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Tears sprang to Satoshi’s eyes as he was led into the room of his mother. The woman inside didn’t look like the woman he knew and loved. His mother looked at him when she heard the door open and lifted her hand to wave him over. The small boy hesitated for a short moment until he felt a push from behind and stumbled further into the room. “My beloved child,” she said, and his feet carried him over to the woman he loved so much. Her face was peaceful as it has always been and only because he knew her so well he could see the slight pain she was in reflected in her eyes. “Mama.” Satoshi felt the tears he had tried so hard to hold back run down his cheeks, and her soft hand came up to cup his face and wipe the tears away lovingly. “Don’t cry, my dear one.”“I don’t wanna you to go.” Once he had started the tears couldn’t be stopped. A sob escaped his lips, and he hid his face at her shoulder. The woman hummed softly under her breath while caressing his hair in an attempt to calm him down. Her fingers traced his slightly pointed ears, and only very slowly he managed to calm down again and look at her when she forced him to lift his face. “And I don’t want to leave you, my dear, but there is no choice. I couldn’t let your brother die. Could I now?” she answered and traced his jawline. Ohno shook his head as his eyes wandered over the side of the bed where a small cot was standing. Inside was a tiny baby boy with a tuff of brown hair and green eyes. He knew that his mother would have never forgiven herself if something had happened to him. But still, just for a small moment, he wished that instead of his mother he would lose the boy. “My big strong, beautiful child. I will miss you dearly. But I know you are strong enough to continue living, greeting each new day and someday in the future bring us peace,” she whispered, and her face became pinched when the pain in her body grew stronger. When nurses came over as to help her move and make her suffering less she waved them away. She didn’t want to be disturbed right now. Sleep would help her, she knew, but she had things she wasn’t sure if she would be able to wake up again. “Let us alone,” she demanded finally. “I will call for you if I need you.” “Of course your majesty,” they answered, and she waited until they left the room and closed the door behind them. A deep sigh left her, and she sat up more. Satoshi helped her and then climbed beside her on the bed. “I don’t understand mama.”“You are still too young to do so, Satoshi. But you will understand as you grow older. Don’t worry. Can you promise me something?”Satoshi nodded and looked at her with bright eyes. He still could feel the tears burning in them, but he was already a big boy now. And a big brother. He shouldn’t cry like a little babe. That was for his small brother. “Good. Take care of Masaki for me, yes? He will need all the love you can give him. Your father won’t be happy with him as he isn’t as strong as he wishes for his children.”Satoshi peaked over the cot to look inside and nodded again silently. Yes, the small baby looked weak and small but it was still a baby, so he wasn’t surprised about that. But if his mama wanted him to take care of his brother, he would. He would tell him stories and heal all of his owies. Just like his mother used to do with him. His mother smiled softly if a bit sadly and put off her necklace. Satoshi didn’t realise what she was doing until he felt the cold metal closing around his neck. His eyes widened as the round medallion came to a rest against his breast. “Mama?”“I want you to have it, ne? I know it is safe with you.”Satoshi carefully lifted it in his hands and looked at it closely. It was the necklace his mother had with her all the time he realised. It was filled with small flowers and moss, and in the middle of it, there was a golden key. He always thought it was beautiful. But he didn’t understand why she would give it to him. “What is it?” he asked silently. He felt strange magic surrounding it, and he didn’t understand why she would give him something like that. Why him and not his father? He was sure it would be safer with his father than with him. Satoshi was still a boy, nothing close to an adult and didn’t really know how to use the magic inside of him properly. Such an artefact in his hands was scary. “With this, you can travel through the worlds,” she explained, and he tilted his head in confusion.“Worlds? Are there other worlds?” “Of course there are.” She laughed softly and stroke his hair before her hands busied themselves with the loose strands of his hair to put them again in a ponytail. “My dear child. There is so much more than you know. And when the time comes, you will experience it all. Just know that this key is there to open the barriers if needed. For now, they are to stay closed though. My family has protected them for centuries, and now it is your duty to make sure that nothing bad will happen.”“But I’m not strong enough. Father would be better suited.”“Maybe now. But you will be one of the strongest of our kin. And your father can’t use the powers that lie within this key. It runs in yours and Masaki’s blood and it will in your children’s,” she explained. Satoshi nodded as he looked at the small key. It looked like nothing if he was honest. He couldn’t believe something so small and non-decrypt held so much power within. “It’s blood magic?” he lifted his head to look into her face. He was surprised to see how pale she had become. He had almost forgotten how ill she was because her words were so calm and stable. “Something like that, yes. Keep it safe ne?”“Uhn… Why can’t we use it though?”“Because we belong to this world. To no other world. To open up all barriers can do good and bad and we will never know which may happen.”“That is confusing,” Satoshi mumbled not really satisfied with those words. His mother chuckled and kissed his forehead. “True. But I’m sure you will understand when you are older, my dear child.” She put her hand over the medallion before putting it under his shirt to hide it from view. Satoshi could feel the metal growing warm against his skin and then the warm lips of his mother against his forehead. “My beautiful child. It is time to say goodbye. I love you so much. Please remember what you promised me. And know that I will forever protect you and your little brother.”“Mama?” He turned around and was shocked to see that she was shivering now. The face grew even paler and slightly greyish as she tried to reach for his baby brother. He jumped out of bed to put the small boy into her arms and then hurried out of the room to call for the nurses, or anybody to help his mother.
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Satoshi ran from the room as the healers came inside in a hurry he could hear their worried voices and the panic in them. But he didn’t want that. He felt overwhelmed by the knowledge that right now he probably had talked to his mother for the very last time. He could feel that the healers were too late for her. He knew that she was going to die this time. Her body had been too weak. She had given him the medallion, knowing fully well that she wouldn’t be able to look after it anymore. In a way, she had found her peace with the knowledge that she would die and was ready for it. Something that he wasn’t and never could be. A shudder went through his body, and he burst into his room to close it tightly behind himself again. He hid behind his bed and tugged the medallion from his cloak to look at it for a moment. Then he pressed his lips against it and closed his eyes. He wanted to forget for a moment at least. He wanted to leave to go somewhere where he wasn’t reminded of his mother. His lips moved almost inaudible. He wanted to vanish. The next time he opened his eyes he found himself in a foreign place. It was dark, and as he looked up, he realised that there weren’t as many stars in the sky as he was used to. The moon wasn’t the soft turquoise he was used to. He had spent hours upon hours in his life observing the orb and following its rules. Here the moon was a milky white and almost too weak to breach through the clouds. “Where…?” he asked himself as he turned around once. He took out the key again and observed the soft glow around it. It took a moment before he realised that somehow he had ended up in another world. “Oops…” he mumbled but then shrugged and put the medallion into his cloak. He wandered around curiously and tried to think of where he could have ended up and how the hell was he supposed to go back?Ohno looked at the plants around him and almost left the park when he heard someone crying. He followed the noise until he stumbled upon a small child. He crouched down in front of the child and hugged his knees close to himself as he observed the kid. He realised that it was a small boy after a short moment. “Why are you crying?” Satoshi asked the boy and lifted his hand to touch his head. The boy looked up with wide eyes and moved backwards, away from his touch with scared eyes. He fell upon his butt and scrambled away while hiding his face. He wasn’t fast enough, though, and Ohno could clearly see the bruise around his eye. Satoshi’s eyes widened, and he moved forward to grab his hands. He pulled them away from the face with a frown. “You are hurt. Who hurt you?” The eyes of the boy became defiant as he looked to the side. “I fell,” he whispered. Satoshi tried not to scoff at those words since he could clearly see a handprint in the form of the bruise and he moved forward again to cup the side of his face into his hands. The boy flinched but didn’t try to run away. He watched him with wide eyes. Satoshi was quite mesmerised by the golden sparkling eyes of the boy across from him and smiled a bit. “Don’t be scared,” he whispered before murmuring an incantation in a foreign language under his breath. For a moment his eyes turned bluish, and the ring on his left thumb lightened up for a second until it disappeared. He pulled his hand away, glad when he saw that the bruise was gone. The boy lifted his own hand to touch his eye that didn’t hurt anymore. “What are you?” he asked. Satoshi shrugged and let himself fall onto his butt. He was glad that he had been able to help the small boy in front of him. “I’m Satoshi of the house of Ohno of the lands of Ai,” he introduced himself. The golden eyes of the boy seemed to glimmer when he looked at him with his mouth open. He had never heard anybody introducing themselves in that way. Still, he bowed his head a little before looking at him straight into the eyes again. “I’m Ninomiya Kazunari,” he explained. “Thank you for helping me,” he added after a second. “Why are you here all alone? As far as I know, little children as you shouldn’t be outside at this hour,” he said and tilted his head to the side. In his home, it was quite uncommon for such small children as this boy seemed to be all alone in the night and they were children of the night as well as the day.“My parents had an argument. They were so loud, and I didn’t want to listen, so I left.”“Won’t they miss you?”“Dunno… I don’t think so,” he mumbled with a sad frown and bit on his lip. He looked at Satoshi with big eyes.“What is that land of Ai?” he asked and hugged his knees close to himself as he watched Satoshi.“It’s the land of Fae. Do you know what Fae are?” he asked. Kazunari shrugged before shaking his head. “Are they like fairies? But fairies are small, they sit upon flowers and laugh and dance.”Satoshi chuckled before shaking his head. “We are not like fairies,” he said thoughtfully and moved his head from side to side. “Or perhaps we are. I don’t know.”“Can you take me with you?” the boy asked suddenly, and Satoshi blinked. “What? Why? Won’t you miss your parents?”Kazunari shrugged and looked down to his shoes for a while. “Probably. It was a dumb question. Sorry. I should go back.” Before Satoshi could say anything, the boy got up and turned around to leave him alone in the park. Satoshi’s eyes followed him until he vanished in the darkness. He had never thought he would see such a small lonely back as he had just now. He bit his lip and looked at the medallion for a moment, before closing his eyes and asking it to bring him back home as well. He suddenly felt worse than he had at home.
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Nino opened his eyes with a sigh and rubbed them tiredly before moving his shoulders carefully. He rubbed the back of his neck with a moan when he realised in what awkward position he had fallen asleep. Nino carefully massaged his neck and shoulders before his hands wandered to the small of his back with a wince he moved his fingers to loosen his tight muscles there. His mind wandered back to his dream as he did so. It had been a long time since he had last dreamt of that encounter. He had run off often to the place he had met Satoshi, but the other had never appeared there again. On some days, Nino still wondered if he had imagined it all. But he knew that he couldn’t have done it. The wounds had been real, and he was quite sure that he had broken his ankle when he had fallen in his haste to get away from the fists of his parents. But there had been no wounds on his small body the next morning, and it had been one of the very few days he had woken up without any pain.He sighed a little as he finally got up to move to his bedside to look at the small alarm clock there. He still had time for some more sleep before he had to go to his classes. It was his last year in university, and Nino looked forward to finishing all his exams and finally becoming an intern at their local hospital. He had already met the doctor he would be under, and even if he seemed strict, he was meant to be a genius, and Nino wanted to learn from the very best.Nino changed to some nightwear and fell to his bed again. He turned on his side and thought about what had happened after that night. He had hoped to meet Satoshi again so that he would take him with him. The beatings and name callings of his father had only gotten worse as the man had turned to alcohol more than before. Nino had tried hard to ignore those words and the wounds he got - he had tried to draw attention to them before. To his disappointment, people had looked away instead of helping him, and that made everything hurt more. Until one day, his mother had left his father, and his father somehow got even worse. There were only bits and pieces that Nino could remember about that night. Still, he remembered the pain in his spine after his father had kicked him more times than he could count. He remembered that his father had left him after Nino didn’t fight back anymore and start on something in their garden. Nino remembered his cries of pain and for help when he had realised that he couldn’t stand up or even sit up without pain shooting through his back. He remembered the voice of somebody else then. Warm, soft hands that held him back, and a gentle voice was telling him not to move until the medics came. He had felt safe then and fallen to sleep, his mind giving in to the pain his body was feelingThey had put his father to jail, his mother also for child abuse, and leaving him unprotected, and he had ended up in an orphanage. It wasn’t perfect there, but it was nicer and better than what he had lived through in his old home. At least there were no more beatings. Nino sighed as he tried to forget about it all. It had taken him some time to be able to move freely again. His father had managed to break his spine after all, and there were still some times in between when he was overly stressed or didn’t take care of himself that his legs would give out under him. But overall, it was a lot better than he could probably have hoped. He closed his eyes as he pulled the blanket further over his body and tried to fall back to sleep. Dreaming of Satoshi was sweeter than remembering about all the pain he had lived through until now. It was strange, he mused, that he still wanted to see Satoshi even if he hadn’t rescued him as he had hoped for a fleeting moment, there was something utterly fascinating about him.—Satoshi had felt terrible the second he was back home. He felt awful for what he had done, and he had wanted to go back right away to help that little boy. But it wasn’t possible, he knew. Only the Fae belonged to his world. He had wandered through the big hallways of his home until he ended in his mother’s room again. He felt sad when he saw all the commotion had come to a stop, and a black curtain was laid out over the woman. Tears sprang to his eyes as he realised that what he had thought had come true already. His mother hadn’t survived.“Where have you been?” his father asked in a gravelly voice. He flinched slightly because he knew what he had done was inexcusable.“I don’t know,” he answered honestly, though. He knew he had been somewhere in another world, but he didn’t know anything about it or what it was called.His father looked him over for a second before sighing with a small shrug. “You should say goodbye to your mother.”Satoshi shuddered at the thought of going close to her corpse. As far as he was concerned, he had already said his goodbyes earlier. Still, he walked slowly to the bed and knelt in front of it. He put his forehead against the black cover and closed his eyes as he whispered a prayer and wished for a safe journey to the other realm. He got up after finishing, tugging at the key he had gotten earlier. “What about Masaki, father?” “I already did the prayers in his stead,” he said with a small smile and put his hand on top of Satoshi’s hair. “He is in the nursery. You should go to him, okay?”Satoshi nodded, looking at the key again, contemplating to give it to his father. But his mother had told him it was his to protect and not for his father. His father looked at him for a second before kneeling. “I see your mother has entrusted you with that?” he asked.“Yeah, she said it’s mine to use in the future. But I don’t know what it does.”The man nodded and bopped his nose once. “You will learn. I promise. But now go to Masaki, please?”Satoshi’s eyes lingered on the still figure of his mother once more before he nodded and moved to leave his father and his beloved wife alone for the moment. He also didn’t want to be a witness of the last of his mother leaving them.—“Will you tell me about mother?” Masaki asked when they stood in front of the stone that marked her grave. Satoshi smiled as he nodded and once again told his little brother all he knew about their shared mother. His little brother always asked him about her, never their father, because he knew it hurt the man too much to even think about his former wife. Sometimes Satoshi feared that his father would detest Masaki for being born, but luckily it was clear that his father loved that last gift of his wife most of the time. Only when the pain was too much, it was different.He looked at the stone as his fingers closed around the key in around his neck. Sometimes he had thought about going back to that world, in the hope of finding that boy again and make sure that he was alright. But he feared the outcome. He closed his eyes, wishing for his mother’s help to guide him and show him what to do. When they went back to the palace, Masaki left to attend to his lessons, and Satoshi went to see his father for a bit and talk about their soldiers in the North. There had been a breach where creatures came through, but it seemed like they managed to fight back. His father was happy with the outcome, so there wasn’t much to talk about. They would send help to the villages close to there to make sure that their people would survive the winter. Satoshi went back to his room and played with the key after ha had taken it off. He understood its power better now and knew that it had to be used carefully. He also knew that his mother had never been able to use its power as easily as he could. But then again, she hadn’t been trained as a soldier as he had. He closed his eyes for a second. It was as if there was a voice whispering to him. There was something in the back of his mind, just slightly out of his grasp.He opened his eyes again and allowed the power to take over without resisting its wish. His eyes changed their colour to blue as the magic took over him. The next time he could see again, he found himself back in the world he had met that boy, Kazunari, his mind supplied. He looked around curiously while making sure his appearance had gone unnoticed. He realised that nobody looked at him, which was good. He observed the people going and coming through two large glass doors in confusion. It was a strange place he supposed. The people coming were slow, and looked hurt while the people behind the desks mostly wore white scrubs.Satoshi’s eyes fell onto a man trailing after one of the people in the white scrubs. He was wearing light blue ones and seemed to listen to everything the older one said. They stopped in the hallway for a moment when the older man was asked something by one of the women working behind a desk. The young man looked up, and Ohno blinked in surprise when he saw the same golden-brown eyes looking at him that used to haunt his dreams.The young man’s eyes widened for a moment, and Satoshi was sure that he could see him even if he didn’t know how the other could do that. He should have been invisible for those humans living here, but seemingly he wasn’t as he was sure their eyes met. Soon though, the older man was calling for him again, and without sparing Satoshi a second glance, the young man, Kazunari, left him standing there alone.
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Nino found himself sitting on a small bench close to the entry of the park this night. He had been nervous and uncomfortable since he thought he had seen that little elven boy again. But it couldn’t be. He was sure it was just the stress combined with the dreams he kept having about it all. It couldn’t be anything else. Still, he hadn’t been able to calm down or find some sleep, so before he had known it, he had found himself back here at the park where he had first met the other boy - now young man probably.“I’m really pathetic,” he whispered slightly as he forced himself to stand up and leave. He had met this person once in his life, he other never had been entirely helpful and left him alone to go back to his abusive parents. And still, he couldn’t let him go and felt intrigued by him. He tried to tell himself that it was only because of his ability to heal. Still, deep down, Nino knew it was mostly down to Satoshi being the first person that was honestly nice to him without expecting anything back or mocking him in any way.When he turned around, he cried out in surprise and jumped back when there just at the line of trees were the figure again. He stood still as the figure came closer, blinking in shock as he saw the sun-kissed skin of the man he had seen this morning. The other was wearing a white tunic with a dark blue cord around his waist and dark blue trousers. This time the man wore boots instead of being barefooted like the first time they had seen each other. Ohno’s head cocked to the side as he came slowly closer, almost looking at him in wonder. “You could see me earlier?”“Earlier? What do you mean? Ah! The hospital,” Nino realised before a frown appeared on his face. “Regardless of that. Why are you here? Fairyland didn’t want you anymore?” he asked in a slightly scoffing voice.“I’m still the prince, so there isn’t much of choice,” Satoshi mumbled with a frown, asking himself if Kazunari did know something he didn’t.Nino blinked before sighing a little. He realised that sarcastic remarks apparently were lost with the other. He took a deep breath before squaring his shoulders. “Why are you here?”“I don’t know. I shouldn’t be here. This is not my world,” Ohno replied with a small sigh as he looked around. There was too much stone and metal for his taste, too little green. The air smelled stale, and the paths were manmade stone that hurt his feet. Still, he came here again and stayed, watching this little insignificant human being running around others, talking to them, comforting them, and helping them apparently without any prompting.“You never came back.”“That time was an accident. It was the day my mother died,” Ohno explained, still feeling hurt when he remembered his beloved mother and her too early death. “I’m sorry to hear that,” Nino said softly with a small sigh. Ohno watched him for a second before a small smile appeared on his face. “Thank you…”They fell to silence again, staring at each other without knowing exactly what they should say to each other. Nino put a hand through his hair as he looked around in thought. He felt quite lost. “Do you remember that night?” Ohno asked finally after the silence became almost thick enough to put a knife through it. “Yes, I lied that night. I didn’t fall. I never fell,” Nino mumbled as he rubbed his hips, trying to ignore the slight pain in his back. He knew he shouldn’t work as a doctor or at a hospital. It wasn’t good for his posture, but he liked it there. “I know you lied,” Ohno said with a sad glint in his eyes. “But I couldn’t force you to state the truth. I had no right, and I wouldn’t have been able to do anything for you, but what I did. And I probably shouldn’t have done even that.”Nino shrugged. He didn’t care about the what-ifs. It could be that everything would have been brought more to the front earlier, it could also have been that he would have beaten to death when he got home or something like that. It all didn’t matter anymore since history wasn’t changeable. “I never thanked you,” Nino said in the end. Ohno chuckled but shook his head. Nino had thanked him already for this, but he wasn’t one to argue. Not here, not now, when he already felt so lost about all that was happening between them. “Do you care for a cup of tea? It’s getting cold…” Nino said, finally. Ohno frowned at the offer and bit his lip. He was getting thirsty and hungry. But he had no money for any exchanges. “I don’t have things to pay,” he said in the end. “I didn’t bring any things for trade, either.”Nino chuckled slightly at those words. “So a poor prince of a fairytale land? It seems that I got the short end,” he teased lightly before holding out his hand for Ohno to grab it. “Oh, well… As a thank you, I will treat you,” he said when Ohno’s fingers closed around his. Nino pulled him along to a 24h coffee shop where he ordered tea for Ohno, coffee for himself, and something to eat when he heard Ohno’s stomach grumbling. “Did you spend all day in that trees?” he asked with a small grin. Ohno shrugged before he shook his head slightly. “Not all day,” he disagreed. “I was at your… Hospital?”“It’s not mine I just work there,” Nino said with a laugh as he sat down across from him. He took his coffee in both hands to take a small sip from it, sighing deeply when the strong taste hit him. Now that was a good cup of coffee.Ohno eyed his tea for a second (Nino didn’t trust him with caffeine who knew what it would do to him) before taking a tentative sip and then nodding slightly.“It’s like herbal water,” he said with a happy hum before moving the thumb adorned by the big ring to his lips, mumbling something Nino didn’t understand and then moved the thumb across the bowl in a circle. When Ohno realised Nino was watching him, he blushed slightly. “It’s a prayer of thanks we do before we eat,” he explained. Nino hummed with an understanding smile and took another sip. “Then you should eat,” he said.Ohno grinned happily as he tugged in, almost moaning at the first bite. “It’s good!!” he realised and started eating faster, making Nino wonder how starved Ohno had been.“Can you tell me about your world?” Nino asked curiously as he watched Ohno for a while. “Or about you, your family?”Ohno hummed thoughtfully for a moment before he shrugged. “I think it’s nothing special. It’s just normal. We all have magical abilities. In some families, magic runs stronger than in others. Our land is filled with hills and mountains, and there are many trees and grass everywhere. We only use stone for our homes to make them safe from the weather but walk on the paths nature left us. We try not to destroy anything that nature gives us but live peacefully side by side with it.”“But you eat meat and such things?”“Yes,” Ohno said with a shrug. “But we never hunt for fun or more than is needed. And there are strict rules about it. But I don’t want to bore you. My family is one of the oldest, and somewhen in the past, a city was build and a clan formed. My family was the head of that clan. As the times moved forward, many smaller groups have decided to join our clan and abide by our clan’s rules making my ancestors their kings and queens. And it stuck. We decide most things in a council, but we have to make decisions considering our clan’s safety.”“It sounds nice,” Nino hummed thoughtfully. “Are all people like you?”“What do you mean like me?” Ohno was watching him with big eyes while licking his lips and the crumbs from his fingertips. Nino shrugged as he watched Ohno for a while. Peaceful, he thought, Ohno was just so peaceful. “Are there wars?”“There was once, long ago, another clan tried to take our over, and my great-great-great-grandfather banned them to another part of our world. They live there now. I don’t know what happened to them.”Nino nodded in understanding and finished his coffee. “I see it sounds interesting. I really would like to see it once,” he said softly. Ohno smiled at those words and nodded. “That would be nice…” he put the last bite in his mouth and sighed. “But for now, I shall return before my family starts worrying over me. Like I said, I shouldn’t be here. But… Would it be okay if I met you again?”“Yes, I’d like that,” Nino decided after a few seconds of thought. He would like it very much. Being in Ohno’s presence was calming like a balm for his soul and heart.“I will bring pictures of my home then. I dabble in my free time,” Ohno grinned as they stood and left the coffee shop. Nino walked back to the park to say goodbye to Ohno and then head home.“Sounds good. Until later then… I’d like it if it wasn’t in ten years, though,” he said with a small grin. Ohno chuckled before moving forward and pressing the tips of his middle finger and forefinger against Nino’s forehead, moving them down slowly. “Let’s not be strangers,” he whispered before stepping back and vanishing in thin air, leaving Nino alone in this world once again.
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“Nii-chan,” Masaki called out, pulling Satoshi out of his thoughts. “What is wrong, Masaki?” he asked as he turned away from the window he had observed the training grounds from. His little brother was breathing heavily as he came to a stop in front of him. “Masaki, be calm. Breathe and then start again,” Satoshi said when Masaki struggled for words. Masaki put his hands on top of his knees as he took deep breaths until he was calm again. “Father called for you,” Masaki explained. “He is in his private chamber.”“Thank you, Masaki. I will go. Did you have your lessons already?”Masaki scrunched up his nose at the question. Satoshi chuckled as he saw the look on his little brother’s face. He ruffled his hair. “Then go. I’m sure Sho is already waiting for you. And you don’t want to make him angry.”“Sho-sensei is scary when angry,” Masaki whined. “It’s not fair that only I have lessons.”“Sorry, but I already finished my schooling years ago,” he explained as he stepped back a little and put Masaki’s clothes in order. He smiled at the pout on the face of his little brother with a small pang on guilt. He never was able to not feel sorry for his brother, who didn’t know his mother aside from stories and whose father was only a shell of his former self. It didn’t help that Masaki was so much younger than most people in court. “Will you train with me later?”“If you’ll be a good boy and listen to Sho,” Satoshi agreed. Masaki’s face brightened up at his promise, and he hugged him tightly around the neck, before letting go and running away to attend to his studies. Satoshi sighed as he watched him go and put a hand through his hair. With a last look outside, he turned around to meet his father. “Come in,” his father called after Satoshi had knocked at his door. He nodded at the guards when they opened the doors for him. “Father, you wanted to see me?”“Satoshi, good to see you.” His father held out his hand for him, and he smiled softly as he came closer and squeezed it. He sat down across from him. “Thank you,” he whispered to the maid, who offered him herbal water and some cake. The maid nodded and then left them alone.As soon as the door closed behind the woman and they were alone, away from prying eyes, his father crumbled into himself. Satoshi bit his lip as he helped his father to lean back against the high chair. His father squeezed his hand. His grip was still as firm as Satoshi was used. “I feel myself fading, Satoshi.”“You are still strong, father. You will walk this Earth for many more years.”A small chuckle escaped his father’s lips at his words, and he shook his head. “We both know that is not true. I wished I spent more time with Masaki, but I never have been able to look him into the eyes and not feel the pain from the loss of my beloved wife.”Satoshi shook his head as he watched the old man. “Masaki always felt loved by you, father. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”“You were always too kind to me. You always took care of your brother, better than I ever have.”Satoshi bit his lip as he bowed his head. He knew, of course, that this was true. His father loved Masaki, he knew that, and Masaki knew that, but since the death of their mother, it was hard for his father to show it. Satoshi had always been glad that his father hadn’t taken a turn to the dark side, but it was hard to see him wasting away.“You didn’t call me to tell me that, though.”“No, you are right. I asked for you to come to tell you that I will step back at the next full moon. I will declare you the next king of our lands then as well.”Satoshi’s eyes widened at those words. He cleared his throat. “I understand. It will be my honour to give my life for our people.” He took the warm water in his hands to take a small sip, feeling the calmness wash over him. “Father, I think you probably wish to rest, and I promised Masaki to train him this afternoon.”“Then you should go, my son. I’m sure Masaki is looking forward to it. He always tells me how happy he is to be allowed to train with you. He looks up to you so much.”“He is a good boy,” Satoshi agreed as he stood and cleaned off a few crumbs from his tunic. He bowed in front of his father, walking up to the door as the guards opened them again. He went out to the courtyard to get ready for his practice with Masaki. He looked over the practice weapons weighing them in his hands, before deciding on the wooden staffs. He put them down on the floor as he changed into his practice gear. “My highness will you need assistance?” the head guard asked him, and he shook his head with a smile. “No, please continue your training. Masaki asked me to practice, and I couldn’t deny him that wish. We won’t get into your way.”“Of course, your highness,” the man bowed his head before leaving him alone. Satoshi grinned as he heard the loud bellowing voice calling out demands for the other guards. Masaki’s arms wandered around his waist as the boy crashed into his side. “Scary captain,” he whispered as he watched with wide eyes as the other people in the court fell into practice stand. Satoshi laughed as he petted Masaki’s head. “It’s his job to do so,” he explained. “And I promise you, Masaki, he will never be mad at you. So no need to be scared, okay?”“Uhn!” Masaki said with a bright grin. “Sho-sensei said I did well.”“Did he now?” Satoshi asked in a teasing voice. Masaki pouted as he nodded fast. “Yes, I promise, Nii-chan. Please, I want to practice.”“Then stand still,” Satoshi said, holding Masaki by his hips to look him over. He sighed as he sorted out Masaki’s long hair, pulling it up so that it wouldn’t fall into the boy’s face and made sure that the dark green belt around his waist was secure. “No boots,” Satoshi said, and with a frown, Masaki took off his shoes as Satoshi did the same. Satoshi tried hard not to grin at the earnest look on Masaki’s face as he warmed his body up and took the staff into his hand, falling into the stance that Satoshi had spent hours teaching him. They trained for almost an hour before Satoshi called for a stop, tickling his brother as the boy pouted because he had to clean up his training gear. Afterwards, he threw him over his shoulder, carrying him to the baths to clean up and then soak in hot water. Satoshi relaxed slowly as he watched as Masaki got sleepier each second. He really hoped that there was no homework because if so, Sho would get really mad at Satoshi for keeping Masaki away from it. —Satoshi watched Masaki, who had wandered into his room just minutes after he had been put to bed by the nanny he had since he was born. He had begged him to be allowed to sleep in his room, and Satoshi had agreed readily. It was custom for Masaki to creep into his room to sleep. He knew it was unusual for little brothers to sleep in the room of their older brothers instead of their parents. But just as his father had said: Satoshi had taken care of Masaki since he was a baby just like his mother had asked him to. He sat on the side of the bed, stroking a strand of hair away from his forehead and pulling the blanket more over Masaki. He sighed softly as he closed his eyes. He didn’t feel tired yet. There was too much on his mind, and he felt a pull at his heartstrings when he thought of the man from the night before - and of course of the little boy from so many years before. But he knew he couldn’t visit him tonight. He couldn’t leave Masaki alone for him to wake up in an empty room. Masaki came less and less to his room during the nights, and mostly he came when he felt an inner turmoil. Satoshi had an inkling that this was about their father, and he could understand the fear in Masaki’s heart very well. “Papa,” Masaki mumbled in his sleep, and Satoshi squeezed his shoulder softly as he caressed his face. “Father is fine,” he whispered to him, smiling when Masaki relaxed in his sleep at his words. A/N: Okay, ages: Nino and Satoshi met when Nino was around 10, and Satoshi was around 15. Now it’s ten years later when they meet. And yes, I know Masaki seems to be very young, but then again, he is very sheltered, and they age slower than humans.
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Nino blew the smoke through his nose as he leant against the railing of the hospital roof. He watched the street below him, letting his mind wander. He had just finished helping out in the operation room, and it was still appalling as he thought of the many blood. Luckily the operation had been successful, and they were allowed to take a short break. At least for as long as someone would need them again. Nino’s beeper was still silent though, and he hoped that it would stay like that. His eyes wandered to the dark sky, and he sighed when he saw how little stars reached him through all the light pollution Tokyo had. It was sad, really that there were more lights down there than in the sky. He blinked when a body materialised beside him, and he thought that he probably should be more surprised than he was. But Satoshi had been a companion since he had been a small child and it was hard to be scared of someone who had healed his battered body the first time they had ever met. “Are you stalking me?”“What does stalking mean?”“Doesn’t matter,” Nino said as he made a discarding hand movement. “What are you doing here?”“I just wanted to see you,” Ohno said honestly and looked at him with big eyes. “Huh?” Nino mumbled, his mouth falling open and staring at the other wide-eyed. “Why?”Ohno shrugged as he played with the ring around his fingers. He sighed a little as he tilted his head back and looked into the sky. “It’s dark.”“Well it’s night-time,” Nino said with a small shrug and sigh.“Where I’m from, stars are lightening up the sky. They are beautiful. Doesn’t your world have them?”“We do… Just not that many, especially not in such big cities,” Nino said as he moved away from the railing. “Do you want a cup of tea?”“Why are you so nice to me?”“Why not? You are nice to me. You don’t belong here, and you seem lost.”“I’m not lost,” Ohno disagreed with a pout. “And I still have no means to pay.”“I will treat you. You promised me a picture.”“I did,” Ohno agreed with a sigh. “I forgot about it.”Nino clicked his tongue as he grabbed Ohno around the wrist and then dragged him from the roof to go to the cafeteria to get the promised tea. “Do you eat sweets?”“I like sweets,” Ohno said carefully as he sat on the chair Nino was pointing at. Nino nodded as he went to buy them food and something to drink. He came back with the tray and then put it down on the table before sitting down across from Ohno, who was staring at him with curious eyes. “What’s that?”“What is what?”“The thing around the cake?”“It’s a plastic wrap,” Nino said with a small giggle. “Don’t eat it.” Ohno frowned as he watched Nino opening the wrapping around his sandwich and did the same with the cake he had brought. He bit into it, chewing it slowly. “Tastes good,” he said with a small grimace. Nino laughed as he shook his head. “I know it’s not the best,” he said slowly. “But it’s one of the better things here. So yeah, tea is fine though.”Ohno took a sip of the warm tea, finding it a bit on the weak side, but it was okay. “I had better,” he mumbled. “Me too, but still.”“What are you drinking?”“Coffee.”“Again? Yes, I’m still working. It helps me to stay awake,” Nino said with a shrug. Ohno nodded in understanding. “Do humans work all the time?”“Interns do. Normal humans don’t.”“What do you do?”“I take care of people, check them for illnesses, make sure they get healthy again,” Nino explained as he licked a bit of sauce from the sandwich from his lips. Ohno’s eyes followed the movement of his tongue curiously. “Like a healer?”“I’m not as good as you, I can’t heal people by just putting my hand on them,” Nino said with a wry grin. “When I was little, I wished I could do that. The world would be a nicer place if you could heal people just like that.”Ohno’s face fell. “I can’t heal everybody. Your bruises were easy. They were just outward wounds. Grave illnesses I can’t heal. I can heal scratches and bruises. Not when it matters.”Nino frowned at those words and stared at the other who was tugging at the chain around his neck. “To me, it mattered. You gave me hope that the world isn’t as dark a place as I had thought that time. If I had stayed outside like I planned I probably would have frozen to death. It was a cold winter night.”Ohno blinked in surprise, and he looked up, watching the other man who was smiling just slightly at his surprise. “My father is dying.”Nino nodded and took another sip of his coffee. “I’m sorry to hear that.”“He never got over the death of my mother. He was a shadow of himself for the last years. But still… He is our father.”“You have siblings?”“A little brother. He was born in the night we saw the very first time. My mother gave her life for him,” Ohno whispered. Nino watched him as his shoulders relaxed again and how Ohno stopped tugging at the chain around his neck. He went back to playing with the ring on his hand, a small smile playing on his lips. “What’s his name?”“Masaki, he is a little sunshine. And he still needs his father,” he mumbled. Nino sighed as he put his hand on top of Ohno’s hand to stop him fiddling with the rings. He turned the hand around to look at the big signet ring, tapping the metal. “He still has you, doesn’t he? You said your father is just a shadow of himself. If so, how much is he really there for him?”“Not much,” Ohno whispered as he looked at the small hands and fingers on top of his. “He has you, though, hasn’t he?”Ohno blushed a bit under the warm gaze and nodded. “Yes, I promised mother then and now father to take care of him.”“Then he won’t be alone, and you don’t have to worry about him.”“But I’ll need him as well,” Ohno whispered, biting his lips at those words. He was ashamed that he still needed his father around. He was an adult, he shouldn’t need anybody.Nino chuckled as he squeezed his fingers. The hand was warm around his own, and it felt like a balm on his mind and his heart. It was almost impossible to fight the smile that appeared on his lips. “If you want someone to listen to you, just come. I’m here, okay?”“You are really too nice.”“Just for you, because somehow I like you,” Nino said, before flinching when his beeper went. He groaned as he got up. “Sorry I need to leave. The break is over, and someone needs my help. Finish your tea and then go home,” he said as he petted his hair. “And then go home to your family. You will feel bad if your father dies without you there.”“Can I visit you again?” “Of course,” Nino said. Ohno’s face brightened as he pulled Ohno down a little. He lifted his hand again to put his fingers against his forehead and moved them down. “Let’s not be strangers, right?” Nino said with a twinkle in his eyes. Ohno chuckled as he nodded. “Yes, thank you. I will bring the pictures the next time.”“I’m looking forward to them. I now need to hurry,” Nino said as he waved and jogged off to his station to help out wherever he was needed. It ended up to only have to clean up a patients room, but he actually was relieved that it was no real emergency.
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“What are you doing, brother?” Masaki asked curiously as he came into his room and saw Ohno sitting at his desk, staring at his sketch pad in concentration. “Drawing,” Ohno answered with a small chuckle at the curious gaze that was on him. “Or how does this look?”Masaki shrugged as he came closer. “Am I disturbing?”“No, never. What’s up Masaki?” he asked as he stood to bring the boy over and push him on his chair before he got a second one to sit beside him. “Did something happen?”“No…,” he said with a scrunched up face that looked as if he would start crying soon. “Masaki…” Ohno said with a sigh as the other looked at the tip of his shoes as to not meet his eyes. “Did someone tease you?”Masaki shook his head before a small sob left his mouth and rubbed his cheek in annoyance over the tears that ran over them. “No, but I did best on my test, and the healers said my lungs are weak again,” he said through sniffles. He rubbed his eyes. Ohno’s eyes softened as he came closer and put an arm around his little brother to rock him from side to side. “It’s okay. I always did bad on my tests. You can do other things perfectly. I always were better at combat than at the boring lessons.”“I’m no good at combat. I want to make father proud!”“You are making father very proud, Masaki,” Ohno said, taking his face in between his hands. He carefully wiped the tears away and looked at him with a small smile on his face. “If you don’t know the things yet, Sho-sensei will teach you again until you know them, I promise. And to father, you are his little sunshine. If you smile, good things will happen to you, mother said so all the time.”“Really?”“Yes, smiles are magic,” Ohno said as he tapped his chest. “So don’t cry, okay? And we will listen well to the healers and do everything they say to make sure that your lungs will be strong. It’s all okay.”“But I’m weak!”“No, you are not. You are just not cut out to be a fighter, maybe. But that’s okay. Not everybody is meant to be, and that is okay. A community needs different things to work.Masaki looked at him with big eyes and slowly calmed down. “Okay,” the boy said as Ohno let him go to give him a cloth to blow his nose. “What are you drawing?” he asked then as his eyes wandered to the sketchpad. Ohno sighed as he looked at the sketchpad and nibbled on his lips. “I try to capture how our world looks like, you know?”“Why?”“Because I like how it looks?” Ohno said frowning when Masaki’s mimic changed to a devilish grin. “What is it, you little troublemaker?”“You are going somewhere sometimes. Mostly in the nights,” Masaki said as he moved his face forwards to look him into the eyes. He swayed back and forth on his seat, looking very giddy. Ohno shook his head in amusement. He probably should be more surprised that his ventures hadn’t gone unnoticed. “How do you know that?”“Because you are not in your room during the night sometimes. I come here when I have a bad dream,” he mumbled with a pout. “First I was disappointed, but you look happy when you come home.”“Do I?”Masaki nodded with a shy smile on his face. “Yes, the real good happy. You don’t look like that often enough. Especially when you come back from visiting father. There is a dark hue around you then. But when you come home from wherever you go, it’s either a happy yellow or a calm blue.”Ohno blinked in surprise before smiling softly. His little brother always had fine-tuned senses for these kinds of things. “Yes, I meet someone very nice. At least I believe so. I’m not sure he thinks so,” Ohno hummed. “And you are drawing pictures for him?”“Yes, of our home, how it looks here.”Masaki tilted his head in confusion. “He doesn’t live here in the castle with us?”“No, he doesn’t. That’s why he asked me how it looks here, and I promised to draw pictures for him. How the grounds look like and the sky and the castle and everything.”“Can I draw him a picture too?”“Of course. What do you want to draw for him?”“I want to draw a picture of Pukki,” he said, happily thinking of his dog. It was a beast almost as big as Masaki was, but he was the most lovely dog in existence that listened to all demands of Masaki. He didn’t listen to anybody else but him though.“Okay, make space for us both here, and I get some new charcoal and another sketchbook for you. You can also practise your characters and write down what it all is that you are drawing and I bring it to him, okay?”“Can I come with, Satoshi?”“No, not yet, Masaki. He is timid. Also, I need that to stay a secret between us, promise?”Masaki pouted even as he nodded in understanding while mumbling his promise. Ohno got up to bring the promised utensils and then sat down again, picking up his own sketchpad.“We have to share the colours. So don’t use them all up, okay?”“Yes, sir,” Masaki giggled. Ohno rolled his eyes as he tickled the boy beside him. “You can call Jun sir not your very own brother.”“Okay, okay, sorry. Drawing now,” Masaki said as he looked back at the paper. A concentrated frown on his face and his tongue sticking out from the corner of his eyes as he started drawing. Ohno chuckled softly as he went finally back to his pictures. He drew the starry sky he loved as well as the green bushes and the purple flowers in their home. The towers of the place they lived in and then because Masaki begged him a picture of his little brother in his favourite green tunic and the cheeky smile he loved to see that often while Masaki drew a picture of him even if Ohno told him that Nino knew how he looked. He hoped Nino would like his home and maybe bring a smile onto his face. Ohno liked the small secret often hidden smiles that appeared on Nino’s face when he thought he wasn’t looking at him. Ohno blinked when he heard a thud and looked up. It had gotten dark in the room, and Masaki had fallen to sleep in his chair. He put down his things to catch the boy before he would tumble down as well. He picked him up with ease and carried him over to his bed and laid him down. He put the blankets over him and put a strand of hair behind his ear. Masaki blinked up sleepily at him. “Will you go tonight?” he asked, half asleep. “No, he has to work.”“During nights?”“Yes, and besides. I still need to finish the drawings for him and father would be displeased if I’m gone so shortly before the big day.”“True. You will make a good leader.”“Thank you for your confidence,” Ohno chuckled. “Sleep now, Masaki. I should get ready for bed too, so move over and make space for me, right?”“Yes!” Masaki said with a giggle as he scrambled off to the other side of the bed. Ohno chuckled as he went over to wash his face and change out of his outer clothes before blowing out the candles. “Not all!” Masaki cried in fear. Ohno blew out the last candle, before rubbing his ring. “We will have fairy lights, sounding okay?”“Uhn,” Masaki said sleepily as he moved to his back. He saw the dancing lights in the room as the bed dipped as Ohno climbed on the bed with him. “They are pretty. You should draw that for your friend,” he mumbled as he fell to sleep. Ohno moved to his side, watching Masaki as he fell to sleep again. “I shall,” he whispered to the boy, thinking of how pretty the lights would look on Nino’s pale skin. — “Long live the king,” the people on the stairs said in unison and Ohno shuddered as he felt the weight of trust and duties settle on his shoulders. He took a deep breath as he nodded in acceptance as he bowed his head. He would do all in his might to protect the people. He had promised his father, he had pledged to the priest and the others today more than once. Their magic was binding as were their promises, and Ohno could feel the bonds wrapping around his body as he closed his eyes to let it be. He tried his hardest not to fight it, not to fight the magic surrounding him, latching onto him and bringing him a new kind of strength and weakness. He could feel his brother’s nervousness behind him, and for a moment, he wondered what the boy could see. If he could see the magic flowing to him brightly as he could the light around himself. He hoped not. He hoped Masaki was not able to see the strands of magic prodding and poking him as they tried to tear him down just to make sure he was strong enough in this new position. Ohno felt tired when the onslaught slowly ebbed down, mingling around his body in a strange kind of caress that left his skin prickling and his body buzzing. He thanked the people for their trust as he heard the small gasp from Masaki he knew he was swaying slightly, but then there were Sho and Jun by his side, helping him to stand and go back to his chambers. Ohno sighed in relief as he was allowed to sit down on a soft padded chair and a bowl with herbal water was brought in front of him. “I’m fine, Masaki. Please sit down and calm down.”“Yes, brother,” he said as he sat on the other chair beside their father and thanked for his drink. “I’m proud of you, my son. I landed on my knees on the day of my coronation,” the old man said with a smile. Ohno mimicked it, even if a bit more tired.“Thank you, father. Now I feel tired, though. Are there any needs that need to be discussed today?”“No, just your formal announcement to make Sho your private adviser and Jun the first of the guard. You wanted that, right?”“Yes,” Ohno agreed as he ruffled Masaki’s hair who was watching them with big curious eyes. Usually, the boy was not allowed in the room with them if they discussed such things, so now he was enthralled by how mundane it was. “Why, sensei?”“Because Sho and I learnt together. I want people my own age around because older persons tend to think they are better than me in making decisions because they have their position for longer than me. Great-grandfather already decided that with the change of the leader, the closest adviser have to change as well.”“Why is that?” Masaki asked curiously, looking at his teacher, who smiled bemusedly as he sat down. “Why the sudden interest in our history?” he teased the boy, who pouted. “I’m always interested.” “If you are not bored. But I will explain it to you, short version: The generation before that had a great war. Your great-great-grandfather almost died because everybody wanted to follow their own interests and told him lies so that he couldn’t see what was happening clearly. He was still young. But since your family is so closely bond by our people, war means that it will tear you apart. To stop this from happening the council with be newly created every time a new leader emerges. Jun and I are meant to protect your brother from now on.”“And you won’t be my teacher anymore?”“Oh, but I will. There is still much to learn, right?”“Right,” Masaki said slowly as he looked at his brother. There was much that he didn’t know, mostly because he didn’t need to know. He would not be a good leader. His brother was and as long as he wouldn’t die before he had an heir he wasn’t considered the next leader. And his big brother would never die, he was sure of it!“And Jun will be the first guard?”“Yes, he will be your teacher in combat as well. I asked him to. He will train you,” Ohno said with a grin. “And you?”“I will do as well if I have the time. But I will have less time than before, and Jun is better in making sure you have a schedule to follow. It will do you good, and he and Sho will work out a lesson plan for you.”Masaki’s eyes widened. He hadn’t had a clear schedule so long, and he was excited if he was allowed to learn fully now. He had feared that he wouldn’t be allowed to because of his weak lungs. “Thank you,” he said happily.“Of course.” Ohno sighed as he got up. “We should go to the feast. I want to turn in early, and father told me to stay at the feast for at least two hours.”
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Nino stood in the doorway, silently staring in the room where only a few hours prior, a mass of people had been inside. At least it had felt like a whole horde as they all stood around the bed, trying their very best to rescue the old woman lying in bed. In the end, nothing had helped. The woman had died that night, and still, Nino had a hard time t accept it. She had been old when she had come, and it had been because of a heart attack. Still, he and the doctor he learnt under had done everything possible to hold her stable, to help her through the pain. Nino felt a shiver run over his back as he remembered how he had come into the room to check on Nakamura-san’s vital signs just as the doctor had told him to do, to see how she was fading. He had pressed the alarm and doctors had stormed into the room. They had tried to retrieve her when her heart had failed again but to no avail. Nino remembered too clearly how the hand in his own had grown weak in the end as life left her. “Ninomiya-sensei, why are you still here?” an elderly nurse asked him friendly. He blinked as he looked up, pushing a hand through his hair as he shook his head. “I’m on my way home. Is there something you need me to check?” he asked, and the nurse clicked her tongue as she shook her head. Nino smirked softly at her attitude. The woman was very respectful in general to any of the doctors, even the interns. Still, she was also very strict if younger colleagues just like him stayed longer than necessary in the hospital. Nino knew it was out of goodwill and worry because she had seen too many people giving up because of all the stress, but he wasn’t like that. “Don’t take it to your heart too much, Ninomiya-sensei. There was nothing you could’ve done for Nakamura-san.”“So you are telling me not to care?”“No, I am telling you, not to care too much,” she denied with a shake of her head. She came closer to put her hand on his arm. “Ninomiya-sensei, people die and something even the best we do isn’t enough. But it’s our duty to try our very best each time. And you can’t do that if you are overworked or if your mind is heavy with regret. It’s unfair to your other charges.”Nino stared at her for a long while, before smiling softly at her. “I guess you are right, thank you, Naomi-san. I really should go home.”“Yes, and I don’t want to see you linger around tomorrow. It’s your free day, right?”He smirked as he nodded, pulling at his hair again. “Right. Good-night.”“Good-night Ninomiya-sensei,” she said with a little wink that made him laugh as he turned around to leave. —Nino lightened up a cigarette as soon as he left the hospital and wasn’t sure if he felt surprised at all when he saw Ohno standing in front of him as if the world had been put on his shoulders. It was just such a day.“Hey,” Nino said as he blew the smoke from his cigarette. “You’re lucky I was just about to go home, wanna come?”Ohno nodded in silence as he fell in step with the other man when he continued to move forward. They walked side by side in silence.“How is your father?” Nino asked as they were walking over ten minutes on their way to his apartment. “He is frail,” Ohno whispered as he bit his lip. Nino smiled and took his hand, squeezed it softly as he intertwined their fingers.“Shouldn’t you be there, then? Be there for him if he dies?”“He won’t. It’s not his time yet.”“Do you feel when it’s time?”“Yes. The stars will move, and tonight they didn’t. I came here after I put my little brother to bed. He wants to meet you.”“I see. You take good care of your little brother, right? You love him very much.”“Yes, I care about him a lot. And he about me.”“It must be nice to be loved,” Nino hummed softly, in a whisper staring in front of him.“What?”Nino smiled at him and shook his head. “Nothing,” he decided tugging him along as he fastened his steps. “I’m starving, let’s get moving. I will make you something to eat,” he shouted as he began to sprint. Ohno looked at him in confusion, but then he started to laugh as he ran after him. Nino was out of breath when they finally stopped in front of his apartment complex and smiled softly when he saw that Ohno was grinning brightly the worry gone from his eyes for now. Nino brought him up to his own apartment with a sigh as he opened the door. “Don’t moan about it,” he warned him with a frown, asking himself for the first time why he had allowed him to come with him. “I brought the pictures I promised you.”“Good you can show me,” Nino said as he slipped out of his shoes in the entryway, motioning for Ohno to do the same. He went to the kitchen with Ohno following him closely. Ohno looked around curiously.Nino’s apartment was small. He owned a one-room apartment a bed in one corner and a small desk in front of the windows so that he could study with either the natural light or the light of the street lamps. He had a little television with an old gaming device and a tiny kitchen with just enough space for him really, but Ohno didn’t seem to have a concept for personal space, so he didn’t look bothered by it. He checked his fridge for any leftovers he could cook for his unexpected guest when Ohno sat down on the chair he had brought over from his desk after he had stared at it for a while. “Those are threads,” Nino explained with a frown. “I need to learn how to tie them correctly so I can close operation wounds.”“Ah, looks interesting,” Ohno said with a scrunched up face, making Nino laugh. Ohno looked at them and the scribbles on the papers around for a while, before dragging the chair over to sit at one end of his kitchen isle, watching him intently as he prepared their food. —Nino could feel his eyes on himself as he moved in the small space, cutting up a few vegetables, threw them with the rice into the pan to fry it. “We have to eat on the floor. I don’t have a second chair.”“That’s no problem,” Ohno said with a shrug as he made a bit of space on the floor and sat down. He smiled as Nino joined him and handed him a plate of the rice. “It’s no master cuisine, but it should be edible,” Nino mumbled as he sat down beside him. He watched Ohno say a small prayer over the food before saying his thanks and started to eat, one eye on Ohno.Ohno tried the food, and soon enough, a smile appeared on his face. “Delicious!” he cried out happily. Nino chuckled a bit as he finished his food slowly. After completing their food, Nino dragged Ohno to his feet. “Even if you are the guest. I cooked for you, and that means you do the cleaning. Try not to break the dishes. I will take a shower, I need to wash this day away,” he mumbled with a small frown on his face as he remembered the dying patient in his care. Without waiting for the answer, he got up and vanished to the small bathroom. In the shower, he leant against the cold wall for a moment, he took deep breaths, closing his eyes when he felt hot tears in them. He wouldn’t cry, he had promised himself that. He breathes in deeply until he had control over his emotions again and then stepped out. He wore comfortable sweatpants together with an old shirt.Ohno was drying the last plates as he came back and with guilt, Nino remembered that there had been more than just things from their dinner. But Ohno was humming calmly under his breath when he turned around, and an honest smile was on his face when he dried his hands and came over. “I finished everything.”“Thank you,” Nino mumbled as he sat on the bed. “It’s easy, I realised,” Ohno said as he came to a stand in front of him.“You talk as if you have never done it before,” Nino teased. “Show me the pictures?”Ohno nodded as he caressed the ring on his hand. Soon after the paintings appeared in front of him and with a grin, he took them in his hands. “My brother wanted to draw for you as well,” he said as he climbed onto the bed beside him after Nino had allowed him to. Nino smiled softly as he took the pictures and stared in wonder at the beautiful paintings that made the world in which Ohno lived seem like something out of a fairy tale. He giggled when he came to the pictures that must have been drawn by another person than Ohno. “Those are from your brother?”Ohno looked at him with a small smile. “Yes, Masaki. He drew his puppy and the people around us,” he explained softly as he told him what Masaki’s pictures depicted. Nino grinned as he came to the image of Ohno, tracing it with his fingertips. “May I keep this?” “Of course. Masaki said he made it especially for you,” he said with a grin. “And I want this one. It looks peaceful,” he said as he pointed at a picture of the night sky above the sea and the castle in the background.“If you want,” Ohno said as he blinked in surprise as Nino leant against him. “Can you stay? Tonight?”“Huh?”“Tell me about your family, your life? I just want to listen to stories.”“Did something happen?”Nino shook his head softly as he laid down on the bed. “Of course not,” he replied. Ohno frowned as he watched him, but made space for Nino when the other man slid under his blankets. “Are you going to sleep?”“I want to hear a story, please. About your loving family.”“Okay,” Ohno said, slipping from the bed as he knelt in front of it. Nino smiled as he took his hand in his own, intertwining his fingers again. Ohno settled down more comfortably as he began to tell Nino a story about his family in a low voice. He could see that Nino was listening intently even if his eyes were closed and his breathing even. His body was slowly relaxing though, and Ohno could tell he was close to falling asleep, so he ended his story for now. In the end, a small smile was on Nino’s lips. Some people are just made for being loved, huh?” he whispered. Ohno blinked not understanding what the other was talking about, but also not liking the lonely look on the other’s face. He put a strand of hair behind his hair, his fingers dancing over his cheek and forehead. “You should sleep.”“I won’t have good dreams,” Nino mumbled opening one eye. “You will. Dream of a king in a faraway land,” Ohno said with a grin as he bopped his nose. Nino blinked in surprise a wry grin on his face. “Promise?”“Yes.”“Will you stay?” Nino asked feeling stupid for sounding so childish, but he really needed the answer to be yes.“Promise.”Ohno watched Nino close his eyes again, his breath evening out slowly. “By the way, did I mention I’m king now?” Ohno asked in a teasing voice. Nino chuckled, in his half-asleep state, sighing softly. “Still an impoverished king, though,” he murmured.“Seems like it. Sleep now. I’ll watch over you,” Ohno mumbled as he watched him finally succumb to sleep. He sighed as he settled down with a frown. Sometimes, he thought, Nino sounded very sad while one second later wholly sane and even happy. He honestly didn’t understand. As he watched the other man sleep, he couldn’t help himself as he caressed the pale lips. It was the first time he saw him this vulnerable, Ohno thought. And this violability seemed very precious. He closed his eyes as he moved his thumb in front of his lips, pressing a kiss against his signet ring, saying a small prayer and a whispered a protection spell. He watched as a little blue light appeared on the tips of his fingers, and he pressed them against the hipbone of the others where they shone like dark blue ink against the skin before vanishing again.
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Nino felt warm and comfortable as he woke up the next morning. He couldn’t remember when the last time had been that he felt this kind of rested after a night of sleep. Usually, nightmares would wake him in the middle of the night. He had accepted what his parents had done to him a long time ago, and besides a few painful stabs, he felt now and then he was fine. The one thing that had never gone away regardless of what and how hard he tried were the nightmares though. He had tried everything people recommended to influence his dreams, but it didn’t work, and in a way, he had already accepted that as well. He turned to his side as he felt movement beside him, blinking in surprise until he recognised the sleeping fairy tale prince - no now king, he remembered - beside him. Ohno’s lips were slightly open, forming a pout as almost silent snores left his mouth. Nino was sure there was spit clinging to his lips, and he grinned softly as he pressed his finger into his cheek. “You are utterly disgusting right that,” he whispered in a small giggle. The hair was standing up in all directions, and there was stubble on his chin. Nino chuckled as he realised that the other wouldn’t budge from his touches and carefully climbed out of bed. He couldn’t believe that Ohno had fallen actually asleep. But there was a warm feeling in his stomach at the thought of Ohno keeping him company because he had asked for it so selfishly. Nino wandered into the bathroom to freshen up. He stared at himself in the mirror as he brushed his face, not really knowing what to expect from his guest and the upcoming morning. He supposed he needed to offer food to Ohno as a thank you though, and because Ohno always looked kind of cute if he was hungry - which he was often, Nino had realised. Nino stretched after cleaning his teeth and face, before frowning slightly as his fingers wandered to his hips. He blinked in confusion but then shrugged. “Just my imagination, huh?”, he whispered to himself as he had thought there was something golden. His skin felt warm as he touched it, but then again, that was also quite normal. He shook his head as he walked out of the bathroom back. Ohno was still sleeping on the floor beside his small bed, and Nino adverted his eyes as he felt a smile creeping up on his lips at the sight. “God, I’m really messed up,” he whispered to himself as he wandered to the kitchen to start boiling water for tea and preparing a coffee for himself. He yawned as he checked his cupboards and fridge for any ingredients he could make for their breakfast. He scrunched up his face as he saw a leftover melon pan in the back of his cupboard, still in its plastic covering, wondering how long it had been stuck in there before throwing it away. Better safe than sorry and he really didn’t want to deal with an upset stomach. To his dismay, he realised that he didn’t have much and that he probably needed to go grocery shopping soon as he started his rice cooker to prepare at least some rice with an omelette and instant miso soup. He usually made do with coffee in the mornings, but today he was more inclined to a change. —Ohno woke up to fingers pressing into his neck rather crudely. He moaned slightly as he felt something slip into space, blinking his eyes open as he whined at the residue pain that he felt even when the fingers finally stopped their rather painful assault and now rubbed his shoulders warmly. “Good morning, your highness,” a slightly nasal voice said in a teasing tone that made his nose scrunch up at that title. It took a moment for Ohno to recognise it as the voice of the little doctor he had met and followed home last night. He groaned as he sat up straight.“Careful there. I think you might have pulled something with the strange way you slept.”“Thank you,” Ohno mumbled as small, but strong arms tugged him into a more comfortable position. He felt life coming back to his legs and carefully moved so that he could stretch them in front of him. He rubbed them with a slight grimace until the feeling was back in them and then stood, bending his knees a few times until he felt safe enough to take the first steps. “I put some toiletries on the rim of the bathtub. You can use them, and the blue towel is also clean. Breakfast is almost finished so hurry.”There was a small smile on his face as he nodded his thanks and hurried out of the room into the direction Nino had pointed. The bathroom was tiny, and Ohno stared for the longest of times at the washbasin until he remembered about how Nino had let the water run the day before for the dishes. From there on the rest of the utensils were easily discovered for Ohno, even if he thought at the remedy to brush his teeth didn’t really taste that nice. He liked the herbal paste from home much more than the almost liquid smelling like honey Nino had. Still, Ohno felt quite refreshed as he stepped out of the bath, smoothing down his clothes while also mumbling a cleaning spell. His ring grew warm on his finger, and he was still bright-eyed when he stepped into the small kitchenette. “Your eyes are blue again,” Nino hummed as he put a cup of herbal water in front of him. “Tea for you, coffee for me.”“My eyes turn blue when I use magic,” Ohno mumbled as he moved his fingers over the plate that Nino put in front of him and mumbled his thanks. “I see. It’s interesting.”Ohno’s eyes glinted softly in the slightly darkened kitchen as he looked up at Nino with a smirk. “What is that you drink always?”“It’s coffee,” Nino said with a small chuckle. “It keeps me awake. Do you want to try?”Ohno nodded with a curious glint in his eyes as his fingers closed around Nino’s wrist. Nino felt himself blush at the warmness on his skin, but he didn’t fight it as Ohno moved his hand to his face and put his other hand around his fingers. Nino wondered again how long and graceful the fingers were and for a moment he looked at the signet ring on Ohno’s thumb as the other man tilted the cup and closed his lips around the rim of the cup. Nino’s cheeks heated up even more as the lips touched his fingers at that action before Ohno took a tentative sip. Nino’s eyes wandered up fast to observe Ohno’s face, almost losing his grip around the cup as he started laughing at the look of utter disgust on Ohno’s face when the bitter drink landed on his tongue. “You humans have the strangest tastes,” Ohno said, gagging slightly as Nino hid his face in his elbow as he giggled helplessly with closed eyes as he tried to hide from view. Ohno’s eyes fell on the other man with a small pout on his face at being laughed at. But his pout vanished soon as his eyes widened and his lips dropped open as he watched the laughing face of Nino. Cute, was the only thought in his head as he stared at Nino in wonder. Nino fell silent as he felt the eyes on his face, trying hard to scowl and not being affected by the stare but it was hard, and he could feel the heat in his cheeks and the tips of his ears at the look of utter wonder and maybe even some kind of affection on Ohno’s face. He cleared his throat after they stared at each other for a while in silence before looking down stubbornly. His eyes fell on the still full plates with a small scowl. “Eat, before it’s completely cold,” he whispered. “And then you should maybe go home.”“Yes… I will be probably already missed,” Ohno realised with surprise and regret at leaving so soon already. “May I visit again?”“Always,” Nino said after a long while of silence, he bit his lower lip, before closing his eyes. He wished Ohno would stay though. The thought of spending his free day with Ohno was a nice one, but he didn’t know how to ask without sounding needy or selfish. It wasn’t Ohno’s duty to spend time with him even if he was already missing the calm presence of the other man, and he wasn’t even gone.Ohno ate in silence for a while, his brows furrowed in thought. “Soon?”“As soon as you’d like. As I already said if you are disturbing I’ll tell you, and if I work you will have to wait,” Nino allowed with a smile. “I’m here if you need someone to talk to.”“What about you?”“Huh?”“To whom do you talk if something is weighing down your mind?”“I don’t need anybody.”“Everybody needs one,” Ohno said stubbornly, but Nino shrugged only. Ohno frowned not liking the look in his eyes, but still, he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was wrong in them. “Not everybody is lucky,” Nino said as he finished his food. “You are a special case, your highness.”“Don’t call me that,” Ohno whined with a pout on his face. Nino’s smile was faint, but it was there, and Ohno took that as a good sign. “It’s who you are. My king from the faraway land filled with dreams and wishes.”“You are a peculiar one,” Ohno mumbled as he sighed. “I have to leave.”Nino nodded as he stood together with Ohno. Ohno smiled as he stepped closer, tracing his fingers along Nino’s temple and saying his goodbyes before vanishing. Nino stood there staring into the emptiness, asking himself if what he did and the meetings with Ohno were really smart. It was at least dangerous for his treacherous heart, he thought.
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“You were gone again,” Masaki said with a cheeky grin on his face, and Ohno chuckled softly. His little brother was too good to be true. He knew that if it were anybody else, he would have been reprimanded to be gone from the kingdom now. “I was,” he agreed, with a soft hum. The thought of lying not even entering his mind for a second. It was hard enough for them to do so. It was as if it hurt something deep inside their core if they lied, so it usually didn’t happen. “Satoshi?”“Yes, what is it Masaki?” he asked evenly as he looked into the curious and slightly worried eyes. He somehow knew already what would be coming out of Masaki’s mouth now. Masaki was the closest person to him, and he knew whenever he used his powers. “You said that the person you are seeing is not from the castle.”“Yes,” Satoshi said with a small smile. “That is why we made the pictures for him,” He reminded him. “He said thank you by the way. He loved the pictures and said that you could visit him if you are really interested.”“Would you like me coming with you, brother?” Masaki asked, and with a sigh, Satoshi shook his head. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his little brother, but Masaki was still weak with only low power in his body. Energy that would grow as Masaki grew, both of them knew that, but right now it was different. Also, he would very much like to spend more time with Nino just the two of them. “No, it’s dangerous. And I like being alone with him. It’s freeing not to have to think of this all, I’m sorry.”Masaki smiled as he shook his head. “I understand. But brother is it safe for you?”“Yes,” Satoshi whispered as he played with the key around his neck. “Mother gave me this because she knew I would be able to handle it, and she told me that I would always have more ease at using it than she ever had. She said I was more powerful than she,” he whispered, his heart feeling heavy as he thought of his beloved mother with the natural smile on her lips and the easy jokes that came from her. He had loved her dearly. “She also told me that she knew you would grow into a healthy, happy young man with a heart bigger than imaginable, and she was right then as well.”Masaki giggled when Satoshi bopped his nose. “I trust you,” he said with a bright grin. “Just be careful not to tell the others if you go visit him, ne? Father always said that the worlds are not to be breached.”“I know. But it doesn’t feel wrong,” Satoshi said earnestly. His mother only had told him to be careful, to make sure it was safe, and he did. He closed the opening behind him each time. “It feels very right.” Satoshi sighed as he remembered back this morning. Leaving had felt wrong, very wrong. “You are not happy,” Aiba observed with a frown. Ohno nodded with a hum. “I’m not. I didn’t want to leave him,” he said in the end. “Why did you?”“Because I’m meant to be here,” he said with an unhappy frown on his face. Masaki giggled at the look and shook his head. “There are no appointments today. Not after the feast yesterday. You are to do as you like. You could just go to your atelier and close the doors. Nobody will question it.”Satoshi’s eyes widened at those words, but he realised how true that was. He could just go there and tell the people he wanted to be alone. He would be called if it was essential, but they usually told Masaki then because them being brothers made it easy for Masaki to call him out of his exile. “But if I do so you need to know how to reach me,” He murmured. Masaki nodded, looking at him with wide, curious eyes. Satoshi laughed softly as he put his fingertips on his temple, his thumb hovering just above his forehead as he closed his eyes. Masaki gasped as he felt the reliable power of his brother, circling him and adding itself to his own core magic. It was true that Masaki was one of their strongest leaders in centuries. Satoshi always looked so sleepy and only used the minimum of his powers that nobody knew how strong he really was. When Ohno stepped back, Masaki looked into the bright blue eyes, his fingers wandering to his heart. “I can feel you very strongly.”“Good then it should be just enough for you to reach me there, but just to be sure,” Ohno said with a smile as he knelt in front of his little brother. He took his hand in his own, moving close to the ring around his middle finger. He closed his eyes as he whispered another spell to the signet ring of his brother, feeling the stone inside connecting with his own. “This should work. Be careful, though, okay?”“Yes,” Masaki said, rubbing his chest. It felt uncomfortable to be filled with so much power that was not his own. It was only bearable because it was Satoshi’s that was so similar to his own. “Do you have mother’s ring?” he asked, trying to ignore the worried look on Ohno’s face. “Yes.”“Good. Take it with you and give it to the man. He should be able to connect with you, right?”“Are you okay?” Satoshi asked finally when the pinched look lifted only slightly. “Yes, I feel already better,” Masaki said, and Satoshi waited until his cheeks were rosier. He sighed as he ruffled his hair. “Be safe and rest, if possible. Do you have lessons?”Masaki shook his head. Sho had given him a holiday for today since yesterday had been so exciting after all. “I will go to my room and take a nap and then take a walk with Pukki. He wants to go to the lake,” he grinned brightly.“Then have fun,” Ohno said with a small laugh. Masaki nodded as he skipped away to his own chambers as Ohno turned around to take the ring of his mother from his room and then go to his atelier. Masaki was right this rouse could work after all if Nino had time to spend with him that was. —When Ohno appeared in Nino’s apartment, he was confused for a second and felt really bad that he hadn’t thought of appearing outside and knocking on the door. But for that, it was now too late. Nino was sitting on the sofa something playing on the screen of his little TV while he had something on a string in his hand. The music was repetitive, and there was a big GAME OVER on the screen. Nino stared in front of him, seemingly not really seeing anything. That was somehow not the joking man from this morning, and Ohno felt a tug at his heart as he saw that he couldn’t explain fully, even if deep inside he knew why he cared so much about Nino and how he felt and why he liked being around him usually. Ohno cleared his throat, but there was no reaction from the other man, so he carefully took the two steps to Nino until he could carefully put his fingers on Nino's shoulder. “Are you okay?” he asked when Nino jumped in shock and turned around with wide spooked eyes. “God, you can’t just appear in front of somebody,” Nino grumbled as he rubbed his face as to get rid of the shock. “Sorry, I tried to get your attention another way,” Ohno mumbled with a pout on his face. “But you didn’t hear me.”“Yeah, sorry, sorry. I was miles away. Did you forget something?” Nino was spluttering somehow and not the calm man he had seen the other few times they had met in this world. No, he reminded him much of the small, scared child he had met the first time and how he hated himself, still, that he had just left Nino then. Deep inside, he knew there had been nothing he could’ve done then. He was a child himself, with no idea how he even really managed to get into Nino’s world nor what to do if you find hurt people there. He still didn’t know for sure. But he thought that the place Nino worked was the right place. They healed people, Nino healed people after all. “I didn’t forget anything. But my brother reminded me that I’m not needed at home right now. And I didn’t really want to leave in the morning. It was nice being here,” he said as he cocked his head to the side with a soft smile on his face. “I’m surprised you are here, though. I thought you always work?”“Not always,” Nino said with a small laugh in his voice. “Thank God for that. I don’t have to go in today. Honestly a nice if scary nurse told me yesterday she would have my butt if she sees me anywhere near there today.”“Oh…” Ohno nodded as he still stared at the other. “Then what would you do today?”“Play a game, clean, buy groceries since a poor king ate all of my last food,” he said with a small grin on his face. Ohno pouted at those words. “I’m not poor in my land,” he said as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I can’t help it if you have other ways to get things… That paper looks strange.”“That paper is called money. Don’t you have money?” Nino asked curiously as he turned around to put away his controller. “We either exchange goods and we have coins,” Ohno mumbled in explanation. “But mostly exchange.”“Seems nice,” Nino hummed. “What do you do if someone doesn’t have coins or something to exchange?”“There always will be a time for people to have something in exchange. If not coins or goods it might be their trade. All can do different things, and sometimes a well-made cake is worth more than a coppery coin.”“True,” Nino hummed as he sighed. “Since you are here, you can go shopping with me, I suppose. If you carry the stuff, you can choose something to eat? If my cooking appeases you, your highness?”“Nino’s cooking is good,” Ohno said with a bright grin. “I want to try your favourite food,” he added then with a frown. Good food always made him happy and somehow even if Nino joked now and his eyes looked a bit lighter there was still something heavy settled into them, and Ohno didn’t like that much. “Hamburger then. And I’m sorry, but I really need to clean this. I suppose you can play a game to entertain yourself,” Nino sighed as he stripped out of the clothes he had worn the night before, Ohno realised. Nino hadn’t changed out of his nightclothes yet even if it was almost midday now. Ohno wondered if Nino had sat on the bed since he had left and somehow that thought made it hard to breathe. Maybe Nino would share with him what was weighing down his mind? If there was something… Ohno still wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination because Masaki was always so bright and happy or crying when he felt terrible. His eyes lingered on the thin back of Nino as he took off his shirt without minding him. He traced the faint scars he could see on his back, that looked worse around his hips and lower back and wondered what exactly Nino had lived through until now. What had become of that little boy with the bright golden eyes?
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Ohno skipped beside Nino as they wandered through the streets. He was looking around at the people walking at a swift pace and a few children running beside their parents. “You have little children,” he observed. Nino’s lips quirk upwards at those words. “Since you are mostly here during the nights or now in the middle of the day, I’m not surprised you think so. Children sleep during nights and during the day they are at school or kindergarten,” he explained as he pulled him beside himself so that the other would walk a little more calmly. “Do I need to bring you to the park to run around?” he asked with a teasing smile on his face. Ohno pouted but shook his head as he walked a bit calmer. “No, but I would like to walk through the park,” he decided after a moment. “Sun is good.”“Urgh, the sun is awful,” Nino said with a giggle but led him to the park. Ohno’s eyes brightened up at the promise as they entered the green space. He felt much more comfortable here, then in the streets if he was honest. Nino shook his head as Ohno’s fingers closed around his and the other dragged him around to look at the showers and the lake in the middle of the park with ducks swimming on its top. “They are cute,” Ohno cooed, and Nino couldn’t help the small smile creeping up on his face. It was charming to watch Ohno right now, he thought and felt his heart getting a bit lighter. “You are like an excited puppy,” he said with a smile. “And as much as I would like to let you run around, I will need to buy groceries and do the cleaning before nightfall. Tomorrow is work, again,” he said his face shadowed for such a second. Ohno frowned as he saw that and moved closer to the other body. Nino felt a shiver run down his back as he felt the heat so close to him. “Don’t you like your work?” he asked with a worried tone in his voice. Nino hummed at the question and shook his head with a tired sigh. “No, I like the job, mostly. It’s just… Sometimes it’s hard.”“Why?”“Because sometimes people you are responsible for die, regardless of how hard you try and that hurts,” Nino whispered after a long time. He really didn’t want to say that. “And I knew that such a thing could happen. But it still hurts. Everybody says the first time is the hardest, but I can’t believe that it gets better.”“Death always hurts,” Ohno agreed in a soft voice as he squeezed the fingers in his own. “So I can understand your pain. But as long as you did everything you could to help it’s enough. Don’t beat yourself up, nobody will appreciate it, less the family of the dead person.”“How would you know? Maybe say think it’s my fault?” Nino said as he bit his lips hard, almost enough to draw blood. “Because I was at the end of a relative when my mother died. I never faulted the healers. They did a lot, they helped my mother to go almost painless and at peace. I know my mother appreciated everything they’ve done to help her even if it never seems to be enough for the people around,” he sighed. “You think so?”“I do,” Ohno said as he tugged him along. “But you are allowed to mourn the loss of a patient, I believe. It makes you human more so than if you would be able to ignore the painfully.”Nino smiled softly as he nodded in, thanks. It helped to hear things like that. He still would need time to overcome it entirely, but at least the guilt on his chest had lessened a little bit. “To the shops then,” he said as he again took the lead since Ohno was just dragging him along aimlessly not really knowing which exit to use to get to a supermarket. —“This is fun!!!” Ohno shouted as he stepped on the back of the shopping cart that he had made Nino get. Nino would have done with a basket since he didn’t need so much stuff, but Ohno had never seen shopping carts and had looked at him with such big begging eyes that it was hard to say no. Now Ohno was sliding across the (thankfully mostly empty) aisles of the supermarket, jumping on and off the cart to get it to roll faster. Nino wanted to hide his face behind his hands because he was sure that the clerks were either thinking Ohno was stupid or contemplating of throwing them out of the shop. At the same time, he couldn’t help the laughter and giggles that slipped out of his mouth whenever Ohno ran across of him while he checked things off his shopping list to make sure that he didn’t forget things that he needed while he leisurely strolled through the aisles to add whatever he thought looked good to the cart if Ohno stopped long enough to allow him doing so. “Still an excited puppy,” Nino decided as Ohno stopped beside him for a moment, his face bright, and slightly red from running around so much. “You should try it.”“Better not. I don’t want to hurt myself or deprive you of your joy, your highness,” Nino said with a grin. “Do you want anything?”Ohno shook his head as his eyes wandered around and landed on some colourful packages. “What are those?” “Sweets. They have a toy inside.”“I want that!”“Are you sure you are an adult?” Nino asked with a small laugh in his voice as he went over to pull out the package together with some salty snacks for himself. Maybe Ohno could stay long enough to watch a movie together with him, he thought, biting his lips. He would like a calm evening and such a peaceful night as the night before. He just didn’t know how to ask Ohno right now. He was sure he needed to go back to his world soon. “What is going on in your mind?” Ohno asked as he tilted his head to the side. He started to learn that Nino was a very silent person and that you needed to be careful as to not miss the shifts in his emotions. Ohno was surprised since he had never met such a hard to read a person as Nino was. “I thought that I wanted to make a cheesy hamburger with tomato sauce. So we have to go back to that aisle so that I can get cheese. I’m sure you’ll like it,” he said with a small smile.“Sounds good,” Ohno agreed with a small shrug of his shoulders. He didn’t know for sure if it was tasty, but if Nino wanted to make it, he would agree to anything. Nino hummed softly under his breath as he walked through the store to put the last things in the cart - Ohno now following behind him silently as he had probably worn himself out finally. Ohno instead watched Nino curiously and listened to the soft voice. He liked Nino’s voice and was sure that he would fit their songs perfectly if he would ever learn them. It made him want to teach the other. Nino paid their food at the register, grinning slightly as he was sure that he heard a sigh of relief from most of the clerks Ohno had almost run over with his antics and handed Ohno most of the bags. Ohno frowned at the heavy bags, but with a small huff, he gripped them differently and walked beside Nino who had a small bag slung over his shoulder, still humming brightly.“I don’t think that this is fair,” Ohno grumbled after they walked for a while in silent, Ohno huffing softly under the weight when Nino grinned down at him. “It’s your payment for eating my food,” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. “But if you agree to help me clean and cook I can help you with a bag or two.”“Oh, I would love to help you!” Ohno decided, but he shook his head when Nino offered to take one of the bags. “I can still carry them, but we should directly go home.”“You are an extraordinary king to get so excited about cleaning and cooking,” Nino wondered as he took the shortcut through a tight alley to his house. Ohno looked around a bit worriedly but then decided that this was safe and followed him with faster steps. “I’m never allowed to do chores at home,” he explained sullenly. “But I like doing such normal things, at least once.”“An extraordinary king indeed,” Nino said with a soft smile as he opened the door to his flat for them and followed Ohno inside to put everything away and make them a drink.
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“I want to try that coffee drink again,” Ohno said as he perched on the chair in his flat. His hands-on the rim of the seat as he stared at him hopefully.Nino snorted slightly at the wish and shook his head. “No way,” he said as he came over to tweak his nose. “You are way too hyper. There is no way I will give you more things to make you hyper.”Ohno pouted, but he still took the cup of tea with a hand to drink the warm liquid. He sighed happily as it tasted delicious. He looked up to catch the last of a very soft smile on Nino’s face which vanished almost directly after though.“This herbal water is delicious,” Ohno hummed.“It’s my favourite,” Nino agreed. He saved money wherever he could, but he had looked long and hard for a tea that he really liked and even if it hurt each time he bought a new package he didn’t regret it in the end. It tended to relax him after all. “Thank you for sharing this with me then,” he said happily as he finished the warm tea together with Nino in silence before he jumped to his feet and put the mugs on the counter. “So what should we do first?” he asked, rocking on his feet and Nino just couldn’t believe that someone could be that excited about cleaning. But he supposed it had to do with not being allowed to do so normally. Nino stood and led Ohno to the bathroom. He pulled out his cleaning products from under the sink and filled a bucket with warm water. “If you want to do something, you can clean the bathroom right now. I will clean the living room and put away everything so that we can clean the floors,” he mumbled with red cheeks as he remembered how awful his flat actually looked like. It wasn’t that he was untidy. He cleaned regularly and made sure that there was no litter on the floors, but since he had so little space and so little time to do daily chores he ended up throwing worn clothes to the floor, before collapsing onto the bed or sometimes forgetting dishes on some places. Most of them were done the night before by Ohno, but he still needed to sort out his clothes and books before anything else could be done. —When he was finished with the living room and the kitchen, he went back to the bathroom to put his clothes to the washing machine. He giggled when he saw Ohno sitting in the bathtub, scrubbing away with a bright smile on his face. Nino shook his head as he put the clothes in the washer, getting Ohno’s attention. “What is that?”“A washing machine,” he said as he sat on the rim of the tub. “You put your dirty laundry inside and then a cleaning product, and it washes the clothes for you. You only need to hang them to dry.”“Huh, practical,” Ohno said with a nod as he frowned slightly. “We wash clothes by hand.”“You as their king?” Nino teased as he ruffled his hair when Ohno pouted. “But you did well. The bathroom is sparkling,” he grinned. “How about a snack before we start in the living room?”“Yup!” Ohno said. “Can I have my toy?”“Yes, you may have your toy,” Nino said with a chuckle as he helped the other out of the tub and led him to the living room. Ohno sat down on the bed that was transformed into a proper sofa right now and grinned like a little child when Nino offered him the sweets he had chosen for himself. Ohno ripped it open and put the first piece of chocolate in his mouth.“Mhm… Tastes nice, you too?” Ohno said as he offered him the package after he had snatched the little bag out of it that had the toy inside. Nino rolled his eyes but took gingerly one of the sweets to pop it in his mouth and then sat down with two new cups of tea for them to enjoy. He watched Ohno as he opened the bag with amusement in his eyes, which turned into giggles when Ohno pulled out a small figurine. It was a whimsical thing made from plastic still Ohno was staring at it as if it was the most exciting thing he had ever gotten and even started to move it around on the table. It was an adorable sight, Nino thought as he enjoyed his tea and leant back. “Ne Nino?”“Yes, what is it?”“How about you lie down and I clean the rest?”“You don’t have to clean the rest of my house for me,” Nino said with a roll of his eyes. “But you are tired.”Nino nibbled on his lips, he wanted to tell him that it wasn’t like that, but that would be a lie. He felt tired after all he had done today already. Especially since the last night had been only short. “I like it, come on, you promised me food. In exchange, I clean.”“Okay, okay. Stupid,” Nino grumbled as he got up to get out his vacuum cleaner. “You can use that for the floors. It’ll be fast. Afterwards, you can mop the floor, and we’re done.”Ohno looked so happy when Nino laid down on the sofa to stretch out his tired muscles, and Nino shook his head as Ohno got to his feet and started to clean the floors. It didn’t take long until Ohno was done and sat down in front of the sofa. “What now?” Nino asked with a giggle. “Eat another chocolate. It’s too early for dinner.”Ohno pouted but ate another piece of chocolate. “Does cooking dinner take long?”“No,” Nino shook his head. “Especially not if you’ll help me. So we can relax. I’m sure being king is also tiring.”Ohno frowned but nodded as he stared at the ring, which was the same as always. At least Masaki didn’t need him which was good he thought. “I brought you something,” he remembered then and pulled out the ring from his pocket. “What’s that?”“The signet ring of my mother,” Ohno explained as he took his hand to slip it on his pointer finger. Nino was surprised that it fit, but it was probably because of Ohno’s magic he thought. There was a golden glow around it, which brought a frown to Ohno’s face but then he shrugged. He couldn’t remember the power of his mother that much, honestly. “Why do you give me a ring?” Nino asked surprise evident in his voice. “It’s so that you can call me if something is wrong. I can then come to you as soon as I have time,” Ohno said with a grin on his face. “Good right?”“Oh very,” Nino said sarcastically. “Why should I call you, though?”“I don’t know. If something happens, if you are bored if you want to talk?” Ohno said a bit more insecure now. “I come to you when my mind is in turmoil. And Masaki reminded me that it’s unfair if only I can reach you,” Ohno explained. “And I want you to call me. I will come to check up on you as well,” he said with a stern look on his face. Nino looked at him and then giggled softly as he lifted his hand to stare at the ring. “You know that if you give rings to others in my world, it means that you are proposing?” he teased. “What means that?”“Asking the other to spend their whole life with them,” he said as he looked at him again. Ohno frowned as he put his head on the sofa where Nino was resting on. “We could ne? You are my friend now after all,” he said with a grin. Nino chuckled at his words before he nodded. “Yes, you are my friend as well,” he said as he ruffled Ohno’s hair and grinned down at him. Ohno had always been his saviour and his only friend, he thought. It was nice to hear that now and spend more time with him finally. “Thank you. You need to explain to me how to call you, though.”Ohno nodded at the words and took his hand in his own before staring at the ring and rubbing it softly with his thumb. “I will put some of my power into it each time we see each other to make sure that you can reach me, okay? You need to wear it as often as possible.”“I’m not allowed to wear it at work,” Nino said with a frown as he felt the ring warming up to his skin the more Ohno rubbed it. Ohno nodded as he moved closer to put the ring against his lips to whisper a spell to it and make sure to put the energy needed into it. It shimmered blue before it died down. Then Nino sat up when Ohno tugged at his hands and sat down across from him his legs under himself as he explained Nino how he could use it. Nino then started a movie for them to watch until he poked Ohno with his feet to make him stand up. “Food,” Nino declared when Ohno looked confused at him. Nino pushed a very excited man to the kitchen. He prepared the patties and put on the rice after he had explained Ohno how to wash and prepare it for the rice cooker. He then gave him a few vegetables to eat on the side and mushrooms for a creamy sauce. “You can prepare some miso soup,” he grinned at the hopeful look. Ohno nodded in concentration as he listened to the instructions of Nino as the other cooked the meat and the vegetables.When they sat at the table, Ohno said a prayer for their food and then stared excitedly at Nino for him to try the soup. “It’s good,” Nino said, laughing when Ohno brimmed with pride for his first self made food. God, how cute could this little king be?It was late at night when Nino was already preparing for bed with Ohno sitting on the floor in front of the sofa made as a bed again. “Will you watch me sleep again?”“No, I just thought to stay with you until you fall asleep and then I head home.”“Sounds good,” Nino mumbled. “Continue your story from yesterday?”“Okay,” Ohno said with a giggle as he told him a story from his very first fishing trip. Nino giggled slightly at some of the first stories until he finally fell to sleep. Ohno smiled as he realised he was asleep and then pressed a kiss to his fingertips before pressing those to Nino’s forehead to wish him a good night’s sleep and vanished for home. He wanted to make sure the other’s at home were alright.
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“Are you finished yet?” Ohno asked hopefully as he looked up to the other man who rubbed his eyes as he stepped out of the hospital. Nino looked as if he had a headache and before Ohno could stop himself, he reached out to him and let his fingers wander over his temple so that the other would feel better. “Yes,” Nino said tiredly. He had to stay a bit longer because there had been an accident and they had asked all the people in the hospital to stay until all people were taken care of. “Feels good,” he hummed. Ohno grinned happily at the words and took his wrist in his own. “Then I want your attention now,” the little king declared loudly, and Nino couldn’t help the laughter bubbling up at him. Ohno had been a steady presence in his life for a few months now, and Nino had gotten used to the other man. Ohno provided peacefulness in his life and a kind of comfortable companionship that it had taken long for Nino to get used to. Now though he didn’t want to miss it again, he was scared at how dependent he had gotten to Ohno, but at the same time, it felt too right and good.He had started to use the ring to call Ohno four weeks after he had gotten it because Ohno had always told him to do so and now he called onto Ohno whenever a day was harsh, and Ohno was not standing at the entry of the hospital after a long shift. “I was worried because you were not here when you told me when your shift ended. I thought I had misread the watch again,” Ohno said suddenly.“What?” Nino said, pulled back of his reverie of the last minutes.“The watch? Did I get it wrong again?”“Ah,” Nino said with a chuckle as he remembered the pocket watch he had gotten for Ohno (it seemed more natural than a typical watch for his wrist). Ohno still had sometimes problems to read the time correctly. He would appear in his flat suddenly during the night instead of in the afternoon when they had meant to meet or mixed up the two pointers. It was adorable. “No, you were on time. But there was a bad accident, and we were told to stay behind until the brute was handled,” he explained.“I understand. Are they good now?”“I was able to discharge a few of the patients with minor wounds,” he said contently. “God I’m hungry though,” he groaned tugging at his arm to have Ohno let him go. But the warm hand around his wrist tightened for a second, and the other pulled him closer to his side. “Food is good,” Ohno agreed hopefully that he would be fed again. He had started to feel bad that he had never been able to treat Nino to anything as he had begun to learn that Nino didn’t earn that much money and one needed money for everything in this world after all. “Since I’m paying I can choose,” Nino hummed, finally able to make Ohno let go of his wrist so that he could take his hand more comfortably. “I want something sweet, but also something filling first,” Nino said deep in thought as he led Ohno to a restaurant. Nino ordered them some Ramen and then sat down at a table. “You like spicy food, right?” he asked as he sat with Ohno. “Spicy is good,” Ohno agreed happily as he watched him with. He grinned happily as he saw his ring on Nino’s finger. Nino had gotten used to putting it on the moment he left work.Ohno held his hand without really realising it, playing with the ring on his finger. “It looks happy there.”“How can a ring look happy?” Nino asked with a smile in his voice as Ohno shrugged at the question. “It just does. It shines brightly, ne?”“That’s because you put in so much power each time we meet,” Nino said with a roll of his eyes. “I thought you didn’t need to do it each day.”“I don’t but this way I won’t forget. I can be forgetful,” Ohno explained with a little pout. Nino giggled as he nodded. That much he had already realised. Ohno could be a little air-headed, and he was surprised how that man was able to reign over a whole kingdom, even if Ohno always explained to him that they were not really on top of the others or like he imagined kings were supposed to be.“How is it at your home? How is your father?” Nino asked silently as they finally got their meals. He thanked for the food, watching Ohno praying over both of their bows before starting to eat. “He is dying,” Ohno said with a sigh. “Shouldn’t you be with him then?”Ohno shook his head, but then he nodded. “Yes,” he breathed. “That’s why I won’t be able to visit you for a few days other than maybe an hour. Will you tell me about your work schedule?”“Of course,” Nino said with a smile as he took his hand in between his own. He kissed the knuckles softly and pressed his lips against the skin for a little while longer, wishing him to be able to give him enough strength for these days. Ohno shivered slightly at the warmth that ran over his body, and he smiled. “I’ll be okay. It has been like this for so long already, so it’s no surprise.”“But still, you love him.”“I do, but at least I will have the knowledge that he will be together with my mother again,” he said with a small smile. “True,” Nino whispered as he let go of Ohno’s hands and motioned him to finish his food. “It was good,” Ohno moaned as he rubbed his stomach. Nino grinned as he drank the cold tea and then stood again. “Wait for a moment,” he mumbled. He had already discovered that Ohno was fond of all kinds of sweets they had here. The other had mentioned that he didn’t know these kinds of sweets from his home. Nino wandered to the front of the shop again to order them some dessert. A cheesecake for himself and a matcha tiramisu for the other. He went over to Ohno and sat down back. “Where did you go?”“You are an inquisitive man,” Nino teased him. He chuckled when the server brought them the cakes and Nino giggled when Ohno’s eyes widened in joy. Ohno took the spoon to eat the first bite of the dessert but started to cough the moment he put the spoon in his mouth. Nino blinked from his cake and then started to laugh as Ohno cleared his throat. “Good?”“Delicious!” Ohno said with a frown as he poked at the dessert in confusion as to what made him cough. “Is everything okay?”Ohno shrugged as he decided that something went probably the wrong way and nodded before taking the next bite, almost choking again. Nino observed him as he did so.“You should be careful with the powder. It catches in your throat,” he explained. Ohno frowned but then nodded in understanding and stared down at the dessert again, almost making Nino feel bad about choosing that one for him. But Ohno had looked so in awe and happy as he had tasted it so that it was hard to really feel bad. Ohno pouted slightly as he stared the dessert down and Nino thought he looked as if he was going to war. Ohno then put the spoon into the cream again and ate the next. This time without choking on the food. “I held my breath,” he explained with a victorious grin on his face. Nino stared at the other for a moment, before giggling and hiding his face behind his hands. “God, you are so cute!” he cooed. He watched Ohno finish his dessert before offering him a bite of his own. He paid for them as they left the restaurant again hand in hand. “Let’s not be strangers,” he whispered when Ohno looked at him with sorrow in his eyes. He pressed his fingers against his temple and let them wander down. Ohno smiled as he nodded and took a hand in his own. He kissed the palm of his hands, lingering for just a moment. “Let’s be friends instead,” he whispered in agreement and then stepped back. Nino smiled as he watched his little king disappear into the darkness before he sighed and shook his head. He was entirely lost to the other know and Ohno didn’t even realise that yet, if ever.
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“Big brother,” Masaki said softly when he found him in his room, looking out of the window. “You’re home?”“Yes,” Satoshi said with a smile, opening his arm for him to come closer. He hugged him softly as he put his head on top of Masaki’s and continued to stare outside. “Can you see the stars?” he asked softly. Masaki nodded with wide eyes as he stared out into the darkness. “Did Sho already teach you how to read them?”“No, sensei said that was for a later time. Not just yet. Why is it important?”“Not yet for you, I suppose. But they tell you the goings of our world. It tells you when a soul is lost, and a new soul is born,” Ohno whispered. “They are very unique.”“What do they tell you?”“That I need to stay home for now. Father is very ill. He will soon be with mother.” Satoshi rubbed Masaki’s back when the breath of the boy hitched. “And I won’t leave you all alone when that happens, nor the rest. They will need a strong leader.”Satoshi sighed softly as he looked at the dark sky and the stars collected there. “And I hope I can be the one they need.”“You will. You are the best!” Masaki said with a giggle, his face bright as he looked at his big brother.Satoshi chuckled as he ruffled his hair. “I’m honoured you think so.”“Won’t you go visit Nino?”“Not for a while. I told him tonight before coming back. That father is close to dying and that I can’t visit for a while. He will understand.”“Do you miss him?”Satoshi rolled his eyes softly as he stared down at him with a small hum at the back of his throat. “I told you, I just came back.”“But still!” Masaki said with a frown. “You can’t visit him.”“Yes, I’ll miss him. Not yet. But tomorrow possible or the day after. I have gotten used to being with him and visiting him.”“I’m sure he will miss you as well.”“Maybe. But Nino is very good on his own. I think he is very self-sufficient,” Satoshi said with a smile as he bopped his nose. He chuckled when Masaki scrunched up his nose before moving his fingers to create a copy of their sky in front of their eyes. “Time to teach you, though. You should be able to read the stars telling your birth, mother’s death, and how they are right now, okay?”“Okay,” Masaki said as he nodded and watched the picture in front of them. Satoshi got comfortable behind him and moved his fingers to make the star constellations appear as he explained everything he knew about them to Masaki who listened carefully and tried to remember everything that his brother taught him. Masaki always enjoyed the time that his brother took off his days to teach him things he knew because even if his teachers were kind and he got along with them nicely, it was special if it was Satoshi. Satoshi’s voice was always very calm when he explained things and the words he used were just very easy to understand. Much easier than those of his teachers.— Satoshi made sure Masaki was covered well by a blanket as the boy fell asleep against him and ruffled his soft hair. He stood then with a little sigh as he walked over to the room of his father. The older man was still awake, just as he had thought it would be. “Satoshi,” he said with a smile, sitting a little bit straighter in the chair he had been resting in. “Father, how are you feeling?” he asked as he stepped close to sit down beside him on a free chair. “Restless but peaceful. It is a strange combination. But the thought of being reunited with my love is giving me peace.”“You should probably rest,” Satoshi said with a smile, taking the warm hand in his own to squeeze it slightly. “I will rest an unbelievable amount very soon, my son. You saw it, I saw it, and I’m fine with that. I want to finish my letters to you and your brother. Masaki… He will need you to lead him.”“I will do my best, father. Don’t worry about it.”The man smiled as he nodded. “I always knew that you are way stronger than me.”Satoshi shook his head. He still didn’t think he was overly strong, but then again, he didn’t want to upset his father now as he said so. It was as if many people thought so, and he would always do his best to become that way. He talked a bit longer with his father about the future of their lands and what dangers there were that Ohno needed to be on a lookout for. Satoshi then bid the man a goodnight and stepped out from the room. A deep sigh escaped his lips as he stood outside, staring at the bright moon just out. He was not sure if he should go and wake up Masaki so that the boy could say his goodbyes or if he should just let him sleep. There was a very selfish part in him that wanted to share the pain with his little brother, but a more significant part of him wanted to let Masaki have a last night’s sleep with the thought of having a father. And a terrible part of him, if he was honest, just didn’t want to deal with the tears and fear this night. He shook his head as he looked at the door again. “Goodbye,” he whispered. He knew that his father would be happy wherever he was going now. He wandered back to his room and climbed into bed beside his brother. He watched him sleep for a while, caressing the light hair before he turned to his back with a sigh. He lifted the key to the air, staring at it, wishing to run away from all his duties for tonight but he couldn’t be that selfish. So he just pressed the key against his lips, closing his eyes. “Be safe,” he whispered, closing his eyes, hoping for at least a few hours of peaceful sleep, before there was a knock at his door and Jun together with Sho storming into his room telling them about the death of his father.
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Ohno sat at Masaki’s side as his little brother opened his eyes the next morning. He had slept only a bit in between the death of his father and now. He wanted to make sure that he was there and awake when Masaki learnt the truth. He played with the soft locks of his hair as he smiled down at the tired boy who blinked a few times before rubbing his face with his eyeballs.“Good morning,” he greeted in a soft voice. Masaki muttered something that Ohno couldn’t decipher (but he also didn’t try very hard to be honest). Then he laid on his back for a while, enjoying the fingers in his hair before a small frown appeared on his face. A sad look crossed his face as he grabbed Ohno’s hand. A look that Ohno mimicked as he smoothed down his forehead. “I feel strange,” Masaki whispered in confusion. Ohno sighed as he lied down beside him, turning to his side, and his head held up by his second arm. “I know,” he said softly. “Yesterday while you slept, father took his last breath. He is now together with Mother,” he explained softly. Masaki’s whole face scrunched up as he turned to his side, his face pressing against Ohno’s chest which held him carefully but tightly in his arms as hot tears ran over his cheeks.“I wasn’t there for him,” he whispered. “Father wouldn’t have wanted you to be there, Masaki. He hadn’t wanted me to be there. I went to talk the last time with him and then I left. He died shortly after. He looked relieved when I told him we would be okay. I’m certain he is happy with Mother now.”“You sure?”“Yes, I’m secure. He always missed Mother. And he is happy that you’ve already grown so strong. He knows we can pursue life on our own, so he was very peaceful when he left.”“But…”“No, Masaki. He wouldn’t have wanted you to be there to see him this weak. It already pained him that you saw him suffering so much these last few weeks.”Masaki nodded as he rubbed his cheeks. Ohno smiled as he wiped away the tears still clinging to his cheeks. “You are his dear child, his sunshine. He never wanted to see you cry or sad.” Ohno smiled as he looked down at his brother. Their Mother had always called Masaki to be her sweet summer child even if he was born in the depth of winter and seeing the boy growing up made Ohno understood why she said that.“We have to get up, Masaki,” Satoshi said after a while. He sighed as he rubbed his cheeks. “They will summon us to tell us that father is dead. Then we need to do the rites. You remember them?”“Sensei taught me,” Masaki nodded, still slightly sniffling. “Just two weeks ago to make sure that I remembered them correctly. Does sensei read the stars as well?”“Yes, we all do, but you and me we are the best in that, or you will be,” Satoshi explained as he combed Masaki’s hair with his fingers as he saw how messy it had gotten. “But for today I will be here with you.”“You won’t go to your friend?”“No, not until this is all over,” Satoshi promised as he climbed out of bed, donning the mourning robes he had pulled out earlier. He showed Masaki how to wear them correctly and made sure that he was looking regal. He smiled as he rubbed away the tears at the corner of Masaki’s eyes. “We need to be strong in front of others.”“Yes, brother,” Masaki whispered. Ohno smiled but didn’t say anything as he let Masaki cling to his arm as they finally stepped outside of the room. The castle was completely silent as they made their way through the hallways. Satoshi nodding to the few people they crossed until they arrived at the door of their father. Ohno nodded and then stepped in as they heard someone call for them. Ohno bowed deeply, Masaki mimicking him at the young man in front of him. “I can only confirm the death of the old king,” the man said with a sad frown on his face. Ohno nodded with a smile. “I know. But thank you for confirming it,” he said as he led his brother to the bed. “Say your farewell, Masaki,” he mumbled and ruffled his hair softly as the boy knelt in front of the bed, his head bowed low as his shoulders shook. His heartfelt heavy as he saw the sadness radiating from Masaki but then he turned to the doctor to give him the solitude he needed for his prayers and his last words. In whispering voices he ordered the man to start with the rites to bring his father to his last destination and then went out to call for Sho and Jun, ordering them once again to start moving all the things, before he went back to Masaki. He knelt beside him, an arm around the shaking shoulders as he drew him closer. It took a moment for Masaki to calm down, but then he managed to get to his feet and let his brother alone so that he could say the last prayers for their father himself. He leant against the wall beside the door, staring out of the window across from it with unseeing eyes. It felt strange. He felt very empty and strange. He didn’t even realise as his brother led him down to the kitchen for breakfast and went through the rest of the day feeling hollow as Satoshi carefully made sure that everything was in order and they did as they had to, to make sure that his father crossed the passage safely.— The next days were stressful for Ohno. It was hard to see Masaki in mourning for their father, hollow and like a shadow of himself. Usually, the boy was bright laughter and silly ideas, but now he was very silent, and most of the time, it seemed as if he was somewhere far away from him. It took over a week before Masaki resembled himself again and Ohno breathed in relief when he saw a hesitant smile on the boy’s face that evening as Pukki put its massive head on his lap. “Welcome back, brother,” he whispered as he saw the light returning to Masaki’s eyes. “I’m sorry,” Masaki said, but Ohno shook his head. He had been a shell himself when their Mother died. “It’s fine. How are you feeling?”“Tired,” Masaki mumbled with a small grimace. Ohno chuckled as he got to his feet and collected him in his arms. It was always hard to carry him nowadays, but with the help of a little magic, it was manageable. “Then let’s go to bed.”“May Pukki come?”“If your beast won’t bite me, he may.”Masaki giggled as he snuggled to his big brother who couldn’t help a small chuckle escape at that noise. He had missed Masaki laughing or smiling so much. “He would never. He loves you.”Ohno snorted at these words before laughing slightly. “Huh… These last few days he seemed to take it into consideration because you didn’t play with him as often.”“Sorry. I don’t know why I behaved like that.”“Because it was the first death you have seen, Masaki. It’s okay. I’m happy it has only taken you a mere week. I think I was in a similar state for almost a month when Mother died. Father had been anxious for me.”“Thank you that you take care of me, brother.”“Always, because you are my little brother, Masaki. I love you and want only the best for you. But now you need to sleep, okay?”“Uhn,” Masaki whispered as he snuggled under the blanket. His fingers were buried in the soft fur of Pukki and Ohno watched him fall to sleep slowly. Ohno sighed as he sat down beside him on the bed, caressing his temple as he closed his eyes. He pressed his lips against his signet ring, holding the key tightly in his fist. He felt tired, he felt sad and overwhelmed, and nothing more than holding Nino in his arms would make him happier right now. He missed the little human and the way the other made him feel. But he couldn’t go tonight, and he knew that. Masaki needed him. He needed to make sure he was okay, just like the days before. Just a little bit longer, he thought.His eyes flew open when he could hear a small cry and a thumb. Pukki was awake right away, growling away as Ohno stared wide-eyed at the figure in front of him on the other side of the bed.
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“Nino!” Ohno cried out moving forwards as to hold back Pukki. “Where am I? What happened? And what is that thing?” he cried out as he moved until the footrest of the bed, almost falling over as he tried to get away from the… What was that even? It looked like a dog, a very big dog almost like a wolf but the fur was very fluffy looking and a beautiful mix of white and greyish silver. His eyes, one blue-grey the other golden-brown. He would look beautiful if he was not growling at him. “Down Pukki,” Satoshi said sternly. “He’s a friend.”“That’s Pukki?” Nino choked, feeling panic rising in himself as things fell to place slowly. He had imagined a smaller cute little dog. At least he sounded somehow like that when Ohno told him how Aiba played with him. His eyes founding the small boy that was still sleeping even with all this chaos around him but he almost was sure that it had to do with Ohno. He was so sure that Ohno had put him to sleep more than once already when he had been overly exhausted after work. He pressed himself against the wooden rest, his legs pressed against his chest as he embraced them. He shivered slightly as he still stared at the dog. He was confused and scared and he really wanted to go home right now. This was not right. Especially since it seemed as if he was going to be a meal for that beast since Ohno didn’t manage to keep it down. “No!” he and Ohno yelled at unison when Ohno’s hold slipped on Pukki and the beast jumped onto Nino throwing him over the end. Nino groaned painfully as his head hit the floor with a painful thud, followed by his body and then Pukki landed on top of him. Nino closed his eyes tightly, trying to prepare for the pain, that didn’t come. Instead, a very wet, very rough tongue licked his face, making him gasp and giggle as he wriggled under the dog. “That tickles. Off boy, Pukki, down!” he said as he shoved the dog away. To his utter amazement, the dog planted himself down beside him wagging his tail. Nino sat up rubbing the back of his head with a small groan as he looked up and saw Ohno stare in amazement at him and then at Pukki. “Are you okay?” he asked Nino as he jumped out of the bed to get behind him and check for any injuries.“A nasty bump on the back of my head,” Nino groaned. Ohno clicked his tongue, shooting a glare at the dog, who whined lowly. “Go back to your master, you beast,” he ordered, sighing in relief when Pukki did just that. His fingers wandered through Nino’s hair to check out the injury and whispered a healing spell so that it would go away. “Better now?”“Much thank you.”Ohno helped him up to his feet and led him to the chairs in the room. Nino sat down in one of them and drew his legs back up, blinking rapidly as Ohno rang a bell and went to the door to ask for herbal water and something to eat. Nino was thankful for that as he used that time to sort out his thoughts. He didn’t understand what was going on, but he apparently somehow ended up in Ohno’s land. He stared at the ring in wonder for a moment, rubbing it slightly with his fingertips as it glowed weakly. “Here, you are cold.”“The surprise and shock,” Nino mumbled but took the warm beverage, smelling it for a moment and deciding that Ohno’s so-called herbal water was just like the tea he was used to. He smiled when Ohno put a thick blanket around his shoulders and took a small sip. “Where am I?”“At my home. I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened. I was thinking of you and then somehow you just appeared here,” he said with a frown. “I felt like someone is calling me,” Nino agreed. Then the ring got warmed and I appeared on your bed,” he rubbed his forehead with a small groan. “I’m sorry. It shouldn’t be possible, or so I thought. But nobody really taught me how to use the key properly. Father had never been able to use it.”“Had never been? As in past?”There was a sad shadow on his face before the confusion settled over it again. “He died a week ago” Ohno still answered at the look Nino threw him. Nino scrunched up his nose before he eased his posture and stood. He went over to him, the blanket tightly around his back as he sat down on his lap and made sure that the blanket was covering them both.“I’m sorry for your loss,” he whispered as he put his head on his shoulder. “You are surprisingly calm, now that you don’t fear to be eaten by Pukki.”“Well… I have gotten used to strange happening since I have gotten to know you and I was only around ten. So I had a lot of time to get properly used to this all.”“Okay,” Ohno mumbled as he hugged him around the waist. He closed his eyes as he finally felt himself relax. The tight ball that had been in his stomach loosening up a little bit. “You’re lucky, I wasn’t working, you know?”“I know. I’m sorry. I will figure out what to do about it and how to send you back,” Ohno mumbled almost already up to his feet when Nino shook his head and cupped his cheek with his hand. “No. It’s fine. It’s my holidays. I was supposed to enjoy that new game that just came out,” he grumbled playfully. “But now I’m here and you need rest,” he said as he moved forward to plant a kiss on his cheek. “And I really really have missed you very much these last few days. So you are not getting rid of me so easily. And imagine your poor little brother if he finds out I was here and he didn’t get to meet me.”“I can’t promise you that I can show you around,” Ohno said. “The others fear strangers. And you are not allowed to be here exactly.”“That’s fine with me, I got you, right?”“Right,” Ohno whispered as he burrowed his face into Nino’s hair. He sighed deeply. “I missed you as well.”“I know. I’m very special, right?” Nino said with a teasing smile on his face, his fingers gently caressing his soft skin, his thumb running over his lips. Ohno blushed slightly but he nodded. “Yes,” he allowed softly as he hugged him tighter. “Sleep now. We’ll figure it out all later. What is with Masaki?”“Put a circle around him that shuts off the noose. He hasn’t slept for a week almost.”“I see. Shall I check up on him?”“If you would?” Ohno nodded as he hugged him tighter. He didn’t want to let him go. Nino looked at him but then decided that Masaki was probably very well taken care off from his brother and Ohno needed him more right now. “Sleep. I won’t leave. You want to go to bed?”“No, I just want to hold you, if that’s okay?”“Of course. Good-night, my not-so-poor-anymore king.”Ohno chuckled as he got more comfortable on the chair with Nino on top of him. “Good night, little lost mouse.” Nino smiled softly as he watched as Nino very closely fell to sleep. He put his head on his chest, listening to the calm heartbeat and the peaceful breaths that hit his hair now and then. “I really might be low-key in love with you,” he whispered. “And I’m a really big idiot for feeling like that.” He sighed as he got settled more comfortable on top of Ohno, looking up to meet Pukki’s eyes, who was guarding Masaki and now taking up almost all of the bed as he watched them. He smiled wryly. “You wake me if something is amiss,” he ordered, feeling only slightly silly to talk to a dog when the beast huffed out a breath in agreement as he rested his head on top of his paws and Nino closed his eyes and fell to sleep very soon after.
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Nino woke up to a cold snout pushing at his hand. He groaned as he rubbed his eyes and carefully unfurled from where he had fallen asleep around Ohno. “Pukki?” he asked, his voice still full of sleep and the dog yapped slightly at his fingers as they wriggled before a low whine tore from his throat and he pushed him again. “I’m up, I’m up,” Nino mumbled. He caressed Ohno’s cheek with just his fingertips. Then he got up to his feet. Nino pulled a blanket over his body so that he wouldn’t get told. He watched Pukki walking over to Masaki and looking at him. Nino groaned as he massaged his lower back. The sleeping position had not been the best for him but it had relaxed Ohno and that was what had been important for him. He didn’t know what had happened inside of Ohno, which emotions had been there that made him appear here but he would find out for sure and make sure that it was all better again.But for now, it was Masaki that he needed to take care off, it seemed. At least if Pukki now pushing his back had to say anything. He knelt in front of the bed where the boy was still sleeping in and looked at Pukki. “I have no idea if his body works like a normal human body,” he says to the dog and shoved him away. “And you need to stay put.”The dog whined lowly and Nino rolled his eyes. He was very surprised that Ohno was still asleep. “How many nights has he been awake?” he asked the dog a bit ironically. Stupid people all around, he decided. For Masaki, he could at least make allowances. He was just a child who has lost his father recently.Nino pulled down the blanket a little bit as he saw how heavily the boy was breathing. He sat up straight and started to check up on the boy. Masaki was sweaty and hot and Nino grumbled as he was sure that he had gotten a fever. If the shortness of breath was telling anything it was also affecting his lungs. He swore softly under his breath and got to his feet.“You stay guard,” he ordered Pukki. “And don’t lie on him. He needs the space to be able to breathe.”He was happy when Pukki just lied down beside Masaki on the bed and he went over to Ohno. “I really don’t want to do this,” he mumbled to himself. Nino wanted to let Ohno sleep for as long as he could but he had no idea how to get around in this place, neither if it was even safe for him to be outside all alone.“Oh-chan,” he said as he shook his shoulders. Ohno groaned softly, murmuring something silly and Nino had to smile fondly. He was so cute right now. “You have to get up and get me some things, Oh-chan. I’m sorry. We can nap later,” he promised, giggling when Ohno at least opened his eyes slightly.“It’s still dark. So it’s still night,” he grumbled, still sleep-driven. “Come back.” Ohno tried to grab him but he stepped out of the way. He frowned, getting just slightly annoyed as he listened to the wheezy breaths of the boy.“Oh-chan, Masaki is not feeling well. I really need your help right now,” he said seriously. That at least managed to get Ohno’s attention. His eyes flew open and Nino held out his hands before he could fall flat on his nose. “Calm down.”“I will get a healer. What is wrong with him?”“He runs a fever and there is something wrong with his lungs.”“Again? I will call the healers, maybe…” Ohno looked at his brother fearfully. The illness in his lungs came up and went from time to time and nobody really knew what was wrong with it. But the healers usually made him feel better. Nino looked up at him, not liking the worry in his eyes. “I can try and have a look?” he offered then. “I mean… I don’t know in which ways our bodies are different but…”“They shouldn’t be too different,” Ohno mumbled. “The magic in our bodies just help our bodies along where you don’t.”“Then shall I? I wouldn’t do anything you wouldn’t like,” Nino says nervously.“Would you? I really want him to feel good, though.”“Of course,” Nino said with a smile, moving forwards to cup his cheek. “And as long as I’m here you will take care of yourself as well. You look horrendous and if this goes on you are also going to be ill my not-so-poor king,” he said with a cheeky smile.“Oh, do you want to be my personal healer now?”Nino giggled as he shook his head. “Nah, I wouldn’t dare.” He winced when Masaki took a wheezy breath and his eyes got serious once more. “I need a few things. And as I don’t know my way around here, I will need you to get them to me. It would also be perfect if you could hop to my apartment? I have some stuff there?”“I can try,” Ohno agreed and then listened to the things he needed to get. He went out to ask the maids for it as well as some breakfast for them. Nino sat at the bed, carefully threading his fingers through Masaki’s soft hair as he watched him. He put a wet cloth on his forehead when they got it and checked his pulse as Ohno left him for the moment to go to his flat. “You are worrying your brother a lot,” he whispered to the boy. “And Pukki,” he added when the dog whined sadly. He would make Ohno take him out for a walk later so that he could make sure Masaki was okay without a hovering dog and brother. “So you have to make it through.”“Uhn,” Masaki whined in his sleep and he smiled. “That is fully right,” he said with a chuckle in his voice. “We are both going to be very stubborn people.”He leant back as his fingers wandered over the warm face, content that the temperature seemed to have gotten lower than when he had been woken up.He blinked when Ohno came back and stood as he took over his small case with his stuff. “Thanks. Now I need you and Pukki to leave us alone. I can’t concentrate with you hovering over me.”Ohno frowned, clearly not happy with the words and Nino understood. He really did but there was a reason he was not cut for being a children’s paediatrician. Hovering parents were the worst.“I trust you,” Ohno decided in the end. He took Nino’s hands and squeezed them softly.Nino bit his lips at his words. They meant a lot to him and he would not let him down. “He will be alright,” he promised and had to hold back from kissing him right now. "If you say so. I believe you, my little lost mouse," Ohno murmured and kissed his cheek. His lips warm and soft, and they left him speechless as well as breathless for a moment.Ohno wandered over to his brother, caressing his cheek softly, before clicking his tongue and calling Pukki over who licked Masaki’s hand once before leaving as well. —“Who are you?”Nino looked up when he heard the boy’s voice from where he was listening to his chest. “Hello. I’m Ninomiya Kazunari. But you can call me Nino, alright?”“You are Nii-chan’s friend,” Masaki said as he coughed softly. “Yes, that’s right.”“Satoshi’s energy is swirling all around you and something else. All blues and yellows,” he whispered his breath still laboured.“No wonder, as to how often he loads up the ring he gave me and considering I’m not from here. Can you sit up for me, Masaki?”Masaki blinked but did as he was told. Nino helped him with his hands to his back and put him against the headrest so that he was stable. “Your hands are warm.”“That’s good, then you are not getting a shock now,” He said as he carefully slipped off his top. “I need you to breath in deeply,” he murmured as he warmed his stethoscope and listened with a frown as Masaki did as he was told.“Very good. You are doing great, Masaki. Does your chest hurts sometimes?”Masaki nodded as he watched him with curious eyes. “The healers say I need to build up my lungs.”“I see. Okay, are you tired?”Masaki shook his head and shuddered slightly. “Cold?”“Yes,” he murmured. “I’m sorry for taking off your shirt. Do you have another one here? Or where does Oh-chan keep his?”“In that,” Masaki said and pointed at a chest. Nino nodded and got up to get another one of the shirts and helped Masaki putting it on. He smoothed down his hair. “Let me check your temperature.”“Okay,” Masaki said a bit more chipper now, making Nino smile. Ohno’s brother was a cutie, he thought as helped him lie down and checked the temperature again. “At least the nasty fever is almost gone,” Nino said with relief as he helped him to drink something and watched him as the eyes fell close again. “Will you stay here?”“Would you like that Masaki?”“Uhn you make my brother happy. He was sad these last few days.”“He was worried about you,” Nino said as he stroke his cheek again. “You got depressed because your father died. He told me you were not yourself.”Masaki frowned at his words but then nodded. “It was scary,” he said. There was a sad frown on his face. Nino hummed softly at his words. “I can imagine that. But you are here now and everything will be alright.”“Because you are here now,” Masaki said with a giggle. “I’m no wondrous healer,” Nino said as he bopped his nose. “But I will do my best so that your big brother can stop worrying, alright?”“Promise?”“Yes,” Nino said, unable to lie to this child.“You like Nii-chan right?”“Very much. But that needs to stay a secret between us for a bit longer.”Masaki pouted but in the end, he nodded. “I’m sleepy.”“Then you go back to sleep, Masaki.”Masaki nodded and Nino smiled as he draped the covers back over his body. He played with his hair until he fell to sleep and then stood with a groan, as his knees clicked. He fell to the comfy chair Ohno had slept in and moved his shoulders with a frown on his face.
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Ohno came back to his room later than he would’ve liked. He was called as soon as he wandered back to the castle and it was hard for him to come up with an excuse why he needed to go back to his room. Everybody knew that Pukki was an excellent protector for his brother. So he sighed as he patted the head of the beast and told him sternly to look after the other two back in his room. Pukki seemed to like Nino so he was sure that Nino would be also safe with him around. And nobody would enter the room with Pukki there. As he entered the room he was as silent as he could be, so that he wouldn’t wake his little brother. A smile crept on his face as he realised that Nino was curled up on his favourite chair, his brows were furrowed as a small frown was on his otherwise slack face. Soft breathes left his lips as he was fast asleep there. Ohno carefully stepped closer and put a light blanket over the slim body as he was sure that Nino would need the sleep. The magic that brought him here would have put stress on his body. Then it had been late in the night and they’ve stayed up even longer with Nino being up early awoken by Pukki. So Ohno was sure that the other man needed as much sleep as he could get. Ohno also wasn’t sure if being here would put a strain on his body and he just wanted to make sure that Nino was fine. Ohno stepped closer to his brother, observing him as he laid in the bed. The blanket was safely around him and there didn’t seem to be much of a strain on his breathing as he laid there. His fingers ran over his face, sighing softly when he realised that the fever was almost completely gone and he changed the wet cloth on his forehead that Nino had placed there earlier.He looked from one to the other, before looking out of the window, thinking about what to do now. When Nino was up he hoped that the other man would explain to him what was wrong with Masaki and hopefully even how to help him. Nino had been very confident at least. He rubbed his stomach when he realised they hadn’t had breakfast yet and he rubbed his eyes. It was almost midday now and that meant that they all would need food and drinks. He stepped out of his rooms, with another look to make sure that everything was alright, before wandering down to the kitchen and ask for them to bring a few dishes upstairs into his room, telling them that he would eat there with his brother. He bit his lips, trying to decide if he should mention his guest but then decided to talk about this with Nino later on. He wasn’t sure if Nino wanted to be seen or recognised by other people just like that. It would be a complicated thing to explain at least. Nobody even knew that he visited Nino’s world in the first place. —Nino woke to the sound of low voices and he tried to suppress a groan as he moved slowly on the chair. He didn’t want to alert anybody that there was a stranger in Ohno’s private chambers. He had no idea how rumours worked here but he didn’t want to be the reason that people talked back about Ohno. He rubbed his eyes when the door closed after Ohno had said his thanks and sat up fully. He peered over the back of the chair, blushing when he saw the fond look on Ohno’s face as their eyes met. “Hey,” Ohno greeted and he nodded. “Hi, sorry I fell asleep.”“You looked like you needed it,” he said with a smile as he stepped closer pushing a cart with different plates on top. He felt his stomach gurgle hungrily at the sight and moaned softly as the scent of delicious food drifted closer. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt that hungry. “Hungry?” Ohno asked with a chuckle, grinning brightly when Nino stuck out his tongue. “A bit,” he agreed then. “The night has been long.”Ohno looked at him with worry clear in his eye and he smiled with a slight shrug. “I’m okay. I’ve functioned on less sleep.”“I want you to be healthy.”“I am. Don’t worry about me, let’s eat. Or better show me where I can clean myself up and then we eat. I feel slightly disgusting. A change of clothes would be nice.”“I didn’t check your wardrobe,” Ohno said with a blush. He had only focused on the parts that Nino had told him where his bag was and had taken that. He didn’t even know exactly what was inside. He didn’t think there were much, though, it had been very light.“I only have an extra sweatshirt in the bag as I get cold easily. Do you have something I would be able to wear?” Still, he grabbed his bag since it was his overnight bag for the hospital and it had a toothbrush and brush inside. Ohno was very clean but his world seemed to be somehow medieval to him and there were some things he enjoyed from his more modern times.Ohno nodded as he put the cart beside the table, moving his hand on top of the dishes and Nino saw his ring burn brightly. “Warming spell,” Ohno shrugged. “It’s always nicer to eat warm food than cold.”“That’s handy,” Nino agreed with a genuine smile. Ohno grinned happily at that praise and then turned Nino around on the shoulder to lead him into the small room beside his bedroom where Nino could wash. He left him alone to pull out some clothes staring at the curtain hiding Nino from view and then blushing as he closed his eyes and envisioned the chair in the room. He let the clothes appear there and thought that this was probably better for his dignity and Nino’s privacy than bringing them inside himself. Ohno looked up when Nino stepped inside as well and a fond smile appeared on his face. The tunic he had given him fit him perfectly.The tunic was a mustard yellow and the accompanying trousers were brown. The earthen colours fit him very well, Ohno thought. “What?” Nino asked when he realised that Ohno was staring at him mutely.“You look good in this outfit,” Ohno said as he blinked. “Sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”“No, I thought I wore it wrongly,” he said with a sigh. “I wouldn’t want to offend you.”“You would never,” Ohno said with a grin. Nino giggled as he finally came over and sat down in Ohno’s favourite chair again. Ohno bit his lips to be not the person to tell him that this was his chair. Also, he was happy if Nino liked that one. “Food?” Nino asked, looking up with big hopeful eyes. Ohno chuckled but nodded as he stood and served the prepared food - which meant he mostly pulled off the lids of the plates and pushed the cart more closely to them. He handed Nino a plate with a smile. “Just take whatever you want.”“Is it all save?”Ohno grinned brightly as he nodded. “Yes, of course. I can eat your food without problems so this should be fine as well.”“I can’t eat raw seafood.”“That’s fine. It’s all cooked.”Nino grinned happily as he started to choose something while Ohno served them herbal water and sat down beside him to eat as well. — Ohno looked at Nino while the younger man ate his food with small sounds of appreciation. But in general, they both were silently enjoying their meal. Afterwards, Ohno took of the herbal water and the porridge he had ordered for Masaki before pushing the cart outside again, where it would be taken back to the kitchen. “Very practical. Do you ever do things around here?” Ohno shrugged as he came back and frowned. “Whatever I’m allowed. But normally I have work to do, you know?”“Not now?”“No we are still in the mourning period and there is Masaki… Which… How is he?”Nino sighed softly as he moved on the chair, pulling his legs close. “The fever is almost gone so I think that whatever brought it up is gone from his body. I think that was mostly down to the emotional stress he had put his body through. But his lungs…”“Will he die?” Ohno asked, feeling scared and choked up at the thought that his little baby brother the sunshine in his home would be gone.Nino smiled softly and reached out to squeeze his fingers. “No, he is a little fighter, just like you.”“But you know what it is?”“Yes, at least I am pretty sure. Normally I would do other kinds of examinations as well to be completely sure but the sounds are there.”Ohno bit his lips and Nino squeezed his fingers again as he tried to come up with an explanation. “There is air in between his lungs, so t say. Because of them, his lungs can’t properly widen, so it’s hard for Masaki to breath and to get the much-needed oxygen his blood circulation needs. He is a bit young if I’m honest since it normally doesn’t happen to children that young. Then again nothing is impossible. Especially if you say he has problems with his lungs sometimes.”“And can you heal him?”“It often goes away on its own, honestly. I want to keep an eye on him, he can breathe, it doesn’t look like he has any problems yet. But if it gets worse I can also help him, I promise. You probably won’t like it then, though.”“Why?”“Because if it gets worse and I need to intervene, I mean really intervene I might have to do a cut and put something in there to let the air out manually. But it’s not bad. So don’t fear, okay? I would just prefer you not to hate me if I need to do it.”“I won’t,” Ohno said, looking slightly stricken nonetheless. “I know you told me yesterday you were free. But can you stay? For a bit?”Nino hummed as he nodded. “Yes, like I said I’m on holiday. It would be nice to see some of your home if I’m allowed.”Ohno smiled as he nodded. He would never lock up the other man. “Of course.”“Good then. Let me check on Masaki. He should eat.”Ohno nodded, biting his lips as Nino got up to wake his little brother. He felt slightly bad that he forced Nino to work if he had a holiday but he couldn’t hide how thankful he was for this small wondrous man to appear out of nowhere when he needed him so much.Ohno sighed, making Nino stop at what he was doing as he tilted his head. “Everything okay?”“Yes, I just thought how much I like you,” Ohno confessed.
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Nino’s mouth fell open at the sudden confession and he cleared his throat as he coughed slightly. “What?”“I like you. The last days, whenever I was down I just needed to think of me and it made me smile and able to continue with my day.”Nino smiled a bit embarrassed at the words and stared to the floor. “Me?”“Yes you,” Ohno said with a small frown. “Is it so hard to believe?”He looked at him in confusion and then stepped closer. His fingers under his chin to lift it and look into his eyes. He caressed his smooth cheek, before shaking his head. “You really can’t believe it,” he said baffled.“Of course not. Look at me. I’m just an intern in a hospital. Nothing exciting about me. Just a normal person, even less, if you ask me. And then there is you,” Nino stopped speaking, trying to ignore Ohno’s half-bemused, half-shocked look. “Me?”“You are so much more. You are kind, talented, magical and I don’t know just so much more. And…” He cleared his throat but Ohno was still staring at him waiting for him to continue. “And you are really beautiful, and if that wasn’t enough a king with a whole kingdom from another world.”“But?” Ohno said poking him softly. “Does that mean you don’t like me?”“That means I shouldn’t,” Nino said with a pout on his face.“But?” Ohno said again, making Nino groan. “Don’t make me say it.”“But I want to hear it,” Ohno whispered and Nino could tell that his face was red with how hot they felt.“I like you very much as well. I felt so for weeks but I would have never told you,” Nino confessed.Ohno chuckled as he stroke his cheek and moved closer again. “That’s because you are so precious.”Nino stopped breathing as Ohno’s lips touched his way too suddenly. It wasn’t that it was surprising him much but then again, he didn’t have the time to steel himself for that (then again there would have been never enough time for that).When Ohno moved back again, Nino blinked a few times, still not believing what had happened to him. He licked his lips, trying to find words when he could hear a sniffle from the bed.“Masaki!” he choked, clearing his throat as he dashed towards the young prince on the bed. Masaki moved on the bed, the sleep leaving him and Nino put his head to his chest to listen to the sounds as Masaki coughed and took deep breaths that resounded just wrong in the room. He bit his lips as he rubbed his chest and helped him sit up. “What is wrong with him?” Ohno asked but Nino was ignoring him instead he talked calmly to the boy until he had calmed down again and his breathing was even. He ruffled his hair with a smile. “Good boy. You should drink something,” he mumbled motioning for Ohno to bring some tea. “And then try to eat something. Are you in pain?”“A bit,” Masaki nodded with a pinched face. Nino frowned as he sat down beside him and helped rubbed his arm.“It will be better soon, I promise,” he said then with a smile. “You are doing so great.”Aiba smiled shyly at the praise as he didn’t feel like he was doing anything but if Nino said so he was sure that it was true. Nino helped him to drink the warm tea and then let him rest against the cushions.“Are you up to eating?”Aiba scrunched up his nose and shook his head. Nino tutted softly as he took the emptied mug away. “No, can’t do. Sorry, Masaki, but you need food in your stomach to fight this illness in your body. I mostly asked you to see if you have anything that you would want to eat.”Masaki pouted and Nino giggled softly. “Your brother told me he asked your chefs to make something especially for you.”Masaki peaked up at the words and looked at his brother. Somehow he hadn’t realised that Ohno was even there. Ohno looked fondly down at the two of them, amused how easily Nino interacted with his little brother. God, how could he even feel more for him than he already did? But seeing him with his baby brother was something else. Especially since Masaki was giggling now that Nino tickled his growling stomach and looked much more like his happy brother he was used to.“I got a rice soup with chicken, eggs and your favourite vegetables,” Ohno explained as he came over with a ceramic bowl in his hands. Nino could see the heat steaming from the soup and he had to say that it smelled delicious.Ohno put up a small table so that Masaki could eat in bed and Nino made sure that he was able to sit up straight to eat. “That looks delicious,” Nino cooed ruffling Masaki’s hair who still looked a bit queasy at the food. “The chef must really like you if they made something so delicious for you. So you should honour their efforts and eat as much as you can.”“Uhn!” Masaki said finally and put the first spoonful into his mouth. It took a few spoonfuls until his hunger chased the slightly nauseous feeling away and he finished the dish with more vigour. “Good boy,” Nino praised him again and then grinned at Ohno. “You can bring those away while I tend to your brother.”Ohno pouted but then he agreed as he took the empty dish to carry it down himself. He had already realised that Nino felt more comfortable without him while examining Masaki. —“How are you feeling?”“Better,” Masaki mumbled. “Pain is almost gone.” He giggled slightly when Nino rubbed his back and shoulders before massaging his neck softly. “Nino’s hands are warm, and make everything better. Better than the healers could,” Masaki whispered.Nino chuckled as he started a proper (or as much as he could) examination with the boy. “I think you are imagining things, Masaki. But I’m glad if you think so.” He sighed as he realised that there probably was no way around to at least puncture Masaki to let the extra air out and make him feel better. But he wanted to wait at least this night to make sure it didn’t go away itself like it had to be the times before. “I will ask your brother later if he has something to take your pain away, okay?”“Okay. Will you read for me?”“I don’t have a book,” Nino said with a sigh. Masaki furrowed his brows as he made a circular motion with his hand. He could see his ring shine in green as a book appeared in his hands. He was breathing a bit harder after that and Nino clicked his tongue. “Don’t use your magic for a while, okay? You will need it all to heal your lungs.”Masaki sighed as he closed his eyes, when he opened them again he looked suddenly much older and Nino was reminded that the boy had lost both of his parents now and had to fight with this illness for a while already. “They all say that. Then I get better for a while, get told to practise a lot and then it gets worse again.” Masaki got quieter and stared at his signet ring. “Do you think…”“Do I think what Masaki?” Nino asked. Masaki curled up beside him and Nino wondered how much the boy seemed to trust him. He supposed it was because he trusted his brother so much and because Ohno loved and trusted him. “Do you think I’m not fit to use my magic? Do you think something is wrong with me? I don’t want to lose it.”Nino sighed as he petted his hair and looked down at him. “I don’t know much about your magic. But I don’t think that you will lose it or that something is wrong with you. But I think that your body might need it to keep you healthy, and if you use it for other things your body gets worse.”Masaki’s face scrunched up unhappily at his words. “But I promise that I and Satoshi will think of something to make you feel better.”“Promise?”“Promise. But you need to be brave for a bit longer. Can you do that?”Masaki looked at him with big trusting eyes as he nodded and Nino felt a strange kind of weight settling on his shoulders at that. He never wanted to disappoint this boy at his side. “But more of that at a later time. Your body needs rest and not to be filled with so much worry. Let me read you this story and then you go back to sleep and let us adults worry about your health. Can you do that?”“Yes!” Masaki said with a small giggle as he settled more comfortable against Nino as the other read him one of his favourite stories. He didn’t realise that his brother came back, but Nino did as he looked up for a second before he concentrated back to the story until Masaki finally fell asleep. “You two are cute together,” Ohno said with a smile, which got wider when Nino blushed.
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“Little mouse,” Ohno called and caressed his hair. Nino blinked as he looked up with a frown. “Mouse?”“Yup, my little lost mouse,” Ohno said with a grin. He sighed as he dropped a kiss to his nose. “Why do I think you are going to say something that I won’t like?” “Because that might happen,” Ohno sighed with a frown. Nino nodded in understanding and turned around to meet Ohno’s worried gaze. He smiled since he just couldn’t help it and reached out to cup his cheek. “Try me then.”“I need to attend to some matters and I want you to ask to stay here and not to be seen.”Nino pursed his lips as he slowly nodded. “Why?”“Because they won’t trust you. They wouldn’t argue with my decisions not outrightly so, but they would try to talk me out of trusting you. They don’t know you and would see you as a danger. If they knew I let you take care of Masaki and not call on any of the usual healers. If anything was to happen to me, Masaki would be second to the throne.”Nino hummed in understanding and sighed. “A king with a secret lover?”Ohno’s lips twitched as he moved closer to kiss Nino. “Exactly.”“I will stay here. Won’t any servants come in though?”Ohno shrugged but then he nodded. “Probably. But Pukki is a good guard dog. He will tell you if anybody is coming close, right Pukki?” he asked the dog, who barked lowly. “Okay then. Go do whatever is needed, but I still want to see something from your world.”“Tonight,” Ohno promised with an honest smile on his face and Nino nodded in agreement. That sounded like a nice plan. —Nino stood up and rubbed his lips after Ohno left with another kiss to them and sighed happily before he got up. He chuckled when he saw Masaki feigning sleep and sat down beside him on the bed. He poked his cheek softly. “Cheeky,” he teased him when Masaki opened his eyes with a giggle. He was glad that Masaki could still laugh and joke around. That meant that his body hadn’t shut down just yet. Nino was sure a lot of it had to do with the magical power residing in the bodies of the inhabitants in this world. “You and my brother talked, right?”“Yes,” Nino agreed. “And we came to the agreement to try being together.” He stroked his cheek with a smile. “So you have to get used to me being here.”Masaki nodded with bright happy eyes. “You make him happy,” he repeated and Nino smiled as he bopped his nose. “I hope so at least. But your illness is still lingering on his mind very heavily.”“Nii-chan is worrying too much,” Masaki said with a small pout and Nino nodded slightly. He didn’t think that Satoshi worried needlessly if he was honest, but he didn’t want to scare Masaki. If he thought that it was nothing dangerous he wouldn’t panic and it would be probably easier to work with him. “You will heal me, because you are good, ne?”Nino chuckled as he nodded slightly. “At least I will try my very best.”“That’s good then,” Masaki decided and petted Pukki’s thick fur with his fingers. He sighed as he stared out of the window. “Are you bored Masaki?”Masaki blushed but nodded a bit. “Yes, but I know that I shouldn’t tire myself.”“True, but that doesn’t mean that you have to sleep all day or aren’t allowed to be bored. What do you want to do?”“Be outside,” Masaki said shyly. He was almost the whole day outside if he was not studying. “And reading the books of sensei. Because otherwise, I will forget everything.”Nino chuckled slightly. “Studying? Of course, you can study if you want. I will tell Satoshi when he is back, okay? I’m not allowed outside for the moment.”Masaki’s brows drew together unhappily at those words. “Why?” he cried out loud. “You are not a prisoner, are you?”Nino chuckled as he smoothed down his forehead. “No, of course not. But this is safer for now. I’m sure your brother wants to be sure to be close to me if he announces where I come from. And he has work to do for now. And his mind is full of worry about you, as it should be. We don’t want to put even more on him, right?”“Right,” Masaki said slowly. “Therefore I can’t bring you out. But how about we go over to the big window? I’m sure I can work out how to open it?”“Would you be allowed on the veranda?” Masaki asked slowly. “Nii-chan’s room is high up. There is nobody else living in the quarters close other than me. And you can’t easily look inside.”Nino looked at the hopeful look and then sighed before he nodded. “Of course. Let me check your fever first,” he decided. Masaki sat up straighter at that and then opened his mouth as Nino put a strange stick inside. Nino looked at the temperature meter. He smiled as he saw that it was gone and then helped Masaki up. Pukki was trailing beside Masaki to keep him up as well as Nino made sure that the chair outside was comfortable for the boy and put a thick blanket over him to be on the safe side. Masaki relaxed the moment the warm sun hit his face directly and the breeze ran around them. “That’s nice,” the boy decided.“It is,” Nino agreed as he sat beside him on another chair that didn’t look as comfy as the one Masaki was lying in. He sighed as he curled up on the chair and stared out into the horizon. It looked peaceful here. Very much like his world, just greener and somehow like he always imagined a fairytale land would look like. “Nino?”“Yes, what’s wrong Masaki?”“Are you sad that you are here? Or scared?”“No,” Nino said as he shook his head and looked over at Masaki. “It’s nice being here with you and your brother. I’m a bit confused as to being here, but I learnt long ago that it’s better not to question things. So I try not to do so.”“Huh? I don’t understand.”“I suppose you don’t have to,” Nino said with a chuckle. “Better if you don’t, if I’m honest with you. I just know that your brother would not let me get hurt. At least as long as I am no danger for any of you and I would understand then.”“You would never,” Masaki said with big eyes. “And if so something bad has come over you. Then it wouldn’t be good to hurt you.”“Thank you for your confidence,” Nino said with a chuckle. “Will you stay here?”“For a while, yes.”“Not forever?”Nino sighed as he shook his head before he shrugged. He honestly couldn’t say. He didn’t belong here. He would be missed at the hospital if he just never came back, and he had things at home that he would miss very much.“Not at this time,” he said then and stood to get them something to drink. Masaki pouted as he came back, but he didn’t say anything and for that Nino was very glad.
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Ohno felt slight panic running over his body as he entered his rooms and found neither Nino nor Masaki inside. He scanned the room, trying to stay calm and not run out and yell that there had been an abduction. Ohno breathed profoundly and then flinched when he heard laughter coming from his balcony. His feet carried him there as fast as it was possible for him, and soon he was face to face with a surprised Nino and a giggling Masaki who was staring at the clouds. “Nino, that one looks like Pukki, ne?” he said as he pointed at something in the sky. Nino’s eyes fell on him before looking at the sky with a hum and small chuckle. “Yes, very true,” he said, before looking at Ohno again. “Welcome back, Satoshi. Is everything alright? You are a bit pale,” he said, worry colouring his tone. Ohno cleared his throat, but then he nodded. “Yes, sorry,” he said as he ran his fingers through his hair. “I was just surprised that you were not in my rooms,” he added sheepishly. Nino’s face clouded over for a second, worrying his lips between his teeth. “No, not because you are not allowed to. But because I was worried that something bad had happened,” he added. “I wanted to go out,” Masaki said with a giggle. “Nino made sure I was comfortable and warm.”“That’s very good,” Ohno said as he ruffled his hair. “I’m not mad. So stop worrying.”Masaki nodded as he looked back into the sky, snuggling up in the chair, feeling more comfortable this way. “Sorry for worrying you,” Nino whispered as he stepped closer. Ohno shook his head and cupped his cheek to close his lips over Nino’s for a chaste kiss. “No, I overreacted. Like where would you have been gone without me knowing? If someone found you, they would have sounded an alarm if they thought you an intruder,” he said with a sigh, putting his forehead against Nino’s shoulder, who hugged him and massaged his neck. Masaki made a strange noise, and Ohno chuckled as he could feel Nino turn around to look at his brother. “Brat,” Nino teased him and stuck out his tongue. “Sit,” he then ordered Ohno, who did as he was told and still closed his eyes as he leant back. Nino sat down beside him, after tutting around Masaki to make sure he was okay and Ohno took his hand. He smiled slightly as he felt a calmness wash over him, and his nerves finally calm down. “What was the game you were playing?”“Nino told me there are figures in the clouds; we tried to find as many as possible. It was fun,” he giggled. Ohno looked at Nino with an amused smile which deepened when Nino blushed slightly. “Masaki was getting bored, and I have no idea where you keep games,” he explained, before chuckling. “That reminds me. Masaki asked if it’s possible to get his school materials. He doesn’t want to become dumb.”“Is that okay?” Ohno asked worry in his voice again. “The healers always say that one body and mind must rest if one wants to heal.”Nino snorted as he shook his head. “That’s not true. I think he would win from that. If Masaki is bored and restless, it might make it worse instead,” he explained. “Small exercises like a walk or sitting here is also preferable.”Masaki’s eyes widened as he looked up sharply. “Oh, Nii-chan, can we do that? Pretty please? I want to go out for a walk!”Ohno looked a bit uneasy but nodded as Nino grinned.“If you eat all your greens without complaining,” he teased the boy who pouted just for a fraction before he nodded. Ohno chuckled as he leant back more comfortable. “You have to have magic hands, Nino. If he already feels that well again,” he said with relief. Nino shrugged at those words and then winked at Aiba who giggled softly. “I’m no magician,” he said with a small frown, though. “And I would prefer if you would stay calm, Masaki. Or I have to forbid the walk again if you get too excited.”“Yes,” Masaki said with a stern look in his eyes. “Good,” Nino breathed as he leant against Ohno, moving closer as he did so. “Do any of you have any preferences for dinner?” Ohno asked after a while, and Nino shook his head beside him. Masaki though perked up slightly and looked up from where he was playing with Pukki at his side. “Stir fry with chicken and vegetables and noodles?” he asked hopefully.Ohno nodded as he got up with a sigh. “I will ask for that then. They would want to know what they can prepare,” he mumbled. “Aren’t you supposed to eat all together?” Nino asked curiously. Mot ht things he knew about kings were from storybooks, and he had always thought they all would eat together. Ohno chuckled, but then he nodded. “Honestly yes, but since it’s still mourning time, they understand,” he said with a sigh. “Otherwise I would have to leave you alone here,” he said with a frown. “I wouldn’t like that.”“Me neither,” Nino agreed.“Why won’t you tell the others?” Masaki asked suddenly, and Ohno blinked, somehow having totally forgotten about his little brother. “Because it’s a bit hard to explain. Especially why I keep him in my chambers together with you, I want to make sure first that you are fine.”“And I don’t want to be scrutinised by people I don’t know anything about,” Nino said when it looked as if Aiba wanted to argue with his brother. “I know I’m not a prisoner, but I never felt comfortable about too many eyes on me.”“And you know that would happen, right?”Masai nodded softly. Still, there was a pout on his face. But the fairy folk was curious after all.Ohno grinned as he got up and tugged Nino behind himself. Nino stumbled a little, but he was laughing as he followed him inside. Ohno groaned and hugged him tightly as they were out of sight of his little brother. “Shy?” Nino asked as Ohno burrowed his face in his hair. “Not really, but it’s neither to be with you alone,” he explained. Nino smiled gently as he caressed his cheek. “You would prefer me to be your little secret a while longer, right, fairy king?”Ohno blushed slightly, but there was nothing to deny for him since it was true. He had loved the moments in Nino’s home just between the two of them, where he could forget about everything that he was supposed to do. But this was his life, and there was nothing he could do to change it. “I don’t mind to be your secret,” Nino whispered against his ear. “But for now you should ask about our food. Then we should have dinner, tire Masaki out with a walk and then we can spend some time tonight together?” he offered with a grin. He chuckled when Ohno blushed and then left without an answer. God, how cute could his little king be?
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Nino sat outside on the balcony listening to the sounds from the inside. Ohno had called for someone called Sho. Nino had gathered that it was the teacher of the boy and Sho had agreed to come as soon as it was possible for him. It was not what Ohno had expected, and Nino knew that the other had not been happy, but he hadn’t found any reason for Sho to stay away. So after dinner, Nino had gone out to the balcony to lie down in the low seat so that his head was not visible over the balustrade. He enjoyed the last ray of sunshine on his body and closed his eyes as his body slowly relaxed. It was so much more silent here, and he loved that fact. Nino had never thought about how loud his world was, and this somehow relaxed him more than regular holidays. The only things he missed were his favourite songs and his games. He would enjoy it more if he were able to play a handheld game, but his head focused on a completely different way now that those things were not available for him. If he was sincere, Nino had always been scared about too much free time in his life. His thoughts tended to wander then, and there were places he didn’t want to revisit. It was enough that he was forced to visit a supervision group regularly in his school to make sure that things happening in the hospital weren’t dragging his mind down. He never felt comfortable about opening up about his most private thoughts and was glad when he could say as little as possible. He was fine, mostly. He had worked through his past with the help of the people in the orphanage, he had ignored the bullies in school and worked hard in his job. Nino didn’t know how he would react if he came across abuse in his job life, but that was something he would find out if it ever came to that. He didn’t need to think about the what-ifs before they happened. That was something he had learnt long ago. Nino listened to the sounds coming from inside again, frowning as he decided that he still had time to enjoy the fresh air and last rays of the sun, as he opened his eyes back to stare at the sunset. It was beautiful, full of yellow, red, pink hues and the dark blue sky behind. He grinned when the door opened and put his head upwards to smile up at Satoshi, who was looking incredibly fond down to him. “Everything okay?”“Yeah, Sho has agreed that if it’s not too much for Masaki that he can try some light reading to not fall completely out of it. I promised him to check on Masaki that it won’t be too much.”“Me too. But normally our bodies are easily telling us when it’s too much, and children are still good at reading those signs. They haven’t learnt to fight them yet as we do.”“You do that?”“Too often. I work beyond exhaustion when exams roll by, and I know it’s not healthy, but coffee is good to keep my body awake.”Ohno grimaced as he remembered the awful taste, and Nino giggled at that cute face. “Nii-chan!” Masaki yelled, and Ohno’s eyes widened as he turned around as fast as he could, looking at his brother. Nino giggled as he got up since he could tell that the voice was just filled with excitement and no fear or pain. “Are you okay?”“Yup,” Masaki said, moving on the heels of his feet backwards and forwards while looking at them hopefully. Nino smiled at the confused face of Ohno and then moved forward to bop the boy on the nose. “We promised you a walk, huh?”“Yes, can we go? Please, big brother, pretty please. I promise to be good,” he asked, taking Ohno’s hands in his own and moving them up and down. “I’m not so sure if you are that excited already by the prospect,” Nino said with a serious face. He chuckled when Masaki’s face fell, and he felt a tiny bit bad. “But I guess a bit of fresh air would do you some good before you get bedsores. Pukki needs to stay by our side, though. No running and wear some warm cloak.”“Yes!” Masaki said, bopping his head up and down as he let go of his brother and rummaged through the chest at the end of the bed to pull out a cloak and wrap it around his body. Ohno smiled as he moved his hands over his sides until the cloak was the right size and looked at Nino. “Do you want anything?”“My sweatshirt should be enough,” he said with a smile as he pulled said jumper over the shirt he wore. It was not that cold here, after all. Winter would have been a difficult season to appear in an unknown world.—Masaki walked a few steps in front of them, talking to Pukki who was strolling beside his master and making sure that Masaki was not exhausting himself. Nino thought the pair of them was perfect together and he wondered how Masaki managed to tame a beast like that. At least the looks that others threw on Pukki told him that it was rather unusual for them to be that friendly around people. Ohno and Nino were walking close to each other, and Nino couldn’t help the small smiles on his face whenever their fingers brushed against each other.He glanced at Ohno who was blushing just slightly as their fingers brushed again and giggled softly as he wriggled his fingers against the pulse point on Ohno’s wrist in answer to show him that it was okay. They didn’t talk much. Ohno sometimes explained to him parts of his home, or if Nino asked him something about the trees and animals around he didn’t know, but it seemed to be perfect to be just calm and silent around each other if he was honest. There was nothing more that they needed. “Masaki are you tired yet?” Ohno asked after almost an hour and the boy shook his head stubbornly even if he was swaying just slightly on his feet and walking a bit more slowly. Nino rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue. “Are you stubborn?” he asked, and Masaki pouted as he turned around and looked at the older. “I don’t want to go back yet,” he argued, huffing when Pukki pushed his back. “I can’t allow you to go outside if you don’t tell the truth, Masaki,” Ohno said tiredly and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You know that. I worry about you, and I don’t want you to get worse.”Nino bit his lips softly at those words. He had checked Masaki over before they left and he knew already then that it needed nothing short of a miracle for him not to have to make a cut to relief his lungs of the pressure. He wanted to do it tonight or early in the morning. The walk was meant to tire the boy out enough that he would fall to sleep and not realise what was happening to him. “I’m sorry, Nii-chan,” Masaki said with a downtrodden look as he came over. Ohno smiled as he ruffled his hair. “It’s fine. I can understand that you want to be out more.” Masaki had always been a wild child even if the times he was allowed to be like that were limited because of different circumstances. “Let’s head back in for now and maybe, and if you are up to it we can do a short walk around that lake we came across earlier tomorrow,” Nino offered with a smile. Masaki’s eyes brightened again as he nodded and fell in step with his brother and Nino. He held Nino’s hand outright and pointed at all the things that caught his eyes to tell him about them and if he liked or hated them and all kinds of funny stories he had experienced outside. When they arrived back at the castle, he had gone silent and was tired. With a fond smile, Ohno heaved a sigh as he picked the boy up in his arms to carry him inside and the stairs up to his room to put him back into bed. Nino chuckled as he watched him being very gentle with his little brother and sat on the comfy chair close to the fireplace that had a low fire inside. He wondered if people had come inside while they were gone or if it had to do with the magic he could feel all around him. “Tight,” he mumbled when suddenly Ohno slid on the chair beside him. It was a tight fit, but the chair was bigger than a normal one, and they were both not the biggest people on Earth. Nino huffed as he moved his legs, so they were on top of Ohno’s who smiled at him and put an arm around his waist. “The boy is deeply asleep,” he hummed.“Good,” Nino decided and put his head on his shoulder. He sighed as he closed his eyes and hugged Ohno close for a moment. He needed to determine how to break to Ohno the lousy news without scaring him too much. The thing he was the most scared about right now - and that was not only because he had no idea how to go back - was to lose Ohno’s trust. He liked being so close and open with the other, and he really didn’t want to lose him not so shortly after he had found him.
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“Kazunari, what is going on in your head?” Ohno asked as he put his arms around the smaller frame of the other. Nino rubbed his nose against his neck and closed his eyes for a moment. “Masaki is worse than I thought. His lungs should sound better now after all this time resting. I want to relieve the pressure in his chest.”“But? There is a but, right? Is it dangerous?”Nino shrugged a little helpless. At the hospital, it was not that bad, and he knew the theory, but he was actually scared of making it worse or hurting Masaki. “It should not. I’m careful, and you have natural healing abilities, right?”“Yes, we do,” Satoshi mumbled with a nod. “I promise to be careful. But I’ll need your help.”“I have no idea what to do,” Ohno said. “I’m no healer. I learnt to fight, not to heal.”“Then you will learn with me. I need you to make sure he stays asleep and as still as possible. I don’t want him to feel anything.”“I can do that,” Ohno agreed as he sighed. He kissed his lips, making Nino smile. “And I trust you.”“Thank you,” Nino said, sitting up on his lap to kiss his lips with a happy smile. His fingers played with his hair before he moved back. He put his forehead against Ohno’s and smiled.“Can we do it right now?” Ohno asked. “I think I won’t be able to relax otherwise.”“Yup, I would prefer that. I don’t know if I might vanish overnight and I would feel better to know that the boy is well.”—“You look squeamish,” Nino mumbled as he concentrated on cleaning Masaki. The surgery had gone well. Ohno had sat at Masaki’s face, keeping the boy in a dream and Nino had made sure that Pukki stayed down. “That was a lot of blood,” Ohno mumbled, and Nino chuckled. “It was really not. It was just a cut,” he said with a sigh. “But I can understand since it’s your baby brother.”“Will he be fine?”“Yes,” Nino nodded and put a bandage on top of the closed cut. “It was still early.”Ohno nodded and kissed Masaki on top of the forehead as Nino pulled the blanket up and allowed Pukki up again as he got up to walk over to the chairs again.“Cuddle?” Nino offered, opening his arms for Ohno, who smiled happily and snuggled close to the other man. “Thank you,” he mumbled. Nino shrugged, swaying them from side to side as he played with Ohno’s hair. He could feel him relax on top of him after a while and kissed his forehead. It was cute how worried Ohno had been. At his world, Ohno was always kind of calm. Maybe sometimes worried, but not overly so. “I wished you could stay with us,” Ohno mumbled. “You would make a good addition to the healers. For when the spells or potions don’t work.”“I kinda want to go back home though,” Nino whispered. “I want to finish my education. I know it doesn’t mean much for you because it’s different here…”“No,” Ohno said, lifting his chin to look at his face. “I understand your will, and I would never want you to give up on dreams. So I will make sure to bring you back to your home. But I would be happy if you can stay here for a bit longer?”Nino smiled at his words and cupped his cheek to kiss his soft, plump lips. He really loved them. Ohno’s lips felt perfect against his own. “Of course. My vacation is still ongoing. At least if our times work similarly.”“They do. Otherwise, it would have been very complicated for me to meet you.”“That’s good then. Sleep?”“Sounds good. But I want to stay here with you, is that okay?”“I would prefer a lounger or something to lie down,” Nino mumbled with a frown.“I should have one installed,” Ohno hummed but then moved them in the seat, pulling the other closer to them. He moved Nino in his arms until he could rest comfortably against him and stretch out at least a bit more. “Is that okay for today?”Nino chuckled as he nodded. “Yes, you are comfy. Thank you.”Ohno chuckled as he kissed his temple and called a blanket over to put over them. Nino smiled as he snuggled up against Ohno’s chest, wishing that it would stay peaceful like this forever. It was the perfect kind of relaxation for him. —“Don’t leave,” Masaki whined, hugging him tightly around the middle. Nino chuckled as he hugged the boy close and ruffled his hair. “I’m sorry, Masaki. But I need to go home, ne? I still need to finish my training.”“But I’ll miss you. It has been so much fun playing with you. And you weren’t scared of Pukki.”“Pukki is a good guard, ne? You take care of our boy,” he said to the dog who barked in answer. “If you are good, maybe Satoshi will take you with him once, okay?”“Will you visit?”Nino moved his head from side to side, but then he nodded. “If I can, of course. So now smile for me?”Masaki grinned at that and Nino kissed his forehead. “Good boy. Remember to start exercising slowly and tell Satoshi when something hurts in your chest, doctor’s order.”“Uhn. But it feels sooo much better already. Like nothing hurts anymore,” Masaki gushed rubbing his chest that usually was hurting or made it hard to breathe. There was nothing of that now, and Nino smiled at the happy, healthy glow in Masaki’s face. There wasn’t even a scar from their small surgery now, and he was pleased that everything worked out well. “Masaki, say goodbye,” Satoshi reminded the boy softly. Masaki pouted but then hugged the other again firmly. “Goodbye, Nino!”“Goodbye, Masaki,” Nino said again, rubbing his cheek before looking at Ohno when the other put his arm around his waist. He leant against him with a soft sigh. “Concentrate on your home, Kazunari,” Ohno asked him, and he nodded. Nino closed his eyes and breathed in deeply as he remembered his home the best he could. He could feel the same strange feeling around him as he had when he appeared here. “You can open your eyes,” Ohno whispered against his ear, and he did as he was told. He looked around, realising that he was back in his flat. It looked even smaller than he was used to after living at Ohno’s room for a week. “Home sweet home,” he mumbled without feeling it much. Ohno grinned as he led him to the sofa to fall on it with him in his arms. “At least no little brothers,” he offered as he pulled him on his lap to kiss his lips. Nino giggled as he nodded against the lips. That was true at least, because Masaki always had close to them, even after he had healed. It had been a bit annoying at times, yet when totally adorable at the same time. “I love you. And I will miss you. Not having you around me all the time will be hard.”“But you do,” Ohno mumbled as he kissed the ring on Nino’s hand. “That is a part of me.”“True,” he whispered as he rubbed his nose against Ohno’s shoulder. “Can you stay tonight?”Ohno hummed as he thought about it for a while before he nodded. “Yes,” he decided then. “Masaki is well and can stay alone for at least one night. I don’t feel like letting you go right away either.”“Good. That way, I can get used to home again,” Nino whispered as he leant against him, listening to his heartbeats. “I should go shopping,” he murmured with a grimace. He didn’t feel like going out, now that he was alone with Ohno again after such a long time. “Don’t you have anything left?” Nino shook his head. “Nothing edible at least. Which is lucky since I’m sure most of it would have gone bad over the week. I was supposed to go the day after you kidnapped me.”“I did not exactly kidnap you,” Ohno said with a frown.Nino giggled at that as he nodded. “Maybe your heart did,” he said, feeling silly and corny as he did so. Ohno chuckled, caressing the red ears of the other. They were warm to the touch, but it was adorable that Nino could be so frank and shy at the same time. “Let’s make a quick trip,” Ohno said and poked his side. “Otherwise you’ll go hungry tomorrow morning, and I can not have that.”“I want snuggles,” Nino said with a pout. Ohno chuckled and then kissed his cheek. “Afterwards. Also, you might need to feed me tonight. Satoshi’s need regular meals.”Nino giggled but stretched out on top of him. “Let me get changed first though,” he said as he pulled off the clothes that Ohno had lent him. Ohno smiled as he offered him his hand before walking to the nearest shop with him. Nino very quickly threw the things in a basket that he needed to survive for the next few days and Ohno’s favourite sweets together with a bar of chocolate that Masaki might enjoy when Ohno went back home. A/N: I somehow needed to get this over. Sorry if the operation was stupid and almost not there but Urgh. Some things are hard for me to write.
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“You look worried,” Nino observed as he offered Ohno a can of cold tea and sat down on the bench beside him. “Thank you,” Ohno whispered as he opened the can and took a sip, before calling his little brother, who was playing with a few local children on a playground. Ohno sometimes brought Masaki along, and Nino had made sure to have a few clothes for the boy at his flat because they had realised fast that the tunics the other two wear were awful for Masaki to climb trees or play on the playground. He had strangled himself almost trice when they had been out the first time because Ohno had to make sure that his little brother didn’t use his magic automatically. “Nii-chan, what?” Masaki huffed as he came over, his hands on his hips with an unhappy frown on his face. Nino giggled as he offered him the drink he had gotten the boy. “Drink something before you get woozy.”“Yes, Nino!” he said and emptied the can on one go. Nino rolled the eyes but took the trash, and Ohno allowed the boy to go back to the play with the other boys. “God, he is really energetic today,” Nino said with a chuckle. Ohno hummed. “Yeah, that means he will have a good sleep tonight,” he said happily. “How is work?”“Good, I get more responsibilities. But it’s fun and interesting and don’t try to get me off track. What’s wrong?”“I don’t know exactly. But something is going on in the south,” Ohno said with a deep sigh. “I get the news that crops turn bad, and animals die while people get ill.”“Huh…” Nino said, staring at Ohno with a frown on his face. “I will have to check if I get more reports like that.”“Are you worried?”“Yes, my world… We are magical beings, and we are sensitive to imbalances. If so many bad things happen there…” Ohno trailed off and shook his head with a sigh. “What then?”“When the balance tilts there might be a war,” Ohno mumbled. “We all have good or bad in us, and we are very in tune with our world. If the balance now tilts to the bad, it might change things in our minds as well.”“Really?”Ohno nodded with a sigh. “There had been a war, once, lifetimes ago. It’s the reason my family is seen as royalty.”“I see,” Nino whispered and squeezed his fingers. “Then you should check on that soon, right?”Ohno nodded as he closed his eyes. “I wish I am wrong.”“Me too.”“May I ask you a favour?”Nino smiled and pressed his lips against Ohno’s mouth. “Of course I’ll look after your little brother. But… Won’t people suspect something if he isn’t at home? And if I’m at your world, I need time to ask for leave.”Ohno chuckled and traced his lips as he hugged him close. “I will think of something. I don’t want to bring you to my world if it’s not safe. And I think Masaki should stay at home if possible. But I want to make sure that he would be able to reach you if he needs to.”“I see,” Nino whispered and leant against him. “Well, first you should find out if it’s really necessary, right? It won’t do anything if you grow a headache over it and then it’s just bad luck. If crops grow bad and animals die, the soil may be bad, that something went wrong. You should check that out first. And not think that it’s some dark magic or something.”Ohno chuckled as he nodded. “Don’t you worry. There is no need to do a witch hunt.”“God, how do you know about that?”“I was bored once, and there was a history magazine I read while I waited for you at the hospital. It was interesting.”“And stupid.”“That as well,” Ohno agreed with a giggle. He leant back, taking Nino’s hand in his own as he observed his little brother running around freely. Masaki could be so much freer here that it was always fun for them both to come. There was nobody that expected him to behave a certain way, and that was good. “How is his health?” Nino asked, and Ohno grinned happily at the change of topic.“Perfect. Not even a tiny sign of pain,” he grinned. “I have never seen him like that. It’s wonderful. He grows stronger each day and can finally train and do like he wants to.”“That’s good then,” Nino decided with a smile. He was happy to have helped Masaki this much. — Ohno called Masaki over when the sun was going down and caught the younger boy when he ran over. “Can we stay a bit longer?”“Not today Masaki,” Ohno said, and Nino nodded. “Yes, it’s getting cold, and I’m hungry. If you are good, we can go to a restaurant, and I treat you both,” he said with a chuckle. “Can we go to eat hamburger and fries?!” Masaki asked excitedly and hopped up and down on Nino’s side as he hugged his arm. “I think I can treat you both to that if your brother is okay with it.”“Please Nii-chan!” “Yes, sounds good,” Ohno agreed with a chuckle and ruffled his hair. “We have such a generous host.”Nino shrugged. He still couldn’t understand how easy it was for him to treat his little king and brother when he usually tried everything to get out of spending money. But it just felt right with those two. “Then let’s go,” Nino said, leading them to the fast-food restaurant close to his home so that they would be able to eat their dinner. Afterwards, they went back to Nino where Masaki changed his clothes, and then Nino kissed Ohno on the lips as he said goodbye to them both when they left for home. He sighed softly, praying that everything was going to be okay. A/N: A short one but I really don’t know how to continue the story >< I won’t be able to get where I was initially, and now I need a bit longer to think about it XD
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Nino looked down at Masaki who looked back at him with big eyes. He sighed and scraped his hand through his hair as he forced a small smile on his face. “Hello, Masaki-kun,” he said then with a smile and ruffled his hair. Masaki hugged a dog toy close to himself, nibbling on his lower lip. “Nii-chan said I would stay here for a while,” he mumbled looking up at Ohno who looked worriedly at them both. “Yup, we’ll have lots of fun, while Satoshi is away for work,” Nino mumbled with furrowed brows. He didn’t fully get why Satoshi decided to bring Masaki to work for this, but then again, it may be made sense since people would be more understanding if he had to go home right on time. Masaki nodded and smiled. “Yup, Kazu-nii-chan looks out for me, right?”“Right,” Nino said with a chuckle. “And for a send-off, we are going to eat delicious Ramen. So come on, you two.”“Yay,” Masaki cheered hugging him around the arm as he skipped along. “What is that toy about?”“It’s a guardian,” Satoshi answered for Masaki who continued to hold to Nino. He was a bit scared about it all. He had never been away anywhere without Satoshi, especially not overnight. “Oh, so it will guard him?”“It will guard you both,” Satoshi said with a little sigh. Nino nodded in understanding, biting his lips before he could ask Ohno what he knew now and why he was so worried. He didn’t want to scare Masaki. “Masaki how about you look for a free table for us? Satoshi and I will order.”“Can I get some of those meat bags?”“Gyoza? Of course,” Nino promised with a grin. Masaki cheered before running off, and Nino chuckled as he looked after him. “Just tell me one thing: Is it really bad?” Nino asked when they were alone, Ohno looking at the menu. Ohno sighed and nodded. “Yes. I will need to take a handful of our fighters and move to the south. Something is happening there, and I need to find out what it is. There might be a war,” Ohno whispered with a grimace. He didn’t want to think about it. “Sho knows Masaki is here, though. I needed to tell someone so that there wouldn’t be a panic. But he can’t get here.”Nino nodded and kissed his cheek. “Okay. So let’s order our food, and then we will make this a great evening for your brother.”“Okay.”— Ohno smiled as he caressed the hair of his little brother after he had fallen to sleep, hugging his dog toy. He looked up when Nino came back into the room and stood to sit on the floor with Nino. “Thank you. Really, thank you. I know that this is not your duty. But I’m glad that he can stay here with you.”“No need to thank me,” Nino said with a chuckle as he leant against him, looking at Masaki.“Is that Pukki?”“Yep, he is a good guardian. I don’t know if this flat allows pets?”“It does, but I don’t really have too much space.”“I see. Masaki knows how to make him change forms into an adorable little puppy.”Nino chuckled and nodded. “That sounds cute. We can go to the park with him then.”“Sounds good. I think you’ll have fun.”Nino smiled and snuggled against the other. “Nino?”“Mhm?”“May I call you Kazunari?”“No…” Nino said and scrunched up his nose. He smiled softly when Ohno’s face fell and cupped his cheek. “It’s too long. You may call me Kazu.”Ohno smiled and took his hand in his own. He rubbed the ring on his fingers and sighed as he put his head on top of Nino’s. He smiled happily when a few strokes later, the ring shined brightly again. He kissed it and closed his eyes. “Satoshi? Will you be okay?”“Yes, of course. Don’t be scared.”“That’s not easy when you mention that there will be fights.”Ohno nodded and kissed his cheek. “I know, and I’m sorry about that, but there is nothing I can do to change that.”Nino smiled softly, but he nodded. “I know that. Sorry for being so moody.”Ohno shook his head and kissed him. It was only natural for him to worry. “It’s fine.”Nino snuggled up on his side and closed his eyes. “Stay for the night?”“Okay, but I will leave before Masaki wakes up tomorrow morning.”“Fair enough.”Ohno smiled and kissed him deeply. Nino smiled and climbed on his lap. He put his arms around his neck and played with his hair. “Hey?”“Mhmm?”“Can you make love to me tonight, without him noticing?”Ohno blinked in surprise, but then he nodded with a smile. That was a good idea. “Of course,” Ohno whispered and pushed Nino down on the floor, raining kisses to his face and neck, as he moved his hand. For a second they were engulfed in blue light before Ohno made sure to touch and love every part of Nino to catch all those lovely little sounds he made. — Ohno carefully shook Nino’s shoulder and kissed the side of his mouth, and his temple as Nino groaned and forced his eyes open. “Kazu,” he whispered and kissed his lips. “What is it?” Nino asked, clearing his throat. His arms wounded around Ohno’s neck as he forced himself to get up. “I need to leave now.”Nino tightened his hold around them and hid his face against his shoulder for a moment. He wanted to beg him to stay, but that would be stupid, he knew that.“I’m sorry. I don’t want to go either,” Ohno whispered with a sigh, kissing him again.Nino nodded and fought his tears. Ohno smiled and caught the droplets, kissing his nose. Nino sniffled a little bit and buried his head against his shoulder for a moment, before letting him go. Ohno watched him with fond eyes and then pulled off his necklace. He rubbed the medallion with his thumb with a sigh, before putting it around Nino’s neck.“Don’t you need this to travel through worlds?”“It helps,” Ohno said. “But I think it’s the safest with you. I can travel home always and of course, to where my heart belongs. But it will help Masaki if he needs to go home.”“Shouldn’t you give it to him then?” Nino asked, caressing the jewellery with his fingertips.“I want you to have it though,” he said with a smile. “Take the gift.”“I will, it’s beautiful,” Nino said with a small chuckle. It was funny how all magical things Ohno had given him so far had been really beautiful. “I’m glad you like it,” Ohno said with a chuckle. Nino grinned and finally got up when Ohno did to move over to his brother and stroke his cheek. “Both of you be safe, promise me that?”“I will look after Masaki-kun. Don’t worry about us. I want you to make sure to come back here safely.”“I will. It might be that Sho sends visions to Masaki. I warned him, but it might scare him first.”“Got it.” Ohno sighed and stood. He should really leave before Masaki woke up. He didn’t want to have comforted him as unfair as it was. He also thought that it was easier for Masaki if he wasn’t here anymore. They had already said goodbye yesterday after all. “Come back soon, but I will kill you if you put yourself into any danger because you are hurrying things up.”“Got it, I’ll be very careful.”“Good boy. I love you,” Nino whispered as he kissed him lovingly again. Ohno sighed and caressed his cheek and the soft part under his eye. “I love you as well,” he whispered, kissing him again and then stepping back fully. His eyes wandered over them both one last time before he put his lips against his ring and murmured a spell and vanished into thin air shortly after.
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Nino played with the necklace in his hands as he looked outside and waited for the sun to rise and Masaki to wake. His heart feels hollow, and he wished for the other to come back safely. He sighed and rubbed his face as he looked at the key catching the sunlight that peeked over the horizon and then stood when there was a noise from Masaki. He was glad that he had been able to secure a free day today and even tomorrow. “Good morning, Masaki-kun. Did you sleep well?” he greeted the boy who looked a bit disoriented for a moment before he recognised Nino. “Kazu-nii-chan, good morning,” he greeted. Nino chuckled and put some of his long hair behind his ear. “You should call me Nino, it’s a lot shorter than Kazu-nii-chan, right?”Masaki pursed his lips and shrugged then. “I like Kazu-nii-chan,” he declared then. “But Nino is also good.”“Only friends are allowed to call me that,” Nino promised him and smiled. “So it makes you special ne?”“Uhn,” Masaki grinned happily and hugged his toy close to himself. “Nii-chan has gone?”“Yes, very early in the morning. He didn’t want to wake you. He said goodbyes are always hard and he didn’t want to see you cry.”“Nii-chan is unfair,” Masaki whispered, and Nino hummed in agreement as he pulled him on his lap to hug him. “He is. But he wanted to keep his strength for the things to come. And we both can understand that, right? We want him to come back safely.”“Yes,” Masaki said in a small voice as he hid his face against Nino’s shoulder, crying softly against the cloth of his shirt. Nino held him close as he rocked him from side to side until he had calmed down again. He then wiped away the tears from his cheeks with the palms of his hands and caressed the soft part under his eyes with his thumb. “I’m sorry for crying.”“There is no weakness in crying, Masaki. So don’t be sorry about that.”“Okay, thank you,” Masaki said with a shaky smile. Nino smiled and carefully stroke his hair before saying and moving back. “How about we start our day? I’m sure you are already hungry?”Nino grinned as he poked the stomach of the boy when it growled slightly and then bopped his nose lovingly before dragging him up. He brought him to the bathroom to show him where everything was and then went to the kitchen to prepare some of the tea Ohno liked and a fruity one so that Masaki could choose while making a cup of coffee for himself.He checked his fridge, deciding that he would take Masaki grocery shopping later. Maybe the boy would enjoy it as much as Ohno did. For today cereals should be enough, he hoped, curious about how Masaki will react when he tasted them. “Nino?!”“Yes, Masaki?”“I want the same clothes that you have!”“As I have?” Nino asked in confusion as he walked over to the bathroom. He watched Masaki who was half-naked and stared at his trousers and the tunic he had brought from home with a glare. “I’m sorry Masaki, the shorts and shirt I bought for you are in the washing machine. But we will need to go out to buy some new ones anyway. You can’t stay in the same outfit every day,” he said with a sigh. “So today you need to wear those, okay?”“Will we buy new ones?”“Yes, and you can even choose which ones you like. Do you have favourite colours?”“I like green and yellow and light blue.”“Then we will look for those colours. But for now, you need to get ready, okay? Then we eat breakfast and go out to buy new clothes and some food.”Nino hid a grimace the best he could, at the thought of how much money he was going to spend from his meagre salary. But that was not Masaki’s problem, and he would be able to figure it out later. “Okay,” Masaki said, still slightly pouting, but luckily he was easily satisfied and didn’t argue too much, which was good for his mental health. He was not used to children and didn’t know if he would be able to manage this all when Masaki had been a brat. Masaki entered the living room just moments later again, and Nino nodded to the floor in front of the table. He had already built the bed back to its usual state as a sofa and pointed at the things he had prepared. “In the cup is a fruit tea, in the teapot, I prepared herbal tea for both of us. Satoshi likes herbal tea, but I thought you might enjoy the fruity one.”Masaki took the cup and tried it curiously, before grinning and nodding. “It tastes like cherries!”“Yup, great right?”Masaki nodded, drinking some more before looking at the table that was filled with bread that Nino had bought the night before, milk and the cereals. “What is that?”“Cinnamon cereals. They are sweet, and maybe you’ll like them.”“I want to try! How do I do that?”“You either pour first the cereal or the milk and then the other. Then stir it and eat them with a spoon.”Masaki frowned but poured in cereals and topped them off with milk while Nino tore a melon pan apart to eat it as his breakfast, while Masaki’s eyes gleamed happily when he tasted the first bite. Nino chuckled as Masaki emptied the bowl within seconds and ate even a second one. Nino chuckled as he put new cereals on his mental grocery list for them. — “Masaki, make sure to stay close to me, okay?”“Okay, Nino,” he grinned as he held to the shopping cart and started to follow Nino through the big supermarket. Nino looked at him with a soft smile, ruffling his hair when Masaki really stayed close to him and looked around with wide, curious eyes. He seemed to enjoy their trip even if he was a bit more reserved than Ohno had been. “What would you like to eat?”“Beef and vegetables,” Masaki said after a few minutes of thoughts. Nino hummed as he put some bread to toast into the cart, before taking some time to think about what to make and choosing two other cereal boxes he thought Masaki might like. “We can make a stir fry together with some fried noodles.”“That sounds good,” Masaki said with a happy glint in his eyes and Nino led him to the vegetable and fruit section. He chose different kinds of vegetables for the next few days and let Masaki choose some fruits he wanted to eat during those days as well. The rest of their trip Nino put in some necessities that they needed for the week before allowing Masaki to chose some sweets he wanted. The boy was smiling brightly and happily at that promise and carefully chose whatever looked good, and that he didn’t know before a package of cream puff pastries, he had already tried before and liked the best. “Is that really okay?” he asked as he had the different boxes and Nino checked them over before nodding. “Yup, they are okay. Not too expensive and there is nothing inside you can’t eat. Come on, let’s pay and then you can carry one bag with your things to the car before we go to the shopping mall. That will be exciting for you.”Masaki climbed out of the car when they arrived at the mall and took Nino’s hand as he was faced with so many different people. “Do you know them all Nino?”Nino chuckled and shook his head. “No. It’s different from your place. I know almost nobody here.”“Ohh,” Masaki murmured and looked at their hands. He wasn’t sure if Nino would mind, but he felt more secure with all the strangers around. He wasn’t used to that. Even at the playground, Nino took him, and Satoshi sometimes were fewer people than here. Nino tightened his grip around his hand and then led him to the first store that sold clothes for children. “You don’t have to be scared but stay close, okay?”“Okay, Nino. I promised Nii-chan to stay with you,” he mumbled.“Good boy,” he said with a smile and led him to the boy’s selection. “You can choose what you like,” he explained. “But you need to try them on so that I can be sure about your size.”Masaki nodded and looked at the shirts before deciding which ones he liked. He frowned a bit at the ones that had fighters on them or were very dark, so Nino made sure to look for brighter ones for the boy. Masaki chose a few in the colours he liked and just because Nino honestly didn’t care allowed him to chose from the girl’s selection as well. Then a few more shorts and after Nino was sure that Masaki fit into them he went to pay for them. He took the heavier bag and allowed Masaki to carry the second one as he looked around. “Nino?”“Mhm?”“Do you think Nii-chan is okay?” Masaki asked in a small voice. Nino looked down at him and ruffled his hair. “Of course. He is a good fighter, right? You told me so.”“Uhn, and Jun said that he would always protect nii-chan.”“That’s good then, ne?”Masaki nodded with a brighter smile on his face now. “Masaki, how about we get you something to play with when I’m at work, or we can’t go out? I have a few video games, but they might not be suited for you and might be a bit boring? Would you like that?”“Nii-chan said not to ask for things,” Masaki said and looked down. “Masaki, you didn’t ask me, I asked you, that is different, right? And I’m sure Satoshi won’t mind.”“Are you sure?”“Yes, so how about it?”Masaki looked at him still a bit shyly and insecure about the offer, but there was a bright glint in his eyes, and he nodded hopefully. “Then let’s go. Afterwards, we bring these things to the car and come back to have lunch, and we can go to the arcade.”“What is an arcade?”“It’s a place with many video games. I liked going there when I was your age and haven’t been for years. It’ll be fun, and somehow I want to go there again.”“Sounds fun,” Masaki giggled and clapped his hand as he followed Nino to the toy store to get some toys and games and a small backpack where he could put in the enchanted Pukki so that his guardian was close to him then. Nino felt already bad enough to have kept him in the car for the time being. But it would have been in the way for today. When they were back at the car, Masaki talked to Pukki in a whispering voice before putting him into the backpack and putting it on. The afternoon was spent eating gross fast food and laughter at the arcade, and Nino counted it as a win when Masaki was able to sleep peacefully tonight with only the smallest of fuss because Ohno wasn’t the one putting him to bed.
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“Where did you bring Masaki?” Sho asked, and Ohno frowned as he checked his sword over slowly before doing the same with his armour. He didn’t think hey would get into a fight, but it was always better to be safe than sorry. He had promised Nino and Masaki to come back to them healthy. He sighed softly and put the sword to the side as he watched Sho for a while in silence. “We agreed that I wouldn’t tell anybody. He is safe where he is. I made sure of that.”“I wouldn’t go and hurt him,” Sho said a bit offended, and Ohno smiled. “I know. Still, I stand by my decision. You know how to contact him, and he is warned about visions that might come to him. Pukki is with him as well, and he will be able to come back here if it’s really needed, but I would prefer if he stays where he is. You’ll do fine here.”“I have no say here. I’m just a scholar.”Ohno chuckled and shook his head. “You are also my consultant. People know you, and you are not supposed to reign over the kingdom. It will go as it is right now. Maybe there will be an influx of people fleeing from the cities where the crop dies, and I’m sure you’ll be able to decide what to do then, better than me even. You have all the numbers in your head.”Sho sighed and nodded. He knew that the people would probably relax more if Ohno were there to comfort then, but he also knew that if Ohno didn’t check on the problems, he would lose trust. Sho had hoped that Masaki would be there for the comfort then. The boy was well-loved, and his smiles would comfort them. But he understood that the boy was still too young for all that and that Ohno wanted to protect him. “I understand,” he decided in the end. “It’s just that I am not that happy with this all.”“I think nobody of us is, but we can’t just sit it out and wait for them to die or for whatever causes it to come to us. If possible, I want to stop it as soon as possible.”“Even if you don’t know what it is?”“We will find out. Jun or I will contact you with everything we will find out and I’m sure we will find the cause with your help.”“I will continue to read on our history. Maybe similar things have happened once.”“That would be perfect,” Ohno agreed, looking up when there was a knock at his door. He allowed the person in and nodded when Jun entered. “Are you ready?”“Yes,” Ohno said with a sigh. “I just need to wear this,” he said, staring at his armour with disgust. He never liked fighting. He trained because he needed his body to be ready, but he had never thought he would need it. Jun clicked his tongue, but stepped closer and helped Ohno to wear his armour right. “You need to keep up spirits.”“I know,” Ohno groaned. “I just don’t like it. It’s heavy.”Jun snorted a laugh. “You should have practised more in full armour then. I have no problems wearing it. It does not weigh me down.”“We can’t all be as perfect as you are,” Ohno said with a grin, closing his eyes for a moment, and wishing the best for Nino and Masaki, before opening his eyes and following Jun outside. He greeted the people coming with them calmly before climbing his horse. No words were forthcoming that he found would make sense and so he just thanked the others, and they left. — Ohno looked down at the tents of the people with him and sighed softly as he leant against the canvas of his own. It was silent, and there were a few fires scattered around the camp, giving them light and warmth if needed and protected the lookouts from stumbling into something. Ohno’s tent was in the middle of their camp and on slightly higher ground. It was so that people knew where he was and to protect him at the same time. He didn’t care much about the status, but it was nice to have more space around himself. It was calming and left him alone with his thoughts. His fingers wandered to the space where his amulet usually was, and he sighed when he remembered that he had left it with Kazunari for the time being. He closed his eyes and thought of his lover. He missed him a lot. Part of why he had given the necklace to Nino was so that he couldn’t easily travel there. He was needed here, after all. The second reason was that he was sure that Masaki would be able to figure out how to use it if needed.“Is everything alright?” Jun asked as he sat beside him. Ohno blinked surprised at actually being disturbed by the other. “Yes, of course, just trying to think about what might await us when we reach Kadena.”“We won’t know before we reach there. So there is no purpose of troubling yourself with it right now.”“I can’t help it. I don’t want to bring anybody into danger.”“I don’t think that we can prevent that fully. But we can do the best there is to protect as many people as possible. That is why we go there now.”“Right,” Ohno said, breathing deeply. “You should try to find some rest, as well. I know you are worried, but you won’t do us any good if you are exhausted.”“I will, thank you Jun.”Jun smiled and squeezed his shoulder. “I’m sure you have your reason to be able to go back soon, right?”“Right.”—Ohno breathed in deeply and slowly before keeping the breath in for a moment, before breathing out again. He had his eyes closed and sat with crossed legs inside his tent. There was a low fire in front of him, and he was left alone for the time being. Jun and his second were in front of the opening, guarding it for any kind of intruder, friend or fiend would be a problem right now. He opened his eyes after he felt his heart rate slowing down, and when his mind was finally free. He stared into the fire, with his magic cackling around himself. His eyes had changed their colour to a deep blue, and a small smile was on his face when he finally was met with Sho’s face in the fire. “Sho,” he said with a sigh. Sho chuckled and moved slightly. “I’m surprised. You managed to clear your mind fast tonight.”“Don’t tease or I might lose it again. I’m really not good with this,” he huffed. It was so strange, honestly. After all, he was a very calm and silent man, but freeing his mind from all thoughts was hard for him. They always seemed to wander rather easily. “Sorry, it’s just that your brother is better than you and that says something.”“Have you talked to Masaki?” Ohno asked in surprise. “Did something happen?”“No, I did not. You said only to do so if needed and otherwise once a week. I will contact him in two days, to let him know you are okay and to get to know how he is.”“Good,” Ohno said with a soft sigh. He had been worried for a moment. “You are okay, right?”“Yes, we are getting closer to Kadena. I don’t know yet what is happening, but I heard from the folk of the villages as we get closer, that the crops are bad this year.”Sho frowned with a small hum. “That is actually… Strange. We have a better harvest than the last five years. It should be similar over there.”“It’s not. I need you to make lists and have messengers go to the villages to ask for their harvest count and then manage to contribute them to the villages that had a bad outcome. It might get worse the closer we get.”“I will do that right tomorrow in the morning.”“Good, another thing.”“Yes?”“Send healers out as well. The few men I have already met from Kadena say that their children fell ill from a mysterious illness and that it seemed as if the cattle had fallen malignant as well. They had to kill a lot of animals to stop the spread and sadly here were other lives lost as well.”Sho’s eyes grew dark at the words, and he nodded. “I will do that. I have not yet found anything similar happening in the past, but I have more to look for from now on.”“Continue to do so. I don’t know what is happening.”“But it doesn’t seem to be war.”“No, that is good, at least. But, I fear what might happen to the mind of the men if there is no help forthcoming. If they think we do not see their needs, it might go to that.”“True, but… You are reacting, and they will know you do not forget them.”“I hope so I really do. I also hope to stop it before it stretches over to more cities or villages.”“Me too, but I have my full trust in you.”Ohno smiled and closed his eyes as he nodded. “Thank you.”“Of course, please stay safe and healthy.”“You too, I want to talk to you again in three days, after you’ve talked with Masaki.”Sho nodded and sighed. “Okay, goodbye.”“Goodbye,” Ohno whispered and allowed the magic around him o slowly disappear as he meditated for a few more minutes, before standing and relieving Jun and Ryo from their posts. “Is everything alright?” Jun asked curiously, and Ohno nodded with a smile.“Sho has everything under control.”Jun smiled relieved and nodded in thanks before leaving him alone. Ohno watched him go and stared into the sky. Tomorrow he would see what horror awaited them, and he hoped that they really would be able to make it all better. He feared what his world might become if they were unsuccessful. A/N: I think I feel more comfortable to write about Nino and Masaki than Ohno and the rest… I’m sorry I’ll try my best
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Nino stretched out his back and groaned as he made it to the apartment complex. The nights had been too short these last few nights. Masaki was a mover while sleeping, and Nino often woke up to a bony knee or elbow to his side or stomach. First Nino had wanted to give Masaki his bed to sleep and sleep on a futon next to it like he had done when Ohno and Masaki stayed with him together. But Masaki had terrible dreams because he was so worried about his brother. The little sleep combined with his work schedule were draining him, which sadly mostly showed with back pain. Maybe the healers in Ohno’s country could have helped him if people were allowed to meet him in future. Nino finally made it to his flat and opened the door to be greeted by an overly excited Pukki. “Oof,” he groaned when the dog jumped on top of him after he had closed the door. “Pukki, down!” Masaki scolded, and the dog whined slightly as he sat down beside Nino, his tail wagging excitedly. Nino lifted his eyebrow as he petted the dog. “What is up with you?” he asked him amusedly. “Does this body mean you are an excited little puppy again? You were much calmer when I visited.”“Pukki is always excited when he is not worried,” Masaki said, coming over and lifting the dog up, to hug him against his chest. “How was your day?”“It was okay. Did you go out today, Masaki?”Masaki shook his head as he nibbled on his lower lip.“Were you too nervous about leaving?” Nino asked and ruffled his hair. “Give me a bit, and we can go out together. How does that sound? I’m sure Pukki does want to go on a walk as well?”“Can we go out to eat?”Nino pursed his lips softly as he heard the question, but nodded. “Of course, Masaki. Let me just change, okay?”“Okay, thank you,” the boy said, perking up visibly and Nino couldn’t help but smile as he searched for clean clothes and changed into another shirt. His hand was rubbing the small of his back, wishing that it would actually help and then sighing when the pain subsided a little for now. He could do this.“Did you eat lunch, Masaki?”“Uhn, I made the cheesy bread you showed me. I didn’t burn it!”“Oh, very good. I’m sure Satoshi would still burn it.”“Did Nii-chan make it?”“Yes, when he visited, he wanted to make lunch for me one day. I needed a ne pot afterwards, and he was pouting, saying that he did as I did, when I cook.”“What did he wrong?” Masaki gasped and looked at him with wide eyes, as he put the leash on Pukki and Nino led him outside. “He left the oven on the highest setting. It was still on when I came home. I’m not sure for how long he kept it like that. I fear it was a few hours and I’m glad he didn’t burn down my flat.”“Oh, sounds scary,” Masaki whispered.“I can show you how to cook if you are interested. But for now, you are only allowed to use the small microwave oven when you are alone. It turns off automatically after a certain amount of time. So it’s safe. Don’t worry, ne?”“Uhn,” Masaki whispered as he automatically went to the park. “Nii-chan said to help you and not to bother you.”“Sounds like your brother. Masaki, you are not bothering me, okay? You don’t have to look after me. I look after you,” he said and hugged him with an arm. “Really?”“Really, really. The only thing you need to do is not to set my flat to fire and do your homework. You got homework from your teacher, right?”“Uhn, sensei gave me things I need to do until I’m home,” he whispered. “And he wants to talk to me tonight.”“Oh yes, Satoshi mentioned something about that. How does that work?”“I can’t explain. But I can ask sensei,” Masaki offered. “Do so, ne? You should know such things, Masaki.”“Nii-chan said so as well,” he mumbled with a pout. “But those things are boring.”Nino laughed softly and entered a dog park where Aiba could let Pukki run around freely. He sat down on the bench, watching them both running around and chasing each other with a smile while before he stared at the ring on his finger. He moved it a bit, smiling as he saw the yellow glow mixed with blue. It reminded him a lot of his lover, and he prayed to be reunited with him soon again. —“Nino, Nino!” Masaki cried out as he jumped to his feet and ran over to him. Nino flinched when the boy ran into his side and hugged him tightly. He ruffled his hair after he put the knife down that he had used to prepare their dinner. “What is it, Masaki?”“Sensei said, Nii-chan is well. He was doing good and helped already our people a bit. Sensei said the city is getting fuller though, but they still have enough food from the last harvests.”“That’s good,” he said and ruffled his hair. “Did he say anything about what brought it up?”“Nii-chan isn’t sure yet, and sensei also doesn’t know. He said he is reading old books and it seems to have to do with the past? I didn’t understand, really. But sensei likes reading old books. He said it’s his job as a scholar.”“Oh, I see.”“But sensei is pretty sure that Nii-chan or Jun-san are not in big danger.”“How so?” Nino asked interested. He wanted Ohno to be safe after all, so he was curious about what was going on in the other world. “Because so far, Nii-chan has not encountered any enemies or monsters or something. And since he is already so far west, they don’t think that something lurks there. But they still need to find out what exactly happened. Because if it spreads further into our realm, we might not have enough in future to survive.”“That makes sense.”“How so? Wouldn’t it be better if Nii-chan goes home and waits if it spreads? Instead of finding out what happens? Maybe it’s not that bad?”“Because, if it’s a natural disaster or something like that, Satoshi should know about what it is, and if he can stop it somehow. If the crops go back because of an illness, they need to cut them down and make sure it won’t spread to other crops, same with animals. You should want to stop the growth soon because if not, it might go too far to be stopped. And if it is something like a climate change, you need to prepare for that as well. The sooner you know and can make plans, the better.”Masaki watched him with wide eyes as he nodded slowly in understanding. “That makes sense. Nino is smart!”“I should hope so,” Nino snorted. “I went to school for a long time.”“Really long?”“Normally long, I suppose. At least for humans. But since I studied medicine, I went to school a bit longer than others.”“Because you became a doctor that rescues and heals people,” Masaki agreed. “Yes, in a way,” he chuckled. “I try my best, at least. But sometimes my best is not good enough,” he sighed. “But we are not talking about that. I’m making dinner, and since you are finished with your conversation with your sensei, do you want to help?”Masaki nodded in excitement and Nino moved the vegetables to the table where Masaki could reach the surface easier. “Pukki, stay out of the kitchen please,” Nino said to the dog, who whined softly but laid down in the doorway, watching them. He rolled his eyes but smiled as he got a knife for Masaki and explained how he wanted the vegetables cut. He watched him for a moment, using the knife to make sure it was safe before he concentrated on the chicken he wanted to make tonight. “Sensei said my work turned out good so far.”“That’s good. You worked hard on it, Masaki.”“Are you proud?”“Very, and I’m sure your brother is even prouder than me when he gets to know that.”“I hope so. Sensei said he would tell Nii-chan how good I did.”“That’s great ne?”“Yes, I wish I could talk to Nii-chan, though.” “Me too, Masaki, but we both need to be strong for him as well, right?”“Uhn,” Masaki agreed in a smaller voice.They stayed in silence for a while, in which Nino really wished that he was better with comforting words, but it was hard when he shared the same fears with Masaki. “He will be proud of us,” Masaki said in the end. “And then he will come and fetch us.”“Of course,” Nino agreed, feeling the weight of the medallion around his neck. He hoped that Satoshi could come without it. But at least he was able to go back home without it, so he wanted to believe in Satoshi’s knowledge about his magic. —“Nino?”“Yes, Masaki?”“What are you reading?”“Files for work.”“Can you read them for me?”“No, sorry that’s forbidden. Are you bored?”Masaki nodded and pouted slightly as he hugged Pukki close to himself. “Do you want to go out?”Masaki shook his head and wrinkled his nose at the rain that was currently going on. He didn’t want to go there right now. “Did you finish your homework for today?”Masaki nodded strongly. “Yes! I really did, I promise.”Nino lifted his eyebrow at the words. “Are you sure?”Masaki nodded and looked as honest as possible even if he tried to avert his eyes at the same time. Nino chuckled and tweaked his nose. “Okay. So do you want to watch a movie or do you want me to read a story to you? Or do you want to read some mangas?”“Will you read me a story?” Masaki asked in a small voice. He liked people reading to him sometimes, all cuddled up, and now that it was raining and slightly chilly because of it he would enjoy that.“Okay, I can do that. How about you prepare the bed then, and we can cuddle there while I read a book to you. And do you want to have hot chocolate as well?”Masaki nodded excitedly and grinned happily. “Thank you.” “Of course,” Nino promised, pretending not to see how a shudder ran over Masaki’s back as the rain got harder and the first thunder rolled in. Masaki still got up to his feet and changed the sofa to the bed and threw the cushions on it together with their blankets and the woollen blanket that Nino customarily used as a blanket for the couch. “Pukki you need to change,” he told the puppy. Nino chuckled as he poured the hot chocolate in two mugs, and decorated one with cream and marshmallows before coming back. “Oooooh,” Masaki said with bright, sparkling eyes as he saw the treat, and Nino smirked for a moment as he held out the regular chocolate for Masaki. “Here you go.”Masaki looked at him in confusion for a moment, saddened that he didn’t get the extra treat as he reached out for chocolate. “Thank you,” he mumbled. Nino chuckled and pulled the hand back before Masaki could actually take it and gave him the other mug. “I can’t take your sad eyes,” he teased and sat down beside him. He pulled out the big fairytale book and read to Masaki, who looked at the pictures and listened enthralled to the stories. He sometimes commented at how similar those stories were to his reality which made Nino wonder if those stories were right after all, and if Ohno hadn’t been the first one to appear here in his world.
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“Thank you for your hard work,” Ohno said to the soldiers as he looked at the burning crops. They had taken samples to look at them when they were back in the capital. He frowned as he looked at the fire. It hurt deep inside to see so many crops burning right now, but it was better that way. The crops that they had found were not well, and Ohno was just worried that whatever had taken them would wander through the rest of the country and destroy even more harvest. The people they had seen so far had told Ohno that they had heard about the illness in the crops in their neighbouring cities and ignored it, before whatever it was had taken over their crops. “Your highness, are you sure this is the right thing to do?”“No,” Ohno mumbled as he looked at Jun with a frown on his face. “But it seemed to be the most logical thing to do if I’m honest. The illness of whatever has befallen those seems to spread, and I hope by burning it, we will stop it from ruining the rest of our harvest. If not, I fear for what will happen to us when winter comes.”“Right,” Jun said, paling slightly at the though. “You think it might spread further?”Ohno nodded and rubbed the back of his nose. “Yes, I fear so at least,” he said with a sigh. “I hope that Sho might find something in those crops as to what brought the illness or that people already fleeing from their homes might help us to know where it all began. It would help a lot.”“True, but it’s hard to say.”Ohno nodded and then smiled a bit. “But I’m glad to see that it’s nothing else. I feared there might be some dark magic that causes this.”“It still could be,” Jun reminded him, and he nodded. He knew that, and that was why they would go further. He sighed and called two soldiers over. He looked at the men as they stood in front of them and gave them the samples. “Please bring this to the main city together with this note to Sakurai-san,” he explained, thanking them when they agreed and left. Ohno turned around to look at the men and women following them and motioned to a handful to tell them to wait here to make sure that the fire doesn’t destroy anything else but the spoilt harvest and then go back to the central city before telling the rest that they would head further right now. It was not yet the night, and he didn’t see a reason to stay and watch the crops burn and lose time. He wanted to go back soon after all. — “Your highness!” a woman called, and Ohno looked up from where he was studying the map with Jun. They were close to the border of their lands, and behind this, there was only mountains and forests. It wasn’t habited by anyone so far, and it looked as if the trees and nature were unharmed. That at least was something he didn’t have to worry about, he thought in relief. “What is it?” he called back. “A boy…”“What?!” he hissed, letting the map go as he ran to where the woman stood, waiting for his decision or order. Ohno came to a halt in front of a small boy. He was sure that he couldn’t be older than five or maybe six, and he was clutching a leather-bound book while staring at them with defiant eyes. “Are you the king?”“I am the sworn king to this country,” Ohno agreed, lifting his hand to stop the woman from intervening. “Get something to drink and eat,” he ordered her as he observed the boy that looked so small to his eyes, a lot smaller than Masaki had ever been. But in comparison, he had old eyes. Eyes that had seen more than should be possible for someone his age and Ohno felt a sting of pain inside his chest as he felt as if he had seen such old eyes in a too young boy once way in the past. Ohno blinked as he tried to shook off that memory as he tried hard to concentrate back on the boy who was still staring at him with big eyes, almost insecure as to how to continue. But he could see the small glimmer of hope in his eyes as he mentioned the food and Ohno couldn’t help the smile that slipped on his lips. He had so many questions as to why that boy was here and what the book he was clutching in his hands meant. Still, he could see that the boy was scared as his eyes fluttered around the many people accompanying Ohno and Jun here, flinching now and then when loud voices reached them or the clang of their armour. He decided that all questions had to wait until he was sure that this boy was okay for now. “What is your name?”“Shota, your highness,” the boy whispered with a stutter as he bopped his head in a meaning of showing his respect.“Such a strong name perfect for you it seems,” Ohno said, still a fond smile on his face. “My name is Satoshi. You can call me that, okay? No need for any titles.”A small, a bit more confident, smile appeared on the boys face. “Are you hungry, Shota?”The boy nodded and nibbled at his face. “But the crops are dead.”“We brought food with us. Don’t worry. It’s not spoilt, I promise.”The boy wrinkled his forehead as he stared at hem and then nodded in agreement. Ohno held out his hand, and cautiously Shota let go of the book with one hand to take Ohno’s hand and follow him to the makeshift resting place Jun had thankfully ordered to be prepared. He nodded at his friend, who was frowning but still looked gentle at the boy when he shrank away from him. “We will check the borders.”“Thank you, Jun.”Jun just nodded as he bellowed another order to the people watching Ohno with that strange boy, who scuttled away at his command to do what was needed to see if something was creeping into their lands that didn’t belong there. — Shota watched as the men and women left without another word and then looked at Ohno with an open mouth. “You are really the king?”Ohno chuckled and nodded. “Yes, did you think I lied to you?”The boy blushed and looked at his dirty fingers. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “No, it’s smart not to believe others directly,” Ohno praised. “But as the elven king, I can’t lie.”“But you can not tell the truth,” Shota said. Ohno nodded with a hum. That was true. But he could not lie outright, and since he had said he was the king, it was, of course, the truth. But then again, this land so close to the borders had seen other creatures, he was sure of it. Ohno watched Shota look at the food and sighed inwardly as he took the bread and broke it in half, offering Shota one half while taking the other. He said a little prayer over their food, watching Shota do the contemplative phrases before he took the first bite. Shota did the same, and as soon as he had swallowed the first bite, there was a small light shining in his eyes as he continued to eat with more vigour. Ohno couldn’t help the smile on his lips as he saw the boy finally eat to his heart’s content. His eyes were a golden yellow, and it was a bit unnerving at how bright they shone to Ohno, but it seemed as if Shota belonged to his folk, he thought as he watched him eat with those mannerisms that they were taught when small. “How old are you?”“I am seven now. My family taught me how to count.”“That’s great. Where is your family now, Shota?”The face of the boy fell for a moment, and Ohno swore at himself. He didn’t want Shota to close up again, but at the same time, it was things that he needed to know. “They don’t grace this world anymore,” the boy said in the end in a small voice as he finished his food and murmured his thanks once again. He then met Ohno’s eyes and held out the book. His face was serious once again, and he held himself a little bit straighter, and Ohno wondered once more how someone so young could look so old at the same time. Maybe that boy wasn’t as young as he believed he was, but he wasn’t so sure. There were secrets in this world that nobody knew of yet. “I shall hand this book over to the king of the lands when he comes to seek for answers to questions too dark to be told. He shall learn about the shame and secrets that lie in his family’s past buried in the dark and long forgotten.”Ohno blinked but held out his hands to receive the book without any arguments. Shotawrinkled his brows as he tried to remember the rest of the words he had been told. But nothing was forthcoming.“Thank you, Shota. You did as you were told.”Satoshi looked down at the book, thinking about opening it now or waiting until he was at home. He sighed and put his fingertips on top of it. He was curious about what it contained and what it had to do with his family, but he could hear the others coming back, probably having found nothing and decided to read it later. For now, he needed to make sure they all would head back for home, perhaps with a little boy in tow. A boy that would rise whispers as to where he came from, and Ohno would have to make sure he was safe with him and not hunted down for the bad things that had graced their lands. He knew there would be accusations from the party he rode with, but he was sure that whatever had befallen their country it was not the work of that boy in front of him, whose eyes laid on the book for a fraction longer as he bit his lips.The boy looked back from the mountains he had clearly come from and then at Ohno once again. “May I come with you? I don’t like to be alone. Nobody told me what to do when I gave you the book, and now all are gone,” he asked in a tiny, lonely voice that broke something inside of Satoshi. He sighed and cupped his cheek with his hand. “Of course. This is no place for a boy your age.” It was no place for anybody really, but especially not for such a small boy that seemed to have nobody to take care of him. “Your highness, what are your plans for now?” Jun’s voice disturbed his thoughts, and he looked up, surprised to see that Jun and the rest were already back. “How did the border look?”“As it should be,” Jun answered, and he nodded with a sigh. He had thought so. The further they had come, the more he had thought that the secret behind the sickness in the land lied somewhere else. Now with the appearance of the boy and the book in front of him, he was sure of it and hoped that the answers lied between the pages in his hands. “Then we will head back home,” he decided and stood. He held out his hand again for the boy offering a smile as Shota took it and picked him up to put him on the back of his horse, climbing up behind him and with a movement of his fingers the rest of their food was packed up and put back into place. “Have you ever ridden a horse, Shota?”“No,” Shota shook his head, his fingers tight in the mane of the horse and Ohno chuckled softly. “Then this is going to be an adventure. Hold on tight they will carry us swiftly over the land, especially since they know we are going home.”
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“Nino?”“Yes, what is it, Masaki?” Nino asked the boy as he came to a stand beside him. He was moving nervously, and Nino smiled as he put his pen down. “Am I disturbing you? Nii-chan said not to disturb you,” he whispered, his voice trembling as he talked about his brother. Nino rolled his eyes slightly, deciding to hit Ohno the next time he saw him because of those words. Masaki had always been shy around him whenever he saw him doing something, or Nino came home late. Yes, Nino couldn’t hide that it was easier to be on his own and be immersed in his work without a boy around that wanted attention or a dog that took up too much space in his home. And yes, he was tired when he came home and would prefer just to sleep than going out with Masaki, but that was entirely on him not on the boy who was lonely and just wanted to spend time with someone. So he plastered a smile on his face and opened his arms for him to come and snuggle with him. “Never, Masaki. I will make time for you, and if you would, I would tell you to wait for a moment until I finish a task,” he promised and rocked him from side to side. “What is it? Do you want something?”“I miss Nii-chan,” he whispered and hid his face against his chest. He sniffled slightly, and Nino’s face fell somewhat. He missed Ohno as well, so he could understand the sentiment, and he knew that it was worse for Masaki since he had never been without his big brother for so long. And that didn’t take into account that Masaki was scared about something happening to Ohno. Nino was sure that Ohno would be able to protect himself and he had many people around him that protected Ohno first and foremost. But words didn’t help in that regard, and he understood. “I miss him too,” he whispered and rubbed the small of his back. “And that’s okay.”“Nii-chan said I should be a big boy. And he promised to come back. He always does as he promises.”“And he will come soon, I’m sure, ne?”“But sensei didn’t say that he was back just yet.”“I’m sure that Satoshi would surprise you to see the shock and happiness on your face.”“You sure?”“I’m very sure. It’s what I would do after all,” he chuckled. Masaki was still crying slightly, but he nodded with a small hopeful smile. That would be nice if his brother were already on the way to them. It had been so long already after all. “What are you doing, Nino?”“Just boring stuff. It’s not important,” Nino said as he put a paper in between the pages he had read and closed the book. “So what do you want to do?”“Can we cook together again tonight?”“Of course. You like cooking, ne?”Masaki nodded with a small giggle. “It’s fun,” he said. “Trying out different things is fun.”Nino chuckled at his words. “As long as you are careful. But if you want to cook some dinner we maybe should go out and go grocery shopping, how does that sound?”“Can I get chocolates?”Nino smirked and tickled his stomach. “I might be persuaded if you listen to me and be a good boy. Pukki needs to stay behind, though. We can’t take him to the shops.”Masaki nodded with a pout. “But if he changes we can take him?”“Yes, of course,” he whispered and groaned as he stood. He felt slightly lightheaded and sighed softly. He really should take a step back at work or do at least less when he is home for that. It was getting tiring, and he knew that if it continued, he probably would fall ill. That would not be helpful for Masaki, though. “Are you okay, Nino?”“Yes, I think I should skip the late-night gaming tonight and go to bed earlier though. I’m a bit sleepy.”“I will take care of you! Like Nii-chan does for me when I’m ill.”Nino giggled and then got serious again. “I look forward to it. But for now, we shall go and buy groceries. Do you have any wishes for dinner?”Masaki shook his head and looked at him with big eyes. “Nino always chooses the best food.”Nino smiled and ruffled his hair before he made sure that Masaki was wearing his coat correctly and led him outside to buy the ingredients. — Nino winced slightly as Masaki patted the blanket down that he had put over Nino and made sure that it was fully covering the man. He smiled when Masaki checked on him to show that everything was okay. Masaki looked happy with that and then climbed over Nino to his side of the bed, accidentally kneeing Nino in the stomach as he went. Nino bit his lips as to not grunt in pain and then moved slightly as Masaki got comfortable beside him. “Are you comfortable?” he asked the boy when Masaki pulled the blanket over him with a bit of difficulty and placed his head on top of the stuffed toy that was Pukki right now.“Yes, Nino,” he said happily. “Are you comfortable?”“Very, thank you. You took great care of me,” he praised the boy, who giggled and then looked at him with a bright smile. He had helped all the time during the preparation of their dinner - Nino had only been allowed to do the cooking since Nino forbid him to use the oven on his own. Then he had cleaned everything up again and put the cleaned and dried dishes away. Nino had to sit on the sofa during that time, bundled up with a blanket and tea in his hands which Masaki had only allowed him to prepare himself because he was a bit scared of the hot water. It had been adorable, and Nino hadn’t been able to stop giggling or smiling with the charming sight. After doing the dishes, Masaki had snuggled up beside him under the blanket his favourite fairy tale book in his hands as he tried hard to read for him the stories inside. Nino knew that most of the story had not been written down as Masaki had told him the story as he remembered from earlier sessions of Nino reading to him and mixed it with stories from his home. It had been very heartwarming, and for once Nino was very glad not to be all alone during the night. But then again, Masaki was good at healing the minds of people around him, without even realising it.“That’s good. Then goodnight Masaki.”“Goodnight Nino. Sleep well, and get well soon, ne?”“I already feel much better. I’ll be great in the morning. Don’t worry too much, okay?”“Uhn…” Masaki stayed silence for a while and then he robbed a bit closer to Nino, taking his hand in his own. “Thank you.”“What for Masaki?” Nino asked, surprised at the words. “You never tell me to stop worrying or not to worry. Sensei, Jun-san and Nii-chan do that.”“I try not to because I know that people can’t help worrying. It would be unfair to tell someone not to worry because it’s hard. And unfair to tell someone not to worry or not to be sad. All I can ask of them is not to overdo it, right?”Masaki was silent for a long while and then smiled. “Right. Nino is brilliant.”Nino chuckled and rubbed his cheek. “Not that smart. It’s just how I feel.”“And thank you for letting me help.”“Mhm… It’s always good to be able to do something, right? It makes things less scary.”“Yes, I know I’m just a small boy, but I don’t like staying behind all the time and not do anything.”“You should tell Satoshi more often then, Masaki. Satoshi just wants to protect you and give you the best childhood. He might overdo it sometimes because you are his baby brother and he knows you didn’t have the best start into life without your mother.”“Nii-chan is the best.”“He is,” Nino agreed with a smile. “And if you tell him you don’t like something, it doesn’t mean that you don’t like him.”“He might think so.”“No, he won’t. He might be confused at the start, but he will understand. It’s normal for you to want to grow up. And it’s always hard to let the other go as the adult. But in the end, it will be all worth it.”“I don’t think I understand that,” Masaki whispered, blushing slightly. Nino chuckled and bopped his nose. “You don’t have to, not yet. You will when the right time will come. For tonight I think we should sleep.”“Uhn… Nino needs rest,” Masaki whispered, sleep already claiming his voice. Nino squeezed the small hand in his own and closed his eyes. Rest sounded heavenly right now to him. He listened to Masaki as his breathing slowed down and evened out, rubbing the back of his hand as he finally realised that Masaki was deep asleep. He sighed and closed his eyes to fall to sleep as well, just seconds later. He felt exhausted, and the dreams visiting him that night were not the most relaxing ones.—The next morning Nino was woken up by loud barking and yelling and crying, and he sat up in shock as he tried to reach for Masaki. The only thing in his mind was protecting the boy from whatever. He blinked though when suddenly he felt warm hands on his cheeks and his eyes focused on the tanned face of his lover. He held his hands on top of his cheeks, feeling tears in his eyes as Ohno pressed his forehead against his with a small sigh. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered.“What…?”Ohno drew back and watched him almost fearfully, leaving Nino in confusion as the other pressed a kiss to his temple and stepped back. “What is going on?”Satoshi shook his head. “I’m not sure, yet. But I will find out.”
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Ohno motioned for Jun to help him down from the horse as he realised that Shota had fallen asleep against him. The boy had been very excited for most of the ride. Ohno knew that the boy also had cried slightly as they left the mountains behind, but he had tried his best to hide it from Ohno and the other people with him so Ohno had decided not to mention it, even if he would need to make sure later on, that he was well taken care of. After he hopefully knew what was going on and how it came that such a little boy was all alone. It laid now in his duty to make sure he was taken care of. After they had left the mountains behind and Shota had seemingly forgotten about his sadness and instead was enthralled with all the villages they came across and all the things he had never seen before. The travel back was luckily fast and swift, as their horses wanted to be home just as much as them and neither he nor the other soldiers had a problem with using their magic to even quicken up the pace without tiring the horses up to much. Jun came over after he had made sure that their horses were taken care off and Ohno grimaced as he slipped from the horse with Shota in his arms. “Make sure that the horses rest as well as the people coming with us. Then I want the servants to bring robes that would fit the boy. And the bath prepared for him as well, as a meal to my chambers.”“Will you keep him with you?”“Yes, for the moment. He talked only to me so far, and it seemed that he wanted to talk with the king, which is me right now, and I don’t want to scare him away with strangers when he wakes up. So could you ask the others for me?”“Of course, my king.”Ohno snorted slightly as he moved he boy in his arms so that the little weight was more comfortable in his arms and he nodded to the others, before walking swiftly to the entry of the castle and to his chambers to lie the boy down on the bed.He could sleep a bit longer until everything was ready for him, and then he would wake Shota for the bath and food before he would allow him to sleep during the night. Ohno frowned down at the book that he had been entrusted with and with a sigh settled down on his study desk to study it. He was surprised to see that it contained letters instead of historical events and for a second more, he hesitated. But Shota had been so sure that this held all the secrets he needed to help his world, so he needed to read it now. —
My beloved,
It saddens me deeply to have brought so much distress to this, our beloved country.
I know you are angry at your fiance for banning me from your home and then even from this world. It was hard at the start to find my way in that alien world. I did, and I fell in love.
It might pain you, my beloved, but I thought that I would spend the rest of my life there. I won’t speak to you about my lover because I don’t want to hurt you that way.
My gratitude to you, my beloved, though. You managed to stand up against your promised one and I know in which danger you were when you freed me from the tower. I promise you that I won’t leave. I don’t want to bring disaster to our country.
Yours
XXX
My beloved,
Thank you for your visit. To be allowed to see your face again… I can’t tell you how much that meant to me.
But I need you not to revisit me. It is not safe for you, especially now that you await your first child. It is not fair to your family.
Thank you for agreeing to gift a book of our history to the family I had to leave behind. I never wanted to burden you with that knowledge.
Yours forever
XXX
Today is a dark day. A star has fallen.
There are no words to describe how I feel adequately. Tonight the world has lost a special fae.
I wished I could be with you at your side in these dark hours. But I am secure in the knowledge that you were surrounded by the people who loved you deeply.
I feel for your children who lost their beloved mother way too early. I feel as if I lost you too early, and I had so many more years together with you.
I send my best wishes to your beloved family.
XXX
I am so sorry, my beloved. I don’t know how long I’ll be able to hold on my life.
I am so deeply saddened, and even if I was gifted another family here, I feel inadequate to them. I never seem to be able to let go of my feelings for them. My heart yearns to meet them again. But as it is, I am bound by my promise to you and can only pray for them to be healthy and happy with their life. I never wish for them to be captured and enslaved as I would have been if not for your help.
I fear for this world though, my beloved. My children… They carry not the same power in them as I do. I fear that I am at fault, I try my best to hold on for as long as I can. Maybe their child…
My beloved, please bless us all.
—
Ohno winced when there was a soft whimper coming from the bed. He put the book away and got to his feet. “Shota, it’s okay, you are safe. Do you remember what happened?” Ohno asked as he knelt in front of the bed. He smiled at the boy warmly when his eyes opened, and he looked at him in confusion. “The king,” he whispered. “You found me.”“You found us. You are such a brave little boy Shota.”“The book?!” he cried out, sitting up and Satoshi put his hands on his shoulders. “I have the book. You safely gave it to me,” he said calmly. “I started to read it because you told me it’s important and I need to know what is happening to this world.”Shota stared silently at his fingers, and Ohno followed his look, wincing slightly as he realised the dirt crusted in his nails. He clapped his hands and smiled brightly down at the boy when he looked up with wide eyes. “But I can study it more later, ne? For now, we should make sure that you are more comfortable. And don’t forget to call me Satoshi, promise?”“But you are the king?”“I am, but since you are such a brave little boy, you should call me Satoshi.”Shota smiled brightly at the words and nodded. “So Shota, do you want to take a bath? The travel has been very tiring, ne?”“The horses were fast and cute!” Shota said with a grin. “Oh, I didn’t say thank you.”“They understand, I’m sure. You fell asleep after all. But we can thank them later. For now, they need to sleep.”Shota pursed his lips, but then he nodded in agreement. Ohno chuckled and ruffled his hair. “I asked the servants to prepare you a bath and new clothes. How does that sound?”“Will you come too?”“Of course, I will look after you,” Ohno promised. He picked the boy up who leant against him trustingly and carried him out of his chambers to the bath. “Check if it’s too hot for you.”Shota frowned at him and then put his hand in the water with a frown. “It’s fine. Nicely warm,” he said with a grin. “Normally we only have cold water.”“Oh, that doesn’t sound comforting,” Ohno agreed and put him on the floor to help him to take off his clothes and then in the warm water. Shota giggled and moved his fingers in the warm water. “That is nicer,” he explained. “Then, I’m glad. Shota? Who does the book you gave me belong to?”“My Momma. She said it’s our treasure and we have to protect it. Mother and father told me the same.”“I see,” he murmured. “Turn around, and I’ll wash your hair. Close your eyes, ne?”“Uhn,” Shota mumbled. “Do you think mother and father will be proud?”“Proud of you?”Shota nodded as he stared into the water. “Of course. The proudest. They have raised such a perfect little boy.”“Even if I’m not enough?”“You are more than enough.”“Momma said… Momma said that she is sorry, we can’t help.”“But that doesn’t mean you are bad,” Satoshi said. “You will always be enough, because you are just who you are and that is always all you need to be, no more no less. I’m sure your Momma would never want you to be different. And your parents neither.”“I miss them,” he whispered, his shoulders shaking as silent tears ran over his cheeks. Ohno smiled sadly as he looked at the shaking shoulders and carefully washed the boy down. “Your family is happy for sure that you are healthy and safe now. And I promise to you, Shota, that you are safe now here forever.”Shota cried louder now and turned around to hide his face against Ohno’s shoulder. Ohno rocked him from side to side and closed his eyes. He hoped he could keep his promises to the boy. It took a while until Shota calmed down and he rubbed his cheeks. “Come on now. Out of the water before it gets cold and then you can try out the new robes. They might still be a bit too big or small, but I promise that they are clean and warm.”Shota nodded mutely as he allowed Ohno to dry him off and wore his new clothes. They were slightly too long, and Ohno had to bite his lips as to not laugh at the cute sight as the sleeves hid his fingers. “Well, we will need to adjust them.”“I like them like that,” Shota said shyly, and Ohno chuckled. “That’s even better then. Now we should fill your stomach, and then you can try to go back to sleep, and I read the last of the book?”“Momma… Momma said that her heir is now in this world and it’s safe and that she can finally leave this world.”“Is that so? Do you know what your Momma meant with those words?”Shota frowned as he walked beside Ohno and almost fell as he was so concentrated. Ohno smiled as he picked him up once more so that he wouldn’t hurt himself. “Momma said… Something… Uhn… Momma could always make wounds go away. Momma said that there needs to be balanced and that healing means not only people. Momma says the Earth falls ill if she leaves without another… I don’t know for sure.”Ohno hummed as he frowned slightly trying to keep up with the explanation, but it was hard. “Oh I see, and your momma said that the heir is now here?”“Uhn… Then she died, she looked very relieved and happy and then she vanished to the stars. Mother and father were sad but also happy? I cried.”“I would have cried as well if my momma died,” Ohno said, smiling when Shota did in relief to his assurance. “Do you remember when it happened?”“A few months ago,” Shota said with a frown. “But I don’t know how much. I didn’t count the days.”“That’s fine. So this… You know the dying of the animals and harvest did it happen right away?”Shota shook his head in answer. “First it was fine, but then mother and father got worried. It was dark more often and colder than it should be, they said. They whispered when they thought I was asleep. They read the book of Momma and were scared. We couldn’t go back to the village. They were not nice anymore to us.”“Oh, that sounds scary and awful, Shota.”“Mother and father just whispered about it. I was not allowed in the village. But they hurt father and mother was sad and then… Nobody came back, but I hid because they told me so.”“That is good, Shota.”“Uhn Momma said horses would come with the king if it goes bad and I shall talk to the king. He will help. Because the king is like his mother.”“My mother?”Shota nodded with bright eyes. “Momma was sure the king brought the heir to this world and would redeem the things that the old ones did wrong.”Ohno cleared his throat at the word and the trustful look of Shota. “I don’t know yet, what happened, but Shota if there is anything I can do to make it all good again, I will. I can promise you and your family that, alright?”“I know. But since everything went bad, does it mean the king has banned the heir?”“I banned nobody.”“But… Only the king has the key to travel through worlds. Momma said so! Because the very important person had it and would give it to him. And Momma said that the heir was there and only if he leaves this world it will go bad. It happened when she was told to leave. Momma wouldn’t lie!”Ohno slowed down his steps as he stared at the boy in his arms. “Shota? Did your Momma ever tell you where she went? I read that she had a family there?”“Uhn, Momma had another daughter in the other world. Momma said they were like us but without magic.”Ohno nodded slowly, almost coming to a stumbling halt but forcing his feet to move and carry him to his chambers. “Do you know about the other family?”“Only a bit. Momma always cried. She said her daughter died giving birth. Her very important person would visit them sometimes to look over them and give them things from our world. Momma says she thinks they have her magic and she was sorry that it wasn’t us. But I never minded. Or almost never. When Momma cried, I was sad that I wasn’t like she wanted.”“I’m sure she loved you,” Ohno repeated, wanting to make sure that Shota wouldn’t think he was not good enough in any way.“And what happened to the child? Did it die as well?”“No, but the very important person couldn’t come anymore. She fell very ill, Momma said. So travelling between worlds was hard.”“Yes, it costs a lot of energy,” Ohno mumbled. “So you travelled through the worlds? Did you meet him? You must have it! After all, Momma said he came here. May I meet him? I can tell him of Momma!”Ohno very slowly nodded and felt his knees weaken as he thought of the only person he knew of that came here and now left again weeks ago. There was only one man that fell through the worlds and, he thought, as he looked into the eerily familiar gold-brown eyes that looked at him so hopeful and pleadingly, it just made sense. “You may,” Ohno whispered and smiled softly. “Hold on tight. We shall take dinner later.”Shota pursed his lips but nodded as he tightened his grip around his neck. Ohno concentrated on the key in possession of Nino to appear in his flat. His appearance woke Pukki who sprang to his feet and barked at the newcomers, which in turn made Shota cry and Masaki wake up. Ohno hugged his little brother for a second after letting Shota go. The boys looked confusedly at each other, but Ohno didn’t pay much attention to it. His eyes on Nino, who as soon as he woke up, stared around in confusion. He stepped closer to hold his face in his hands and pressed his forehead against Nino’s feeling tears building up in his eyes at the thought of his family having a hand in how unfair life had treated his lover so far. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered, voice thick with emotion. He didn’t know just yet what this all meant and how he could make things right. But he would find a way without hurting this family again so much as his ancestors seemed to have done. A/N: This went out of hand, sorry. It’s not exactly what I had in mind last chapter… and it’s probably super confusing, but it’s confusing for us all (me and the characters included) I hope you still enjoyed this chapter.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Nino hugged Ohno around the neck. For now, he was not caring about the chaos around them as he hugged him tighter and drew him in even more. His lips soon found Ohno’s mouth in a hot searing kiss. He had missed the other so much. It took a moment until he managed to draw back and look at the other again. His eyes drinking in Ohno’s face and the loving, if the pained look in his eyes. He then blinked when Masaki appeared beside Ohno, tugging at his arm an even smaller child following behind. “You brought another child,” he mumbled in confusion. His brows drew close to each other as he stared at Masaki and at the boy beside who was now clinging to Ohno’s tunic and hide halfway behind Ohno in fear. “He’s not mine,” Ohno said as if that was important and Nino supposed it would be if the boy were younger. But as it was Nino hadn’t even known Ohno closely around the time the boy had been born, so it had nothing to do with them. “I wasn’t implying that,” Nino said, forcing a smile on his face. “I’m just confused.”Ohno smiled down at the boys and ruffled Masaki’s hair. “Who is that?” Masaki asked, and Ohno rolled his eyes. “I thought you would have asked.”“He doesn’t answer!” Masaki whined, and the boy flinched as he pressed against Ohno’s legs. Ohno swayed slightly at the pressure and Nino giggled as he forced the residue of sleepiness away. He rubbed his face and stroke his hair to the side as he sat up further. “Masaki, tell Pukki to calm down, or I will lose my flat. Then go to the bathroom and wash up,” he asked the boy. Masaki pouted and looked at his brother, who lifted his eyebrow and then nodded as he called Pukki over who finally stopped barking and growling. He then wandered off to the bathroom to get ready for the day, and Nino sighed. “I just have one question,” Nino started. “What is it?” Ohno asked, clearly amused at his behaviour. He looked at Shota and tried to make him come to the front, but the boy grabbed the tunic even tighter. “Are you okay? Did a war happen? Is a war happening?”“I’m not hurt, maybe a bit tired and emotionally drained, but I’m fine. No war, luckily, but it’s not yet safe. Not really, and I am at a loss of what to do exactly.”Nino pursed his lips and nodded as he stood and went to the kitchen aisle to prepare tea for Masaki and some breakfast. “Do you want to eat as well?”“We were supposed to take in dinner, before coming here,” Ohno agreed with a small blush and Nino giggled. “Oh God, true you have to be so tired, little one,” he said as he peeked around Ohno to look at the boy. “I can offer you some breakfast, a full dinner would take too much time, and I am still not awake enough for making sure not to hurt myself.”“Breakfast is good,” Ohno said and grinned victoriously as he finally managed to pull Shota to the front and pick him up. “Shota, meet Ninomiya Kazunari. Kazu meet Shota.”“Hello Shota,” Nino said with a smile as he busied himself to prepare the dishes. He looked at Ohno with a frown. “Can you change the sofa for me? Otherwise, we have to stand while eating, which would be uncomfortable.”“Of course,” Ohno said with a chuckle. He told Shota to hold on tight as he changed the sofa with just a bit of a struggle, while Nino busied himself with the food - deciding to take more time to cook a Japanese breakfast. Masaki could eat the cereals he had come to enjoy while being with him if he wanted or have the full meal like the rest of them. He brewed coffee for himself and tea for Masaki and Ohno, staring at the boy who was peeking at him from behind Ohno’s shoulder shyly. He didn’t know what happened that made Ohno bring a kid, but the boy looked lost and lonely, and it hurt his heart to see a child his age like that. He sighed and shook his head slightly as he turned to the stove to make a hot chocolate. A little bit of warm chocolate milk had never hurt anybody. And for him, it had always calmed him down and seemed as if the world was not as bad and dark as it appeared.Many questions were running through his head, but he wouldn’t be able to ask them for as long as two children were with them and he knew Ohno would think similar. “Nino! I’m finished,” Masaki said happily as he skipped inside. Nino chuckled and ruffled his still-wet hair. “Very good. So now you go and set the table for four persons, and I’ll go to the bathroom,” he said. Masaki nodded, and Ohno watched in amusement as his little brother knew exactly where to get the things he needed and managed to set the little table Nino owned. It was almost too small for all of the stuff, but somehow Masaki managed and sat proudly beside his brother as he was done.“I can see that you are a big help for Kazu, huh?” “Uhn, Nino showed me how to help,” Masaki giggled. “And he always makes sure I do the boring assignments I got from Sensei.”“That’s good then. I’m happy to see you healthy and in good spirits, Masaki,” he said and kissed his forehead. “I’m sorry that I didn’t greet you, probably.”Masaki nodded and then stood as Ohno put Shota down for a second after whispering to him for a second to make him let go. Ohno stood as well and moved Masaki back a step to watch him closely to make sure he was okay. He had been so overwhelmed with seeing Nino and realising what the book might mean. But now he needed to make sure that Masaki was alright. He smiled as he traced two of his fingers across his forehead and finally greeted him altogether. Masaki was a bit clumsily as he did the same, but his enthusiasm was always refreshing. Nino came back after a few more moments and Masaki followed him to help him bring the food to the living room. They had to put most of the bowls on the floor, but that was okay. Nino put the mug of hot chocolate in front of Shota with a small smile. “That’s just for you, Shota,” he explained. “Oh, Nino’s special chocolate?! I want to have it too,” Masaki whined, and Nino frowned. “You have your tea for the morning,” Nino said with a chuckle. “No sugary drinks in the morning,” he reminded him. Aiba pouted but then agreed with a sigh as he plopped down on his seat. Ohno chuckled and ruffled his hair. “Eat your breakfast, Masaki.”“Will we go home today, nii-chan?”“Maybe, I don’t know yet,” Ohno said with a sigh. “Eat your breakfast first, please. Then we can talk about what happened back at home.”“Okay,” Masaki said a bit unhappily, and Nino rolled his eyes. “Satoshi is right,” he reminded him. Masaki nodded, and Nino smiled as he watched Shota, who was pressed close against Ohno, watching them all. He motioned for Ohno to do something about him and the other blinked a bit confused until his eyes fell on Shota who was staring at the hot chocolate and food. “Shota,” he mumbled, getting his attention slowly. Shota looked up with wide eyes, and he ruffled his hair. “Drink the hot chocolate. It’s delicious.”“But if the king’s brother wants it,” he said in a tiny voice. Masaki perked up at the prospect of hot chocolate, but Ohno put a hand on his knee. Masaki blinked and looked at the boy in confusion, for the first time, seeing that he was scared and insecure and he felt sorry for being so loud and bratty. “You can drink it,” he said with a brilliant smile. “If Nino made it for you, it’s for you and no for me.”“He is right,” Ohno said. “It’s fine, Masaki would not be mad.”“Uhn…” Shota mumbled and took the drink finally in between his hands. He sniffed at it in curiosity before taking the first sip. His eyes lightened up at the taste, and he licked his lips.“Do you like it?” Masaki asked excitedly, and Shota nodded shyly. “It’s the best. I told you so. Drink it before it goes all cold,” he advised.“It’s fine. Take your time it won’t go cold,” Ohno promised with a wink and Shota smiled. He still leant against Ohno, but at least he didn’t look spooked anymore as he finished his drink slowly and then took the plate that Ohno had prepared for him to eat. When he was all fed, he carefully got to his knees and tugged at Ohno’s arm to get his attention.“Is that the one momma wrote about?” he asked curiously. Ohno’s eyes wandered to Nino, who looked at them in confusion as he cleaned away the finished dishes slowly. “It might be. But I don’t know yet. But it is my very important person.”“Did he visit us?”“Yes,” Ohno breathed and stared at Nino who looked back, his eyes glowing in the dark brown, golden colour that was just slightly darker than Shota’s but still very similar. Ohno looked from one to the other as Shota pursed his lips as he stared at Nino and realised that their mouths were the same, especially like that. The resemblance was almost scary. He then looked at Shota who looked as if he wanted to jump up and storm to Nino, but Ohno didn’t want to scare Nino just like that, and he didn’t know what to do. He needed to think it through. Nino had a life here that he couldn’t take away just because his world was dying. But at the same time, he couldn’t hide that and tell Nino it was fine. “But I will talk to Nino first,” he explained. Shota pouted but nodded as Ohno put him to the floor. “Why don’t you two play together and I’ll help Kazu?”“I’m sleepy,” Shota mumbled with a small blush on his face.Masaki giggled and climbed on the sofa, patting the cushions beside him to lure Shota close. Shota stared at the boy but then decided if his parents told him to trust the king it was fine to trust the king’s brother and very important person. So he stood and went over. Masaki put the blanket over him and allowed him to lie with his head on his lap. “I can tell you a story,” Masaki said, pulling out the leather book that Nino read from to him almost every evening. He had come to love these fairy tales that always transported him back home.Shota listened to the stories and closed his eyes with a sigh. He gripped the blanket tightly in his hands. “They are like the stories momma told us,” he whispered, and Masaki looked down in confusion at him. “They are a lot like our history stories ne? But not fully,” he said with pursed lips. Shota nodded with a small yawn but then shrugged. “They are my momma’s stories,” he repeated. “I don’t know about history. Will you read more?”“Uhn,” Masaki said in confusion as he looked down at the book and started to read another story until the boy fell to sleep. —“What are you talking about?” Nino asked with a hiss, almost feeling hysterical as he stared at Ohno, his eyes wandering over his shoulder to the boys who were still on the sofa. “It seems like you are not from here.”“I was born here.”Ohno nodded and nibbled on his lips. “The boy… Shota, he brought a book from his grandmother? I didn’t get it fully, sorry. But it’s written that she was banned here and had a daughter and that daughter had a son.”“And that is supposed to be me?” Nino snorted. He rubbed his face and groaned for a second. “That can’t be. I’m a normal human. No magic powers whatsoever.”“That’s not true. You appeared in my world.”“Yes, because you hoped I would. It’s your magic. Probably linked to the ring you gave me,” Nino said, pointing at the ring around his neck as he couldn’t wear it on his fingers during work hours. Ohno sighed and pulled the necklaces out. His thumb rubbed over the medallion with the key that shined brighter than ever in his mind and then wandered to the ring. It was still glowing slightly yellowish, and Ohno knew after all those weeks without him renewing the energy it was not supposed to. It was not supposed to glow yellow to start with. He just never had paid it any mind. “It reacts to you, Kazu.”“It can’t be. I can’t do anything.”“You healed Masaki.”“I did not. I did a medical procedure on him, and that helped him. His body did the healing. Or you.”“I can heal, yes, but only small things. Your cuts and bruises when we met. Not anything else.”“But… Then your bodies. You told me your bodies helped you heal faster.”“They do. But Masaki’s body worked against him. It was you. When he had the fever and all it was gone hours after you arrived.”“That’s stupid. You are grasping for straws here, Satoshi.”“Maybe,” Ohno allowed. “But, truth is: My world is dying. The book says that it needs the heir of that boy’s momma to heal. Shota told me she died when she felt him being there. You are the only person that came and left.”“I can’t… Satoshi… I…” Nino whispered and shook his head as he buried his face in his hands. “It’s too much. I need time to process this.”Ohno bit his lips but nodded. Time was something they didn’t have, but… How could he force Nino to come with him? That would make him no better than the persons that had brought such bad luck on them. “I can do that. I will bring you the book. Will you read it, if I did?”Nino nibbled on his lips but nodded. “I can do that. But I want to be alone.”Ohno flinched slightly but nodded. “Of course, I will take them with me and give you the book.”“And don’t come to visit if I don’t ask for it.”“That will be hard.”“Yes.”“But if it is your wish?”“It is Satoshi. I need time to think it through alone. It’s too much for me. You, Masaki, Shota, Pukki your world, I can’t deal with it all around me right now.”Ohno sighed but nodded. “Okay. Okay, I trust you.”“Thank you.”Ohno nodded, and Nino pulled off the key to put it in Ohno’s hands. He didn’t need it, but he understood that it was easier for Ohno to move them all with it. Ohno kissed him again, and Nino forced a smile on his face as they went to the living room. “Masaki, it’s time to go home,” Ohno mumbled and picked the sleeping Shota up. “Will Nino come?”“Nino has work,” Ohno chuckled. “You know he lives here.”“Uhn,” Masaki said and went over to hug Nino. “Can we visit?”“I’ll tell Satoshi when I’m free, but I’ll be busy for a while,” Nino said as he stroke his cheek. “I need to study for my exams. I neglected it a bit while looking after you.”“Oh…”Nino nodded and grinned. “But it’s fine. Listen to your brother and study hard.”“Yup, will do…” Masaki stared at him for a while, moving around nervously. “What is it?”“May I take the storybook? Shota likes the stories, and I can read them all to him then.”Nino frowned but nodded. “If you take good care of the book, you may.”“Yay, thank you!” he cheered and hugged him close again. Nino chuckled and pressed a kiss to Ohno’s cheek. “Let’s not be strangers when we meet again,” he whispered in his ear and Ohno nodded in relief. “Yes,” he agreed and laid an arm around Masaki’s shoulder as he finally left Nino alone. Nino sighed when soon after the promised book appeared on his desk and he fell to the sofa, staring at the ceiling. It could not be true.
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Nino stared a bit blankly at the family tree at the end of the book. His head was swimming from all the information he had read earlier, and his heart hurt for the unknown woman and how bad her life had been because of that old king. It was still confusing to him since he didn’t understand fully where he stood and who was who in those books. It was clearly written as a diary with extra information for whoever found it. Maybe more likely even letters to the precious person the woman mentioned that were never sent. He understood a bit better because of the fairytale book he had since he was a child. Those stories together with these letters filled in gaps that he never really understood and he had a relatively good imagination about who the person writing these letters was.He still couldn’t believe how she belonged to the same family like him, and he didn’t understand how he could in the least be related with anybody from Ohno’s world and how he ended up here. For once in his life, he wished he was able to look for the people he lived with before he ended up in the orphanage. Maybe they would be able to fill in the few gaps left, but even the thought of looking for them made his skin crawl. There was no way in hell he was going to do that. He groaned as he buried his head in his hands and tried to breathe through the memories coming back to him. He worked hard to shove them somewhere else, and all these stories just made him remember his damned childhood. He hated it so much. He felt a sharp pain in the small of his back and jumped to his feet to walk through his flat. He knew the problem was only psychosomatic. There was nothing left of the old injury, and he had done nothing to aggravate the pain this time around. Ever since Masaki had been there, his mind had been full of taking care of the boy, and he had taken long walks with him and Pukki and spend little time bent over his games or his desk studying, so he knew it was nothing like that. Yes, he still worked, after all, he wanted to finish his degree, but he had made sure to go home on time and not take any extra hours because he had a child at home, which all people understood then. His eyes fell to the family tree again, tracing the names there. On one branch right at the bottom was Shota’s name written on the other side, his name was written, and he wondered how the woman would be able to know his name. He would believe it was just a trick on him, but above of his name were the names of his birth mother. The one name Nino only knew because of official birth documents since he had never been lucky enough to get to know her and he felt a little bit choked up at the care of how the letters were written. How much care there was in the Kanji that made up his and his mother’s name, and it was strange to feel so loved just by seeing that. It was nice to know his mother had been loved, though. He sighed and pinched the base of his nose as he felt a headache coming in. At least his back didn’t hurt anymore, he thought sarcastically as he shook out his fingers. He felt strange, and he just wanted to get out right now, so with another last look onto the book, he left his home.Nino found himself in the park soon after, breathing in the crisp air and looked at the dark sky. He knew he should be preferably at home, trying to sleep or read a bit more, maybe to prepare for work tomorrow but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to rest. He felt antsy as it was and walking the extra energy off helped actually. In the end, he fell to a bench, stretching out his legs in front of him as he stared into the sky just a little bit longer, before his eyes wandered to the ring that Ohno had given him all that time ago. Nino smiled softly as he stroke the band and stared at the yellow glow it gave soon after. He observed the stone in it, rubbing it with his thumb, wondering if he really could do what that book said he would be able to. What Satoshi told him he could do. And he wondered what to do with the knowledge if it was true at all. Should he just go with it? Should he ignore it? Was it good even to consider never stepping a foot into Ohno’s land again and see all of it die? The knowledge that people died because of him hurt a lot. But they were at fault…Nino sighed as he shook his head. That was not true. The ones at fault were already dead since ages. Not even Ohno’s parents were at fault, but their parents and Nino knew that at least his grandmother loved the world enough to go back and hide somewhere while keeping it safe. Nino didn’t know if she would have the chance to go away again after she was forced back, but the letters didn’t sound as if she was sad for being there. Nino hoped that at least she regretted leaving his mother in this world and then him, but then again… She had to leave her daughter, and it had seemed that she regretted it at least and hoped for them to be happy. Still, it was hard not to hate that world who had first forced an innocent woman into an unknown world not caring about what happened to her and how she would fare just to bring her back when they realised that they were going to die without her. It didn’t sound like they apologised for their mistake but still put her to prison and made her life miserable and what was the crime she committed? She fell in love with the person who was supposed to marry someone else. They stole his chance to grow up in that life. He should hate them, he really should want them all to die and for that world to vanish. But he couldn’t. The thought of putting Ohno and Masaki through that misery hurt even more. If he didn’t know better, he would say that it was all an elaborate plan of Satoshi, but he knew the other had been just as confused and surprised by the news as Nino was right now. —“I told you to stay away,” Nino whispered as he looked up after a while. There was a tiny smile tugging at his lips when Ohno’s sheepish figure stepped out of the shadows. “Spying on me?”“Worrying about you,” Ohno disagreed and stepped slowly closer. He observed him, only relaxing when Nino’s smile got a bit wider, and he held out a hand for him. “I don’t like seeing you lonely and so sad. The boys are safe. So stop looking like you want to scold me. Jun is watching them,” Ohno said as he stepped close to him and sat beside him. His fingers tightly intertwined with Nino’s in his lap. “It’s not your fault. And you can’t help it.”“It feels slightly as if it is at least partly my fault,” Ohno whispered, and Nino sighed as he put his head on Ohno’s shoulder. “I wish I could say the decision is easy,” he whispered.“It’s natural that you are not sure of what to do now. You lived your whole life here. You fought hard to be where you are right now. Taking it all away from you is wrong.”“I should hate you, you know? For doing this to me. If I had never met you, nothing of this would have happened. I still would be sure about what my life was. Miserable for some, maybe, but it’s still mine.”“Yes, I know. I’m sorry.”“Or you should have known earlier. Find me and take me with you before I lived through all that. That would have been okay as well.”“Life’s not fair.”“No,” Nino agreed and closed his eyes. “I should really hate you and your world. Now more than ever.”“You have every right to do so, yes,” Ohno whispered and caressed his fingers. Nino sighed and relaxed his tight grip. “But I can’t. The thought of being the reason that your world is going to be miserable.”“The fault would lie on my ancestors. Nothing to do with you, Kazunari.”“I know,” Nino whispered. “But I also know that somehow or the other my existence would make it back to being better. I swore to become a doctor. I swore to help everybody I can to rescue them. Not to be at fault for them dying.”“And you are a good doctor.”“Am I? Or is it just the power that I don’t understand or even know if I have it.”“You do,” Ohno mumbled and closed his hands over the ring Nino wore. He smiled as it warmed to his touch and reacted to him, showing clearly the feelings Nino had for him. “Even if you don’t understand them, but you can learn more about them if you want. It might be just easier for you to use them in my world, our world since magic, in general, is stronger there.”Nino hummed softly and closed his eyes, feeling much more relaxed since Ohno was here. “Are you crying?”“Maybe,” Nino mumbled and held him closer so that Ohno couldn’t check up on him. “But you are a good doctor. It’s not your magic that knows all your stuff and knows what to do to which injury or illness. You are good at what you are doing, and all your patients can count themselves lucky to have you as their doctor. I know how invested you are in each person.”Nino pressed himself closer to the other and sighed. “You know I would never forgive myself if I let your world die right?”“I know,” Ohno whispered.“But I also can’t just leave all the hard work I did so far behind.”“I also know that. We have to find a compromise. I will never force you to do anything you are not comfortable with. You know that, right?”“I do,” Nino whispered. “I need to sleep before I can think properly.”“Masaki didn’t let you get enough?”“He did. He was the perfect house guest, but today was somehow exhausting.”“That is probably really my fault.”“Probably. How are the boys? I probably was very skittish around Shota.”“Mhm… he’s a confused boy.”“Tell me about how you found him again? And what are your plans for him now? He seems to be my cousin or something like that… I know you did mention something, but it was confusing honestly.”“You’ll probably fall asleep on top of me.”“If so, I trust you to bring me home safely.”“Okay,” Ohno whispered as Nino settled down beside him and he drew him closer as he put his head on top of Nino and explained to him about their travel and what they have seen until they met Shota, even if Nino fell to sleep halfway through his story. But that was okay.
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Nino woke up in the next morning in his bed, and for a moment, he was not sure if he had dreamt about meeting Ohno the night before. He rubbed his eyes, yawning slightly as he rolled onto his back. He breathed softly in and out for a while, collecting his thoughts. There was the sound of his door opening, and he flinched slightly as he sat up. He was not even sure what he expected, but he relaxed when he saw that it was just Ohno. So it had not been a dream yesterday. “Good morning,” Ohno said with a smile as he put down the bag and slipped out of his shoes.“Good morning. Did you bring me home?”“Yup, I carried you home and placed you in bed.”“Have you been naughty?” Nino asked with a chuckle as he realised he was in his sleeping gear and Ohno pouted as he shook his head. “No I used magic,” Ohno said as he came over and nuzzled his cheek with a giggle since his cheek was not smooth as usually since he has not shaved yet. “I didn’t think you would appreciate me touching you while you were completely out of it.”Nino smiled and put his arms around his neck to draw him closer. He kissed him deeply and put his forehead against Ohno’s.“I sneaked a bit of money, though to buy breakfast. I didn’t trust myself to make that coffee you liked, and you didn’t have bread.”“That’s fine,” Nino whispered. “Did you stay the night?”Ohno hummed in agreement and pecked his lips again a few times. “I was worried you would have bad dreams. Like I said. The others watch Masaki and Shota. Shota is nervous, but he trusts Masaki.”“It’s hard not to trust Masaki,” Nino agreed, and Ohno grinned happily at the praise he knew it was. He had raised Masaki very well until now. “Thank you for getting us breakfast. I shall get ready and then eat.”“You have to go to the hospital?”“Yup, making rounds and helping out in surgery. I’m looking forward to it.”“Sounds nice,” Ohno agreed carefully and wrinkled his nose. Nino giggled as he pecked his nose and finally let go to get up and start his day with going to the bathroom to wash up. When he was back, Ohno had poured the coffee he had bought into a regular mug and put their breakfast on plates. The sofa was back to its normal stage so that they could sit down and eat there.“We need to talk,” Nino said, and Ohno hummed in agreement. “We should.”“But not right away?”“Not during breakfast. We eat, you go to work, and I go back to my world to make sure everything is okay there.”“Is it really dying?”Ohno breathed deeply and then nodded mutely. “It is. The place where we found Shota… I’m surprised the boy survived that long. Nothing was alive there. The trees were dead, and there was no cattle or any other animals, Shota was the only living soul there.”“I see,” Nino said and shivered. He had never thought that that could happen. “And you think it will all go back to how it was when I’m there? How?”“I don’t know,” Ohno admitted and hugged him close for a second. “But Shota and his grandmother seem to think so.”“I have no idea what I’m supposed to do when I’m there. I can’t do any magic.”“Not knowingly. I’m sure your magic comes out naturally if there is something or someone you want to heal. It’s not all big gestures and summonings.”“But you are mostly muttering something.”“Because I learnt how to focus my magic. And because it’s much more active than healing.”“There is more that I don’t get,” Nino mumbled.“You can ask me anything.”“Why are healers special? You said your bodies keep you healthy and heal you? And you healed me when we first met.”“I can do small wounds. But I think that your magic might have responded to mine and helped the healing along. And we get ill or hurt sometimes. Masaki got hurt a lot because he is an active child. I can’t explain well because it never interested me,” Ohno said sheepishly. “I can’t believe it,” Nino teased and poked his cheek. He sighed as he finished his coffee and rubbed his face. “I should get ready. Can you come over tonight?”“Earlier than yesterday?” Ohno teased, and Nino smiled before he nodded. “Yes, I would like that. If you are good you are allowed to a sleepover,” Nino said with a wink. “Hug Masaki for me.”“I will. Be careful.”Nino nodded and moved to stroke his forehead with three fingers. “Until then.”—Nino looked up from his books in the evening when Ohno appeared in his room. He rubbed his eyes under the glasses he wore and smiled when Ohnodropped a kiss on top of his head. “Welcome back,” he said. “I’m back,” Ohno said with a grin.“I forgot to cook,” Nino said sheepishly. Ohno shrugged and presented him with a basket. “I brought food,” he declared. “I thought I should do something to thank you for taking care of Masaki. I thought the food was the least I could do. And I knew you needed to study.”“Best fae boyfriend I could ever meet,” Nino grinned and put his books down. He rubbed the small of his back, smiling when Ohno massaged his shoulders for a second. “Food and talk.”“Yes, sir,” Ohno said with a grin and Nino squealed when Ohno moved forward to kiss his lips again. “Awful,” Nino scolded him and put two cushions on the floor in front of the low table where Ohno laid out the feast he got from the kitchen chef at home. Ohno poured them some blueberry and mint-infused water and even if Nino liked to end the evening with a can of beer he knew that tonight they both should probably stay sober and talk. They both ate in silence at the start until their most significant hunger was satisfied. “How are the children?”“Good, we spent the day together, and Masaki gets along well with Shota, which is a relief. Shota is mostly surprised about all the things we have in the castle, and a bit overwhelmed. But he seems okay walking with Masaki or me. I told everybody we met who Shota is and that he will stay with me.”“YOu already adopted him?” Nino asked with a small chuckle as he took a sip of his water.“In a way… I promised him that he is safe and not alone anymore. I’m sorry for not talking about this with you before.”“No, it’s fine. I knew when we got together, that there is Masaki to take care of. One boy more is not making that big of a difference. He is not much younger than Masaki.”“He is not, but he needs more help to adjust.”“Well, I need that time as well.”“Nino…”“No… Hear me out. I thought about it. There is not much that holds me back. I know that everybody who would watch us from the outside would already yell at me to go with you and give it all up. I can’t do that, though. Not just like that. I lived for so many years here in this city. I almost lost my life because of my parents’ doings. I found shelter in an orphanage, and I fought to get the best marks possible, didn’t care about bullies. Then I fought to get into a university, worked to pay the fees and managed to get a good place in a hospital to learn even more. I don’t want to give that up just like that.”“I would never force you.”“I know, and for that I’m thankful. I want to finish my studies. It’s just a year more, and the last exams should be over then. I will do my best to succeed in it.”Ohno nodded and sighed as he leant back against the sofa and nibbled on his lower lips. “I can understand that and would want to support you. I know it’s important for you.”“Yes, I want to see that I can do it.”“Of course you can. You are the best,” Ohno said, and Nino giggled at the earnest look on his face. “But… And here I am talking thinking that Shota and the book are right, okay? I will need you in my world if I don’t want it to die. You were at my home a few moons ago. Not even a full circle of the planets and it’s already dying. I don’t know if it will hold all that time without you there.”“And I don’t want to be the reason that more dies,” Nino said and squeezed his fingers. “I can come and sta over whenever I have free days. And I have holidays. I can travel through worlds. Yes it is a bit exhausting travelling, but my body can deal with it, I’m sure.”“I don’t know. I don’t want you to fall ill.”“I’ll be fine. It’s just a year,” Nino repeated. “And I’m sure that I would be able to stay home if it’s too much one time for my body. I just don’t know if it helps?”“It might be better if you are always in my world, but I’m sure we could muddle through for a while. But what will you do afterwards?”“Move into your world,” Nino said with a sigh. “I would tell the people here that I will move to another city, another hospital. It’s normal, and nobody will ask questions or care.”“But…”Nino frowned and looked at Ohno for a second. “Don’t you want to have me there with you?”“Of course, I do! But you worked so hard to get the certificate to be a doctor and then you can’t work as one.”“I know, it’s stupid to even go through with my studies because of that. But I can’t give it up. And maybe there is something I can do at your place? Or am I not allowed to do?”“Kazu,” Ohno scolded and turned around to take his face in his hands. He rubbed his cheeks as he met the worried look on his face. “You can do whatever you want. I won’t make you a prisoner. If you want to work, we can find something. If you want to lie all day in the sun, you can do that. But if you want to stay with me, I would be happy if you agree to raise the boys with me.”“Of course, I want to stay with you. You wouldn’t get rid of me,” Nino said with a chuckle and kissed him. “And I will help you take care of them. I promise. I don’t know yet what I will do, later on, it’s hard for me to look too far into the future. I want to concentrate on the now.”“That is fine with me. Are you sure about your decisions?”“Yes,” Nino said and snuggled closer. “And stop questioning me. You should just agree to everything or rather kidnap me to safe your world. Not care about my feelings.”“You stupid, stupid man. I will always consider you and your feelings first,” he scolded and pulled him closer to kiss him. “What a considerate and good boyfriend,” Nino mused.“Oh so I was a good boy?”“A very good one,” Nino said with a chuckle, which turned into outright laughter when Ohno smirked. He was soon engulfed in blue light, smiling when he felt his ring react and shining a bright yellow. Or Ohno was right, and it was him responding to his lover, who knew? When the light was gone, Nino realised that the food was gone from the table and instead of the floor he was now on top of the mattress of the sofa turned bed with Ohno sitting across his hips. “So I can stay the night?” Ohno asked again as he bent low to nuzzle the hollow of his neck, nibbling at the sensitive skin of the side and back of his neck. Nino felt shivers ran over his body as he confirmed Ohno’s question with a little moan. It had been too long since he had been like that with Ohno the last time after all.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Nino rolled his shoulders as he felt a little body colliding with his and looked up from the books he was bent over. He smiled when he saw the toothy grin of Shota and ruffled his hair. “What are you doing here?” he asked the boy and allowed him to climb on his lap. It has been a few weeks now that he and Ohno had come up with a compromise and decision about how they would work with the need of Nino being in Ohno’s world and of course what they wanted to do in future. Nino spent almost every free day in Ohno’s world and even if he had to change from a morning to a late-night shift, he spent hours there. It was tiring on his body. He was not going to lie about that, and he knew that Ohno was worried, but Nino trusted his body and the magic he had come to accept inside of him, to do the rest. Right now, he had brought his books for studying with him to Ohno’s world since he had a few days free to prepare for the next exams. He didn’t have to work since the hospital tended to make sure to give their students the time to study for good results as they found it the safest option and Nino was glad for it. “What are you doing?” Shota asked instead of answering, and Nino stretched out his back and leant against the tree he was sitting under for shade. It seemed to work better to keep the world from crumbling if Nino spent as much time in nature as possible when he was here. It was nothing that he enjoyed much (Nino had always preferred the inside and his games after all), but he could cope with it. Also, it was much more peaceful out here than in the castle. “Studying. My exams are coming up. Also, Satoshi had to work, and it’s boring sitting in his rooms when he is not there. Did you run away from Sho-san?”Shota shook his head and pouted at the question. He loved studying with the teacher and second hand of Ohno. He had never been able to learn reading or writing, after all, and he was absolutely excited about it. Nino was sure it was partly due to Shota’s need to gain confidence. Neither Nino nor Ohno thought something was wrong with the little boy. Still, Nino knew from experience that sometimes hearing it from all sides was excellent and well, but not enough, and he felt no need to stop him from learning things he was interested in as long as it didn’t make him sad if something was hard. “Sensei said that I was free to go. We practised two new letters and read a story. Masa-nii had to stay longer for different lessons, which Sensei said would await me when I grow older.”“Oh, that sounds nice.”“Uhn, he praised me. He said I have nice handwriting,” he said happily. “Better than Masa-nii, even if I didn’t study for as long yet.”“Yay congratulations, Shota,” Nino chuckled and ruffled his hair at the happy, bright smile on Shota’s face. Everybody around here was very gentle with the little boy, and it was a heartwarming sight as to how much he had grown so far. He was not hiding behind Ohno’s legs anymore or behind pillars if they were out. And he was like a sponge soaking everything that he was taught up and collected them inside his small body and brain as if they were gems. “Shall I show you?” Shota asked, and Nino hummed in agreement. “Sure. I should also learn those new letters, ne?”“Yes!” Shota cried out happily as Nino pulled the little table Ohno had brought out for him closer to them and put some clean parchment paper on it to let Shota explain to him the new letters he had learnt today. Nino didn’t fully understand why he could quickly grasp the unknown written language of this world. Still, it was surprisingly easy even if his handwriting probably would never look as elegant as that of his lover. He put his head on top of Shota as he noted down all the letters he had learnt and carefully made him do the homework as he watched over and let his mind go back to all those weeks before when he had first arrived here (or second, but it seemed like the first time since then.)—Nino was halfway hiding behind Ohno when Ohno led him out of his chambers. They had explained to Masaki and Shota that they had to stay back for a while, which caused Masaki to pout and argue, but in the end, agreed to look after Shota when Nino had threatened him not to give them the presents he had brought from home. It had been a tiring argument and really. Nino had not wanted to face Ohno’s first guard and adviser right now, hiding away had sounded nice, but he knew it was wrong.Now though he was face to face with the two men, with Jun glaring at him and Sho frowning down at them and he wanted to run away. “What is the meaning of this?” Jun asked.“I met Kazunari months ago in another world,” Ohno said calmly, keeping Nino’s hand in his own which was comforting for him at least. “We are in such a big danger, and you go out finding yourself a lover? I thought you were looking for a rescue,” Sho mumbled, and Ohno nodded. “I did.”“How?!”“See, that’s what Shota’s book told me. His great grandmother was guarding this world. In a way at least. Her presence helped to keep it alive, the power of that was given to her heir.”“But Shota is just a child. The world is dying.”“It’s because Shota is not her heir but Kazunari,” Ohno said with a sigh. “It’s complicated, and I’m not going to tell you the personal history of a family that my ancestor has done horribly wrong, but we figured out that Kazunari is a half-Fae. He belongs here with us, and with his presence, the world will slowly heal.”“You sure?”“Almost one hundred per cent,” Ohno said calmly. “Kazunari will be here as often as he can. He still has things he needs to finish in his world…”“…You can’t be serious! If this all is true he needs to stay here,” Jun said, stepping forward and almost reaching for Nino who flinched and hid more behind Ohno. “Jun!” Ohno said clear and sharply, glaring at the first guard who paled under the dark look of Ohno and Nino pressed his face against Ohno’s neck, shivering slightly. He couldn’t help himself, but Jun had looked so threatening for a second that he feared for his freedom and safety. Ohno’s hand was still warm against his wrist as he held him steady, but there was no mistaking the power running off of Ohno in waves. It was the first time he had seen Ohno so angry and strong, and it seemed to shock both men in front of them as well. “I’m sorry,” Jun whispered, and Sho agreed softly. “I will not allow any of you to make Kazunari feel unwelcome or unwell. He came here on his free will to help out. To help this world be safe and that full well knowing that it will uproot the whole life he had known until now. You are not forcing him to do anything he doesn’t want to do,” Ohno said and waited for them to nod. Nino pressed closer to Ohno’s back, rubbing his nose against his shoulder. Letting the calming scent wash over him. He knew Ohno would keep him safe, and he never felt as loved as in those moments. And he knew he had made the right decision to trust Ohno. “Apologise to Kazunari, not me,” Ohno said finally when Jun and Sho both apologised again. Ohno looked back at him and carefully pulled him to stand beside him. “Don’t be shy or scared. I won’t ever let anything happen to you,” Ohno whispered in his ear, and Nino blushed slightly but nodded. He followed the soft push to the small of his back before he came to a stop in between Ohno and the other two people in the room. He felt uncomfortable. There was no need for them to apologise to him. He could understand Jun’s feeling. If it all was true - and it was still an if. They couldn’t be entirely sure just yet. Then it was expected that they wanted to keep him there and to make sure he couldn’t leave again. “I apologise for scaring you. It’s not right to want to force you,” Jun mumbled bowing his head low, and Nino stared at his neck for a moment before he cleared his throat. “It’s okay,” he murmured, almost squeaking when Jun stood straight again with a furrowed brow, and he was again face to face with those impressive scary eyes.“No, Satoshi-san is right. I don’t know what happened, but it seemed that you are not from this world.”Nino nodded softly as Ohno mumbled a name that he couldn’t place, but there was understanding in Sho’s eyes, so he supposed it was the name of his world in Ohno’s language.“It is a big gift from you to come here to this world to keep it alive even if you have no bounds to it.”Nino hissed softly, and he looked at Ohno. That was not true. He had people, significant people, here that were worth any sacrifice he made. Ohno smiled softly at his look and came closer again to put his arm around his waist, making him more comfortable in an instant. “Kazunari agreed to live here fully after another year. He is studying in his world to become a doctor, which is like healer but more. He wants to finish it. We came to an agreement, and I will have posts up to check if the death will come closer. But I am sure we can manage for a year,” he said slowly. “And I trust you to make sure he is safe and comfortable here.”“Of course,” Sho said with a smile. “And I will need help. I have no idea about this world. I will stumble and fail at things and do things wrong,” Nino said a bit embarrassed. “Please treat me kindly.”There was a small smile on Jun’s face as he nodded and Nino somehow knew that it was going to be okay, somehow. —“Are you looking?” Shota asked, and Nino blinked. He stared at the homework Shota has finished and chuckled. “Yes, sorry, I was miles away.”“Are you tired?” Shota asked worriedly and turned on his lap to rub at Nino’s temple like he had seen Ohno do sometimes when Nino had a headache. “A bit,” Nino mumbled and closed his books. “I suppose I should stop for a bit. Shall we go back inside? See if Satoshi and Masaki are finished? We can have lunch together.”Shota was looking at him a bit worriedly, but then he nodded with a bright grin. “Uhn! I can carry your books,” he declared, and Nino chuckled as the boy put them in his bag and huffed under the weight of the books. Nino took his hand in his own, and they made their ways back. Nino knew there were eyes following their every step. Some were not the friendliest ones, but he had gotten used to it. And he knew that it was less and less with each day he was here and showed himself to the servants and people living with them in and around the castle. Shota was skipping alongside him, chattering up a mile and Nino chuckled now and then at the words. It probably helped to make the others more positive towards him to see Shota, Masaki and of course Satoshi trusting him and being so close to him.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Nino glared at Ohno and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m fine.”“You’re not. You are swaying from side to side! You are going to lie down and sleep for at least eight hours without any disturbances,” Ohno said through clenched teeth. “But…”“No buts. You will sleep, and you will stay here. No travelling today,” Ohno said, his stance going softer as he saw Nino shivering and almost losing his footing as he came closer and put his arms around him. Ohno picked the younger man up and sat on the sofa with him on his lap. “I’ll be fine,” Nino said weakly, and Ohno shook his head, humming softly and nosing his temple.“You need rest, and you need to take care of yourself. I’m sorry I realised so late how tired you are,” he whispered and kissed his cheek. “It’ll be fine if you don’t come this weekend. We’ll survive.”“But it’s not all back to normal.”“That might be, but at the same time, it has not worsened. It’ll be soon that you come live with us, but you have exams this week, and you need all the strength you can have for that,” Ohno reminded him and kissed his forehead. “Stay?”“Of course, my little mouse, let me put you to bed.”Nino nodded as he allowed Ohno to manhandle him to lie down on his sofa entirely and put a blanket over him, he didn’t even realise how he fell to an exhausted sleep the soon he was wholly lying down. Ohno sighed as he sat on the floor and observed Nino as the younger was finally sleeping peacefully, and he caressed the frowning brow with a small smile on his face. They got it. Not that much more time and Nino would have finished with his studies, he thought. They would be fine, even if he needed to fight against all people who thought knew better than them. — Nino chuckled when he entered his flat. He had already heard the voices of his lover scolding two very excited children and was curious as to what awaited him. He had written his last exam, finally and was a bit burnt out but also felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. There was still a practical exam coming up, but he had always been better with practical things than writing, and he was just happy not to have to read as many books anymore. He waited until Ohno hushed the children and then opened the door, laughing loud when soon after two small bodies collided with his and he hugged them tightly. “Welcome back!!” Masaki cried. “We brought food. Satoshi said that you might be hungry after you worked hard. Are you hungry?” Shota added curiously. “I am, thank you for preparing something for me.”“We were allowed in the kitchen,” Shota breathed, his cheeks red from excitement and awe that the king had cooked himself for them. “We helped.”“Oh, I’m looking forward to tasting it.”“The chef was a bit worried about us making a mess, but observed us like a hawk to make sure we won’t poison you,” Ohno said as he kissed the side of his mouth. “Good work, my little mouse.”“Thank you,” Nino chuckled, allowing the children to pull him along to the small table that seemed to be weighted down by the feast they had brought. “It looks good,” he praised the children who grinned proudly as they started to eat finally. He praised them a little more with each dish he tried and then chuckled when soon after the food was gone, both boys fell silent and drowsy.“They were high-tension all day,” Ohno snorted, and Nino laughed softly. “I can imagine.”“How are you feeling, Kazu?”“A bit drained, but mostly happy to have finished my exams for now. I have a practical exam in a few weeks though,” he said with a grimace. “I’m sorry for all the trouble I put you in, Satoshi.”“No, you are not troubling me, or endanger us. We agreed, you remember? You will finish your studies. I will prepare our home for you afterwards. The garden for you is to be changed so that you can stay warm and safe from wind, rain or ice. The boys get new rooms with a connecting door between them, and I am changing my chambers so that you fit in as well.”Nino blushed at the words and shook his head as he remembered how he had thought it was all a lie in the beginning. This man could not be a king in his mind, but there he was. “Do you want chambers of your own?”“I don’t need them,” Nino said with a smile. “I am happy to be with you.”Ohno frowned but then huffed. “No, you need a place that will belong to you,” he decided then. “I will make something you’ll like. Something that will remind you of home.”Nino bit his lips as he thought of the other land. There was no way it would ever remind him fully of the Tokyo where he grew up. He felt his heart grew heavier at the thought of leaving this all behind. His life, his hobbies, his belongings. Even if he could take them with him, most of them would be useless without electricity. “And they already are building a small cabin for you.”“Huh? Why?”“Because my little lost mouse, I did not forget your wish to continue to help others. You are a healer, body and mind. I want to make you happy.”Nino chuckled and snuggled against him. “Satoshi. I am happy to be with you,” he whispered and closed his eyes as he knew that was true. Being around Satoshi would make him happy, but he was also glad to know there would be things he can do in Ohno’s world. He would feel like he belonged there more if so. — Nino woke in the warm bed of Ohno and smiled as he felt Ohno’s naked body wormed around his own equally naked body. He moved and buried his nose in his hair. He sighed happily as he moved a bit closer to the other. Ohno was warm, he was happy, and he felt good. After the exams, he had another week free from the hospital, and he had put most of his vacation days as well so that he could spend a lot of time here. He had felt it necessary after the little time he had to spend with Ohno in his world when the exams had gotten close. Nino was happy about that. It was nice to wake up beside Ohno all day, it was nice to sit outside in the sun and feel the nature corresponding to him, and it was refreshing to see Masaki and Shota running around each day and play with each other. Nino was happy that Shota had opened up fully, the shadows of what he had seen vanishing from his eyes under the care of Ohno and Nino and the love of Masaki. Nino had always known that the sunshine that lived inside Masaki healed the hearts of the people around him. And it did wonders with Shota, who bloomed under Masaki’s easy acceptance and friendship. Ohno had gotten word from the cities further away from that they were slowly healing. The worst part still where it all began, and Nino wondered if there was more that he could do for that. He sighed and pressed kisses along Ohno’s temple and jawline until he ended up against his lips until Ohno woke finally. He was chuckling when Ohno groaned and moved back a little as not to get hit when Ohno moved his arms to stretch them over his head. “Good morning, Satoshi,” Nino whispered and grinned when Ohno’s eyes wandered over his body. He wondered how one could feel so warm and blessed and safe while being naked and scrutinised that way. “Good morning, did you sleep well?”Nino hummed slowly and kissed him again. He couldn’t help himself. He knew that soon the boys would come for breakfast before their lessons and that they should get ready, but he couldn’t help himself.“Seems like it. When have you go back?”“In about two weeks. For a while then I can move fully here.”“Still sure you won’t regret it?” Ohno asked, there was still the worry in his eyes that Nino would not be happy here with them, which was so stupid in Nino’s mind. “I might regret having to go back to do the last exams. But I want that.”“And you should.”Nino smiled happily and moved down again to kiss him. “I want to go to the place where you met Shota. I want to see it, and maybe I can do more there?” he announced suddenly, caressing his stomach when he felt Ohno stiffen under him. “It won’t hurt me.”“You sure?”“Yes, bring me there before I have to go home.”Ohno breathed and nodded. “Tomorrow. I will get everything in order today. Tomorrow we’ll go there,” he promised. “Do you want to travel with the ring or by horse?”“I don’t care,” Nino said with a smile. “I trust you to decide what is best.”—Ohno watched Nino as he knelt in front of the mountain they had found Shota. They had left the children back at home because they had agreed it might be dangerous for the children and Nino hadn’t wanted to hurt Shota with all the memories this place held. Ohno sighed as he looked around. The place was still dead. No animals, no plants, nothing. Ohno was not even sure that the air was fully breathable. There just seemed to be death all around them. His eyes wandered back to Nino, who kept his eyes closed as he prayed or whatever he did. Ohno wasn’t sure. He had agreed to give Nino the space he wanted, and he wouldn’t listen in. Maybe Nino wanted to somehow connect with his dead grandmother. That would also be all well for Ohno. He blinked when a bright yellow light engulfed Nino to concentrate than in his hands. Ohno had seen it a few times now, whenever Nino was very concentrated to heal the small bruises on the boys’ bodies whenever they were too reckless. It also helped Nino to get more comfortable with his magic and Ohno knew that there was a light shine around him whenever he sat under his tree, trying to figure out how to heal the world. Nino carefully broke the earth under him to bury a seedling he had chosen from the garden around the castle. He didn’t get what was special about it, but it was the same tree as Nino leant against each day when he was here.Nino poured the water on it that they had brought and Ohno finally understood why he had insisted of bringing it as well, as Nino said something, Ohno didn’t get and then stood again to come over. Ohno put his arm around his waist, surprised to see the seedling already growing slightly and Nino hummed. “It will help,” he said, with so much certainty that Ohno knew he was right. “How did you know what to do?”“Those trees are said to give life,” Nino whispered. “I put everything inside it that I had in me. I am now slightly sleepy, but I’m sure it was right. It is part of me now. Or not really. But it has part of my magic inside the seedling. It will strive. In the book, there was something written about it.”“If you say so I will believe you,” Ohno said, and Nino smiled as he kissed him. “Bring me back to the castle?”“Of course,” Ohno agreed, looking back at the seedling again, surprised at the growth already. He didn’t know how NIno found out, but he was happy for him. — “Congratulations, Ninomiya-sensei,” Ohno said with a small chuckle in his voice. Nino blushed but couldn’t help the giggle that escaped him when Ohno held him around the waist to pull him close and kiss him warmly on the lips. “I knew you could do it.”“I graduated,” Nino said, still slightly unbelieving. He really did it. He showed everybody that he could do it, regardless of his past. He had done it. He had shown everybody he was worth something. He knew it was stupid to have put so much to this graduation, but he couldn’t help it. Ohno hugged him tightly as Nino buried his head against his shoulder at the sudden tears. “I did it. I really did it.”“Yes, you did. You did so great. I’m so happy for you and so proud.”“Thank you,” Nino whispered. He knew it didn’t really mean anything in Ohno’s world and that it didn’t matter for his future, but it mattered to him. Nino was glad that Ohno sounded genuinely proud of his achievements and didn’t try to belittle him. “Let me take you home? I want to pamper you a little to celebrate. And I have two boys waiting at home very excitedly to see you and congratulate you. Even if I would be happy if you could stop crying until then,” Ohno teased him, kissing him again. “Or they will hit me for making you sad.”“They are my little protectors after all,” he grinned, wiping his eyes. “But I would love for you to take me home to my place first? Can they wait a little longer? I think I would love to be alone with you for just a bit.”Ohno’s eyes sparkled at his words and the deeper meaning to them and cupped his cheek as he pecked his lips a few times. “I think they can handle. It might help that I told them your exam is in two hours.”Nino stared at him with wide eyes for a second in total surprise, and then he threw his head back as he laughed out loud. “Sounds good,” he grinned, taking his hand in his own to bring them to their apartment to spend a little bit longer just with his lover. “Uhn,” Nino mumbled, and he knew he would bring his doctor’s coat and stethoscope with him to Ohno’s home even if it was silly. He kissed Ohno again, calming down under the ministrations and massage of Ohno’s long fingers on his nape and down his back. “I love you, my beloved king.”“I’m really blessed, little lost mouse.”Nino chuckled as he kissed him again, bringing his arms around him, as he clung tightly to him when Ohno’s light engulfed them both to bring them to Ohno’s home. When he was run over by two small bodies, hugging him tightly, he knew he was not lost anymore. He was home.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Nino was kneeling in front of the small grave that he had spent almost an hour cleaning and putting a small bouquet down. He stared at the engraved name with a soft smile as his fingers traced it, and he carefully put the small stones that Masaki and Shota had given him that morning.He no longer felt regret or that deep sadness when he stood here, and he was happy for it. He stood with a small sigh when he finished his inner monologue with his mother and left the graveyard soon after. Nino smiled down at Satoshi, who was leaning against the short wall circling the cemetery. The other man had paid his respects just when they arrived and then left Nino alone for as long as he wanted to stay. Something they did each year and Nino. "All done?""Mhm… Thank you for the spell to help keep it in order," Nino mumbled, and Ohno chuckled. "My lost mouse, everything for you. I know that you would be sad if it gets broken or something."Nino nodded with a hum and took Satoshi's hands in his own. "Masaki and Shota gave me a list of sweets they want to have when we come back. You think we should do the shopping first and then enjoy our date?""Sounds good to me," Ohno hummed in agreement. Nino grinned and kissed the other man as he thought of the two boys he thought of as his sons that he had adopted in his mind shortly after moving to Ohno's world ultimately. He knew that Masaki saw him more like a motherly figure than his big brother's lover, but he also thought that Masaki sometimes thought of Satoshi as a second father figure more than a big brother. It was mostly down to Satoshi having raised him after his mother's death, and both men had no problem with that. For Shota… He had been so young when he joined Satoshi's household that it was sometimes hard for him to remember his parents fully, and the hollow spot in his heart had been for Satoshi and him to fill right from the start. Nino shook his head with a sigh at the thought and wrinkled his nose. Today though, was only for him and Satoshi. They had managed to free a day for both of them and intended to enjoy it in Nino's old world. Sometimes it was hard for Nino to remember his life here, and he knew it was mostly down to the happiness and fulfilment he felt now that he lived at Satoshi's side. Earth had some bad memories for him, and even if he had worked out his past a long time ago with the help of many professionals and his willpower, there were sometimes shadows around the corners of his eyes when he saw hurt children in Satoshi's world. Abuse was a red flag for Nino, and he knew that he sometimes reacted too fast and harsh in those instances, but he couldn't help it. He had lived through the bad and the ugly it could turn into if not interfered with early on, and he didn't want to have another soul experience that. If he could protect all of them, it would be fantastic. He knew he couldn't, though. A part of him felt terrible that he was so relieved to live with Satoshi in his world. There was a lot less abuse than he knew here, and the punishments, if discovered, were a lot harsher and swifter. He knew that he would probably see more signs of abuse here and maybe could intervene. Perhaps not, though. He knew that it was hard sometimes. "Where is your mind, Kazunari?""Miles away. I'm sorry, Satoshi. I don't know where my mind went. Let's get those sweets. Do you want anything?""Since I met you and am allowed to love you, I have everything that my heart desires," Satoshi said with a teasing grin and a twinkle in his eyes. Nino looked at him with amusement in his eyes. "That was awfully cheesy even for you, my king," he said with laughter clear in his voice. "Are you sure you don't want one of those cream puffs you enjoy so much back at home but always moan that the cook can't copy well?"Satoshi blushed but then nodded. It was hard to act as if he had not been looking forward to buying a stash of those and make sure to keep fresh back at home. Nino laughed as he filled their cart, not caring for the strange looks they got. There was no need to buy produce or meat, after all. They all had that and more back at home. "I wanted to bring some new books for Shota," Nino remembered as he frowned. "Remind me to go to the bookstore after this?""Of course, my love," Satoshi said with a smile. Shota loved hiding away in a nook in the big garden, close to Nino's little healer hut and spent hours reading if he had not to go to lessons with Sho. He was a gentle soul, so he never enjoyed the combat sessions with Jun as much as Masaki, even if he understood that it was expected for him to be trained as well. He now lived as one of Ohno's offspring, a possible heir to the throne now if Satoshi and Masaki both might not be able to be there, and therefore he had to know how to protect himself. Nino knew that it was only a matter of time that the boy would ask him to teach him his healing ways, and he was looking forward to that. They spend the next hour going in and out of different shops, getting paints for Satoshi that were different from the things he could get home and some ointments for Nino that he could do himself now. Still, it was always more comfortable and better to have some on hand if needed, same with bandages and the newest information in the worlds of health. Nino liked staying updated even if there were many things he didn't necessarily need in Ohno's world. Masaki's illness of his lungs had taught them both that sometimes other kinds of help were needed than magic, and Nino was eager to learn, never wanting to give up on a person if not wholly required. After they bought the books and a few games, Nino and Satoshi huddled close, and Nino chuckled as he rubbed the signet ring on his thumb when Satoshi pressed his own against his lips and brought the necklace with the key to the front. Nino's eyes wandered around as he made sure that nobody was watching and then concentrated the same as Satoshi as they both sent their purchases ahead of them. Freed of their burden, Nino took Satoshi's hand in his own, who intertwined their fingers and pressed a kiss against his knuckles. "Now, all your thoughts are only allowed to be on me," Ohno reminded him as they started walking through the park again. Nino's lips twitched slightly as he nodded in agreement. "As you wish, my king," he said, laughing out loud when Satoshi's eyes got smaller as he bit his chin in retaliation for the endearment. Even after all the time that Nino used that to tease Ohno, the other still was not that happy to be reminded that he was still of higher status than Nino. Nino watched Satoshi frown beside him with a small smile before he halted his steps. He chuckled when Satoshi stopped right away, looking at him with worry in his eyes. "You do know that I love you, right, Satoshi?""I don't like it when you call me king.""But that is what you are," Nino reminded him and tugged him closer. "You are my poor king that sometimes is the sweetest man alive and sometimes the most annoying one.""But…"Nino hummed and shook his head. "No. You did so many things to make me happy in your world. And you could do so because you are the king. So I am thankful for that. You even made sure to have an heir without the need to marry and get a child of your own," he whispered as he cupped his cheek. He kissed the side of his mouth and peeked up into his eyes. "And for all that you did, I don't mind that you can't give me a wedding, my beloved king. I don't have any needs for a higher status than I have. I am happy to be just a healer in your world. I am glad nobody knows what my presence does to your world. I know you want people to respect me more. I don't need that, though. It's enough that you know that the children know and your close friends. It is safer that way as well for me. I don't want them to celebrate me as a hero that I'm not.""You rescued our world. You are a hero."Nino shook his head with a smile. "I am a healer, and I did what I was supposed to do, right? And you know what the only thing is I want?""What is it?" Satoshi asked, eager to fulfil whatever it might be. Nino smiled and pecked his lips once, twice before moving a step back. "To wake up in your arms daily and to have you tell me you love me each night. I don't need more than your love because that is what healed and rescued me."Ohno chuckled and nodded. "I can do that. And just so that you know: This was even more cheesy than what I said earlier."Nino's eyes twinkled as he smirked. "I'm trying to make you take me home and to your bed. I wonder when I lost that ability to do so, though.""But our date…" Ohno said with a pout, and Nino shrugged. "You can take me out for dinner another time," he decided then. "I am not hungry for food tonight."Ohno's eyes twinkled as he laughed and hugged Nino around the waist to draw him closer. "You are a brat," he decided as he closed his lips over Nino's in a deep, scorching kiss. Nino felt warm, loved and lightheaded as he could feel their magic swirling around each other when Ohno finally brought them home, and for once, Nino did not mind that they landed directly in bed. — "What is wrong, Shota?" Nino asked as he found the small boy close to the waters. "Nothing," he mumbled, and Nino lifted his eyebrow as he sat down beside him. He drew his legs closer to himself and looked at the boy. There was a deep frown on his face, and his lips were pursed. Nino was also sure that Shota had cried before he arrived. "Try again," Nino said after a while. Shota looked up, his eyes a bit softer now. Nino put his head on his knees and turned it so that he was facing Shota. Shota sniffed slightly as he rubbed his eyes, the traitorous tears back into them even if he hated it. "I… I dreamt of my parents," he whispered, and Nino hummed. "I sometimes do.""That is normal, mh? It's normal to miss and remember them.""But that is the problem! I can't remember how they looked," he cried out, and Nino bit his lower lip as he allowed Shota to shuffle close and hugged him around his shoulders to bury his head against his side, hiding the tears from the world. Nino rubbed his back as he listened to the heart-wrenching cries, wishing for a way to help Shota, but it was hard. He had no picture nor anything from them to help Shota remember. "But you recognised them, still, right?""Because they smelled like father and mother," he whispered. "What if I forget that smell as well?" he asked fearfully and rubbed his eyes. "How did your parents smell?""Like the flowers around the house. Father would collect them and press out the oil for mother to use for washing and as presents because she loved the smell," he whispered. "And the oils helped my grandmother when she was in pain.""That sounds nice," Nino said and rubbed his cheeks with his thumbs. "Uhn… You look like father when you take medicines," he whispered. "Do I?""And like mother. I don't know. Father was bigger, mother was smaller." Shota wrinkled his nose. "But I like watching you.""I'm honoured, Shota. Can you tell me what flowers they were? We can try to replicate the oil. So that you will always remember the smell?""Mother says they only grew where we lived," Shota whispered, tears again in his eyes. "They all died."Nino sighed and kissed Shota's forehead. "I promise we will find them, okay?""Really?""Yes, really. And now we shall go back to Satoshi and Masaki. They are looking for you as well.""Why?""Because you missed lunch," Nino said with a smile. They always made sure to all eat together, so it had been strange, and a reason for worry when Shota wasn't there, and nobody knew where he went. Not that Nino would tell Shota about the panic he had sent the household into. That would be too much for the boy. He stood and offered Shota a hand, who took it and together, they slowly made their way back. Nino smiled at Satoshi when he could see the evident relief in the other's eyes as he saw Nino hand in hand with Shota, and he came over to kneel in front of Shota and hug him tightly. "Where have you been?""Sorry," Shota said sheepishly and a bit fearful. Satoshi sighed as he kissed the top of his hair and shook his head. "It's okay. Are you hungry?"Shota thought about it but then slowly shook his head. There was still sadness inside him, Nino could feel, so he supposed it was the reason for the lack of appetite. Satoshi's eyes searched his, and Nino mouthed a 'later' to him. He would tell Satoshi tonight when they were alone, he decided. For now, they should calm down Masaki and then take the children out to play with Pukki and forget about their worries for a bit. — "You think it's a good idea?" Satoshi asked, looking at Nino, who was caressing Shota's hair as the boy had slipped into their room during the night. Nino hummed and nodded. "We went there last month to check if it could be inhabited again. It looks fine. The nature is back.""But… We don't know if those flowers still exist.""They will," Nino whispered and put a stray strand of hair away from Shota's eyes. "I'm sure it will be. And it might do Shota good to see his home again and say goodbye to it fully.""I let him do that when I took him home.""I know. But I think he never really believed he would be allowed to stay. Let us all go there," he whispered. “Masaki, Shota, you and I. Let's see if there are things he wants to take if there is a place that he wants to say goodbye. I am sure the graves of his families are there."Ohno hummed as he nodded. They usually thought of their loved ones with prayers to the moon, so there was no attachment to graves as there was for Nino, but maybe it helped. And if not, he was sure that Nino was the right person to help Shota through any issues that might appear. "Okay, I trust you… You're our healer, be it body or mind."Nino smiled and kissed his lips. "Thank you for your trust, Satoshi. Let's go to sleep and start preparing in the morning?""Of course." Satoshi smiled and kissed him before putting an arm around Shota when the boy drowned in his sleep. He would make sure they could travel as soon as possible. If nothing, the boys deserved to see more of the kingdom. It took them a handful of days until Satoshi had managed to organise them to leave for a few days. The trip was long after all, and this time, there was no need to hurry or safe the world. Nino watched the boys enjoying discovering different cities and spaces and traditions while Satoshi explained everything there was. It was always a pretty sight to see Satoshi taking care of the boys and their excitement. When they arrived at the end of their travel, though, Nino took Shota on his arm again and ruffled his hair as Ohno stayed back with Masaki so that the pair of them could go to where Shota had lived. It was a family business, in a way, after all. "It's all green again," Shota whispered and looked at Nino with big eyes, clearly in awe. "And it's all because of you.""Not just me. It's thanks to you. You protected that book and fought so hard to stay alive, even if it was difficult, ne?"Shota nodded and hugged him around the neck as he hid his face slightly. "It was scary.""But you were so very brave. Braver than anybody I know.""Braver than Satoshi?" Shota asked with a gasp since to him the man was the bravest person in this world.Nino chuckled and nodded. "Yes, braver than Satoshi."Shota stared at him unbelievingly. "You never gave up or ran away.""They didn't allow me to come," Shota whispered with sad eyes, and Nino swore at those stupid people even if he knew it was all down to them being so scared about what happened. Scared people tended to be stupid. But Shota was a little boy, so he wouldn't be able to forgive quickly, and he was very glad that he didn't need to. That was Satoshi's duty, not his."Do you want to see where I lived?""If you want to show me, yes, of course," Nino whispered, and Shota looked at him with wide and happy eyes. He pointed the way, and Nino carefully moved Shota in his arms so that he could hold him safely and climb the mountain until he reached the small cabin. Shota gasped as they turned the last counter, and Nino smiled as he saw the cottage surrounded by his beloved flowers. They were all dead when he left, after all, and he hadn't seen them down earlier as well. "Those… Mother's flowers!" he cried out, and Nino put him down, allowing him to run over to sniff at them. There were tears in his eyes as he looked up. "They smell just as I remember!""I'm glad," Nino said and smiled. "Do you want to go in?"Shota nodded as he tugged at his hand and led him inside. He explained everything they could see, and together they carefully looked for things Shota wanted to take after the boy had asked if he would be allowed. It took them a while until they came back, and Nino had very carefully dug out a few of the flowers, making sure the roots were whole. He didn't want to kill them, after all. He put his hand on top of his head and lead him back to the rest, where Shota ran over to Satoshi, who hugged him tightly, and Masaki soon asked him to show what they brought back with them. Nino observed Shota for the rest of the evening until Nino herded the boys to get ready for bed and chuckled when Masaki pouted. "It's late. You can play more tomorrow," he whispered as he sat down beside the bedroll. Shota's eyes were already drooping sleepily, and Nino smiled softly. "Look, Shota wants to go to sleep already. Do you want to leave him alone?"Masaki shook his head, and Nino bent down to kiss both of them on the forehead. Shota smiled and looked up when Satoshi came close. "Thank you for taking me," he whispered. "Of course, Shota. You're family, and if you want to come here or anywhere, you tell us, okay?""Just like father and mother?""Just like that if you allow us.""They would be happy," Shota decided, and Masaki grinned. "Of course, Sato-nii and Kazu are the best ne?" Shota giggled and nodded in agreement as Nino caressed their hair again until they finally fell to sleep. Satoshi chuckled and hugged him close around the middle as he drew him close to himself. "This was a good idea."Nino smirked and kissed the side of his mouth. "I told you so. It'll do him some good to have a part of his home with him when we are back as well.""True, my beloved healer. You're just perfect.""Flatterer. Time to go to bed," he said, and Satoshi hummed in agreement as he kissed his neck. He knew that being here still drained Nino. It was so much better now but not completely healed yet, and Satoshi knew that Nino always made sure that Shota felt safe and probably put too much into digging the flowers out to make sure they would survive the trip back home. And home was just getting better and better, Ohno thought happily as he watched Nino drift to sleep beside their boys. A/N: Awful. I have no excuse, sorry <3