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Fireless

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"But I thought you would like it! The story is so cute!"

"I don't read manga." Ritsuka said, looking away as he pressed the book into Yuiko's hands, her ears drooping as she looked at the familiar cover.

"But…" she sniffed, making Ritsuka tense up a little as he noticed how her eyes began to water.

"D-Don't cry, Yuiko." He said giving in and looking at her. Even as a high school student she was still prone to weeping fits. "I just didn't have time to read it, that's all."

She rubbed her eyes, moistening her hands but maintaining a good hold on the comic still in them. She sniffed again but nodded a little, offering a smile, "Alright, Ritsuka-kun, I understand. You're always so busy!"

Ritsuka couldn't help but smile a little, shaking his head slowly at the cheerful girl that had morphed from one stage to another in only a matter of seconds. He liked that about her, he found something to like about everybody…but…even though he liked them all…all of the people around him…Soubi's hurt the most.

Soubi burned…

"Hey, Ritsuka-kun!"

"What is it?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

Yuiko leaned in close, so close and so quickly that Ritsuka recoiled from the sudden close in the gape between them, his eyes a little wider then they had been since his younger years.

"Do you want to come over today? My parents were working so I thought I would try to make you something!"

Ritsuka bit his lip. "I don't know…"

I want to go with Yuiko to her house…it's been a while since I saw her…but…I can't break another curfew…and I was going to try to contact Soubi…

As he thought about it, he reached into his pocket, lightly touching the cell phone resting inside of it. The warmth of the tiny machine warming his bare fingers after the chilly afternoon air.

"Please, Ritsuka-kun!" she pleaded, lacing her fingers together in a begging pose. She looked hopeful and the way her large eyes sparkled with building hope made him have to look away in order to keep himself from giving in noticeably.

"Alright." He said, giving in after seconds of fruitless struggle with his only female friend.

Yuiko cheered, throwing her hands into the air, forgetting that she had been hanging onto the manga and it flew out of her hands, flopping down to the sidewalk at the feet of an approaching figure. It wasn't long before Yuiko was picking it up and bowing apologetically to the man that had been stopped by the fallen comic book.

Ritsuka peered up at the man warily.

He was tall…as tall as Soubi it seemed, he was wearing a wooly trench coat that was fitted compared to the shrouds he saw older men wear. It made a chill run through him when he noticed that the man's face reminded him even more of Soubi, his glasses and his sharp but handsome features…but there was a difference between this man and Soubi. Though the Sentouki was no warm-fuzzy individual, this man's eyes were cold and rather piercing as he smiled a rather sarcastic smile and waved aside Yuiko's apology.

"It's nothing." He said as she straightened up, peering up at him with obvious color rising in her cheeks.

Ritsuka almost turned to walk home without going to Yuiko's when he noticed that the man's eyes were suddenly on him with a knowing expression on his youthful face. He seemed to realize the Sacrifice had caught him since he merely smiled, pushing the frames of his glasses up the bridge of his nose then hiding the hand away within a pocket as he continued to look at Ritsuka.

"Hello." He said in a falsely pleasant voice.

His voice wasn't as deep as Soubi's but it was no less manly and it sounded authoritive, like a college professor's or someone of a knowledgeable nature.

Ritsuka murmured a greeting, averting his eyes from the older man.

He heard the man chuckle…it was a dark chuckle.

"I suppose it's no surprise that you would have no interest in me, Aoyagi-san." The man said, his tone a little mocking.

However the voice sounded, that didn't alter the fact that this man knew Ritsuka's name and he immediately looked back at him with a wide-eyed gaze. Yuiko seemed to be just as surprised, this was the first time any of them had met after all…

"Don't bother asking about it." The man said, walking past them but pausing near Ritsuka. "But if I were you, I'd get a move on before someone else claims "those". It would be much easier on him…"

"Who…are you?"

"An old acquaintance…of Soubi's…"

At the mentioning of the Sentouki's name, Ritsuka's entire body became rigid, his mind blanking out as the man passed him without another word, Yuiko unable to speak either since her attention was on Ritsuka who had become so stiff after the man's words.

"Ritsuka-kun?" she touched his shoulder, jostling him a little.

"No!" he shouted, slapping her hand away, un aware of whose hand he had slapped away until a moment later.

He didn't know why…but that man knew Soubi…and it seemed to be an intimate knowledge for some reason…

Yuiko looked on her friend with concern.

"Ritsuka-kun…"

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So…he really is as short-tempered as he seemed…

Leaning back against the high wall of the high school, out of sight from the pink-haired girl and Ritsuka, the man relaxed, removing a cigarette from a silver box that had been in his coat pocket. The cold gleam of the winter sun flickered over the man's glasses as he lowered his head, cupping his hand over the tip of his cigarette that he placed between his lips while igniting a lighter, protecting the flame from any threats of a breeze before he could get a satisfactory red glow at the very tip.

I can see why he means so much to Soubi…but that doesn't mean he meets my approval. He thought; removing the cigarette and exhaling a stream of smoke that curled a few inches into the air then drifted into a messy haze that dissipated into the atmosphere. Still, I was able to get a good look at him on my last day out of the school…

Replacing the cancer stick, Ritsu-sensei leaned back his head against the bricks, eyes drifting over the buildings beyond his glasses and past the steady stream of smoke that the breathless day left undisturbed. He relished the chilly feel of the natural winter air, rather then the artificial cold that the air conditioner spat out in the darkness of his office, with the cold glow of his computer monitor replacing the winter sun. He liked the cold…it froze everything. Just like his butterflies frozen forever within their glass cases sprawled over his walls.

The, of course…there was that one who got away…

"Soubi, you'll have to hear that confession soon…" he mused, smirking and making his cigarette droop in between his lips. "His ears are in danger with each passing day…"

He lifted his head; glancing back from where he had came from before emitting another stream of smoke, accompanied by a low chuckle. Teenagers today…they're so impatient…but I suppose he has been waiting quite long enough.

Withdrawing his lighter, Ritsu-sensei looked at the butterfly engraved on the aluminum casing. He sneered at it, remembering looking at Ritsuka's glaring eyes earlier.

"He's burning…"

Pinching his cigarette between his fingers, Ritsu flicked the lighter a few times before a small flame appeared and he held it beneath the filter, watching the flames lick the base, the pure white surface of the expensive brand starting to char and blacken from the heat at the improper end. After a moment, it finally ignited and the teacher watched it slowly burn in between his fingers.

Soubi's persistence is liquid fire within that child's veins. It always has been…he's been burned to the word degree and one day that scorching will turn into a raging flame that he will not be able to dominate…

Dropping the burning cig to the sidewalk, he watched the filter's fibers burn away.

"Fire…scorching, charring…purifying." He smirked, "It is only growing into something more serious."

Ritsu pushed away from his wall, abandoning his burning cigarette as he continued on his way. He had a bus to catch…a desk chair to fill…and another student to train.

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"Here ya go!"

Ritsuka lifted his head from the palms of his hands from which he had his head rested in just as Yuiko set down a bowl of ramen in front of him. He wrinkled his nose at the steam rising from the dish, carrying the salty smell of instant shrimp-flavored powder. It was obviously packaged ramen and not homemade as Yuiko had claimed she would give him.

"I'm sorry. The stove wasn't working for some reason." Yuiko said, laughing nervously. "I could only use the microwave…"

"It's fine." He said finally, picking up a package of chopsticks that she had placed next to the bowl for him.

They could hardly eat in silence, the only sounds being Yuiko's slurping once in a while when she had forgotten her table manners and ate more messily. She would also forget that she had already made comments on the taste already and would exclaim how delicious she thought it was or she would cry out if she had burned her tongue.

Ritsuka had hardly touched his, only poking at the softening noodles with the wooden tips of the chopsticks. At the same time he scanned over the broth, almost as if he was waiting for some sort of explanation to emerge from the depths of the dish and explain to him why the man he had met that afternoon knew Soubi.

His hands ached to grab his cell phone and call the Fighter to find out just who the man was to Soubi.

"Yuiko, did you know that man we met after school today?" he asked finally as Yuiko set her empty bowl back onto the table.

She peered up at him for a moment, her ears drooping as she admitted that she had no idea who the man was. She didn't even know what he did or how he looked. Yuiko had been too busty apologizing to him and then noticing how Ritsuka had stiffened in the man's presence. It was as if she hadn't heard a single word the stranger has said to them…

Well…alright she didn't remember.

"Ritsuka-kun…is that why you are being so quiet?" she asked, rising from where she had been sitting and going to sit next to Ritsuka. She watched him prod at the noodles; they were breaking apart from his probing…

"It's nothing." He said without looking at her. "Just forget it."

"But…"

"Don't worry about it." Ritsuka said, looking at her and smiling a little, "Ok?"

Your smile…Yuiko thought, still looking a bit upset, Ritsuka-kun, your smile looks so sad.

Ritsuka was about to attempt another mouthful of ramen but his food would have to wait…his cell phone had suddenly begun to ring and his pocket vibrated with the ringer. He jumped, reaching for it but as his hands were free, Yuiko gasped.

"No!" she cried, pushing him down onto the floor, holding his shoulders.

"Y-Yuiko!" Ritsuka's face burned as he found himself looking up at Yuiko on top of him, her hands holding his shoulders down.

Now…Yuiko was not stronger then Ritsuka…he was just in shock at what had just occurred.

"Y-Yuiko, get off…"

"No!"

"I have to answer!"

"No! No!" She lowered herself on top of him, clinging to his shoulders now rather then pressing them down, her body fitting against his and her tail twitching side to side in brief flicks.

Ritsuka stared at her, light resting his hands over her back. She was quivering…shaking like a frightened child.

"Don't answer it, Ritsuka-kun." She said, lifting her head and looking right into his face, "I…don't want you to have to leave because of it."

Removing his hands, the Sacrifice propped himself on his elbows as Yuiko pushed herself up, straddling his legs as she stared down at his stomach, seeming to be looking past him at the floors below rather then the stomach itself.

What's gotten into you, Yuiko? Ritsuka offered a wry smile. "Just because I got a phone call doesn't mean I'll leave, Yuiko. Idiot." He tapped her forehead with his knuckle.

"But…" she wasn't moved by this statement. "That was the ringer for Soubi-kun…"

It was true…Ritsuka knew it was the ringer he had programmed into the phone that identified Soubi out of the other phone calls. He wanted to answer that phone call more then prod at that ramen but Yuiko had stopped him…

"Yuiko…I'm sorry." He said, lowering his eyes. His elbows were beginning to ache from his weight and the uncomfortable wood flooring beneath them. He slid his arms forward and lay back on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. "I can't help it if Soubi calls me…I…I like it when he calls…"

"But…Ritsuka-kun…"

He peered up at her and she leaned down over him, her eyes were glassy with tears but he didn't understand why…in fact, she looked upset and he had no idea why that was so either.

"Ritsuka-kun…I…I like you!"

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Ritsuka wondered down the sidewalk, his hands buried deep within his pockets and eyes counting the cracks in the sidewalk but his mind hardly kept track of the growing numbers. His mind was replaying what he had told Yuiko after she had confessed to him…he hadn't expected her to tell him so suddenly but for some reason, even though she told him, he wasn't shocked.

I'm sorry, Yuiko…I like you too…but not the way you like me. Our likes…are not the same.

B-But…Ritsuka-kun…

There's…someone I really like right now…and even though it would have been great if it was you…it isn't…I'm sorry…

"What else could I have said?" he murmured, shuffling his feet.

He held up his phone that he had been cradling hopefully in the palm of his hand since he had left Yuiko's house. The clock displayed on the tiny screen revealed the lengthening evening and the threat of the limiting hour of his curfew. He gripped the phone as the thought of his mother's punishments to come if he was late ran through his head.

"Ritsuka?"

The single word coiled about him and lassoed him down to the spot with its unintentional spell, the soft footsteps behind him triggered his ears to erect and he looked back over his shoulder where the familiar shape slowly advanced up the sidewalk. He trembled as the young man paused a few paces away from him, the slight smile and the cool-eyed gaze from behind lengthy bangs made his heart leapt into his throat.

"S-Soubi…"

"What are you doing here?"

Ritsuka broke free of his frozen legs and spun around, confronting Soubi.

"I-I should ask you that! Why are you here?"

Soubi pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose before indicating with his thumb across the street.

The gesture drew Ritsuka's gaze to the building and he felt his cheeks burn as he recognized the building as Soubi's apartment building. It appeared that he had wondered in the direction of Soubi's apartment without even thinking. He had been so absorbed in his refusal of Yuiko that he hardly noticed the direction his feet had carried him.

"Do you want to go inside?" Soubi offered, smirking.

"N-No!" he snapped, "Why would I?"

The Sentouki approached him and drew him into an embrace.

"You're cold." He murmured, "That's why."

Damn it…he was right…why did this man always have to be right? It was as if the Fighter wasn't human…

"I can warm up when I get home." He said but rested his head against Soubi's shoulder in spite of his refusal.

"Then there is something I want to show you…" he coaxed, stepping away, a hand braced on his back and the other indicating the building.

Ritsuka sighed, his breath escaping into a puff that evaporated seconds after leaving his lips.

He always gave into Soubi…he realized that when he felt the gentle pressure on his back that led him forward. They crossed the street and entered the building through the rusty stairwell leading to Soubi's door.

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Here I am again…

Soubi removed his coat, taking Ritsuka's and stashing them away while Soubi eyed a covered canvas in the corner of the room, a paint splattered sheet was spread over the floor beneath it, wrinkled from being trodden on over and over again. There were brushes suspended in jars of oil or water, paints were left on a narrow table that was perched beside the easel.

Not a single chair in sight.

"What is it you wanted to show me?" he asked, peering back over his shoulder as Soubi half-hazardly tied his hair back and approached the covered easel, bracing his hands on his hips as he observed the cloth covering it. He was probably seeing what was beneath the fabrics…eyeing the colors beneath and taunting Ritsuka with the fact that he knew what lie beneath them.

"I finished the painting." He said, craning back his neck and looking at the teenager. "I wanted you to see it first."

"Me?" Ritsuka's short fuse just grew three miles long as he looked at Soubi with a flabbergasted expression. "Why me?"

"Because…" Soubi touched the fabric thoughtfully, "It reflects the desire I want someone to feel…"

"Desire?"

The man nodded, dragging the fabric down and revealing the artwork.

Ritsuka's eyes widened as he looked upon the painting. The colors drew his eyes right to it.

Brilliant shades of orange, yellow, and red ignited the canvas in flames, licking away at the edges relentlessly, but amid these flames, a single blue butterfly seemed to be popping out of a tongue of fire, its wings large and elegant with shades of navy to cornflower, the tiny black body graceful and extended from the flames like a reverse candle wick.

"Do you like it?"

Soubi's words pulled Ritsuka gently but forcefully away from the entrapment he had been encased within when he looked upon the painting. Just that one question could have stirred him back into awareness of Soubi's stronger power…but it was enhanced greatly by the arms snaking about him from under his own arms and sliding across his stomach and the chin digging into his shoulder. He felt the gaze on him…an answer was required?

He was afraid an answer would break the spell.

"I-I think it work for Kiio-san." He managed to choke out, swallowing his heart at last but it still thudded painfully in his chest to make up for its relocation.

"Is that so?" Soubi asked, closing his eyes and releasing his embrace a little, running a hand up his chest before bracing his chin and turning the teen's head toward him when he straightened up a little. "You have no comments then?"

"N-No…"

"Nothing to say?"

"N-Nothing." He murmured.

"Then why am I feeling this?" he asked, pressing his hand firmly against Ritsuka's chest and the Sacrifice reddened as he realized Soubi had felt his heartbeat even through his sweater.

"I think there is something you want to add."

It was burning again…he was being scalded again…the lulling heat of Soubi's touch combined with the sharp change in degrees with the fire scorching Ritsuka's veins. Each beat of his heart burned and he winced as the pressure of Soubi's hand made it pound against his ribs.

"I…" he breathed.

"Yes?" Soubi tensed up.

"I…h-have nothing to tell you!" he snapped, pulling himself free and rounding on the Fighter.

His blistering heart hammered, his breath coming up in short pants that made his body heave but he glared at Soubi as strongly as ever. "I-I have to get home."

My curfew…

He turned away, looking for his coat.

I can't be late again…

Soubi approached him from behind, gently resting his hands on his shoulders and resting his forehead on the back of Ritsuka's own head. He took a few calm yet deep breaths, the Sacrifice able to hear each deep intake behind him. He was rendered motionless, his body refusing to move…it wanted to know what Soubi was doing...

"Don't go…" the Sentouki finally whispered. "Stay…stay here…"

"Sou—bi…"

This wasn't like him…Soubi hadn't told Ritsuka to stay with him at all…he always passed off others and held him there by force…but as Ritsuka stood there in the silence of Soubi's apartment, he realized that there was a weakened fragment within Soubi's words.

There was a pleading tone…

Soubi's hand curled around Ritsuka's wrist.

"Stay the night with me…"

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((Ok, I couldn't resist...I had to have the story continue. At least I made this chapter longer then the others. Please continue to support me and review, otherwise I will have to discontinue this story. Reviews will feed my "Creative Spirit" and they will also give me confidance in Soubi and Ritsuka's...future scene...

If it wasn't obvious, Ritsu-sensei's little scene by himself was to show that he was somewhat giving up on calling Soubi back to the school and surrendering him to his foolish desires. But you all probably caught that little bit of symbolism. Please review!))