withoutverona | Room 502, Monday Morning, 3/16

The weekend had been kind to young master Montague. There had been mud fights and muffins and even two birthday parties. And, when it got quite terribly late -- 9 o'clock at least -- he drifted back to his room with Yurika by the hand. They watched cartoons until they fell asleep on the bed like a pair of puppies, TV still droning away.

When Romeo first woke up on Monday, it took him a moment to feel as if anything beyond gratitude to be his proper size again, followed by annoyance at the grit of mud behind his ears and in other places his five-year-old self had forgotten to wash. He'd seen that shock of blonde hair in the morning many times.

Then he realized he hadn't so much, lately. Drawing away to get a better look, he held his breath. He was going to savor these moments until she (perhaps inevitably, he thought) made her excuses and left him alone again -- or at least tried to.

[OOC: For the taller and modded-with-permission birthday princess. Also, he's very unlikely to get around to opening Pixie Dust today -- drop me an email if you have a desperate need to shop there and we'll work something out. Also, going NWS because reunion sex is awesome.]

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Yurika stirred slightly, trying to curl closer to the source of warmth she'd been happily curled up with. She was having a nice dream, and didn't feel like getting up yet.

Eventually, however, consciousness began to intrude, and her eyes slowly fluttered open. "Ohaiyo," she sighed, still not-exactly awake enough to process anything beyond 'bed', 'warm', and 'Romeo', let alone remember why she might not want to be there.

"Ohaiyo," he returned, letting himself slide back under the covers and close to her again. "It's morning, love."

She made an unhappy sound of disagreement at that statement, turning her face into the pillow. "Isn't," she muttered. "Sleeping."

He could have argued with her; the sun was peeking through the windows more aggressively by the minute.

But ... he couldn't. Not then. He wrapped an arm over her waist and nestled his legs against hers, his nose to the back of her neck. "Then let's sleep."

Yurika squirmed to snuggle against him, practically purring at the idea of staying in bed longer.

The nose to the back of the neck elicited a giggle, which was enough to wake her up just enough for her brain to start clicking on. "Wait, Romeo? What..?"

Reluctantly, Romeo edged back a little. "We fell asleep here watching cartoons," he reminded her. "I think I asked to show you my toys."

"Toys?" she queried, sitting up slightly to look around as understanding dawned on her face. "Oh gods, we were wee again, weren't we?"

"This island hates me, and hates my birthday."

"We were, and I was smaller yet than last time," Romeo nodded, trying to remember what had happened on her birthday the year before.

Oh.

"I would take childhood over the angels."

"Reno gave me a plush unicorn," she replied, casting a look at the toys scattered about. "Being a kid again is better than angels, but I'd really just like Fandom to leave me alone at this point."

This was awkward, and Yurika scooted towards the end of the bed, trying ascertain an escape route. "Sorry I fell asleep on you."

"I think that's the one thing Fandom will never do," Romeo said ruefully, sitting up.

She was leaving, of course she was leaving, and Romeo was surprised how much louder his voice got as he reached for her. "I was glad to have you here. Don't leave so soon. Please."

Yurika paused, looking down at his hand where he had touched her. "Don't tell me you want to watch more cartoons," she said brightly. "Or do you just want a turn with the unicorn, and don't want to admit it?"

"No, I --"

Romeo faltered. This wasn't easy, but he had to try, and if he failed, at least there would have been the attempt.

"I fucked up," he said, bluntly. "I did something unforgivable, and I know it, and I know you're being generous to even speak with me. But I love you, and I don't want to spend the rest of our time here without you, the way we were. Is there any way you could grant me that?"

The urge to chew on her lip when nervous like she had as a child was almost overwhelming, and Yurika brushed imaginary dirt from her pants as she stalled for time.

"You're right," she said quietly. "What you did was wrong, and it hurt. It still hurts, if I let myself think about it. I try telling myself that you were drunk, or you didn't really know what you were doing, but that doesn't make it hurt less."

"But that you know it was terrible, and you've quit trying to make excuses for it and you keep trying to fix it... that means a lot." Yurika ducked her head, letting her hair fall in her face. "I miss you."

"In faith, I know it was wrong," Romeo answered, reaching his hand slowly along her back. "I never meant to hurt you, though. I hope you can believe that."

"But I miss you too, and I worry about time, and duty, and the worlds breaking us apart, and -- if life has taught me any one thing, it's that now must be enjoyed, as it never lasts."

Yurika didn't flinch at the contact. Instead, she just sighed and let her eyes drift shut. "I know you didn't," she said quietly. "Or at least, I do now. I thought initially that you had done it deliberately, to hurt me, and that's one of the reasons I was so angry."

She turned on the bed, shifting to face him. "I said I'd give you another chance, aijin, and I mean that. I just needed my own space for a bit. You go off to the beach, I hide in my room and sulk. We've each got our own ways of coping, ne?"

Romeo recoiled a little. "I'm thoughtless," he said. "I'm almost never cruel, not unless my back is against a wall and another has struck the first blow. I would never try to hurt you."

He dipped his head to see her eyes. "So we can be normal until graduation?" The hope animated his voice.

"Maybe. That depends." Her eyes flickered up to meet his, a spark of her normal good-humor dancing in them. "Are you planning on marrying any other girls in exotic locations without informing me beforehand?"

He laughed, in relief as much as at the joke. "I think I'm done with marriage for my teens, and possibly for my twenties as well. I won't wed again until I'm quite old and wise."

"Old and wise? A bachelor forever, then," she sighed in mock-anguish. "How sad!"

Romeo snickered again and leaned against her, trying to pull her back onto the bed. "You could be an old maid and make me soup," he suggested.

"If I made you soup, would you eat it?" Yurika asked skeptically as she let herself get tugged back on to the bed. "It might be toxic."

"I would eat anything you gave me, dearest," Romeo said, leaning up to kiss her. "And I'm glad you agreed to try being with me again. I only had one other idea."

She had wanted to kiss him on the roof, and Yurika brushed her fingers over his cheek before claiming a small kiss.

"What was your other idea?" she asked, curious. "Were you going to get me a real pony?"

He had been the very nicest boy she'd met this weekend, after all.

Romeo pulled her closer yet, pressing his body against hers. He'd missed her. "I was going to tie you up and make you agree to take me back," he whispered. "Should I have thought of the pony first?"

"You were going to..." Yurika trailed off, blinking at him before an evil grin spread across her face. "You know, most boys resort to bribery first. Unless the offer of 'making me agree' was a form of bribe."

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Room 502, Monday Morning, 3/16

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