Chapter Eleven

"How long can those guys sleep?"

It was quarter past eleven, and though most of the world was already up and about, Natsuki, Shizuru, and Aishu were still sound asleep. Outside of their door were four figures, the group waiting patiently for the trio to wake up. They didn't want to miss the moment where the big news came out.

"Are they ever going to wake up?" Mikoto asked, head on Mai's lap.

The woman smiled, ruffling the girl's black hair.

"I'm sure they will. Natsuki and Shizuru were up for a long time, and Aishu is probably still a little sick, so sleep is good."

"Well they better hurry up! I don't want to be waiting here all day!"

"Their rest is important though, Haruka-chan," Yukino told the grumpy blonde. "They've been through a lot."

"Yeah, well if that girl hadn't run away in the first place, then they wouldn't be this exhausted," Haruka mumbled.

Yukino smiled in turn.

"It's okay, Haruka-chan," she told her. "I'm sure they will wake soon."

Despite her Otome's angry comments, she knew that she was just as curious and excited as every else for the upcoming event.

Rolling onto her side, Mikoto wrapped her arms around Mai's waist, nuzzling her face into her tummy.

"I don't want Ai-chan to leave. What do you think she'll say?"

"She better say yes with all the trouble she's caused!" Haruka snapped. "If she doesn't, I swear I'll-"

"Ne, ne, Ms. President," Mai said to the brunette. "You should tell Haruka to have more faith, and to stop being so loud."

"B-Baka!"

"There!"

Mid Haruka's mini fit, Mikoto shot from her spot and leaned against the door, pressing her ear against it.

"What?" Mai asked.

"I can hear them!" Mikoto whispered excitedly. "I can hear moving!"

The other three leaned in towards the door and, sure enough, noises could be heard.

"Nyaaaaa…"

A still sleepy young brunette had begun to wake up, a strange little itch on her face the cause of it. She reached up to scratch at it and it immediately stopped. Once it was gone, she curled back up, wanting some more sleep, but of course, that didn't happen. Seconds after she got rid of the feeling, the itch came back. Instead of scratching it again, however, she opened her eyes, her groggy gaze slowly becoming clearer by the second. What woke her up finally was the sudden realization of two things. One, the itch on her face was due to a finger scratching at her cheek, and two, from the moment she opened her eyes, a deep pair of crimson ones were locked with her own.

"Shizuru?"

Aishu went to go sit up, but before she got the chance to, Shizuru had pulled in her close, wrapping her arms around her and snuggling her tight. She wasn't prepared for this action, but she should have been seeing as it was Shizuru. The warmth she felt was very inviting, but a pang of guilt also swam inside of her.

"Shizu-chan?"

Nothing. Shizuru made no movement and no noise.

"Shizuru?"

Still nothing.

"Shizu-chan. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for running and for causing trouble and for-"

"Shhhh."

Another thing the child wasn't expecting. She wanted to apologize for what she had done, but the other wasn't letting her do so.

"B-but Shizu-chan, I-"

"Shhhh," Shizuru said again, hugging the girl a little tighter.

Was she being serious? After all the things Aishu did, all Shizuru wanted to do was snuggle her?

"It's because they're not mad, remember?" She told herself. "Mai said they didn't hate me and that they weren't mad. They were only..."

"I was so worried."

Shizuru finally spoke, her voice quivering slightly as her hand gently scratched at the girl's back. A soft kiss accompanied that scratch, the girl sinking deeper into Shizuru's warmth. Aishu had missed this tremendously. In thinking she had lost it made her realize how precious it was, how precious they were.

"How are you feeling? I was really, really hoping you would be okay. "

"I'm all right," Aishu said back, feeling guiltier by the minute. Shizuru's words had been calming and soft, but she could hear the hint of sadness behind them. She really had been worried sick for her.

"Shizu-chan, please," Aishu pleaded, not wanting the woman to cut her off again. "Please, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything. I didn't mean to make you guys worry, and I didn't mean to-"

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

Shizuru pulled away slightly, resting her forehead on Aishu's own while looking her in the eyes.

"Absolutely nothing. You're here in my arms and you're safe. That is all I wanted. Don't be sorry."

"Don't be sorry?"

Aishu's eyes welled up a little. Maybe Mai was right. They weren't at all mad in the slightest. They just wanted her to be okay, and in times like this, instead of saying I'm sorry…

Aishu reached up and wrapped her arms around Shizuru's neck, hugging her and hiding her face in the woman's hair, the lavender scent a familiar friend.

"Thank you," she whispered. "Mai-chan told me you and Natsu-chan have been with me until she kicked you guys out, and that you snuggled with me when I called for you in my sleep. You took care of me. Thank you."

She felt Shizuru's arms wrap tightly around her, a single tear falling down the woman's cheek.

"Oh, my little Ai-chan," she said with a smile. "You are more than welcome. How could we ever not care for you?"

Pulling away again, Shizuru kissed the girl's cheek before winking and nodding over to the still sleeping blunette.

"I think it's time to wake her up, don't you think?"

Aishu looked behind her to the sleeping Natsuki and smiled, nodding her head.

"I'm surprised she didn't wake," Aishu commented. "She really does sleep like a log, doesn't she?"

"Always dead to the world," Shizuru giggled.

Crawling over, Aishu sat by Natsuki's head.

"Natsu-chan," she whispered, shaking her gently, but the woman didn't budge.

"Naaaaatssssssuuuukiii-chaaaaan."

Nothing again, the blunette still not moving. It was then Shizuru crawled over and whispered something in the girl's ear, a smirk appearing on Aishu's face moments after.

"Trust me," the brunette told her. "It'll work."

With that in mind, Aishu leaned over Natsuki's head, and when she was close enough, she blew into her ear.

"Aie!"

Within half a second, Natsuki shot from the bed, falling right out and hitting the floor with a thud. In slight shock, Aishu dove under the blankets and hid.

"Dammit, Shizuru…"

Natsuki sat up, rubbing the side of her head as she shot an annoying glare towards her other half.

"Why the hell do you like waking me that way?"

Shizuru was laughing at the sight of this. She knew it would work, and the reaction never got old.

"Ara! As much as I like to tease my Natsuki, it wasn't me who did it this time."

She then pointed to the little lump in the bed. Curiously, Natsuki crawled to the edge and lifted the covers, peeking in to find a little Aishu staring back at her.

….

"Ai-chan!"

The covers were torn right off and Natsuki attacked the girl with a warm, strong hug.

"Ai-chan I'm so glad you're okay! I've been worrying like crazy! We both have!"

"Natsuki…"

You scared us pretty bad when we arrived to find you soaked with a fever, but you're okay! You look a lot better!"

"Um, Natsuki-"

"I'm sorry we weren't there when you woke up. We wanted to be, I swear it, but Mai kicked us out because we were there for so long and-"

"Natsuki!"

"Oh, hmm?"

"Ne, I'm really happy to see you, too, both of you, but I can't breathe."

It was then Natsuki realized that she was half way on top of Aishu, clinging to her with a death grip.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!"

She got right up, allowing Aishu to do so, too.

"Don't be," Aishu said with a sheepish grin. "I'm all right, but I think I'll let Shizuru wake you up like that from now on so I don't get squished."

Natsuki gave her a half smile, tears now welling up in her emerald greens.

"When did you get here?"

"Late last night," the girl answered, now crawling to the top of the bed. She settled and rested her back against the head board. "Mai-chan helped me sneak up here."

Natsuki snickered at this.

"Sounds about right. Remind me to thank her later. How are you feeling, now?"

At this point, the two women were now sitting on either side of Aishu, Natsuki's hand pressed gently against the girl's forehead.

"It looks like your fever hasn't come back."

"I'm okay, I promise," Aishu answered. "I'm just really tired to be honest, which is really weird seeing as I've been doing nothing but sleep."

"It's what being sick does," Shizuru said back. "Sleep is important when you're not feeling good, so you need all the rest you can get. Chills are gone for good, too?"

"Mhm. I promise."

"You really had us worried," Natsuki said. "You were a mess by the time we got to you."

Looking down, she nodded her head.

"Yeah, Mai-chan told me what happened. I know you told me not to say this, Shizu-chan, but I'm really sorry. I'm sorry I worried you guys. I assumed stupid things and did what I always do when I get scared. It would have been easier and smarter to go to you both first."

"Don't worry about it," Shizuru told her. "It doesn't matter now."

"It does matter," Aishu sad back. "How could I have assumed those things when all you've ever done is take care of me and such. It wasn't right."

"We should have explained the letter to you sooner," Natsuki said back. "We only held off because we wanted you to get to know us first. We wanted you to understand and learn that we weren't taking you in and caring for you because we were asked to or because we had to, but because we wanted to. You already had our hearts the day we met you, and the more time that was spent together, the more we fell in love with you."

Aishu blushed upon hearing those words.

"You did?"

"Of course," the blunette answered, squeezing the girls arm gently. "Shizuru and I love you very much."

Aishu's heart jumped and skipped a beat, her chest warming immensely, and the words she had kept locked up for a long time now ached to come out.

"I can do it. Just be brave."

After a few more moments, she took a deep breath and finally spoke.

"I-I love you guys, too!" Those words felt foreign on her mouth, tears forming as she told them this. While she had admitted this in Haruka's and Yukino's presence, she had yet to say it to her guardians' face to face. She had wanted to say this to them for a long time but was just too nervous to do so. Now…

"I mean it, I really do. I'm just not very good at showing it. However, I want to get good at it. I want to stop worrying so much about getting hurt. I want to be able to have those moments where I can just snuggle up and feel safe. I don't want to be afraid anymore. I love being with you guys. I love you."

They all sat there in silence for a moment. Aishu had never been that open before, her stomach now in knots from doing so. The silence wasn't helping either.

"Well," Natsuki finally said. "I guess we really didn't need to worry about that after all."

"Wait," said a very confused Aishu. "What?"

"I told you," Shizuru said winking. "There was never a need for worry."

"What are you guys talking about?"

The brunette giggled, leaning in close so her forehead was touching Aishu's. Winking again, she nodded to an object in front of them.

"You see the bureau over there?" She asked. "Go on over and you'll find and envelope on it. Bring it back here right after."

"Envelope? What's in it?"

"You'll see. Can you get it?"

Although confused, Aishu did as she was told. Getting up, she walked over to the bureau, grabbed the item, and made her way back to the bed, sitting right in the middle of it.

"Here," she said, handing it to Shizuru.

The woman merely held her hands up and shook her head.

"Nope. It's not for me. It's for you."

"For me?" she asked, her confusion growing by the second. "Why for me?"

"Open it and you'll see." Natsuki told her. "Haruka and the President gave this to us the day you visited Garderobe, but it's really yours."

With curiosity now getting at her, she turned the envelope over, the Aries seal on the flap. Opening it up, she took out the few sheets of paper that resided inside. Unfolding them, she glanced at the first page.

"W-wait a second." Aishu's eyes began to widen as she looked over the words. "No way. I, are these-"

"Ara, so you do know what they are," Shizuru said, voice warm. "Can you tell us?"

Oh yes, Aishu knew exactly what they were, and as she glanced over them, time itself seemed to stop. She was in shock. Now, previous events and words exchanged should have easily given this way, but Aishu just never thought of it happening. She never thought she would see this type of paperwork with her name on it. She tried to answer them, opening her mouth to do so, but could not find the words, streams of tears replacing them.

"What are they?" Natsuki asked softly.

The two women had now crawled closer to the girl. Looking up, Aishu saw the two looking back with love, making the tears fall even more.

"P-papers, " she managed to stutter out. "They're papers. A-adoption p-papers."

For some reason, when Aishu said those words, something broke inside of her. Something changed. Dropping the papers, she covered her eyes with her hands and cried, really cried. She cried out everything that she had held back for years. She cried out every bit of pain that was left inside of her. She cried in realization that someone really loved her. She cried in knowing she was wanted.

"You w-want to adopt me?" She finally said, wiping away some tears.

"We want nothing more than to have you be part of our lives, part of our family, forever." Shizuru replied while wiping some of those tears away. "Of course we want you. Do you really think we can just give you back when summer's over?"

"We love you, too much," Natsuki continued, her fingers playing with Aishu's hair. "Too much to ever let you go, and we will love you that much and more forever. All we have to do is get these signed by Yukino, and you'll officially be ours. What do you say? Will you be our little girl?"

Aishu's words disappeared again. Their little girl? She would be someone's daughter? She'd have a Mother, two of them, and she'd have a family. She, the one who gave up a long time ago, would have a family.

"Say yes already!"

Haruka's voice rang through the room from behind their door, the three of them bursting out into giggles once the initial shock of having eavesdroppers wore off. After, Aishu looked up at the two women, her gaze returning the love theirs showed.

"Yes," she said softly. "Yes."

The smiles Natsuki and Shizuru sported grew upon these words, their eyes shining with happiness and excitement.

"Ai-chan!" Natsuki giggled, the two now hugging her tightly.

"Our little, Ai-chan," Shizuru whispered.

"Nyaa!"

It was then their bedroom door shot open, Mai walking in closely followed by Mikoto, who, well, wasn't exactly walking.

"Ai-chan!"

At full speed, she launched on the bed, finding Aishu in the pile of bodies and hugging her excitedly.

"Ai-chan doesn't have to leave now!"

"No, Mikoto-chan," she said with a giggle. "I'm not going anywhere."

"We're you guys listening the whole time?" Natsuki asked.

"Of course!" Mai said with a smirk. "I wasn't going to wait any longer for you slowpokes to come out, so we all came up ourselves."

"Slowpoke is an understatement," said Haruka, the woman and Yukino both standing at the end of the bed. "You all were slower than slow."

Glancing over at Mai, Aishu shot her a smile before letting go of Mikoto and greeting the red-head with a warm hug.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"I'm so happy for you," Mai said back, hugging her tight.

"Now don't go causing any more trouble!" Haruka told her.

"Haruka-chan, I think she'll be okay." Yukino said.

"She better be. I don't want to be called in the middle of the night to go searching for her again all because she-woah, hey!"

Mid rant, Aishu went over and gave Haruka a tight hug, the golden haired female taken off guard.

"I want to thank you, too. You and the President. You helped me so much. It's because of you two that I'm with them in the first place. You gave me a home."

Yukino teared up a little herself.

"Of course, Ai-chan. I am glad we could help you."

Haruka, who was a blushing mess, simply pulled back from Aishu and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Y-yeah, well. You better thank us. Like I said before, you've got guts, so you better get stronger."

Aishu giggled and nodded.

"I will."

After that, she dashed back to the bed and snuggled between the two women. Curious, she decided to try out the new title she'd be using.

"M-mom," she stuttered as she grabbed Natsuki's hand. She then did the same to Shizuru. "Mama."

The two women couldn't help but smile, each placing a kiss on the girl's head. They loved the sound of the new words.

"That's right," Natsuki told her. "You're our daughter now. All ours."

Silence ensued for a few minutes, tender moments passing between the three. It probably would have gone on much longer, but then, out of nowhere, the silence was broken by a very loud noise. The source of this sound? A puppy-eyed Mikoto holding her tummy on the bed,

"Mai, I'm hungry."

Now they all started laughing at this, Mikoto blushing a little.

"Come to think of it, I'm pretty hungry, too," Aishu said.

"Well, I did have plans of making lunch in the kitchen as a celebration," Mai told them.

"We should go start!"

"Sounds good to me," Natsuki replied. The trio got up from the bed and followed the other four out of the room, however, just before leaving, Aishu stopped, turning around and looking back into the bedroom. Reaching her hand up, she placed it on her chest, a smile on her face. It was warm again. Everything else was gone. All the sadness, the worry, the pain, everything.

"You all right?"

Both Natsuki and Shizuru peeked back in to check on her. The girl, in return, just looked back up with a smile.

"Yes," she answered. "Definitely. I'm more than all right."

Reaching out, she slipped her hand into Shizuru's, the other into Natsuki's, and the three walked together down the hall.

"Come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I ate," Aishu commented. "Whatever it is, I hope there is mayo involved."

At that comment, the two women stopped in their tracks.

"What?" The younger girl asked.

Shizuru just stood there shaking her head and muttering what sounded like "not another one" while Natsuki proudly ruffled Aishu's hair.

"That's my girl!"

For once in her life, Aishu was happy. Really happy. Every bad thing that had happened to her was a thing of the past now, and worrying was something she wouldn't need to do any longer. No more running, no more fear. She was safe, safe and loved by two of the greatest women she had ever met, and now she could keep them forever. Finally, she had a family. In knowing this, she smiled, knowing this was only the first day of what would be a great adventure.

Author's Note: This is the end of book one my friends! Thanks to all of the readers. I appreciate the time you have taken to read and review. You're the best! Book two, Coral Year, is on the way. The prologue is already posted and there will be much more to come for the trio!