Hey guys! OMG I'm such a bad author. I haven't updated in like…two months O.O What IS WRONG WITH ME? I don't want to bother you guys with A/N, but all I have to say is that your REVIEWS kept me going, I've been busy, so sorry! I promise that next update won't be as late if you review good!

Chapter 7

Jin took a deep breath before curving his lips into a smile as he watched the unconscious form of Natsuki on the chair, "Well, when we were kids, Natsuki had always wanted to be an Otome…a huge effect on the way she saw things…"

Flashback

"Hey Natsuki…err…what are you doing?"

Little Natsuki turned from where she was carrying a gun shaped log aroundto acknowledge her best friend's presence, "What's it look like I'm doin'?"

Jin, who at the time was only twelve walked up to his younger friend and held his hands out, "Well, it looks like your doing exactly what you are." Natsuki raised an annoyed eyebrow at him, "Swinging a log around while making noises like pshhh, and whoosh…"

Natsuki held her log as a soldier would hold his rifle and walked up to Jin. Standing at a mere four/ten or so, the eleven year old Natsuki wasn't at all intimidating to the five/one Jin. She squinted her eyes up at him and he in turn raised his eyebrows. It wasn't long until Jin broke out into laughter. Natsuki twitched in anger and in response hit him over the head with her log.

"Ow! Hey! What'd you do that for?" Jin closed one eye and rubbed at the large lump growing on of his head, his eye holding a large tear.

Natsuki turned her back on him defiantly and said gruffly, "Just you wait. I'll become an Otome when I get older and you'll get more than a bump on the head, I'll tell you that much."

Jin stopped whimpering and began his laughter again. He had the courage to walk up to Natsuki and place a palm on her shoulder, "All right Natsuki, I believe you." Natsuki turned around angrily, only to meet true and supportive eyes, "But you have to promise me one thing." She raised an eyebrow at him. He smirked, "Once you become a full fledged Otome…" his grip tightened, "You can't forget me…" He smiled sadly.

Natsuki watched his expression with a confused one, almost frightened, and began to stutter. Jin watched as Natsuki tried to say something coherent, but bust out into an outright smile as she failed. Soon, he was laughing again. Natsuki lifted her eyes to his, "What?! What's so funny? I swear…girls might be the only ones to have periods…but you're an exception."

Jin continued to laugh, "I'm sorry Natsuki…but you're so GULLIBLE!!!"

With that, he ran.

Natsuki realized what he was talking about and once again puffed in anger, "JIN!" The two chased each other around the open area of an abandoned field. Natsuki, log still in hand, waved it around angrily while shouting words eleven year olds should never know in his direction. Jin jumped and avoided blows from the dreaded log of doom and continued laughing.

The continued in this activity for a long while until Natsuki finally tired of chasing around her too carefree friend and plopped down on an open area of grass. She laid herself on her back and held the log close to her body. Jin bent over her side and smiled victoriously, "Oh my, is the great Otome Natsuki tired already? You know, if you tire this easily, you won't survive a single battle."

Natsuki lazily swatted the log in his face whilst mumbling, "Shut up…"

Jin finally gave up and laid himself next to her, placing his hands behind his head, "Say Natsuki."

"Ehm?"

He laughed, "Well, I was just wondering if you were up to some fun tonight."

Natsuki shifted her eyes to look at the figure next to her, "What kind of fun?" she asked suspiciously.

Jin feigned a look of hurt, "Why Natsuki…how can you be suspicious of your dear friend Jin?"

"Maybe it's because of that friend that I was slapped in the face a total of nine times, by nine different girls."

"Aw come on! I really thought I'd win the bet!"

"Yeah, but you didn't now did you? And I had to pay by…by…" she growled at the memory.

"Come on Natsuki, Otome are supposed to speak properly at all times, are they not? You had to pay by…"

She threw grass his way, "I had to pay by…damnit…by stealing three differently patterned panties from the girl's locker room at school…and then…"

"And then…" Jin coaxed, "It's good to let it out Natsuki." He smirked.

"And then…I had to…grrr…and then I had to wear 'em on my head, take a stupid picture, and post it on the school website…THERE!"

Jin laughed, "Oh yeah, that was such a good one…whoo…Natsuki, you should have seen the look on their faces when I showed them what was on the site…"

She twitched, "YOU were the one who showed them?"

"Of course…but come on! I didn't think they'd all go as far as slapping you! They all seemed like such soft spoken girls!"

Natsuki sat up straight, "Well apparently not because both my cheeks were red for a week!"

Jin sat up as well, "But Natsuki, this is what I don't understand. There was only three panties…but nine girls…and nine slaps…either you need to go back to kindergarten, or I'm just straight losing it."

Natsuki swung the log unsuccessfully at his head as he ducked and said roughly, "Don't you know?! Girls travel in packs! They're like tigers! If one pounces on you, so do the others!"

Jin laughed again and said, "Well you don't exactly travel in a pack. You're mostly by yourself. If I was in your grade, of course you wouldn't be." He smirked. Natsuki grumbled some more and plopped back down, "You know Natsuki, there have been rumors among the upperclassmen…and women…I guess." He smirked over at his friend.

"Oh no…what did you say this time...?"

"Oh no Natsuki! Don't give me credit, this is all you."

She sighed, "What?" Her voice was calm, but irritable.

Jin only smiled, "Wellll, the upperclassmen have been saying how…dare I say it…how 'cute' you are, kinda like a little…wolf." His smile grew.

Natsuki turned and looked at him evilly, "Run."

Jin held his hands up defensively, "Hey wait now! It's not my fault. They see you walking in the halls all by yourself in your usual state of dress and they fawn. Well, the ladies do."

Natsuki groaned.

"Well maybe if you didn't dress like such a bad…'boy', they would stop! I mean honestly Natsuki! If you're going to wear the boys' uniform then you should at least wear it properly. Tuck in your polo and straighten your vest. Don't let your belt hang off the end like you usually do and make yourself presentable to adults! Then they'll stop. But if I were you…girl and all…I wouldn't want to stop."

"Perv…"

"I'm a guy…what can I say?"

"Anyways, talking about dresses and such, you should get used to wearing one. Otomes wear dresses almost all the time you know, well that is, while you're at Garderobe. It seems like kind of a fetish thing to me though…I mean…have you seen the dresses they wear? They've got that whole whorish maid thing going on."

She nudged him violently, "Don't talk about Otome like that Jin…"

"Oh all right."

End Flashback

If not held back by her mousy girlfriend, Haruka would have most likely tackled Jin in ways only professional wrestlers, not Otome, knew how, "Whorish?! I'll preach you whorish!"

While busy holding her feisty girlfriend back, Yukino piped up, her voice louder than usual, "teach, Haruka-chan…and please calm down!"

Jin held his hands up defensively and said, "Hey hey, come on now…that was how I thought!"

"So how do you think now? I know, you won't be able to think at all once I smash your face in, then it'll make the world a better place!"

Jin continued to hold his arms up in his defense as Yukino tried desperately to keep Haruka from pouncing on the man. Shizuru only watched in amusement as the others continued their antics.

It was a good ten minutes or so when things had finally calmed down and Jin cleared his throat, "Now, where was I…"

Resume Flashback

"Oh All right."

"Anyways Jin, how come you know so much about Otome? You're a guy…"

"Well, sneaking around Garderobe lookin' for random Otome junk to sell really gets to a guy. We got to live somehow right?"

Natsuki scoffed, "Right."

"Anyways, how did you fare today?"

Natsuki took a deep breath and sighed, "Ok I guess. I got a few things here and there, but all in all, it wasn't that great."

Jin too sighed, "Well that's life in the slums for ya. At least the city's payin' for our school."

"That reminds me, did you wash your uniform yet?"

"Nope. Forgot about it."

"Well we should do it."

"Ah man, we have today and tomorrow off. Let's do it tomorrow night. But for now…" Jin stood up, "Let's play some role playing."

Natsuki stood with him, her log clutched in her right hand, "What kind of role playing."

"Well…I know there aren't any guy 'Otomes' hence the name…Otome…" he laughed, "but how's this. You get to be principal of Garderobe, and I'll be your right hand man."

Natsuki thought of the role playing for a moment, wanting to make sure she didn't miss any points that would somehow get her in trouble. After thinking for a long five minutes, Natsuki came up with her decision, "All right, I'll play."

Jin smiled triumphantly, "All right. Getting into character in five, four, three, two…" Jin stood straight and tall and walked up to Natsuki, "Good afternoon Principal Kruger, what's today's order of business." He chanced a glance at her log, still clutched in her hands and whispered to her, "Psst Natsuki, you haven't transformed yet…put the log down."

Natsuki glanced down at her log and realized that he was right. Quickly, she placed the log on the ground and cleared her throat. She then walked away from him and clasped her hands behind her back, "Right, well, there have been problems with..." she paused, "Jin, what should the monsters be called?"

Jin thought for a moment, "I don't know…dark creatures…?"

Natsuki shrugged and cleared her throat once more, "Right, well, there have been problems with…the dark creatures…again."

Jin stayed rooted to his spot, "All right, what do you suppose we do about them?"

This caught Natsuki by surprise, "Well…uhh…well…"

Jin whispered to his flustered friend, "We need to take them out. The sooner the better."

She whispered back, "Right." She cleared her throat yet again, "We need to take them out. The sooner the better."

"Right. Should we start now?"

"Uh…yes?"

Jin sighed exasperatedly, "Natsuki, you have a lot to learn."

And so as the days passed by, the two found themselves completely in this role playing game they had created. Jin taught Natsuki this and that. He taught her battle strategies, words of encouragement, and ways to treat subordinates at certain times. In one month, Natsuki had become quite the exceptional leader. Of course, she could definitely be better, but for that moment in time, she would do.

But, the month after the one month period the two spent together bettering Natsuki's leadership skills, that they had no idea would come in very handy in her future, Natsuki began to find flaws in the way Jin was her second in command. The first time was completely odd. The two had been conversing about tactics to carefully extract an injured Otome from the grasps of a 'dark creature', Natsuki suddenly, out of a whim, reached out for an imaginary cup of tea.

Jin watched his friend to this and had to ask, "What are you doing?"

"I'm drinking tea."

"From where?"

"From wherever you brought it to me." She was beginning to get irritated.

"I never brought you any tea."

Natsuki blinked, "Really? I could've sworn…" Natsuki stared at the imaginary cup of tea in her hand, "Well…you should from now on, or else I'll keep reaching for imaginary…uhh…imaginary tea."

Jin raised an eyebrow and said almost reluctantly, "Aye aye ma'am."

The next time was when they were just leisurely talking, though still in their roles. Natsuki sat down on a fallen trunk and Jin took a stand next to her. Suddenly she said, "I feel like I need a…shoulder rub. I don't know why…it just seems so natural to me."

Jin looked at her like she was crazy, "Ok, tea was ok, but there is no way in hell that I'm giving you 'shoulder rubs'."

Natsuki gave him a long hard stare, but ended up sighing in defeat. She fidgeted in her spot, feeling as if something was missing.

The one that Jin felt he had to draw the line at was about three months into their role playing game and Natsuki was discussing the topic of Jin's failure in a mission, "Well you should have been more careful then."

"I told you, I tried."

"But look at the damages charged, and that thing is still running around out there!" This had happened when Jin lost a sparring match to the quickly growing Natsuki.

"Yeah and thanks for asking how I am. I'm fine really."

Natsuki finally noticed the small bruises she had planted upon the older boy and watched as he frowned at her, poking at a bruise on his chest. Natsuki sighed and mumbled, "It would be a lot easier to sympathize with you if you were a girl…"

Jin felt like he had enough, "Ok Natsuki, what is up with you?! For these past two or three months you've been asking me to be more like a girl each time! First it was tea serving, then massages, and now you want me to be a full fledged girl?! Jeez! What's next? You want me in high heels and a thong? Let me tell you Natsuki, that disturbs even me." Jin looked at his friend weirdly.

"I'm sorry!" She retorted, her arms folded across her chest, "I just feel like things should be different somehow, like something's not right."

"You mean like the fact that there is a lack of another set of boobs, the female genitals, and that there are two balls and shaft instead? 'Cause that's what I'm getting' from ya."

Natsuki scowled, "Do you have to use such vulgarity around me?"

He raised his hands in the air, "I swear Natsuki, even the real principal of Garderobe wouldn't match up to your uptightness!"

Natsuki sighed, "Whatever, can we just continue please?"

Jin sighed as well, a defeated look on his face, "Whatever I say goes in one ear and out the other. Fine, let's continue."

So they continued their game for the rest of the year. Laughs and jokes were created here and there and the two thoroughly enjoyed themselves. It was their third year into the game did they stop playing it. By this time, Jin was fifteen going on sixteen and Natsuki was fourteen on fifteen. The two had acquired part time jobs as mechanics at a shop in town. They considered themselves lucky. Not many in the slums could get jobs like they did.

Thanks to their education, they were able to get jobs. The two were also allowed to use the company motorcycles as well. Natsuki also began to get interested in guns and firepower in general. She watched plenty of action movies and programs in which guns and long ranged weapons were used.

It was the middle of the year when the letter came…

Jin and Natsuki opened the back door to the garage and heaved the boxes of parts into a stack by the door. Natsuki wiped the sweat from her brow and leaned against a nearby workstation. Jin picked up a nearby wrench and headed towards the refrigerator on the far side of the room after flipping on the lights, "You want anything?"

Natsuki grunted an answer Jin took as yes and continued his trek to the refrigerator. Upon reaching it, he dropped the wrench on a nearby counter and flipped his mechanic hat backwards and opened the door, the cool air, making him shake a bit. He took out to sodas and closed the door. As he was about to turn around, he found an envelope with Natsuki's name in the middle of it. He took the letter and the two sodas and went back to Natsuki. He handed her the soda and the letter as well.

"What's this?"

Jin took a sip, "Dunno, it was plastered on the fridge door."

Natsuki placed her drink down and looked at the envelope intently. The front had her name in neat scripture. There was no return address, but a stamp on the top right. She shrugged and tore the envelope open, dumping the remains in the trash. The piece of parchment inside was folded neatly in threes and Natsuki opened it just as carefully.

She read the first few lines with a bored expression on her face, but it soon turned to surprise as she continued. Jin watched his friend's expression changed and walked over to her. He read it over her shoulder and his expression changed as hers did.

When they finished, the two looked at each other, amazed. The two were silent for a long while until Jin said, "Will you do it?"

Natsuki looked at him long and hard. She clenched the note in her hands, "What have I got to lose?"

Jin smiled at his friend, his usual boyish and gay smile, "Well let's start packing shall we?"

End Flashback

"Oh man, that night was pretty funny. You should have seen the underwear we had to pack for her. She had so many ones of wolves, dogs, and can you believe it, Otome! Oh, but what was better was her br..."

"Finish that sentence and I'll gut you." Came the slurred and wavering response. Everyone averted their attention to Natsuki, who was lazily opening her eyes. They could even hear Nao shuffling from the phone to be able to hear Natsuki. After a while, Natsuki spoke again, "So…" she scanned the people in front of her, "Do I want to know what I missed?" and everyone broke out into laughter.

And there it is…so let me know what you think, and again, I apologize! Thank you to reviewers! I'd answer reviews, but its been so long! I don't know if you feel the same way anymore! So I'll answer reviews next time, so BE SURE TO LEAVE A REVIEW! It'll make me happy, and when I'm happy I write :) thanks guys!

P.S. SHIZNAT I'm keeping my promise…don't kill me…xD