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Keiji couldn't wait to see Chosokabe again! It had been about a month since their last encounter. Now he'd finally made it to the Fugaku, just in time it seemed. The ship was just about to take off before he arrived.
The crew greeted him individually before going back to their chores. Some were lounging around on the deck.
"Is Chosokabe in the captain's quarters?" He asked before he set out to meet the man. It was better to have an idea of where he was instead of having to wander around on the giant ship.
"Yeah, he's there." One of them said, "But I'm not sure if he was expecting you..."
"Is someone else here?" Keiji gave him a weird look. There were very few times that Mori was on the ship before he got there, but now that they were passed the war they got along just fine.
"Well, yes; and I'm not sure if boss would want us to..."
"If anything happens I'll say you tried to stop me." He smiled as he danced his way past the men who seemed to be trying to create a line for him not to cross.
The captain's quarters were in the middle of the ship. It was a pretty long walk because of the size of the vessel, but Keiji managed to make it there within the hour. He could already hear Chosokabe laughing by the time he got to the door.
Yup, Mori was already there.
He didn't feel the need to knock; at this point Chosokabe just knew to expect him. So of course, this was the one time that even he would admit that he probably should have knocked to give some form of forewarning. Scratch that, he should of sent a messenger hawk to let him know days in advanced. That way he might have been a bit more prepared for this.
When he opened the door he found that Chosokabe guest was not Mori, but instead the One-Eyed Dragon, Date Masamune. He faltered at the door for a second.
"Keiji!" His friend beamed at him. "I thought that was you I heard clomping around up there. Sit with us."
He hesitated before he sat down on one of the plush pillows. Chairs and couches were to much of a hassle for the ship. When they got into a bad storm, unless everything was bolted down, they would slip and slide. Heavy furniture like that also weighed the ship down. So instead the room was filled with seat cushions. They were plush pillows that were more than comfortable and varying in size.
"I brought sake!" He announced, trying not to come off as uneasy as he felt.
"Awesome!" Chosokabe took the bottle that was presented to him and poured a small cup for everyone. "Keiji have you met Date Masamune before?"
"Yes I believe we've met!" Keiji smiled in the dragon's directions.
Masamune was lying on his stomach using one of the pillows to support his upper body. He gave the vagabond a passing glance, but beamed at the pirate as he handed him his cup. Keiji didn't miss the way their hands touched during the pass.
"One-Eyed Dragon, what are you doing here?" Keiji asked. He looked forward to his time with Chosokabe. He was one of the few nice people in these warring states who understood what he was talking about when he said he wanted peace. That's why he couldn't understand him hanging out with Masamune. He was all about war and fighting.
"I helped Chosokabe out a while back and he invited me to come on his ship. Naturally I took the invitation."
"Ah, so I'm guessing Kojuro is somewhere around here."
"No, I left him home to hold down the fort."
Chosokabe leaned back on a mountain a pillows behind him. His gaze was resting on Masamune.
Now Keiji understood why the crew was so against him going in today.
~.~.~.~.~
It was a while before Keiji could catch Chosokabe alone. It was pushing midnight when Masamune fell asleep on cushions he was laying on.
"Do you mind me asking why you let the One-Eyed Dragon up here?"
"He helped me out a while back, like he said. So when he mentioned wanting to see my ship I offered him to come up here. Besides he's a pretty okay guy."
"Yeah, but whenever it came down to trying to organize everyone together, like when we tried to stop the Devil King, he was the last one on board. The only reason why he even helped was because he knew he was next!"
"I take it you don't like him."
"The first time I tried to talk to him all he wanted to do was fight me."
"The same thing happened between us."
"Yes, but he was really trying to kill me. I knew you had no intention of hurting me."
Chosokabe shook his head, "He's not too bad once you get to know him."
Keiji sighed knowing that he probably wasn't going to get through to his friend, "Just be careful when it comes to him."
~.~.~.~.~
Keiji was wishing that he was back on land right about now. It wasn't like Motochika was ignoring him. It was the exact opposite actually. He was working to make sure that he spent an adequate amount of time with Keiji, while still keeping Masamune entertained. He broke away from the two to go to the bathroom. By the time he got back, one of the men told him that Chosokabe was out on the main deck with Masamune.
He was expecting this. Most of the times he was here they would hang out on the main deck for a few minutes before they went to bed.
He froze at the stairs that led up to the deck. Chosokabe and Masamune were further away, leaning against the rail. He couldn't hear what they were saying but he could see Motochika tentatively put his arm around Date's waist. The dragon smiled at the pirate, leaning on him.
Things clicked in Keiji's head. He knew that Chosokabe had a thing for the dragon, because that's all he would talk about since Hideyoshi was destroyed. He never expected Masamune to like him back. Seriously, the man had a stick up his ass and his nose in the air. He couldn't picture him caring for anyone else but himself.
He crept a little closer hoping that the noise he was making would cause them to separate.
"Sorry about the whole Keiji thing. I wasn't expecting him to come."
"It's alright." Masamune said.
"He's a good friend so I can't just turn him away. Besides even you have to admit it's fun having him around."
Masamune hummed in agreance, turning in Chosokabe's arm to smile up at him, and kissed him on the nose."I still get to spend time with you, that's all that matters." They shared a long passionate kiss before separating again in anticipation of Keiji's reappearance.
Keiji decided that now was a good time to come completely into the room to announce that he was going to turn in for the night. Motochika looked disappointed but bid him goodnight anyways. Masamune gave him a curt nod.
The rest of the trip was no better than the first day. He was trying so hard to play dumb, but there were times when they were all but waving it in his face. It was driving him nuts, but he didn't want to say anything to Chosokabe about it. It still boggled his brain how the most peace loving pirate could love a, arrogant, pride full, war raging, family killing...He stopped himself there knowing that if he crossed that line in his head then he would eventually end up saying it out loud.
"You're starting to sound jealous." He mumbled to himself. He wouldn't lie to himself and say that he didn't take an interest in Chosokabe. As mentioned before he was the nicest person in these warring states and...
It doesn't really matter now. Today was his last day of having to deal with this. They were going to make a stop in Maeda first, instead of one of the surrounding states of Oshu so Keiji didn't have to walk. Masamune said that he planned on staying a board for a bit longer, but Keiji didn't pay it any mind.
"You seem pretty down." Chosokabe noted. They were the only two on the deck right now. Masamune had taken to his bed about an hour ago.
"Just disappointed that the trip is ending so soon." He lied.
"You could stay a bit longer. We don't have any specific destination in mind."
"That's alright. I promised Matsu that I wouldn't stay away too long this time."
"Oh." Chosokabe didn't believe him, "If you want we can do something next month when Masamune's not here?"
"That's not what I meant."
"I can tell that being around him makes you uncomfortable."
"How can you not be? You've heard the stories yourself. Some of the things he's done..."
"You don't know the whole story." Motochika defended.
"He killed his whole family. He massacred the surrounding areas around him in order to take them for himself. What good can possibly be in that?"
"The surrounding areas took his father hostage, and when he went to rescue him his father order him to kill the kidnappers as well. He lost Oshu in the end. That's why he was so hard on them when he re-concurred them. As for his brother, his mother favored him over Masamune to become head of the family, but she couldn't make him give up the spot without him dying. She manipulated his brother into challenging Masamune into a death battle."
Keiji was quite for a while. Everyone knew that Date had a rough time growing up but he didn't know the full extent of it.
"I know there are times when he comes off a bit harsh, but he doesn't mean to." Chosokabe explained, "Are you okay? You seem a little agitated. You're not normally one to care about the back ground of the people on my ship."
"Because I know they have good intentions. He's another story. It's only a matter of time before he wants your land as well."
"We've been in an alliance since the whole Hideyoshi thing and we both know that that's not what really bothering you."
"It's nothing."
Chosokabe sighed knowing that Keiji wasn't going to open up to him.
"I'm going to head to bed." Keiji said.
"Alright, I'll see you in the morning. We'll be docking by Meadea at noon."
"Okay. Good night."
~.~.~.~.~
Masamune was staying in Motochika's room. Keiji knew it without being told. While the door was thick the wall was thin. His room was to the left of the captain quarter, and sure enough he could hear them, exchanging loving words at night. It drove him nuts. Luckily this was the last day he would have to go through this.
Though he had to admit there were times when he listened in on purpose wishing he was the one receiving Motochika's kindness. Then Masamune would respond and Keiji knew everything he said was lies. He doubted that the dragon had any kind of human emotions. Especially now knowing of Date's true upbringing. It affirmed that it would be hard for him to relate to anyone.
"I'm worried about him." He heard Chosokabe say.
"He may just be worried about any upcoming conflicts. Toshi does have a tendency of allying himself with the worst of people and Keiji always has to get him out of it. It's ashamed that he doesn't just take control of the head of the Meada family. He would be able to stop his country from going to war and is strong enough to defend it."
"He doesn't like being held down."
"Ah, so he rather travel than bring his land peace. Ironically enough, that's what he's always talking about."
"You should sleep. You headed to bed hours ago saying you were tired."
"I could tell he wanted to talk to you about something without me being around."
There was the sound of a shared kiss. Probably deep and passionate.
"I love you." He could hear Masamune whisper.
"I love you too, no matter what."
"I don't deserve you."
He's got that right, Keiji thought.
"Of course you do," Chosokabe whispered back, "You deserve only the best, and that would be me."
Masamune laughed, and Keiji decided to ignore it. There was no way to make this situation better. Motochika would never see him the way he saw Masamune. There was a deep bond between the two that only needed a few moments to form. He didn't want to interrupt whatever happiness that Chosokabe had because he was envious of the dragon.
There was a silence on the other side of the wall, meaning that they had settled in bed and were going to fall asleep soon. He found himself still awake regardless. About an hour in Masamune started talking again. This time it appeared as if Chosokabe was asleep because he wasn't answering anything he said.
"You have no idea how lucky I am to have you. After everything that I've done, and everything I've been through you still chose to stick with me. I've never met anyone who has accepted me the way you have. I love you and every time we make love, I know you love me the same. I've never been with anyone like this before, nor have I've ever had feelings for someone like this. I don't want to screw this up, but I can't promise I won't," his voice was breaking at this point, "I really hope you can understand that. I want to explain it to you but I'm scared that you would think I'm weak. I love you."
Keiji sighed, feeling kind of bad hearing Masamune pouring his heart out. This was something he knew he wasn't supposed to hear, like most of the conversations he overheard since he got here.
By morning he had come to peace with what was going on, biding the couple farewell. He felt as if he should say something to apologize to Masamune but thought better of it.
"I'll come pick you up sometimes next month and we can hang out just the two of us," Chosokabe grinned as he dropped Keiji off.
"Sure," he smiled softly. As long as he could keep the friendship it was good enough for him.
I was going to take a completely different direction from this but then I forgot which direction that was, so it ended like this. Sorry if Masamune is a little OC but I think he was pretty close to it until that last scene.