Chapter Text
Lavender fire, crushed earth, and bitter smoke. Centuries old, the beast of beasts beneath a veneer of sharp beauty. Silk and satin sleeves, a thousand fluttering leaves, and a pointed smile subtly tinged with honeyed ichor. Finery and savagery, wild and tamed, eternal yet temporal. His many names are on the tip of tongues and the anxious minds of men. The purple flame, the foxfire, the Venerable Lord of The Yokai – Kuya.
Eiden felt the very weight of that name the day their far paths met at a crossroads. He mistook Lord Kuya as a noble while walking to his next commission. Some bandits, more foolish and unaware than Eiden, jumped on the yokai. Without his conscious effort, he was now barrelling headfirst into the Lord Yokai’s side to push him out of the way of a blow. That day, a simple human caught the old lord by surprise. That day, the Lord of The Yokai was no longer just a legend of a fairytale, he was in the flesh, and Eiden became his only student that he’d ever taken in.
His only servant was a more accurate title.
Before the sun would wake, Eiden was already running about the palatial temple. First, he’d go into the shrine surrounded by an otherworldly lake that thrummed with magic and overflowed with tingling life. This was the lord’s private quarters, accessible only to the lord himself, and the human servant he entrusted to its maintenance. He’d sweep the porcelain floors, soak them in soap and water, scrub at it with cloth, and then polish it with wax. Next was dusting the furniture, washing dirty clothes and folding the ones that have dried, preparing the water for Lord Kuya’s bath, then he’d prepare a warm, homemade breakfast. By then, morning would come. He would greet his master and prepare his clothes. Before taking his early soak, the lord requires his servant to properly tend to his hair with a comb and a varying amount of natural, fragrant oils. While the yokai bathed, Eiden prepared chamomile, berries, cinnamon and honey into a refreshing drink.
They would spend their mornings at the grand breakfast table reserved for just two – at Kuya’s orders, the servant would sit half on his own seat, and half hanging off the lord’s strong body, nipping and licking at bits of sweet fruit, meat and ambrosia dripping from the yokai’s long, clawed fingers. Essence sharing, his teacher calls it. To regulate the overflowing river of untapped magic that pulsed within his mortal body. Eiden isn’t sure if he’s mortal anymore, actually. He’s lived a hundred years of service and learning. Eiden isn’t sure if he’s actually learned anything, since he still can’t cast a single spell. Well, either way, he is content with his existence. This close, intimate bond between master and servant, teacher and student, god and follower allowed for tender, vulnerable moments that were for Eiden and Eiden alone. A being so cruel, manipulative, willful, impulsive and distant became playful, indulgent, protective and refreshing in his eyes. While he knows Kuya will never reciprocate his deep feelings for him, Eiden knows that no one will ever be more dear to him. He knows that he can’t go back to a life where he doesn’t know and love the lord of the Yokai.
So you’d understand his surprise at the loud, emotional bursts of anger he would hear from Kuya’s garden, where yokai, spirits, and magical beings sought audience with the fox lord. He’d speak at such a volume that it pierced the essence fortified walls.
“Your majesty, if you would consider–”
“No.”
“I have come to negotiate for–”
“Get out.”
“Venerable Lord of Yokai, your grace, I have brought offerings, wealth, and treasures to ask for your blessing–”
“LEAVE.”
Eiden winced as the poor soul screamed, and the scent of fire permeated the realm. Silence. Then finally, a pair of large, familiar boots made their way across the path. Whatever weight this new being was holding, it shook the trees, the ground, the flowers, and Eiden’s whole body, as it was dropped to the ground. He felt a spike of anger in the air, and he didn’t need to see Kuya to know that the fox was snarling.
“I already know what you’re going to say.”
“Then go. Turn, leave, and never show yourself to me ever again.”
“It’s not you I’m here for. It’s not you I’m asking. This isn’t your decision to make.” The man sighed. “Give this to him and tell him my offer. That is all.”
With a few blunt words, the man left, his strong presence leaving along with him. Kuya immediately burst into a litany of severe curses. His words curled along the edge of his teeth, human speech degraded into enraged growling. Eiden hurriedly stepped in with the snack and refreshments he came to deliver in the first place. He shrieked when Kuya turned towards him, but after seeing the recognition in Kuya’s eyes, he placed the tray down and walked closer, waiting for the yokai to make contact. And he did, reaching out to Eiden’s delicate wrist.
Kuya smirked. Like a distant vision, he became quickly composed and refined, his demeanour changing to that of the mischief-loving fox that Eiden knew him to be. “Oya?” He purred, pulling those frail human fingers close to his lips, “Little vixen, what a delightful scent of fear you have. I was in the middle of work, you see, but now I’m quite famished.”
A lovely pink tinge bloomed all over Eiden’s skin. He all but squeaked, pulling away from his teacher with a stuttering laugh. “Eh, hehe...Yes, yes I hear you, my lord. You were too busy with work for lunch, so I brought red bean filled rice cakes, vanilla ice-cream, and matcha tea.”
“My, is it that time already? Were you lonely? Oh, poor, spoiled little servant.”
“Anyways, on the topic of work…what’s um, all this?”
Kuya sneered and clicked his tongue, glaring at the large chimaera corpse in particular. He went contemplatively silent, and once he came to a decision, he turned towards his student. “Courtship gifts. I’ve been preoccupied with wedding proposals for quite some time, and it has proved to be the most infuriating affair.”
Oh.
Well, that was expected. Of course the lord of yokai would have proposals and suitors dogging his every step. He’s had visions of this and dreams so vivid they felt like memories. As long as Kuya was happy, he didn’t mind. Except that the human heart is a creature, and at this very moment, it begged to be let out of its cage to die.
Keep your head down, Eiden.
Don’t ruin what you have.
He brought himself to smile; a wavering curl of the lips. “I…I’m so happy for you! This is a good thing, you know. Yeah, it might be annoying now, but who knows? You might find someone to love.”
Kuya didn’t turn to look at him. Instead, his face contorted and scrunched in anger, directed at the shiny coins, gems and dead beasts dirtying his elegant garden.
“These are for you.”
…
The words of encouragement Eiden that sat on his tongue like bile died, and he was left with his mouth hanging open and his eyes wide like some sort of stupid fish.
“Eh? EEEEHHHHH????”
Unaffected by Eiden’s confusion, Kuya began to monologue heatedly to himself. “No shame…that brute, that uncouth, uncivilised, beast. The audacity to walk up to your fellow lord and ask for his servant’s hand in marriage! He knows, and still, even still, he dared to come here and drag filth all over my realm, and attempt to drag filth over my student!”
“W…wait, Lord Kuya, you’re, you’re pacing a lot and you’re not making sense…”
His rapid footsteps halted and he whirled around, digging his claws into Eiden’s shoulders.
“Listen, little vixen, ” Kuya muttered slowly, as if to emphasise the importance of his words, “Marriage is a horrible thing. Men, whether mortal, human, beast, deity, or spirit, cannot be trusted. You are naive, stupid, young, and beautiful. They will ruin you, with all your petals, sweetness, and fruit, and they will leave you when you wilt for the next flower to ruin!”
We’re both men…and I don’t have any of that!
“Promise me.”
“Ah?”
“Promise me you won’t give yourself to a man who does nothing but eat, sleep, and hunt.”
“What?”
Kuya sighed, pulling away to run a hand through his subtly ruined hair, which had been pulled and tugged from stress. “It’s a mistake to tell you. It’s a mistake.” He muttered to himself for a while. Then he turned to Eiden, his face grim but unreadable. “Quincy has asked for your hand in marriage. He tells me he wants the answer from you.”
In an instant, Eiden flushes. “Quincy? For me? I can’t understand… I’m just a servant, I have nothing to give to the lord of the forest!”
The blank look Kuya gives Eiden completely flies over his head.
“Will you say yes?”
“...Well, I’m honoured, really. I’m just a servant, and I can’t even use magic…I should accept, right?”
“Why?”
“I’m fortunate to have anyone who wants me at all.” Eiden laughed softly, “We can figure out if we’re not for each other during the courtship. Lord Quincy – he’s…he’s kind. I’m sure he’d understand and take care of me.”
Kuya laughed. Spitefully. Dangerous, ancient magic pulsed through the air, and for a moment, Eiden hears the screams, the fire, the crying – the longer he stays frozen, more flashes of images pierce his mind. Illusions playing with the minds of men. Parents giving up their children for the chance at another day. Another dawn. Blood. Claws. Fox fire.
“Oya,” Kuya bellowed, “Is that it, then? I know he takes you on those little adventures, travelling through forests and watching you while you talk and draw. Is that it? Just a little bit of attention and you’ll let him fuck you all he wants!”
A flash of heat fills his cheeks at the last bit, but it’s completely overshadowed by the dread that fills his stomach.
In a moment of classic Eiden-esque stupidity, he blurted out the first words that came to mind in self defence. “Well, I don’t have a chance with the person I love, so why not just take what I can get, huh!?”
“Who?”
“Wha- woo-woah!?”
“Who is it?”
A weight pushed Eiden down, and to his ever growing horror, he watched Kuya’s face blur the lines between fox and man. His snarl was severe, stretching monstrously. A scream scratched at his throat, but it couldn’t escape his clenched mouth. He was afraid, so very afraid, but Kuya was hurt. He knew it by the furrow in his brow and the scratchiness in his voice, and the almost anxious way he pressed his palms over Eiden’s chest.
“Why do you care, huh!? What does it matter?”
“Oh? My little vixen is stubborn today. What does it matter to you, a student should always listen to his teacher.”
“It matters because it’s you!”
He covered his face, unwilling to look Kuya in the eyes as he cried embarrassed tears.
Kuya abruptly let go of his shoulders.
Eiden’s heart fell. Now you’ve done it.
“See…this is why I didn’t want to say anything. Just — just gimme some time to pack my bags–”
He let out a startled shout as he was lifted up into Kuya’s arms. He saw Kuya’s face for only a moment – a wide grin pulling at his cheeks as his eyes fluttered shut at the force of his smile – and then he felt a gentle pressure against his lips that left him breathless. He let out a single gasp. Eiden breathed him in, bitter earth and crushed leaves. It was only when he opened his eyes to Kuya’s uncharacteristic soft smile that Eiden realised he had been kissed and belatedly turned very very red.
“Fufu~ That’s a lovely shade on you. To cry over something like this, how embarrassing of you.”
“You’re the worst!” Eiden groaned, fanning away the heat from his cheeks. “You could have just told me you liked me…”
“How boring. Isn’t it more entertaining this way?”
Eiden pouted. “I’ll never get you…but, what happens now? Are…are we engaged?”
“No.”
Pushing their foreheads together, Kuya smiled. “If I’m going to marry you, I’ll do it right. I’ll get you a courting gift better than everything your other suitors have gotten you. I’ll make you fall in love all over again, Eiden.”
Just as Eiden thought he finally controlled his blush, his face turned bright red again. “That’s way too much! You’d definitely get anyone if you told them that…”
“Is that so?” Kuya chuckled, “But I just want you.”
“You already have me, Kuya.”
Eiden reflected on that day a few years later, leaning against Kuya’s chest while raising his hand high to admire the intricate band tenderly wrapped around his ring finger. His husband was fast asleep, arms protectively curled around Eiden’s belly.
Love is an amazing thing. It can turn one to two, and two to three.
Eiden couldn’t wait for Rakuyou to join them.