For Love
"Come back soon, Auntie Noriko!"
Over and over those cheerful words played through Noriko's
mind as she sobbed into her arms. It wasn't fair. It just
wasn't fair. Takami had only seen her once, and that had been
fifteen years ago in the little girl's time. Little girl...
That girl was now of an age with the pilot of Gunbuster. The
thought brought fresh agony welling up from Noriko's shattering
heart.
Across the small table, Kazumi's world began to fade. Her
husband Koichiro, her beloved Coach, was gone. Now this young
girl, this brave young girl who had lost her father so long ago
and was destined to leave behind everything else she loved at the
speed of light... This girl was all she had left. It took
everything she had not to fling herself across the table and take
the brunette girl into her arms.
But then she found herself wondering why she should resist
that impulse... and before she could think again, she rose from
the floor and walked around to kneel once more beside Noriko.
Even in the depths of her grief Noriko felt the warm
embrace of her friend. Amid the choking sobs that wracked her
athletic frame she heard the words of the woman who held her
close. "We're doing this for them, Noriko. We're racing into
the heart of the galaxy, against all odds, to save them. To give
them both a future." Once, long ago and yet only recently,
Kimiko has pleaded with Noriko on a warm spring day to give her
young daughter Takami a future. Now Operation Calnedias,
humanity's last, desperate hope, sought to give a future to the
entire human race. "No matter where you go, they will always
love you, and you'll always have them in your heart. Just like
you'll always have your father."
The mention of the man who had meant more to Noriko than
anything made the girl lift her head, tears overflowing from her
deep, soulful brown eyes. "My father..."
"Your father would be proud of you. Is proud of you,"
Kazumi corrected herself. "You saved the world. And you're
going to save it again."
"I couldn't... couldn't have done it without you. I
wouldn't have wanted to do it with anyone but you." The girl's
words reached into Kazumi's heart and nestled in a hollow the
woman hadn't known existed. Kazumi had believed for fifteen
years that Noriko was the true savior of humanity. Hadn't Noriko
been the one to break Kazumi out of her self-pity? Hadn't Noriko
shown her what they were fighting for, that there was hope when
all seemed lost? To know that this girl, this wonderful, loving
person cared for her that much... "You're right." Noriko dabbed
the tears from her eyes with the sleeve of her gray sweater.
"You're right! We're fighting for them." And then she smiled,
and the sun came up on them both.
In that moment Kazumi knew that she would never be alone so
long as Noriko survived. Together they had survived dangers
undreamed of and together they had triumphed, and not even time
could separate them.
A decade and a half had passed for Kazumi. She had married
Koichiro Ota, for love of whom she had nearly given up and for
love of whom she had finally fought at Noriko's side. Their
years had been blessed, and when he died Kazumi carried on,
strengthed by his memory. All through those years the shining
face of a brown-haired girl had stayed in her mind, the memory of
the girl who had given her a chance to marry the man she loved.
Kazumi owed everything to Noriko. Her embrace tightened around
Noriko for a moment.
Only six months ago Noriko had said goodbye to her
beautiful friend, a still-blushing bride. That image more than
anything else, Kazumi and Coach standing together as man and
wife, made it all worthwhile. Her friend's happiness was
infectious and the joy Noriko felt when she looked at the wedding
photo was fresh even now. And now Kazumi was here again... and
everything had changed.
But they still had each other.
She felt her friend's arms clasp her even closer. It meant
the world to Noriko. She was so lucky to have Kazumi and Kimiko
and even little... well, not so little Takami. Three reasons to
go to Hell and face the Devil, and three reasons to come out
fighting and winning. Her smile grew. She pulled her head away
from Kazumi's uniformed shoulder and gazed into the woman's dark
eyes.
Kazumi looked so different, dressed in her skirted military
outfit, white shirt and black tie and dark olive jacket all so
official. And her hair, that amazing cascade of locks that
Noriko had privately envied so, it was cut short! But those
eyes... Even now, after so much time for Kazumi, after so much
life, those eyes were still the same. Intense. Gleaming.
Beautiful. Noriko felt her breath catch for a second. How had
she never seen just how beautiful Kazumi was?
The look of wonderment on the girl's face prompted Kazumi
to speak. "Noriko? What's wrong?"
"N-nothing..." Embarrassment flamed on Noriko's cheeks.
"Sorry."
"You don't have to apologize to me." A hand lifted to
touch a single fingertip to the girl's reddened face. "After
all, with everything we've been through together, we have a
connection like nobody else." Her friend's touch and intimate
words made Noriko shift uncomfortably. Yes, they had a
connection, but why was Kazumi suddenly being so... close?
As if sensing the girl's thoughts Kazumi pulled her hand
away. Her other arm released Noriko and she stood, smoothing out
her green uniform skirt. She hadn't meant to do that. The
words, the touch, had come all on their own. A violent curse ran
riot through her mind and she stared out the transparent-steel
porthole. If she alienated Noriko now, she'd never be able to
recover. That was something Kazumi didn't think she'd be able to
survive. Cold dread iced over her heart. No... she couldn't
lose Noriko, especially now. "When this is all over and we get
back to Earth, what will you do?"
Thank God, it worked. Noriko's response was immediate and
bright, and the ice began to melt as the brunette said, "The
first thing I'm going to do is go to the beach and sunbathe!"
"You've missed fifteen years of beautiful sunshine on
Okinawa... But when we get back we'll make up for lost time,
right?" Kazumi turned from the porthole and was rewarded with
that smile once more. The ice was gone in that heartbeat.
Noriko nodded firmly. She'd like nothing more than that.
When this was over... Yes. When. Not if. Leave it to Kazumi
to help her put things into perspective. She was happier than
she had been in months, happier even than the moment several
hours previous when she realized who the woman enthusiastically
embracing her was. She had to share that joy, and the person she
wanted to share it with was standing right there, framed by the
universe. The girl stood up and threw her arms around Kazumi,
proclaiming, "I love you, Kazumi!"
Kazumi stood shell-shocked. She had no idea why her young
friend's words paralyzed her. She loved Noriko very much. The
brunette had often called her "Big Sister" during their training
and their first engagements against the enemy. Why should the
girl giving voice to that same affection leave her stunned?
Before Noriko could figure out that something was amiss, Kazumi
forced her arms to move and clasp around her friend.
Silent seconds passed. Neither of them moved. In this
time they were all they had and they both knew it. God had
brought Kazumi back to Noriko, and the girl wasn't going to ever
let go again if she could help it. Somewhere deep within Kazumi,
a revelation dawned, and she was glad of the silence.
Yes, she loved Noriko. But it was more than what she had
thought. Koichiro, Coach was gone now, and their time together
was over. This was the time she shared with Noriko. Not even
all the happiness they had felt just now could stave off the
bleak despair that crept slowly up her spine when she pondered
the fact that she didn't know how long that time would last. She
had to make everything of it she could. But if she turned Noriko
away...
There was only one way she could be certain. Her friend
had taught her that in the face of fear, the only thing to do was
go on. "I love you, Noriko." The words tore at her very soul
with the hardship of admitting such a long-buried emotion and the
terror that the girl... the young woman in her arms wouldn't
accept it.
"Kazumi? Kazumi, you're trembling!" Was something wrong?
Noriko pulled back and searched the woman's face for a sign.
Those beautiful eyes were closed, her soft lips were pressed into
a pale, tight line and her body shivered under Noriko's hands.
Yes, something was very definitely wrong. "Oh, God, Kazumi, what
is it?"
She didn't understand. Dear God, she had to say it
again... "I love you, Noriko." The words were husky, masked
with unshed tears and the fear she was drowning in.
Noriko was lost in the moment. She heard Kazumi's words...
and what they meant was finally apparent to her. There were many
kinds of love. There was the love Noriko felt for her father and
he for her. There was the love Noriko felt for Kimiko and Jung
and Kazumi. And then there was the love Kazumi had shared with
Coach.
And that last was what Kazumi was expressing now.
The surprise of a few minutes before returned, brown eyes
opening wide as the view of the galaxy beyond the terrified woman
who stood before her. Nevermind that it was another woman, that
didn't matter. This was Kazumi. Kazumi was all she had left of
her life. Kazumi... loved her.
Warmth flooded through Noriko as the woman's eyes finally
opened. Kazumi couldn't take the suspense any more. She had to
see... There was no fear on Noriko's face. None of the dreaded
revulsion. The brunette was... accepting. The words came a
third time, easier. "I love you, Noriko."
"I..." What could she say? Noriko fought for words,
fought for something to give Kazumi. She'd never felt this
before. No, that wasn't right, she'd felt it once before.
Smith. Gorgeous, funny, brave Smith. She'd wanted to give him
something, wanted to give him herself, but there hadn't been
time. Now she was all she had to give Kazumi. "I love you too,
Kazumi. I mean it."
All the tension drained away from Kazumi. Once more she
embraced the younger woman, this time allowing herself to savor
the feel of Noriko's body under the sweater. Maybe she was
greedy, but she didn't care. Here and now Noriko was all that
mattered to her. No telling how much time they had left. On
impulse she nuzzled the younger woman's cheek, then found
Noriko's lips with her own.
The soft sensation of Kazumi's kiss tingled through Noriko.
She'd never known this before. She was glad she'd waited. If it
felt as good to the woman kissing her as it did to her, Noriko
wouldn't want to give it to anyone else. Her fingers slid into
Kazumi's shorn locks, felt them slip like silk strands. The
gentle pressure of the brunette's touch awakened a low murmur of
pleasure in the older woman. The kiss deepened. At the gentle
bidding of Kazumi's tongue Noriko's lips parted, and they tasted
each other in wonder.
This... this was love, thought Noriko. This was how deep
it could be. She wasn't sure exactly what she was craving from
Kazumi, but she knew that Kazumi would understand and give it to
her as she yielded to the older woman's affection. Her hands
slid from Kazumi's hair to her neck and her shoulders, greedy for
the feel of her new love's body. The older woman matched the
touch with the heat of her palms against Noriko's bare neck and
the young woman understood what she needed. Noriko's voice rose
in a plea, muffled by the kiss.
Kazumi's hands grasped the suspenders Noriko wore over her
shoulders and slid them aside, down over the girl's arms. The
instant that it took for her touch to break away from Kazumi so
that she could slip her arms out of the brown straps was torture.
The girl's hands latched onto the woman's jacket and fumbled
wildly with the buttons. Noriko had to feel Kazumi. She had to!
The shock of the kiss breaking made the young woman pause.
"Easy," said Kazumi, "easy. Let me." Deftly she unbuttoned her
jacket and cast it aside. Knowing what her love sought she
unknotted the tie and opened the stiff white shirt she wore. She
paused playfully halfway down the row of pearly buttons on the
shirt and grinned at Noriko. The girl whimpered, then laughed.
Kazumi stripped off the shirt, then unhooked her bra and it
joined the other garments on the floor. Noriko stared in awe at
her love's perfectly-shaped breasts, the rosy nipples standing in
relief from their mutual excitement and the touch of the air.
Kazumi took the younger woman's right hand and placed it on her
chest, over her heart. "Do you feel that?"
Under her palm Noriko felt the steady thrum thrum, thrum
thrum of Kazumi's pulse. "I feel it," she said. Her own
heartbeat fell into step and it felt like the most wonderful
thing in the world.
"You're in there, Noriko. You're in my heart and that's
where you'll always be." Kazumi placed her own hand over
Noriko's and pressed gently. Then she let go and grasped the
younger woman's misty gray sweater, tugging it out of the waist
of her skirt. As soon as that was done Noriko stripped off the
garment and flung it away. Her chest was bare to Kazumi now.
Nothing lay between them as they kissed once more, hearts beating
in time.
The heat of Kazumi's body flowed into and through Noriko,
filling her and wrapping around to radiate back to its source.
At first all she felt was the older woman's love, pure and
strong, but then Noriko became aware of another sensation.
Kazumi's shapely breasts were pressed against hers, massaging
back and forth as their kiss became more passionate. The
tingling from her erecting nipples traced electric fire into her
belly. The brush of the older woman's skin against hers, the
sweet taste of her lips, the embrace of her tongue, everything
was sending Noriko straight into Heaven.
The clouds of pleasure parted when Kazumi broke away from
the kiss again. "Let's lie down on your bed," she whispered.
Releasing her young lover she took Noriko's hand and led her over
to the mattress. Kazumi sat on the bed facing Noriko and looked
up into the girl's eyes, wanting to fall into them and never
stop. "Noriko... I want to make love with you. But if you
don't want to--"
"Please," the girl interrupted her, "I want to. I want to
more than anything." The heat in those words surprised Kazumi,
thrilled her. Excitement shivered through her as she tugged
Noriko's skirt down over her legs. The girl placed her hands on
the older woman's shoulders and stepped one foot out of the
puddle of fabric, then kicked it away with her other foot.
Kazumi let her hands trace up and down Noriko's firm thighs,
wanting to savor this moment, but the desire within her was too
much and she hooked her fingers into the waistband of the young
woman's white panties and pulled them down.
Passion overcame reason as the removal of the white fabric
revealed Noriko's shaved sex. Though she had never touched
another woman before this Kazumi knew deep down what a woman
needed. She rose and pushed Noriko to the bed with a gentle
touch, then knelt on the floor and slipped her head between the
young woman's legs. Kazumi's lips touched Noriko's labia and a
jolt shot straight through the brunette, making her gasp and arch
her back. The older woman clasped Noriko's hips, anchoring them,
and her tongue flicked between the girl's soft folds. The taste
was like nothing Kazumi had ever experienced, and she didn't
think she'd ever get enough.
Noriko's hands found Kazumi's silken hair once more as the
woman, her lover, Kazumi drove wave after wave of unbelievable
pleasure through her body. Her body flexed as Kazumi's tongue
traced the inside of her labia, then slithered up and covered the
nub of stellar fire that threatened to sear right through her.
All thoughts except one burned away -- Kazumi loved her, and this
was how much.
The sound of Noriko's voice, writhing in passion just like
the girl's trim body, drove Kazumi onward. She drew her lover's
clitoris between her lips and stroked the girl's slick sex with
her fingers, knowing what would send Noriko over into bliss.
Kazumi slipped first one finger, then two into the young woman's
body and delighted in the sensation, the knowledge of Noriko
surrounding her. Noriko gasped Kazumi's name and then shuddered
as the world shattered, her blissfully warm passage contracting
around Kazumi's finger's in her orgasm. The woman's own voice
joined the girl's cries of ecstasy with a low moan of
contentment.
Noriko fought for breath at the same time as she wanted to
lose herself completely in the sensations running riot inside
her. The aftershocks of her release faded, leaving her with a
warm, languid numbness. Kazumi stood and knelt on the bed,
leaning over to kiss her young lover again. Noriko marveled at
the taste of herself on the woman's lips. This was love, and
this was how much Kazumi loved her. She never wanted this time
to end. She clutched suddenly at the older woman, pulling Kazumi
down atop her, and kissed her lover with all the passion she
could muster. If Kazumi loved her this much, it was only right
that Noriko love back just as strongly.
The young woman's hands traced up the back of Kazumi's
legs, pulling up her skirt and grasping Kazumi's rounded buttocks
through her underwear. Noriko slipped her fingers into the
panties, wanting to feel her lover's skin, and all the while she
played with Kazumi's sweet tongue, aggresively displaying her
affection. Kazumi shifted and pressed her breast to Noriko's
mouth, urging the girl to take the straining nipple between her
lips. Noriko obliged hungrily, lust and love mingling in the
young woman's impression of a babe.
The girl's fingers strayed further around the curve of the
older woman's behind, under her, found her damp. She had to know
how Kazumi tasted. Noriko shifted her hands to pull the panties
down over the other woman's thighs, and Kazumi pulled away with a
devilish smile. The older woman stood and stripped off her
uniform skirt and underwear, then knelt on the bed and straddled
Noriko.
"Is this what you want, Noriko?" Kazumi asked, her eyes
dancing playfully.
"I want you," was Noriko's reply. The young woman's hands
grasped Kazumi's hips and urged her forward. Kazumi shifted
upward along her body, and Noriko's mouth found what it sought.
The older woman's taste was different, but more exciting to her.
The feel of Kazumi's soft folds against her lips and tongue made
her growl, deep in her throat, and begin to suck. Kazumi gasped
several times and leaned back, supporting herself with her arms.
Noriko's hands massaged her lover's hips and she delighted in the
feel of Kazumi's curves. Her touch slipped up the older woman's
body, enfolded those beautiful breasts. She rolled Kazumi's
nipples gently between her thumbs and forefingers and stroked her
tongue across the older woman's clit with increasing force.
Kazumi was close, she could feel the orgasm building deep
inside her like a gathering storm. Though she had brought Noriko
to release once already she wanted to share that moment with her
young lover, to bind them even further together. The sudden lack
of pleasure was almost agony to Kazumi as she pulled away from
Noriko's mouth so that she could lie down on her side, facing the
other way, her leg bent and propped. It took only a gentle
urging from Kazumi to get Noriko to roll over and mimic her
posture. The girl latched onto Kazumi's sex again and slipped
her fingers into the older woman's body. Kazumi smiled, loving
Noriko unconditionally, and kissed her young lover's labia
gently, then found the girl's clitoris waiting for her
ministrations.
Noriko's excitement had already brought her close to the
edge again, and her mounting passion drove her to greater effort.
Kazumi felt the first wave of release break over her as Noriko's
warmth again contracted around her fingers, even harder than the
first time. Then the world was lost in ecstasy. Kazumi's love
for Noriko surged up with the crashing tide of pleasure and
washed away everything except the heaven that filled her.
Noriko's name was the only prayer she needed.
They lay together, not knowing how much time passed as
their afterglow warmed them. Kazumi sat up and reversed herself
so that she could kiss Noriko one more time. The girl looped an
arm over her older lover and sighed in contentment. "Don't ever
leave me, Kazumi," Noriko said softly.
"Never, my Noriko," the older woman promised, and it was a
promise she intended to keep no matter what happened, no matter
what forces strove to push them apart. Come Hell itself, she
would not leave the young woman she loved. Never. She would
fight the Devil himself for Noriko -- for love.
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