Feather Flight: "You
Come to This Blackened Land." (part 5)
An AU Kuja fic, shonen-ai, language
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“Shhhh don't wake /him/..."
"I'm trying not to but there'll be no way of separating them if I don't move the arm!"
"Oh what a mess... well do your best... oh be careful!"
The agitated whispers were annoying but ignorable; the gentle grip on his wrist was not. Laro came awake silently, giving no outward sign as he waited for his wits to catch up with his body. Kuja's limp warmth was still sprawled across his chest, the thin arms tucked beneath him in a close embrace. The nurses were very gently trying to extract the man, shifting his arms so they could separate the two. For a moment, the ex-soldier was tempted to continue feigning sleep and let them carry the man back to his own bed. It would certainly cause less of a stir then what he was about to do. The sleeping form in his arms mewled discontentedly as they tried to free him, and Laro's decision was made.
"Leave him. He's comfortable." The nurses all but fell over themselves in pulling away from the bed. Trying hard not to disturb his burden, the dark man made an effort to stretch his sore shoulders and rub the sleep from his face. Kuja only burrowed closer, nuzzling against his neck; kitten like. He fought the urge to smile, attempting to keep things professional if only on the surface.
"Was there something you needed?" The two women were still blushing and fidgeting. It took several seconds for them to make themselves clear.
"No sir, it's just... well I came in to take over her shift see, but she had fallen asleep... and then I found /him/ there curled up like a baby and we thought for certain that we'd lost you... but you're... obviously fine..." The apron-ed woman finished lamely.
// ... they thought I'd... die? // As hard as he concentrated, his memories of the previous days were hazy but he remembered the feeling of the delicate hands on his chest, the wave of cool pain-free bliss that flowed through him.
// Masa... he /did/ something to me...? //
The nurse interrupted his train of thought, her co-worker slipping out the door to fetch the doctor. "Nazer Kai... how do you feel...?"
"Feel...?" Laro blinked at the bizarre question. "...I feel fine." Staring at the ceiling, trying to self analyze his curious mood, he was rather startled at the complete truth of the statement.
"Kai?!" Ing caught himself on the doorway obviously expecting the worst. He stared in amazement as the soldier winced at the shout and waved gingerly. The silver-haired youth on his chest stirred again, and grumbled, slowly rousing himself with a giant yawn. "Kuja?!" The doctor, beyond startled by the odd scene, took a moment to settle his mustache before resuming his usual collected demeanor. Laro spent confusing moment juggling the still drowsy form and untangling himself from the sheets as the small medic helped him to sit up and began to examine him.
"... what's... going on..." The soldier smiled at the complaint from under his chin. The cat-man, still nested against his chest was trying to get his bearings, pushing away just enough to look up at his unusual pillow. "...oh... you."
// No one should look this adorable when tired... just like a kid... except those eyes... they could stare right through you. //
"Good morning." The blue eyes blinked sleepily at him.
"Humph."
"Impossible..." Kuja looked up at the doctor in surprise at the uncharacteristic outburst. The mustached man was taking the soldier's pulse, flustered once more. "Make a fist, Kai... now bend, and this way..." Putting the dark man's arm through a series of rotations he muttered a moment then sat down, confused. Now fully awake, the silver-haired man watched the frowning face and then his companion's cheerful one. Laro repeated the exercise with his free arm, pleasantly surprised at the ease of the motion. There was neither stiffness nor pain, the joints functioning as they hadn't for over a year.
"Well I'll be damned..."
"But /how/?!" Dr. Ing was baffled. "You're... damn it you're in perfect health! This is just not possible..." The soldier simply shrugged, but he couldn't help but tuck the cat-like man closer, his suspicions still fresh in his mind. The doctor was apparently also considering the possibilities, fixing the quiet man with a stern glance. "Kuja, you were with him all night, yes? Did... anything peculiar happen? When did his fever break?"
Ocean-blue eyes watched him from under the sheltering fringe of silver hair, pondering the question. "I... fell asleep."
"So you're saying that a bloody miracle happened /right/ under our noses... and we all slept through it?" Curling deeper into the protective one-armed embrace, the cat-man said nothing, simply watching the flabbergasted doctor.
"I don't remember anything either, not that it probably helps..." Laro attempted to calm the man with a conciliatory smile. "But hey, I'm not complaining..." His small friend seemed to relax with his comment, and he briefly wondered if he should confront him later.
"It's... it's just not possible..." Sitting for a long moment watching his patient, Ing toyed with his mustache then stood abruptly. "I don't know how long this will last for, but you're right. Let's take what we're given, hmmm?" He shrugged, "Gods know /I've/ been praying for a miracle... Well... let's run some tests... but after breakfast... you must be hungry."
"Starving."
"Coming, Kuja? Your friend will come down when he cleans up a little, and you should do the same." Suddenly remembering himself at the doctor's gentle prompt, the silver-haired man all but sprang out of the bed, blushing slightly as he silently slid from the room. Dr. Ing watched his escape. "He... he seems quite attached to you Kai... was most ferociously stubborn about staying by your side... a curious one, our little foundling... not child-like at all... not when he chooses to be."
"It bothers you...?" The soldier kept his voice neutral, carefully standing to test his legs.
// Should I tell /him/...? But what do I say... I already have enough odd-ball theories about Masa, one more and they /will/ think I've cracked... no, no I'll wait... I want to ask the kitten first. //
The doctor shrugged. "Well, it's not as if we ever did discover his age, or know anything about what would be 'expected'... it might be a symptom of the amnesia, or maybe it's his nature... He may look almost human, but it's a poor thing to judge him by, especially if he fell from the /sky/." He smiled at what had now become something of a town-wide joke despite the fact that he too believed it, at least in part.
"Let him be then... it doesn't bother me... if he is child-like or not."
"You're rather fond of him too."
"I make no secret of my likes or dislikes."
"No, I suppose you don't... take your time coming down to breakfast, we'll see that your 'masa' gets fed..." The small man paused at the door. "Still, you have to admit, if this recovery of yours lasts... that boy really will have become your lucky charm." The soldier merely snorted, bundling together a change of clothes and a towel for the bath.
// What have you done, Masa...? //
// 'From you I'll accept that name'... //
The dark man paused; uncertain if the remembered-words were from a fever-dream or had actually been spoken.
// No, he /did/ say that... and then I called him beautiful...? Oh hell... he probably thinks I'm a complete... but then again... he stayed didn't he? He healed me... and he stayed... // When he stopped to think about it, his body easily remembered the feel of the light form in his arms, the way the hair tickled his neck as he had pressed closer. It was almost unnerving how real the ghostly touch felt. Shaking his head, he sank into the hot bath, and methodically began to scrub.
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The beach was baking, but the salty breeze was refreshing, dispelling the afternoon heat. Laro did his best to impersonate a piece of driftwood, happily lazing on the sand, catching a short nap. Beside him, his companion sat quietly, watching the rolling surf. The past week had been an odd sort of role reversal, the quiet youth watching solemnly as his friend regained his strength. There had been no relapses; the dark man's 'cure' seemingly a permanent development. Kuja discretely flicked his eyes sideways, taking in the sprawled form beside him. He couldn't help but feel pleased with the results of his work, as exhausting and unpredictable as the effort had been. He frowned, looking at his hands again, but the spark, the power was gone, sleeping once more.
// But... I had it... I felt it... /magic/... //
In the distance a cluster of children were laughing and playing in the surf. Seagulls chortled and cruised in lazy circles over head.
// I wonder... could I summon it again...? Or was this /truly/ a miracle... // He sighed. // I just don't know. //
Laro took an opportunity to stretch, wiggling his toes in the sand childishly. The cat-man watched in amusement. "What are you doing...?”
"Relaxing... you?"
"The same, I suppose..."
The dark man raised an eyebrow, “Bored?"
"No... just watching the sea... it always moves..."
"Well most of the time... when it stops, that's usually bad."
"Where I grew up the water never moved. Nobody swam in it either..." He nodded towards the distant children.
"What, nobody?"
"We didn't know how to... even if we could. But nothing that went in ever came out... not without a ship anyway..."
// And I tossed Zidane in... Hoping he'd never come back... there wasn't even a ripple... little did I know he'd end up the happier of the two of us... if I had... would I have jumped in after him?... Or would I have been too afraid. //
"What the hell kind of ocean was that?"
// No kind of ocean, Laro... but you /don't/ need to know about that... Odd, I think /then/... I wouldn't have done it... jumped... I was scared of the unknown... but now...? //
"More of a pond really... but never mind."
"No, tell me... I want to know."
"About water?" Kuja raised an eyebrow.
"About where you grew up... about you." He grinned, ignoring the taunt.
Hiding his face in his hair, the cat-man chuckled again. "Not much to tell really... I don't remember much."
"You remember about the water..."
"Hmmm..." There was a hint of a smile. "And what about /you/... what did you do before you went to war..."
// ... it seems 'unknowns' are the only things I can jump into... so many secrets... I can do this. I have to. //
Laro smirked as his question was neatly derailed. "Went to school to be an officer... did you fish in your pond?"
"There weren't any..." The flock of children had begun an impromptu race, wet sand splattering as they tore down the beach in a loose mob. Kuja let out an inarticulate bark of dismay as a clump of sand sprayed him in the face, Laro, having been used as a hurdle, was even worse off, but laughed instead.
"Hey!" The silver-haired man dusted his clothes, grumbling after the rapidly departing kids. "Damn it, I have sand in my hair... /again/... That's the third time this week!"
The soldier laughed at his prissy tone. "You /could/ go remind them... if you can catch them that is."
Looking morosely up the beach, the cat-man sighed. "Catch them? Why bother... they're coming back..." Sure enough the merry group has rounded a boulder and was sprinting back. The soldier finally pulled himself up, still laughing and hailed the children as they drew close.
"Oi, Sevo! My friend here says that your running is a nuisance..."
The darkly tanned boy matched Laro's grin. "Oh, I suppose it is... for old lazy slowpokes like you two..."
"Hoho! I'll have you know when I was a boy..."
"Not possible... you were probably sleeping all the time /then/ too!" The soldier feigned injury while the younger children giggled.
"I'll have you know that we're /both/ excellent runners..." Kuja blinked in alarm as the broad gesture immediately included him in the conversation.
"What?"
"We've been resting all this while just so we'd have the energy to run circles around you barely grown sprats."
"Um... Laro...?"
The dark man grinned. "I feel /fine/, Masa... it's a great day for racing!" The cat-man stared in disbelief as his companion and the head-boy bargained about the distance, finally settling on a large boulder several hundred feet away.
"It wasn't /you/ I was worried about..." The grumble wasn't heart-felt however, and he submitted to the gentle prodding into position. "Wait, so what do I do?"
Laro stared at him in surprise. "Haven't you ever raced before? They say 'go'... and we head for the rock. Touch it and turn around and come back here first... and you win."
Kuja stared thoughtfully at his friend. "And what's the prize...?"
"The prize..?" Laro shrugged, "I guess it's that everybody knows you're the best..." He chuckled. "You'll be able to boss the sprats around all you like."
Kuja gave the tanned-boy a measuring look. "If I win... no more getting sand in my hair...?"
The child shrugged. "You won't, but sure... if you do... then we'll make sure not to bother you guys when you're sleeping anymore..." He snorted at the likeliness of the deal.
The cat-man smirked. "Very well... let's race."
For all his cheerful boasting, Laro soon lagged behind the group, his stamina still not as it should be. He watched his friend's slim form darting down the beach with a grin. For all the silver-man's complaints, he was at the front of the pack; eyes narrowed in determination as he all but flew over the sand, tail streaming along behind him. Kuja didn't just touch the marker-boulder, he hit it full-on, leaping to spring-board off the rough surface and reversing-course mid air. The feat of acrobatics landed him in a plume of sand several feet ahead of the now awed crowd as he regained his pace, steadying his first few strides through the expedient of using hands as well as feet. The soldier watched in delighted amazement at the unmistakably feline antics and easily caught the light form as it plowed across the make-shift 'finish line'. Masa was panting loudly as the rest of the runners straggled in.
"I win." The children blinked in awe, the younger ones giggling as they watched the cat-man's tail lashing in excitement. The quickly smothered the sound when caught in the icy-blue gaze. "The forfeit is mine, no more sand in my hair... go play somewhere else."
Laro smiled at the silver-haired man's grumpy declaration, conceding the victory with a shrug. "I think the lagoon down on the point probably has water in it..."
Acknowledging the validity of the idea, Sevo and the others grinned, waving as they jogged away. Kuja remained quiet for several minutes longer, sucking in lungfulls of air. "Laro... next time, I'd appreciate it if you didn't go volunteering me for things."
"Who volunteered you..."
"/You/ did! Remember?! ....racing... like a kid... shit... I've /never/..."
"Then it was about time wasn't it..." The dark man smoothly cut him off, the calm words effectively silencing the complaint.
"What does /that/ mean...?"
"What I said, of course." Laro shrugged and helped his companion upright, and leading him down the beach. He thought a moment before explaining. "Funny thing is, Masa... 'you've never...' It seems there's a lot of things you've never done... big things, stupid things... I don't know what sort of childhood you had... but something tells me that whoever raised you skipped over some important stuff... like 'play'... and 'fun'... and friends... what /did/ you do as a child, Masa...?"
"Went to school to become an officer." The cat-man deliberately copied the soldier's tone.
"Funny... tell me...? The truth...?" He looked at the earnest dark eyes and deliberately produced a Zidane-like shrug, comically exaggerated.
"I must have done /something/... but I can't remember." For a moment the taller man looked as though he would call him out on the lie, but after a long moment, Laro smiled sadly and continued their walk in silence.
// You wouldn't understand anyway... // Feeling a little guilty at the obvious falsehood, Kuja sighed, rubbing his forehead as his companion lazily pretended to look for seashells. There had to be a way to tell the soldier things without telling /everything/... he chose his words with grim precision. // This... this is going to be painful... and probably a bad idea... but what the Hell... if he wants to know, might as well... //
"When I was young..." The dark man's head snapped up in amazement, watching the cat-man as he spoke softly to the sea. Masa was ignoring him, almost talking to himself. "You were right... I never played as a child... well maybe I did... but only in secret... on my own... little stupid games I made up... skipping pebbles and climbing rocks and the like... but I..." He turned, fixing his friend with a distant blue stare. "I was different from the others... /they/... they never played at all... just /worked/ they were always mindlessly doing /something/... stupid menial things... /waiting/..."
"Waiting for what...?" The soft question seemed to jar the youth out of his reverie, causing him to grimace.
"Umm... We were all being.... ‘trained’. Yes,
trained... for some bigger task... Being an 'individual' was not a /desirable/
thing... not in Brambala...
"...
"He was..." Kuja stopped, uncertain which word to use.
// Maker... father... /god/...? 'Torturer' is more like it... 'scientist'...? He'd have called himself the 'Guardian of Terra'... or something... 'Pompous old fool with an ego the size of Lindblum' is more like it... /bastard/... codger... 'waste of life'... //
"... he was the one in charge... he gave orders, and we obeyed... well /they/ did... I... I have always had a contrary disposition."
"I don't think you're contrary..."
"You've never tried to boss me around either..."
"This is true." Laro hesitated, sensing some of the emotion buried beneath the calm facts. "But what of Zidane...? He was a brother, yes?"
"He was raised by someone else... he...he was sent away when very young."
"Oh..." He wanted to ask more questions, trying to find the source of whatever it was that felt so /wrong/ about the simple confession, but was interrupted by a distant shout. The soldier looked back towards the town, Masa following his gaze with curiosity.
"They seem to be trying to get our attention..."
// ... Just in time too...I was beginning to run out of 'safe' things to say... I think I've only made things worse... Oh /please/ be something distracting... //
The cat-man watched as a set of three riders, jockeyed their animals down the bluff and came towards them. Bright sunlight glinted off of pieces of metal armor, and all three had their helmets tucked formally under their arms. He raised his eyebrows, dubiously impressed at the sight of the knights. The third and youngest was holding what looked like a cavalry banner. Turning to ask his friend the meaning of the blue-and white patterned flag, Kuja paused. The dark-man's stricken features were an ominous sign.
"...Laro...?"
For a moment the recuperating soldier said nothing, grimly watching the new arrivals come near. Suddenly he turned, "Masa, go back to the Clinic."
"What?"
"Go on, they're only here to see me... and this'll probably be very boring... and..." Kuja's eyes narrowed at the lame excuses.
"I think I'll stay..." He watched as the soldier grimaced and then sighed; their recent conversation suddenly very applicable.
"...Contrary, huh...?"
"...Definitely... besides... they're here."
"Keep quiet then... maybe they won't notice you."
"As you wish."
The switch from stubborn to obliging caused Laro to watch him suspiciously for a moment, but the cat-man was right. There was no time for him to slip away and not have it draw attention. He stepped forward a few paces, moving to greet the riders as Masa waited calmly, watching from shore. The dry sand was almost painfully hot beneath his feet. The pair of senior officers stared in surprise for a silent moment, and then dismounted, bowing low in front of him.
"Nazer Kai."
"Great Kai..."
"Don't bother, I'm retired."
They blinked in surprise when their salutes were met with casual candor. The more be-ribboned man cleared his throat carefully. "You were discharged with honors in consideration to your incurable condition, sir."
"Yes."
"Rumors have recently reached the capital... that you have been cured after all..."
"Perhaps."
The man sighed at the un-forthcoming replies. "Are you cured, sir?"
For a minute, Laro and the officer stared at one another in a silent test of will. At length the dark man shrugged, "What do they want."
"I have a message for you... from the King, and two more from highly important military leaders..."
"Someone sent a captain... all this way... to send me mail from Martinosso, Ibat, and 'old man' Riquoi ? The war must be going well to afford such extravagance..."
Refusing to be baited, the man clenched his jaw. "Quite the opposite in fact, and I don't care /who/ you are... You'll show some respect for your King!"
"You've never met him, have you."
"That doesn't matter!"
The dark man laughed, suddenly amused. "Very well then soldier, give me my letters... and thank you for a job well done."
"I'm supposed to brief you as well, /sir/."
"Are you...?"
"/And/ wait for a response... /Sir/..."
Laro's humor vanished, his face suddenly serious. "I suggest you find something to amuse yourself with for a while then... I /will/ take the letters now... but putting up with a briefing from /you/ can wait until after dinner... I assume you know the way to the clinic... after /that/... we can /discuss/ the possibility of my giving you any response. Do I make myself clear?"
The captain balked at the coldly precise instructions. "...yes sir."
"Then I suggest you find the inn... it must have been a long trip... if you'll excuse me..." Laro accepted the small bag containing several sheaves of paper, and turned away, the conference was over. Silently moving to stand beside Kuja, he kept his eyes fixed on the water, fists clenched until the men re-mounted and turned their horses towards town.
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The cat-man divided his attention between his companion and the departing riders with amused curiosity. Forestalling his questions with a look, the soldier continued their walk down the beach, working off the last of his tension. Kuja waited until he saw the tight shoulders finally relax before saying what had been on the tip of his tongue for the past several minutes.
"... ‘just a simple soldier’.... hmmmm...?"
"I know..."
"’Nobody important’....?"
"I know..."
"’Nothing to tell really’... hmmm?"
"I didn't want you to think you had to... it's just that..."
Kuja dropped his teasing tone, sensing the mood was still too fragile to harass the man further. "You were worried I wouldn't like you... if I knew...?"
"I guess... It... didn't seem to matter, if you knew or not... and I was so tired of everybody bowing-and-scraping... I just wanted..."
The cat-man shrugged. "I'm not blind you know... I had already figured it out, mostly..."
Laro blinked. "You did...? And you didn't say anything...?"
"What would it have accomplished? I understand, not wanting to tell me..." He smiled and gave the soldier a gentle shove. "If you think that I'm going to start bowing to you however... you'd better revise your expectations."
"Never... you should never bow to me..." He laughed, scratching his head in embarrassment. "Ah well... now you know my 'big secret'... it's a relief I guess..."
"If you say it is..." Kuja smiled knowingly.
"Some day, I'll have to figure out what your secret is..."
"... Some day... I'll tell you..." The cat-man smile grew broader, and leaving his friend staring in surprise, he sprinted ahead down the beach, delighting in the texture of sand between his toes.
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Notes: At this rate, I'll never get where I'm going.... oh well, no loss. Not like I have an agenda with this fic. Just goofing around after all. ^_^;
--Lunar
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