As soon as Kujaku finished tying off the braid, Fay hopped down off the stool. Wide blue eyes stared up innocently at the stargazer.
"All done?" he chirped.
Kujaku nodded and placed a kiss upon his head. It never ceased to amaze Kujaku how long it took to get the boy ready for bed at night. As king, Ashura had important duties to attend to, and Taishakuten simply did not have the patience; therefore, the responsibility fell to Kujaku. Not that he minded; in fact he quite enjoyed the time he got to spend alone with Fay. The boy was too cute for words and very energetic. Kujaku was just glad that he hadn't gotten soaked giving Fay his bath this time. Celesian nights were extremely cold, and even with the heating charms that permeated the palace, one did not want to have to walk around in soaked robes.
At first, Kujaku had been worried about having to braid Fay's hair every night before bed. It was the sensible thing to do, as it prevented tangles. He had been worried that Fay would not be able to sit still, as there was a lot to braid, quite frankly. However, the child had merely swung his legs and babbled happy nonsense at the stargazer, much to his relief. By this time it had become quite routine.
"All done," Kujaku agreed, taking the child's hand. "Let's go say good night to Taishakuten-sama and then it's off to bed with you." Fay nodded happily as they left the room.
In spite of his terrifying appearance and cruel attitude, Fay was rather close to Taishakuten. Fay's inability to be intimidated by the general was the cause of many whispers among the courtiers. The general consensus was that the child had no fear. Not a single one of them knew how correct this notion was or why. The only people who knew of Fay's origins were the King, his general, and the stargazer. Fay, of course, was oblivious to the rumours that circulated around him. All he knew or cared about was that he was protected and loved, which is all any child truly wants – and something Fay more than deserved.
Fay halted suddenly, and his eyes impossibly widened. "Oh!" he squeaked, and ran back into the room. Kujaku stared after him for a second before following. Somehow Fay had managed to scramble onto the stool Kujaku usually had to lift him onto and was climbing onto the wardrobe.
"Fay-chan, what are you doing?" Kujaku gasped as Fay walked carefully across the wardrobe and leaned over it to the bookshelf. Kujaku tried his best to quell his rising panic over the whole situation. The boy was not going to fall, he had excellent balance. However, this did nothing to calm the seer's unease, especially since Fay had not answered him and he had no idea what was going on.
Fay had given up on trying to lean to the bookshelf and jumped onto it, tiny feet scrambling to find a ledge as Kujaku ran forward, ready to catch him if need be.
"I'm fine!" Fay said, giggling at Kujaku's sigh of relief. Kujaku had half a mind to check for greying feathers. "Hyuuu, I got it!" Fay jumped down into Kujaku's waiting arms. Kujaku groaned; nestled snugly in Fay's arms was a blue, overstuffed cat plush. "Nyanko-sama would have gotten lonely if she had been left there all night," Fay explained solemnly.
Kujaku didn't even want to know how it had gotten up there in the first place. Kujaku only hugged Fay tightly and carried him out of the room. Fay's abandonment anxiety was justified, so the stargazer just let it pass.
Taishakuten's attention was snatched away from his maps of Celes' defences by the vilest word in the Celesian language as something attached itself firmly to his leg. "Mommy!" the limpet squealed in joy. The general momentarily ignored the nuisance to glare at the violet eyes dancing with mirth across the room. Kujaku smiled innocently and bowed. The squeals of "Mommy! Mommy!" continued so Taishakuten looked down.
"Where did you come from?" Taishakuten asked, picking Fay up and standing him on the table.
"The bath house," Fay said. "I'm all clean now." The child held his plush close and smiled widely. "I wanted to say goodnight to Mommy before story time." Fay looked down at the maps and scraps of scrawled-on parchment scattered across the table. How Taishakuten had somehow managed to find an empty space on the table to stand him was anyone's guess. "Mommy looks busy. What were you doing?"
"Keeping the things that are most important to me safe," Taishakuten answered, gathering everything up. Fay squeezed Nyanko-sama.
"Me and Daddy, right?" he said and was rewarded with one of Taishakuten's rare smiles.
"Exactly," he said, ruffling the blond hair. Kujaku snorted from across the room.
"Hey, what about me?" The stargazer sniffed dramatically. "And don't mess his hair up. It took me almost half an hour to comb and braid it." Taishakuten grinned at him and pulled Fay in close for a noogie. The boy squealed happily and squirmed in his embrace. Kujaku huffed and rolled his eyes.
Taishakuten knew full well that Kujaku wanted Fay's hair cut. He hoped Kujaku harboured no illusions of that ever happening. Long hair was a sign of nobility in Celes. Ashura's relationship with Taishakuten was no secret, so it was common knowledge that the King was never going to take a wife. Nearly the entire court was certain that it was only a matter of time before the King named Fay as his heir.
Kujaku was the only member of the court with short hair. Somehow the choppy locks had become a popular style with the Celesian youth, and imitations were everywhere. Naturally, it never occurred to the General that young men were trying to lure the eyes and minds of their sweethearts away from the palace. Instead, he attributed it to a general laziness that the star gazer shared with teenagers everywhere. Kujaku's sex symbol status was something Taishakuten was better off oblivious to. He was positively famous for being the jealous type, and if the rumours that the stargazer could tempt even a lesbian into bed with him ever reached his ears...
Fay yawned loudly and rested his head on Taishakuten's broad shoulder. Taishakuten frowned; if the child fell asleep here then he would never hear the end of it. Ashura was very adamant about reading Fay his story every night. The last time Taishakuten had carried a sleeping Fay into the child's chambers Ashura had made him sit there and listen to the story. It had been Kujaku's idea, of course, and the stargazer had perched happily at the edge of Fay's bed and listened to the story of the three young girls saving a magical land where the will of one controlled all. Taishakuten had not enjoyed it nearly as much; the ending was far too sad.
Taishakuten shook Fay gently and set him down on the ground. Fay stared up at him questioningly. "It's high time that you were hopping into bed for Story Time, don't you think?" Blue eyes widened and a mouth fell into an O shape. Fay ran forward and hugged Taishakuten's legs.
"Sweet dreams, Mommy," Fay whispered up at him. "I love you." Taishakuten's mouth opened to respond and closed, but no words came out. The ache in his chest was inexplicable. It was something like love, but was like no love that Taishakuten had ever known. He didn't know what to say, so he merely watched as Fay skipped down the corridor in that irregular gait that all children have. Kujaku stepped to his side as Fay turned into his own chambers, where Ashura would be waiting.
"That child is a gift," Taishakuten said at last, rare warmth in his voice.
"I do hope so," Kujaku agreed, uncertainty in his voice. Taishakuten looked at him sharply. Kujaku sighed and stepped to the window. He reached up and pulled free the jewel encrusted headband that hid his third eye. "I still cannot read his future," he explained, looking up at the stars. "Something is blocking my sight." He turned back to Taishakuten, purple eyes ablaze. "Or someone."
Review as always my lovelies!