Ch. 28
Disclaimer: "Your conscience is what hurts when all your other parts feel good."
Gan Ning winced as he tried to curl his hand around the hilt of his sword, his stiff, aching, fingers blatantly refusing to cooperate. He growled with frustration and let the weapon clatter to the floor. "Useless." He spat, and sauntered over to one of the benches that lined the courtyard, sitting down heavily next to Lu Xun. Sun Shang Xiang picked up the fallen blade and examined the handle, not making eye-contact with her sulky friend. "Maybe if you tried it a few more times…" Gan Ning shook his head, not letting her finish. "I can barely hold my chopsticks, Shang Xiang. It was stupid to try it this early." Lu Xun shifted his position on the bench trying to get comfortable. "You know," said the young man. "You still haven't told us anything about what happened to you." Gan Ning stared at the floor for a minute. If he couldn't trust Lu Xun and Shang Xiang, then he might as well not even be on Wu. He closed his eyes and began his story.
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Shang Xiang stared at him open-mouthed, while Lu Xun blinked owlishly, mulling things over. The princess suddenly snapped her mouth shut. "I knew you were gay! HAH!" Gan Ning scowled at her. "What the hell is that supposed to mean? How could you possibly have known that?" Shang Xiang smirked and ponted at his outfit. "Your clothes." She said simply, as though that explained everything. The pirate's scowl deepened. "What's wrong with my clothes?" "Nothing. That's how I knew you were gay; straight guys can't dress for shit. Have you seen what my brother wears? Da won't let Ce leave their room until she's fully inspected and approved of him, and dad has mom, so you don't notice it as much with them. But poor, poor, Quan…" She sighed and wiped at an imaginary tear. "The poor boy. He's beyond saving."
"What about Lu Xun? He's a pretty spiffy dresser." Gan Ning gestured at the boy in question, who blushed slightly. "Oh, Xun. Everyone knows that Xun's queer as hell." Shang Xiang's comment turned the strategist's light blush to an intense, beet red. "Actually, Lady Sun, they don't. Remember the whole 'It's a secret' conversation?"
"…No…not really…" Lu Xun pulled his hat down over his eyes and attempted to shrink into non-existence. He might have succeeded, had not the incorrigible brat-princess poked him hard in the stomach, breaking his concentration and causing him to flail about wildly. The resulting chaos ended with Shang Shang on the floor laughing and Lu Xun landing squarely in Gan Ning's lap. As both men tried to regain their dignity, Shang Xiang quickly left the scene before either of them could think to be angry.
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Gan Ning was almost to the end of the hall and two doors away from his room when he heard footsteps behind him. Turning quickly, he found himself face to face with a wide-eyed and furiously blushing Lu Xun. Before the older man could say anything, Lu Xun had reached up on tip-toe and given him a quick, nervous kiss. The boy began to back away, stammering, "I-I'm sorry, General, I didn't—I—I just---I've always been---been interested in you and---and what happened to you was so terrible! I'd never do to you what—what he did!" Without a word Gan Ning pushed him up against the wall and gave Lu Xun his first real kiss. As his tongue explored Lu Xun's mouth, he tried to tell himself that he had no reason to feel guilty; Zhang He had not really loved him, and it would be foolish to go on loving Zhang He.
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Later that night, after taking Lu Xun's virginity, Gan Ning lay in bed with his arm around the sleeping seventeen year-old, and cried for the first time since he was a small boy. Silent, shuddering sobs went through his body, and he clutched tightly to young man who was completely infatuated with him. He stroked the boy's hair, and wished that it were Zhang He in his arms, instead.
Has anyone noticed that Lu Xun is like…the ultimate uke? He's just so adorable! He positively screams "DO ME!" Next chapter: Is Sima Yi just a crazy psycho dude, or does he act the way he does because he's socially inept and doesn't know how to tell Zhang He that he's crushing on him? I little of both, methinks….
