[Smut ahead]

Chapter Eight

Akane sunk deeper in the hot spring outside her house. It had been two days since Kogami had kissed her, and the memory still made butterflies appear in her stomach and a strange heat rise in her cheeks. Sasayama had been requesting Toko's presence more and more, and Akane enjoyed the happy blush which settled on her handmaiden's cheeks when she talked about the kind Emperor. She'd eventually told Toko to just go and see him already and when she'd nodded that yes, she was being serious, Toko had bowed deeply, hugged the princess and sped off faster than light. Now, that she was alone, her thoughts returned to Kogami, reliving the experience. Since it was quite late, she'd decided that it would be best for her to sleep, since she was setting off in a few days to be handed right back into Makishima's clutches. She wasn't afraid. She was strong enough to handle whatever he had planned for her in that one day, and she would ensure she had her knife on her wherever she went. Besides, Kogami wouldn't allow anything bad to happen to her. He even promised. And Kogami never, ever, went back on his word.

She pulled on her night garments and padded softly to her room. She was about to get into bed, when she heard a knock on her door. She slid the wood panel back to see who it was, and her heart leapt when she saw that it was Kogami, and she threw it completely back. A cool breeze washed over her, and it was only then did she realise just how warm it was inside the house. "Shinya!" she waved. "Come in." He glanced up at her and smiled softly, and she ran downstairs to meet him. He didn't bother kissing her hand this time. Instead, he just tilted her chin up so he could capture her lips in his, but it didn't come anywhere close to the kiss of a couple of nights ago, since it was just a quick peck.

"Hello," they said together, and Akane giggled at their strange custom.

"I've missed you," he admitted, pulling her in for a one-armed hug.

"I've missed you, too," she echoed his words back to him. "Let's go to my room. It's comfier and cooler in there," she told him, taking him by the hand, leading him to her room. She had been feeling on edge when she was alone before, as if she was being watched, but now that he was here, she was in her own safe haven again. He sat on one side of her bed, and she sat on the other.

"You're right, it is much better in here," he murmured looking around at the little ways Akane had tweaked it to make it more personal. Kogami especially noticed how strong the smell of roses was in here- to him, it was almost intoxicating.

"Kogami?" Akane spoke up after a moment's silence. "Can I lean on you?" He was only slightly taken aback by her request and shifted so that he had her in his arms again, her head resting on his chest. "This is nice. How was your day?"

"Bit of a mix really," he replied. "Everyone's on edge about heading to take you to Makishima- did you know some of the army have already set off?" She gazed through her eyelashes into Shinya's blue ones, wanting him to continue talking. "But Kagari and Shion were all making sure nobody was sad for too long."

"Sounds a lot like them," Akane agreed, nodding her head.

"I don't want to give you back to that asshole, even for a single minute," he growled, the grip on her hands getting stronger. "I think I really will go mad,"

"I will too, and Sasayama even said, it's just a single day- not a lot can happen in that time, I'm sure," Akane tried to sound encouraging, but she didn't believe a single word that came out of her mouth. Perhaps Kogami did, though.

"I'm sorry," he sighed. "Here you are trying to look on the bright side, and then there's me, being so negative about it. You really are amazing. You know that, right, Akane?" Akane blushed and sat up to look at him, crouching down to press their foreheads together, before kissing it gently. She pulled back, a tad embarrassed, expecting Kogami to say something, but his eyes were stuck to her, wider than usual.

"S-Shinya?" Akane reached out her hand to stroke his hair, bring him back to reality, but instead, she found herself being flung on the bed, looking up at Shinya, whose knee was wedged firmly between her legs. She glanced back up at Kogami to see he was breathing rather heavily. His hand found its place on her cheek again, stroking his thumb on it in circles, before leaning in, as if he was going to kiss her again. A hair's breadth was between them when he froze, his entire body seeming to lock up. He jumped off Akane faster than she could blink, and bowed deeply, as if in apology.

"Goddammit, what the hell was I thinking?" he chastised himself, before looking at the puzzled Akane. "I'm sorry, Akane, that was way out of line. Forgive me. I'll see you in the morning." He turned away from her sharply and set off to leave, but he was held back by a hand clutching his sleeve. "What are you-?"

"Shinya…" she looked at her hand furiously, avoiding his gaze. "I..." Her face was upgraded from red to vivid crimson. He said nothing, so she swallowed her dignity and looked him square in the face. "Take me." Her voice came out more commanding then she intended, and the entire situation caught Shinya off guard. She dropped his sleeve, but he didn't move an inch, and stared at her in utter surprise.

"You… don't know what you're saying," he muttered, almost so quietly she didn't hear him.

"I do," she retorted.

"No, you don't," he sat on the bed next to her, not meeting her gaze. "I'd just corrupt you. I can't do that, not to you."

"Then what if Makishima gets to me first? Are you saying you're perfectly okay with him corrupting me, then?" she finally moved her eyes away from his face and onto the floor, and she could tell it had struck a nerve. "Besides, we both know that I'm stronger than that. But I suppose if you don't want to-"

"What? Of course I want to- hell, I'd love to, but-" he stumbled over his words. "I'm meant to court you first, take you for walks, and to dinner, and to kiss you. And it doesn't seem right. You're a princess, and I'm me, the dog, as Mika calls me."

"Shinya… we don't have time to do all that courting stuff in the three days we have left before I get sent right back to Makshima, and God knows what that guy will do!" she took his hand in hers, and he automatically interlocked their fingers. "So, whatever happens… if I'm forced to spend the rest of my life with Makishima, if I have to marry him… I want to have memories of you first."

"You're sure?" he asked, tentatively. His confidence returned when Akane nodded at him. His lips crushed on hers before she had chance to even think another thought. Their tongues slid around each other, almost naturally, as his lips worked against hers. She felt his hand curled up in her short locks, and the other clutching the material at the small of her back. He was much rougher than he had been before, as he pushed her back down on the mattress, hands now at both sides of her head, knees squeezing her sides. He broke away from her, panting heavily, and Akane was gasping for air as well.

He leant back on his knees so his hands were free to slide off her kimono. "Can I?" he asked softly.

"Yes," she reached a hand up to stroke his cheek reassuringly, and he took this as a good sign as he slid the kimono off her slender shoulders, but not completely off, since he wanted to savour the moment. He wrapped his hand around her wrist and kissed each finger individually, before adjusting to lock their fingers together as he trailed his lips along her arm. Akane shivered as each spot his lips brushed grew hot before settling to a light glow, a sigh escaping her lips as he left feather-light kisses on her shoulder. He burrowed his face into her neck to nip at the skin, and Akane's breath hitched as he continued his actions, tugging on her skin between his teeth with sharp little bites. He paused for a moment to gaze at her, and a low whine crawled up her throat, and she made no attempt to prevent it. The kisses began again, trailing down her neck to the valley between her breasts. He looked up at her again, and she just nodded, and whispered, "Yes." His gaze flickered back to her chest, and she stopped breathing for a moment. His eyes… looked so- "Ah." She was driven out from any form of coherent thought as his tongue dragged across her nipple, her head tipping back momentarily. He latched onto her breast, dragging a small stretched out sound from her mouth. She moaned as he sucked at it, before diverting his attention onto the skin of her breast, nipping the sensitive flesh to bring it into his mouth before sucking softly. Her hands reached out to grasp the back of his head, fingers curling into the black locks as if to anchor him to her. She gasped as his teeth grazed her nipple, revelling in this strange warm feeling that flowed throughout her entire body, especially between her legs. It was like she was pleasantly burning, the heat blossoming outwards wherever Shinya touched her.

He surged suddenly back up to her face, kissing everywhere that wasn't her lips. She twisted her head to try and catch him and make him kiss her again, but he laughed quietly as he left her face to lay kisses on her throat. Finally, he kissed her lips, but it was only a quick peck, again, and she groaned and tried to move her hands to hold his cheeks, but that just made him move his hands to pin hers against the bed. She could hear his own breath coming fast, and she wiggled against him, wanting to be touched again. He grabbed the remainder of her dress, and before he dared pull it all the way off, he looked at her. "Akane. Are you sure?"

"Absolutely, yes," her voice sounded breathy, but she didn't particularly care. She felt a rush of cool air on her thighs, and blinked as he threw the garment unceremoniously behind him. He raised a hand to trail his fingers up her thigh, almost gliding over her skin. Akane whimpered as her hips twitched forward, almost missing the smile spreading slowly on his face. A hand clasped down on her right leg, keeping it pinned down, and she could feel his hot breath on her inner leg. He started nipping on her inner left thigh, drawing moan after moan from her, that smile staying on his cheeks before he himself froze. She started to twist her hips, but he held her fast. Akane trembled with need up until Shinya's tongue drew across the front of her panties, the heat seeping out through to her skin, and she cried out.

"Should I keep going?" he asked, still treating her with care and respect.

"Please," she pleaded, and she didn't have to say anything more as she saw her panties flung, precisely as her dress was before, flashing in the light for a brief second. She then became aware of the wet feeling between her legs, so she pressed them together, to have them pried apart not a minute afterwards. Shinya's hands wrapped back around her thighs, keeping both pinned to the bed before his face was lowered. Akane twisted her head to the side with a near-silent groan when she felt his breath against her, making her feel much warmer than she was. When his tongue touched her and trailed up, she moaned for the entire duration of that first lick. Her nerves felt like they had almost exploded from the sensation, and his tongue was on her sooner than predicted, and she was gasping and moaning with each slight contact, screaming when he flicked her clit. He closed his lips around the sensitive nub and sucked, repeating the treatment he gave her breasts. The wetness between her legs seemed to have disappeared, and she pushed herself onto hr elbows to catch sight of a white dribble on Shinya's chin that was quickly licked off by his prowling tongue.

He glanced up at her briefly, his lips glistening. "I could do that all night," he said, in a tone half way between a threat and a promise.

"Sh-" she started to say his name, but was cut off when his tongue moved among her folds to plunge inside. "Shinya!" his name fell off her lips as a half-moan, half-scream as she collapsed back onto the bed.

At first it was a slow movement as if testing the waters, and then the pace picked up suddenly, as his tongue thrusting forward, as deep as he could get it. Twisting it inside of her caused her to arch up from the bed, bringing her hips forward in an attempt to get it further in. She felt a finger leave her leg to press against her clit as he removed his tongue. He calmly returned his hand to her leg, and plunged back inside her body, exploring nook and cranny. Her following scream pierced the air, her back arching off the bed and pressing herself closer to him. All the tension she had felt collecting in her had been released, and a delicious feeling was running through her entire body. When she fell back onto the bed, his tongue was still giving her a thorough lashing, and she could feel that tension coiling in the pit of her stomach again. She moved her hands down to grasp in his hair, hoping to keep him there, wanting to feel that again. When she felt herself nearing that edge again, he pulled back, and she moaned in frustration.

"M-More," she gasped whilst fighting to bring her harsh breathing down to a normal pace, and she moaned at the sight of his face lowering again, licking her up and down again, but pulling away once she neared the edge. "Please, Shinya."

Another smile flashed across his face and he stood up quickly, practically tearing his yukata off, and Akane peered at the well-defined abs on his chest. She licked her lips subconsciously, wanting to lay as many kisses she could across the expanse of skin, but he pushed her back down, before pulling down his underpants. Her breath finally slowed, and she tried to look away because of the blood she felt rushing to her face. He returned his hands to either side of her head, and she could feel his cock against her thigh. "You wanted more, right?" His lips curled up at her positive response. "Okay." He scattered a few kisses across her face. "This might hurt a little," he murmured into her ear, as his hand positioned himself at her entrance.

She wrapped her arms around him and clutched at his muscled back. "Shinya," she whispered back. "How much will it hurt?"

"You'll only feel it for a second," he promised, and she relaxed against him. "If it helps, dig your nails in all you want." Was he being serious? Akane glanced at his determined eyes, before ducking down to hide in his shoulder, her grip tightening on his back. "Akane, relax," he purred her name in her ear, which certainly did soothe her, and her hands smoothed over his skin. She could feel a foreign sensation in her core as he pushed forward for a moment. Briefly, she tensed, but relaxed when no pain had come. Suddenly, his hips moved fast in a fluid motion, and she mewled barely a second later. There was a sharp pain between her legs, and she allowed a pained noise to escape her. Kogami caught her lips in a searing kiss again, and when he pulled back, he gazed at her with questioning eyes, but she nodded in consent. She kissed him again before she could moan as he picked up the pace, and slowly she started moving her hips as well to match with his rhythm.

Her moans increased in volume, and she became aware of him moaning and gasping with her, the sound going straight in her ear, and it was at that moment she realised her lips were next to his ear too, meaning he heard every little sound she made too. He stretched her slick walls as it filled her, thick and hard, and he drew back deliberately, so that she felt every last bit of the friction between them; she moaned with each slow thrust, her limbs wrapping around him, and bit by bit, the pace got faster. With one last, deep thrust, she screamed at the top of her lungs, feeling herself clamp around him as she arched her body one last time, and he held her close, groaning her name repeatedly. It was only then Akane became aware of the fluid he'd spilt inside her.

She fell back onto the bed, where Shinya pushed her backwards and began to press numerous kisses into her skin, leaning up to nibble at her ear and whisper how much he truly did love her. Her heart pounded, and as she wrapped her arms around him, she mumbled, "I love you, too." He returned her embrace, and fell onto the bed, hands securely holding her around her waist. Akane rested her check against Shinya's chest, listening to his heartbeat, before promptly falling asleep to the sound of his voice telling her that he loved her, oh so very much.

Outside, hiding amongst the trees, Shogo Makishima felt as though he had been slapped in the face. Never before had anyone dared disrespect him, and he felt incredibly insulted. He'd decided that that night was going to be the night he finally brought Akane back to her true home, but as he had gotten close, he'd heard some rather peculiar noises drifting from Akane's open window. Immediately, he'd gotten stealthier, and was practically touching the wall outside her room when he'd dared look in. And what he saw horrified him. Akane- his Akane, could he add- was laid back on the bed, completely naked and moaning Shinya Kogami's name. The man himself was positioned between Akane's legs, and defiling her. Makishima barely reigned in the temptation to slash his throat there and then, but somehow managed. As he crept away into the trees once more, a multitude of ideas about just what he'd love to do with the troublesome samurai had already began drifting through his head.