Part 1 (1/2)

centauri2002.

Giving In.

A Mai HiME Fanfiction.

Chapter One: For You.

The air gave way, almost in fear, as the whistle of a blade sliced through it. Natsuki's heart stammered in her chest at the sight before her. Is this the place? She inwardly questioned. Her hand tightly gripped a door handle and she had one foot inside the room and one outside. She had frozen as soon as she'd opened the door and the scene before her registered in her mind. Another whistle sounded out and Natsuki's eyes followed a blur of metal sweep in an arc through the air. The owner of the weapon was dressed in an unusual attire. Unusual to Natsuki anyway. Black armour adorned their legs, waist, chest and head. Underneath the armour were black pleated pants and a white s.h.i.+rt tied at the upper arm by white cloth. It was as if the armoured form was dancing, weaving the deadly weapon to an unheard beat. The facemask hid the ident.i.ty of the owner and Natsuki squinted at the piece of armour to try and catch a glimpse through the metal bars.

A quiet cough broke the spell that held Natsuki in position and she blinked a few times, turning her head from side to side to find the source. Similarly dressed women stood around the edge of the large hall, all but one focused on the weapon wielding dancer in the center of it. All of them held their facemasks at their sides and she was surprised to see not one man among them. The woman who had been gently coughing to draw her attention now stood a few feet away, a soft smile and a curious look on her face. Feeling a little embarra.s.sed for her staring and state of indecision, Natsuki drew herself fully into the room and carefully closed the door behind her.

”Can I help you?” The woman's soft tone was hushed.

Natsuki shot her a cold look, her eyebrows drawing together to cause irritated creases to appear. ”No.”

The other woman's eyes widened in surprise at first but soon narrowed in suspicion. She took a step closer but paused at the hostile glare she received. ”This area is for members only...” She trailed off, expecting Natsuki to understand the remainder of the sentence.

The raven-haired teenager's jaw clenched. Why was this stranger b.u.t.ting into her business? She turned away from the annoyance and her eyes were drawn back to the lone figure in the center of the hall. Each placement of the foot, each tense of a muscle, each arc and thrust of the blade was made with precision and such grace that Natsuki could only gawk in awe. A spark of recognition tugged at her mind, stirring disturbing memories. There was something about those movements that reminded her of the way s.h.i.+zuru had wielded her element during The Carnival, yet there was also something distinctly different. The weapon itself was very different from the extravagance of the red naginata her friend had used to kill so many. This one was merely a long wooden shaft with a blade akin to a katana's attached at one end of it. Just before the blade was a small circular guard and below that was the naginata's only decoration; red cloth that had been wrapped around it to about halfway down the shaft. Each of the weapon's movements was lacking in that murderous intent she had witnessed before, replaced with the want to show the beauty of the kata.

Feeling a pressure on her shoulder, Natsuki spun around to face the same woman as before. She flinched away, scowling at her. ”What do you think you're doing?” She forced through clenched teeth, attempting to control her anger at the lack of respect towards her personal s.p.a.ce.

The surprise appeared on the other woman's face once more and lingered. ”I'm sorry but I'll have to ask you to leave.”

Natsuki let out a frustrated breath. ”Look, I'm here to meet someone.” She raised her voice a little, hoping she'd get the point and leave her be. Besides, she had come to meet someone, she was just a little earlier than expected. She'd often come pick up s.h.i.+zuru outside this building and give her a ride back to her apartment on her Ducati. But curiosity and an early dinner and pushed her inside to see what exactly it was her friend did in here.

She knew s.h.i.+zuru partic.i.p.ated in many activities during the day and evenings but she hadn't divulged every single one to her. She guessed her friend thought it might bore her. Perhaps if she'd been talking of tea ceremonies she would have been right in her a.s.sumptions but this was an entirely different matter. In the past, she'd never really thought of s.h.i.+zuru as an active sort of person, she always seemed to expend as little energy as possible, doing only enough and nothing more. Certainly, this seemed to be the case with her work as Kaichou of the Student Council. In every day tasks, she seemed to move languidly yet always with grace and poise. Yet, she had seen another side to s.h.i.+zuru entirely when The Carnival had come. That s.h.i.+zuru had done everything in her power to ensure Natsuki's enemies were destroyed. And that was an awful lot of power she had discovered.

It made sense to her now that s.h.i.+zuru would be involved in naginatajutsu but she was still surprised to find her here. She knew s.h.i.+zuru felt immense guilt over her actions during The Carnival and had expected that she'd want to sever herself from any reminder of them. Again, s.h.i.+zuru had proven that she was stronger than she had given her credit for. She hadn't spotted her in this hall though. Where could she be?

”I still need to ask you to wait outside.” The woman said almost apologetically.

Why wasn't she giving up? Natsuki crossed her arms across her chest defiantly and took on a stance that, she hoped, told the other woman she was going nowhere. The other woman's brow knotted in confusion and irritation. Obviously, she couldn't understand why this girl was being so obstinate. Now she had drawn the attention of a few others in the hall. Just as the woman next to Natsuki was about to open her mouth and repeat her remark, she glanced behind the girl clad in biker leathers, her eyebrows rising.

”It's okay, Arao-san.” Came a m.u.f.fled voice from behind her and she turned quickly, her arms still folded across her chest, the leather creaking slightly at the sudden movement.

Stood there, just feet away, was the one who had been performing the kata in the center of the hall, holding the naginata with its blunt end resting against the polished floor. ”Sensei?” The questioning voice of the woman who had been annoying her drifted to her ears but she didn't turn to look at her.

In one fluid motion, this Sensei reached up behind the facemask and pulled at the black cloth tied behind it before grasping it firmly with the same hand. The protective garment was then tugged at, releasing a mane of chestnut hair to fall around and frame a refined face. Deep crimson eyes pierced her own, never faltering, a smile gracing her calm features. Natsuki's heart fluttered at the sight and she was slightly surprised to see there wasn't a single sign of perspiration on the captivating beauty. Those eyes then flicked away from hers and settled upon the woman nearby.

”She is my guest.” s.h.i.+zuru explained and then turned around to address the rest of the cla.s.s. ”That is enough for today. Ensure you practice your katas. I will want to see you performing them next time.” The other women bowed to their sensei and she returned it before facing Natsuki once more.

”s.h.i.+zuru..?” Natsuki asked a little uncertainly. She's a sensei? Her brain finally registered the new information. The armoured woman c.o.c.ked her head to one side and smiled at her, a hint of fondness seeping into her expression. It's so strange... seeing her like this, she thought. Her emerald gaze dropped down over the contours of the protective clothing, finally coming to s.h.i.+zuru's bare feet and then back up again to meet crimson which now held a touch of amus.e.m.e.nt.

”Ara, is something wrong? Natsuki is early.” Came the instantly recognisable Kyoto-ben accent.

Natsuki shook her head slowly, still stunned by the revelation. And that kata... I knew she was graceful but... that was beautiful. She shut off her inner monologue and concentrated on replying to s.h.i.+zuru instead. ”No, I just finished up early and got fed up waiting outside.” She jabbed her thumb in the direction of the door behind her to emphasise her words.

”As impatient as ever.” The corner of s.h.i.+zuru's lips twitched upwards as she spoke. At Natsuki's roll of the eyes and huffed breath she glanced around the room. Natsuki followed her gaze, seeing that most of the women had filed into an adjoining room but some had remained, chatting to each other. She then looked back at Natsuki. ”I need to get this armour off, can Natsuki a.s.sist me?” There was a twinkle of something in those crimson orbs but Natsuki barely registered it. When she continued to look blankly at her friend, she continued. ”It is hard to get on and off.”

”Oh.” Natsuki grunted out and shrugged. s.h.i.+zuru smiled again and turned, lifting her naginata and walking towards a lone door in the opposite wall. One of the students shuffled over eagerly and s.h.i.+zuru pa.s.sed her naginata to the woman. Natsuki couldn't help but glare as a blush filled the student's cheeks when s.h.i.+zuru looked at her. Stupid fangirls, she inwardly cursed. Apparently sensing something was awry, the girl hurried away to place the weapon back where it belonged whilst the sensei wasn't using it.

Natsuki's attention was drawn back to s.h.i.+zuru when she heard the jangle of keys and she saw the door being opened. Her friend glanced back at her before stepping inside and she followed, donning a demeanour of disinterest. Noting this, s.h.i.+zuru merely smirked and closed the door behind them. The room itself was fairly small, housing a small table with a lamp, some paperwork and some stationary. A wooden chair sat under the table and nearby were two metal lockers. There was a long wooden bench against one wall with a large comfortable-looking blanket folded atop it. There was an alcove set into another wall that led into a small shower room. She guessed this was the club leader's office, which would make it s.h.i.+zuru's, though she wasn't sure how many clubs convened here.

s.h.i.+zuru crossed the room and opened the left hand locker, turning back to Natsuki once that was done. She stepped forwards closing the distance quickly and waited. Natsuki s.h.i.+fted uncomfortably under her gaze, red orbs burning into her. That look made the heat rise under her skin. ”W-what?” She cursed herself for stuttering. Why couldn't she ever gain immunity from that look.

s.h.i.+zuru smiled her first fully genuine smile since Natsuki had arrived. It held a great many things within it and she was happy that it was just for her. ”Natsuki is meant to be helping me.” She said cheerfully.

Heat rose up to the biker's cheeks and she quickly stepped around s.h.i.+zuru to hide the blush. She was standing around like an idiot. Why did s.h.i.+zuru always do that to her? She surveyed the armour, quickly ascertaining how they were fastened to the slim body beneath them. She decided to start with the s.h.i.+n guards first and knelt down beside s.h.i.+zuru, her hands moving to the armour. As she removed those, the pleated pants fell away from the other woman's legs and she could tell they were quite baggy. She placed the two items to one side and she could feel crimson eyes upon her but she didn't look up.

Next, she moved onto the gloves. ”I don't think you need my help for these.” She complained though her tone held no hint of agitation. s.h.i.+zuru merely chuckled, her mirth causing chestnut strands to dance around her face and over her shoulders. Natsuki pulled at the armour and it slipped off, her fingers unintentionally dragging against the skin of the other woman's wrist and palm. Her well-trained ear picked up s.h.i.+zuru's. .h.i.tched breath but she ignored it, continuing on to the other hand. The sound of the other woman's quickening breaths were soon drowned out by the pumping of blood through her own ears, as if it was trying to make her oblivious to what was going on around her. She swallowed, her throat suddenly becoming dry. What's wrong with me?

She placed the pair of gloves next to the s.h.i.+n guards and then eyed s.h.i.+zuru. That calm expression remained on her face, but her gaze was averted this time, focused on the wall ahead of her. Only the armour at her waist and chest remained and those would probably be the most difficult to remove. In more ways than one, she found herself thinking. She stepped forwards and searched for the fastenings on both pieces. ”You could help me, you know.” Natsuki scoffed.

s.h.i.+zuru turned her head to look her in the eye. ”Where's the fun in that?” She asked with a devious smirk, one Natsuki recognised all too well.

Deciding to concentrate on her task, she turned her attention to the chest armour. At a guess, it appeared to be bamboo and lacquered too. There was a pattern etched into it and it looked pretty expensive. It was certainly of better quality than those of s.h.i.+zuru's students. There appeared to be three ties to this piece, one at each shoulder at one at the small of the back. Not wanting to damage it in any way, she set about removing it as carefully as possible. Her nimble fingers made short work of the knot at s.h.i.+zuru's back and she slid the dark cloth out of the way. She moved her hands up to the tie at the right shoulder. Grasping the chest plate with one hand, she untied the knot with the other. Then she moved onto the final tie and expertly undid that one aswell. The armour dropped into her hand and the weight of it surprised her. It was quite light yet solid. She stepped around s.h.i.+zuru, stretching her other arm out to grip the opposite side of the chest piece. The older woman s.h.i.+vered slightly as Natsuki's arm grazed her chest.

Natsuki placed the item carefully with the others and returned to stand in front of s.h.i.+zuru, eyeing the final piece of armour suspiciously. She hadn't been able to figure out where the ties on this one was. It didn't help that she was constantly being distracted by the now heaving chest of the other woman. What's up with her? She grumbled in her head, more annoyed because her eyes were being drawn to it. She focused on the waist armour for a moment, noting that the flap in the centre held s.h.i.+zuru's name and what she guessed to be the name of the dojo. Slightly smaller flaps flanked that one, providing ample protection for the legs and groin. ”So how do I get this off?” She asked, not looking up at s.h.i.+zuru's face now.

s.h.i.+zuru's right hand moving caught her attention and it made a motion which caused Natsuki's cheeks to flare up with embarra.s.sment. She was pointing to the centre flap. ”There.” Was all s.h.i.+zuru said, her voice even. How could she do this to her? d.a.m.n you, s.h.i.+zuru.

”There's no way I'm... No. There's no way. You can reach down there yourself.” Natsuki huffed, her arms folding tightly over her chest. She turned her head to the side in a sorry attempt to hide her blus.h.i.+ng face.

”Ara, Natsuki doesn't want to help me?” Came the feigned hurt she'd come to expect at this point in their interaction. No matter how many times she told herself she was teasing her, it still caused a sinking feeling in her chest. She pushed down the sensation, her embarra.s.sment outweighing that at the time being. After a few moments she heard a heavy breath come from the other woman. ”Alright, I'll do it.” The resigned tone in her voice was even more crus.h.i.+ng than the feigned hurt as she knew this one was real.

Natsuki dropped her arms to her sides and sighed. ”Fine. I'll do it.” She rolled her eyes and knelt down in front of her friend. She looked up into that crimson gaze and saw a hint of amus.e.m.e.nt, along with something else she'd seen before but hadn't been able to name yet. She'd often thought of asking what s.h.i.+zuru thought when she saw that in her eyes but knew she'd get an evasive response. There wasn't much point in trying to get something out of the Kyoto woman unless she wanted to offer it freely. s.h.i.+zuru s.h.i.+fted her feet slightly, spreading her legs to give Natsuki better access. The burning heat in the biker's face flared up at that thought.

Why do I keep thinking like this? What the heck is wrong with me? Now staring at the flap, she reached out and tentatively pulled it upwards to see what was behind it. The curve of s.h.i.+zuru's thighs were masked a little by the pants but because of the black cloth tied at where her legs met, she got a clear indication on what was beneath the clothing. Natsuki was sure she was going to pa.s.s out with the amount of blood that was rus.h.i.+ng to her head. It didn't help that her head was level with s.h.i.+zuru's groin either at this point, her face all too near for her liking. Swallowing hard, she lifted her free hand and wrapped her fingers around part of the thin cloth, her knuckles brus.h.i.+ng the pants and she could feel the heat of s.h.i.+zuru beneath them.

She sharply pulled on the material, satisfied when the knot yielded, loosening the grip the ties had on s.h.i.+zuru's waist. She could see now that it was wrapped once around her slim form. She reached around her hips with her other hand, allowing the waist armour to rest on her shoulder for now so it wouldn't fall to the ground when she freed it. Leaning in a little too close, she reached behind s.h.i.+zuru and pulled on the thin piece of cloth. Her fingers fell to the curve of the other woman's behind when the armour dropped onto her, released at last from its hold. If it hadn't been for the item between her and s.h.i.+zuru she would have found her cheek resting against her belly right now.

Natsuki quickly shot backwards, the armour falling into her arms and looked up at s.h.i.+zuru's face. Her head was tilted to the side, her eyes shut and her lower lip was held firmly between her teeth. There was even a slight tint of pink colouring her cheeks. Oh s.h.i.+zuru, why do you do this to yourself? She inwardly asked, sadly. But then it hit her. Natsuki was really the one doing this to her. She could have quite easily removed the armour in a less invasive manner but, even if it was sub-consciously, she had chosen to do it the way she had. s.h.i.+zuru certainly didn't force me. Why did I do that then?

”S-sorry.” She stuttered out. That was the only thing she could think of to say with the way her mind was whirling right now.

Crimson orbs found hers and she was sure she could see shame hidden beneath their swirling depths. s.h.i.+zuru turned and walked back to her locker. ”Ookini, Natsuki.” She muttered, her voice quieter than usual.

Natsuki shook her head. Why do you continue to feel ashamed of how you feel? She really wished she had the courage to speak these questions aloud. She was being a bit hypocritical in thinking that though. Didn't she feel ashamed of her own feelings? How do I really feel? Gah, why is this so hard to figure out? She stood and placed the armour with the others before walking over to where s.h.i.+zuru stood at her locker.

The older woman reached up with a hand and grasped the white cloth bound around her upper left arm, her head slightly lowered and her eyes focused on something within the locker. She tugged on the cloth and it unwound, freeing the sleeve of the s.h.i.+rt she wore. Natsuki recognised the type of clothing; it resembled a kimono s.h.i.+rt in the manner it was worn and tied. She watched with fascination as the wide sleeve slid down, hiding smooth creamy flesh as it went. It finally came to rest just at the slender wrist, above delicate hands and long fingers. She found herself staring at that hand, unable to tear her gaze away and was glad when it reached up to free the other sleeve, disappearing around the other side of s.h.i.+zuru's body.

Attempting to distract herself, she leaned forwards and peered into the locker, her eyes scanning the small place quickly. There wasn't much inside it. There were some articles of clothing; trousers, a sleeveless top, a sweater, shoes, and to Natsuki's embarra.s.sment and curiosity - underwear. Doesn't she wear any under those clothes? She found herself thinking which only furthered the heights of her embarra.s.sment. Images flashed into her mind and she became acutely aware of how close to s.h.i.+zuru she was standing.

”Ara, if Natsuki wanted to know what bra I was wearing today she could have just asked.” Came the Kyoto woman's teasing voice.

Natsuki's face flushed further and she snapped her head around to glare at her tormentor. She immediately regretted the action though as she found herself only inches away from s.h.i.+zuru's face. The first thing to come to her was the sweet scent of s.h.i.+zuru, the smell reminiscent of green tea and the armour she had just removed. Then came the even sweeter scent of her breath as it brushed against her face, bringing every nerve under her skin to attention. She became aware of the heat emanating from the other woman's body and the smouldering warmth filled her, fanning her own temperature. Her pulse quickened, adding to the speed at which the blood filled her cheeks and her stomach fluttered nervously.