Warnings: Shonen-ai, angst... um... Tatsumi being a little too cute... it�s really kinda scary how nice he is here.

Disclaimers: Yami no Matsuei is not mine. The characters are not mine. The lyrics are by the Wallflowers.

Part One: Tsuzuki

I'm looking up at the moving clouds

I've been hit so hard this time

I just might stay down

Now, if you were me, I would come back to get ya

If this is love, then I don't remember

You would find anyone that treats you better

We've all there been through hell and high water

I ain't sorry, baby, don't think that

We ain't done anything that I'd take back

Go on, pretend that you ain't changed

And don't worry about me, baby

See you when I get there, aha, aha

A sakura blossom drifted past my eyes, landing gently on my forehead. I would have done something to get rid of it, but I didn�t really mind. I was paying more attention to the other hundreds of sakura drifting to the ground from the trees above. Past the trees, there was an endless expanse of blue with a gentle scattering of clouds and the bright light the represented the sun. That�s right�represented.

There was no way to literally view the sun from the afterlife. In fact, everything around me was just something that was created to make the Shinigami feel more at home when they made the transition from Earth to the afterlife. I hardly noticed anything about the place, anymore. Like the fact that every day was exactly the same.

I heard a yawn from beside me, so I rotated my head, feeling the ground under my skull, to look at Tatsumi who was lying next to me. He would kill me if I told anyone that this is where he had wandered off to. Tatsumi trusts me the most with his big secrets. I never knew why until recently. He told me....

I should back up and tell the whole story.

Hisoka and I were on a fairly normal case, if there is such a thing, that looked to be just routine demon antics that involved humans being stupid and summoning things they can�t control. I hate that. Anyway, our information led us to an amusement park. Hisoka didn�t want to go with me, it�s likely he realized that I was going to make him go on every ride, and pleaded with Tatsumi until he agreed to go in my partner�s place.

Well, we were having a really good time... for the most part. I think Tatsumi, funnel cake, and roller coasters don�t mix well. The poor guy was feeling a little ill all afternoon. Though, he did buy me all kinds of sweets, since we weren�t getting a real meal. He really can be far too easy to manipulate. All I need to do is give big puppy eyes and he finds it in his heart to at least make a compromise.

Though, I still haven�t forgiven him for that cinnamon roll.

So, back to the story; I saw this girl who looked strange. At the time, I couldn�t place what it was. Thus, we followed her, and she led us directly to the house of mirrors. We were a little concerned when there was an extreme lack of people, and even more so when we realized that both the exit and entrance doors were sealed shut.

The strange girl appeared before us, now with a pair of dark feathered wings. The lights above were perfect to make it impossible to tell which girl was really her between the girl herself and the reflections. I tried to summon Byokko, but she beat me to the attack, slamming against me by the shoulder. She had some sort of pike in her hand that drove deep into the muscle of my shoulder, and the sheer force of the impact knocked the wind out of me.

I slumped against what was presumably a mirror, feeling oddly drained. I glanced down to see that a curse had been etched into the pike. It looked simple enough, but way beyond my capacities. Watari would know what to do with it. But, God only knows, it was hard to keep my eyes open. When my world went dark, I at first thought that I had closed my eyes without noticing, or had maybe passed out and still felt like I was awake, or something. Then, it dawned on me. Tatsumi had made the room dark so that the demon�s reflection would not distract him. Of course, that made the battle tougher.

I must have passed out after that, because the next thing I remembered was Tatsumi�s face looking over me in Watari�s lab. I felt betrayed instantly, thinking that Hisoka had not come for me in the house of mirrors, even though he must have felt my distress, and then wasn�t there for me when I woke up. For some reason, it hurt really bad to think about it. But, I just couldn�t understand it. How my heart ached, why I felt like I wanted to see him so badly, and why I couldn�t think of anything else.

Tatsumi put a hand to my cheek and assured me that the curse was taken care of. He told me that Hisoka went to take care of the human responsible for the demon. Though those matters were normally left to the Earth authorities, Hisoka had insisted on teaching this particular person a lesson. Tatsumi found that funny, saying that it was because Hisoka and I were in love that Hisoka would do that.

Hisoka doesn�t love me, Tatsumi does. I told him that, and he was quiet for a long time. Finally, he smiled at me and told me that I was wrong. But, I know that Tatsumi loves me. I find it hard to believe that a level-headed man like Tatsumi would really believe that Hisoka had fallen for me. No, my feelings for Hisoka have nothing to do with this.

But, if Hisoka doesn�t love me, who could he? After all we�d been through, after all the pain we�ve suffered together. I would give anything for him, at very least my life (well, afterlife, anyway). There is no one that he could be closer to, and no one that would be so dedicated to him. Sure, plenty of people like Hisoka, but he is my partner and my love and I want him for myself.

Um, so that�s the end of that story.

Tatsumi was still staring at the sky when I looked over at him. A dark expression crossed his features for a minute, but it was gone as suddenly as it came. He turned to me, his face full of an emotion that was rarely there�hope. Then, he smiled at me. Tatsumi and I only had a few moments like this, but I could tell that he loved them as well as I did.

�Tsuzuki, Tatsumi,� a flat voice said. We both sat up, looking behind us to where Hisoka was walking up. There was no emotion in his face, other than the slightest hint of agitation. He raised an eyebrow and said, �There�s a staff meeting in ten minutes. I was asked to come get you two.�

�Thank you, Hisoka,� I chirped, grinning at him. He still never apologized for not coming for me. I mean, I�m sure he had some good reasons, or something. It wasn�t like Hisoka to simply blow off everything and everyone. The funny thing was, though, this little act he was putting on�as though he�d never changed, as though he�d never come to change his mind about me, as though he had no feelings for me.

I glanced at Tatsumi, and he was still smiling. �We�ll be there in a moment.� Hisoka looked at Tatsumi in surprise. I could understand why, though. Hisoka was not used to Tatsumi�s �moments� when the man decided to do something entirely out of character. The fact that Tatsumi was dismissing Hisoka so that he could have a moment more alone with me was not something that I wouldn�t expect.

�It�s okay, Hisoka. I�ll see you in there.� I made sure to let my feelings slip out a little for Hisoka to feel. Or, at least I think that is how it is done. Anyway, I think he got the point because he actually smiled a little and nodded to us before turning and going back into the building. �Ne, Tatsumi, do you think he�ll ever apologize?�

�Not in my afterlife, Tsuzuki. But, he did smile.� Tatsumi looked at me like what he said should mean something to me. To a certain degree, it did. Hisoka had acknowledged my feelings in a positive way, even if small.

You know, for someone who�s in love with me, Tatsumi really is reliable for romantic insight.

�Yeah, I guess so.�

~*~ To be continued ~*~