Dreamer Awakened

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Giving up on sleep, Kusanagi heaved a deep sigh and opened his eyes. Reluctant to move, he stared at the darkened window, listening to the steady and even breathing of the girl nestled warmly against his back. How he would like to stay like this a little longer. But he knew he couldn’t. Allowing himself a moment more, he finally rolled off the edge of the mattress and staggered around the bed to cross the room towards the door, his muscles unusually stiff from maintaining an uneasy balance on the edge of the bed for the last few hours. Stopping in the doorway, he arched his tired back in a lithe stretch, extending his arms over his head, the muscles on his chest flexing as he sought to shake the fatigue from his body.

What he needed was a shower, he thought, bringing his hands back down, one stopping on the way back to rub the bleariness from his eyes. Moving once again, he made a detour to the closet and grabbed a pair of faded jeans before heading back towards the door. But before he passed through it, he hesitated, turning to look back over his shoulder, his eyes seeking out the sleeping figure of Momiji.

A half-smile quirked his lips as he watched her. She was quite a vision. She had forgotten to braid her hair last night and he preferred it that way. Lying on her side, her chestnut hair spilled softly across her cheek and down the blankets, following the curve of her waist and thigh, one hand flung out in front of her, the other tucked beneath the cheek resting on the pillow. In sleep, her face looked younger than her nineteen years; almost childlike and she wore a serene expression: she was the epitome of innocence, pure and seraphic.

Kusanagi laughed softly to himself at that thought, a touch of irony twisting his lips, but his eyes were soft as he continued to stare at her. She might look like an angel lying there, but his current condition was proof that she was far from selfless when it came to sleeping arrangements, he thought. With one last chuckle, he finally turned away from her to make his way to the bathroom, but his thoughts still centered on her and her nocturnal passive-aggressive tendencies. Momiji was quite the insidious bed-sneak – and he wondered why, the few times that he had been in bed with her before, that he had never noticed it.

Kusanagi still hadn’t figured that one out by the time he’d finished his shower, and could only surmise that perhaps it had been more of a subtle thing before. Or perhaps on those few occasions, he had just been too dead to the world to notice her domination of sleeping space.

But last night it had been impossible for him to ignore. She had all but shoved him into the floor, hogging everything from the surface of the mattress, to the sheets and blankets. And it had taken him a while to realize it was happening too, because it had been done a little at a time with small scoots here and there. Her little rear end had wriggled ever closer to him, moving him further and further towards the edge that separated him from the warm comfort of the mattress and the hard, cold wood of the floor. And she had been just as subtly ruthless with the sheets and blankets too - a little yank here and a little tug there, until she had eventually won virtually all of those as well.

Shaking his head, and giving up on trying to reason it out, Kusanagi turned out the bathroom light and slowly made his way down the darkened stairway to the kitchen. He was dressed only in his faded blue jeans, his hair dripping wetly onto the white towel draped around his bronzed neck and shoulders, and despite his shower he was still feeling a bit groggy from lack of sleep. Perhaps a quick cup of tea might help to wake him up before he finished dressing for his trip to Ise.

Flipping the light on inside the kitchen, he moved quietly towards the stove, idly using the end of the towel around his neck to rub at his greenish-black hair, making it stick out at odd, spiky angles all over his head. With a yawn, he paused in the task of drying his hair, letting the end of the towel drop back down against his shoulder as he grabbed the kettle off the stove and carried it over to the sink. As he reached for the faucet, his eyes slipped to the bottom of the sink and he stopped dead in his tracks, a crack of laughter escaping from his lips upon spying the heap of underwear lying there.

Momiji’s underwear – abandoned in the heat of the moment and apparently forgotten as well; it was hard to believe that it had only been yesterday that he had carried out his little plot for revenge, for it seemed like much more time had passed than that. Still smiling, Kusanagi reached down and poked at the stiffly dried clump of fabric with a long finger, and an unexpectedly ingenious and wonderful idea occurred to him.

This could be the perfect opening he had been looking for. After all, there was nothing standing in his way anymore since he no longer had a vow to keep. So why not seize the moment? Suddenly wide awake, he swung around, and without filling the kettle, returned it to its place on the stove before going back over to the sink to gather up the now pathetically rigid underwear.

Hmm. Now to locate a place to put them where she wouldn’t find them. Kusanagi rapidly went through all of his options and then, smiling at his own cleverness, he carried them upstairs. Safely hiding them away, he then crept towards his own room. Putting his still wetly spiked head around the door, the sharpness of his eyes cutting through the dimness of the room, he peered at the bed.

All was silent but he waited a moment before stealthily crossing to the closet to crouch down and take out his square leather box of pictures, removing from it the flimsy, white fabric that he had placed there for safe keeping. Pulling himself to a standing position, he directed one more cursory glance at the bed before he once again stole from the room, heading, once again, for Momiji’s bedroom. His intent was to plant the bait in a not so obvious place, but not in such an inconspicuous place either, so that she wouldn’t be able to find it.

After a few attempts, he thought he finally hit upon the perfect solution, which was to put them back in the exact same place he had found them – wedged in the back of her bottom drawer. Finally satisfied, he retraced his steps back to his room, where only one task remained: figuring out what to do with the underwear currently lying on the floor. He had to make sure that she found the bait instead of settling for wearing those, and he didn’t want to leave anything to chance. But he wasn’t at all certain as to how to achieve that certainty without arousing her suspicions. As he stood pondering the matter from the doorway, his eyes wandered back to where Momiji lay and he found his thoughts neatly sidetracked when he noticed that she remained unmoving in the exact position where he had left her.

Given her persistence of unconscious motion, Kusanagi could hardly believe that while he was gone she hadn’t "wandered" back to the middle of the bed. She had had plenty of time to do so; in fact, he had more than expected her to. But no, even now, she was on "his side of the bed" - the middle ground having been forsaken for the exact spot where he would have liked to have remained for several more hours - her head nestled comfortably against his pillow, sleeping quietly.

Perhaps if he had just switched sides he might have managed to get a couple of hours of decent sleep, he thought as his eyes drifted to "her side of the bed". That might have worked, for her side had grown stone cold long ago – even her pillow was indentation-less, since her head had spent most of the night crawling its way to take over his.

Too bad he hadn’t thought of that before, he thought sheepishly. But even if he had, he still probably wouldn’t have moved, he reflected ironically, for he had enjoyed it far too much having her body pressed up against his back. She was warm, and soft, and so curvaceously feminine – oh yes, he could definitely get used to her being in his bed. His lips curled into a sensual smile at the realization that not only could he get used to it, but he was also already addicted to it.

There were just one or two things that were missing – or maybe that should be, there were one or two things that should be missing and currently weren’t - that would make another night like last night absolutely perfect. But all that would be remedied quite soon… Kusanagi’s eyes flitted back to Momiji’s abandoned underwear, and his smile took on a slightly perverted twist as he pictured the little slip of silk being combined with the rest of his and her nighttime apparel.

Ah, he breathed deeply to himself, his body already thrumming with anticipation. His acceptance of his feelings made him feel… liberated; finally able to pursue what he wanted. And after waiting for three long years, he found that he barely had the patience to wait just a few more hours for it too. Kusanagi laughed quietly to himself at the irony of it, stifling the sound almost immediately when he heard what sounded like a murmured coo and the rustling of blankets. Instantly, his eyes flew from the underwear to Momiji and he realized that he only had a few more seconds before she was fully awake. Hurriedly he walked over to the panties lying on the floor and stared, still not certain of what to do with them.

But it was too late to do anything now, he decided, his gaze pivoting back to Momiji, watching her face scrunch up as she stretched. He forgot about the underwear dilemma for the present to focus his attention on her instead, telling himself that he would come up with something. Pulling the towel from around his neck, he stepped over to the bed, casually tossing it to the end before easing his knees onto the mattress and leaning forward, his stomach and chest stretched out so that he was propped up on his elbows just if front of her face, letting his gaze wander affectionately over her, so very thankful that he no longer had to fight what he felt for her. Her eyes were still closed, but the light stain of color across her cheeks and the little grunting noises she made as she continued to stretch told him that they would be peeking open any minute now. His mouth curled into a slight smile as he watched her, waiting.

Momiji took a deep breath and with a less than tuneful ‘hum’ let it out. Her brow crinkled in a worried frown as she cracked her sleepy eyes open and she couldn’t help the feeling that something was out of place. Before she could further analyze it, it was brushed to the side, replaced by a whimsical smile that melded into a dreamy expression on her face as she spied Kusanagi propped up next to her.

She had never seen his hair, wet or dry, in such disarray before. It was practically standing up and cheering on top of his head and she thought with the soft smile currently ensconced across his features, that this was perhaps the cutest she had ever seen him look.

"Kusanagi, you look… like a giant pineapple," she teased in a sleepy voice, reaching out and smoothing down the spiky looking strands of hair on the side of his head, shy color staining her cheeks a deeper pink when he captured her hand with his. A possessive look brightened his eyes as he softly pressed it against the freshly shaven side of his face, letting her fingers trail down his jaw beneath his before letting it go and addressing her.

"Good morning, Princess, I hope your feet are feeling better this morning," he murmured, a lazy smile stretching across his lips, his light, teasing tone at odds with the intense look in his eyes.

Momiji gave him a searching look and her smile faded somewhat at his words. She felt her uneasiness quickly return as she began to vaguely recollect how numb her feet had been the night before, and flashes of hazy images that seemed more fantasy than real began to play themselves within her mind – drinking hot sake, tripping over her benumbed feet, a passionate kiss between her and Kusanagi in her bedroom, tripping over her own feet some more, and then… sharing more than a passionate kiss with Kusanagi….

I love you, Kusanagi. The words drifted up from the depths of her mind and set off a panic alarm.

Dear god, she hadn’t really told him that, had she? she thought frantically. Please, let it be just a dream! But then more images rushed in on her and her rash confession was blown away by the memory of their intensity. Images of her and Kusanagi, their bodies intertwined on the bed - soul consuming kisses and deep caresses that had left no room for thought, nor any extra breath for protest, and then – oh lord…. What had happened then?

She couldn’t remember!! And Momiji’s blood turned to ice in her veins when she suddenly realized that she was missing just more than her memory. With a horrified gasp, she sat bolt upright, her green eyes as wide as Kusanagi had ever seen them and her panic-stricken gaze swung wildly from him to her own body, down to her waist where her underwear should be but wasn’t.

Kusanagi took one look at her frantic expression and the teasing smile was wiped from his face. Something must be wrong, he thought and one word popped into his head - Tengugaki.

"What’s the matter?" he asked sharply, abruptly sitting up next to her.

"Oh, my gosh…what?" she asked her gaze flitting nervously around, not looking at him, "where are my panties? What happened to my panties?" She was almost in a frenzy now.

Kusanagi remained silent for a moment. Then there was a slight noise, almost like a choking sound, and Momiji reluctantly brought her green eyes back to him when her efforts to locate her missing panties somewhere on the bed failed to bear results. She noticed that he was giving her a swiftly calculating look, his stiff posture once again relaxed and Momiji felt a tendril of suspicion curl through her when she saw the hint of a smile that played around his mouth. He was up to something, but what?

"They’re in the exact same place as they were last night, Princess. It’s not like they have the ability to get up and move around on their own," he told her in a dry voice.

His reply was calculated to irk her and it did just that. Momiji’s mouth tightened in irritation, but she was still too worried about her dislocated intimate apparel to give vent to it.

"No," she replied in a calm voice that in no way hid the riotous emotions beneath the surface, "I am quite certain that last night, they were on my body – which is exactly where they are supposed to be - and now - they’re not!"

"What a shame that’s the only thing missing," he muttered under his breath, his gaze flickering down to her trim waist buried beneath the covers, wishing that he had the time necessary to do a bit of exploration. But he didn’t. He should already be on his way to Ise, but he couldn’t resist the temptation to stay just a while. Just long enough to tease Momiji a bit.

"What did you say?" Momiji asked warily as Kusanagi’s eyes slid downwards and stayed there.

"Not a thing," he replied in a louder voice, his cat-like eyes finally snapping back up to her face, a completely innocuous expression that Momiji found difficult to trust pinned in place. It made her chestnut brows pull together over her eyes, which in turn made Kusanagi give her a look that said, ‘why are you looking at me like that? I haven’t done anything!’

Ignoring the look, Momiji stared at him a moment longer, which he steadily met and her words of the night before pounded through her head: I love you, Kusanagi. Her stomach twisted in panicked reaction to them. She hurriedly dropped her gaze from his and missed the puzzled look on Kusanagi’s face at the shadow he had seen flit through her eyes before she did so.

It hadn’t been a dream, she thought. There was no way it could have been. And even though she had revealed her feelings to him, he hadn’t verbally responded to her – But, she thought, trying to give herself a bit of hope, hadn’t he kissed her after that? She was almost certain that he had, and then… and then…

Oh crap – what if they had…?

And she couldn’t remember it?

Surely not?

The gods wouldn’t be that cruel would they?

But if she and Kusanagi hadn’t…. then why was her underwear missing? Why couldn’t she remember!? she lamented desperately. The sun had barely risen and already Momiji felt the beginnings of a pounding headache setting in as she desperately tried to recall the exact events of the night before. Nervous energy began to build and she wanted to get up and pace the floor – but not without her underwear. She just felt too – exposed without them.

So she lifted her chin and turned to study Kusanagi who sat, his lids half lowered over his eyes to hide what he was thinking and dredged up the courage to play with fire and pursue the topic.

"Well if they are not where they’re supposed to be, then where are they?" She queried, her hands tensely clenching the sheet covering her lap, unable to keep a thread of the unease she was feeling from creeping into her voice.

"Who said they weren’t where they were supposed to be?" he challenged smoothly and then smiled when her eyes began to sparkle with temper and she made a noise of frustration.

"Kusanagi! This is - " she ground out and was about to add the word ‘serious’, but forgot to, letting go of the sheet in surprise instead, as he placed his fingers on the mattress next to her hip and leaned towards her, his face coming closer and closer to hers.

"You really don’t remember, do you, Princess?" he asked softly. The soft light in his eyes was mesmerizing as he leaned ever nearer, and Momiji watched him, her green eyes flitting over his handsome features and settling on his sensuously curved mouth when he whispered, "Since you can’t seem to remember, perhaps we can do a little something to help jog your memory."

Jog her memory? Is that what he was trying to do?

Didn’t he realize that when he got close, she might as well not even have a brain, since the feelings he stirred within her short-circuited it? she thought wryly. And then just as she had foreseen, all brain activity immediately ceased, as she realized that he was going to kiss her and her instincts took over, craving the addicting heat that she felt in his touch. Momiji’s lips parted in anticipation and her breathing began to flutter restlessly in her throat as he rapidly closed the remaining distance between them and claimed her lips in a hungry kiss.

She closed her eyes as she felt him slide his lips across hers, his tongue flickering out to tease against their softness before trailing away to move across her cheek and jaw, his hands coming up to tangle in the long tresses of her hair, pulling her closer to his chest as he nuzzled against her neck. Far beyond any hope of rational thought now, Momiji brought her hands up and gripped the bare muscles of his shoulders, the hunger deep inside her body beginning to increase. Her head fell back and she drew in a shuddering breath as his slid his open mouth along her neck, his teeth gently nipping the sensitive skin there while he slowly moved upwards towards the delicate shell of her ear.

"So, Princess," he breathed, his voice low and husky against her ear as he continued to nuzzle her, "does this remind you of anything?"

"Ungh," she moaned, trying to force herself to think and failing completely. "I – don’t – think – so," she moaned, amazed at herself for managing to reply in something other than unintelligible gibberish.

At her words, Kusanagi laughed softly and quit nuzzling her. Then she felt his hands tightening in her hair, tugging so that her head was pulled in his direction as he eased away from her neck to aim a devastatingly sultry smile at her.

"Hmm, I think this calls for drastic measures then," he purred softly. "Perhaps if we delve a little deeper we might be able to shake some of those memories loose - and if not…" he let his voice trail off suggestively, his half-closed feline eyes gleaming with a predatory brightness.

And then he once again brought his lips against hers in a mind shattering kiss, this time sliding his tongue deeply into her mouth and letting it twine with hers as his hands left her hair to trail downwards around her back. He wrapped his arms securely around her and pulled her up against him so that she could feel the heat of his chest penetrating the thin cotton of her nightgown.

Momiji’s own hands began to wander eagerly then, going from the smooth skin of his shoulders and running lightly down his sides and back until he freed his hands from around her and brought them around to capture her restive movements which were making the dangerous game he had engaged in even more precarious. He already didn’t want to stop but he knew that he had to, for he had a trip to make, and her touch only inflamed him more.

It was time to bring this most enjoyable part of the game to a close, before things got completely out of hand. And so he reluctantly pulled away from her, giving one last nibble to her lips before he eased backwards and opened his eyes to look at her flushed and dreamy countenance.

"So, Princess," he intoned, his words causing her to open her eyes and look at him, "how was that?"

"That was…" Momiji breathed, "incredible –" she stopped speaking when he chuckled and brought his hands up to the sides of her face, briefly leaning his head forward against hers before letting her go again and sliding away from her, to the edge of the bed, his back to her.

"Thank you, but that’s not what I meant," he told her over his shoulder in amusement, as he stood up and casually sauntered over to the dresser to pick up his comb. He began raking it through his spiky locks without even looking at his reflection in the mirror, his eyes, instead, riveted to Momiji who still sat in the middle of the bed, looking a bit befuddled.

"What did you mean then?" she asked her brain still trying to recover from his kiss.

"I meant did that help you to remember anything about last night," he laughed and turned to face her now, putting the comb back on the dresser and leaning against it to watch her.

Momiji looked away from him, feeling stupid for not realizing that was what he meant in the first place, and mumbled, "Oh. Well, I can’t – you are – that was –" Momiji stopped, a look of pain crossing her face, feeling even dumber for babbling like an idiot. "- No," she finally managed, "it… didn’t help me to remember what happened to my – " she stopped again, this time in acute embarrassment, and then hurriedly added, "it doesn’t explain why I’m not wearing my underwear nor does it help me to remember where my underwear currently are."

"That’s funny," Kusanagi told her with suppressed amusement, and crossed his arms in front of him, "I thought it explained all too plainly the reason you’re not wearing your underwear," and when Momiji’s mortified gaze shot to his face he gave her a lecherous grin and uncrossed one arm to point lazily to the floor and say, "and that’s where your panties are," his eyes following her every movement as she rose on her knees and peered over the side of the bed. He watched her for a minute more, her body stiffening as he let his next words drop. "They’re right where you abandoned them, Princess."

"Abandoned?" she asked, "what do you mean, abandoned?" A tremor of alarm ran through her at the sly look on his face. She took an immediate dislike to the turn in the direction of their conversation.

"You know," he sighed, the hint of regret in his tone belied by the wolfish smile on his face, "this would be so much easier if only you could remember… but since you can’t, perhaps it’s best if we leave it at that –"

"What!? No!" Momiji desperately inserted, leaning in his direction, still on her knees. "I need to know!"

It was beginning to get lighter outside now, some of which was filtering into the room making it so that Kusanagi could once again trace the curves of Momiji’s body through the thinness of her gown. His body’s response was immediate, tightening uncomfortably as his eyes flitted downwards and threatened to remain fixated upon her breasts and the curve of her hips. But he clamped down on his desire and refused to give in to the temptation, reminding himself that now was not a good time…

Disappointment screamed through him and he sought to relieve it by telling himself that while he might not have time to indulge his body, he at least still had time enough to indulge his mind and finish teasing Momiji. Turning his thoughts back to her and seeing her intensely interest focused on him, he allowed a helpless expression to flit across his face.

"Are you sure that you want me to tell you?" he asked in feigned uncertainty, his eyebrows soaring over his eyes as he kept his gaze pinned steadily to her face.

Momiji took one look at his hesitant expression and her dread reached new heights. Her heart hammering heavily in her throat, she took a long swallow and thought. Did she really want to hear what had happened between them last night, knowing that besides the possibility of him telling her that they had slept together, he might also bring up the fact that she had told him that she loved him, while he had told her… nothing? Was finding out the current status of her virginity worth such a risk?

Yes! - No! Oh, lord, she didn’t know!

Shutting out the conflicting voices beginning to clamor in the back of her mind, Momiji finally gave a little nod and waited with baited breath for Kusanagi to speak.

"You’re absolutely certain –" he began to ask again, but was interrupted by her edgy outburst.

"Yes, Kusanagi!" she shouted at him, her need to know outstripping the remainder of her patience.

Kusanagi smiled at her reaction, which he hid from her by walking over to the closet to grab a clean shirt.

"All right then," he replied calmly, and then added in a considering way as he pulled a shirt from the closet, "Where to start… well, I guess I would have to say that… things were a bit – wild last night, to say the least –"

"Wild?" Momiji echoed, her voice rising in faint surprise.

"- You know, you really shouldn’t drink, Princess," Kusanagi informed her over his shoulder in wry amusement as he slipped the black t-shirt over his head before turning back in her direction, "not only does it make the bottom of your feet go numb, but it apparently sends your sex drive spiraling out of control as well – "

"My…sex drive?" she squeaked, her green eyes staring at him like she was afraid he’d turned rabid.

By now, Kusanagi had almost forgotten his earlier physical disappointment, thoroughly enjoying the picture he was painting for her, and so he enthusiastically continued as if she had never said a word, his explanation becoming more outrageous by the minute. "Yes, your sex drive," he confirmed and at her blank look, clarified it by adding, "you know, your libido – your sexual appetite –"

"I know what a sex drive is, Kusanagi," she hastily interrupted him with a grimace, "I’m just not sure if –"

"Yes, I know," he cut in with a lecherous grin, his voice rising above hers before he added, "and you more than proved it last night too!"

"Wh- what?" she gasped weakly, crawling towards the edge of the bed on her knees, but stopping after a few inches when her gown was snagged beneath her, halting her movement. "Just what do you mean by that?" she asked him, an inkling of suspicion beginning to rise in the back of her mind when she saw his smile. Something about this just wasn’t right, she thought. He was enjoying this way too much!

"I simply mean, that you were so – er, incredibly… uninhibited… that you practically ripped your panties right off –" he informed her gleefully.

There was a moment of unbroken silence while Kusanagi awaited with great anticipation, Momiji’s reaction. And when it came, he found it highly satisfying.

"I…did…WHAT!?" Momiji demanded, her mouth hanging open, beyond shocked, not sure if he was serious.

"Yes," Kusanagi nodded in affirmation, and then added a shade too idly, "that was my reaction as well. I hadn’t expected you to do such a thing - that was why I was unable to stop you. – But after the panties, I realized that you weren’t yourself and so I was able to keep you from ripping your gown off as well – "

"WHAT!?" she screeched in disbelief, still on her knees and yanking at the hem of her gown, trying to hobble forwards, almost making it to the edge before she had to stop again. She was beginning to suspect that he was lying because Momiji was pretty certain that she would NEVER do something like that –

"But that’s when I knew you were serious," he inserted, the look on his face becoming a trifle smug.

"Serious? Serious about what?" Momiji asked sharply, her eyes glued to the suspect look on his face as he propped against the closet door, his arms once again folded across his chest, watching her struggle with her gown.

"About your proposition to me," he informed her and watched her jaw become unhinged once more.

"My proposition? What proposition!?" Momiji finally made it off the bed and slowly walked towards him.

She ignored her panties for now and eyed him with patent distrust, which quickly transformed into irritation when she saw the feline smile that inched across his face. Now she knew for certain that he was toying with her - the fat head! It was written all over his face – and, like the idiot that she was, she had almost fallen for it, too!

"I’m sure you don’t need me to spell it out for you, Princess," he remarked dismissively, his eyes never leaving her face as she cautiously advanced towards him, a beautiful green fire beginning to kindle in her eyes.

"No," she contradicted in a quietly seething way, and then, curious as to how far he would go with his tale, waved her hand towards him and invited, "go ahead… spell it out for me. Just how exactly did I proposition you?"

Kusanagi gave her a considering look and knew that she was onto him, but he didn’t care. This was far too entertaining to stop now, and so he gave her a sly grin and asked as she came to a stop in front of him, "Are you sure you want to know?"

"More than anything," she assured him fervently.

"Okay," he replied resolutely, "but don’t say I didn’t try to warn you."

"I’ll keep it in mind," she muttered with a frown and waited impatiently for him to continue.

"You know… it’s rather difficult to find the right words -" he began.

"I’m sure you’ll manage," she muttered sourly as he continued speaking.

"- without sounding a bit crude, so I’ll just come right out and say it, how’s that?" and after a nod from her, blurted out, "you asked me to take you last night."

Momiji couldn’t help it. Her body stiffened in shock, not quite believing that he would dare say such a thing and found herself repeating that four-letter word that seemed to constantly be on the tip of her tongue this morning. "WHAT!?" Shock and outrage mingled in her voice as she stared up into Kusanagi’s mischievous face.

" – I couldn’t believe it –" he went right on going, not bothering to hesitate even as she began speaking at the same time, no longer willing to sit quietly and listen to his outrageous explanation.

"There is NO WAY –" she began passionately.

"You actually threw yourself at me –" he continued with relish, his voice rising above her softer one.

"- that I– " Momiji cut in, refusing to let the strength of his voice overpower hers.

"- and you demanded that we have hot… steamy… SEX –" he was thoroughly enjoying himself now, watching the furious color begin to spill into Momiji’s face at his emphasis on the word ‘sex".

"- would EVER say – " she declared emphatically, her temper flaring as she watched Kusanagi’s smile become even bigger as he witnessed her embarrassment.

" – you know," he added for extra measure, as even her ears became red, "WILD… JUNGLE…LOVE!"

"- such COMPLETE and UTTER… CRAP!!!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, her chest heaving indignantly so that Kusanagi finally let his eyes slide downwards to glance hungrily at her before forcing himself to look away and back up at her face.

Kusanagi’s chuckle was a bit strained and he gave her a crooked smile, "… So you’re not willing to buy that, eh, Princess?"

"Kusanagi!" she gritted out between her teeth and took a step closer to him, her hands fisted by her sides, "I think – I’m going – to KILL YOU!"

She launched herself at him and he laughed. Before she could do any serious damage, however, Momiji found herself caught in his arms as they came up and encircled her, pulling her into a close embrace that immediately took all of the wind out of her sails. It was impossible for her to stay mad at him, she thought peevishly. Especially when he held her like this. Her cheek was pressed against the softness of his shirt and she heard his voice rumble in her ear as he brought a hand up to her hair and slowly ran it down it’s silky length.

"Little idiot," he said softly, using his other hand to put a finger beneath her chin and lift it upward so that he could look into her eyes. "You don’t remember anything, Momiji, because nothing happened last night."

"But what about my underwear – " she began and he interrupted her.

"That was entirely my fault," he told her with a wry twist to his lips, his thumb gently stroking against her cheek, "it should never have happened," and then when he saw the sudden stricken look in her eyes quickly added, "- but not for the reasons that your thinking. Momiji – " he stopped, feeling awkward, and then finally managed, "- about last night… we need to have a talk – "

Momiji’s stomach clenched in knots, and she pulled away from him to look into his face. His expression told her nothing, so she turned away from him, suddenly feeling vulnerable and exposed. Her eyes lit on the panties lying on the floor and she started towards them while he continued speaking in uncomfortable accents.

"But not right now. There is something that I need to do this morning. It shouldn’t take me long," he told her slowly, an idea forming in his mind as he watched her move towards her underwear. He stepped in her direction then, carefully gauging her movements as he continued speaking. "I want you to wait for me here, and then when I get back – " he stopped speaking as she bent to retrieve the silk panties and closed in. His timing had to be just right. "Here," he offered helpfully, making his move, "let me get those for you."

Moving swiftly, he bumped into her rear end causing her to stumble forward, and then he reached down and yanked at the silk as hard as he could, knowing that they were caught under Momiji’s foot. There was a sharp rending sound as he pulled them free and he watched Momiji straighten and spin around, a look of dismay on her face as she gazed at the panties he held in front of her, now torn apart.

Success! He thought exultantly doing his best to keep his face devoid of any expression.

"Oh, no!" Momiji groaned and took the silk from his fingers, looking at the irreparable damage done to fragile material.

"I’m sorry, Momiji," Kusanagi murmured, truly feeling a pang of remorse at the look on her face.

"No," she mumbled, "it’s not your fault – I’m just so clumsy," she explained.

Kusanagi didn’t say anything, but now he felt like a heel. He would make it up to her, he vowed to himself, but not now. Right now, he needed to be in Ise. He took a step towards her and called her name, drawing her attention back to him for the moment.

"It’s getting late, and I need to go now, Momiji, but I want you to stay here," he reiterated, his eyes solemn as he looked at her, "until I get back. I need to talk to you. It’s important."

Momiji’s eyes flitted across Kusanagi’s face, looking for anything that might offer her a small ray of hope, but she could still find nothing. Again she began to panic, worrying that he hadn’t been ready to hear her confession and that in telling him she had made a grievous error.

"But I have to go pick up Noa," she protested weakly, thinking of ways to try and delay their ‘talk’.

"Wait for me to come back," he repeated insistently, "and we’ll go together."

Seeing his look of determination, she knew that she could not delay the inevitable and so she nodded numbly. That seemed to satisfy him, and after one, more, hard look at her, he turned to go. He bade her goodbye as he strolled through the door and she responded weakly, still standing glued to the spot, too caught up in her worries to even bother asking where he was going.