Warning: This story has a Sumire/Lucia pairing. If you read this and are surprised by the fact that they're both girls, you're either an idiot or you haven't watched/read VVV, in which case I wonder why you are now reading this story. You've been warned.

A/N: I have come to realize that the number of VVV fics is depressingly low. Aiming to rectify that, I already have five or six stories lined up to write, though most of them are longer stories and so might take a while before making it on the site, since I'd like to concentrate on the shorter ones first and get them out of the way. On that note, I apologize for any inconsistencies you may come across, since I've only –at this point in time- watched the first four episodes and haven't read the manga. Yet.

Disclaimer: I do not own Venus Versus Virus or anything affiliated with it, nor am I making any money from this story.

It Doesn't Count

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Lucia ran swiftly through the forest whilst dodging the many low hanging branches with ease. It may have been dark, but the moon, a sliver away from being full, was large and bright, lighting the way between the trees easily. Side stepping a strike from the virus pursuing her, she leapt into the air and fired a round into its chest. Its shrieks of pain echoed through the night as she landed on the soft dirt and picked up her pace. She was close.

Sprinting, Lucia broke through the trees into a small clearing. Glancing around quickly, she scowled, her gaze landing on two lone boulders jutting out from the ground near the center of the clearing. Walking carefully closer, she confirmed she was in the right spot as she spotted one of Sumire's shoes lying discarded a few feet from the left, and slightly larger, boulder.

"One of these days, Sumire," Lucia muttered exasperatedly as she looked at the faintly glowing protections she had carved into the stones earlier. "One of these days you will listen to me."

Her plans foiled for the moment, she scanned the ground for Sumire's tracks. Finding them leading in the opposite direction she had arrived from, she began to follow them to the edge of the clearing. A slight vibration was her only warning before a virus shot up from where she was standing. Barely able to dodge the surprise attack, Lucia hissed as she clutched her shoulder. Taking her hand away, she was given only a second to register the fact that her hand was covered in blood before the virus was once again upon her.

Shit.

Jumping to the side to dodge a flurry of spikey projectiles, Lucia quickly scanned the ground for the gun the virus had knocked out of her hand earlier. Spying it a few meters away, she made to sprint towards it before three more inky black viruses emerged from the ground between her and her weapon, crazed grins and red eyes upon their disfigured faces. Cursing silently with teeth clenched, she recognized the futility of attempting to reacquire her firearm at this point in time. Changing tactics, she once again sprinted into the forest.

Eye catching movement to her right, she leapt sideways and threw her dagger. The sharp weapon hit its mark with a faint squelching sound and began to disintegrate its target. Unable to risk retrieving it, Lucia, now weaponless, continued to follow Sumire's – or what she hoped were Sumire's- tracks deeper into the forest while the other three viruses continued to track her.

"Sumire…" Lucia growled under her breath. One of these days…

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Sumire bit her lip nervously as she hesitantly walked further into the forest, her eyes continuously glancing at the surrounding darkness from beneath her bangs. A slight breeze rustled the leaves, causing her to start in fright before shivering. The night air was cool; her short sleeves and skirt were doing little to protect her from the chill.

Oh, how she wished she were cocooned safely in her blankets at home. Instead she was in the middle of nowhere… alone… in the dark… at 1 o'clock in the morning… whilst being hunted by viruses… Sumire whimpered. Gasping as her shoeless foot struck a root, she hopped over and leant against a tree and began to try and rub away the pain.

"Owww…" Wincing, Sumire wasn't sure what was worse; a throbbing toe or a frozen foot. If only the day had gone as she had planned, she would be at home with some hot chocolate, curled up on her bed in her comforter with the latest book in the series Yoshiki had lent her. Instead, they had a job. And she was missing her shoe. She sighed. Losing her shoe hadn't exactly been her entire fault, per say…

/Sumire followed Lucia closely as they trudged deeper into the forest. It was late and the forest was dark. The only light came from the moon, and though she was thankful that the forest wasn't pitch black, she could have done without the shadows. The silvery light from the moon cast sinister shadows throughout the forest, making it impossible for her to discern between figments of her imagination and actual viruses.

Lost in thought, Sumire didn't notice Lucia stopping and bumped into the older girl's back. Squeaking out an apology, she blushed lightly as Lucia turned her head slightly and raised brow at her. Wondering why they had stopped, Sumire gave a start when she realized they had entered a small clearing. Following Lucia to the large rocks in the middle, she looked around while Lucia studied the boulders. The clearing itself wasn't that large, and she couldn't help but wonder why they were there. Unlike herself, Lucia didn't seem to be out of breath at all.

"Sumire." Jumping slightly as Lucia's low voice broke the silence of the forest, she shifted her attention to the other girl. "I want you to stay here while I go check something. Don't leave this spot."

Eyes furrowed in confusion, Sumire asked, "Where are you going?"

Lucia stopped and turned her head slightly. "There's…" Hesitating slightly, she seemed to mull over her words before continuing, "Something's… off. Stay here. Do not go into the forest. Do not follow me. Stay right where you are." Once again moving forwards, she melted into the shadows of the trees and was gone.

Fidgeting with her gun nervously, Sumire leaned against one of the rocks as she waited. Unable to keep her eyes still, they darted around the clearing, trying to pinpoint every little sound that made it to her ears. She sighed uneasily. "It's gonna be a long night."

An hour later found her sitting down in the same spot as earlier. Her gun held loosely in one hand, she used the other to doodle distractedly in the dirt with a stick. Eyes flicking around the clearing, she froze as she saw movement on the ground before her. Squinting, she was just able to make out a large black body the size of a golf ball and eight spindly legs.

Biting back a scream at the sight of the large bug headed slowly towards her, she glanced quickly around her. The stick in her had was too thin, and Lucia would yell at her if she wasted bullets on bugs, not that she'd be able to hit a target that small anyways. Panicking, she slipped her shoe off of her foot and tossed it at the bug, only to miss.

Startled, the insect began to crawl faster. A fist sized rock a few feet to her right caught her attention. Scrambling to it, she picked it up and turned, ready to squash the spider only to blanch. The once large spider rippled and expanded into a large virus resembling a cross between a tarantula and a wolf. Yelping, she fumbled with her gun and let off a few shots while running in the opposite direction and into the forest.\

She blamed the virus for her missing footwear. Because of it, she was now lost in the forest with no ammo and no dagger. Not to mention it was still hunting her, seeing as how none of her shots had connected and her dagger was in a rosebush somewhere.

"Well, well." Gasping in surprise, Sumire whirled around. "You do sure smell good for such a scrawny little girl." The virus licked its lips with its long yellow tongue, its eight legs shuffling in anticipation.

"S-stay back!" Sumire stuttered nervously, painfully aware how vulnerable she was as she aimed her empty gun, hoping it wouldn't call her bluff.

A rough chuckling growl escaped its head as it shuffled forward ignoring her weak warning.

"I don't want to see viruses! I don't!" Sumire mumbled desperately as she backed up slowly.

The virus flashed its black teeth at her, the points dripping with saliva. "Oh, but I want to see you." With another growl, it leapt.

Teeth scraping her thigh, Sumire cried out as she stumbled back. Ignoring the pain as best she could, she took off once more into the trees, the howling virus in hot pursuit.

Gasping in pain and lack of breath, her pace began to slow. Getting ready to skirt around a large tree, Sumire's surprised cry was cut off by a hand covering her mouth as she was yanked back against something soft. Struggling against her captor futilely as an arm wound its way firmly around her waist, Sumire froze when she heard a familiar low and smooth voice whisper in her ear. "Hush."

Eyes wide, Sumire stopped struggling and went limp, not resisting when Lucia pulled her closer. "Do you have any bullets left?" The hot breath and lips just barely brushing against her ear made the hair on the back of her neck stand up as she shivered slightly. Hand still covering her mouth, Sumire could only shake her head slightly from side to side.

Lucia made a slight noise in the back of her throat. "Dagger?" Sumire blushed and shook her head again as the hand around her waist slid along her shirt to probe the empty sheath. An exhalation of breath against her ear had her squirming slightly, prompting the arm around her to tighten its hold.

Sumire stumbled slightly as Lucia suddenly began to back up further into the bushes. They slowly made their way backwards, Lucia's arm around her waist keeping her from falling when she stumbled. Soon they came to a stop next to a forked tree.

"Do you see it?" The sudden words startled her as the heat made her swallow. Confused, she scanned the forest in front of her. Hesitantly, she shook her head no as a shriek in the distance had her shaking once again. "Hmm," Lucia hummed comfortingly in her ear. "Look closer. It's hidden."

Biting her cheek nervously, she looked closer. A slight shadow low to the ground had her squinting in confusion. It looked sort of like a box. Sumire nodded slightly. "It's an old logging shed. Luckily for us, it already has strong barriers on it. We'll hide there."

As they inched closer, Sumire was able to get a better look. The shed was old, but still sturdy; the dark wooden planks were slightly discolored yet nailed together firmly. About four feet high and two or three feet wide, it was a very small shed. Besides the front door, the only other openings were two slight cracks towards the roof on either side, allowing air and a sliver of light inside.

The hand covering her mouth slowly withdrew and fiddled with the latch on the door. Motion in the forest made her stiffen as the sound of heavy breathing came closer. Whimpering as she saw the shape of the same virus that had attacked her earlier, Lucia wasn't able to fully muffle Sumire's cry as she rapidly yanked her backwards into the shed and shut the door, locking it from the inside.

Sumire buried her head in Lucia's neck, her hands clenching the older girl's shirt as she shook. Lucia shifted slightly into a more comfortable position before petting the frightened girl's hair soothingly, her other arm still around the girl's waist. "Shhh, shhh," Lucia shushed her softly as the shrieking got louder, the virus sniffing around outside the shed. "It's okay, you're okay. It can't get us in here."

After a few tense minutes, the virus seemed to have lost interest, its footfalls getting fainter as it left to search elsewhere. With the imminent threat now gone, Sumire slowly stopped shaking, allowing Lucia to calm her down. As the silence descended upon the shed, Sumire shifted her head slightly and took in their positions for the first time. Lucia was sitting cross-legged leaning against the wall of the shed facing the door, one arm around her waist while the other still gently moved against her head.

Though that was enough to have her blushing, it was her own position that caused her cheeks to enflame. Because the shed was small, there was just enough room for one person, namely Lucia, to fit comfortably. Sumire, on the other hand, was sitting sideways in Lucia's lap with her head resting on her right shoulder. Clearing her throat, she muttered a quiet thanks and, clearly embarrassed, she let go of her shirt and tried to shift away. Lucia's arm around her waist surprised her by tightening, effectively stilling her and causing her to slowly fold her hands in her lap. "It's alright." Slowly settling against the other's warmth, silence once again engulfed them.

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Lucia looked down softly at the shorter brunette in her lap as she continued to soothingly pet her soft hair. Though her current actions greatly contrasted the cool and aloof front she normally portrayed, she couldn't help herself. Sumire had disobeyed her again, yes, but that hadn't mattered when she saw how frightened the younger girl was. Ruefully, Lucia admitted to herself that when she was comforting the shaking girl she had acted without thinking, instinct having won over pride. Sighing at the unintended chink in her persona, she tried to justify it to herself. It's only because we're alone in the dark. No one can see, so it doesn't count.

Her sigh having caught Sumire's attention, she was unable to school her features in time as Sumire's curious green eyes gazed up at her from beneath her bangs and connected with her own soft blue one. Deciding it was too late now to feign indifference, Lucia allowed a small smile to paint her lips. After all, it doesn't count.

Flustered, Sumire's eyes flickered to the side, a blush once again settling on her cheeks. Amused by the reaction, it took her a few moments to realize the other girl was speaking. "Come again?"

"Ah," Sumire's eyes flickered to hers before quickly darting away once more as she stumbled over her words in that endearing way she did when she was flustered. "I was, um, thinking-wondering! Wondering how you knew this was here. The shed. Was here. Wondering how you knew the shed was here."

"Mm," Lucia hummed in amusement. "Well, you remember I said there was something off about this job?" Waiting for the slight nod against her shoulder, she continued. "It seems I was right. It took me awhile, but I was able to conclude that these aren't normal viruses. It seems our employer wasn't exactly trustworthy. Remember the earth element virus?" Another nod. "These ones are similar, but instead of being powered by the earth, they are powered by the dark, making them weaker during the day and us fools for going after such a large number of them at night. We're effectively stuck here until sunrise."

"Oh," Sumire once again darted her eyes to her face, fluster losing out to curiosity. "And the shed?"

"Well, curiously enough, when I went back to the spot where I clearly told my partner to wait, safely within a barrier I might add, all I found was her shoe and some tracks leading into the forest, where I, oddly enough, told her not to go." Lucia wryly started as she watched the red hue once again slowly seep into Sumire's face. "So after getting ambushed and losing my weapons whilst looking for said wayward partner, whom I can only assume had a very good reason for disobeying, I stumbled upon this place and noticed the carvings etched into the wood."

"S-s-sorry! This is all my fault! Except for my shoe, that was only half my fault, I mean-" Sumire was tripping over her words as she sped up her explanation. "Fault-bugs! My shoe and the spider that wasn't a spider but it looked like a spider and it was coming at me I was sitting there where you told me to stay but the spider was gonna eat me and I couldn't shoot it because it was small and yelling and there was nothing so used my shoe but missed and there was a rock but it was far and then the spider was a virus and then I stubbed my toe and bit my leg and you startled me and-"

"Sumire, Breathe." Lucia commanded, slightly worried as she began gasping for breath. Only understanding about half of what was said, one thing stood out in Lucia's mind. "Bit? Are you all right?"

"It-um," Sumire started as her breathing returned to normal. "On my thigh. It doesn't really hurt any more…"

"Which one." The hand that was petting her hair came to rest on the girl's bare knee.

Face shyly turned to the side, Sumire mumbled. "The, ah, the other one."

Lucia slowly and softly slid her hand up Sumire's leg, wanting to check her injury yet very aware of the change in the other's breathing. Stopping when she reached the broken flesh on her upper thigh, she gently probed the cuts with her fingers causing Sumire to visibly wince. The bite marks were thankfully shallow and the blood had already crusted over. "It's shallow. We'll disinfect and bandage it when we get home." Done with her examination, she slid her hand up a little higher and stroked her thigh softly in apology, making a small whimper escape from Sumire's throat. Face like a tomato, Sumire buried her head in Lucia's neck once more.

Lucia's hand stilled and she inhaled sharply when Sumire nuzzled into her neck, her nose and lips unintentionally ghosting across the sensitive skin. Sumire froze when she heard Lucia gasp. Curiously, she shifted slightly in her lap and repeated her actions on Lucia's neck, running her nose tentatively up to the right below her ear.

Lucia gasped again as her hand unintentionally twitched on the Sumire's thigh, causing the girl to let out another small whimper and press against her harder. Slipping her hand out from under her skirt, she allowed it to join her other hand on Sumire's waist, her fingers teasing the bare sliver of skin between her shirt and skirt lightly. Because it doesn't count.

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Sumire flushed as she pulled back slightly, shocked at her own daring. Though she had talked about her feelings with Yoshiki at the park, and Lola had teased her from time to time, she hadn't actually thought she had a chance with the cool blue-haired woman. The gasps the older girl let out when she nuzzled her neck, however, seemed to disprove that thought quite soundly.

Looking up at Lucia, Sumire was startled at how close their faces were. Was she always…this close? Their noses were a hair's width away from touching, her green eyes close enough to see the small flecks in Lucia's soft blue one. Mesmerized, Sumire was startled when she heard a faint shriek. Jumping slightly, she gasped as her lips met Lucia's soft ones, her eyes widening in shock in unison with Lucia's blue one.

Wrapping her arms around Lucia's neck for comfort as the arms on her waist tightened reflexively, she slowly moved her head back. Still gazing into her eye, Sumire licked her lips distractedly before freezing. Furrowing her eyebrows, she licked her lips again. What the… Blinking in confusion, her eyes darted towards the other's lips. Maybe… Glancing once more into her eye, Sumire noticed the raised eyebrow and couldn't help but color slightly as she licked her lips once more.

Curious, Sumire leaned in slightly and licked Lucia's lips causing Lucia to gasp slightly. Nibbling softly on her bottom lip, Lucia's hands clenched at her sides, a nearly inaudible whimper escaping her throat when Sumire pulled back again. Licking her lips again in thought, her lips curled into an impish smile when she spotted the slight blush on Lucia's face.

"Sumire," Lucia slightly gasped her name, cheeks getting redder as Sumire licked her lips again. "What are you-?"

Sumire cut her off as she captured Lucia's lips again, only this time intentionally. A part of her sighed in relief as Lucia slowly returned the kiss. The signs had been there, but it was nice to have confirmation. Rubbing her hands through the soft blue hair at the nape of her neck, Sumire licked Lucia's lips again, this time in question. Taking Lucia's gasp as an invitation, her tongue darted between the slightly parted lips to rub against the other's tongue, before mapping out the contours of the other's mouth.

Parting for air, both of them panted as Sumire licked her lips again. I was right. Her lips taste like cinnamon, but the inside of her mouth tastes like vanilla. An odd combination, yet… intoxicating. "Has anyone ever told you that you taste really good?" Enjoying the sudden blush but not giving her time to reply, Sumire pulled her head down again for another kiss, tongues dancing as soon as their lips met.

They both startled apart in confusion as Sumire's cell phone started vibrating, before an upbeat tune started playing. "Oh," Sumire removed one of her arms from around Lucia's neck and fumbled for the phone in her skirt pocket. "It's Lola." Flipping the lid open she put it against her ear. "Hello?"

"Sumire? Everything okay? You guys are taking an awfully long time. You didn't get lost did you?" Lola's voice sounded faintly through the receiver.

"W-what? No! Everything's fine. We ran into a bit of trouble so we're camping out until sunrise." Sumire defended weakly as Lucia moved to nuzzle her neck.

"…You got lost didn't you? You're such a klutz Sumire." She swore she could hear the smirk over the phone.

"Lola!" Sumire blushed as she felt Lucia smirk against her neck.

"I knew it. I told Nahashi that's probably what happened when you guys weren't back an hour and a half ago." Lola laughed victoriously.

"T-That's not the point!" Sumire gasped into the phone as Lucia latched onto her neck and began sucking, aiming to leave a mark.

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Lola furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she looked at the phone in her hand. She didn't just imagine that…did she?

"Hey Sumire," Lola asked before eating another chocolate from the bowl on the coffee table. "Is Lucia there?"

"Y-yeah." Another gasp. So she wasn't imagining it. Lola smirked. It's about damn time.

"Lola," Lucia's voice broke her out of her musings. "Tell Nahashi to pick us up at the edge of the forest. And bring a first aid kit."

"You know," Lola started mischievously, chocolate all but forgotten. "You guys probably shouldn't have sex if one of you is hurt, you know, especially since it's probably Sumire. Something tells me she's not into the whole pain thing." Lola waved the chocolate in the air vaguely in emphasis.

"Lola." Lucia growled warningly.

Eyes wide, Lola chuckled nervously. "Right. Forest. First aid. Lookit the time, gotta go."

Hanging up the phone, Lola sighed in relief and popped the chocolate into her mouth, looking up as Nahashi walked into the room.

"Was that Lucia? Are they all right?" Nahashi asked, concerned.

"Wha-oh, yeah, they're fine. Stuck until we pick them up at sunrise, but for the most part fine." Slouching into the couch, Lola popped two chocolates into her mouth and grinned. "Say, how do you feel about having a daughter-in-law? Theoretically, of course."

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A/N: And as I post this I am off to read the manga online. This thing turned out…alright. Took me all day to write, though. Seriously, started at noon and it's now 12:06AM. If you like it, there are a few things I had to cut out, so I could probably make a sequel detailing them getting picked up and arriving home to…do things….like….sleep :P Mwuahuahua. Nah, they'd end up doing a little more than sleep, of course. Lucia'll have to find a new justification though :P I'll try to stick with the Japanese names, despite only having seen the English dub.