HAPPY NEW YEARS! Lanie presents, "Ache: chapter nine. Bring in the new year with some almost-lime!" In this chapter, we do in fact have some slashy action. We even find out what was going on with Tohru and Kyou since Chapter Six! Yay! So this is a first-resolution chapter, which is incredible, seeing as everything is meandering so much. The second advantage is that now, Kyou won't be distancing himself from Yuki like Tohru told him to. I like to think that it is a very jumbled story because Kyou is very jumbled; contrasting from "Plants" where Yuki was very cohesive, logical, rational. Again, that's just what I'd like to think... Chances are that I'm being completely ridiculous.

I really wanted to make the chapter lengths smaller again, to give you more updates, more often. That way, each chapter also has more impact. Which is fun to me... But I was writing, and realized (again!) that obviously, then, this story is going to be a fair bit longer than Plants, even with longer chapters. Right now I'm thinking the length will be at 20 chapters, more or less. If they were short chapters, there could be nearly 40 of them, which is just too many. I could, of course, make this into a three-parter (instead of the second half being ENORMOUS!). What do you all think? In any case, I do want to make a huge THANKYOU! to all my reviewers. I actually glow after reading what you guys think about this story! I do in fact make happy noises to myself. So thanks and keep it up! I'm so happy. It really does inspire me... to write more...!

Now enjoy this next chapter, it's my non-literal baby.

Ache
by Lanie Kay-Aleese

Chapter Nine: His Eyes Trembled

Rating: Pg-13. Slash - sensuality - violence - light incest.
Category: Angst/Romance
Pairing: Kyou/Yuki
Length: 9 of ?

- - - -

Long fingers on the brass door handle.

Kyou saw the shadows of hands as the door opened, and cast an expanding square of light and darkness on the wall across of him. His eyes centered on the hands, for some reason he couldn't explain. They were women's hands, and they weren't. They were stronger, somehow. It made them more beautiful, more beautiful than Tohru's trembling fingers.

He'd read, once, that hands said a lot about a person. But he already knew this person, and it was obvious that this was a flawed theory, because these hands, they just didn't match with Yuki Sohma at all.

The boy grasped the handle loosely, forgetting the touch - or maybe, reconstructing it - as he paused for some reason, ensnared by something on the shelf. Kyou didn't get it. There wasn't anything worth looking at there, so what was he doing, staring into dim darkness?

Yuki spoke at last. "No dinner, huh?"

Kyou sat up and leaned his back against the wall.

It was strange because he suddenly noticed, in that hallway light, how the rat hadn't grown much, during the time he couldn't remember. But he had grown, and it made him now a couple of inches taller. He wondered if there'd been a conversation about that, maybe during a mealtime. He wondered if Shigure had made jibes about it. He wondered if he'd tried to gloat and Yuki had beat him to the ground. There was no way for him to know.

It disturbed him.

"What do you want, you damn rat?" Kyou swallowed a small cough before continuing, "It's not like you care if I eat or not."

Yuki folded his arms around his oversized navy sweater.

"No, I don't care about you," he stated, simply.

"Then what the hell are you --"

"Tohru thinks that you're mad at her."

Kyou frowned. "That's not it."

"Good. Because it would be stupid to miss meals, in order to avoid someone."

"Of course that would be stupid!" Kyou scowled, "Geez, isn't it obvious? I'm sick. If I went and ate dinner, I'd just throw it up or something, and then Tohru would be really upset!"

Yuki stood silent for a moment, awkward; and Kyou wasn't used to having conversations with the rat, only, and it got him all tense. And really, a part of him just didn't have the energy for it.

"About Tohru," Yuki's voice became stern and cold, "Why did you tell her that you didn't love her?"

Kyou paused, then, "'I - I don't love her."

"That's a lie. Anyone with eyes can see you do. That's the only reason she was risking her feelings to say something"

"Yeah, well what about you?" Kyou shot back, "What about you? I've got eyes, too, you know. I've seen you flirting with her. I've seen you kiss her on the head before. I mean, come on!"

"That doesn't mean I'm in love with her," Yuki returned.

"Well neither am I!" Kyou leaned back against the wall, finding himself worked up - practically panting from the exhertion that just verbal sparring had achieved. He couldn't read Yuki's expression, and it was really annoying. He looked down, instead.

"Look, I just... I just couldn't lie to her about something like that. It didn't feel right. I used to think it was what I wanted, but... it's stupid."

"No. It's not."

Kyou shot up, and fastened his eyes on Yuki. What he'd said had... almost been kind. Maybe something had happened to make Yuki lost inside himself, too. Maybe that thing Yuki had lost... was his coldness. Was it possible that he knew what was going on? And if maybe it wasn't just the world outside that changed, but Kyou who had changed, inside?

The question rose up from the back of his throat.

"Yuki... what am I like?" Kyou wondered, mostly to himself.

And then--

Something squished inside of his stomach, and a crimson light flashed from behind his eyes. It was like a thousand prickling volts of electricity had leapt from the back of his head. They shot down his back, through his extremities and the oxygen streaming in his blood- and Shit, he felt terrible--

Then, he looked up. Everything was back to normal.

Mostly.

The shadows were a little different, though. And there was a real terrible draft in the room. Yuki still stood near the door, again, and Kyou watched him as he shut the door firmly - for the second time - with his beautiful hands.

Yuki's fingers clenched as they held onto the folds of his pants. A strange grin spread across Yuki's face, striking Kyou as unnatural because the rat was never willing to smile! in front of him, never willing to laugh...

Then Yuki swung his hips to the side, and he forgot.

"Kyou," said the rat, lowly, his voice in that strange whisper that woke up the butterflies from the back of his stomach. Kyou felt a smile tugging at his lips. He'd been so lonely.

"What do you want?" Kyou stretched out on the bed, and he felt the cool air tingling the exposed stretch of skin on his stomach.

Yuki cocked his head to the side. He glided towards the bed, a couple feet closer, so very slowly and delicately, his fair skin glowing.

"Nothing, really..."

So slow... so delicate.

The rat now stood at his feet, and he bent down, awkward in his clingy pants. Why did he wear such tight pants?

"Those pants look uncomfortable," Kyou said. Yuki smirked and pushed his hands into the rustling sheets around Kyou's legs. Tantalizingly slow, and with purpose, he tangled his fingers into the fabric and trailed them up to the very edges of the place where the cotton collided with Kyou's skin.

Even through the sheets, the touch made Kyou gasp. Trails of fire burnt beneath his skin. Surprise? Pleasure?

"They," replied Yuki, and the fingers swept beneath his knees, "are," and the pads of his luminous fingers trailing over the creamy white sheets that hid his thighs, "quite uncomfortable."

The touch vanished, and Kyou shot out his hand. "Hey!"

His eyes clashed with the soft violet gaze of his cousin. And Kyou felt his face growing as red as his hair, yet he couldn't tear his eyes away. It was amazing, when he thought about it; the brown flecks that were scattered in a ring around Yuki's pupils. And even his lashes were that violet purple. It was like twilight, or daybreak, or as if his dreams had come back as a flower-

"Please. Just once," Yuki whispered, his eyes soft and sincere, "No one's watching... I promise."

"Okay," Kyou replied, barely able to muster the words, and in that moment, Yuki dropped his slender arms to Kyou's bare shoulders. He slung his left leg over Kyou's fabric-entrenched legs, and shifted over, so he was looming over Kyou everywhere.

His violet-grey hair framed his face like a heart as it hung towards the ground and Kyou. And then he smiled - with huge, dilated eyes - and it was so beautiful because it was for him, Kyou.

Kyou, who couldn't resist it anymore.

He reached out and cupped the back of Yuki's head in his hand. He pushed it down, firmly, and pressed the boy's lips to his own. In that very instant, heaven struck - something felt brilliant, giving and needy all at once. But mostly, it felt right. He was overwhelmed by the softness and intimacy that seemed to pour from Yuki's gracious mouth. Yuki kept the contact for a moment, then slid his tongue against Kyou's bottom lip, prodding Kyou's mouth to open beforeYuki was plundering the depths. Kyou felt himself responding, moving, tangling his tongue with his and Yuki pressed against him, so needy, so - so wanting - like no one had ever wanted him before.

And Kyou just couldn't help it. He couldn't stop himself from wanting back. He moaned into Yuki's mouth. He couldn't help the need that divested Yuki of all words, and left him without words, without wanting words ever again - he pushed one hand beneath Yuki's sweater and shirt, and slid the fabric up his back - and Yuki swept his fingers across Kyou's collarbone, and lower onto the naked skin - Kyou bit down on Yuki's lip, and this time, it was the rat who moaned - and the moment Kyou heard it, he nearly lost everything. He just wanted more touch - just needed more touch - just more closeness - just so much more of that blazing fire - just more - just --!

"Kyou."

Kyou broke apart his lips from an invisible assailant.

His eyes trembled.

- - - -

New Years Greetings from the New Years Furby:
"Gargle... ahahhaha...Kitty!... Me love you. Purrrrr."

(Lanie wonders whose Furby this is, and if they'd mind if it was tragically drowned? TT;;)