Author's Note: Sorry for the wait! I needed to take a break from writing and get back into the real world (unfortunately). This chapter is a bit shorter but its a set-up for what is to come for the future chapters. Anyway, I hope you love this chapter as much as the others! A big shout-out to:
Valoja
MissAMira
and..
Honey-Bone
for giving their opinions to the questions in the previous chapters! For those who haven't, please do so! It helps me to be more motivated and know what you guys think and would like to see! Also, thank you so much to everyone else who has reviewed! I couldn't do this without you guys! I will now be focusing on this story full-time to get it moving along faster since so many love it! Now, without further ado, please enjoy!
Chapter Three- Recuperating
Once the second game of Go fish was finished, this time with a win to Chitose, it was around eleven and Totsuka decided to start fixing the midday meal. Lasagna, he insisted, was what they were going to have that day, with a request from Anna to make it 'extra red'. Akane watched as the honey blond passed the box for the card set over to Rikio and stood, stretching his arms above his head. The heavyset blond collected up the cards and pointed to Akane's hands, silently asking for hers. She handed them to him, then neatly folded her legs beneath her and leaned away from a feisty Bandou and Shohei, who were still arguing over who truly won the first game. Totsuka headed for the kitchen, stopping to help the white haired Strain off her stool before they stepped into the next room. Right before entering, the twenty-two year old smiled at Akane.
"Did you want to help?" He asked, and the teen glanced around before pointing to herself in question. Totsuka nodded, still beaming. The brunette hesitated and Rikio patted her knee in reassurance. She jumped at first but settled when she realized that it was him.
"Go ahead," he insisted, packaging the cards into the tiny white box. Akane tentatively stood and made her way over to the blond. Totsuka flashed her a final smile before gently grabbing her hand and pulling the brunette alongside him into the kitchen. He pulled out a piece of white paper with illegible scribbles covering the surface and flattened it on the smooth countertop.
"Let's see . . ." he murmured, scanning the paper. His face brightened up once his brown eyes landed on a certain word.
"Aka-chan, would you mind getting the box of pasta? It should be on the third shelf in that cabinet." The man pointed to a wooden cupboard next to her and she pulled it open, only to be attacked by multiple boxes falling on top of her. She leapt back and they fell to the floor with dull thuds. Kusanagi stepped in, worry etched across his features.
"Is everything okay?" he asked, walking over to help Akane pick up the small packages, "I heard a loud sound but it seems you're alright." Akane nodded meekly, wary of the blond's close proximity. He knelt beside her and picked up all five boxes before placing them on the counter. Scattered on the floor, however, were bunches of broken noodles and crackers.
"Oh dear." Kusanagi sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Seems like we'll need the broom. Now, where is the damn thing . . .?" He broke off; grumbling to himself about the last place the broom was placed. Totsuka laughed lightly as Anna slung her legs back and forth while she sat on the counter, working on opening a jar. The honey blond took it once it was undone and set it down. At last, the broom was found and Kusanagi held it out to Akane, a smile on his lips.
"Would you like to do the honors?" he joked and she took the broom from him with a silent nod. Kusanagi stepped back to give her room to work and made his way over to the duo. He leaned over the younger's shoulder, reading the paper.
"'Home-style Lasagna', eh? Sounds pretty good to me, Totsuka. Did you write this recipe yourself?" The man nodded and placed a hand on Anna's head.
"Specially requested," he said happily and Anna confirmed the statement with an enthusiastic nod. Totsuka and Kusanagi turned when a finger reached across the space between them and a dustpan entered their view.
"Finished?" Akane gave another nod then went to the trashcan and dumped the dustpan she had picked up from where the bartender set it. She reluctantly held the two items out to the owner of HOMRA and he took them from her, his fingers brushing hers. The brunette drew back in distress and raised her hands to stare at them in awe. Kusanagi stopped to watch her but faced away when she lifted her head to look at him. When the broom and pan were placed back, the blond mumbled something about checking on the boys and left hastily.
"I think you scared him off!" Totsuka burst into a loud chuckle and even little Anna seemed to smile. She was holding a marble up to eyelevel and a secret spark entered her eyes. Akane glanced down to avoid their bright gazes and fiddled with the edge of her shirt.
"Ah, we still need the pasta!" Totsuka suddenly exclaimed and rushed over to grab a box from the shelf. But his fingers just grazed the box; he wasn't tall enough to fully reach it. He pouted then beckoned Akane over.
"I'll lift you up so you can grab it, okay?" She stood in front of her and hoisted herself up while Totsuka held her by the hips. At first, she missed grabbing the box but pushed herself up just a bit more so her hand seized the cardboard and triumphantly she held it up in victory. Totsuka let out a shout of victory and carefully helped her down. Yet, Akane lost her balance and started to tumble forward. Totsuka yelped in shock as his grip slipped and she fell. Luckily, Anna managed to catch the box of spaghetti before gravity took completely over but the same couldn't be said for the teen. Both Totsuka and Akane hit the ground, her beside him. The mute's head whacked against the ground hard enough to knock her unconscious and with an unheard gasp, she blacked out. The honey blond was luckier and he sat up, rubbing the back of his head for the second time that day.
"Aka-chan, are you okay?" He glanced over at her, groaning. Realizing that she was still, he began to panic.
"Aka-chan? Aka-chan, answer me!" He rolled over to her side and picked her up, cradling her head. Kusanagi rushed into the room and immediately joined Totsuka and Akane. He knelt down and rested a hand upon the honey blond's shoulder and squeezed.
"Let's put her on the couch, shall we?" Totsuka stood, still cradling the female in his arms. He nodded stiffly, his body not fully obeying the command.
"Yeah," he choked out, and followed the blond into the next room. Softly, he set her down and once he did, the others grew curious and started asking questions. Kusanagi waved them off as Totsuka reached over and brushed a stray piece of chocolate hair from Akane's forehead. The bartender turned to the younger, his mouth opening in question.
"Did you want to tell them what happened or did you want me to?" he asked but Totsuka shook his head wildly.
"No," he answered, and took a breath. "I'll tell them myself." The second-in-command nodded. The light brunette nervously faced the room and let out a tense laugh.
"Well, once again, she fell. This time I was helping her get the box of pasta from the cabinet and I lost my grip… you can guess what happened from there." He went silent as the Homura members processed the new information.
"It was… an accident, right?" Rikio pointed out, glancing at the unconscious teen.
"Of course!" Totsuka exclaimed back and the chubby blond nodded.
"Then it's not your fault," Rikio replied, and the others nodded in agreement. Totsuka let out a shaky breath and ran a hand through his blond locks.
"Thanks guys," he said and relaxed enough to give a small smile. The atmosphere in the room became less stressed as the Homura members each left to do their own thing in the bar. Anna trotted up to Totsuka, holding an ice pack in her small hands. With a smile, the honey blond took it from her and placed it over Akane's forehead.
"Hopefully, she'll wake up soon." The man looked worry and Anna reached out to take his hand.
"Aka-chan...I'm so sorry."
Seri eagerly walked up the steps of the famous bar, a jump in her step. Though she would never admit it, she was thrilled to see the young woman again. As she opened the oak door, a loud laugh came from inside the building. Seri, smiling to herself, stepped inside. Her blue eyes scanned the room, searching for Akane, until they rested upon the couch where said woman still lay. The Tundra Woman's gaze narrowed in suspicion. Totsuka noticed her sudden appearance and his smile faded as the whole room settled in an uneasy silence.
"I can explain-" Totsuka began but was cut off when the Scepter-4 lieutenant strode over to the counter and angrily crossed her arms to glare at the blond bartender. Izumo raised his hands, mutely proclaiming innocence.
"Enlighten me on this matter," Seri seethed and Izumo set down the glass on the countertop. He pointed to Totsuka, who hovered nervously around the blonde. Seri turned to him, fire in her icy gaze.
"WeweregettingspaghettiandAkanefell," he said in one breath. There was a pregnant silence as the Red clan waited for the Blue's response. She pursued her lips in thought as anger settled in her gaze. After a moment, the blonde rose suddenly and marched over to where the younger brunette lay.
"Akane will be accompanying me back to Scepter-4 headquarters-" Here many of the Homura members burst into arguments aimed at Seri, but she simply waved them off and kept talking. "-and there she will stay. Homura is obviously not civil enough to take care of someone who requires, well, special circumstances and I believe that Akane will flourish under our supervision," she finished and Yata snarled in response.
"You're just going to stick her in one of your fucking institutes! There's no way in hell any of us are going to let you do that!" The skateboarder lunged at Seri in fury with a battle cry, fist cocked back and cloaked in flames. There was the clang of metal on metal and a muffled thud as Yata hit the ground and rolled back onto his feet, the skateboard beside him. The rest of Homura bristled angrily and the room temperature rose. Seri stood poised; her saber at the ready in her hands as her blue eyes swept the room expertly, pinpointing possible threats. The vanguard dipped down to grab his skateboard again and slid it under his feet in preparation for another attack. The Scepter-4 lieutenant tensed and Yata dove towards her-
A brown blur darted out in front of the female blonde and Yata cursed loudly, throwing himself to the side to avoid crashing into it. He fell onto the couch but Rikio quickly helped him up. As soon as he got to his feet, Izumo grabbed him by the shoulders and yanked him backwards, keeping him from retaliating. The Homura group turned to stare at the interruption.
Akane was positioned directly in front Seri, her arms spread in a T and her chocolate eyes wide in fear. Once she realized that there was no more danger from the fiery redhead, she clung to Seri, arms wrapped around Seri's own, forcing her to lower her weapon. The blade shook with the added weight until its owner gave up with a sigh. There was a quiet snick as the rapier was slid back into its scabbard.
"Akane, you could have gotten hurt," Seri scolded, slight alarm in her condescending tone. Akane shook her head, brown hair whipping back and forth with the motion. The blonde relaxed her shoulders but remained alert. Izumo released Yata, the redhead mumbling a few choice words under his breath before stumbling and plopping onto a stool. Akane watched him for a moment then turned back to the older woman. Seri decided to get straight to the point.
"Akane," she began and the brunette tilted her head in question. "How would you like to see where I work? The people there are nice and I think it will be good for you to get out of this place for a while. What do you say?" The mute glanced down and thought for a heartbeat before nodding enthusiastically. However, her excitement changed to worry as she glanced at the Homura members around her and backed towards them. Seri's smile dropped a bit.
"No, they cannot come with us. It will be just me and you." Akane seemed to let out a silent whimper and inch towards Totsuka, who smiled at her apologetically from his seat adjacent to the still-angry skateboarder. Seri reached out her hand and gently grasped the teen's wrist, keeping her from moving any further towards the opposite clan. Mikoto grunted, golden eyes narrowing slightly.
"You can stay the night here-" Seri shot a burning glare at the boys, silently ordering them to be on their best behavior over the shoulder of Akane, whom she had pulled close to her. "-and tomorrow morning I'll come to pick you up when I head to work. Does that sound acceptable to you?" She waited until Akane nodded reluctantly. "Good. Then I will see you at six o'clock." The blonde gave a nod to the owner of the bar, with a glower to the now-silent Yatagarasu and the rest of the room, before exciting through the door, the bell tinkling softly. Izumo gave a sigh of relief and Homura instantly burst into chaos.
"She can't just-!"
"There's no way we're gonna let-!"
"Fucking Blue!"
"When that woman comes back, I'm going to-!"
Izumo struggled to calm the furious bunch, trying to get them to lower their voices. Akane began to get overwhelmed and fled to the couch where the bartender was. She hid behind him, peeking around enough to stare fearfully at the provoked males. Izumo glanced over his shoulder at her then finally yelled when he'd had enough.
"Quiet!"
The room quieted down immediately and Mikoto struggled to keep the smirk off his face.
"You're scaring Akane. All of you need to sit down and get a hold of yourselves," Izumo growled angrily and they obeyed without a word. Akane skittered over to Totsuka and sat down beside him. He smiled softly at her then leaned over and whispered 'sorry about earlier' into her ear. She watched him, something flickering in the depths of her gaze. When she turned to look at Izumo, who was now scolding the Homura members, Totsuka let out a silent sigh of relief. Once finished giving them a speech on proper behavior, the boys scattered to their rooms, still unhappy about the earlier events. Eventually, the room was clear, save for the ever-present bartender, Akane, Totsuka and Anna. Even the Red King himself had vanished for the night.
Akane pointed upstairs and Totsuka nodded.
"Take whichever room you want," Izumo told her and she disappeared up the staircase. The honey blond, realizing that Akane wouldn't come down until morning, mumbled something about heading home. Izumo and Anna sent him off with a wave and bid him farewell. For the umpteenth time, the bell chimed quietly. Izumo sent Anna off to bed as well and she pecked him on the cheek as a goodnight before climbing up the stairs to her room. Now alone, Izumo focused on his nightly task of cleaning the spotless bar countertop.
Later that night, Izumo jerked awake, realizing he had fallen asleep on top of the counter he so preciously cherished. He ran a hand over his face and stood from the stool, yawning to himself. He headed over to fix the cushions of the couch but the sound of padded feet on the stairs distracted him. The blond glanced up to see Akane hovering on the landing, the remnants of a nightmare still in her eyes. Izumo smiled to himself and sat down on the same pillow he had been adjusting, then glanced over at Akane. She stared at him, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. It took her not a heartbeat to make up her mind.
Akane sniffled and fled into the open arms of Izumo, burying her face into his chest. Listening to the sound of his steady heartbeat, she fell into a dreamless slumber.
Author's Note: I really did mean for this to have Izumo x Seri ! However, I just can't resist pairing up Akane with Izumo. They just seem to go along so nicely. But! To those who prefer Izumo and Seri, I'll come up with more of those two, I promise! Also, in the next chapter will be coming Scepter-4! At last, the Blues get to have a bit of showtime! See you next time!
