This is an early solstice gift dedicated to the Lovely TBF101. May it also bring a little seasonal joy to all the other wonderful readers and reviewers of "Days without Sun" who have petitioned for the continuation of that story. So here you have it... Sequel to "Days without Sun" and prequel to "The Uke Flu" (Which I truly do intend to return to at some point).

1st note: I know FF's repeat policy, but for continuity's sake, the first chapter here is "Returns" but also part the last of the "Days" epilogue. Chapter two starts the new material for this story.

2nd note: If you haven't read DWS, it would be seriously helpful before reading this fic.

3rd note: I will soon be moving a copy of DWS to my tumblr account under daniel-lazerus along with all of my other fics from all my various pennames. It would be nice to maybe see a few of you over there too.

Hope this fic meets your expectations.


Disclaimer: I do not own Junjou Romantica or any of its characters


Return to the Light

Chapter One: Flight


Misaki opened his eyes slowly, blinking. He'd been jarred from sleep by a bump. Not that he was disappointed to be roused, his dreams had been disturbing as usual.

It took him a moment to recall where he was and he blushed when he realized he was currently stretched across the length of two wide, plush seats. One of these seats also held Usagi-san, who he'd apparently been using as a pillow.

Feeling Misaki stir, Akihiko looked down from the book he'd been reading. He set the book face down on the seat across the aisle so he could reach down and brush the damp bangs back from Misaki's forehead.

Misaki was grateful that Usagi-san didn't verbalize the question his solemn face asked.

"I'm fine," he lied. "Feeling much better."

He winced as feelings of nausea contested this, however, quickly returning to him with his consciousness.

The cocked brow he received in response let him know that Akihiko wasn't buying it. Even so, Misaki was grateful he'd somehow been able to hide how sick he'd been feeling for the last week from Usagi-san until they'd gotten on the plane and into the air.

It had helped that Usagi-san had been so busy with all the travel arrangements for getting them back to Japan. Otherwise, Misaki had feared that between Usagi-san and his doctors, he would have been made to remain at New Days for even longer.

Realizing Akihiko was staring at him; Misaki frowned and closed his eyes against the intensity of his lover's violet gaze. He allowed the cool fingers to continue smoothing his brow: it was soothing.

"How much longer until we get there?"

Akihiko was worried, but his lips quirked into a slight smile at the question. He was pleased Misaki was so anxious to get home. However, he wondered if Misaki yet understood the true extent of what they'd be facing once they got to Tokyo; although they'd had a taste of it leaving the center.

Recalling the throngs of reporters that crowded around the limo as they pulled out of New Days to head to the airport, Akihiko grimaced. The events with Korovin had catapulted them into a dark kind of international stardom: everyone wanted to see and hear from those who'd survived.

Their trip to the airstrip had been slow going as cars followed alongside them, honking. Several helicopters, too, had circled above them on the drive to tarmac: paparazzi with high powered lenses hoping to get a shot of he and Misaki behind the limo's tinted glass.

He'd even had to have one of the flight attendants removed from the private Usami jet that had been sent from Japan to retrieve them, when he'd caught her trying to sneak pics with her phone of Misaki, curled up asleep, in his chair.

Thank Kami-sama we were still on the ground. I'm going to have the ass of whoever it was that let that bitch on this plane.

Snapping himself away from his dark thoughts, Akihiko answered at last. "We've been in the air just over ten hours so we have another ten, maybe eleven hours or so… Why?"

"Just wondering…" Misaki murmured sleepily.

Looking down at his boy, Akihiko felt a new wave of worry wash over him. He had agreed to let the doctors give Misaki a potent tranquilizer before leaving the center. Given how Misaki was with new spaces, even within New Days, despite the months they'd been there, this measure had made sense.

Akihiko knew Misaki had been terribly anxious about leaving. For the last week, in fact, the boy had been elusive and withdrawn. A pang of guilt pierced him that he hadn't been more available, but there had been so much to arrange before they left. Not only that, but he'd been advised of late that his hovering wasn't helping Misaki's recovery.

Fuck that, I'll hover if I want.

Akihiko looked down at his beloved. Misaki seemed to be sleeping again and he exhaled a soft sigh of relief. The doctors had promised there would be no side-effects to the tranquilizer, other than Misaki sleeping initially, and then maybe feeling a bit groggy later as the drug wore off. Given this, he had never anticipated that Misaki would have such a violent reaction; throwing up three times once they'd boarded the plane within the span of a few hours before finally drifting off into a fitful sleep. If he'd known, he would have never allowed them to give it to him.

Suddenly Misaki bolted upright.

"Misaki?!"

"Bag!" Misaki rasped out, his face pale, forehead beaded with sweat.

Before Akihiko could call out, the remaining flight attendant was there, holding a plastic bag for Misaki to vomit into. Guaranteed by the fees she earned from Usami Corps for her services, her pretty, painted face remained a mask of serenity even as Misaki retched.

"Enough of this!"

Akihiko stood up and strode through the curtain separating the front quarters from the back of the jet where their personal Usami Corps' physician sat, along with one of the Usami lawyers, a publicist, and a team of mixed security professionals.

The Doctor looked up from his laptop where he was playing solitaire. "Mr. Usami."

"He's sick again. You said it wasn't the drugs, so what's going on?"

Used to attending demanding clients, Dr. Pena stood up and headed toward the front of the plane. When he and Akihiko had arrived at Misaki's seat, the flight attendant had already dealt with the mess. They found Misaki sitting relatively upright, a cool damp cloth on the back of his neck and a ginger ale clasped in one hand.

Weary eyes opened and Misaki stiffened at the sight of the doctor. Pena was relatively new to him and so, made him uneasy. He relaxed only slightly at the sight of Usagi-san standing behind the physician. It didn't help his anxiety that even though Akihiko looked composed, by the dark shade of Usagi-san's eyes he could tell that his Rabbit was angry about something.

Dr. Pena stepped closer and leaned down slightly. "Mr. Usami says you were sick again, Mr. Takahashi?"

Misaki felt his cheeks get hot. He looked nervously at Akihiko and then nodded.

"You told me what it was you'd eaten before, and given the source of your food there at New Days, food poisoning seems unlikely. And I understand you've never had an issue with flying before either. Right?"

Pena reached over to press his hand to Misaki's forehead but moved a little too quickly. He realized his mistake seeing him shrink back as Akihiko bristled forward.

"I'm just going to check your temperature, Mr. Takahashi… Please relax," Pena soothed. The moment his hand brushed against Misaki's skin he frowned: the boy was searing.

He looked over at Akihiko. "Well, I think we have our culprit. He wasn't running a fever before but he has one now. I was told he gets these frequently."

Akihiko frowned. "Never like this! They don't make him vomit!"

Despite the sharp tone in Usami's voice, Pena remained nonplussed. "Then it's likely a twenty-four hour bug. He should be over it by the time we land and hopefully no one else in this closed air system comes down with it."

"Please, make some ice packs up for Mr. Takahashi." Pena nodded to the attendant, who immediately headed back into the cabin's kitchen area to comply. "I'll go back to my things and get him some fever reducers. These measures and keeping him hydrated are the best we can do until we land."

As soon as Dr. Pena moved off to retrieve the medicine Misaki looked up at Akihiko with anxious eyes. His fever-flushed face grew pinker.

"I'm s-sorry, Usagi-san… I don't m-mean to m-make problems."

The shake in Misaki's voice made Akihiko's heart clench. It was not a good sign when Misaki began to stutter. He tried to remind himself that the doctors at New Days had warned him about how difficult this would be. They had all been fearful that he and Misaki were leaving too soon. So much damage had been done.

His mind went immediately to one of the other boys who had left New Days weeks before against the staff's warning. He'd committed suicide shortly thereafter.

But then he wasn't Misaki, and he didn't have someone like me beside him…

Stepping over, Akihiko leaned down and pressed a kiss to Misaki's forehead. Though he was shocked at how hot his boy's skin was he kept his voice even.

"You will never be a problem, Misaki."

Before Misaki could protest, the attendant returned with the ice. Akihiko helped him up while he had her pull the double seats out to form a much more comfortable bed. Blankets arranged, Akihiko retrieved Suzuki-san from his single seat and set him up at the head of Misaki's new nest as both guardian and pillow.

If it wasn't for the tranquilizers in his veins and the fever in his head, Misaki would have been more reluctant, but given his present state he allowed Usagi-san to get him settled, all but tucking him in. He sighed, sinking into Suzuki-san's comforting plush as Akihiko placed an icepack behind his neck and one at his crown.

"I can't believe Aikawa-san found Suzuki-san for you, Usagi-san." Misaki's voice was heavy with sleep but sounded happy.

"Yes," Akihiko hummed as he took a new seat across from Misaki where he could keep an eye on him.

Suzuki-san, rather than be a comfort, had become a non-entity when Misaki was taken. Given this, he'd left his previously treasured bear behind with quite a number of other things at the Garopaba flat when they'd ended up taking such sudden residence at New Days. When the case broke, unscrupulous celebrity treasure hunters had broken in and taken most everything.

His amazing editor had taken it upon herself to embark on another search and recovery mission and, with Santo Justino's help, they had somehow tracked the bear down. Aikawa's reasoning for this effort was that Misaki would need a friendly face when he returned to Japan, one that wasn't her author's.

Akihiko winced lightly at his neglect and its result, as Suzuki-san regarded him with an accusatory stare from across the aisle.

"I'll make it up to you, I promise, Old Friend."

The shuffle of feet on the carpet drew his attention away from things he could do to win back Suzuki-san's favor: Dr. Pena had returned with Misaki's pills.

"I'll give them to him."

Akihiko rose and held out his hand. Misaki was already drifting and he didn't want him disturbed. Pena's face darkened at this, but rather than retort he merely dropped the two capsules in to the outstretched palm.

"Give him these and we'll see where's he's at in a few hours." Pena gruffed, before he retreated to the far end of the plane where the atmosphere was notably warmer.

After getting a bottle of water from the attendant, Akihiko moved back to his sleepy lover.

"Misaki…"

Kneeling beside him, Akihiko cracked the bottle and filled the back of his mouth with water. He placed the capsules on his tongue and leaned over, catching Misaki's mouth with his own as his blossom roused.

Sleepy green eyes widened, but Misaki accepted both the medicine and the kiss. When they parted, still half asleep he snorted. "Stupid, Usagi… Now you're going to get sick too."

A cool hand caressed Misaki's cheek. "No, I'm not. And by tomorrow you won't be sick anymore either."

A small pang on conviction prodded Misaki into fuller wakefulness at these words, knowing that he'd in fact been feeling this way for far longer than Usagi-san could imagine.

He watched Akihiko move back over across from him and sit down, book soon in hand again, waiting for him to nod off before he returned to his novel.

"Yeah, I'll feel better tomorrow, once we're home again." Misaki muttered this half outloud as he sank back down into Suzuki-san's soft lap, eyelids closing already. It was a promise he offered for both and Usagi-san and himself, not knowing that this was one promise he'd never be able to keep.


All my fellow Egoists please forgive me for stealing that Hiroki/Nowaki scene for the Romantica couple here.

Thank you for reading!