Chapter 27: Nice to meet you

Cinnamon and garlic.

That was the first sensation brought to Izaya as he slowly regained his senses. The sweet fragrance of honey, flowers and various spices simultaneously battled over dominance as Izaya's eyes scrunched.

He felt heavy. As if someone were pulling his body down under water. But he could breathe.

Obviously, since he was able to smell.

Light flooded his senses as soon as he opened his eyes and he quickly blinked to adjust to the setting. A wall made of red bricks invaded his vision, and a few bars of wood, making up the ceiling of what seemed to be some kind of… cellar?

It was fairly hot for a room under the earth and yet-

"You scared the hell out of me." Surprised called to Izaya's expression as he recognized the voice quicker than he was able to react.

Shizuo.

The king was sitting next to Izaya, who was resting in what seemed to be a small bed. Only upon looking into Shizuo's direction did Izaya spot what was causing the smell and hot air. An unfamiliar guy was standing by what seemed to be a stove. Crackling happily the fire underneath heated whatever it was that the stranger was cooking with a humming tune on his lips.

"What…" Izaya whispered slowly, his voice failing him as it crackled like a dying frog. he quickly cleared his throat.

"You passed out." Shizuo informed him curtly on his current situation.

Like watching a theater play in front of his eyes, the latest event replayed in Izaya's mind.

His sisters. His father. The wedding. Shizuo. The poison. Blood.

Looking down at his body Izaya searched for the stain of red, only to be greeted with white blankets covering his body.

A very naked body.

Swallowing hard, his hands clutched the blanket.

They knew.

Shizuo did- The guy at the stove, was he the doctor?

Like lightning, the consequences of his failure struck Izaya as he shot up from the cushion.

Mairu! Kururi! His body turned, he moved to get out of the bed, but a very strong and unforgiving arm shoved him right back before he could even pull the cover off.

"Where are you going?" Shizuo.

His expression was undecipherable for Izaya- especially now- He didn't have time to worry about the king's revenge, hatred or despise.

"My sisters- I need to find them before-"

"You. Are doing nothing right now." Shizuo's voice thundered, efficiently shutting Izaya up midway.

Trying to push himself up from the bed nonetheless he was met with the same force he had felt earlier when the king held him down.

Izaya had no chance. In a healthy condition he would already barely stand a chance against the victor of so many battles- but now? With his body weak as a cooked leaf of tea?

Lifting his arm in frustration, Izaya covered his eyes.

He could do nothing.

Nothing.

He failed to protect his sisters, he failed to properly act out the wedding night, and now? He wasn't even able to get up from a goddamn bed.

"I guess you need some time alone," the doctor tinkering with various bottles by the stove suddenly said and scurried towards the door.

The wood creaked loudly as the iron lock fell shut.

Silence perturbed with nothing but the pleasant sound of bubbling liquid in the pot filled the room.

Izaya swallowed. There was still a chance, maybe he could convince the king to let him go. "Shizuo, they need me. If my father finds them before me- He-"

"He isn't looking for them." Shut down as quickly as he had raised his voice, Izaya felt the frustration triple as he glared at the king. "You don't know him, he would set out on his own two feet to get his revenge!"

He was behaving selfishly. Rude. He knew that. Especially considering what he had already done to Shizuo. Izaya should be kneeling on his knees and beg for forgiveness and yet-

He couldn't bring himself to act anymore when all he could think about was his sisters, potentially already in his father's grasp.

Suffering.

Sighing heavily Shizuo reached for the rim of the blanket as he put it back in its proper place.

"He can't look for them because he has no reason to," he said, and Izaya was left confused.

Confused about the content as well as the way the king spoke to him. He sounded gentle. As if he were trying to calm him down.

Izaya had expected a death sentence, maybe words of disgust and despise. He expected pain and suffering, a fate very suitable for a traitor.

Yet none of that reflected in Shizuo's eyes.

The king seemed to realize he had officially dumbfounded his bride as he started to explain. "You aren't dead."

Nodding softly, Izaya agreed. "... obviously."

He was able to breathe, his body felt heavy, yet his chest was oddly light. He could hear, smell, see, feel- of course he was alive.

Shizuo nodded, as if to confirm his wife was following him. "Instead there are rumors going around about you having fallen ill."

A moment passed in which Shizuo looked at Izaya expectantly.

And Izaya- Izaya was only more confused.

What was he trying to say?

"... your point is?" Izaya asked, the slightest hint of a forced smile crawled to his lips as he tried to not aggravate the king.

He didn't understand how he couldn't be raging mad. He appeared gentle, forgiving, as if he had never told him about the facade.

"I don't plan to endanger your sisters," Shizuo started once again, choosing his words more carefully to ensure that he wasn't going to miss the point again. "You will continue being my wife until I find them," he pointed at his wife, then back at himself. "Not your father, me. I will offer them to live in my castle, along with their sister. Who would the duke be to decline the king's will? He can have the money, throw parties, drink himself to death…" he faded out as his wife's expression grew more and more unreadable.

Was she- no, was he happy about what he was saying? Shizuo couldn't tell. His expression seemed oddly off. "That way he will lay off, right?" he tried again, hoping that he had managed to assure the brother that his sisters were not in danger at the moment.

And then he saw it.

Expressionless, yet stunned, a single tear suddenly dropped down the corner of his wife's left eye. Quickly, as if only having realized upon the droplet's soft touch that it was there his bride quickly wiped it off.

Izaya was relieved.

Too relieved to put into words.

He was not dead.

His sisters weren't either-

What the king was offering… how? It was too good to be true.

"Why?" he croaked softly, quickly clearing his throat as he regained his posture.

A shadow cast across Shizuo's eyes as he lowered his gaze to the bed. His hands were resting on top of it and he brought them together in a fidgeting move.

"... your family isn't the only one digging up lies to save their face," he started slowly, and just from the way his eyes befell with sadness Izaya could tell how hard it was for the king to say what he was about to tell. "I'm sure you have heard of it. The rumor," Shizuo sighed deeply, "About my older brother fleeing the castle, the successor of the throne."

He had.

No one in the kingdom hadn't heard about it. For half a year it was the one topic every gathering secretly gossiped about. Apparently the successor of the throne had found a girl he loved from the depths of his heart. He met her on one of his hunts, she had been a commoner and just got lost in the woods when he found her.

Rumors said it was love at first sight and seeing as she was of such low standing it was the one story every girl wanted to experience.

But the story took a dark turn.

As soon as the wedding had taken place not only the older brother had taken a liking to his wife.

His father had too.

Rumors, one worse than the other, circled within months about what cruelties the former king executed in his chambers when he ordered her to stay the night. Izaya didn't need to be a genius to know the topic was sensitive.

"... I did. Is it not true?" He asked carefully as to now show his doubt. A little spark of hope blossomed in his chest as he wondered whether all these cruelties had been false after all.

Shizuo was such a fine man with principles not even the mightiest and righteous knights had. His father couldn't have been this bad right?

But it seemed he was wrong as Shizuo's face darkened.

"I am the older brother."

More confusion added to the mix as Izaya understood the rumors as true, yet not entirely correct.

"My father decided at an early age that I was not fit to be the successor. I was never enough in his eyes nor was I ever going to become what he wanted," Shizuo explained, his hands fidgeting with a heavy ring on his finger. "Kasuka, my younger brother, wanted to divert father's attention. He took my place, asked to be made the successor instead and lied to the population about who was who," a soft smile spread across the king's lips at the memory. "Two brothers looking fairly similar, it took only a year of not appearing on any occasions to fool the folk. He was always contained, smart, he knew how to speak to royalty and difficult people-" he faded out and his hands clenched on each other as his expression soured. "It was him who fled the castle after what my father did to his bride-"

Wow.

Izaya… felt bad for Shizuo.

This entire situation- it was so similar yet so different to his own. He understood the pain of just never being enough so well- and the cruelty…

Flushes raced across the spots Izaya's father had disciplined over the years as he brought the memory back.

"... what I want to say is-" Shizuo sighed deeply, finally raising his gaze from the bed as he met Izaya's. "You aren´t the only one forced into a position you never wanted."

So that was the reason Izaya hadn't been ordered to be hanged yet. That was why Shizuo was so forgiving.

"So I …. continue to pretend to be your wife?" Izaya repeated what the king had offered earlier, his voice wavered a little as he couldn't quite believe what he was saying.

This decision was bitter. Shizuo was supposed to lead a happy life with a loving wife right now. Izaya had robbed him of that. Of future children. Of another wedding.

How would he get out of this?

How could he forgive him so easily? Despite their similarities, he had fooled the king for so long and yet he harbored no hard feelings?

How?

"... aren't you mad? You should despise me, you know. I lied to you. You married a man because of this charade," Izaya reminded and for the shortest moment Shizuo's expression soured.

"I would lie if I told you I don't care," he answered, but held himself content as his expression relaxed. "But what good is it to hold a grudge? You did it for your sisters. You wanted to protect them," he paused shortly. "As you might know I have been to the battlefields on more than just one occasion."

A soft snort escaped Izaya's lips at the huge underestimation.
"Yeah, so I heard." A little amused by his own words, Shizuo couldn't quite hide a smile either.

"You see, sometimes the decisions you have to make aren't just all white and black. Sometimes they are gray and sometimes plain evil," Shizuo explained as he met Izaya's eyes. "Your actions might have been wrong, but your motives weren't."

He seemed honest.

Like he meant every single syllable spoken.

There was really not a shred of ill will in his words.

Amazing.

Izaya couldn't help but think so.

After everything he had done- he was willing to put himself into his shoes and only consider the positive aspects of Izaya's decisions.

Izaya's gaze softened.

This man. He really was too good at heart. Too good for aristocratic gossip, too good to pretend and too good to Izaya.

"...that's an awfully generous way to view it." Izaya mumbled as he pushed himself up. This time Shizuo let him as he was merely sitting straight. "I can't thank you enough for this. How am I ever supposed to repay this favor?"

Shizuo's answer was expected.

"Simply don't."

Of course.

Izaya couldn't help but smile.

Was this guy a saint?

Ah.

Startled by his own thoughts, Izaya worriedly glanced towards the door the stranger had left through.

"What about the doctor?" Izaya had been less than conscious when Shizuo called for him in the chambers, but he certainly remembered his surprise when he discovered Izaya's gender.

"Shinra? He won't say a word to anyone." Doubt must have reflected in Izaya's expression because Shizuo enforced his words once more. "Trust me."

Trust, huh?

Izaya snorted as he let himself thud back into the cushion.

It wasn't like he had any other choice, right?

"Now, seeing how you called your sisters Mairu and Kururi," Shizuo suddenly started, catching Izaya's attention once more. A spark of curiosity and an amused smile had spread across Shizuo's lips as he leaned closer. "Who do I have the pleasure of speaking to?"

Ah.

Right.

"...Izaya," Izaya answered, and he had never felt this strange, spelling his own name. "That's my real name." A soft hum followed as Shizuo seemingly matched Izaya's appearance with the new title.

"Izaya," he repeated, "A beautiful name."

Ah.

Beautiful? Izaya laughed. That was certainly a first. To have someone tell him that.

Izaya didn't really know what it was, but something about this situation just seemed so light. So free.

Upon waking Izaya had felt as though the world was going to end and yet with a few simple words and smiles Shizuo had made everything seem so easy. How?

It had to be a gift.

"Then tell me Izaya, how are you feeling?" Shizuo asked, and Izaya sighed upon having heard the quest more often in his life than he was willing to count.

"I'm fine," and the answer came just as quick and automatic as he had been used to giving. And that didn't go by unnoticed by the king as his expression grew angry.

"No more lies!" Harsh and louder than Izaya had expected them to be, they hallowed in the small chamber.

It hadn't been his intention to lie- really.

It was just what he used to say in order to not aggravate his father and right now, having heard that same question again he just-

"Sorry."

Izaya didn't even know why he was apologizing, but he felt the need to.

A deep sigh left the king's lips and a quiet apology laid on his lips as he regained his posture. "Didn't mean to lash out," he mumbled and Izaya couldn't help but feel guilty.

Shizuo… was honestly concerned. About his well-being.

He was such a good man.

Through and through.

With every fiber of his being gentle and caring.

"You coughed up blood," Shizuo started once more, and this time he made sure to keep himself contained. Worry reflected in his eyes as he met Izaya's. "Does that happen a lot?" All of a sudden it was as though someone had taken all the joy of his being. The words had been spoken sad and quiet, almost like a whisper as if he were scared of confirmation.

"... sometimes," Izaya mumbled, a bit perplexed, "Usually when it's cold or when I … feel weak."

Shizuo's ears perked at that.

"Weak?"

Izaya wasn't particularly keen to repeat what he said. Neither was he happy to go into detail as admitting as much already struck his pride multiple times.

The truth. He owed it to the king.

Nothing but the truth.

At least from now on.

"I get dizzy. I had a hard time breathing- during the wedding I was having some trouble getting enough air, but I didn't think much of it. After all, I was going to die anyway. Kinda pointless to bother with my condition at that point," he quickly said, smoothing the heavy topic over with a joke.

He found it funny, but it seemed Shizuo didn't as his expression grew serious.

"Izaya, just so we have a mutual understanding," he suddenly started, leaning over, "I want you alive. If you do anything rash like killing yourself the deal of me finding your sisters is off the table, okay?"

Ah.

Again.

Izaya nodded.

"Understood." So much earnesty. So much good will.

How could he harbor nothing but good intentions towards a guy he shouldn't give less of a damn about? It made Izaya feel… light.

And oddly protected.

Like a chick under her mother hen's wings.

"Good." Shizuo nodded, and yet he seemed like something was troubling him. Eyes avoiding Izaya's he seemed to search for words.

"What, is there more I have to promise?" Izaya joked, but this time Shizuo didn't smile as his face was thwarted into an angry scowl.

"No. It's just-" he sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, "Your father has announced his visit."

to be continued~

Heyo guys~! I planned to update everything... but I only made it through two updates xDDD Sotd will finally get an updte in a minute haha the rest will be next week xD I'm sewing plushies for the convention and god damnit - I can not recommend xDDD SO much fabric cutting, so much sewing so much sdkjghdsjg Imma die. Good bye. xDDDD My sister is visiting too to help me sew haha
anyway~!

I hope you enjoyed this and see you next Saturday~! :3