2027/Number One Pie Buyer

Number One Pie Buyer
Date of Scene:	13 October 2016
Location:	Seiyou Public School - Royal Garden
Synopsis:	Amu and Tadase talk about their fans. And about Lacrima. And about Eilam. One of these goes better than the others.
Cast of Characters:	Tadase Hotori, Amu Hinamori

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Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase doesnt wait for Amu to show up, this time. Instead he's there waiting after school by her door - how he got there when their classes should let out at the same time is, perhaps, anyone's guess - and smiling. It's almost a Tadambush.

"Hey. I finished up all my paperwork and I think I'm going to go crazy if I spend the rest of the afternoon at the Garden. Do you want to go grab a milkshake?" he asks, pretty much directly.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori walked out of class. She wondered why all the girls had gathered outside and were staring with wide, starry eyes. It wasn't like... and then she saw him. Oh my gosh. And that smile. The bishounen. The sparkles. She stared at him. Then Ran poked her cheek.

"Huh? Oh!" She had little hearts fluttering over her head. He was so cute. And oh my gosh he got the paperwork done to be with her! EEEEEE! She stared at him before a little red flooded into her cheeks and she gave a nod. Holding out her hand. Their classmates sqweeeeed.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase is a bit bluishing now - not just because of Amu, but because of the attention. He's never sure how to handle the idea of being the center of this sort of attention - at least without Kiseki's help, and Kiseki has only been good at turning girls away, not just dealing with looks.

This mean Tadase is turning his own face away and almost into Amu's shoulder. "Let's go. Like. Now."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori mentally sqweed and wiggled and shrieked and did that lil wiggle skirt thing. Mentally, though. Externally she was cool as a cucumber, walking away and pulling him along. "Come on, then."

Behind them they could ehar the girls talking. "Oh my gosh, the king was soooo cute! did you see them? Sweet and spicy Amu is soooo cool! No wonder they're together they're just soooo perfect eeeeee!"

She didn't say a word, just mentally cheered. He was just soooo adorable. Then she stopped and glanced back with a little glare. Their fan club quickly eeped and dispersed, vanishing in a few seconds. "Better?"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase looks up at her, letting out a breath. "Better, thank you." Sometimes he's as dependant on her attitude as anything else to get him out of these... situations. "I don't know why we get so much attention. I mean we both get a lot of it together but it's like it's magnified." Tadase says. He's still so unconfortable with having to deal with it, the same reason he always used Kiseki to push away confessions.

"Anyways. Now that that's over. First, how is your arm doing. Seconmd, did I remember you saying you had something you wanted to talk to me about? "

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori nodded. "Ehhhh. If it helps, I'm now known as 'Punched out a car Hinamori'," she said with a chuckle. "Seriously, I don't know how people got that in their minds. I wanted to talk with you about Lacrima. I uhhh... I want to help her. I know she'd going through a lot and... I was hoping we could... help her find some people to feed off that won't get hurt? So she won't starve and go nuts and cause some kind of incident?'

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase laughs. "I've heard. I have to admit, even though I know it's not the case, if there's anyone I can imagine who was capable of doing it... well..." he says, laughing and hanging onto her a bit. It's the talk about Lacrima that brings him back to a less jovial mode.

"You know, we had another person who thought they needed to drain energy to succeed at their goals in Tokyo. But it turned out that they just weren't letting other people help then." he says, quietly. "Do you think it might be like that for Lacrima? That she's just convinced it's the issue, and not... really the case?"

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori frowned and then closed her eyes. "I... don't know. Maybe? But..." She took a slow, deep breath. "For now, she's scared. For now she's trying hard to be good, but if people keep pushing her away and telling her what she can and can't do, it'll drive her deeper and darker. Into something none of us want her to be."

She smiled down at him. "But... if we help her now? IF we get her the energy she needs, gain her trust, help her maintain control. Later she might be more open to other methods. And then maybe we can find a way to help her? Besides, the energy drain doesn't really hurt them. Just makes them tired, right? So... if that's all it needs to do, to help her stay on the path of being good, I think it's for the best."

She paused for a second. "Besides. She... reminds me of Utau. I can almost hear her heart's egg screaming for help. And... I want to help her. But we need her trust, first."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase leans against her, but he's genuinely in thought more than anything else. "I can see your point. But we also need to be careful about it. Like... I don't want her to feed off of you. Not just because of the obvious, but because you've already proven to me you don't know how to handle being sidelined anyways, and you'd just try to sleepwalk your way towards a fight anyways." It's said as a joke, but is a very real concern of Tadase's.

"And there's a lot of folks like that. It's not just about finding people who would help - Virtue's people love to help. It's finding those who could actually help without endangering themselves. Who'd know how to rest and stay down after a drain. That's the thing we have less access to. Maybe I can see if some of the support staff, some of Lindy's folks or the Taisha might be willing to help in the interim."

"But it can't be a permanant solution. Like an addition, we'd need to work towards getting her clean."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori grinned at him. "Hey. I was just being realistic. You guys needed my help. And you got hurt there, too. And yeah, I know. It'll be just temporary. But temporary may be all we need. If we can get her feeling she can trust us. If she feels that we're there to help her. She might let us help her in other ways, you know? and maybe then we can help her get free. If we just try to force it on her, she'll never accept it. She'll just get sad and mopey and angry, then run off and we'll never see her again."

She sighed and looked ahead. "i... don't want her to have to be alone. She told me how she got it. Imagine if it had been you, or Nade-chan. Or... any of our friends. I couldn't just leave them. So I can't just leave her."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase looked up at her. "I also need you to be in one peice and not taking unnecessary risks." he says, quietly. Real worry in his voice for a moment there. But a big breath and he's onto the next subject.

"I know. I don't want to walk away from anyone we can help, anyone we can save. We both know I have my own concern in a way, and sometimes we feel like we want to help people who don't even want our help. It's just... I want to make sure we're careful about it. A lot of people depend on us."

"And I depend on you, Amu."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori blushed and then looked off to the side. She wanted to say something romantic. But instead... "Of course you do. I'm dependable. And don't worry, nothing bad is going to happen to me. I mean, I got crushed. Like five times and I walked away with nothing but a fractured arm and some bruises. I'm like, invincible." NO! SHE WASN'T! She'd been INCREDIBLY lucky she hadn't died from that. One might even thought she had armor. Say... plot armor.

She reachedo ut and gave his hand another squeeze. "And I know. i won't take unnecessary risks. But... I think this one is necessary. She needs us and we can't just let it go, not when we know we can do something about it. Besides, it realistically makes sense, too. She's powerful. If we help her now, later she'll help us as an ally, rather than fighting us as an enemy. Right?"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase doesn't actually know how to respond to her remarks - so he just nods and continues on. But not before just a little comment. "Just be careful, Amu. For me?"

"Look, I'm on board to help her as much as we can safely. I think that's fair. I just don't want to promise her we can help until I know we have enough people lined up that we can. It would be really bad if we said we could and then that well ran dry. She'd think we were lying or something. Dark energy makes people jump to the worst possible conclusions really easily."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori nods. "Oh, I know. I just told her I'd help her if I could. I... don't think she can draw from me, though. Apparently Sailor Moon would hurt her, due to her purity magic and... well... with the way my magic works, I'd rather not risk accidentally purifying her again."

She then sighed. "Listen if... the absolute worse happens, we can think of somehting else. Stopping her permanently. But... I know it'll be difficult." She rested her head on his shoulder. "But it means the world to me that you'll help me. So thank you. You're the best boyfriend ever."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase nods. "Well, and Sailor Moon is not someone we need low on energy - a lot of people aren't. There's the problem, like I said." he adds, quietly. "I think the best choice are... the people who help out in Virtue. Lindy's people, maybe some of the Taisha. A lot of them are really looking for ways they can help out because they can't necessarily stand against the sort of things we do."

"I know how you feel. I worry about having to do that with... Ikuto." Tadase says with a nod, hand coming up to run through her hair. "I hope it doesn't come to that. For either of them."

Tadase doesn't actually revel in the compliment, but returns it. "You know you're pretty great too. I missed you a lot while you were gone. Thought about you all the time. I'm so glad you're back."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori blinked a few times and then sighed. Right. Now she remembered what she needed to talk to him about. Just... Okay. She turned to him. "Tadase-kun. First. We are not going to have to do anything to Ikuto-kun. We can help him." Her crush totally not affecting her judgment. "And I need to tell you... while I was away. I just... ummmmm..." She chewed on her lower lip. "There were..." She took a slow, deep breath. "A lot of boys. A LOT of boys. I didn't cheat on you or anything like that! But, err... I received a few confessions." Then her cheeks turned red.

"And... a kiss from one... or two..." Oh. Oh dear. "And then, err... Eilam-kun kind of... confessed and kissed me too..." Oh dear oh dear. "I-I didn't cheat, I swear! I just... I... had to let you know..."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
And that's about when Tadase stops and moves away from Amu. He almost pushes her away bodily, but doesn't. "What?" is the word that finally escapes his mouth after several syllables that don't quite sound like words so much as half-thoughts left to die in his mind.

Tadase certainly isn't the type to overreact to this information at all. A big breath. Then another. He turns away, and then back, takes a breath. Finally he actually /says/ something.

"So.... then you slapped them and told them you had a boyfriend, right?" he says, after a moment. Is he reaching for some sanity? "Because you didn't like... let them, right? They just did it and were forward."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori eeped and quickly nodded. Then... looked down. "W-well... I mean... I-I told them I had a boyfriend as soon as they confessed! S-some of them were pushy and... errr... I-I did push them away!" Most of them. Ohhh, Miki wasn't even getting involved. She saw where this was going.

"I-I didn't initiate any of them! I swear! I just received a lot of confession letters a-and I thought you should know. I-I mean, you get confession letters and ummm, girls who like you all the time, r-right?" Totally the same thing! NOT!

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase tries to play the role of the perfect ruler, the great King, the absolute protector. It's something he really wants to be. But as is evident in Kiseki, Tadase has a few faults in his heart. And no matter how hard he tries, some of those faults bubble up through all of the things he wants to be, reminding him of how far he has to go. The three most major faults are pride, hubris, and - loudest now - jealousy.

Tadase turns away again, but this time he doesn't turn back. His fists are clenched, and shaking a little. Head down looking at the floor. "I get them, sure. But I don't have any of them kiss me. How is it that doesn't happen to me, or to other girls I know, but it does to you? It doesn't have anything to do with the fact that you've also kissed Kukai and Nadeshiko, right? Or that one of those names is someone I know, someone not in Europe?"

"You know, while you were gone, girls would tell me I was being silly for waiting for someone when I didn't know when she'd come back or what she was doing, but I certainly never thought you'd be off being kissed by other people."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori cringed a lot, little mental arows stabbing her with each word. He was right, of course. She wasn't exactly known for being the most faithful. "Tadase-kun... I never.... I swear, I would never, ever do anything to hurt you. I didn't initiate any of them. And I did push them all away!" Well, those that lasted long enough for her to regather herself. She poked her fingers toether. "I-I don't... know. Guys are... just more direct?" she tries. Telling that to the guy who, well... Tadase. Not the smartest move.

"I knew I shouldn't have told you, but Nadeshiko-chan told me I needed to be honest about it and... and I wanted to..." ... So nades knows.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
That's when Tadase turns around, very quickly, almost militaristically. "Of course you should've told me, Amu. Na-chan was right about that. The part where you made a mistake wasn't there." he says. Tadase is... well, he was a lot more upset about the idea that Amu's love might be a pie to be shared than he let on in the past, and this situation might be less about the kisses more recently and more about not being happy about the ones in the past, still.

"You know, Amu-chan, I would think that it wouldn't be particularly hard for the 'cool and spicy' Amu Hinamori, who has upperclassman afraid to go near her, would not have a difficult time putting out signals that she did not want to be kissed."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori cringed again, hugging herself. "I... I do! Really! Just, guys don't listen to them. I-I mean, look at Ikuto. A-and I was yelling at Eilam when he kissed me, I almost slapped him, too!" Oh my gosh she was so bad at this. She took a small step back. "I wouldn't have done this on purpose, Tadase-kun. I know how sensitive you get about this."

Miki face palmed. "Oh... Amu... no." She took the prince's hand and took off. Allowing the two a chance to get out from the king's nuke about to drop.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
You can, in a way, almost see the point of his carefully crafted decorum break into a thousand peices, like a priceless vase knocked off the floor. Kiseki goes with Miki, and it's unclear if that's helpful or hurtful.

"I... get sensitive?" he says, almost perplexed, and then he's - very quickly - invading her personal space with an accusing finger. "First off, it's not overly sensitive for me to not want my GIRLFRIEND to be kissing other guys. Or be kissed by them. I shouldn't be promised a dance and come out to her dancing with someone else. I shouldn't have to compete for your ATTENTION."

That finger points right at her. "You shouldn't have feelings for anyone else. Your heart shouldn't flutter when someone else looks at you. You shouldn't blush looking at Nadeshiko and you sure shouldn't be giving him a present and me a good-bye phone call." Oh, he knows - and is bitter- about it. Best friends would mean less if there weren't Complicating Factors.

And then it just all deflates and all of the anger he had just kind of drops off like a balloon. His arms slump to the sides and he looks down again, like just holding that much out was exhausting.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori blinked, her eyes going wide. "That's what this is about? Nadeshiko-chan is my friend! She's my BEST friend! She's not my girlfriend! I don't love her like I do you! And I'm sorry I can't just stop myself from having feelings! I like boys, okay? There are a lot of cute ones, pretty ones, adorable ones who I find really cute and I'd never, ever cheat on you with them but that doesn't mean I can stop myself from having feelings for them! Boys are awesome!"

She yelled. The other two made a retreat as well. "And I didn't mean the kissing thing, i meant the... other guys thing. And f course I didn't give you a gift!" Oh, here it comes. "Do you have any idea how hard it was to leave you? If I had come and seen you. If I had told you face to face. I... I never could have left. Nadeshiko-chan hurt. But... but I never... I never could have survived telling you goodbye..."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase makes a face. "You know what, maybe that's the problem." Oh, there's that sound that Na-chan would know, that tone in voice, that hurt, pride-wounded King lashing out. "Maybe you just think you care about me. Because when I look at other girls I don't even see them like that. I don't even think about how pretty or attractive or cute or any other word they are. Because they're not you."

"But that's obviously not how you see other guys, so that just makes me feel like you don't see me the way I see you."

"I'm sensitive because I just want you to see me the way I see you!" he shouts back, before turning away. He's absolutely not crying. "You know, I want to believe that in a way..."

"I want to believe that you avoided me because you couldn't bear to leave. I'd understand that. I didn't know what to do with myself when you left. I spent the whole time trying to not think about it. About you, because being away from you hurt. So I threw myself into all of this work, all of this good versus evil stuff, and... now I don't know what to do now that you're back either. I was going to go out with you today and try to get us back on track so I could make up for all that lost time..."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori took a step back. Ohhh, the prince was crying. "T-Tadase-kun... I..." She reached out, trying to grab his shoulder. Trying to pull him back to her. "I love you. I really, really do. You mean more to me than anything. And I meant what I said. Even if I am interested in other guys, that doesn't matter. You're the most important thing in the world to me. More important than any cute baker, violinist, dancer or waiter. No matter what happens, I love you, not them."

She tried to move in to hug him. "I... I'd never give you up for them. I gave them up for you! Because... because I love you, more than anything! It was the hardest thing in the world, not being with you. I spent so much time crying and hating every second of it. Wanting to call you, but so afraid I'd break down in the middle of the call." But had no trouble calling nades. Called her all the time, in fact. Doubt Ndes told him, though.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
The conversation might have taken a different turn if she had. Instead, Tadase just sort of... leans back, melts into Amu, like his battery had run out. Instead of a rigid, tall, strong-standing King, here was a very concerned teenaged boy who was trying to shoulder a lot - both for other people and for himself - and hadn't had time, hadn't allowed himself time, to sort through complicated feelings and deep concerns.

And so she pulls him back as she talks, he's leaning against her, she's hugging him, arms around. "Then why don't you feel the same way?" he asks. This time it's not an accusation so much as it an honest question. "What do you mean by gave them up?" Tadase asks, looking up at her. It's like he doesn't have it in him to be truly angry at her for long periods of time, though maybe sad is in some ways worse. "I don't understand anymore, Amu."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori stared at him. How to explain it. "Tadase-kun. I DO feel for you the same way you feel for me. But..." How to put it. "That doesn't mean I lose feelings for everyone else. Love... love isn't..." She tried to think of it. A pie? No. "Love isn't a number! It's not math! I don't have ten love and you don't have ten love! I don't just give you ten love and have no more love to give. I give you ten love but it's like... I still have ten love to give. I give other people five love or six love or even eight love. But that doesn't mean you lose any of the ten love."

She then sighed. "Okay, the pie is better. Love isn't a pie. I have like... love isn't a pie. There's no... slice. You can't take a slice and then I have one less to give. If I give a pie slice, I still have a full pie. Because the pie isn't limited." She leaned in a little closer. "But... prince... you have my full pie. My undivided pie. Other boys might have a slice or two or three. But you alone have all of my pie."

To be honest, the pie wasn't much better.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase keeps looking up at her. "But you can't just do that. It doesn't make any sense. Even to use your pie analogy. You can't share a slice of pie with someone. You can share parts of it but then you get less of it. If someone comes along and has a slice or two that's less."

"I mean. It doesn't matter how much of a number or a pie or anything else you have. But what we're really talking about is attention. You have my undivided attention, everything I have to give no matter how many things that is. If I gave you ten love and still had ten love you'd get that next ten and so on and so on for ever. It wouldn't ever go to anyone else."

He leans up and pulls himself away from her. "I don't understand why or how you'd want to give other people five or six or eight or any number even if it's a fraction or something. I don't get it. And the only thing that makes sense to me is if you're not..."

"Like I'm not enough all on my own. Like. Why do you have to explain it away. It's not that hard. Belle doesn't go back and see Gaston on the weekends. Sleeping Beauty doesn't get kissed by a second Prince too. Not even on the cheek."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori stared at him. "no. It's not... it's just... I don't..." She clenched her fist. "It's like... It's just..." How to put it. "Friendship! It's like friendship! That kind of love! You love Nades and Kukai too, right? and... you loved me like that once, right? But just because I came into your life, didn't mean you suddenly started loving them less, did it? Or your grandmother? Or all those other people in your life? Did you suddenly lose your love for them, or did you just gain new love for me? It wasn't used up, it didn't disappear. Those people still mean so much to you, right?"

"That's what it's like. You're the most important person in the world to me. But I can't just... stop myself from noticing. From occasionally having others I like. Even if they confess to me or kiss me or have dinner with me or rescue me, that doesn't mean I care less about you! It jsut means there are feelings for them. New feelings, not your feelings."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase stomps his foot out of irritation at not being able to connect with her, more than anything. "Yes, it's different. But the way you're talking about them, I don't... I don't let other people into my heart the way you do. You're not just talking about friends! You're talking about dinner and things!"

"I wouldn't let some girl who'd given me a confession letter kiss me and then take me to dinner or something, but it sounds like you somehow expect me to be okay with that?!"

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori let out her own frustrated cry. "I don't let them! I know that would upset you, that's why I don't let them do it! They just end up... doing it! I know you hate it, so I always turn them down! It's not my fault that they still pursue me! Do you tihnk I'd get mad if a bunch of girls like... kissed you or something? No! Because I know you wouldn't cheat on me on purpose!" ... But she'd hope that'd mean they could be more open.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase looks at her out of the side of his eyes, and it's an uncharacteristically cold look from him, something harsh, something marinated in his negative traits. "It's not about the fact that I hate it, Amu."

    "It's about the fact that you don't hate it. All of this time you've only talked about how it makes you feel. But you're missing the point. It's also about how you feel. You don't hate it. You wish you didn't have to turn them down, isn't that it?"

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori froze, opened her mouth. Then closed it. She looked away and crossed her arms. "Yes. I do. I wish you could accept it, that you'd be... willing to share. But you're not and I'm okay with it! I don't need anyone else but you!"

That right there? That was something pretty close to abusive. If unintentional.

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase shakes his head and takes a step back - shifting once again rapidly from offense to defense. "Why should I be okay with it, Amu?" he asks, sounding hurt. "Why do you even want me to share. I don't understand that idea. Of wanting to share or be shared. I don't get it at all."

"And I don't think any of those guys want to share either. I'm pretty sure they'd all want you to themselves. You're just..." he doesn't finish that thought. He just starts walking away, instead, bititng the words back.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori raced forward, grabbing his hand. "Tadase-kun, I... I'm sorry! But I love you! I don't care if you don't want to share, we don't have to share! We've never had to share! Please, I don't know how to explain it! I don't know how to say it any better! I love you, I won't leave you, I won't cheat on you! I won't... do anything like that. I swear. I just... want to look, from time to time."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase is now not doing a good job of hiding the crying, though at least it's not an out-right bawling fest. It's just a few, here or there, as he talks. And he's holding his voice up well. Practice.

"I've tried. Really, really hard. To be okay with it. To remind myself you're just... I don't know, pulled a little bit. I was so strong while you were gone. I didn't want to be one of those untrusting, controlling guys. That's not very noble."

"But I don't... want... you to... I don't know, window shop. I don't want you to be kissed on the cheek. I don't think I can put up with it. But I can't lose you either. And I'm afraid to lose you. All the time."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori stared at him. Her mouth fell open slightly. Then, finally, she hugged him. "Tadase-kun. You WON'T lose me! I promise! I swear! You won't ever, ever lose me! You're my love! You're the cutest, most pretty, most amazing, greatest, most beautiful boy I've ever known! Just looking at you makes my heart skip a beat, when you talk to me I jump, when you look at me... when you look at me I want to shriek and giggle like a school girl." She was a school girl.

"I'm not window shopping. I'm just looking! I'm just... peeping in the windows a little as I walk by. I'm happy with you. So happy and I swear I won't leave you. Ever ever."

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase put his arm around Amu, almost subconsciously, hugging her very tight. "I'm afraid." he admits, quietly, almost too quietly to hear. "I've never felt the way I feel about you, about anyone else. It's so wonderful and great. But I'm always afraid you don't feel the same way about me, even if I think it's true I can't help being afraid."

"It's because I care so much about you, that I... don't want to think about you finding anyone better. And maybe that's not fair of me because if there is someone better you deserve it. But sometimes I feel like you're always looking and that makes me afraid."

"I'm not much of a King, am I."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori stared down at him, her eyes locking with his. He felt that way? He actually felt like that? She really was the worst person. She didn't deserve someone like him. "Tadase-kun. I love you. There is no one better. There never will be. I will never feel for anyone the way I feel for you. You're so cute and wonderful and amazing."

She hugged him tighter. "And you know, I find someone better every day. Every single day we hold each other's hand, it gets better and better. The way you look at me. The way you make me feel. It always gets better and it'll never stop. And I don't care if you're a king. You'll always be my king, so long as I can be your queen. Okay?"

Tadase Hotori has posed:
Tadase leans up - he's normally the taller one but he's kind of slumped and crumpled for the moment - and kisses her on the chin. Then he stands up and tries to shake himself off, wipe away the tears. "I'm sorry for getting like that." he says, trying to find his poise, posture. "You're so wonderful, Amu."

"Really, wonderful. You're the only one who could be my Queen and the only one I want. The reason I'm afraid is because you're so good and no King wants to lose his Queen, not when he's spent so long looking." He grabs her and pulls her to him this time.

"It does get better." he admits. "And I think we're a little better now, even if it was tough for a second. The fact that you didn't run away, didn't hide... that makes you strong. Maybe stronger than me. But... I'll borrow your strength when I run low, and you borrow mine when you need to, and that way we'll never ever be without it."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori nods. Then hugs him even tighter. "You never, ever have to apologize for feeling bad. For being worried. For being scared. For being anything you are, Tadase-kun. I love ALL of you. Both the king, and the not so king." She closed her eyes. "It doesn't mater to met if you're feeling scared or sad or happy or strong or weak. I'll always support you and be by your side for all of it."

"Because... you're my number one pie buyer." ... Okay it was a REALLY bad analogy.