This fic actually manifested itself as a doujinshi first, but since it
takes longer to get the doujin inked & scanned & translated, I put
together a more-or-less fanfic version of it. To be honest, this story
is is one I would almost assign to my alter ego. This one should more
or less make Celebration seem G-rated. So beware, all you minors and
people who are legally not allowed to get hot and bothered. :P
Bwahahaha. :) Enjoy, ladies (& germs). The doujinshi version is on
its way :P
**
Tsutsumareta
a Margaret Elseworlds based on #16 by Jennifer A. Wand
Tsutsumareta means surrounded, with the connotation of being wrapped
inside or embraced by...
~suki dakara~
~kuyashii kurai~
[Because I love you..
...so much it hurts]
(the final words of Margaret #16)
**
In a bedroom somewhere in a huge mansion, somewhere in the
richest district of a large suburb on an island nation, two people had
forgotten about everything else in the world. And how good it felt to
forget, when usually, the outside was all that was on their minds. But
not now. Not when their lips had met, parted, hovered an inch from
each other, and joined again in an embrace so sincere and so intense
that time itself seemed to stop and make room for the fevered beating
of their hearts.
~Ah... I'm surrounded by Doumyouji...~
Tsukushi's eyes were closed, and her legs were no longer
working. She'd slumped forward to lean against Tsukasa, letting her
whole body go limp within the frame of his firm embrace. Her senses
overflowed with Tsukasa... her mind and her world were filled with
him... he was holding her up, his arms her strength, his kiss her
lifeline. Everything resonated with his essence.
~The clothes I'm wearing... his size, his scent...~
She had crawled through the dirt like a snake to get into his
room that night, but now she felt like a princess. It was the oddest
thing... all the frustration, all the humiliation she went through just
to be with him, to be with this violent, unpredictable, incorrigible
man whose emotions boiled constantly on the surface like lava flowing
down the slope of a volcano, who saw everything in the simplest
possible terms and had no qualms about moving mountains if they
happened to sit in his path. But all it took was a white shirt that
was far too big for her, and smelled of him, and she felt clean again.
All it took was his eyes pleading as he asked if being with him was
really worth it for her... begging, but not demanding, the answer he
wanted, and she gave it to him. Simply because he was the kind of man
who would ask such a thing. And because the moment he did, she fell in
love with him all over again.
~His hand touching my back~
It was the most intimate thing she had ever felt. Simply the
presence of his hand on her bare skin, beneath the huge shirt, and she
felt as though warmth was diffusing into her all over. She'd never let
him get so close before, but despite the rising panic in her throat,
she couldn't tell him to let go. She didn't even want to.
~being in his arms, even in his room... everything is full of
Doumyouji...~
~And...~
~his kiss~
Vaguely, she remembered feeling paralyzed in a similar room in
this house a whole lifetime ago, as Tsukasa lowered her to the floor
and laid atop her, kissing her breathless. His lips had been so soft
and warm on hers that she could only lie there, stunned, unaware of
whether or not she was kissing back, unaware of how much time had
passed or how she felt... But this was different. This time she was
answering him, letting the passion she felt flow between their joined
lips, even opening her mouth to him. The feelings that flooded her now
were familiar but new - they were what that kiss so long ago had only
hinted at. What she had peeked at tentatively through the keyhole, but
now she opened the doors wide to experience it all as fully as she knew
how.
~so hot... even while being so gentle...~
But still it was Tsukasa's kiss, and Tsukasa's kiss was never
frightening, even when it was overwhelming. Still, his lips caressed
hers gently, teaching her even as he tasted her. Still, his hands were
firm even when they wandered, and she felt completely protected even as
she opened herself, surrendered herself.
~I have no control. For the first time in my life, there are
so many things I want to do. Even my breasts are crying out to be
touched~
His hand had slipped beneath the back of her bra, and slowly,
slowly, it was inching to the side. Even in the midst of the kiss,
Tsukushi felt almost single-mindedly aware of his movement, and for a
few intense moments she forgot to breathe, conscious only of a tingling
just below the base of her breasts. She froze when she realized it was
anticipation of the arrival of his hands. Tsukasa felt her go rigid,
and he took the moment to stop and breathe. His lips relaxed, and his
head tilted away from hers.
~No control...~
Their lips parted, and Tsukasa took a ragged breath.
"Makino.." he pleaded in the instant before their mouths came together
again.
~at all...~
~but somehow...~
She didn't want him to stop kissing her even for a second, but
persistently, he pulled away. Her eyes fluttered open. "Do you.." he
started, before his eyes squeezed shut and he pulled her into another
hot, brief kiss.
~I'm not scared...~
This time, when he let go, both their eyes were open, and the
gravity between them took a breath to make way for his words. When
they came out, they were charged and broken. "Do you know what you are
doing to me...?" he half-gasped, half-growled, his gaze hot and his
hands still pressing possessively into her skin. She felt herself
smile, and a warmth of love filled her.
~Me too...~
"Yeah..." she breathed as she leaned in to kiss him.
~Me too...!!~
And when the force of her leaning body began to topple them
over, neither one fought it, and the coolness of the bedsheets soon met
the heat of their embrace in a red and white blossom of sensation.
~Me too... me most of all...~
He was enveloped in a canopy of her, her hair falling to spread
across his forehead like the spray of a waterfall, her hands tangled in
his hair, arms lying on each either side of his face, body suspended
just over his, one of her legs between his bent knees. He could feel
the pressure of parts of her he'd never dared dream of imagining, and
just the knowledge of what they were made him half-crazy. And then...
and then... she whimpered into his mouth, and he nearly lost it right
there.
~Doumyouji, do you know what you're doing to ME?~
Tsukasa's lips strayed from hers then, kissing down to her
jawline - and then she could do nothing but cry out as he pressed his
lips into the soft skin of her neck, over and over, in a million aching
places. She'd never even imagined anything could feel like this, and
there were no words for it... just a series of moans that escaped her
throat as her breathing quickened and her body, forgetting to balance
carefully above him, crashed powerfully against his.
~I don't understand it but... don't stop... if you stop I'll
die...~
She could feel his hands at work on her collar, and before she
knew it he was urging her shirt off, kissing the skin of her shoulder
as it was exposed little by little, filling her with chills and heat
both at once. Unconsciously she lifted her arms one by one to aid him,
and then all at once his shirt was gone too, and they were lying side
by side, the sheets pulled over them and isolating them in a starched
white world - and his warm, warm bare skin against hers was one of the
most intimate and amazing sensations she had ever had...
~I'm so happy it hurts...~
He kissed her mouth thoroughly, caressing her face with earnest
hands, making her feel like something fragile, something that must be
treasured. She hardly knew what to do in return but hold on and try to
keep up with his long, measured kisses. But she couldn't think,
couldn't plan, when her mind would do nothing but repeat his name.
~Doumyouji...~
She was sure he was whispering something between urgent kisses,
but she couldn't interpret it. When one of his hands flew downward to
her chest, she bit her lip and tried hard not to cry out, but his mouth
soothed hers and guided it, teaching her a pattern of kissing away the
intensity of the sensation when it overflowed. Her hands tried to
answer his movements, and while the terrain was different, a flood of
satisfaction filled her when he sent a barely audible growl vibrating
into her mouth.
~Doumyouji...~
When she realized, some time later, just what the lower half of
their bodies had been doing, she was so embarrassed she nearly melted
down completely. But now she wasn't aware of the rhythm of the motions
or the heat that was building between them. All she knew was she felt
close to him, closer than she'd ever been. Even being lost in him,
unable to think, unable to reason or identify where she was or what she
was doing, felt much more like coming home to a long-lost Garden of
Eden, a heaven. That sparkling sea she'd considered love to be so long
ago was now surrounding her, submerging her. She gave herself up to
its waves.
~Doumyouji...~
"TSUKASA!!"
~GEH.~
That voice was not supposed to be there.
Shivers turned to cold sweat immediately, and Tsukushi and
Tsukasa froze, still half-tangled together, suddenly not even
breathing. The moment shattered and broke in several pieces around
them, and they lay among its ruins as the muffled sound of high heels
on carpet thudded somewhere near them.
"Give me a break!" Tsubaki ranted, looking around the room.
What a dump. The bed was a mess, all wrinkled and lumpy sheets - how
could that clumsy arrangement of pillows he'd set up to fake sleeping
have gotten worse? And dirty clothes on the bathroom floor, the porch
window open... "That boy," she fumed. "His big sister comes home and
where is he? The bathroom's a mess, too..."
When her heels clicked on the bathroom floor, Tsukushi dared to
breathe. "Onee-sa..." she began to exclaim in a panicked voice.
Tsukasa put a finger against her lips. His eyes rolled to the
side as he listened intently. "Sh... I think she's gone into the
bathroom," he whispered. His breath felt hot against Tsukushi's face.
"Wait a bit."
Tsukushi gritted her teeth and tried not to breathe. All at
once she was very conscious of how bad this would look if they were
discovered... and just how much of her would be exposed besides her
secret...!
~Eeek... I'm half-naked...!!~
"Oh well. The least I can do is neaten up that bed," Tsubaki
announced to no one in particular as she left the bathroom. She rolled
up her sleeves, not noticing that those lumps on the bed that bothered
her so were radiating some serious heat.
~Geh...~
Tsubaki grabbed the bottom of the sheet. "All... right..."
"Shuddup, Nee-chan."
Her eyes widened. "Tsukasa?"
A bare-chested Tsukasa sat up in bed and yawned conspicuously.
His face was flushed and his hair tousled, as though he'd been very
much asleep. "Can't you let a guy sleep at this hour?" he complained
as Tsubaki stared. He cracked his shoulders as the remaining lump on
the bed prayed very hard not to be noticed.
Tsubaki clenched a fist, annoyed. "And where were you!? Don't
you dare tell your big sister that you've been sleeping all this
time," she threatened.
"Does it matter where?" Tsukasa answered noncommitally,
yawning again.
Shrugging, Tsubaki changed the subject. "Ah, never mind that,"
she said, clapping her hands, suddenly sweet as sugar. "How are things
with Tsukushi-chan?"
Tsukasa paused briefly. "Who knows. She's going out with that
lookalike guy." Tsukushi, below, knew exactly what his face must look
like... puffed-out red cheeks, avoiding eye contact with his big
sister... even if his mouth could tell a lie, his face could not.
And Tsukushi also knew from the tone of her voice that Tsubaki
had picked up on it. "Oh? Well, why don't I have a seat right over
here, and you can tell me all about it."
Tsukushi worried that Tsukasa couldn't pull off the charade,
but at least she could breathe a little easier knowing Tsubaki had
given up trying to make hospital corners out of her. At least, she had
that luxury for the moment and a half it took her to realize that
"right over here" meant the bed!
"So what happened?" Tsubaki asked casually as she sat down
squarely on the edge of Tsukushi's hair. The poor fugitive bit down on
the bedsheets hard so she wouldn't scream in pain. Sweat poured down
her face in torrents. Somewhere, some god or other was laughing at
her, she was sure of it! Scowling, she pinched Tsukasa's leg, trying
desperately to make him aware of her plight.
Tsukasa just turned blue, and when Tsubaki hummed in curiosity
at his sudden reaction, he stammered anxiously, "I d... don't really
wanna talk about it." Beneath the covers, he tried to swat away
Tsukushi's hand as though it were a persistent fly.
"Oh? Why?" his sister asked, still oblivious to the goings-on
just below her.
Tsukushi pinched him again, and Tsukasa's blue face turned
pink. Taking a deep breath, he shifted on the bed to pin Tsukushi's
hand firmly beneath his leg. She winced and bit harder on the sheets
as he said apologetically, "Sorry, Nee-chan... but can you just leave
me alone?"
"Well..." Tsubaki started, patting down the comforter next to
her. Then she stopped short. Her hand wandered, patted further, and
then stopped short.
Tsukushi prayed. Tsukasa stared.
Abruptly, Tsubaki ceased her movement and got up. "If you say
so... but if you want to talk remember I ALWAYS want to listen," she
reminded her little brother sweetly. She hummed softly as she moved
briskly toward the door. When she reached the doorway, she turned to
give Tsukasa a syrupy smile. Joyfully, she chirped, "Goodnight, you
two...!"
"Yeah, g'night..." Tsukasa began sleepily, and the door had
already clicked closed before his eyes bugged out and he roared
"...YOU TWO!?" at the now-empty room.
~The secret's out...~
Somewhere on the other side of the mansion, Tsubaki poured Tama
a glass of champagne. The two women clinked glasses and congratulated
each other on a job well done. "Cheers!"
"Oh, brother..."
Tsukasa hung his head, rubbing his eyes and temples with both
hands. His shoulders were hunched over, his eyebrows knotted.
Tsukushi sat up then, drawing a length of bedsheet over her bare body
with one thin hand, and put her other hand on Tsukasa's arm. "Are you
all right, Doumyouji?" she said quietly.
He didn't answer, but just groaned to himself again. Tsukushi
felt at a loss. She found herself really wanting to cheer him up, to
bring the smile back to his eyes that she had seen before he'd first
kissed her that night. Unconsciously, her fingers moved in a slow
caress across the width of his arm. "That was pretty scary," she
offered. "But it's Onee-san, so I think things will be all right.
Don't you?"
He lifted his face slightly, and at the sight of her concerned
eyes, his features melted into a smile, the tension in his forehead
disappearing. He touched her face and kissed her cheek, and the gentle
movement sent shivers through her. "...Yeah, I'm okay," he said in a
soft voice. "I didn't know Nee-chan was back. But you're right, it
should be okay. I'll talk to her tomorrow."
~Doumyouji...~
Tsukushi could feel her eyes filling with tears. Her world
seemed to vibrate with the comfort of Tsukasa's touch, his voice.
Secrets, confidences, and worries would have to wait until morning.
All she knew, all she had room to know in her drowsily humming head at
that moment, was that she loved him, and that she was happy with him.
Her head nodded forward sleepily, and he caught her and held her to his
chest with strong hands. Her hands touched his back tentatively. She
closed her eyes and inhaled the scent of his presence.
~Your warmth...~
"In any case, let's go to sleep..." he said into her tangled
hair, his lips like a burning caress on the top of her head. She
murmured assent as he laid her down on the coolness of the pillow,
wrapping his arms around her. Moonlight shifted over the bed and
lulled Tsukushi into a sweet, dreamless sleep.
~From now on... it'll always be surrounding me, right?~
--'til next time--
takes longer to get the doujin inked & scanned & translated, I put
together a more-or-less fanfic version of it. To be honest, this story
is is one I would almost assign to my alter ego. This one should more
or less make Celebration seem G-rated. So beware, all you minors and
people who are legally not allowed to get hot and bothered. :P
Bwahahaha. :) Enjoy, ladies (& germs). The doujinshi version is on
its way :P
**
Tsutsumareta
a Margaret Elseworlds based on #16 by Jennifer A. Wand
Tsutsumareta means surrounded, with the connotation of being wrapped
inside or embraced by...
~suki dakara~
~kuyashii kurai~
[Because I love you..
...so much it hurts]
(the final words of Margaret #16)
**
In a bedroom somewhere in a huge mansion, somewhere in the
richest district of a large suburb on an island nation, two people had
forgotten about everything else in the world. And how good it felt to
forget, when usually, the outside was all that was on their minds. But
not now. Not when their lips had met, parted, hovered an inch from
each other, and joined again in an embrace so sincere and so intense
that time itself seemed to stop and make room for the fevered beating
of their hearts.
~Ah... I'm surrounded by Doumyouji...~
Tsukushi's eyes were closed, and her legs were no longer
working. She'd slumped forward to lean against Tsukasa, letting her
whole body go limp within the frame of his firm embrace. Her senses
overflowed with Tsukasa... her mind and her world were filled with
him... he was holding her up, his arms her strength, his kiss her
lifeline. Everything resonated with his essence.
~The clothes I'm wearing... his size, his scent...~
She had crawled through the dirt like a snake to get into his
room that night, but now she felt like a princess. It was the oddest
thing... all the frustration, all the humiliation she went through just
to be with him, to be with this violent, unpredictable, incorrigible
man whose emotions boiled constantly on the surface like lava flowing
down the slope of a volcano, who saw everything in the simplest
possible terms and had no qualms about moving mountains if they
happened to sit in his path. But all it took was a white shirt that
was far too big for her, and smelled of him, and she felt clean again.
All it took was his eyes pleading as he asked if being with him was
really worth it for her... begging, but not demanding, the answer he
wanted, and she gave it to him. Simply because he was the kind of man
who would ask such a thing. And because the moment he did, she fell in
love with him all over again.
~His hand touching my back~
It was the most intimate thing she had ever felt. Simply the
presence of his hand on her bare skin, beneath the huge shirt, and she
felt as though warmth was diffusing into her all over. She'd never let
him get so close before, but despite the rising panic in her throat,
she couldn't tell him to let go. She didn't even want to.
~being in his arms, even in his room... everything is full of
Doumyouji...~
~And...~
~his kiss~
Vaguely, she remembered feeling paralyzed in a similar room in
this house a whole lifetime ago, as Tsukasa lowered her to the floor
and laid atop her, kissing her breathless. His lips had been so soft
and warm on hers that she could only lie there, stunned, unaware of
whether or not she was kissing back, unaware of how much time had
passed or how she felt... But this was different. This time she was
answering him, letting the passion she felt flow between their joined
lips, even opening her mouth to him. The feelings that flooded her now
were familiar but new - they were what that kiss so long ago had only
hinted at. What she had peeked at tentatively through the keyhole, but
now she opened the doors wide to experience it all as fully as she knew
how.
~so hot... even while being so gentle...~
But still it was Tsukasa's kiss, and Tsukasa's kiss was never
frightening, even when it was overwhelming. Still, his lips caressed
hers gently, teaching her even as he tasted her. Still, his hands were
firm even when they wandered, and she felt completely protected even as
she opened herself, surrendered herself.
~I have no control. For the first time in my life, there are
so many things I want to do. Even my breasts are crying out to be
touched~
His hand had slipped beneath the back of her bra, and slowly,
slowly, it was inching to the side. Even in the midst of the kiss,
Tsukushi felt almost single-mindedly aware of his movement, and for a
few intense moments she forgot to breathe, conscious only of a tingling
just below the base of her breasts. She froze when she realized it was
anticipation of the arrival of his hands. Tsukasa felt her go rigid,
and he took the moment to stop and breathe. His lips relaxed, and his
head tilted away from hers.
~No control...~
Their lips parted, and Tsukasa took a ragged breath.
"Makino.." he pleaded in the instant before their mouths came together
again.
~at all...~
~but somehow...~
She didn't want him to stop kissing her even for a second, but
persistently, he pulled away. Her eyes fluttered open. "Do you.." he
started, before his eyes squeezed shut and he pulled her into another
hot, brief kiss.
~I'm not scared...~
This time, when he let go, both their eyes were open, and the
gravity between them took a breath to make way for his words. When
they came out, they were charged and broken. "Do you know what you are
doing to me...?" he half-gasped, half-growled, his gaze hot and his
hands still pressing possessively into her skin. She felt herself
smile, and a warmth of love filled her.
~Me too...~
"Yeah..." she breathed as she leaned in to kiss him.
~Me too...!!~
And when the force of her leaning body began to topple them
over, neither one fought it, and the coolness of the bedsheets soon met
the heat of their embrace in a red and white blossom of sensation.
~Me too... me most of all...~
He was enveloped in a canopy of her, her hair falling to spread
across his forehead like the spray of a waterfall, her hands tangled in
his hair, arms lying on each either side of his face, body suspended
just over his, one of her legs between his bent knees. He could feel
the pressure of parts of her he'd never dared dream of imagining, and
just the knowledge of what they were made him half-crazy. And then...
and then... she whimpered into his mouth, and he nearly lost it right
there.
~Doumyouji, do you know what you're doing to ME?~
Tsukasa's lips strayed from hers then, kissing down to her
jawline - and then she could do nothing but cry out as he pressed his
lips into the soft skin of her neck, over and over, in a million aching
places. She'd never even imagined anything could feel like this, and
there were no words for it... just a series of moans that escaped her
throat as her breathing quickened and her body, forgetting to balance
carefully above him, crashed powerfully against his.
~I don't understand it but... don't stop... if you stop I'll
die...~
She could feel his hands at work on her collar, and before she
knew it he was urging her shirt off, kissing the skin of her shoulder
as it was exposed little by little, filling her with chills and heat
both at once. Unconsciously she lifted her arms one by one to aid him,
and then all at once his shirt was gone too, and they were lying side
by side, the sheets pulled over them and isolating them in a starched
white world - and his warm, warm bare skin against hers was one of the
most intimate and amazing sensations she had ever had...
~I'm so happy it hurts...~
He kissed her mouth thoroughly, caressing her face with earnest
hands, making her feel like something fragile, something that must be
treasured. She hardly knew what to do in return but hold on and try to
keep up with his long, measured kisses. But she couldn't think,
couldn't plan, when her mind would do nothing but repeat his name.
~Doumyouji...~
She was sure he was whispering something between urgent kisses,
but she couldn't interpret it. When one of his hands flew downward to
her chest, she bit her lip and tried hard not to cry out, but his mouth
soothed hers and guided it, teaching her a pattern of kissing away the
intensity of the sensation when it overflowed. Her hands tried to
answer his movements, and while the terrain was different, a flood of
satisfaction filled her when he sent a barely audible growl vibrating
into her mouth.
~Doumyouji...~
When she realized, some time later, just what the lower half of
their bodies had been doing, she was so embarrassed she nearly melted
down completely. But now she wasn't aware of the rhythm of the motions
or the heat that was building between them. All she knew was she felt
close to him, closer than she'd ever been. Even being lost in him,
unable to think, unable to reason or identify where she was or what she
was doing, felt much more like coming home to a long-lost Garden of
Eden, a heaven. That sparkling sea she'd considered love to be so long
ago was now surrounding her, submerging her. She gave herself up to
its waves.
~Doumyouji...~
"TSUKASA!!"
~GEH.~
That voice was not supposed to be there.
Shivers turned to cold sweat immediately, and Tsukushi and
Tsukasa froze, still half-tangled together, suddenly not even
breathing. The moment shattered and broke in several pieces around
them, and they lay among its ruins as the muffled sound of high heels
on carpet thudded somewhere near them.
"Give me a break!" Tsubaki ranted, looking around the room.
What a dump. The bed was a mess, all wrinkled and lumpy sheets - how
could that clumsy arrangement of pillows he'd set up to fake sleeping
have gotten worse? And dirty clothes on the bathroom floor, the porch
window open... "That boy," she fumed. "His big sister comes home and
where is he? The bathroom's a mess, too..."
When her heels clicked on the bathroom floor, Tsukushi dared to
breathe. "Onee-sa..." she began to exclaim in a panicked voice.
Tsukasa put a finger against her lips. His eyes rolled to the
side as he listened intently. "Sh... I think she's gone into the
bathroom," he whispered. His breath felt hot against Tsukushi's face.
"Wait a bit."
Tsukushi gritted her teeth and tried not to breathe. All at
once she was very conscious of how bad this would look if they were
discovered... and just how much of her would be exposed besides her
secret...!
~Eeek... I'm half-naked...!!~
"Oh well. The least I can do is neaten up that bed," Tsubaki
announced to no one in particular as she left the bathroom. She rolled
up her sleeves, not noticing that those lumps on the bed that bothered
her so were radiating some serious heat.
~Geh...~
Tsubaki grabbed the bottom of the sheet. "All... right..."
"Shuddup, Nee-chan."
Her eyes widened. "Tsukasa?"
A bare-chested Tsukasa sat up in bed and yawned conspicuously.
His face was flushed and his hair tousled, as though he'd been very
much asleep. "Can't you let a guy sleep at this hour?" he complained
as Tsubaki stared. He cracked his shoulders as the remaining lump on
the bed prayed very hard not to be noticed.
Tsubaki clenched a fist, annoyed. "And where were you!? Don't
you dare tell your big sister that you've been sleeping all this
time," she threatened.
"Does it matter where?" Tsukasa answered noncommitally,
yawning again.
Shrugging, Tsubaki changed the subject. "Ah, never mind that,"
she said, clapping her hands, suddenly sweet as sugar. "How are things
with Tsukushi-chan?"
Tsukasa paused briefly. "Who knows. She's going out with that
lookalike guy." Tsukushi, below, knew exactly what his face must look
like... puffed-out red cheeks, avoiding eye contact with his big
sister... even if his mouth could tell a lie, his face could not.
And Tsukushi also knew from the tone of her voice that Tsubaki
had picked up on it. "Oh? Well, why don't I have a seat right over
here, and you can tell me all about it."
Tsukushi worried that Tsukasa couldn't pull off the charade,
but at least she could breathe a little easier knowing Tsubaki had
given up trying to make hospital corners out of her. At least, she had
that luxury for the moment and a half it took her to realize that
"right over here" meant the bed!
"So what happened?" Tsubaki asked casually as she sat down
squarely on the edge of Tsukushi's hair. The poor fugitive bit down on
the bedsheets hard so she wouldn't scream in pain. Sweat poured down
her face in torrents. Somewhere, some god or other was laughing at
her, she was sure of it! Scowling, she pinched Tsukasa's leg, trying
desperately to make him aware of her plight.
Tsukasa just turned blue, and when Tsubaki hummed in curiosity
at his sudden reaction, he stammered anxiously, "I d... don't really
wanna talk about it." Beneath the covers, he tried to swat away
Tsukushi's hand as though it were a persistent fly.
"Oh? Why?" his sister asked, still oblivious to the goings-on
just below her.
Tsukushi pinched him again, and Tsukasa's blue face turned
pink. Taking a deep breath, he shifted on the bed to pin Tsukushi's
hand firmly beneath his leg. She winced and bit harder on the sheets
as he said apologetically, "Sorry, Nee-chan... but can you just leave
me alone?"
"Well..." Tsubaki started, patting down the comforter next to
her. Then she stopped short. Her hand wandered, patted further, and
then stopped short.
Tsukushi prayed. Tsukasa stared.
Abruptly, Tsubaki ceased her movement and got up. "If you say
so... but if you want to talk remember I ALWAYS want to listen," she
reminded her little brother sweetly. She hummed softly as she moved
briskly toward the door. When she reached the doorway, she turned to
give Tsukasa a syrupy smile. Joyfully, she chirped, "Goodnight, you
two...!"
"Yeah, g'night..." Tsukasa began sleepily, and the door had
already clicked closed before his eyes bugged out and he roared
"...YOU TWO!?" at the now-empty room.
~The secret's out...~
Somewhere on the other side of the mansion, Tsubaki poured Tama
a glass of champagne. The two women clinked glasses and congratulated
each other on a job well done. "Cheers!"
"Oh, brother..."
Tsukasa hung his head, rubbing his eyes and temples with both
hands. His shoulders were hunched over, his eyebrows knotted.
Tsukushi sat up then, drawing a length of bedsheet over her bare body
with one thin hand, and put her other hand on Tsukasa's arm. "Are you
all right, Doumyouji?" she said quietly.
He didn't answer, but just groaned to himself again. Tsukushi
felt at a loss. She found herself really wanting to cheer him up, to
bring the smile back to his eyes that she had seen before he'd first
kissed her that night. Unconsciously, her fingers moved in a slow
caress across the width of his arm. "That was pretty scary," she
offered. "But it's Onee-san, so I think things will be all right.
Don't you?"
He lifted his face slightly, and at the sight of her concerned
eyes, his features melted into a smile, the tension in his forehead
disappearing. He touched her face and kissed her cheek, and the gentle
movement sent shivers through her. "...Yeah, I'm okay," he said in a
soft voice. "I didn't know Nee-chan was back. But you're right, it
should be okay. I'll talk to her tomorrow."
~Doumyouji...~
Tsukushi could feel her eyes filling with tears. Her world
seemed to vibrate with the comfort of Tsukasa's touch, his voice.
Secrets, confidences, and worries would have to wait until morning.
All she knew, all she had room to know in her drowsily humming head at
that moment, was that she loved him, and that she was happy with him.
Her head nodded forward sleepily, and he caught her and held her to his
chest with strong hands. Her hands touched his back tentatively. She
closed her eyes and inhaled the scent of his presence.
~Your warmth...~
"In any case, let's go to sleep..." he said into her tangled
hair, his lips like a burning caress on the top of her head. She
murmured assent as he laid her down on the coolness of the pillow,
wrapping his arms around her. Moonlight shifted over the bed and
lulled Tsukushi into a sweet, dreamless sleep.
~From now on... it'll always be surrounding me, right?~
--'til next time--