Part 3
The imperial inner chambers held a mirror as tall as Peony that filled his walk-in closet, which also gave Luke and Asch a sense of privacy as they examined their clothing. Peony had locked his chamber doors, but he now closed the bedroom doors for another layer of seclusion.
As he waited, Peony looked from Asch to Luke, from Luke to Asch. He'd chosen their outfits, and as usual he congratulated himself on his impeccable taste. Luke's light green robe brought out his eyes while the orange sash highlighted the flaming orange tips of his hair. Beside him, Asch's darker green robe and blue sash nicely complimented Luke's coloring while accentuating his darker hair.
Physically identical, emotionally opposite, the boys were held close enough by the chain that their very presence seemed mingled, as if their fonins charged the air between them. Side by side, they were quite striking-a pair that any lord would be proud to keep in his harem.
A pity this was far more complicated than a mere harem acquisition.
"Wow," Luke said, holding the sleeves up to his face. "This is really comfy. It almost feels like pajamas."
"Pants don't come with the outfits?" Asch asked, tying his robe tight as he looked over his shoulder at the emperor.
"Nope," Peony said. "In fact, those are kind of traditional Malkuth clothing for the emperor's friends in the court."
He carefully edited out that they were clothing for specially chosen partners, and specifically the female members. What they didn't know would hurt them, and the colors weren't the gold and red that most courtesans wore anyway. Since the robes were for those "cherished" by the emperor, their religious standing as saints would easily count.
"Besides," he added. "Jade wants to be able to instantly see if you start disappearing again. So just the robes for now."
"No pants," Asch grumbled. "We can't really fight in this. Or with these stupid collars."
"You won't need to fight," Peony said, his smile fading. "I'm very glad to see you two back, but I'm afraid I'm about to use you all over again."
"Huh?" Luke breathed, grasping his end of the chain like a lifeline and worrying it between his fingertips. He lowered his head and stared at the floor. "But...we just came back. I don't want to die again."
"Quit whining," Asch huffed. "That's not what he meant. Geez, it was so nice not hearing you whine all the time."
"Quiet," Peony said, giving Asch a look, then turning his attention to Luke. "Not like that. I won't let that happen again. You-both of you are worth far more to me alive. I promise."
Instantly Luke beamed in relief. Peony couldn't help smiling in return. Luke had a joy that seemed to overflow and infect everyone around him. Well, except Asch. It was hard to reconcile seeing two mirror images that were so opposite, moody and stern, reserved and uninhibited. And as much as he loathed to hurt them, his kingdom came before even his own desires. He simply had to resolve not to harm them unnecessarily.
"When you showed up," he started to explain. "I took you in because I couldn't stand seeing everyone treating you like an mindless animal."
"Not too far off," Asch muttered at Luke, but a stern look from Peony silenced him.
"But there's an official reason for you being here," Peony said. "Technically, Luke, you're my hostage. Held here as insurance to keep Kimlasca from attacking."
"Oh..." Luke murmured.
"How come Luke's the hostage?" Asch demanded.
Peony would have snapped at him to be quiet, but he read the longing in the other boy's eyes and relented. No use insulting him when Asch was throwing around his wounded pride.
"Because he looks the closest to your amalgamated form," Peony said. "But don't worry. You're both going to have to be hostages now."
"Hostages against what?" Asch asked, mollified by Peony's answer.
"Assassination attempts. I've had three in the past couple of days alone, the first of which you killed for me." Peony sighed, sick of politics. "I'm sorry to have to repay you like this."
"We're not just chained up like this to keep us alive, are we?" Luke realized.
"No," Peony said. "It all has to do with the lack of an obvious Fon Master to lead the Order of Lorelei. That means a power vacuum between Tritheim and Anise, and their followers are vying to knock out their support structures. In Anise's case, that means me."
Peony took a breath. "Whoever is Fon Master will interpret the Score, and a reformist like Anise would mean that the Order would lose a lot of power as she moves people away from following the Score blindly."
He waited to make sure they didn't have any questions, then continued.
"This is where you come in. You've got the same resonance as the Seventh Fonin. You released Lorelei from its prison and delivered it back to the world. For all intents and purposes, you're a Saint of Lorelei."
Asch and Luke stood dumbly for a moment, then glanced at each other, trying to see if either of them understood. When Luke shrugged his shoulders, Asch looked back at Peony.
"Which one of us?"
Peony smiled. "Both of you. You were together when it happened. It merged you together. Now your fonins are so eager to return to Lorelei that we have to help keep your bodies here."
"...and?" Asch asked.
"And people already know the story and that you were affected by Lorelei. If they see you both back, whole, they'll treat you like something sacred."
"Like a cheagle?" Luke whispered, wide eyed.
"Kind of," Peony admitted. "And in your fragile state, as long as you're by me, no one will dare to attack."
Luke frowned. "So we're like bodyguards?"
Asch scoffed. "No, you idiot. He means that if no one will try anything, 'cause if anyone tried to kill him, they could end up killing us instead. Or...or that he could hurt us in retaliation."
The hardest part was watching Luke look up at him in betrayal. Peony kept a stony face. Sometimes being the emperor was damned awful. As the moment passed and Peony didn't reassure them that he'd never have them punished for someone else's sins, Luke lowered his head again.
"For how long?" Luke asked.
"I don't know," Peony said honestly. "Days, weeks...years. Until the next Fon Master is chosen."
Peony let them digest that information. A minute passed. Then two. Luke moved to sit down, then paused as the chain jerked. At first Asch showed no signs of moving, but with a shaky breath he sat down on the bed and Luke sat beside him.
Peony's heart tugged at seeing them sit side by side, shoulder to shoulder. Asch reached up and felt along the length of his collar, pulling at the welded hinge and searching out any weak point. He yanked at the chain, but Jade had crafted the fonins himself. Nothing could break the seals the Colonel had created.
"For what it's worth," Peony said, "I'm sorry I have to do this."
Long minutes dragged by. Luke leaned against Asch, and surprisingly, Asch didn't move away. Peony wondered how their time together and their sudden separation was affecting them. Did their touch calm them? Did the sudden quietness in their head worry them?
"You know I have no intention of harming you, but the threat has to be there for everyone else to see," Peony said. "You understand that, right?"
Luke nodded, eager to believe in his friend. Asch hesitated and nodded once, slowly.
"What do we do while we wait?" Asch asked, and although he had nodded, his voice told Peony that the boy was still making up his mind.
"A lot of things," Peony said. "You'll need to learn to get along. Jade will work toward finding a more permanent solution so we can get you two unlocked eventually. I also imagine you'll still want to practice your swordplay."
"Like this?" Asch scoffed, yanking the chain so that Luke jerked. "Impossible."
"Hardly impossible," Peony said. "You'll see. I promise this won't be as bad as you're thinking."
"That's 'cause you're not chained to him," Asch snapped, then growled when he realized Luke had said that, too.
42/13/2020
Luke tapped his pencil on his diary. Somehow the book had survived the release of Lorelei, his merging with Asch and the years he spent wandering mindlessly across the world. He'd even tried to keep it up, but deciphering what he'd written-
iWent Baticuul ate travelled on a boat an apple and and and fireworks/i
-was pretty much impossible. Asch had snuck one peek over his shoulder and looked away again quickly.
iWorking on my penmanship like Guy wanted,/i Luke wrote, taking time forming his letters. iGuy's also teaching me more hisotry now that I'm interested. Jade said he's gonna tutor me in fonics when he's got a better idea of how my own fonins are doing./i
"You misspelled history," Asch grumbled.
"Huh?" Luke scanned back and sighed, scratching it out and fixing the letters. "Man..."
Stretched out on the bed beside him, Asch stared at the swirled white marble ceiling. Peony's palace delivered mind-boggling luxury, and after living as a soldier for so long, the soft bed and the palace servants felt like they were meant for Luke. Not Asch the Bloody. Luke fon Fabre, savior of the world...
He had barely reclaimed that name. Sometimes it still felt like a lie.
He stretched his sword arm up to the ceiling. Learning to fight while chained to Luke made for sore muscles, especially since he had to practice drawing so he didn't slash Luke. He rotated his shoulder with a wince, then sat up-
"Gack!"
Asch choked and fell backwards while Luke dropped his pencil as he was yanked sideways. Growling in frustration, Asch would have snapped at Luke for not paying attention if they hadn't been yanking each other each way for weeks.
"Gah! I hate this!" Asch said, slamming his fist on the mattress. "I can barely move at all!"
"You're too far away," Luke said, the same thing he'd been saying for days. "You'd have plenty of room if you stayed right at my side."
Asch glared at him, but there was no arguing with the obvious. The chain wasn't going to grow longer and he couldn't keep his replica at arm's distance forever. Especially not now. And he didn't have Luke's voice in his head jumbling his thoughts anymore. That in itself was more than he could have hoped for.
"I think your hair got some tangles in it," Luke said, looking up from behind him. "Come here, I'll brush 'em out for you."
Asch didn't move or acknowledge him, and he stiffened in surprise when he felt the brush sweep down his hair, then again beneath it against the nape of his neck. He endured it for a moment as his shoulders and arms tensed, then he turned and snatched the brush from Luke's hands.
"Knock that off!" he snapped.
"Huh?" Luke blinked with a hurt expression. "You don't like it?"
"Shut up!" Asch wasn't about to admit that he tightened up at being touched, having not ever experiencing it before. "It's not-you just can't do it right!"
"Really?" Luke asked. "Am I doing it wrong?"
"You..." Asch huffed. "Turn around."
Obedient, Luke turned and tilted his head, letting Asch push him forward and awkwardly touch the brush to his hair. After a moment, the brushing became a little more confident, then a little stronger again. Luke smiled. So that was it. He was supposed to start off really light.
Which was how Guy found Asch with Luke all but in his lap as he did his hair.
"Man, that brings back memories," Guy chuckled as he came in with a package under his arm.
"'Memories'?" Asch echoed.
Luke grumbled as Asch paused in his brushing.
"Yeah," Guy said. "I used to do that for him when his hair was that long. He's good at caging a good brushing, huh?"
Asch looked down at Luke, who had turned on his side so Asch could reach the back of his neck. It felt so natural to continue brushing that he hadn't even noticed his hand was moving again.
"Told you so," Guy said.
"He was showing me how to do it right," Luke said.
"Shut up," Asch grumbled, still brushing despite himself.
"When you're done with that," Guy said, "I brought you new clothes. Same colors, but the cloth's a little lighter so you shouldn't be so hot."
"Thank goodness," Luke sighed. "These things are so heavy."
"It's 'cause of the inner lining," Asch said. "It traps the heat in."
"How do you know that?" Guy asked.
"Daath changed its uniform contractor once," Asch said. "We had recruits dropping left and right during formation, but it still took us weeks to convince the seamstresses that their pretty linings weren't good for the troops."
"Well, these feel lighter, so maybe you're right," Guy said. He unwrapped the paper around the robes and spread them out on the end of the bed. "Looks like you're right. Ready to dress for dinner?"
Luke shook his head. "Not yet...let him finish."
"I'm done," Asch said, tossing the brush aside. He yanked on the chain and held it taut. "Come on, get up."
"Aw..." Luke climbed up on his knees and looked at them with bleary eyes. "Can't we get our meals delivered here?"
"You were spoiled before," Guy said. "Meals aren't supposed to be delivered. You're supposed to gather in the dining hall."
"Ugh," Luke said. "All those nobles get on my nerves."
Guy put a hand on his hip.
"Um, except you," Luke hastily amended. "And Jade and Peony, of course. Well, maybe not Jade..."
"Jade is Jade," Guy agreed. "Besides, you have to make appearances."
"And that sucks!" Asch said, shedding the top of his robe. "They all gawk at us like we're circus animals."
As Asch stripped, Guy helped undo the sash around Luke's waist and took his robe, tossing it to land on the sword rack in the corner.
"Hopefully the next sash should be easier for you," Guy said. "It doesn't have the wrap around in the back."
"Everything's easy compared to plate armor," Asch said, slipping into his own robe. He waved his arms around and fidgeted. "It feels too light."
"Saints don't get plate armor," Guy smiled. "You'll just have to get used to it."
"Yeah..." Asch wrapped the robe up tight and tied the sash. "Wish we could get some pants, though."
"You'll have to take that up with Jade," Guy said. "Although I wouldn't ask him at dinner. Not with all those people watching."
Walking to the dining hall was an ordeal in itself. Luke knew what a spectacle they made, matching redheads in colorful robes with a chain between their collars, but he'd thought the nobles would get tired of staring every single time. At least the servants didn't gawk, but-
"Didn't your parents teach you not to stare?" Asch snapped at a passing noble, who startled to one side, his feathery cap sliding down his face. "Am I the only one who ever had an etiquette tutor?"
"They don't often get to see a saint," Guy said. "Besides, nobles have plenty of manners. They just don't always show it. Luke, for instance, has really good manners, but only when he wants to."
"Hey," Luke said. "I behave!"
Guy laughed. "Yeah, you're not a spoiled brat anymore."
"Just sometimes," Asch muttered.
"It's not my fault my etiquette tutor was lousy," Luke said. "He'd fall asleep when Guy left."
"Yeah..." Guy grimaced. "I'm sorry, Luke. Your tutors never really treated you well."
Luke smiled. "It's okay. You were there."
They veered off to another hallway, this one flanked by two guards at the door. The emperor's entrance to the dining hall lead to his private chambers, and no one was allowed into this section of the palace without his approval. Even the servants were the older, trusted members of the household.
"There you are," Jade said, standing by the door. "Running a little late?"
"The hall was a little crowded," Guy said. "More guests than usual?"
"I'm afraid so," Jade said. "Tomorrow's the Festival of the Grand Symphonic Convergence, so several families send a representative to the concert."
Asch grimaced. "Man, I remember those concerts. Boring and took way too long."
"Now now," Peony said, coming up behind them. "I always thought they sounded pretty. I had even thought of bringing you two along."
"Really?" Luke asked, stepping forward and dragging Asch with him. "Could we?"
"Don't listen to him," Asch said, rubbing his neck under the collar. "He doesn't know what he's asking."
"You're religious icons now," Jade said. "You should make appearances like that."
"Let the Order make them," Asch said. Then he paused. "Wait...would that be Anise or Tritheim?"
"That's exactly what I was worried about," Peony said. "I don't know what effect you two would have just by being there. I'd love to see Tritheim killed, but not in a riot in my capital."
The trumpets in the dining hall sounded. Peony waited as Jade took his position at the door, about to lead the way in.
"I need to take a vacation," Peony murmured. "So I can have at least one dinner that doesn't have horns and an audience."
"We could go to the spa," Luke offered.
"Yeah," Peony said wistfully. "That'd be nice. And I could make my Jade wear his swimsuit."
"Time to eat," Jade said, opening the door a little early.
The talking in the dining hall stopped as everyone respectfully stood. Jade stopped at the throne's side while Luke and Asch sat on the cushions spread around the throne, giving them ample space to sit comfortably. As Peony sat between them, resting his foot on the cushioned stool, the effect was subtle but clear-Emperor Peony protected and controlled the saints, and even if the fonin chain's purpose had been explained to the nobles, it also emphasized that they were his prisoners. Cherished and privileged, but prisoners nonetheless.
Guy and Jade flanked either side of the raised dais and didn't partake, keeping their hands free. No other attempts had been made on Peony's life since Luke and Asch's reappearance, but they would not take chances. Though there were many more guards on duty, they were the last, best line of defense, which did nothing to make them less jumpy.
Asch shifted on his cushion, trying to cover his bare feet with his long robe. The Malkuth robe had been obviously influenced by Hod fashion, but it was too light and flowy for his taste. On his other side, however, Luke lounged against the throne, one leg curled beneath himself while the other was bare to his thigh, and the top of his robe had fallen open along his shoulder. Asch blushed and wished his replica wouldn't show off so much of his...their body.
The servants brought their supper, two crystal goblets of cut fruit cocktail. It was a light dish, which suited them after the heavy private lunches they'd had. As the servant passed by Asch, he took the opportunity to lean against Peony and whisper at Luke.
"Will you cover up a bit more?" he hissed. "You're shameless."
"Shut up," Luke whispered back, bending his leg as he reclined. "You're not dressed any better."
"I don't have a choice," Asch snapped. "And I'm still fully covered. You look like a half-dressed drunk."
"He looks fine," Peony whispered, lazily drifting his hand down to stroke Luke's hair. "As do you."
Asch sulked, but he didn't move as he felt Peony touch his own long hair. He wondered if he should shy away, but it was hardly more than he was used to. He closed his eyes. Sometimes he still missed Van...
There was a gasp from everyone in the hall. Asch looked around, then followed their gazes upward. At the round window in the ceiling, a white and blue blur was chipping at one of the glass panels.
"What on earth?" Guy wondered, half drawing his sword. "Is that a monster?"
Jade took a long look, then relaxed. "Oh, it's a monster all right. But I don't think we need to worry."
Peony smiled. "I do believe you're right. Luke...you have a visitor."
"Huh?"
The glass panel broke in half. Jade disintegrated it before it could fall, and a moment later a blue bundle of fur in a gold ring tumbled into the hall, floating down into Luke's lap.
"Mieuuuu!"
"Hey!" Luke grinned and hugged Mieu, then held him up. "I missed you! How'd you get all the way up here?"
Mieu rubbed his head against Luke's hand as his ears flopped back and forth. "I heard you came back, but that you were all funny in the head. So I thought maybe I could help you, and here I am."
"You traveled all alone?" Luke said. "I'm impressed. And the elder let you take Yulia's ring again?"
Mieu chirped. "Oh! I should've asked permission, shouldn't I?"
Luke winced, but Asch laughed and leaned closer to Mieu.
"No, you did good. Better to beg for forgiveness when you get back."
"Oh, Asch!" Mieu cried. "You're back, too! And you're both okay in the head."
"Yeah," Luke said. "Jade did that for us."
As Luke held Mieu, he noticed that the room had gone quiet. He looked up and found everyone staring at him, and then one by one the nobles bowed their heads. Luke frowned, turning to Peony for an explanation.
"The saints of Lorelei just had a sacred cheagle descend out of the skies into your lap," Peony said. "It's practically a sign of divine favor."
"But...Mieu's just my friend," Luke said.
His little protest made Peony snort. "Your friends include an emperor and numerous warriors with names like 'the Bloody' and 'the Necromancer'."
When Luke didn't know how to reply, Asch gave the chain a small tug. "Just sit back and look regal. And close your robe!"
Luke obeyed, half-heartedly tugging the top of his robe back into place. Why did everyone have to keep staring? And why didn't Peony have a bigger footstool so he could hide behind it?
"Are you okay, Master?" Mieu asked. "You look scared."
"Just a little nervous," Luke admitted. "And you don't have to call me Master anymore, remember?"
"I know," Mieu said. "Is it okay if I do call you Master?"
Luke chuckled. "I guess...if you want."
Mieu couldn't keep his voice down, and his question set off a new round of whispers. Luke grimaced and he looked over at Asch, who wore the same expression. Wordlessly he reached over and took Asch's hand, expecting to be quickly shrugged off. Instead Asch turned his head, pressing against the baggy cloth of Peony's leg, and let Luke keep holding him.
Tbc...