Shiro & Clarice - Valentines not-so-sappiness

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Lips lock and cultures clash! Fortunantly, swords do not (yet). For those looking for fewer cavities this Vday.



Clarice knocked on Shiro's door hesitantly, so far he had not surprised her with any Valentine's day gifts. She did not expect much, but this late in the day she as beginning to worry. Willing herself to stand still and stop fiddling with the bow on the bag she carried, she waited for him to open the door.

The public displays of affection among the mansion's lovebirds was disgusting. Not that he hadn't stolen a kiss or three from Clarice over the course of the day, but at least they weren't giggling in the corner over some stupid little teddy bear that sang "My Heart Will Go On" if you squeezed its tummy. Looking up from his computer when he heard the knock, he closed his laptop and went to the door to open it. "Hey," he greeted Clarice, smiling.

"Hi," she smiled back, kissing him quickly. This kissing thing was new. And nice. Really nice. "Happy Valentine's Day," she held her bag out to him, trying not to blush. She hated blushing, although she seemed to do it a lot. "It's from Japan."

Shiro nearly confessed his undying love and devotion right there on the spot. The bag was full of Pocky. Lots of Pocky. Of all different flavors. Shiro was almost drooling as he rummaged through it. "Wow. This is excellent, Clarice. Thank you." Smiling more widely, he bent down to kiss her, lasting a little bit longer than the first one had.

"I thought you would. Dr. McCoy helped me find it though. And they all have your name on it. So no one can say they didn't know they were yours and eat them all," she explained, pointing out the various kinds. She'd managed to find Banana-chocolate pocky online. Which appearantly you could not get in the USA.

Shiro almost laughed out loud when he saw his name written in glitter ink on every box. "You win the best girlfriend award," he declared, stepping aside so that she could come in. "I will get Lorna started on making the medal right away."

Smiling, Clarice wondered if Lorna should make matching awards. Then, they could beat out everyone else with their cuting. It wasn't something that she had ever thought she'd be a contestant for anywhere, but now that she was, she wasn't going to complain. Being cavity inducing was fun. "I'll hang it with my David Bowie posters."

It was when Clarice closed the door behind her and Shiro put the bag down on his desk that he realized that the two of them were alone. His back to her, he gulped nervously. Not that they were at the point for certain things, no. But they had the opportunity. He hoped that it wasn't on her mind. "How was your weekend? I did not get to see you much for the past week."

She shrugged, suddenly nervous, "Medlab. Wasn't as bad as it could have been," that had been last fall, "The kids were really well behaved."

Shiro nodded. "And Alison and Mr. al Rashid? How are they?" Because he did not think that he could skip yet another week of Krav Maga. One was bad enough.

Again, she shrugged. There was a fine line about what she could and could not say, "They're fine," fine covered an awful lot of ground though, and she didn't know too much more than that. Even if there are no lasting injuries, she didn't know when they'd be completely healed or what complications, if any, there were. Where was her Valentine's Day present?

Patient-doctor privilege, Shiro assumed, and let it go with a shrug. But he noticed a change in the way Clarice was standing and speaking."Are you well? You look tense."

Clarice fidgeted, manners dictating she not say what she wanted to say, yet still wanting to say it. Quickly, she blurted, "What about my Valentine's gift?" she hadn't expected anything big, but something? Small and maybe furry?

"A gift?" he asked, perplexed by the question. Why would he give her a gift? Gifts are for White Day which isn't until March 14th. "I do not have anything," he said slowly. "Girls do not get presents on Valentine's Day."

"Do not get presents?!" Clarice repeated, irate and confused, "It is Valentine's Day and you are my fucking BOYFRIEND!" she became louder with each word until she was screaming.

Shiro mentally smacked his forehead with his palm as he realized why she was so angry. It was another case of culture clash. "And on Valentine's Day, girls give gifts to their men," he explained calmly. "Men reciprocate in March. That is how I was brought up." The 'in Japan' was left unsaid.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she glared at him. If she thought that she could beat him, she'd have her sword about now. "You're in America now."

"I am aware of that," he said testily. "But I am not American, and I am sure that I have made it abundantly clear that when given the option, I follow Japanese traditions in place of American traditions."

"So then I'm supposed to suddenly be Japanese? Okay, ichi, ni san..." she counted to three in Japanese sarcastically, "Oh, wait. No poof. Guess I'm still American."

"~What a shame~," Shiro muttered in Japanese. "It is a foolish holiday, anyway, developed by a card manufacturer as an excuse to make people spend money and exclude those who are unattached."

"Spoken like a guy without a girlfriend," Clarice informed him, teleporting away. She was damned if she'd let him see her cry this time. There was a cliche here, she knew it, she just didn't care.

Shiro's jaw dropped when she disappeared, and he remained silent for a moment. "FUCK!" he shouted loudly, kicking his bookbag clear across the room.