A/N Look I know that around this time that, as third years who need to study for college, these two would have been forced to retire from their respective clubs. For the sake of the story let's just call it oversight on my part and let it go please

UmiHono Fluffiness

The archery field was an open air affair, with a smooth hard wood floor and 50 feet of open grassy space. Umi stood ramrod straight, clad in the loose, white haori and navy blue hakama of the archery club, bow in hand and an arrow pulled taught against the string. Winter's cold teeth bit lightly at her knuckles and fingers, leaving the digits numb and shaking, the chill slipping up through cracks in the wood to nip at her feet. It was one of the few times the seventeen year-old ever felt disappointed in her sport of choice: nothing about archery was made for winter.

With a suppressed shiver, she focused on the target before her, realigning her arrow with the circles center. Above, the sky had already begun to darken; turning the bright white snow clouds an ominous grey. Umi tried to pay the late hour little mind and ignored the sense of loneliness that settled in her stomach at the thought of being only person left at the school. Everyone had gone home hours ago, she was probably the only person silly enough to stay this late. All of her friends had left long ago idol practice having ended early on account of the cold. Thoughts of her friends took route from there; had they made it home safely, where were they if they hadn't? It was in her nature to worry after all and becoming a third year had only made her feel that much more responsible for her juniors.

In the time since the third years-last year's third years she reminded herself- had graduated, things at Otonikazaka had calmed down considerably. With the school closure so long ago turned over, and the Love Live won, there hadn't been much for the remnants of Muse to do. Someone had suggested getting ready for the summer idol competitions, but the idea had been shot down: without the eldest members of their group it seemed in poor taste to continue competing. Eventually they settled on making small appearances, as they were, they were getting enough work to not need to advertise themselves anymore.

To Umi, that decision meant she could focus on some things she'd been neglecting, a time to catch up on all the responsibilities that had been put to the side for the sake of idol work. She had started with Kyudo and Kendo, returning to the clubs in full had been first and she found that some of the things learned in idol training could be applied to those sports as well. After cementing her position in both avenues, Umi redoubled her efforts in an area of her life- one she felt would be a permanent part of it- Honoka.

Her childhood friend had relaxed quite a bit going into their third year, spending less time running around and more time sleeping or holed up in a corner somewhere, thinking. For Umi, Honoka's newfound docility meant the girl was lot easier to deal with in some ways and much harder in others. She was still constantly late to things and still refuses to do her work as a student properly, but her laziness made it easier to find her when she was shirking. Honoka claimed there was a lot to think about now that they were seniors, a sentiment the brunette could understand. A great number of things had changed, the greatest among them, arguably, was the status of their relationship.

She and Honoka had begun dating after all and even though there were so many more important things to think about-college entrance exams, work, and inheriting her family's dojo to name a few- Umi could not help but to focus on the budding romance between them.

Pushing away everything in her mind in one great thrust, she took aim, careful to focus solely on the target. A long steadying breath had her shivering hands under control and she took the shot.

THUNK

It sailed smoothly through the air and imbedded itself directly in the targets gold center. Umi allowed a relieved sigh at the sight- it was the best she'd done all night after all- and relaxed her stance. The world around her slowly came back into focus as she let her mind relax, suddenly making her aware a noise behind her. She spun in place, bow and arrow rising with her hands and leveling with the forehead of a nervous ginger.

"Uh…" The newcomer's hands shot up instantly in surrender, blue eyes wide in fear. Umi lowered the weapon, slowly taking in the appearance of the other girl. She was dressed for winter in a thick, cream colored jacket and a white and red scarf. Black stockings kept her legs insulated against the cold and a tan hat covered most of her ginger locks, allowing a few orange strands to frame her face cutely. Honoka seemed to relax under Umi's scrutiny, lowering her arms and puffing her modest chest in acknowledgement.

"What are you doing here Honoka?" A large grin split across the shorter girl's face at the question.

"I heard a certain someone was overworking themselves and I came to scold them."

"Really? And since when do you get to scold me Honoka? You're always the one doing something wrong." The taller girl crossed her arms and made her best faux scowl. "Who even told you I was here? I'm pretty sure I'm the only person left on campus."

"Maki-chan did actually. She was staying late to revise some songs and saw you as she was leaving, then she text me." Her bright blue eyes seemed to light up as she spoke, as if being contacted was some kind of achievement. It made Umi smile despite herself. Her words brought a concern to mind, however: how long had she been here?

"What time is it, Honoka?"

"Uh, let me check. Hold on." She rummaged around her coat pocket for a moment before pulling out her cell phone with a triumphant roar. "It's 7:13."

"7:13?" Had she really been practicing that long? Maybe Honoka and the others were right to worry.

"Yup, so it's about time someone comes to stop the workaholic Umi-chan before she freezes to death." With no way to defend herself, Umi just nodded in response as she pondered how exactly she'd let time slip her by like that.

What had she been thinking about the whole time? All she could remember was trying to perfect her technique, other than that there really hadn't been anything special on her mind. Now that she thought about it, the last few days had been like that for her: a nearly endless stream of work and practice. The only thing she'd taken any time off to do was sleep. And for what? There was nothing coming up soon that she'd wanted to work toward and there were no archery tournaments in the relevant future. What coul-

Suddenly her mind went blank as warmth spread through her hands and the smell of sugar and winter sweets filled her head. The smell was so sweet and so overpowering, Umi felt herself relax in its familiar embrace. Her slowed mind rejoiced at the surge in warmth she had unconsciously forgotten she didn't have.

Just as she had begun to get used to those feelings, a new kind of warmth pressed against her lips, sending little shots of comforting heat throughout her entire body. She melted into it all, letting all of her senses shut down one by one until all she could feel was the soft heat.

And then it was over: Honoka had pulled back with a soft, bright smile dancing on lips. She still held on tightly to Umi's hands, however, thumbs gently tracing patterns into the smooth flesh. The taller girl watched her, bemused, golden eyes struggling to focus.

"Hehe, I remember how the first few times I did that, you would tense up like statue or something." She leaned in and lightly nuzzled Umi's neck, speaking into the hollow of her throat. "As cute as that was I'm glad you've gotten better with that. It makes these kinds of moments really enjoyable you know?"

Umi felt the girl's breath on her throat; felt the softness of her chest against her own and sighed. Honoka had a habit of giving her surprise kisses if she was thinking to hard or was upset- according to her it was the easiest way to get her attention. Whether that was true or not, Umi did not know for sure, but her girlfriend seemed to think it was for the best. And Umi had never been successful in convincing her otherwise.

"Well, I honestly can't say it bothers me anymore either, even though it annoyed me to no end at first." She pulled the smaller girl closer, slipping her hands free to wrap them around her waist as the girl's arms slid around her neck. "Right now I'm just glad no one is around. It would be terrible trying to explain this to a random passerby."

"Why? Everyone at school already knows. Besides I'd love to show everyone how adorable my Umi is."

"Ugh, if you did that I would immediately declare our relationship over. No matter how much you begged." The mere thought of something so embarrassing made her cringe. "Anyway, I need to change and lock up. It's cold out here."

Honoka released her, walking quickly to the corner of the range where her school bag lay forgotten. Umi quickly moved about her tasks, changing and shutting down the space in record time. When she was done she found Honoka waiting patiently just outside the door. They linked hands once they were close enough-an act Umi deemed just bearable enough to be done out in the open- and made their way off the campus and on to the snow dusted roads.

The snow had been quite the surprise so early in December, but the city welcomed the stuff with open arms. There always seemed to be some group of kids or another playing in the frozen white mess. Christmas lights covered the fronts of most stores and homes, Japanese renditions of western Christmas songs danced merrily in the speakers of most shops. The holiday season was here and it seemed everybody was exited.

Honoka leaned against Umi's right shoulder, hugging the attached arm as close to her body as she could, as though she was afraid it would disappear on her. She was babbling by now, talking about everything and nothing all at once. Umi considered it one of the girl's good points most of the time: it was nearly impossible to get bored when she could talk animatedly about socks and manjuu.

"Kotori's been really busy lately, ya know? It's been really hard to find a chance to hang out with her."

"Well that's to be expected. She did start dating Hanayo recently." The change in topic surprised her, but she rolled with it. After all, she too missed their friend. "And I'm sure she has wanted to give us more space since we've begun dating."

"We started dating six months ago Umi. She would have said something if we were bothering her right?" Even though her words were seemed sure, Honoka faltered a little at the end, allowing Umi a glimpse of what the girl was really thinking.

The taller girl sighed like the long suffering friend/girlfriend she was. Despite being friends their entire lives, Honoka and Kotori had a bad habit of not communicating when something was wrong between them. It was one of the hardest parts of knowing them, especially when it was over something trivial like this.

"Stop Honoka. You know Kotori isn't the type to speak up when something is wrong. Why do you think she 'suddenly' got more work right after we told we were dating? She didn't want to impose so she made up excuses that were plausible enough that we wouldn't think twice about her being absent all the time." The air around them was thick now, heavy with tension as Honoka processed her words, nothing like the contentedness that had permeated their walk until now. Her girlfriend shifted and turned her gaze to the cloudy sky above. Somehow she managed not to leave Umi's shoulder in the process.

"I… guess I should have noticed, huh?" the ginger laughed humorlessly and snuggled closer to Umi, pulling them to a stop on the sidewalk. "Am I a bad person Umi?"

"Yes." Umi answered instantly and felt Honoka stiffen in shock, and pressed on quickly before the shorter girl could respond. "But everybody is on occasion. You have more good moments than bad, and when you have a bad moment you do everything you can to make it right. Don't get upset over this Honoka: just talk to Kotori and I'm sure that you'll find everything to be all right."

Honoka was silent for a moment, making Umi wonder if she'd said the wrong thing and ruined their walk. Just when she was about to apologize for her harshness, a cute giggle bubbled up from the ginger's throat, scaring Umi with its suddenness. The shorter girl stepped away, keeping their fingers intertwined, her bell like laugh filled the air with an infectious happiness and Umi found herself smiling.

"That was mean Umi," Honoka said between snorts and chuckles. "That's not how you cheer someone up at all. You're supposed to tell me I'm perfect you know? As a prince you need to be charming Umi. Charming!"

Frowning now, Umi placed a hand on her hip and leveled her companion with a scathing glare. "The truth hurts Honoka; it's something you'll just have to deal with. Besides I am not a prince. I'm a samurai at best, and samurai show no quarter to the undisciplined."

"Hmph, you'd think a samurai would care more for her princess' feelings," a sly grin slipped onto Honoka's face. "I've never heard of a samurai who would faint from a kiss."

Flame erupted onto Umi's face for the second time that night, turning her pale skin the deep hue of a supple cherry. "I've asked you several times not to bring that up. It was one time and it was my first kiss. I wasn't prepared at all!"

The ginger stuck her tongue out and took off, running down until she reached the end of the road. She looked back with a megawatt smile, eyes bright with mischief and mirth. "If you're such a samurai then come and catch me Umi! Maybe then I won't tell everyone!" Cobalt eyebrows rose at the sudden challenge- was she serious- but she couldn't help the grin that pulled at her lips.

"You're on!" She took off after her friend, surprising the girl-obviously she had thought that Umi wouldn't rise to the challenge-who almost fell as she tried to run away, cackling excitedly like a child.

Xxx

Half an hour of running and laughing left the pair bent over, sweaty, tired, and gasping for air a few feet from the entrance of the Homura sweets shop-Honoka's home. Light from the doorway bathed them and the street in a muted, golden glow, contrasting with the faded orange of the street lamps. Small fluttering flakes of freshly falling snow caught that same light and reflected back into the sky in small, shimmering show. Umi marveled –between desperate pants- how the light caught onto the thin sheen of sweat coating Honoka's face, making her glow like the snow. The shorter girl caught her staring and grinned, righting herself and offering Umi a look that said 'Like what you see?'

Umi wondered why she was always the one caught staring. Ever since the beginning of their relationship as lovers, the taller girl had always found herself on the receiving end of affection. Compliments and the like just seemed so natural with Honoka, flowing from her mouth in a sweet river that left Umi shivering and blushing. Despite that, she never caught Honoka staring: never with her mouth agape, eyes wide in amazement, like Umi was the most breath taking thing she'd ever seen.

It wasn't fair. The only time Umi had managed to make Umi blush was when she confessed, since then Honoka had become a storm of affection that the archer just could not quell.

"Hee hee, you look really pretty right now Umi-chan," Honoka said voice low as though she were afraid to speak loudly in the silence of the street. "This lighting really suits you, you know? It makes you look like some kind of angel. Heh my angel Umi-chan."

There it was again: that shameless adoration and intensity, spelled out like the weather. Umi was almost sick from sugar coating her girlfriends words and desperately wished for the courage to say something back.

The taller girl refused to blush- she believed she done enough of that tonight- and instead crossed her arms over her chest dismissively. She frowned and stepped a bit closer the girl, surprising her by leaning in and laying her head on the girl's small shoulder. Honoka jumped at first but quickly settled into it, gently wrapping her arms around Umi's waist. One hand wandered upward to rub at soft cerulean locks. Breathing in, the tall girl once again found her head of Honoka's sugary scent. It was intoxicating.

"Umi-chan?"

"I…I'm little tired after all that running. Can I just rest here for a bit?" Umi wrapped her arms around the shorter girl as she spoke, squeezing lightly.

The ginger was silent for a moment and then she bounced a little, jostling her charge for a moment. "Sure, Of course you can Umi-chan. Heh heh."

"What?" Umi asked defensivly.

"Nothing, I'm just happy to see you rely on me Umi-chan," She giggled again, "I mean I've always relied on you. Ever since we were kids, I've always felt like you had my back, even when I didn't ask for it. To be honest, I was a bit jealous of Kotori-chan for a while. It seemed like you always went to her when you had problem instead of me and that made me kinda sad. But now Maki-chan calls me when you start to over work yourself and you hug me first, instead coming to you for one. It really makes me happy."

Umi listened intently but remained quiet, her instincts told to wait.

"It's a bit isn't? For me to be saying this kind of thing. I mess up a lot and am kinda dumb, I don't have much going for me besides my peppiness and Rin-chan even beats me at that." Honoka chuckled happily, as though she truly thought it was humorous. "I just want to say thanks Umi-chan, for sticking by and leaning on me. And I'm going to do my best to be the kind of person you come to."

It didn't feel right to speak after that so Umi remained silent and just hugged the shorter girl tighter. Honoka really was stupid sometimes, but that about the only Honoka could be.

They remained like that for a time, just enjoying each other's warmth and the cool winter night air. Eventually Umi felt Honoka suppress a shiver and decided she would have to be the one to end this lest they die of hypothermia. Reluctantly she pulled away from the ginger, kissing her lightly on the cheek as they passed. Something flashed briefly behind blue eyes for a half second before Honoka began speaking again.

"Hey, Umi-chan?"

"Yes?"

"Do you want to spend the night? I don't really want to part ways yet and tomorrows Sunday so we don't have to worry about school or anything."

Umi smiled again, even as a blush seeped into her cheeks, "Yeah, that sounds nice."

Xxx

A/N Like it? Hate it? Think it should be longer? Let me know in a review please. Also I'm very happy to add more the HonoUmi tags, even if it something as meaningless as this. I had a lot of fun writing so tell me what ya think.