Disclaimer: Nothing's mine but the plot! Enjoy and Review, por favor!
A/N: Chapter six is up! Now I've added Sei/Youko, if only BARELY, but there will be more where that came from! Read and review and enjoy as always!
Chapter Six
Later that day, everything was back to normal, save for Yamato's eerie silence and Sachiko's heightened possessiveness over Yumi.
The Yamayurikai were spread out all around the sitting room, deciding on where they would go that day.
"Noriko and I wanted to go visit a certain Buddhist Temple while we were here," Shimako said to the room at large.
"And we didn't want to drag the rest of you along with us," Noriko finished in her usual blunt way. "So we thought it might be better if everyone just...split up for the day so that we could all do what we really want to."
"That sounds good, Noriko-chan," Sei replied cheerfully from the hallway just before jumping into the room and attacking Yumi. "I want to spend the day with Yumi-chaaan!" she cried, rubbing her cheek against Yumi's to Sachiko's annoyance.
"Absolutely not," Sachiko declared with finality, pulling Yumi out of Sei's arms and into her own. "Besides, Yumi and I have already made plans." Yumi nodded enthusiastically from her onee-sama's arms to disguise the blush.
"Aww," Sei whined with false dejection. "I guess I'm stuck with Youko, then." Said person raised her eyebrows at the blonde.
"No one's forcing you to do anything, Sei," Youko replied cheekily, her arms folded across her chest. Sei strolled over to her and thrust an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close with a grin.
"Come on, I was just kidding," she said, pulling Youko towards the door.
"Fine, but I'm driving," Youko stated as she was dragged outside.
From inside the sitting room, the muttered word 'killjoy' could be heard and Shimako smiled slightly at her onee-sama. Noticing the smile, Noriko wrapped both her arms around Shimako's right and pulled her up off the couch a bit harder than necessary, from Rosa Gigantea's soft cry. "Let's go, onee-sama!" she cried, pulling Shimako towards the door. The beautiful girl turned back and waved apologetically before following her petite soeur and beloved out the door.
PGBR
"It's beautiful," Noriko murmured as she gazed up at the magnificent temple and the large, marble Buddha that was gazing out at the sea.
Shimako blinked a few times as she was pulled from her daze- she hadn't really been admiring the temple at all. "Beautiful," she agreed softly, though her gaze never left Noriko's eyes.
The latter blushed heavily and turned back to the temple. "Shall we go inside?"
"Um...actually, Noriko-chan, I was wondering if I could have a word with you," Shimako replied hesitantly, and Noriko turned back to her, confused.
"Of course, onee-sama," she said slowly, following Shimako over to a group of trees over to the left of the temple.
Shimako's heart was racing and she took a deep breath as they walked away from the crowd: it was now or never.
PGBR
Yumi shivered and looked worriedly to Yamato, who was currently on the receiving end of an icy glare from Sachiko. She was sure that if onee-sama got any angrier, Yamato would explode into flames from her wrath.
Yamato was, as usual, unfazed by Sachiko's possessiveness- she had tagged along simply because of the revelation that she had come to only an hour before. She would give everything to see Yumi happy- everything but Yumi's happiness, and that was just what Sachiko would steal from her if she allowed them to discover each others' feelings.
She sighed at Yumi's blush when Sachiko wrapped an arm around her waist, thinking her petite soeur was cold. It wasn't going to be easy to convince them to allow the other to move on, especially after playing matchmaker for so long. She was on her own to keep them apart until they returned to Lillian, and after that, she would have to break out her secret weapon. With any hope, Yumi's feelings for Hideo-kun would return after all, and from Sachiko's reaction earlier, if the heiress thought Yumi was happy with another, she wouldn't interfere.
So until then, she would endure the wrath of Ogasawara Sachiko for her baby sister's sake.
PGBR
"We could do this back home," Sei muttered as Youko dragged her around the shopping center, handing her more and more bags as they went along. But despite all her complaining, she never made Youko keep the bags herself or forced her to take them somewhere else. It had always been Youko- she didn't know it, but she was the only one who could make Satou Sei do something she didn't want to.
"Oh, stop it," Youko chided mildly. "If you'd just have fun, maybe try something on..."
Sei groaned dramatically beneath all the shopping bags. "Nooo," she moaned, her voice muffled.
"Well then, stop complaining," the raven-haired ex Chinesis said simply before pulling Sei into yet another clothing store. "Have you noticed anything different about Sachiko?" she asked quietly. "I'm worried about her."
"What do you mean? She's just as possessive of Yumi-chan as ever," Sei replied, grinning. "Maybe a little greener than usual, but that's Yumi's own fault. Onee-chan- how dense can she get?" Her words were harsh, but she said them in a fond tone, knowing Yumi the way she did.
"I mean a little while ago, when Yamato-san mentioned that boy...Hideo-kun, was it? And her nerve..." Youko specified as she examined a pair of jeans. "I've never seen Sachiko give up like that."
"Sachiko would do anything for Yumi-chan," Sei replied, shrugging. "And Yumi-chan doesn't like it when she gets angry."
Youko shot Sei a disparaging look as she disappeared behind the curtain of a dressing room. "Of course Sachiko would do anything for Yumi- she's my petite soeur, for God's sake, I know!"
Sei was only mildly surprised. Youko had always been a motherly type, especially when it came to her petite soeur, though she'd never admit it and rarely showed it. "Then what's the problem?" she asked, a bit exasperated- it she was honest, her mind was anywhere but on her favorite playthings at the moment.
Youko sighed as she stepped out wearing a pair of form-fitting white jeans. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "It's just...she is my petite soeur and I can see it in her eyes- she'd falling fast, and she's still tied down by that awful family of hers. Even if she and Yumi-chan ever discover their feelings are mutual, they'll only get their hearts broken, and I think Yamato-san just realized that a while ago."
"I like her," Sei said, grinning widely as Youko rolled her eyes. "Look, don't worry about it too much- let them work it out by themselves. Maybe they'll get their hearts broken if they let themselves love each other but if they don't even try then they'll get their hearts broken no matter what, right? Give them a chance."
Youko frowned slightly but nodded. "I guess you're right. But, then again, the great Satou Sei is always right, I suppose," she replied with the hint of a smile teasing at her lips.
"You better believe it," Sei replied, though her tone was more distant this time. "You know, those look really good on you," the blonde tomboy said abruptly. "You should get them."
Blushing, Youko rolled her eyes. "Nice try, but you won't distract me that easily, Sei."
"I wouldn't dream of it."
PGBR
When they left the store with a new bag, Youko mused out loud, "You know, if they ever do find out about the others' feelings, Sachiko will never let you within ten feet of Yumi-chan again. Even if they can never be together, she'll see it as her right to keep you away from her Yumi."
"And she doesn't already?" Sei replied, amused.
"The difference is, Sei," Youko continued, "that this time, she actually will have the right, and you know how she gets."
"Ah, I think I'll survive," Sei said after a moment, still grinning cheekily. "Although I will miss the softness, and Shimako just isn't as fun to jump.
"And I'm sure you'll find another victim soon enough, Sei," Youko replied airily, not meeting her best friend's eyes.
"...yeah...," Sei murmured gazing down the Red Rose with a strange look in her eyes. Youko glanced up and frowned, looking away quickly, but not before a blush as red as her rose formed on her face. "I'm sure."
PGBR
"Is something wrong, onee-sama?" Noriko asked once they were under the ginkgo tree.
"Not wrong, Noriko-chan," Shimako said slowly. "Nothing's wrong, but...I just...we need to talk."
Noriko's eyes widened in fear and they instantly flitted down to the rosary around her wrist- Shimako had noticed. "I'm sorry onee-sama!" she cried, her eyes brimming with tears. Shimako frowned slightly, shocked by her petite soeur's intense reaction and slightly hurt- had Noriko guessed and rejected her feelings? But before she could reply, Noriko continued, "I- I didn't mean to, onee-sama, I swear I didn't mean to, it just happened! Please don't hate me, onee-sama..."
Unable to comprehend the situation, the most Shimako could do was catch Noriko in her arms as the younger girl fell into her front. "Noriko-chan...," she said softly. "What are you talking about?"
And then Noriko was leaping back, wiping the tears from her eyes but Shimako was tired of being lied to and pulled her back. "Noriko," she said sternly, grabbing her by the shoulders and causing her petite soeur to look up at her in shock. "What were you talking about? What are you sorry for?" Because deep down, her heart was pounding and she prayed Noriko couldn't hear it.
"I...I...," Noriko began, recognizing defeat. "I love...no, I'm in love with you, onee-sama," she said quietly, gazing down at her feet. "I thought you brought me over here to take back the rosary because you knew and I...I didn't really think I just...reacted. But I guess...," she began to uncoil the rosary from around her wrist, "I guess you'll be wanting it now anyway, right?"
Shimako was so stunned that she didn't say a word as Noriko began to take off the rosary, tears slipping down her cheeks. It was only when the cross was dangling in front of her as it was shoved in her face by her beloved petite soeur that she began to register that she was allowing her nightmare to come true. "Noriko...please...don't," she managed to stutter. But it was too late- the rosary fell to the ground at her feet as Noriko gave up waiting for her to take it back as she ran from the temple.
Shimako was still frozen to the spot, her gray eyes fixated on the rosary on the ground when Youko and Sei found her half an hour later on their way back to Youko's car.