"Hey, Tamako..."

"Hm?"

"You still love me, right?"

Tamako chuckled. "For the hundredth time, yes. You worry too much, Midori-chan."

The blonde brushed a few stray hairs out of her girlfriend's face, which was currently resting comfortably in her lap, and frowned. "You're too cute for me not to worry."

"Ehehe...I still don't get it, but thanks."

Midori sighed in wonder at how naive this girl could still be. At least she'd taken care of part of it, she thought.

Looking back, she really couldn't decide what spurred her to confess those few days back. Maybe it was partially due to her coming over after school to study, only to be interrupted by a Mochizou "phone call". Maybe it was from the opportunity when she followed Tamako on an order to replace the ingredients she'd used in her latest mochi experiment. There were a handful of other factors, but they wouldn't come to her at the moment.

One certain contribution was when one of the vendors started asking Tamako about getting a boyfriend. She snapped at that point, dragging the girl well out of earshot amidst protest. "Midori-chan!"

"What?" she snapped back, a little harsher than intended.

"I still have to pick up some things for supper, you know." Tamako tilted her head slightly. "Or was there something over here you needed?"

The blonde squeezed the arm she'd latched onto a bit tighter, quivering in rage at her own jealousy. God, she must look like such a child now. "No, I-". She lowered her head a bit. "...I'm sorry."

"What's wrong, Midori-chan?" Tamako asked, a look of concern crossing her now-moonlit eyes. "Are you scared or something?"

Midori paused and blinked at her, then smiled slightly. "Yes, I am scared. I'm scared that someone's going to come and take you away from me."

"Take me away?" The brunette placed a finger under her chin in thought. "Like a kidnapping? Nobody here would do that."

The blonde chuckled. "No, silly, like here," she said, placing a hand lightly on Tamako's chest. "I'm worried that someday someone else will find their way in here and lock me out, and I couldn't stand that. It may be selfish, but I want that spot to be mine and mine alone." She wrapped her companion in as tight a grip as she could. "Like my grandpa said, 'everybody loves somebody'...and for me, that's you. I love you, Tamako, more than anyone else I've ever met in my entire life. I always have, and I always will."

There was an awkward pause and a brief moment of panic, and then she felt a pair of arms circle around her back.

"I understand." The voice came out in a whisper. "I honestly haven't thought about it much myself, but...the way I love my family, my friends, and how I feel about you, it's all different somehow. Ah, but there's a place for everyone, you know?" Tamako leaned back and gave her the warmest smile she'd ever seen. "I love you too, Midori-chan. No matter what happens or who I meet, that's not going to change."

"Then...can I..." Midori fumbled over her words, then abandoned them, instead drawing closer together until their lips gently pressed together. It was a bit awkward, a bit clumsy, but sweeter than anything she'd ever tasted...which in these circles was quite a statement. She pulled back after processing the thought. No need to be too hasty. Besides, the brunette looked ready to explode already.

"...This is going to make a lot of people sad though," Tamako mused. "I wasn't joking about your popularity."

"Oh really..."Midori answered with a smirk. "So if they asked to trade places with you..."

"Absolutely not." Tamako grinned sheepishly. "So...now what?"

"Now..." The blonde glanced at the rather empty streets around her, then into the starry sky. "Now, we should probably get back before people start worrying about us."

"Oh, I know," the brunette interjected, planting her fist in her palm. "If it's this late, you could just stay over at my house tonight. Oh, but I have to get up early and help with-"

Midori put a finger lightly on her lips, cutting her off. "I'd be glad to help, if you'll have me. Just because you're my girlfriend now won't change that."

Tamako's face went scarlet again at the word 'girlfriend', eliciting a few giggles. "Right...um...thank you."

Midori nestled her head against Tamako's as they set off back toward the shop, arms, hands, and fingers locked together. The corners of her mouth curled upward imagining what Dera would do when he got wind of this.

The bird had spouted some nonsense about love and loss before flying across the street and wound up staying at Mochizou's house for the better part of an hour. He came back much more somber, going on about a battle won but a war to be fought and something about honorable combat. Then he gave them a combined handshake...wingshake...whatever, and flew off again. Nobody saw him until the next day, when Shiori dumped him unceremoniously at the front step.

Midori sighed and pulled the girl in her lap up closer to her chest, garnering a quizzical glance. "It's fine, it's fine."

Tamako reached up and put a hand on her cheek. "You better tell me if it's not, okay?"

The blonde grinned. "Promise." She wasn't too sure about battles and wars, but she swore she'd do anything in her power to keep that light from fading even the slightest.

"Good," the brunette beamed. "You're so much cuter when you smile."

Midori just stared at her a moment before squeezing the girl as hard as she could, only letting up after Tamako had whacked her hard enough to signal 'can't breathe'. Still...she didn't plan on letting go any time soon.

-X-X-X-X-

A/N: Going to start putting these down here now. I'll probably do something longer later, but for now…if I can't sleep, I'm going to write. Read, review, have a nice day (and a cavity).