Undoing
Undressed for the hotspring, Koumyou is a naked collection of fine bones and scars. Ukoku catches the end of his braid as he walks away. He pulls off the tie, lets it unravel a little.
So they stand, Ukoku still mostly clothed, Koumyou nude, the braid a rope between them.
"Don't undo what you can't repair," Koumyou warns lightly.
"I know how to braid hair," Ukoku mutters darkly. He's never done it, but how difficult can it be for a genius?
"You might learn," Koumyou agrees, "But are your fingers as precise and steady as Kouryuu's?"
"...Not him again." A common complaint.
"Let go, please?"
Ukoku hesitates.
Understanding
Ukoku and Koumyou settle into the hotspring, disrupting the moon's reflection on water.
"Does it ever bother you I killed your friend?" Ukoku breaks the meditative silence.
"Should it bother me?" Koumyou sinks back, breathing in languid steam.
"I'd be angry." Ukoku grins, showing his teeth.
"I suppose you would, if you had friends to lose."
"Like you?"
Koumyou only smiles in reply.
Ukoku huffs a sigh, looking very teenaged. "Sometimes I don't understand you."
"Why are you trying?"
"I understand everything!" He has to understand to take apart.
"Do you now?" Faint amusement, almost mocking.
A pause with gentle water sounds. Ukoku narrows dark, stubborn eyes. "It just takes time."