Ai Yori Aoshi Fan Fiction ❯ Necessary Evil ❯ Necessary Evil - Intervention ( Chapter 9 )

Chapter 9: Intervention

Tae-chan hummed as she wiped the window glass clean before giving it one more check to make sure it was streak-free. It had been a week since the group returned from the beach trip, and it was nearly graduation time; well, for Kaoru anyway. She and Tina had another year to go before they would be up for graduation. Stepping over to the next window, the girl sprayed some glass cleaner on it and began to wipe it down.

"Aoi-chan! Miyabi-san!" came a call from below. "I'm home!" called Kaoru. Speak of the devil. Thought Taeko happily.

"They went out to town to get some things, Kaoru-sempai!" she called back from upstairs. A few moments later, she heard him walking up the stairs. Pushing her glasses back up, she glanced over and saw him round the corner. "Welcome home, Kaoru-sempai!" she said cheerfully.

"Thanks, Tae-chan." He said in return, stepping over to her and kissing her lightly on the lips. Tae-chan giggled as he leaned back from the kiss. "Any idea where Tina-chan went?" he wondered. Turning back to the window she was cleaning, the girl shook her head.

"No, Kaoru-sempai." She answered. "She said something about a stop on the way home, but nothing else. Is something wrong?" she wondered.

"No." answered Kaoru before pausing. "Well, no more so than any time that crazy girl goes off somewhere unsupervised, that is." He joked. Tae-chan joined him in laughing at the taller girl's expense.

"True." Allowed the maid. Finishing the window she was on, she stepped to the next one. "So, anything new?" asked the girl, reaching for the bottle of window cleaner.

"No. All they did was talk about the graduation ceremony coming up at the end of next month." He shrugged. Not feeling the bottle hooked into her apron string, she looked down to discover it was gone. Before she could panic, she heard Kaoru squirt some cleaner on the window. "Let me give you a hand with this." He offered. She smiled up at him.

"Thank you, Kaoru-sempai." She beamed. Standing on her tiptoes, she began to wipe the glass clean. Moving behind the girl, Kaoru took her waist in a firm grip to steady her. Nodding her thanks, she worked her way down the glass. Kaoru kept his hands on her waist as she moved to the bottom of the window. Not that I mind in the least! She thought happily.

For his part, Kaoru was liking the feel of her waist in his hands. During the trip, he had managed to live on an average of five hours sleep a night, and had slept with all the girls at least twice each. Except the one I want most. He reminded himself. Still, we did get some time alone. He grinned at the memory of those times. Even if we couldn't have intercourse, we did manage to do everything else! His dick snapped erect at the memory of his and his Aoi-chan's times together.

Against her rear, she felt his arousal. Biting her lip, she slowly pushed her rear against his groin, hoping he would take the hint. God, I'm always so horny before my period! she thought to herself. With two weeks to go, she had been in near-constant arousal, especially whenever she was near Kaoru. Something about him just makes me hot. She began to wiggle her hips against his stiff member. A gasp escaped her as she felt his arms snake around her waist and cup her breasts.

"Something you want to tell me, Tae-chan?" he whispered in her ear, his tone humorous. She blushed a bit as she leaned back against his chest. Turning her head, she felt him lean into her for another kiss. When they broke, the maid was panting. Gently squeezing her breasts, he felt her thick nipples become hard, her entire areola puffing up.

"Aah." She moaned softly, the rag falling from her grasp. Looking over, she saw that there were no more windows on that hallway. "Do you…want me?" she asked him. In reply, she felt his hand go from her breast to her waist, then down her leg until it ran into skin. Once there, it came back up, under her skirt. "Mmm" she hummed as his hand reached her panties. Trailing his fingertips along the waistband of her cotton panties, he soon found what he was feeling for.

"Horny?" he teased her, touching the small battery pack for the mini-vibrator doubtlessly tucked deeply into her. Silently, she nodded. His fingers slipped down to lightly rub the front of her panties, which were already damp from her lust. "How long do you think we have?" he asked her softly.

"D…don't know. Aoi-sama and Miyabi-san shouldn't be back for a while." She said, feeling her pussy grow wetter. "What about Tina-sempai?" she asked, her tone a bit rough with her desire. Kaoru shrugged.

"No idea." He said, moving his hand to caress her ass. "Think we should risk going to one of our rooms?" he asked her, gently pinching her nipple through her top. Tae-chan fleetingly considered that, but decided it would be too far to walk. Grabbing his hand, she tugged him around the corner and through a door into the linen closet. Closing the door, she turned to him.

"I can't wait that long." She breathed, reaching back to untie her uniform. Within moments, her uniform was crumpled at her feet, leaving her naked except for a relatively thin bra, small, tight panties, her white socks and house shoes. Kaoru smiled as he took in her hard nipples, wet panties and the small battery pack tucked into the waistband of her panties. Reaching out, he unsnapped her bra, letting her large tits burst free.

Grabbing her hands, he guided them to his pants as he fastened his lips to her right nipple, his fingers caressing her free nipple as she got to work on his pants. Flicking her hard nipple with his wet tongue as his fingers rolled her other nip, he smiled as she moaned hotly. God, she tastes good! He thought, sucking on her nipple. Switching nipples, he felt her hands succeed in freeing his cock, which she immediately began to caress. Moving his hands down her body, he stroked her hips momentarily before hooking his thumbs under her panties and tugging them off.

As the girl wiggled her legs to shake the panties onto the floor, her mini-vibrator's power pack fell to hang a bit below her knees from the cord that disappeared into her drooling pussy. Easing back from her tits, which were covered in drool, he smiled as he saw the battery pack swinging minutely. "Have you been wearing that all day?" he asked her, touching her bare pussy and feeling how hot and wet she was.

"Most of it." Said the girl softly, her cheeks coloring a bit. "It's one of my favorite ones." She whispered guiltily. Catching her hands as she reached for it, he guided them back to his chest. Seeing her look, he smiled at her.

"Allow me." He said, reaching down to take a firm grip on the cord. Slowly, he pulled on the slick cord, seeing it begin to slid out of her sheath. As it did, he heard a slight buzzing sound. Tae-chan gasped and shivered as a smallish bulb came clear of her, along with a squirt of her juice. Kaoru frowned as he saw the pink cord went through the bulb and back into her sex. "Tae-chan…?" he began.

"It's um…double-headed." She said, knowing what he was going to ask her. Shrugging to himself, he kept pulling. A short distance later, a second, slightly larger bulb pulled free. Now holding the vibrator in his hand by the middle of the cord, he noticed that Taeko had had half of the device in her pussy. "Just how deep was this?" he wondered, feeling his lust rise a bit.

"I…keep it against my cervix." She admitted, stroking his dick a bit faster. Kaoru knew that he would cum soon. Figuring that it would be easier to cum in her, he pulled her to him by looping an arm around her hips and pulling her to him. Kissing her passionately, he broke the kiss as he turned her to face a shelf of towels. Pushing on her back, he bent her over. As soon as she realized what he wanted, she got settled, spreading her legs and getting a good grip on the shelf.

With his lover ready, he lined up and buried himself in her to the hilt in one shove. Prior experience with her had taught him that she liked it when he did that. For all of her size-queen tendencies, she was still pleasantly tight down there. When he had asked her about it months ago, she had told him that she had read a book about exercises and tried them, finding that she could keep herself tight and still be stretched enough to use her larger toys.

With a steady rhythm established, he grabbed her hips and began to gain momentum and speed. As he grabbed her hips, he felt the buzzing bulbs brush his thigh. Glancing down, he saw that he still clutched the small vibrator in his hand. He also saw something that gave him an idea. Fumbling with the slick device, he managed to get a hold of the thing between the bulbs, and brought it to her clit from under the side of her hip. When the vibrating bulb touched her erect clit, Tae-chan had squealed in delight, her pussy flooding with slick juice.

With his other hand, he eased her ass cheeks apart and began to tease her puckered rear door. Tae-chan went nuts with pleasure, and less than fifteen seconds later, she went still, her body trembling as she came. That was fast. Blinked the young man. Panting, Tae-chan hung her head to recover. As she did so, another idea came to him. Pulling the slick toy from her drooling snatch, he moved it around to her anus and touched the dripping, slick bulb to her back passage. "Oh, God!" mewed Tae-chan, her entire pussy contracting on his dick. "Yes! Right there!" she begged, twitching her hips.

Granting her wish, he pushed the bulb a bit harder against her anus and felt her go wild again. He had been hesitant to try anything serious with any of his lovers in regard to anal sex, though Tae-chan and Miyabi seemed comfortable enough with the idea. Worried that he might do something wrong, he had shied away from any real experimenting, an occasional touch his only foray in the area. Now, he was curious if Tae-chan would like it if he went a bit farther. Increasing the pressure a bit, he flinched as the bulb popped inside her back door, her sphincter clenching closed after it. "Kaoru-sempai!" whimpered the maid, going into another orgasm.

The sight of the girl's ass swallowing the toy was more than he could take, and his ball sack tightened, warning him that he was about to blow. Slamming into her as deeply as he could, he blew his load into her, panting from the effort as several jets bathed her insides in semen. Once he was done, he leaned forward to rest against her back. "Tae-chan, that was awesome." He said to her, feeling warm and happy. She hummed in agreement. Minutes passed. From below, they heard the sound of someone open the main door, followed by Tina's shouting.

Quickly straightening, the two swiftly began to dress. Kaoru looked at his softened dick, covered with their cum. Grimacing, he started to tuck it back into his shorts, but Tae-chan stopped him. "Here, let me." She said, reaching out and wiping his dick off with her panties. Once he was reasonably clean, she tucked him back into his pants and zipped him up. Looking up at him, she smiled. "Better?" she asked.

"Much." He said. "But what about you?" he wondered, indicating the cum-soaked panties. Tae-chan shrugged. "Not a big deal." She said. "I'll slip out and get cleaned up while you keep Tina-sempai distracted." Reaching back, she was about to pull the bulb out of her rear when Kaoru stopped her.

"Leave that in." he suggested/ordered. Blinking, Tae-chan released the cord. "And let's do this, too." Said Kaoru, taking the second bulb and easing it into her messy cunt. As the second bulb lodged in her passage, she shivered. Smiling, Kaoru looked up at her. "Good?" he asked her. Mutely, she nodded.

Swiftly, she stepped into her wet panties and pulled them up, reaching for her bra. Kaoru snagged it and held it out of her immediate reach. Getting the idea, she stepped into her uniform and quickly got it settled, her breasts clearly unrestrained and her nipples hard. Hearing Tina moving up the stairs, the two swiftly exited the linen closet and were innocently talking as they approached the head of the stairs as Tina rounded the corner.

"Hey, guys!" she said cheerfully. "When's dinner?"

"In about an hour, Tina-sempai." Said Tae-chan. "Aoi-sama and Miyabi-san should be back about then." She noted. Tina blinked.

"Landlady-sama and Manager-san went out?" she wondered. Both of her classmates nodded.

"What's so surprising about that?" wondered Kaoru. Tina shrugged.

"Just never pictured Landlady-sama as the shopping type, I guess." She said dismissively. Stepping between the two, she draped an arm over Kaoru's shoulders and snaked one under Tae-chan's arm, groping her breasts. "So, who's up for a drink?" she asked, a gleam in her eyes.

-

"So, what did the doctor say, Aoi-sama?" asked Miyabi as the two of them pulled out of the private office of a local doctor that the Sakuraba's had retained to see to their daughter's health. Aoi had been scheduled to see her for her bi-annual checkup, so she and Miyabi had gone to take care of that while the others were at school. Unfortunately, they had been delayed, and it was now almost supper time.

"She said that everything was fine." Answered Aoi. "Next visit, I'm supposed to have some blood work done." She added, frowning. The young girl disliked needles. "And she said she's going to refer me to an ob-gyn."

"A gynecologist?" wondered Miyabi. "What for?" she asked. Aoi shook her head.

"I don't know." She answered truthfully. "I can't imagine needing to get examined, as I am not yet sexually active."

"I see." Mused Miyabi. Someone is putting pressure on the family, I just know it! She thought, making a note to check her email. Her attention was diverted by Aoi's voice.

"How was your check-up?" asked the younger girl of her governess. Miyabi smiled.

"I am perfectly healthy, Aoi-sama." She said. Very healthy, in fact! And now, I can stop worrying about taking those damned pills! She mentally gloated, absently touching her right inner forearm. A small, faint bump was there. Among other things, she had finally gotten the doc to get her set up with an implant. Not that she would tell Aoi, as that would be rubbing her activities with the girl's fiancé in her face; something that Miyabi would never do, no matter how fine Aoi seemed with it.

From there, the talk turned to trivial things, and when they arrived home a half hour later, Aoi had her menu for the week planned, as well as having organized her housework into an easy schedule. Once she had outlined the plans for the week to Tae-chan, she had happily set to work on dinner for her family, humming as she daydreamed of when she could openly call her Kaoru-sama `husband'.

-

Tina frowned and checked the indicator yet again. The message was still the same. Grimacing, she carefully wrapped the small wand in toilet paper before burying it deeply it the trash can in the bathroom the three rooms in the servants' quarters shared. "What's the hold up?" she growled to herself, washing her hands yet again. Finishing up, she dried her hands on her towel as she looked at herself in the mirror. A beautiful girl looked back at her, much as she always did.

"Well, maybe next month." She whispered as she exited the bathroom. At this rate, that little bitch might get him first! She thought angrily, picturing the small, dark-purple haired Mayu in her mind. That she had managed to steal her Kaoru from her for a night of sex while they had been at the beach was painfully clear to the American girl. It infuriated her to think of the smug, satisfied smile that the little whore had worn for the rest of the week as she constantly managed to get herself close enough to Tina's guy to cling to his side.

"Fucking tramp!" she bit out.

"What was that, Tina-sempai?" came Tae-chan's voice from behind her, making her flinch.

"Ah, um…nothing, Tae-chan!" laughed Tina weakly. "Just talking to myself." She added, trying for a bit of defensive misdirection. Seeing the girl studying her closely, she frowned. "What is it, Tae-chan?" she asked suspiciously. "Did I forget my shorts or something?" she wondered, glancing down to make sure she had put her shorts and panties back on. Seeing less of them than she was used to, she frowned.

"Um, have you been gaining weight, Tina-sempai?" wondered Tae-chan, ever direct. Tina's left eye twitched.

"Just what are you saying, missy?" she challenged the shorter girl. "Are you calling me fat?" Taeko held up her defensively.

"No! Of course not!" she denied. "Your clothes just seemed a bit tighter than before, that's all!" she explained. Tina frowned.

"Well, I haven't gained any weight." She muttered, moving toward the main house. Wasn't there a scale in the master bath? She wondered. Curious, Tae-chan followed her. Passing the living room, the short procession caught Aoi and Kaoru's attention, the two rising from the couch where they had been sitting side-by-side, holding hands stealthily. Passing Miyabi on the way down, Kaoru had quirked an eyebrow at the two in front of himself and Aoi. Miyabi fell into line behind Aoi.

Entering the bathroom, Tina spotted the scale and stepped on, watching the readout. "What?" she muttered, sounding a bit concerned. "Can't be right." She added. Her face lit up. "Of course!" she exclaimed, tugging off her shirt, followed by her shorts and socks, leaving her in her bra and panties. From the doorway, the four watched her.

Once more stepping on the scales, Tina waited for the readout to steady. "What?" she asked, shocked. "No way!" she whined. Swiftly, her bra and panties landed on the floor. Seeing the readout, she whimpered. "Kaoru!" she bellowed. "This thing's broken!" she wailed disconsolately.

"Broken?" asked the group as one. Stepping into the room, Tae-chan frowned as Tina turned, nearly in tears, and glommed onto Kaoru, who had turned to look away from the naked woman. Trying to keep from leering at her shapely form for the sake of appearances, he managed to get her to put her shirt back on at least. Meanwhile, Tae-chan had stepped onto the scale.

"Looks right to me." She said, stepping off.

"It's not right, Tae-chan!" protested Tina, still clinging to Kaoru. "It's broken!" she accused once more, burying her head in Kaoru's shoulder. Tae-chan stepped onto the scale one more time. Shaking her head, she shrugged, stepping off.

"No idea what she's talking about." She offered to Miyabi, who had stepped over to look at the readout. Seeing that it was zeroed properly, she stepped onto the scale herself, frowning at the number.

"Tina-chan, this scale is correct." She said, stepping off before Kaoru's curious eyes could read her weight. Much as I'd like to say it wasn't, that's what I weigh. She thought. Tina turned to her last hope.

"Landlady-san!" she begged, "You believe me, right?" she wheedled. Silently, Aoi stepped onto the scale. Looking at the numbers, she thoughtfully stepped off.

"It seems to be correct." She offered sympathetically to the blonde.

"No!" sobbed Tina into Kaoru's shoulder. "It can't be correct!" she whined. "There's no way that I could have gained fifteen pounds in six months!" she denied. Tae-chan covered her mouth. Miyabi looked away, and Aoi's eyes opened just a bit wider. Seeing the reactions of the girls, Tina angrily stomped her foot. "It's not funny!" she fumed.

"You have been eating a lot more than usual." Noted Kaoru.

"And you aren't taking any PE classes this semester." Added Tae-chan.

"And Aoi-sama's cooking is far better than what you have been living on for the last couple of years." Offered Miyabi diplomatically.

"I'm sure that it's just stress from school." Soothed Aoi. "It will go away once you pass your mid-terms. Besides, you are still beautiful." She coaxed the girl. Tina straightened, her face taking on a determined look.

"Damn right it will come off!" she said angrily. "Starting tomorrow, I'm going to exercise until it's gone!" she vowed.

"Perhaps Miyabi-san can help." Said Aoi. "She is a certified fitness instructor." She explained. Seeing Tina's interest, Miyabi nodded.

"I am a trained aerobic instructor, as well as a personal fitness instructor." She confirmed. "I would be happy to help you, if you so desire." She offered. Anything for my Aoi-sama.

"Really?" chimed in Tae-chan. "Could I join in as well?" she asked eagerly. "I'm a little stiffer than usual, so some stretching and exercise would do me good."

"What's one more?" mused Miyabi. Glancing at Kaoru, she smiled a warm smile. "Do you wish to join us as well, Kaoru-dono?" she asked, her tone light and teasing. Smiling, he shook his head.

"Thanks, but I'll pass." He declined the offer. "I've got my finals and have to prepare for my bar exam, so I'm pretty busy." He explained.

"True, your studies are vital." She mused softly, remembering the importance of his getting a good job with a respectable firm. If he is to wed Aoi-sama, he must be employed with an excellent firm, or the Sakurabas will be trouble. Looking at Tina and Tae-chan, she considered the two. "Join Aoi-sama and myself in the sun room tomorrow morning at five forty five am." She directed. "Do you have exercise clothes?" she asked them.

-

"Tina-sempai, are you sure you want to skip lunch?" asked Tae-chan as she settled next to Kaoru on their usual bench in the campus quad. Tina sat beside Kaoru. It was a nice day, and Kaoru and Tae-chan had their usual Aoi-made bentos. Tina had asked Aoi not to make her one, as she was losing the extra weight. Still, when Kaoru cracked the top of his, and the wonderful smell of Aoi's cooking hit her, her stomach growled like a starving tiger.

"Are you sure…?" began Kaoru, aware that Aoi had slipped a spare bento into his bag for just this emergency. Tina waved his concern off.

"I'm fine, really!" she said, her stomach rumbling as Tae-chan bit into a rice-and-salmon ball.

"On a diet, chubby?" came a sharp voice from beyond Tina. The young woman didn't have to look to know who was talking. "Trying to loose the tonnage?" taunted the voice.

"Oh, if it isn't the little street walker." Snarled Tina, slowly standing before turning to glare at the small, lithe girl who was smirking up at her. Mayu - as always - was done out in a very expensively-made business ensemble, and looked absolutely perfect. The fact that her figure was perfect under those clothes was not lost on Kaoru.

"You know, you'll loose those breasts before the gut." Taunted Mayu, slipping past her fuming rival to meld herself to Kaoru's side. "But then, Americans like beer bellies, don't they?" she sniped.

"That's odd." Muttered Tae-chan. Kaoru glanced at her.

"What's odd?" he asked her.

"When I eat, only my breasts get bigger." She noted, absently touching her large mammaries. Both Mayu and Tina glared at her hatefully.

"Poor baby!" snarled Tina, her voice thick with mock sympathy.

"Maybe you should join the blonde baka on her diet." Sniped Mayu, feeling inadequate in the chest when she was near the cheerful maid. Kaoru frowned.

"Mayu, Tina." He said, his tone slightly disapproving. Both sighed.

"Fine, whatever." Muttered Tina, turning away from the three on the bench with a disdainful sniff of dismissal. It's easier not to drool when I'm not looking at Landlady-san's food. She though grimly. She could, however, still smell the wonderful scent of the gourmet-level cooking. Her stomach grumbled again.

"Here." Came Kaoru's voice from behind her. Turning, she saw him holding out a rice ball to her. Seeing the look in his eyes, she gratefully accepted the light snack. Happily chowing down, she hummed in contentment. Mayu watched her eat with a skeptical look on her face.

"It can't be that good." She denied, reaching over to take a rice ball from Kaoru's bento. The young man didn't bother to protest, as he knew that he would giver her one if she wanted it, no matter how hard he tried not to. Why fight the inevitable? He philosophized to himself. Mayu bit into the treat. Chewing the perfectly done rice and fish, her eyes lit up.

"Hanabishi-sama, this is the best I've ever had!" she enthused. Kaoru smiled at her.

"Aoi-chan is a wonderful cook, isn't she?" he asked the young girl, daydreaming of his precious Aoi-chan. Mayu nodded enthusiastically.

"Hey! Do you think that she could teach me to cook, too?!" she asked Kaoru, even as she snagged another ball from his bento. Tina bared her teeth.

"Landlady-san is too busy to waste her time with a rude little girl like you, Mayu!" she spat. Mayu shot to her feet, the top of her head coming up to Tina's collarbone.

"Oh, really?" she challenged hotly. "She has time to care for a gaijin bitch, but none to teach me to cook? Ha! I don't believe you!" the small girl went on angrily. Kaoru and Tae-chan exchanged resigned looks. And once more, the main event. Thought Kaoru, handing his bento to Tae-chan to hold while he played peacemaker. Watching him work his magic on the two rivals, Taeko absently finished off all his food.

-

"Ah!" gasped Aoi as Kaoru's tongue lapped against her clit. Smiling as he worked, the young man ran his oral muscle over her sensitive button again. "Kaoru-sama!" pleaded the short-haired girl. Deciding that he should be nicer to her, he carefully began to work on her soaked petals, being very careful not to disturb her maidenhood.

The two were in her room, Aoi naked and on her back in her bed, Kaoru naked as well as he knelt between her legs, his face in her groin as he did one of the few things that they could do without risking their future. Over the time that Kaoru had been `practicing' with the other girls, he had discovered a lot about technique and timing, much to the collective approval of all the girls. Though there was nothing the two lovers wanted more than to consummate their engagement, they had agreed that they would wait until they were properly engaged - and that meant that Aoi's family accepted his engagement to her - before they crossed that final line. Aoi had emotionally sworn to hold herself in trust for him, a declaration that had made him feel guilty about the other girls.

Right now, those thoughts were a lifetime away from them both, as the two love birds were able to loose themselves in each other. For the last hour, they had been petting each other and engaging in every conceivable means of enjoying each other's bodies short of breaking her cherry, and by now, Aoi had cum at least a dozen times. Still, Kaoru wanted one or two more for her.

Sliding his fingers along her entrance and inside her passage until they barely brushed her hymen, he worked her toward another orgasm, loving the soft cries and panting of his intended bride. His dick was hard and begging to plunge into her, but he found it oddly easy to ignore that burning desire when he was focused on giving his lover such ecstasy. Going for broke, he tickled her anus with his pinky and heard her mew in imminent release. "Kaoru-sama." She breathed raggedly as her body shook. Against his tongue, he felt her grow even wetter and lapped up as much as he could like a kitten laps up cream.

Satisfied that he had gotten her off yet again, he moved up from between her legs, wiping his face with his hand as he lay down beside her. She was still panting and her eyes were clouded over with bliss as she rode the last of the orgasm for all it was worth. Idly waiting for her to come to her senses again, he cupped her modest chest in his hands and began to rub them lightly. Presently, he felt her hand touch his arm. "Welcome back, Aoi-chan." He said, glancing at her face and seeing bright, clear smile.

"I wish I could give you all of me, Kaoru-sama, but I cannot; at least, not right now." She said, leaning over to him and kissing him passionately. The first time or three that he had eaten her out, he had made sure to wash his face before kissing her, but when she caught him doing that, she had objected, saying that as his wife-to-be, it was her place to care for him. She had shocked him to the core by licking her juice from his face. Her face had been hot enough to make him sweat a bit while she did it, but he had found it powerfully arousing to feel her licking her own cum off his face. Since then, she had made it clear that she had absolutely no inhibitions when it came to him. Breaking the long kiss, her hands slipped down to caress his member. "How would you like me to relieve you?" she asked him intently, watching him for any indication of how he wished to use what he could of her body.

Though still new to the game of sex, Aoi had managed to gain skill in blowjobs at a surprising rate, and she would try absolutely anything he wanted. The two had, in fact, done damn near everything except anal. For some reason, Kaoru felt too embarrassed to even mention it to the demure and modest Aoi, whom he was sure would be offended by the suggestion. Besides, it's not like I've ever tried it. He mentally admitted. Still, being a bachelor for so long and having friends like Suzu and Saito, he had seen enough porn to have the idea in the back of his mind.

Pushing that thought aside, he realized that Aoi was still patiently waiting for him to decide how she could return the attention she had received over the last hour. As she waited, she gently and firmly stroked his member with her palms. A gentle smile graced her lips, and her eyes were soft and inviting. Reaching over to her, he pulled her to his chest, her head fitting neatly under his chin. "Mmm. This feels pretty good." He mused, enjoying her soft, warm body against his. Wrapping her arm around his back, she absently touched his scars.

"Do they feel any better?" she whispered to him, one hand still on his cock, which was just below her breasts.

"The scars?" he asked. Feeling her nod against him, he answered. "Yeah. They do feel better now. Each day, they feel a bit better." He said truthfully. "You really are healing them." He mused happily. Aoi felt her eyes tear up at his confession.

"And I will continue to heal them, Kaoru-sama!" she promised yet again. "As your betrothed, it is my right to care for you and heal you." She said, sounding oddly possessive. Even when he is with the others, he is MINE. She thought fiercely. Below and between her breasts, she felt his erection become slick with precum. "And right now, I want to do this." She said impishly, pulling back a bit to get enough room to reach the edge of the bed. Feeling around, she pulled up a small bottle of baby oil, opening it one handed and squirting some into her cupped palm.

Capping the small bottle, she titled her chest to the side and swiftly covered her breasts with a generous coating of baby oil before hugging herself to her lover once more, this time, her cheek was pressed to his midriff, his hard length between her slick mounds. Slowly at first, but rapidly gaining speed, she began to rub him with her oily breasts. Kaoru felt the slick touch of her breasts, and knew that he would blow pretty quickly. Six minutes that felt like six seconds later, he gasped, calling out "Aoi-chan!" as he blew his load over her chest, throat and part of her face. Aoi had tilted her head down for just that reason, as she knew that he found it arousing to see his cum on her face.

With both of them sweating from their play, they lay on their backs, side to side, as they rested, Aoi leaving his cum on her naked form. Minutes passed. Finally, Aoi spoke. "Kaoru-sama, have you shown your scars to any of the other girls?" she wondered. Silently, he shook his head.

"No. Not even Yabi-chan." He replied seriously. Aoi turned to look at him.

"Why?" she wondered. He frowned.

"It's not…they don't need to know about them." He said at last. "Only my Aoi-chan has a need - no, the right - to know about them." He elaborated. "Why ask?" he wondered.

"I was just wondering how they would respond to them." She said softly, relishing the feel of his warmth against her side.

"I don't think that they'd like them." He said slowly. "They're pretty hideous, Aoi-chan." He reminded her.

"I see." She said softly, smiling a bit smugly. Before they could delve deeper into the issue, a soft scratch came from the door to her room, followed a moment later by Miyabi opening the door.

"Pardon my interruption, Aoi-sama, Kaoru-dono." She said softly, kneeling just inside the door once she closed it. Though her eyes usually stayed on the floor, she kept peeking at the two. Both just smiled, their fingers interlaced. "Kaoru-dono, it's time." She said simply. He sighed heavily.

"Ok, Yabi-chan." He said, stretching a bit. "Back to the doghouse for me, I guess." He smiled at her.

"My apologies, Kaoru-dono." Said the governess, her tone genuinely regretful. "Please, do not think that I do this willingly." She added softly. Sitting up, the man felt Aoi brush her hand down his scarred back before handing him his shirt. He stayed facing Miyabi as he pulled it on, preventing her from seeing his scars. Standing, he stepped over to his hastily-discarded boxers. Miyabi watched his naked form lecherously.

When he was dressed, Miyabi opened the door for him, bowing as he exited Aoi's room - after a long and passionate goodnight kiss from the girl. Touching his arm, she signaled him to wait for her a moment. Soft words were exchanged with her charge, then Miyabi accompanied him to the front door. Before opening it for him, Miyabi had kissed him deeply as well. "My apologies, once more, Kaoru-dono." She said softly, opening the door for him.

"Don't sweat it, Yabi-chan." He assured her, stepping past her out the door. As he passed, he lightly pinched her taunt ass. Gasping, she mocked smacking him. Chuckling, he skipped back out of her range. "Good night, Yabi-chan." He said thoughtfully as she closed and locked the door behind him.

-

Humming to herself, Tae-chan collected the mail on her way into the main house. Sifting though it, she set the letters in their place, one stack for Aoi, one stack for Miyabi. Shifting though the rest of the mail, she tossed Tina's various magazines and catalogs onto school bag, to be dropped off that night when she went back to her room in the servant's quarters with Kaoru and Tina. Spotting a couple of letters for Kaoru in the stack, she scanned the return address and smiled as she recognized several of the companies as large, prestigious law firms.

"Well, looks like Kaoru-sempai is going to be a famous lawyer." She murmured to herself. A mauve envelope caught her eye, and seeing Kaoru's name on it, she couldn't resist turning it over to see who had sent him such a thing. "Of course." She muttered, giggling a little. It was from the Miyuki Group's Legal Affairs department. Mayu must be behind this one. She thought, setting it under a couple of the plain white envelops from the other law firms. Can't let Tina-sempai see that one!

Seeing that she was down to the last couple of items, she turned her attention back to the mail. Dropping two pieces of junk mail into the trash, she found herself looking at a plain brown manila envelope. Miyabi usually got things like this once a week or so, and she had stated to put in on the Manager's pile when she realized that her name was on the envelope. Frowning, she checked the name again. "Well, it's mine, all right." She mumbled, thoroughly confused.

Turning it over, she saw the rubber stamp of the mailroom of the station where her mother worked. Wonder what this is about? She thought, slipping her finger under the seal to tear it open. She had no more than started to tear the corner of the envelope when the front door opened to reveal Tina and Kaoru. "Tae-chan! What's for supper?" was Tina's traditional greeting. Kaoru shook his head.

"Very original, Tina." He muttered. "Welcome home, Tae-chan. Have you seen Aoi-chan or Miyabi-san?" he asked her. Silently, Tae-chan shook her head.

"Sorry, I just got here a few minutes before you two." She said, dropping the envelope into her bag. "I've got to change for work. Be back in a minute!" she called, grabbing her bag and hastening to her room to change into her maid's outfit. In the rush to get changed, the strange envelope was forgotten. When she returned to the main house, Tina was vegging in front of the TV, and Kaoru was nowhere to be seen. "Where's Kaoru-sempai?" she asked the American.

"Went to check on something." Answered Tina off-handedly. "He should be back soon." She added, her eyes never leaving the screen. The big-breasted maid sighed.

"Should have known not to bother asking." She said to herself. "Well, I'm going to start dinner, I guess." She said, moving toward the kitchen. "Aoi-san left the menu for tonight on the refridge, so I can start while I wait for her." She decided, entering the kitchen. Tina didn't notice that she had left, her eyes on the screen.

Meanwhile, Kaoru was upstairs, looking for his bride-to-be or Miyabi, either one. Both were supposed to have been home, but there was no sign of them. Maybe they went out on an errand or something. He thought, lightly knocking on Miyabi's door. "Miyabi-san?" he called, being careful not to say it too loudly and attract unwanted attention from Tina. "Yabi-chan?" he prompted, listening carefully. Hearing no reply, he checked the door and found it open. "I'm…coming in." he warned, pushing the door open and entering the room of his first lover.

Everything was neat and orderly, as it always was. Frowning a bit, he checked to make sure she wasn't standing on the small balcony outside her window, and when he confirmed that she wasn't, he thoughtfully moved out of her room, closing the door behind him as he made his way to his Aoi-chan's room. Lightly knocking on the door, he waited for any signs of movement or response from inside the young girl's room. "Aoi-chan? Are you in there?" he asked her. Receiving no reply, he cautiously opened her door.

As Miyabi's room had been, Aoi's room was meticulously neat and orderly. Glancing at her kimono rack, he noticed that it was empty, which meant that she was wearing her more formal kimono. Frowning a bit, he looked around the room, but nothing looked out of place or odd, so he decided that Miyabi and Aoi had probably just gone out for something.

That thought sparked an idea to confirm that, and grinning at his clever plan, he stepped out of his love's room, closed the door and jogged happily the hall to the stairs, descending them two at a time. Hanging a hard right at the bottom of the stairs, he moved behind the couch where Tina lay watching TV, moved through the dining room and patting Tae-chan's succulent ass as he quick-stepped past her, getting a naughty giggle from her.

Beyond the kitchen, he passed the pantry and opened the door that led to the attached garage. Sure enough, there was no shiny silver BMW there. "I was right." He said happily. "They just went out to run an errand." Greatly relived, he closed the door to the small garage and walked back toward the kitchen to see if he could help Taeko with anything.

-

Kaoru frowned as he pulled on his clothes for school. Aoi-chan and Yabi-chan didn't come home last night. He thought morosely. He, Tina and Taeko had waited until past midnight, but they didn't come home or call. It had made them all uneasy. An hour after dinner, Tina had suggested that he call her parents. It was a good idea, except for two things: her parents didn't approve of him at all, and more importantly, he didn't have any contact number for them.

"Miyabi-san was always the one that mediated for us." He muttered. Pulling his pack up from the side of his futon, he turned toward his door, only to have Tina toss it open.

"Kaoru, let's…!" she began before realizing that he was already ready. "Oh! Well, we're gonna miss the train if we don't hustle it up a bit." She announced, grabbing his arm and tugging him bodily out the door. At the house's gate, he spotted Tae-chan waving at them to hurry. Jogging to the train station, the three barely caught the train to school.

Most of the day was a blur, except for lunch. Opening his bento, he found fried rice and beef. Oh, yeah. Aoi-chan wasn't there to make our lunches. He suddenly remembered. Tina noticed the same thing. Seeing the slumped shoulders of her two friends, Tae-chan nervously scratched her head. "Um, sorry about that, guys!" she apologized. "This was the best I could do on short notice."

"No, it's fine, Tae-chan." Replied Kaoru, smiling at the younger girl. "Better than anything I could make, I promise!" Digging in, he discovered that it was quite good. Tina did likewise.

"A bit plainer than Landlady-san makes, but this kicks ass!" she said happily, working her chopsticks gustily. Her good humor didn't last long.

"It certainly couldn't be worse than what you consider `cooking', now could it?" came a snooty voice from behind the blonde girl. Tina bit one of her chopsticks in half.

"Mayu-chan, be nice." Chided Kaoru gently. Mayu sniffed dismissively.

"Only because you asked, Hanabishi-sama." She agreed truculently.

"It'd be a pity if you fell down some stairs." Snarled Tina. Mayu took a seat next to Tae-chan and opened her own deli lunch. Surveying the bentos of her Hanabishi-sama and the other two, she frowned.

"What happened to your usual food, Hanabishi-sama?" she wondered, clearly not considering the plain but good meal worthy of her Hanabishi-sama. "Is Aoi-san sick?" she wondered. Taking half her cold cut sandwich in hand, she offered it to Kaoru. "Here, have some of this. It's New York City-style cold cuts on rye." She explained. Before Kaoru could accept the offering, Tina's hand shot out and snatched the half-sandwich.

"Oh, really?" she taunted. "I'll be the judge of that, missy!" she said, sinking her teeth in the innocent food. In three angry bites, she finished the treat. Mayu gaped at her, her eyes afire with indignation. "Hump!" snorted Tina, taking a swig of her drink to wash the food down. "Good thing I took care of that for you, Kaoru." She said sagely. "The little slut used the wrong kind of mustard and the bread was cut too thick. Not to mention the ham was smoked, not roasted. And a Japanese girl like her might consider that turkey, but to me, it was closer to cardboard!" she viciously.

"You rude, thoughtless whore!" snarled the girl, her fist balled up. "You're the reason your country has such a shitty reputation!" she accused. Tina bared her teeth.

"Oh, so you want a history lesson, do you?" she said, standing. "How about we start with World War 2?!" Both girls seemed more than ready to settle it once and for all.

"How about we don't, Tina, Mayu-chan." Suggested Kaoru blandly. Both girls turned to him as one.

"But she started it!" they cried in unison. Kaoru sighed.

"I don't care who started it. We're not going to turn this into a brawl." He said sternly. This must be what it's like to be a parent. He thought tiredly. That thought immediately filled his head with a daydream of him and Aoi, cradling their first child. Aoi-chan'll be a perfect mother! He thought dreamily. Because he was daydreaming, it took a few moments for him to realize that Mayu was trying to ask him something. "Sorry, Mayu-chan, what was that?" he asked her, a bit embarrassed to be caught daydreaming.

"I asked if you would like me to get you a new meal." She said, cell phone in hand. "Ruka-san is only a couple of minutes from the store now, and I can have him get you something extra." She coaxed. "They make this really good hamburger there." She added enthusiastically.

Taeko perked up. "Do they make one like they serve in America? With cheese and vegetables and all?" she asked. Mayu nodded.

"Yeah, but that's called a cheese burger. Want one?" she asked, grinning at the maid. Taeko nodded.

"I've always wanted to try one." She said. Touching her pocket, she frowned. "But I don't have the spare money for it." She regretfully announced. Mayu just shook her head.

"It's on me today, Taeko-sempai." She graciously offered. Tae-chan head-bowed her thanks. Putting her cell phone to her ear, she added the request to her own order.

"In that case, get me a tuna and ham sub!" chimed in Tina. Mayu glared at her.

"So sorry, gaijin." She said with poisonous sweetness. "But I only treat my friends, not gutter trash." Tina's eyes narrowed.

"Now listen here, you sawed-off runt…!" she began.

"Tina." Said Kaoru. One word spoken in that tone was as good as a full reprimand.

"Fine!" she snapped, turning away from the others. Mayu stuck out her tongue at the taller girl spitefully until she felt Kaoru's eyes on her. Looking up at his expression, she sighed.

"Just this once." She muttered, relaying the change to Ruka. A moment of listening, and she ended the call. "Food will be here in fifteen minutes." She announced. Glancing at the clock, they saw that they had time. While they waited for the food to arrive, Kaoru's mind drifted back to thoughts of Aoi and the future.

-

Gasping, Kaoru shot upright in bed. Aoi hadn't been home when they got back, and it was beginning to freak them all out. No notes, no calls, no nothing. After a nervous night, they had gone to bed without much fanfare. As he slept, Kaoru had had a nightmare that Aoi had told him that she couldn't marry him and had walked away, ignoring his pleas for her to stay. Just like momma. He thought bitterly. Deciding that he need a glass of water, he started to get out of his futon.

As he swung his feet out from under the cover, his door opened unceremoniously and Tina and Tae-chan peeked in. "You ok in here, Kaoru?" asked the blonde. She was in a long tee shirt and nothing else, judging from the look of things. Tae-chan was in a nightie that came to her knees, her breasts seeming more impressive for being unconfined by a bra. Both looked good enough to pound all night. "You were making a lot of noise." Added the American, stretching.

"Were you having a bad dream?" wondered Tae-chan.

"Uh, yeah, I guess I was." He said cautiously, surreptitiously feeling to make sure his tee shirt covered his back. "Were you two still awake?" he wondered, glancing at the bedside clock. It was barely past one a.m.

"Well…" began Tina. Tae-chan glanced at her other sempai, then back to Kaoru.

"I couldn't sleep." She admitted. "Without knowing what's going on with Aoi-san and Miyabi-san…" she trailed off. Switching his gaze from the maid to the nut job, he raised an eyebrow in the dim illumination of the moonlight streaming in through his window.

"Um, me, too." She admitted.

"Guess we're all worried." He sighed. Standing, he moved toward the door. "I'm gonna grab a glass of water." He said, moving past them. He was two steps toward the bathroom when he realized that they were following him. "What?" he asked them. Neither said anything, just looking at the floor, the walls or the ceiling. "Well?" he prompted.

"Think we could…share a room?" asked Tae-chan, biting the bullet.

"We might sleep better." Suggested Tina weakly. Opening his mouth to say no, he re-considered the situation. Fuck it; we just might at that. He realized.

"Sure. Wanna a drink first?" he offered.

"Trying a bar pick-up line on us?" teased Tina half-heartedly. Tae-chan blushed a bit.

"And a pretty cheap one, too." She said softly, her smile a bit forced.

"Sorry. Give me a bit and I might be able to come up with a classier line." He apologized dryly. Getting a drink of water, he put the cup back and made his way back to his room. The girls followed silently. As he was about to lay down on the futon, it occurred to him that his futon wasn't big enough. Turning to the girls, he motioned to the futon. "Get comfortable." He invited them. "I'm gonna go get something to sleep on." He said.

"Here, let me help you." Said Tae-chan immediately. "We can get my futon and put it next to your futon." She suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." Agreed Kaoru. It was the work of only a few minutes to get her futon into his room. With her futon settled against his, the two found Tina in the center of his futon. Before either could speak, she pre-empted them.

"Tae-chan, get in the center of your futon." She directed.

"What about me?" asked Kaoru. Tina smiled.

"You go in the middle of us." She announced. Taeko smiled.

"That's an excellent idea, Tina-sempai!" she enthused. Insistently pushing Kaoru to the futon, she swiftly had him where they both wanted him, and moments later, he was surrounded by warm females on each side. Surprisingly, he drifted off to sleep rather quickly. And while it wasn't the most restful of sleeps, it was sleep, and they all got some.

-

Day two of no Aoi-chan and Kaoru was getting very uneasy about the whole thing. "They should have contacted me by now." He muttered, fidgeting nervously on the couch. "What could have happened?" he wondered. Beside him, Tina was staring at the TV - which was off - but didn't seem to be here-and-now mentally. In the kitchen, Tae-chan was washing a dish for the fifth time.

All of them flinched when the doorbell rang. Heaving a sigh of relief, they went to welcome the two long-lost members of their household home. Instead of the demure Aoi and the confident Miyabi, they found a bubbly Mayu and a calm Ruka there. Blinking, Kaoru realized the flaw in their assumption. Of course; why would they ring their own doorbell? He thought. "Um. Hi." He managed.

"Hanabishi-sama!" cried Mayu, glomming onto his side gleefully. "We came for a visit!" she announced unnecessarily.

"How fortunate for us." Growled Tina. "I'm gonna watch a movie." She muttered, heading for the living room.

"Come on in." said Taeko graciously. Ruka bowed to her.

"I thank you for your hospitality." He said. "Is Sakuraba-sama or Kagurazaki-san home?" he asked politely. Kaoru shook his head.

"No, Ruka-san. I haven't heard from them in two days." He said, his tone belying his concern. Ruka nodded.

"I see. When you see them, please give them our thanks for their excellent hospitality." He said. Mayu frowned up at him.

"Aoi-san is gone?" she asked. Seeing a brief wince shadow his face, she knew that something was wrong. "Hanabishi-sama?" she asked softly, looking into his eyes. "Anything I can do to help?" she asked.

"I'm sure that they're fine!" he tried to reassure himself. "But I wish I had a way of contacting them to make sure." He mused. Mayu turned to Ruka.

"Ruka-san, find their number." She ordered imperiously. The man bowed a bit.

"I will try, Mayu-sama, but the Sakurabas have an unlisted number and move between a number of houses." He noted. Mayu stamped her tiny foot.

"I don't care what you have to do!" she said impatiently. "Find the number and get Aoi-san on the line for my Hanabishi-sama right now!" she ordered. A thought occurred to her. "Ruka-san, the Miyuki Group has had dealings with the Sakuraba Zaibatsu for more than a century now. There should be a means of contacting the head of the group somewhere in our company records. Maybe Accounting could find it? Or sales?" she prompted.

"And excellent idea, Mayu-sama." Agreed Ruka. "If you would excuse me, Kaoru-san?" he said unctuously as he stepped out onto the porch. Kaoru caught a glimpse of the man lifting his cell phone to his ear as the door closed behind him.

-

It was getting late, and Mayu was about to be dragged back home when the group heard the sound of tires chirping out front. Before any of them could rise from their seats, the door opened and Miyuki strode thorough the door. Her face was set in a haunted look, and her clothes - usually impeccably pressed - were wrinkled a bit, as if she had spent a while in the car. "Miyabi-san!" cried Kaoru, drawing breath to continue. Miyabi beat him to it. Dropping to her knees, she prostrated herself in front of him.

"Kaoru-dono, I must ask you to come with me immediately." She said formally, still bowing to him.

"Miyabi, what's going…?" he began. He was interrupted by Tae-chan's cry of shock. The maid had been in her room, doing some homework, and had just now remembered the manila envelope. Now, she ran to the main house, almost running into the still-running BMW Z3. Hurriedly rushing through the door, she tripped over Miyabi.

"Ow!" she complained as she picked herself up. In her hands were three crumpled sheets of paper. Looking to see what she had tripped over, she blinked. "Manager-san! Where is Aoi-san?" she wondered. "You need to see this!" she pressed on, shoving the papers at Miyabi.

"I already know, Taeko." Said the woman. "Kaoru-dono, there isn't much time." She said softly, finally looking up from the floor. "She's waiting for you." She whispered.

"What the FUCK is going on here?!" screamed Tina at the top of her lungs. "Where's Landlady-san? Where have you been these last two days?"

"Tina-sempai! Kaoru-sempai! Look!" said Taeko impatiently, shoving the papers at Kaoru. He found that they were two photos and one sheet of newscast type. He didn't need to read the newscast to know what it said; one glance at the pictures was enough.

"What are they trying this time, Yabi-chan?" he asked her, kneeling in front of her.

"Lord Sakuraba has arranged a marriage for her to the son of a new supplier the day after tomorrow. He plans to have her married and gone before kicking you out. Lady Sakuraba is being silent on this issue, so there's no help there at the moment. If we can get you there before the wedding, she might be of some assistance in preventing this from happening." She said, her expression tight. Knowing the signs that she had more to say, he prompted her.

"And?"

"And I was dismissed in disgrace from service to Aoi-sama. I shouldn't even be here, and I'm sure that when my absence is noted, they will either move the wedding up, or move Aoi-sama to a new location to prevent us from disrupting the ceremony." Said Miyabi.

"God! Yabi-chan, I'm so sorry!" said Kaoru, feeling guilty about her dismissal. After all, I'm pretty much the cause of this all. Miyabi managed a smile.

"I knew this would happen, Kaoru-dono." She said simply. "But we need to hurry. Aoi-sama has barely slept and hardly eaten since this happened. She wants you, Kaoru-dono." She whispered softly.

"Excuse me, but I think I'm entitled to an explanation of what the hell is going on!" came Mayu's irate voice.

"Mayu-sama, that is not appropriate language for a lady." Chided Ruka. Looking into Miyabi's eyes, he saw that she agreed with his decision. Standing and helping Miyabi to her feet as well, he turned to look at the assembled group.

"Let's go to the living room." He said. "And shut the door, Tae-chan." He added. Within seconds, they were all seated in the living room except for Miyabi and Kaoru. Taking a deep breath, he faced them. "First, I have to ask your forgiveness for deceiving you all." He began. "Aoi-chan is in fact my fiancé." He dropped the first of several bombs. There was a started gasp from the group at large, followed by various reactions. Tina seemed sad, Tae-chan looked like she had suspected something like that, Mayu looked confused and Ruka had a blank expression on his face. They're taking this far better than expected. He noted.

"If I may ask, Kaoru-san," began Ruka urbanely. "Why the deception?"

"Aoi-sama's family strongly disapprove of him." Interjected Miyabi, standing by his side. "There are factions within the Zaibatsu that wish to take prominence from the Sakurabas for themselves, and they were causing trouble when they discovered that Kaoru-dono was Aoi-sama's suitor." She paused, choosing her words with care.

"So, you decided that having a very visible girlfriend would disarm the rouge factions." Guessed Tina, uncharacteristically sharp. She shook her head. Mayu looked at Kaoru, her eyes clouded up.

"Hanabishi-sama, why?!" she said, nearly in tears.

"He is not to blame, Mayu-san." Said Miyabi immediately. "It was my plan to derail this threat. If you are to blame anyone, it is myself, and not Kaoru-dono or Aoi-sama!" she insisted.

"I do love you all." Said Kaoru, far more serious than they had ever seen him. "Believe me, this was never easy, and I care for you all more than I care for myself." He paused. "But Aoi-chan and I have been in love since we were children." He finished. "It's her that holds my heart." He finished.

"Since childhood?" gaped Mayu. "But…if…what happened?" she managed. She could understand the concept of romantic love, and had started her foray into physical love, but she was still relatively inexperienced in the way that the real world worked. Realizing that he had best start at the beginning, he took Miyabi's hand and guided her to a seat next to Mayu.

"I have another thing to confess, but let me start at the beginning." He said. He told them of his family. He told them of his father's death and the way that the Hanabishi had all but torn his mother from him. He told them of his first meeting with Aoi, their promises to each other. He told them about the last time he had seen her before she entered his life ten years later.

"This is nice, but what does it have to do with confessing something?" wondered Tina. I never stood a chance with him, did I? She thought to herself.

"It has to do with why her family is hell bent not to let him marry their daughter." Said Miyabi softly. Kaoru nodded.

"I'm sure you wondered why I'm registered under a different name at the University." He told them of the time he had returned from school to find the head of the Hanabishi household burning all the letters his mother had written to him, and all the mementos he had left of her. He told them of his choice to disown them. "This is how my grandfather responded." Said the man somberly, taking his shirt off in one motion and turning his back to them.

The girls gasped at the ugly, silvery scars all over his back. "Kaoru! God in heaven!" choked out Tae-chan. Miyabi stared at them.

"So, that's why you never showed me your back when…" she trailed off, not wanting to talk about that in front of the other girls. Some things you just shouldn't say. She thought.

"Hanabishi-sama!" whimpered Mayu, her hands partially covering her eyes.

"Kaoru-kun." Whispered Tina. He…lived with that all this time? But he was always so happy!

"Does Aoi-sama know about those?" asked Ruka calmly. Kaoru nodded, covering them again.

"She was the first to see them in ten years." He confirmed. "I crawled out of the Hanabishi household's gate on my hands and knees. I lost enough blood to pass out a block from the house. When I came to, I managed to get to a friend's house. His dad was a doctor, and I got these seen to for free. With no money, I had no choice, but I would rather have died than ever see those I once called family again." He seethed. "For years, I woke up in agony from these things, and when I went to bed, I ached so much I could hardly sleep. But I vowed that I would never go back, and I never did.

"I got into school under my mother's maiden name, and worked two jobs to pay for a series of small bachelor pads. I didn't have a life until I graduated from high school and enrolled in the University. Even there, I had three jobs to pay for the tuition and for my latest apartment." He smiled.

"Well, I had no friends until Tina-chan dragged me to the photography club that day." He chuckled. "I never said thank you for that, Tina." He said, giving her a genuine smile. "And then, one day, I was coming home, and there was this girl in a kimono, trying to find her way to an address written on a well-worn scrap of paper." His expression turned fond. "My Aoi-chan had come back to me after ten years." He chuckled. "That single thing turned my world upside down, and I've never been better." He finished.

"So, she saw your scars when you two were in the bathroom that time when I first met the great and mighty `Kaoru-sama'." Miyabi shook her head.

Kaoru nodded. "And you know, she promised to heal them with time, Yabi-chan." He said. "They haven't hurt since she promised that." He added.

"Not surprising. All I ever heard, all day, every day - for ten years! - was how she had to be a perfect wife for her precious `Kaoru-sama'." She snorted. "I have to tell you, I was expecting a more godly man than I found that first night." She admitted.

"But, Hanabishi-sama was supposed to marry me!" protested Mayu. Tina leaned forward to look at the smaller girl.

"Are you sure, Mayu?" she asked, her tone serious and lacking any venom. "You always call him `Hanabishi', don't you?" she asked. Numbly, Mayu nodded. "Don't you think that that sums up your relationship to him? He disowned them, and you saw what they did to him. How can you think that your claim to him outweighs Landlady-san's claim?" she asked.

"You know, I never thought about it, but Aoi-san always calls him `Kaoru-sama'. Always." Noted Tae-chan. Miyabi nodded.

"And she has for all her life." She added. Mayu was silent.

"You are wasting time, Kaoru-san." Came Rica's calm voice. Every one looked at him. "Your maiden awaits her knight in shining armor. Go to her. Make good her faith in you." He pressed. Kaoru nodded. Turning to Miyabi, he extended his hand.

"Come on, Yabi-chan." He said. "Let's go save our Aoi-chan."