Moments in Time [Not Quite One Shots]

[swampie2]

Can't say I've been one for samurai stories, it was well written though.

[Hesmiyu]

Despite liking samurais, I've never read a samurai thing. This sorry leaves me slightly confused yet I don't know why. It is written in a way I like though .

[Skeeve]

This one was rattling around in my head ever since I caught a Zatoichi film the other day, and is... uh, let's say "heavily inspired by" the final swordfight. I've always been kind of a sucker for 'what if' style stories, where you drop people from one setting into another and see what happens.

This one in particular I thought fit Lilly and Shizune really well; what happens when two people who have a lot of respect for one another find themselves on opposing sides? One with a strict adherence to law and efficiency, and the other primarily concerned for the people the law may trod on.

Although I do regret I couldn't find a good place to try and fit a 'Satouichi' pun in there somwhere.

[Skeeve]

Aftershocks (NSFWish)


I smiled lightly as Emi shifted her shoulders a little, trying to get more comfortable under my arm. It drew my attention away from the movie we were trying to watch, but then I’d long since lost track of what was going on with it anyway.

Emi had her prosthetics propped up against the end of the couch, and with the way her skirt was pooling around her, it almost looked as though she just had her legs tucked under her, rather than being without them. I suspected it wasn’t a thought she’d appreciate. With or without her legs, she was beautiful, and that was more than enough for me.

Finally noticing that my attention was on her and not the TV, Emi looked up at me with a sly little smile. In an all-too innocent tone, she asked, “What’re you thinking about?”

I could feel the flush creeping up my cheeks as I replied, “Ah, just… just about how pretty you are.” Well, it wasn’t actually a lie, anyway.

For some reason, even as she blushed, Emi didn’t look like she quite believed me, but her smile widened a little all the same. “Mmhmm.” Idly reaching up, she drew a finger down my chest, lazily drawing patterns. “You know, the reason I invited you home this weekend is because my mom is in Tokyo until tomorrow evening… we could stay the night, if you wanted.”

If ever there was a statement designed to make my heart race, that would be it. It started to beat so hard it felt like the room was shaking. It wasn’t until Emi’s prosthetics clattered to the floor, and she cried out, “Earthquake!?” that I consciously realized it actually was.

There was no time to think. As the house rattled around us, I scooped up Emi, heedless of her shriek, and even as the adrenaline coursing through my veins started making each beat of my heart feel like a jackhammer to the chest, I dashed with her to the dining room table, half ducking, half falling to the ground.

I clutched my chest as the pain in it grew even greater, letting out a low groan as I flopped over onto my back, Emi’s fearful voice sounding distant. That was when the bookcase started to tip. In my mind’s eye, I could see it shoving the table to one side, all the books crushing my chest, stopping my heart, and then… nothing.

Then all I could see was Emi’s eyes, locked on to mine.

She’d thrown herself across my hips, straddling me and shielding me from falling debris bodily, and as the books and knickknacks crashed down around us, and she let out a cry of pain they slammed into her, but she didn’t fall onto me. The table slammed against the far wall with a smash, the bookcase propped against it, above us at an angle, the room suddenly eerily still.

My breathing calmed down as my heart did, recovering from the episode as I stared up into Emi’s eyes, unable, unwilling to tear away. It took me a few moments to try to form words to break the silence. “Emi… you…”

Emi’s reply was low, thick with emotion. “I’m not letting you go without a fight, Hisao.”

The sudden surge of emotion, mixed with the adrenaline was too much for me, and I reached up, tangling my hands in her hair, pulling Emi down to my mouth for a fevered kiss. Her body melted into mine in response, her hands trailing down my body as she returned the kiss with just as much intensity.

Still drowning in Emi’s eyes, I couldn’t stop myself from running my own hands down her body, caressing her thighs, as we lost ourselves in sensation.

-----

It feels like hours have passed when we come back to ourselves… or minutes, I can’t tell. Emi sprawls against my chest, cradling her head just under my chin, our arms wrapped around each other, our breathing in perfect time. Briefly, the ground rumbles again, shaking us against each other, drawing a gasp from me and a whimper from her.

When it’s over, neither of us wants to be the first one to move, to break the peace we’ve found in the aftermath of the quake. A part of me wishes that we could stay like this forever. It’s a ringing phone that finally cuts through the quiet, and, groaning lightly, Emi rolls off of me, fishing in the pocket of her skirt for her cellphone.

She opens it without looking, answers, “Hello, Mom.” Leaning back, and propping herself up on one arm, Emi listens patiently as I can faintly hear her mother’s worried voice on the other end. “No, Mom, everything’s fine. It’s a big mess, but Hisao was here, and…” She trails off, looking at me with a smile that I would do anything to see again.

“...we took care of each other.”

[Sharp-O]

Okay, I did not expect that and I loved it all the more. Fantastic little story!

[Skeeve]

Thanks! I've never actually written romance before, so I'm trying to branch out a little.

[Sharp-O]

Well you did an astounding job.

[Skeeve]

Crossed Wires, Part 1


The following day, we found out just how comfortable the seats on the bus back to Yamaku really were.

I did end up spending the night with Emi, but it was far from the romantic interlude I’m sure we were both hoping for. It was well after three in the morning by the time we got everything cleaned up from the aftermath of the quake, and collapsed into bed. Still, even though neither of us had the energy for anything more, it was nice to spend the night cuddled up to her.

Not that it lasted nearly long enough. We got so little sleep that it was actually Emi who suggested forgoing our morning run, and we barely ended up catching our bus. It wasn’t long after that the gentle swaying of the bus’ movement ended up lulling us to sleep.

I have a lot of trouble remembering my dreams at the best of times, and this one is no different. There’s the vivid impression of movement, a bright flare of light, and a high-pitched scream… and then I jolt awake, heart hammering, my hand pressed against my chest.

The sudden movement seems to startle Emi, who’s already awake, and sends my cellphone clattering to the floor of the bus at our feet. A look of worry crossing her face, she asks, “Hisao, are you okay!?”

I don’t answer immediately, focused on the beating of my heart. It’s fast, and hard, but not painful, and as I take deep breaths and gauge my surroundings, it begins to slow. “I’m… I’m fine. Not an attack, just a bad dream, I think.”

Emi lets out a deep breath at the same time I do, then punches me lightly on the arm. “Don’t do that to me!” Before I can really respond, she gives me a light kiss where she punched me, then bends down to pick up my phone. “You really ought to be more careful with that… oh hey, you’ve got a text message.”

Instead of handing the phone back, she flips it open to read without asking. I’m not really sure how I feel about that, but I guess it’s not like I’ve got anything to hide. “Who’s it from?”

Her lips pressed into a thin line, the corners of her mouth turned up dangerously, Emi turns the phone to me, glaring daggers at me. “You tell me, Hisao. Who’s it from?”

A little taken aback by Emi’s sudden aggression, I take my phone back; it’s a message from last night, from a number that seems familiar but that I don’t immediately recognize. It reads ‘I miss you, sweetie. <3 Sweet dreams.’ Slightly bewildered, I reply, “I don’t know. Must be a wrong number.”

Hastily, I punch out a quick ‘sry, wrong #’ and lean over to kiss Emi on the top of the head. “Emi, you know you’re the only girl for me.”

She holds her glare for a moment more before letting out a light sigh and leaning into me. “I know, I’m sorry. I trust you, but it’s hard not to let my imagination run away from me.” Her grin turns a little impish, and she opens her mouth to say something more, but we’re both cut off as my phone buzzes again with another notification.

There’s that dangerous look on Emi’s face again. With no small amount of trepidation, I flip open my phone again.

‘Don’t be silly, Hisao. I’ll see you soon! <3 <3’

Before I can say anything in my defense - not that I’d even know what to say about this circumstance - Emi’s snatched the phone out of my hand and is furiously typing away, thumbs flying over the keys as her reply is sent in record time.

‘listen bitch this is hisaos gf so back off and goaway or i will mess u up’

With more force than is probably necessary, Emi snaps the phone shut and holds it out to me, eyes closed. As I take it, she says quietly, “Tell me you’re not cheating on me, and I’ll believe you. I just… need to hear it.”

My reply is quiet, but intense. “I’m not cheating on you. I love you, Emi, I could never do that to you.” Wordlessly, Emi leans back into me, slides an arm around my back, and snuggles in for the rest of the ride home. After a few moments, I can’t resist trying to lighten the mood, just a little. “Besides, I know that if I ever did you’d introduce me to a new world of pain.”

Emi doesn’t open her eyes, just smiles a little and hugs me tighter. “Damn right I would.”

[brythain]

Oh no, it's Hisao's mother, isn't it?

[Skeeve]

LOL

I really wish I'd thought of that first. No, that's way more entertaining than where I'm planning on going with this.

[Mirage_GSM]

Can't be. She calls him Hicchan

Also, he'd probably know her number, wouldn't he?

[brythain]

Can't be. She calls him Hicchan

Also, he'd probably know her number, wouldn't he?

The -chan suffix can be used by older people of (their) children. And... maybe Hisao has been avoiding his mother for so long that he's forgotten her number, and even not put it in his contact list! However, -she- clearly has not forgotten him.

[azumeow]

My bet's on Misha being Misha.

RUN, HISAO!

[Skeeve]

Crossed Wires, Part 2


It seemed that the earthquake didn’t hit nearly as hard here at Yamaku. There were only some closed pill bottles to pick up in my room, and although Emi’s room was a bit messier, we had everything set right early enough that we could head into town for a leisurely dinner. Life settled back into its usual pre-quake routine; runs in the morning, classes, then studying for our upcoming exams, and with no replies, the incident with the text message seemed to be forgotten.

That was, until Thursday. I’d invited Emi over to help tutor her on her science, after she turned her puppy-dog eyes on me. Not that she needed to - I’d help anyway - but I think she enjoys having that kind of power over me. Truth be told, I kind of enjoy letting her.

We’ve just finished up our physics review and were about to move on to chemistry when my phone buzzes with a notification. Although she doesn’t say anything, I can feel Emi tense a little next to me as I flip open the phone. Glancing over it, I volunteer, “Huh, it’s from Hanako.”

‘Do you remember which questions Mutou assigned for tomorrow?’

I type out a quick reply - ‘Q. 3 and 4, a thru f’, and I’m about to close the phone, when I pause for a moment. There’s something… something tickling the back of my mind as familiar. I barely notice when Hanako’s reply message comes in, so lost in thought am I.

‘Thanks, Hisao. You’re a lifesaver!’

With a slightly pensive cast to her voice, Emi asks, “What does she want, Hisao? You look… worried.”

I blink a little bit as Emi’s voice pulls me back. “Hm? Oh, sorry, Em, she just wanted to know what homework we were assigned today.”

Still sounding puzzled, Emi leans in, putting her head on my shoulder, wrapping an arm around my waist. “Then what’s on your mind? You look like you’re on Mars or something.”

Still somewhat distracted, I reply, “I’m not sure…” Abruptly, not sure why I’m doing it, I page back and start flipping through my received messages, and just as abruptly, I see it, my eyes widening involuntarily. “The- the numbers…”

Peering at my phone, it takes Emi a few moments, but her startled gasp tells me she’s seen it too. The message I just received, although marked as having been sent by Hanako, are also listed as being from the same phone number as the two mystery messages I received over the weekend.

“Hanako sent those texts!?”

-----

It’s hard to concentrate through most of the morning’s lessons. I’d meant to ask Hanako about the texts before class, but she came late, and so we didn’t have a chance to talk. Although part of my attention is focused on getting all of the day’s notes down onto paper, I’m not really processing them, just copying. Questions are whirling through my head. Why would Hanako do something like this? Did someone put her up to it? What was Emi going to do?

Abruptly the bell rings, cutting through my reverie, and hastily I close my books and shove them into my bag, intent on catching Hanako before she can leave. She’s still here, which is a testament to how much progress she’s made since I came here to Yamaku, but appears to be getting ready to meet Lilly in the tea room. Abruptly nervous, I catch up with her just outside the classroom door. “Hey, Hanako, can I talk to you for a second?”

Somewhat startled, Hanako turns around to face me. “H-Hisao? Wh-what is it?”

Neither of us notice Emi sidle up behind us, slapping the wall right behind Hanako with enough force to make us both jump, despite the din of the students swirling around us in the halls. “Why did you send those flirty texts to Hisao? Did you think he wouldn’t tell me about them?”

Looking for all the world like a rabbit cornered by wolves, Hanako looks back and forth between us with a panicked expression on her face. “Th-they weren’t f-flirty! I j-j-just wanted t-to k-know ab-about the h-homework…”

Emi’s expression curls up in that little smile that tells me she’s really angry. “Not last night, the ones from the weekend!”

Hanako stammers a little, but she appears to have been frightened too badly to speak, so before she can bolt, I decide to step in. Flipping open my phone, I pull up the texts from the bus ride. “Hanako, is this your phone number? Did you send these?”

Hanako’s hands tremble a little bit as she takes the phone, looking at the screen, panic slowly giving way to confusion in her expression. “I… t-this is my ph-phone number, but I didn’t type these…” Seeing Emi’s expression, she hastily pulls out her own phone, pulling up the list of messages she’s sent me. “S-see?”

Emi takes the phone, and pages through the list, looking unimpressed, but confused. “I… I don’t see them. But what if you just deleted them?”

Hanako bites down on her lip, still looking scared and confused, so I take my phone back. Something’s bothering me about that, and look at my phone. “What I don’t understand is why it didn’t put these messages under your contact, Hanako. Hold on, I want to try something.” Quickly, I send a reply to Hanako’s last message about the homework, and almost instantly her phone buzzes with a notification.

‘test’

That done, I page over to the other two mystery messages, and type out a slightly longer message. ‘this is a test to find out who you are.’. My finger hovers over the ‘send’ button for a few moments before I push it, and all three of us stare at the swirling wait animation on the screen of my phone, holding our collective breath in anticipation.

We all blink in surprise when the phone that buzzes is not Hanako’s, but mine, returning an error message:

‘Message undeliverable: recipient not found’

Almost instantly, Emi’s face turns crimson with embarrassment. “I’m sorry, Hanako… I should’ve known you wouldn’t do something like that. I got angry, and it was hard to think straight. Can you forgive me?”

Hanako shakes her head a little bit, starting to calm down slightly. “It-it’s okay. I w-would’ve come to the s-same c-conclusion too, p-probably. N-no hard f-feelings.” Obviously still very tense, Hanako gives us a little wave and makes her way down the hall and around the corner at a pace roughly approaching light speed. Considering how angry Emi seemed, I can’t say that I blame her.

Emi sighs heavily, hanging her head. “Well, shit. Now I feel terrible.”

With a little smile, I reach out to squeeze Emi’s shoulder in a reassuring fashion. “Ah, you were just sticking up for me. I’m sure she’ll be fine. C’mon, let’s go to lunch. Rin’s probably up on the roof waiting for us.” Inwardly, though, I’m still troubled. If Hanako didn’t send those messages… then who did? And how?

[AntonSlavik020]

This is getting really interesting. I do like a good mystery. As a side note, I wonder who has better puppy dog eyes, Emi or Ruby from RWBY? They're both adorable.