Defy Not The Heart. Amy Blankenship

Take you in my arms and kiss you senseless. "… he’s such an arrogant bully…" I want you so bad, Kyoko. "… and the way he treats…" Shinbe fidgeted, wondering how long he could keep his secret, now that he had claimed her. "… isn’t that right, Shinbe?"

      â€˜Huh? Did someone ask him a question?’ Shinbe glanced from Suki to Kyoko as they both stared at him waiting for his response.

      Having no clue what they were talking about, he took the safe way out, "Why, yes. I think you’re absolutely right, Suki. If you will excuse me, I have to go speak with Toya.” With that, he quickly escaped out the door.

      Suki and Kyoko watched the door close after him, and both girls giggled.

      Shinbe made it to the outside of the small structure and quickly leaned forward against the wall. He placed his hands against the cool wood on each side of his head, and then thumped his forehead against the wooden planks. The pain always seemed to help him clear his mind. It was just slow this morning. After last night, he couldn’t get the feelings back under his control. It was worse now than it had ever been.

      He really didn’t want to grope Suki so she would hit him, it just didn’t feel right to do so after touching Kyoko’s body. He feared he would never be able to touch another but her again, without wanting to rip his own hand off. He had chosen his mate and she didn’t even know it.

      Toya stood about five feet away, watching his brother and feeling waves of guilt wash from him. One of the perks about being a guardian was that you could sense things about those around you like a lie detector from Kyoko’s world.

      He cocked a dark eyebrow, "What did you do, grope Suki again?" Toya frowned at his brother, seeing him flinch at his voice.

      Shinbe flashed startled, dark violet eyes at Toya and pushed back from the wall, righting himself. "NO! I… well, you see…" Shinbe frowned at his own stuttering. He quickly forced himself to become calm, once again gaining composure. “I was just staying out here so I wouldn’t make any noise and bother Kyoko’s hangover,” he said with a wise edge to his voice, hoping Toya would take the same advice.

      Toya growled in the back of his throat, "I still want to know how the hell she wound up drunk. I think I’ll go find out right now." He started to angrily pass him, then stopped when Shinbe reached out and grabbed his arm in a firm grip. Toya scowled down at the opposing hand, wondering what his brother thought he was doing.

      Shinbe watched silver highlights leap into Toya's golden eyes and quickly let go of his arm. In a steady voice he ventured, "If I were you, I wouldn’t do that yet, unless you like the taste of floor." He hid his smirk when he sensed Toya's remembrance of the taming spell.

      Toya gave his brother a brooding look before turning his back to the door mumbling, "She should know better than to get in that shape to start out with." He suddenly cringed holding his head where Suki had just brained him with her slayers weapon as she stepped out the door behind him.

      "Ouch, what the hell was that for?" Toya glared at her.

      Suki stood, giving him a ‘You know what that was for’ look. "Don’t be so over protective,” she glared at him, knowing he would never hurt her. “Kyoko told me what happened last night.”

      Shinbe felt his life begin to pass before his eyes. He quit breathing, waiting for Toya to kill him.

      Suki continued, "Her friends, on the other side of the heart of time, took her to a gathering where there was alcohol,” she paused for effect, “she did not drink anything. Instead, she ate a lot of fruit, only to then find out it had been soaked in very strong alcohol," her lips twitched. "But by then, she was already drunk."

      Toya growled and turned, starting to go in and yell at her for her stupidity, but again received a numbing blow from Suki.

      "Leave her alone, she just went back to sleep. And I don’t think she will be able to go anywhere today. So I suggest we leave her here to rest. We can search for the crystal talisman without her for one day."

      She turned to look at Shinbe, wondering why he was acting so strange. He’d usually tried to grope her at least ten times before noon. "Shinbe, are you all right this morning?" she stepped closer and stared up into his pale face seeing his eyes were a touch overly bright.

      Shinbe came back to life when he noticed Suki was close to his face. He quickly took a step back, then it dawned on him what she’d said. He gave a soft sigh, shaking his head, "Actually Suki, no, I’m not feeling too good myself." He didn’t have to fake it either, because as disturbed as he had been since last night, he really felt like he was losing his mind.

      Toya scrunched up his nose at his brother, "Yeah, you really do look like crap. Maybe we should leave you here to watch after Kyoko." He then narrowed his eyes on the amethyst guardian. "But if you touch her, she’ll tell me." Knowing his warning had been heard loud and clear, Toya turned back to Suki. "Do you want to go get Kamui, or should I?" he questioned, not really wanting to feel her weapon upside his head again.

      Suki shrugged, "I’ll get him. You," She shoved her finger into his chest, “Stay out here.”

      Shinbe choked on his laugh trying to keep in mind he was sick. How did he ever pull this one off? As a guardian himself, Toya should know guardians do not get sick… at least he’d never known one to do so. Still… the idea of staying with Kyoko, of being alone with her all day… well, that temptation was just too much.

      Shinbe watched Toya glare at Suki's back as she went to get Kamui, but he stayed outside. Within a couple of minutes, Kaen joined them, peeking in the door at Kyoko. Shinbe knew Kaen would watch after Kamui if they ran into any trouble. A guardian for a guardian, he had often teased his younger brother.

      Shinbe watched the group until they were out of sight. He felt his body and mind relax for the first time all morning. With a sigh, he turned and went back into the hut where Kyoko was sleeping.

      Kyoko stirred in her semi-sleep, her mind drifting to the night before. Back to the party, trying to spend what little time she had in her world with Tasuki. She really missed him because this world took up so much of her time. She’d been so focused on him that she hadn’t even realized the fruit was tainted until it was too late. She pouted, wondering if Tasuki had known the whole time.

      She didn’t remember much about making it back to the maiden shrine, or back here to the hut for that matter. She did remember some of the dream she’d had though… Shinbe. Kyoko slid in and out of sleep, her thoughts continued as if they didn’t care whether she was awake or not.

      She’d always liked Shinbe because out of their small little group, he was the most fun of the guardians to be around. And he could always make her laugh without even trying. He was not the type of guy who would settle on just one woman though. Obviously he had issues. But lately she had started seeing him in a different light.

      Kyoko tossed in her sleep. It just wasn’t fair. She loved Toya deeply, but he seldom gave her a glimmer of feelings back. Now Shinbe, on the other hand, was a different story. When Toya would yell at her for little things, Shinbe always seemed to try to make her feel better.

      It was almost as if the worse Toya acted, the sweeter Shinbe would become, but he acted as if it was nothing but friendship. Sometimes she wondered about him, and that was probably what had led to the dreams she’d started having of him. Up until last night, her dreams had stayed within the limits of sanity. Last night’s dream had gone way out of control.

      She knew Toya loved her in his own way, and would probably even die for her, but he refused to show her his true feelings. She knew him getting angry so easily, and bossing her around was just his way of hiding the fact that he cared about her. Sometimes, he hid his feelings so well, that she almost believed him. Still, she found herself comparing the two men. She was always around Shinbe and Toya, and both guardians had their good and bad points.

      When dreaming of Toya kissing