Part Three: Their Secret

Chapter Two: Breaking water

The persistent beep-beep noise of an alarm clock was enough to rouse Kari Kamiya from her slumber. Haphazardly, she poked a hand out from under the blanket in its direction and succeeded in batting it into silence on the third attempt. That was enough of that she thought firmly as she retracted her arm. For a moment she lay content in the stillness of the room and was about to snuggle down for a long lie when she felt a breath of warm air hit her face. Her eyes opened to discover the face of her brother inches from her own. As her other senses kicked in, she became aware that she still wore last nights Digital Punk outfit. The memories of everything that had happened the previous evening flooded back to her and she could not help but smile. Inconceivable as it might be, the impossible had occurred last night, Tai had confessed his love for her.

Kari's eyes drank in the sight of her still sleeping, tousled haired brother. He looked so cute she just wanted to pull him into a hug and never let go. And it seemed that was exactly what had happened last night. For she could recall lying down on the bed beside him and that they had huddled together under the blanket. A small chuckle escaped her lips as she caught sight of the smearings of black lipstick on her brother's. They had shared several kisses before sleep had apparently taken them she recalled. Rubbing a hand from Tai's right shoulder and down his arm, she encountered the bandage she had applied to his wound. Even in the dim light under the blanket, she could tell that it remained blood-free on the surface level. Later that day it would require re-dressing and she would be able to have a proper look at it then. For now she remained content that her brother had dodged the emergency room bullet. Perhaps fate, for once, had interceded in her favour. As she had been almost certain that it would have been an inevitability. And if that had happened, she may never have gotten him to admit his true feelings for her.

From beside her, Tai began to stir. Kari watched as, still asleep, he tried to roll away from her. Thump! She cringed on hearing his face hit the wall.

"Oww!" he exclaimed in a sleepy voice that indicated he could not work out what had just happened; too cute.

"Tai," Kari giggled.

Her brother struggled to turn around to face her, "huh?" His hair now covered his eyes, impairing his vision.

"Wakey, wakey, sleepyhead," she said as she reached out to move the clumps of hair from in front of his eyes.

"Kari!" Tai exclaimed as he jerked backwards, this time hitting the back of his head against the wall.

She gave him a smile, "in the flesh."

Behind his bloodshot chocolate eyes, she could see her brother's brain trying to access long term memory and retrieve the appropriate data. She laughed internally when her own suggested she go and get one of the manga from his bookshelves to read while she waited for him to remember; he was totally still running windows 98 up there. After a few more moments, he glanced down at his right arm and then back at her.

"Still here," Kari said in amusement.

"Did we fall asleep like this?" he asked, indicating that he was not yet firing on all thrusters.

The temptation to say, "no. I went to bed and when I woke up this morning I decided to get dressed and hop back in for a morning snuggle," was almost too much for Kari. However, given that the ability to understanding wit would not come online until after he had eaten breakfast, she elected to go with, "looks like it."

He gave her a small smirk, "I really screwed up last night, didn't I?"

"You did," she agreed, "but luckily I arrived in time to patch you up and then beat the truth out of you."

Tai looked into her eyes as he said, "I guess I owe you this, then," before reaching out for her lips with his own.

Kari felt her brother's dry lips make contact with her own, yet it still felt heavenly. Passionately she returned the soft kiss. Any fears she may have had that he would try and shirk back into his shell today quickly dispelled. When contact was eventually broken, she had to take a breath to bring her down from cloud nine and back to earth. "If you do that again, I'm going to want you to do that every morning."

Tai grinned, "when am I ever going to be awake before you to do so?"

She responded by giving him a playful pout, "hmph."

"On the flip side, you could always use it to get me out of bed when I inevitably sleep in."

A devilish grin danced on her lips, "don't tempt me."

They shared another short kiss before Tai asked her, "what time is it?"

"Just after half seven, I think. Your alarm clock went off a few minutes ago and I suspect you never set it to weekend time yesterday."

"Urgh," Tai exclaimed as his eyes shut and he tried to roll onto his back.

She couldn't help but smile. It seemed her brother really was allergic to mornings. "Tell you what. Why don't I get up, go shower and then make us some breakfast? While you have an extra twenty minutes. Sound fair?"

He opened his eyes but groaned again. "I think I need an extra hour."

"Half an hour," Kari stated as she fixed him with a no-nonsense look, "or I'll delve into the freezer and find something of mom's to serve you."

"Half an hour it is," he gulped; his features having paled slightly at the suggestion.

She gave him a quick peck on the lips before climbing out of his bed. When she reached the door, she called back, "and before you ponder whether or not to take a chance, remember you still have to eat for the rest of the weekend." She left the room to the sound of a loud groan.

Kari made her way to the bathroom, where a quick look in the mirror caused her to burst out laughing. Her makeup had smudged horribly from the tears she had shed last night and her black lipstick looked patchier than a tinkers coat. All in all, coupled with her pale skin, it gave her the appearance of a zombie whose head was on fire. Lucky for her, like pretty much every other part of her brother, Tai's eyes never worked properly until after he had eaten breakfast. She undressed quickly and hopped in the shower before it had properly heated up; causing her to let out a small yelp. Making sure to thoroughly scrub her face, Kari washed quickly.

When she eventually made it to her bedroom, she pulled on her orange anarchy t-shirt and a pair of blue three-quarter-length jeans. Being a pair that her mom had bought for her, there was nothing interesting about them bar the basic rips she had put in the knees. Hopefully, once her mother eventually figured out what she was doing to the clothes she had been bought, she would take the hint and allow her to buy everything herself. Reaching under her bed, she pulled out her CD box and plucked out Hergest Ridge; something light. While she had an itching to listen to Amarok, putting that particular album on would probably send Tai running back into his room to hide, given that he had barely passed his initiate phase. So that would have to wait until some point later in the day when she could put her headphones on.

Leaving her bedroom, Kari made a stop in the living area to pop on her album, before heading into the kitchen; keeping the volume low enough that it wouldn't travel to her brother's bedroom. The delicate opening notes of the first composition bathed over her as she started cracking eggs into a bowl. She added milk, butter and seasoning before giving it a thorough whisk and tipping it into a pot. Putting some bread on to toast and a pot of coffee to boil, she began scrambling the eggs. By the time she had started plating up, the flat footfalls of her brother could be heard from down the hallway, followed by the sound of…

"Urgh, close the door in future, Tai!" she exclaimed as she picked up the plates and brought them over to the table. They were soon joined by two glasses of orange juice and two mugs of coffee; she'd had a rough night too.

Sitting down, Kari waited for him to join her before starting her breakfast. As though guided more by his nose than eyes, Tai staggered down the hallway and plonked himself down opposite her. Without saying a word, he began attacking his food. She giggled to herself and shook her head. How could anyone revert to that level of asleep after only half an hour? They ate, with only the sound of the music to be heard. Although she suspected that her brother only noticed something was playing after he'd drank his first mug of coffee.

Finishing her last mouthful, Kari looked up at Tai, "so, what shall we do today?"

He looked at her over the rim of his mug, "I think we should talk," he said in a serious voice.

So much for a light-hearted morning, she thought as she met his gaze. "What about exactly?" she asked, trying to hide the concern in her tone. Surely he was not about to turn around and tell her that last night had been a mistake?

She felt an icy hand of fear begin to wrap itself around her heart when he replied, "about us." It must have shown on her face as he quickly added, "about what we should and shouldn't do."

Kari let out an audible exhale of relief. It seemed that her mind was still expecting her reality to turn out to be nothing more than an elaborate fantasy. "Ok," she said, slightly more tentatively than she would have liked, "I suppose that would be a good idea. Mom and dad aren't exactly brother-sister shojo manga fans."

Tai nodded his head, "that's probably an understatement. If they catch us doing anything inappropriate we'll probably wish we were facing the Dark Masters again."

"Don't refer to it like that," she uttered coldly. "I don't care what anyone else thinks, nothing we do should be referred to as inappropriate. However, you are right. We can't do anything around them that will arouse suspicion."

"Agreed. It would probably be for the best if we act normal in the house while either of them is home."

Kari sighed but nodded in reply. Maintaining secrecy would probably need to be the number one priority for any sort of relationship that they might have. "We're going to have to make sure that we know roughly when they'll both be home so we know when it's going to be safe to be ourselves."

"It also goes without saying that we can't tell anyone. Even if they don't have an issue with it themselves, we can't run the risk that they'll tell someone that will."

That one went without saying, however, it made her ask, "what about Teiko, she already knows half of the truth?"

Tai took a sip from his mug before saying, "I'd trust Teiko with my life and if there was one person I would ever tell, it would be her. But I'm not sure that's a good idea. Regardless of how cute she thinks we would be."

"Guess I'll just have to act natural next time I see her," Kari replied. While she wished she could share her love for him with the world, Tai was probably right on that matter.

"Besides, her tongue can get a little loose when she gets drunk. Although it's not likely she'll ever be drinking in the company of anyone we know."

"I take it you'll be more comfortable if we still act normal out with the house for now?" she then asked after a mouthful of orange juice.

Tai took a moment to think before answering, "I think so. I know I'm not offering you much, but I'm still trying to get a handle on all of this. You still have two years on me, remember."

"I understand," Kari nodded. "I'll wait as long as you need me to. However, if/when that time comes, we should probably be careful about where we frequent. Too many people in Odaiba might recognise us."

"Good thing we'll have the rest of Tokyo to play with," Tai said with a laugh.

She joined in and added, "if we lived in a small town it would be impossible. Once one person saw us doing something naughty, it'd reach home before we could."

He gave her a smile, "I suppose that just leave one question."

"Which is?"

"What do you want to do today?"

Kari pondered this for a moment, before asking, "how much school work do you have to do?" While she wanted nothing more than to spend the whole weekend with him, like they had done the last time their parents had been away, it would not be fair if she monopolised his attention when he had work he needed to do.

"Honestly, I don't know," Tai replied with a weak grin. "Most of yesterday is a blur before…" he raised a hand to rub his left cheek, "…you slapped me!"

She gave him a serious look, "it was to keep you conscious. However, you're lucky I didn't slap you again for being so stupid."

Tai lowered his head and she could see his eyes shifting to the bandage around his right forearm. He sighed, "I guess I owe you more than that kiss."

Kari shot him a wicked grin. "Think of it this way. As long as that remains our little secret, you belong to me."

"You're claiming ownership over me?" he asked warily.

Kari's reddish-brown eyes met his chocolate ones and she tilted her head slightly as she replied in a calm yet authoritative voice, "pretty much. So no kissing other girls for you."

Tai shrugged his shoulders and let out a hollow laugh. "Don't worry, I don't intend to go out with anyone else. I've had my fill of crappy relationships," he looked at her pointedly, "and I've seen what happens when you become trapped in one that you're not committed to."

For a split second, her mind wandered to TK and how she much she had hurt him. She felt the obligatory pang of guilt before wrenching herself back to the here and now. "I guess that'll be no boyfriends or girlfriends for either of us. Let's hope mom and dad continue to think it's because we're being mature adults and putting our studies first."

He let out a chuckle. "With all the changes to your appearance, I bet mom will be dreading what sort of boy you might date. So I think she'll be happy if you remain single."

Kari burst out laughing at the thought of the sort of boy's Tai was referring to. "I guess she should be thankful that my taste in boys is very particular."

"I'm beginning to think my taste in girls is becoming equally picky," Tai replied before grinning. "Although I'm willing to bet she'd approve of my tastes over yours. I hear that guy you like is a bad influence."

Even though his comments had a serious undertone they both burst out laughing. However, the 'bet' comment had reminded Kari of something. "If you don't have too much work to do, let's go into town and pay a visit to Iowa's. You still owe me a CD from the Teiko bet."

Tai looked at her blankly for a moment before recollection set in. He rolled his eyes. "Fine, let me go check my planner and if I'm not facing a Giga Cannon's worth of homework, we'll go. But remind me not to make any more wagers with you."

Kari smiled innocently at him, "why would I need to do that? Surely you're not scared of a friendly bet with little old me?"

"Because behind that cute, innocent exterior lies a very clever and devious mind."

She gave him the devilish grin. "Don't forget a crack shot with a green turtle shell."

Tai stared directly into her eyes with his game face on. "I swear that if it's the last thing I do, I am going to kick your sassy butt at Mario Kart."

"Care to make a wager on that?"

She laughed internally when she saw Tai grit his teeth. It had been far too easy to bait him. Hands firmly planted on the table, her brother rose from his chair. "I'm away to check my school planner and if my workload isn't going to bury me, you, little sister, are going down this weekend."

"Maybe I'll go pick out what other CD's you're going to buy me when you fail miserably," she replied as she watched him stalk off to his bedroom.

There would be no need for her to actually make good on her threat, for she had already researched which albums from both Mike Oldfield and Pink Floyd she wanted next. Instead, she stood up and cleared away the breakfast dishes. By the time Tai returned, she had already started washing them.

"Ok, so given how much work I need to do, I can either do half of it tonight and the other half tomorrow or take today off and spend all of tomorrow working."

"Let's go into town today and have lunch somewhere," Kari replied after a moment's thought. "Then when we get back, we can both study and you can get your backside stuffed with green turtle shells during break times. Just like we did a couple of weeks ago."

"Sounds good, except you'll find my backside will be well protected with banana skins." He gave her a steely look of determination. "You're not going to beat me this time, Sister."

Kari finished washing the last mug, sat it neatly on the draining board and then walked slowly to stand in front of him. "Bring it on, Brother," she said as she locked onto his gaze. They stared at each other for a moment and she could see in his eyes a sparkle of hunger reminiscent of the one she herself felt upon losing herself in the beauty of those chocolate brown orbs. Wrapping an arm around his neck she reached up and planted a gentle kiss on his lips. However, when her nose wrinkled, she quickly said, "you seriously need a shower, Tai."

Dethatching herself from him, she watched as he smelled his own armpit, laughing when his face almost turned green. "I think you might just be right on that one, Sis," he said before holding up his right arm, "but what about this?"

She pondered for a moment before deciding, "let's have a look at it first."

They both sat back down at the table and Tai held his arm out towards her. Carefully, Kari peeled away the tape and unwound the bandage. It seemed that by doubling up on the gauze and wrapping the bandage tight, she had successfully got the blood to clot and the wound to seal. However, she could not help but feel partly responsible for the collection of six scabs at varying stages of healing that his wrist also bore.

"This one will almost certainly scar," she said, pointing to last night's cut, "however, if you're lucky, the others won't leave anything noticeable."

She watched him study his arm for a moment before he said, "so long as no more than two leave a discernible scar, I doubt anyone will be able to tell what they are. If not, I'll need to get a wristband or something."

"We'll cross that bridge if we need to once they've fully healed," Kari replied with a reassuring smile. "In the meantime, it's probably not a good idea for you to get it wet." She pondered for a second, then added, "wait here," before standing up and making her way to the kitchen. Rummaging in a drawer she removed a roll of plastic kitchen film.

When she came back, Tai gave her a look that suggested he found her idea ingenious, "you're going to wrap it in film like they do with tattoos."

"Exactly," she said as she placed the film over his wrist and quickly wrapped it around enough times to make it watertight. "I'd still advise keeping it as dry as possible. The heat from the water might make it sting like hell."

"I'll be careful," Tai said with a nod of his head as he stood up and headed for the bathroom.

Half an hour later, while sitting on the sofa enjoying the second half of Crises, Kari heard her brother return to the main living area. Turning her head, she was pleasantly surprised that he had chosen to wear the black jeans she had customised for him, along with the red and black shirt she had paired them with. Unsurprisingly he had added a long-sleeved black top underneath it.

"Dressing to impress," she said sagely as she smiled at him. "I've taught you well."

"I did say they might grow on me."

"Your arm," she then said as she stood up from the sofa.

Tai rolled up the sleeve of his top and indicated the fresh bandage he had put over it. "Already taken care of."

Kari crossed the distance between them and inspected his handiwork carefully. "Did you clean it with antiseptic?" she asked firmly.

He nodded, "of course. Are you ready to go?"

"I just need to grab my jacket."

Heading for the front door, Kari retrieved her short denim jacket from where she had discarded it the previous night; her phone and purse were still in the pockets. Pulling on last night's black and neon yellow converse, she smiled when Tai opted for his black boots over his trainers. She really had taught him something. Opening the front door, the siblings stepped out to enjoy a mild autumn Odaiba day.