"Ronin Warriors: The Final Victor"
By Onikage
Scroll Thirty-Seven: Hate Me, Shake Me, Break Me, Love Me…
::Warning: Strong Sexual Situations. Not for kids! Really. I mean it. NO KIDS!::
Dais leaned against Mia's bedroom door as he found her sitting on the window seat at the far end of the room. She leaned on her elbows and just stared out into the ominous, yet beautiful display of colors upon the northern horizon. He saw her sigh heavily, before she stood. She screamed when his presence surprised her. She held her hand over her heart, gasping.
"GOD, Dais! Make some damn noise next time!" He looked guilty and held up his hands defensively.
"Sorry?" he asked. Mia sat at the foot of her bed and held her face in her hands with a groan. "My lady?"
"Hm?" Dais sat beside her.
"What is troubling you?"
"… Take your pick." Dais just remained silent. Mia lowered her eyes. "... Cale," she confessed. "I… I let him down. I knew that I didn't love him like that… and I couldn't tell him. This is all my fault."
"I don't think so, my lady," Dais spoke up. "You didn't want to have to say the words 'I don't love you'. You didn't hurt him intentionally like he believes." Mia went to her dresser and picked up her hairbrush.
"Easy for you to say," she began and started to brush, "You aren't the one with the broken heart… I just wish… I wish I could make him happy." Dais looked at the floor.
"... So, you don't want anything to do with me with the purpose to make him feel better?" he suggested. Mia whipped around quickly.
"No! What are you talking about? I wasn't trying to get out of a jam when I said I loved you, Dais. I meant it!" she stated, a little bit hurt by his comment. He remained silent. She kneeled in front of him and leaned on his lap. "… I was trying to say that it's upsetting me that I can't make everyone happy. I know that seems impractical, but in a time and place like this it really didn't seem to matter anymore what was impractical or not. I'm lucky if everyone is smiling at dinner now. Everything is so hard with all the fighting. Maybe I thought that if I did what everyone wanted, they'd feel... just a bit better," she explained softly. She leaned her head on his jeans and stared out the window. "I feel so foolish…"
"My lady… what happened was not your fault. Nothing that you could have done would have pleased everyone. Cale has been bottling up emotion after emotion… He was bound to hit rock bottom. Now that he has… he can begin to heal. He has been a troubled soul for many years…" Dais lifted her up to sit beside him. "Don't you think on what he said for a minute…"
"I can't help it. Sometimes I can't help but think that he's partially right. I wasn't honest from the beginning-"
"Mia, you have been through such a trauma. You didn't know what you wanted." Dais held her hands gently. She lowered her eyes.
"I'd just wish he could understand how I feel."
"… He will. Once he realizes what he wants and what is most important, he will." Mia looked up at him shyly.
"R-really?"
"Well, I hope so!" he smiled nervously.
"You 'hope so'?! What the hell kind of an answer is that?!" she laughed. Dais pulled her close against his chest, resting his face in the back of her neck.
"The kind that gets you to smile at me again…"
Cale simply stared at Domo. She waved a hand in front of his face. "Hellooo, Cale! You there?!" she laughed. He blushed when she started laughing softly.
"O-oh, sorry…" He stepped aside. "Please, come in." She entered and placed a bag on the desk.
"It's so dark in here… Oh, right… 'Warlord of Darkness'… Got it…" She watched Cale lock and secure his door tightly. "… I heard about what happened with you and Mia," she announced softly. Cale sighed and turned.
"Not beating around the bush, are you? If she sent you in here, then get out. I have nothing to say to her, nor do I want to hear more of her excuses and lies," he snapped. Domo plopped onto his bed.
"Oh, relax. I just thought you might want someone to talk to. I figured you couldn't talk to the guys after what you said to Mia. They'd take her side easily, and the girls are so into the new couple around here." Cale frowned.
"So how come you aren't?" Domo didn't answer right away and walked over to the large window. She stared out at the ominous horizon.
"… Because I… just don't care about that kind of thing anymore," she said softly. Cale's face softened as he saw sadness in her dark green eyes. She didn't care? Well, that was just a flat out lie... He could tell by the expression she gave him, but as soon as it appeared, it vanished, and she smiled again. "What does it matter anyway?" she asked and opened the bag that was on the table. She pulled out a large, expensive looking bottle. "Morphine, for the pain," she smirked, tossing him a shot glass. Cale nearly dropped it. He stared down at the glass with a little bunny smiling up at him. He raised an eyebrow.
"… Didn't picture you as a drinker, Korin… or one to have little pink rabbits on her glassware," he chuckled. Domo lifted her chin, rather hurt by his comment.
"Hey! 'Ri-san gave me these for my birthday! These are good luck!" she said and tried to open the bottle. "Hn. This damn… thing!" Cale smirked and took the bottle from her hands.
"Good luck? How so?" he asked, opening the bottle with ease. Domo pouted slightly and took the bottle back.
"You know, the only reason that you could open it was 'cause I loosened it for you," she stated matter of factly. Cale rolled his eyes.
"Of course, my lady!" he smirked.
"Anyway, they're good luck because we were in a restaurant for my party and Japan's hottest pop-star came out and asked me for a pen to sign autographs. He said these were cute," she sighed happily. Cale made a face."Who?"
"… Gackt. Come on! Drink up and start talkin'…"Tori skipped and hopped down the stairs. Swinging around the corner, she passed the laundry room, and a tight, green-toweled encased backside of Halo, digging in the dryer. Tori halted and stopped, admiring the view and debating whether or not to rip off the towel and call for Megami and Sakura. She smirked before tip-toeing behind him and,
"BOO!!"
"WAAAAAAH!!" Sage bumped his head on the dryer and fell backward, boxers, socks, and some choice undergarments flying everywhere. Tori's face reddened before Sage yanked the towel back up over his waist. His cheeks colored. Tori kneeled beside him, still trying to fight off a fit of giggles. "S-sorry, Sage… but the way you were standing, I couldn't resist! Are you okay?" Sage rubbed the back of his head and shrugged before standing. Tori followed and looked at him in puzzlement. He's not mad? "Sage?"
"You mind? I'm standing here in a towel with my underwear strewn about for all of girlkind to see." Tori blushed and turned.
"Whoops…" Sage started to make himself at least halfway decent and hopped into a pair of blue jeans. He sighed heavily. "… Hey, Sage? Can I ask you something?" Sage buttoned his jeans and started to gather his clothing.
"What?"
"Nothing… you just seem upset about something. You wanna talk?" She stooped over to help him gather his things. Sage sighed and remained silent. "You know that you can't bottle up your feelings. You might explode like Cale-kun did… I don't want that to happen to you." Sage lowered his eyes.
"All right… Let's go up to my room. We can talk there…"
"How 'bout my room? Kayura isn't in there… She's… with Ryo-sama."
"'Ryo… s-sama'?" Sage repeated. Tori blushed. "Looks like you're the one who needs a pep-talk," he smiled. She remained in a flushed silence with a slight nod, fiddling with an article of clothing that she now realized it had bore some resemblance to what someone whould where to a strip joint. She blinked at it, and then at Sage."Sage?"
"What?"
"... Please tell me that you didn't... dance your way through college." Sage snatched the undergarment with a heavy blush.
"Gimme that."
Tori followed Sage down the hall after depositing his clothing in the basket. "Think Cale-kun will ever get back to his old self?" she asked.
"… I hope so…" They passed by the kitchen door. It had been propped open by a chair. Kento, Sai, Megami, and Sakura looked to be playing some kind of drinking game:
Sai shuffled the deck of cards expertly as he and Kento explained a rather fun game that they overly played in college. "Okay, girls… The game is "Queens"," Kento began pulling out the stock of beer from the refrigerator. "It's really very simple."
"Even Kento can do it!" Sai chirped.
"Hey!" Sai started laying the cards faced down all over the table.
"Doesn't matter who goes first. All you do is pick a card and go left. Kento, will you demonstrate?" Sai asked. Kento opened a can of beer and set it down.
"Of course, buddy!" Kento picked up a card and presented it to them. "This is a King. So as the rules go, everyone's gotta drink. The cards go as follows: Aces… you get to pick anyone else to drink."
"As we demonstrated, a King makes everyone drink," Sai added, handing out cans to everyone. "So does an eight."
"If it's a Queen, you girls both take a drink…"
"A Jack makes guys drink… Megami, love? Beer or malt liquor?" Sai asked.
"Ummm… I dunno. Just gimme one!"
"Yes ma'am!"
"Tens make the second person on the right of the chooser drink. So if Kento is on my right and Sakura was also on his right, Sakura, you would take a drink. The same is said of a nine, but that goes to the left." Sakura nodded.
"Sevens and sixes it's the immediate right or left. There's no skippin'," Kento explained.
"Fives will just change the direction of turns. So instead of left, you go right." Sai replaced the king Kento had to the field. "Do you understand?"
"I… I guess so. Wait! What about the rest of the numbers?" Megami asked.
"If you pick four through two, then you have to take that many drinks. So if Sai picked a four, he would have to take four drinks. This game is a lot easier with shot glasses, but that's the good liquor and it's Mia's. So we'll just count a drink for one second. Four drinks would equal four seconds. It doesn't seem like much, but when you can barely read the number, it gets pretty interestin'!" Kento grinned. "Ready?"
Sakura and Megami gave each other a long look of worry. Neither of them wanted to be plastered again, but when you have Dynasty attacking and the end of the world drawing nigh… you tend to try and get your kicks where ever… even if it is spending the night next to the toilet or getting laid by your best friend's boyfriend. They hoped the latter wouldn't happen. Sakura held her can up to Megami's bottle. "Kanpai?"
"Kanpai!!!" she beamed. "I wanna go first!"
"Go for it!" Kento grinned. This is gonna be easy! Megami picked up a Jack.
"Down the hatch boys!!"
Tori peered over Sage's shoulder into the kitchen. "What are they playing?" she asked softly.
"Looks like they're playing what we used to play in college… Hey! They're drinking my stuff!" he growled. Tori held him back.
"I'll buy you some more, okay?" Sage pouted slightly.
"But, but… It's imported!" he protested. "Nooo…"
Sage deposited his laundry into his and Rowen's room. He opened the door quietly when he saw that the lights were off. It was only eight o'clock and Rowen was usually up until ten or eleven at the earliest. He stopped when he saw Nasake curled up next to Rowen, who had also fallen asleep reading. Sage set the basket down beside his bed and just stared at the pair. He tightened his fists in frustration.
He couldn't seem to phase the ache in his heart whenever he saw Sai or Kento with the girls or Rowen with Nasake. He had remained quiet about his affections. He kept his actions in check and even daily meditation in order to stem unwanted emotions seemed as if it were an impossible task.
It was. He felt awful. He felt cheated.
He felt angry.
Rowen stirred softly and blinked. He saw Sage staring at him in the dark room. Rowen saw the confusion and frustration in Sage's lavender-blue eyes. Sage's eyes widened with a gasp and he looked away with a blush. He started to go. Rowen sat up.
"… Sage? What's wrong?" he asked in a whisper. Sage suddenly smiled softly.
"Nothing Rowen. Just go back to sleep. Don't wait up," he said and quickly exited, shutting the door behind him. Rowen stared at the closed door in silence. Sage…
"Mmn? Rowen? Whas… wrong?" she mumbled. Rowen sighed heavily knowing the look that Sage had given him. He leaned back and pulled himself close to her.
"Nothing, Nasake," he whispered. "Just go back to sleep."Cale coughed a bit as he took a shot of the liquor Domo had poured. She swallowed it as if it were water. "You okay?" she smirked.
"… Y-yes. Been awhile since I had something this strong." He picked up the bottle and nodded. "Fifty percent… That'll do it." He poured them another glassful before leaning back against his headboard. "So… What did they all exactly tell you?" he asked and knocked another one back. So what if he got piss drunk? The current situation wouldn't seem as bad, and he wouldn't remember this twenty years down the road! Domo swallowed the gold fluid and shuddered. "Woah, that one had more in it…" Cale held up the bottle.
"More?"
"Always," she smirked. "… All I heard from Kayura and Sekhmet was that you flew off the handle when you found out that Mia was jerkin' your chain. Kayura said that it wasn't intentional and that Mia is new at the emotion… Anyway, some choice words were said, but they think that you were just blowing off steam from everything that's happened. They warned me not to come up here too." Cale swallowed hard. Domo followed.
"Why did you?"
"'Cause I felt like it," she said flatly. "That and to beat some sense into you if you mouthed off to me." Cale raised an eyebrow and took another drink.
"Oh really?"
"Yeah, really. So be nice and start venting. This bottle wasn't cheap," Domo ordered and poured him some more. "How many have you had anyway?"
"Um… Four or five."
"Good."
"This isn't healthy, you know?" Domo hugged his arm.
"Neither is alienating yourself from your friends, Cale," she said softly, her attitude changing from her norm to something much more sad… something darker. Cale lifted his arm and pulled it around her. He drank more slowly with the next one.
"Something tells me that you didn't come to visit just to say hello… The pack leave you behind to lick your wounds?" he asked. Domo swallowed another sip and started to feel the heat of drunkenness on her cheeks. Or maybe it was the heated skin of his chest that was making her feel like that.
"… Not exactly, Cale," she whispered.
"What happened in the city?" he asked. Domo sat up and stared into her glass.
"I don't wanna talk about it…" Cale moved closer and placed a strong hand on her head.
"Come on…" he coaxed, refilling her glass. "If I have to tell all, so do you…" Domo sighed heavily.
"… When we got back in town, I found out Ryu had been screwing someone else behind my back."
"Now when you mean 'screwing someone else', do you mean that he had been previously with you just for that purpose?" he asked. "I would think that you were smart enough to recognize that." Domo drank quickly and frowned.
"Trust me; it didn't start out that way… Well, that was before a warlord so happily informed me of Ryu's after school activities and that everything I've ever felt for him was a lie… Whether it was on his part or mine… I don't really know the answer to that," she said softly.
"Wait. Stop. WARLORD?" Cale inquired.
"Raiko. Yeah, he's got fuckin' nine lives…"
"Just how, pray tell, he happen to tell you this?"
"… Ryu and I were making like rabbits-"
"You don't sugar-coat things do you?"
"What? I hadn't done it in months! You go a year without your lover and tell me you don't get a little… animalistic. Anyway… There we were… and things got a little too rough…" Domo pulled down the edge of her jeans, exposing large fang and claw marks. Cale gasped silently and set his glass aside, pulling back the fabric further to examine the marks. "I'll let you fill in the rest," she said softly.
"What happened to Ryu?" he asked after a pause.
"Raiko so kindly led me to the bathroom… Whatever had been going on, Raiko had ambushed the two-"
"'Two'? Oh…"
"It was a blood bath…" she finished the rest of her drink and let a shuddering sigh rush through her teeth. "I sort of zoned out after that. Raiko had his fill of consensual sex, now he got to rape a rag doll… I didn't scream… or cry… I just remember the way the bed creaked… and the rain storm," she said softly. She felt Cale's hand through her hair as he rubbed her back comfortingly. Frankly, he was down right worried. He knew that it wasn't easy to talk about being raped. Mia had been the textbook example of that. Yet Korin showed no signs of distress. Her voice had been empty and monotonic, something that caused a feeling of dread to rise.
"How did you escape?" He saw a small smile rise to her lips.
"… By the wonderful warrior of light," she replied, half sardonically and half of some other unknown emotion. "… I remember darkness, and then suddenly I felt so hot. You know the feeling you get right before you have an orgasm?" Cale cleared his throat and eyed his empty glass.
"Can't say that I quite remember that feeling…"
"… I don't remember everything clearly. It was all very dreamlike. All I remember is Sage… touching, feeling… tasting. It felt like I was making love to… sunshine… Yeah, I know that it sounds corny, but… there's no other way to describe it. It felt wrong, but wonderful at the same time…" She paused. Cale stroked her hair.
"… You have feelings for Halo?"
"… I don't know… Everything has been a mess since Kento told me how he felt. Sage has been so patient, and supportive. I had no idea how he felt about Ryu and me… but when I woke up, I was alone in Ryu's apartment. The place was a wreck. I felt a breeze and I turned and saw Sage… all armored up, exhausted, and so battered… I felt that he had defeated Raiko… to save me. I felt so awful when he gathered me in his arms and took me home, knowing that he knew that I still loved Ryu even after everything he did." Domo paused. "…I don't deserve someone that selfless…" she whispered almost inaudibly. "I think he's mad at me anyway," she added.
"Why?"
"… Because I won't talk to him like this. We haven't spoken of it since that night in the apartment. I just… I can't!"
"Woah, hey. Take one step at a time. If you do everything at once, it makes things worse. Trust me," he sighed and put his arm around her again as he leaned back.
"So, what are you going to do now?" she asked.
"… I don't know. I just feel like an idiot. I saw the signs of those two, yet I still pursued. I think I might be loosing my touch with that dark charm you were talking about," he sighed. "I've been contemplating about poking out an eye to change her mind… Dais has one eye… Seems to be the fad now," he smirked.
"Eww. No. Don't do that." She leaned on his chest, well aware of his hand tangled in her hair. "You won't have any depth perception. Plus… it would clash with the scar. I think your better looking than Dais if it's any consolation to you," she confessed softly. Cale raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, really?" Domo nodded after a pause. She smiled.
"Yeah. You don't need Mia, Cale… You just need some time to think about what you want and enjoy times to get to now your friends." Cale flushed gently.
"Thank you, Korin."
"You know you have to stop calling me that…"
"Does it bother you?" Domo rested her head against his chest, feeling the effects of the alcohol.
"… It makes me feel… isolated. Korin is a like a god. She's worshipped, loved because of her wrath… No one loves her for her. They love her for her power to protect. I'm… nowhere near that. I'm human, not a religious icon."
Cale took the glass out of her hand and placed it next to his on the nightstand. He folded his arms around her. "Okay… Domo it is then."
Tori looked up to see Sage entering her room from the open doorway. She smiled softly. "Hey, didn't think that you were gonna show," she murmured. Sage sat beside her and shrugged.
"… I figured that the only way to sort out my head about your friend is to talk to her best friend. It seemed logical at the time… Now it feels like I'm bordering on obsession."
"I don't think so. She is cute and does have some kind of effect on the people that she gets to know. Tell me something… Why do you care about her so much?"
"… I… feel like there's something buried underneath that front she puts on. Something that just draws me to her. She once told me about her being raped… I just barely knew her at the time."
"What?! She didn't tell me about what happened until years down the road!" Tori exclaimed.
"… Maybe it was then that I noticed something about her… It was in the back of my mind… almost as if it was calling out for help. I just wanted to know more about her… I just wish I knew why she confided in me at that time… She also hung around more after Kiku died. For a while she… opened up. I actually got her to laugh a few times."
"Well, Sage. There is something very calming about you. Maybe she sensed that… She kissed you if I recall over at my place!!"
"She was drunk."
"Sagie-boy. I hate to break it to you, but six shots of tequila, two shots of that whiskey that Sai had brought and the orange soda she downed in a minute flat is just starter fluid if you know what I'm sayin'. It takes a lotta beer to get her to do something that she wouldn't normally do. The girls and I were gone after our third shot of tequila!" Sage's lavender-blue eyes widened.
"… GOD. Maybe it was because I was a little tipsy…" He blushed heavily when Tori kissed his cheek.
"You do have the cutest rosy cheeks, Sage!" she grinned. His face flared.
"Th-thanks… I think… So what's up with you and our fearless leader? You two were inseparable the whole time we were in the city! You two even slept in the same bed…" he said in a softer tone. "You two didn't…?"
"Huh? WHAT?! NO!!!" Tori squealed, clutching her cheeks. Her face felt so hot! "Geez, SAGE!"
"Well, what were we supposed to think?! You had Kento listening at the door on some nights!" Tori frowned when Sage covered his mouth. "Uh, you weren't supposed to know that…"
"I can tell." Tori sighed. "NO. We didn't do ANYTHING. He was… keeping an eye on me for Anubis. Plus I was have mucho nightmares that I really don't want to get into right now…"
"So…"
"So??"
"So do you love him or not?"
"Anubis?!" Tori squeaked.
"NO! Ryo…" Tori looked down at her lap and shrugged.
"… I… I think so… but I know that he and Kay are…" she didn't finish. "It's impractical to hope, but… I can't help it. I tried telling him once, but… got cold feet." She frowned. "I just don't understand why she's constantly hanging on Anubis though… It makes me so mad!" Sage raised an eyebrow.
"Are you sure that you're not mad because you're jealous of Kayura? Because you do have feelings for Anubis?" Tori shrugged with a sniffle.
"I… I don't know!" she whimpered. Sage pulled his arm around her and she huddled against his shoulder with a sigh.
"Ever think about talking to Anubis?"
"Oh, yeah right!" she frowned. "His ego is all ready too big!" Sage chuckled.
"True… Well… Ask yourself this: what do I want?" Tori sighed.
"… I want my life back, Sage. I want the pain to stop… I don't want to feel lonely anymore," she whispered. "I know that it sounds like something out of a movie and that I'm over dramatizing everything…"
"You are an orphan, with no living relatives left, you are fighting on the edge of a cataclysmic war, with a crazy heffer of a warlord trying to kill you because of a mix up… I'd say that your life is over dramatized, not your way of thinking…" He blinked when Tori started laughing. "Wow… I didn't expect you to bounce back like that!" he smiled.
"N-no, no! What you said about… Z-zeal!! HAHA!! Crazy heffer! That's a good one!!!" she cackled. "I gotta use that next time!" Sage stared at her before breaking down into soft laughter.Domo stared at the wall while hanging her head upside down over Cale's bed. He lay right beside her doing the exact same thing.
"All the blood s'going to my head," he mumbled.
"It's life in a different perspective, Cale… Plus, you're hanging over too far."
"Oh…" He shifted. Paused. "Nope, still going." He rolled over onto his stomach and leaned his chin on his folded arms. Domo followed.
"… What's wrong with us, Cale?" she sighed.
"We're drunk, my lady," he chuckled.
"No… Well, yeah… I meant… what was wrong with us as people? Did we do something wrong?" she mumbled.
"… I don't know. Seems that way… I think this is the part where I say that 'of course there's nothing wrong with us! We're unique. One of a kind! To each their own-'"
"Okay, you covered it…" Domo rolled over onto her back and stared up at the darkened ceiling. "… I just feel. Empty." Cale turned on his side and leaned on his elbow.
"'Empty'? Empty like hungry or empty-headed like Hardrock?"
"That isn't nice, Cale."
"What he's a phenomenon! So full of food, yet so empty-headed! It's maddening!" Domo just sighed.
"… I feel like everything has been sucked out of me… I don't feel wanted most of the time. I don't feel that someone needs me for me… not just for my body."
"What… about Halo?" he reminded. Domo closed her eyes.
"I don't doubt Sage… at all… I want to believe that his intentions are… true. I just can't… His eyes do convey love… but… all I see is… pity… and I hate it when someone looks at me like that…"
"… Same here," he murmured. A pause. "… When little Kiku and I first met… I felt… human. Completely human. I smiled. I cried. I laughed. More importantly, I felt… love. Now that she's gone… I feel more lost than ever. Her spirit was so bright and pure. Something that I have not… touched in a long, long time… All that was trapped into one little body that needed everything I did… and I… couldn't protect it. I couldn't protect her." Domo turned her head to Cale and rolled on her side.
"It's not your fault. She's… safer now," Domo reassured.
"Aye… but for how long?"
"… Who knows?" she sighed and closed her eyes. "… I just… I wonder if I could ever feel something different. To feel… needed, wanted, befriended… happy… loved… instead of the mind-numbing sameness of pain… I want all of it. I want it like when two lovers just stare into each other and get lost… feeling, tasting, seeing, hearing… even the scent. It's been one hard screw after another… ever since my rape… The numbness never leaves you, Cale. You feel like you're incapable of anything but." She sniffled as she felt a warm, sword-calloused hand on her cheek.
"Hey, hey… Shh… don't talk like that. Things will change, Korin…"
"I was fourteen, Cale," she stabbed, angry eyes opening with fresh tears. "I still feel it!" she breathed sadly.
"I only meant…" Domo sniffled and pushed herself off of the bed, moving towards the door.
"I know what you meant, Cale," she whispered. "I… I need to go…" Unlocking it, she held the doorknob in one hand and heard Cale move up behind her. Just open the door and go, Korin, she told herself. Go before you do something you'll regret… She held the knob firmly, arm shaking slightly.
Out of the corner of her eye, a large forearm and strong hand leaned slowly against the wood frame of the door, keeping her from opening it. The other hand slid to the soft skin of her shoulder and pulled away the strands of sunshine to touch the nape of her neck. She could feel the presence of his body almost against her back… his breath in her ear…
"… Must you go?" he asked softly, stroking the soft hair that flowed beautifully down her back. Domo snapped her eyes shut, shrinking slightly in her stature and moving closer to the door. She answered with a slow nod. Cale followed and trapped her with both arms now on the door. Slowly an arm snaked around her waist and he pulled her snugly but gently against his frame. He nuzzled her ear. "… I don't want you to go," he whispered.
"C-cale… W-we can't…" she gasped, breathless.
"The numbness… fades, Korin. Light can return and melt the ice around the heart. For over four-hundred years… I've felt frozen. Locked away from the world… The ice is gone… Once again I'm… alive," he whispered into her ear, turning her around. He nudged her forehead with his own. "If I can feel again… you can too… You are beautiful, Domo… We all see it… we all see your light that we need. But you can't be strong all the time. The light does dim, but there is always something there for it to become bright again…" Domo whimpered helplessly and let out a small cry. "Shh… shh… Everything will be all right," he soothed. "Anger will melt… and fear… and shame… and sadness. Please…" he begged softly. "Don't leave now… Let… let me be a light for you in this dark time… Just… for now until you're ready for a Light of your own…"
"Ca-cale," she whispered, near a sob. "I… it hurts…" she sobbed softly, falling weak in her knees. Cale caught and lifted her in his arms, before placing her gently back on his bed.
As Cale leaned over her, he saw for the first time Domo. Not Domo as the bearer of Korin's light, but as Domo the girl, the young woman… the very same, beautiful person that Halo saw: untainted, uncovered, attached, young, innocent… pure. He knew better than this. For some reason it didn't feel as wrong as it looked. He felt something pulling at him, more specifically his heart, almost commanding him to give all he could to someone who needed it, even if it were never returned. He did love Domo… just like everyone else did. Halo, however, loved her more and she had failed to see it… The love Cale felt was the same as Torrent's, equal to Hardrock's and Strata's. It burned like Wildfire and Rekka's… Everyone. She needed to feel it. Experience it with her body, so the mind… the twisted, frightened, fragile mind could experience it… to know it, to want it enough to live with it instead of fear.
Fear. He sensed fear above all else. A fear that was strong and defiant in its resolve. If she could overcome it… perhaps her light would shine for all to see? He wanted just to give… not take as he had done so many times and so many years ago. He wanted to give her a chance… a change to become the innocent again. A chance for her and Halo…
He was puzzled as to why he was doing this. Perhaps he not only did it to save her… he did it to save himself, to save himself from letting go of the light completely, to make him see the hope of something good in this world… Maybe… even to feel again… too.
The tears just wouldn't stop flowing. Domo gazed up into the midnight eyes… soft and warm, knowing once they were hard, dark, and bleak. She felt a flutter from the stare he gave her. The stare conveyed strength and security, but at the same time… love… No… not quite the same look that Sage gave her… It was kind, friendly… calm… serene… familiar. Slowly, a soft smile fell over his lips as he leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead. "…'Bless this soul… with all your light'…" he prayed aloud.
"… H-huh?" she uttered. Cale traced her cheek with the back of his hand.
"… An old prayer from my people from ancient times… times when light was apart of me as the dark…" he whispered. "'May the grace of them… and Korin, be with you'," he breathed just as his mouth claimed hers in a gentle, but powerful kiss.
Sage tiptoed out of Tori's bedroom careful not to make her stir from sleep. He smiled softly to himself. He couldn't believe that he actually felt a little better now. Almost renewed. "… Wonder if Sai and the others are still at that game?" he asked aloud and descended the stairs, and into the kitchen.
"I bet… my sock!" Megami smiled and lifted a limber, rather bare leg high in the air and pulled off the yellow article.
"Headband…" Kento added to the growing pile of clothing. It looked like a pair of jeans, a white skirt, a yellow tank top, a smaller blue girl's shirt, a dark purple shirt, a sock, a headband, and the household brand-named Milkball shirt. This left Kento in his boxers… Spiderman boxers more specifically… It left Megami without a shirt. The bright white against her dark skinned, rather fairly ample chest, was hard to miss. Sai had lost a shirt and Sakura appeared to be in nothing BUT her underwear…
Of course, everyone was a little too drunk to care.
"Your turn Sakura-sama," Sai reminded. She pouted.
"I fold…" She had lost something every round. Sai pulled off both of his socks and a watch. Kento sighed heavily.
"Me too…" Sai was way too good at this game.
"Looks like it's jus' you an' me, love!" Sai smiled. Megami glared over the rim of her cards.
I'm sooo NOT gonna loose this round!
"Are you going to bet?" Sai asked, very confident in his hand. Megami set her cards down slowly, making Sai grin form ear to ear, before starting to take back his watch. Megami put one hand down on the pile.
"Hold it, mister!" she snapped. " I can't undo this thing with one hand, y'know!" she frowned and reached behind her to unclasp her bra. Sai's eyes widened. Kento eyes couldn't get any larger. Sakura just giggled at them. Megami sighed contently and tossed the yellow C-cup lingerie into the pile before sitting back down and picking up her cards. "Okay. Now I'm ready!" she smiled. Sai flopped back in his chair and tossed his cards on the table.
"I fold."
"YES!" she grinned. "Man, Sai… You had a three of a kind!" she pointed out and presented only a pair of deuces. Kento had his eyes on… another pair, before bursting out into laughter. Sai just shook his head.
"Dude! You got so played…" Kento grinned. He noticed Sage out of the corner of his eye. "S'up, Sagie-boy? We're playin' poker! Dude, s'up with your face?" he asked. Sage swallowed hard and backed out of the room slowly before about-facing in the direction of the backdoor from the study hallway. "… Why couldn't I have normal friends?" he sighed and exited out the back door and down to the lake to think.
He was surprised to find a familiar silhouette sitting on the dock and staring down and out at the water.
"Good evening, Anubis," he greeted. Anubis slowly turned his head to look then back out at the moonlit lake.
"… Halo," he greeted in return.
"Mind if I join you?" Sage asked.
"… I suppose. It's Lady Mia's dock. You'll have to ask her," he joked, but in a rather absent voice.
"… Something on your mind?" Sage asked after a long pause.
"… What made you think that?"
"Because you're more quiet than you usually are…"
"So, what is your point, Halo?" Anubis asked with an annoyed tone. Sage sighed, giving up on pursuing the matter any further.
"Fine, but it's not gonna go away…"
"I doubt that you could help me," Anubis replied softly.
"You might be surprised." Anubis lowered his eyes to the water.
"I don't suppose your powers have grown enough to ease a lonely heart as of late, have they?" he murmured in askance. Sage's eyes widened before his face softened.
"No… sorry. Maybe if you were a foot shorter and a girl… the powers of 'persuasion' can be a helpful remedy," he smirked. Anubis looked up at the moon, ignoring Halo's attempt at humor.
"… I wish I had died instead of Kaos," he whispered hoarsely. Sage straightened.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What brought this on? You've all ready died ONCE!" Anubis lowered his eyes. They glimmered in the reflection of the moon's light on the watery surface.
"… It seems that I do more harm than good here."
"Like what?" Sage couldn't understand.
"I can't seem to do anything right… I couldn't protect Kaos… or little Kiku… Zeal is out of control because I've let her live this long… Gods… even Tori. I promised Kaos that I'd watch over her in his stead, and I can't even keep her safe or happy… As far as she's concerned I'm the worst of this ragtag time of rebels…" He turned to look at Sage waiting for some response. Instead he got a puzzled stare. "W-what?"
"… Don't say ragtag ever again," he chuckled. Anubis growled in annoyance.
"Just leave me alone if you're going to laugh! I don't need it from you either…" Sage with held his laughter.
"I'm sorry, Anubis…" A pause. "… Y'know, she doesn't think you're that bad…" Anubis stiffened.
"What did she say?"
"… You're just a little… how do I put this nicely?"
"Oh, lovely," he groaned. "Nevermind… I don't want to know."
"'Misguided' was the word that she used… I think that she meant Zeal. I promised her I wouldn't say anything to you, but… She's hurt that won't see past the fact that she's nothing like Zeal, and that no matter what you may think… or even feel for Tori… it's always going to be influenced by Zeal and no something that she herself has made you think… Does that help?" Anubis didn't respond immediately.
"She's exactly right…" He laughed bitterly. "That's just makes me feel a lot worse now…" He sighed and stood. "… Guess I have a lot of thinking to do…"
"Anubis… She doesn't hate you… remember that," Sage reminded. Anubis faded into the shadows of the dark forest, leaving Halo alone with his thoughts.
Domo drew in a short gasp of air as sharp teeth nipped at the flesh against her neck before being lavished with a hot tongue. Strong, tight arms held her slender back against the heated, bare body of the former warlord of darkness. She opened her eyes, half-lidded with a new passion, and caught herself in the mirror across the room. The moonlight bounced off skin, covering it so that she could not tell where one body ended and another began. Cale slid his hands up over her chest and over the taught flesh of her breasts, drawing another soft gasp from her throat. Her hair spilled down over her and Cale's shoulders, tickling and teasing his skin as she moved with his touch. She whispered something his ears barely managed to pick up and he looked into the mirror at her. He felt her skin shiver as he caught her eyes. He stilled his hands; his eyes narrowed slyly as the burned something hot and carnal into hers. He suddenly smiled, with an indulgent expression in the midnight depths. Slowly he slid a hand down her stomach, feeling her writhe slightly at the contact with her over-sensitive nerve endings. She moaned softly at his hesitation, and was set free from his deep stare as his eyes closed and he buried his lips against her ear. "Shh… shh… don't rush it… Leave everything… to me," he said softly, breath hot and heavy in her ear. Domo curved her head back against his shoulder and bit her lip, reaching up to bury her hand in the soft down of his hair. Cale reached upward and caught her hand, bringing it back to her side and looping his fingers through hers. Domo turned her head to him in protest, but gasped in shock as his lips claimed hers confidently.
He shifted slightly, holding her body across his lap and inside the crook of his arm. As her body relaxed once more, he smiled to himself as he felt her mouth respond in a surprisingly innocent way. Her hand slid to his hair again, touching the feather soft locks.
Cale tightened an arm around her body and lowered her back against the mattress. He murmured softly against her mouth as her body heated up his even more, and the more than needed dose of alcohol pumping through his body only multiplied the heat. Another bliss-filled moan came from him as both of her hands buried themselves into his hair, petting, gripping gently as if he were a cat. It was actually quite enjoyable, almost enough to make him purr.
His lips left hers slowly and he stared down at her. Domo stroked his hair as she stared up at him. Her dark green eyes expressed untold passion and a new glimmer that he had never quite seen before. Cale smiled fondly down at her. There, he concluded. There it is…
"… C-cale-sama?" she whispered.
"… Mmn?"
"I… feel something… something good… What… what's happening to me?" she whispered, eyes misting. Cale leaned down and kissed her softly.
"Just… trust me," he breathed against her mouth. His lips left hers to trail kisses down her throat, then further to the skin between her breasts. Again he felt her hands in his hair. He turned his head and dragged his tongue across a nipple. She whimpered and bit down on her lip, feeling a normally gentle sensation, become intense. She opened her mouth to moan again as he gently suckled, but only a gasp of air greeted the otherwise silent bedchamber.
Something suddenly entered in the back of her mind. Darkened lavender-blue eyes greeted her and a smile calmed the overwhelming feelings she was having. S-seiji-sama? But… A soft chuckle met her ears. Cale brought his head up to her ear and nibbled gently on the lobe.
"That's it… It's real… Don't try and think… just feel…" Cale instructed her. He let one hand explore her body freely, trailing it down her thigh and toward the inner tender flesh. She moaned softly as his hand sought lower places of her body and slipped into the apex of her thighs.
Halo's name met his ears as her body arched immediately into his touch. He smiled. "Yes…" he breathed in her ear. "It's all right…"
There was silence. She had only been whispering it into the darkness of the night. He wanted her to say it, to say it like she meant it. He slid down the length of her body and ran his hands back up her long legs, lifting them onto his shoulders as he parted them. She whimpered as he started to kiss along the insides of her thighs.
Again came the name, just a little louder then before. Cale dipped his head down and ran his hot tongue over her center, making her moan in pleasure as her hips rose of the bed to meet his mouth. He looked up, still giving her a gentle, but torturously teasing tongue bath. She chewed on her lip and gripped the sheets.
Domo opened her eyelids, heavy with pleasure and the haze of the spell Cale was putting upon her. Instead of sapphire locks, she thought she saw ones of gold. Her heart leapt briefly. In the same instant, Cale inserted his tongue deep within her. "…S-seiji!" she moaned. She felt a sudden weight being lifted from her as Cale rose over her and took her into his arms. She looked at him with eyes of love and need, knowing that she saw what and whom she wanted to see. She needed to see the love that they all held. As an armor bearer, he could see into the hearts of his fellow soldiers. He knew the heart of Halo.
And now she did too.
"Seiji-sama…" she whispered, stroking his face gently. Her eyes misted. "Please… please…" she begged. Cale nodded, staying silent. He bent down and lapped up the tears with his tongue before kissing her tenderly.
There was a suddenly pang of loneliness in his heart and was reminded of Mia. He carefully lifted her hips and slid himself inside her. Domo's body curved and her head tossed as he slowly rocked his hips in a fluid like motion. He bent his head backwards. Warmth. Healing warmth fell in a rush over his body as he pushed and pulled inside of her. It felt so deliciously… bright. His eyes fluttered shut as pleasure coursed through his body. He quickly moved toward the edge of climax , hearing the soft moans of Halo's name intermingling with her voice and another's.
He opened his eyes and found auburn locks spilling out across the sheets and teal eyes staring into his full of desire and need… and perhaps there was a little bit of an apologetic gaze. It was as if his heart was beginning to mend and the bitterness he felt melt away.
He lifted her body into his lap, wrapping a strong arm around her shoulders and the other hand at her hips, pushing himself even farther into her body. Her eyes locked with his as she rocked her hips back and forth. "F-feels good... So... good!" she gasped. Eyes of lavender-blue loving hers and ones of teal healing his. She leaned forward and kissed him with a passion that he had never felt from her.
"… With me," she pleaded, moans escaping in hot gasps. She was so very close. "T-together…"
Something primitive awoke within him suddenly and light exploded around his eyes as he thrust sharply, moaning loudly. "Mia!" Domo cried out as she felt him expand and thrust inside her.
"Seiji!" Her body curved back, Cale's hands holding her as he convulsed through his orgasm. She collapsed back against the bed, Cale following, exhausted.
Moments passed by slowly and gasping breath became nothing more than slow and deep ones of wanted sleep. Cale finally opened his eyes. The auburn locks had vanished. Domo curled up against him, having fallen asleep almost moments after. Cale stared at her features:… relaxed… content… and no longer tormented. He leaned over and kissed her softly. "… Sleep sweet, my lady Korin…" And thank you… He glanced at the door for some reason.
One lavender-blue eye pierced through the darkness at him. Cale felt a sudden stab of guilt. The eye closed and vanished. Cale reached over and grabbed the comforter on the ground. He pulled it up and over them. With a wave of his hand the door shut quietly and he slowly slipped into sleep.A/N: Okay. There. It's done. Ping, ping, ping!! I'm all typed out now you pervy elf. This should tie you over for now. Anyway… how did you like it everyone? I tried to actually put a plot behind the reason. Did it come out okay?
Yes, there IS such a thing as "Queens". It's a drinking game that can be found at . I do NOT, I repeat, do NOT encourage heavy drinking of any kind, especially if you are underage… Unless you are a RESPONSIBLE 21-year-old adult, don't engage in acts of random stupidity like drinking for fun. There isn't a rewind/erase button on life, kids. "Thank you. This has been a public service announcement."- Yuli.
::whaps boy upside head::
"OW!"
::Grins::