" a familiar, cheerful voice called out to him. In no time at all, its pink-haired owner was standing beside him, regarding him with a smile. He narrowed his eyes, an expression of annoyance crossing his face.

It was Miki, an assassin of Uruha.

Surprisingly clad in a proper school uniform, Miki grinned at him. "How was the exam?" she asked, like they were the closest friends. Her very blue eyes flashed with what he could only call as mischief, as if a friendly warning that he was in for an interesting afternoon with her again.

Miki, together with her younger sister Aki, had transferred to Nashikiri High School more than two months ago, in the beginning of the semester. With the exception of Recca, who had looked like he already expected them to be there, the rest of the Hokage had been uneasy upon seeing two of Kurei's assassins.

I wonder what that bastard is planning this time, he had thought, making no attempts to conceal his distrust. Miki had been most friendly ever since they arrived, but Ura Butou Satsujin made him realize first-hand how sneaky and deceptive she and her sister could be.

And so while the others warmed up to them in no time, he tried his best to avoid them. The Ura Butou Satsujin must have somehow closed the gap between Recca and his older brother, but Kurei was still Kurei, and Tokiya no plans of having anything to do with him or those who followed him.

"They're not so bad," Recca told him once. Far ahead, the Hokage, with the addition of Miki and Aki, were laughing over the story Domon seemed to be sharing. "I've talked to Neon, and she even asked me to look after her sisters."

Tokiya's lips twitched into a smirk. He was pretty sure Recca was more than willing to oblige. The boy was a bit of a pervert, anyway. "Do you remember how they wanted to kill us over a year ago?"

Recca cocked an eyebrow, the stubborn look on his face indicating that he wasn't about to listen to Tokiya. They had formed a sort of friendship during the Ura Butou Satsujin over a year ago, but that didn't mean they were ever going to agree on anything. "People change, you know. You just have to give them a chance." He shrugged. "Even Kurei has changed. Have you seen him lately?" He snickered at the mention of his half-brother.

Tokiya narrowed his eyes at that.

It was over a year ago, two days after the Ura Butou Satsujin, that news of Kouran Mori's death shook the entire nation. In contrast to the greedy, ruthless bastard that he truly was, Mori was an altruistic philanthropist in the eyes of the public, and his death was considered a terrible misfortune by the many who did not know of his cruelty.

According to reports, Mori's car had fallen off a cliff after mysteriously exploding, sending him to his immediate death. Without its president, the Mori empire was left in chaos, especially when Kurei, the only heir to the unparalleled wealth of Kouran Mori, was also reported to be missing. Rumors and speculations ran rampant, most believing that Kurei must have died with Mori in the car accident.

"It would take much more than that to kill that bastard," Recca had casually told them two months into his brother's disappearance.

And of course it was true. It was three months after the Ura Butou Satsujn when the Mori empire, represented by Uruha Rai's Raiha himself, released the official statement that they had finally located Kurei. In the short span of two weeks after his return, the flame caster took over the business and put the company back together, impressing not only his business associates but also the leaders of the country. The media loved Kurei, and subsequently, all that was heard were his acts of charity, paraded all over the news.

Now it seemed like even Recca had even forgotten how cruel his half-brother was. Stupid and reckless, the younger flame caster was trusting to a fault.

"Your optimism will kill you," Tokiya told Recca bluntly. It was perfectly obvious that Recca had been keeping in touch with Kurei.

"Not if you kill it first," Recca countered with a shake of his head. He motioned to their group, looking very relaxed. "Lighten up, Mikagami. Now will you join us for lunch or not?"

"No."

Instead of answering Miki's question, Tokiya smirked. "What are you doing here?" He knew that she always had her lunch with Aki and the rest of the Hokage, although she did make it a point to randomly show up and be a nuisance to him.

"I kind of miss you," she simply said, and he frowned. It had only been two hours since they last saw each other, during the flag ceremony.

He turned on his heel, unable to keep his irritation with her persistence. He wasn't about to waste his time talking to her and tolerating her antics. She was too childish, too loud, too daring. Even if she weren't one of the Uruha Oto, he was pretty sure he still wouldn't like her.

Miki was right behind him, as if expecting his reaction. "Your classmates looked on the verge of tears after the exam. Was it difficult?" she asked, trying to make a conversation.

Tokiya knew that she knew the answer to her question – she was in the same year as he was, after all. Although he didn't understand why she put so much effort in making him talk, he thought it would be rude not to answer. She was still a young lady, no matter how rashly she acted around him. "Not really," he replied briefly. That could pass off as a decent reply, right?

Miki pouted. "Why do I even ask? You're a genius; of course the exam was easy for you. You best Calculus, Chemistry, Physics – " she trailed off, a grin spreading across her face as though she remembered something.

Tokiya quickened his pace, impatience showing in his eyes. He inwardly cursed when he noticed the meaningful glances thrown to them in the hall. It wasn't that he cared, but it was still rather unnerving, feeling all their curious stares. That, and there was this damned memory of Miki's first day that he would never forget in his lifetime.

On her first day in school, Miki shamelessly announced that she had a big crush on him, the ever serious, no-nonsense Tokiya Mikagami.

That had been quiet an experience. Of course there had always been girls who tried to befriend him, but none of them had gone so far as to declare to the whole school their feelings for him.

His serious façade not cracking, he had chosen to not comment about the whole thing and let it pass. He thought that if he ignored her, she would stop bothering him.

He obviously thought wrong.

Miki giggled, effortlessly matching his speed. The Idaten was a practical madougu, and despite the fact that she wasn't using it now, years of using it served her good. "Slow down, Tokiya. You almost look like you're running away from me," she teased, a wicked smile on her lips. There was no doubt that the idea amused her immensely, which only served to annoy him further.

By then they had almost reached the lunchroom. Miki skipped to the first empty table her eyes caught sight of. "I'll stay here while you buy lunch. I've eaten, so don't buy me anything," she told him.

Having no choice, he proceeded to fall in line, all the while irritated by the fact that she was too… gutsy. The bravest girl to approach him gave up after one week; how could she continue for months? Instinctively, he flashed a look to the lunchroom door. It didn't take long for him feel stupid. I'm not trying to run away from her, he told himself, and felt even more stupid for being so defensive.

He came back to their table several minutes later, holding a tray of food. She cocked an eyebrow when he handed her a canned fruit juice and a sandwich. "I told you I've eaten. Aki and I didn't have classes an hour ago, so we had early lunch."

"It's my treat," he said begrudgingly, and sat down from across her. He admitted he was pretty rude to her almost all the time, but he always treated her to lunch anyway. I'm not that rude.

"That's so sweet of you," she said, smiling. "Thanks, Tokiya. I'll eat the sandwich later," she continued, sipping from the bendable straw. "I've always known you aren't as cold as you make yourself to be."

He looked up from his lunch and found her watching him, almost looking… mesmerized. He knitted his eyebrows to hide his discomfiture. Why was she looking at him like that? Didn't she know that it was rude to stare? He raised an eyebrow in query, sensing that her statement had a conclusion to it. He sipped his drink and -

"We're so meant to be."

- he nearly choked. "W-What did you say?" he asked, looking at her with disbelief written all over his face. Did she just say what she just said?

Instead of being offended, Miki flashed him an amused stare. "Are you all right?"

"I'm all right," he snapped, and tried to go back to his food. Her ideas never ceased to throw him off-guard, and he didn't know if he should be irritated with her for that or with himself for being always affected somehow.

"We're so meant to be," she repeated casually.

Tokiya could only stare at her. "You've got to be kidding me," he said. "We're…" he faltered, sort of crept out by the way she had worded her sentence, "so not meant to be."

Miki raised an eyebrow, apparently unconvinced by his statement. "Do you enjoy Physics?"

At the question, Tokiya's uncertainty faded to the back of his mind. Physics was a much, much better topic. It was a safe ground for him. "So?" He was so sure that the tone of his voice told Miki that he didn't just enjoy Physics – he aced the whole thing, too.

"The law of attraction and repulsion," she said, looking very certain of herself. "Opposites attract."

He stared at her for a few moments, until finally he gave a mocking laugh. "Opposites attract," he repeated, with an incredulous shake of his head. "I admit we're complete opposites, but that we attract…" he muttered, letting himself trail off with a hint of sarcastic amusement.

Instead of being offended, Miki only smiled. "If you end up with someone like yourself, you'll die of boredom," she told him bluntly.

At this Tokiya stared at her, a small frown adorning his features. "What?" he asked, not sure if he should be offended or not. He wasn't… boring, was he?

She gave another shrug. "What will you talk about? The latest scientific advancement? The chemical reactions in her body that causes her to blush? The life of Shakespeare? The derivatives of trigonometric functions?" She giggled upon seeing him blink in incredulity.

"It won't be so bad," he said after a brief pause. It sounded pretty boring, in the manner that Miki had described it. It wasn't going to make him change his mind, though. "It's not as if we'll talk about those things when we're together."

"Then what will you talk about?" she asked, sounding curious.

"What is it to you?" he snapped.

"I'd like to know what we'll talk about once we're together," she replied cleverly.

He shook his head in dismissal, although inwardly cursing himself for underestimating Miki. Dammit, but she was good.

She sipped her drink, a thoughtful expression crossing her face and lingering there. "Don't you think it would be more interesting to be with your complete opposite?" she said. "It will give you a chance to see more of what's out there."

Tokiya nearly ran a hand over his face in frustration. "I don't need a complete opposite of myself to see more of what's out there," he told her, unable to believe that he was actually talking to Miki about matters like this.

Miki only blinked at him. "I don't believe you."

The young man huffed. "That isn't your problem," he told her, unsure how to emphasize this enough.

"But I want to make it my problem," Miki said stubbornly, the smile on her lips unfaltering.

Tokiya put down his utensils and looked at Miki in the eye. "The law of attraction and repulsion applies to the physics of electromagnetic fields," he told her, like he was talking to a child. "It's true that opposite electric charges attract, and that like electric charges repel. But it doesn't necessarily apply to people's relationships."

"So you don't think people who are similar break apart more easily?" Miki asked curiously, looking like she was actually listening to him for the first time since they met.

"People who are opposites of each other break apart, too," he muttered, and pushed away his empty plate before gulping down his water. He was no expert when it came to relationships, and for the life of him, he couldn't even begin to fathom what prompted him to humor Miki and her silly Physics argument for the possibility of them being together. "It happens."

"Oh?" Miki prompted.

"Differences can destroy relationships," he said. "In the end it's really all about a sort of equilibrium, where they try to balance their differences and similarities to make their relationship work."

He nodded, surprising himself when he realized that he believed what he was saying. "They should have something in common as well."

Upon his words, Miki smiled. "I think that's very interesting, Tokiya," she said, and the next thing he knew was her leaning across the table to where he was. "We're both wielders of madougu. I think that's a start."

Tokiya couldn't help but back down against his seat, feeling dazed when he realized how close she was to him. He swallowed as he caught a whiff of her perfume. Don't you dare think about how good she smells, idiot. "W-What the hell are you doing?" he demanded, reminding himself that they were in the lunchroom, and that practically the whole school could see them. In fact, he could feel the curious eyes on them at the moment. Damn.

"Tell me honestly, Tokiya Mikagami," she started, her blue eyes boring into his, "aren't you attracted to me?"

He swallowed, finding himself unable to think straight. Something about her eyes told him that she knew more than she should, and that she was using this to her advantage.

Dammit, Mikagami! Don't just sit there! Answer her! he scolded himself, watching the strands of her hair cascade down her cheeks. Yes or no? he thought, and clenched his jaw at the realization that even though he couldn't say yes, he couldn't say no either. Not when she was this close, and he could see how beautiful –

Ah, shit.

Tokiya was screwed.

۞۞۞

And Miki knew it.

She laughed at the play of emotions on his face, very pleased. "Of course you are," she said, answering her own question with utmost confidence. She moved away from him and sat back down in her seat, triumph in her eyes.

"I'm not," he snapped through clenched teeth, making her giggle all the more. He stood up stubbornly, throwing her a glare. "I've had enough of you and your nonsense."

She looked up at him, unaffected by his anger. "You look even more adorable when you're angry," she said instead, her smile growing only more deviously as she watched him walk off. He didn't even acknowledge Recca and the others when they waved to him on his way out.

The Hokage and Aki gave Miki a questioning look as they approached. "What's gotten into him?" Recca asked. Yanagi, Fuuko and Aki exchanged curious glances, while Domon looked like he was at a loss.

Miki smiled innocently. "He just realized he's attracted to me," she said, and picked up the sandwich Tokiya had given her. She took a small bite, meeting the eyes of her friends. "Now he's running for his heart."

At this, all the girls in the group snickered. Recca and Domon seemed a bit confused, though. "There's just no way he likes you," Recca pointed out bluntly. "I don't even think Mikagami likes himself." Domon nodded in agreement.

"Oh, c'mon. You guys don't know anything," Aki said, laughing with Yanagi and Fuuko when the two guys scratched their heads, very puzzled.

"Is it too late, for Tokiya?" Yanagi continued, the amusement evident in her voice.

"Let's just say he's running for something that has always been mine," Miki replied, and flashed the surest of smiles.

…the law of attraction and repulsion…

I truly adore TokiyaMiki, so here's my little tribute to them. :)

I noticed that there are a lot of TokiyaFuuko fics in the archive. It sort of surprised me, because I don't remember ever seeing any remarkable scene between them in the anime. I have to say that I see more chemistry between Tokiya and Miki than between him and Fuuko. Episode 30 pretty much helped me decide on that, is all.

Thoughts? I'm curious to know what ToFuu fans have to say about this. :)

Hilaire
04.13.09