Chapter Sixteen – Just the Two of Us

Author's Note: I do not own the Buso Renkin series and the characters of the original series. I own only the original characters of this fic, Sakuya Mutou, Kaworu Jounouchi, their siblings and friends, Phalene, some members of the Alchemist Army, and the enemy, the Tetsujin Juusan. Buso Renkin is the creation of mangaka, Watsuki Nobuhiro.

Also, please read the fanfic at my deviantART, "KajiMotomiya", to view materials not posted in , such as character profiles and Buso Renkin data original to the fanfic itself. Just so you'd have an understanding of some of these OCs.

–

The school bell rang, and Sakuya loudly banged her head onto her desk. "AAAGH!" she groaned. "I COMPLETELY forgot about the summer midterms!" She then proceeded to roll her face side to side on her desk. "I don't wanna study~."

"I don't wanna study~!" Yumi yelled just as loud in unison with Sakuya. She turned her head to Mihoshi. "Ne ne, Miho-tan, you'll help us out, right?" She gave Mihoshi her puppy dog eyes with her cat-like lips.

"Sorry, but even I had trouble with the past material," Mihoshi let out a slight giggle as she waved her hand at Yumi. She turned to Sakuya. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Probably." Sakuya leaned back on the seat of her desk, turning her head to Ouka. "How about we ask Kaworu for help?"

"He'd prob'ly say yes," Ouka smirked. "He is pretty whipped."

The four girls began to laugh as Ouka Hayasaka looked at them from her desk with a content smile on her lips.

–

As the four girls headed back to the dorms, Daisuke and Arata looked up from the dorm entrance. "Yo, they're here!" Daisuke called out. "Muto-senpai! Over here!"

"Ah?" Sakuya heard her name being called as she ran to Daisuke and Arata. "You're…Souta's friends, right? Daisuke Otogiri and…Arata Hikari?"

"That's right," Arata nodded. Arata was a smaller boy with a brown bowl-style hair while Daisuke was a taller, more athletic male with black spiked hair and smaller bangs over his forehead. "Souta's staying over at class for extra help, so we're waiting for him."

"Kid's probably almost done by now, anyway. But he did tell you about your outing with your mom, right?"

Sakuya blinked a bit. "…WHAT?"

"You didn't know?" The smaller boy laughed a little. "Souta already hung out with her when you were depressed. He was supposed to tell you about it, but he must've forgot."

"He's been forgetful lately." Daisuke chuckled and headed for the door. "Arata, I'm gettin' a drink. You want anything?"

"Cold green tea is fine, thanks." As Daisuke left, Arata looked at Sakuya's arriving friends. "Don't get mad at him, okay? He's doing his best."

"Hard not to be…" Sakuya grumbled, slapping her palm onto her face as her friends giggled behind her. "Don't you guys laugh! You too, short stuff!"

–

The night rolled on, and Souta finally came home. "Saturday is officially over…" he sighed, taking his shoes off. He heard a hissing sound and looked up. Much to his surprise, Sakuya was waiting for him with a devilish and demonic scowl on her face. "N-Nee-san! Wh-what's up? Did you wait for me?" All of a sudden, she grabbed him and shook him from the collar of his jacket.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU HUNG OUT WITH MOM?" she cried out. "I WANTED TO HANG OUT WITH HER!"

"I-YI FOR-OR GO-OT!" Souta's head swung back and forth, and his eyes began to swirl. Soon, Sakuya dropped him, and Souta coughed a bit. "I was supposed to tell you, but you were all depressed. Didn't wanna make it worse."

"I'm gonna make YOU worse, you little brat!" Sakuya then proceeded to chase Souta to his room and tackled him onto his bed, tickling him. In a fit of laughter, the two finally calmed down as the let their feet dangle off the edge. "What time?"

"Mom's free tomorrow at eleven." He looked at Sakuya with a content smile. "She's really fun. I hope you have fun, too. You seem to have a lot of things on your mind, anyway."

Souta was thinking of Sakuya's wellbeing all this time. He never really showed it, but he really cared for his older sister. Sakuya smiled and placed her palm over his face. "Thanks, Souta," she laughed and sat up. "Looks like I won't get to study tonight…"

–

The streets were busy that Sunday morning as Sakuya stood in front of the entrance of a burger restaurant called "Butterfly Burger". She looked down at her cell phone with a worried look. It was already eleven-thirty. "Mom's late…" she sighed.

–

In a nearby park, a crowd of people watch a chopper touch down, and a blue-haired woman in a business suit with a scar on her nose jumped out. Her braided hair flew about as the chopper began to rise. "Thanks, Gouta!" she called out and ran out of the park.

Gouta watched her, blushing a bit. "Tokiko overslept…she was excited for today…that's too cute…"

–

Sakuya watched a chopper fly off in the air over the city and raised an eyebrow. "A news report in the area?" she asked herself. "That's pretty random, but okay…"

"Sakuya!" a woman called out, and Sakuya turned to a running Tokiko. She blushed at the beautiful attire her mother was wearing, which was a business-woman attire with her long hair in a braid. The two actually looked similar in terms of their hairstyle. "What?" Her daughter laughed a little and pulled the braid apart. Her long hair flew out and down. "H-Hey!"

"I think you look better this way, mom," Sakuya smiled, swinging her own braid around. Tokiko smiled and laughed a bit, and the two went down the street.

Their day was filled with fun. They spend the entire Sunday going to clothing stores, visiting the arcade, eating ice cream, just wandering around. Tokiko and Sakuya had the time of their lives, both of them with big smiles on their faces. For a time, what had happened the past few weeks seemed to have washed away.

–

The sun was in the sky, getting ready to set. Tokiko and Sakuya sat on the hill overlooking Ginsei City. "So how did you and dad meet?" Sakuya asked.

"The same way you and Kaworu-kun did." Tokiko remembered that spring night many years ago as she held her Kakugane close to her heart. "Your father…Kazuki saw me luring a Homunculus and got himself killed trying to protect me. According to Kaworu-kun, you did the same thing." Sakuya laughed nervously. "I gave him a Kakugane from my previous mission as a surrogate heart, and in weeks time, he became a well-accomplished warrior." She recounted her past adventures with Kazuki. Fighting the Homunculus followers of Koushaku Chouno, now Papillon the Butterfly Man, taking on the LXE and traveling Japan to find a cure for Kazuki's condition during his time as a Victor. Their final battle, and their reunion. They were all blissful memories.

Sakuya looked at her mother and smiled a little. "Dad must've been quite the Alchemist Warrior," she sighed. "I don't think I can ever fill his shoes."

"There's no need to. You are who you are." Tokiko then wrapped her arm around Sakuya's shoulders. "Our irreplaceable daughter, an Alchemist Warrior, a protector of Ginsei City. I couldn't be more proud of you."

"Did dad propose to you in any weird way? Auntie Mahiro and Uncle Okakura used to say that dad was a real handful." The mention of the proposal made Tokiko blush and bury her head into her legs. "…Mom?"

"…." Tokiko remained silent for a bit. "…Your father…he…after we all graduated, we had a small party with Captain Bravo, Gouta, and our other friends who also attended Ginsei Academy…and…well…"

–

"Heck yeah! We are DONE!" Okakura cheered, and he, Rokumasu, Daihama, Kazuki, Tokiko, Mahiro, Saori, Chika, and Gouta, all toasted their glasses of soda, water, and whatever other liquids was in their glasses. Busujima and Captain Bravo were also in the celebration. "College, man! And a bunch of ladies waiting for me!"

"The probability of that is…" Rokumasu looked at Okakura and smirked. "Nevermind. Might as well enjoy ourselves now that we finished High School."

"Who would have thought that the years would have gone by so fast?" Daihama sat back and looked at Kazuki and Tokiko. "Especially with what you two went through."

"Juggling academics with work…" Gouta placed his hand on Kazuki's shoulder. "You're really something, Muto."

Then Mahiro stood up. "Oh, big brother! What was it you wanted to say earlier? You kept saying that you had something REALLY important!"

Saori and Chika laughed a bit. "Kazuki saying something important? This will be interesting." Saori sat back as she said this while Chika leaned in. "So what is it?

Tokiko looked at Kazuki with an anticipating look. "I'm curious as well, Kazuki," she sighed. "Normally, you never do anything like this unless you REALLY have something on your mind."

Captain Bravo looked at Tokiko, then at Kazuki, who was furiously nervous. He smiled a little. 'I see…'

Then Kazuki stood up, drank his glass of green veggie juice, and slammed his cup on the table. "Tokiko!" he exclaimed, and this caught the girl's attention. "I…You…are EVERYTHING to me!" The girls save Tokiko all leaned in with squeals ready. "You…were by my side through everything we went through. Because of you, my life…was given a second chance. And if not for you, I wouldn't be here saying all this."

"What's this about?" Tokiko raised an eyebrow. All of a sudden, Kazuki grabbed her hands.

"I want to spend that life with you! Forever and ever!"

Mahiro and Saori let out a loud squeal as Busujima covered her blushing face. The boys were all taken aback from this. "What are you saying, Mutou?" Gouta exclaimed.

"Dude, you just got out of college!" Okakura placed his hand on Kazuki's shoulder. "Think this through a little!"

"I did think it through!"

Tokiko was furiously red, and she lowered her head. She shook a bit and stammered. "…You…" she muttered. Everyone knew that Tokiko was ready to mete out her punishment. "You…are serious?"

Kazuki nodded. "Dead serious. I'm super serious!"

The room got silent. Tokiko stopped shaking. Finally, she raised her head. Tears rolled down here blushing cheeks. "Then…be sure to take responsibility for your actions." She smiled gently and threw herself into Kazuki's arms. Both of them had big smiles on their faces. The others raised their glasses and cheered.

"Bravo, Kazuki! Bravo, Tokiko!" Captain Bravo called out and raised his glass. Everyone all did as well. "A toast for Kazuki Muto and Tokiko Tsumura!" The glasses clanked together, and the night was filled with joyous laughter.

–

"No way!" Sakuya laughed, and Tokiko joined her. "Dad is SO corny!"

"That's just how he was." Tokiko leaned back and looked at the setting sun. The stars we slowly becoming visible. "But life was good, though. The two of us…employed the Alchemist Army, living out our lives. We got married a year after he proposed…and then we had you."

"…Wait." Sakuya had to think about this a bit. "…How old are you?"

Tokiko smirked. "Guess."

"…I don't want to know anymore." The two giggled a bit as Sakuya leaned in. "Dad…must've been a great man…I wish I could remember him a little more…I haven't seen him in so long." Her yellow eyes looked distant as she stared at the setting sun. In fact, she didn't have much memories of her parents. She spent most of her life with Mahiro that she couldn't remember a time she spent with Kazuki and Tokiko.

"Hey, mom?"

"What is it?"

"…Have you ever sung me a lullaby?"

The Warrior Chief looked at her daughter with a puzzled look. She didn't even know one herself. She was left with amnesia many years ago and forgot her memories since a certain memories. Tokiko looked out and brought Sakuya closer. "I could never come up with one. But Kazuki used to come up with thousands of them…" She closed her eyes, and her lips and voice did the work.

Hush, little child
Dry your tears
Papa and Mama are with you
To take away your fears
We will never let go
We will never look away
Because we love you, little child
And we will always be here to stay

Sakuya huddled against her mother. Her voice was shaking. "Dad…is so corny…"

Tokiko held her tighter. "He really is…" She felt Sakuya grip her arm tighter. "You can let go now," she told her. "You're with someone who deeply cares about you. You can finally be yourself. So…don't hold back, Sakuya…" At the soft caring command of her words, Sakuya let out a loud cry as she gripped Tokiko's arm tighter. The tears streamed down her face like waterfalls.

'I've already used my tears for you,' Tokiko thought to herself. Tears were also forming in her eyes. 'It's time that someone who cares about you just as much as I did will cry for you. Kazuki…'

–

It was now evening, and Tokiko had dropped off Sakuya in front of the dorm. "Make sure you study, okay?" she smiled. Sakuya cringed at the word. "Don't hide it from me. Kaworu-kun has already informed me of you summer midterms." Then her smile turned into a smirk. "I better see passing grades from you…the BOTH of you."

"…You mean me and Kaworu?"

"I mean you and Souta." Sakuya smiled and laughed at Tokiko as she waved to her mother. "The past few weeks were filled with battles and all, but I have time to at least take you both out to dinner. Only if you pass."

As the two hugged and waved at each other, they went their separate ways. Sakuya closed the dorms' doors, only to be pulled in the arm. "Ow ow ow!" she exclaimed. "What the hell?"

"Hey, Sakuya…" Ouka whispered to her ear. She had a frantic look on her face. "Come with us for a sec."

"Wait, what's this about?"

"Just come with us!" Yumi nudged and started to pull on Sakuya's arm.

"Seriously, guys!"

"We are too!" Mihoshi added and also pulled. "Let's go!"

"You two, Mihoshi?"

The four entered the main room to find Souta, Daisuke, and Arata sitting in front of Kaworu. "Then using that method, what's the answer to this question, Daisuke-kun?"

The spikey-haired freshman looked into his notebook. "…Thirty….six?"

"Correct." Kaworu then looked up and saw the girls. "Ouka-san! Mihoshi-chan! Yumi-chan! Where did you three go?" He had a cross look on his face. "You're supposed to be studying!"

"Nee-san!" Souta ran up to Sakuya. "Isn't it weird? Kaworu-san…he's…"

"He's wearing glasses!" Ouka pointed at Kaworu's face. "It's weird, man! He's wearing glasses!"

"And…he's…HOT!" It was an unexpected comment from Yumi. "I mean, look at him!"

"I'm…not…saying anything…" Mihoshi's face was completely red.

"You four…" Kaworu lowered his head and slowly raised his fist. "Get over here RIGHT now…and you too, Sakuya-kun!" He was blushing wildly. "Your mother put me in charge of tutoring you for your summer midterms! So start studying!"

Sakuya couldn't help but snicker a little and pushed her friends and brother into the room. "Yeah, yeah," she laughed and patted Kaworu's shoulder. "Seriously, it's not a bad look on you. You should do it more often."

"I…only wear these on certain occasions…I don't enjoy them at all…" His voice was really low, and the others started to laugh a bit. "It's not funny! S-Stop laughing!"

As the scene unfolded, Sakuya realized something. Tokiko told her to cry because she was with someone she herself cared about and someone she could be herself with. Sakuya cried with Kaworu the previous night. Thinking about it, her cheeks slightly turned pink. 'Maybe what I did after had something to do with it…' she thought to herself and looked back up at Kaworu. She remembered the times they trained together, the battles fought together, and their everyday lives spent together. 'Mom and dad were probably like that at first, too. They must've been good partners.' Upon thinking this, a smile fell upon her face.

'And Kaworu…is the best partner anyone could ever have…'

–

Out in front of the convenience store, the shaggy-haired man lifted up his tinted shades under the street light, letting out a puff of smoke from his lips. He could hear a growl nearby in the parking lot. "I guess you're done?" he asked in the darkness, and the growls began to multiply.

The black-haired woman stepped into the moonlight as well. She wore a tight orange tank top and baggy army pants and combat boots. She smirked as she swiftly snatched the man's cigarette and puffed some smoke herself. "All set here. But don't forget. You're not the one leading the mission. HE is."

"Hmph. I know, I know." The man then took out another cigarette, the last one, from the box and crushed the container, dropping it onto the sidewalk as he lit up his smoke. He saw multiple feral glowing eyes behind the woman in the shadows of the streets. He made out what looked like big cats prowling about. He smirked and said, "All goes according to Kami-sama's will. But my revenge…is my personal mission. So don't get in my way."

"Ha!" The woman then turned to a standing figure behind her cat-like silhouettes. "When do we head out?

The figure was silent. He looked at the two, and a devilish snake-like grin formed onto his lips.