A/N: *insert disclaimer here*

I would like to thank everyone who left comments and questions. Know that they feed my muse and she is very very happy. I would really love to answer your questions, but I think it's better if I just go on with the story, ne? But I love the questions because it keeps track of all the loose ends I have to tie up before I call this story completed. :D

So just keep 'em coming and lemme know when it gets a bit confusing.

And ooooh! I know a certain Kaichou who is very happy to know that his obsession for maids is being shared by another person.

kaichou, this chapter is as much for you as it is for me. :D We both know how i badly need this, ne?

And for everyone else who just loves Chimeko...

Enjoy!


When Shi-chan invited me and Hi-chan for a ride to the market, I thought we would only be gone for the morning. I also wanted to cook something good for Chikane-chan and Natsuki-chan, so I gladly joined. I didn't think we would be gone the whole day. Shi-chan drove for about an hour and a half to a market and then walked all day, trying to look for her tea, which she couldn't find anywhere. I was already done picking up ingredients for the meal I wanted to make, but Shi-chan just wouldn't quit. We had lunch at a shabby diner but I could tell she didn't enjoy the food at all. She barely took more than two bites. On my part, I wouldn't know if the food tasted like anything I wanted because I kept thinking about Chikane-chan. In the end, Shi-chan decided we should go to this little shop where we could buy the rest of our supplies, and then she was gone for quite some time, which of course made our shopping take too much time.

We came home around half-past eight in the evening. Natsuki was already in a very foul mood, anybody could see that from a hundred miles away. Even Shi-chan, who loved teasing Natsuki-chan, was quiet and did not say a word, except for a short and very curt apology. Hikari-chan proceeded to the kitchen area to prepare dinner for us.

Chikane-chan.

When we arrived, Chikane-chan's presence was more ominous, and definitely darker than that of Natsuki-chan. Unlike Natsuki-chan though, Chikane-chan was quiet, observant, but seething with anger. Shi-chan was slightly bowed as she talked to Chikane-chan in a very quiet voice. Chikane-chan whispered something back, which made Shizuru bow even lower. It was almost a hiss, the way they whispered to each other, and every time Chikane-chan would reply to Shizuru, Shi-chan would either flinch, or bow even lower. By the time Shi-chan turned around, her shoulders were hunched and her chin was nearly touching her chest. She looked like a little child being scolded by a very strict teacher.

"Is everything okay, Shi-chan?" I asked as Shi-chan passed by me.

Shi-chan only nodded, and smiled, but she looked even more apologetic, like she just realized she made a big mistake. I tried looking at Chikane-chan, but she won't meet my gaze. Instead, she headed for the door and went out. I wanted to follow her but Natsuki-chan was still screaming at everyone and I thought I could deal with Natsuki better than I could with Chikane-chan.

We had dinner about a few minutes later. It was just pre-heated take-outs, since Hi-chan didn't have enough time to cook a proper dinner for everybody.

At the dinner table, Natsuki-chan's mood had lightened up considerably, and Chikane-chan didn't seem so angry anymore, but you could still tell that it was impossible to talk to her. Shi-chan was talking to Hi-chan about something that I couldn't understand. And I was left to sulk and pick at my food, until I felt a cold hand gently touch my arm.

"You should eat, Himeko."

I often forget who Chikane-chan is when she's beside me. It's kind of hard to believe that the person I've often just stared at in posters, magazine covers, internet pictures, album covers, advertisements, and TV shows, was sitting beside me, casually touching my arm.

It was a few years ago when I first heard of Chikane Himemiya.

I was walking down the school halls, and passed by the music room when I heard this gentle melody calling out to me. It was a very familiar sound. It was a piano piece and it sounded like quiet summer nights. It made me feel nostalgic all of a sudden, like I was trying to remember something that I just can't remember, and it made my chest hurt. I followed the sound until I found a cd player, beside it lay Chikane-chan's first cd. Chikane-chan's picture was that of her playing the piano. I thought she looked grand, like she belonged with the piano...but that she also looked lonely. She was smiling, a quiet smile on the picture, but it was a sad smile.

I'm really not sure what came over me, but I ran to the nearest music store and bought her cd.

Ever since then, I was hooked. I bought all kinds of her merchandise and I would even starve myself just so I could buy her stuff. Natsuki-chan thought I was being silly, but I wish she would understand. It's like I couldn't get enough of her music, like I was looking for a certain melody in her pieces, but that I just couldn't find it. It was like her music was talking to me, like every note was written for me, but I just couldn't understand what she was trying to say. It was like I could almost hear my name being called out loud, but I just couldn't tell her that I was there, listening, trying desperately to understand what she wanted to say.

And when, finally, I met her face to face...I wish I can tell you exactly how that felt. As she sat before me, a few days ago, I could hear my heart pounding. I was afraid everyone in the limo would hear my heart beat but I couldn't stop staring at her. Despite looking at Shi-chan with those cold eyes, I could see how beautiful she really was. I thought she was already beautiful from the posters and the pictures, but looking at her up-close was just...amazing. She was even more beautiful, like a princess. The way she held herself high, you just knew she was powerful. And then she turned to look at me.

For a moment, I thought the whole world disappeared, and at the back of my mind, I could remember vague dreams from a long time ago. I could hear laughter and smell crisp summer grass...and faint traces of roses. I thought I was losing my mind, and it would just be fine for me.

And when, after being gone for a few days and worrying about her, I ran to her and hugged her, something at the back of my mind told me...I was home. It felt right to be there, inside Chikane-chan's embrace. I just wanted to stay there, and never let her go. But what am I thinking? Chikane-chan lives a far different life than I do. Chikane-chan is beautiful and probably has a lot of admirers. She will probably find a prince suited for her. She is a princess and deserves to be treated like one. She deserves a prince: a handsome, powerful young man, who will sweep her off her feet and take care of her and make sure that she gets everything she will ever want.

I don't even fit in to any of those criteria. I'm just an obsessed loser fan girl, who was accidentally thrown into this complicated situation. And when all this tides over, Chikane-chan will go back to being who she is: that distant figure I've grown to love, whose songs captivate millions, and grips onto my heart. And I will be back to who I am: a nobody.

Maybe it's wrong to say this, but a part of me is happy that I was thrown in this situation, otherwise, I wouldn't have met Chikane-chan. Because that cold hand touching my arm right now, just felt like the most perfect thing in the world.

"I'm fine, Chikane-chan. I'm just not feeling well all of a sudden." I excused myself and silently left the table. I tried to smile at her but I could already feel the tears welling up and I know they were going to fall any second.

I went to my room and closed the door gently, then bit my arm to stifle the sobs. My heart was pounding again and it was starting to really hurt, The thought of separating from Chikane-chan was unbearable. I don't ever want her to go. I want to stay by her side and watch her play and listen to her as she composes her songs, maybe even hum to herself. I want to follow her around and be proud of her. I want to be the person she leans on when she's tired. I want to smile for her. I want to hear her call my name again and again. I like the sound of my name when she calls out to me. I want to be there when she introduces me to other people as her...friend.

What else could I expect?

We cannot be more than that.

Sure, those kinds of relationships exist, but Chikane-chan's stature will not allow her that. Besides, Chikane-chan is perfect. She couldn't possibly be like me. She can't share my feelings. She can't be as dirty and low as me.

Chikane Himemiya is the perfect princess, and she will meet her perfect prince one day...and even if it hurts, I'll smile and be happy for her.

The tears won't stop falling, and I wasn't really sure I wanted them to stop.

Of all the people to fall in love with...it has to be the one I know I can never have.


A few minutes later, I heard a soft knock on the door. I hurried to the bed, closed my eyes shut, and pretended I was asleep.

"Himeko?"

My heart was pounding away as I realized who it was. I heard the door gently open and close and felt the bed shift slightly as Chikane-chan sat on the bed.

She sat there for what seemed like forever until I heard her a heave a very painful sigh.

My back was turned to her so I didn't know what she was doing. She sat quietly for another eternity and it took all my strength not to move and turn to her, to control my breathing and pretend I was really asleep.

She heaved another sigh, this time heavier than the last and then she spoke with the heaviest, most strained voice I have ever heard. It was like she was trying to control something inside her, and she was losing the fight against it.

"I want to apologize for the way I acted. I was just worried sick and I lost my patience. If anything ever happens to you, Himeko, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself. I know you're awake. And I know you can hear me. And I also know you're tired of all this. Soon enough we'll be back to the way things are. You'll be able to continue your studies. I'll pay for your apartment with Kuga-san. And all of this will seem like a nightmare from a long time ago. I promise... I'm so sorry, Himeko."

I wanted to tell her she was wrong. I wanted to tell her I wasn't angry at her. But when I turned around, she was already gone.

I was reduced to another bout of tears as I realized I just hurt her without even meaning to.


The next morning, I woke up to find everyone eating at the table. Shi-chan was back to tormenting Natsuki-chan, and surprisingly, Natsuki-chan seemed like she was enjoying Shi-chan's teasing. Hi-chan was just laughing, and Chikane-chan...

...was nowhere to be found.

"Good morning, Himeko-chan!" Shi-chan called out. As if in response to a question they all knew I was going to ask, she added, "My cousin is outside, preparing to leave. You can still catch her if you hurry."

Without thinking, I ran to the door, only to crash into Chikane-chan who was about to enter the house. I was momentarily disconcerted because I had anticipated falling on top of her. But all that happened was Chikane-chan stopping me in mid-run...and I was very aware then that her body was hard and soft at the same time...and that she was holding me, rather gently. My poor heart started beating so fast, I had to push Chikane-chan to try and steady my heart beat. But she took it the wrong way again...

Good morning, Himeko.

Her voice was sad, flat, and dead. And she was annoyingly polite as she bowed slightly. Without another word, she went to the basement. I was left with no choice but to wearily trudge to the dinner table where everyone was looking at me.

I wasn't in the mood for breakfast, but there was nothing better to do, so I just sat there.

Chikane-chan emerged from the basement a few minutes later, holding what seemed like half a katana with her left hand, and dragging a full length katana with her other hand. She didn't even look at us as she went straight for the door.

"Himeko-chan, I am starting to get annoyed at the two of you. Could you just please forgive her? Because I cannot take sitting at this table with the two of you sighing like that..." Shi-chan said with a frustrated groan.

I looked at Natsuki-chan who smiled back at me. "If you think, eating with you like that is bad, we nearly lost our appetites when the Snow Queen sat with us a while ago and sulked like you're doing now." she said, and then gently, "Ne, Hime-chan, you know you're the only one who can fix this. Because I'm pretty sure, the Queen is not about to get off her high throne any time."

"Hey, don't talk about my cousin like that." It was meant as a reproach, but Shi-chan said it more lovingly than reproachful.

"Just go to her, Himeko-sama."

Hikari was hitting the foot of my chair with her wheelchair in an effort to push me off it. And it just made me smile at her.

I heard the truck start and my feet suddenly had a mind of their own as they ran towards the door as fast they could, only to hit Chikane-chan for the 2nd time. And once again, my battered heart started beating again as I found myself being held by the most beautiful person in the world. But I didn't push her away this time.

"I-Chikane-chan-I want to apolo-" I stammered but she stopped me with a shake of her gorgeous head.

"Do you want to go for a drive? The truck needs a mechanic, and there's no one in town who can fix it." She said before she let me go and held my arm instead. My voice box wasn't functioning properly so I just nodded. Chikane-chan turned to the 3 who were at the table and said, "Hikari, Shizuru is to eat only mushrooms today."

Shi-chan was dumbstruck but didn't say anything, while Hi-chan bowed slightly. I could still see the despair and disbelief in Shi-chan's eyes as Chikane-chan lead me outside towards the idling truck.


"Why are you smiling like that?"

"Nothing. I just don't think you fit well with this truck. You look so out of place."

And Chikane-chan did look out of place. Despite wearing baggy clothes and torn jeans, instead of looking shabby, Chikane-chan managed to pull it off and look even more beautiful. And she made the old, rickety truck, with its tobacco smell, mixed with the smell of rust and oil, look even worse than it already looks. She just didn't fit with the shabbiness and the ugliness of it all. Chikane-chan even tried to wear a cap to hide her beautiful, long, midnight blue hair, but it just made her look like a really beautiful boy...bishonen.

She really was perfect.

The town we entered was a lot smaller than the one Shi-chan drove to yesterday, and a lot quieter. It had rice fields everywhere, and then there were also long stretches of plain grass fields. There was a mountain visible in the distance, and the sea on the other side. I guess it's not so small, but it's definitely less urban. It was peaceful, as if time had its own slower pace there.

The town had its own school, set at what looked like a side of the mountain. It had a very long, and very high stairs leading to it, and I could hear the nostalgic bells, ringing in the distance, announcing the start of the next period. The town felt very familiar, peaceful, serene. It felt like home.

Chikane-chan drove for about ten more minutes before we found a mechanic who said we should go back around 4, and the truck would be fixed by then. Chikane-chan removed a really long parcel and strapped it to her back.

We had no choice but to walk then, just to pass time, but Chikane-chan seemed to know where she was going.

Soon, I was staring at a huge mansion, with tall metal gates. The gates were chained and padlocked. To my surprise, Chikane-chan pulled out two rusty keys and opened the padlocks and removed the chains. The gates creaked open noisily.

"Chikane-chan?"

She didn't respond but continued to walk towards the looming house.

The house was huge and old and had been forgotten. Vines covered most of its walls and some of the tall windows were shattered. Some were missing glasses completely. The front door was about three times taller than Chikane-chan and was arched. It looked heavy. Chikane once again produced another key from her pocket and opened the door. It rumbled and groaned as it opened so that for a moment, I thought it would fall on us.

There was a sad sigh of wind that passed us as we entered and I saw the inside of the mansion.

It was breathtaking despite its condition.

The door opened up to a carpeted floor leading to a grand staircase that broke off into two directions: one led to the left, the other to the right. There was a huge chandelier above the staircase. To the right and left of the staircase there were doors that looked like they were twice as tall as Chikane chan but was as heavy as the front door.

There were also doors to our left and right, one of which was open and revealed a sort of living room.

"Chikane-chan?" I repeated, trying to understand what we were doing here.

"This is the village of Mahoroba, and this is the house where I grew up." Chikane motioned around her. I couldn't read her expression. It looked dazed, reminiscent, and in excruciating pain altogether. "The door to the left, under the staircase, leads to a hallway. At the very end of the hallway is another door that leads to Hikari-nee's old room. I stopped calling her that a long time ago."

"Hikari-nee?" I asked.

"Yes. Hkari is three years older than me. Her father served my father and died serving him. Hikari was trained to be a servant, and she came from a long line of servants loyal only to the Himemiya family. It destroyed her to find out that she had to go to the orphanage when her father died. But I made sure she would be taken care of. Hikari likes her solitude and secretly wishes to die ever since she lost her legs in an accident a few years before her father died. But she can't quite bring herself to suicide...and only because I don't want her to. She is still very loyal to me.

But more than that, Hikari-nee was my first friend."

She wasn't looking at me anymore, as if she's forgotten I was there. "Up the stairs, to the left and then straight to the very end of the hallway is my old room. At the other end of the hallway, opposite my room, is Shizuru's old room."

"After my parents died, we only stayed here for three more years, then we moved to Tokyo."

I didn't want to interrupt Chikane-chan so I kept my questions to myself, making a mental note to ask her about it later.

She led me up the stairs and to the right of the staircase, down another long hallway until we stopped in front of a white door. She opened the door and led me inside.

Inside the room, the sun was shining on a grand piano, sitting in the middle of the room. There were shelves lined with books along the walls of the room, and there were also high arched windows.

"This is my favorite room. I could read books and play the piano here to my heart's content." Chikane-chan opened the lid of the grand piano and touched the dusty ivory keys. "This was where my mom and my dad would sit and listen to me play. Sometimes, I would play the piano while he read books and mom would knit."

"It also has an excellent view of the garden at the back of the house." She added after a moment's silence. Chikane-chan walked towards one of the windows and started talking, more to herself again.

"I was standing here, one day, when I saw a little girl sneak into the garden, and rest under one of the trees. The girl, I soon found out, lived at the other edge of town, near the mountain's forest. We became friends after that and would play as often as I could. But she was often left alone in the gardens, waiting for me. I could only meet her once a month because of my schedule. But that one day every month were my most memorable days."

"She was the first and only girl who ever became my friend, outside my house."

Chikane-chan sounded like she was in pain. Her words, though calm and collected, bore so much weight, it was making her tremble slightly.

"She always wore a red ribbon on her braided hair and she looked so beautiful with it. One time, she tied my hair using the ribbon. I didn't want to take it off after that. I still have that ribbon with me."

Red ribbon?

I didn't want to stop Chikane-chan but her words were very familiar. At the back of my head, I could vaguely hear laughter, the same laughter I heard when I first saw her. I went to the window and stared at the garden.

The grass have grown very long from neglect and it choked some of the other plants. All that was visible now was an oak tree, surrounded by roses that seemed to have been forgotten by time...roses...

"Before she left that summer, she told me a story. She said something about two seashells, how there is only ever one other half of a seashell. And that we are all just seashells, trying to find that half that would fit us perfectly...that we never stop looking for that other half until we find it, or we die trying."

A sudden surge of pain hit my heart. I know that story from somewhere in my past. I have heard of it.

"She gave me a necklace, that day. It was made from a simple string, the kind you would always find in gift shops. And the necklace's pendant, was a seashell...It was half a pink seashell. I have been given more valuable things, necklaces with precious metals and stones. But none of them were more precious than that seashell necklace...only because it was priceless."

She was saying something about how she wore it every day, until she went to the music business and they asked her to take it off but she never really did. She mentioned something about always keeping the seashell pendant close to her heart. She was saying something about it being the most precious thing she has...how it was so fragile, she had to make a delicate ivory case for it.

But I heard none of it as I reached for my necklace. It was half a pink seashell, and I've had it with me since as far back as my amnesia would let me remember. When I woke up that day on Natsuki's doorstep, I was clutching the necklace like my life depended on it, and it was my only clue to who I was, but it never made sense to me.

"She said she would keep the other half until I find my prince so I could give my necklace to him and she would give the other half to me as a gift...that since my prince hasn't shown up yet, that she could be my little prince for the meantime, and that she would try to take care of me and protect me from harm. I thought she was being silly, she was often clumsy and would trip over the most obvious things, but she was very serious. She wanted to protect me."

...her prince...

It came back to me, slowly, painfully: The lazy afternoons, the running and the games, and all the times I tripped and fell over and she would be there to always help me up with a smile on her face. The girl with the long midnight blue hair, the beautiful princess from the castle, the noble girl playing with the poor nobody, my beautiful Chikane-chan.

My? No...she was just the princess from my dreams, but not mine.

"I wanted to tell her that I couldn't give the necklace to anyone...that the thought of someone else getting her gift was unacceptable...but she was gone. Her house had burned over night but they never found her body. I searched for her for almost three years, but never found her."

It was a fire, I remember now. The men came in the middle of the night and tossed bottles of gasoline in our house. My father pushed me out of the house and into the forest, telling me, begging me, to run as fast and as far as my feet could carry me. I didn't want to leave them, and I could hear my mother screaming in agony as the fire engulfed her body. I saw silhouettes of the big men coming closer and I was terrified, so I ran. I ran and ran and ran without thinking. I could hear my father screaming in the distance. I ran until I couldn't see the fire, until I couldn't hear the screams. I ran until my feet gave in and I remember falling.

"Eventually, life caught up with me and I had to quit. But in my heart I always knew she was alive. My heart never stopped hoping, dreaming of finding her again and laughing with her..."

When I woke up, I didn't know where I was. I only knew my name. I walked and walked and started scavenging for food. I walked for a few more days, eating out of garbage cans, scavenging whatever, but I always walked at night. I was too scared. I thought the men would find me too and burn me. I got sick, and fell asleep. All through the night, I thought I just wanted to be safe, to forget...as the fever burned over me, I thought it was also burning my pain and my sufferings away. I never would have thought it would also burn my memories of the princess of the castle.

I woke up remembering nothing except for my name, only holding on to a seashell necklace, holding onto it and never wanting to let it go.

I wanted to know. I wanted to make sure.

"Chikane-chan, what was her name?" I asked, my back turned against her, facing the forgotten garden. I was clutching at the pendant hanging just over my heart. I knew my voice was shaking and tears were starting to well up on my eyes again.

"Her name?"

I felt her slowly walk towards me. She slipped her arms from behind me in an embrace and whispered.

"I will never forget her name, because she shares the same name as you, Kurusagawa Himeko."

I felt the world slide under me and my knees wobbled and gave way. But Chikane-chan caught me, and chuckled. "Yes, you really haven't changed too much, have you, Himeko? Your knees are still as weak as I remember them."

I couldn't say anything. My world was coming apart and pulling together at the same time...and the princess was all that was keeping me from breaking down. She held me close to her, supporting my full weight when all I ever wanted was to be the one to support her. My heart was pounding in my chest as I clutched ever more tightly to the necklace that suddenly seemed so heavy.

"Himeko...?"

"I wanted to be your prince. I was playing that night, pretending I was a noble prince, with braided blond hair. I wanted to protect you and keep you safe. I wanted to be strong for you and make you proud, because you were the princess from the castle. But I was being silly of course. I'm a girl. Only a guy could be a prince..."

Chikane-chan chuckled again and held me tighter, closer to her. She was being too kind.

"You shouldn't even hold me like this, Chikane-chan. I don't deserve a friend like you..." I said, and I felt her hold on me loosen. I took that opportunity to pry away from her but she clasped my wrist with both hands.

"What do you mean?"

"I want to be your prince, Chikane-chan. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want you..." I couldn't stop the tears then, and my words were broken but they won't stop either, until I said.. "I love you."

Chikane-chan was quiet as she looked at me. She was smiling her kind smile and I knew she was just waiting for me to finish before she rejects me.

"I know. We're both girls and that kind of love is wrong and I wish I felt something else but-" Chikane-chan cut me off. She was searching for something in her pockets while she spoke.

"The little girl in the garden once told me that I should give this-" and she produced a an ornately carved, small ivory box with gold linings from her right pocket. She opened the box to reveal a velvet layer, holding a seashell pendant inside. "-to the prince that was going to capture my heart."

She slowly, reverently, took out the necklace and wrapped it around my neck. I could tell she was still being careful, as if at any moment, the string would break and the necklace would fall.

"You may not have a strong body, and you may not be of noble birth. You may not have a handsome horse, or a powerful sword. You may not have a castle, and servants, and a land to rule over...but you're heart is pure and your soul is strong, which makes you the perfect prince for me..."

I was shaking with unbelievable happiness. The words came slowly and it took me an eternity and a half to absorb them all...but when they finally hit home...I wish I could tell you how I felt. My tears were overflowing and I could do nothing more to even try and stop them...but I had to say something...do something. So I let go of the seashell that I was still clutching, removed it from my neck and wrapped it around Chikane-chan's neck. I almost couldn't get it tied because my hands were shaking and my eyes were blurred, but somehow, after fumbling for a while, I finally managed to tie it up.

Chikane-chan took that moment to grab embrace me, gently, almost as if she was still afraid to touch me.

"And that little girl promised she would give you hers in return, ne Chikane-chan?"

I heard her murmur her soft "yes". And we stood there for a while, not doing anything, really. We were in an embrace that could have lasted a million years and I probably would have never noticed. I was listening to Chikane-chan's strong heartbeat as it played a strange melody that seemed to sing with my own heart. I never wanted to let the moment end. Then I realized she was humming a different song, something I knew very well.

"You used to hum that when we were little. When I say I want to sleep under the tree, you would hum that tune and I would fall asleep." I said. It was a very different melody than the one Chikane played in her albums. It was sweet, soft, almost airy. Whenever Chikane would hum it to me, I would feel peace wash over me and I knew I was safe, and I would fall asleep beside her.

"I wrote it for you..." she said. I started swaying gently as she hummed, afraid that I might fall asleep and wake up and find that this was all just a beautiful nightmare.

"Ne, Chikane-chan?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm not really a prince. You're the one always protecting me, taking care of my wounds whenever I get hurt, and lulling me to sleep. Even now, you're still protecting me."

Chikane-chan touched my chin and gently tilted it up so that I was looking straight at her sapphire eyes. I felt like I could drown in those eyes, and I would have been the happiest drowning person.

"You are my prince, Himeko! Odd as that may sound to you, but it's true. All that I ever did, all my decisions were guided by the thought that you may be looking at me and I don't even know it. You kept all my demons at bay, and protected me from myself. You have done what no one else could have ever done for me. You love me. And because you love me, you make me want to be better. You are my prince, Hi-"

Honestly, I only understood the first and last sentence. Everything else was blurred as I kept drowning in her eyes, and when I couldn't take staring at her anymore, I looked down and found her lips...and while she talked, I couldn't help but notice how she formed her words. Chikane-chan was perfect. Even the way she talked was formed so perfectly, it was almost mesmerizing how her lips closed and opened and formed the music that was coming out of her mouth. And I was filled with the overwhelming need to touch them...so I did.

And it effectively stopped her from talking. But again, I didn't really mind. Under my touch, Chikane-chan's lips were soft, and full, and they looked so inviting...delicious, really. And I wanted to taste them...so I did.

I stood on my toes to reach Chikane-chan's lips with my own, and when I finally caught them...it was bliss.

She hesitated for a moment, but then she finally responded. And I could taste her.

I couldn't tell you if it was sweet as wine, because I've never had wine. But it was something else. It was soft and slick and smooth and tasted odd in a very good way, and I just couldn't have enough. I felt like I had to own her, and I was following my need. I snaked my arms around her neck and pulled her head down towards me so I could taste her even more. But the more she gave, the more I wanted. When she opened her mouth, I lost no time and pushed my tongue inside her, and I wanted more. I knew I was dominating her, but I can't tell you the empowering feeling of her letting me take full control of the kiss.

And then I felt something fall on my cheeks that made me stop. It was warm and wet, and salty to my taste.

Chikane-chan was crying...and it actually made her even more beautiful. She looked so vulnerable, and gentle and broken all at the same time, it was heart-breakingly beautiful. I don't exactly know when my tears stopped falling and hers began. She was about to wipe them away, but I caught her hand, and instead, I planted little kisses, trailing up to her eyes. And I kissed each of her eyelid, savoring the taste of Chikane-chan's tears.

"What are you doing, Himeko?" Chikane-chan asked. Her voice was slightly trembling.

"These tears, my princess, are never going to fall to the ground. I will always be here to catch them." It sounded cheesy, I know.

"I love you, my little blond prince." she chuckled gently, before placing a chaste kiss on my lips.

"Right back at you, my princess." I said and we kissed on more time.

I volunteered to drive back home, and Chikane-chan agreed. Chikane-chan told me stories and we were just laughing along the way. It was almost dinner when we arrived back at the warehouse. And I couldn't stop myself from smiling, even as we entered.


"Would you please stop smiling at each other!" Shi-chan was in a foul mood. Like me, she hated mushrooms, but was forced to eat them as punishment for coming home very late.

We were all sitting at the dinner table, Chikane-chan was in front of me, and we just kept exchanging smiles, which of course did not escape Shi-chan's observant, and rather easily annoyed, eyes.

"Honestly!" she continued when we didn't pay her any attention. "You two look like two little girls who have just discovered that they were in lov-oh.." and then Shi-chan began to smile too.

"One more word, Shizuru, and you will have mushrooms till the end of the week." Chikane-chan wasn't looking at Shi-chan, but her message came across clear.

But now, it was Natsuki's turn to be even more confused, which of course annoyed her too. "Wait! So why is everyone smiling now? What did I miss?"

Shi-chan and I giggled while Hi-chan and Chikane-chan just shook their heads and smiled.

"Don't worry about it, Natsuki. I'll tell you all about it later..."

Natsuki blushed a deep red and went back to eating.

Wait...what did I miss?