Hello there guys! So here is another fic from yours truly.

I know, I'm so sorry to keep you waiting. It's been truly a long time since I last posted a fic, and I know I promised to some of the readers that I may write another adult fic for these two… but I tore it all up since I didn't feel like it depicts them at all. For that reason, I decided to start this one instead. Just a fair warning though, the ratings may change, since I was also deciding if I will include mature scenes *ehem ehem* later on. This will still depend on my mood and if the story itself calls for it though, and whether the readers and reviewers (assuming you guys are still here,) will support me for it.

This fic was inspired by Kittylyne, and I'm truly thankful that I've found her fic from a different fandom. If I haven't read that one, The Queen's Hand would probably be the last fic I've ever written here. Ugh.

Okay so on to the story. Slight AU, slight OOC. You will understand why.

DISCLAIMER: I do not, in any way, own Chihayafuru. I do however, own some original characters, ideas and situations and therefore they cannot be used in any other media or similar form without my permission. Anyone who does so will lose all their teeth, assuming they will be lucky enough to escape my clutches. Consider yourself warned.


I


"Heya boss."

A dark-haired man of medium build walked over to a tall woman who stood facing the glass-paneled wall of her office, appearing to be busy looking down to the chaos that was Tokyo. Wearing a blood-red corporate jacket which hugged her curves all in the right places, paired with a pencil-cut skirt of the same color, she looked the picture of a sophisticated beauty.

She tucked a wavy auburn strand of hair behind her ear. "Akatsuki. I trust that I have good news from you?" She asked without turning to face him.

He inwardly snorted at his mistress's lack of courtesy. "I do and I hope you'll be amused." He moved to open one of the windows in her office which she could allow before lifting a stick of cigarette to his lips and lighting it. "Our men tells us that he's already returning today. The man's on his way now as we speak. He's expected to arrive sometime this morning."

She then finally turned to face him, revealing a heart-shaped face and amber eyes which blinked at him from under long lashes, her expression set into hard, fierce lines. "Can we trust that information?"

The man called Akatsuki snorted openly now, obviously unimpressed. He reached into his pockets and pulled a smooth, glossy paper out, handing it to her as she approached him, arm held out for it. She smoothed it out before turning it, eyes widening and breath catching as her gaze settled on a man who appeared to be in his late twenties captured about to enter what looked like an airport terminal. Even with just the picture she could tell he had a commanding presence about him, his frozen strides graceful and lithe, like that of a panther.

He has definitely grown into a quite good-looking man.

"Finally." A feral smile graced her lips, one which made Akatsuki shiver. "And the other target?"

Akatsuki flicked the ashes off his cigarette outside the window, ignoring her obvious displeasure. "Alive and well. She's where we expected her to be." He turned to her then, wariness gracing his expression. "But why on earth do you want her? She's not exactly a suitable target. In case you're forgetting, she's still quite well-known. If she disappears, the whole country will know."

"She's the perfect bait. By using her you know we could lure him out." She explained, her expression changing into what looked like mild chagrin. "I didn't exactly want to drag her into this, but she's essential. We'll be able to use her to get to him." She crumpled the photo as her hand curled into a fist. "I've waited for so long, and I have everything covered. All we have to do now is to set the plan into motion."

He ruffled his hair, not in the mood to argue with her further. "I hope you know what you're doing."

She glanced at him, and the manic glint in her eyes made another shiver curl down in his spine. "Oh, I do. He'll be sorry he ever took that case in the first place."


Ayase Chihaya felt like she was about to burst – she was bubbling with nervous energy, and she knew it was showing in her face – the way her eyes lit up, the flush in her cheeks, the trembling of her hands as she tried to make herself look decent by dusting her cheeks with powder to reduce shine and applying a small amount of mascara and lipstick. She hadn't felt this excited for months - not even when the karuta team she had been coaching had won the championships of the Tokyo regionals five months ago, or even when…

She shook her head, chastising herself mentally for allowing her thoughts to stray, then hurriedly picked up her purse, checked herself one more time on the mirror to see if she was all good, then pirouetted gracefully on her heels to rush off to the door of her apartment, grabbing up her keys from the center table in her living room as she made her way to the door. After locking the door behind her, she broke into a mad power walk to the stairway which led to the parking lot, and broke into a short jog towards her black Mercedes-Benz convertible which she had managed to acquire while juggling her teaching and modeling career. After unlocking it, she climbed in immediately, tossing her purse onto the seat beside it and gunning the engine to a soft purr before backing out of the driveway and speeding off.

She was supposed to pick up Kana-chan from her family store today at nine-thirty, but it soon became apparent that she was, undoubtedly, going to be late. Coming home late last night due to a shoot which ran late as well had seen to her disregarding her alarm which she had set at seven-thirty. Muttering short curses to herself, she knew she had no one to blame but herself when she hit the damn snooze button.

I swear I'm going to petition the factories to stop creating alarm clocks with snooze buttons someday.

Chuckling lightly to herself at how ridiculous her thoughts were, she concentrated on maneuvering her way into Tokyo's early morning traffic, praying that it would be light today and will give her enough time to speed by her friend's kimono shop.

Which also reminded her that she had to check if Kana-chan's ready yet.

She pulled to a stop and grabbed her purse beside her, honking loudly at a blue sedan which attempted to cut into her lane. Glaring at the driver who looked pissed off at her, she honked once more before he got the idea and proceeded to grudgingly wait for another opportunity to slip in, making her smirk triumphantly.

"You're ten years too early to try your tricks on me." She said aloud, wishing with more than a touch of irritation that he could hear her.

She had just pulled her phone out when it buzzed, indicating a call from none other than her best girlfriend. Hurriedly picking out her earphones, she inserted it to the earphone hole and took the call.

"Morning, Kana-chan! I was just about to call you! Are you ready yet? Sorry, I really woke up late!" She said all this in one breath, before she heard a sort of apologetic laugh from the other end of the line.

"Morning too Chihaya-chan. And no, you don't have to panic. I'm really sorry, but I'm calling you because I can't come with you today to meet Buchou at the airport."

Chihaya stepped on the gas as the cars in front of her moved, doing her best to keep her mouth from falling open. "What? Why? Did something happen?" She asked worriedly, trying her best to concentrate both at her driving and her friend.

"Okaasan cannot come over today to watch the shop for me, she said she's feeling under the weather. You know how the elderly are nowadays. I'm really sorry about this, Chihaya-chan."

She bit her lip, not being able to help herself from worrying for her friend's mother as well. Oe-san had been nothing but kind to their circle of friends, most of the time acting like a second mother to them, be it during a tournament or certain occasions, like birthdays, engagements, or even weddings. "Is she okay? She hasn't contracted flu or anything I hope?" She slipped into the lane which led to the airport, resisting the urge to start biting her nails whenever she was stressed out.

"No, I don't think so, thank God. She just said she doesn't feel steady on her feet. Maybe it's just a flash of dizziness or something." Kana-chan's voice confirmed through the earpiece.

Chihaya found herself breathing out a quick sigh of relief. "I hope it's nothing serious. Oh anyway, I hope she gets well soon. Pass that on to her for me, will you?"

"Sure! Sorry about this again, Chihaya-chan. I really didn't mean to leave you alone for picking up Buchou… please give him my apologies." Deep remorse echoed from Kana-chan from the other end.

She hurried to assure her friend. "It's fine Kana-chan! Don't worry. I can do it myself. And Taichi's never one to be upset with just that you know. You know how kind that guy is. What's important is that Obaachan gets well okay?"

"Yes, of course. Thanks, Chi-chan." A slight pause followed. "So what, you're really going alone? What about Wataya-san? Has he even reacted at the news that his best friend is already coming home?" She could feel slight annoyance filtering from her best friend's end of line.

Chihaya stepped once more on the gas when the traffic light flashed green and she finally entered the lane which will lead to Tokyo Narita Airport's quadrangle. "Umm… of course he's happy that Taichi's coming home. It's just that you know how busy he is with his work and stuff and him being on the other end of the country…"

She could almost see Kana-chan making a face on the other end. "I see. So he really chose to do that huh…"

Chihaya looked down to her lap, knowing Kana-chan must be holding herself back from saying something which might as well upset her even more, given the current status of her relationship with the man.

"You know how he is." She muttered weakly, snapping back into attention when the cars in front of her moved once more.

A sigh resounded from her best friend. "Yes, I do understand how he is. That doesn't mean I have to- Oh good morning sir!" Her voice ended in something like a squeak.

She thanked the heavens silently for the welcome interruption, sparing her the girl's lecture with what her boyfriend is currently doing and not doing to her. "I guess I have to go now, Kana-chan."

"Yep, I already have a guest, and Tsutomu will be coming over later to help me here. Give our regards to Buchou please? We'll see him at his welcome home party instead. Thanks, love you Chi-chan! Take care!"

In spite of her discomfort, she managed a smile. "Sure thing. See you around, Kana-chan! Say hi to Tsukue-kun for me."

Her best friend laughed. "Oh stop calling him that, Chi-chan. He's already outgrown that nickname."

Chihaya couldn't help but chuckle. "He's still Tsukue-kun for me. Anyway I'll have to go. Love you Kana-chan!"

And with that, they both hang up.

Chihaya stared out into the traffic in front of her, finally succumbing to her mind begging her to think. She stretched her legs below her, taking care not to suddenly put too much stress on her muscles for fear of sudden cramps and spasms.

She honestly couldn't blame Kana-chan for sounding pissed off earlier. This is not the first time, after all, that Arata had blown her off – had blown them off. Her beau had been doing so well for himself, - too well, in fact, that he couldn't seem to notice how much it was already starting to put a toll on their relationship, a fact which was pointed out to her more than she needed to, by so many of her friends, be it from the high school circle or work colleagues.

It was five years ago when she and Wataya Arata had started going out. It was a kind of a relationship which had progressed naturally from their being together for so long, they had been friends since childhood, and many had been unsurprised by the changes their relationship had wrought over time. It was, after all, one thing which could be expected from people whose love had been tested by distance and time – he was originally from Fukui, having only spent a portion of his childhood in the city to which he had to go back from after finishing his elementary years, and she lived in Tokyo, which meant that they couldn't exactly see each other every day after those wonderful childhood years. Despite of everything that had happened then, - Arata's falling out from karuta, their squabble when she and Taichi had gone to Fukui to find out why he even did so – he was the one who had taught her karuta, who had loved the sport more than anything else and which was why it had been unthinkable that he had given up the game – the tournaments which they had both taken part of and which only served as a healing balm to long distance friendships, - finally, he had decided to move to Tokyo to able to attend one of the universities there and secure a brighter future for himself.

And he had managed to get in not only a normal university, but with Todai itself – one of the many universities in the world known for doling out sophisticated education.

It was then that everything between them had changed, as if the cogs of their relationship had turned and signaled everything to move forward. What she had dismissed as simple longing for a friend who she cannot see every day could no longer be ignored, and the slight obvious tension between them – slight, but still obvious enough to people who knew them well enough to be able to see it, like Taichi and Kana-chan for instance – had nothing to do with two people who saw each other as nothing more than friends. They had grown into adults, which meant that they couldn't continue acting like the children they once were.

It had taken a small get-together and drinks, as well as a rap on the head from Taichi for Arata to be able to tell her how he really felt, and she had accepted his confession without hesitation at all, ending in her spilling her feelings for him without any second thought. The memory of how she had blurted out everything to him as well had her still smiling, though the smile it brought on her face right now was something that had been mixed in bitterness more often than she would like lately.

She had to be honest, their relationship felt like glass to her now, balanced precariously and delicate in every way. She knew why that was, and what had caused the change. Love is something that two people will have to work hard for, though she had to admit, it wasn't everything in this world they lived in – a fact she would have liked to not realize because she knew she couldn't ignore it once she did. Though love could get people through the worst of times, it had to take more than one person to keep it going.

And lately, she felt more often alone than she was supposed to.

Chihaya had nothing against what Arata had accomplished for himself, and there was no question that she was proud of him and what he had done for himself in the long run. He had made a name for himself the moment he had beaten and finally taken over Suo Hisashi as the karuta Meijin, and had accomplished a great deal one after another. He became an assistant head to his karuta society, and was, on top of that, juggling his career as an aspiring architect. He had slowly risen from the bottom and is now a head architect connected with Fujisaka Industries – a powerhouse corporation known for reconstructing and remodeling the Kyoto palace and other famous landmarks in Japan. He was entrusted with more projects, and the glasses-wearing man had been too happy to oblige to the point that most of the time he had to go to one place or another in order to head a project – without even telling her.

Her expression soured as she recalled the latest venture he had decided to take. Fujisaki Akira, head of Fujisaki Industries and Arata's boss, had decided to offer to send him to the US for a special training to learn more about techniques and special works he could use as an inspiration for their projects. It was all free with all the usual frills and fuss when a huge company sends you for the so-called training, - seminars, free hotel accommodations, events and corporate functions. It was slated to take around six months, and he was chosen due to his good records, and without any second thought, he had accepted.

Without even mentioning it to her.

She was loathe to recall the argument they've had over the phone when he finally told her that he was to take his flight from Osaka this coming week, since he was going to be based there before the blasted six-month training. She had told him that she was not angry over his wanting to do something for himself, though she could appreciate it even once if he had told her what he was planning to do and even cared enough to ask her opinion regarding it.

I've accepted it since it's an opportunity I couldn't pass up. I wasn't expecting it either hon. But they chose me, and I have no qualms whatsoever in taking it. If it's for our future, I don't care if they send me to Venus or something. I had hoped you would understand that, that's why I took it without question.

Again with the future talk. She had gritted her teeth and clenched her hands so tightly that her nails pressed into her flesh in an effort to hold back a few scathing words she would have said right there and then, if her conscience hadn't taken over and prodded her in doing so.

She couldn't even see him off properly to the airport, since his flight was on a weekday and she would be at school, teaching, not to mention, the fact that the two of them were miles apart. He had told her he was okay with it, telling her honestly that if he saw her, he might not be able to leave at all.

So seeing me is a bad thing for your career?

Again, she had bit back a scathing remark. The last thing she wanted was to make him think that she would hold him back from whatever he wanted to do, and she didn't want that. She cared enough about him to give him his space, even if it was making their relationship pay the price.

He had changed. She had often found herself wishing that he had remained the earnest, if serious guy he was during their early twenties together, when he was just paving his path to his dreams.

Chihaya had been avoiding thinking about it, but it was as if he had forgotten that she had feelings and that she needed him, even for just a few hours. She was his girlfriend after all. She still deserved time and attention, didn't she?

She was brought back rather unpleasantly from her musings when a loud honk came behind her, making her start. She grasped at her concentration once more to avoid stepping on the gas accidentally and cause a minor collision – especially that she couldn't afford it, knowing that her best guy friend is arriving today and she was late – his plane schedule indicated that he would be arriving around ten-thirty, and she wouldn't want to waste any more of the precious minutes with a police officer and perhaps a very angry driver for not being careful with her driving and for being easily distracted with errant thoughts.

Chihaya moved up ahead, finally entering Narita Airport's quadrangle. A quick glance at her car clock told her she had little more than thirty minutes left before he arrives, and despite of the apprehension she was feeling because of being almost late, the giddiness and excitement she had been feeling earlier this morning had returned in full force, and the happy flushes in her cheeks gave it away. She didn't realize how much she missed him, when he had decided to spend three years in London with his family before deciding to return to Japan to pursue his goal and continue his job that his family hadn't wanted him to end up with at all.

She hurriedly circled the parking lot to find a parking space, and thanked her lucky stars that she immediately found one. It was perfect – she couldn't help but think that maybe the heavens decided to take pity on her, since it was under a sakura tree – which she needed for the car, not wanting to use it when the seats would be boiling hot.

After settling everything, she turned the engine off, grabbed her purse, her keys and climbed out. As soon as she did, she took a deep breath of the warm, if not hot, morning air, savoring the beauty of the sakura tree she was standing under, then turned quickly and broke into a sprint to the inside of the airport, heart pounding in her chest, eyes wide in anticipation.

She was glad he could finally return home after three years, and was beyond happy that she would be seeing him again in a few more minutes.

When she did see him again, she was going to give him one big hug, assuming that he wouldn't be mad at her for being late.


He stared out into the window as the plane slowly made it's descent to the airport. He could see the runway, along with the huge white, immaculate building which he knew was the airport itself. He was quite lucky that he had gotten the window seat, for it gave him a view of his home country up in the air and savor the remaining minutes he had before the plane touched down.

Nippon. Jeez, did I miss the sakuras.

Running a hand through his mocha-brown hair, he settled back into his seat as the pilot announced their descent, first in Japanese, then in English. Standing up to get his bags from the overhead compartment, he then sat down smoothly once he had secured each of his possessions on both of his hands.

He was more relieved to be finally going home after spending three years with his family, trying to convince and to appease them that he could take care of himself in Japan. London had been a nice place, he had even come to think of it as his second home, but there was a difference between the country you were born in, and the country you had come to know only years ago. As any fellow human being would agree to, he knew that returning to his roots was what he needed to do, which was just as natural as breathing in and out.

Palm resting on his cheek, he sighed to himself, recalling the reason why he had to leave for London in the first place, and why he had to spend there three years more than what he had originally bargained for.

He was born to the wealthy Mashima family, the firstborn son of the eldest scion in a family of distinguished doctors. His grandfather was a reputable heart surgeon, and his father a rather famous psychologist. Being the eldest Mashima of his generation including all his other cousins (which were quite few to begin with,) he was of course, expected to follow in both of his grandfather's and father's footsteps, especially when he was also being expected to step up as the next head of the family. And while he had actually started on the path of becoming possibly the first neurologist in the proud clan, meeting his friends had altered quite a lot of his decisions, particularly one girl who he had spent most of his life with.

Karuta had started plainly as a habit. He had been intrigued by the one hundred cards since he had been a kid, and had made flashcards in order to memorize them when his teacher in his elementary school had asked them to recite it in class. He hadn't realized that he has quite the passion for it until Wataya Arata had arrived – or more like barged in their lives, particularly in Chihaya's way back then. He and Chihaya had built up competition with all those childhood years they've spent together, always making everything a point of contention, - even their heights. But with Arata's arrival, everything had been turned upside-down, to say so in the least. That here was a kid who could easily beat him in karuta had shocked him to the core so hard it had led him to do one of the biggest things he had always regretted in his life.

He and Arata had been slated to face each other in a karuta match, and not wanting to lose to him, (even as a kid, he had a lot of pride, something which had been ingrained to him by his mother,) had ended up with him stealing Arata's glasses.

Yes, taking them had been a really lame, bad, bad, bad idea. But he wasn't thinking, and he was but a friggin' kid who thought that he could lose Chihaya to him in the blink of an eye once he lost the game at the time. And he sure as hell felt that his instincts had been spot on now, even when he had been too young to understand it then.

Sighing to himself, he gazed out the window frustratedly once more. They were approaching solid ground now, and he gritted his teeth to prepare for the landing which he knew will rattle every bone in his body.

He had sworn to himself to stop thinking that way, but he couldn't deny the feeling that he had lost something, someone as precious to him as the air he breathes to an another man, a glasses-wearing, karuta God-incarnate man, - at least, it had felt that way to him - and the depressing feeling that he could no longer stay with her even as he wished to. It was over, he had instigated their relationship in the first place, and he refused to cry over it. It was just too pathetic for him to do so, and Mashima Taichi was done being pathetic.

As painful as the decision was to let her go, - it was, after all, clear to him and everyone else that she belonged with the Meijin, with Arata – he also knew that he couldn't stay depressed forever. Thankful that he wasn't one to focus on one thing, it had given him the excuse to let karuta go and move on with his life, much to their friends' – and his family's – surprise, who had never understood his passion for the sport in the first place, and had always admonished him for choosing to be a part of a club which could be very well disbanded. Of course, he also had to disappoint Chihaya, which, as much as he hated having to do so at the time, had also cemented his decision that everything would be better for him if he could start with a clean slate. Knowing he had hurt Chihaya's feelings, who had always turned to him as the dependable, trusty best friend and sort of like the older brother he had unconsciously created for himself, - a far cry from the barely perceivable difference in their ages, - there also came a time that they had drifted apart from each other.

It was something which he knew came as a direct consequence from his decisions, though he had not regretted it, not even once. It was during this time that the epiphany came to him that he wanted to stand apart from his grandfather and father's shadows.

He had dutifully enrolled for medicine once he had entered college, acing the tests he had in Todai and entering the Faculty of Medicine as the top scorer of the entrance examinations, - but along with giving karuta up, he had realized that he didn't want to live his life with expectations from anyone, not from his friends, not from his family. It was his damn life, so he might as well start making decisions that were based solely on how he wanted to see it through. Meeting his friends, growing up with Chihaya who had always lived her life to the fullest, had led him to decide that he wanted to be able to live with no regrets, and he could only do that if he allowed himself to think of his own welfare for once. This epiphany, along with his dropping out on his second year of medicine, and entering a special training academy for aspiring civil servants had raised inevitable repercussions he knew would happen but had chosen to face instead of running away like the coward he once was.

He had found another way of being able to help other people, as he had once dreamed of as a child, but not in the path his family had originally wanted for him. This had caused a rift between him and the Mashimas, who valued their chosen occupation along with the family pride. This had also led to him collapsing from the combined frustration and stress, as the results of the medical tests had dictated at the time. Ironically, this was what had finally healed the rift between him and Chihaya, who had rushed at the time to the Tokyo University Hospital with Arata, and had, in tears, apologized over and over about not trying to understand his decisions and for adding to his frustrations. He had told her that no, she wasn't a frustration, but Chihaya was stubborn into thinking that she owed him at least his peace of mind, and had insisted on staying with him until he finally forgave her, even though he knew there was nothing to forgive her for.

After recovering, he had received word from the current head of the family that they wanted to talk. And talk with them he did.

He grimaced at the memory of having to talk with his father… and having to face the stern admonishments he had received at the time. He had swallowed all the criticism, all the anger and the sharp reminder that he was to be the next head, and that they were expecting great things from him, but he had stood his ground. Kana-chan had always described him as someone who was selfless to the point that he was willing to go as far as to help others first without even thinking of himself, and he had decided that it was time to put himself first, even if that meant turning the Mashimas against him.

He had already given karuta up. He was not going to give up his dream just to please them too.

In the end, his father had given up. He had informed him that the family will be migrating to London as part of the better career his father would have there, and he would agree to his taking a different path if he would spend an entire year there. He knew that his father was planning to dissuade him using London as the bait, to try and force him to see the benefits of living there with a career as a doctor. He hadn't been blind to his father's plan but had still agreed, excited at the prospect of seeing the place the Harry Potter series had been born and in being in another country, making the decision to stay with them for a year, even when it meant leaving his friends, his job and Chihaya behind.

He had enjoyed staying there, though he hadn't been swayed once by his father. All throughout the ordeal his mother had stayed silent, which was not something he had expected from her seeing as she was the one who had discouraged him from karuta in the first place. He had taken pity on Rika, his younger sister, who was starting to be pressured by the family name that he had decided to stay longer in order to keep an eye on her. During this time he had continued with taking training classes on martial arts, wanting to keep himself in shape for his return to Japan and to continue on his chosen profession.

Breaking out of his musings, he decided to pull out his wallet and open it, smiling to himself once he saw the last picture he had taken with his colleagues years ago. They were all impeccably dressed in their uniforms in the photo, though they were all rowdy and messing around, hats missing and huge smiles and grins on their faces, - he was even holding a huge tub of beer in one hand. He missed the idiots, who had loved teasing him with his eyelashes and good looks.

You don't belong here man! You belong on the page of a magazine! Those fashion ones you know? You'd make a hell of a lot better income with being a model!

He had simply made a rude gesture to them at the time, which met full, hearty laughter as a response.

The photo slipped from his hand and he fumbled with it. Another photo came out, which he immediately caught on his other hand.

It was a photo of him and Chihaya, taken under a sakura tree. They were both in coats with scarves wrapped around their necks, and he recalled taking her out to watch a basketball game between Todai and Meiji Universities, the last game they had been into before he had left for London. Chihaya was clutching at his arm smiling happily with her hand out flashing a peace sign, with him grinning simply beside her. Arata had been unable to come with them at the time as he was based in Kyushu then, and in an effort to cheer Chihaya up before he left her alone, he had decided to treat her out for a game.

The apprehension settled in his nerves. In a few minutes, he would be seeing her again. Though he had refused at first at having her pick him up from the airport, she had point-black refused as well his suggestion to just wait to see him at his welcome home party (courtesy of Kana-chan) since he could go home by himself.

No! You did not even let me see you off properly when you left! This is the least you can let me do you know!

He had sighed and given in then, knowing it was a useless battle. Though he was having second thoughts of seeing her, knowing how much he had to prepare himself for the agonizing burn of the hole she had left open in his chest, he still missed her. A lot. Of course, he had missed Arata as well, despite of Chihaya's noticeable avoidance of answering his innocent queries of how they were both doing the past few months whenever they talked to each other through skype.

He knew something was off between his two best friends, but he knew better than to push Chihaya into telling him. He hoped, for their sake and his, that everything was… still alright. It was not his place to intervene after all, they were all adults, and he knew they could fix whatever was happening between them themselves.

At least, I hope they would.

Just then, the wheels finally reached the runway with a jaw-rattling thump, and he had to brace himself for the impact it had caused. The rough landing was one that he had expected, and though he didn't like it, he couldn't deny the joy he felt for finally being back. Once the plane had finally settled, he and the other passengers prepared to disembark.

As soon as he made it out of the plane and had stepped down the stairwell, he inhaled deeply. Ah. Japan's air. It had been too long since he had breathed it in.

Really too long.

"Welcome home to me."


Chihaya was breathing hard in and out, hands clutching at her chest, unable to believe that she had made it just in time with ten minutes to spare. She could see Taichi's plane schedule at ten-thirty, and the time it had landed on the terminal. Straightening up to her full height, which was at 5'8, she fixed herself and her clothes, not wanting to look disheveled.

This is ridiculous. I'm just meeting Taichi. Since when did I start caring about how I look like in front of him?

With an unpleasant jolt back to reality, the arrivals section started filling with families of the arrivals themselves as the passengers entered. Happy 'Tadaimas' and 'Okaeris' filled the air, and she smiled fondly at a family of three which had gathered on her left, the father bending down to kiss a little girl on her cheek, then straightening up to bestow possibly a second kiss to a beautiful woman who appeared to be in her mid-thirties on his side.

Hmmm… that's nice. I wonder… what it would feel like to have a family of my own?

"You said you're here to pick me up, but you look more like you want to be in that woman's place instead. Makes me think you've already forgotten me." A baritone voice said teasingly behind her, and she wheeled around in surprise, fingers flying to her mouth.

There he was, standing casually behind her, a backpack slung carelessly over his shoulder, clutching two more bags in his hands. A smirk curved his lips, amusement awash in those amber eyes of his.

Oh Gods. He was still the same as she remembered, though of course, there were subtle differences that were not visible to others except to those he were close with. Head full of mocha-brown hair which had grown longer now for him to be able to brush it up, skin more tanned than the last time he had been in Japan, and he was taller. She had always managed to reach the tip of his nose, but now it looked as if she could only reach the tip of his chin – she estimated him to be well over six feet now, as opposed to the five foot-eleven inches his height had been before.

Her gaze strayed down to his upper body - his shoulders were broader than she remembered, the muscles on his arms more noticeable through the simple navy-blue collared shirt he wore as well. No doubt about it, he had filled out in the three years he had been in London, as evidenced by the rock hard jaw line and the cheekbones which were higher than she could perfectly recall – his face had turned sharper, filling out to its manly potential.

"What, Chihaya? You just gonna stand there and ignore me or I'll at least get a 'welcome home' hug from you? And here I thought you were so excited to see me back."

That did the trick. Chihaya broke from the trance-like state she was in, and ignoring the reactions and stares they might get from everyone, she launched herself straight into him, making him drop his backpack and bags as she threw herself into his arms with all the force she could muster.

"Ooff! Geez, Chihaya! I expected a hug, not an attack! Are you trying to break my ribs?" He laughed, as the chestnut-haired girl he held in his arms started shaking and trembling.

"Taichi! Oh I've missed you so much you idiot! How have you been?" She cried, tears running in rivulets down her chin as she looked up to him with those large, auburn eyes he had tried so hard to forget when she and Arata first became a couple but failed to do so anyways.

"I've just been great, considering the fact that London doesn't have any women like you who could break a guy's ribs-ow!" He was cut off with a sharp gasp and breathless laugh when she punched him on his left side. "You haven't changed, Ayase – you're as brutal as ever!"

"How dare you tease me like that after we haven't seen each other in three years!" She exclaimed indignantly, his laughter subsiding to a frown as he realized she wasn't actually joking, wiping her tears with the back of her hand as he danced out of her reach when she attempted to punch him again, only to have him pull her back into an embrace to prevent her from punching him on the face this time.

"We did see each other using Skype, you know." He breathed into her hair, which filled his nostrils with the scent of strawberries.

"Not in person! That's different!" She protested, though her voice sounded muffled with her face pressed so deeply into his chest. She wrapped her arms around his waist, sobering down. "Taichi no baka. Teasing me like that when all I could think about was you finally coming home today during the last week."

"I'm sorry." He apologized quietly. "You're not usually this sensitive to my teasing, that's why I have no qualms whatsoever in doing so. That's my own brand of telling you that I've missed you too, you know. Or have you forgotten how I loved teasing you?" He murmured into her hair, albeit more worriedly as opposed to earlier.

"Maybe. I don't know. But apology accepted." She muttered in response, sighing into his chest.

His brows furrowed. Chihaya isn't usually like this. She took every one of his jokes uncaringly and would retaliate with her own brand of insults which would result to them bickering, but that's it. They had grown up with each other long enough to know the other so well to the point that they knew how to push each other's buttons. For Chihaya to be actually irritated with him… it was something that only happens so rarely, when she was under stress, or about to succumb to the pressures of everyday life and the timing of his jokes had coincided with it.

Right now, he didn't like the odds. That she came here alone, all by herself isn't a good sign. Where the hell was Arata? He hadn't been hearing from him for the last few months. He knew how Chihaya's beau had grown workaholic, but the recent months had been different. It was like he just literally disappeared from the face of the earth.

What is he doing to you, Chihaya?

"Where's…" he asked, trailing off, as Chihaya looked up to him, meeting his inquisitive amber eyes. With an unpleasant jolt, despite of how beautiful and otherworldly she looked to him, as she always did, he saw, for the first time since he arrived, the bags under her eyes, and the wary glint in those auburn orbs. It was like she was so tired, but still had the energy to be cheerful enough with him coming home. No wonder she had snapped at him like that. She is under stress, no doubt, but she was still happy to see him, and had taken the time to meet him. His tendency to joke had failed to make her think that he appreciated seeing her again.

Dammit. Since when have I been so insensitive?

He then realized that she was waiting for the rest of his sentence, as evidenced by her brows beginning to furrow as well. "Where's Kana-chan? You told me she's coming with you right?" He changed the name he was about to ask for at the last minute. There was something with the way Chihaya held herself which told him that asking about Arata would upset the balance she seemed to be holding over her own emotions.

What the hell is going on with you, sweetheart?

She reluctantly released her hold on him as she responded, "Her mom's sick, and she called to ask me to apologize to you on her behalf."

Taichi stared at her. "Hey, it's alright. I won't get mad for her not being able to be here."

Chihaya had stepped forward, bending down to pick up one of his bags, in a manner telling him that they should get a move on. "That's what I told her. She says she'll be seeing you at your welcome home party instead with Tsukue-kun and the others." She then turned to smile at him mischievously. "Which, I can guarantee you'll not be able to get out off."

"I wasn't planning to." He said with a defeated sigh, pausing to grab the heavier bag from her and handing her his backpack instead when she attempted to protest. "It's not like you'll allow me to escape anyway."

Chihaya turned her head to bestow him a sweet smile, one which he noticed, was genuine in it's appearance. "Good. Just making sure, you know."

As she trudged ahead of him, he couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding. He knew that he had no right to meddle with whatever was going on with her, but he still couldn't help but worry. That Chihaya was forcing herself to clamp down whatever it was that was bothering her and concentrate on being cheerful for his sake sounded like warning bells were ringing in his head. Something's wrong. Something's wrong with her dammit.

"Oh, Taichi?" She stopped a few feet away from him, pirouetting gracefully on her heels to face him once more that his breath momentarily caught as her hair flew into a complete circle behind her as she did so.

"Yeah?" He asked, sounding wary as well that he had to smack himself mentally for doing so.

She skipped forward and rose on her tiptoes, filling his nostrils once more with her tantalizing scent before she pecked his cheek – no, the corner of his mouth to be correct – grinning all the while as she did. "Even though you were mean earlier, I'm glad you're home. Okaeri."

He stared at her, trying to read through her eyes whatever was bothering her. He'd developed that ability because of her, and he had always been dead right when it came to finding out what her problems are.

No. I don't think it's right to do that now.

For her sake, he had to step back and keep his mouth shut in the meantime. She was happy to see him, and he had no wish to dampen that glow in her eyes, which had been so long since he had last seen it. He would find out sooner than later what it is, and for now, he would have to concentrate on keeping that good cheer and smile on her face.

He took hold of her face and gently wiped the remaining traces of tears on her cheeks, allowing a smile to stretch his lips.

"Tadaima."

Yes he was home… finally. With her. And in the meantime, that should all that would matter now.


Author's note: Okay, so I know what you're thinking. This is quite similar to my other fic, particularly the Red Threads of Destiny's first chapter (all those who have read it will realize the similarities despite of the differences). I seemed to use 'Reunion' as my central theme for all my fics, and I hope it doesn't irritate you. And yes, this is the first time I'm trying myself out if could write a story with an action genre. I hope I nailed it quite well.

I will try my best to update, however, it will be irregular. As much as I wanted to do it regularly, I only have limited time at my disposal. I hope you will stay with me even when this will undoubtedly happen.

Of course, everyone will be free to leave reviews. Constructive criticism will be most welcome. I'll be looking forward to your reactions.

I missed you guys! I look forward to seeing you in the next chapters!

Love,

Michiko :)