Summary: Kouyuu says something he shouldn't while drunk, although it takes Reishin longer than it should to realise exactly what has been said. Reishin/Kouyuu, Reishin/Houju. Written: May 2007.
Beautiful.
The look on Kouyuu's face as he left caused Reishin to frown. It was not rare for his son to seek him out in in Houju's department - it was easier to avoid work there, after all - and while Kouyuu had perhaps never caught the pair in such an obviously compromising position before, it was not as though his son did not know that they were occasionally ... intimate. Only a fool would be friends with someone as beautiful as Houju and not bed him, and Reishin had always been drawn to things that aesthetically pleased him. That Houju pleased him in other ways as well was why he had never bored with his best friend in the way he did most of his other pretty, possessions.
It was why he took his annoyance out on his entire department when he eventually returned, because while Houju was especially pretty with his robes around his waist and his hair tangled in Reishin's fingers, Kouyuu's abrupt entrance (and even more abrupt exit) ruined his mood for the day. Houju was perhaps even less forgiving than Reishin, as there was a dark threat in his tone when he 'wished' (or was that commanded?) Reishin farewell.
And, surely that stupid boy had known. It was not as though Houju has not spent entire evenings in Reishin's bed, and Houju had a habit of being deliberately vocal when he felt the need to prove some childish point.
Kouyuu was not at home when Reishin got there, which was perhaps just as well. When his son was not back even when dinner had been served and the sun long set, Reishin started to pace impatiently. Kouyuu was surely lost somewhere - even worse, he could be lost somewhere with Ran Shuuei. Reishin did not raise idiots, and therefore all of his son's faults were a direct result of his interaction with the Ran boy. If Kouyuu came home drunk ...
But Kouyuu didn't come home at all, and if there was one thing that Shuuei did do well it was in insuring that the only bed Kouyuu ended up in each night was Kouyuu's own. If Kouyuu had gotten himself so lost that even Shuuei did not realise he was missing, or if he had stumbled somewhere and fallen ...
Reishin did not play fetch. However, when Kouyuu hadn't return even when the candles had burnt down to half-forgotten stubs and Shuuei had still not at least sent a servant to say that he had Kouyuu tucked away somewhere, he found himself doing exactly that.
He (eventually) found Kouyuu sitting beneath a plum tree, his gaze fixated on the small stream before him. The flowers were no longer in bloom and even the leaves had lost their sheen, leaving behind a tangle of half naked branches. Reishin knew that Kouyuu was ... difficult ... when he was drunk, and best left to those who had far more patience than he did. Yet, there was nothing loud or blusterous about Kouyuu now, leaving behind instead a strangely disturbing stillness about his son.
"You should have been home hours ago," Reishin said sternly, his gaze narrowing when Kouyuu's only response was to take an undignified swig from his drink. "And don't you think you've drunk enough?" Kouyuu laughed hoarsely at that.
"No. Not yet." Pause. "Reishin-sama."
"If you're going to act like such a fool, the least you could do was be a fool somewhere more private." The last of his patience lost, Reishin reached down and grabbed Kouyuu's arm before dragging him to his feet. His son stumbled against him, another strange laugh escaping through alcohol laden lips before Kouyuu managed to right himself. The laugh cut abruptly off when Kouyuu's gaze caught Reishin's, and Reishin frowned in annoyance at the hurt that shone there through a haze of drunkenness. Reishin had caught the boy instead of letting him fall, hadn't he? There was no reason for Kouyuu to look at him like that, especially since it was Kouyuu himself who was being so bothersome. "If you think that your workload will be any lighter tomorrow due to your stupidity toni-"
"He's very beautiful, isn't he?" Kouyuu uncharacteristically interrupted, his words seeming to stumble as they fell from his lips. "Kijin-dono. He's very ..." Kouyuu paused, searching for the right word. "Beautiful."
"Of course he is," Reishin said, his frustration evident as he attempted to manoeuvre Kouyuu through the (thankfully) empty corridors. So this was about Houju and this afternoon, after all. "Do you think I would bed anyone who wasn't?"
Another small, empty laugh, followed by a very soft "No."
And Reishin did not like this at all.
"If you have got yourself so childishly drunk just so you can block out his beauty, then I shall have to banish you from visiting his office even for official duties."
"I've always thought he had the most beautiful hair," Kouyuu stumbled on, gripping at Reishin's robes more tightly when his feet gave out momentarily beneath him. Reishin would have left Kouyuu in the corridors to find his own way home if such a thing wouldn't have surely lead to greater embarrassment on Reishin's behalf. "So shiny and, and. Beautiful. Hair doesn't normally look like that."
"It does if you spend hours in front of mirror each morning making sure it's perfect," Reishin said with a grunt. His best friend could be strangely vain for someone who wished to shield their beauty from the world.
"And, and. He always looks elegant, so tall and powerful and there, although if he wasn't there then he wouldn't be elegant would he? You have to be there to be elegant. You have to be there to be anything. Otherwise you're not there but there, and then you can hardly be beautiful or elegant or ... beautiful, can you? If you're only there."
"If you are going to ramble like a madman, the least you could try and do is make as much sense as one." At least madmen could be deciphered if you applied yourself enough, but Kouyuu was simply stringing together drunken nonsense. Kouyuu, however, appeared too caught up in his ramblings to pay heed to such a comment.
"Elegant and beautiful and there. Of course you're sleeping with him, because who wouldn't? Except for people who are not elegant and beautiful and - " Kouyuu broke off, one hand slamming against the wall to right himself as he almost fell. Again. He was going to make Kouyuu pay for this when his son was sober. "I always knew that, because he's always been beautiful and you two have both always-" this time when Kouyuu stopped speaking it was to blush darkly. "You've both always-" Kouyuu gave up, continuing on a different thread of thought. "I just ... I just never realise how beautiful he was."
"He isn't that attractive," Reishin grumbled darkly, dragging Kouyuu away from the security of the wall with a touch more strength that was necessary. "You make it seem as though you've never seen a passably attractive man before. Besides, his disgraceful personality dulls his beauty drastically." Of course, few people actually ever saw Houju's less-than-attractive side, as he was far better at hiding it than his beauty. Why Kouyuu was having this sudden revelation about Houju's beauty after having known him for years-
Of course.
"You saw his face, didn't you?" Reishin said flatly, ignoring the small 'omph' that escaped through Kouyuu's lips as Reishin pinned him roughly against a column with one hand so that he could unlock the door to their quarters. Reishin did not fuck his friend when he was wearing one of his masks, and while Kouyuu hadn't interrupted them quite at that stage, they'd been very close. "Most people, Kouyuu, do not go and get drunk after seeing Houju's face. They're known to become delirious, to be unnaturally happy and to not be able to think straight for weeks. Drinking is generally reserved for drowning your sorrows after having to spend any length of time with him and his twisted sense of 'humour'." He didn't even glance down at Kouyuu as he manhandled him into his room, shoving his son unceremoniously in the direction of his bed.
"I forbid you from ever seeing Kouyuu again!" Reishin ordered the moment he entered Houju's office the next morning, causing the few officials that had gathered there for a meeting to scatter. Houju seemed unmoved by Reishin's command, turning instead to the report he had just been given with a disgruntled sigh.
"As I hardly ever see that son of yours in the first place, Reish-"
"I don't care where you happen to be, you are to avoid him at all costs." He slammed his hands down dramatically on Houju's desk. "If you see him in a corridor, you are to turn and walk away. If he enters your office, you are to hide beneath your desk. If you are out walking and he spies you-"
"-I'm supposed to climb up a tree?" Houju interrupted dryly, although his words held a dark edge. "I will do as I please, Reishin, and if that includes your-" Houju appeared to rethink his line of thinking at the very last minute, as he quickly changed tact. It was a life saving decision. "Are you going to tell me why I am suddenly banished from being within a few meters of Kouyuu?" Reishin growled as he dropped elegantly into one of Houju's chairs, contemplating for a moment whether Houju deserved to know what a mess he had made out of everything.
"He saw your face yesterday and spent all night swooning over a bottle." The words were strangely hard to say, and Reishin had to force them out. "Apparently, he thinks you're rather beautiful."
"People don't get drunk after seeing my face," Houju said matter-of-factly. "They do not possess the ability to." And this was the wonderful personality that everyone else somehow missed.
"Well, he did." Reishin said impatiently. "I do not believe I have ever seen him so ridiculously upset."
"People do not get upset after seeing my face," Houju's calm tone held an edge of annoyance. "You know that as well as I do. They are physically incapable of-"
"Yes, yes." Reishin interrupted. "However Kouyuu is an exception, and it is all your fault that he is going to be useless to me for days He's obviously now jealous that I am bedding you, and you know that it often takes weeks for that to wear off." Reishin had seen normally sane people become jealous of anyone that Houju even dared talk to after merely glimpsing his face, and Kouyuu was not exactly all that sane to start with.
"You are angry."
"Yes!" Of course he was! Houju would be as well if he'd spent half the night worrying about where that wretched boy was before having to go fetch him back home. Not to mention that Reishin would have to deal with all the added 'extras' that came with any exposure to Houju. Perhaps he should send Kouyuu away for a couple of weeks.
"And jealous."
Yes!
Wait.
"No!" He quickly retaliated, his gaze narrowing. "I am not so stupid as to think that you would prefer Kouyuu over me, nor do I care who you bed as long it is not someone from my own family." Houju studied him quietly for an impossibly long moment for replying.
"That is not what I meant, Reishin."
"Then I think that you should keep your thoughts to yourself," Reishin replied coldly, rising swiftly to his feet.
"Reishin," Houju called just as Reishin reached the door, and Reishin found himself stilling, despite himself. "Have you thought that perhaps it is not you that he is jealous of?"
"He's ... very beautiful, isn't he?"
That stupid, stupid-
"Leave, now." It was a command and Shuuei did not pretend otherwise, ducking his head respectfully and giving Kouyuu a quick, sidewise glance before slipping from the archives. Kouyuu had apparently recovered enough of his senses to look wary, and he remained silent as Reishin swept across the room to where he stood. His son looked tired (as he should), and there was a strain in his eyes that a hang over couldn't quite explain away.
"You are right," Reishin started coldly, his gaze never straying from Kouyuu's. "Houju is very beautiful." Kouyuu nodded sharply, an unusually tight smile slipping briefly to his lips.
"I know," Kouyuu said quietly, averting his gaze just enough that Reishin couldn't catch the emotions that surely lingered there. His son was getting better at hiding his emotions, Reishin decided, and that would not do at all.
And so, Reishin kissed him. When Kouyuu froze beneath his touch Reishin thought for one, heart stopping moment that he'd somehow misread the situation completely, and then Kouyuu was suddenly - desperately - kissing him back. It was all Reishin needed to deepen the kiss possessively, all he needed to press Kouyuu up hard against the wall, eliminating any space between them. If Kouyuu had been Houju, then Reishin would have taken him right there, shoving his robes up around his waist and smothering away any cries with his lips. And, there was undeniably a part of Reishin that wanted to do exactly that with Kouyuu, especially with Kouyuu...
But, where-as Houju would be hoarsely commanding Reishin to take him harder, faster, now, Kouyuu's breaths were hitching with just a hint of panic. With a growl, Reishin tore his mouth away from Kouyuu's, his hands remaining tangled in Kouyuu's hair even as he leaned back slightly to give Kouyuu some semblance of space. He waited patiently as Kouyuu fought to catch his breath, finding his son's quiet struggle somehow more erotic than any moment he had shared with his closest friend.
"I ... Reishin-sama ..." Kouyuu trailed off as Reishin slowly ran his fingers through Kouyuu's hair before dipping close for a chaste kiss.
"I will not share you," Reishin said with controlled quietness, biting back a small smile when Kouyuu appeared aghast at the very thought. Reishin couldn't help wondering if he'd ever been quite as young as the other man seemed right now. "You are an adult and can make your own decisions, but if you decide this then there will be no-one else." Kouyuu nodded numbly. "For either of us." It took a precious few moments for Kouyuu to properly process Reishin's quiet comment, his eyes widening impossibly large.
"But, Kijin-sama-"
"Is beautiful," Reishin replied dismissively. If Kouyuu could not work the rest out for himself, then it was Kouyuu's own fault.
"Beautiful," Kouyuu echoed softly, a tiny smile blossoming on his lips even as a hint of disbelief remained in his eyes. "Just ... beautiful."
It was only part of what Reishin had meant, but it was at least a start. There would be plenty more occasions to coax Kouyuu into the realisation that he was just as beautiful in his own way, as well.
And Reishin had always loved beautiful things.