Title: In the Moonlight.
Author: NaomiSidhe -- Naomi Hunter on Fanfiction.net
Email: juliansidhe@zoidwars.zzn.com or Rougekitty@msn.com
Pairing(s): Multiple pairings mainly Ryuichi-x-Tohma. Hints of Tohma-x-Eiri. Minor Shuichi-x-Suguru. Also, Eiri-x-Shuichi and Sakano-x-Suguru. Yes, Sakano-x-Suguru. I love that pairing. In the snail-like process of writing one…I might even finish it one day. :p
Description: AU, way AU. It's set in like the Middle Ages-ish. The dialogue is kind of archaic, too. (Thee, thou etc). Prince Tohma, while traveling to the Uesugi Kingdom strays into the Magical Forest and finds himself in quite a predicament.
Warnings: Lime. Sap. Angst. Fantasy. Magic Flowers and love spells. Faery dust galore. Lot's of Faery slut-ness. ^_^ Inspired by Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream kind of--it's what we've been doing in English class.
Rating: R
Note: I use 'fair' in the sense of 'beautiful' or 'beauty' and Titania is the queen of the Faeries.
THE CAST:
The prince from lands afar: Tohma
Princess: Mika
Prince: Eiri
Prince: Tatsuha
Wanderer: Kitazawa Yuki
Captain of the Guards: K
The Reluctant Knight: Sakano
Faeries: (main): Ryuichi,
Shuichi
Suguru
(messenger faery--minor part.) Noriko.
Bard of kingdom near: Hiro
In The Moonlight.
By: NaomiSidhe / Naomi Hunter.
"What is it I'm waiting for, in this room without you--
It's just the clock's ticking, but it resonates in my sleepless heart like
The sound of footsteps.
Even now I'm waiting; I stop here alone.
From where do you now see the moon we saw together on that day."
-"In The Moonlight" ~Gravitation.
Once upon a time, not long and not short from our own, there were two kingdoms that lived in harmony with one another. One was to the east and one was to the west, separated in-between by the Magical Forest.
Prince Tohma sighed and covered his face with a hand, leaning back in his throne. The Seguchi Kingdom had become barren over time and was too weak to continue on its own. They had come to rely on the Uesugi Kingdom for help, and traded its last prince to marry its only princess, Mika. But, they did not know of their Prince's repugnance to the situation, for he was in love with the fair and striking Prince Eiri of the Uesugi and had been for most of his life.
"Oh, what am I to do? I cannot marry one I love not! I shall not. Oh, I wish I had the strength to run away, to desert my kingdom and confess to my dearly loved Prince Eiri." He murmured aloud, staring at the grand tapestries.
"Prince Tohma!" Called a Knight.
"Yes, Sir Knight? What do you wish of me?"
"To inform you of your journey to the Uesugi Kingdom!"
"I? Voyage to the Uesugi Kingdom?"
"Yes, my Prince, you shall travel to them and greet their Princess, Mika as your wife!"
Prince Tohma was too overjoyed at his luck to care he was to meet his lady. /This is it! I will declare my love to Prince Eiri and we shall be wed!/
"When shall I leave?"
"In the morning you shall set off!"
The handsome blonde Prince smiled as he pulled the pack onto his shoulders and his Fedora over his head.
"Are you sure that it is best you go alone?"
"Of course, I can travel much quicker alone than I can with a troupe of men. Now, farewell, Sir Knight!"
He started down the path and walked all day on it, never tiring.
"Hello, good sir." He said to a wandering man who's eyes were shaded.
"And to you, Fair Prince." He chuckled gravely. "Go you into the Magical Forest?"
"Indeed, it will bring me there quicker."
"I would not if I were you, I'd go back to the fork and not go through. Inside lays a wicked collection, of faeries, hobgoblin and sprites, piskies, nymphs and pixies, do be careful or they'll play trixies…Beware, beware of the iniquitous four, wish you meet them nevermore. Enter not, the forest rare, or you'll find a story to no compare…so, enter not, gentle Prince, many before have done so and have not been seen of since."
Tohma laughed softly. "I thank thee for your admonitory words, kind sir, but I shall be fine. I do not fear the Fae or and hobgoblins that could come my way."
"Your words be your folly, good Prince, but do not say I did not warn thee. But, steer clear of the stools of toad and eerie rings, elderly oaks and willow trees… "
And so, the Prince entered the forest, despite the drifter's caveat. The grove was dim and mottled with light sparkling down through the trees.
"I shall not fall prey to any imp to come my way ." He said softly, trekking through the brush.
"…we are the Fae of Titania's Grove,
Protect her dear flora, trees and mead
Safeguard her dear beasts; deer, rabbits and dove
We love to burden those who take no heed
We are the Fae of Titania's Grove
Lovely and sweet we four be
Trick and trap you from above
To see is to believe and to believe is to see…" Echoed four voices in a calm meadow.
Tohma's curiosity crept him closer, leaning through the shrubs. Inside a ring in the grass danced four youths, three young men and one young woman. Shimmery, translucent wings sprouted from their shoulders, and flowers were woven in their hair and scant clothing. The young woman had lavender hair, pulled into thick double twists, the male next to her had dark pink hair with little periwinkle lilies of the valley plaited into it that matched his eyes. The other boy was thin and wiry with dark green hair and brownish eyes. The last was tall and slender with sienna brown hair that shone olive green in the light that was interwoven with little pink and purple flowers, his pale skin adorned with more, rainbows of wildflowers curled around his arms, wrists and calves, little yellow cowslips coiled delicate chains around his ankles and his sapphire eyes shone as he sang. The four all wore light brown garments made of woven grasses around their hips and breasts.
The prince's cheeks coloured as he watched the brunette. /They cannot be Faeries they are as tall as I; the faery folk are tiny creatures that are no larger than my hand…but they have wings and they must be, by the looks of them--/
"Ryuichi? What's wrong? Why have you stopped?" The pink haired one asked as the young faery chuckled.
"I see we have an audience, Shuichi." He purred, his speaking voice as delightful as his singing. "A lover of disrespect he is, not asking to listen in on our songs. It's a sin to spy on the Fae, fair vagrant, I should make an example of you. Show thyself."
Reluctantly, Tohma stood and the Faerie's eyes widened, ever-so-slightly.
"Oh, my, my, what a pretty Vagrant he is, do you not agree?" They all tittered as he stalked closer. "So sweet he is, he would make a very nice treat…" He murmured, licking his lips subtly.
"Audacious Puck! Impish Pixy! Wicked Hobgoblin! Leave me be and let me pass! I have no business with thee!"
The faery called Ryuichi laughed quietly. "Oh, no, we can't do that now, can we? Suguru?" He said as the emerald haired pixie stepped up.
"Yes, Ryuichi." He said, waving his hands gently.
Tohma let out a cry as vines wrapped around his ankles and wrists, pinning him up against a tree.
"How could we let you go, my darling? You look so tasty." He teased, brushing his lithe fingers across the blonde's cheek and he caught a smell of his enchanting and flowery fragrance.
"Y-you're going to e-eat me?! That's cannibalism…I guess…"
The faeries fell onto the floor laughing as the leader smiled seductively.
They collected themselves one by one, and the two males crawled over, running their hands up his legs as the brunette touched his hair, eyeing him with fascination.
"No, you're much to beautiful to eat, besides, you're a little to raw for us, anyway…"
"W-what are you? Who are you?"
"Me? I am anything you want me to be…" He purred, as the handsome royal flushed, as the Faery took his beloved Eiri's face.
"E-Eiri?"
"Yes, my love, it's me…" He leant forward and smiled. "Kiss me, dear prince."
…
Tohma awoke to someone purring in his ear.
"Tohma….Tohma….wake up, Tohma…" He grunted and rolled onto his stomach. He had the impression of being all light and floaty; unattached. Tohma felt a pair of cool hands slide up the back of his bare thighs and backside, up his spine and gently kneaded his shoulders as he felt someone straddle his lower back. "Come on, wake up, sleeping beauty…" He hummed in his ear, gently nipping the curved outer edge. Tohma breathed in the same flowery-sweet aroma he had before. He quickly turned his head to look into the deep sapphire eyes of the brunette faery.
"Eiri? Eiri…? Where is Eiri?" He asked quietly as the mischievous little pisky met him with a kiss, leaving a sugary nectar-like taste on his tongue after the lips receded.
He flipped onto his back again, feeling Ryuichi's hands caress his chest, moving lower and lower till he let out a moan. The faery giggled and kissed him again.
"Where am I…?" He whispered, feeling completely spent. "Am I still in the forest?"
"Yes…"
"Why?"
"Oh, you know why."
"What happened." He gave a sly smile and began to cover his naked body in kisses again.
"Tohma…" He purred, curling up around him.
"Where is Eiri…?"
"Eiri was never here, lovely, you only imagined him."
Tohma gathered the strength to sit up and stared down at the Faery. He noticed that they were laying in a bed of flowers and the faery had a content smile across his rosy pink lips, and his unclothed flesh was covered in minor scratches from Tohma's fingernails.
"You are my love," he whispered, "The one I wait for."
"W-what?" He was suddenly pulled into the mystical man's embrace.
"I live for you, my sweet Prince."
"You speak nonsense, how do you even know who I am?"
"I know all, my lovely one, I know you better than you know thyself. You are my sweetest love of whom I live, love and breathe for…Stay with me, fair, sweet Prince and all you see in Titania's forest shall be yours."
"No! I mustn't stay! My love, Eiri, awaits me!"
"He loves you not, and I do, my sweet. Stay with me, forever and live as King of all that Titania possesses. Own me, sweet Prince. Take my love…"
Tohma stood and shook his head, leaving Ryuichi kneeling on the floor. The Faery's face was obscured in his stomach, his arms curled around his waist and thighs.
"No, this isn't real! I must find Eiri, this is all just faery glamour! You cannot trick my human heart!" He breathed as Ryuichi stared up at him furiously with his narrowed sapphire eyes.
"Ay, Titania, what fools these mortals be!" He hissed, standing. "What care I for human hearts, soft and spirituous as porridge! You know not of a Faery's love and vows; a Faery's heart beats fierce and free!" He cried and in a flash he was gone.
Tohma's knees weakened and gave out as he coughed on the swirl of shimmery pollen that was lingering from the handsome faery. He fell back against the foundation of flora, inhaling the fresh earthy scent, the morning dew adhering to his naked body. His head felt light again as he scanned the area for his clothes. He lay his head back against the mound of soil and slid his eyes shut. /Just a few minutes…just a few minutes and I'll get up…/ He thought to himself, slipping off to sleep.
Prince Tohma was awakened by the sounds of light footsteps and felt clean, crisp water splatter on his face and trickle past his parted lips. He saw the two other male Faeries from the night before. The pink haired one stood over him with an animal skin pouch that was emptying the rest of the water on his chest now. He wore a cross look on his face and the other was crouched on all fours with a bark-tray balanced on his head. Shuichi knelt beside him and took the tray from Suguru's head. Its contents were berries, fruits, tubers, some flowers, and some mushrooms.
"Eat." They said in unison, Suguru nestled into Shuichi. Shuichi caressed the spot between Suguru's wings gently, that was obviously quite sensitive from the look on the lithe boy's face.
"Eat." Said the female from the night before, dropping down from a nearby tree. She held a hand on her hip and gave him the same look. "I suggest you do, before our hospitality runs out."
He did, hesitantly, sipping the nectar delicately.
Prince Eiri groaned, slumping back in his throne. His brother, Prince Tatsuha was lazily kicking the wall, his head resting against Eiri's arm.
"I'm bored…" He mumbled as the golden haired Prince snorted.
"I'm more bored."
"Nuh-uh, I am."
"No, I am."
"No! I am--"
"Shut up, both of you." Mika sighed as she stood and approached K, the Captain of the Guard, and Hiro, the Kingdom's Bard. "Have you any word from Prince Tohma of the Seguchi Kingdom?"
"No, Milady." K said, looking up from polishing his gun.
"Damn!" She hissed as Hiro bowed.
"Milady? May I suggest what I believed to have happened?"
"Go ahead."
"I believe he must be taking an unwilled sojourn in the Magical Forest! The Fae have been restless these past few days and I believe they must have a prisoner."
"I wish not to believe you, but it is feasible." She put a finger to her lips. "Eiri? You will go to the Forest and retrieve Prince Tohma."
"Why? I don't want to."
"Eiri!"
"Fine."
"You will be accompanied by Sir K and one of his men."
"Yeah, Uhhuh, whatever."
"Milady?"
"Yes?"
"I have no men at the time, they are all out preparing for the wedding."
"Well, there must be someone to aid you…"
K walked up behind the palace's accountant and slapped him on the back, knocking his glasses clean off.
"Sakano, my boy! Today's your lucky day! Your dreams have come true, you're going to be a Knight!"
"W-what!?!?" He fumbled for his glasses and pulled them back on, staring up at the man fearfully. "What are you t-talking about?! I never wanted to be a Knight--" Both hands shot up as he let out a yell, staring down the barrel of a really nice gun.
"You were saying?"
"D-do I have to?" He squeaked as K moved his finger nearer to the trigger. "OKAY! OKAY! I'll do it! I'll do it!"
Prince Eiri, Sir K, and the Reluctant Knight: Sakano, all trekked down the path to the Magical Forest. The three stood in the entrance of the Woods.
"I'm going this way, all right?" Eiri said as the Knights nodded.
"All right, Sakano! You head in! Yell if you run into any problems!" K laughed, shoving the protesting young man off on the path on the other side of Eiri's.
"Now, time for me to find the Faeries…"
The three Faeries attending to Tohma looked up at the sound of something Tohma couldn't hear.
"May I have my clothes?" He asked as Noriko, the female, waved her hands and produced a pair of wild plant-woven pants and a light airy shirt made from spider's webs. Suguru and Shuichi stood and grinned surreptitiously at each other.
The young woman wrinkled her nose. "Fine, you go off and play while I report to Ryuichi. Slackers." She sighed and then, the faeries were gone. Tohma stood and took a few hesitant steps. Were they allowing him to go?…and rather, did he want to go.
Shuichi landed in a cherry blossom tree and tiptoed from limb to limb, following and watching the handsome new prince make his way down the beaten path. The man turned and he leant down, close enough to touch him and whispered in his ear.
"What are you doing in our forest, human?" He jumped nearly twenty feet and spun around, drawing his sword.
He snarled at the Faery. "Wretched little Imp!" He shouted, swinging the blade at him.
The pink haired youth giggled and with a flutter of his hand the rapier was altered into a bouquet of pink tulips.
"What…?" The handsome prince said as the Faery dipped his fingertips into a pouch at his waist and let the glittery powder fly into his face.
Eiri grabbed at his eyes and cursed loudly while the faery waited. He blinked his ocher eyes and his mouth fell open.
"Who…are you and where have you been all of my life?!" He cried, jumping on the waiflike, winged-teen and covering him with kisses.
Sakano shivered more as he slowly stepped into a tiny clearing. Every noise made him more vigilant and panicky. Unseen to the indigo haired man, a dark vine slithered up and tripped him, making him fall flat on his face, pitching his glasses a few feet.
Through his fogged vision Sakano saw someone bend and pick up his glasses, turning and holding them out to him. He quickly snatched up his glasses and stared up at a cute Elfin-like young man with dark emerald hair and pretty brown eyes, Then, he saw the wings. He let out yelp and stumbled up, drawing his sword awkwardly. He began to swing wildly and the blade flew out of his hands into a nearby tree. Suguru sniggered and he tripped backwards this time, over the same vine. The dainty Faery got on his hands and knees and crawled forward almost into Sakano's lap, inclining his head a little with a cute look. His lips grazed the other's gently, leaving a sugary taste on Sakano's lips. The tentative Knight went scarlet and trembled.
"Fae…be gone?" He squeaked as Suguru pouted.
"But you're so cute…" He said, slipping his hands into the other's pants, listening to him groan reluctantly. "Please? I won't bite…hard," he giggled and pulled Sakano on top of him, taking off his glasses. He slowly and lazily dragged one of the flowers from his hair across his face, letting the syrupy juice run into his dark eyes. The accountant-turned-Knight settled his nose into Suguru's downy hair, inhaling the delightful aroma of the forest that remained on the young man. He pressed his willowy frame against him, letting his fingers creep down his back and between the youth's gossamer-like wings, savoring the blissful gasp he received.
Ryuichi stood under a small waterfall that emptied into a shallow, waist high basin. The crisp water poured down his head and down the rest of his body. He tugged his fingers through his wet, messy hair and rubbed at his face. The freezing cold water did nothing to soothe his anger and indignation.
"Ryuichi! Humans have entered the forest! Shuichi and Suguru are distracting two of them, but, I fear they come for Prince Tohma--"
"Let them take him," He snapped, shaking the wetness from his sienna brown tresses.
"What?"
"Let them…" He said, softer than the first.
"Found you!" Said a loud and obstreperous voice. "You, I presume are the ones who kidnapped Prince Tohma!"
"Hnh." Ryuichi sighed and made his way to the ornate and flowery throne, sitting wearily. "He leaves of his own will."
"Then you admit to keeping him?"
"Only to beguiling him."
"That is a crime, a crime against the kingdom!" He snarled as Ryuichi said nothing and flexed his fragile wings.
"I am not one of your kingdom and as of now you are in mine, so I suggest you leave because it is an offense to be here, human."
"Impudence. You shall answer to Princess Mika of the Uesugi Kingdom! Come! Plead your blamelessness to her Majesty."
"Do you dare disrupt the serenity of Titania's Grove?" He breathed, standing up and walking to the Knight, making him recede further down the path.
"I owe no loyalty to this pagan realm!" He raised his firearm and took aim on the nimble faery and fired. Ryuichi concentrated on the bullet and it transformed into a spray of flower petals. "W-what?!" He ran back to the most central clearing, where they had split up.
"You realize that you shall be…oh what's the phrase? Pushing up daisies, now, my good Knight, adieu." He said, raising his hand.
"Stop!" A melodious voice called, tackling K, who was ready to fire again.
"P-prince Tohma!" The knight cried as Ryuichi halted his attack.
"Good Knight, I beg you to stop!" he turned to the faery. "Ryuichi, please, do not harm him."
"As you wish." He said quietly, waving his hand and materializing the rest of the inhabitants of the forest there.
Sakano's head lay in Suguru's lap, while the faery stroked his indigo hair and Shuichi lay beneath the gorgeous golden-haired prince who had his face nuzzled into his rosy, flower-entwined hair.
"E-Eiri!" Tohma breathed, his heart clenching.
"Shuichi, release him." The brunette faery told him. "You too, Suguru."
"What?! Why?" he purred, wriggling from beneath the Prince, who pulled him right back.
Suguru pouted, "Yeah, why, you got to have fun, why can't we?"
"I said, release them." Ryuichi told them sternly. He appeared before Eiri and brushed his fingertips, coated with fragrant nectar, over his closed eyelids. He slowly declined until he lay on the grass and Ryuichi did the same to Sakano.
"Uh! But, Ryuichi!"
"No buts…" He said, stepping up to Tohma.
"R…Ryuichi…." The prince whispered as he was swept up in the Faery's embrace, falling into a mind-blowing kiss. The Faery gave him a distraught look as he kissed him again, gently on the lips. "I love you…" He whispered and grazed his fingertips over Tohma's eyelids.
"R-Ryuichi!" He gasped as he fell forward into his arms and was placed gently on the earth. They dealt with K accordingly and vanished.
Tohma sighed, laying in bed next to the Uesugi princess. He was troubled, this past year. Everything perplexed the handsome Prince. Of course he loved Mika, but, why did it not feel right…why did it feel so empty? He rose from his bed and stood at the window in nothing but a gauzy robe. He stared down at the garden, specifically one flower. It was a dark purple colour and was usually bright and lively, but ever since the Prince's misery started, it had begun to slump. He had replanted it after he was found with it, outside of the Magical Forest, with Sir K, Prince Eiri, and Sakano. He thought of that place, now, no longer vibrant and alive--now a dark and gloomy place. The flowers there drooped and had begun to wilt, the trees had begun to creak and moan, the animals began to slowly die…His dreams were heartbreaking: he watched the Forest die every night, and watched a fading Faery take its last breath. The Faery instilled fluttery vibrations in his heart, causing him pain.
He cried for the pixie, slumping into the chair by the window. His heart ached as he caught the scent of the flora and fauna of the Forest. It was calling him.
"Why does the fate of the Magical Forest plague me so? Why does the mere scent of flowers cause my heart to break?" He breathed aloud as the tears coursed down his cheeks. The pull of the Forest was too much to resist. "I must go…I must go to find out what part of myself I left behind there…something I should have done long ago."
He strode over to the cabinet and opened up the drawers, rummaging to the back. There was a set of clothing made of woodland grasses and spider webs. He put them on quickly, brushing his fingers over the silky web-woven shirt and the soft-roughness of the pants.
The air was cool as he strayed into the forest, cooler than it should have been. Fireflies buzzed lazily, barely lighting his way. Moonlight peeked through the branches of the perishing trees and he heard a waterfall emptying into a basin nearby. He followed the sound and came upon a florid bower. Tohma noticed three other creatures crumpled a little away.
/Faeries…? Could It be?/
He crept closer, approaching the bower. There lay a beautiful faery laying on his stomach, his pale skin glowing in the moonlight and his wilted wings catching the glimmers of luminosity. Tohma's stomach fluttered with anticipation and felt his memories slowly trickle back. He could feel the Pixie's hands caressing his bare flesh, taste the sweetness of his saliva, hear his soft, seductive purr, and smell the perfume of the wildflowers that surrounded them. He gently shifted him onto his back and sat beside him , stroking his hair gently. He kissed him on the lips in the hopes of awakening him. A few moments later Ryuichi's sapphire eyes slowly opened and his lips parted.
"T…Tohma…"
The prince smiled and felt the Faery's arms slip around his neck, burying his face into his shoulder.
"You've come back…returned to the plainness and meadows ridden with death. My broken heart could not support the life within Titania's Grove …look at this place now…it is gone…" He lamented into his neck.
"Why did you send me away."
"Because it was not your will to stay. I could not keep someone as beautiful as you captive."
"However, you were wrong, my love, I was trying to tell you that I would stay…."
"But, Eiri--"
"Loves me not, and I love him not, Ryuichi. My heart beats for you." He kissed him softly and held him tight.
"So will you stay with me? You will live an immortal life with me?" His eyes shined hopefully as Tohma smiled.
"Yes."
They kissed again and Ryuichi opened his hand, holding it out to Tohma. He placed the delicate silver crown in his flaxen hair and marked him with the nectar of a flower.
"I love you for all eternity." He whispered, laying him down on the bed of flowers.
And all around them, the flowers began to bloom.
[End.]