I'll wait
Till your love comes down
I'm coming straight for your heart
No way you can stop me now
As fine as you are…

-Van Halen

*`~

Misharei awoke the following morning to feel the weight of Kamatari crushing him. His lover was asleep on top of him, snoring lightly, his mouth slightly open. This did not cause the young man any discomfort, he simply smiled and closed his eyes again, wishing to go back to sleep. Kamatari's bare skin against his left him feeling warm and safe; he had no desire to move just yet.

Sun streaked through the window and birds sang loftily from their trees. It was a beautiful morning and all was well with the world. The boy snuggled down deeper into Kamatari's arms, his cheek pressed up against the other man's chest. I've found all I've been waiting for. And I could not ask for more.

"Is it morning already?"

This is what Misha interpreted his companion's mumbling to mean. He slid one of his hands out and brushed back Kamatari's tousled hair. "Go back to sleep, Itoshii. We had a busy night, we did."

Kamatari groaned, blinking against the strong sunlight. "Am I squashing you, Dearest?" He pushed himself back slightly, his shoulders popping in the process.

"I was quite cozy. You don't need to move." He nuzzled his head against the older man's shoulder, "It only hurts if you don't want it." He whispered mischievously, his lips brushing against Kamatari's collarbone.

"Mmm…" The cross-dresser melted back down on top of his lover, his arms tightening around Misha's slender waist. "I love you…" His voice caught in his throat, followed by a yawn.

"Was…Was I okay? Did I do everything right?" The young man clung to his beloved, his willowy arms snaking around him as if afraid he would disappear. "Did I disappoint you, Itoshii?" He was dying for Kamatari's approval; dying to know he'd done okay in the previous night's escapades. It had been his first time and he was incredibly nervous that he had messed up.

"Anata, you were wonderful." A slight smile crossed the former Juppon Gatana's face and he bent down to kiss the young man, "I regret nothing. My only wish is that you hadn't fallen asleep. I could have gone on much longer. But now," He settled back down on the bed beside the boy, holding him close, "I'm much too sleepy."

"Go back to sleep. I'll stay here with you and keep you company." Misha snuggled up against him. He could feel the steady rise and fall of Kamatari's chest as the man beside him fell asleep again. Did I really wear him out so much? He smiled to himself, Never knew I had it in me…

He looked up, his gaze traveling across Kamatari's pleasant face. His face was flushed and rosy, his eyelashes sweeping across his cheeks. It was hard for Misha to resist the urge to kiss him. He looks so beautiful lying there. So innocent and free. Nothing could ever be more beautiful than he is. Nothing…

His lips grazed across Kamatari's brow, causing a smile to cross the other man's face. His mouth moved downward, capturing his lover's lips in a kiss. Surprisingly, Kamatari kissed him back, sliding his tongue into the young man's mouth. One of his velvet eyes winked open and he pulled the boy closer to him. "…Ai shiteru…"

"Hai; go back to sleep. I'm sorry I woke you." Misha said softly, "I couldn't help myself. You looked too beautiful to resist."

"Arigato-oh-oooh…" Another yawn forced it's way out in the middle of Kamatari's thanks. He nestled his head against the boy's shoulder, nuzzling, sighing contentedly. "I'm so tired."

"Chaa…" A satisfied smile lit the young man's countenance, "Go back to sleep. I'll try not to wake you again, Itoshii Hito." He stroked Kamatari's cheek with the back of his hand, enticing another yawn.

"Hai…"

Misharei smiled to himself as he hugged his lover tighter, settling back into a comfortable position. We'll be here a while longer…

*`~

"I wonder…" Misha began as he stared down at his breakfast. He paused, swirling the thing called a "spoon" through the gray mush in the bowl. A pensive look crossed his face and his gaze slid back up, traveling from his breakfast to Kamatari, then giving a side-glance at Dominick. He finally focused on some point in the middle of the table, staring at a knothole in the fine grain of the wood.

"You wonder…?" Kamatari prompted him, wondering if this would be any sort of comment about the previous night's activity. Please, don't let him mention it. Even if Dom-san doesn't understand, it will still make me blush…

"I wonder what's become of Sojiro. He got away and no one knows…" He looked back up, his sleepy eyes meeting those of Kamatari.

"I'm sure he's fine, Darling. Sou is pretty clever and intuitive. And he is very strong. Much stronger than me." The older man smiled, hoping to calm his friend's sudden fears.

"Hai; I know. But Kamatari…I'm still worried." A deep frown crossed the boy's face and his brow furrowed, leaving him with a rather comical expression, "Sojiro was my only friend besides you. I know he was hurting very much, especially after he met Himura the Battôsai. He was so confused about everything to begin with…Battôsai didn't help the matter any."

"Ara; don't worry about it. I'm sure our genki little tomodachi is fine. Now eat your breakfast."

Misha sighed. They were back to where they had been when they first met Dominick. "What about Misao-san? Or Kaoru-san? They spared your life…Aren't you curious? I wonder if Misao-san has thawed the icy heart of Shinomori-san yet."

"You wonder too much." Kamatari informed him patiently, "And you worry about every one but yourself." He was looking lovingly at the boy, his chin rested on the palm of his hand, "I think perhaps it's time you worry about yourself and no one else. Well," He added as an afterthought, "Maybe it's okay if you worry about me."

"Chaa! Of course I worry about you." A smile lit the young man's face, "I worry about you more than anything. You're my Itoshii Hito, after all."

"Ara; ai shiteru, Anata." He fluttered his eyelashes, his lips curling into a gorgeous smile. Winking, he blew the boy a kiss across the table.

"I know." A surreal smile crossed Misha's face and he looked back down at his breakfast. I suppose I should eat something…He picked up the spoon and went back to his stirring.

Dominick blinked, looking slightly confused. I hate when they have conversations in Japanese and I can't understand a word they say. His dark gaze turned to Kamatari, searching the "woman's" face for answers to what they had been talking about.

"Misha misses some of his friends from home. He wonders what they're doing now." A melancholy expression crossed his pretty face. While he also missed Japan quite a bit and was just as curious about the people they'd dealt with, he knew there was an appropriate time for such things and now was not it. If they got caught up in a discussion about their acquaintances from back home, they would ignore Dominick and that would be very rude.

"Oh. You can write a letter to them, no?" The man's dark eyes fell on Misha's face, one eyebrow raised, "Mail does cross the ocean, little boy."

"Iie; don't call me that, onegai shimasu. I'm a man, not a little boy." The ex-scythe bearer frowned lightly, his eyebrows knit together, "Kamatari and I have both asked you not to call me that before. It hurts my feelings."

"Ah, I am sorry. I never quite understood. Your poor English makes you hard to understand."

"I'm learning now." The young man said slowly, "Kamatari has been…learning me." His brow furrowed again. That wasn't the right word and he knew it. But he couldn't remember what the word was.

"Teaching." His lover smiled in amusement.

"Chaa…Arigato, Itoshii. Teaching me." The boy corrected himself.

"Very good, Dearest." This earned him a kiss on the cheek as praise for his hard work and persistence at learning such a complicated language.

"Domo arigato."

"Iie…'Thank you.' English, Misha. Japanese is for you and I when we're alone. When we are," A seductive smile crossed his face, "Alone together."

"Chaa…" A light blush spread across the boy's cheeks, deepening as the meaning of what he said sank in. "You embarrass me, Itoshii." He ducked his head, his long hair falling around his childish face.

"I'm sorry."

"Ahem." Dominick cleared his throat, "What are the plans for today?"

"We should stay one last day. Just to make sure Misha is alright." Kamatari decided, looking once more at the young man by his side.

"Good idea."

"Genki dêsu!" The boy exclaimed, "I feel fine. I just want to move. I'm sick of being here in the same place."

"Darling, you're only now recovering. And I'm not sure what we did last night will necessarily have helped the recovery." Kamatari soothed his young lover's ruffled feathers, "I want to make sure you are perfectly okay before we move on."

"I am perfectly okay! I'm sick of being inside, sick of this terrible food and sick of being sick!" He banged the spoon down on the table, a storm raging in his usually tranquil eyes. "You still treat me as if I am a child!"

"Misharei…" Kamatari began slowly, having no clue how to finish what he had began. "I do not mean to treat you that way. I'm truly sorry if you believe that I do. I had no idea…Darling, I'm only concerned about your well-being. I only want you to be well." His hand found it's way to Misha's cheek and his fingers caressed the boy's pale, smooth skin.

"G-gomen…I didn't mean to yell at you." The young man's gaze dropped back down to the table and his face flushed red, "I'm just…overwhelmed…after what we did together last night. I suppose I'm a little flustered still…Sometimes I wonder if you truly love me…" His voice trailed off, leaving them in the midst of a dangling conversation. Then he looked up, his eyes wet with tears.

"Ara…Anata; my darling dearest one, I know that you think last night changes everything. I know it's something you wanted for a very long time and now that it has happened you're frightened." He folded the boy into his arms, "I'm not going to leave you. Not now, not ever. I love you."

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry; I shouldn't doubt you. But after all you and I have been through -your broken heart- I wonder if I am just a replacement for Shishio. Did you think of him when we made love?" Misha looked up, tears hanging from his eyelashes.

"I thought of no one but you." Had they been alone together, the older man would have eagerly proven this. He wanted to kiss away the boy's tears, hold him close and whisper sweet words to him. The previous night had been bliss for him; a suffocating euphoria he never could have achieved with any one else. But, seeing as they weren't alone, he had to settle for simply comforting the boy.

He kissed the young man softly, holding him close to his chest. "I don't love Shishio-sama any more. And I never loved him the way I love you. I do think about him from time to time, wonder what he's doing in hell and all, but I've moved on. You are the only one I love, Kataomoi Misharei."

"But you will not forget, will you?" Came the whispered response, "He will always be there, always haunt you, no matter how much I love you." Spindly fingers found their way up to Kamatari's face, brushing across his cheek. He drew the other man's face down, kissing him desperately, "I want you only to be happy. I don't want you to suffer because of him. I waited two years for you to return my feelings, but I never wanted it this way. I wanted us to be happy together without Shishio dying. I didn't want you to love me because he was gone."

"I don't love you because he's gone." Their foreheads rested together, their eyes meeting. The rest of the world was quickly fading away; the two of them were together and nothing else mattered. "I love you because you're special. You're a wonderful, brave man. You think about everything and you put your heart and soul into all that you do. You're beautiful to me and I love you for it."

"Itoshii…" Another kiss, "Gomen nasai…Ai shiteru. I don't want to doubt you. But you were so in love." Tears streaked down his face, "You loved him so much you were willing to give up your life when you failed him. Would you do that for me, Kamatari?"

"Iie…I would not kill myself. Because I know you would be forgiving of me. I would not throw it all away, were I somehow to mess up. You are so patient with me, you would not be angry like Shishio-sama would. He did not allow second chances. You have given me second and third and even fourth chances. You don't give up on me. This is how I know you love me."

"So dêsu…" Misha's voice caught in his throat, "I love you more with every breath I take. I would never give up on you, even if it meant waiting a lifetime for you to understand. I was ready to let you come here alone, because I knew you needed to leave. Misao-san told me I couldn't; that I loved you and needed you with me. But I told her that if it would help you, I would let you go. Sometimes part of love is letting go."

"I know. But, Darling, you never need to let me go. I will always return to you. You told me once that no matter what everything led you back to me. I understand now. All of my thoughts always focus on you, no matter how obscure they are. I cannot think of anything…You're all I think about these days."

"Really?"

"Really." A soft smile crossed Kamatari's face, "Now cheer up. We'll leave tomorrow. Right now, you and I are going to take a little walk, just the two of us together away from everybody else."

"Just us?"

"Hai." He kissed the boy once more, this time on the forehead. Then he released him, rising from his seat at the table. "Excuse us, Dom-san. I think Misha and I need to speak together alone." He bowed politely, his short hair falling lightly around his face.

"Of course." The man had been watching their interaction curiously. The conversation had been a mix of broken English and Japanese and he was dreadfully confused. It seemed that every time the two were together, one or the other wound up crying. As best he could figure, the boy was worried about something involving a dead man named Shishio whom Kamatari had at one time loved.

"Come, Dearest." The former Juppon Gatana offered his companion one slender hand, "We need to talk."