Title: Brothers Notes: This fanfic is dedicated to UchihaChi95 of deviantART, and her mum.
Summary: Reishin receives an apology from his younger brother, twenty-three years after the fact.
Time-Fit : After The Melting Snow Party.
Disclaimer : I don't own these characters. They and Saiunkoku Monogatari belong to Sai Yukino.
Rating : PG13
Genre : Family/Humour
Warnings : Yaoi, very mild
Pairing : Kijin/Reishin, Kuro/?
"Kuro wants to see me? Now? Why, Brother Shoka? I've scheduled a meeting with him tomorrow at Koga House."
"That's for official business. He wants to talk to you."
Reishin laughed, harshly.
"That would be a first, wouldn't it, Brother Shoka? My little baby brother wants to talk to me!"
"He wants to apologize, Reishin."
"Tell him he's twenty-three years too late. Goodnight, Brother Shoka."
Reishin, blinded by unshed tears, walked into Kijin who had just entered the room.
Holding his distraught lover in a tight embrace, Kijin considered the significance of what he'd just overheard.
"Lord Shoka, what happened between Reishin and Kuro?"
Shoka hesitated. Reishin had said nothing to Kijin all these years ...
"Lord Shoka, I think I need to know now."
"Secretary Ko, you know about Reishin's beatings, right? Kuro took it upon himself to inform Father of Reishin's misdemeanors."
"Even that last time? When Reishin was almost disowned and thrown out on the streets?"
Kijin's voice was dangerously quiet.
"Where's Kuro now?"
Kijin started to disengage himself from Reishin, but was pulled back by frantic hands.
"It's alright, Dumpling, I will leave him alive."
Reishin clung harder.
"Brother Shoka, tell Kijin what you told me."
"Secretary Ko, Kuro couldn't have known the consequences. He was only a child. All his previous tale-tattering led just to beatings. He wouldn't have expected anything different that time."
"And that makes it alright? What the hell!"
Kijin's voice trembled.
"Reishin, is that why you've never talked about this? Because Big Brother there says you should forgive that sadistic little bastard?"
"No, Brother Shoka never said that. He said, when Kuro grew up, he would see things differently, and then he would apologize. I waited, year after year; pretending that nothing was amiss, being civil when discussing clan matters. At some point, I came to realize that I don't want him to apologize, ever. I no longer wanted to forgive him."
The silence was broken by Shoka's quiet voice.
"Kuro's ready to apologize, Reishin. It's overdue, but it's sincere. He looks quite beside himself."
That made Reishin giggle, albeit a little hysterically.
"How can you tell, Brother Shoka? Did he forget to oil his hair? Was there a crease in his robes? Is his headpiece one degree off-centre? What would that prissy brother of ours look like distraught?"
Shoka laughed.
"You are incorrigible, Reishin. Secretary Ko, what do you think? Shouldn't Reishin hear what Kuro has to say?"
Kijin noted Kuro's reaction to his presence. It really was a Hong brothers' issue, but ... his Dumpling needed him, so he was going to be thick-skinned and stay put. Besides, it was Shoka's manor they were in, and Shoka had welcomed him unreservedly.
"Brother Reishin, I've wanted to apologize for years. But I couldn't, because I didn't know why I did what I did. To offer an apology without that would be meaningless, even insulting."
"And now you know the reason?"
"I was, and am, jealous of you."
Reishin looked at a loss.
"Why should you be jealous? You were the only one Father was proud of. You were the model son. You married the woman he chose. You gave Father his one and only grandson. What do I have that you lack?"
"Beauty. The type of beauty that makes men cherish you."
Kijin observed the Hong brothers. He couldn't tell if Shoka or Reishin looked more stunned. He turned his gaze to Kuro.
Tallest among the Hong Brothers, broad-shouldered, well-groomed to the point where one itches to mess up his clothes, his handsome features perpetually austere, his dark green hair lightly oiled and his beard immaculately trimmed, Kuro cut an impressive figure.
Impressive, yes, but certainly not one to be cherished by men. From what he heard from Shoka, Reishin was already a stunning beauty, and feminine-looking, by the time he was ten. The difference in their physical traits must have been obvious by then. Kuro could not ever aspire to grow up to look like his second brother.
Kijin's heart went out to him. On the few occasions that he met Kuro, he had always felt that the man was not quite living. He seemed to be going through the motions, doing all that he does dutifully, without passion. And now, for him to realize the reason behind his own deep-seated jealousy, must be earth-shattering. And yet he thought of his brother.
Realizing that neither Shoka nor Reishin were ready to speak, Kijin filled the gap.
"Lord Kuro, why now? Did something happen on the way from the Hong Province to Kyo?"
Shoka snapped out of his trance.
"Did you meet someone, Kuro? You mentioned that your carriage was attacked by bandits. That a lone traveler fought them off, and escorted you the rest of the way. Was it him? What happened?"
Kuro shut his eyes.
"At the city gates, just before we parted ways. He kissed me, and asked to see me again. I said nothing. I got into the carriage and drove off. By the time I sorted out how I felt, and drove back to the gates, he was no longer there. I don't even know his name."
Reishin squealed.
"Then why are you wasting time apologizing to me? Why aren't you scouring Kyo for this man?"
Kuro opened his eyes to look at Reishin.
"Does that mean I'm forgiven, Brother Reishin?"
"Yes, yes, you are. Describe this man, Kuro, I'll mobilize my spies to search for him."
"No, Brother Reishin. I was right to drive away. I'm married, with two children. I should remain faithful."
Reishin hissed in exasperation.
"To what purpose? When was the last time you had conjugal relations with your wife? You have maintained separate bedrooms for the last eight years! Oh, Kuro, if you'd just get laid, you wouldn't be such a sour-puss!"
Kuro flushed, and protested, looking to Shoka for support.
Laughing, Shoka shook his head.
"I have to agree with Reishin. Just keep it away from the Hong Province and your family, Kuro, but do get laid, it would be good for you."
"Thank you, Brother Shoka. Now, Kuro, a detailed description."
"Shorter than me, about your height, Brother Reishin. Dark green hair and beard. A cross-scar on the left cheek. Fights with a staff. One of the bandits called him The Little Staff King..."
Shoka turned to exchange a glance with the masked Kijin. Kijin nodded, and gave a silent thumbs-up. Shoka quietly slipped out of the room.
Behind his mask, Kijin grinned wildly. Of all the men in Kyo, it had to be the wiry-bearded, bear-of-a-man Ro Ensei! Ensei, ever since he fainted outside Shoka's manor, had been a house-guest every time he was in Kyo. Strange, when Ensei was working as Kijin's assistant in the Finance Department that summer, Kijin never imagined that he liked men. And a tall, manly, bearded one too! Kijin shuddered a little at the image of the two dark green beards entangling in a passionate kiss.
"Oi, this better be worth digging me out of bed! So where is this person I'm supposed to meet?"
Ensei stomped into the room, and stopped short, mouth agape.
Shoka walked in after Ensei, and did the introductions.
"Ro Ensei, meet my younger brother Kuro. Kuro, Ensei is my house-guest."
Reishin squinted at Ensei.
"Yes, of course! Why didn't I think of it?"
"Because it's unthinkable?"
Kijin chuckled.
"Come on, Dumpling, let's go home."
"Wait! Brother Shoka, oils!"
Shoka frowned.
"Oh dear, maybe I can find some cooking oil ..."
Ensei burst out laughing.
"Isn't that his luggage over there?"
Shoka nodded.
"And?"
Ensei leaned over the seated Kuro and sniffed deliberately at his hair.
"Mmmmm, smells nice. Your hair oil will do, sweetheart."
Ignoring the commotion caused by his remark, Ensei threw Kuro over his shoulder and walked out of the room, picking up the luggage on the way.
"Goodnight, all."
The three men watched as the figures retreated. Reishin was the first to speak.
"Brother Shoka, can we come for breakfast tomorrow, please?"
"Really, Reishin, your interest is hardly decent."
Reishin pouted.
"It's not everyday that one's baby brother gets cherished!"
Kijin laughed.
"With Ro Ensei, that would be 'ravished'!"
Giggling, Reishin corrected himself.
"Please, Brother Shoka, it's not everyday that one's baby brother gets ravished ... and by The Little Staff King, no less!"
Looking at his hysterical younger brother in mock disgust, Shoka addressed Kijin.
"It's past his bedtime, isn't it, Secretary Ko?"
"Ah, so you know about his sleepy hysterics, Lord Shoka."
"Of course, and if he doesn't stop, he's going to start ..."
Hic!
"... hiccupping. I've tried everything. Nothing works to stop his hiccups."
Kijin laughed smugly.
"Watch me, Lord Shoka."
He took off his mask, and gave Reishin a resounding kiss. The hiccups subsided. Reishin's hands started to roam.
"Oh, great, Secretary Ko. Now, instead of sleepy and hiccupping, Reishin's sleepy and horny."
Shoka laughed.
"Don't bother going home. Use a guestroom. You win, little brother, you'll be here for breakfast."
Kijin scooped Reishin up, and turned to Shoka.
"Can I trouble you to look for that cooking oil?"
[The End]
Notes :
(1) This story is the result of a conversation with UchihaChi95 of deviantART on Hong Kuro, in which she said, "...he's a sour-puss and I have a cousin like him and my mum straight up said 'He needs to get laid'". UchihaChi95 threw that line at me as a prompt!
(2) The story of Reishin's beatings by his father is told in Brother Shoka.
(3) The strained relationship between Reishin and Kuro is based upon what is hinted at in the anime Season 1. When Kuro comes to the capital city Kyo, he is shown visiting Shoka, but not Reishin. The canon Reishin has only negative things to say about Kuro.