Just-a-Quick-AN: Thank you to all who have reviewed. Your support means so much to me

Chapter 9

Luke opened his eyes. Asch was also awake, but he didn't look like he was in the mood to talk. He was staring through the darkness at the far side of the room. When he glanced down and noticed Luke's glinting eyes, he immediately reacted. He took Luke's face into crook of his neck and side down into the bed. His eyes never leaving the door.

Hushing Luke's curiosities, he reached out above the bed, flicking open the window quietly while two pondering green eyes watched him. Asch then pulled the sheets up to cover their heads. Luke wanted dearly to stress his discomfort at the humidity accumulating in the small area, but instead kept silent assuming Asch was most likely still mad at him for his previous remarks that night.

Asch lent down and whispered in a breathy tone. "I need you to stay close, and quiet. I can hear people wandering around the building in heavy armour." Luke froze, then, regaining some rationality, pressed himself as close to Asch as possible. However the thought occurred to him as to why they were so close in the first place. He looked at Asch who, reading his clueless expression, sighed tiredly before answering.

"If they get in, they'll be expecting to find two people, not one. If we're close enough their hazy thoughts, hopefully sleep deprived, will strike it off as one single person snoozing alone alone. Understand?" Feeling slightly underestimated Luke bit back a childish remark coldly, turning as he did so to show his resent. Asch growled at him. "Stop that, get back here!" he whispered hoarsely. Luke did as told, slowly.

Asch held him tightly. "This is no time act like a child, even if you are only eight years old, don't use it as an excuse! You should already know what comes out of that attitude you have."

Luke's body went limp as memories of the disaster at Agzeriuth came flooding back to him. He closed his eyes and nuzzled Asch's neck. Something so painful was best left to nightmares.

However, his remorse was shortly replaced by anger when he remembered how Asch promised notmention such events. Their bargain originally was; Asch doesn't say anything to provoke Luke and Luke won't bite back with something else. He knew now was really not the time for fairness per-se, but a deal's a deal. All's fair in love and war, brother dear...Luke smirked inwardly, after spending an entire year with Asch he had gained a very good understanding of what annoyed him so much.

One such action that made it into a comfortable position on Asch's was any touching of his neck. It seemed like an odd fear to have, but then Luke thought of Guy and it seemed perfectly reasonable. Alas, there was one small snag in his plan: his hands were no where near Asch's neck, nor would he be able to get them there without Asch's knowledge, though another, smaller muscle might just do the tick.

Luke nuzzeled up into the space between Asch's neck and the pillow, he tilted his head slightly and brushed his lips up against Asch's ivory skin before lapping ever so gentily at the pale surface.

Asch shifted slightly, but otherwise gave no response, Luke was not satisfied. He gave a few more harder licks to the same spot until Asch growled at him. The deterrent didn't work, at least not the way wanted it to. We new found amusement in his eyes Luke continued along the same lines with what he had been doing, the only difference he made to action was to graze his teeth against the already aggravated skin.

"Ah- Dammit Luke! Stop that!" He whispered, his voice hoarse from restraint. Pulling Luke back by his hair Asch glared scornfully at him. "If they hear us and come up here, we' re in deep shit, get it?" Asch released his grip and brought Luke back to his chest. "Now stop it, and stay still until I say otherwise!"

They stayed in silence, utter silence, and that's when Luke noticed something was wrong. He could no longer hear the murmurs from outside their room in the streets below them. He turned to look up at Asch. The worry crossed with stress glare did not ease Luke, even though it was not pointed at him.

After few minutes Luke whispered little apologies into Asch neck and clung onto him tighter.

As Asch opened his mouth to speak he heard footsteps echo from the other end of the hall on the other side of door to their room,he seemed to be the only one though. Luke was still muttering away and his hands were busy keeping the child still. Asch rolled his eyes, it was going to be a while before he lived this down.

But the footsteps were getting closer and Luke wasn't getting any quieter. Taking a deep breathe Asch lowered his head to Luke's level and joined their lips.

Luke barely squeaked through his nose when realised why he wasn't making any noise. His silence was accompanied by Asch's soft breathing bouncing around the side of his cheek. He wasn't complaining,quite the opposite, he melted into the kiss, closing his eyes and pushing back against Asch's entire body.

Asch pulled back resorting to the other age old method of keeping little children quiet. A glare. Luke seemed to shrink back under it, a retreat to a crevice in Asch's neck which he nibbled earlier. To his own distaste, it was still wet.

Guy did not like this plan. Guy did not like that he was part of this plan. Guy didn't even like the thought of the rewards for this plan because rewards counted on the plan succeeding. And Guy hated that more than the women who harassed him in Baticle when he went shopping. In fact the only good Guy saw in the whole thing, the redeeming glory of it, was that, if it went well Asch and Luke would be back home before morning. Hopefully.

The first stage plan itself would preferably work like so; They, Jade, Natalia, Tear and himself, were crouched in the darkness in a cluster of trees and bushes. Anise, who was picked out as being the most energetic given her age was wandering up and the path intersecting the detached lump of forest. When, any unfortunate group of guards idly walks by they will see Anise (or she will make herself seen) and then run for the check point at the Albior, where Noelle and Ion are waiting for her with hot chocolate - after all she would hardly fit in a suit of heavily built armour made for a grown man. On her way past she will signal the hiding group who will ambush the unsuspecting knights and knock them out. They will then take their place and their armour and sneak into Belkend.

But, there were too many places it could go wrong.

Surprisingly enough, they managed to get to Anise's signal's signal before it all started to go to the dogs. Only a rally of two guards came by. There was no trouble knocking them both out cold, however, there was only two guards and four of them.

Jade was a definite, if worst came to the worst, he'd know how to talk himself out of it. That and he was the only person in the group who could make sence of the 'plan'. Guy on the other hand, picked up the joker in the deck as neither Natalia or Tear could fit into the knight's armour given it was made for male use only.

Guy sighed heavily at this predicament. Why did he always wind up with the short straw?

He groaned clasping on the helmet. he felt like a cluttered piece of fon-tech. "Jade, you're doing the talking, got it?"

Jade flicked buckles on his left gauntlet with inhuman ease, otherwise, he was silent.

After a few minutes he spoke. "I assume you are aware of the rest of the arrangements, in terms of the plan?" Guy nodded, though secretly he cringed at the thought of what the risks were if either of them were found.

As they began marching, Guy found himself looking back and wondering what would have happened if only it wasn't two men that had come along.

AN: My sincere apologies for the wait. Preferably I'd like this to be longer, but circumstances I don't like explaining have lost me such right. Next chapter may contain gore. Just a warning for those with iffy guts.