Scant rays of sunlight drifted slowly passed the shades, dancing in the dust of the air and spreading across the bed. Haruhi watched them grow with envy, because they (unlike she) were actually allowed to move. The grew across the silken sheets, up the curve of her body and into the shadows of the creased blanket at an agonizing rate.

Silently, she willed them to move faster, yet the more she dwelled on them, the slower they seemed to move. Time crawled, but she dared not stir for fear of the iron grip around her waist and shoulders.

She had always known that Kyouya was not a morning person and had gone into their marriage fully expecting him to be a grouch in the early hours. Of course, she had generally attributed this to his being rich and spoiled and able to sleep as late as he chose. She had also been confident that once they were married, she would break him of this habit, or at least curve it.

She had been very, very wrong.

Mornings had become a pattern. Wake with the sun, lie perfectly still for two hours, and then force him to wake up. Even at nine o'clock, his temper was still fierce, but it was manageable. Before nine o'clock, there was no hope. He would quite simply bite her head off and then roll over, dragging her with him in a vice grip.

Haruhi was not sure if she found the situation frightening or bothersome. A part of her felt angry that he insisted on her laying in the bed with him; just because he wanted to sleep didn't mean she did. But, she had to admit, it was charming in it's own way, and the possessiveness made her feel wanted. Certainly 'warm in his arms' was a pleasant place to be, so she could only object so much.

Yet after a week, the novelty had worn off, and it was nothing short of boring. She was sure it was only about seven-thirty and already she was drumming her fingers on the mattress.

She shifted slightly and Kyouya grunted, his arms tightening slightly. Haruhi sighed and cautiously raised a hand to his hair, brushing the messy bangs from his forehead. He made another noise and forced her face against his bare chest.

Haruhi hissed in annoyance.

"Kyouya," she said quietly.

He tossed a bit but did not respond.

"Kyouya," she said again.

"Haruhi, shut up," he grumbled into her hair.

"I want to get up," she complained.

"Ha-ru-hi!" he said angrily. "Go back to sleep!"

"Kyouya!"

He suddenly went very still and an unnaturally sinister aura began to emit from his body. The onyx eyes flashed like steel, sending the tiny brunette into shivers.

"K-Kyouya...?" she whimpered, trying to push herself away from him.

"I said go back to sleep," he hissed. His voice was like poison as it struck her, stealing her breath in a swift movement. Haruhi gritted her teeth resolutely and fixed a glare onto her face.

"No, Kyouya. I want to get up."

Kyouya dragged her closer to him in fingers that hurt, eyes shut once again. Haruhi squirmed and struggled in vain as he crushed her against him, gasping for air.

"K-Ky...ouya," she spluttered. "W-wake up! I can't breath!"

When he did not respond, she decided that she would have to make him relax to regain her freedom. Since her movements were so limited, she began pressing soft kisses to his neck and chest. Something akin to a purr rumbled deep in his throat and the arms loosened slightly, though not nearly enough to break free.

Haruhi shifted upwards and kissed his lips instead, tracing his bare chest with her fingers. She suddenly felt him responding, his mouth moving on hers, his hands exploring her body. He growled and flipped her backwards, looming above her with his eyes half-open but unmistakably awake. She shivered as he began to kiss her throat. That wasn't what she had wanted.

"Kyouya, can I get up now?" she asked, trying to escape his heavy (and somewhat comfortable) weight.

He blinked at her. "Of course not."

"Wha...?"

"By my calculations, Haruhi, you have stolen from me at least two hours of sleep that I will never get back. I at least plan to spend those two hours doing something pleasant."

"But we... last night..." she said weakly. And then she blanched and whispered, "Two hours?"

Kyouya, despite being cranky, could not help smirking at the look on her face. "That is the punishment for waking me up early," he said with a note of finality that dared her to question him.

Haruhi eyed him warily, her mind reeling through possible ways to escape this situation. His smirk deepened as he watched her struggle. He knew it was pointless. He had made up his mind; she should just accept it.

He slowly lowered his face to her ear and began to nibble on the lobe.

xXx

Haruhi, in the days to come, found it difficult to entirely abandon her desire to wake early in the mornings, but for the most part did not dare to force Kyouya into consciousness. Sometimes she would wake him at 8:30 and allow him to compensate for his sleep with her body, mostly because it was more interesting than laying there, but she found the best solution was merely to stay up late, just as he did. She also couldn't help feeling that she was doing more to make their relationship work than he was.