Epiphany
Chapter Two
Sanosuke felt the older man's warm embrace surround his whole existence, and the intimacy that he felt was all the proof he needed that this was no joke. There was no catch. Saitou craved him, in an almost animalistic passion, and he reciprocated the sensual affection with tiny nips at the Miburo's left ear while he rested his cheek on the broad, strong shoulder of the policeman, from whom a smoky air of masculinity emanated, closing his eyes and purring contentedly as the man's not-so- gentle fingers brushed their way down his back to caress, and almost taunt, his other set of firm cheeks.
He moved his lips, slowly and fluidly, down to Saitou's long, thin- muscled neck with the aid of a slightly protruding tongue, nibbling ever so softly when he reached his destination. His partner continued his rubbing and squeezing down below, inching one hand past the slim hips to continue the stroking motion on the youth's swollen hard-on. The subject of so many dreams was coming true for the Wolf, who, however still cold, seemed to be breaking through his walls of inner protection.
Sano moaned mutely, the sound muffled by his lips' attachment to the ridged and gasping throat, in which he felt a rapid heartbeat pound incessantly. Could this be real? That in a matter of minutes, this enigmatic yet desirable man transformed from a snide rival to a fiery lover?
True, he may have at last recognized his own love for the conceited bastard, whose every aspect now rendered Sano lightheaded and weak in the knees when he pictured the merciless Shinsengumi in his mind, but this he was sure of because he knew it extended past the superficial. Dammit, the guy wasn't even much to look at, though his amber irises, shining through narrow slits, were entrancing. And he had one hell of a body.
But that was besides the point. There was a far less tangible goal to be reached. Something hidden beneath the layers that Saitou had built up for himself in, perhaps, emotional defense acted as a magnet for Sano, a secret waiting to be discovered. He knew he needed whatever it was that lay at the core of Saitou's being, needed now more than anything else in the world... for his own completion.
Nevertheless suspicion grew. How was he so sure that what Saitou felt for him wasn't just lust, the foreshadowing of another abandonment that he was not at all prepared to take? He'd rather trudge through life without the presence of his other half next to him than to be betrayed by the hormones of his traitorous lover.
Thoughts sprung to the days of the Sekihotai, when glory waved like a proud flag above his Taicho and the whole group. Sano was so happy then. And innocent of the ways of human nature. Yet his colleagues were destined to leave him, a survivor of a corrupted government's plot to secure the confidence of its disgruntled people, as they simultaneously left the world. He knew that if forced to forsake hope again in the midst of what he believed to be infinite joy, he would not survive.
Furthermore, to put it bluntly, Sagara Sanosuke was not a goddamn whore. He would not be the victim of a sweaty romp and a one-night stand. The word "honor" actually meant something to him, and though admittedly not a religious man, he had his own morals just as Saitou had his sense of justice.
Awakened by doubt and a sense of unbalance, the young rebel pulled away suddenly, his engorgement wrenched from the desperate grasp of the Wolf.
"Just you try and rape me, temee..." murmured Sano hoarsely, wiping his moist lips in disgust.
Saitou, taken aback, stared at the Rooster-Head with utter confusion. What had changed so quickly? How would the love-marks he had just received on his neck bring anyone to the conclusion of rape?
"What is it, Ahou?" he questioned, fearful that his newly-formed bubble would soon pop. After all, he'd waited so long for the moron to come to his senses.
He watched as Sano clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly in turmoil within himself, muttering under his breath, "I won't let it happen again... Right when I think I can trust them... They always desert me..."
It dawned on the Wolf that he had never taken into account Sanosuke's terrible past and had thus judged him wrongly. He believed the young man to have a clean, unsullied view of the world but almost forgot about his unsettling experiences. The kid, more than anything, needed support and love, both of which Saitou was willing to give, but he had to find a way to secure Sano's faith in him.
The tall officer covered the distance created between the two with a wistful yet earnest expression and reached behind Sano's head to untie his red bandana and retie half of it onto his own wrist and the other half onto the Tori-Atama's, making them almost inseparable with the sturdy hold.
"Idiot. You think I'd ever leave you? After all this time I spent, wondering how to tell you about my feelings, you think I'd put it to waste? I live a simple, frugal life. There is no excess in anything that I do or say, Sanosuke. But this is to prove to you that I will stay with my Ahou, no matter what," Saitou put his arm around Sano's waist and pulled him close.
"I may have seemed crude in my affirmation to you, but that is because it is so difficult to express such things. I hope that you understand," he whispered with uncharacteristic tenderness into the youth's ear.
Sano felt all feelings of anger and jealousy and suspicion melt away from him, and he raised his arm, which in turn elevated that of Saitou's, to examine the tightly bound limbs. They were together and moved in perfect unison.
He pulled Saitou ever closer to him, never wanting to let go.
"I love you, Hajime."
"Ahou ga."
Sano smiled with a gleam in his eye that wasn't there before. He had underestimated the older man, now embarrassed at his outburst and suspicion of lust, but... but it was just too great.
He could feel the hollow void within himself being filled up at this very moment with the fervent emotion that he had been missing since childhood.
Wherever this dumbass police officer would take him, he'd follow. He was hooked now, always a victim to his own loyalty, and would be willing to risk another letdown for his man. After all, wasn't life composed of dangers and perils? They made the experience rather fun.
Of course, insecurity might come back to haunt him later, at a time when his resolve was broken, but he knew now that Saitou would be there to guide him through. And that would be enough for him.
Like his best friend, Kenshin, he decided then to keep to an idealistic dream of which he'd been afraid during years of fighting on the streets and drunken brawls. He'd been evading commitment, believing that the inevitable end to it would always be his loss, but now he could stand it.
He'd show Saitou that Sagara Sanosuke would brave the lingering uncertainty from his past to create a new future. Taicho would have wanted him to be this way.
"So what are you waiting for now, old man. Can't get it up anymore?" he teased, running the pads of his fingers down Saitou's rippling deltoids and triceps. "Fuck me."
Chapter Two
Sanosuke felt the older man's warm embrace surround his whole existence, and the intimacy that he felt was all the proof he needed that this was no joke. There was no catch. Saitou craved him, in an almost animalistic passion, and he reciprocated the sensual affection with tiny nips at the Miburo's left ear while he rested his cheek on the broad, strong shoulder of the policeman, from whom a smoky air of masculinity emanated, closing his eyes and purring contentedly as the man's not-so- gentle fingers brushed their way down his back to caress, and almost taunt, his other set of firm cheeks.
He moved his lips, slowly and fluidly, down to Saitou's long, thin- muscled neck with the aid of a slightly protruding tongue, nibbling ever so softly when he reached his destination. His partner continued his rubbing and squeezing down below, inching one hand past the slim hips to continue the stroking motion on the youth's swollen hard-on. The subject of so many dreams was coming true for the Wolf, who, however still cold, seemed to be breaking through his walls of inner protection.
Sano moaned mutely, the sound muffled by his lips' attachment to the ridged and gasping throat, in which he felt a rapid heartbeat pound incessantly. Could this be real? That in a matter of minutes, this enigmatic yet desirable man transformed from a snide rival to a fiery lover?
True, he may have at last recognized his own love for the conceited bastard, whose every aspect now rendered Sano lightheaded and weak in the knees when he pictured the merciless Shinsengumi in his mind, but this he was sure of because he knew it extended past the superficial. Dammit, the guy wasn't even much to look at, though his amber irises, shining through narrow slits, were entrancing. And he had one hell of a body.
But that was besides the point. There was a far less tangible goal to be reached. Something hidden beneath the layers that Saitou had built up for himself in, perhaps, emotional defense acted as a magnet for Sano, a secret waiting to be discovered. He knew he needed whatever it was that lay at the core of Saitou's being, needed now more than anything else in the world... for his own completion.
Nevertheless suspicion grew. How was he so sure that what Saitou felt for him wasn't just lust, the foreshadowing of another abandonment that he was not at all prepared to take? He'd rather trudge through life without the presence of his other half next to him than to be betrayed by the hormones of his traitorous lover.
Thoughts sprung to the days of the Sekihotai, when glory waved like a proud flag above his Taicho and the whole group. Sano was so happy then. And innocent of the ways of human nature. Yet his colleagues were destined to leave him, a survivor of a corrupted government's plot to secure the confidence of its disgruntled people, as they simultaneously left the world. He knew that if forced to forsake hope again in the midst of what he believed to be infinite joy, he would not survive.
Furthermore, to put it bluntly, Sagara Sanosuke was not a goddamn whore. He would not be the victim of a sweaty romp and a one-night stand. The word "honor" actually meant something to him, and though admittedly not a religious man, he had his own morals just as Saitou had his sense of justice.
Awakened by doubt and a sense of unbalance, the young rebel pulled away suddenly, his engorgement wrenched from the desperate grasp of the Wolf.
"Just you try and rape me, temee..." murmured Sano hoarsely, wiping his moist lips in disgust.
Saitou, taken aback, stared at the Rooster-Head with utter confusion. What had changed so quickly? How would the love-marks he had just received on his neck bring anyone to the conclusion of rape?
"What is it, Ahou?" he questioned, fearful that his newly-formed bubble would soon pop. After all, he'd waited so long for the moron to come to his senses.
He watched as Sano clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly in turmoil within himself, muttering under his breath, "I won't let it happen again... Right when I think I can trust them... They always desert me..."
It dawned on the Wolf that he had never taken into account Sanosuke's terrible past and had thus judged him wrongly. He believed the young man to have a clean, unsullied view of the world but almost forgot about his unsettling experiences. The kid, more than anything, needed support and love, both of which Saitou was willing to give, but he had to find a way to secure Sano's faith in him.
The tall officer covered the distance created between the two with a wistful yet earnest expression and reached behind Sano's head to untie his red bandana and retie half of it onto his own wrist and the other half onto the Tori-Atama's, making them almost inseparable with the sturdy hold.
"Idiot. You think I'd ever leave you? After all this time I spent, wondering how to tell you about my feelings, you think I'd put it to waste? I live a simple, frugal life. There is no excess in anything that I do or say, Sanosuke. But this is to prove to you that I will stay with my Ahou, no matter what," Saitou put his arm around Sano's waist and pulled him close.
"I may have seemed crude in my affirmation to you, but that is because it is so difficult to express such things. I hope that you understand," he whispered with uncharacteristic tenderness into the youth's ear.
Sano felt all feelings of anger and jealousy and suspicion melt away from him, and he raised his arm, which in turn elevated that of Saitou's, to examine the tightly bound limbs. They were together and moved in perfect unison.
He pulled Saitou ever closer to him, never wanting to let go.
"I love you, Hajime."
"Ahou ga."
Sano smiled with a gleam in his eye that wasn't there before. He had underestimated the older man, now embarrassed at his outburst and suspicion of lust, but... but it was just too great.
He could feel the hollow void within himself being filled up at this very moment with the fervent emotion that he had been missing since childhood.
Wherever this dumbass police officer would take him, he'd follow. He was hooked now, always a victim to his own loyalty, and would be willing to risk another letdown for his man. After all, wasn't life composed of dangers and perils? They made the experience rather fun.
Of course, insecurity might come back to haunt him later, at a time when his resolve was broken, but he knew now that Saitou would be there to guide him through. And that would be enough for him.
Like his best friend, Kenshin, he decided then to keep to an idealistic dream of which he'd been afraid during years of fighting on the streets and drunken brawls. He'd been evading commitment, believing that the inevitable end to it would always be his loss, but now he could stand it.
He'd show Saitou that Sagara Sanosuke would brave the lingering uncertainty from his past to create a new future. Taicho would have wanted him to be this way.
"So what are you waiting for now, old man. Can't get it up anymore?" he teased, running the pads of his fingers down Saitou's rippling deltoids and triceps. "Fuck me."