Navy and Azure
by Apple-chan

Disclaimer: Obviously not mine.

RenxPilica. Contains lots of waff, fluff, angst...and a really, infuriatingly annoying Tao En. Set approximately 11 years after the Anime. Their love knows no boundaries. Their love is limitless, timeless...endless. He completed her, and she completed him...in the most ultimate sense. Yet...love does not always automatically lead to a happy ending.

Warnings: PG-13 for adult situations and mild swearing.

Chapter 4 - Scarlet Fantasies


Ren stared at the garter in his hand with disbelief, then glared darkly at all the grinning faces of his friends.

How the hell did all this happen?

A minute ago, he was sitting on one of the chairs nearest to the corner of the secondary sponsor table in the reception hall, minding his own business. And now...he was at the center of the ballroom, directly across from where the newlywed couple--Yoh and Anna, that is--were located, and who were now both watching him with great interest and expectation. Everyone's eyes were on him. Him, the young man who had caught the garter right at that moment when Yoh threw it...and he wasn't even one of those who had eagerly lined up for it. He had managed to catch the blasted lacy stretchy garment--rather, his incredibly conspicuous tongari -caught- it for him.

He really needed to get rid of that stupid pointed abomination in his head. Although it was good enough as a weapon to hurt his friends with occasionally, it mainly served him no purpose, and was starting to become a bother. Now that he was almost practically as tall as his father, he didn't need it anymore to increase his height. He didn't -want- it anymore...especially since it attracted too much attention--not only from people, but from animals, plants, and inanimate objects--like the blasted garter.

Speaking of the blasted garter...he glared down at the garment he was clutching, wishing to God that he could just throw it away somewhere and end it just like that. This is all stupid. He didn't even want to catch this thing. He was perfectly content with glaring off to wherever he was glaring off just a moment ago, thank you very much. And he wanted to get back to doing just that.

He found himself glaring murderously once again as, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted an incredibly drunk Bokutou no Ryu chasing after his precious, most wonderful older sister...and his Neesan was running for dear life, while at the same time, trying to squeeze into all the possible corners she could hide herself in, only to get herself found by the godforsaken man. As his sister disappeared behind the curtains of the hall to hide from Ryu once again, Ren found himself muttering a colorful stream of profanities under his breath. His sister was being attacked by a drunken madman, and what the hell was he doing to stop it? Nothing. He was standing here and holding a piece of...whatever this is and dreading what will probably be one of the worst experiences in the whole seventeen years of his life. This is stupid. Whose idea was this, anyway?

He turned his head and glared at the culprits: Lyserg, and Chocolove. Damn those two Western pricks for planting this Western idea into Yoh and Anna's heads. Damn them both to hell. Currently, the said pricks--together with Manta and Faust--were restraining what, to Ren, looked like a very, very, -very- angry Horo-horo with a whipped cream covered face. He vaguely remembered that earlier, in the heat of his anger against Ryu, he had managed to elbow the Ainu shaman's head and sent his face landing straight into a large, untouched plate of custard cream pie.

Beside the table where his friends were trying to restrain Horo-horo, was the thirteen-year-old Iron Maiden Jeanne, who was sitting primly and properly beside Marco, all the while calmly watching the proceedings...and occasionally exchanging a furtive smile with Lyserg when she thought her guardian wasn't looking. Meanwhile, on the other side of the hall, still very near where he was, he spotted Asakura Hao, who, upon seeing his glare, waved at him cheerfully and mouthed for him to hurry up.

Ren's eyes went back to the center of the hall, to the married couple's position. The beautiful and lethal Asakura Anna had a very hard frown on her face...and a vein that was hovering dangerously on the brink of popping on her forehead. Little by little, while gazing at all the chaos that surrounded her wedding reception, her frown evolved...into a full-fledged homicidal glare. Meanwhile, Yoh was trying very hard to calm her down. He flashed Ren a brief, pleading look, mouthing the phrase "get it over with" to him as he did so. On the adjacent side of Anna, Tamao the maid of honor was fussing over the bride's clothing and attempting something very similar to what Yoh was doing.

...Get it over with. Right. Sighing with resignation, Ren finally focused on the lady who had caught the bouquet, just moments ago. All throughout his mental contemplations and musings, he had purposely ignored the young woman, whoever the hell she may be. He didn't see her catch the bouquet. By God, he didn't even see -himself- catching the garter, so how could he be bothered by such an irrelevant detail?

It doesn't matter. Bracing himself, Ren kneeled in front of the young woman, who was sitting on a chair provided at the center of the ballroom. He held the garter in front of him, eyeing it with distaste, wondering why women had a partiality for such a small, insignificant garment. It probably symbolized something. These things always do. Shaking his head free of all thoughts, he focused once more on the young woman in front of him...and found himself gazing at a pair of what has got to be the most beautiful, smoothest and fairest and shapeliest pair of legs he had ever seen in his whole life. Granted, he had not seen -that- many, and granted, only a little bit of the skin was peeking out from underneath her gown, but still...to elicit this kind of a reaction from Tao Ren, one would have to be...close to perfection.

He slowly ascended his gaze from her feet up, an odd expression crossing over his face as his eyes met a pair of dark blue ones squarely.

She gave him an uncertain smile.

His heart gave a slight leap. He -knew- who this young lady was. -Of course- he knew who she was...

Right?

For some mysterious reason, he couldn't quite remember her. She was cradling Anna's soft bouquet of white roses in her hands. She was watching him keenly, wondering what he was going to do next.

...What was he -supposed- to do next? Somewhere in between gazing at her face and wondering who she was...he must have forgotten.

"REN-KUN," Hao's voice was extremely, irritatingly loud. "We're falling asleep here."

Ren turned his head a bit and flashed the long-haired shaman his most deadly glare. Then, he went back to his current predicament...er, situation.

"Ren-kun..." The young lady who caught the bouquet--the lady whose identity he forgot--gave him a soft, inviting smile. His breath caught. "Let's do this already," she whispered to him.

Who is this girl? He wondered as he continued to study her face. There was something very, very familiar about her...he just couldn't pinpoint it. Not yet, at least...but he'll probably be able to figure out who she was...all in due time.

"Stop staring at MY SISTER!" Horo-horo shouted behind him. "...And Pilica, STOP staring back!"

Horo-horo's sister...Pilica? Ren thought with disbelief. The girl who hits him and Horo-horo about twenty times a day each and every time they see each other, which was practically everyday, just to cease their arguments? The brat who cries over the littlest things? The obsessive brother-torturer? The little snob who used to sniff with dislike against any other shaman sans her brother? The girl he has known for, oh...the last five years?

...Well, damn. He must be pretty blind not to have noticed. He had seen her grow up right in front of his very eyes. He had seen her transform from a little girl to a young woman. He had seen her grow from the little brat to the...well, what -had- she grown up into? He wasn't exactly sure. Either way, he had witnessed everything. Everything.

But then again, he hadn't been exactly watching her the whole time, was he? She was such an insignificant detail in his life. Insignificant details weren't worth any of his time...right?

Right...?

Well, damn it all to hell.

"Ren-kun, just place the garter up around my...thigh already," she whispered. "Everyone's starting to become restless," she added.

He frowned up at her. "Why should I?" He asked stubbornly. He was still thinking, dammit...and -no one- in the world has the right to interrupt his thoughts...no matter how beautiful she happens to be. No one.

Pilica rolled her eyes to the ceiling and exhaled impatiently. Then, she swung her right leg in front of his face and raised the skirts of her bridesmaid gown up. "DO IT," she ordered, giving him a warning look.

He gave her another frown, before he shifted his eyes down. A blush crept up his cheeks as he stared at her thighs. They were white, smooth, and flawless--just like her legs. And probably just like the rest of her. He shook his head vigorously and averted his eyes. Hormones. Distraction. She was a very, very, -very- tempting distraction...and he was allowing himself to get distracted. He was allowing his hormones to take over his body...and his mind.

...Dammit.

"Ren-kun, what's taking you so FREAKING LONG?" Hao sighed dramatically. "Look, she's offering HERSELF to you already. It would be quite -rude- to REFUSE." He added meaningfully.

"SHUT UP!" He and Horo-horo barked at the same time. Then, they looked at each other and glared.

"Lay your hand on HER for more than TWO SECONDS and I SWEAR, I will kill you," Horo-horo snarled.

A smirk formed across Ren's face as an idea came to him. Gazing up at Pilica, he flashed her his most charming grin. Satisfied with the blush that it elicited from her, he raised the garter up her heel, painstakingly and purposefully slowing his movements in order to spite Horo-horo.

...And partly so that he could prolong touching her. He really didn't want to stop. Touching her made electricity flow through his veins, awakening things inside him that he never knew existed. Touching her made his blood rush, flow, boil...making him feel as alive as he had never felt before...

Hormones. His hormones were definitely overtaking his senses. Shaking his head hastily, he ignored the weird thumping and thundering sounds inside his chest and forced himself to look away from her long enough to be able to flash her brother a triumphant grin. Long enough to arouse the ire of the Ainu shaman.

And he found himself unable to look away. Her eyes drew him, beckoned him...and he was allowing himself to be beckoned. He couldn't do otherwise. He was staring at her, he knew...and she was staring back. Her eyes were like enthralling sapphire jewels...so beautiful, so mesmerizing--and breathtaking.

Just like the rest of her. Indescribably beautiful, and hypnotizing.

A wonderful, irresistible kind of hypnosis...

"DAMMIT, REN," Horo-horo growled. "TAKE YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF MY SISTER!" He escaped from his four captors' hold and stalked furiously towards the Chinese shaman.

"Horo-horo-kun, NO!" Faster than lightning, Lyserg jumped in front of the Ainu shaman, losing his balance in the process and knocking both himself and Horo-horo to the floor.

"...ITAI! Lyserg, let go of me..." Horo-horo struggled on the floor. "I'm going to kill that little runt--"

"No you won't," Hao chimed in gleefully. "Rather...you CAN'T."

"Why NOT?!?" Horo-horo demanded as he continued to struggle out of the dowser's grasp.

Hao smiled sweetly and gracefully inclined his head towards Pilica. "...THAT'S why not."

The Ainu shaman glared at him suspiciously, still struggling against Lyserg's hold as he turned his head towards his sister...

...Her eyes were locked with Ren's, and they were gazing at each other intensely. VERY intensely. In fact, they haven't taken their eyes off each other for the past three minutes.

The clock ticked. Four minutes.

"Excuse me..." Hao's annoyingly sweet voice chirped once again. "Ren-kun, Pilica-chan." He stood up, crossed the room towards the center of the ballroom, and waved his hand in front of their faces. "You've successfully managed to put the garter on her, Ren-kun. You two are done."

"Huh?" Ren snapped back to reality and gave him a blank look.

Hao rolled his eyes. "I SAID...you're DONE, Ren-kun. Done. As in FINISHED," he said with emphasis. "So you can let go of her thigh already before Horo-horo-kun murders you," he added with a wicked grin.

And at once, Ren took his hands off of her and stood up. He turned around and started to walk away. "Thank God THAT'S over," he muttered under his breath as placed his hands inside the pockets of his formal slacks, all the while trying to still the beating of his heart...and ignoring the faint lingering warmth of her skin against his hands...

"Wait a minute, it's not over yet!" Yoh's voice sounded cheerfully, and Ren found himself being pulled back towards the center of the ballroom once again. "You two are going to lead the dance along with us!" He announced. The groom had an arm around his newly-acquired wife's waist, and Ren noticed that Anna looked slightly dazed and off-balanced. Vaguely, he wondered if the Itako's current state was the product of her husband's successful attempts in distracting her mind away from the slight pandemonium Yoh's friends--him included--had caused and were still causing at the moment. He was probably right. Briefly, he wondered -when-, exactly, had Yoh been able to...execute his distracting plans, for he certainly didn't notice it. The newlywed couple was only a few of feet away from where he was, and he didn't even notice. How in the world could he -not- notice...oh yeah.

All throughout that time...he must have been distracted with something, as well. He had been distracted by the garter, and the young woman who had caught the bouquet, who had turned out to be none other than Horo-horo's sister Pilica. He had been distracted by her eyes, her face, her body, her...skin. And he had willingly allowed himself to get distracted.

Well, damn.

He turned his head...and the second he set eyes once again on Horo-horo's sister, his mind suddenly registered what Yoh just told him earlier: him and Pilica, along with Yoh and Anna, were going to lead the dance.

The slow dance.

...What the HELL?

*

Ren stared blankly at the spacious hall in front of him as he increased his pace on the treadmill, all the while trying to recall the events of last night, right from the time he and Pilica arrived at the Estate, up until he had said goodnight to her before the two of them went to bed. He forcefully shook off any negative thoughts and focused only on the positive ones.

His secretary was the same as always, barraging and fussing over him, reminding him of everything he thinks Ren should be reminded of, and supplying him with all the crucial details that he had missed during his week-long absence at the Estate. Kang Mei had always been more of a timid older brother than an actual secretary--an actual assistant to Ren, as the man had been on his post for more than ten years. Kang had assumed his role as Ren's secretary-cum-assistant ever since he had officially inherited the Clan Head title from his father. Although, more often than not, Kang was found torn between him and his father, the man was astoundingly loyal, for in his book, it was Ren-sama's wishes that came first and foremost, regardless of whether En-sama disapproves of it or not...or whether he demands otherwise.

As for his mother and grandfather, they were particularly excited and happy to have him finally back at last. Their enthusiasm was evident all throughout dinner, with the way they regarded him--and Pilica, as well--with eager interest and cheerful attention. The whole dinner had been fixed up rather elaborately as well, which wasn't quite surprising. Tao Ran had a flair for the special, and in her opinion, her son's homecoming was more important and should be celebrated just like any other event in their family.

As for Ren...although he didn't much prefer all the lavish preparations his mother, his father, grandfather and the rest of Estate had made just for him, he appreciated it all the same. His mother and his grandfather were sincere, he knew that much. His father, on the other hand, had motives...and he had found that out during the little talk that they had right after dinner.

Ren's jaw tightened as he remembered. No matter how hard he tried to block out all his negative thoughts, one slight mention of En was all it took for them to resurface. He increased his pace in the treadmill. Last night's little verbal tirade has got to be one of the shortest and most infuriating ones he and his father had ever had. Up until last night, he had never felt quite so angry and so defiant in his whole life. In their usual talks, it was always just him who was the subject of all the discussions--him, his actions, and the decisions he made in his life. But last night...last night was different. Last night, he had someone else's dignity and honor to protect from his father's lashings. Last night, he had been in weak, defensive mode, warding off his father's violent attacks against Pilica's persona--in futility. He had been so powerless to protect her from his father's painful verbal assertions. Now, he didn't even know why he had bothered. His efforts to protect her had been for naught--En had successfully managed to hurt her, and the worst thing about it was, he had allowed it to happen without meaning to.

Ren exhaled, shaking off the perspiration that had accumulated on his face as he went even faster, channeling all his anger and frustration onto the treadmill furiously. He only hoped his attempts in comforting her were enough to at least compensate for his father's harsh words--words that she undoubtedly heard with her own ears. Words that had wounded her deeply. He had tried to assure her that nothing can stop them as long as they were together, but...he wondered if they could actually live up to that. He certainly hoped so.

Briefly, he recalled a couple of the vows he had told his father in his anger...I love her, and I'm going to marry her.

Her. Pilica.

...He had actually told his father that he was going to marry her. He frowned slightly. Yes, he had said that to the old man in the heat of the moment--but did he really mean it? Did he really, honest-to-goodnessly want to marry her right NOW? He just didn't know. He didn't even know if he had the courage to ask her. It had taken him six years, for crying out loud, just to confess his love for her...and even then, he had first admitted it to a child--a one-year-old boy, no less. And even then, it had to take him getting infuriated by Asakura Hao, and Pilica running after him for him to be able to finally admit his feelings.

Now, he didn't have six years, and he didn't have an Asakura Ren-chan or an Asakura Hao to back him up. He would have to propose to her on his own. He would have to propose to her as soon as possible...otherwise, his father would never let him hear the end of it. Furthermore, because the old man heard straight from Ren's own mouth about his intended marriage proposal, it wouldn't be hard to second-guess what the man's next action was going to be. He wouldn't be surprised if En suddenly decides to...FORCE any one of the women he had lined up for his son to choose from on him.

Ren gave a little hiss of anger. I don't want any other woman. I already have the one I want.
Besides...courage notwithstanding, he really would love to marry Pilica. He would love to have her as his wife. He would love to spend the rest of his life with her. He wanted to be with her for always. She was the only one for him. He really didn't want anyone else--and certainly NOT any of those other women. He would never be able to love any of those women. She was the only one he could ever love.

I -do- intend to marry her soon. I do. Just...not right now. I can't ask her now...I can't.

I can't because...well...he shook his head helplessly. I don't have the courage. I'm...a coward.

With one final, resigned sigh, Ren finished up on the treadmill, wiping himself with a towel as he headed towards the bathroom.

I'm a coward.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Pilica stole a shy look at her dance partner.

The moment she turned her head towards him, their eyes met. She looked away quickly, fighting off the blush that was threatening to stain her cheeks and trying very hard to calm the frantic beating of her heart. Her right hand was cold and clammy and clasped against his left, and her whole body was frozen in a stiff position due to the fact that his other hand was on her waist. Even though he was steering her around the ballroom, even though they were dancing, she was unable to move freely. Or rather, she -didn't- want to move. Shifting a little bit wouldn't do anything to ease their situation...rather, it might only serve to heighten her nervousness more.

She didn't even know why she was nervous. It wasn't like she didn't know her dance partner. -He- was Tao Ren, for the love of God--her brother's rival for virtually everything on the planet. She's known him for five years. By heck, he'd been subjected to her ire more times than she could even count. She'd hit him on the head more times than she could ever count, too...at least, up until that time when the two of them were still about the same height. Meaning, the year before last.

When in the world had he gotten so tall? She wondered silently. Now, she needed to look up just so she could see his face...-not- that she was really itching to look at him, mind you. He had a pretty normal face. He didn't look like a mental case, that's for sure. She'd seen him millions of times. She probably had the length of his tongari memorized. She probably had his stance memorized...

Not that she's been observing him, mind you...because she hasn't. Alright, so maybe she has, but it wasn't anything like...that. She was merely gauging him for her brother's sake. Yes, that's right. For Oniichan. She was measuring her Horo-Oniichan's opponents. That was her job, as his trainer. Yes, that was it.

"Stop being so darn stiff," he murmured against her ear. His breath brushed against her neck. Her heart skipped a beat. Several times.

Instead of heeding his request, she stiffened even more in his arms. She didn't know why the rush of his breath against her skin made her heart react like that. Like it knew that she had never felt anything that...that foreign in her whole life. But of course it -knew-. It was -her- heart, for Christ's sake. If there was one part of her body which would know something like that, it would be her heart.

Why was she even thinking about this anyway? Something as irrelevant as a freakingly short rush of breath against her skin was not worth any of her time, or her thoughts. It wasn't even worth any heartbeat at all, or any feeling, or any...

"Darn it, Pilica..." Dear God, there he goes again, breathing against my neck, Pilica thought. Ok, calm down. Calm. Down. "Would you please try to RELAX? I'm not going to eat you." He adjusted his hold on her hand and waist, forcing her to calm her rigid stance.

Still, she remained frozen.

An exhale. And then, "Pilica. Look at me." He bent down and tried to catch her eye. "Look at me, darn it."

"...No." She managed to whisper, swinging her gaze to and fro, avoiding his eyes, which were playing some sort of tug-of-war game with hers. She didn't want to look at him. She didn't want to dare taking a peek at him anymore--not if it meant her heart was going to go overdrive again. Looking at him made her heart beat fast. His breath on her skin made her heart skip a beat a thousand times. Now, if she looks at him at the same time that he breathes on her neck...it doesn't take a genius to guess what would happen. She'd be sentencing herself to an early death by heart attack. And she was only sixteen...she was definitely, definitely too young to die.

"Dammit." She heard him mutter under his breath, followed by a stream of words she couldn't quite comprehend. Much to her relief, he stopped trying to catch her eye. Instead, he took a long, deep breath...and loosened his hold on both her waist and her hands.

Thinking that he had finally given up dancing with her, Pilica was about to heave a sigh of relief...but that soon turned into nervousness once more as he swiftly grabbed her hands again, placing them around his neck as he simultaneously slid his arms around her waist and pulled her towards him.

If she was just nervous just a second ago, she was in panic now. In extreme, utterly inconceivable panic. He was holding her close...-too- close. There was only a mere fraction of a millimeter that hovered between his body and hers, and it was downright unnerving. Add to that the fact that his arms were around her waist...-tightly- woven around her waist.

She was going to die before this is all over. She just wasn't sure if it was going to be from panic, or heart attack...or both.

"Don't take this too personally. I'm just following the lead of the bride and the groom," he whispered. "...And everyone else," he added meaningfully.

"What?" She gazed up at him questioningly. Subconsciously, her body relaxed in his arms.

He grinned with satisfaction. "That's better." He removed one of his hands from her waist and tipped her chin up a bit, leveling their gazes. "Whatever you do, don't look away from me...alright?"

"Why not?" She frowned. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that someone was gesticulating frantically and shouting on one of the tables. Upon closer inspection, she realized that it was none other than her beloved Oniichan. Her dear older brother had a murderous look on his face and he was struggling against something that was holding him captive...or -someone- rather, who was trying very hard to restrain him from attacking... "Oniichan's angry," she gave her dance partner a confused look. "...Why?"

Ren raised an eyebrow. "What are we doing right now?"

"Dancing." She answered promptly. "...So what?" She shifted her gaze around her for a bit.

Near them, the bride and the groom were dancing far too close that it hovered on the brink of indecency. Somewhere a couple of feet away, the blonde, bespectacled Marco was imprisoned in the arms of a very large lady who was eagerly steering him around the dance floor, much to the man's chagrin, evident in the extremely tortured expression on his face. Occasionally, he was found glaring off at some direction in the floor. The object of his glares was none other than a familiar tuft of bright green hair--Lyserg Diethyl, who was twirling Iron Maiden Jeanne somewhere at the very edge of the ballroom, quite obviously lost in their own world, dancing to the beat of their own music. Near them, Faust VIII was caught up in a slow dance with his dearly beloved wife. The other guests were also dancing, and only a couple people were left on the tables--her brother, in particular, and the person who was restraining him. A dark aura was beginning to form around Horo-horo.

Ren sighed, taking hold of her chin and coaxing her to gaze back at him...and when she did, he spoke. "I'm not supposed to hold you any longer than two seconds," he explained dryly. "If I hold you any longer, he'd kill me. As of now, I've had my arms around you for about..." he paused, thinking, "fifteen minutes."

"You're doing this to spite him, aren't you?" She continued to gaze back at him. He really had the most astounding eyes. She'd noticed them when he was placing the garter up around her thigh. She wasn't able to see them that clearly then, but those intense orbs would never have failed to capture her senses even if there was a mile of distance between them. And now...she was so close. And she could see them very vividly, bright as the sun, mesmerizing as the moonlight. Drowning in them sounded good right about now...

A mischievous smile. "...Maybe." He traced the curve of her cheek with his fingers, the teasing smile never leaving his face as he caressed the smoothness of her face, before his hand shifted to her hair.

A furious blush crept up her cheeks, deepening with every passing second as he continued to touch her. "Maybe?" She repeated in a murmur.

"Uh-hm. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not." His eyes held her gaze...and she couldn't look away. She didn't want to. Her heart was beating so fast that she thought her chest was going to explode.

...This time, she really couldn't care less.

*

Pilica examined the large tray of food in front of her, a slight smile forming on her lips as she surveyed the contents. Three bottles of milk, three eggs, a couple of rolls, a large bowl of fruit, and a million other things besides--these are what constitutes Tao Ren's daily breakfast.

She had already eaten her breakfast with Ran and Ching a bit earlier, and she had enjoyed it very much, partly owing to the fact that En had not been around to join them. When she questioned Ran about this, the older woman had asserted that neither En nor Ren ever ate breakfast together with them. As early as dawn, En already had himself buried up in his study, while Ren woke up quite early to begin his daily training and then, resume his duties as the Clan Head afterwards. Breakfast was usually delivered to them on the dot, in the respective rooms they happened to be in.

That particular detail made her wonder if the reason why the two of them never ate breakfast in the same room was because they were trying to avoid each other. As if reading her mind, Ran assured her that avoidance wasn't the case at all--for if it was, they wouldn't be eating any of the other meals together either, but they did. It was just that both En and Ren preferred to work early before they did anything else. They were alike in that respect. However, the similarity ended there. Ran didn't elaborate on all the differences between her son and her husband, but Pilica could surmise quite a bit what they were. Yet she wasn't about to judge people hastily--she had only known En personally for a mere two days, after all. And Ren...even though she had known him for more than a decade, she still couldn't say that she knew him quite well.

One thing's for sure, though: as much as Ren loved her, his father hated her. For some reason, he hated her.

Perceptive as they both were, Ran and Ching had sensed the negative feelings En harbored towards Pilica, and during breakfast, they had advised her not to take him and his comments to heart. As for what he was capable of...they had assured her that she had nothing to worry about on that score.

"Just remember," Ran had told her confidently, "Ren is the Clan Head. He has the authority over this place. He decides how things are done, and who can come and who can go. Not my husband," she added with emphasis. "My husband goes with whatever Ren wants, regardless of whether he approves of them or not. So don't you worry about him." She smiled reassuringly.

"And if you have any problems with him whatsoever, you can always come to us," Ching had told her cheerfully. "I'm his father; I can still order him around."

Pilica's heart was quite warmed and relieved at what they had both told her. She really couldn't ask for anything more. Still, though...she wondered: why did Tao En hate her so much?

Pushing that thought out of her mind, she focused on the thing she had to do at the moment: Ren's breakfast. She had offered to take the tray up to his room despite Ran and Ching's insistence that she leave that task for the servants. As Ran pointed out to her, she was a guest in their household...and of Ren, no less, and that's plenty enough reason why she shouldn't be allowed to do anything that remotely resembled a servant's work. She should relax--that was the only thing she needed to do, according to Ran.

As grateful as she was, Pilica had told the older woman that she was used to this kind of thing, being that she and her brother lived alone for the most part in their little cottage in the fields. And besides, she was only going to do this for Ren, and no one else. At that point, Ran had relented, and as she gave the azure-haired young woman her affirmation, Ren's mother had also exchanged a secret, knowing smile with Ching. Pilica had caught their little exchange...and she wondered what that was all about.

Realizing it wouldn't do any good to contemplate about it anymore, she picked up the tray, carefully balancing it on her hands as she prepared to have it transported up to Ren's room.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ren-kun?" Pilica called out tentatively as she stood by the slightly ajar door of Ren's quarters, cradling the breakfast tray in her arms. When she didn't get an answer, she pushed the door open with her foot, hesitantly peeking in before entering completely.

She set the tray down on top of the table by windowsill...and then, turning around, she took a couple of steps, surveying her surroundings with fascination. She fingered the navy blue bedcovers as she passed by his four-poster. The curtains hanging by the windows were light golden in color, and the cover of his dresser and chest drawers were in the same shade as well. Every article in his room was either navy blue or light golden; sometimes, with occasional touches of maroon here and there. Mostly, though...the room was composed of the colors that defined him--at least, physically.

As she continued to look around, her eyes caught a small, delicately framed picture by his bedside table. She walked towards it, painstakingly holding the light gold frame in her hands, wanting to examine it closer...and she found herself being pushed back through time as she gazed at a four-year-old Tao Ren in the picture.

Even before, he's already got that perpetual frown on his face, she thought. A frown, mixed in with a slight smirk. A small sigh escaped her lips. She stroked the picture fondly, her fingers running over the image with a mixture of reverence, love, and affection...almost as if she was touching the person himself...almost as if it was actually Ren she was touching.

Underneath his frown and smirk, though...a hint of sadness laced the young Ren's golden eyes.

The image in the picture wasn't very different from the Ren that she knew now. Except for the fact that he was taller, older, and more mature--a man, instead of a boy--a lot of the times, she could still see the hint of sadness in his eyes. The shadow of a frown in his face. And the smirk--it relieved her to know that, at least, his trademark smirk had now been replaced by a real, genuine smile.

A small, startled gasp escaped her lips as a pair of arms slid around her waist and pulled her close. "...Ren-kun," she managed to whisper.

He gave a soft chuckle. "How long have you been here?" He breathed against her neck.

"I...I'm not sure," she murmured, sighing as he began to press gentle, fleeting kisses to her nape. "I've brought you breakfast."

His arms tightened around her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," she managed. She drew in a breath as his lips grazed her ear. She leaned against him, savoring the feel of his arms around her as one of her hands reached up to caress his hair. "You smell good..."

"Uh-hm. I just took a bath..." His lips traveled to the side of her neck. "I just realized I haven't greeted you good morning just yet, so...good morning..."

"Good morning," She greeted back with a soft, blissful sigh. She placed the picture back on top of the table and shifted a bit in his arms, with every intention of turning around so that she could face him directly...and so that they could kiss more fully...

Her actions were halted by a knock on the door. "...Ren-sama?"

Ren groaned against her neck. "Kang. What is it?" A slight note of irritation laced his voice.

"...En-sama says he needs you in his study right now," the secretary answered promptly. "According to him, you have urgent clan business to attend to."

"Can't it wait? I'm a little busy at the moment."

"Uh...he said it was very urgent."

A couple of minutes of silence. And then, Ren sighed. "...Alright, Kang. Tell him I'll be there shortly. I'm just going to have breakfast."

"I will, Ren-sama." Footsteps echoed at the halls outside as Kang walked away.

Heaving another sigh, he pulled away from her with extreme reluctance. "I'm sorry." He walked over to his breakfast tray and began wolfing down the contents as fast as he could.

Pilica sat down on his bed as she watched him eat. "For what?" She realized that he didn't have a shirt on. She could feel the blush rising to her cheeks as she examined his lean, muscular form, noting that this was the very first time she had ever seen him half-naked...she shook her head hastily. Hentai thoughts. You're having hentai thoughts, Pilica.
Taking a swift drink from his third and final bottle of milk, he gestured towards the door. "...This," he answered quietly. "Business dealings." He rolled his eyes. "If it wasn't for the family, I wouldn't be doing any of this, but..." he shrugged helplessly. He walked towards the closet and pulled out a shirt. He put it on, smiling apologetically at her as he fastened the buttons.

She stared at his empty breakfast tray in amusement before turning and smiling brightly at him. "It's fine," she assured. "I'll wait for you here."

"Good." A slow grin spread across his face as he crossed the room towards her. Clasping her shoulders gently, he bent down and gave her a long, dizzying, incredibly thorough, and equally satisfying kiss. His mouth moved over hers almost as if he was trying to memorize every single inch of her and engraving them into his whole being. She held on to his shirt tightly for support as she closed her eyes and kissed him back with equal passion, ardor...and love.

With extreme reluctance, and what seemed like every ounce of willpower he possessed, he tore his mouth from hers, tracing his fingers gently across her lower lip, savoring the aftermath of a kiss that was entirely too short for either one of them. "I won't be gone long, I promise." With a final, fleeting kiss, he exited through the door, leaving her incredibly breathless and dazed long after he had left.

*

"Kiss?" Ren and Pilica said at the same time.

"Hai!" Hao nodded cheerfully. "I do believe it's part of the tradition. The man who catches the garter will have to kiss the woman who caught the bouquet." He recited like a college professor. "Isn't that right, everyone?" He shouted loudly enough for all the people in the reception hall to hear. Everyone who was dancing had paused in their step the second that he announced that it was time for the bearer of the garter and the bearer of the bouquet's traditional kiss.

"Yep," Yoh answered promptly, grinning at his twin and kissing his wife's cheek fondly.

"Uh-huh," Lyserg smiled at Ren, glared darkly at Hao and squeezed the hand of his dance partner, the beautiful Iron Maiden Jeanne, who smiled at him sweetly in response. "It's tradition," he added.

"Is it?" Ren demanded.

"...YES!" Chocolove, who was at the table still restraining Horo-horo, answered in a shout.

"NO!" Horo-horo shouted back, glaring murderously at Ren, while at the same time, struggling against the comedian's hold. "You are NOT going to kiss my SISTER! Absolutely NOT!"

Ren rolled his eyes to the ceiling. He then gazed at Pilica beside him. She was staring off into far space, her cheeks extremely flushed. She refused to meet his eyes.

And yet...just a couple of minutes ago, while they were dancing, she was looking at him squarely. She was staring straight into his eyes, without flinching. And he was staring right back. Not only was he staring, he was also touching her. He was caressing her face, and her hair...which probably explains her brother's current murderous tendencies. After all, the Ainu shaman had threatened him with death if he ever touches Pilica for more than two seconds. And he was probably touching her for about, oh...an hour or so? They had been dancing -that- long.

And, despite the fact that he had kept insisting to himself that he was only doing it to infuriate Horo-horo, he couldn't deny that...he enjoyed every minute of it. He enjoyed having her in his arms. He enjoyed having her stare at him, and he enjoyed staring right back.

Honestly? He didn't want the moment to end. He wanted to hold her and gaze at her and dance with her for as long as he could...

...Damn. What the HELL is this?

But really, kissing her would be going -way- too far.

However, that's not to say he didn't want it...for truth be told, he did.

Well, damn.

"Come on, Ren-kun!" Came Hao's urging voice. "Kiss her already."

He gave the long-haired shaman a look. Then, realizing that he might as well get it over and done with, he inched closer towards her, tapping her shoulder as he leaned against her ear. "Pilica. Look at me."

"No." She stared at the opposite direction where he was, refusing to turn her head. But he could hear her breath catch.

He rolled his eyes to the ceiling. Here she goes again. Maybe he could manage a brief kiss on her cheek...that should be acceptable. He bent his head slightly and leaned towards her face...

...And she chose that time to turn her head. "What are you--?" Her eyes widened incredulously as his lips landed on hers.

He froze for about half a second, his mind still trying to process what just happened. What he had just managed to do.

He had kissed her. Actually, he was still kissing her. His lips were still on hers. And he didn't want to pull away.

She didn't look like she wanted to pull away, either. Her eyes were slowly drifting shut as her hands tightly clenched and unclenched at her sides. At the same time, her lips slowly softened against his...

And he did what any normal, hormone-overloaded seventeen-year-old boy would have done under the circumstances: he kissed her again. He brushed his lips against hers once, twice, thrice...and a couple of more times until he had lost count of it and lost awareness of everything else that was happening around him. -She- was the only one who existed. She...and him.

Her hands slid up around his neck just as he pulled her against him. Her fingers twined in his hair as she kissed him back, her mouth moving over his sweetly, with so much passion, so much of herself pouring deeply into the kiss that he wondered how she could still be standing there beside him when he knew for certain that she had already give her whole self to him in that kiss.

This definitely wasn't just his hormones working here. If this was just his hormones, then...how come he felt so much? He felt so much from her. So much of this...emotion, whatever it is. She was making him feel...something. Something very significant. Something that was quite foreign to him. Something that he had never felt before in his whole life. Something he had never quite experienced, but nevertheless, knew...

And it had nothing to do with his hormones. Nothing at all.

"...Okay, I think that's enough," somewhere near them, someone was saying that. "You two, break it up. Ren-kun, Pilica-chan!" They barely heard it.

Finally managing to escape from Chocolove's grasp, Horo-horo rushed towards the center of the ballroom...and forcibly tore his sister away from Ren.

"You are SO DEAD after this wedding, Tao Ren." The Ainu man growled threateningly as he dragged Pilica by the arm, glaring at everyone he passed by as he headed straight for the exit.

Ren stared at them, his mind barely registering what Horo-horo just told him. An odd expression crossed over his face as his eyes met Pilica's.

As she was dragged away by her brother, she looked back at him. The emotion that was reflected in her eyes conveyed exactly what he felt...and his mind confirmed to him what his heart already knew.

...Something that it had obviously known for a very, very, -very- long time.

TSUZUKU.

Replies:

Yup, Nezumi-chan, when I spoke about "clan" here, I was actually talking about their family. I'm thinking that the Tao Clan is pretty big, sort of like the Li Clan in CCS. I'm guessing intermarriage between second or third cousins or such may be fairly common, being that the Taos are, more or less, a traditional Chinese family. So yes...even though En *might* have changed a little bit (become less manipulative and patronizing), I'm pretty sure he would still insist that his son marry someone who fits their status...and in his eyes, Pilica does *not* fit at all._

And yes, Kitsune. Me's *still* quite fixated on Lyserg and Jeanne.*sweatdrop* I don't know if I was a little obvious, but I did manage to stick in a couple of moments for them here.^^ I think I'm getting another idea for a new fic for them...

To kiiro asakura, good to know na nag-memellow na yung in-laws (o mother-in-law lang ba?) ng brother mo. Good for him.^^ Anyway, I do believe sanayan lang yan. All they need is time. I think it's also what En needs. He needs time to get used to Pilica. And he needs to accept that his son loves her.^^

To gatita, thank you for reading my stories. Glad you liked them! No, you don't scare me, and no, I don't think you're a wacko at all. I am, though.^~

To Itosugi-Cypress, GoddessLD, and Takari-san, thank you for reading and reviewing. Hope you liked this chapter!^_^
End notes:

Thanks for all the reviews (and thanks also to those who read but don't review--you know who you are *cough*).

A mistake I forgot to note: in one of the earlier chapters, I described Tao Ran's hair as purple, when it is, in fact, navy blue--just like Ren's. Pardon me--got colorblind for a second there.^^;;; Anyways, I've already made the necessary corrections. That's in Chapter 1 - Rainbow Castle.

For those who haven't seen (and wish to see) the lime-ish outtake for The Venice Incident, the URL is in my profile, so you can check it out if you wish.^^ And yes--there is, in fact, a second installment, coming as soon as I finish it (which depends on my motivation^^;;;).

Up next: Chapter 5 - Gray Flourishes. Tao En's grand schemes comes into fruition.

Feedback is most appreciated!