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Of Butterfly Wings
Chapter Twenty-Five: Touya's Wish
Touya pressed Kagome further against the wall, bracing his arms on either side of her head. He slanted his mouth against hers possessively.
She's not yours.
Inuyasha's words kept ringing in his head. It'd spurred a rage in him that he hadn't felt in close to three years. The second he'd spoken those words, he'd lost all control over himself.
"Touya," Kagome drew his attention. "What happened out there?"
Touya took a shuddering breath.
"That stupid mutt," He snarled through clenched teeth. Honestly the memory alone was enough to make his blood boil. Touya continued, "After I got my first few hits in, he asked me what I was doing dating someone like you."
He laced his fingers with hers as he fought to reign in his fury.
"He said that I should've learned my lesson the first time and that you aren't mine." Touya growled.
He'd known that the guy was full of shit but he never once thought that he'd be that delusional.
Kagome said nothing but he could see her expression shifting from concern to abject fury.
"That… that…" She struggled to find the words, "Absolute mongrel!"
She made a beeline for the exit where he knew that Inuyasha was still picking himself up off the concrete floor of the arena.
Touya instinctively stopped her by curling his arms around her waist and pulling her back.
"Who does that bastard think he is?! What, does he expect me to just come crawling back to him?!" She turned within his grip, "Let me go, Touya! I need to beat his ass!"
His lips curled up into a smirk.
Yeah, he had a feeling she'd react like this. Kagome was many things but a pushover wasn't one of them.
"Let me go!" She tried to pry herself free from his grasp.
He pulled her closer to him instead, "I already destroyed his body and his pride. So there's no reason for you to go out there."
"But—!" Her fury refused to let up.
Touya buried his face in the crook of her neck, "Don't go to him. Even if it's just to kick him." He closed his eyes as he took comfort in her warmth, "I want to stay like this for a little while longer."
He felt her shoulders deflate as the anger left her.
She still trembled within his grasp, but he felt her lean back fully within his arms.
This was all he needed.
He didn't care about what happened between Inuyasha and Kikyou. The only thing that mattered to him was ensuring that neither of them hurt Kagome.
His gaze drifted to the sea of azure flames still billowing out in the open arena. If Kikyou had thoughts of harming his girlfriend, then hopefully his match just now would snuff them all out. Being the opposite sex would not save her from his fury if she chose to go after Kagome.
He wasn't sure how long they'd stood there wrapped up in each other's embrace. However he could hear the familiar sound of the crowd's swelling cheers and a fight taking place in the arena. It seemed as though the next match had already begun.
He could spy Kanna's silhouette in the background along with a guy he'd never met before. He blinked as he observed the man reach out and try to grope at the younger woman. The crowd broke out in cheers as Kanna sent him flying out of the ring with one of her mirrors.
"They fixed that up pretty quick." He commented to himself.
Kanna stomped off the platform as Miroku collected himself with a jovial laugh.
"Touya," He felt Kagome lean further into him. "Can you promise me one thing?"
"Depends on what it is." He responded. If she asked him to keep his nose out of her fight, then the answer would be no.
"If things don't go well in the match, will you at least pull me out of there?" She turned to meet his gaze directly. "If Kikyou uses her quirk to put up a wall of shards then your ice would be the only thing that can break through."
Touya cocked his head to the side, "Ice? Not fire?"
She gave a soft shake of her head, "Crystallize has an insanely high melting point. It would take too much time trying to break through with your fire. If you strengthen your ice's attack power, you can punch through her shards pretty easily." Kagome pressed both of her palms against his forearms, "Mom often gets onto Kikyou about her shards being brittle. They look pretty and can be an effective offensive attack, but they're too weak to hold up against powerful opponents."
Which meant that if he attacked the shards with his ice, they would shatter and he'd be free to pull Kagome from the ring.
Touya heard the crowd's cheering grow louder as Sango and Kagura took to the platform. He didn't need to listen to the announcement to know that this one would take a while.
His lips curled up into a smirk, "As if I wouldn't do that anyways."
He leaned over her shoulder and captured her lips in a searing kiss.
It still pissed him off to know that Inuyasha felt like he had some kind of claim over her. As if she were supposed to be waiting with bated breath for him to dump Kikyou and get back with her.
His arms tightened around her as the battle continued to wage outside. He heard Midnight commentating on the status, with both Sango and Kagura coming to a stalemate.
He drew back just enough to give Kagome a chance to breathe.
"Touya?"
He captured her lips again, paying little heed to her confusion.
There was a part of him that was afraid to admit that Inuyasha was right about one thing. Kagome really was far beyond his league. Under normal circumstances, they never would have even crossed paths. On top of that, the notion that she could actually find him attractive was one that never should have even crossed his mind. Yet here they were now, both completely wrapped up in each other's arms and lives.
He heard Midnight squeal with excitement as a loud crash echoed through the stadium. Sango's name was called as the victor and he knew that it was time for Kagome to approach the platform.
A high school romance was unlikely to last forever. At some point, someone better was bound to come along and be Kagome's true soulmate. She would grow up, graduate and go on to marry someone she loves.
He pressed his mouth even harder against hers, claiming every breath she took with a sharp sense of possessiveness.
Even if the end of their relationship was an inevitability, that didn't mean that he was ready to relinquish her to anyone else at the moment. Not to Inuyasha nor any other stray that would dare to look her way.
Touya pulled back for a brief moment to catch his own breath.
He wanted this to be more than just a simple fling. He wanted to imagine that there was a future beyond high school waiting for them. For once, he wanted to live.
Touya took her bottom lip between his teeth, enjoying the subtle hitch in her breath.
His body was broken and burned, but with her quirk he was steadily getting better. Even if he never healed completely, he wanted to think that he was no longer standing at death's door. He wanted to think that there was a chance they could be more than just high school sweethearts.
His eyes met hers.
He could see every emotion she felt flickering through her gaze. Embarrassment. Admiration. Affection. There was no secret she could ever keep from him. Her expression would always give her away.
Regardless of how things turned out in this match, he knew that there was only one thing that he wanted. Just one future that he desired more than anything else.
It was selfish of him, but he wanted to imagine them being more than just exes in ten years time. He wanted to be the one she called her husband.
Touya drew back, "I'll be watching."
It was far too early for him to tell her the truth just yet. They still had two more years of school to finish after this and a whole host of issues to resolve regarding their families. Until then, he would wait until she was ready to be honest with her about his feelings.
This festival's outcome, the future and everything that came after graduation could wait. He just wanted to focus on this single moment in time.
"Promise you'll jump in if it becomes necessary?" Her voice took on a pleading tone.
His smile softened at that, "As if you could keep me out of that ring."
One thing he knew for certain.
If any harm came to her during this match, then his fight with Inuyasha earlier would just look like simple fireworks compared to what he would unleash later.
They heard Midnight's call of Kagome's name, summoning her to the arena.
Touya reluctantly released her from his grasp.
"No matter what happens, you just focus on not getting hurt." He warned her, "Don't worry about anything else."
She flashed him a nervous smile, "I will."