Disclaimer: I do not own Yami no Matusei
Background Information #1: "The war" refers to the war between Seiryuu and Kurikara. Since Touda was imprisoned for years, and Kurikara lost, I'm assuming he was on Kurikara's side.
Background Information #2: In the Kyoto arc, Anime-Tatsumi said, "This is Touda!" But in the manga, he never said it was Touda who had caused the fire. So we're going with the manga on this one, okay?
Shout-outs:
Kiko812: Well, I didn't hate chapter 6, but I think it was my worse. And thank you very much for the compliment. People don't handle Tsuzuki's past well? YnM fanfiction is really good…but maybe that's just by comparison to other fandoms…Lynn: Actually, you spelled "sequence" correctly. It was "encouragement" you spelled wrong. (Wink) Good muffin basket joke. (Wink again)
Stratus5: (Blush. Glomp)
Amethyst-eyed Koneko: Yay! You think I'm good again! (Happy dance) Now you see why I had Hisoka learn Illusory Magic? (Wink) You know, I initially imagined Ruka to be somewhat like Tsuzuki and have a quiet kind of power, but when I pre-wrote the chapter in my binder she turned into the bit of a spitfire she was in that chapter, and I just went with it. I love how no one can finish their sentences around her, but she adores them all and they adore her in return. So of course Ruka would give Tsuzuki her blessing. She loves the kid. I've lately gotten into the whole brother-sister dynamic, ever since we read Catcher In The Rye in my English class (Contemplates parallels between Ruka-Tsuzuki and Phoebe-Holden. Decides Phoebe-Holden is more like Cathy-Trowa from Gundam Wing…).
For your questions…1) Do you really want to be spoiled? I'll let you know now that I'm only 88 percent sure of who it is. But if you really want to be spoiled, let me know in your review. 2) "Seiryuu" and "Sohryuu" are the same person. I have been spelling his name the first way since forever, and have actually been led to believe the second way is incorrect. I'm not quite sure at the moment, but I'm going to stick with my original spelling, if only because I like it better. 3) Odd pairings are invented by odd people. A psychologist would have a field day with the people I hang out with. At least we didn't come up with Byakko/Touda. Yes, someone has written that and yes, it does sound oddly intriguing. 4) "IYOFQH" is the initials of my pen name. "Snark" means someone who is very sarcastic. 5) "Juxtaposition" and "Deus ex machina" are literary terms. Juxtaposition is the placement of appropriate objects for the setting. Deus ex machina is a plot point cop-out; a solution that is too convenient to be plausible.
Hikari Tsuki Chi: Yes, that line was actually a shout-out to one of my reviewers. And about "Gensoukai"…I'd seen that name around the fandom but at the time didn't know what it was. However, "Kansei" is a place name in Gensoukai—either the city or the region—so I just referred to it.
Aacire: Thank you!
Side Note #1: Adrenaline is a hormone located in your adrenal glands (they're so original, aren't they?). They prompt "fight-or-flight" in frightening situations.
Side Note #2: "Crimson liquid iron" is blood.
Side Note #3: I hope you all know where to feel for a pulse.
Side Note #4: Despite any beliefs this chapter may generate, you are not going to see any sex scenes between Tsuzuki and Hisoka. (Readers: "What? No sex?" Many readers leave) I was totally uncomfortable writing the innuendos, and they weren't even perverted—they were serious. Also, Tsuzuki plus Hisoka plus fantastic sex life equals WTF in my book. A guy whose self-esteem is so low that he's attempted suicide at least twice, thrown in with a guy who couldn't stand to be touched even platonically for most of his life and whose only experience with sex was a brutal rape that killed him three years later…yeah, they're gonna have a fantastic love life, sure.
Now a lot of you are probably going "WTF? They're getting married, aren't they? Married people make love all the time!" That is just going to have to wait for a couple more chapters. Right now my plans call for about 14 or 15 chapters, and you'll get the answer in either the last or first to last chapter.
Domestic Strife
"Eileen? It's me…call me back when you get this message."
"I thought you took this as seriously as I did."
"Eileen, please stop avoiding me. Call me back."
"I can't believe you think it isn't good enough."
"Maria, can you put Eileen on the phone?"
"Eileen is…hold on…Eileen says she's too busy."
"I waited for you for all those years! I gave up Heaven for you! And you…""Eileen, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…"
"You say it isn't good enough…""C—p, we fell asleep," Hisoka muttered, glaring at the clock on the wall as he sat up in the infirmary bed.
"For, like, a half hour," Tsuzuki said, burying his face in the pillow. "It's six-thirty in the morning. Relax for once."
Hisoka glared, but it soon turned half-hearted and he begrudgingly settled back onto the bed.
"I didn't say this before…thank you," Tsuzuki murmured, leaning his forehead against Hisoka's.
"Hmm? What for?"
"I got to see my sister again because of you."
"Well, I was trying to save our lives at the time, but…"
"Mm." Tsuzuki intoned, halfway between a chuckle and a sigh. "She just had…has…this power about her. She can suck you in. She's the exact opposite of me."
"No. You pull people in, too."
"I meant personality-wise," Tsuzuki amended, though Hisoka felt a little twinge of a hasty cover-up. "I don't know…do you remember anything of what happened?"
"A little bit."
"Maybe you felt it…she just has this strength about her. I really do adore her, Hisoka. She has this capacity to love that I never thought anyone could have."
"It runs in the family," Hisoka said.
"Yeah, but she's more forceful about it," Tsuzuki said, with a fond laugh. He cupped Hisoka's face. "You accidentally let out a thought that we're engaged while you were possessed by her. And you know what she said? She said she didn't care that we're both guys; she said she was happy for me. Don't know about you, Hisoka, but where I grew up they weren't very accepting of that kind of thing. And she never got out of that environment at all…she was just always like that."
"I'd never have known either way, what my environment was like," Hisoka said, more of a way to keep them from plunging into silence.
Tsuzuki pulled in closer to Hisoka and took his fiancé's hand with his free one. "You know, memory can be a miserable thing," he whispered.
"I know. You and I know better than anyone."
"Sometimes…I really hate having memories of her. I get to wishing she's here now to bug me about helping her clean the house. It was so hard to lose her…I meant what I said, Hisoka." His voice cracked. "I really won't be able to bear it if you leave, too…"
"You're such a simpleton," Hisoka mocked gently. "I told you, I won't leave willingly. I can't speak for circumstances…but I'll stay as long as I can."
"I sense a little dig in there," Tsuzuki said, with a funny, sad sort of humor. "All my promises I can't keep…"
"And people would think I ruin moments," Hisoka muttered, but not unkindly. "I wasn't thinking of that…it's just how I am…"
Tsuzuki gave a short laugh, with at least an attempt at veritable mirth. "Allow me to unruin it."
"That's not even a word."
"It is now," Tsuzuki insisted with the stubbornness of a child. He dug his fingers into the folds of Hisoka's hair and pulled his head in closer to kiss him. After a few seconds he still didn't let go, and instead intensified the kiss.
Hisoka's face screwed up a little but there was some sort of weakness in his bones.
'It's Tsuzuki…it's just Tsuzuki…'Tsuzuki's arms snaked around the small of Hisoka's back and pulled him against himself. There was a wild, adrenaline-fueled thumping in Hisoka's chest and throat. He was being pressured onto his back; Tsuzuki was on top of him…
Trapped can't get free let go let go let go please let go please I'm begging you begging you please let go no stop it no please stop please no'It's just Tsuzuki…it's my partner, my fiancé…he's not…he's not him…'
Tsuzuki's hand moved up to Hisoka's neck and it took all his self-control not to scream.
Hands around my neck can't scream can't breathe taste of iron crimson liquid iron running down my throat out my mouth vomiting choking on blood"Tsuzuki…!"
Hisoka pulled back into the pillow with a shuddering gasp. Tsuzuki's hand was still on his neck. It took what felt like minutes to realize Tsuzuki's index and middle fingers were pressed against his skin underneath his jaw line.
"Your pulse is racing," Tsuzuki said softly.
"I'm sorry," Hisoka apologized impulsively. "I'm so sorry…"
"No." Tsuzuki wrapped his hands around Hisoka's skull and kissed the top of his head. "I'm sorry."
"But I…"
"But nothing." Hisoka seemed so…Tsuzuki couldn't place his finger on an adjective. His already unnaturally white skin had paled, as if all the blood inside him had evaporated into thin air. The breath passing in and out of his slightly parted lips was shuddery and disciplined, unnaturally controlled yet bordering on hysterical. And his eyes…the abnormal shade of green that graced his pupils stood out even more protuberantly against his blanched face than was usual, and the light reflecting in them was the sheen of terror.
So…pale, and…weak, and frightened, and disgusted…with himself.
"I promised I'd exceed him," Hisoka murmured.
"You will."
"How can I do that," Hisoka whispered, his voice on the edge of breaking, "when I can barely stand to let my own fiancé touch me?"
Silence. And then…
"I'm touching you," Tsuzuki said teasingly, poking Hisoka's nose.
"You're a moron, do you know that?" Hisoka shot at him, with just a trace of a sad smile.
"I'm touching you," Tsuzuki repeated determinedly, poking Hisoka's shoulder.
"Stop it."
"I'm touching you." A poke to Hisoka's side. "I'm touching you." His stomach. "I'm touching you." His forehead.
A snort. Something like a chuckle, something similar to a laugh.
"And now I'm…tickling you!"
"Stop it!" Hisoka squirmed as Tsuzuki's fingers wiggled their way over his neck and arms. His life in the basement had not only lightened his skin but also made it overly sensitive, which was a source of never-ending amusement for Tsuzuki whenever the rare opportunity presented itself to render Hisoka no different than a ticklish 6-year-old girl.
Tsuzuki grinned and let his hands relax on the sides of Hisoka's face, letting their eyes gaze into each other's. Slowly he planted a chaste, undemanding kiss on Hisoka's lips and then rested on top of Hisoka, touching their foreheads. Hisoka's hand gripped Tsuzuki's sleeve as if gripping his panic and preventing it from rising by sheer strength of will.
"We'll get there," Tsuzuki whispered. "We'll figure out a way. We promised we'd exceed him. The two of us, remember?"
There was some unnatural ball of dryness lodged in Hisoka's throat that made answering difficult. "Ye…s…"
It's amazing how things get back to normal after a couple days. Tsuzuki and Hisoka had vacated the Infirmary that same day and returned home. Hisoka went back to work the next day, and Tsuzuki 24 hours after him. The stillness and quiet of Tsuzuki's home was enough to drive them both batty. If too much thought had ever exploded into not enough, it was now.
So it came as somewhat of a shock to Hisoka when Tsuzuki turned to him and said, "You know, we've still got a wedding to plan." Hisoka had nodded dumbly, Tsuzuki had bit his lip, and both of them had cried until they laughed, or at least attempted to.
Wakaba sat in the revolving chair at her desk, humming the latest love song under her breath and swinging her legs merrily as she typed in the coordinates to the Suzaku Gate. Tsuzuki and Hisoka stood a few feet behind her, watching. Terazuma, for some reason he did not deem fit to explain, was leaning against the wall, his one leg propped up against it, nursing a cigarette.
Pressing the Enter key, Wakaba pushed the chair back on its wheels and cleared the way for the Tengu.
"Hiya!" Wakaba offered cheerily, waving her hand at the twins. "Tsuzuki and Hisoka are scoping out Tenkuu for the wedding, and I'm popping in to see where I'm officiating. So can you guys keep the Gate open? Hajime's here to keep you company."
"Kannuki, I am not—"
"We probably won't be very long," Wakaba continued, undaunted and as if uninterrupted. "I'll send forth a summons for when it's over."
"Sure thing," Kotaro said, giving her a thumbs-up and a wink. Wakaba grinned giddily, and the unguarded Hisoka felt a little pulse of jealousy coming from the chain-smoker against the wall.
"Well, come on, you two," Wakaba said, gesturing for Tsuzuki and Hisoka to follow her. "We'll be back soon, Hajime!" She called over to her partner. He grunted in response as she, Tsuzuki, and Hisoka disappeared into the vortex.
"She's a sweet thing," Kotaro commented as the forms disappeared. "There aren't many girls like her in Kansei."
"There aren't many like her in Meifu, either," Terazuma growled.
"Oh, and you'd know this…how?"
"Because I live in this rat hole, that's how," Terazuma said, agitatedly tossing out his half-finished cigarette and lighting up another one.
"That's bad for your health, you know."
Terazuma snorted. "I'm already dead, remember?"
"Well, it must be a source of annoyance to Wakaba-chan, then."
Terazuma's ear twitched at the term of endearment. He grunted in response.
"She tells me that the smoke smell stays in her hair for days, even after she showers," Kotaro added carelessly. "You really don't think of her a lot, do you?"
"Watch it, bud," Terazuma snapped, incensed, the color of his face bordering on livid.
"I meant no disrespect," Kotaro amended smoothly. "I was just stating an opinion."
Terazuma's nostrils flared. "Yeah, well, keep your opinions to yourself. No one asked for them."
"As you wish," Kotaro said placidly. "Then perhaps you'd settled for some news?"
"Whatever."
"How about the news that Wakaba and I have a date on Sunday?"
"You…you WHAT!"
Kotaro mocked wiping his face. "I see how it is. I give you the news; you give me the weather."
"Why would she go out with you!" Terazuma raged, his cigarette dropping to the ground.
"Well, because I asked her," Kotaro said, looking at Terazuma as if he had answered a simple arithmetic problem wrongly. "There's no law against it, is there?"
"Is this true, Kojiro?" Terazuma demanded of the darker twin.
Kojiro stared at him and bit his lip.
"I can't believe this!"
"I can't believe this!"
Hisoka threw down the pen he was using in agitation and disgust. A bright streak of red flames soared over the tent under which he, Tsuzuki, and several other Shikigami were planning.
"This is the third time! What are they even fighting about?"
"To tell you the truth, I'm not sure," Rikugo answered apologetically. "I think they fight on principle now."
"Tsuzuki, can't you do something with them?" Hisoka importuned. "They're your Shiki!"
"Believe me, if I could have stopped them long ago, I would have," Tsuzuki said, with the tone of one who has accepted defeat.
"Well, can you at least get them to be civil for five minutes?" Hisoka demanded tensely.
"Tsuzuki, I'm afraid they're going to set this place on fire," Wakaba added, small-like. "And I don't want to officiate somewhere that smells like a crematorium."
Tsuzuki sighed and stood up from the table. "I'll see what I can do…"
"That's the spirit," Hisoka commented dully, noting the reluctance in Tsuzuki's demeanor. Tsuzuki made a face and then trudged around the corner.
"Why are they fighting, anyway?" Wakaba asked.
"Well, they've never gotten along," Rikugo explained. "They were on opposite sides of the war to begin with, and I guess they haven't let the old grudges slide."
"There's more to that and you know it, Rikugo," Taimou said, her words unusually calm for her words.
"Taimou…" Rikugo said warningly, sneaking a guarded glance at Hisoka that, unfortunately, did not go unnoticed.
"What is it?" Hisoka asked, glancing questioningly back and forth between the two of them.
"Oh, for pity's sake, he was there, Rikugo," Taimou said blandly, and then turned her attention to Hisoka. "Touda tried to kill Tsuzuki in Kyoto, and Suzaku still hasn't gotten over it."
"Subtle as always, Taimou," Rikugo said, looking pitifully at a flabbergasted Hisoka. "You never knew, Hisoka?"
"No, I never…no one ever told me."
"Tsuzuki's own Shiki tried to kill him?" Wakaba asked, her eyes wide.
"Tsuzuki summoned him for that purpose," Taimou explained. "This was a year and a half ago; you remember?"
"I'd just heard it was a job gone wrong…not that Tsuzuki tried to kill himself!" Wakaba's eyes hadn't yet reduced to their natural state.
"He's since recovered," Taimou said, not without a trace of misgiving. "Hopefully."
"Yes, hopefully," Hisoka muttered, both sarcasm and hidden concern in his voice.
"Suzaku has always loved Tsuzuki best out of all of us," Taimou continued. "She sees him as a younger brother in need of her protection. So after Touda nearly killed him, you can imagine how upset she was."
"And she hasn't gotten over it yet," Hisoka stated.
"I really doubt she ever will. It doesn't help that Touda doesn't appear to take her seriously."
"He sounds like a jerk," Wakaba said righteously, her cheeks burning.
Hisoka blinked. "I think that's the most unforgiving speech I've ever heard come from you."
"Rest assured that Suzaku shares your sentiments," Taimou said, with a trace of the smile. "What I find downright amusing is that Touda is…shall I say…"crushing on her, wicked hard", as Byakko profoundly enlightened me the other day."
"Isn't that just typical," Hisoka muttered, scratching his pen against his paper.
"Aren't you upset about this?" Wakaba asked, turning to face him.
Hisoka made no answer, but his grip on his pen seemed to tighten and he bit down on his bottom lip. Wakaba stared at his hand and made no comment. A very pregnant silence reigned over the small group.
"If you'll excuse me," Taimou said suddenly, standing up. "I have a little advice for Tsuzuki in dealing with those two hotheads." If she had a visible face, Hisoka, Wakaba, and Rikugo would have seen a scheming smirk.
"Oh, that doesn't sound good," Rikugo moaned. "She's devious, that one."
True to Rikugo's prediction, a loud squawk of "WHAT?" soared over the skies of the general vicinity a few minutes. From the horizon came Tsuzuki, walking unusually quickly.
"What happened? Hisoka asked as Tsuzuki retook his seat next to him.
"Taimou offered an idea," Tsuzuki said, "that we should force Suzaku and Touda to be each other's dates to the wedding."
"She WHAT?" Hisoka yelped, standing up. "And you took her up on this?"
"Don't hurt me!" Tsuzuki whimpered, covering the top of his head with his arms. "Believe me, I thought the same thing as you, but then Taimou pointed out…"
"…that it would force them to behave around each other," Taimou filled in, coming up behind him. "Think of it as punishment of spoiled children being bratty," she advised. "I personally think it amusing, but I doubt that would fly with other people."
"Crematorium, here we come…" Wakaba whispered under her breath.
"Is there a reason why you never told me about Touda?"
"What?"
Tsuzuki and Hisoka had been abandoned. Rikugo had taken Wakaba into Tenkuu to show her where she would be officiating, and Taimou had gone off, presumably to reason with Suzaku and Touda, but more likely to have a hidden snicker on their expense.
"In Kyoto," Hisoka elaborated. "Taimou told me that you summoned Touda to kill yourself."
"Oh."
"Did it slip your mind or something?"
"No…well, sort of," Tsuzuki admitted. "I didn't want to bring it up, so I kinda…made myself forget about it."
"Why?"
"Well I…I guess I…didn't want you to hate him. Touda. He's already got enough hate directed at him from the Shiki; he doesn't need it from Meifu, too."
"What is this war Rikugo was talking about?"
"Oh…it was a revolution years ago," Tsuzuki began. "A Shiki named Kurikara wanted to take over Gensoukai. Touda was on his side. Seiryuu stood up to them and won. Kurikara was banished to the Fuyuu Desert and they locked Touda up inside Tenkuu. I came along years later and let Touda out and took him on as my Shiki. But sometimes I think that was a mistake. It's not that he's an awful person or anything," Tsuzuki quickly fixed, "he's actually really loyal and great to have in a pinch. But…it's not like anyone's forgotten what happened and they treat him like c—p."
"Believe me. It's better to be where everyone hates you than to be where nobody know that you exist. At least you learn to deal with it after awhile."
Hisoka was looking off into the distance, chewing on his bottom lip. Tsuzuki slid his hand across the table and covered Hisoka's with it. Hisoka looked down at the two hands, and then up at Tsuzuki's face.
"You're where you're wanted, Hisoka."
"Yeah. I know." He snorted. "It would be nice if they could see me now…Nagare and Rui…my "parents". The looks on their faces…"
Tsuzuki remained silent, unsure of how to answer. Hisoka kept staring off into the distance.
"But anyway," Hisoka said suddenly, turning his attention back to his fiancé.
"Oh, um, yeah," Tsuzuki said, trying to recover his thought processes. "Are…are you angry that I didn't tell you it was him?"
Hisoka shrugged. "Not really. We've had a year and a half to deal with it. And you did summon him for that purpose; it's not his fault. You were the idiot in that situation, not him."
Tsuzuki scowled. "Thanks."
"You were."
"Yeah, I know," Tsuzuki sighed, squeezing Hisoka's hand.
"Hey!" Wakaba was jogging towards them, her arm raised. "Rikugo just showed me the spot and it's gorgeous. And we'll have no problem fitting everyone in."
"That's good." Hisoka stood up. "We should head back home now."
"Yeah, we should," Tsuzuki concurred.
Wakaba whipped out a fuda scroll and smiled. "Come on, let's away!"
"Kotaro, Kojiro, where did Hajime go?"
"Oh, he left quite a while ago," Kotaro said, a tad flippantly. "In a bit of a huff, actually."
"Why?" Wakaba asked, full of unworthy suspicions.
"We'd better go," Tsuzuki said, taking Hisoka's elbow and pulling him away. "I have a bad feeling about this."
The pair's short journey of a few feet away was rewarded by an outrage shriek of "You WHAT?" and an orange-haired whirlwind blowing past them.
"What did you do?" Hisoka asked, turning to the two brothers.
"Oh, just told Terazuma-san a white lie," Kotaro said mischievously.
"Or a ploy," Kojiro added, almost silently.
"Kotaro, what did you tell him?" Tsuzuki demanded.
"Oh, just that Wakaba-chan and I were pursuing a…shall I say…romantic relationship."
Tsuzuki face-faulted. "WHAT? Why would you do that?"
"To make Terazuma-san jealous," Kojiro offered, just as quietly as before. "It's just a plot my brother cooked up."
"Lying like that is pretty pathetic," Hisoka condemned.
"Well, his self-induced shyness is even more pathetic," Kotaro sniffed defensively. "And so is his ignorance. If he listened at all he would know that Wakaba and I have no chance of a romantic involvement."
"And why's that?"
"Hajime! Hajime, wait up!"
"Kannuki, shouldn't you be with your boyfriend?" Terazuma snarled, his teeth grinding into the cigarette he wasn't so much smoking as he was chewing into small bits of paper and tobacco.
"Hajime, Kotaro is not my boyfriend." Wakaba ran in front of Terazuma on the stairs and spread her arms out wide.
"Bulls—t. Why should I believe that? He told me, Kannuki!"
"Hajime!" Wakaba's face was turning an indignant pink. "You're such an ignoramus! I can't believe, after all these years of being my partner and seeing me with him, that you don't know!"
"What? I don't know what? What don't I know, Kannuki, huh?"
"Hajime! Kotaro is gay!"
The cigarette fell out of Terazuma's mouth.
"He's what?"
"Gay. G-A-Y. I don't know how many times I've talked to him about guys he's liked! If you'd have paid attention at all over the past decade, you would know that!" A resentful film of tears began filling up in her eyes.
"He's…he's…he likes guys…" Terazuma's eyes, widened with shock, suddenly narrowed. A patented Terazuma Rant™ was in order. "Jeez! Is everyone in this precinct gay? This is demographically impossible!"
"Watch your tone," Wakaba snapped huffily. "And in case you haven't noticed, I'm not gay."
A hush fell over the stairwell. Terazuma took out his pack of cigarettes, then thought better of it and put them back in his pocket.
"Not even a little bit?"
"Not even a little bit."
"You sure?"
"I'm sure."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
Another silence reigned supreme over the small area. Wakaba wiped at her eyes.
"Look, I'm…sorry for yelling at you," Terazuma said, his teeth itching to grind at a cigarette.
"No, I'm sorry," Wakaba said, her face softening. "I was yelling, too. And you're not an ignoramus. You're just…a tough, silent loner."
"Thanks, I guess."
A third quiet invaded the room.
"Hajime?"
"What?"
"Would you…be my date to the wedding? The reception, I mean, since I'm officiating?"
"Your date?"
"Yeah."
"Well…sure, I guess…yes, I guess, sure."
"Good…Thanks."
"Ah, h—l." Terazuma practically ripped his pants pocket out going for his cigarettes. "'Scuse me…!" He darted past her, lighting up a cigarette as he went.
Wakaba touched a hand to her mouth, and then turned to look up the stairs at Terazuma's trajectory.
"Did that just happen…?"
"Well, today was certainly interesting," Hisoka commented, sitting on his and Tsuzuki's bed.
"Good thing Terazuma didn't see us," Tsuzuki said. He was already lying down.
"Well, we were behind him, so…"
"Argh." Tsuzuki poked Hisoka's side. "End the snark. Do you think Taimou's plan will work?"
"It'd better," Hisoka said. "Or my guess is Touda will be wishing he was still imprisoned in Tenkuu."
Tsuzuki laughed softly. "Suzaku has a way of doing that."
"Mm."
"Hey, Hisoka, speaking of that…what were you thinking about when you mentioned your parents today?"
"Nothing," Hisoka said, shrugging.
"Bull…"
Hisoka swatted at Tsuzuki's head, and then settled into a lying position under the covers. "Fine. I was thinking about how much I would enjoy seeing their faces twist at the thought of me being happy."
Tsuzuki shook his head. "That's awful," he murmured. "They're awful, to leave their own son with so much hate…" He paused for a second, and then reached out for his partner. He wrapped one arm underneath Hisoka's head and then cupped his skull, and with the other hand pulled Hisoka's legs closer to him and into a bent position.
"What are you doing?"
"Snuggling you." Tsuzuki kissed Hisoka's cheek and then tucked the younger man's head underneath his chin. "You need to be babied."
"I'm not a child." Hisoka made to pull away.
Tsuzuki's grip didn't loosen. "You still need to be babied."
"Tsuzuki, let go of me."
"Nope. Nothing doing, darlin'. Resistance is futile."
"Do you even know what "futile" means?"
""Useless"," Tsuzuki said promptly. "I'm smart some of the time, Hisoka. And I'm smart about this. You need to be babied." Tsuzuki began stroking Hisoka's hair. "At least every once in a while."
"You're a freak."
"That loves you. And that won't be letting go anytime soon."
Hisoka heaved an exasperated sigh. "Fine, you big lug."
"Hee!" Tsuzuki nuzzled his forehead against Hisoka's. "Good night."
"Whatever," Hisoka said, adjusting himself so that he lay more comfortably in Tsuzuki's embrace.
Hmm…I hope I didn't jerk you guys around too much with the tone shifts. I did actually contemplate making this chapter short and ending right after the infirmary scene, but decided against it. I only want one very short chapter, and that'll be about chapter 12 when Tsuzuki/Hisoka actually get married, so the only ones talking will be them and Wakaba.
Oh, and I hope it's not too unbelievable with Hisoka's and Tsuzuki's sleeping arrangements. I hope you caught the difference in Tsuzuki's actions between the infirmary scene and this last scene. I'm only saying this now because I know someone will inquire about it. Just refer back to chapter 1 if you have any questions/concerns.
Again, not a favorite chapter but good enough, I think. I like the whole scene with Wakaba and Terazuma.