My name is Faith, nice to meet you all.
I'm sure that while reading you'll notice that I'm not a native speaker... or, in the worst cases, that I'm an illiterate. Well che correct answer is the first one, English is not my mothertongue so there will be mistakes (and I lack of an english speaker beta-reader, sigh) but I try hard to make it acceptable. So, please, don't be too mean with me. Also, corrections are accepted!

This chapter is only a brief prologue/flashforward of the story, the real plot begins from the next chapter.
The story title is in Latin and means "to the stars through difficulties" (actually it is "per aspera sic itur ad astra" that is "a rough road leads to the stars").
Have a good reading : 3

Prologue

He was walking fast, almost running, panting hard in that cold night. He needed to make it fast and make sure not to be seen. The music and the idle chatter could be heard from far away, from the ballroom where he was fleeing from.
After descending the marble stairs that led to the backyard garden, the boy almost fluctuated around the trees and the exotic plants, beloved gift from from the Hiiragi family. He hid sometimes when he spotted a moving shadow or heard a sound, and then went back on his path.
It was dangerous but kind of thrilling: rebelling to the moral law was something he could do if that meant to pursue happiness.

"Mika?" he whispered cautiously, approaching the entrance of the labyrinth made of bush plants, "Mika, are you here?" he tried again rising a bit his voice, turning a corner along his way, lit up only by the moonlight. He was following the trail of white rose petals spread on the grassy ground, it was their ploy to find each other. "Mika?" his heart was throbbing in his chest and sweat was forming on his temple.
He was getting apprehensive, why wasn't he replying? Where was he? This was the chosen place for their secret meetings but now he was arrived in the centre of the labyrinth and all that he had seen were only leaves and branches.

A sudden sound from the plants behind him broke abruptly the silence and a couple of arms grasped him around his chest, and he found himself pressed up against another body. He whirled his head and barely held a scream of terror, before noticing that a familiar smell of roses had overwhelmed his nostrils. The roses of his greenhouse. There was only a person that carried that scent.

"I was afraid that you wouldn't come" whispered the figure pinned against him, he had thrown his arms around his neck and had buried his head in the crook of his shoulder.

"I was afraid you were gone" the boy broke away and reflected in those blue irises surrounded by golden locks. With one hand behind the blond's neck, he drew him closer and kissed him passionately, as if they hadn't seen each other for years, as if that was their last kiss.

Despite the cold, Mika's skin burned like fire and he was sure that in the long run he'd have been burned by his beauty.
In the hit of passion he gripped the collar of the blond's thin jacket and got him closer to deepen the contact. Their tongues fought ferociously, and to seal that primordial desire he bit his lip causing Mika to moan.

"Sir" the blond panted after breaking their kiss in need of air "We can't go on like this... it's too dangerous for you and your reputation-"

"Stop calling me that" the boy cut him off and cupped his cheeks affectionately with his hands, but his voice was firm "I have a name "

The blond lowered his gaze and clenched his fists in hesitation, "Yuu-chan" he called after a moment. He felt relieved only pronouncing those few syllables but this didn't erase all the social differences that existed between them "It's risky... they could find us"

"Relax, we are safe here"

"Yuu-chan, you ran away in the middle of a party!"

"Don't worry, Yoichi is covering-"

Mika got away forcefully and narrowed his eyes "You are a noble" he made sure to emphasize each word for the other, that had apparently decided to be stupid and couldn't care less about his actions. "I am only a servant, we can not continue like this. I am not worth... and you deserve better. Miss Shinoa is such a dear girl..."

But the other boy wasn't having any of it.

"Don't even say that, Mika!" he almost shouted and rested his hands on Mika's shoulder even though the other was trying to break free "If I'm here it's because I want you and nobody else! All the girls that I meet, all the balls that I attend... nothing matters to me because you're not with me and it hurts so much. Just because you don't own a mansion or a title, doesn't mean that you're different from Shinoa, Mitsuba or whoever...it's weird to say so listen me up" he paused, feeling his cheeks getting redder. He could only hope that the darkness could conceal his embarrassment "You- you are the person I want to share my life with!". He had taken both Mika's hands in his own and hadn't even noticed that he had almost cried out that words. He smiled heartedly, his emeralds shone in the moonlight and reflected in the deep blue. He tried to appear strong enough, he had to, it was the only thing he could do. Mika always did too much for him.

'I am different because I'm a boy!' Mika wanted to scream and affirm his position, knowing too well that their love was outrageous,it was the worst of the sins in that world ruled by lies and hypocrisy. But he remained silent, leaning against the soft fabric of the luxurious silk coat that his lover was wearing and smiled lightly, it was a sad smile but full of love.
"I love you, Yuu-chan" he muttered defeated and slid down on the ground with the other, sitting with their backs against the hedges of the labyrinth "I trust you"
He rose his eyes to the sky. Everything was dark and there were no other sounds apart from their intertwined breaths. Only the stars shone in the night sky along with the moon.
Mika was blinded. He was so devoted to his Yuu-chan that he could no longer weigh the dangers that would have occurred along the path he had chosen to go through. He'd have done anything to make the boy he loved happy. Anything.

A comfortable silence filled the air, but there was a last thing that needed to be said before enjoying that moment.

"Lord Bathory attended the party, his wife was with him" Yuu spoke. His voice was low and serious, as that simple information carried behind another hidden meaning. And it did. Mika had got it. He knew it because the blond had stiffened next to him. Yuu had his head on Mika's shoulder and had wrapped him in his arms.
"That Ferid guy, he acted weird. I don't like him"

Mika let himself sunk in that warm embrace and closed his eyes, feeling the tiredness of the long day of work growing more and more,"Yeah...I don't like him too. I'm worried about him".

Yuu took a glimpse of the boy next to him and smiled a bit, before turning his head back toward the starry sky "As long as I'm here nothing is going to happen"

The blond curled in his jacket and relaxed in his lover's arms, even the bitter cold was not a big deal when he was with Yuu.
"I trust you, Yuu-chan" he affirmed sleepy.

"Let's see the stars together. Tomorrow it's another day"

Someone once said «It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife». That person must have definitely known something about marriage - after all, the book published a few years before sold too many copies for his liking - but for Yuichiro Amane marriage was the stupidest thing in the whole universe, because marriage wasn't equal to love. And he was sure as hell love didn't exist in their world, or, at least before reading the entire copy of Pride and Prejudice, and before meeting Mika.
But how much could it cost loving another human being?

*.*.*.*.*

Comments are highly appreciated, I need your feedback to do better (I don't know whether to continue this fic or not, so please tell me)
If you want to talk to me or look at some doodles about this story , this is my tumblr: faithgrace. tumblr. com
Thanks for reading and have a good day : 3

IN THE NEXT CHAPTER:
Shinya wanted to know if Guren felt that same sense of turmoil, that irresistible desire of being touched. It was growing deeper and deeper, even more intimate. It was something that he had desired for a long time by now.
He approached the man's face and whispered in his ear.
"Have you ever imagined how could our relationship be be if you were not my Master?"