A/N: Now if you're wondering why this took so long with so many plot bunnies, it's because I was busy sewing cosplays for a con that had come up. I hope this isn't disappointing to you!

Chapter 2: Desperate Longing

And so the mundane, lavish life-style resumed. Len was back to staying in his mansion, sipping fancy tea and eating the finest meals while having servants cater to his every need. He returned to the quiet, supposedly perfect life-style under the close watch of his mother and father. However, after the masquerade, Len had never been more aware of his apparent imprisonment. After meeting Rin, he felt so much more alive and awake. It was as if his eyes were opened to so much more—that there was something beyond the world he knew, and the way to that world was with Rin.

Len couldn't help but sigh heavily when his morning tea was brought to him. He ran a hand through his blonde, tossled hair and groggily looked at the fine, elaborate cup of tea placed on his night stand next to him. And so the day begins. He scowled to himself as he reached over to grab the saucer and sip his tea.

"Is the tea not to your liking, Young Master Len?"

Len had not realized that his thoughts had shown on his face. Not wanting to convey all his feelings so early in the morning, he simply settled with, "Perhaps something less strong next time."

"I'm terribly sorry." The servant bowed.

"Never mind, don't worry about it." Len waved a hand and sipped his tea once more.

What Len did mind, however, was how the servant seemed to overreact over such a simple thing. She acted as if the fate of the world depended on his cup of tea and that her failing it, was akin to failing the world itself. The cup of tea, Len thought, was just a silly cup of tea—there were people starving and in thick poverty outside, and the servant that tended to him was worried over a mere cup of tea. Once again, Len reminisced on how he loathed the aristocratic world.

"You may leave, now, I'll be down to breakfast in a moment."

"You do not need assistance in your attire for the day?"

What was he, a child? At nineteen years-old?

"No, I'll be fine."

Len had to wave his hand again before the servant finally left him alone in his chamber. Once the door clicked shut, he sighed and put down his cup of tea. Finally reaching the stages of being fully awake, he stretched his arms high above his head and groaned. At least in this brief moment alone, he could act like himself. Crawling out of bed, he slowly wobbled over to his wardrobe and opened it. Even though there was an abundance of clothing in front of him, he had a hard time choosing, because he had a hard time finding the simplest thing. Most of the clothing there was too elaborate for his tastes.

After choosing his attire for the day, Len closed the wardrobe and dressed himself. It was a skill he had acquired on his own at the age of fourteen after being stubborn with the servants and shooing them out of his room. He went at it for several hours before he successfully dressed himself for the first time and his father severely scolded him afterward, but he had learned how to dress himself. In his mind, it was a small step in rebellion towards the life of nobles.

After knotting his necktie, Len pulled his hair up into his usual, high ponytail. Then glancing in the mirror in his chamber, he finished putting on the fassade of an earl's son. His new awakening brought him to the realization how dead his eyes looked standing there. The thought then crossed his mind how his eyes would look if Rin was standing at his side. After making the final touches on his appearance, he left his bed chamber.

Trailing down the corridors of his father's mansion, Len slowly made his way to the dining hall. There a breakfast that was nearly too fancy to eat was waiting for him. As he entered the room, Len met the eyes of his father, staring at him with an observant gaze. The moment their gazes crossed, Len felt like he was being critically evaluated head to toe. Len looked over to his mother sitting across from his father with the same look of assessment. Naturally, there was a moment of tense silence in the room as Len waited for his approval, which came in the simple words of,

"Good morning."

"Good morning, Father, Mother." Len responded, finally taking his seat.

Once he had seated himself, the servants got to work, moving around and rearranging things so that the plates before the family of nobles were filled. Everything was akin to some kind of performance, and Len had the task of holding true to that. When several minutes had passed and a few bites of their breakfast eaten, Len's father finally started a table conversation.

"Len, I assume you are aware of Kaito Shion's newly arranged engagement?"

Len paused, "Yes..."

"Did you get a chance to meet his fiance at Viscount Kamui's son's engagement party?"

Len felt his heart jump lightly in his chest, "Yes, I did. It's... the daughter of Earl Kagami isn't it?" He could feel the hesitation in his words.

Len didn't know why he was confirming this piece of information with his father. Perhaps it was due to that small piece of denial in his heart that such a beautiful woman was already taken away. That his newly blossoming feelings for her was not as forbidden as it seemed. That he could just beg to call off his engagement with Miku and be with Rin. It was no surprise that his heart sunk a little lower when his father replied,

"Yes, that is correct."

"I met her at the engagement party several nights ago." Len paused after sipping a bit of his drink, "I didn't know Earl Kagami had a daughter."

"Yes, well, he doesn't speak of her often." Earl Kagamine began, "The Kagami household bears a much more tense relationship with us than the Hatsune household. When they heard that we had arranged a marriage with you and Lady Miku to gain diplomacy, they decided to do the same with the Shion family who we are on friendly terms with."

Len scoffed to himself. I am a tool, he thought.

"Why does Earl Kagami not speak of her often?" He then asked.

"She truly is an improper child... word has it that she doesn't know her place in the household. And that for a woman, she's too outspoken. I believe Earl Kagami is ashamed to have a child like that under his wing. They were concerned that they wouldn't be able to bargain her off to be married."

Len's hand had fallen onto his lap so he could tightly ball his hand into a fist. He so desperately attempted hide the boiling anger that had begun to fume at his father's words. Pain came, but it felt only like an itch while his thoughts were swirling in his mind. The way that his imbecile of a father spoke of Rin reminded him as one would speak of an object. As his hand began to shake, it was a strange emotion that enveloped him—it was that of complete and utter animosity towards his father and an insatiable longing for Rin.

"As usual, I expect you to attend their engagement party in the next week. Create good terms with her so that we can take advantage of the opportunity the Shion family has given us."

"Of course." Len nearly mumbled as he grasped his butter knife tighter than usual to cut a biscuit.

For the next week Len had grown more and more anxious. He wanted to see Rin above all else. He wanted to meet the owner of those stormy, ferocious, yet beautiful eyes from his memory once more. No matter how far a distance he was from her, every part of his body seemed to be drawn to her as if his kiss had put him under a spell. When the time of the engagement party came, his anticipation was so thick it was seemingly tangible.

"Len, you seem rather excited for tonight. You are not usually like this for parties." Len's mother commented when she noticed the air about him.

"Is it because Lord Kaito was your friend from childhood?" Miku asked, turning her head to the side toward him.

"Yes, it is," Len quickly lied.

The carriage rocked back and forth as it drove along the dirt pathways through the country. Most of the nobles had their homes a ways from the city to avoid the crowds of commoners, separating their world. And it truly seemed like a different world with how desolate it sometimes became. The lights of the Shion estate slowly came into view.

"Remember, Len, it is your responsibility to create good terms with Earl Kagami's daughter. Do not let her improper constitution affect that."

Len felt his eye twitch and when he spoke, he just slightly hardened his tone, but not too much to bring down his figure, "I will make my own judgment of her."

More and more carriages came into sight as they approached the mansion. All the nobles closed in, coming out in their lavish clothing, exhibiting it to their peers in hopes to impress. Len thought it was fortunate, however, that this was only a normal party rather than a masquerade, so he didn't have to deal with costume-like attire. When their carriage had stopped, Earl Kagamine and his wife were the first to come out of the carriage. Their presence was announced as Len escorted Miku next to him. But to him, all the sounds around him were blurred out—his attention was completely drawn to find Rin amongst the crowd ahead of him.

"..n... en... Len!"

Snapping from his delusion, Len turned his head toward Miku who had been apparently calling him for more than a brief moment now.

"Keep your head straight, your composure is failing."

Len groaned inwardly, but his disappointment didn't last long when the couple of the occasion was in sight. Once his eyes caught the sight of Kaito towering over the crowd, Len's eyes immediately fell down to his side where Rin was staring straight back at him. He could have sworn time had stopped for a moment. According to custom, he and Miku approached them to greet them as guests.

"Len and Lady Miku! It's so good to see you here!" Kaito beamed, oblivious to the surges between Rin and Len.

Len looked back up at Kaito and smiled, "It's a pleasure. Congratulations." He said the last word quickly, still in slight denial that Rin was his future bride.

"And it is a pleasure as well to see you and your fiance again, Lord Kaito." Miku curtsied.

While Miku and Kaito engaged in conversation, Len allowed himself to glance once more at Rin. A smile crossed his lips as he gently lifted her hand and kissed it tenderly. Butterflies swarmed in both his and in Rin's stomachs. For the first time that night, Rin's lips curled upward while her eyes slowly came to life. Seeing the light come into her eyes brought a deep relief to Len, washing away the anticipation and anxiousness before. He couldn't quite describe what he was feeling throughout his body at that moment, but it made him feel so alive.

Then all at once, the fire between them was extinguished by the sound of Kaito's words.

"I would really like to speak with you more, Len, but I do have guests to attend to."

Len glanced at Rin, his heart sinking a little knowing that they had to separate. And before he knew it, he had formed a proposition for Kaito.

"What would you say to a chat over lunch in the next few days time, then?"

Kaito paused for a moment considering it, but a smile gradually crossed his lips.

"I'd like that very much." He began, placing a hand on Len's shoulder, "Perhaps you could bring your fiance along as well?"

"I'd like that very much." Miku curtsied.

"And perhaps your fiance can come along as well." Len eyed Rin once more, a feeling of warmth instantly flowing through him when taking in the sight of her, "We could all become more acquainted."

"It would be a pleasure." Rin remarked.

Len couldn't help but smile at the sound of her voice before speaking once more, "Then how about the day after tomorrow? At noon?"

"That would be wonderful." Kaito agreed, before taking Rin by the hand, "Now, if you would excuse us."

And with that, Kaito and Rin turned away to greet the crowd of guests that had gathered behind them. Len did not turn to face them, but instead stared off into the distance for a moment already dreaming of the day of their appointment to come. And he could not stand to see Kaito brush the skin of Rin's hand with his own. In silence, Len could feel their frail "friendship" diminishing.

Suddenly recalling where he was, Len turned toward Miku to catch her staring off into the distance. He lifted his elbow, holding his arm toward Miku and caught her attention.

"Shall we go, then?"

Len attempted to sound appealing, but he could not deny that he dreaded going through the ritual of yet another party filled with care-free nobles. Silently, Miku had taken hold of his arm and together, they walked and disappeared into the lavish crowd.

The party had passed without much incident much to Len Kagamine's dismay. Because it had been Rin's engagement party, she was busy attending to guests with Kaito. They had only caught each other's longing glances from a distance. They had only danced a brief dance and Len seized the opportunity to whisper sweet sonnets into her ear, but the next moment they once again had drifted away from each other. There was no time for a moment of privacy between them with the guests crowding around the couple of the occasion.

The day after the party had passed with agonizing slowness for Len, knowing what was to take place the next day. When the morning of their lunch had come, Len was awake at the break of dawn. The only ones awake in the manor were the servants preparing for the morning. Seeing Len wide awake and already dressed caused quite a shock for the servant that usually tended to him in the morning.

Miku had arrived in the late morning. If not for the insisting of Len's father, Len would have remained in his room. The way he and his parents greeted her as she entered the mansion was like some kind of ritual. Everything about this mundane life was like a ritual. However Len could sense the obvious aura of approval emanating from his parents. He silently scoffed at them, knowing that they were ignorant of his true intentions.

Like the day before, the journey in the carriage to the Shion estate was slow and agonizing. Len sat across from Miku, engaging in whatever small talk he thought of to ease awkwardness. He couldn't help but notice, however, that their conversations never became deeper than small talk. After a while, he could hardly remember what they had talked about mere moments before.

When they arrived at the Shion mansion, servants were immediately there to attend to them. After Len had guided Miku out of the carriage, his eyes instantly flew out to those that approached them. His eyes had caught the sight of Kaito right away, and from there he sought out Rin trailing by his side. But to his surprise and discomfort, she was absent.

"Welcome," Kaito began taking hold of Len's hand and shaking it, "If you and your fiance will come this way, tea is awaiting us in the courtyard. Lunch will be served there soon."

"Thank you," Len mumbled.

Len was a bit hesitant to ask right away where Rin was, so he settled with searching for her as they traveled throughout the mansion. Still, she was nowhere to be seen. Was she yet to arrive? Was she feeling ill? Or did she simply refuse to attend? Len desperately hoped that it was not the latter. His thoughts scattered when he heard an audible gasp come from Miku when they had finally entered the courtyard.

To understand what had her so entranced, Len took the liberty of looking at his surroundings. He had come here many times when he was younger to play when his father came on business, so there wasn't much surprise waiting him. However he could understand why Miku was so enthralled. Bushes of beautiful, blue belladonna flowers climbed the walls of the courtyard and trees of falling leaves lined paths with the ambient sound of flowing water coming from a beautifully carved fountain.

The three of them were seated at a table at the end of the path in the middle of a small field of grass. As they settled, tea was immediately poured for them. Len finally took this instance to inquire of Rin.

"Is Lady Rin not joining us today?"

"It's rather curious," Kaito began, "Shortly before you arrived, she said she had something to attend to and ran off somewhere in the mansion. I have not seen her since and I do not know where she is."

"How impolite," Miku commented, "to leave guests waiting. Why invite her at all?"

"Certainly her manners are most irregular," Kaito continued, "It's no wonder her father is desperate to send her off."

Len quickly took a sip of his tea to hide his scowl, suppressing the urge of anger that had suddenly risen in him. He simply could not believe Kaito—Rin was supposedly his fiance and here he was speaking poorly of her. Even he would not openly speak of Miku in such a way. Len's anger thinned when he saw something in the corner of his eye, however.

He looked up, scanning one of the walls of the courtyard until he had spotted a window. What intrigued him so was not the window, but who stood just beyond it. It was Rin staring from a distance, waving to get his attention. When she had seen that his eyes were on her, she motioned with a finger for him to come. With that Len immediately knew her desire and perhaps why she did not meet them right at their arrival—she wished to see him in private.

The butterfly had once again taken flight.

"Excuse me," Len said as he stood up, "The carriage ride here was very unsettling and I feel a bit ill. I should like to take a walk."

"Allow me to accompany you," Kaito replied, just beginning to stand up.

"No," Len quickly held out his hand, "I'll be fine by myself, please stay here, I'll be back in a moment."

He could hear Miku muttering something about poor manners, but he quickly disregarded it. Calmly, yet quickly he walked away from them, through the courtyard until he had reached indoors once more. Naturally, he turned his head from side to side, eagerly searching for Rin. He had hoped that she had given him a signal that would indicate where to meet, but the thrill and excitement of seeing her again covered any feeling of dissatisfaction. Len had found himself wandering outside again, this time to a small garden at the side of the mansion. He had nearly given up, and turned to look in another area, but a small voice had caught his attention.

His head whirled around to find a young woman with hair that brilliantly caught the light of the sun—Rin. Immediately, his heart began to pound, coming to life from the cold. His feet feeling light, Len quickly paced over to Rin and took her into his arms. He then began to speak her name over and over again.

"Shhhh..." Rin hushed, "Come over here where we won't be seen."

With that, she freed herself from his embrace, but instead took his hand and led him deeper into the garden. Their surroundings closed in on them, their world shrinking. Eventually, they found themselves closed off to the outside, ensnared in their own living dream. They were covered to the rest of the world with silent rose bushes and thick green leaves. Both of them now breathing harder than they should, they gazed into each other's eyes, excitement taking hold of them.

Slowly Len bent over and briefly brushed his lips against Rin's as she had risen on her toes to meet him. Their eyes met once more and both realized how wonderful such a small kiss had felt. Before they knew it, they had reached toward each other once more for another, and another. The kisses had grew from pecks to longer moments of passion as they further explored each other. Rin had felt something run across the back of her head and Len found goosebumps crawling all over his skin when her hand had brushed the back of his neck. In response, Len drew Rin closer and closer to him until her beating heart was against his. Just before Len had slipped his tongue into her mouth, Rin pushed herself back, gasping for air. Len was a little disappointed, but understanding as he chuckled at her reaction. Still holding her close, he leaned in so that his lips barely brushed against the skin of her ear.

"I've been longing to see you." He whispered.

"And I, the same."

Len felt a soft, quiet groan pass through his throat when he felt something warm stroke across the side of his neck—her lips. He welcomed the warmth that followed afterward, standing still, taking in every moment of it. Then it suddenly stopped. His hands growing slightly stiff, Len pushed himself back to look into Rin's eyes.

"What's wrong?" When he saw that a hint of sadness was behind them.

"I fear we should be meeting with Lord Kaito and Lady Miku soon."

Len had been so entranced by their dream that he had forgotten. His countenance darkened, "I suppose you're right..."

Rin had grabbed a fist full of the fabric of Len's clothes, "Hiding and meeting secretly like this... must all our moments together be brief and fleeting?" She leaned her head against his chest, "Our lives won't allow us to meet more than this."

Len paused for a moment lifting his hand to stroke the back of her head thoughtfully.

"Who's to say that our lives can control us?"

"Hmm?" Rin looked up at him, searching for an answer in his eyes.

"Who's to say that we can't meet outside of parties and lavish tea parties. Can't we escape our cages for a brief moment?"

"If it means to see you more than a fleeting instant, I'd do anything."

Len smiled at this, "And I the same." Then the next moment, his eyes excitedly widened, "Do you know the lake Crypton?"

"Yes, I do." Rin tilted her head to the side, slowly taking in everything he was saying.

"On the morrow," Len eagerly began, his heart beating faster and faster with anticipation, "Shall we meet? I'll tell my father that I have business to attend to that will require the whole day. We can spend a whole day with each other."

Len had expected her to smile and nod in response, but instead he found that the gap between their lips had been closed once more. Once more, a fire melted throughout his body as he pressed back, taking in everything about her. The moment was brief, however, because in the next instant, she had parted from him, but not without grinning back in return.

"I would love to have that arrangement with you."

Len felt the urge to caress her skin with his lips again, but just as he leaned toward her, Rin pressed her finger against his lips.

"But first, we must return to the luncheon."

Len laughed. Everything about the world they were about to return to seemed so ridiculous—his true home was standing right in front of him.

"You go first then," Len winked, "They're expecting you, and I'm supposed to be on a walk."

A/N: Okay, I admit... I DID have a little tiny writer's block. It's just that this chapter seemed slow to me and ironically it's boring just writing about the lives of those boring aristocrats. XD Once I got to Rin and Len though, it sped right back up. With this chapter ends the exposition! From now on, it should be much more exciting. :) Please review and tell me what you think!