Part Eleven:
Yuui closed the biology book he had finished reading in Luval's library and stifled a yawn. He went to the stacks and put the book back. It was pretty early in the morning, and he hadn't slept since the night before. This was one of those nights he couldn't drift off; the lack of Fai's presence took a toll on him from time to time.
Ashura had taught him how to make a sleeping potion, but he refused to turn to artificial means of sleep. He was determined to learn to cope, because now was the time he and Fai should adopt more adult customs. He was about to select another book, this time fiction, to take back to his room when he heard some commotion from the hallway.
Yuui crept towards the doorway, but listened instead of revealing himself. Eavesdropping was a bad habit he'd picked up as small child, but it was necessary to his and Fai's survival. He wasn't able to break it, even in safe surroundings.
"...and she'll be here by breakfast," one of the servant girls, Milcent, said.
"What is the purpose of her visit?" Ashura's valet, asked in a peevish tone.
"I'm unsure, but she made a pointed request that Lord Yuui and Lord Fai are not to join them for breakfast. Only King Ashura."
"She must not be aware of Lord Fai's punishment," the valet said.
"No, sir. I got the impression she was aware. She said his name in such a gloating tone," Milcent said.
Yuui's heart thudded, and he extended his empathy. Both of them where distressed and irritated. Yuui wrapped his arms around his waist, knowing the only person that could cause this much of an uproar: Duchess Naidra Harvoan. His stomach clenched at the thought of Ashura's overbearing aunt visiting.
The woman always tried to mask her contempt for the twins in cooing sweetness; but Yuui couldn't avoid picking up on it from his first day meeting her. It only got worse when Fai hit nine years old and discovered he could play practical jokes on the malicious woman. Of course, each time Ashura made a big production about how he was going to punish Fai. Behind the woman's back, the king plied Fai with extra desserts as a reward for needling the woman.
She was Ashura's mother's sister. Her daughter and grandchildren would have been due to inherit before Ashura adopted him and Fai, and she had made a formal case to the parliament to void his and Fai's inheritance. It had failed unanimously. Too many people favored the twins over bloodlines; besides, the twins had the correct pedigree from Valeria. The woman had never quite gotten over it.
For some reason, Ashura seemed adamant that his direct, male bloodline was to end with him. He certainly refused any suggestions of marriage and wouldn't even consider taking a concubine. Yuui had asked Ashura why a while ago, but the king had told him to not worry about it.
"Well, you should go to Master Yuui's room with his breakfast. Make sure he stays. I'll go tell the king and help him handle the duchess," the valet ordered. Yuui heard the two servants leave further down the hallway.
Yuui poked his head out of the library and scrambled towards his bedroom. He quickly got into his cold bed and balled up. Milcent knocked on Yuui's door and called out, "Master Yuui, I've brought you breakfast."
"Come in," Yuui said, trying to figure out a way to spy.
The young, pretty girl wheeled in a cart and put a smile on her face. "I brought you some kasha."
"I didn't request this. I was planning on breakfast with Father," Yuui said, taking the bowl of whole grain porridge and sour cream from the girl.
"King Ashura has a unexpected visitor: his aunt, the duchess," she answered formally.
"Do you know why Her Highness saw fit to visit?"
"No, I'm sorry," she said, and Yuui sensed it was the truth. He sighed, figuring he'd have to wait until the horrid woman left, because Milcent was now waiting right outside his bedroom door.
"So our son is traveling? It'll be good for him to see Nihongo. But what's this about a foreign mage that's been causing a stir?" Lord Suwa asked, intrigued by the report from his one-eyed steward, Kentaro.
Kentaro's lips twisted into a half smile. He was trying to decide what to reveal to the young lord's concerned parents. He wanted to make sure he told only the truth and not gossip. "It's related to the trip the young lord took to the other realm several months ago. Princes Tomoyo brought back one of the two mage-princes from that realm as a punishment for him grabbing demons from our realm by way of magic.
"He has to work slaying demons for Princess Tomoyo over the course of a year's banishment. The king of the ice realm sent along some sort of stone that actually repels demons. Recently, your son has escorted this foreigner around the coast so he can cast wards using this stone."
"He must be extremely powerful if he's able to pull objects across realms," Lady Suwa observed.
Lord Suwa nodded and said, "So why is Kurogane, and not some other higher ranked ninja, escorting this important guest around our realm?"
Kentaro knew Lord Suwa was shrewd and his miko was also very astute. There was something they were concerned about. "Souma has told me that your son took a vow to the king of the ice realm. He'd personally protect the mage-prince. From what I understand, the mage-prince is not exactly... elegant in our most basic customs, and Kurogane has a special knack for taking the mage in hand that no one else has managed."
"What do you mean by that? Is he some sort of barbarian?" Lord Suwa asked.
"Oh no, he's very civil and polite, by all accounts. It's just the mage-prince's behavior is rather outrageous and forward. The rumors about him range from him being an addle-brained fop, to him being an extremely powerful warrior. It's very confusing information, but in general, he seems to be well liked."
The young lord's parents gave each other a concerned look. It was Lady Suwa that asked, "Is this mage-prince dangerous?"
Kentaro hesitated, but answered truthfully. "Yes. He could lay waste to an entire village with a few strokes of his finger, a magic he calls hexes. However, he has gone out of his way to protect and not destroy."
Lady Suwa shook her head. "I'm not sure I approve of Souma's decision to send Kurogane with this mage."
Lord Suwa looked at his miko and smiled. "We have instilled in Kurogane a strong sense of judgment. He'll be able to tell if this foreigner's character is good or evil. If he feels compelled to stay by this foreigner, then I'll trust him."
"You're right. He probably feels obligated to be protective. I'm proud of that," Lady Suwa said, smiling back.
Lord Suwa turned towards his steward and said, "Since he made a vow, I'll trust him. I'm sure he'll do his utmost to show this mage respect and dignity."
Kurogane took the slumbering Fai and trapped him under his body. The flame in his stomach needed to be quenched. "You awake, mage?"
"Awe, Kuro-kin is frisky and demanding, but I'm still pretty sleepy. That is... unless you can find a way to wake me up."
Kurogane threw open Fai's robes and saw the mage was just as amorous as he was. He leaned over Fai and started nipping firmly along his collar bone. Fai shiver and moaned, giving Kurogane more access.
Kurogane pinched Fai's pale nipples, hard, and got a gasp of pleasure from the mage. He'd discovered over the last several weeks that Fai enjoyed being dominated over and the slightest bit of pain would send Fai into ecstasy.
He enjoyed making Fai submissive to him, but he still wasn't comfortable causing Fai real pain, even in the quest for pleasure. They'd come to a happy medium, for now, with a few pinches, bites, or spankings here or there. He had to admit, spanking the bratty mage was certainly one of his favorite hobbies right now.
They both drifted into a hazy passion as they shared deep kisses and sensual caresses. It wasn't long before he pushed the mage over the edge, and Fai lay trembling in the ninja's arms. Kurogane nudged Fai, and he eagerly went down on him. He closed his eyes and let his fingers tangle in silky, blond hair. Delightful tension cascaded downwards, leaving Kurogane's body twitching and spent. Afterwards, Fai crawled over to the ninja's left side. Kurogane took him in his arms and kissed his left temple, gently.
"Sorry I woke you up so early. I know it isn't quiet dawn," Kurogane finally murmured as he buried his face in Fai's soft hair.
"I didn't mind at all," Fai said, snuggling as close as he could. Kurogane started drifting back into sleep. It wasn't until the dawn's light started brightening the cloth of their tent that the sound of horses approaching woke him again.
His heart started thudding painfully as he arose from Fai's beautiful, lithe body. The mage gave Kurogane a blurry, inquiring expression. Kurogane grabbed his own black cloak, the closest garment, and draped it over over Fai's shoulders.
"Keep your skin covered, more now than ever," he ordered, springing up from the futon and scooping up a kimono. He quickly tied it shut and turned to Fai. "Listen, we're in a territory hostile towards people like you. Stay inside the tent no matter what."
Fai nodded even thought he looked confused. Kurogane quickly gave a reassuring caress to Fai's cheek before leaving their tent. Kurogane grabbed up Ginryuu and kicked himself for not explaining everything to Fai yesterday as they traveled into the Tsukiyono province.
Kurogane assumed an edict from Princess Tomoyo would suffice enough to not be harassed, but maybe not. Sure enough, it was the four people he'd hoped to avoid. They were riding up to the encampment in full black and green armor. Kurogane knew Mamuro Takatori saw himself as a holy crusader on a quest to execute all foreign mages. His three retainers all also sought vigilante justice.
Ran Fujimaya pulled the reins up on his horse and glared at Kurogane. "You are welcome, cousin, but not your foreign sorcerer. Hand him over now, as per the laws of Tsukiyono territory."
"I have a dispensation from Princess Tomoyo on his behalf, exempting him from the laws of this territory," Kurogane said, doubting Ran or the others would care. But he did calculate it'd make their quest for revenge tougher if they crossed Princess Tomoyo, so they'd probably stand down.
Ran's violet eyes narrowed. "How dare you side with a foreign sorcerer over blood."
"Wait," Mamuro said. He was the new, young ruler of the territory. He came from a corrupt family. But he was doing his utmost to repair the damage, starting with hunting down the three wicked, foreign mages his father had brought to this realm. "Kurogane, you know you've insulted me by bringing a foreign mage into my province. I'd never dream of insulting your father by violating the laws of Suwa like this. Please give him to us and there will be no fight."
"He's not like those three lunatics and that kid running loose in your province. That was your father's fault, bringing them here to pick fights with the neighboring provinces. My mage is sacrificing a year of his life to protect Nihongo from monsters. You'll show him respect or answer to me."
"Nagi is not a foreigner, he's just a child! Those other three corrupted him when they kidnapped him from the orphanage I was at! They saw he was powerful, like them, and turned him into something horrible," Ken said, clenching his fist. "Never mind your sentiment! Your foreign mage is a coward, I don't see him around."
"He's no coward. I told him to stay put because you'll back down. There's no way you'll continue to get support from Princess Tomoyo if you lay one finger on him. And that's something you can't afford to lose. If you want to hunt mages, go track down the devils responsible for your misery."
"He has a point, Mamuro," Youji pointed out. "Why not let this one go and hone in on Crawford and his clan? They're the ones that wronged us. Besides, we can't afford to lose the royal court's support in some petty struggle."
"We let none go!" Ran turned his icy glare from Youji to Kurogane. "Do you really want to fight me on this? You know Shinon was my swords master, right?"
"Until you pissed him off with this quest to hunt foreign mages. You dishonored him over this madness, and he's disavowed you because of it," Kurogane said, putting some gloating behind his words.
Kurogane could see he'd hit a sore spot when Ran slid off his horse and clenched the hilt of his katana. His gaze grew more intense at Kurogane's bluntness, his body was ready for battle.
"Hand the foreign mage over and Fujimaya and Suwa will remain allies. Otherwise, I consider it war... cousin," Ran said, his voice low and full of malice. This was beyond what his three companions had planned, judging from their surprised expressions.
"My mage is none of your concern... cousin," Kurogane said, his thumb starting to push Ginryuu an inch from its sheath.
Fai shivered as he pulled on a proper kimono. He heard Kurogane say "my mage" twice and it hit him hard. He belonged to the ninja and he was wanted. Kurogane probably wasn't even conscious of the possessiveness he'd just admitted. His throat grew tight and stomach grew raw at the near danger to Kurogane.
The mage went and quickly and found his staff. He had no idea what those other men could do, but he was certainly going to keep them from Kurogane. He knew better, after months of being with Kurogane, than to interfere in one of his personal, one-on-one fights. The ninja was strong and Fai had faith he could beat this redheaded man coming to confront them.
Yuui tried to eat the dinner time appetizer of warm zucchini soup, but pushed it aside with the polite excuse of being ill. Ashura refused to dismiss him from the small dining room. He looked at the large, plate glass window to his right while Ashura had his soup. The black sky pelted down light, spring-time snowflakes on the Celes landscape.
"Yuui, have you thought about marriage?" The sudden question from Ashura, out of the blue, brought a blush to his face.
"What? Oh no..." Yuui answered, shaking his head vigorously. "I mean, there's fourteen more years before it'd be considered proper to look towards marriage. It's not something I think about at all," Yuui said, citing the typical wizardry age of consent of thirty. Their longevity is what pushed that to what normal mortals would consider too long of a wait.
And it was true, Yuui really didn't find anyone interesting enough to catch his eye. He really had no feelings of wanting to finding a romantic partner yet. His empathy made it complicated for him to forge relationships, so he'd have to be careful and slow if he ever did find someone.
"I suppose you know I had a rather... special... visitor today?"
"Yes, sir. Is that why you're mentioning this topic?"
"Yes. It would seem she can't steal your and Fai's inheritance, so now she's come up with a scheme. She's picked two of her granddaughters and wants to draw up marriage contracts for you and Fai. It would ensure her family would come to power no matter which one of you I pick to become king."
Yuui's mouth grew dry at the odious idea. He clenched his hands under the table and fretted. He and Fai owed the king their very lives. How could he refuse a request, even one like this?
"I suppose that would be acceptable to me," he finally forced himself to say. "But I don't think Fai would be pleased."
The king looked shocked and shook his head. "No, you misunderstand me. I'd never sell you and Fai off like cattle into arranged marriages. It's a barbaric, old-fashioned custom I find distasteful. I want you both to find your own mates. My only consideration is your and Fai's happiness. However, there is one thing I will not allow you to do: marry any of my blood relations, even on my mother's side. If you are to inherit, you'll create a fresh, powerful bloodline. Not one drop of my blood is to survive me on Celes' throne. Is that clear?"
"So I guess you told the duchess we're forbidden to marry her granddaughters?"
"Yes, and she was furious. She could cause some trouble," Ashura said, getting a dark expression. "Especially, now that Fai's gone, she feels emboldened."
Yuui didn't know what to say so he pondered what King Ashura had said. He asked, "May I ask why you want your bloodline gone?"
Ashura's brow furrowed. "That's a conversation for another day, and I promise very soon I'll explain. I'm very weary from dealing with that woman. It makes me wish I hadn't banished Fai, so he could turn her skin purple again."
Yuui snickered and nodded. "That was one of my favorites, too."
"You know, I'm as proud of you and Fai as I can be. I couldn't love either of you any more than if you were my flesh and blood."
Yuui felt his chest tighten and his vision blur. "I'm so grateful that you gave us such a wonderful home, not all the things you provide, but your care and attentiveness. We really ended up being blessed to have a father like you. Thank you."
Yuui could sense Ashura was getting choked up, too. The king finally said, "You may be dismissed. I want you to got straight to bed and get some sleep. Your eyes are too dark from restlessness. Tomorrow, I'll take you to the hunting lodge for some fresh air. No hunting, of course."
Yuui smiled at his guardian's thoughtfulness. King Ashura never hunted with Yuui around, because he could feel an animal's death. It wasn't as powerful, like sensing a human death, but it still inflicted pain on the healer.
With that, he hopped up and gave Ashura a quick embrace before heading out the door. On his way to his bedroom, he froze. Something was tingling his head. It was like a simmering rage that he'd never felt before. As quickly as it came, it fled his mind. If it wasn't for his exhaustion, he'd try to puzzle it out. In no time, he was fast asleep on his bed.
To be continued.
