Re: :[:It Happened One Night (Private):]:

[Ryou Misaki 0]

Ryou had turned a deeper red now, having felt a kiss on the side of his head. No matter if it felt empty it was still a kiss, even he sped up a bit after having felt such a thing. " R-right.. " He mentioned towards the change of driving once the next stop was taken, which luckily with Ryou's new speed was actually already within sight.

 

Having parked he got out of the car he glanced at her from the corner of his eyes to check if she was getting out and then turned his back on her. His mind was rattled by the contact still and he wanted to get back at her, do something that'd make her feel uncomfortable as well but not make it look as bad as it seems. " Um..after...the job's done..Wanna come over to my home for dinner? " His father would do it, he'd make her feel more awkward than she ever did in her whole life. The least thing the man could do was turn his piercing gaze onto her, though she'd probably feel nothing considering her attitude, still worth a try.

 

Luckily this thought had made his cheeks stop blushing by the time he had turned and looked at her. A soft look of curiosity coming from his as his mouth wasn't in any real shape of happiness or despair as much as just curiosity. He looked like he was waiting for something which was her answer, a curios cat look to him.

[Milady 0]

Clare hopped out of the car with relative ease, however, at hearing his words she seemed to have stumbled on the jump and fell forward. In order to keep her balance, she grabbed the first thing in front of her - Ryou... Or, actually, Ryou’s pants - the two front pockets. As soon as she gained her ground, Clare stood up, blushing and looking as though she was embarrassed beyond belief. In the back seat, Francois almost had his currents short-circuit. How could someone go from sleepy, to depressed, to happy, to philosophical, to mischievous in such a short time? He knew full well what she was doing. Surely, Clare was not the type to klutz out no matter how little sleep she had! About a week ago she had a lovely chat with her transsexual neighbour and asked him whether she could have a receipt for his new size forty-two designer pumps. “Sandy” was more than happy to oblige his attentive neighbour who always watched after his cat when he was out and always brought over something tasty when she baked (and she baked often). Now this very receipt was resting peacefully in Ryou’s left front pocket. Clare plotted for a week how she was going to do it, and this was the perfect opportunity. Now, whoever will wash his pants will discover a receipt for a pair of shoes too big to wear for anyone but Ryou himself... Oh, what will his father think! Francois could only sigh at her childish immaturity. No, Clare was no child. The way she designed and carried out her little plots was too precise and too professional. She just an intense pleasure from making others look awkward either though her words or actions.

 

“Sorry about that,” she mumbled still blushing deeply, “I guess I’m really under-slept... Will you be kind enough to give me your arm again?” Without waiting for his response, Clare took Ryou under the arm and smiled sheepishly. “So you no longer find me embarrassing, eh, Ryou?” For a while now she’s been making sarcastic comments about how Ryou never invited her over to his place because he must have been ashamed of his father meeting her. Maybe Clare was a little forward with them, but then she had every right to be - for a year now Ryou’s been breaching all possible rules of good etiquette. At least three times a week he would come over to her house (uninvited way more than half of the time) around ten in the morning and leave at ten at night. On the other hand, she never got an invitation to his place. Even that jerk’s last birthday was celebrated at her apartment - let’s face it, he practically lived there. With time Clare’s subtle hints turned to blunt sarcasm about the matter, however, she never actually objected to him coming over to her place more frequently than propriety allowed. Francois claimed that it was her spinelessness that had been the reason why she had yet to receive an invitation, while Clare was convinced that it was because of his father. Either way, she couldn’t wait to see where Ryou lived, and, most importantly, to meet Kaze Mizaki. Something told her that the man would remember this dinner for a while...

 

“Whatever made you change your mind about hiding me from your father for the rest of the eternity, darling,” she continued with a soft chuckle. “Or were you hiding your father from me? Surely, Ryou, something extraordinary must have happened to make you realize that you have been slighting me for the past year! Who gave you some etiquette lessons?” Clare could have gone on with her prickly questions, but something in Ryou’s expression made her stop. He no longer looked helpless and shy, but rather there was something curious about his slightly parted lips, something almost animal-like. For the first time since they’ve met, Clare did not feel herself to be the feline in this cat and mouse game. Maybe they were both cats? Why else would her face have the same expression as his? And why would her lips part and curve the same way right now? For some reason Clare could feel herself moving closer to him. There was nothing she could do about it, and nothing she would do. For one reason or another, something inside her wished to connect her own lips to his. However, when Clare was just inches away from him, a sudden noise brought her out of this strange stupor (do I even need to tell you that it was Francois purposely making a ruckus in her purse?). Clare’s slightly parted lips curved into a malicious smirk, and although her face continued to move towards his, it now took a slightly different direction. “Want to know a little secret,” she whispered into his ear, “we’re here to deliver something, not for you to ask me over to your place, although I have to give you credit for originality.” Clare laughed mischievously and moved away from him. “However, I do agree to pay you a little visit, since you’ve asked so nicely.”

[Ryou Misaki 0]

Ryou's face went empty as he had caught onto Clare while her hands had captured his pants, luckily for him his hands were underneath hers or else his belt couldn't take the pull. He did her hand move a bit as she had been at his pants but guessed it was due to her grabbing onto something and not placing a receipt into his pocket. Having let her go and seen her cute face was somewhat worth the near moment of embarrassment, he wondered why she was caught off guard. Blaming it all on his question and lack of sleep she must have assumed that she was dreaming; He never asked her over. He now wondered if it was right of him to even ask her in the first place, he should warn his father or ask his permission on the matter itself before just inviting a friend over. If he was lucky then the two would never cross one another during the large mansion, but Ryou never did have that type of dumb luck to begin with. He'd deal with the problems and consequences after the two argue or get a bad impression of one another. It can't be helped now....

 

Having felt her arm underneath his again made him look at her once more just to feel a faint whisper at the side of his ear. She knew what she was doing and knew his reaction; Her lips brushing up against his ear made him close to shuddering as he felt the heart pump blood through the body and a warm sense of embarrassment to run through his body. His eyes got more smaller in a sense as he felt nervous from her words and nearly missed paying attention to them as she was this close and embarrassing him even more. " You're right.... " He had muttered back, trying to regain himself back into the conversation rather than the feelings his head was trying to comprehend. " I always have etiquette.. " He said in a rather carefree tone. His voice didn't reveal his emotions at the time which was something that was lucky for him considering the moment. Kaze had taken an interest to history even with his futuristic ideas and plans for ZAFT. It lead Ryou to have an almost have an noble type attitude if he were to be met in a party or meeting where his father dragged him along. His manners were actually high classed but he had acted like a common man that it was hard to believe at times, Clare especially knew only the common Ryou and he had wondered if she liked either really, she seemed to have taken a clear dislike to his common attitude at first but slowly came around to it. Now he even wondered if she saw him when he was acting high class even, new experiences right? Of course, every day is something to learn.

 

" This guy's a bit...let's just call him a jerk. " He had said, having known Darlton was as much of cheerful as a pit bull who lost his bone. The man would treat the chairwoman like dirt considering his rather pro-war views and anti-natural views either. Some of the people in the army were extremely questionable in Ryou's views and he wondered why everything wasn't watched more closely either. But he had also assumed that due to their great minds that they wont get out of hand or worse pull off some weapon that'll cause more harm than it's worth. It's been 15 years and he didn't want to recall the memories of the last war at all, he was still confused by it all and the reasons for conflict also. Ryou had no real emotion to carry into battle or reason to fight himself, it was an Impulse if one could define what he was doing. He had simply done it out of necessity and desire to get revenge, but now that 15 long years had passed his anger and mind grew to understand that it was wrong for him to have thought like he had done before. " Clare...why did...you join the army? " He had asked as he was walking with her, his eyes still staring forward as he waited for an answer if any was going to be even given to him.

[Milady 0]

“No, you don’t,” Clare chuckled softly and looked at him with one of her usual patronizing smiles playing on her soft lips. Ryou was lovable - end of story. Of course she knew that this dork had a more sophisticated side to him. Clare could not complain about her memory or about her attention to detail. She remembered nearly every meeting with him, and remembered all of the more formal occasions where they ran into each other (although there were very few of them). He was dazzling at those times, almost flawless, but she could tell just by looking at this young man that all his gentlemanly qualities were very much a result of strict drilling. They were in no way inbred. He would never know how to tell a person of status from an impostor, he would never have more than minimum of polite an subtle charm when it came to talking to women, he would never be able to bend the finite rules while still retaining his gentlemanly behaviour, and her would never truly be comfortable in a company of people who believe that status meant everything. It was not enough to be taught the basics - you had to have a bit of charm, a tad of recklessness, and a lot of confidence to truly merge with the mask that the upper class society imposed upon you. He took off this mask for her, and although he did not know it, Clare was grateful for that. Over the time of their acquaintance, she had seen him sulking, eating up depression with chocolate ice-cream, gloating, slamming doors, pulling pranks, blushing, stumbling, tripping, falling, laughing too loudly, acting resentfully... Oh, the list went on and on! Clare never disliked him for it. Ryou’s vices were just as much in the open as his virtues, and Clare managed to like both. She liked them so much, in fact, that she had no scruples about revealing her own. She took that lovely, tailored, artificial appearance off for him and only for him. It sat so well on her, felt so natural, fitted so perfectly, that for a long time Clare had not realized that it was not her true nature. Nor did she realize that it had a tendency to come off around him. This realization came for the first time when one of her friends told her that she seemed different around it. Clare looked at the girl in surprise as the former asked whether or not that side that came out around Ryou was Clare’s true personality, and then it started clicking in - she never treated Ryou the way she did everyone else, and it was obvious. “You never have it around me... And please don’t change that.”

 

“I’m used to jerks,” Clare laughed when Ryou mentioned their next host, “after all; I hang out with you all the time.” Unfortunately for Clare, she had no idea that the man they were going to see was. Had she known, she would have remained in the car, but alas! She did not. Darlton and she met at a cocktail party when Clare was about sixteen (about one and a half years ago). She was invited over by a friend of a family who had known father in his former years. It would have been a very nice party had there not been both extremists and pacifists invited. After enough drinks went around and all the refreshments ha been consumed, the usual talk about war and politics broke out to the dismay of half of the invited, as well as the hosts. Poor Mrs. Marayama was trying to get some more cake for everyone, while Dr. Marayama (he was a well-known general surgeon) was forced to fight off the verbal assaults of his tactless guest - Mr. Darlton. ‘Are you telling me that there is nothing sacred in dieing for the cause, for the rights of coordinators, for the...’ ‘Are you telling me that if I was to get run over by a cab it would sanctify your local taxi service,’ came a steady, mocking, silvery voice that cut through the buzzing and the arguing that filled the afternoon garden. The entire room turned to the patio door and looked in astonishment at the person who uttered those words. No one had expected it in the least to hear something like this from a darling doll-like creature that wore the cutest black dress, wiggled her hips like a runway model, had the most uncomfortable shoes, put on perfect make-up, had her curled brown locks bounce up and down when she moved, spoke in a soft childish voice, and spent the whole party talking to the hostess about the best fabric and accessories for an evening gown. Nobody expected that cute head to have a brain in it; nobody thought that behind her small, bow-shaped, pinkish lips hid a sharp tongue; and certainly nobody could have anticipated that this young creature would come to the aid of the host and so easily disarm one of the most violent extremists around. Everyone, regardless of his or her political beliefs burst into laughter, while Mr. Darlton shot a look at her that clearly said he would not be forgetting this any time soon. That is the story of Clare’s acquaintance with him, and although it had gained her access to virtually every party ever thrown by the higher Plant society, she still had to wonder whether or not it was a mistake to reveal her political beliefs and her sharp mind on that day.

 

“Why did I join the army?” Here she paused, considering whether or not she should tell him everything that happened before she enlisted... No - it would be a very big mistake. The moment she trusted him, she’s become dependant on him. Clare did not want that. She loved him in her own weird way, but she did not wish to ever have a need for this young man. In the end, it was much better to have no one to lean on... “I enlisted because there was no other place for me and nothing else I could have done with myself.”

[Ryou Misaki 0]

He was in rejecting her words completely and didn't understand her at the moment either. She had a father and home to return to, he knew that much from their chats where she didn't slip up too much information but her words were something he wasn't truly getting into his mind without confusion and bewilderment. " There's always another place...and something you could have done with yourself. It's your life after all. " A hypocrite remark coming from a boy who had been dependant on his father. A part of him realized that he shouldn't have preached to her about decisions when he himself was a bit more of lost dog that needed orders. " It's just...that you don't seem like the type for war. " He had muttered softly and wondered if she had caught it even. Hopefully not.

 

The area was much more different than Lloyd's. Soldiers and Scientists seemed much more in a hurry and serious to their jobs than Lloyd's carefree ' Eat cookies every hour ' regime. Darlton wasn't a scientist either, just a general with many hookups and enough status to change a few chairmen in the boards. Never the less the man had kept to his job and disliked the peaceful times, mostly due to the fact his children and wife were killed in the wars, and couldn't stomach the naturals having been  given so many peaceful chances when they were just a race struggling to live in the times. Coordinators were looking into the future while the naturals could simply live in their little mud ball of a planet. Ryou remembered hearing it from his father, the history of Darlton's hate at least and felt pity for the man, his father on the other hand considered Darlton a broken man clouded by his own guilt and anger.  Having gone inside it was easy to see who was Darlton from his huge size, the man stood at around 6'7 with a huge tuned body that belonged in the military and of course he had a large commander suit that made him general. Ryou was a bit unsure on whether he should have walked forward to talk with him or not but then remembered that Clare was still holding onto his arm. " Commander Darlton.. " Ryo uhad spoken out as he came close and the huge body turned around. A pair of small dark purple eyes were staring down at him as if he had said something out of line and was about to get shot. " General Darlton to you brat. " He had said to Ryou knowing that he was lower classed in the army already just from the pair of golden eyes he had noticed. They had no sense of battle or death in them, Ryou was gonna die on the front lines he assumed. " What is this conduct? " He had asked staring down at Clare holding his arm. " Is this what they're teaching you in school now? How to escort women? " Ryou had straightened a  bit and saluted the man with his free hand feeling that he already made the behemoth angry. He was like an ape seeing another animal holding a banana or something, beating his chest and screaming at the other. " sir, I assure you this is not what the military school teaches the students! Sir! " He had said in a stronger tone that was unlike Ryou at all. " I've come with a Disc containing files for your eyes only appointed to me to deliver under my father and the leading scientist of the ZAFT technology, Sir! " Darlton looked almost pleased at the charade, while Ryou was wishing he could leave considering how much air he just wasted by saying all of that with one breath. Darlton on the other hand wasn't as amused by this sudden change coming from him, having recognized the woman in front of him from long ago. " Hand me the disc. " He had simply said to Ryou as the boy took it out and one of the other scientists took it and placed in the computer. " Your Father is really starting to move these days.... " He had muttered with his arms crossed behind his back. He was making idle chatter in hope of something Ryou can supply. " I wouldn't know..I barely see him considering the work he has. " Ryou answered and looked around.

[Milady 0]

Camellia heard him, but knew that he did not want her to, and so his comment remained unanswered. Oh, what did he know about her? Nothing. He knew enough to consider himself close to her, but nowhere near enough for her to consider him close to her. Clare did not want this closeness from anyone, especially Ryou. She could care for him, and her affection did not depend on the amount of trust she had for him, but no matter how much affection she had, Clare could never give away everything. This was the same for everyone she ever cared about, regardless of the relationship. They could count on her love, affection, on selflessness, but her mind was not something that any of them could ever have. Was it selfish? Perhaps. She could always take back her love and care, but once someone really understood her, she could never change that, and could never take the knowledge back. In a life that really was not her own, her mind was all that she could cling to. Her thoughts, her dreams, her pains, her wishes and hopes - no one was meant to know them completely, and this isolation made Clare capable of taking on the role of a soldier, although she was least suited for the job. Ryou was right in that respect. She could never go though with this and not be disgusted with herself for what she had done. Clare would never forget that the person on the other side of the line had feelings, and memories, and loved ones at home, and knowing it she would still pull the trigger without so much as a second thought. This mentality was self-destructing in its lethal brutality, but her branch of service demanded people who could think for themselves and act regardless of their thoughts...

 

As they entered the building and were led to the general’s room, Clare could feel a wave of nausea coming up to her throat. She recognized him even before he turned around. Somehow this did not promise to be one of those sweet reunions - not in the least. No, it would be wrong to say that Clare was afraid - she wasn’t. It wasn’t fear that made her feel this way. There was an aura around this man that she found sickening. When they first met, the two were in a garden full of people and separated by a good distance, but now Clare could tell for sure that she could not stand the presence of this man. Had she not held Ryou’s hand, she would have ran out of that room and continued to run until the building was no longer in sight. There was guilt, anger, remorse, pain of loss, hatred… Oh, so much hatred! Breathing the same air with him was like inhaling blood. It felt as though all this man wanted was death, and he would stop at nothing to have the blood shed. She stood there in stupor as he turned and began talking, but her inaction was broken when she saw the way that general Darlton looked at Ryou. It was as though he already saw a nameplate on the boy’s grave with his charred remains resting in an iron army coffin beneath it. No! No, no, no! She would never let that happen! Not as long as she lived! Instinctively, her right arm that rested on his went upwards. Clare wrapped it around Ryou’s upper arm, and cupped his shoulder in her hand. She clung closer to him, as if truly believing that as long as they touched, nothing bad would ever come to him. She did not care what this ape thought about the way they stood together - if he did not like it, he could just turn around.

 

“Ensign Clarick, sir,” Clare replied in her sweet tone and threw a salute that was so ceremonious that bordered on mockery. Unlike Ryou, she was not affected by the general’s screaming. If anything, it forced her to retaliate and hide the turmoil inside her. Clare was not the type to let some authoritarian scare her into a model military conduct. He had limited authority over their squad, all of them were out of uniform, and the young people were on a leave - in other words he had no right to scram, to spray them with his saliva from across the room, and to demand them to act as though they were on a parade. “I believe I already had the honour of making your acquaintance a year and a half ago at Dr. Marayama’s cocktail party. The way I remember it, you and doctor did not agree on something that afternoon,” Clare continued to chatter away as though she did not care that the man she talked to outranked her tremendously. There was nothing in her voice that would even hint at an ounce of respect. She spoke with politeness that felt suspiciously like a slap. “But who’s counting those minor events, right? How have you been, sir? Do you need some help burning that disk? It is our job to assist you in any way possible.”

[Ryou Misaki 0]

Ryou had felt Clare's grip change and get closer, though he didn't know why she even did this until she mentioned the party. Ryou's face was surprised at most that they knew each other while Darlton on the other hand had attempted to keep his face from turning into a resenting scowl. " Yes indeed, Dr. Marayama's children seemed to have also joined the army. Lot of good they are, useless mechanics. " He said as if he wasn't happy that they were in the front lines so they could get shot. " But they are helping the troops by repairing their suits.. " Ryou had said as the man darted his eyes from Clare to Ryou all of the sudden. " what good are suits if the pilots are dead? We need less mechanics and more soldiers. " He said as Ryou's hand turned into a fist. " Then we'll just be sending more people to their graves and eventually we'll die out! " He had said while trying to remain calm.

 

Darlton knew that he was getting nowhere with the two brats in front of him, Ryou was as close to Clare but he seemed more blunt in his words than her sly ones that would bite at you at a later time. He was about to say something when one of the scientists came back with the disc and a somewhat disappointed face. " What? the man placed passwords? " Darlton said knowing Kaze already. " The man's overprotective... " He whispered while the scientist handed back the disc to Ryou. " You don't need anything else then...we're leaving then. " He had said while Darlton turned his back on them. Ryou was now frustrated with it all and had nudged his arm to Clare and smiled again. " Let's go? " He had said to her.