This fic is dedicated to the awesome HaruMichi! Sorry for taking two months to get this posted! And thanks for everyone who has ever reviewed one of stories! I really appreciate it, and I promise to become better at responding.

Anyways, read and review!

Kyoto

Kyoto. It was an inside joke between the two of them that started sometime during their high school days. But as time dragged its robe across their lives, the joke became something more. It became a promise.

"What are you reading Onee-sama?"

Sei lifted her eyes from the text and looked at her petite soeur curiously.

"I'm reading 'Love in the Time of Cholera.' Have you ever heard of it?"

Shimako shook her head. "I don't think so."

Sei chuckled a bit. "No one I've ever asked has." Sei went back to reading as Shimako returned to scribbling away at her homework.

It was quiet in the Rose Mansion. The others were absent. Sei knew that deep down in her mind resided the reason why they weren't there, but she was too content as she was to recall the memory.

The sky was grey Sei noticed from the corner of her eye which explained the consent patter she heard outside the window.

"What if I had told you that I had heard of it Onee-sama?" Shimako asked as an unusual glint entered her eyes.

Sei thought for a bit, eyes on the ceiling. She smiled.

"I would ask you to runaway with me to Kyoto. I could make you so happy Shimako."

Shimako giggled, soon joined by Sei and her rambunctious laughter.

Calming down, Shimako returned to her homework, but not before saying "Perhaps another time Onee-sama."

That's when it started, and after that day, whenever they shared those rare moments of doing homework together, Sei would try to entice Shimako away from homework with the mention of Kyoto, but the ever studious Shimako shot down her attempts with a smile that betrayed her sternness.

There were only a handful of days they could be together as petite soeur and Onee-sama, the last one being Graduation day. Even though Shimako told Yumi that Sei hadn't ask her to do anything once she graduated, to her credit, Shimako didn't know this conversation was going to happen.

"Shimako, try not to miss me too much."

The tears Shimako held back during the graduation ceremony were called forth. Secluded from everyone else under the sakura tree, Sei held her petite soeur, whispering soothing words.

"It'll be alright Shimako. I won't be going far away like Youko and Eriko. I'll still be Tokyo, and besides, it's spring. You'll meet new people, and one day, you'll realize that it isn't weird not having me by your side."

Sei felt Shimako shake her head vigorously in defiance. "That won't happen Onee-sama!"

Sei chuckled, running her hand through Shimako's hair.

"Yes it will, but it's alright Shimako. However, if you still don't like it, we have one other option."

Shimako pulled away enough from Sei to look into the older girl's eyes.

"Another option?" Shimako repeated, a mixture of hope, curiosity, and confusion in her sapphire eyes.

"Yes. I could always not go college, and you could always drop out of Lillian, and we could always run away to Kyoto. Like I said before, I could make you so happy."

Shimako laughed without restraint as she rested her head on Sei's shoulder. "And what would we do in Kyoto?"

"I'm not sure...well there are a lot of shrines out there. You could work in a Buddhist temple, and I could work in a Shinto one. I think you would enjoy seeing me in a miko outfit.

Shimako laughed again as she pulled away completely from Sei's embrace. Her eyes were puffy along with her cheeks, but the twinkle in her eyes made her look radiant.

Shimako straightened out her uniform. "Perhaps another time, Onee-sama." She offered her hand to Sei. "We should get going before we miss taking the photos with the rest of the girls."

Sei grinned as she grasped Shimako's hand, and as a homage to the day they became soeurs, Sei sprinted in the direction of the Maria-sama statue, dragging her petite soeur along. She knew Shimako would be alright with the sudden sprint. She knew Shimako would be alright in the coming term.

And Sei was right. Though with some stumbling first, Shimako gained her footing as the new Rosa Gigantea, coming out of it with a petite soeur.

Sei was genuinely happy when Shimako told her over the phone a few days later, if not also a bit jealous at the frequency Shimako said Noriko's name with a fond lit. At least, her petite soeur was in a good place in life right now unlike herself.

Shimako noticed the sadness and invited Sei to come over the next day. For catching up was the excuse neither of them believed.

They ended up in a hammock at the back of the shrine after dinner, looking at the night sky.

Shimako wasn't a coaxer, so she stayed silent, intertwining their hands together.

"It's Kei..." Sei began, and then proceeded to tell Shimako about how she fallen for the girl with the similar name. When she gathered the courage to confess, Kei shot her down, albeit gently. Kei was straight.

The confession hung in the air above them. Shimako squeezed Sei's hand.

"Do you love her?"

"No, but it still hurts."

Shimako nodded as she laid her head on the crook of Sei's neck. They stayed silent, watching the stars and the occasional plane in the sky.

Shimako squeezed Sei's hand to get her attention.

"What is it Shimako?"

Shimako raised her head to meet Sei's grey eyes, a playful smirk on her lips.

"Runaway to Kyoto with me. I'll make you forget all your troubles, and most of all, I'll make you happy."

Sei laughed as she gently forced Shimako to her previous position, placing a kiss on the top of her head.

"Perhaps another time. I'm enjoying this moment too much."

They parted in an hour or so, and for the most part, their lives returned to the semi-sooth sailing they had experienced before, except this time, they started hanging out more. But not that much. Maybe once a week, and only after they made plans over the phone.

On a snowy Thursday in December, they hadn't made plans, and yet, Shimako showed up at Sei's dorm room, drenched in melted snow.

"Shimako are you crazy? Get out of those clothes before you catch pneumonia or something!"

Shimako stubbornly shook her head. "I have to talk to you."

Sei gripped Shimako's arms. "It can wait. Just change out of those clothes. I have extras in my closet."

Shimako agreed, only after seeing the worry in Sei's eyes. Sei steeped out of the room to give Shimako some privacy and to get them something warm to drink. Entering her room twenty minutes later, Sei found Shimako sitting on her bed. Sei handed Shimako a cup of steaming green tea.

"What happened?" Sei asked as she sat on the bed next to Shimako. She took a sip of tea to hide her anxiety.

Shimako released a shaky breath as her eyes met her Onee-sama's.

"I'm going to inherit the shrine."

Sei's eyes widen. "What about your brother? I thought he was going to inherit the shrine."

Shimako nodded her head solemnly.

"He was, but he got into an argument with my father. Now my father is giving it to me."

"And you don't want it because you still want to be a nun?"

"No. It's not that. I've given up the idea of being a nun awhile ago. It's the fact that...I just don't want to be weighed down by it."

"But you're still going to take it because you're the dutiful daughter."

Shimako chuckled bitterly. "That's one way of looking at it."

Sei could tell Shimako that she didn't have to do it if she didn't want to. That it was her own life, and that she shouldn't let others make decisions for her. But in the end, Shimako did make her own decision .

"How long do you have Shimako?"

"About fifteen years. Father said that after high school I should start concentrating on the shrine."

"You're still going to college right?"

"Yes, but after that, I'll focus on the shrine."

Silenced joined them once again as they sipped their tea, and when tea was no longer an excuse to keep them silent, Shimako rested her head on Sei's lap. With pleading eyes, she stared at her Onee-sama.

"Can we runaway to Kyoto Sei? Not for the rest of our lives or anything like that, but just for the weekend? I just need to get away from all of this Onee-sama. I just need some time to gather my bearings."

It killed Sei to see her petite soeur so defeated, and it killed her even more to crush her request.

"We can't Shimako. The roads are covered in snow, and it won't let up until sometime next week."

Shimako's eyes welled up, but Sei was quick to reassure her. "But once the roads clear up, I'll take you Shimako. I promise."

Shimako didn't cry that night, and though she wasn't allowed to forget her troubles in Kyoto, she was able to forget them in her Onee-sama's dorm room.

Thankfully, for Shimako's sake, her brother apologized a few days later, and after asking Shimako for permission, her father gave Shimako's brother his inheritance back.

That night they celebrated by going out for dinner, along with Shimako's petite soeur Noriko. The dinner was a causal affair doused by laughter and warmth. When she blessed her food, Shimako added a quick thanks to God for having two great women in her life.

Later that night, when Shimako walked Noriko to the Nijo's door as Sei waited in the car, Noriko dropped the bombshell.

"You love her don't you Shimako-san." It wasn't a question.

Shimako blushed as she looked away from Noriko's penetrating glaze. She hated it sometimes that her petite soeur knew her so well.

Shimako sighed, returning her glaze to Noriko. "I do."

"She loves you too."

"Perhaps."

It was Noriko's time to sighed. She turned to unlock the door.

"Don't wait too long Shimako-san. You'll regret it."

Shimako nodded. "I'll consider it."

Noriko stared at her Onee-sama for a long time, and when she found what she was looking for, she smiled and said goodnight.

Shimako embraced Noriko, whispering goodnight as well. Letting go, Shimako watched Noriko enter her house and then headed back to the car.

"That took awhile." Sei stated once Shimako settled in her seat.

"It did." Shimako replied enigmatically, denying Sei the information she was seeking.

"All right. So do you want to go home or do you want to do something else?"

Shimako's face was unreadable, Noriko's words running through her head. Sei waited, a bit worried at her petite soeur's sudden reticence.

"Can we go somewhere and take a walk?"

Seriousness fell upon them, and Sei nodded yes as they drove off.

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the park somewhere in downtown Tokyo, and three minutes later, they were walking down one of its many trails.

"This isn't like you Shimako."

Shimako stopped and turned to Sei. She reached for Sei's hand and squeezed, not looking up.

"I'm not sure how to go about it."

Sei put her hand under Shimako's chin and raised her head until Shimako's eyes met hers.

"Just start. You'll pick it up as you go along."

Shimako bit her lip, and after meeting Sei's open and warm eyes, Shimako decided to follow what Sei said.

She started to lean in, and when her lips met Sei's, she mimicked the movement of Sei's more experienced lips, picking it up as they went along. Her arms wrapped tightly around Sei's neck as Sei's arms wrapped just as tightly around Shimako's waist. Sei pulled away, but only to recapture Shimako's lips again and again until the need for air became too great.

Sei pulled away and rested her head against Shimako's, trying to catch her breath.

"Shimako..."

"Sei, before you say anything, let me say something. Let's just try it out. If it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out. But we won't know unless we try. Also, I'm choosing to do this out of my own free because I love you."

Sei planted a chaste kiss on Shimako's lips and smiled. "You always know what to say to me don't you?"

Shimako smiled as well. "As do you."

Sei pressed Shimako's body closer to her. "It's not going to be easy you know."

Shimako nodded, her head on Sei's shoulder. "I know, but if I have you, it won't be so bad. Plus, if it gets too bad, we can always runaway to Kyoto, which by the way, you still owe me a trip to."

Sei kissed Shimako's forehead.

"I'll take you there just be patient beautiful."

Shimako blushed as they walked back to the car, hand-in-hand.

Their relationship, though it began with tentative steps, grew by leaps and bounds through the years. Shimako graduated from Lillian and unlike what everyone expected, Shimako enrolled into Tokyo University. She decided that if she wasn't going to help people spiritually, she would help them physically. Sei was supportive, and eventually, Sei found herself a graduate of Lillian University with a job in one of Tokyo's most prestigious newspapers.

Soon, they moved in together into a quaint apartment, where the only complaint was the bills.

"One hundred and fifty dollars on a dress? You must be crazy!"

Shimako stopped putting away the dishes and looked at her girlfriend.

"If I recall correctly, you were the one who told me to get it."

"It's not like you ever listen to me."Sei huffed as her eyes returned to the bills. "I'm just going to runaway and not pay these bills."

Shimako quirked her eyebrow. "Like you promised to runaway with me to Kyoto? When's that going to happen Sei?"

Sei grinned. "I'll take you there. Don't worry."

"If you say so."

Shimako returned to her chore, not noticing the twinkle in Sei's eyes. Shimako didn't know that Sei had two tickets to Kyoto. For tonight.

Kyoto wasn't just a town in Japan that was spared from firebomb attacks in World War II. Nor was it just the home to hundreds of shrines. It was an inside joke. It was a promise. And when the time came, it became a getaway for two people in love.

FIN