Disclaimer: I do not own Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei nor do I own any of its characters. No money is being earned by writing this fic and all credit goes to its respective owners.

Subtle Change in Normalcy

She knew she was going to feel like this. She told herself not to think about it. She should have gotten used to it considering how long she had been going on like this. Nevertheless, the feeling of loneliness lingered within her even when she knew it would dissipate in a matter of a few hours. He had taken her to school, seen her off, and had promised to return before the school gates closed. She was only to wait for that time to pass, and take her lessons to assist in making that time go by faster.

It was only a few days ago when Miyuki started her life as a third year student. Serving the student council since her first year, she, after Nakajou Azusa graduated a few months prior, had then taken the seat as student council president. Of course, when the idea of her taking the position was first brought up, Miyuki held many reservations to whether she was competent enough in taking the role. This, however, was quickly settled when a certain onii-sama praised the idea, leading to Miyuki agreeing to take the position all too enthusiastically the next day.

Onii-sama, she thought, for now not bothering to correct herself. She only had half-an-hour left, but similarly to the past few days, she missed having his presence close by. While he was not within her line of sight, she knew he was still by her, watching for any possible danger that may befall her. Yet, she still yearned for him to physically be by her side. She reveled in the sight of his gaze moving all around their surroundings, and only when meeting her own would they break away from their usual stoniness and soften. And so much did she want to feel his warm hand on her head, calming her down as she busied herself with the tedious work of the student council president.

However, he was to no longer attend school. For it was from the beginning of the year that 'Shiba Tatsuya' was to be erased from everyone but the Yotsuba's minds.

Unbeknownst to the rest of the clan, with him gone, so was her initial purpose of attending school. Here they were allowed to stand as equals and not as master and guardian. As much as she now wanted to stop attending, her presence at school was crucial. She was to act as the stimuli to Shiba Tatsuya's 'disappearance'.

As student council president, she now needed to achieve as much attention as possible. By doing this, all eyes would be fixated on her achievements, and not on the achievements that were made in the past, especially those that were achieved by her brother. While this very notion of having to slowly remove the achievements of her special person saddened her, why she was doing it honestly excited her. All of this was prerequisite if the clan was to announce her future engagement with him. If she were to continue with her melancholic attitude at his absence, the prelude to their engagement would only be lengthened.

Remembering this, Miyuki quickly dispelled all her negative thoughts and replaced them with more positive ones. As if sensing her sudden change in mood, the setting sun shined even brighter through the window behind her, colouring the entire room in bolder shades of yellow, orange and red. With everyone else in the student council having left long ago, it was only the black of her shadow that could be seen moving across the room. Not even her guardian, Minami, stayed with her at this time. Knowing that she would be late, Miyuki had instructed Minami to return home once school ended. After Miyuki had told her who was going to accompany her home, Minami made no effort to refute and so left by herself as instructed.

Finally done with her reading, Miyuki switched off the monitor and leaned back against her seat to glance at the clock. She was right about it not being enough work. She still had twenty minutes left.

Leaning against the armrest of the chair, Miyuki closed her eyes, and refreshed herself to all that she had learnt during that day. Such an exercise would be done by her everyday to improve her memory and reduce the amount of studying she had to do upon returning home. After all, she had other important duties to attend to there rather than think about school. This was especially made so with him currently working hard to win the favour of the clan. With him doing all that, she had to make sure she worked just as hard to let him relax whenever he returned.

When finished, and seeing how she, to her utter exasperation, still had time to spare, Miyuki then let her mind wander off to the other occurrences of that day. Closing her eyes again, her mind chose to relay the chat she had with Honoka and Shizuku in class a few hours before. To the time when they had asked her whether her parents had arranged anything for her in the future. With gossip about arranged marriages becoming the norm as they were now third years, Miyuki was able to quickly understand that they were referring to this topic when they had asked her this question.

Of course, she was not allowed to tell them the answer. However, with them not specifically asking her if she was going to get married, Miyuki was able to answer their inquiry with a simple, and not too far from the truth: "I'm not really sure."

This response earned her a pair of disappointed sighs but, before they could ask any more, Miyuki had quickly changed the topic.

They are going to find out in a few years anyway, Miyuki thought, mind now back to the present. All of them will.

She was going to be revealed as the next head of the Yotsuba clan after a few months of graduating from First High. Not only would she be revealed as the next head of the Yotsuba clan, but so was he. Here she felt her insides do jumping jacks. He is also going to be your husband, her mind added. Now here it was her heart's turn to do the jumping.

With her face starting to heat up, it was then that the Snow Queen's thoughts drifted back home, where she first obtained the news from the Yotsuba head herself.

-~.x.X.x.~-

"P-Pardon, oba-sama?"

Miyuki looked on, astonishment clearly evident in her eyes. Her mind could not compute any of the words their aunt had just said to them. Never before was she ever caught so off guard. Noticing herself spluttering, and in front of her aunt no less, Miyuki paled to a deathly shade, and quickly bowed deep in apology. "Forgive me for speaking out of turn, oba-sama."

In the corner of her vision, Miyuki did not miss the ever present smirk widen on her aunt's face at her actions. While her expressions seemed to always have a chastising effect on her, this one expressed genuine amusement.

"After becoming head, you shall be betrothed to the man standing beside you," Miyuki heard Maya repeat as she straightened back up. "Tatsuya, you shall be removed of your status as a guardian and will take Miyuki's hand in marriage."

Even with her receiving the bit of information again, Miyuki continued to be incredulous at her aunt's brazen words. She knew that she was going to be part of an arranged marriage, which she had so far done well in not thinking about, but she didn't expect this to happen! Wanting someone to attest to what she was hearing, Miyuki then craned her head to see the reaction of the person standing next to her.

What she saw surprised her even more than what she was just told a moment ago. Through his usually calm façade, she was able to see the slight confusion that had made itself visible in his eyes. Being right beside him, she was also able to notice the slight tightening of his jaw. At the sight of his reaction, which was far more of what he would normally show even in front of her, Miyuki was finally hit with the seriousness of their situation.

We are going to get married!, her mind shouted, and while it was supposed to be more in astonishment, it ended up more as a proclamation.

Right after that thought was put out, ambivalence overtook her, and she strained to keep all of those turbulent emotions from leaking out to her outward appearance.

She was going to marry him. Embarrassment laced with a spike of eagerness surged within her body. He was finally going to be accepted into the Yotsuba family. Contentment filled her. He was going to be her equal, no longer her guardian. Self-gratification inebriated her. He was finally going to be treated how he should have been all this time. She was floating on pure happiness. They even had Maya's support!

But it was still too early to accept what she was being told. Why such a thing was happening was something they were not told as of of yet. Pushing, shoving and then finally locking all these emotions back into the depths of her mind, Miyuki spoke to find her answer.

"But how is this possible?" Against her wishes, Miyuki felt her fingers start to fiddle with themselves.

"It wouldn't be a problem if you two were not registered as siblings in all your personal documents, don't you agree?" Maya waved a finger as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. Nevertheless, it didn't exactly answer the bigger question Miyuki had in mind. Before she could rephrase her question, she was cut off.

"As for what is needed for this to happen," Maya continued on, "Tatsuya, I have removed your application for attending next year's semester. From here on out, you will need to keep a low profile, and so I advise you not to head out unless necessary. Miyuki, you will be going through your usual routines, though further instructions will be sent to you later on."

Oh. Now this Miyuki was not so happy about.

"Minami will take over your role as guardian and watch over Miyuki, though we will make sure to not interrupt you two in your private time. While Miyuki continues on with school, you, my cute nephew, on the other hand, must make the formal amendments with the rest of the family. You have my full support." Though Maya would always have a smile on her face while talking to them, the one she was exuding now seemed a lot more sincere.

Although she was initially disappointed at her aunt's previous speech, what she had said afterward had Miyuki derailed from those thoughts.

We will make sure to not interrupt you two in your private time…, her mind trailed on, repeating the line over and over again.

It was only then did she notice her aunt's amused gaze land on her, and Miyuki could not stop from looking away in embarrassment.

Beside her, Tatsuya made no effort to fix his sister's earlier question. Reading Miyuki's expression from before and seeing her lack of dissent, he had decided against it. Focusing back on their aunt, and noting how she had decided not to make a personal appearance, Tatsuya figured they were not going to get anything else out of her now. Also because of her relaying this information to them via private call, Tatsuya surmised that she had not yet told the rest of the clan of her decision. Knowing her, he was probably only going to get the full details when she did decide to make a proper appearance. Now sure he was going to get his answers later, he moved all his focus to the figure beside him, waiting for her to speak again. Miyuki said nothing, however.

Seeing that neither of the two had anything else to say, Maya found it time for her to end their exchange. With another genuine smile, she dismissed them. "I shall now prepare all preparations needed on this side."

And with that, the screen shut off, too fast for either of the siblings to say their farewells.

-~.x.X.x.~-

Back in the student council room, Miyuki shifted in her seat. She had relayed this event many times in her mind, yet her aunt's words still dumbfounded her. Also, even when the news was only passed on a few weeks before, she had found her aunt to work fast. Being student council president, Miyuki had access to information of all the students of the school, whether still attending or not. With this, it was easy for her to see the fruits of Maya's actions behind the scenes. She already found many of her own and her brother's information missing when she had looked into his files a few days ago.

Searching for information regarding her brother again, Miyuki found nothing. It seemed that The Queen of Night had already finished enshrouding this part of his life in darkness. Also seeing how the principal had access to the same information she had, and had not made any comment on it, Miyuki could only surmise that even the principal had been surreptitiously brought into the ordeal and was silenced. Again, while it did dampen her mood, as it meant that people were going to be forced to forget about her beloved onii-sama, she knew they could always make up for it again after the announcement of her being head… of him being head… of the both of them being head of the Yotsuba clan. Now here Miyuki made a very good impression of a tomato.

Seeing how she still had plenty of time before the bell rang, her mind continued to drift off back to the time where she had her second meeting with her aunt.

-~.x.X.x.~-

Something was different.

Almost immediately after exiting the car, Miyuki felt a presence other than her instructor in the building. Beside her, Tatsuya seemed to have noticed the same. However, being prohibited from entering the building even before their aunt's big announcement, he could not do anything but use Elemental Sight to scan whatever presence lay on the other side. Meeting his reassuring gaze after a few minutes, Miyuki understood that the individual he sensed was someone they were both well acquainted with.

"Oba-ue is waiting in there."

Miyuki smiled at him, already figuring as much, though was inwardly peeved at the fact that she knew she was going to be teased from the moment she was to enter. Even so, she had to say her farewells quickly otherwise she'd be late for her training. "See you in an hour?"

Tatsuya patted her head. "I shall be waiting here."

Feeling a bit more confident because of his touch, Miyuki gave him another heartwarming smile. "Goodbye, onii-sama."

And with that, she turned away from him and made her way into the building. Oh how much she later regretted not staying with him a bit longer.

What happened next, Miyuki could remember well. Maya had welcomed her spectacularly by strongly reprimanding for her use of the word "Onii-sama" when she had bid Tatsuya goodbye.

"From now on, you will be calling him Tatsuya. He is no longer your precious onii-sama, but your esteemed fiancé," Maya proclaimed, her usual grin widening all the more.

"But, oka-sama, is this not going a bit too fa–!"

"Say his name, Miyuki. You two must learn how to become more intimate with each other." At her words, Miyuki could not argue and so proceeded to do what she was told with a blush all too evident on her face.

"T-T-T-Tatsuya," Miyuki stammered, too quiet for even her own tastes. Either from embarrassment after saying her brother's name so casually or in shame from failing to say his name, Miyuki felt her blush burn even deeper onto her face.

Ahead of her, Maya's grin widened even more. "Better."

With this, she was then called to sit and from there, they went through the more intricate details of her engagement in which she would later need to pass on to her brother. Why Maya did not have her brother come in along with her from the beginning, Miyuki could only later guess it was because she found it much easier to make fun of her without his presence. With Maya teasing her in the most uncomfortable way throughout their discussion, Miyuki found it almost impossible to look at her brother directly when he picked her up an hour later.

-~.x.X.x.~-

"T-Tatsuya," she tried again, this time back in the student council room. Again, she felt another unwanted wave of heat settle itself onto her face. With how often she'd been heating up for the past few days, Miyuki could have sworn that she had long lost her affinity for the cold.

Miyuki crinkled her eyebrows, an action she was taught never to do, at her umpteenth failure of saying his name properly. Though embarrassment hit her first when she said the name, it was now quickly replaced with irritation. Why was she still not used to it? Why couldn't her tongue properly follow what she wanted to do? She had heard so many people call him by his first name, and yet, why couldn't she? She was even alone in the room with no one to hear her.

No longer was she to call him "onii-sama". She now had to call him by his given name. Sometime after the meeting with her aunt, Maya had somehow, and without her knowledge, made her brother correct her whenever she made this mistake. Luckily for her, he did not do so as strictly as he was expected to. If he did, Miyuki was sure she would lose all confidence in conversing with him. Already, she no longer directly referred to him in her speech, and this, Miyuki only then realized, was something she did quite a lot.

Before she could try saying his name again, Miyuki was cut off when the school bell rang.

It was finally time!

Finding precedence in their reunion rather than in her ability in saying his name, Miyuki quickly gathered her things and made her way out the room. For her, the bell was not only a warning that the gates were to be closed soon, but also a signal of her brother's arrival outside the school.

-~.x.X.x.~-

Little was said during their ride back home. He knew that his meeting would take long, and so that morning they both agreed that he was to take his motorbike instead of the car.

Now in her casual clothes, Miyuki made her way to the kitchen to brew up a cup of coffee. Having long given up on kitchen duties and knowing of their situation, Minami was nowhere to be found. With her hardly making so much of an appearance at home, it felt like it was just the two of them living together like before. However, for Miyuki it felt so very different.

Behind her, Tatsuya sighed, exhausted, and perched himself atop the sofa. Relaxing into it and removing the fatigue that he had accumulated during that day, he made himself defenseless–an act that was reserved to her presence alone.

Turning the crank to grind the coffee beans, Miyuki decided to start up a conversation to help distract herself. "So how did the meeting go?"

Behind her, she heard her brother shift on the sofa. "It took a long time to get everyone's attention. They all refused to believe such a meeting was being held."

Miyuki's grip tightened on the crank. As if sensing its master's wrath, the cold acted, leading to her immediate area lowering in temperature. Stubborn fools, she thought vehemently to herself.

Suddenly remembering she was not alone, she forced herself to calm down. She should not react. This, she quickly reminded herself, should have been expected. It will pass. He should stay on the couch to rest, she reassured.

Seeing her recompose herself at the corner of his vision, Tatsuya removed all thoughts of getting up. Leaning further into the couch, he gave another sigh. "Oba-ue… Oka-sama then entered and all their grievances died down. Nobody was brave enough to speak up afterwards in her presence."

At the counter, Miyuki raised an eyebrow. "Oka-sama?"

Already expecting such a reaction from her, Tatsuya let out a small smile. "She said that she had adopted me as her son and told me to call her that from now on. Instead of siblings, we will now be considered as cousins. Oka-sama was rather enthusiastic when she said this during the meeting."

For the third time this month, Miyuki was speechless. Asides from the fact that they were now betrothed, the man before her did not only move up in status, but also gained the acknowledgement of the rest of the clan all in one moment. Miyuki could not stop the smile that crept onto her face as she placed the coffee on top of the tray.

"Congratulations, onii-sama! Everyone will finally respect you! They'll finally realize your true worth–ah!" Miyuki then realized her mistake, but looking up at Tatsuya's lack of reaction, the smile she had on did not fall. She really was being spoilt. Then she paused, one thought forcing itself at the front of her mind.

"You two must learn how to become more intimate with each other."

Ahead of him, Tatsuya could hear a cup be placed on the table. Opening his eyes to grab his coffee, he leaned forward but stopped midway.

"Miyuki?"

Holding onto the armrest, Miyuki leaned toward him, her mind now blank. Only the words of her aunt remained, reverberating, and wreaking havoc with her feelings before finally knocking over the ones once considered immoral. The ones she had so carefully kept in check all this time, the ones that she tried to look away from in fear of what would happen after she did. Having had these feelings all this time only to grow within her with each passing year, Miyuki could only hope they would disappear eventually. At that time she knew such feelings were never going to be accepted. Such a thing was impossible! And so she had locked them away before they could grow any faster. However with the announcement that stated she was now allowed to love the man she never should have had in the first place, those sealed feelings were suddenly given an opening. Now having given some time to figure where this opening was, these emotions were finally able to go rampant and jump around in jubilation. Nothing was to disturb this exultation, and so Tatsuya's call was lost to her.

"Miyuki, are you alright?" Tatsuya tried again, and again she did not hear him.

"You two must learn how to become more intimate with each other."

Tatsuya arched forward to touch her, pull her out of her revelry, but quickly withdrew when Miyuki suddenly leaned even closer. Understanding how none of his words would reach her, Tatsuya lifted a hand to stop her.

And it was then he realized he had no reason to.

He was completely motionless as he pondered why he had tried to stop her. Actually, he had a pretty good guess to why, however how he had not thought of such a scenario such as this stunned him. He should have already been fully aware of what would entail with them now being engaged. Stopping him from any further thought, it was then that it occurred to him that they were currently in the same position as they were in two years back. Miyuki wouldn't make the same mistake twice, this he knew well, and so he silently waited for her next move.

"A few days ago, Oba-sama told me I should be more intimate with you…" Miyuki trailed, hot breath tickling his cheeks, and their faces now only a few inches apart. Eyes so similar to his stared squarely at him, a myriad of emotions momentarily allowing themselves to be seen before they were soon covered by her eyelids.

"You two must learn how to become more intimate with each other."

It was only a quick peck as it was not long before Miyuki apprehended the entirety of her actions and pulled herself away from him and the couch.

"I'm so sorry!" Miyuki bowed, hiding her face and the deep blush burning on it. Even if it was only for a brief moment and the action being so trivial that it could have been interpreted as a friendly gesture, it was enough to get her heart beating to the point it felt like it was going to explode. She had just forced a kiss on him without his consent! Now that she thought about it, never did she hear his opinion of their arrangement. With how they never talked about it with each other, she only assumed that he was fine with it. Tears started to build growing at the corners of her eyes, and Miyuki felt them threatening to come down. Maybe she did something she wasn't supposed to do, and maybe those feelings weren't supposed to be let out after all. It seemed that she wasn't as ready as she thought.

Straightening herself up, Miyuki hid her eyes behind her bangs. She was too embarrassed to look at him. Twirling herself around, she made ready a quick saunter back to the kitchen; no, her room, she amended the thought.

She finally did it! One side of her jumped, though that was quickly pushed down and replaced by a different thought. She shouldn't have done that, she really shouldn't have. Why, why, why, why, why?

"Forgive me, onii-sama. I wasn't thinking. I should've asked you first." Through her teeth, Miyuki apologised in the calmest voice she could muster. Before she could make her first step, however, she was stopped by his voice.

"Miyuki," Tatsuya said softly. Immediately, she froze.

"Miyuki, come here," he repeated in an even softer tone. She did not respond. She was incapable of moving from her spot. She was too scared to look at him. Only later did she feel his hand on her wrist.

His grip on her was soft and reassuring. It made circling motions around her radiocarpal, gently rubbing the joint her as it sought out to comfort her. At his touch she felt herself automatically calm down. Pulling her arm back a slight bit, Tatsuya urged her to move back towards him. She followed his movements, expecting him to stand in front of her and give her a chastising gaze.

But he did not stand.

In contrary to her prediction, she was pulled down onto the couch, and not onto her usual spot. Instead, she was placed on his lap. Whatever stillness she had before, it now changed into uncomfortable squirms. Not intending to scare her off, Tatsuya placed his hand atop her head.

"Don't tell me that you're sorry," he whispered in the same soft tone, wiping off her tears. "You have no need to apologise."

"But–"

"Miyuki," he called her again, this time his voice holding more gravity. At his tone, Miyuki was stripped away of all her thoughts.

Now caressing her cheek, he gently pulled her up to face him. Like often, she leaned herself into his touch and closed her eyes, fully entrusting herself to him. What happened next came as another surprise. For on her lips, she felt the same softness as she felt before. Only taking a moment to register his action, Miyuki responded to his kiss.

Their contact lasted a few moments longer than their first one. As both sides responded to each of their movements, though hesitant at first, it was not a simple peck either. Initiating the kiss, Tatsuya hoped that she would get his message through it. And she did as she responded by continuing their act. Having now caught on to both each other's feelings, all previous uncertainties were cleared away, their contact lasting much longer than Tatsuya had intended. Not wanting to get completely lost in it, Tatsuya pulled away.

Catching her breath, Miyuki opened her eyes. Even with her stamina training, keeping her happiness and the rest of her emotions under control took a lot out of her. Finally comprehending what had just happened, she felt her emotions swell up again in her throat.

Tatsuya looked at her reassuringly. Only to her he could hold what was close to proper emotions. And so it was at this time that he realized the true extent of his feelings. He had always thought his feelings for his sister were normal of what any other older brother would have. Actually, he was sure it was just that. That was supposed to be the only emotion he was capable of. However, with how accepting he was with the contact they had just shared, he realised how far his love for her actually was. Though him himself may always see her as his cute little sister, he never thought those feelings were actually capable in seeing her otherwise.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of." Tatsuya put a hand back onto her head. "I should be the one apologizing for not expecting that when given our situation."

Again Miyuki responded to his touch, her emotions stirring and yearning for him once again. She couldn't believe what just happened. Not only did he accept her actions, but he also returned them. He actually kissed her back! But then did that mean that he was okay with their situation? Now that Miyuki thought about it, maybe he only did what he did because he thought it would make her happy. After all, most of his actions were because of her and not for himself. She didn't want to be the only one who benefited from this. She didn't want to trouble him again for her sake…

"No one's twisting my arm to get me to go to school. I enjoy being a normal student with you."

Remembering him say that line when she had said the same thing back after their encounter with Blanche, Miyuki relaxed even further into his touch.

"Onii-sa..." Miyuki trailed, but stopped when she felt his rubbing pause. She looked up at him confusedly for a moment, only then realizing her mistake.

"… Tatsuya," she finally managed, blushing at both the name and how he resumed his rubbing.

"Yes, Miyuki?"

Making sure his hand remained atop her head, Miyuki shifted to a new position. Over his knees she went, her legs now straddling his own.

"Tatsuya," she exhaled again, momentarily praising her second success in saying his name. Staring right into her eyes, Tatsuya could see the blue of her irises convoluting as another stream of emotions leaked in, and the black of her pupils dilating. So filled with life, he thought, and for that moment he made sure to burn an image of them in the deepest part of his mind. Then her voice, oh so soft and oh so breathily, came and snapped him out of his momentary transfixation.

"Are you truly pleased with oba-sama's arrangement for us to get married? I don't want it to be because you think it'll make me happy." Miyuki placed her arms around his neck. "Tatsuya, I want you to be happy about it too. I want to know your sincerest thoughts of the matter. You don't need to accept my feelings if they make you feel uncomfortable."

Again made amazed at her bold actions, Tatsuya then relaxed, softening at her words. Even with her movements not showing it, her facial expression made it clear to how much she was trying to get a serious answer from him. "Miyuki, there is no need for you to work so hard to do this."

Miyuki looked down in apology, but he soon pulled her back up to look straight at him.

"I apologise for not seeing how unsettled I've made you," Tatsuya caressed her cheek, "but don't forget that your happiness is mine as well. While I may still see you as my cute little sister, I will endeavor to see you as you would like me to."

Although his reply did not fully answer her feelings, Miyuki had expected as much and found it more than satisfactory. She had all the time in the world to change those feelings. Having also been given the right conditions to do this, it shouldn't take that long to do so either. Thinking of this, Miyuki laughed inwardly. Tightening her arms around him, finally completely sure of her actions, Miyuki gave him a vibrant smile. "Tatsuya, please close your eyes."

He complied. And soon, their lips met again.

Drawing him closer, Miyuki leaned even deeper into the kiss, eager to have their contact prolonged. Tatsuya responded, complying with his past statement that he would give it a go. Although still rather hesitant, he slid his arms behind her, drawing in their movements.

Together, they moved their lips in sync, Tatsuya's hold helping in leading her, and her arms pulling them closer. At their intimate action, their breaths quickened, fanning each other's faces warm. Careful they were at first, still not completely experienced with their actions. Only until a bit later, when they had fully gotten used to the other's movements, how much the other would tilt their head, how much the other would lean in or lean back, and how long the other liked to keep in contact, did their pace start to quicken.

Miyuki felt as if she was floating. Because of their actions, all cognitive abilities were quickly stripped away from her. Her feelings were reciprocated, and the sole barrier that kept her from sharing and releasing these feelings fully was finally broken down. Inwardly, she briefly thanked their aunt for finding a way to get them together.

Understanding how much she could take emotionally, Miyuki was able to stay platonic, or, well, as platonic as the act of making out could be. Soon enough, she found herself at a shortage of breath, and while she didn't want to at all, they needed to stop soon. This, Tatsuya noticed in her breathing, and so loosened his grip on her.

While her heart screamed for more, her body's need for air triumphed. Sliding her arms down to his chest, Miyuki pulled away. With her mind resuming all its modus operandi, she realized just how desperately she needed air. Senses relinking themselves back with her brain, she heard her deep breaths and noticed the high temperature of her body. Underneath her, she felt that he was the same, though his breathing much more leveled. Inwardly, she jumped for joy knowing that she was able to get him to feel the same way she did.

Behind her, Miyuki felt his hands tighten again, securing her firmly into a hug. "Are you alright, Miyuki?"

"Yes, just a little tired," Miyuki breathed against his chest. "Can we remain like this for a bit longer?"

Tatsuya gave a slight chuckle. "You really are a baby, Miyuki."

Miyuki gave a little giggle at his reference. "Is that wrong? I want you to dote on me, Tatsuya."

And together, they silently wondered whether they would ever get used to this.

Now cold was the coffee in front of them.

END

AN: FINALLY DONE! Sheesh, it was really hard for me to get used to putting Tatsuya's name into Miyuki's speech. In the end, I just replaced where I thought she would say 'Onii-sama' with his name.

Sorry if I missed anything in this story. Please note that I got most of the references from the anime. I really need to reread it all and catch up. I haven't even read the thirteenth volume, though I've heard a lot about the sixteenth (huehuehue). Chocacho, thanks again for helping me proofread.

Reference at the end is from episode 17 when Miyuki wanted Tatsuya to sleep with her. Tatsuya's "No one's twisting my arm to get me to go to school. I enjoy being a normal student with you." is from episode 7.

Now here is something random I thought of when going through episode 25 when Tatsuya hugged Miyuki:

EXTRA

Tatsuya breathed deeply, finally free from the torment that he received from performing Regrowth on Kirihara and Isori.

Strapping Trident back into his belt, he immediately turned all his focus to the girl behind him and, before Miyuki could react, kissed her… deeply.

Face turning red, Miyuki could not do much but follow the instructions her body rather than her mind provided her. Before her mind could fully comprehend exactly what was happening, Tatsuya drew back, quickly changing their position into one of a hug.

"You did great, Miyuki," he whispered hotly into her ear, inwardly enjoying the shiver he felt her have within his arms.

Choosing that time to resume his mission, Miyuki could only gape at her brother as he flew off.

"Onii-sama…?"

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