Riddle me This

Beta: No one

Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

A/N: HOLY COW I'M DONE!

She didn't know how to ask him at first, how to present her request in a way that would gain approval. Then again, she was merely attempting to ask him if they could spend the holiday together. She went through several various versions of 'May I spend Christmas with you Senpai?' ranging from politely worded letters, to personal meetings. Finally she opted to resume the riddles they had played before, when he discovered her gender. The last clue would put him at her apartment in two hours, so she had opted to soak in the tub.

Naoto closed her eyes and let the warm water rest her body, while the bubbles that surrounded her sparkled a bit from the lighting in the bathroom. The soft rainbow of colors let her mind wander away for a bit, and since Adachi had been caught there was no reason why she shouldn't. It was peaceful in there, so much so that she didn't realize that she had nodded off until she heard a voice calling her.

"Naoto-kun? Oh Naoto-kun..." her eyes flew open as she sat up straight in the bathtub. The water was chill now, the bubbles nearly gone and she couldn't tell how long she was out of it. "I'll assume by the sound, that you've woken up, in that case. May I come in? I'm assuming your taunting riddles were to bring me here. A reward of your naked body would be nice." She could hear him teasing her from outside the, now open, door, did he open it and look at her as she slept?

The bath water being cold no longer mattered, since she was blushing so much now she could no longer feel it. She had never gotten the key back to her apartment, and for a moment she didn't know if she regretted that mistake or welcomed it. But she had to get out of the bath now, and that meant...

"Shut the door then go to the other side of the apartment, and let me hear you!" she called out before sinking deeper into the water of the tub. He was on the other side of the door, though he kept his gaze up towards the ceiling as he reached over and grabbed the door to close it. From there she could hear it click and his voice rose up beyond it.

"I accepted your challenge Naoto-kun. But I think you should increase the difficulty of those riddles, since it didn't take me any time to figure them out."

Naoto heard his footfalls and his voice, taking it into account before she finally stood up in the bath, climbing out and grabbing her towel. She swiftly began drying herself off and putting on another set of clothes before pulling the plug in her bathtub. But the moment she opened the door and walked out she found herself caught in Souji's arms. He had gotten behind her, though she didn't know how, then wrapped his arms around her smaller frame.

"If you wanted to spend Christmas with me, all you had to do was ask you know. Perhaps when I first arrived here, I would have yielded just to make you happy, but now..." he lowered his head, letting his breath fall on her ear. "Now, I expect to be the one on top as payment for this admission."

'On top' could mean several things really, that he wished to assume the male role totally, assigning her the softer female one, or... well there was always 'that' meaning. "I suppose that is agreeable, so long as we're in agreement of what 'on top' means..." Her arms were over his so she reached up and brought her hand behind his neck to pull his head down closer to her face as she spoke.

"I'm sure by the end of the night we'll have decided on the true meaning of those words," he was so amiable in tone as he spoke. "This will be my only Christmas here for a while at least, so I want to share it with you." She turned around and buried her face into his chest out of objection that he would have to leave. "It'll be ok Naoto-kun, we have each other after all. Besides your message all, but, states that I am to be in total obedience to you. So tell me princess, why do you want to spend Christmas at my place?"

"I thought about allowing you to celebrate here, however; as I thought about it, it occurred to me that you have spent many days away from there. Busy traveling to and from locations due to the case, school and your numerous jobs. I felt that perhaps as part of the 'gift' concept I should back off and allow you to stay home, thus travel to see you instead."

Only a pair of thin shirts stood between her and Souji's bare chest, something that created an interesting sensation deep within her. She wasn't used to being so intimately close to someone who cared about her. But Souji was warm, and by her side thus she didn't mind, in fact she welcomed it, as her mind shift back to how he stole her first kiss. In this very apartment in fact, and he held her in much the same way, close with an incredibly tender hold.

Which brought her back to why she was spending Christmas with Souji, more importantly, why weren't they having it in the family room? 'His' room implied that an understanding had been reached about who would be 'on top', not only that, as she passed him...

Why was his futon already out?! "Senpai? Why is your futon already out?" Already her mind started on what a futon could be used for. Warm skin, strong arms, a deep seated surrender that awoke when Souji touched her. Was this what it meant to be in love? This ability to look into someone's eyes and get lost in them?

"Ahh and here I thought you knew... Perhaps love has made your intellect slow down my Princess?" She swallowed hard as she heard his amused voice, the teasing that went with it. "That is the rule after all, I'll do as you say, but I'll do it 'my' way." The feeling of his fingers running against her flesh didn't help her any. "I did plan on us making the Christmas meal together, but Uncle started making comments. I realized if I did that he'd assume we were getting married and well..."

The very thought did startle her as she shuffled to the table. Since if she walked in her normal style, she couldn't promise she wouldn't fall over in sheer nerves. But he did have a point, Dojima-san would probably raise an eyebrow over who Souji was making a meal with. Despite how she acted around Souji, Naoto wasn't sure if she could handle being teased about marriage.

"I have to admit, you opting to challenge me to riddles just to ask about us spending tonight together... Did you think I would lose?"

She shook her head as she sized up the meal presented to her, "no, of course not Senpai, I have full confidence that you are capable of anything that you put your mind to."

His hands were on her shoulders, gently pushing her down to the seat at his table, so she submitted and knelt down. Settling herself in, placing the package that held the school girl's uniform to the side. No matter how many times she had been invited to his room, it never stopped to amaze her that she was doing this at all. Somehow she had managed to convince herself quite well that no one would appreciate her odd likes and dislikes; accept her for who she was without forcing her to be someone else. So when they began to eat, the atmosphere was much the same as when she was first rescued, relaxed and safe. When he took her hand and kissed the inside of her wrist, she reacted by gently kissing the back of his hand. Even as she felt the warmth return to her cheeks, really she shouldn't have been this modest, yet Souji just had that type of influence over her.

"I ahh... I made the cake, Senpai. I followed the instructions so hopefully it came out to your satisfaction."

For a moment he seemed distant as though thinking something very deep. So she said nothing to interrupt him, instead she pulled her cake box over. Opening it and began working on presenting the cake. She cut and served it, while hoping that someone as good as he was at cooking, approved of her limited skills. "My grandfather finally answered my call. I guess I had to finish the assignment before he would, though I thought I would tell you. He's pleased that I have made friends here..."

Upon that admission she looked away from him, nervous and shy all the same time. When she had originally spoken to her grandfather she had gone to quite a length about being forced into that trip. He had argued that perhaps it would give her a chance at spending time around kids her own age. All her previous cases had her working only with adults, but this was something new. She had argued the whole time, until he asked for the report on what had happened. When he had learned what happened at the hot springs he had grown very quiet. All she could focus on was how her gender was discovered, over time her grandfather asking if she had come to respect this group's leader.

Respect? She wasn't sure about that in all honesty. At first she considered him a poor imitation of the detectives she adored in the books she read. But after the hot springs, she got to know him better in those days before her kidnapping.

"And what does he think of me?" Naoto choked on her next bite, causing him to raise an eyebrow in surprise. "Well?"

"Well... you see, ah, the first time I talked about you... was the day after the trip to the Amagi Inn." Her conversations with her grandfather had dwindled down at that point. Probably because of his Phantom Thief case, but also because of his friend.

She noted his grin, but she felt more embarrassed simply because for a time she wasn't asked about him. "Well don't leave me in suspense, Naoto-kun, tell me."

"I-it ah, wasn't much... really," she rambled, her cheeks an increased shade of red. She had feared him finding out, though Souji's grades were solidly in the higher bracket of students, he didn't come from an established family. Naoto had feared that perhaps her grandfather would disapprove of her growing feelings for the upperclassman.

"I could tell him," Souji replied, and she could hear the smirk in his voice. But apparently her grandfather had been alerted that there was a man in Naoto's life. For their next conversation brought Souji up to discussion. "But where would I start? How your body feels pressed close to mine or how you look in nothing, but, a towel?"

Oh no, that would kill her, forget her grandfather!

"Senpai! I can not talk like that to my grandfather, you are well aware of that!" she felt ready to die at that moment. It hit rather alarmingly close to home for her, not that her grandfather mentioned such adult themes. But her grandfather had expressed his pleasure that Naoto had found both friends, and someone who took a deeper interest in her.. He had concluded that Souji's focus, during her recovery among other things, implied possible interest. Naoto's reciprocation had delighted the older man and the servants it seemed. Despite how they treated her, it seemed they had similar hopes for her finding someone as would be expected upon a girl. Yet it didn't annoy her as much as she would have thought.

"Fine, but there isn't much else you can talk about, after all, it's not like you can just discuss the details of the case with him." But perhaps that was due to the fact that she had fallen for the one they were hoping for.

"This is true, but he is happy that I've made friends. But I fear showing my true gender to him, what would he think of me if I tried." Which was the truth, Naoto wasn't exactly sure what she would become in accepting her gender. She had abandoned the ideal detective image being female so long ago, she'd have to go back to the drawing boards. What clothes would she ultimately choose? Styles? Colors? Really some of the stuff she knew, but the others and what her grandfather would think...

"If he's worthy of being your grandfather, then he won't have a problem with it."

"Worthy? He's a well respected detective, Senpai..." How could he say that? Her grandfather was well admired, in the high class circles of law enforcement many knew his name! With a grandson he could proudly state who Naoto was, but with a girl... it was just...

"It doesn't matter if he's the well respected Emperor of Japan, Naoto-kun. So long as you feel loved and safe, that's the responsibility of a parent to their child. Even I learned that living here, my parents work very hard and even if they love me, they have little time for me."

His tone of voice was enough to startle her, his force of voice, the look of determination in his eyes. The fact that he felt so strongly to say that was enough to reinforce that he loved her. But if that was the case, then her analysis of his background was a little off. "I'm surprised then. I would not have imagined someone to live such a lonely life and yet be so caring, so loving." She understood that they were normally gone, thus why he knew so many domestic skills. But the fact that he learned what it meant to have a family while being here in Inaba, with extended family rather then his own. Even if they loved him, how did he view his relationship to his parents?

"I guess it's because I chose not to give into the solitude, my perseverance paid off in the end, since I found you."

"I will admit I never thought that I would find someone for myself. That I would forever be alone, due to both my choice in occupation and my deception. At most, I thought I would enter a marriage contract and that love would be irrelevant. Only now, I've begun to understand what my parents must have felt for each other." She blushed as she confessed, but at the same time she felt strong and proud of what they were sharing. Being the unknown proof of his way of life, a way that allowed her to meet him was exhilarating. "May I use your bathroom for a moment, I wish to show you something?"

Gathering up the package she slipped out of the room and down towards the bathroom. Opening the package, she couldn't help but feel a sense of trepidation over the act of putting on a girl's uniform. It was winter wear, but even then it felt odd, the fit was different then what she was used to, the cut and style expecting of small modest breasts. Yet, while Naoto clearly didn't stick out like one of those ridiculous American actresses with breasts the size of melons and brain sizes to match, yeah still odd. The bra was simple, and between that and the lack of restriction, she felt she was topless in a sense. The skirt... well Chie-senpai had the right idea, biking shorts, something that was tight to the body would have done better. Cold air just came up her legs making her shiver as she looked over the final result of her in a school girl's uniform.

A few spot checks and she was peering out of the bathroom before rushing back to Souji's room. If she thought standing in a skirt was bad, running in one was worse. Kept feeling like it was flapping against her legs and drove her crazy. But she was at his door, no embarrassing moments just her, her clothes and her dignity... oh and goosebumps. Behind her, she could hear Souji's footsteps as they ascended the stairs to his room. For a moment a panic seemed to engulf her that he would laugh or ridicule her for the outfit. But no, this was part of being a girl, a different style of dress and something he would understand. Right? He didn't mind any of the other girls in skirts after all.

"Naoto-kun?"

"Ahh, how do you like it Senpai?" She asked her voice conveying more nervousness then she would have liked. Her hands stayed close to her chest, the blunted v cut still making her feel like her breasts were more visible then they were. She tried to look him in the eye, but her fears kept her eyes just about mid upper chest. Her answer came when his arms slipped around her, warming her from the chill and restoring her confidence.

"You look exactly like I'm going to be fighting off other boys from chasing you."

The difference between men and women's clothing could be felt in that moment, the clothes she was used to was made of thicker, stiffer material. Meant to make it harder to detect her natural female body. Even when she took the coat off, it was still a man's shirt and thick like one. It was also a bit interesting, because it allowed for a subtle evaluation of the male form. In laymans Japanese, it meant she could touch him and not be obvious...

"Senpai," she scolded, as soon as he stopped being so flirtatious at least. Naoto pushed him back trying to escape from his possessive hold, partly because the thin clothes issue worked both ways... and she wasn't stupid. And Souji wasn't easily dissuaded apparently, before she found herself in his embrace. Which all and all wasn't a bad thing, he was warm, and if he didn't try to use the top of her head for a headrest... Stupid lack of height.

"It's true, I'd fight for you."

She felt his finger rubbing her chin, but if he thought for a second that he was the sole proprietor of defending the other... Naoto had spent so many years of her life alone and craving acceptance, to have it now, acceptance and a lover. It was a drug she didn't want to give up, a high that intoxicated her to no end. "I can fight for myself, and if anyone is fighting to keep rivals off I'll be the one fighting."

His light blush was a victory for her, a triumph in creating that response out of him. So when he let her go, she accepted the momentary chill, as he walked to his desk and pulled out something. "I got you something for Christmas as well," he spoke as he held out what looked like a wrapped CD case to her. But she shook her head quickly, unwilling to give in to him and act like a frilly girl despite being excited about it.

"Senpai this isn't the 'real' gift, it was just something I wanted to show you. Here, allow me to change clothes and I'll get it for you."

Naoto quickly returned to the bathroom to change, unlike other girls, she was just too vulnerable to the cold still. Years wearing the thicker, warmer clothes of a boy made this sudden introduction to winter chill more harsh on her. But it also meant that she was more quicker in putting those clothes back on. Though for a minute she stood there, the shirt on, but unbuttoned with the unbuttoned binding bra under that. Debating for a moment before deciding that she was a woman, she didn't need to hide her natural figure from her Senpai. Dojima, yes, Souji, no, simple as that, so she buttoned up the shirt and then packed up the clothes so she could rejoin Souji in his room. As she ascended the stairs she pulled out the box she had wrapped her gift in.

She walked into the room, with him standing there the CD case still in his hands. So she walked over to him while he spoke, the gift she made for him in her hands as well. "Merry Christmas Naoto-kun."

"Host first," the gifts switched hands, as she spoke. He went to his couch and sat down before unwrapping it leaving her standing there with a sense of apprehension. Being and accepting that she was a woman was one thing, but the watch was childish in appearance. Even she realized that the gift looked childish. But she didn't have the proper tools to make a realistic looking watch, even at home.

He unwrapped the gift, opening the case to remove the watch itself. His momentary blinking and studying of said item caused her to inwardly pale.

"I adjusted it, it has a sensor that allows it to detect where I... ah am, it's range is limited, but ah...." For the first time having to say 'what' it did made her realize something...

"Are you stalking me?" And his lack of facial expression upon saying that was enough to make her really worry.

"NO! I ah, just, you're always in my mind, and I'm wearing one, too," did she screw this up that badly?

"Thank you for the GPS Unit disguised as a watch, it's better then wearing a leash," she didn't think of it as a leash! She... was that how it looked to others? If they knew, it well... Her mind began trying to discern it when she realized that, yes, it would look like she was a possessive girlfriend.

She was still nervous sitting on the couch, but she accepted the CD case and began unwrapping it. The color copy jacket on the case read the title of the book she used to read as a child.

"I got in contact with your family servants at the Estate. In order to make amends for what they did in the 'case', they willingly told me what your favorite book growing up was. So I got a copy of it, and read the whole thing saving it onto that disc. I hope that a single year of theater classes will be enough to make the disc a pleasant thing to listen to."

Her hands shook and her eyes grew wide, as she heard his explanation of the CD. The very idea that he had gone through all the trouble to make this for her was very touching. "Oh Senpai, thank you... this.. this is just..." She felt his arms engulf her, for once her small stature didn't bother her, she felt perfect in his arms.

"Merry Christmas Naoto-kun, I love you."

It was an odd mix between before when he stole her first kiss in her apartment, nervous and yet joyful this time. But she wouldn't deny him this, he had given her so much, to deny him a kiss was too cruel. One kiss... Two kisses...

Distance 1meter.