Huggler: Don't worry, Shion gets better- she's a sweetie underneath all that bluster, really. Well, I figure she's right about that boy-crazy age…I thought I was in love with an annoying little blonde boy who was three inches shorter than me back when I was that age :P Oh, I love that pairing…I'm having such a hard time deciding D:

Obsidian and Cobalt: I love Shion :3 No, Tamao isn't going to be straight, lol, she's too gay for that :/

xMaskedDestroyerx: It's all about the buildup :3 Nope, I don't want Tamao to be alone, straight, or with an OC…but I have a question I've always wondered about (anyone feel free to give their opinion): if I did ship these two in this fic, who would be on top? They both have top-ish qualities, though I'm leaning towards Tamao being the top for some reason…

Shadow Apparation: Yep, obliviousness when it comes to yourself is really something everyone faces- at least, something I face, lol. Don't worry, there'll be a happy ending :3 I'm currently torn between her and Miyuki, as the votes have been cast.

going-rogue2374: I think the age difference is a year larger, because Yaya is a year younger than Tamao, right? Anyway, thanks for your vote :3 Age won't be a factor in deciding.

xannaxmurderx: Thanks :3

TheDarkAznVampZard: Thanks :3 And aww, that means a lot to me :3

ChibiRox: Will do :3

oOOOo

Strawberry Boys?

Three: Hold Onto Your Women

xXLiStLesSXx

oOOOo

Tsubomi blinked sleepily, trying to keep her eyes open as she sat in one of the pews in the chapel during choir practice. She'd hardly been able to sleep the night before, what with the excitement of the boys that she would be interacting with, and Yaya had never come out of her sulky stage. The brunette hadn't even spoken to Tsubomi once they got back to the dorm room, choosing to sleep with her back to the younger girl.

And now she was feeling the effects of a nearly sleepless night as she leaned back against the cold, hard wood. Choir was her first class of the day and, coincidentally, the only class that none of the boys would be attending, considering the temporary nature of their stay. Beside her, Yaya was slumped back against the pew as well, arms folded over her chest, and Tsubomi found herself glancing at the older girl out of the corner of her eye, weighing her options.

She had never taken herself to be one of those girls, the ones who mooned after the objects of their affections, or swooned over the smallest gestures. But now she found herself looking for excuses, always looking for windows in which she could touch Yaya, if only a little bit. At the moment, she was contemplating leaning against the brunette's shoulder- true, Yaya had been more affectionate recently, or at least, more open to Tsubomi's nervous contact, but there was also her attitude, her scowl that stayed in place even when her arm was around the pinkette.

Tsubomi bit her lower lip, deciding that she should probably find out whatever it was that Hikari knew before anything else. "Yaya-senpai," she began, prodding Yaya in the side, swallowing back the rush of longing that always came now whenever the brunette would look her way, "Is everything okay?"

"Huh?" Yaya asked, blinking and staring at Tsubomi for a moment before she shook herself out of whatever stupor she was in. "I'm fine, pinky," she finally said. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Tsubomi scowled at Yaya's clear avoidance. "I don't know," she huffed, "you're the one acting like a freak or something ever since you heard about the boys coming."

Yaya growled under her breath. "I'm not acting like a freak," she muttered belatedly. "If anyone's acting like a freak it's you, fawning all over them even though you haven't even tried to talk to one of them yet." Her tone was sullen, and Tsubomi frowned in confusion, turning to watch Yaya, who was glaring straight ahead.

"What's your problem, Yaya-baka?" she snapped, her patience running thin.

"I don't have a problem," the taller girl mumbled, leaning back against the pew sullenly. "I'm not the one fawning over a bunch of boys I've never even met."

Tsubomi was officially confused- it was fairly obvious that Yaya did have a problem, and that whatever the problem was had something to do with her feelings about the boys. "Why is that a problem for you?" the pinkette asked huffily, though her heart was twisting inside her chest as her mind raced to possible conclusions.

Don't get your hopes up, you stupid girl. This is Yaya we're talking about- Yaya.

Yaya shrugged moodily. "'s annoying," she muttered, shoulders hunched, her arms folded over her chest. "And you haven't even met them yet- imagine how obnoxious you'll be when they're put into classes."

Tsubomi straightened indignantly, her hesitant hopes that Yaya might have returned her feelings ruthlessly dashed, but she refused to allow the brunette to see the crushed hope in her eyes. "If I'm so obnoxious, nobody's forcing Yaya-senpai to be around me," she shot back, her petulant tone not doing much to hide the pain in her voice. "In fact, I'd appreciate the break."

Yaya seemed to stiffen beside her, and her dark gaze morphed into dark scowl, refusing to meet Tsubomi's eyes. "Whatever," she muttered, and suddenly the pinkette found herself feeling extremely guilty for some reason she wasn't sure of. It wasn't like Yaya not to fight back, and this new, more docile and sullen Yaya made Tsubomi miss her teasing senpai.

How was it that she could set out to right this whole thing, but just end up making everything worse?

PGBR

Chikaru sighed.

She was leaning on top of the table in the council room, her arms folded in front of her as she watched the volley between Miyuki and Shion. In the space between the two meetings, Shion had gone from lukewarm to boiling- it almost gave Chikaru jet-lag.

Shion hadn't so much as glanced her way since the events of the night before, and Chikaru had begun to feel as if she'd been too hard on the Spican with her reprimanding. She was sure she was correct in thinking that Shion didn't know what she wanted, but she was worried that her scolding had taken a blow to the blonde's rather prominent ego.

Currently, she and Miyuki were arguing over something laughably trivial, even in comparison to most of their other arguments- Chikaru thought it might have had something to do with silverware in the dining hall.

Eventually, Miyuki rolled her eyes and strode out of the room, maintaining her dignity in her usual cold fashion, leaving Shion fuming behind her.

That, at least, hadn't changed.

After a moment of silence, Chikaru spoke.

"Shion-chan…"

The blonde seemed to jump a little bit; she'd clearly forgotten Chikaru was there, which wasn't entirely uncommon when she and Miyuki got into their arguments. "Minamoto-san," she stated once she had calmed slightly, turning to face Chikaru, her features instantly softening. Chikaru frowned at how easily Shion returned to the formalities, but shook it off- she knew the Spican better than anyone, and Shion was always formal to a fault, avoiding personal matters at all costs.

And what are the costs, in the end?

"What happened yesterday?" Chikaru asked, standing and walking over to Shion's side of the table. She was a couple inches shorter than the blonde, but was well aware of Shion's weakness- she stood mere inches away from the Spican, never breaking eye-contact. Shion shifted under the intense gaze.

"You tell me," Shion muttered gruffly, tensing as though she were trapped, though her entire left side (and the path to the door) was wide open. It was as if Chikaru had captured her with her mere presence. "As I recall, you were the one making all the decisions."

Chikaru sighed, her eyes falling to Shion's bow tie; she was sure that the Spican would hear her out at this point, and keeping eye contact while Shion was being so out of character would surely shake her resolve. "I meant before that, back in the dining hall," she said softly, reaching up to fix the Spican's collar mindlessly. "You weren't exactly welcoming to Kenshi-kun. You realize he will be joining us in council meetings as of Friday, don't you?"

The blonde stiffened, her eyes flashing, but showed no physical emotion. "I know."

Chikaru waited for a moment, until it became apparent that Shion wasn't going to continue. "You're going to have to be more civil towards him, Shion-chan, I-"

"I know, Chikaru!" Shion snapped, her violet eyes staring accusingly into Chikaru, taking the dark-haired girl by surprise. Those same eyes widened when Chikaru pulled away from her in shock, and instantly became filled with guilt and regret. "I apologize, Minamoto-san," she muttered, turning away from Chikaru to stare at the table in front of her. "I don't have a problem with Kenshi-kun in particular," this, Chikaru could tell, was a bold-faced lie- Shion had never been able to lie to her face, "but the mere idea of men having a say in our school's decision-making…"

"I know, Shi-chan," Chikaru replied gently, reaching back over to Shion and tucking a stray blonde hair behind her ear. She, more than anyone, knew that Shion felt her control and power was being threatened with the addition of the male population. "But it's only temporary."

Shion sighed. "I know," she muttered. "But they shouldn't be here, Chikaru."

Every time Shion said her name, Chikaru felt her heart go into overdrive inside her chest, and she couldn't resist stepping just a little bit closer to the Spican, taking a chance and tugging at her bow. It was a flimsy excuse to be so close to the blonde, but Chikaru wasn't so prideful that she wasn't willing to take what she could get. "It'll be okay, Shion-chan," she finally said. "I can't predict how the rest of the school will accept the boys, but I'm not going anywhere."

She leaned forward and pressed a brief, feather-light kiss to the Spican's cheek before slipping away from Shion and out the door, leaving one madly-blushing and confused blonde behind her.

PGBR

Yaya had a problem with jealousy- or rather, more accurately, she had a pronounced possessive streak. She was well aware of this, and usually it caused her no problems, as most girls she liked before Hikari had wanted her back. And when it came to Hikari, she was so used to the Amane-fangirling that the jealousy in that respect had become almost routine, a part of her life that she just had to accept. And surprisingly, now, even those feelings seemed to be fading away to be replaced by a kind of disembodied acceptance.

But watching her little pinkette eagerly awaiting the integration of the boys into Astraea Hill? It made a whole new kind of jealousy flare up within her, almost like a flash fire, consuming her in an instant. When it was just Hikari and Amane, Yaya was used to being pushed to the backburner- Tsubomi, on the other hand, had always (always) put Yaya first, no matter how much she groused about her. And now it seemed as if she were losing that, too- and to a bunch of stupid, hormonal boys.

She was a lot like the president of her school in that manner- Yaya was simply a very dominant personality, and the idea of boys being mixed into Astraea Hill had made her feel extremely threatened from the very first time she'd heard about it. She was used to making girls blush, to teasing and flirting with them, something not many girls at the Hill did. But with the boys around…Yaya remembered public schooling, remembered how her older brother used to come home with at least three girls a week. She remembered being so shocked that he had wormed his way into the favor of so many girls- at least until she saw him in action.

Many boys made it their personal mission to charm girls, much like Yaya did, and with so much added competition, it was very hard not to feel threatened. Tsubomi's clear fascination with the boys only served to make things a hundred times worse. Yaya felt a certain degree of possessiveness over the pinkette, due to the fact that it had been Tsubomi who had dragged her out of her Hikari-stupor and stood faithfully by her side for so long. Every time the younger girl would mention her excitement over the boys, Yaya felt a rush of jealousy straight to her core, and she was extremely bad at hiding it.

At that particular moment, she was heading to dinner with the pinkette and Hikari, who had agreed to meet Amane in the dining hall. Although her feelings for the blonde had just about passed, Yaya was grateful for her company, as she provided a minor distraction from Tsubomi and her stupid infatuation. The comfort passed as quickly as it had come, however, as they entered the dining hall only to find boys sitting all over the place, mixed in with the girls, who, for the most part, already seemed to be loving the situation. Tsubomi squealed in excitement, and Yaya felt a new wave of possessiveness bubble to the surface.

Beside her, Hikari squeezed her hand. "I know it's hard, Yaya-chan, but you have to try to be a little less obvious," she whispered in the brunette's ear. Yaya turned to her, frowning in confusion. "You growled, Yaya-chan," Hikari giggled. "Kind of loudly."

Yaya huffed and sat down at their usual table, where Tsubomi was already actively chatting with a skinny blonde boy. Her jaw tightened and, before she could think it through, her left arm had snaked tightly around the pinkette's waist, her eyes boring into the side of the oblivious boy's skull. Thankfully, Tsubomi was already used to the contact, so she subconsciously leaned in to Yaya, not recognizing the motives behind her actions.

The boy's eyes flickered to Yaya's for only a moment before he turned back to Tsubomi. The brunette felt her muscles tense at his blatant disregard of her claim- he didn't seem to be fazed in the slightest. Unable to do much at this point, she tightened her arm around Tsubomi's waist.

If you never let go, she can't slip away…right?

But you never let go of Hikari, either, not when you should have. And whose arms is she in now?

So I have to worry about getting a job and now I'm feeling like a loser again because I'm fairly sure I'm being lied to and I'm just SO fucking done with relationships (or maybe just girls). It's like life is shipping MeXForever Alone :/

Spoiler alert: I think it's going to happen.

So I'm writing more fanfiction :3

Sorry for the delay, please remember to REVIEW!