Lyoray Week 2020
Prompt: Reconciliation
May 13, 2020
Lyon grabbed the large cup of coffee he'd bought from his car's cup holder while stretching his other arm to snatch the suitcase that lay on the passenger seat. He yawned, still tired from his unexpected late night.
He got out, shoving the door shut with his hip, the car's alarm engaging automatically as he walked towards the elevator of the underground parking garage. Once inside, he pushed the button for the Lobby, closed his eyes briefly, and readied himself for the rest of his day.
When he entered the building that housed the offices of his law firm, Reitei Law, his mind was already on the appointments he had scheduled that day, as well as the cases he would have to review.
Arriving at the metal detector Lyon emptied his pockets, placing the contents in a small container as he did every day and waving at the security guard as he walked through.
"Have a nice day, Mr. Vastia," the guard greeted him as he handed him his belongings.
"You as well."
Lyon put the cup in the crook of his elbow so he could open the door, looking forward to the thirty or so minutes of peace he'd have before his first appointment. He realized, however, that he would have to wait as he found an unusual scene playing out in front of him.
"I've told you, I need to see him right away, it's urgent!" A man stood arguing with their receptionist.
"And I've already told you, Sir, Mr. Vastia does not see anyone without an appointment. I'd be happy to try to find you an opening, but he is booked solid through next week."
Lyon remained silent, not wanting to make his presence known until he had a better grasp of the situation. He intently studied the man, trying to connect him to any of the cases he was handling, but although he seemed familiar, Lyon was able to discount that connection.
"That's not good enough," the man slammed his hand on her desk.
"That's it!" the receptionist fumed, "I have tried to be polite, but if you don't back off right now, I will need to call Security to escort you out."
The man immediately brought up both his hands, waving them in front of him, "You don't have to do that. Look, I'm sorry, it's just urgent that I talk to him today, I had to get a sitter for my kids."
Lyon continued to examine the man with interest. He was tall with long dark hair that was put up in a ponytail, his annoyed stance reminding him of someone, although at the moment, the resemblance escaped him. That was until he turned around, and Lyon recognized the man who had been at the Dads Club Meeting the previous evening. The one who had been so interested in Gray.
Lyon had asked Gray who he was, but his friend had only said the guy was no one important, in a moody way that made Lyon immediately realize the exact opposite was true. But try as he might he'd not been able to get anything more out of him.
The rest of his evening had only gotten more interesting from there. And now that same man was here looking for him, and Lyon would be lying if he said he didn't want to talk to him. Realizing that if security became involved, he'd lose his chance, he made a split-second decision.
"It's alright, Risley, I have a few minutes before my next appointment. I'd be happy to see Mr. uhm?"
"Fullbuster, Rogue Fullbuster, well Eucliffe now," Rogue pointed at his wedding band.
Your brother? Really?! Damn it, Gray!
Lyon wanted to throttle his best friend. He should have realized the second Gray went into obstinate mode that it was family related. Now that he could get a good look, he could definitely see the resemblance.
"Right this way," Lyon said politely, once again wishing he'd been able to get more sleep. He led Rogue to his office, opening the door and waiting for him to enter so he could close the door behind them.
Lyon gestured toward the chairs that faced his desk, "Take a seat."
Rogue sat down, and Lyon joined him at his desk chair. They stared at each other silently for a moment.
"Well then, how can I help you, Mr. Eucliffe?" Lyon grabbed a yellow legal notepad and a pen, preferring to take notes and entering them into the computer later on.
"I don't know if you recognize me or not, but you were at the Dads Club Meeting last night. You went with my brother, Gray."
"I was indeed at the meeting last night," Lyon agreed, "As to who I was with, I don't really comment on my private life to strangers."
"So you are dating him!" Rogue exclaimed, "When did he get back? How is he? What happened with Siegrain? "Where can I find him?"
Rogue continued asking question after question, but Lyon had a hard time keeping track of them all. He tried to keep a straight face but couldn't manage it, exploding into loud guffaws instead. The idea of him and Gray dating was just too ridiculous.
"I needed that," Lyon commented, once he was finally able to get himself under control. "Rogue, was it?" He waited until the man nodded before continuing.
For once, he wasn't exactly sure what the right way to handle a situation was. He knew there wasn't much use denying he had a personal relationship with Gray considering Rogue had already seen them together. Lyon could see that he was looking around his office. It would only be a matter of minutes before he noticed the only personal item Lyon kept, a picture of himself with Ur Milkovich that had been taken at his graduation from Lamia Scale University.
Ur was his mentor and somewhat of a mother figure, but she also happened to be Gray and Rogue's aunt.
"I suppose there's no harm in telling you that I was Gray's college roommate at Lamia. To be honest, I'm surprised we've never met before."
"So you can help me talk to him?"
Lyon could see the hope in Rogue's face at his words, and he hated to destroy it, but then again, given what he did for a living, he was used to it.
"I'm afraid that's really all I can tell you. Gray is my friend, but he's also my client, and I'm not at liberty to discuss clients."
"Wait, he's your client?"
"Indeed," Lyon agreed.
"Why did he hire you?"
"I've already told you, I can't answer those types of questions."
"Fine, what types of services do you provide?" Rogue demanded stubbornly, making a face that was so very much like Gray's that Lyon couldn't help but laugh again.
"Look, as much as I would enjoy sitting here and playing twenty questions with you all day, I have an appointment to prepare for, so If there's nothing else I can help you with, I really must ask you to leave."
"It's been six years since I last spoke to him," Rogue declared, his shoulders slumping at the admission, "and I have no other way of getting in touch with him. Please, you're the only lead I have."
Lyon took a sip from his coffee. He knew better than anyone that, given the situation Gray found himself in, he desperately needed to reconnect with his family. Especially after what they had learned the previous evening, but Lyon's hands were tied both legally and in friendship. He'd hoped to get that process started by getting Ur to visit soon.
Gray had never talked about his younger brother much, and Lyon was embarrassed to realize he'd all but forgotten he had one.
He wanted to help Rogue, but he also knew Gray couldn't be forced into this, not when he was still so emotionally vulnerable. Even now, Lyon was reasonably sure that Gray had only told him the facts he needed to help him escape and defend his case against Siegrain.
He'd known Gray for years, and he was well aware that Gray had an unhealthy habit of burying his feelings. The information he had was but the tip of the proverbial iceberg, one that Gray was determined to keep submerged.
"Can you at least tell him I'm sorry?" Rogue interrupted his thoughts, and Lyon could see the quiet desperation. He'd seen it in his clients often before, usually during nasty custody battles that weren't going their way.
Lyon opened his mouth to explain his position once again, but Rogue didn't give him a chance.
"When I first saw him last night, I was furious. That he would be back in town without even a call was just the last straw, but then I saw he had a son. I didn't even know that. I have two sons." Rogue held out a picture of himself and the blond man he'd been with the previous evening holding the twin boys that Aki had been playing with.
"I'm sorry, I can't take that," Lyon was quick to respond.
"Just look at it," Rogue pleaded, waving the picture in front of him, "I'll be the first to admit that our family is messed up at the moment, and I know I hold some of the blame for that. I was more focused on trying to protect Gray from Siegrain than in listening to what he wanted, and I probably made everything worse, but I only did that because I love him."
"Mr. Vastia, I don't want our sons to grow up not knowing each other. They deserve better than that."
"Lyon," he corrected, clicking on the tip of his pen repeatedly as he considered what he'd just heard. Maybe there was a way they could help each other out after all.
"Lyon," Rogue repeated, "All I'm asking for is the chance to get to know my brother again, for both our sakes."
Lyon picked up the phone in his office and dialed the receptionist, "Risley, can you come in here for a second? Thanks."
He opened his briefcase and rifled through the papers inside until he found what he needed. Looking up when Risley entered, he handed her the folder. "This meeting is going to take a bit longer than I thought. Can you have Mrs. Johnson fill out these forms when she arrives? Put her in Conference Room One, I'll meet her there once I'm done."
"Sure thing, Mr. Vastia," Risley left the office, but not before looking at Rogue curiously.
"Does this mean you're going to help me?" Rogue asked as he fiddled with the wedding band on his finger.
"No, it means you're going to help me help your brother," Lyon noted, "Now, tell me everything you know about Siegrain Fernandes."
0-0
He had scribbled pages and pages of notes from his conversation with Rogue. Even though most of it was hearsay and wouldn't stand up in court, it had served to give him a clearer picture. To say that he was furious at Gray was an understatement.
In exchange for the information, Lyon had agreed to consider talking to Gray about maybe getting in touch with his brother. Although he had still refused to accept the photograph, Rogue had left it behind, and he'd stuck it inside his briefcase before heading into the conference room to meet his client.
Thankfully, the rest of his day had been routine: appointments, phone calls, research, filing motions, and scheduling court appearances. It had kept him occupied, but now he was on his way home, and he felt the frustration build.
When he'd first met Gray Fullbuster, they had not hit it off at all. Lyon had thought he was arrogant and self-centered. Now that they were older, Lyon could admit that he'd seen what he'd wanted to see, threatened by both his considerable talent on the ice and by his familial connection to Ur.
He had seen Gray as his replacement, even more so when Ur had ensured they were paired as roommates and asked Lyon to watch out for him. Taking a particular interest in him, just as she had in Lyon.
Yet, over a few months, they had found they were quite similar in many regards, including their determination to give their all to win. Which was why Lyon could not for the life of him understand why his friend would have failed to tell him all the things his brother had shared.
Embarrassment? He supposed that was possible. When they had been at Lamia, they had both been untouchable, and Gray had lost that after his injury. Lyon remembered how defeated he'd seemed after he couldn't play hockey anymore, but could that really have changed him that much?
He'd been against it when Gray had told him about the modeling during one of their lunches, but he'd had no indication that anything had been off, and he'd been too busy with law school to really concern himself with it.
Still, none of it mattered anymore. The fact was Lyon couldn't really help Gray properly if he didn't have all the information. Not as a lawyer and certainly not as a friend.
He was determined to get to the bottom of things tonight. With that thought in mind, he opened the door to his apartment, smiling at the little boy that ran over to greet him with his arms up in the air.
"Hey, Aki," Lyon greeted, "Did you miss me?"
The little boy nodded eagerly, and Lyon picked him up with one arm, cradling him to his side as he walked over to his desk to drop off his briefcase. He was still getting used to the idea that there were children out there who weren't scared of him. It was a nice feeling.
The smell of food being prepared alerted him to Gray's location. "Hi honey, I'm home," Lyon called out to him.
Gray raised an eyebrow at his greeting, "Honey? Something I should know?"
"Gods no," Lyon chuckled, "Just had someone ask me if we were dating."
"Oh, was it that woman on the third floor?" Gray asked as he stirred the pasta sauce. "Sorry about that, she wouldn't take no for an answer, so I told her I was gay."
"Oh, great," Lyon complained, "She was cute."
"Meh, you can do better," Gray mumbled, pouring the contents of a box of pasta into a pot full of boiling water.
"Pasta again? I know you want to help out, but I don't have time to go to the gym."
"Sorry dude, I had a housekeeper," Gray shrugged his shoulders, "Pasta and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are about the only things I can make that won't potentially kill you."
"Maybe you can let me cook sometime?" Lyon pointed out.
"You don't exactly have the most normal of schedules, Aki can't wait that long. Besides, there are lots of cute girls at a gym," Gray reminded him, "And it'd be great for your stress levels."
"Whatever," Lyon put Aki down and loosened his tie, "I'm gonna go change."
He walked into his room, tossing his work clothes into the hamper provided by his laundry service and changing into some shorts and a t-shirt. Lyon had no idea how he was going to bring up the topic with Gray, but he knew he'd at least have to wait until Aki was out for the night.
Walking back into the kitchen, he opened the fridge, grabbing two beer bottles, and opening them. He handed one over to Gray and put some juice in a sippy cup for Aki.
"Did you hear back from that embassy guy?" he asked, thinking that Gray had seemed unusually calm considering the news he'd received. Rather than just being out of the country for work, Gray's parents had gotten caught up in a civil war. They'd been stuck in Alvarez for years now.
"Not yet, but you know, I was thinking about it all day," Gray remarked," It's been years at this point, and the government hasn't done anything to help them so the most they'll be able to tell me is whether they are alive or not. If they had died, they would have called me, right? So that must mean they're okay. And now Gildarts knows about it, and he's someone who gets results."
"Gets results? What does that even mean? He just looked like a big kid at that meeting last night."
Hearing the timer go off, Lyon handed Gray a colander for the pasta and set about grabbing some plates and cutlery.
"Don't let that fool you. Gildarts might seem harmless, but he's Special Forces," Gray explained as he drained the pasta in the sink, setting aside a portion that he began to cut into smaller pieces for Aki.
"Is that how he lost his arm and leg?" Lyon wondered.
"Yeah, it happened on a mission a few years ago, my old man was pretty broken up about it. I'd been worried when I heard, but I gotta say, it doesn't seem to have slowed him down any. Anyway, he's got lots of connections in the government, so he should be able to find out more than what some bureaucrats will tell me."
They sat down to eat their dinner and watch a show with Aki before his bedtime. The little boy lay with his head on Lyon's lap, stretching his legs until his feet touched Gray. He'd started doing that a few weeks earlier, and Lyon still didn't know how to respond to it.
"You can run your fingers through his hair if you want, he likes that," Gray suggested like he'd read his mind.
Lyon huffed as if he didn't need to be told such a thing, but the truth was he was hopeless when it came to this stuff, something Gray had caught on to fairly quickly. He wasn't used to people showing him affection like this, liking him not for shallow reasons, but for who he was.
Truth be told, he wasn't sure he deserved it, he was in the business of breaking up families. Most of the time, it was what was best for everyone, but he knew many of the kids he tried to help didn't really see it that way when their lives were being torn apart.
He could certainly relate to that sentiment. His childhood hadn't been particularly pleasant. Sure, his family had been loaded, and he'd never wanted for anything material, but that is all he'd ever had. He'd grown up in a noisy home, one that was full of anger and recriminations. His parents had been fighting with each other ever since he could remember. When he was ten years old, they had finally decided to get divorced, and things had turned even nastier, with Lyon stuck in the middle. Reduced to nothing more than a pawn they used to hurt the other.
Aki laughed, shifting in his lap and making himself comfortable. Lyon slowly moved his hand down to pet the small head, holding his breath as he ran his fingers through the little boy's hair and tensing up when Aki turned his head to give him a beaming smile.
"Relax, you're doing fine," Gray soothed, adding in a teasing tone, "and I don't know, maybe breathe?"
Lyon ignored the childish desire to stick his tongue out at his friend, too fascinated by how this all made him feel.
"He likes you," Gray remarked casually.
"Yes, but why?"
Gray shrugged, "What can I say? He's a Fullbuster, terrible taste in men."
Lyon snorted but kept playing with Aki's hair. As soon as the show was over, Gray turned the TV off and picked up Aki from Lyon's lap.'
"Wow, you really did a number on him, he's out. I'm gonna go put him to bed."
"Alright, I have some notes I need to enter into the computer," Lyon grabbed another beer from the fridge before walking over to his desk. He opened his briefcase and pulled out his laptop and legal pad with all of the day's notes.
While he waited for Gray to come out, he reread the information he'd jotted down from Rogue. Once his laptop had booted up, he opened up his law firm's software and entered Gray Fullbuster in the search box.
First, he added the names Rogue had given him, Rogue Eucliffe, Hibiki Lates, and Eve Tearm, under the category People of Interest. Then he set about creating a timeline for the events Rogue had told him about. He was still typing away when Gray came out of the bedroom he shared with Aki, closing the door gently behind him, baby monitor in one hand.
"Productive day?" Gray asked, stopping at the fridge to get another beer and setting the monitor down on the counter.
"Yeah, it turns out one of the guys from the Dads club came to see me today, wanting to ask for my help. So I guess leaving those business cards paid off."
"Oh? Was it the guy Gildarts was talking to, what was his name, Luke?"
"Loke," Lyon corrected, "No, I know him, he's a lawyer too." He waited until Gray had sat down before he pounced. "Actually, it was weird, this guy wanted me to help him find his brother. Can you imagine that?"
Gray gripped the arm of the table but said nothing.
"Your brother Gray, he was your fucking brother. You didn't think that was worth mentioning when I asked you last night?"
"There was nothing to say, he made his feelings clear a long time ago," Gray's shoulders slumped in defeat, recognizing that Lyon wasn't pleased. "Your acting skills have improved since college," he noted.
"And yours haven't," Lyon snapped, "I knew there were things you were keeping from me, and I wanted to give you time to tell me yourself, but you had no plans to do that, did you?"
"I told you before, I don't care about me, I only care about what happens to Aki." Gray protested.
"And I get that, but what you don't seem to understand is that I am your lawyer. I need to know this shit to help you keep Aki safe."
"I thought you were my friend."
"Don't give me that, you know I'm both. And for the record, as your friend, I'm plenty pissed at you too. He cheated on you, Gray. Before you were even married. What the hell were you thinking?"
"It doesn't matter now," Gray mumbled, "It's over, isn't it?"
Lyon got up from his desk and moved over to the table to sit across from his friend.
"I already know he hit Aki, did he hit you too?"
"NO!" Gray defended, pushing his chair back and standing up, clearly not wanting to continue the conversation.
"Sit your ass back down," Lyon demanded, quickly backing down as soon as he saw the defiance reflected in Gray's eyes.
"Look, you trusted me to get you out, why can't you trust me with what happened?" Lyon pleaded.
"Rogue doesn't know anything that was going on. We were barely speaking at the time."
"And why do you think that was? He told me he called you plenty of times, and I bet you that if I requested those phone records from the cell provider, they would back him up."
Lyon sighed, "Siegrain isolated you long before you were married, Gray. Controlling who you did and didn't talk to, controlling your finances, your career. He was controlling you, and you're not doing yourself any favors by protecting him."
"Is that what you think this is?" Gray's laugh grated on Lyon's nerves, it was brittle and full of self-loathing.
"If it isn't, then please tell me what it is."
"You're not telling me anything I don't already know," Gray whispered and Lyon could see that he was holding back tears, "Yeah, it took me years, but I realized what he was doing. How do you think that makes me feel? To know that I let it go on for so long, that if it wasn't for Aki, I might still be there now, begging for whatever attention he chose to give me."
"Angry? Worthless? More disappointed in yourself than anyone else could possibly be capable of? Trust me, I've been there, but you're not going to get out of that by pretending it didn't happen, and frankly, it isn't like you to shy away from a fight."
"I didn't want you to find out," Gray took a shuddering breath, and this time there were tears, "Stupid Rogue."
"Gray," Lyon rubbed his forehead, trying to figure out what to say, "You and Ur, and now Aki, you guys are the only family I really have, but you have a brother who cares about you. Enough to risk getting manhandled out of my office by security today, just to get a chance to reach you through me."
He moved back to his desk to grab his suitcase, retrieving the picture Rogue had left him, and bringing it to the table.
"He wanted me to give you this-" he slid it right under Gray's nose, thankful for his decision of taking it after all. Having a visual confrontation with one of the missing parts of Gray's life turned out to be more useful than he'd thought, and for a second, he could see Gray falter.
"Your brother wants to apologize to you and at least give your kids a chance to get to know each other," Lyon continued, "I'd say it's worth considering, but that's all up to you. I'm not going to get involved with that any more than I already have. And when you're ready to talk, I will listen. As a friend."
He stopped speaking, realizing that Gray wasn't really paying attention anymore, too focused on the picture.
"Do you think they're happy?" Gray wondered.
"They haven't come to see me for legal advice yet," Lyon joked, trying to lighten the moment but got no response.
He walked over to the living room, to give Gray some time alone. Finding a hockey game on the TV, he sat down, glancing at the dining room every now and then to make sure Gray was still doing okay. After a few minutes, Gray joined him, still holding on to the picture. They sat on the sofa quietly until Lyon noticed with growing alarm that Gray's shoulders were shaking.
When this happened with a client in his office, he usually called Risley in, and she took care of it, but there was no one here to do that.
"Are - are you okay?" Lyon asked, feeling like an idiot. Of course, he wasn't okay, he was crying for God's sake! The only other time he'd ever seen Gray cry was when he found out he couldn't play hockey anymore, and once again, Ur had handled it.
Gray shook his head, and Lyon moved closer to him, trying to think of what he should do. At a loss, he did the only thing that came to mind. He pulled Gray down until his head was on his lap and ran his fingers through his hair as he'd done with Aki earlier.
Gray looked up at him in surprise and chuckled through his tears, wiping his eyes as he declared, "Oh my God, you really suck at this."
"Fuck off, I'm trying my best," Lyon groused.
Gray didn't comment any further, bringing the subject back to more comfortable grounds. "Aki seemed to like playing with the boys yesterday, didn't he?"
"Yeah, it was kinda cute. I'd never seen him around other kids before."
"He's never really had much chance to," Gray admitted, looking embarrassed.
"You're already changing his life for the better," Lyon pointed out, continuing to play with Gray's hair, the repetitive motion feeling oddly soothing to him as well. "Just goes to show, you made the right choice."
"I can't believe Rogue has kids too," Gray sniffled, "or that my parents haven't met any of them. It's all so strange."
"Yeah," Lyon agreed, "Does that mean you're going to talk to him then?"
"I want to, but I was such an ass to him," Gray admitted, and Lyon could hear the regret in his voice.
"Do you miss him?"
"Yeah."
"Then apologize. Let him yell at you for a few minutes. In the end, isn't it worth it?"
"Maybe," Gray hedged, "I'll think about it."
"Don't make me call Ur," Lyon threatened playfully, and Gray mock gasped in response.
Once Lyon felt Gray had calmed down enough, he announced, "You should know, I'm gonna do whatever I can to make sure that Siegrain can't touch either one of you ever again. And I'll say it again cause it bears repeating. When you're ready to talk, I will listen, and I won't judge you."
Lyon waited for a full minute before ruffling Gray's hair and adding, "I mean, I already know how much of an idiot you are."
"Takes one to know one, asshole."
Lyon chuckled, feeling much more comfortable with their usual insults than with all the sensitive topics and emotions they'd been tackling.
"Are you even watching this?"
"No, in all honesty, I'm exhausted," Lyon confessed, "You?"
"I'm gonna watch for a bit, Invel's playing, and I wouldn't mind watching him get punched a few times."
Lyon snorted, remembering how much the two men had hated each other in college. It was a pity too, Gray had been a much better player. "You do that, I'm gonna go to bed. Night, Gray."
"Night."
Lyon was almost to his bedroom door when he heard a very faint "Thank you."
He turned to acknowledge it, but Gray was already focused on the game, the picture of his brother's family sitting on the sofa next to him.
You're welcome.
Lyon smiled and closed the door behind him.