Feather Flight: The First Blush of New
Beginnings (part 11)
An AU Kuja fic, shonen-ai, language
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It wasn’t the first time in the past week that he had returned to his chambers well after his friend had fallen asleep. Laro paused in the doorway admiring the way that moonlight was caught in the toss of the sleeping man’s hair.
He shoved his hands in his pockets to remove any possibility of reaching out to touch him. Masa didn’t need him to be interrupting his rest any more than he had to. With a sigh, the soldier moved quietly into his small dressing room to strip off his clothes and wash his face. The day had been long and if possible, even more tedious than the previous one. All he really wanted to do was lay down a while, cuddle with his wily partner, and talk about unimportant things, or nothing at all. He just couldn’t seem to ever finish with work until well after most sane people had retired. It didn’t strike him as quite fair that he was rumored to have the affections of the most beautiful person at court, and then to realize that he had probably spent the /less/ time with the silver-haired man in the past several days than just about anyone else.
// What’s the use… not like I have any good news to share with him anyway. //
He knew that the cat-man had been making friends at court. He would have been a fool to leave his companion completely unprotected and supervised during the day, but the reports of just how easily the slim scholar had captured the hearts of the council were enough to make him laugh. Any of Masa’s stories from the past week would be infinitely more amusing then the news he could share about armies and provisions. Feathers were already becoming the fashion in several of the younger courtier’s hair. Folding back the covers, careful not to disturb the other occupant of the bed, he settled on the mattress.
// I… no, it’s foolish to think that he’d wait up /this/ late… hell in a few hours it’ll be dawn again… and away I’ll go… // He made a face.
// Maybe I’ll just sleep in for a change… have a real breakfast… /talk/ to someone who doesn’t call me ‘sir’ for five minutes… //
Something sharp jabbed him in the ribs as he sank into the bed. His investigations resulted in a small leather-bound book with a ribbon marking the page. Curious, he leaned into the moonlight to take a closer look. It was obviously a gift. Laro’s eyebrow went up in amusement as he read the little inscription, both at the message “Something to enliven your lonely evenings,” and at the familiar signature.
// … Am I going to have to have a /talk/ with that old man? What else has he been showering on my kitten while my back is turned… and how many others are doing the same? //
Making a mental note to keep better tabs on just who was lavishing attention on his supposed ‘concubine’ while he worked, Laro decided he /would/ take the morning off. Somehow he wondered if there wasn’t some large /trove/ of gifts piling up somewhere discretely out of sight. Maybe he would check under the bed. The thought almost made him chuckle out loud. He flipped the first few pages, recognizing the book as a popular trilogy of romantic plays. His friend was apparently making good progress on the dramas. The bookmark was placed well after the ending of “A Woman Named Sparrow,” and just at the end of the first act of its sequel. The soldier flipped back a few pages, reminding himself what the play was about. “Desire and Her Family” had never been one of his favorites, but he had to admit the fight scenes were plentiful and well planned. Smiling, he carefully put the book on the nightstand before settling the blankets again.
// … he tried to wait up for me after all… stubborn little thing… //
On impulse he changed his mind about sprawling out alone on his edge of the wide bed. Reaching over hesitantly, he scooped Masa into his arms, curling around him until the delicate head was pillowed on his arm. The movement was more than enough to wake the cat-man up. Laro smiled down at his sleepy partner before kissing his forehead apologetically. “Go back to sleep… I’m about to do the same.”
“… At least you came to bed properly this time… Last night you deliberately snubbed me…”
“I figured waking you up four nights in a row just so I could have something to hang onto while I dozed was rather selfish…”
“… and yet you’re waking me now?” The expressive lips twitched into a sardonic smile. “… boor.”
“… I missed you.” Laro shifted until his head was comfortably on the pillow, his face buried in the silky tangle of his partner’s hair.
“You can wake me any time you know… I was just teasing…” It was Kuja’s turn to shift, wriggling loose of the soldier’s grip enough to turn around and thread his arms around the larger torso. “… I wish you would, actually… since you seldom stay for breakfast either… I’m beginning to feel like I’m sharing a room with a phantom.”
“I was thinking we could have breakfast tomorrow… if you don’t have plans…”
“Scandalous… sure the war won’t suddenly explode if you aren’t planning for it every waking hour?”
“… well to be honest I was planning to sleep in a little too… so it would be a few ‘sleeping hours’ as well…”
“You lazy oglop! Positively shameful.” Masa’s teasing laugh turned a little frantic as the soldier began to tickle him in revenge. “M-mercy! Mercy, sir knight. You have me at a disadvantage…”
“Which disadvantage is that…?” The cat-man batted at his face to dispel the comic leer.
“The disadvantage where I am still groggy from being newly awakened from sleep while you are still full of the vigor of the day…”
“… The ‘vigor’ of far too many cups of coffee, you mean…”
“Well yes, that too…”
It was a nice feeling, to have the slender hands playfully catch and caress his face. Curious fingertips traced the length of the scar, marveling as his kitten had before, at how the blow had spared his eye. The feeling wasn’t unpleasant exactly, but it did tickle slightly. There wasn’t much sensation left in the thick tissue but he smiled anyway, letting his ward do as he pleased. The hands eventually finished their exploration of his face, resting gently on either cheek as if about to pull him down for a kiss. Leaning down a little into the soft touch, he turned to gently kiss both palms.
“… you’re still binding your hand?”
He frowned surprised at the feel of the cool silk beneath his lips, and at his own inattention that he had not noticed it before now. Masa drew the hand back as if burned, fisting it into the loose material of his sleep-shirt. “I… It’s just to keep it clean… while I sleep… it’s mostly healed.”
Laro couldn’t help but feel guilty. He should have been paying more attention, to the injury, to his companion in general. One way or another he would make the time to be with Masa more often.
// Gods know there isn’t much time left… //
The war was inescapable but there was no reason it couldn’t wait until morning. Laro pushed his worries away for a moment, content to focus on those within his power to control. He caught smaller man’s hand in his own, running an apologetic thumb along the soft fabric of the bandage.
“Well I’m glad there was no permanent harm anyway…” The soldier grinned in the dark room. “… and I see that you’ve already wound Riquoi around your dainty fingers… what else has he been wooing you with while I’ve been away…?”
“… /wooing/?” Masa snorted. “I wouldn’t know anything about that. I had mentioned the other day that I was fond of plays, that’s all… He was thoughtful enough to find me a few.”
“I see… hmmm.” The dark man rolled onto his back, making vaguely thoughtful noises.
“What…?”
“…hmmm…”
“What?!”
“… I don’t know…” He fought hard to keep a straight face despite the cat-man’s growing exasperation.
Kuja propped himself on the larger man’s chest, glaring. “… and what, pray tell me, is so /thought provoking/ now…?”
“I’m just thinking…”
“Don’t strain yourself.”
“Ha. Ha. I was just thinking… that if everyone is going to start buying you luxurious love tokens… I’ll have to do something suitably extravagant to keep up.”
The pale scholar blinked. “You don’t have to buy me things.”
“Maybe I want to.”
“That’s silly.”
“That’s what being in love is all about. Isn’t it?” Laro raised an eyebrow in challenge.
“… I wouldn’t know anything about that.”
A boney elbow dug painfully into his chest as Kuja rolled over again, curling up on his side of the mattress. The soldier sighed in defeat. “… I was only teasing, Masa.”
“Do as you like… I exist by your leave, after all.”
“Oh now /that’s/ hardly fair.”
“… what do you want me to say then…?”
Snuggling closer, he dared to wrap his arms around the slight frame again. He tucked his face in the dip at the nape of the cat-man’s neck, pressing as close as he could without pinching his partner’s tail. It tickled his shins beneath the sheets. “I don’t want to argue with you, kitten.”
“… then don’t.”
“Why won’t you let me buy you things…? Is it what the others will say?” Unable to keep his hands completely to himself when temptation beckoned, he gently stroked down the long line of Masa’s side. The bed was quickly becoming warm enough to make him sleepy.
“They already imagine, and /say/ plenty. I doubt your buying me trinkets would change anything, except maybe confirm some of the ‘facts’…”
“Well, there you are then… I’ll get you something suitably outrageous, I can afford that… if only once… what would you like?” The general grinned.
“You know what I want.”
“I do?” Confused at the soft words, Laro racked his brains for any memory of an item that the smaller man had coveted. Nothing in particular sprang to mind. “…remind me.”
“… I want to go with you.”
“Absolutely not.” The words were out before he thought, and he winced at how they sounded. His wily friend had gone perfectly still. “…I’m sorry Masa… but I can’t... You don’t know what you’re asking for.”
“In that case… I want you to sleep with me… /carnally/… If I am to play the part of grieving concubine once you go, at least let me know what I’m grieving for…”
“… I… No Masa… I have a feeling that /that/ isn’t what you really want… so no… I won’t…”
“… In that case… don’t try to buy my happiness. Rumor states that my person may be for sale, but I assure you that my feelings are still my own.”
Laro sighed and rested his head against the silky hair. The slim man was unbearably stubborn at times. He was tired, bone tired, and he knew his partner had to be the same. It wasn’t the best time to be having deep philosophical discussions. He was amazed they hadn’t degenerated down to name calling yet. Best to end it before it did. He couldn’t even remember who was to blame for starting the squabble. “…I’m sorry.”
The silver haired man sighed in defeat, rolling over once more to accept the apology properly. “… You’ll stay for breakfast?”
“If you’ll let me.”
“Don’t be silly.”
“I’m tired Masa…” The soldier curled around his partner with a contented grumble.
“… sleep then. We’ll talk in the morning. Only idiots make decisions at this time of night.”
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It was tricky to slip from the bed without waking the soldier. Despite his exhaustion, Laro was a chronic early riser. He muttered in his sleep and rolled into the warm hollow in the bed as the silver-haired man stepped quietly to the small bathroom.
He would need to move quickly to rebind his hand before his soldier woke. It throbbed painfully beneath the tight bindings. Kuja peeled off the clean top-layer of wrappings to reveal the mess beneath. When the cloth wouldn’t come free on it’s own he sunk his hand into the basin of cool water with a sigh and waited for it to soak off.
// What I wouldn’t give for hot-and-cold tap water… //
After a few painful moments the cotton pulled free, blessedly leaving the scab intact. He glared at the small wound cursing its stubbornly slow healing. It was better than it had been a week ago, but still looked like it was only days old instead of something from over a fortnight ago. Checking for infection had become almost a ritual as he carefully prodded his palm, but everything looked and felt as it should with the exception of the fact that the wound still would not go away. He bit his lip slightly in worry.
// Maybe there’s just something wrong with this place… I
mean… It took me 6 months to recover from my /arrival/… maybe something in the
air? Every world is different… The reason
It was useless to speculate. Even if he had had the equipment to detect the differences in fields and natural energies he wouldn’t know much more than he could guess now. His training had all been focused with acting upon pre-established theories, not concocting new ones. Such things had always been Mikoto’s domain.
// She’d know what this meant… She was always clever. An automaton… but a clever one… //
He smiled grimly as he rewrapped his hand, carefully disposing of the used bandages where Laro wouldn’t find them. He didn’t like admitting that he missed the genome. ‘Sister’ still sounded wrong in his mind, but less so then it had once. They were from the same template after all.
// Same template, different variables… round and round and round. Me, Zidane, Mikoto… She’s on Gaia now… I wonder if without Terra influence… will she start to change? I was always… a little ‘off’… but going to Gaia was the real catalyst. And Zidane grew up there, so he /definitely/ had personality… so will she? //
Kuja couldn’t imagine what it would be like for the prim woman to develop a sense of humor; a sense of anything. He smirked.
“Masa…?”
“Here.” Splashing some water on his face before draining the bowl, he finished his tidying and turned back to the bedroom. “I thought you wanted to sleep in…”
“Maybe I will… are you coming back to bed?” The cat-man could easily read the implication that Laro would get up if he didn’t.
“I thought I’d ring for breakfast for you…” He allowed himself to be caught and coaxed back onto the quilt. “…but maybe it can wait.”
It was hard to care about the soreness in his hand, or his other worries when being burrowed into the bed by a cuddly giant. For a few minutes there was a confusion of blankets and limbs but eventually he was comfortably tucked against the pillows, the cocoa-skinned soldier above and around him. He wrapped his arms around what he could of the larger man’s back and grinned as Laro made a face.
“Your hands are freezing.”
“You’ll just have to warm them up…”
“Minx.”
“I thought I was a kitten.” His partner had leaned down for a kiss but Kuja spoiled it by playfully nipping at his nose when it came in reach.
The general only chuckled again and succeeded on his second attempt. “You are adorable, whatever you are… and your tail is tickling me…”
“You’re just full of complaints today. Perhaps I shouldn’t have come back to bed.” Teasing, the silver-haired man made to pull away only to be caught again. Propped on elbows and knees, Laro was trying not to crush him, but there was little room to maneuver. Besides, the kisses were too enjoyable to completely ignore.
Wondering how far he could coax his sleepy soldier the mage stretched, lifting off the bed a little to press against the muscled chest. Sensing the move was well received he went ahead and worked his arms free. Rumbling in pleasure, his companion seemed more than eager to follow his lead, following the pressure of the hands tangled in his hair to deepen his kiss. The cat-man gave up his recent apathy in favor of pushing harder, moving his lips and tongue against the soldier in ways that were anything but chaste. It was too easy to get excited by the feeling of the larger body pressing gently down against him. If he had to make a fool out of himself, at least he could guarantee that Laro would do the same with interest.
He was dizzy by the time the general came up for air, almost giggling as his lover trailed hungry little kisses down his throat.
// God but he’s good… Nothing like… // Kuja’s brain went blank as lips and teeth gently pinched his ear. It didn’t matter how many lovers he had on Gaia, men and women alike had been sampled, tried, and found wanting after a little while. Something whispered in the back of his mind that he would miss the soldier when he was gone. It wasn’t that he was the most original or ardent beau, but there was an adoration in the way he held him, touched him, tasted him.
// This can’t last… he’s just all muddled from just waking up… // Deciding to enjoy what he was being given, the cat-man wiggled to gain better leverage against the smooth sheets and precipitated a near disaster. Silk while lovely looking had some definite disadvantages. Trying to accommodate the smaller man’s need to shift angle, Laro shifted slightly and then lost a battle with the frictionless surface. Elbows sliding out from under him he all but landed on his lover.
“Ooof… too heavy…”
“Shit, sorry…”
“Ow, watch the /tail/…” Several painful moments later the mage sighed in relief, pleased with the results if not the means by which they had come about. Apologetic lips worked against his throat as his soldier tried to make up for his mistake. Rather than the expected embarrassed ending, the slip had only helped things along. Kuja lifted his head slightly to get an appreciative view of the man now sprawled between his legs. It was more than little tempting to buck against the warm weight, to grind his hips against the washboard stomach to encourage the man to go further.
// I think it safe to say… this is foreplay now… //
Laro’s interest, pressing firmly against the back of the cat-man’s thigh as the large man curled closer, was certain. He wondered if it was possible to gain by accident the exact thing he had been all but begging for over the past several months. Silently demanding another kiss, he decided to throw caution away and gave in to the need to lift his hips off the mattress, gently rocking, testing. The needy groan breathed into his mouth was all he could have asked for.
// Then again… they say actions speak louder than words… and Heaven knows /talking/ about it has gotten us nowhere… //
He couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend a lazy morning. Kuja let his head fall back on the pillows, using feet and hands to pet what he could reach of his lover’s back, arms and legs. It was amazing how well things were progressing, slowly but with absolute assurance that there would be no turning back. The movement of his hips had started a sympathetic pattern. He sighed as he was rhythmically pushed against the mattress in a gently parody of what was to come. Wanting to goad the man further, he lifted his head again, kissing and nipping the muscled shoulder. Over the smooth curve of bone and skin, a nervous movement caught his eye. It took a second to focus on it, anything beyond the confines of the bed seeming relatively unimportant. He locked eyes with the stunned soldier standing at the door, and startled, bit down harder than he intended.
“Ow!”
Laro’s complaint was the catalyst for several things, not the least of which was the young man at the door dropping an arm full of scrolls. The cat-man felt his lover go very still in his arms, and pressed his forehead against the warm skin in regret. He didn’t necessarily mind being walked in on. With the blankets it wasn’t they had been providing /that/ much of a show.
// … Don’t over react, Laro… I know you like your privacy but… //
It was impossible that the dark man could hear his thoughts, but he must have picked up some of the warning as Kuja’s hands tightened on his arms. Taking a breath to steady himself he craned his head to see who it was.
The younger man was still fumbling with his deliveries. Every time he stooped for a new one another would slip from his arms to bounce onto the floor.
“Leave them.”
“…yessir…” The junior officer turned to flee.
“… Tell them…” Laro’s voice caught him with his hand on the knob. “… Tell them I’ve taken the /day/ off. The Dean can make any decisions that can’t wait.”
The news was apparently more than the young man could be prepared to cope with given what he had inadvertently interrupted. He bolted out the door, carefully shutting it behind him before the sound of his footsteps rapidly faded down the hall.
“Well… this will certainly add to my popularity…” Somehow Kuja couldn’t help but find the whole thing funny. Disappointing, but funny. His friend only swore bitterly.
Whatever had been about to happen between them was over, the interruption providing an unwelcome reminder of reality for the soldier. “… I’m sorry…”
“What the hell are you apologizing for?”
“I…” The man grinned ruefully. “Never mind.”
Kuja simply shrugged. “Some other time perhaps. Breakfast?”
“…Yes please.”
The cat-man simply smirked as he retrieved his night-shirt from where it had fallen on the floor and padded over to the bell-pull. “You really are going to give me /quite/ a reputation… Nazer-kai… accosting me in front of the /help/…”
“Shut up, kitten…”
“I’m just teasing…”
Still grumbling, the man rolled out of bed and staggered to the washroom to get a start on his day.
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With the new trainees awaiting their first trip to the front and older soldiers back for refit, the streets of the city were awash in uniforms. Fine weather and the upcoming deployment seemed to drive everyone out and into the markets, desperate to soak up one last day of freedom before buckling down for the months ahead. The general grinned as he used his full height to peer over the heads of a noisy group of lancers and see where he was going. Fair weather and a little freedom were exactly what he needed for the afternoon.
Laro checked for the tenth time that his partner was still following close behind, afraid of loosing the smaller man in the crush. Wandering around without an honor guard was more fun, but meant living with the crowds. He wasn’t above using his own bulk to push through the crowds at the entrance, the cat-man following gamely in his wake, arms tucked primly into his sleeves as he walked.
“There are one or two places I haven’t been to in ages… and another few that I think you’d like…”
“You really don’t have to do this you know…”
“Don’t be silly… It would hardly be fair if someone else took you to the market before I did.” He caught his partner by the elbow to guide him around a corner and down a less populated street.
“The bars are popular I see…”
“Yeah well not everyone sleeps until almost lunch time before having breakfast.”
The blue eyes turned to gaze at him with artful innocence. “But Laro, we weren’t sleeping.”
He strictly forbade the blush to come. “Stop that.”
They passed several storefronts for tailors. One featured a robe of a blue so rich it almost looked green. He wasn’t surprised when the cat-man looked longingly at it. “Do you want to try it?”
“No Laro… I have clothes enough.”
“I didn’t ask if you /needed/ it… I asked if you wanted it.” The silver-haired man simply shook his head and looked away. Sighing in amusement, Laro caught his partner by the arm again and walked purposefully towards his goal. If he had to say farewell to his kitten and return to war, he planned to do it with style. Opening the door to a rather cluttered looking shop, he bowed the man in.
Kuja looked around and blinked in surprise. Clocks of every shape and color decorated the walls, each ticking and chiming as they counted the seconds. The general didn’t wait for his awed companion, pushing gently passed him and making his way to the counter.
“Ritch… how are you.”
“As I live and breathe, Nazer-kai… back from the dead I heard…”
“Not dead… battered, but not dead…” He turned away from the smiling artisan to observe his scholarly-looking friend. Masa was still engrossed buy the brass gears exposed on a particularly large grandfather clock. “… how’s your son doing? I haven’t been well informed about the front for a while now and it’s hard to track down one person in a crowd…”
“Still alive, if that’s your worry.” The old man grinned wryly. “Ibat-kai is putting his skills to good use. He wrote me the other day to complain about how the sand is always getting in the coils but there is really no stopping it is there…”
“Not that I know of…”
“But I’m sure you didn’t come always the way here just to ask about Jeo…”
“… Actually… no… I’m on the look out for something… a gift… and I thought immediately of you.”
“I’m honored.” Wrinkles eyes flickered from the soldier to the other occupant of the shop. “… for a friend?”
“Something like that.” Laro slouched against the counter with a conspirator’s smile. “I remember you had a rare gift with birds once. A friend of mine would probably fall absolutely in love with something with a touch of class…”
“Goodness Kai, those went out of fashion a while ago… no one wants a music box these days, they all either get the real thing or hire out.”
“That’s a pity… I don’t think Masa is the sort to like seeing real animals in cages…”
“I may have one or two left… I still am fond of them even if the court isn’t. I could check the back…”
“Would you?”
Done with his investigations of the larger cabinet mechanisms, Kuja had finally come to see what was so exciting about the back of the store. “Someone you know, Laro?”
“An old friend.”
“Ah.”
“What do you think?” He gestured around the crowded shelves and walls.
The slender man allowed a small smile. “He has some legitimate skill… the models in particular are cleverly done.”
“His son is just as good… Or would be if he ever worked on toys instead of weapons.” Nodding in agreement, the cat-man leaned against the counter to study a fancifully designed ship on the shelf nearby. The rigging was done with embroidery floss to exacting detail.
A muffled thud from the small room beyond caused him to look up and at his companion in silent inquiry. Laro simply grinned, trying to look innocent.
“Ah… I’d almost forgot I had this… a commissioned piece… for the late Duchess of Heysworth… her children never came to claim it…” The cloth wrapped parcel that was reverently placed on the counter had the familiar bell shape of a birdcage. Peering around his burden to wink at his audience, the clockmaker fumbled with the ties. “Lets take a look shall we?”
Laro almost forgot to gage his friend’s reaction as he stared at the marvelous music box. The device was captivating. Inside a carrying case designed to look like a decorative wire cage was a brilliantly yellow enamel bird. Each of the feathers was made of its own little brass sliver, shaped, molded and coated with a butter yellow enamel. The beady eyes were chips of lapis and the claws delicately gripping the branch were painted as to look almost real. Every detail true to life, the clockwork canary rested still and dormant, waiting for someone to turn the toy-like crank. Looking through the wire cage, he caught the cat-man’s enraptured expression and knew it was the right thing.
“Her name is Virgo…” The old man’s voice was almost reverant.
“What does she sing, Ritch?”
“Hmmm… ‘A Summer Day Lullaby’ as I recall… old but popular…” The elderly artisan lifted the cage off carefully and wound the base. Springs set into motion, the little bird flipped it’s wings with a little rustle, cocking it’s head in a parody of life and beginning to sing. The lazy little tune chimed through the quiet shop.
// It’s uncanny how he makes them move so well… you almost forget they’re just toys. //
The song finished and Laro let out a happy sigh. “I’ll take her.”
“Oh good. I can’t think of anyone who would treat her as kindly as you…”
“Have her sent would you?”
“Of course.”
“… eleven zodiacs once pondered… how best to capture Virgo’s heart…”
The soft whisper was almost inaudible but the soldier turned, curious. His friend was watching the treasure as it was tucked first into its protective cage, and then behind a layer of canvas. “What was that…?”
“Nothing… just… remembering a story I heard once…” Interest suddenly fixed on something on the far side of the room, Masa left him to stare at the clocks.
// He looks… rather sad almost… //
Worried, he followed, hoping he hadn’t made a mistake. “Let me guess, you don’t like canaries…”
“Quite the opposite, Laro… They and I have always had a great deal in common.” The silver-haired man smiled softly. “Both they and I have learned to sing despite our cages.”
“Ah…”
Whatever was bothering Masa seemed to pass. He looked back with a smile. “It’s lovely, utterly useless, and likely going to bankrupt you… a fitting love-token I suppose?”
“Something like that. Shall we try someplace else?”
“‘Go for broke’?”
“What good is money on a battlefield…”
“How true.” Shaking his head in disbelief, the cat-man followed him from the shop.
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Right… so… It’s a waff fic so we can’t go more than three chapters without… the waff… next up? Well, plot I guess… it had to happen sometime.
--Lunar.