I live, guys! Holy cheese, isn't that amazing?! :D I suppose it really hasn't been that long since I posted something, but those were mainly author's notes, so I consider it to have been a while. It's certainly been a long time since I posted a one-shot, that's for sure. I think the last one-shot I posted was that kinky Kou x Haruka story...yeeeaah. TOTALLY DON'T REGRET THAT FANFIC. =w= Anyways, I just completed this earlier today and I decided to post it. Surprisingly, it didn't take me very long to write this. The downside to that is how short it is. ^^; However, I hope you'll find something to enjoy about it. I combined my two current obsessions here: Kou x Haruka and Lord of the Rings. Yes, I'm a huge LotR fan (and shipper) and I managed to combine that with KouKa.

What is my life? Seriously, what the hell am I doing? I could be doing so many more productive things right now, but no. I put Lord of the Rings and my OTP together. I brought two of my favorite obsessions together. I'm not ashamed, I'm just questioning the meaning of my life. XD

This takes place during episode nineteen of the anime when they went on a vacation to that island belonging to Haruka's family. The scene that inspired me to write this one-shot was when Kou mentioned that he went into Aya's room the night before to "watch the stars with her." It's no secret that I'm very anti-Kou x Aya and I simply needed to take a spin on that scene, turning it into Kou x Haruka. No offense to Kou x Aya fans, I'm not judging you in the least. We all have our own ships we adore. ^-^ I guess this can be classified as my own headcanon for this part of the anime and it'd be awesome if anyone else sees this as a possibility. The glorious thing about scenes that aren't described or left out is that you can imagine whatever you want. Plus, if it wasn't explained, then you can't be proven wrong about your theory either. Let your imagination wander and fuel your love for your pairings~

Series: Monochrome Factor

Pairing: Kou x Haruka (It's rather implied since I didn't make them an official couple in this.)

Warnings: Yaoi/Shounen-ai (Boy x Boy), Shota (an older man with a young boy), and enough sap to make a year's supply of maple syrup.

Disclaimer: I don't own Monochrome Factor or any of the characters, they all belong to their rightful owner(s). I also don't own The Lord of the Rings trilogy or the direct quotes from The Fellowship of the Ring, they both belong to J.R.R. Tolkien.

Kou softly hummed to himself as he walked down the hallway of their vacation home on "Haruka's island" as he put it, even if it technically didn't belong to the graduate. Everyone else in the house was asleep, so he made sure to stay quiet as he headed to the room he was looking for. The man hadn't been able to fall asleep and he decided to go mess with Aya for fun.

'She seriously hates when I harass her, but I can't stop myself. I've always had a fondness for teasing people.' Kou mentally stated, smirking a bit. Teasing is such a huge part of his personality, as well as flirting. He's flirted with both men and women, which he gets a joy out of each time. 'I know Aya-chan will probably murder me for sneaking into her room, however it's worth it to see her furious and steaming.'

Kou reached the room Aya chose to stay in and noticed the door was open. The Rei was pleased since that gave him easier access to get inside and he grabbed the door frame, peeking in with a whisper, "Aya-chan~?"

He blinked in confusion when he noticed that the room was empty, sheets ruffled on the vacant bed. "She's not here? Hmm. I wonder where she could have went." Kou sighed in defeat, his plans for entertainment ruined. He stood in the doorway in silence for a few seconds and drummed his fingers on the frame surrounding him, thinking about what he should do. Grab a midnight snack? Take a walk on the beach? See if anyone else happens to be awake?

"Oh, I know." Kou's face lit up, looking triumphant. His eyes trailed further down the hallway to the room at the very end, grinning happily. "I'll go hang out with Haru."

~OoOoO~

Haruka sat on his bed reading a book he brought with him on their trip and he was honestly glad he did, due to there not being any internet connection on the island. Kengo had complained to Haruka earlier that he couldn't survive without internet access and the adolescent found it pretty amusing.

The sound of the floor boards creaking outside in the hallway caught Haruka's attention, yet he chose to brush it off as someone heading to the bathroom. It wasn't until he heard the footsteps approaching his room that his interest heightened and as quickly as that happened, he saw Kou appear in the doorway. Haruka turned his head, observing the tall man. "Onii-chan, what are you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same question." Kou stated, pointing out that Haruka was also awake. Smiling warmly, Kou strode inside the room and closed the door behind him quietly. "I wanted to watch the stars with Aya-chan, but she's not in her room." He said, sounding a bit defeated. "Anyway, that's besides the point, and I knew you'd be a great person to spend time with."

A faint blush crept over Haruka's pale cheeks and he cleared his throat, not knowing how to respond. "I see."

"Growing kids like you need a good amount of sleep, Haru." Kou proceeded to sit down on the boy's bed, grinning at him with a special kind of admiration he held only for Haruka.

Haruka darted his eyes to the text in his novel, avoiding Kou's charming grin and his remark. He replied without meeting the elder's gaze, "I always read before I go to sleep."

"Of course I know that. I've seen you reading a few times when I was watching you through your bedroom wind-" Kou stopped short after receiving Haruka's judging stare as the child momentarily locked his eyes on the man and rearranged his sentence, "So, what are you reading?"

"Nothing that interesting." Haruka didn't say anything when Kou got more comfortable on the bed, sitting cross-legged and placed in front of him. "It's a book Hikojuuro's read and he suggested I check it out, but we generally have different tastes when it comes to stories."

"Oh yeah? What do you like?" Kou was actually curious about what kind of stories Haruka enjoyed reading because it gave him a chance to learn more. His connection with the graduate was indeed close, however Haruka was a pretty shy kid and only revealed things to Kou when he asked the youth to. Although, the shyness was definitely a lovely contribution and the Rei liked getting to help Haruka come out of his shell.

"Well, I enjoy fantasy plots. Alternate universes, stuff in that genre. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is a good example." Haruka felt genuinely pleased that Kou asked him to elaborate on the books he took pleasure in, it made him feel glad to know someone was interested in hearing what he had to say. "I brought the first installment with me." Haruka leaned over to reach his bag that sat on the hardwood floor and he switched books, returning with The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien.

"Ah! Hobbits, right!" Kou nodded enthusiastically, smiling widely. An image popped into Kou's mind and he squealed. "I can see you making the cutest little Hobbit ever."

Haruka blushed brightly, surprised and embarrassed. "You're imagining me as a Hobbit?" His gaze wandered off, not feeling confident in Kou's image of him. "I doubt I'd make a decent Hobbit."

"No, no, you would!" Kou argued, inching closer to Haruka and his indigo orbs scanning over the younger briefly. "You're already short, so that's one thing down."

"Thanks, Onii-chan." Haruka thanked sarcastically, giving Kou another slightly irritated expression and resting the book on his lap.

"I didn't mean it in a bad way, Haru. Your short height is adorable, I love it." The older of the pair complimented, clasping Haruka's small hands in his. "Your height matches well with mine because I can hug you and cuddle you a lot." Kou finished his sentence by pouncing forward onto Haruka and urging for the kid to sit back against the head board of the bed with him. "You would make a really great Elf, too."

"An Elf, huh?" Haruka asked, cuddling up to Kou and trying to be secretive about it, so that the elder wouldn't notice. The pair knew Haruka failed at the attempt, but Kou didn't make a witty remark to embarrass the boy. Instead, he chose to drape an arm over Haruka's shoulders and reach for the book that was abandoned on the bed from their sudden movement. "What do you think the others would be if they were characters in Lord of the Rings?"

Kou stared at the ceiling, contemplating for a minute. "I think you and Ken would be Hobbits. Your big, blue eyes would work well for you to be Frodo and I can see Ken being Pippin since people are yelling at him a lot. Aki would most likely be a human man, possibly a ranger. Maybe he would be Eomer because they each have a disgruntled expression frequently. I'd want to be a mortal man, probably the hot guy Aragorn, and Shirogane would make a good Gandalf, I think."

Haruka smiled lightly, taking the book from Kou. "Do you mean he'd be Gandalf the White since he has all that white hair?"

"Okay then!" Kou snapped his fingers. "You're right, Shirogane would be Gandalf the White. However, he could make a nice Galadriel. Hikojuuro-san would definitely be Gandalf the Grey. Hikojuuro-san's old enough to fit the part. Um, please don't tell him I said that."

The graduate scoffed before he started giggling. "Alright, those roles for us are decided. I'm pretty sure Aya would be Eowyn and Mayu might be able to be Arwen, but her personality is completely opposite of Arwen's. Rosie might be an option for Mayu. Master seems like he'd make a nice elf, too. He's always very calm and collected."

"Not to mention he's got that pale, Elven complexion." Kou chimed in, flipping the cover on the book open for Haruka and reading it alongside the child. The Rei read the inscription inside on the fifth page under his breath, "Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky, Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone, Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die, One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne in the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie. One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them in the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie."

While Haruka listened to Kou read, he pressed close to the man's chest, the warmth of Kou relaxing him. It may have seemed weird to their companions if they were to witness the pair discussing what characters they would all be from a fantasy series and taking so much joy from it, but that didn't matter to Haruka. All that mattered was the mere fact that he and Kou were sharing the same amount of fun doing this together.

Kou continued his reading once he flipped to a random page that caught his interest. Securing his arm around Haruka, he began,"There were rockets like a flight of scintillating birds singing with sweet voices. There were green trees with trunks of dark smoke: their leaves opened like a whole spring unfolding in a moment, and their shining branches dropped glowing flowers down upon the astonished hobbits, disappearing with a sweet scent just before they touched their upturned faces. There were fountains of butterflies that flew glittering into the trees; there were pillars of coloured fires that rose and turned into eagles, or sailing ships, or a phalanx of flying swans; there was a red thunderstorm and a shower of yellow rain; there was a forest of silver spears that sprang suddenly into the air with a yell like an embattled army, and came down again into the Water with a hiss like a hundred hot snakes."

It was a bit odd to Haruka that he found himself loving the way Kou began reading various sentences from the book. Another part of him felt it should be like this, though. Getting to have some alone time with this person he trusted so much, loved dearly, and treasuring these moments was the only thing he genuinely wanted. Haruka noticed his eyelids started to close and he blinked them open, clearing his throat in an attempt to stay awake. He really wanted to keep listening to Kou's deep, gentle voice reading the beautiful lines from the story, but the elder's radiating heat and the comfort of his strong arms was making it difficult to stop from succumbing to slumber.

"And there was also one last surprise, in honour of Bilbo, and it startled the hobbits exceedingly, as Gandalf intended. The lights went out. A great smoke went up. It shaped itself like a mountain seen in the distance, and began to glow at the summit. It spouted green and scarlet flames. Out flew a red-golden dragon—not life-size, but terribly life-like: fire came from his jaws, his eyes glared down; there was a roar, and he whizzed three times over the heads of the crowd. They all ducked, and many fell flat on their faces. The dragon passed like an express train, turned a somersault, and burst over Bywater with a deafening explosion." Kou finished the lengthy paragraph and kept quiet for a few seconds until saying, "Well, that certainly was awesome. I could seriously envision the fireworks and the party, that was fantastic. Don't you think so, Haru?"

Kou knit his eyebrows, puzzled by the unresponsive silence from his young comrade. He set the book down by his legs, turning his head to look at Haruka. "Hey, Haru—Oh."

Kou was greeted by the peaceful sight of Haruka curled against his chest, the adolescent's hand loosely balled into a fist and holding onto his shirt, breathing softly. Haruka's figure moved and up and down with his timed breaths, evident that he had fallen asleep.

"Oh, how cute." Kou purred, lifting a hand to ruffle Haruka's grey hair in an affectionate gesture. "You sure were tired, huh?" His question obviously went unanswered and Kou moved the book onto a small dresser next to the bed, turning off the lamp in the process, pulling the covers up over their laps. The Rei made a careful attempt to lower Haruka onto the pillows and into a laying position as he did the same.

Once he managed that, Kou brought the blankets higher and rolled onto his side, readjusting Haruka in order for the pre-teen to be cuddled close to his torso. Kou's arms wrapped snugly around Haruka's back and he sighed happily. "There we go."

Admiring Haruka's adorable sleeping face, Kou chuckled when the kid made a small whine in his sleep, reminding him of a kitten. He gave into temptation and cupped Haruka's warm cheek with a hand, raising his face to press a kiss on his forehead. His lips traveled lower and grazed Haruka's nose, whispering, "Goodnight, Haru."

Kou decided to let sleep consume him and the sound of the ocean waves outside their vacation home combined with Haruka's breathing was the last thing he heard. Kou and Haruka stayed in their comfortable embrace the whole rest of the night, both feeling perfectly content and glad they could experience another one of the moments that only happened between them.

Too much fluff or too much fluff? Goddamn it, I will forever be a fluff monster. I'm honestly fine with that. Do you know how difficult it was for me not to make Kou and Haruka kiss in this? Do you know? I held back my desperate urge to have some mouth-on-mouth action and settled with a forehead-nose kiss. I'm very proud of myself for showing some restraint, I needed it. Don't fret, I have no doubt that I'll come back with a new story with a bunch of KouKa kisses. :3

I'm quite happy with the result of this one-shot and I hope you liked reading it. Oh, I never tire of writing Kou x Haruka. It always makes me so happy and giddy, it's magnificent. Just throwing this out there, but if anyone ever wants me to write them a KouKa fanfic, then I'm completely open to that. Writing Kou x Haruka is kind of like air to me now, I can't do without it. More so, I need it. *insert Spongebob voice here* I NEED IT! O^O The same goes for writing a story involving KouKa and ShiroAki. I really wish there were more fanfics with those two pairings interacting and I'm constantly looking for opportunities to write something for it.

Okay, I'm rambling. Thank you so much for reading this and feedback is greatly appreciated. Stay beautiful, lovelies. Ciao!