Chapter 32: Made for each other

"The merchant. I ordered him to search for my sisters. The plan was for him to bring them to me and flee with them as soon as they arrived." The words came hesitant and slow. It didn't take a lot to guess where the issue lay.

"I'm guessing he brought the wrong person?" Picking up the iron rod, used to adjust the lodges of wood inside the fireplace, Shizuo nudged a piece of gleaming coal back into the flames.

Letting himself turn over Izaya sighed as his gaze traversed the ceiling. "The issue is what I promised in return." He had never really been fond of artistic paintings, but right now, viewing the non judging images displayed ahead seemed far less challenging than to face the king.

"Hmmm, anything I can't provide?"

"... his weight in gold?" The amount of pressure a heap of gold like that would cast onto a person weighed probably less than the words Izaya had spoken. Guilt that transcended into a specific kind of shame clutched his throat.

A small moment of silence followed in which Izaya prepared himself to be scolded, or anything alike. Maybe judged for how far he had been willing to go. Maybe the king was finally going to be fed up with his lies after finding out he didn't only want to betray him but also relief him of his wealth.

It certainly gave anything but a good impression. So the words following came as an even greater suprise.

"That's all?"

Blinking shortly, Izaya turned his head to glance at the blond.

He was still calm, his expression not even wavering in the slightest as he watched the display of dancing flames.

He didn't care.

It was… odd, to put it courtly. But in Izaya's position he couldn't hope for any better reaction.

"I will pay back every ounce of gold, I swear," he quickly spurred to word, rolling back onto his stomach. Propped on his elbows this was probably the closest he had ever come with the king, seeing as he was leaning on the bedframe all the same.

And despite conversing about a topic that should bring calamity Izaya somehow found himself feeling safer and sound than anywhere else in the world.

A soft chuckle followed from said king and Shizuo turned his head. The flames glittered eagerly in his blue eyes, adding a shade of gold to the already gentle glance. "No need to. My father kept demanding more taxes for years despite already drowning in his goddamn wealth. Paying what you promised is no effort at all."

He was serious.

Izaya could tell.

"I'm not sure whether to accept such a generous offer."

"Then I will help you decide. Do it."

Yes, serious indeed. And it seemed he wasn't going to back down. It caused a set of mixed feelings to stir in Izaya and Shizuo noticed.

Of course.

What did he expect?

Despite being an impostor, his "wife" had only done everything he had in order to help his siblings survive. This wasn't a matter of greed, never had been.

So Shizuo could very well envision that his offer was kind of unsettling Izaya's undying pride, despite not being able to come up with the sum he wanted to pay in a lifetime.

Sighing softly Shizuo let his head thud against the matress as he glanced at the ceiling.

Gold, jewels, expensive colors- he wanted to burn them all.

"Sometimes I think money is cursed, you know," he whispered softly, regaining the attention from his wife. "The boundaries people overstep just to achieve piling up more of it results in so much more cruelty than I could imagine worthwhile."

Rumors Izaya had heard about Shizuo's father immediately came to mind. He had already figured he had had an awfully hard time growing up inside this castle. But with a person like that as his direct guardian…

"Talking about the king?" he questioned softly.

He didn't want to pry, and yet- he was curious.

"Sort of. The point is, all the gold in the world doesn't matter to me if it's of no use."

Heh.

Funny.

Considering the king had been nothing less than scum it was quite astonishing how noble Shizuo's motives were. "I think you are the only person in this world not striving for wealth."

"Are you?"

Izaya shrugged with the slightest hint of a guilty smile. "... a little? Don't get me wrong I'm not looking for a sweet life with servants attending to all my needs. But I am quite fond of clean water, clothes and a warm meal twice a day."

A mischievous grin spread across the king's expression as he turned his back to face his queen.

"Most of the water found in the woods is clean. Clothes can be washed as for food-"

Izaya snorted. "Are you trying to brag?"

"Maybe."

Of course he was. Telling him he was completely fine without any worldly belongings- he was either a saint or trying to teach Izaya a lesson.

… then again.

It was what it was, wasn't it?

Shizuo may be the king, but what had he been before?

Sure. A prince, but all in front he had been a warrior. Still was.

The stories about his battles may be exaggerated, but that didn't change the fact that he returned from numerous campaigns with nothing but victory and glory. He was feared throughout the land because of what he was capable of.

So surviving with no servants, money or help was probably really simply child's play to him.

"What is it like?" Izaya found himself mumbling softly. His voice was low and the fire probably louder than him as he continued. "On the battlefield?" A piece of wood cracked particularly loud as if to underline the sudden density of tension.

Almost immediately Shizuo's body had tensed and his expression lost just a but of its former glint.

"Cold? Yet warm," he began softly, his words matching the warmth of sweet honey on a new spring day. "Sometimes, when my knights are starting a fire and telling stories about their wives and children it's the place I enjoy being most in the entire world. With the smell of freshly cooked meat, wet grass and a chilly breeze battling the fire." Shizuo's voice was soft, low and extremely pleasant to listen to.

The description was short and not too detailed and yet from the sound of his words Izaya could almost imagine himself sitting there by the fire himself.

He had seen how the knights had treated Shizuo when he married. They loved him, as both their king as well as their friend. Unfitting humor and vulgar jokes were probably the daily bread they shared in the evenings and somehow Izaya wished he could be part of it.

Shizuo sighed, and the warmth left in a matter of seconds as his voice changed to a cold and chilling void. "But then you suddenly find yourself on cold stone. Corpses sprawled around you and a kind of heat that only a stranger's blood leaves on your skin itches up all the way to your face."

Izaya swallowed.

Absentmindedly his hand traced to his own cheek as he envisioned the scenery just a bit too clear.

Shizuo was gentle, with every action he took he was always thinking about others.

Imagining the very same man taking another person's life like that built an unimaginably hard contrast.

Especially for Shizuo himself.

Having fallen silent not more was told about it and Izaya took a short breath.

"... sounds harsh."

Shizuo mimicked a forced smile.

"It is." And suddenly the smile just turned even more eerie as his eyes lowered to the ground. "My father used to love it."

"The campaigns?"

"The battlefields." It was sickening to think about. His father in general, and the amount of satisfaction he drew from watching others suffer.

Killing people was one of the more gentler actions he executed.

Just thinking about what else he had done over the years caused Shizuo's mood to go sour and he closed his eyes in an attempt to chase the unsettling images away. "I hate to admit it, but it's him I learned my fighting skills from. You know, sometimes I feel like I am turning out to become more and more like him."

Ah.

That last part wasn't meant to be spoken aloud. The soft heat of having spilt too much than he intended forced its way into his chest as he swallowed quickly.

He hoped Izaya would just ignore his words, but of course that wasn't what happened.

"I don't think so. You use your skills in a better way."

A bitter smile of doubt flashed across Shizuo's face as he looked at his queen. "Do I? I'm chopping heads off like a gardener picking weed. You saw me cut down those men." Ah.

Shizuo was talking about the kidnappers that tried to kill him. In a way he was right.

Just thinking about how those men's guts displayed on the ground like a damn merchant's goods made Izaya's stomach churn. "Gruesome isn't it?" Shizuo sighed.

And yet- fear was not the only emotion Izaya felt recalling that specific event.

"... it probably won't help much, but I wasn't scared of you," he started, "Sure the sight of you cutting those people down wasn't exactly something I had been craving to see, but you did it to protect me." Splattered in blood from head to toe as Shizuo had been the source of action and reason was more important than what was plain for the eye to see.

Fear.

Izaya had seen it reflected in Shizuo's eyes. Fear that they had hurt or were about to harm his future bride. Worry.

For the blood that had already settled on the ground potentially belonging to him.

Care.

For how Shizuo kneeled down to confirm Izaya's wellbeing with his own set of eyes.

And the relief upon realizing he had arrived in time.

None of the emotions fitting the gruesome and cruel father had even remotely reflected in Shizuo as he executed what had been necessary.

"A few seconds later and they might have killed me, so-" Izaya mumbled, not quite sure how to convey his thoughts without sounding overbearing. He was talking to the king after all.

A man he was indebted to for life. He wasn't in any place to judge or spout unqualified opinions. But there was one thing he could do at least.

"Thank you. I know I already said it, but just in case you thought my gratitude was part of my pretense, it wasn't. You may have chosen harsh actions but with solid justification."

Shizuo snorted. "That's a really easy way to view it."

"Well, who is telling you to choose the hard way?" And Shizuo paused at that.

His head turned and he looked at Izaya, perfectly content and honest with his words, and somehow he found himself mesmerized.

This guy-

He should feel like he was talking to a stranger. Effectively he was, apart from his family situation and illness he hadn't exactly learned a lot about his character yet.

They had spent a mere week together and even during that timespan he only saw him for a couple times- whilst pretending to be someone else.

So why?

Why did he feel like he had just known this man for an eternity? Never before had he mentioned any of these thoughts aloud and yet here he was, carefree talking about what was on his mind with no filter.

Averting his gaze he looked towards the dying flame.

No piece of wood was fed, no stirring jerked it back into motion as Shizuo decided to give it a rest.

Was Izaya, right?

Was he being too harsh on himself?

Nothing had been more on his mind than his father, his cruel actions and the means he exerted to get what he wanted. Power. Fame. Fear from his servants. Respect.

And yet right now he suddenly found himself thinking about his mother.

It was funny, Izaya had never met her, most didn't as she died years ago and yet he had found the same words she had when he was young.

And somehow suddenly Shizuo found himself thinking that Izaya was right.

Was he trying to take the blame for what he did? He was.

Like an iron blanket of undying guilt the sins of his father and his reputation weighed on his shoulders.

But he wasn't his father.

So what sense was there to take on his errors and blame?

Lightness of the kind someone feels after having carried a boulder for a day and finally getting to put it down pulled Shizuo's shoulders from their slump.

He had only just become the king. Instead of living up to the mess his father had created, wasn't it time to build his own kingdom?

He wanted to become the king he always hoped for his father to be and what he thought his mother deserved.

A genuine smile spread across his lips in an uncontrollable fashion and he shook his head softly.

"Maybe you are right," he sighed with a heap of newly found confidence.

He was starting with a clean slate.

And he could pull this off couldn't he? And with a reliable companion nonetheless.

"What about you though?" he asked, turning around to face Izaya. Curiosity had spiked. He had been the only one to talk and most of the topic of today's evening so right now he found himself wondering just what it was Izaya had experienced in life to become what he was now.

But his curiosity was not to be satisfied as no answer followed except for the soft sounds of steady breathing.

"Izaya?" Leaning over Shizuo blinked he had rolled to the side, and now glancing at his face Shizuo realized he had already fallen asleep.

…of course.

Shizuo snorted softly but tried his best to remain quiet as he didn't want to wake him. It had been a long day.

Having passed out the day before, having Shinra treat him only to find out that his siblings were still safe as Shizuo was willing to uphold the cover and now having waited for him to arrive back at the castle it was to be expected.

It was late too.

And the moon was slowly but surely replacing the light as the fire dozed into a well deserved slumber as well.

Letting his head thud against the bed, Shizuo merely sat there and watched the raven.

He looked so peaceful.

Cute.

Might be the dress, maybe the fact that he had helped him get a load off his chest, but somehow Shizuo couldn't help but feel oddly protective of him.

Gazing at the moon, Shizuo couldn't help but smile at Izaya's words.

"Looking forward to going to hell, huh?"

The words were so silly.

Yet so effective.

To be continued~

Alright now we are done xD I hope the looooong date didn't take too long xD We needa get somewhere with the plot after all, right? C: We still got the father visiting and everything after all hehehe See you next Saturday when I dig up a bit of drama~ xD