A/N: Yo! Alrighty so this story will be wrapping up pretty soon I think... It will probably end up with 40 chapters, so I guess that means we have eight more chapters to go! (including this chapter, that'd be nine)

I know, I know- it's sad to see it approaching the end, but I'll be starting up a new Tora story after this, (if I have the time to) because I favor his character so much ^_^

So anyway, let me just take a moment to say thank you to all of my amazing readers, and for those of you that review- I love all of your commentary and very much appreciate it, and even though you push me for updates, don't worry, it's probably good that you do ;) Also, for those of you who showed concern for me, well d'awwww, I'm touched. But now I'm all good, it's alright. I'm a tough cookie!

:* THANKS SO VERY MUCH FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT!

"We're forever teetering on the brink of the unknowable, and trying to understand what can't be understood." ― Isaac Asimov, The Caves of Steel

Chapter Thirty-Two. To Move Unsteadily...

"Akari," A low tone greeted her as she opened the door and stepped inside the vehicle.

"Igarashi." She sighed back, sneaking a mere glance at him before purposely averting her eyes.

There was a slight pause as his watchful golden orbs settled on her. "...You look troubled." He noted calmly, face impassive- as if he could care less- as if he was simply making a sure statement of her appearance, not voicing his concern for her in any way.

Akari's face was a bit flushed, but other than that she showed no signs of anything wrong with her. She scoffed, looking away from him as she spoke.

"I'm fine." She lied.

Tora kept his eyes on her for just a second longer, before tilting his head casually in the other direction.

For the past couple of days, Akari had been attending school with him just like she used to (though Maki was always with her now). Even though Tora and Akari attended the same school and lived under the same roof, they hadn't been seeing too much of each other since... what had happened the other day. They were in different classes at school, and at home... well, Akari had recently thrown herself into her school work, studying nonstop, avoiding contact with anything but books. Tora was simply busy with work and preparations for certain things.

After the little incident with Orochi at the school two days ago, and the aftermath of that- as soon as they arrived back at the estate together, Akari had gone straight to her room, and had stayed there for the remainder of the evening that day- no doubt trying to escape the awkwardness of the car ride back from the school. The two of them had sat in silence, Tora privately mulling over his plans, and Akari internally fretting as she thought about his promise to her, worrying at just how serious he had acted.

It is one of the many powers of an Igarashi- toying with other's minds- another being toying with other's emotions. Akari was all nerves, her mind in a state of something like a mix of panic and confused anticipation because of him. And her emotions were completely out of whack- half the time she was angry with him, other times she felt almost threatened by how he had acted so possessive of her that day. Mainly she just didn't know what to think. Therefore, in her current weakened state, she chose to defend herself by shutting him out. And she'd been doing a fairly good job of that for the past two days now. Tora should be impressed, though it's not like she cared if he actually was.

Speaking of the golden-eyed Casanova, he was not in the least bit concerned with the way his prize had been avoiding him. Contrariwise- he had her right where he wanted her. After all, she couldn't stop thinking about him- her thoughts revolved around the words he had said to her, and his actions, along with their meaning. Though she physically ignored him, turning up her nose and always walking in the opposite direction, inwardly her emotions and her thoughts were all, in some way or another, connected to him. She was solely his to control, and she didn't even know it still.

But he had to be cautious with her- (thus the two-day period he allowed for her to relax and let her guard down). The girl was on a very short fuse now. Anything could set her off, he knew, and so he would pick his moments carefully. Every move he made, or word he said, was strategically thought through before-hand, even more so than usual. He had meant what he'd said about him and him alone knowing how to handle her- no one else could tease her, string her along, and tempt her the way he knew he could (and likewise with her being able to do the same to him, though she did it subconsciously while he did it with a purpose in mind). No one else could be patient enough to wait until her temper cooled in order to talk- and even when he didn't have the patience, he knew just how to cool her temper using his own personal methods. And it worked a large majority of the time... not always, but most of the time, his methods were more than effective on her.

That small lack of control he had over her, caused by how stubborn she was and how unpredictable she could be at times, didn't bother him too much. If he could control her all of the time, what fun would that be?

"'Fine'?" Tora hummed, smirking lightly as he crossed one long leg over the other, enjoying the spaciousness of his stretch limo. "I didn't ask how you were doing. I was simply making a comment about your appearance."

Akari glanced at the young man who, merely just the other day, had called her his belonging, and felt her face heating up quickly as he glanced back at her, tossing her a shaded gaze that made his golden eyes look much darker than usual, as if tinted a murky bronze. She opened her mouth, and closed it, thinking better of engaging in any sort of conversation with him.

"But if I had asked," He tilted his chin up slightly as he regarded her with that unfathomable look of his. "I would have wanted a better explanation. 'Fine' isn't much of an answer."

Her eyes slid shut and she let out an exhausted sigh, refusing to entertain him with much of a reaction. Tora's gaze traveled down to her hands, seeing that they were neatly collected into her lap, one palm holding to the other- as if to steady herself. He raised an eyebrow as he watched her hands suddenly clench together while he stared.

"How long do you plan to stare at me like that?" Akari asked, keeping her eyes set on the window. She didn't need to see him to know his eyes were on her- she had grown quite used to the feeling by now. "If you really are wondering, my first answer was just as good an answer as any. I'm perfectly fine."

The flush on her cheeks was not dying down, if anything, it was even worse now and spreading along her neck and across her forehead. She huffed out a breath, fiddling with her hands in her lap. Not only was she tense as she sat there, keeping closer to the window than to Tora, but her eyes watched everything that passed by outside with a strange sort of intensity- silvery blue irises flitting back and forth in a dizzying sort of way.

"...So you say." Edging closer and resting his hand on her thigh, just beside her own pair of fiddling fingers, he leaned towards her, allowing his breath to hiss against her heated face. "But I think you're lying."

She turned her head to finally look him in the eye. Her gaze was guarded and he couldn't quite read her expression, which frustrated him enough to press his hand more firmly against her thigh.

"Tora," She glanced down at his hand and then her eyes zipped back up to his face, while he pressed even closer, pushing her back against the car door behind her. The back of her head hit the window and suddenly, both her hands were held in one of his, clasped together in front of them both while he leaned across her. She lost her voice when his lips abruptly settled over her own, pressing a soft, lingering kiss there that lasted for several seconds.

When Tora broke away, he leisurely slid his tongue over his lips, looking at her with an impassive expression.

He said nothing for a moment, merely held her there, caught between his lean body and the car door. His eyes held such rich depth to them, she noticed as she stared, and yet she could probably look in them for hours on end and still have no idea what any of his inner thoughts or feelings were. He had so much control over himself, his life, and everyone around him- always so well-put-together and perfect. He gave off a powerfully enchanting aura, his face was nothing but a mask, he was a man cloaked in secrets; stunning, dazzling, seductive.

And he was slowly driving her insane.

Tora caught the look in her eyes- that look of detestation, with a flicker of want. He kept his eyes trained on her, taking in every eyelash flutter, every breath. Due to their close proximity he could feel how high her temperature was, and when he had kissed her the air inside the car had seemed to grow thick and sickly warm as well. As he continued to watch her for a reaction, he realized something.

"Hn?" His tone was quiet, but full of derision. "No reaction this time?"

Akari stared at him, and it was almost a glare, though the harshness didn't quite spread into her gaze. A couple of days ago, she would have felt affronted by the sudden kiss- especially after all the stuff he said about her belonging to him. He couldn't do whatever he wanted with her, whenever he liked- that's what she would have yelled at him and been angry about.

But this time around, today, in this moment... well, with hardly any contact with him over these past two days, she found that she was both craving his touch, and wanting to know just what he meant by convincing her with his so-called 'proof' he had twice now mentioned. So far, he had given her no proof of any kind- in fact, he hadn't really done much of anything since the day he claimed, almost like a promise to her, that he'd convince her of both of their feelings for each other.

Was she supposed to look into it herself? She didn't know what to do. So basically, she was more curious about it than angry at this point. Ever since he told her, in such a sure voice, that he would have her convinced by the end of this week, she had been waiting on the edge of her seat for the past 48 hours, ignoring him and avoiding him, yet waiting for him to do something. And now, he had finally made a move.

It had taken a little effort, but she hadn't even kissed him back- she was giving him no reaction. This was her testing him. This is what she had been waiting for. Because two could play at this 'love' game.

If he really cares about me like he so claims, She thought to herself, searching into the depths of his eyes. if this is more than just intrigue or interest for him... then no matter how boring I act, or dull and unresponsive I become, he won't pull away from me.

The pair was staring intensely at each other, neither of them really noticing that they had arrived back at the estate and the car had pulled to a stop. They were too involved in each other's gazes, both trying to read the other, figure the other out. Gold and silver, silver and gold, clashing, evening out, but never being able to delve into the other. For only a moment, it was as if assorted pandemonium tingled through the air in a whirlwind of invisible emotions just waiting to start pouring out of either one of them.

The moment was broken when a soft sort of sigh escaped Tora's lips, his hold on her hands gradually loosening until he had released her and pulled back, moving away from leaning over her and instead opting to sit close beside her.

Cinnamon lashes grazed heated cheeks as Akari blinked slowly, watching him move away. Admittedly, she felt disappointed that he had ended up pulling away, loosing his interest so easily, just like that.

I knew it-

"It would seem you've forgotten." Tora spoke clearly, interrupting her thoughts.

She looked at him in a strange sort of way. "I... what?"

"You've forgotten," He voiced in a satirical tone. "just who you're dealing with. Do I really have to remind you that you can't trick an Igarashi?"

The knowing smirk he gave her then was paired with and complimented by the patronizing glimmer in his eyes. He raised an eyebrow at the face she made at him in return- her eyes narrowed but bright, and her skin burning up with an intense flush. She didn't appear angry, but it went without saying that she certainly wasn't happy with the current circumstances.

He reached forward, smoothing his arm past her body, and opened the car door for her. "I don't like it easy, but you're hardly that." He managed to whisper in her ear, a repeat of words he had previously said to her in the past. His lips curled into a loose smile when he noted the way she struggled to reattain her cool composure, exiting the car quickly, stumbling in her attempt to get away from him.

He'd let her leave for now. After all, there was only so long he could ignore the phone call he'd gotten earlier today from his fiancée.

"I apologize for missing your call earlier. So you're back from America, I take it?"

A familiar and polite voice met his ears, "Yes I arrived early this morning."

Tora picked up a piece of paper sitting on the desk in the study, allowing his eyes to read along with the words on it as he continued to speak into the phone. "Could I trouble you for a visit?"

"That depends, Tora-san."

He paused, eyes flickering slightly over the page he was reading as he lost his place. "On what, might I ask?"

"I heard... that there is a girl, living with you... that she's been at your estate for quite some time now."

A slight frown appeared on the blonde's face, and he had to take a moment to gather his thoughts. Where was all this coming from? He wasn't prepared for her to have found out yet. There was a specific way he wanted to go about it.

Deciding on taking a blasé approach to this unexpected predicament, he smoothly asked. "Are you reading into the nonsense they print in the newspapers and magazines? Whoever told you that?"

A pause followed.

"May I meet her?" She responded, looking past his avoidance tactic, though sounding slightly hurt that he had started to lie.

Sometimes, Chiyo had her interesting moments. Now was one of them, he supposed, though the way she knew him so well and yet didn't know him at all had always bothered him.

"What purpose do you have behind meeting her?" He sighed into the phone, beginning to walk along the perimeter of the room, passing his paper-cluttered desk and a shelf of books.

"Well... since we are engaged, I simply want to get to know the people you acquaint yourself with. You already know most of my friends, after all." Her voice grew suddenly quiet, as if she was afraid to say her next words, though that never really stopped her from saying them anyway. "And, I am a bit jealous, to be honest, so I would like to better understand the situation and talk with her."

Tora listened, though this was not what he had wanted to hear. He continued his slow stroll around the room, tongue touching the roof of his mouth as he was pondering the words he should allow himself to speak.

Finally, he replied, after Chiyo was patient with him for around about a minute. "Well if you're going to be stubborn about it, I'll introduce you tonight. Come to the estate and you can meet her before I take you to dinner."

There was a quiet gasp on the other end of the line, a happy one. "Thank- thank you... you're taking me to dinner?"

He took on a more charming tone. "What's this, Chiyo? Did you not think I would like to celebrate your safe return to Japan?"

An apology followed, simply flying out of her mouth, and he had a feeling if they were talking in person, she would have bowed until her hair brushed the floor. He leaned against his desk, back to where he had been standing before, and listened half-heartedly as she spoke of how she couldn't wait to see him, and how kind he was, the usual things she said. Really, she was a nice girl, just... too nice for his taste.

Eventually, she seemed to notice his lack of response and quieted down. "...Tora-san?"

"I'm looking forward to you telling me even more when we're at dinner tonight." He applied a fake, dazzling smile to his face even though she couldn't see him. His tone was as gentlemanly as ever as he ended with; "It was lovely to hear your voice again, but I'll have to end our talk now."

Being used to their conversations ending so quickly, Chiyo made a sound of understanding. "Of course. I'll see you later tonight, Tora-san."

Offering her no goodbye, as he found there was none needed, Tora ended the call and lowered his arm, holding his phone in a loose grasp.

He allowed himself to sigh, rather loudly and heavily. He'd been planning everything out for a while, but now that it was time to implement all the different parts of his plan, putting it into action and making it work was not serving to be an easy task. Chiyo hadn't complicated things all that much, but still, he hated having to change his plans around even the slightest bit.

Orochi, himself, Chiyo, and Akari... ah, there was much to be done about this.

And there was another thing now- due to his impulsive need the other day to prove the point that Akari was his, and only his, he had to make her fully succumb to him before the week was over. He had to, and it wasn't a matter of if, or how. He would do it. And at the same time, he would make all of his careful planning a reality.

Was it possible he was actually, if only a little, overwhelmed by all of this?

Taking a moment to delve into his mind, Tora closed his eyes. He breathed in slowly, assessing everything, remembering certain details. It didn't take all that long for him to happen across a memory of something he'd told Akari not too long ago, and slowly, his brain started to piece an idea together from that.

Golden irises had a sudden darkened look to them as he opened up his eyes again. Well, he was finished with most of his preparations and planning at this point, wasn't he? So, then... the tiger was on the prowl starting... right about now.

He did have some time to kill before later tonight, so he really should spend it enjoying himself, and winning over the rest of his 'prize'.

Akari should have known better than to think she would forever be safe inside her room.

Of course he had a key, and anyone knew how to unlock a simple door.

"What are you doing?" She scowled, turning in her seat and looking up at Tora, who had walked over to where she sat at her desk and promptly reached forward, closing the textbook she had been reading.

"I have a proposition for you." He murmured, eyes sliding over the contents of her cluttered desk, before coming to meet her gaze.

Akari raised an eyebrow at him, admittedly a bit interested. "Make it good then. I have a lot of work to do." Came her curt reply.

She wasn't expecting him to suddenly place his hand on her desk, leaning over until his lips nearly brushed her forehead. She sucked in a quick breath, while he stared down at her with one eyebrow arched high.

"What do you say we practice something other than equations," He offered, voice lowering just enough to sound a bit suggestive. "something more physical."

Though it was worded like a question, it was voiced like 'you are going to do this and you are going to like it'. She stared up at him, blue-silver eyes glimmering and slightly widened. At the sound of his voice rumbling so close to her, and the way he worded things, her pupils dilated and her heart rate randomly sped up. Seeing the smirk on his face, she quickly looked away, leaning back in her chair in order to put some distance between them.

She cleared her throat, trying to resist the silly urges he always awakened inside of her. "Go jerk yourself off, I'm not your sex toy." She said firmly, and yet, she was avoiding his eyes with every word she spoke. "Perverted tiger."

Tora was almost taken aback, but then he remembered just who he was talking to. She could be wonderfully unpredictable at times. He had the sudden urge to grab her, and he did, initiating contact by holding her chin and forcing eye contact.

"You've misunderstood," He pointed out, the sly smirk still on his face and a cool look in his eyes as his fingers hooked strongly just underneath her chin. "I'm not particularly in that sort of mood at the moment. Although you do tempt me..." His eyes roamed her body, certain images began to fill his mind and he pressed closer to her.

"What exactly have I misunderstood?" She dared him to answer her, speaking in a tone that was obviously a bit angry.

Tilting her chin more, his lips barely brushed her cheek as he spoke, "I said I would teach you how to defend yourself, didn't I?"

Akari racked her brain for when they'd talked about that, but she couldn't very well focus with the scent of him overwhelming her, his warm lips pressing lightly by her cheek, and the fine fabric of his shirt brushing against her body as he brought one of his arms closer.

Feeling the sudden need to gain some of her personal space back, she pushed him away and stood up, the chair she was on nearly falling over in the process. Tora simply stood there for a moment, staring at her with a blank look, and then he grinned slightly and took a step towards her.

"Okay, what's it gonna take for you to leave me alone for the rest of the evening?"

He paused, if only for a moment, and then turned towards the door. Glancing at her, he made a gesture with his arm.

"I'm actually busy later tonight, so I will end up 'leaving you alone', as you phrased it. However," The smirk he gave her spelled bad news. "for now, I'd like you to come with me."

A huge sigh released from her lips, and yet, regardless of how annoyed she was by him, her feet moved on their own and she followed him out of the room.

"...So this is where you practice kendo, or judo, or whatever it is that you do?"

Currently Akari was standing in a large square room- equipped with wooden practice swords hanging along wooden paneled walls, black floor mats, and several mirrors aligned vertically along two of the four walls. There was so much more equipment likely locked inside the massive storage closets standing along the side of the room as well.

"It's my own private dojo." Tora replied, walking into the room behind her.

She turned to face him, a slight frown on her face. She gestured down to the clothes she was wearing. "Are you expecting me to work out in these clothes or something? Why are we even here?"

Tora stopped to stand in front of her, taking a moment to observe her appearance. She had changed out of her school clothes into something more comfortable so she could study, and was wearing a blue button-up sweater and what looked to him like cotton pajama pants. He couldn't help but eye the v-neck of the sweater, and how the slightly loose pajama bottoms were accentuating just how dainty she was, her thin ankles barely poking out from beneath the fabric. She was so small and it just made him feel like even more of a man around her. He could wrap his arms around her and protect her and kiss her, among other, less innocent things...

"What the hell are you looking at me like that for?" Akari flushed brightly as she looked up at him, noting how he was watching her like one would examine an exotic animal they'd seen for the very first time.

Tora didn't even make an effort to take his eyes off of her form. "What do you mean?" He had a stupid little half-smile on his face that was driving her mad.

"You know what I mean! Why are you staring like that?" She asked, voice filled with a certain tenaciousness that proved her temper was rearing its ugly head.

For a moment, his eyes flickered up to meet hers. "Eh? Does it bother you when I look at you a certain way?"

Deciding to annoy her even more, his eyes began to slowly travel down the length of her body, seeming to catch at every slight curve and show of skin. Uncomfortably, she swallowed, the heat in her cheeks brightening the angry and embarrassed look in her eye. How he could turn any situation or conversation into something that caused others discomfort, was beyond her. He was just really good at manipulating everything.

"Yes, it does." She took an awkward step backward, scratching the side of her arm in her unease. "Don't- don't look at people like that. It's creepy, and gross, and- and you're being entirely unpleasant."

He couldn't withhold a sudden bout of laughter at her response to him simply staring at her. He couldn't hep it, he was amused, she was so fun to watch! Akari took another step away, looking upset by his random laughter, and when Tora finally regained himself, he looked at her with mirth and something unrecognizable in his eyes.

"You can be so interesting..." He admitted, smiling in the aftermath of his mocking laughter. "How you can lie so easily is rather impressive. I'm amazed that you have enough obstinacy in you to plainly say I'm unpleasant, when you're actually attracted to me."

Alright, the smile on his face and the way he thought he knew her so well was definitely getting to her now. All his arrogance, and the way he just loved to watch her squirm as he teased her, made her grit her teeth. The thing is... what frustrated her so much was- well- the fact that part of her actually kinda liked when he interacted with her like this, and another part of her fought against that feeling. He was always making her feel so conflicted!

"I'm-" Her first instinctive response was to deny. "I'm not attracted to you!"

Tora made a sort of mocking 'tsk' sound with his mouth. "You seem to have gotten into quite a bad habit- that was the third lie you've told me today. I think means for punishment are in order..." His lip curled up into a sly smirk, his eyes taking on the look of a predator, as he took a sudden step towards her.

She merely had the time to take a turn in the opposite reaction and prepare to get out of his way, before he had hooked an arm around her, pulling her in towards his chest, and used his free hand to brush against the back of her neck, holding her head in place for him.

"I thought you were teaching me something, not punishing me." Akari reminded him, eyes wide as she stared up at him, waiting to see if her words had any effect at all.

Tora did pause to listen to her, but his smirk only grew more devious after that. "I am fully capable of doing both at once."

On impulse, he pushed against her with his weight, his foot catching around her ankle and effectively tripping her. They collapsed neatly on the mats, his body covering hers and his warm lips wasting no time in seeking the heat of her mouth. Akari's eyes opened up wide in wonder at his swift movements. This kiss was deep and forceful, his tongue parting her slightly chapped lips, his hand grazing behind her smooth, warm neck, tugging her head closer. Not so gentle, very firm, and there was a specific type of demand that went unspoken by him, it was just floating through the air as he kissed her.

"Tmmm... mmb..." She mumbled against his mouth, unable to speak properly with him pinning her down and sneaking his tongue around inside her mouth. He was gradually delving more of his energy into the kiss, and she was still, for the most part, lying there unresponsive.

Though, her heartbeat had increased considerably- and he knew. He could feel it just beneath his thumb on her slender neck, a frantic, steady pulsing movement. Internally, Tora was triumphantly basking in how easy it could be to excite her. Externally, he sighed against her lips, pushing against her firmly, selfishly wanting more.

Tora knew he had to pull away before he got too excited and forgot himself. Not wanting to, and with a light, barely-audible groan that he practically couldn't help, he removed his tongue from her mouth and his hand from her hair, trying to refocus. He paused carefully, letting his warm breath hover over her skin, his fingers wrapped warmly around her arm. His eyes found hers, and he licked between his lips, slowly, as if in order to taunt her. Akari fought a shiver, trying to look as unaffected as possible in order to discourage him.

He watched her for a few more seconds, and she noticed that in his eyes there was a cloud of lust hidden somewhere, along with his usual unfathomable, deep, bright, wolfish stare. Akari took in a much-needed breath as he leaned back, kneeling on his knees, his bent legs straddling her hips. She was unsure of what he was going to do next, and she definitely didn't know if she should be looking forward to his next move.

In a practiced move the blonde young man lifted one of his arms, allowing his nimble fingers to quickly unbutton the white shirt he had on. Soon, it was merely settled on his shoulders, and he easily pulled his arms from each sleeve and threw it somewhere else in the room. A wicked glint was in his eye when next he looked down at Akari, who was still pinned beneath him, and now looked rather flushed.

"You may want to take that sweater off so that we can practice some moves now..." He said with a grin, one hand already reaching towards her, his fingers already touching against the top button of her sweater.

Akari cleared her throat uncomfortably and squirmed a little, noting that his words themselves were harmless enough, but they could be interpreted in several different ways. She tried to scoot out from underneath him, successfully squirming away a few inches before he pinned one of her shoulders with his hand.

Tora gazed down at her with, almost, a glare. His tone was a bit darker while he hovered over her in that intimidating way of his. "Will I have to teach you using the harsher method?"

Her eyes widened, and just as she opened her mouth to rebuke him for acting like this, he acted before she could speak.

Rolling easily up off the mat and onto his feet, he brought her with him with just a tug on her arm. They stood facing each other for only a second before he maneuvered around her, catching her off-guard from behind. Both of his arms held tight at her hips, and as she got distracted and pressed her hands against his own in order to stop him, he moved his nose into the crook of her neck and inhaled deeply, causing her to freeze and shiver.

"You smell good." He murmured, voice low, and possessive, and entirely distracting.

Before she knew it, Akari was pushed up against one of the mirrored walls in the room, both of her hands held tightly in one of his behind her back. His other hand was tugging roughly at her hair, allowing her head to rest just below his shoulder, against him.

Seeing as they were facing the mirror, she closed her eyes, feeling embarrassed when she saw their reflection... it looked kind of... provocative. And she wasn't quite sure if that was more disturbing, or appealing.

His nose grazed just under her jaw, his lips tickling her hot skin as he spoke her name. "Akari..."

"Sh-shut up!" She cursed herself for stuttering, but her breathing was hitched because of how perfectly seductive he was acting. She felt as if she were melting- dammit, and she'd been doing such a good job of ignoring him lately! Why did he so suddenly turn everything around?

He chuckled lightly against the nape of her neck. He was moving his head around, pressing soft, enticingly warm kisses to different areas on her skin. "Do you know how to fight me off? You have to at least open your eyes."

She squirmed, feeling him press her closer to the mirror in front of her. "No you pervert! You just want me to see what you're doing to me!"

"Hmmm..." He hummed, this time against the crook of her neck near where her collarbone rested. "Exactly. I want you to watch what I do, and learn how to defend yourself against my attacks. I'm teaching you self-defense like we'd planned, remember?"

She opened her eyes to murderously glare at his face, but his head was tilted in such a way that she couldn't meet his gaze. Her eyes widened when she got to watch him nibble lightly at her skin, before shortly afterwards latching on with soft lips and sucking lightly. Feeling it was one thing- watching it, along with feeling it, was... a completely new experience all together. He tugged harshly at her hair again, making her inhale sharply, and his tongue lapped over the love bite he'd just placed low on her neck.

"T-tell me how to get out of this, then." She demanded, squirming while he slowly looked up, meeting her eyes in the mirror. "If you're supposed to be teaching me... then do it." There was an angry tone to her voice when she saw the way he was smiling so lasciviously at her.

"First," His voice was right in her ear as he lifted his head slightly- he was getting right to it, then. "you have to... relax..."

Abruptly, he released her wrists. Before she could fully react, his covetous hands moved to caress her, memorizing every line and shape, each curve and trigger point that made her shudder. He began to whisper and mumble sweetly into her neck, simple yet meaningful words that he wouldn't be caught dead saying aloud normally, though he couldn't help himself around her. She made him act sometimes out of character, and act even more messed up than he usually was, she made him act this way. She was the source of his amplified greed and lust. He was unnaturally desirous of her, and only her.

Due to his surprisingly soft and careful ministrations, Akari felt herself actually beginning to relax. Her tense muscles began to unwind and she leaned back and practically melted against him, staring into the mirror with a half-lidded gaze, watching him place a kiss against the side of her neck, then her chin, whispering just under her ear.

Tora had to withhold a lazy smirk as one of his hands moved from where it was just above her thigh, to just in front of her chest. With a kiss against her cheek, he unbuttoned the first button of her sweater. With a nibble at her ear lobe and a hot breath in her ear, he unbuttoned the next two. Soon, she was stripped of her sweater and he was just starting to pull it off of her body, peeling it away from her arms with the light touch of his fingers. He flung the fabric away from them both and his golden gaze settled on her reflection. She still had on a white undershirt, though the lack of her sweater left more bare skin shown to his hungry eyes. He smiled against her shoulder, a loose and loving grin (though in his case, 'loving' meant a strange mixture of greed and possessive care) This was proving to be much too easy- he'd have her acknowledging her feelings for him all too soon, of that, he was positive.

Akari sighed deeply, her mind going into a state of almost, bliss. She couldn't remember the last time she felt such warmth from a person, and admittedly, she was enjoying herself.

Her eyes snapped open though, when he brought her back to reality by pressing her forcibly against the mirror, and pinning her arms back behind her back. She blinked repetitively before staring up at him through the mirror with confusion in her eyes.

Tora chuckled lowly. "Now that you're relaxed, let's start the lesson." He pressed his body more heavily against her back, pinning her very effectively between him and the mirror and staring into her eyes with a look that said he was enjoying himself a bit too much. "Do you remember what I taught you the last time we did this?"

"What do you want me to do, try to throw you over my shoulder?" Her voice was quiet, but sarcasm was starting to drip into it just a little bit. "The way I see it, I can't move. You've got me completely pinned."

He smirked at their reflection, anyone who looked at them could clearly see he was in control. "That's the way it certainly looks, isn't it? But there's always a way out- if you're smart enough to find it." He ended his sentence with a teasing tone, something to start getting her a bit worked up again.

She huffed, moving her arms slightly, but that didn't do much. "Come on, Igarashi-"

He shut her up quickly by leaning forward and biting her lip- just a little too hard. She yelped and struggled more in his grasp, while he pulled back enough to whisper in her ear.

"During these lessons, each time you do something wrong there will be certain consequences involved. Call me by my first name."

A fire was building inside of her, and she pressed her head back against him harshly, struggling to get her wrists free. "What the hell kind of teacher are you? I feel like this is more for your benefit than mine."

"Would you rather we tried something different?"

"...Different how?" She asked cautiously.

Suddenly, he had pulled away, dragged her around, and moved towards her, backing her up until they were each standing in the middle of the room. He looked into her eyes, seeing her uncertainty and smirking at it.

"I'm going to allow you to attack me." He stated plainly, watching with interest as her eyes widened and she looked at him in a strange way. A small, arrogant smile landed itself on his face then. "Well, I'll allow you to try it."

She shook her head at him, baffled by this whole situation. "What will I learn by throwing a few punches at you?"

He took a step back, and stood there, arms at his sides and feet firmly planted, ready to have her come at him. "Not much. I know it's impossible that you'll land a hit" At this, she scowled. "-but the main point of this is to give me a chance to examine your technique and your movements. I've already memorized your body," He smirked lecherously, and she recalled the feeling of his hands from a few moments ago and blushed. "now I'll need to watch the way you move, so that I can better assess you, and then assist you."

She gripped her bare arms, looking weary once again. "Well..."

"Would you rather I not teach you how to defend yourself? I was under the impression you wanted to become stronger."

Akari huffed at the bait he was laying in front of her face with those words. She felt offended, and she didn't want to do things his way. "Why do you have to teach me? Shouldn't I have an actual teacher?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Why do you think? I'm probably the best teacher you could get. Also," That wicked light came back into his eyes again. "I believe I did mention, it's me and only me who can handle you properly. You can be fairly troublesome."

She glared at him, and he knew it was time to move things forward. He grinned, simply standing there in nothing but his slacks, muscles relaxed and stance almost, lazy-looking. When he spoke, it was in a cold, different sort of voice than the one he'd been using so far. "Make your move now."

Akari wasn't sure why, but she actually wanted to rise to the bait. Probably because she knew he was actually, in some twisted sort of way, trying to help her. Another thing that she realized was, she really wanted to prove him wrong and land a hit on him. She wanted to show she was capable of doing what he claimed to be so 'impossible'.

With the quirk of a smile on her face, she took a step back and looked him up and down. Her eyes tried to figure out where she should hit him, and how to go about it, but occasionally they'd get distracted at his lean form and the way his muscles stood out in such a tempting way. She shook her head when she heard him make a sound of smug approval when she was glancing at the way his pants hung just a little bit low along his waist, and then looked him in the eye, pausing for a moment.

He stared at her, as if both challenging and mocking her, and she decided to just go for it.

It was all just a blur, and then she found herself flat on her back with him standing over her, with a look on his face that said that was just too easy.

"The best way to defend, is to not resist." He crouched down beside her, staring at her with the usual sharp intensity in his eyes. "This works especially well for people who do not have the body strength needed to fend off an attacker." A smirk was added in. "Like you."

Sitting up, Akari rubbed the back of her head and glared at him. "Fine, so I'm not the strongest person in the world. We both already knew that. What I want to know now is... what the hell did you just do? I don't... I mean, how?" She was still amazed that someone could move so quickly, and avoid an on-coming charge so easily. She practically threw her body at him, running full speed ahead.

"A person's defense is often weakest when they are on the offensive," He explained, simply, almost in a bored sort of tone."in other words, when an attacker comes at you planning to strike, they are focused on doing just that, which can leave them vulnerable. The irony in this is that that vulnerability is actually their attack, and they themselves. If a person is coming straight at you, ready to hit you in any way they've prepared to, they most likely will be coming on quick, using a lot of speed and force. And if you're clever enough, you can use their own momentum against them, helping you to not only avoid their attack, but throw them off as well."

He stood up and reached out a hand to her. When she took it, he spun her around and pushed her up against the nearest wall. She gasped while he leaned over her and whispered into her ear.

"Simply put, it's all about finding other's weaknesses, and using those against them."

Akari tried to lean back against the wall so as to better see his face. Her silvery gaze was locked on him like a target, her mind swirling in confusion because of him. She just could not understand him, or all the methods he had to life. He was an eternal puzzle for her, annoying, yet so enticing. She half-despised him, half wished to be his.

"Tell me now, Tora." She murmured, looking him right in the eye as he held her in place. He did nothing more than blink, and wait. "Do you think you know what my weakness is? You said you needed to watch me move, and now you have. So, what threw me off, then?"

He didn't even miss a beat. Unexpectedly, he grabbed her- wrapping both arms around her smaller body and pulling her into him, cherishing her warmly, breathing into her hair, closing his eyes and smirking at the cute sound of surprise she made. He held her like that, and told her his answer.

"You already know the answer to that." His voice was deep and masculine and sounded so convinced of his own words.

Akari, startled by the embrace, mumbled denials. "I wouldn't ask if I did know, baka. I don't know whatever weakness I supposedly have."

"Do I need to punish you for yet another lie?"

She pressed her heated cheek against the warm skin of his bare chest, thinking for a moment, gathering herself. She couldn't very well think properly, though, with him holding onto her like a life-line. She could hear his steady heart beat reminding her he was human, not an actual demon, like she so often thought. She could feel the strength of his arms around her, encircling her, so comforting and strong. He was so overwhelming that it hurt her to hold back.

She could feel something inside of herself, that both worried her and excited her. It was her rapidly pumping heart opening up to him even more than it already had, accepting more, wanting more, of him. Him and his devilish traits, handsome face, and intelligent, seductive golden eyes. She wasn't sure what to do... Of course, of all the people to fall in love with, she just had to fall for an idiot of a man like him.

She cared for him, but she really didn't want to be the idiotically naive girl who admitted to loving such a tricky, lethal animal. She was conflicted and confused.

"You need me." Tora told her firmly. "It's not something you can hide when it's so obvious."

She remained silent.

"We both know that I've become your weakness, and that miraculously, you've become mine. Isn't the fact that you are the single exception to all of my rules enough gathered proof for you to understand all this?"

Again, silence. She pressed further into his chest, her arms around him pulling him tighter to her. She wanted to tell him now, yet didn't. It didn't feel right yet... she probably still wasn't ready. She was still trying to understand what can't be so easily understood.

"Akari." His voice was a bit quieter, her name coming from his lips said in such a warm way that was so opposite his character.

She wanted to bury herself in his warmth, but never have to answer him when it came to this topic.

Finished with being ignored, Tora pushed her away from him in order to look at her face. His hands settled on her hips, and her arms fell limply to her sides as she avoided all eye contact with him.

"You're an intolerably stubborn woman, and such a lavish, intriguing temptress, but you've been fooling yourself, and lying to cover up the truth." His golden eyes were fierce-looking now, and he stared down at her with a seriousness that was almost scary. "I can be affectionate, I can be understanding of you, I can show compassion for you, I can do it all, and mean it, all of it. I'll admit to my feelings for you, and all I want is for you to do the same."

His words were too much. She twisted in his grasp, turning enough to where she was ready to run away, but before she could he grabbed her and pulled her back against his chest. His arms encircled her again, this time from behind, and he dipped his head low in order to rest his chin at her shoulder and blow soft breaths against her cheek.

"You want me." He said darkly, knowingly, voice like velvet as he tried to calm himself and entice the answer he wanted from her. "You can't escape that, Akari."

She froze as his hands began to explore, one of them going up and the other traveling south. As his hands moved, his mouth created words just at the edge of her ear.

"You can't deny that you are mine, and that you like it that way." She moved against him, but he hooked a leg around one of hers so that if she moved forward, she would trip and fall. Her breathing increased and she mumbled something incoherent, and he took notice and paused for a moment to suck the area just beneath her ear. When she squirmed against his chest, he angrily hushed her with; "You can't fight against me, not when you crave me so strongly."

"Tora-" She was at a loss of what to do. "Tora... please let go. Stop... stop..." Her voice was breathy as he suckled her skin again, and it slowly faded away as he spoke to her.

"It's against human nature to resist the things that we truly want." One of his hands was placed at her right thigh now and applied pressure with a firm squeeze, his thumb trailing back and forth in slow movements just on the inside of her leg. Accidentally, she sighed and unknowingly leaned against him, and he gave a soft grin and brushed his other hand over her chest and to her face, moving it to the side so that his lips could almost touch hers.

"Give in to me." He said, searching deep within her icy gaze, trying to persuade her with the look her was giving her. For a second, her eyes fluttered, and she looked back at him with a clear expression of want and pure affection. Tora wanted nothing more than to see her look at him that way all of the time, and he immediately crushed her lips in a bruising kiss that showed just how serious he was being about this.

Just as she was starting to kiss him back, he recalled that with her, it couldn't possibly be just that easy. Their mouths pressed hotly and her body pushed back against him, she was arching slightly and his hand on her thigh had gotten a mind of its own and was now rubbing smoothly up and down, drawing little invisible patterns and getting dangerously closer and closer to a certain area above the inside of her thigh. He couldn't help himself but to indulge in this pleasure for a few long, drawn-out moments, but his head knew that he had to stop, for the sake of having her in the long-run, he had to stop for now. She wouldn't admit anything to him so easily, of that, he was sure of, because he knew just how stubborn she was and just how she worked.

She had given into him for now, in this moment, momentarily. But once he stopped trying to seduce her, she'd be back to acting distant again.

When Tora broke away from her, Akari practically keened for him to continue. She turned a little bit more, bringing one of her hands to his chest and pressing her palm to his smooth skin and hard muscle. This little, insignificant action seemed to please Tora, because right as it seemed he would pull away from her he planted his lips against her neck, sucking and licking and planting some probably very noticeable hickeys there. She gasped and even moaned a little bit, in the haze of her mind wondering how far they were going to take it right now.

Tora had completely turned her around now, and she was facing him and touching his skin lightly, brushing his arm with one hand, smoothing the other hand down his chest. It was driving him mad with several different emotions, because even though many a female had touched him like this before, none of them had he felt so attached to, as he did with Akari. He moaned when her feather-light touch moved down his side- he'd never thought of himself as sensitive, but what do you know, that had triggered something because now he had his arms hooked underneath her and he was picking her up, pulling her legs around his waist.

Well this certainly wasn't related to self-defense anymore... but then again, was that really what he had brought her here for? Had he had ulterior motives? Absolutely.

"Tora..." Akari whispered his name and ran her hands through his hair, looking down at him in a daze while he ducked his head and began to nip with his teeth on her flushed skin, getting gradually closer to where her breasts were hiding beneath her undershirt and bra.

It was like she had turned on some sort of switch on him, because his brain knew he should stop before he found himself waking up next to a naked and furious prize of his, but his body could care less. He was moving like a machine, though every move he made was purely done from instinct. He didn't know when he had pushed her against the mirrored wall again, but he did notice his reflection when he glanced up for a moment, and that's when he was shocked back into reality. The sounds she was making and the feel of her body had driven him to that point where he couldn't even listen to himself, but now that was ending and he was starting to come down from the spot he had momentarily shared with Akari on cloud nine.

Her legs were still wrapped around his waist, and he was still holding her up against the mirror, but he forced himself to pull his head back and look her in the eye, panting, close to being out of breath, and searching for the right words to say.

Eventually, they both calmed down to the point where he dropped her to her feet again, and they simply stood close together, looking at each other and trying to resist jumping at each other again like a pair of wild animals.

He found his words when Akari pushed her hair away from her face and cursed aloud. "Dammit..." She muttered, avoiding his eyes once more.

"I think I understand why you can't admit the way you feel."

Upon hearing his words, her head shot up and she looked at him with pleading eyes, as if to say she wished to hear the answer to that as well, because she herself didn't really understand it.

He leaned over her, caging her in as he extended both his arms and pressed both palms against the mirror behind her. "It's illogical to care about someone like me. You're scared of me, and what I can make you feel." He licked his lips and continued, watching her giving him a blank stare. "In short, you couldn't possibly be in love with me."

"Because," He leaned forward just enough to tickle the edge of her ear with his lips, and smirked as she stiffened in suspense. "all I am," He drew the sentence out slowly, letting it sink in. "is a lecherous predator."

And just like that, he pulled away from her, giving her room to think and smirking like the true devil that he is. On the inside, he was upset that it had to end like this for now, but what else could he do? He'd have to be patient, and keep coming back at her with new attempts, more approaches. He would eventually have her completely, and thinking of that moment is what drove him on. He stared at her for a bit longer, gaze gladly traveling up and down her body, looking at her fondly, like a little boy pining after a toy he sees through the glass window of a store.

Abruptly remembering herself and startling out of her stupor, Akari glanced at him, then looked away, blinking repetitively down at the floor. "Yes. Exactly." Her face was on fire with a bright flush and her voice was very, very soft. It was obvious she was flustered, and conflicted.

Tora sighed, looking at her refusing to look at him. He looked away and then his eyes fell on the door across the room. His voice was louder than it had been before this time when he spoke up. "Well,"

Akari jumped when she suddenly felt something hit her softly, and she looked down to see that he had thrown her sweater back to her. She peeked up at him wearily, seeing that he had also grabbed his shirt was was now pulling his left arm into a sleeve. When he caught her eye, he gave her that look of his, with an eyebrow raised and a small smile on his face.

"I have a guest arriving in a couple of hours and she says she wants to meet you. I think now's the time for the both of us to go freshen up before she arrives. Would you care to join me in the shower?"

Leave it to Tora to have a sentence that started out innocent, and ended fairly not.

Akari roughly pulled on her sweater, looking into his eyes again after she had it on, and tilting her head in curiosity. (she was ignoring the last thing he said) "Some lady you know wants to meet me? Should I be worried, is it someone important or-" Her face suddenly paled at her next thought that she voiced aloud. "Is it another person sent by my father?"

Tora quickly extinguished her fears. "No, I don't believe she's ever been associated with anyone from your family. As far as how important she is," He paused, and couldn't find an answer to give. He was unsure if telling her now who it was would be a very good idea.

Akari moved towards him, needing a little more information than just that. She felt like too many things were always being hidden from her and she was always the last to find out, on top of that, she was never understanding anything. "Baka tiger... Just tell me already." She said, a bit too forcefully.

Admittedly, lately, she hadn't been feeling too well. She'd been studying day and night in order to distract herself, and when she couldn't distract herself with that she was thinking and over-thinking about Tora, and her, and his words to her, and Orochi, and her family, and her friends- but mainly, mainly she just thought about Tora. A lot. She'd fret over him and his words, the way he acted... She was inordinately confounded by him and all he was. Her life was a confusing emotional roller-coaster and she wasn't feeling too great about it.

It had been this way for a while, yes, but only now was it coming on stronger than ever, and only now did she start to feel all this pressure getting to her. She felt as if she was stuck on a wild teeter-totter, and most of the time now she was left teetering, unsteady and confused, she could fall or stumble at any second. And she was so sick of it- anymore surprises that she didn't know about or wasn't prepared for would really eat up her nerves all the more, and she didn't want that.

"Tora, I'd like to know just who it is that-"

He met her eyes and gave her a harsh, slightly bitter smile, flashing his canines at her in the process. "My fiancée is the one coming to visit, and you will have to meet her tonight."

If Akari had been feeling unsteady before, then after hearing this, she felt as if she was on the very brink, just about ready to start tumbling over the edge.

"Your... fiancée..."

A/N: I know. I'm terrible at getting my updates in on the due date. No need to remind me.

I'm going to be an awful author someday -_-

unless I have a bad ass editor who forces me to work overtime in order to finish all the work like a week before the actual due date.

In that case, I'm going to be a fantastic author someday.

CK :*

p.s- next update will be in- not this week- but next weekend most likely. So when is that, sometime around the... 26th? Yeah, sometime around then.