********* (I Love You) Chapter XXI: *****-A FFXI Love StoryFollow

AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is Chapter XXI of my love story ************ (I Love You)[/i].

Previous chapters and aki:

Part I- Connection (Enishi)

Kasho II- Kodoku (Solitude)
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Chapter XIX: http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/forum.html?forum=35&mid=111927348442145844&num=0

Aki XX:
http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/forum.html?forum=35&mid=111935938018852277&num=8

Read and review, as always. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!
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Chapter XXI: *****
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The figure slammed me up against the wall, and then kissed the corner of my lips.

I felt -her?- mouth trailed down my cheek, forcing my neck to arch upwards as -she?- then started to kiss underneath my chin.

To my surprise, the kisses weren’t soft and delicate, like a freshly bloomed rose. Instead...

They were cold, harsh, as if I was a means to an end.

I placed one of my hands behind the person’s back and felt long, somewhat thin hair trailing away from her slender body.

And it was then that I noticed the fragrance of rolanberries.

"Hitomi...please...stop..." I whispered to her as she looped her arms around my waist and then pushed me up against a brick wall.

"Please..." I tried again to no avail.

If we were going to kiss, I would never want it to be like this...

It was then that we heard voices at the alleyway entrance, and I happened to recognize one of them.

Ducal Guard.

I froze in place, praying that they wouldn’t notice us. But Hitomi, instead of freezing in place, simply buried my face in her long hair and then started to run her hands up and down my leather armored chest.

"Hitomi...this isn’t the time..." I said frantically, trying to keep my voice down so the guards wouldn’t hear me.

"Did you check this alleyway?," one of them said to another one.

"No sir." The first one replied in a firm voice.

With a flash of realization, I recognized the first voice as the green who had just signed on with the Ducal Guard right before that Tavnazian assassination attempt a few months ago.

"Then I suggest you check it soldier." The first come snapped back, with a fair amount of authority hidden behind his voice.

Apparently he’s grown a spine since the war began...looks like he would have been able to make the cut after all.

The second soldier’s shoe heels clicked together, and then I heard him start to head down the alley a little bit before freezing.

"Expose the world to me...Flash!" I heard the soldier shout before a blinding light illuminated the alleyway, making everything glow as bright as the midday sun.

My eyes started to water at the blinding light, and I tried to blink away the tears a couple of times, but failed miserably. Hitomi didn’t notice, but seemed too intent on figuring out how to slip her hands inside my subligar.

We’ve been found. We will both be killed almost certainly on the spot...

"Nothing down here sir. Just a ***** and her john." The soldier said as he retreated back down the alley as the flash dimmed away.

"Very good, then let us report back to the Archduke, and tell him that the Grand Duchy is safe, for now at least." the former-green said.

"Yes sir!"

Their footfalls quickly faded away, back to what I presumed would be the Archduke’s palace.

And with that, the girl pushed herself away from me and wiped her mouth with the back of her right hand. She then held up her left, and let a yellow lightning spark float out of it, barely illuminating our faces in shadows. Her eyes were cold and hard, as if she was used to living this sort of life.

"Dimitri-chan, sorry. I saw them coming, I not watch you be caught. Acting bad geisha only way I save you." she said in very broken English as she then turned her head to the side, listening for what I presumed to be more troops.

I looked at her, feeling the corners of my mouth slowly tugging upwards into a smile.

"Its okay Hitomi...but lets stop talking now, and get to my mog house. If they are following standard protocol, they will be back in an hour to check again." I replied quickly.

She nodded once, and the light on her finger died out. She then allowed me to take her hand to lead her around Lower Jeuno in the darkness, as we gracefully slipped our way to the alley’s entrance, and then it was a simple trip back to my mog house.

-fin Chapter XXI: *****

Nights, I really like the story so far, and I hope you don't mind a little constructive criticism.

I think you want the word 'yujo' instead of 'geisha'. It's a pretty common misconception that geisha are prostitutes, and that isn't the case at all. Think of a geisha as more of the person you'd pay to come sing or dance for you at a party. Yujo were (are? I don't know if they still exist) basically high-class prostitutes.

Sorry for being so nitpicky - I became rather enamoured of geisha after reading 'Memoirs of a Geisha' by Arthur Golden, and did a ton of reading and research about them on my own. Liza Dalby (interestingly enough, the only North American woman to ever work as a geisha) wrote a really excellent book on geisha, if you're interested. :)

</nitpick>

Again, sorry for the nitpick, and keep up the great writing. :)

Thanks, Nights. I definitely see better where you're coming from now.

I'm glad you didn't see that in a negative light - I was worried I'd come off a little bit too harsh upon reading that post awhile after I wrote it. It probably doesn't help that I'm in the middle of a reread of the Liza Dalby book I mentioned in my post, either. ^^;

Can't wait to see how this turns out - your explanation got me more excited to read the rest. :D