A/N: I did a little comic strip for the chapter: 'Voluntary Submission' – I'm no artist, but check it out if you don't have anything to do. You'll find the link on my profile page or go to my deviant homepage from there.

Balance

Our relationship is like a wavering scale - sometimes I am the one that holds the reins and sometime she is.

Whenever we have small issues we rarely confront each other directly, because we trust and understand each other enough to recognize problems before it reached to that point. Even if it gets to that point - neither of us are the type of person that likes being told what to do, though Haruka-san may beg to differ, so we avoid doing so directly to one another – instead we manipulate.

Although I usually have the upper hand in this department, as much as I hate to admit it, ever since we had started going out Natsuki has developed ways of making me do her bidding.

But this time it's different – this time she told me directly and sternly about her, about how she doesn't trust or like her – well she never really liked any of my… admirers… but it was a first that she has deliberately ask me to stay away from one of them. She was so serious, it was a bit unnerving.

"Shizuru-onee-sama. Would it be okay to have lunch with you today?" The girl in front of me asked eagerly.

I can feel Natsuki watching us like a hawk – as opposed to her usual casual side glances whenever one of my kohais approaches us.

"Marguerite-san" I started, using a diplomatic tone.

"Call me Tomoe." She replied cooly.

Natsuki stepped closer to me – a protective stance?

A tense threatening aura grew and loomed from behind me.

"Tomoe-san. I'm afraid I have already made plans with my Natsuki. But thank you for the offer." Giving a polite smile as an arm wrapped itself around my waist I believed it was best to dissfuse the situation before it got any further.

I looked to my side and saw Natsuki glaring dangerously at Tomoe-san who seemed unfazed by the possible death threats she was not-so-subtly sending out.

"That's okay, Onee-sama, another time maybe."

I gave her another smile and a nod before Natsuki and I turned to leave.

"There's something about that girl that doesn't sit right with me." Natsuki whispered - her arms still possessively around my waist – I genuinely smiled at her rare display of affection.

"Maybe, Natsuki is just paranoid."

She mumbled her reply.

With us, she would always relent and compromise with my requests and I to hers – that is how we work – like an unsteady scale that tips gently from side to side – but in the end we are balanced.

A/N: This was a rather off-handed plot I thought up hence the shortness of it and also I'm sorry, I know I tend to spoon feed you guys the meaning/theme of the story but I can't help it – it's a habit.