Disclaimer: This fanwork is based on characters and situations created and owned by Minekura Kazuya. No copyright infringement is intended or implied. No profit made.

Kenren knocked lightly on the Commander's door, half-hoping that he wouldn't hear it, and the General could move on, putting this off for a little while longer. His skin was prickling uncomfortably under the leather of his collar, and his head was still pounding with the residual effects of the previous night's activities. It wasn't that he regretted it, precisely, but...

"Enter," came the muffled answer from the other side of the door, and Kenren's stomach clenched. What the fuck was he supposed to say, to do? It was one thing to go lusting after and inevitably fucking one's direct superior/subordinate (and was Kenren ever glad for that little piece of mindfuckery), but it was something else to cross gender, species and rank to the degree that he had last night. Kenren puffed his cheeks out in a nervous sigh, steeled himself, and turned the knob.

Poking his head inside, he tried for a personable smile and utterly failed. Perhaps a salute would be more appropriate? But he'd never really done that before, so. Aw, fuck. This was a mess, whatever way he looked at it. Kenren dropped any attempt to figure it out, deciding to just follow Goujun's lead. He sidled into the room and pushed the door to behind him. He was pretty certain that the Commander would prefer that, no matter what went down. Pulling himself up to his full height, Kenren took a deep breath, hoping it would calm him a little.

"You wanted to see me? Sir." Kenren almost winced as he heard the slight edge in his own tone. Not that there wasn't usually one, when he spoke to Goujun, but normally it was rather more amused and asshole than timid. He was frankly disgusted with himself for it.

Goujun, ostensibly focused on paperwork, didn't look up. Kenren clenched his jaw, but opted to say nothing. Following the lead, that was what he was doing - not pissing off the guy who had - no, that was a bad place to let his mind go wandering, just now. The last thing he needed for this meeting was a raging hard-on. Especially if this wasn't to be a conversation about the events of the night before, but some discussion on the effectiveness of the current drill routine or something. Kenren smirked at the thought, barely kept from snorting a laugh. Wouldn't that just be the topper, huh?

Finally, Goujun seemed to finish with the stack of papers before him, setting his chop on the last one and placing it fussily on the neat stack in his outbox. Kenren valiantly and narrowly avoided rolling his eyes - fortunately, as that was the moment Goujun decided to look up.

"Ah, General," he greeted, red eyes pinning Kenren with a cool, unreadable gaze. One long-fingered white hand gestured to the chairs in front of his desk. "Please, have a seat."

Great. A seat. No hope that this would be orders rather than a discussion, then. Taking another deep breath, Kenren followed the direction, settling into the chair slightly to Goujun's left. He remembered to sit up straight, but he had to squirm a little to find a comfortable position. Eventually, he felt stable enough to gather himself and give his attention to the Commander. Resting his elbows on the arms of the chair, he folded his hands loosely together and looked at Goujun. Seconds ticked by, crimson eyes staring steadily into black while Kenren waited for Goujun to begin. After what felt like an eternity, he figured out what was holding them up.

"Thank you," Kenren intoned and Goujun nodded, leaning back a little. Smug, self-righteous little - he crushed the diatribe before the annoyance could seep to the surface and show in his expression. A little voice in the back of his head (the one he so rarely listened to, much to his inevitable chagrin) warned him that antagonizing the dragon was Not Prudent and for a change he decided that perhaps it knew best, after all. There was nowhere left for them to send him.

Goujun cleared his throat, folding his hands on top of his desk. His gaze wandered out the window to his left as he spoke, "You look a little under the weather today, General. How are you feeling?"

Kenren blinked a couple of times, attempting to puzzle out what kind of response was expected of him. Was he supposed to acknowledge the night before, or was he being told to pretend it hadn't happened? He stifled a sigh and tried to walk the line between. "I had a bit of a strenuous evening, but I'm doing fine, thanks."

The Commander's head didn't move, but his eyes darted back to Kenren. "I'm glad to hear it." He took a deep breath, his stern composure cracking just a little bit. "I should hate to see your duties adversely affected." He cleared his throat again, and Kenren fancied his could hear a touch of nervousness in it. "You're quite sure that you're...fit?"

Unable to keep it in any longer, Kenren ducked his head to hide the grin that broke across his face. Well, wasn't this just peachy? He'd have to remember this carefully, to comfort him when Goujun's more usual nature took over again. It would be warm and pleasant, this memory.

"Yes, sir. I'm...fully functional and capable of carrying out my duties."

Another sidelong glance from Goujun, another long pause before he cleared his throat again - Kenren would be watching for that little tic in the future - then, "I believe," Goujun said slowly, "that you are owed...an apology. General."

Kenren gaped. He knew it, could feel it but he couldn't stop. This had to be the most surreal thing he'd ever experienced. Was Commander Goujun of the Western Army, the Dragon King of the Western Sea actually offering him an apology? An apology. If there was one thing that Kenren would never have applied as a necessary after-thought to the kind of time he'd had the night before, 'sorry' was it. When Goujun finally turned to face him, Kenren managed to snap his jaw shut. Too late, it seemed, as Goujun's eyes narrowed at him. He raised his hands, palms toward the Commander.

"Whoa...sir, you don't owe me any-"

Goujun's eyes slimmed to slits as he cut Kenren off sharply, "I didn't say that I owed you an apology, General." His mouth thinned to a hard line and he gave a heavy sigh. "But, as we both know that one will not be forthcoming from the Marshal, I am forced to offer it on his behalf."

It took a moment for this to sink in, with Kenren blinking slowly at his commander. He reeled quickly through the events of the previous night, but he couldn't find anything for which Tenpou could be condemned. Quite the opposite, in fact. "Commander," he started, then had to pause to reorder his thoughts, his brow furrowing a bit, "I really don't remember a single thing for which either you or-"

"Tenpou failed to explain certain things to you," Goujun broke in again, the words measured, considered (hell, he'd probably been practicing this all morning, by the sound of it), "and I am entirely certain that you were not informed that I was expected last night."

Expected.

Last Night.

Goujun. Expected. Last night.

Kenren's eyes narrowed. "Expected. Sir." Fucking Tenpou.

"Indeed, General." Goujun just avoided clearing his throat again, and the discomfort obvious in his expression was nearly enough to soften Kenren on the idea of giving the Marshal a good smack in the chops later. Nearly. "Please don't misunderstand. Tenpou had me arrive on the pretext of reports that he has owed me for more than a month. My ignorance of his intentions is why I offer you an apology on his behalf, rather than my own."

"So..." Kenren drawled, resolutely holding in both his annoyance and his amusement, "you two are-"

"Were."

"Were - an item?"

Goujun grimaced a little at the description, "That's not a term I would use, but it's not entirely inaccurate. Certainly, it was never as consuming as your...relationship."

"Consuming?"

"Indiscreet."

"Ah, right. Thanks." Kenren nodded slowly, shifting his eyes away from Goujun so that he didn't break into laughter. Fucking Tenpou, seriously. "So, he sprung it on you, too. No need to apologise for that. Besides," he shrugged, though he couldn't quite manage to keep the slight leer from his voice, "no harm no foul, yeah?"

Goujun arched one elegant eyebrow, studying Kenren for a long moment. Finally, he said softly, "If that's your view, I-"

"It is."

"All right, then, General." Goujun's lips pursed briefly as he gave Kenren one last appraising look. "Thank you for coming."

Oh, now that just hurt. Kenren managed - somehow - to keep from bursting into hysterical giggles as he stood, waving off a more than usually poor approximation of a salute before moving to the door. He paused with his hand on the knob, turning to look at Goujun over his shoulder. "Hypothetically, Commander, if the Marshal managed to lose all of his paperwork for a week or two..."

"I would have no choice but to make him do it all again," Goujun assured him with a stern look.

Kenren grinned. "Excellent."