Hello! Disclaimer: I am not an expert on Saint Seiya lore/Indian/Chinese history and culture so please give me mercy if I got something wrong in this story. Thank you!
** I changed Shaka's hair to brown, because I just like this coloring better.
* This is part of my Dohko x Shaka series (A Gentle Rain, and Rain Again are the first two stories!)
This is a work of fan fiction
Shaka liked having his space to work and remain undisturbed. Unless he was summoned, he would stay locked away to meditate, or pick up the quill to write, or thumb through a book of poems. But Athena's Sanctuary had been mild that day, as even the trees swayed their tempting fan dances in the gentle breeze and all the insects sleepily came out to enjoy the warmth the long awaited spring equinox lent them.
Truly, the land had been a gift in Shaka's eyes. He departed from his Temple of the Maiden to drink in the air, light and cyan, as every man and creature had to when the weather was so nice. Fat brown songbirds chirped their salutations and Shaka sneezed against the pollen the fluffy bees spread with their endless work. Someone must have had his name on their tongue with the way he sneezed. He had half a mind to think that Libra Dohko was pondering about him. It wasn't a coincidence that Shaka had been thinking of his neighbor too, and all the high energy he would draw with his presence.
Before Shaka could let his memories play about that Dohko, a swift butterfly traced a loop in front of his face with its vibrant wings. Delicate, but majestic like many insects were, it was a peacock green and blue, and didn't hesitate to show off its colors to the plain Virgo Shaka. The thing must have harbored the soul of someone who used to exist. Now free and unburdened, it came to the heights of Sanctuary to enjoy the warmth. Perhaps it was searching for its lover and soulmate with the way the butterfly made its wide circles and arcs. It fluttered around, speaking things with its simple existence, exercising its skills as all insects had a talent for speaking not with words but with energy. And Shaka held out his hand for the little thing and it perched on his palm to fan its wings for only a second before it was off again. Shaka hadn't been its lover. He was comfortable in thinking he would never be anyone's lover, but stranger things had happened.
As the butterfly flew up the path to the Temple of the Scales like it had been summoned, Shaka couldn't shake another passing thought. The little insect reminded him of his Dohko, that man was so free and flippant when he was allowed to be. He could be careless and easygoing after being released from the chrysalis of intense meditation and guarding. And like a butterfly, he could simply appear like a ray of sun from the heavens.
Shaka sat 'neath the Ginkgo tree that cheered in the good weather and he folded his legs beneath him, ready to do his own meditation and waiting. He was no soothsayer, but he could feel his neighbor, Libra Dohko, was going to visit him that day. Like he smelled the air for rain, he was certain Dohko would come, and his gentle, tempered cosmo would rage on again. That butterfly would surely tell him that Shaka was waiting. Sitting in Padmasana, passing the time before Dohko would arrive. And the Saint of Libra would be ready to tell him another superstition about the wind, or the trees, or pretty butterflies just like the one who told him to go to the Temple of the Maiden. And he would have no qualms with listening to the thing, as he liked to play with Shaka and would no doubt be tempted as they had their fun and heard each other's voices in the past.
Shaka could be peaceful in his predictions and amongst the sound of rustling grasses, and the sun who wasn't harsh on his brow, he could hear the smallest things. Lady beetles crawling on the bushes, the earthworms digging in the loose soil, the butterflies breaking from their cocoons to dry their wings, and every Gold Saint's heartbeat. He even heard Dohko, not before he felt him. Dohko would have something pink to say, Shaka was sure of it.
"Beautiful morning, Shaka! I have something for you!" Dohko spoke out like he was fated to.
He stood with his chest puffed out as his rusty hair moved like grass in the wind when he laughed. As if he had been another of Mother Nature's elemental gifts, he belonged in that day. And in his hand, he held something of a stalk that was thick like young bamboo, but ashen and purple against Dohko's honey complexion.
"Good morning. Strange, I didn't ask for a reed." Shaka smiled plainly out of politeness.
The Virgo Saint didn't move from his spot, Dohko would take up a space beside him at some point. He probably would have jumped into Shaka's clothes if he could, with how personable he was. Shaka thought it nice, but ultimately pitiful, the saddest men were the most jovial, as they had such a hard time with detachment.
"It's a cane."
Shaka listened, and offered the lifting of his eyebrows as to nudge his neighbor on.
"A sugarcane." Dohko looked too enthralled.
Naturally, the Libra Knight wasted no time as he sat cross-legged next to Shaka, and peeled some of the leaves off the top of the cane with that mesmerizing aura of his. He sat a bit too close, but Shaka didn't stir—he never did. And he took a moment to admire a hint of sensual balsam that hung around Dohko like the beckoning scent of a carnivorous plant.
Shaka watched as Dohko was calculating how he would cut the thing. "Thank you, but I can't accept. You should know us Gold Saints shouldn't play so much."
"Nonsense, Shaka. I'll be sad if I can't share with my friend." There was a flourish that came along with how he addressed his so called friend.
He put his hand on Shaka's shoulder when it didn't belong there, and the Virgo Knight could only sigh.
Dohko then threw his splendid laugh around, not paying much attention to Shaka as he went on with preparing the sugarcane. He began to score it with a folded knife he happened to have, as he carried so many burdens around. And the grassy scent of the husk being pulled from the sticky cane made the Virgo Saint nostalgic for a time that laid in both the past and the future.
Listening to Dohko work on chopping and slicing didn't bother Shaka so much. He attentively minded the detail work of producing the perfect pieces of sugarcane, finally making his mouth quiet and his cosmo comfortably cozy in his focus. Shaka bathed in his cosmoenergy as it swirled around him like incense, hugging him in an embrace that made him think nothing other than Dohko and his soul. After some time, Shaka twisted his lip, calming the thoughts that banged at the door to his mind. He was adamant on returning to his meditation until he felt Dohko place something an inch away from his lips.
A small round chunk of sugarcane, no larger than a date or a fat Mediterranean grape, pinched between Dohko's large fingers. Again, Shaka held still, and didn't react to Dohko's smile of feigned innocence, flirting wouldn't fool the Saint of Virgo.
"This one's just for you." He made his voice sweet and rich, and he nudged the sugarcane towards Shaka's lips, but gestured to himself at the same time.
Still Shaka remained unmoving, a mirror to Dohko who wouldn't yield to the cold shoulder. As the wind carried a bit of movement to their stagnation, that Libra Dohko's cosmo whipped up a hurricane. It encased the Virgo Knight in a certain comforting safety as it made the air just outside their arena loud and raging. And spotlighted in the most tranquil part of his storm was that glowing smile, wide on his face and just contagious enough for Shaka to fight a sneer. Even if he wanted some of the sugarcane, he could feed himself, but the silly Libra Knight would see to it that he was treated like someone too precious.
"You're not joking are you?" Shaka said behind a breath of surrender.
"I know you're not talking."
And Dohko placed the small treat on Shaka's tongue once he gave up and opened his mouth. He smirked something terrible as he certainly relished tiring Shaka out.
The sugarcane oozed its delicious nectar when Shaka began to chew. It was refreshing and floral as it insisted to be consumed until it was nothing but pulp. Dohko gathered all the other pieces he had cut and bit at one uncaringly. He showed his grin again, the one that dueled with the sun for who was the brightest.
"Taste good?" He had a certain way of babying his fellow Gold Saints.
Once Shaka spit out the fibers, Dohko offered another piece to his hand. The Saint of Virgo took in a full breath from his nose and thought he had satisfied his neighbor enough. But after another waiting moment, he decided to take the other piece with the bow of his head. He would be unable to rest if he simply didn't acknowledge his friend.
"You're so fresh, Shaka." Dohko showed his cute, but patronizing smile.
Shaka took another bite of the sugarcane, trying not to shiver at the lovely taste. And he lent an ear to Dohko who went on with his musing and prattling about his admiration for, but seniority over a Saint like Shaka. And Shaka kept a thank you in the back of his mind for the spry Libra Dohko as sometimes it was good to keep an energetic companion around for the balancing act that was The Middle Way.
ONCE the pair finished chewing the sugarcane and enjoying its juice over easy conversation and declined flirting, Dohko started up again. He collected the white fibers to be buried and given back to the earth as food for the worms not without a story or two. And Shaka watched him again, a bit slow in his indulgence and dressed in light linen as that sneaky Dohko convinced him to remove his Gold Cloth for comfort.
And the day was kind to them, as were the birds that only sang beautiful ballads, and the trees who joined with their own music as their leaves shivered. While they lounged, a proud and enormous jeweled butterfly perched on Shaka's cheek, exciting a tiny laugh from him with how small its touch was. And Dohko took a special note of the event with a widening of his gaze as if he heard the butterfly saying something secret to him. And then he went on and on about how being visited by vibrant butterflies meant so many wonderful things. Then Shaka would just listen and think a revelation about how when they were like that, Dohko made him elusively happy. But there were so many other ways they had to be, and Shaka would have to let go of his neighbor soon.
The Virgo Saint returned to his thoughtful stance and face as he was finished with revelry. But the mischievous Libra Dohko must have had something up his sleeve with the rigid pose he struck as Shaka looked away from him.
"If you have something to say, I will hear you." Shaka said, noticing Dohko's curious eyes all over him.
The Knight of Libra hummed with something of a complexity on his mind no doubt. All he did was look, and knot those thick eyebrows, an inquisitive half-smile on his lips.
Not used to waiting for a response from someone like Dohko, Shaka spoke up again. "What is it, Dohko?"
"It's just…" Dohko lifted his hand then set it down. "Actually…" Again he cocked his head to the side. "Well…" His eyes darted all round until they settled level to Shaka's abdomen.
With the bend of his neck, the Virgo Saint check the front of his tunic and reckoned it didn't look any different than how it always did. So he thought to frown as he didn't like games, but battled an absurd smile as Dohko was so silly. When he opened his mouth to try again, he lost his words when the Libra Saint pounced with his hands in front of him.
Shaka winced, feeling his cosmo surge gold, anticipating what he thought to be a physical attack. A quick fragment of a thought cropped up in his mind. Why would Dohko atta—Then he was barred from his thoughts all together and tightened his expression. As he clinched his teeth, waiting for the pain, he felt something unmistakably pleasant well up in his stomach.
"Tickle, tickle, tickle!" Dohko snickered under Shaka's eruption of laughter.
That damn Dohko was too unpredictable, even for the always ready Virgo Saint.
"Do—hko!" Shaka said pitifully between his hastened breaths.
It was uncontrollable, he couldn't hold his stern expression, or tidy his voice with his dignified airs. He couldn't even think of how shameful it was to be caught in such a particular sneak attack. Dohko made his sides and chest ache wonderfully with all the laughter Shaka had stored up from being stone-faced for so long. It was only a matter of time before he was straddled beneath Dohko's strong body and despite being able to escape, Shaka didn't.
The Libra Saint's fingers were perfect tools for the job, dexterous and nimble, they knew many a trade. In circling patterns, they traveled up and down Shaka's belly with ease, placing a fire inside it. Like tiny tigers, they leapt from one side to the other, quicker than Shaka could fight them off. And Shaka let Dohko tickle him as his playful aura climbed to the heavens and he hadn't felt so pleasantly surprised in quite a while.
Finally, as Shaka couldn't take it anymore, he lifted his head and squawked out like the final cry of a mouse in a cat's jaws. Then Dohko stopped to giggle at his handiwork and watch Shaka who had been reduced to a puddle of gasps and sighs.
"Ha, I knew you'd warm up to me." Dohko celebrated, still sitting over Shaka with his legs on either side of him.
The Virgo Saint panted and let his cool brown hair tangle beneath him, too spent to scold his neighbor in that friendly way reserved for those who tickled. As he laid limp, trying to catch his breath, he saw a pair of butterflies interlace in the breeze above Dohko's head. And the Saint of Libra peered down at him, so old and wise, but eager as a puppy who liked to play, but didn't know his own strength. Equilibrium nearly found Shaka when he felt Dohko intwine their fingers gently like Shaka would break if he squeezed too tightly.
To say Dohko's body was warm would be a lie, it was scalding with its heat. The Virgo Saint avoided Dohko's eyes that teased and wanted to tickle him even more. But it was the Libra Saint's boldness and freeness that made Shaka forget all his sterility and remember he was a man before anything else. What did it matter if he tried to tip the scales in his favor for a change.
The Saint of Virgo lifted himself up, pushing against Dohko's heavy body until he was on his back. His wispy hair played amongst the grass and he offered a tiny piece of his voice to Shaka in a content hum. Shaka knew Dohko was strong enough to roll over for him.
"Finally ready to play?" Dohko said with his smile.
Shaka wobbled his head from side to side, allowing himself a little bend of his lips that was born from Dohko's grin.
Like always Dohko started to laugh heartily as if Shaka went to tickle him back, asking something about if Shaka meant yes or no with his customary nod. It was amazing how easily he could laugh, but Shaka made sure to keep a tally in his mind for all the laughs that were meant for him.
"You're so strange," Dohko took a breath then laid his trap. "Virgo Shaka."
And Shaka tripped the invisible wire upon hearing his name. Below him, sprawled out attractively was his neighbor and compatriot, speaking all kinds of coquette with his eyes and the smallest sounds his voice could make. Shaka told himself he wanted to get up, but he didn't listen to himself that time. Never did he think the Libra Saint to be a master at commanding with only his gaze.
He wasn't just looking at Shaka, he was asking. His cosmo simmered into something delicate and careful, fair like a mother tigress. Where his bright eyes helplessly pleaded for something, his wheedling smile, so faint, but so sure, demanded. Usually such a gaze would be noted, but dismissed by the typically detached Shaka. But that time wasn't the usual time, and Dohko was just clever enough to seduce him.
Instead of turning away like the man who was almost a god would, the man who was Shaka faced Dohko's gaze, meeting it with his own trump card. Slowly, the Virgo Saint lifted his eyelids, fully taking in the Saint of Libra with his rarely seen eyes. For such an enjoyable visit, Shaka thought he owed Dohko that much of a sight.
The Libra Saint gasped a tiny bit of satisfaction, then placed those burning hands on Shaka's back, light as a tickle, but restricting as a spell. And Shaka could no longer think of leaving. Then Dohko played in Shaka's chestnut hair, every touch radiating pleasure to Shaka's closed off heart.
The Libra Knight always knew how to break Shaka and invoke his humanity with no other tool than himself. His body that felt so comforting, or his teasing fingers that could caress just as skillfully as they could land an attack, or whatever little noise that came from his mouth. And when Shaka looked at those lips, he noticed Dohko's smile melt into something more thoughtful.
Shaka saw it coming, he anticipated it before he recognized it. So he felt the feelings that couldn't be ignore, reminding himself that one thing a man couldn't stop himself from doing, no matter how divine he was, was to love. And Dohko's swirling cosmo, turned into a dancing breeze and carried all Shaka's mandates and hardness somewhere else far away for the time being.
Dohko's lips were hot and sweet from the sugarcane, and he knew all kinds of tricks to welcome Shaka with how rousing the embrace felt. It was soft and free and laced with a trusting familiarity, Dohko never failed to deliver on when they got like that. Steadily they both held the embrace, only allowing time to relax themselves further. And Dohko who had been a magician with touch, pet Shaka's head in low long sweeps. And Shaka didn't suppress a whimper as it threw more tinder on the fire of their intimacy, and Dohko returned it more gracefully, releasing sounds of pleasure into the air in the process.
Then they broke apart, only to come together beautifully once, twice, and many more times. And they continued to play together as the morning dew dried and it turned into midday. The songbirds and the bees, and the pairs of glamorous butterflies visited them as they laid together. Then Shaka had finally said it was enough. And Dohko who was fair and understood balance, agreed, but still hung around Shaka after they both donned their Golden Cloth again. They went to meditate under the Ginkgo tree, Shaka for quite some time, and Dohko for only a few minutes until he fell asleep, exhausted from getting to know Shaka.
WITH his nose to the sky, the Virgo Saint smelled rain building in the clouds and began to rise. But he was stopped when he looked at his sleeping companion. Mouth open and leaning against the tree's great trunk, Dohko let out honest and heavy breaths, lost in slumber. As Shaka shifted, he felt his white cape pull from beneath Dohko's body.
Leave it to Dohko to cling onto Shaka even in sleep. So as to not disturb his compatriot, who deserved sleep, and would surely be a bother if he woke up, the Virgo Saint pulled at the fabric until it detached from his back and draped it over Dohko as a parting gift.
And he left to retreat inside his temple.
PERHAPS he hadn't felt the first raindrop, or the next couple, but eventually that last big one woke Dohko up as it ran down his face. He rubbed his eyes before tugging on Shaka's cape and massaging the ground around him, searching for that peculiar Virgo Saint.
Despite being left in the downpour, Dohko thought he was content to have again spent some time with his neighbor. As he gripped the cape, folding it once lengthways and threw it over his shoulder, he stepped out into the rain, towards the Temple of the Maiden. And he felt that stable cosmo, that was trained enough to bend and yield, but never to be disrupted. It was impossible for Dohko not to be led astray just by feeling Shaka's cosmo, let alone seeing that attractive face, or those eyes.
The Libra Saint bowed his head in thanks before turning to the Temple of the Scales in the distance. Of course, Dohko would be back just like the sun, and the songbirds, and those Peacock Butterflies. But all the things a Gold Saint had to do would never disappear. Regardless, he would hope and wait for the next time he could pull Shaka from his duties if only for a little while.
I was trying to be a bit more disciplined with myself on this story. I love being over indulgent with my creativity, but there always has to be a balance ^^ . I really enjoyed writing this, again I believe Shaka and Dohko together is strange, but sort of like opposites attract. I did kind of manipulate Dohko to be a little more playful (but I think Shaka would do that to him hehe).
When I first started shipping these two, I was watching a clip from Soul of Gold where Dohko is caught by Andreas and he calls Shaka a fool, I thought it was funny! Then I thought maybe Dohko likes to go around doing and saying small things that come off a "certain way". (He is a Libra after all!)
I also have to admit, tickling your serious partner is so cute! I don't think Shaka would be the type to allow it, but Dohko makes him do mysterious things! I also learned that there is some kind of culture shock (correct me if I'm wrong) when foreigners visit India and speak to the people they will shake their head instead of nodding for yes! It is quite sweet I think so I put it in!