InsaneJournal

Sunday: August 26, 2007
WHO: Loki and Mitsuko
WHERE: Mitsuko and Logan's Cottage
WHEN: Night
WHAT: Preparing for leaving isn't that easy.

Being that Sunday was the day before Loki's big adventure out to the isle of Tol'hith with Theora and Adam, it meant that Loki needed to pack all of his needed supplies today. He awoke early in the morning and dropped by Mitsuko's house bright and shiny, only to find Mits in the midst of a hangover and not feeling to well. Loki's morning was spent tending to his girlfriend, making sure she was all right and waiting for the hangover to pass before he asked her if she would like to help him for that day with his preparations for going to Tol'hith. It would be a long journey, and Loki wanted to spend his last day home with Mits. He still needed to pack, though.

Loki brought Mits back to his place once she agreed, and the first thing they began to do was pack up clothes for him. Loki decided his work clothes and worn-out attire made for a better selection of packing up, especially after Theora told him there were dangers on the isle. Chances were he wouldn't be lounging at every step unless he stayed on his boat. For his boatly hours, Loki snagged a variety of Hawaiian shirts and loose beach shorts, earning a thwack from Mits for one of his multicolored flower shirts. She immediately threw it into the trashbin, instructing him never to wear it again. During their packing and the eventual trip out to the beach to make sure everything on the boat was prepared for the journey, Mits talked all about Logan.

Logan had a crush! Loki found himself tickled by this news, asking Mits if he should interfere and help the boy out with his lady. There were other things, though, that she brought up (which weren't so happy). Logan wanted his friends to live with him and Mits, and he'd been drawing eerie portraits of himself, torn over the news that he wasn't allowed to be their guardian. Loki understood why the young man was told no, but at the same time it caused an ache to hear how Logan felt about the matter. Very strongly, in fact. Hearing Mits going on about her little brother arose thoughts in Loki's own head about his family.

His parents over in the Bahamas, whom he'd left behind to come here to Elysium. His other friends, people he'd met long before Nico and Zach, and yet he wasn't living with them. They were half a world away.

After the boat was proved to be ready for takeoff tomorrow morning, Loki suggested they head back to Mitsuko's cottage to check on Logan and ask him if he wanted to come to lunch with him. Mits would probably insist, which brought a smile to Loki's face. It was important for the boy to eat and spend some time with his sister. They were, after all, a family. The duo stopped by and picked up Logan. All three of them enjoyed lunch out on the town, returning home hours later for Mits and Loki to run through everything and make sure Loki definitely had everything prepared. They all had dinner together that night, too. A family endeavor, Loki thought, as they worked on it. (Although, admittedly, Mitsuko did most of the cooking.)

Nighttime finally rolled around, though. With all of Loki's stuff at Mitsuko' cottage, Loki also decided to spend the night, too. The muse took a shower before bedtime. Even though a spare room had been set aside for Loki, he slipped into his pajamas and walked down the hallway to Mitsuko's room. Sleeping with his girl for the night was okay, yah? Of course it was. Mits probably set aside the other room for Logan's benefit, which was exactly what Loki assumed as he snuck into Mitsuko's room for the night.

Loki sighted Mits underneath the covers in her bed, smiling softly at what he saw before making his way into her room. Closing the door quietly behind himself, he crept up to her bed and sneaked under the covers.

Mitsuko blinked bleerily as Loki slipped into bed with her. She was a bit thrown by it for a moment as she sat up to look at him. She had set up the spare room for him. But... Oh... Well, he was all showered and now in her bed. They had been going slow, but Mitsuko was hardly going to deny him of he wanted to progress further. "Is this the part where you tell me you're shipping out tomorrow, Sailor?" She teased softly as she he began to undo the belt of her sleeping yukata, letting it fall down off her shoulders.

Actually, Loki had only come into her room in order to lay down with her tonight. Anything further wasn't on his mind, so when Mits began to undo the belt of her yukata, Loki put one of his hands on top of hers to stop her. He gave her a small smile. "Nah, love," he said quietly. "I just thought you and me could, ya know, lie down and . . . " Loki thought shortly on the word for it, since he wasn't exactly sharp on the dot with these romantic type things. "Fall 'sleep together, is all," he finished.

He sat back on the bed, looking across from her, worry etched on his face. Loki wasn't sure how Mits felt about that. "If it's all right with ya," Loki added in his quiet voice. He didn't want to talk too loud that Logan heard him somehow.

"Oh!" Mitsuko's eyes grew wide and her cheeks flushed a bit in embarrassment. "Gomen..." She murmured in apology, bowing her head down. She closed her yukata quickly, but frowned slightly in confusion as she looked over him in bed. "Ano...." Why was he here if not for....

Oh. OH! As Loki revealed his thoughts, Mitsuko's back stiffened. She took a deep breath. "I... I don't do that, Loki." She swallowed hard, feeling nervousness and sorrow at this admission. She desperately want to snuggle with Loki as they fell asleep, but...

She pointed to herself. "I don't look like this when I sleep. I can't... I can't hold my form." She thought back on the one time she had tried to sleep with her lover, when she was only fourteen. She pushed her yukata off one shoulder, turning slightly so Loki could see the faded scar on her shoulder blade. She normally used her illusionary powers to conceal it when she wore revealing outfits. It was a knife-wound long healed. "It did not go well the last time I tried."

Loki's face fell when she said she didn't do that. At first, it just didn't make sense to him. It took her explanation to sink in on him. Even as she first pointed out that she didn't hold her normal human form, Loki almost grinned and blurted out how he could care less if she was beautiful Mitsuko or a fuzzy fox, both were just as adorable to him as the next. It took the scar on her shoulder blade to knock a good train of common sense into his head. Oh, Loki thought.

He sat silent for a moment, wondering if she would understand that he wasn't anything like that. But of course she did! Mits wouldn't be with him if she thought he'd . . . do anything like that. Right? So, Loki did the only thing he knew how to do. He smiled at her and said the truth. "You know I don't mind ya fox form, Mits. It's the cutest thing in the world. But if it makes ya uncomfortable, we don't have ta. I'll go and get in the spare room, 'kay?"

Loki laid his hand on hers for a moment as he gave her a smile, finally moving to get up from the bed.

Mitsuko bit her lip for a moment, hesitating. Loki was different than her other lovers. For one, he knew from the get-go what she was. Two, he had his own powers... Most of her lovers were human, unable to deal with things that were out of the ordinary. She pulled her yukata back up and turned to look into Loki's eyes. They were so honest, affectionate... As he spoke, Mitsuko felt her nerves start to calm. Of course he would be all right with it. Their time together had proven Loki knew her better than anyone.

"Wait," she said quietly. She got up on her knees and stopped Loki. She leaned in, giving him a gentle kiss. As she pulled away, she looked into his warm and tired gaze again. "Loki, I l..." She could feel the words in her throat, the feelings she had for Loki about to come out. But no, she couldn't. It was too soon, their relationship too new... She didn't even know if she could say it and truly mean it. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

The visage of the girl morphed smoothly into that of a white fox. She raised her head and opened her eyes, waiting for Loki to return to the bed or continue out of the room now that she was in her animal form.

He stopped at her insistence. Loki would always listen to her whenever she had something to say or convey to him. Despite his faulty attention, Loki made a good friend and sometimes more for his ability to listen and empathize with others. His faults caused others to forget that a lot, but Loki tried his best to hope his friends (and Mitsuko) remembered his better qualities over the not-so-good ones. "Yes, Mits?" he asked softly, the kind look in his eyes that was always there for her no matter what.

Suddenly, she shifted into her fox form, a little furball of pure whiteness like crisp, clean snow. Loki couldn't help but grin and lean down to be at eye-level with her. He touched his nose to hers, pulling back and still smiling. "Aren't ya just the cutest thing," Loki said, reaching up to scratch behind her ears. And she was — to Loki, anyway. That was all that mattered to the muse.

He laid down on her bed in a comfortable position on his back, pulling the covers over himself and holding them up for Mits to scramble under, too.

Mitsuko's fears were completely allayed as Loki touched his nose to hers. She let out a soft chuff in approval as Loki complimented her. He really was terribly sweet. And when his hands touched her ears, she was absolute mush. Mitsuko loved to have her ears petted, in both her forms. She tilted her head to lean into the affectionate touch.

Once Loki had laid down, Mitsuko tilted her head to look him over. If the vixen was capable of it, she would have smiled. He's mine, she thought to herself. She trotted to his side, leaned in and gave him a quick lick across the cheek. She crawled under the blanket, placing both paws on his chest. She then laid her head down on him. The small white fox curled up against his side, half laying on him. She blinked at him sleepily.

Loki chuckled at her lick against his cheek, tossing one of his arms around her furry coat as she settled in beside him with two of her paws atop his chest. He dropped the blanket on top of them and stroked her shiny coat as sleepiness set in for him. He glanced over at her, smiling at her in the darkness. "Ya never have ta worry about me, Mits," he said, scratching behind her ears as his eyelids drooped to a close.

As his hand stroked her fur lazily, he fell asleep with Mitsuko at his side. Whether she was a fox or a human while they snuggled and let sleep claim them, it didn't matter. As long as he got to spend this moment with her, it made everything else right for the muse.