"Why do I have to sleep on the sofa?" Saiga complained from his prone position. The other occupant of the Green Drug office did not look up from his paperwork. (1)
"Were you particularly attached to the room? If I recall correctly, you didn't seem to spend too much time there anyway."
"So cruel."
"Am I wrong? Besides, now you can be in the office more often."
"Oh, you wanted me to work?" Saiga's sarcasm was evident despite the shades. Kakei smiled back at him from behind his glasses, a decidedly wicked glint in his eyes.
"Isn't that what Rikuo-kun is for?"
"You are a very bad man, Kakei."
"Now who is being cruel?"
"Come here, you."

Rikuo rolled his eyes. The two of them clearly needed more than an office. He continued sweeping and 'keeping an eye on things,' as his boss had vaguely instructed. The store itself was deserted. A distinctly sexual sound was heard from the office. Rikuo sighed, annoyed. They never quit. He had taken this job temporarily because at the time, he saw no other options to pay Saiga-san back. He was currently questioning that decision.

Unbeknownst to him, another person was asking a similar query.
"Why is there a younger Saiga-san at the Green Drugstore?"
"Mistress?" "Mistress?"
"I'll have to ask Kakei-san over for tea, I suppose." Yuuko-san rubbed her forehead. Hitsuzen could be a bitch sometimes. Kakei was lucky to only have to deal with premonitions, she thought to herself.
"Yay! Teatime!" "Yay! Teatime!"
"Later. For now, some sake."

It was later on in the evening, after the closing of Green Drug. Rikuo stared at the ceiling, wishing the fall chill would somehow avoid the cracks in the building that let the cold into the room. No such luck. It would have been a lovely crisp autumn evening if he had been in a better mood. But instead, he turned over in the now-too-thin sheets and turned his gaze to the window pane. He had been working for a week, putting up with the antics of his employer and …that man. The deal was supposed to be that Rikuo would work to pay off his debts while Saiga-san would add to them by working to find Tsukiko. But now, Rikuo worked while those two messed around, while Tsukiko… Rikuo shut his eyes and tried to sleep. Again, no such luck.
After a few more minutes, Rikuo got up and dragged himself to the washroom. He didn't want to think about it anymore. He just wanted to sleep.

Kakei sipped his tea quietly under Yuuko's glare the next day. He took care to savor the taste. It was chrysanthemum and rosehip, perfect for a late fall afternoon. (2) He smiled blithely back at the livid space-time witch, who was practically jumping out of her seat with irritation.
"This tea is perfect. Your tea-brewing skills have improved exponentially."

"In fact, this may be the best I have ever tasted from you. I do congratulate—"
"Kakei-san…"
"Not to say I don't enjoy your teatime company and discussions—"
"Why are there two Saigas in your store?"
"…What?"
"The older one is currently teasing the younger one, who is rather unamused. Interesting."
"What on earth are you talking about, Yuuko-san? There is only one Saiga-san. Mine. The assistant is a young man named Himura Rikuo, who is definitely not Saiga." Kakei smirked.
"Not exactly Saiga, per se…"
Kakei put down his tea cup in one fluid motion, and turned to stare at the space-time witch intently. Yuuko smirked. At least she had his attention now, however demanding. She kept up the staring contest until her own desire to talk to Kakei won over.
"Oh, alright, I'll tell you if you quit that childish behavior."
"Well?"
"The one you call your assistant is indeed a young man named Himura Rikuo. However, he seems to be…a sort of copy of Saiga-san. A reflection, if you will." Yuuko paused to sip from her own glass, although it was not tea. Kakei raised an eyebrow as she continued to speak once more.
"It may not make sense, but they are similar enough to give me pause."
"No chance of coincidence?" Kakei joked. Yuuko smiled. "I thought not."
"I am in the process of confirming it, but I highly doubt that your new assistant is a perfectly normal child."
"He can break things without touching them. An affinity."
"More than that."
"More than…? He will not fully reveal his past to even to us, despite his request of service…."
"Has it never occurred to you that if he had a wish, why would he not have come to my shop and not yours?"
"I…no, it had crossed my mind, but I figured I would be hearing from you at some point."
"Touché. But my dramatic revelation still stands, you know."
"Which is…?"
"That I directed Himura Rikuo to you; that I know exactly what is going on here. "
"I had a notion it would be something to that effect. However, whatever abstract relation to Saiga he may have, I simply cannot love him in the same way."
Yuuko rolled her eyes and took a deeper swig. Kakei could be so indirect when he wanted something from her—usually when he didn't wish to pay upfront, the greedy bastard. The space-time witch raised an eyebrow back at the psychic.
"Now, Yuuko-san, I am hurt! I didn't intend to imply your matchmaking skills have suffered any, and yet you don't seem to take my question seriously," Kakei smirked.
"Stop playing the coquette, Kakei. Not everyone you meet will find you irresistible, and you know it." Kakei smiled, somewhat darkly. "Yuuko. I am not joking in this matter. You are the one who told me that Saiga and I would be together because it was fated. (3)If this kid is somehow another Saiga, that would cause serious problems. I will not allow that."
Yuuko set down her glass, empty. "You are wondering if there is some possibility of your attraction to this boy. There is. However, you will make your own decisions on that matter. You always have that power."
Kakei pushed his thin glasses further up the bridge of his nose, mired in thought. Finally he smiled, a decidedly unchaste expression on his face. "No, I'm afraid you are wrong. There really is no possibility at all." Yuuko narrowed her eyes, unclear of his intentions. "His sexuality, you mean? That's not exactly a given." He smiled back at her scowl.
"No, he's definitely gay. But that's not what I was referring to."
"Alright, I'll bite. Why is there no possibility of your sleeping with him?"
"No, that's always a possibility. But there is no possibility of my being in love with, or even being attracted to him. It's because he's clearly seme." (4)
Yuuko choked slightly, but recovered rather quickly. "Then didn't you think that about Saiga-san, too, at first?" Kakei's smile took on a sadistic quality, but he said nothing. Yuuko rubbed her forehead. She needed more alcohol to do this job. Or, better yet, an assistant. (5)
"Well, I guess they are mirror images in more ways than one," she noted.

When Kakei walked through the back door of the Green Drug in the fading light, two pairs of eyes turned towards him, identical despite one set of ever-present shades. Rikuo used the opportunity to escape from Saiga-san's proximity. The man clearly needed a hobby. One that did not involve being insanely sketchy or perverted. Rikuo had made it to the stairs but it was no use.
"Himura-san, the shop is still open. Please do not take an early break." Rikuo grimaced internally. If Saiga-san was the epitome of everything frustrating, Kaikei was its patron saint. He went back to sweeping the floor, a task only partially done since a certain someone had decided to block the way. Honestly, if the man was so bored as to corner him, he could at least help out.
"Saiga, I need to talk to you before you set out tonight," Kakei said smoothly. Right, because the two of them had a discussion-based relationship, Rikuo commented silently as they filtered out. He went back to sweeping. God, how much longer would he have to stay here, endlessly attempting to sweep these stupid tiles clean? He didn't want to fathom a future where every day he donned the hated green apron, stocked the shelves, avoided flirty school girls, etc. Every day full of their damn screwing round. In more ways than one.
And now the pile of dirt warranted getting the dustpan. He sighed, a bit angrily. How the hell did the floor get so dirty after he just cleaned it? One old woman and some highschool girls couldn't possibly do this much damage. It was like a tomb, anyway; no one really stayed long enough to merit interest. So dull, so quiet. Well, except most of the time when those two were…Wait, why was it silent? Rikuo paused. It was indeed silent. He tried for gratitude but ended up being unsettled.

Saiga had been trying very hard not to laugh. After all, Kakei was angry, and laughing at an angry Kakei meant a fate worse than death. But it was a funny situation. A clone-thing of him? And Kakei didn't want to exploit this in any fashion? And of course, the bit about Himura sleeping with Kakei was hilarious, too. The brat definitely couldn't even measure up. In more ways than one. He exhaled, biting back a grin.
"So what do we do?" he asked tentatively. "I feel like we've become parents or something."
And then Kakei had passed out. Which was worrisome, but as it happened frequently enough, Saiga merely caught him and lightly shook his shoulder. It didn't work to wake him up. Instead, he latched onto Saiga's hand. Which Saiga did not mind overly much. Kaikei's displays of affection could be quite frustrating. Again, Saiga did not mind. He decided to simply sit down on the couch, and wait for his lover to wake up again. And there was no reason not to be cuddly in the meantime.

Kakei blinked slowly, mildly confused. He was in the office. Well, that was not unusual. He was on the couch. Not so strange either. He was also in Saiga's lap. That would have also not been strange, except they were not intimately engaged. And while he was sure Saiga would be willing to remedy that situation, Kakei had slightly more important things on his mind. (6)
Saiga loomed over him. "Welcome back."
"I'm going to hit that woman for not telling me sooner. The child is coming."
"What?"
"The child I started the shop for."
"Oh, another foreseeing dream about him? Is he on his way?"
"Fifty yen says this one's a mirror image of me."
"I'm not betting with you. Ever."

Downstairs, Rikuo hung up his apron and flipped the sign to read Closed. He climbed the stairs, exhausted. He wouldn't sleep tonight either. Maybe something would turn up. If not tomorrow, then next week, or next month.

(1) Yeah, I can't see him doing paperwork either.
(2)She got it as payment. Yuuko has no skills with beverages other than alcohol.
(3) Yuuko is so a fangirl. 'You have a deep connection'? C'mon, she is just manipulating the idea of fate. Cuz she can. Only an idiot or someone really oblivious (5)wouldn't get that kind of line.
(4) This is because Kakei is way too much of a control freak to not be dominant in their relationship. I mean emotionally, cuz I'm not gonna deal with their relationship physically. We all know where that goes. Seriously, his personality is too sadistic to not be seme.
(5) Watanuki. Yaaaaay!!
(6) Although Saiga may not see them as more important. Oh, you know I just wanted a reversal of the "don't worry about this cold fish" scene in the manga.

Dedicated to my friend who loves Legal Drug and asked for a fic. You know who you are.