Track 11

Once Crow's friends each left to go home, Hikari sat poking at the fire with the stick she used to roast her marshmallows. The fire was slowly dying, but it was still lit enough to keep her warm. After telling everyone goodbye, Crow walked back over to her with a big smile on his face. That was the most fun he had had with them in a long time. And it was all thanks to Hikari.

She looked over to him just as he sat on the ground next to her. "Thank you for coming out here tonight. Everyone really liked having you here and told me to invite you the next time we all get together."

Hikari smiled and looked back into the fire. It was a nice feeling. "I'd really like that. They were all pretty great. You know... You're very lucky, Hoglet..." She poked at the fire some more before putting the stick down on the ground and hugging her legs close to her. It was a little colder out than it had been before.

"Lucky?" He raised an eyebrow. "Why do you say that?" He definitely felt lucky to have her there with him, but he knew there was no way that's what she meant.

"Living here... It's so nice. You're surrounded by so many great people who obviously love you very much. I've never known what that was like. Kamiko is the only friend I have ever had." She kept her gaze on the fire as she spoke.

He tilted his head and reached forward to grab her hand. It was so soft and warm... "Oh come on. You can't forget all of us at BRR. We all care about you, too."

She looked away from the fire to him. His face was only half lit by the fire, but she could see the caring look in his eyes. He was being so sweet to her. "I-I know. It's just... It's different, you know? Just seeing how close all of you are and hearing all of the stories. And seeing how wonderful your parents are... Kamiko's parents were barely around, so most of the time it was just the two of us and the butler. And even then there were times that she wasn't around because she was with her boyfriend who she eventually became engaged to, or the times they had certain dinners that the butler and I weren't allowed to be apart of since we weren't actually family. Every once in awhile he kept me company, but I also spent so much time alone..." She sighed and looked down at the hand he was holding, feeling very much comforted by his touch. "I guess I just envy you a little. I would never want to take back any of the time I spent with Kamiko, but if I could have done it while living this sort of lifestyle... Things could have been so much better."

He reached with his other hand to lift her chin to look at him again. "Hikari... You have no reason to envy me. So maybe things didn't work out the way you wanted them before, but that doesn't mean they can't now. No matter what happens you will always be welcome to come back here if you want. My parents seriously adore you, my friends think you're about as amazing as I am. And I... I do feel lucky just like you said." He blushed a little, which was a little harder to notice in this lighting. "I'm lucky that I had the chance to spend this time here alone with you."

Hikari didn't know what to say. Every word he spoke to her made her feel so warm inside. She tried to open her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

Crow's heart was racing. He had already said more than he had originally planned. Thankfully, she wasn't freaking out or anything like he had been worried about. 'Okay...' he thought to himself. 'You made it this far... Don't give up now.'

He gripped her hand just a little tighter out of nerves and with his hand still on her chin, he leaned in, finally planting a kiss on her soft lips. After all this time having the feelings he did for her, and the many attempts earlier in their trip, he was finally able to kiss her. Hikari froze where she sat, completely unsure of how to handle herself in that situation. All she knew was that she felt dizzy and like her heart might explode from her chest. Her eyes filled with tears as she closed them and leaned in to him.

Crow eventually pulled back with a grin on his face. That was really nice. "You have people who care about you, too, Hikari. I'm not going anywhere, so don't forget that."

The poor leopard had so many emotions flowing through her at one time. "Hogl-" She stopped herself. "C-Crow... Thank you so much. No one has ever gone to such lengths to make me feel better before." This might have been one of the only times she had ever talked to him where he wasn't practically praising himself. Sure, it came out a few times while his friends were around, but this time the only one he was talking about was her.

He moved his hand from her chin to her cheek and gently rubbed it with his thumb. As he did this, he noticed her cheek was wet. She was crying... Chills shot through Hikari's body and she thought she might pass out. "You don't need to thank me. I don't want you to ever feel like you have to be alone again. I promise to make sure that never happens, no matter what."

She bit her bottom lip, the way his felt on hers still fresh in her mind. She definitely wanted more, but wasn't sure how to tell him without making things awkward. By this point, the fire had just about died and it was starting to get chilly out. Crow hated the feeling of being cold... In the silence, he stood up and held out a hand to her to help her up. "Why don't we head back now?"

She hesitantly reached for his hand and stood, feeling her cheeks burning. She was so quiet now... Crow hoped he hadn't said or even done something wrong to make this happen. As they walked, he watched her from the corner of his eye. She stared at the ground as she walked, still not sure what to say to him. Just to see how she would respond, he let his hand brush against hers while he walked next to her. Her warm skin felt so welcoming and he thought it would be nice to hold.

Hikari's eyes went wide and in her nervous panic she quickly held her hands behind her back rather than letting them hang at her sides. She mentally cursed herself. She really didn't feel like herself that night.

Crow sighed quietly and decided it was best to leave her be. He put his hands on his hips and kept his distance until they made it back to the house. By this time, his parents were both already in bed. After they made it upstairs, he stopped outside the door of his room. Hikari started toward the room she was staying in when she heard his voice. "Thanks again for coming out. It really meant a lot." With that, he opened his door and closed it behind him once he was inside.

Hikari leaned against the door of her room and sighed. She felt like such an idiot... She could have been a little more expressive of how she felt like he was... but she didn't know how. She turned around and opened the door to the room and went inside to change into her pajamas. The nightgown she wore was a dark pink with leopard spots all over it, and a trim of lace on the bottom and the sleeves. It always felt nice to change into them after a long day.

When she got into bed, she realized that the Crow plush she had been sleeping with was missing... She left him sitting on the piano in Crow's room!

The moment Crow entered his room, he unbuttoned the shirt he was wearing and tossed it on the ground. Did he maybe go too far? He hated the thought of making her uncomfortable. The kiss was so nice, though... If only he could do it again.

His pants came off next and he was left wearing only boxers. They had little milk bottles all over them. They were kind of embarrassing, but he still liked them.

As he turned around to flip his light off, there was a knock at the door. His heart skipped a beat when he realized it had to be her... His parents would just let themselves in. He opened the door slowly to see Hikari in her short little nightgown standing in front of him with her arms crossed. He felt his face grow hot at the sight. "U-Uh... is everything okay, Hikari?"

She hadn't expected to see Crow wearing only his boxers when the door opened. She quickly averted her eyes and cleared her throat. "Yeah... everything is fine. I-I just forgot something in here when I was working on my music."

"Hm?" He forgot he left her in there when he first went outside with his friends. "Come on in. What was it?"

She followed him inside the room and closed the door behind her. Even if they weren't talking very loud, she didn't want to wake his parents. She fiddled with her hands in response to his question. This was embarrassing... "Uhh... well... Your plush. I brought him in here for... i-inspiration. And now I..." She looked down at her feet. "Hah... I'm probably going to sound pretty ridiculous..."

He looked over to see the little plush of himself sitting on the piano. She... had it there for inspiration? Really? He turned back to her with a curious expression on his face. "Now you what? What's going to sound ridiculous?"

She rocked back and forth on her feet. How could she say what she needed to without making it weird. "Well... I can't... sleep. I got so used to having him with me."

He picked up the plush and looked at it in his hands. "You really like it that much?" Of course, it was a plush of him, so did he blame her? Not at all.

She took a step closer to him, admiring the look on his face as he stared down at the plush. "I do... I feel very calm when I have it with me. When I sleep, it relaxes me... When I write music, it helps me keep focused."

He smiled, thinking about how sweet it was that a little toy that looked like him made her feel so peaceful. He held it out for her to take, and she hugged it close to her. He then sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Hey... I'm sorry about earlier."

She looked up to him, feeling just a little guilty. "Why are you sorry?"

He rubbed the back of his neck out of embarrassment. "I shouldn't have kissed you without seeing if you were okay with it first. It was pretty selfish of-"

She reached forward and placed her finger on his lips and shook her head. "Don't you dare apologize. I'm glad you did it. There's no way I would have had the courage to do it myself."

He blinked, blushing when she touched his mouth. So she did like it? He took her hand away from his face, her words giving him a major confidence boost. After feeling like he had done the wrong thing, this changed things. He held her hand in his and gave her a cocky grin. "So tell me... I was good, right?"

Hikari's cheeks were bright red at his question. With the hand he wasn't holding, she gripped the plush close to her, getting a little clever. "Good? That's a tough one. I'm not so sure I remember that much~" She looked up to him with a smile on her face, really hoping he would take the hint.

She couldn't remember? How could she forget something like that!? If anything, he knew he had to be an amazing kisser. "Hmph..." Suddenly, he pulled her close to him and dipped her, kissing her just a little harder this time. This time there was just a little more feeling behind it.

Hikari, making more of an attempt this time to return the kiss, let the plush drop to the floor as she ran her hands up his arms. One of her hands stopped at the top of his back, while the other continued up for her to tangle her fingers in his hair.

She stumbled backward until she was sitting on the edge of his bed. Her heart raced as he leaned in further to her, persuading her to lean back. This was the farthest she had ever made it with any boy. She did exactly as he wanted, not at all letting up on the kiss.

But Crow didn't plan to take it any further than that. He gently placed both of his hands to her cheeks as he pulled away, then moved them to the bed, where he held himself up over her. "Now... I'll ask you again. I was good, right?"

Hikari's face was now a burning crimson. She found it hard to look back up at those piercing red eyes of his. "N-No... You were amazing, Hoglet." She finally used the nickname again, but this time it sounded more affectionate than teasing.

He smiled down at her with a look of accomplishment on his face. "Now that's more like it." They stayed in this position just staring at each other for a few moments, both admiring the other. There was no way Hikari wanted to leave and go back to that cold empty room she was staying in.

Crow moved off of her and grabbed the plush from the floor. She sat up with her legs folded under her as he came back to sit down on the bed next to her. "So why do you need this handsome little guy again?" He handed it back to her, knowing that was the real reason she came in to see him and that she would most likely be ready to head back.

"I just... It's nice to have something to hold while I sleep. There's just something about him that keeps me calm." She looked up to Crow, who was watching her carefully. It was also true that he, himself, helped her relax. She had hardly felt any stress the whole time they had been on the farm. What was it about him that was so good at that?

"I see..." He leaned back onto his big fluffy pillow and held out his hand. "Let me see it..."

'Damn it...' Hikari thought to herself as he stretched himself out on the bed. If there was one talent Crow had besides his musical talents... it was being sexy without even trying. The fact that he was wearing nothing but his boxers... which were cute with the little milk bottles on them... and laying in front of her with his hand out... Was she dying? She was pretty sure of it.

"Hikari...? Are you listening? Let me see the plush," he said, waving his hand at her. He could see the looks she was giving him and grinned. Was it possible that she couldn't handle him?

With her cheeks burning from embarrassment, Hikari put the toy in his hand and watched as he pulled it to him and cuddled it right in front of her. "Oh, you're right. This is nice! I might have to hang on to him for the night," he teased.

"Wha!? That's not fair at all..." She looked over to him with a pout. "I told you he helps me sleep. Why would you do such a thing?"

"It does belong to me, remember? I guess you're just going to have a long night now, aren't you?" He smirked to himself as he rolled over and let the plush cover his mouth to hide it. She was so cute when she got all pouty like this. He had never seen it until she finally opened up to him, but he would do anything to see that look on her face again.

"I'm not leaving until you give that back, Hoglet!" She smacked the bed and shot him a bit of a glare. What kind of game was he playing? There was no way she could let him win!

He shrugged, closing his eyes like he was about to go to sleep. "Then since I don't plan on giving him up, it looks like you're going to be in here all night. Try not to be too loud. I need my beauty sleep."

Hikari scoffed and stared down at him with an eyebrow raised. Her ear twitched at his words. She had had enough! "Fine!" She stormed over to the wall and turned off his light before angrily letting herself into his bed under his covers.

Crow opened one eye to see the angry leopard laying next to him, her eyes closed. His little game went a bit farther than he had originally planned. Now she was in his bed with him. He could feel his face heat up as he opened his mouth to speak. "You're serious about this, aren't you?"

She opened her eyes, still pouting, which made his heart feel like it might burst. "At first I was... and then I got in this bed. How dare you keep this comfiness from me and make me sleep in that other one. Your blankets are so soft and warm." She curled up in his covers and let out a happy sigh. "Good luck getting rid of me now. Your fault."

He couldn't help but smile. She really was adorable... "Don't worry about that. I wouldn't want to try to get rid of you." He didn't have a problem with her sleeping there. Not one bit. He nestled his face into his pillow and closed his eyes, the plush still in his arm. "Good night... Sleep well, okay? I'm right here if you need anything."

She smiled, just loving how cute he looked with the plush. Giving it up to him for the night was definitely worth it. "Night, Hoglet." She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.