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People often say the brightest stars burn the fastest. What is conveniently left out from this warning is the stories of the stars that burn in a state of perfect equilibrium, outshined by those more luminous and simply serve as the point of comparison for the supernova of their generation. In an ideal world, everyone would be allowed to stand atop the glistening pedestal and bask in the radiance of the spotlight. Unfortunately for Sirius, she’d be the sucker that burned just bright enough to remain in the public’s scrutinizing eye, but never given the opportunity to outshine Japan’s dearest Emperor. Shipped off to Europe in some sort of humiliation trial, all that came of it was a hurt ego and a desire to burn herself into ash. Despite swearing to never interact with her personal curse again, she finds herself standing in front of a familiar flat of someone she used to know.
Before she can even raise her hand, a half-dressed human girl bursts out of the apartment, stumbling past with tears brimming in her eyes.
Sirius waits until the girl’s hurried footsteps fade down the hallway before nudging the already cracked door open. Inside, the room is cloaked in shadow. At the center sits Rudolf, hunched over her dining table as though no one else had ever been there. One hand clutches at her forelock, the other idly twirls a half-full glass of whiskey. Her leg is drawn up close to her chest, a flannel sliding loosely from her broad shoulders to reveal the white sports bra beneath. The moonlight spills through the window, painting the apartment in silver. The only sign she’s aware of Sirius’s presence is the subtle twitch of her ears toward the door.
“What the hell…” Sirius mutters, frozen in the doorway, unable to move closer to the bleak scene before her. Her arm instinctively reaches for the frame of the door.
After what feels like eternity, Rudolf finally drags her head to meet Sirius’s expectant gaze. If there was a worse time for her to show up, she certainly couldn’t think of one. “It’s exactly what it looks like. I’m sure you’re smart enough to put the pieces together, Sirius.”A crooked smile tugs at the corner of her mouth, a poor attempt to appear composed.
Sirius walks up to her childhood friend, but the usual sparkle in those mischievous amethyst eyes is replaced with dull, sunken eyes that are in desperate need of a good night’s rest.
“Oh, there is plenty to explain…” Sirius says, planting a hand on the table beside Rudolf’s glass and leaning in “... like why Japan’s golden child has fallen far enough to pick up the local strays that hang around her apartment.” Rudolf’s tail lashes as she shoots Sirius a venomous glare, but Sirius doesn’t flinch, instead returning her scowl with an insincere smirk. “What? Was having everything you ever wanted too dull for you, dear Emperor?”
“I don’t know what you came here for…” Rudolf growls, grabbing Sirius’s hand in an iron grip and yanking her down to eye level and knocking her half-finished glass onto the floor. “But if you’ve got something to say, I suggest you spit it out before I really get sick of your shit.”The sharp crack of breaking glass was a sound Rudolf knew by heart; she’d smashed more trophy cases than she could remember in her spirals of anger. It was one thing to suffocate beneath her own achievements, yet another entirely to see them throw her reflection back at her.
It had been too long since they last faced each other. Sirius hadn’t expected the strength still hidden in Rudolf’s grip, not after her infamous retirement. A cold wave crawls up her spine, chased by a flicker of fear. She wrenches her hand free and stumbles back a step. She’d never seen Luna in such a desperate state, staring back at her with a revulsion similar to the first time she’d abandoned her to pursue the throne.
“You want to know what I think? Fine, have it your way,” she hisses through her teeth. She turns away from Rudolf, her fists clenched at her sides until her nails broke skin, a sting of blood pooling in her palms. A moment passes, with her ribcage working extra diligently to keep her heart in place while it slammed against it. “I barely recognize you anymore, and I haven’t for a long time.” Her eyes become bloodshot, years of frustration at living in Rudolf’s shadow boiling over all at once. “I don’t even know who the fuck you are anymore, Luna-” She isn’t planning to spill her guts out in what was supposed to be a quick visit, but there isn’t any time like the present.
The person in front of her wasn’t who she fell in love with -- the one she’d run across continents for if it meant staying by her side. Rather, that thing devoured Luna and spat her out long ago for some lofty throne.
Rudolf shoots up from her chair, closing the distance in two powerful strides. Her hand clamped onto Sirius’s face, tilting it up, “Don’t you call me that. Not anymore.” She shoved Sirius aside. “After all that frolicking in Europe, I would’ve hoped you learned some respect by now.” Moonlight that usually glimmers across Rudolf’s lashes now drapes her in shadow, darkness deepening with each heavy breath.
Sirius steadies herself, wiping her sore cheek and glares back at the looming stallion. “Respect? That’s rich coming from you.” A bitter laugh escapes her as she gives a mocking little flourish of her hands, “Have you seen yourself lately? You’re a sick joke of a role model.” She keeps her distance, but her words are laced with something more sinister than venom, “All you’ve got left is a glass in your hand and a legacy you’re squandering away.”
A lump forms in Rudolf’s throat, sinking heavily into her chest. Sirius isn’t wrong. As much as she wants to lash out, to throw her against the wall until she bleeds. None of it would change the truth: she was utterly alone and it was her own choice. Her tail snaps with enough force to whip her back toward Sirius. “You think I wanted this? You wouldn’t understand what it’s like-”
Sirius’s eyes lock with hers, a glare sharpened into the kind she once reserved only for her parents -- the ones who molded her into the excuse of an Umamusume she’d become. Her steps stomp against the cold tile as she closes the distance, leaving mere inches between them. “Well, Princess, I didn’t want to end up as the washed-up scapegoat of the Symboli family, but here we fucking are!”
Blood drips from her clenched fists, splattering against the floor in soft, rhythmic patters.
Rudolf's eyes widen at her sudden outburst, her hands awkwardly floating at her sides. Nothing weakened her in the past other than Sirius’s naive, hopeful eyes that never quite grasped reality. Sirius’s heart was so gentle that even necessary choices felt like forbidden acts; the thought of hurting her, even for a moment, made Rudolf’s resolve crumble. She has never seen her this furious, not even the day she rejected the name “Luna.”
“I… I didn’t know you felt that way,” Rudolf manages, her voice faltering only to be cut off.
“You know, I could live with being humiliated if it meant you’d be happy,” Sirius shoots back, her voice breaking with fury. “But nothing is ever good enough for you.” Her heart hammers so loudly it seems to echo through the room’s silence. “I would’ve done anything for you, and now I don’t even know who you are anymore. Looks like you don’t have a damn clue either,” gesturing towards the various patched up holes across the walls.
“If you’d told me sooner, I’m sure I could’ve--” Rudolf’s words spill out, fragile, almost childlike in their desperation. In this fragile instant, the Emperor's facade vanished. What remained was the little girl who learned that love was earned through her accomplishments, not something that was a given.
“No!” Sirius cuts her off again, her voice cracking. “You don’t get to say that. Not when you left me out to fucking dry. Not when you abandoned me for your bullshit throne!”
She shoves Rudolf hard. The bay stallion stumbles back and crashes onto the couch. Rudolf hits the couch with a grunt, the springs groaning under her weight.
Before Sirius could savor the upper hand, Rudolf’s hand shoots out, grabbing her opened collar. With a vicious pull, she drags Sirius down with her. Sirius topples forward, landing against her with only an arm’s length of space between them.
“You think you were the only one left behind?” she snarls, maintaining her grip on Sirius’s evergreen collar. “You talk about thrones and crowns like they mean a damn thing to me anymore!” Rudolf’s calloused hands grip Sirius’s shoulders, shaking her. “You think I wanted any of this? You think I didn’t bleed for every scrap of respect they forced on me?”
Her voice falters, but her eyes blaze -- fury, grief, and something else that wouldn’t name itself.
Their legs tangle together in the struggle, neither willing to yield to the other. The room fills with their ragged breathing, broken only by the distant rumble of trains passing through the night.
What began as childish pushing and shoving shifts in an instant. Rudolf’s hand travels, dragging her fingers playfully across Sirius’s chest.
An embarrassing sound slips out before she can stop it, her body betrays all her self-control.. Flushed with anger, Sirius tears Rudolf’s hand away. “You really are a piece of shit, you know that?”
Rudolf’s lips curl into a mischievous but mocking grin, “I actually didn’t…” In one swift motion, she flips their positions, pinning Sirius beneath her. Now looming over her, Rudolf’s shadow stretches in the pale moonlight.
“But what I do know,” she hums, her grin sharpening into a taunt, “is just how easy you are.”
Heat rushes across Sirius’s face. Years of buried longing for her childhood friend betray her now, evident in the way her body stirs involuntarily beneath the stallion above her. She turns her head aside, desperate to avoid Rudolf’s knowing gaze. It feels utterly pathetic.
Rudolf’s hand moves again. Sirius flinches, but this time it was gentle. Instead of the roughness from before, her fingers brush Sirius’s cheek, coaxing her to meet her eyes. “You know you can’t stay mad at me…” she murmurs, voice dripping with greed, “...so why are you pretending?”
Sirius burns with desperation, but she isn’t about to let Rudolf have her way like she always did in their past. With a sudden surge of willpower, she shoves her back into the couch cushions. Rudolf sprawls out, legs falling apart. At that moment it was obvious Sirius wasn’t the only one aching for relief.
“You wouldn’t admit what you really want if I held a gun to your head, would you?” Sirius hisses, her hand sliding lower until it draws a startled moan from the prideful stallion beneath her. Rudolf’s hands twitch, starting to move towards Sirius, but she forces her back into the couch with a sharp push.
“I’m having my fun today…” she says, a grin twisting her lips with quiet menace. “...and you’re going to like it.”
Her hands hover at Rudolf’s chest for a heartbeat, then pull back. Slowly, Sirius steps away from the couch, undoing the buttons of her vest one by one until it slips from her shoulders. Beneath it, black lace frames her chest, the delicate fabric stark against her flushed skin.
For a moment, her composure wavers, with Rudolf’s hungry stare threatening to undo her entirely. It’s been years since she’s been the object of her desire, and the feeling is intoxicating. Rudolf’s flannel drapes carelessly from her frame, collarbone jutting sharper than Sirius remembered. Perhaps she hadn’t been eating well either, but it was anyone’s guess. Her shoulders and biceps coil with tension, muscles flexing as though bracing for whatever came next. Sirius straightens, steadying her breath. No, she wouldn’t get what she wanted so easily. Not this time.
She saunters playfully across the room, then slips back between Rudolf’s legs. Her wild hair spills forward as she bends over, meeting Rudolf’s eyes head-on. Again, she catches Rudolf’s wandering hands and presses them firmly into the couch, while her tail traces her legs.
“What’s this about?” Rudolf growls, bucking her hips in frustration. Her eyes burn at the sight of Sirius so scantily dressed, closer than she had been in years. “Don’t you want to remember what I feel like, Sirius?” she quips, her voice roughens with both irritation and need.
“Now wouldn’t that be convenient?” Sirius retorts. Releasing Rudolf’s wrists, she leans close, her lips brushing against her ear. “You’re not allowed to touch me until I say so.” She seals the command with a sharp bite before pulling away, only to trail her hand lower, reaching for the waistband of Rudolf’s pants, which already strained with impatience.
Rudolf’s ragged breath quickens as Sirius pulls her pants back to reveal her hardened excitement, heat radiating from its anticipation. Surprisingly, the ill-tempered stallion doesn’t resist, instead watching Sirius’s every move intently. Her patience starts to wear thin. What a ridiculous rule.
“Taking your time I see…” Using every inch of restraint she has left, Rudolf growls against Sirius’s neck hovering just above her. “What, you getting cold feet all of a sudden?”
As she withholds salvation from the dear Emperor, Sirius’s smile tilts with wicked amusement, “Tsk tsk…” She traces Rudolf’s burning desire against her own, just enough to feel how wet she’s become. Her teasing touch makes Rudolf’s whole body ache, more potent than any summer girl’s pheromones. “You kept your loyal dog waiting for years on end…” In a swift motion, she slams herself down against Rudolf, taking her in entirety. A gasp escapes both stallions but Sirius regains her composure soon after. Threatening to take away the euphoria she just granted the exasperated stallion, she playfully holds her chin as she shifts her weight upwards, “Yet you never came back whenever I called for you.” She reaches for Rudolf’s hands that were begrudgingly planted on the couch and guides them towards her hips, “Guess we both can’t be self-serving pieces of shit, can we?”
Finally receiving permission, Rudolf can’t hold herself back any longer. “Sirius…” She desperately grips her ass with one hand, the other clawing up her back as she drives herself further into Sirius’s depths. “You make a good point, but you never stop coming back.” Rudolf has a fear of open bodies of water, but for once she wishes she could drown.
“You’re…” Sirius tangled her fingers in Rudolf’s hair with every thrust, biting back words she could no longer form and giving herself to satisfy Rudolf’s insatiable greed. “...You’re awful- mmh!” She cries out and her protest dies when Rudolf suddenly meets her lips with her own, a kiss so deep that she’d forgotten what snarky comeback she wanted to spit out.
Rudolf breaks away to trace hungry marks down her neck and chest. It seems as though the Emperor had desires that not even the most dazzling trophy could satisfy. Looking up at her irritated companion, Rudolf mutters, “Sorry, what were you saying again?” A shit-eating grin pans across her face.
“Don’t act coy with me, Lu- Rudolf…” Taking Rudolf’s inaction as an offense, she raises herself only to resume her own pace against the heat down below, taking a wind out of Rudolf at the same time. “You’re lucky I even tolerate your sad ass, so get on with it.” She plants herself even harder as sweat drips down her legs and onto the couch.
“If you say so…” Rudolf gladly accepts her command, her words laced with lust as the remanence of whiskey draws from her breath. With even stronger force than before, she effortlessly lifts Sirius for ease of access and seeks her own salvation. Her hot breath in between thrusts meets Sirius’s desperate pleas.
“Listen up Ru- I can’t be here all night so get. on. with. it.” Sirius curses between gasps. It’s so frustrating being angry with Rudolf, because no matter what challenge you present the Emperor with, she somehow follows instructions perfectly. It is no different now, where her quickened pace sacrifices none of its strength and leaves her breathless, “... wait holy shit!”
In a moment of ecstasy, she comes undone under Rudolf’s merciless movements, but it’s clear that Rudolf won’t stop until she is completely spent. She is never one to leave a task half-finished.
“Hnng, fuck!” Rudolf bites her own shirt as she gives the final push to her own satisfaction, letting herself pour into Sirius as she sinks on top of her.
Rudolf collapses against Sirius, their bodies still trembling, the heat of their shared release lingering like a stubborn flame that refuses to die out. Their breaths come in jagged, uneven rhythms, neither quite ready to let go after so long apart. Heat lingers where they’ve touched, both in anger and lust. Sirius smirks, brushing a strand of hair from Rudolf’s sweat-slicked face, her fingers tracing the line of her jaw.
“You’re… impossible, you know that?” Sirius mumbles.
Rudolf’s chest rises and falls, her eyes meeting Sirius’s with a mixture of exhaustion and awe. Rudolf leans closer, her grin widening, playful and victorious. “And yet, here you are,” she murmurs teasingly, “still coming back to me.”
Sirius’s tail flicks with reluctant amusement. The defiance in her eyes softens, replaced by something warmer, unspoken but heavy with their complicated history. Despite the lack of words, both understood that maybe words weren’t enough to fix whatever was wrong with them. She reaches up, letting her hand linger over Rudolf’s, and for the first time in what feels like forever, the fight in her eases.
They stay like that, entwined, bodies and breaths slowly syncing, hearts still hammering. Outside, the city hums on, oblivious to the storm they just weathered together. In that moment, the years of loneliness, resentment, and abandonment had no place in their company.
Finally, Rudolf pulls back just enough to look into Sirius’s eyes, searching, waiting for her reaction. “You don’t have to say it… not yet,” she whispers.
Sirius’s lips twitch into the smallest, reluctant smile, and for a second, the world and their issues fall away. “Maybe… maybe I won’t,” she admits, and it’s enough.
Enough to let the tension dissolve. Enough to let the night belong to them. Enough to remember that even the almighty Emperor can’t survive the world without her loyal subject.