Fly away with you

His eyes opened slowly, still only slits. He felt tired from yesterday. It had been such a trying day and it just kept getting progressively worse. Sheets slid noisily under his fingers as he skimmed his hand over the bed to find her. Big golden eyes popped open when the realization pinged inside his brain that there was no one next to him, he was alone. His body jolted upright, eyes darting wildly around the room. Nothing! Ichigo was gone! She never awakened before him, never! She was too much like cat to wake up well on her own. Had something happened? Where could she be? He might not have been quite this panicked but yesterday was still running through his mind.

Kisshus' hands trembled slightly, adrenaline already pumping through his veins as he jumped out of bed. He shrugged off his night clothes and put on the shirt and jeans she purchased for him. Sliding the window open he perched on the sill to survey the outside. There was no sign of her outside. Unfortunately he could not check the house but he was sure she was not in the house. He listened carefully but he did not hear even a sound of her presence. If she was in the house he would be able to hear something from her even if it was only the sound of her breathing.

He glided out the window and shot up into the sky. The thought of her being alone caused a quiver deep inside him. Even if there ended up being nothing wrong, it was fine as long as he found her. He wanted to stay by her side from now on no matter what. If there was danger, he wanted to be there to protect her. If he had a say in things, nothing would even harm her again. He did not want to lose her.

Ichigo sat quietly on a bench in the park. The breeze whispered through the leaves of the trees and danced through her hair. It was a cool morning but she had a jacket so it was fine. She breathed deeply of the fresh air and the scent of water, flowers, and grass. The early morning sun had called to her, pulling her out of bed, and calling her to this place. A few times in the past, she had been here, but not often. She had come here several times before Kisshu arrived though. Something had been drawing her here. It was a beautiful place, and it even had a picturesque little pond. This was the perfect place to come to find a bit of peace in the world, or peace of mind.

Sleep had not come easily to her at all and what sleep she got was fitful. Poor, tired Kisshu had fallen asleep long before she could manage to really close her eyes. Her poor exhausted hero tried to stay awake but lost the battle almost as soon as his head sank onto the pillow. It was fine that way. Truthfully she wanted it that way so she did not have to talk to him about anything. Had she started talking she might have spent the whole night crying.

With sleep so far out of reach, she spent most of the night watching him sleep. It stunned her the way he looked while he slept. He did have the ability to look angelic but it rarely seemed genuine. There were times he seemed far more like a devil when he tried to seem angelic, but it was a different story when he was sleeping. He truly looked like an angel; prefect, sweet, tender, and stunning. What little light there had been drifting into the room from the moon caused something of a glow on his skin. His perfect features seemed even more smooth and attractive in that light. His hair looked more like fine green glass or silk as the light caught it and made it shimmer with every breath he took. Beautiful was not a word you were supposed to use for a man but she could not think of a better description- maybe handsomely beautiful.

Her eyes caught the distinctive flickering movement. There it was, black wings sharply contrasting the pastel color of the lake. The large black butterfly flew toward her, the slight bits of blue flecks on the bottom of the wings sparkling in the light. There it was, her little friend. It stayed at this park, she saw it every time she came. Only she knew the reasons it stay in this area.

A few weeks before, she came here and saw two black butterflies; mates, a pair of creatures tangled in a fated love story. She had envied them their freedom to be together that time, but that was before. The next day she returned to find only one. It took her no time at all to discover why. She found the mate floating over the water's edge. Ichigo carefully fished it out in hopes it would revive, but it never did. The fated love story she envied the day before turned out to be a different fate than she first thought, a tragic fate. Why she did it, she was not sure, but she brought to dead creature home with her and kept it.

Since then, she saw the lone black butterfly here each time she came, still waiting for her lover to come. Somehow she felt connected to that butterfly, like they shared a connection only they could understand. She pitied the little thing – It had such a short life to live, and was allowed happiness for such a short time, and now it would be alone forever. Their story was so like her own, one that showed the tragedy life could allocate. The butterfly seemed to know as well – Sometimes it would come to perch next to her on the tree.

Ichigo watched it fly, so beautiful and yet so sad. She really identified with that black butterfly. She and the butterfly both lost their mate and could not help but stay in the places he once had been. This is what life doled out to them both, happiness for only a short time.

Her heart fluttered as she watched a second black butterfly join the first; the two began a gorgeous aerial dance. It was just like when she saw the two mates the first time, only this butterfly was a new one. Somehow, this little creature found her, the lonely butterfly. He found her when she had no one. Now she would not be alone. Thank goodness! Ichigo did not want the butterfly to be alone. . . Her heart began to move to the beat of their dance.

Her eyes followed them as they flew into the sky together. Could it be? Was it really so simple? Could she really allow things to be that simple – Allowing a new butterfly to come into her life?

A twig snapped and grass rustled under the feet of someone walking. Someone was coming up behind her. Could it be Kisshu? She did not turn her head to look until someone slipped onto the bench at the opposite end of her. She was almost afraid to look but when she did she did not find the person she expected.

"Sweet Juliet!" Ichigo bolted up, ready to fight.

"Hey," She held up her hands. "Does it really look like I came here to fight? This happens to be my favorite place too!"

The girl's medium length, auburn hair swayed in the breeze. The expression on her beautiful, yet childlike face was calm, almost happy. If she had intended to fight she could have done it before Ichigo knew who she was. It really did seem like she was here in no other capacity than to relax. Still, Ichigo was wary of sitting back down. She knew very little about this girl from the Crusaders so it was hard to know what to think. She did seem like the most normal out of the group. She even dressed a bit more reasonably.

"It is really peaceful here, one of the best places in this whole city." Juliet stared out over the lake.

"Yes, it is." Ichigo nodded – It was a bit strange to talk to an enemy so casually.

"I found it years ago and I come here about every morning. Being here for a while makes the day seem livable, don't you think, Mew Ichigo?"

"Yeah, it does." Her eyes fell to the lake. "It makes you forget about things you hate to think about."

"Yeah, it is a bit magical in that way, I think. A place like this has a lot of power to refresh a person's soul." Sweet Juliet drilled her with her eyes.

"As you say, it makes you forget about the bad things for a while. It's a bit like a drug, or maybe health food for the soul."

Silence fell over them and Ichigo eased back onto the bench. It really did seem like this girl was not going to try anything. She seemed relaxed and nearer to a state of happiness than Ichigo ever saw her look. Normally she seemed a bit melancholy, bored, and gloomy. She never smiled and her voice was always even and dull unless she was performing. This girl seemed so sad. It made her wonder what had happened to her in life – What sad memories did this girl hold in her heart?

"Ichigo!"

Ichigo whirled around to face Kisshu – He was using his pendant again because his ears and eyes looked like a human's, even so, it was bad. She did not want this girl to know anything at all about him. The Crusaders already likely knew too much about him, she did not want them to know anymore. She sprang up and whirled him back around, heading him in the same direction he had come. She smiled and waved to Sweet Juliet, waited until there were some tall bushes for cover, then forced him into a dead run.

After a few minute of letting her run him ragged he finally dug his heels into the concrete, acting as an anchor to stop a ship. He had been searching for an hour, looking in all the usual place, torture every time she was not there. A thousand possibilities had gone through his head over what might have happened. After being so worried about her, worried nearly to death, he wanted answers.

"Alright! First, why did you just leave without telling me? Second, why are we running?" He locked her in his eyes, determined to get answers.

"I'm sorry." Her eyes turned apologetic. "I thought I would be back before you woke up. You were so tired I did not want to wake you just because I needed to go on a walk." She shrugged, "As for why we're running. . . it is because she is not a friend."

"Not a friend?" He arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah, that's right. I did not want to be around her."

"You acted like it was more than that." Kisshu did not believe her.

"Forget it, it doesn't matter, let's just go home. I'm off today, remember!"

He tilted his head, "Then, since we are already out, why not do something? Where do you want to go this time, Koneko-chan?"

He was glad she was alright, very glad. The moment he saw her it was like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. As long as she was safe, he was happy. The fact was, he could not even be angry with her for worrying him. The moment he saw her face his heart melted, like it always did. She was too amazing, and he was too much in love to be angry for very long. She smiled and linked her fingers with him, giving his heart a little thrill. She did seem a bit odd today though. There was something in her eyes he did not understand and could not tack a name to. That look made him wonder what she was thinking. It might have been about the same things she kept secret from him.

"Why don't we. . . I don't know. We can do anything." She had been going to suggest something and changed her mind.

Kisshu moved closer, almost cheek to cheek with her, "Come, there must be something you want to do. Tell me!"

His heart flitted when she stopped him and joined her lips with his.

"Or. . . we can go back to your room." He grinned listlessly, dazed by her sweet kiss.

"Kisshu!" A rosy color rushed to her cheeks.

"It was just a thought!" He chuckled jovially.

Her fingers slid out of his hand and she began walking again. She pulled away again just as it was starting to get interesting – She always did that. He was enamored with her as he watched; red hair flowing loose in the wind, the graceful movements of a gazelle, and her skirt twirling freely around her knees. She had no idea how beautiful she really was. Too bad she could not see herself through his eyes. He pressed his lips together hard to keep from laughing when she nearly tripped herself. Well, she was still Ichigo.

He moved in behind her, slipped his arms around her, and rested his chin on her shoulder, "Sorry, Koneko-chan! Are you mad at me now? I was only playing."

Ichigo leaned her head back in an attempt to see his face. "No, I'm not mad."

"Ok, then where shall we go? We have all day together this time, so what should we do?" He was in high spirits; he just knew it would be a good day.

She grinned, "Surprise me! You can pick."

He pulled back and gave her a sultry look, "Are you sure? It might be dangerous to give me so much freedom."

She produced an impish look of her own, "I'll just trust you, I suppose."

Ichigo raced through the tall grass leaving a long trail behind her. She giggled and twirled a few times as she ran. The blue sky was cluttered with clouds. There was only the very faintest of breezes to sway the vast space of grass, flowers, and trees. Being here in a field of tall grass and flowers made her look a bit like a redheaded fairy. Kisshu pulled a peach of a tree, one for her, and one for himself. After a few more twirls she collapsed on the ground. She reclined in the sea of grass, arms tucked neatly behind her head as she gazed into the sky. He glided to her side set the fruit on her forehead. She scrambled to catching it as it rolled off.

"Peaches? I did not notice the trees were peach trees." She bit into the sweet flesh of it.

"Not all the trees are, only about five. The rest are normal trees." He bit into his as well as he sat next to her.

"How did you know about a place like this?" Ichigo's gentle brown eyes surveyed him.

"I found it a year ago when I was here with Taruto and Pai. There is no one around forever so we could come here sometimes to relax a bit." He shrugged, "I thought you might like to see it."

"I do, it's wonderful!"She tore at the flesh of the peach again.

He let the sweet taste of the peach tickle his tongue and run slowly down his throat. Peaches might have been his favorite fruit – He glanced at Ichigo – His favorite, other than strawberries. Strawberries were the best. He smirked into the bite. He loved strawberries the most. Something made him want to kiss her now and see what she tasted like after eating a peach. If he made a move like that now though, he would get slapped.

"Hey, have you ever played the cloud game, Kisshu?"

He arched an eyebrow, "The what?"

She drew him down next to her, "The way you play is you watch the clouds and try to find shapes in them."

"What kind of shapes? How do you decide who won?"

"There is no winner, it's just for fun. You try to find anything at all, like a rabbit, or a dragon, just anything." She grinned and stared into the sky.
The two of them lazed on the grass and watched the clouds. Ichigo was better at this game than he was, he discovered. She saw something in nearly every cloud. Sometimes she had to really explain her discovery to him because he saw no resemblance to the objects she claimed were in the cloud. There were times he argued with her over her discoveries – After all, it was not a rabbit, it was a duck, clearly. He argued with her because it was fun. Kisshu slithered his hand toward hers and laced his finger in with hers as they watched the sky. This was what he liked.

"Ichigo," He propped himself up on one elbow, "would you like to go into the sky?"

"What?" She blinked at him.

"I mean, would you like to fly? I could take you. We could go see the clouds up close, then you'd know I was right about the duck."

"You mean the rabbit." She propped herself up, "But I've never done anything like that. How high are we talking about?"

"How high do you want me to take you?" Kisshu gave her his best obsequious, deferential look.

"Will you be good?" She leaned closer.

"I am always good!" He beamed.

She sighed, "Even though that was a blatant lie, I guess I'll try it." Her face lit up, "I've always wondered what it was like to fly like you, or the birds."

Kisshu leaned over a stole a quick kiss, "Then I will show you."

Her heart was beating fast, soaring with the clouds. A few clouds flew by them. He let her run her fingers through one, soaking her hand with its water. It was truely more amazing that she expected. The wind glided over her face and down her body as they flew through the air. Up here she felt so free! It seemed like nothing could bring them down ever again. The view from up here was stunning, breathtaking, really. In the past she had seen pictures of these types of aerial scenes but it was nothing like seeing it herself. She breathed deeply of the pure, fresh air in the high altitude. She was in his arms, so she was not worried. Flying was amazing!

"What do you think, Koneko-chan?"

"It's amazing!"

"I knew you would like it!" He laughed the happy, musical laugh she loved.

"It feels amazing to fly!"

Kisshu took her by the arms, letting go of everything else.

Ichigo paniced instantly and glued herself to him. "What are you doing?"

"Calm down! It's ok!" He tried to pry her off his neck. "I'll have your hands, so it will be fine!"

"No way!" She shook her head.

Once again he took her into his arms so she could let loose of her hold on him. "I only want to show you something, scaredy-cat!"

"I am not!" She hissed.

"Then relax and let me show you-"

"No!" She shook her head again, "I don't think so!"

He gave her a roguish smile "I thought you said you would trust me."

"B-but, I. . . what if I fall?" Her eyes darted from him to the ground that was getting smaller by the second – They were so terribly high.

"What if you do? Don't you know yet?" Kisshu released her; sheer terror filled her as her body cut through the air.

The air was pounding against her with the strength one might expect from a tornado. She could not even breathe. The air was rushing past her so rapidly she could barely catch hold of even the lightest drag of air. She could not keep her eyes open; the air rushed into her eyes so rapidly they went dry in an instant. All she could do was squeeze her eyes shut and wait.

The fall came to an abrupt end when he caught her, one arm around her shoulders, and the other hooked under her knees. He did a few loops with her in tow and then spun with her a few more times. At the moment she was contemplating murder, but that would mean she would be falling again.

"You!" Ichigo gasped for breath and tried to calm the harsh pounding of her pulse.

"Don't you know yet, Ichigo?" Those golden eyes turned soft, "I will always catch you, no matter what."

"You know, that might make me feel better had it not been for the fact that you were the one who dropped me to start with!" She shouted into his ear.

He winced at the volume, "You humans do these kinds of things too! I've heard about trust falls and skydiving."

She kept her volume the same, "In a normal trust fall you are not hundreds of kilometers in the air! And I've never gone skydiving!"

He laughed, "So does that mean you didn't trust me?"

"It means I'm thinking of killing you! I might like to fly but I do not like to fall!"

"By the way," a devilish glint flashed in his eyes, "I like your panties! They actually have strawberries on them! It is too cute!"

"Kisshu!" Her voice turned into a growl, "You looked!"

"I could not help but see them! Your skirt was flying all over the place!"

Ichigo's fingers locked onto his ear and twisted, "Just whose fault was that?"

"Ow, ow, ow!" His face contorted into a pained, but still smug look. "It was mine, I admit it!"

She made him squeal as she tightened her grip, "Why don't you say you're sorry? Then you might want to consider never doing it again!"

"I would, but I'd be lying if I said I regretted it."

She gave his ear a wicked twist.

"OW! I regret it, I regret it!" His neck contorted trying to ease his suffering. "I could drop you again, you know!"

She nodded, "Yes, you could, but your ear would come with me!"

"Ok, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I won't look at them again!" He relaxed again once she released him. "Maybe. . ."

He dropped her again before she could grab his ear. Her body fell freely through the air with nothing to stop her or slow her down. She clamped her eyes tightly closed. This time, her head migrated lower and lower until she was plummeting head first like a comet toward the ground. She tried but had no idea how to fight against the power of the air to right herself. She screamed as she felt her stomach jolt into her throat and the rest of her organs beginning to migrate. When she hit the ground it would be head first.

Ichigo felt him move in beside her, arms enclosing her waist, and pulling her against him. To her dismay he did not stop them, he simply complied with the momentum gravity already had. Reflexively, she swathed her arms around his neck and circled her legs around his waist; she buried her face deep in his neck as she waited to hit the ground, too frightened and out of breath to fight it. Any second they would be crashing headlong into the ground.

Her organs shifted again as the ride rotated into an upright position and stopped. Her head was swimming wildly and all she could do was cling to him as her brain desperately struggled to orient itself. Regaining equilibrium was difficult after a ride like that. As soon as she was able, she glared up at him as him body shook with laughter. He pressed his lips to hers but she did not return his feeble gesture of peace. He smirked into the kiss before pulling back in laughter.

"Are you angry with me, Koneko-chan?"

"Yeah, but I can't kill you until the world stops spinning." Her face dropped into his neck again.

"Aww! My poor kitty! You're not used to these kinds of things." He chuckled, "But they always say practice makes perfect, so maybe we should keep trying."

Ichigo tightened her arms and legs around him; he would not be able to drop her again.

"So, you don't want me to let you go?"

"No!" She hissed.

"Very well, but that means, since I have you like this, I can have fun with you. Right?" He placed one hand on her thigh.

"I will strangle you! If you try anything I will definitely kill you!"

"But, Koneko-chan, this situation is too good to miss! Opportunities like this are so rare!" He told her, tone mysterious.

"You will be missing a lot more than an opportunity if you don't watch it!"

Kisshu sighed dramatically, "Fine, but you're no fun. But go ahead and look around now."

Ichigo lifted her head and was stunned to find him standing on the ground. She drooped her feet to the ground and retracted her arms from around his neck, unfortunately her knees promptly gave out when she tried to stand. Sitting on the cool grass felt good though, so it was fine. Having something solid under her was the biggest relief after a free fall that she could ever have dreamed of.

"See, I told you I will always catch you. I got you safely back down to the ground, Koneko-chan."

She locked her fingers around his wrist and brought him forcefully to the ground. Rage was not even an adequate word for her current emotion. Before he could respond she crawled on top of him, straddling him, and pinning his arms to the ground.

"I swear, Kisshu, if you ever do that again I will strangle you! Strangle you!"

"Really?" The playful, teasing smile of his showed no hint of worry, "I don't know! It seems like what you want more is a kiss."

Before she could say no, he pulled her to him and rolled; this time she was the one pinned as he lay over the top of her. His long, strong fingers coiled around her wrists. She turned her head away to keep him from kissing her, but he simply turned his attention onto her ear. He wrapped his lips around her earlobe, gently sucking it in. She tensed as he nipped it, gently working it between his teeth. Heat was rushing fast into her cheeks and it was becoming hard to breathe. Why she did not resist or push him away she was not sure. His tongue began to explore the curves of her ear. Ichigo gasped as he thrust the tip of his tongue inside her ear. The feelings it sent rushing through her were so unfamiliar.

"What are you doing? Cut it out, Kisshu!"

He kissed her lips, softly at first, but then he drew her in deeply. Her arms instinctively curled around him. His body pressed closely against hers, lips drinking her in. She could not help but return his passion filled kisses. He reached one hand back and found her thigh, sliding his fingers down until he found her knee – He drew it back, bringing it higher around him. More than normal, he was being assertive, not giving her the chance to pull back. The long, tender kiss sent ripples of sweet, unfamiliar pleasure through her. Right now, she could not help giving into it. Unintentionally, she moaned into his mouth, but he answered with one of his own. It was all so strange; strange feelings, strange thoughts, and strange emotions. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and wondered if he noticed it too. Her mind darted back to the butterfly. Was it really alright? Was it really so easy? It felt easy now, but should it?

"Ichigo, is this what you call. . ." His fingers traveled along her cheekbone, "making out?"

The blush in her cheeks deepened and she shoved him off. "Why don't we go somewhere else now!"

"Alright, if you want." His eyes fluttered sluggishly.

They were both sitting up now, staring at each other. His eyes traveled over her a moment, a dazed, lazy look in them. His eyes practically spoke the words: "anything you wish." That look was such a puppy type of look. Suddenly he seemed so compliant. It was strange how quickly he could shift; assertive one minute and flatteringly deferential the next. Her heart jumped as he threw his arms around her, tackling her back down. He cuddled up to her, head tucked under her chin.

"We can go in a bit, but could we just stay like this just a little while?" His voice was so soft, so servile in nature that it surprised her.

Ichigo ran her fingers into his hair, "Yeah, we can."

The little lovebirds were having fun! That was good, for now. They should enjoy their freedom because it would not last much longer. Sitting tall in his chair, he took a sip of the red wine in the glass. He flexed his long fingers, the fingers of a puppeteer. Already, he could feel the girl's strings beginning to connect, that was how he knew where they were now. They really had spoiled his plans for them today by running away, but that was fine. There was time. Still, he would not be able to wait very much longer before he began to act. Maybe he would go see Ichigo tomorrow. The little cat's wild spirit would turn submissive under his iron grasp. If she did not, he would crush her into tiny pieces. A devilish smile creased his lips. Maybe he would visit them both.