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Chapter Seven: Morning

Solei shook her head in amusement, then retracted her ears quickly as she heard footsteps approaching.

She knew who it was without turning from her ingredients, and she tried to keep her voice level as she gave the morning greeting. "Good morning, Nuriko." He had been trying to surprise her, but now that plan was out the window, gone once she had called him by name without turning and in a perfectly flat voice.

He decided after a moment's deliberation to continue with his plan. "Morning, Kamai." She stiffened as he spoke, her knife pausing for an instant before resuming its rhythmic chopping.

'He has no right to call me that.' She thought to herself. 'It's too…too…' she fumbled for the right word. 'Too…intimate!' She poured the egg mixture for Amber's omelet into the waiting pan and spread it around expertly.

He shifted uncomfortably in the silence. "Look, about earlier…"

She stopped him, her eyes not moving from the pan. "Forgotten."

He tried again. "I just wanted to say,"

She cut him off before he finished, intent upon stopping the scene from progressing into an intimate moment, knowing that interruptions were common in her kitchen. "Forgiven." Relief etched itself across his face, and he smiled freely, awkwardness forgotten.

He came closer. "Anything I can help you with, Kamai?" His use of her name irked her, but she made no comment on it.

"Set the table for five and tell me what you want on your omelet."

He thought as he gathered the plates, then spoke. "Whatever you want to put on it."

She slid Amber's breakfast onto the top plate that Nuriko held before speaking. "Leave the other plates here, take Amber's to the table, there's place-cards with names for where things go. And, please, be serious, Nuriko. What do you want on your omelet? I don't know you that well." She was slightly agitated at him and poured another egg mix.

'Ahh, but I want to know you better' he thought while he responded. "Only what you deem worthy."

She rounded on him, still annoyed at his use of her other name. "Would you stop being so damn cryptic!" she exclaimed. "I'm trying to make you breakfast!" She waited, holding his gaze with smoldering silver eyes. He looked away first.

"Sorry. Ham, cheese and tomato."

She took a deep breath to calm herself, then turned to gather the ingredients. "I shouldn't have yelled, Nuriko. Sorry, but you have to give me a straight answer when it comes to food. Yes, I'll take my chef's due, but you need to help me out until I get to know your tastes better." She took another plate from the stack and slipped his omelet onto his plate.

"Here." she said, asking Amber what Tasuki and Nakago wanted on their omelets.

"Cheese and onion."

Solei whipped around at the voice, spatula in hand. "Nakago!" He smiled slightly. "You startled me."

"Evidently."

"Why are you able to call me by name as I approach but not him?"

"Because I, unlike you, have spent years training how to walk silently." Solei stifled a smile and flipped the omelet onto the plate, repeating her question with a smile.

Amber crept into Tasuki's room quietly, bucket of ice water poised and ready. She grinned, grimacing slightly at his snores.

'3, 2, 1…' She launched the bucket of water at his peacefully sleeping form and raced out the door, hiding behind the door-jam as he began to curse in four languages. Her eyes went wide and she began taking mental notes as he progressed beyond the outer ranges of her vocabulary.

She heard Solei's voice from down the hall. "How did you wake him up?"

Amber grinned again. "The old fashioned way. With a bucket of water." She heard her friend's gentle laughter before a pair of strong arms grabbed her from behind.

"What the-" she started to ask, but one of the hands covered her mouth.

A low voice whispered in her ear. "What did you have in that bucket, Amber?" She relaxed as she heard Tasuki's voice, but realized all too quickly that he was only wearing his pants.

"Water." She mumbled innocently into his hand.

"Oh. Don't do it again."

She nodded, and his hand dropped. "What do you want on your omelet?"

He was in the castle again, walking up a long, spiral staircase towards a single oak door. He opened the door and saw a figure in a long red dress facing the window away from him. This was the princess. Who was she? She started to turn around, her dress rustling and her face came into view. Just as he was focusing in on who she was, a violent explosion of cold rushed over him. Waking him up and ruining the ending to his dream yet again. He caught sight of Amber as she disappeared around behind the door, yelling curses at his vicious awakening. He toweled off, still cursing, and crept up behind Amber.

"What the-" She started to talk, but he folded her into his arms, covering her mouth with a hand.

"What did you have in that bucket, Amber?" He felt her relax in his arms, then stiffen slightly against him.

Her lips moved sensuously against his palm as she answered. "Water." He barely deciphered the word through his hand.

"Oh. Don't do it again."

She nodded, her hair brushing against his bare chest. He released his hold on her and she turned to face him, her eyes strangely blank. "What do you want on your omelet?"

"Cheese, ham, whatever."

"Righte-o." Amber went skipping down the hall into the kitchen. Grabbing a shirt from the dresser, Tasuki followed.

"So, what does he want on his omelet?"

"Cheese, ham, whatever." Amber repeated dutifully.

"Fresh out of whatever, sorry."

"Oh well."

Kamai awoke restless, her mind replaying the previous month, her heart still in denial. She rose in a single fluid motion, amazed that her body did not protest after all of the dance she had been doing. She stared down at herself and her eyes narrowed at the sight of her temple-issue nightshirt. She slid out of it quickly and put on her vest and pants, pulling her hair up into a ponytail to keep it out of her face as she trained. Grabbing her knifes as she pulled on her boots, Kamai slipped out the door, the soft leather on her feet treading silently on the polished rosewood floors. She ran lightly through the corridors, carefully opening the screens to the outside. The sun had not yet begun to rise as she crossed the dew-coated grass. She removed her knives and hung them in a sling on a tree-branch. She unsheathed her long sword, catching the sun's first rays on its snowy blade. She heard another sword being drawn, and she turned to face Nakago, her blade flicking up in salute. He repeated the gesture, and then stepped into a ready position. Solei grinned inwardly and brought her own sword up. No sooner had she done this, then he attacked, his blade flying, and she parried it easily, having improved by training with him. As the sun rose, they fought. Each attack a bit faster, a touch more complex, both trying to see how good the other was. Just as the sun was finishing its ascent, Solei tripped, her usually perfect footing failing her. She lost her sword as Nakago flicked it out of her hand; she swept him as she fell, intent upon continuing the fight despite her lack of a weapon. He fell on top of her, his sword at her throat.

He smirked, his sword unmoving. "I believe, Girl that I win."

Solei was caught between a furious blush and a laugh, but decided against both, returning his smirk with an identical one. "I would beg to differ." He raised an eyebrow. Kamai's smirk widened and her eyes flicked to her right hand, which held a knife to his chest.

Nakago's face returned to its usual mask. "They're watching. Let's give them something to watch." Only when he spoke did she realize how close they were, and that it wasn't the wind ticking her ear, it was his breath. His lips brushed the sensitive flesh behind her ear and she shivered at his touch. He found a particularly tender spot behind her earlobe and she tried vainly to stifle a slight whimper. His kisses trailed lightly down her jaw to her lips and once more she was surprised by the gentleness of his caress, as he even touched her. Carefully he parted her lips with his tongue, obtaining entrance into her mouth. It was a lover's caress, soft and gentle. She melted as he continued in his sensual assault on her mouth. A thought briefly flickered through her mind about how many girls had felt the same, but quenched it almost as quickly. She shifted oh-so slightly beneath him, needing air. Nakago, sensing that the need for a show was over and that things were progressing in a slightly awkward direction, expertly tapered off the kiss and rose, flicking his sword as if to rid it of blood. Kamai also stood, head swimming, and unconsciously repeated the same gesture with her own sword, automatically using a warrior's training. Nakago ran his thumb almost affectionately over her temptingly kiss-swollen lips, then bowed to her mockingly, winking to her as he had to the spy.

"A draw, Nakago?" she asked, her lavender eyes dancing as she curtsied in return.

"Perhaps."

She fought to keep her face straight. "Perhaps, indeed." She went to retrieve her knives from the tree, and when she returned, he was gone, like a wraith disappearing in the night. She let the smile break loose and walked back down the hill towards her grandfather's shrine, he had taken both kisses from her, she had not given them, but they had FELT real, not phony. But then again, he was well known to manipulate people in whatever way it took to achieve his goal. She shook the morbid thought out of her mind and continued on her trek. Not to her...

Jaime went back to the shrine, intent upon apologizing to Solei; he knew she often trained on the hill in the mornings, so he went to watch. When he arrived, he saw her bow to a blond guy, then cross swords in preparation. He watched each blow, each parry, wondering if the guy could even come close to her skill. As he observed the mock-battle, the swords increased in speed, and both fighters upped their speed. Suddenly, he saw Solei drop to the ground, and he stifled a cry. A pair of ice blue eyes belonging to Solei's opponent caught his gaze and winked. As he watched, the two kissed passionately, and he stalked away, a tight smile on his face. A bouquet of white lilacs and white tiger-lilies fell to the ground, her favorite flowers not given in apology.

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MS