A/N: Oh my God. Is this true? Can it be? Yes--it's human Mokona. I might have totally botched up his (Mokona's gender is unspecified, isn't it? Gah, I can't imagine him as a girl though) personality because my original draft of this chapter had Mukuro instead. Now Mokona seems extremely mature. And did you know Mokona's real name is Soel? I swear it is! Wikipedia said so, and Wikipedia knows everything...
I'll just shut up now so you can get to the story. xD
"Oh, Fai-san!" Mokona beamed at him. "So good to see you. Please, come in." The young man ushered the blonde into his studio office, seating him in a chair across from his desk.
"What brings you here?" he inquired, propping a chin onto his palm. His blue eyes twinkled.
"You invited me," Fai laughed.
Mokona giggled. "Puu. So I did. Ah, that's right…" He dug around in a drawer and withdrew a folder. "I have a business proposition for you." He watched Fai intently as he flipped through the contents of the file. "You are becoming very popular among the fashion industry, Fai-san. Your pictures are amazing. I believe you do have the talent and potential to become a professional. Seeing as you are doing so well, I considered pairing you up with a partner--another rookie model. His background information is in those papers. Please think about it."
Mokona tilted his head to the side, his snowy hair sweeping across his forehead. He smiled benignly.
Fai examined the papers, scanning through them with ease.
Haruko Ashura, he read, interested. A photo of the youth was next to his profile. He was a mysterious sort of handsome, with long raven hair that fell silkily across his shoulders. His skin was a shade lighter than Fai's; then again, perhaps that was because of the stark contrast between his roots. He had jet black eyes and a vague smile that sharpened his gaze. Fai skimmed across his basic history, found it to be acceptable, and glanced up at Mokona.
"Well," he said at last. "I think it would be fun."
"Puu. Always the eager one, aren't you, Fai-san?"
"Quite so, Moko-san."
They exchanged twin smiles of pleasure and Fai stood, handing back the folder.
"Keep it." Mokona stood as well. "Would lunch be appropriate?" he asked.
"Very much so." Fai happily slid his arm through Mokona's and they strolled out the door.
"Hello?" Kurogane's gruff voice was met with mellow laughter.
"Hey, you."
Kurogane grunted and had half a mind to hang up the phone right then and there.
"What? That's no way to greet your sister after all these years!"
"I beg to differ," growled Kurogane good-naturedly as he leaned back in his chair and glanced over his calculus homework. Deciding he had done enough for the moment, he set his pencil to the side. "So. What's up?"
"I got a boyfriend."
"Who is he? I'll kill him."
"Oh, very funny, but there's no need. If he makes a move on me I'll castrate him," Tomoyo giggled.
"Right." Kurogane winced.
"So anyways, I was just calling to check up on you. How's college?"
"Sucks ass."
"Haha."
"If that's all, then you might as well leave now."
"Wait." Tomoyo hesitated.
Kurogane sighed. "…I'm waiting."
"Have you talked to Fai-san about…?"
Kurogane stiffened. "No," he said flatly.
"Why not?" she demanded at once.
"Because he's better off without me."
Silence.
"If you really believe that, then you're stupider than I thought," Tomoyo muttered, and hung up. Kurogane stared at the phone for a while, immersed in his thoughts.
Fai breezed in loftily.
Kurogane narrowed his eyes when he glimpsed a stranger striding in behind him.
Fai beamed. "Ah, Kuro-puppy--"
"Kurogane," he corrected automatically.
"--this is Mokona-san," the blonde continued without missing a beat. "He's the fashion designer for Tsubasa. He makes the clothes, and I model them." Fai smiled proudly. "He's also a photographer!"
Kurogane glared at Mokona, his hostility thinly veiled beneath a stony gaze. "Mmph," he grunted sourly.
Mokona was a lean, young man with sleek white hair that spiked up in methodical places. His eyes were a vibrant hue of dark sapphire, almost as bright as Fai's own. He had a flirtatious aura about him, his lips curved into a parabola of clever giddiness.
"Puu," chuckled Mokona, his eyes glittering. "He's quite a looker, this one is. Maybe he'd like to try the modeling industry as well." The youth circled Kurogane like a cat might stalk its prey, and Kurogane scowled at him.
"Fat chance."
Fai giggled, and plopped down on the bed. His shirt rode up his abdomen, exposing a creamy white stomach and a new tattoo on his belly button emblazoned with a butterfly. Kurogane stared at it. Fai noticed and grinned.
"Kuro-cutie likes my tattoo!" he chirruped jubilantly.
"What--no!"
"Moko-san got it for me when we were downtown! Don't worry, it peels off though." The two men smiled at each other and Kurogane felt a twinge of jealousy flare in the pit of his stomach. He watched Mokona lean over and tug down Fai's shirt--if anything, it should've been him who was doing that--, his nimble fingers lingering on flesh and the corners of his mouth curling upwards as Fai giggled and murmured something like "that tickles".
Kurogane made it a point to look away, unsettled by this display of obvious affection. Mokona seemed to have friendly intentions, but…
Dammit, Fai was supposed to be his.
"Well, thank you for lunch, Moko-san."
"You're welcome, Fai-san." Mokona cast a sly wink over his shoulder at Kurogane. "See you two later."
"Like hell you will!" Kurogane barked as he disappeared behind the door.
"Puu," came the fading reply.
Fai stretched, sighing blissfully. He rolled onto his stomach and leaned over the bed to haul his backpack nearer. Rummaging through its contents, he pulled out his homework and arranged it across the mattress. He frowned at it thoughtfully, opening his physics book and leafing to a particular page.
Kurogane returned to his calculus and they worked in relative silence.
It was getting dark outside when Kurogane finally finished his assignments. He shrugged out the tension in his shoulders and twisted around in his chair to pop his back. His glance fell on the blonde, who had managed to doze off in the middle of completing a worksheet. Fai's breathing was patterned and steady, his lashes sweeping the rise of his faultless cheekbones as he dreamed. His face was pressed against the sheets, his body cushioned in a collection of homework and textbooks. A pencil lay motionless in his hand, his fingers still curled around it loosely.
Kurogane stood and bent to the task of gathering up Fai's papers. He was stacking them into a pile when he noticed a plain folder sitting haphazardly on the corner of the bedside table. He picked it up, wondering if it was Mokona's, and flipped through it casually. He glimpsed a picture of a man and his face darkened considerably.
Haruko… Ashura?
Fai stirred in his slumber and Kurogane sat cross-legged on the edge of his own bed, studying the files.
Ashura was a newbie in the fashion industry. He modeled clothes, like Fai. His popularity was rising slowly in Tsubasa styles. He was a composed fellow, with a moderately superior expression. Kurogane read his background info and stared hard at the photos that came with it. Ashura was an only child. He was nineteen years old, academically and socially adept, and worked part-time at a restaurant downtown. His next photo shoot was scheduled for this Wednesday. And…
It said here that Ashura was a good match for a partner. Someone, probably Mokona, had highlighted the specific words, "would be interesting to see him matched with another model in demonstrating merchandise", and then had went on to comment, "Ashura-san is ranked in the top ten rookie models, next to Fai-san. A partnership would be a new experience for both of you".
Kurogane glanced at Fai and frowned.
Oh, hell no.
A/N: Does anyone know Ashura's last name? Or if that is his last name, then what's his first name? I can't remember if it was mentioned anywhere in the anime or manga. Maybe it wasn't... So I just made up a name like Haruko because I couldn't get the name 'Haruno Sakura' out of my head. Heh.
