A/N: Okay here it is…. huffs Gomen….

Thank you: puffin, Shos-lady, Soralover1, Notta Writer, Vera-sama, evil-pillow, and inumoon3.


The Punishment (or) The Art of Haggling

Ichigo had hid the car inside the garage and waited for Eiri Yuki to return from his meeting with his editor.

She entered the house, her oji-san trailing behind her. "Now, I really must go, little Blossom…" She nodded. "I understand." He leaned down and kissed her on the cheek and exited the house. She gulped sitting down on her family's ugly purple couch. Tou-san is going to kill me……She thought miserably. It was no secret that Ichigo and Shuichi were afraid of Eiri's temper. She rubbed her hands together, watched the door for a couple more seconds and then got up to get a glass of juice. She kept watching the front door, dreading the moment it would open. She jumped at the sound of a floorboard creaking. Ichi looked down. It was her own foot making the noise. "Get a grip, Ichi!" she muttered to herself, placing her glass on the counter. "You're just…" SLAM! "Damn…." Eiri Yuki came into the living room, cigarette in mouth looking at her with his sharp, gold eyes.

"You look guilty of something…" He spoke passed the stick.

Ichigo blanched.

"I-I I do….?"

She felt sick.

He was THAT good?

"What is it? Out with it?"

She squirmed in her seat.

"Ichigo?" His tone held warning.

She squirmed a bit more.

He crushed the cigarette in an ashtray. "Why do I have a feeling you did something you weren't supposed to do?"

"Ummm…"

"Ichi-honey, okaa-san's hooooome!" Shuichi Shindou hollered, running over to protect his young, looping his arms around her. Ichi breathed a sigh of relief. Saved by the baka….. She mentally thanked her uncle. Oji-san must've sent word for him.

"What's going on?" Shuichi looked up innocent. "What, Yuki?" "There's something fishy going on and I don't like it!" Ichigo squirmed some more, watching and feeling as her parents did one of those Wild West showdowns. "It wasn't her fault! She didn't mean to-Oooops!" He slapped his hands over his mouth. "Ah Ha! So something did happen!" "Ummm…" His young lover began to laugh nervously. "Who-who said anything happened, Yuki?" He back up and her tou-san walked menacingly forward. "Something is NOT right. You wouldn't be home unless you were either pregnant or just plain sick. And we KNOW your neither one of those, so that means…." His gaze swept to their daughter. "She's the factor." "Wh-why would you say that, Yuki?" He laughed again. Yuki swung back to Shuichi. "There it is again. You ARE hiding something and you DO know something." "Well-um…" Her tou-san turned toward the garage. "No, Yuki don't!" Shuichi hollered.

"ICHIGO!"

Ichi winced. "I'm done for….." She buried her head against the couch, waiting for her sentence.

Eiri Yuki stormed into the livingrooom anger in his face. "Ichigo Uesugi!" She winced again. "Yuki, please!" Yuki turned to Shuichi. "You knew about this…?" "Well just for awhile…" "And we're talking why?" He motioned towards the garage. "The fender of my car is crunched!" She gulped. "WHY is the fender of my car crunched? Oh, and my windshield! WHY is that cracked?" "We-I…" "I'm waiting, young lady." He growled. "Well-I-uh… "Wai-ting…" He tapped his foot annoyed. "Your car sorta hit a garbage truck..." she whimpered. "Sort of?" He leaned down in his daughter's face. "What do you mean 'sort of'? Either something hits something or it doesn't. There's no median in an accident, Ichigo." "It-it did…" She inched away awaiting her punishment. "And your okaa-san knew about this…" "Yeah." "Who else?" His hands were now planted on his hips. "Ummm…Oji-san." She smiled. Yet at Yuki's dangerous glare she wiped the smile quickly off her lips. "This is NOT anything to smile about Ichigo Hana Shindou-Uesugi. You just damaged a very expensive foreign car." "really?" "yes." He began to pace. This she did not like. "And do you know what your punishment is going to be…"

"Yuki!"

He turned around. "What? Can't you see I'm busy, brat?"

"Yuki…Anata….We should talk this over…" he tugged at his lover's arm. "She has two parents after all."

"She's still getting grounded for a week."

"Yes, that's fine…but not until her birthday and the concert it over, Yuki."

"What? You're siding with her? Since when? How the hell do you expect her to learn if you always give her leniency?"

"Please, Yuki, please!" He hopped onto his lover, latching his legs around the other's waist. "Please oh please oh please! Wait till after the concert! After the concert! It's our baby's sixteenth birthday! It's special!" He began to whine and plead.

Ichi watched hoping her okaa-san's cute ways would seduce her tou-san into giving in. She then shivered at what she had thought. Never EVER did she want to hear the word seduce and her parents in the same sentence! Ech!

"Please oh please oh please, Yuki!"

"Fine!" He dropped his young lover. "After the concert! No latter!"

He turned to his daughter.

"After the concert, one week, no tv, no anime, no cell phone. No NOTHING. Understand?"

Ichi blanched.

"Yuki, don't you…"

"No! You got your damn wish…Now she has to pay…"

"Perhaps just the TV, all that rest of that stuff is pretty harsh…"

"No."

He walked off a slammed the door to his study.

Shuichi walked over then and took his daughter into his arms. "Sorry, honey. I tried my best."

"You did what you could." She snuggled.

HE hugged her back.

"Thanks..."

"That's what mommy is for, Ichi-chan…"

She laughed and thanked Kami for unusual blessings.


Next Chapter: Aftermath

A/N: Since LTS is done now I have time to finish this and my other fics…So happy! Not that I didn't enjoy LTS, I did. Well hope you enjoyed this one! Please review!