Kaizer20: I was actually thinking Youko with Sei =P That was the whole Miyuki thing, but then I was like, wait, Sei was still in high school…o_O

XRosarioX: Thanks! And I always forget to review too xD

Themightymustachex3: Thanks, I'm glad you like all the pairings! I adore YayaxTsubomi as well.

Stravri: I figured stubbornness was one of Miyuki's main traits, plus she's growing to care about Shion and doesn't want her to get hurt.

Huggler: I didn't spend much time on them because I was going to start on them when Yaya and Tsubomi's plot got straightened out. I was leading into their plotline at the end of the last chapter.

RomanticVulcanolight: None taken- I didn't think I could pull it off either, to be honest xD I just figured that the Stopani fandom was dying and the idea just…came to me. And thanks! This scene was kind of hard to write, just because of all the necessary dialogue and body language and what not.

How Can You See With Your Eyes Closed?

Chapter Eight: Don't Ever Let Me Go

Hideshi stared down at the angry little blonde her, his brow furrowed in confusion. She appeared to be blocking his path from his fiancé, and her body was puffed up just about as big as it could be and yet…something about her pose struck fear into his heart.

"Um…okay?" he stated wearily.

Behind Shion, Miyuki had drawn her knees up to her chest. It was just her, Shion, and a man who could easily put both of them in the hospital if he wanted to. Her heart racing, it became hard for her to breathe and she blindly reached out, only to feel her hand become encased within a stronger, more confident one.

Shion, holding Miyuki's hand with her right, was posed with her left hand on her hip, glaring viciously at the man before her. "You are not to touch her," the Spican said, her tone firm and dangerous. "You are not to look at her the way I know you have been and you are not to marry her, do you understand?" Her words just barely slipped past her gritted teeth, and Miyuki clung more tightly to her hand- she had no choice but to accept the help Shion had been trying to offer in this confrontation.

Hideshi blinked several times before laughing in disbelief as Miyuki cringed further behind Shion. "You think I'm going to listen to you?" he asked, his smile fading as he stepped closer to Shion, looming over her in an attempt to assert his dominance in the situation. "You think you have the power to do anything about this arrangement?" He paused, his small eyes darting from Shion to Miyuki and back to the angry blonde before him before he barked out another laugh. "You actually love her, don't you?" he asked, his eyes dancing maliciously. "You love my fiancé."

"Yes, I do," Shion spat, her body trembling with suppressed rage, "and I've put up with you and your disgusting attempts at seducing her for longer than I thought was possible, but congratulations- you took it too far this time."

"Who are you to tell me what I do with my fiancé?" Hideshi asked in a low voice, leaning over so that he was directly in the blonde's face. Shion wrinkled her nose- his breath stank of alcohol. Her posture broke momentarily- what would have happened if she hadn't been here? What would Miyuki have allowed him to do? Yet another dose of rage boiled within her, threatening to spill over to the surface. "She's my property- she belongs to me."

Forcing herself to keep a calm exterior, Shion dropped Miyuki's hand and took a step forward, trying her best to make up for her lack in height and strength with her pride and determination. "Ever heard of Toumori Kenjou?" she asked lowly, her lips curling into a smirk when the man went pale. "I could ruin you," she hissed, so lowly that it was just more than a whisper, but in the tiny confines of the room, it might as well have been a shout. "My father's been looking for an excuse to throw your pathetic ass in jail for more than ten years- don't think I need solid proof, because I guarantee you if you try anything with Miyuki, I will destroy you." She stepped back slowly, her hate-filled violet eyes never leaving his. "Do you understand?"

Hideshi gulped, his Adam's Apple quivering. This wasn't the time for false bravado- he had more of a record than he would care to admit. "So if I stay in the guest house, and don't touch Miyuki before our marriage, you'll leave me alone?" he asked, attempting to keep a calm exterior.

Shion scoffed, her lips twisting into an angry sneer. "You lost that privilege by having the nerve to show up here tonight," the Spican spat. "I was five seconds away from bringing my family name into this anyway, and this…" she gestured to the room at large, shaking her head, not having the words to describe the situation, "this just cost you your fiancée."

Miyuki gasped from behind her, not even noticing as the hot tears finally escaped her eyes. She hated it- hated the situation for rendering her so powerless, so weak. It was the whole reason she'd hidden her emotions, relying instead on her stern, emotionless façade. Now all the emotions were rushing at her and her everything was dependent upon the blonde in front of her.

"You were always such a crybaby, Miyuki."

"Nobody's going to come along and save you. There's no Prince Charming waiting to jump in before you say 'I do'."

Hideshi's eye twitched, and his hands curled into fists. Shion noticed the gesture and simply raised her eyebrows, unlike Miyuki, who had desperately hissed her name, begging her not to get herself hurt. It was one thing after another, gone- always, always gone. "I hope you're not trying to threaten me," Shion stated bluntly. "Because I guarantee you, if anything happens to Miyuko or myself, you'll be dealing with the entirety of the council's families combined. Including Hanazono Enterprises- lay one finger on either of us, especially her, and I guarantee you that Ryoji Hanazono will have your head on a platter." She paused for a second, enjoying the pasty white color that the man had taken on. "That is, of course, if I don't kill you first. You have no idea how much I want to tear you apart right now. If I had my way, you'd be in a thousand tiny, shippable pieces right now. But then I'd be the one sent off, and I made a promise, you see." She looked over at Miyuki and her eyes softened for just a moment before she turned back to Hideshi. "You're going to go to the Rokujous tonight with your bags packed, and you are going to tell them that you refuse to marry Miyuki after all- that you realized she was far too good for a scumbag such as yourself. And you're going to tell them that Shion Toumori is willing to pay any price for the hand of their daughter. Then, regardless of their answer, in a few months' time, you'll be receiving a restraining order in the mail, and you're going to sign it, and you're never going to touch, see, or even think about my fiancée ever again, understood?"

Hideshi's hands clenched into fists, and for a minute it looked like he was going to hit Shion, but he seemed to think better of it. "I understand," he said through gritted teeth, eyeing the Spican with utter loathing. "I apologize for my behavior."

"Apology not accepted," Shion replied coldly. "Do as I said."

He stood in the doorway for a moment, his eyes shifting from the trembling, broken-looking Miyuki to the blonde who had transformed from an impertinent schoolgirl to a spitting cobra. Finally, he shoved out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

PGBR

Chikaru placed her thumb against her bottom lip absently, staring at the two empty seats across from her. Shizuma was pacing, looking as if she were ready to kick some ass at the drop of a pin.

Suddenly the door burst open, and both girls' heads shot up only to be met with the sight of a timid looking bluenette. "The head sister told me to inform you that the meeting was cancelled," Tamao said hesitantly. She paused for a moment, as if deciding whether or not to say her next words. "She called me into her office, and the man who was with Miyuki all day was sitting across from her, looking like he'd pass out any minute. As I was leaving I heard the head sister say something about him not coming within miles of the school, and that if he dared to press charges, he'd be facing the wrath of the entire student body," Tamao finished, cowering slightly beneath Shizuma's enraged expression. But to her surprise, the previous Etoile, the only girl in the world who truly hated her, stopped on her way out of the room to thank her gruffly before storming up the stairs, most likely into the head sister's office.

Tamao hesitated in the doorway- her dorm room was past the office, and she really wasn't sure she wanted to be sucked into World War III.

"Tamao-chan."

Tamao glanced up at the sound of her name, her violet gaze meeting with Chikaru's smiling eyes. "Thank you," the Le Rim president said, smiling sweetly tiredly from her seat. Slowly, Tamao made her way forward and took the seat beside her.

"Um…" she began. "It may not be any of my business, but…"

Chikaru sighed. "My guess is that Rokujou-san's fiancé went a bit too far, and didn't account for the fact that Shion-chan had gone up to check on her a few minutes earlier," she said, remembering Shion's muttered excuse when the Spican had left dinner early. "I do hate to judge people, but there was something about that man that made me afraid for Rokujou-san's safety. I might have mentioned a thing or two to Shion-chan to encourage her to check up on her."

"That was good of you," Tamao stated with a kind smile. "You're always doing the right thing, Chikaru-sama," she added as she sat back in her chair, her posture slightly hunched, her eyes focused on her hands clasped in her lap. "Sometimes I wonder how it must feel to always know the right thing to do. Whenever I'm unsure, I always run away or pretend everything's fine; whenever Yaya-chan's unsure, she does just the opposite and pushes and pushes until she's lost whatever she wanted in the first place. But she has Tsubomi-chan now, and I have…" She broke off, and Chikaru could see a single tear slip down her cheek, glistening in the somewhat dim light.

Chikaru got up out of her seat and pulled Tamao gently into her arms without a word, every new shake of the girl's shoulders tearing a wider hole in her heart. "Tamao-chan," she said, pulling away slightly when the bluenette's sobs had lessened and taking the girl's chin in her fingertips, raising her eyes to meet hers, "you said Yaya-san has Tsubomi-chan now?"

Tamao frowned, wondering why that was the part that Chikaru was focusing on. "Yes," she said, too tired to really care. "I'm happy for her, really- Tsubomi-chan is so much better for her than Hikari-chan ever could have been. She hurt herself so much trying to make Hikari-chan happy, and when she couldn't stand it anymore, Hikari-chan only hurt her more. She never cared about her, not the way she deserved, and I don't know why Tsubomi-chan stuck by her side even when it seemed like Yaya-chan would stay in the cave she buried herself in forever, but she did. And I think Yaya-chan is much happier now that she has Tsubomi-chan. I think she would have been miserable with Hikari-chan."

Chikaru nodded sagely before dropping down into the chair beside Tamao, turning herself so that she was facing the bluenette head on, her eyes boring into Tamao's. "So perhaps, then," she began, brushing the tear away with the pad of her thumb, "there is someone out there who is better for you than Nagisa-san ever could have been, hmm? There are not so many differences between Nagisa-san and Hikari-san, after all. Love is hardly ever where you look for it, Tamao-chan. You have to wait for it to come to you, and then you have to take a chance before the opportunity leaves you." She smiled winningly at Tamao until the younger girl broke into a small smile of her own.

"I guess so," Tamao said hesitantly, biting her lip. "I just...how long is it going to take? How long am I going to love her until someone else comes along?"

Chikaru ran a hand through the blunette's hair gingerly. "No one can say for sure," she said, "but it might come sooner than you think." With those words, she brushed Tamao's bangs back just long enough to press a kiss to the girl's forehead and hesitated there for a moment before straightening and quietly exiting the council room, leaving a confused bluenette behind.

PGBR

"It's cold."

Yaya heaved an exaggerated sigh. "You complain too much," she stated, grinning when Tsubomi huffed and turned away from her. The brunette was lying on her back, her left arm behind her head while her right arm held her pinkette close. With the cool night air and the scent of rain in the air, Tsubomi was nearly on top of her girlfriend, cuddling her for warmth. "We won't be out here too much longer. I wouldn't want my cute little tsundere to catch a cold," she stated with a smirk. It quickly disappeared when she sneezed quite suddenly, almost knocking Tsubomi out of her lap.

The pinkette laughed loudly, glad to have a chance to throw Yaya's teasing back in her face. "I don't know," she said sweetly. "It would seem as though I have a stronger immune system than Yaya-sempai. However, I guess this proves that saying wrong- it seems that idiots really can get sick."

"Or maybe I'm just smarter than you give me credit for," Yaya shot back in the same obnoxious voice, causing Tsubomi to scoff. "You don't have to be so mean about it," she muttered sullenly as the pinkette in her arms giggled maniacally. Stupid karma.

Tsubomi maneuvered herself so that she was straddling her taller girlfriend. Her girlfriend. Not Hikari's, no anybody else's. Hers. Finally. Her heart raced in her chest and she bent down, closer to the grinning brunette so that their lips were only inches away, their noses just barely touching. Yaya's eyes flashed and suddenly they were kissing, Yaya's arms wrapped loosely around Tsubomi's waist while the pinkette braced herself on the grass on either side of her. "You're not very patient," Tsubomi mumbled as they broke apart and Yaya punctuated their kiss with a small peck on her nose.

"Come on, Tsubomi-chan," Yaya said with a crooked smile. "Anyone would think you didn't know me at all."

"Maybe I just wish Yaya-sempai would grow up a little bit," Tsubomi replied haughtily, rearranging herself so that her arms were wrapped around the brunette's neck, hugging her like a teddy bear.

"Hmm," Yaya hummed, her fingers tracing patterns on the pinkette's back, "you know, I think I've put up with the whole 'sempai' thing long enough."

"B-but you are my sempai!" Tsubomi spluttered, sitting up so that she was resting on Yaya's hips. "It's basic courtesy!"

Yaya grinned at Tsubomi's heavy blush and sat up, holding onto the younger girl's hips so Tsubomi wouldn't fall over backwards. "But I am also your girlfriend," she said, punctuating the statement with a brief but meaningful kiss. "And if you go around calling me sempai all the time, it might give people certain ideas…"

Tsubomi's face instantly flushed tomato red, and she spluttered helplessly for several moments while Yaya laughed. "B-baka!" she shrieked, trying to leap up from the brunette's lap only to be pulled back down. She settled for smacking Yaya in the back of the head. "You're the only hentai who would think something like that!"

"Ouchie~ please be gentle with me, Tsubomi-chaaan!"

"BAKA!"

Right, well, there you have it- the confrontation as well as some TamaoXChikaru beginnings =)