The Fairest of Them All

II. Unavoidable Disturbances

Laito gave her a closed-eyed smile while Ayato stared at her from the corner of his eyes. He gave out a light 'hmph' and turned away again.

"I want to see her," he said after a moment, his voice strangely lost its rough edge. His eyes now bored the carpet beneath the table.

"Now, now, we all feel the same way~" Laito replied, standing up. "And as much as a killjoy Reiji is, I must agree that it's best not to disturb her...although I wouldn't mind seeing her in her frail state, ufufu~"

Ayato clicked his tongue, but showed no other signs of disagreement. They suddenly heard thunderstorm, followed by heavy rainfall and howling wind that indicated the beginning of a heavy storm.

++++++++++++++++

Guinevere came out of the bathroom, feeling highly refreshed as fresh steam rose from her soft skin. She walked to the direction of her bed, drying her hair. Suddenly, arms wrapped themselves around her torso, halting her. Shaking out of her shock, she allowed laughter to escape her lips as they squeezed her tighter. She caught a glimpse of lilac strands from behind her and her eyes softened in recognition.

Her eyes twinkled as she said, "Ah, my precious Kanato. Did Reiji not prevent you from seeing me?"

"He told me to not disturb your rest, but you haven't rested yet, have you?" Kanato replied. When he received nothing, he continued, "Guinevere...do you not want to see me?" His tone was more hushed than usual.

"No, it is quite the opposite actually," she said. "It's nice to see that you have grown well. It makes me glad."

"Then...why..." he started. His voice began to rise as he spoke, "why did you leave me? Why did you leave us?!"

Guinevere sighed. "I currently do not want to talk about it, but I apologize for leaving you and Teddy alone, I really do. It must have been incredibly difficult for you both." She then gently pried Kanato's hand off her.

Once she faced him, her eyes widened upon seeing his violet ones clouded with tears as he glared at her. She gave him a soft smile and leaned into him, pulling him into her embrace. He let out a sniff in response and snuggled closer, burying his face in the crook of her neck. His arms once again encircling her and she reached her hands out to stroke his hair. She delicately pulled them away and watched as the lilac strands slipped effortlessly past her slender fingers. She admired the softness of his hair, the sound of Kanato's deep inhaling soothingly reached her ears.

"...But I will not go anywhere from now on," she reassured.

She could feel him grabbing a chunk of her clothing from the back, crumpling it slightly. "Really?"

She nodded, humming in agreement. "Yes. You have been through enough pain...and do not fret, my dress will dry eventually. Tears are just water, after all."

Kanato pulled away slightly and tilted his head up to gaze into her captivating silver eyes. "...can you put me to sleep?"

"Of course, precious," she soothed.

After she flicked the light switch, she allowed Kanato to drag her towards her bed, their feet barely making a sound as they walked across the cool marble floor, onto a low, gold-rimmed platform embedded with pale-coloured roses. She drew the silky, chiffon curtains to block the golden rays of dawn and was tugged onto the soft mattress. Both of them snuggled underneath the milky blankets, embracing each other as they drifted off to sleep.

+++++++++++++++

"I would like to go, too," Yui asked, trying to erase the timidness from her voice.

Ayato turned around. "Hah? You want to go see her? Why?"

"Because...I need to thank her."

"Mmm...okay, Bitch-chan, you can come with us," Laito said. An amused sound escaped his lips. "Ufu, don't give me that look, Ayato. Bitch-chan will eventually meet her anyway, so why not allow her to see her 'saviour' now~?"

"Tch, she's resting, baka," Ayato answered.

Laito tilted his head, a smirk adorning his face. "Well, how about this, if she's asleep, then we'll leave her be, but if she's awake...then we can have some fun~"

Ayato rolled his eyes. "Your way of fun is twisted."

Laito pouted in response. "Ayato, you can't talk~"

They clashed heads.

"You wanna—" Ayato began.

"Okay~!" Laito broke away. "Let's continue this later. Bitch-chan has been waiting for a while now..." he extended a hand out to Yui. "Shall we go?"

Gingerly, Yui reached for his hand. The moment they made contact, both of them disappeared, with Ayato following with a scowl.

...

A thin ray of dawn sunlight managed to seep in between the thin gap between the curtains, slicing a part of the darkness residing in the extravagant room. It glinted off the gold-rimmed platform, lightly piercing through the chiffon curtains that were pushed to one side. This gave a clear view of the two figures asleep on the bed, partly enveloped by the shade.

Yui shivered as Laito gazed at the two figures through half-lidded eyes, whose limbs tangled against each other as their bodies were cuddling closely. Despite his smirk, his eyes were cold, sending shivers running down her spine. Ayato, however, didn't even bother to hide his murderous aura, allowing it to leak out in thick masses as he too glared at the two figures. Yui noticed that his teeth were gritting and his hand was clenched, knuckles almost too white against his pale skin.

The two figures were Kanato and a woman that Yui didn't recognise. She had ebony hair, with a slight, deep blue shade that reminded Yui of a starless, night sky. She had long lashes and a perfect oval-shaped face, with a touch of chubbiness on her cheeks, highlighting her youthful appearance. Her nose fitted her facial features nicely as her fair skin looked soft and smooth. The milky blankets uncovered the top part of her silky red nightgown with thin, black straps that were attached to elegant patterns right underneath them that formed a heart-shaped border, shaping the outline of her—no doubt larger that Yui's—bosoms hidden behind the quite revealing gown. One conclusion came to Yui's mind at that moment as she observed the sleeping woman's beauty: 'She looks like Snow white.'

Kanato snuggled closer towards the beautiful woman, fuelling the other two brother's annoyance and—jealousy. Yui fidgeted with the hem of her nightdress, even more uncomfortable with the tenser atmosphere.

Ayato began advancing towards them when Laito clamped his fingers around his wrist, eyes still focusing on the two presences cuddling in bed. Their gazes met for a moment, before Ayato shook his brother's grip off him. After a click of his tongue, he disappeared. Laito narrowed his eyes, jealousy flashing through them as the woman ran a hand up his second brother's body, weaving her fingers in his lilac hair. Yui blinked, and he too was gone. She began panicking, realising that she was left alone, and began hurrying out of the room. However, she tripped on something soft and thudded onto the hard, marble floor. She winced as her skin began to sting from the contact.

Someone stirred, letting out a groan from above her on the bed. She froze.

"What..." a figure slowly sat up. "what filthy being dares disturb our sleep?"

The voice was soft and smooth, though anger caused it to have a lower, rougher edge. Yui looked up slowly, and was met with a familiar babyish face and lilac hair.

She gulped. Kanato was not happy.