Kusakabe brought the tray of tea into the room overlooking the garden. It happened to be Hibari Kyouya's favourite place-he'd learned this from years of searching for his superior after the other man had gotten too annoyed with the 'herbivores'. A name Kusakabe himself often utilized if only to attempt to calm the skylark down. It didn't often work and he had the bruises to prove it. Not quite so adept at silencing his footsteps the 2nd in command of the Disciplinary Committee's every step sent shock waves through the tea kettle and cups. Maybe it'd been a bit idealistic for him to include a second cup for himself. Just maybe.

"Tetsuya Kusakabe. What are you doing here?"

"Some tea for you. To help you relax after the incident with the ...herbivores."

The sharp eyes narrowed then returned to gazing at the sand in the zen garden. One rock jutted out from the pale grains of eroded stone-any others and there would be complaints of crowding. A small amount of flesh, somehow unmarred despite the Cloud's frequent battles peeked out from the dark yukata. Kusakabe made his way over without a lick of fear. Hibari had come to trust or at least tolerate him now. Well, maybe.

He kneeled on the wooden planks of the floor, steaming tea pouring from kettle to cup with a faint splashing noise. The drink was accepted in a moment. One hand reached out and swiftly grabbed the cylindrical glass then was raised to the pale pink lips. Tetsuya blamed the heat on his face on the tea.

"Why are you still here Kusakabe?"

"E-Eh? Just in case you wanted more tea sir." His surprise acted as a poor cover for his true emotions. At least he'd been noticed rather than ignored without a word. That had to be some sort of progress.

Nothing else was said. But then again, he wasn't told to leave either. Speaking would be frowned upon and given the circumstances not much remained to talk about. The mission had been successful. If it hadn't they wouldn't have come back alive. Hibari Kyouya had little interest in discussing things beyond that.

The glass raised in front of his face.

"More."

"Right."

No 'thank you', no 'please' but the unspoken words were the most important ones coming from Hibari.

"Kyo-san, I think-"

"When did I say it was alright to call me that?"

"Well, never technically but I-"

"I won't call you Tetsuya."

"That would be improper."

The other man sipped his tea quietly as if mulling over the idea of being referred to in such an intimate manner. Despite the fact that the other guardians used each other's first names. Kusakabe went to pour himself some tea-it might help his nerves now that he'd actually called his Boss by anything other than Hibari-san and had almost instantly regretted it. A hand closed around his wrist.

"Pouring your own drink is a break down in discipline. If you do it again Kusakabe I'll bite you to death."

"But-Kyo-san asking-"

One look shut him up. "Even your subordinates should not pour their own tea. Dump it out."

"Wh-What? I mean, yes sir."

Everything Hibari did was done so with a certain elegance laced with roughness even when it came to pouring a drink. The tea was tipped over the tray and allowed to slide out of the cup as the Cloud guardian watched over it as if it were of the utmost importance. His fingertips wrapped around the grey handle of the kettle then poured the liquid.

"Thank you Kyo-san," he took a long drink then sighed, "is there anything you need done?"

By which he meant anything that he hadn't already done without being asked to. Any subordinate who couldn't tell what needed to be done without being told didn't deserve their position.

"Lie down."

"Lie down?" Kusakabe did it without much protest only because Hibari rarely did things for no reason. No, he never did things without reason. A second later the unimpressed fast of the other man appeared over him, one hand bracing his body against the floor next to the commander's torso.

"Kyo-san, is there something you need?" Leave it to the older man to tease him beyond all compare. His eyes wandered, following the line of the yukata down to the milky stomach.

The same lips he had admired many times before were placed awkwardly over his own. He hadn't expected it of course, and he hadn't expected that a man who was so good at other things would be so poor at something as simple as kissing. The pressure was too soft at first then enough to bruise his lips with his own teeth. One of the hands yanked its way through the carefully styled pompadour with no ceremony. The elegance had disappeared leaving only unrefined and inexperienced touches. But Kusakabe allowed the hair pulling, the failed attempts at tenderness and nips at his bottom lip that left him bleeding because the great Hibari Kyouya wasn't infallible.

"Kusakabe, you can leave now."

"Yes, Kyo-san."

"Tomorrow, bring me more tea."

"Alright, until tomorrow then," he smiled with bloodied lips. Some things never changed, least of all Hibari, but he guessed that this time he'd seen the one instance where the skylark had. He just wished it hadn't ended with the bruises all over his body. Well, he could deal with it. If years with Hibari taught a person one thing it was fortitude. And Kusakabe for one was strong enough to withstand any abuse the Cloud could deal out-after all he'd been doing it for years and wasn't about to stop now. But for the present moment he had to focus on cleaning himself up. He sighed-Kyouya didn't go easy even when it came to romance. It was to be expected and Kusakabe decided he would rather have this than a regular girl any day. Well, maybe he'd reserve judgment on that one for a little while longer.