krystalkatzficz | Against His Will part 110

“Sho!” Masaki snorted ducking behind a terracotta plant pot as his husband threw a snowball at him. The snow was getting thicker now and even if they wanted to leave they wouldn’t be able to, there was no way a carriage would be able to make its way through and it wasn’t fair to try and force horses. He didn’t mind so much, Sho had told him that if it was like this here then it would be ten times worse in the north and there would be very little chance that they would start their campaign south, and that was assuming that Yuichi had made it home yet.
For a while there had been a sour tang of unrest in the castle but it was already being swept away by the queen’s determination that she was going to give them a winter festival to be proud of. The palace was being decorated with lush greens, vibrant reds, with gold tapestries being draped around the ballroom again. The party this time would be small, she said…For family and staff alone…The staff had been surprised by the offer but the buzz of excitement was apparent in each and every member of staff. The queen had told him that he was the reason, the staff would normally have a party of their own in the kitchens but this time she wanted them to know how much she appreciated them. The whole family, along with Sakurai and himself, led by Lady Kazuko, had been making parcels for each member of staff and everyone was in agreement that it was going to be the strangest party imaginable but perhaps one of the most enjoyable.

“I will get you my husband!” Sakurai shouted in return while Hercules barked loudly in Masaki’s arms. They had put the dog down in the snow but only his head had been uncovered and now his coat was damp but he appeared to be enjoying himself and they all knew that when they went in hot drinks and snacks would be prepared, even for Hercules. Masaki gave another laugh and grabbed a handful of snow with one hand throwing it awkwardly in the vague direction of his love. He clearly missed by miles but he was happy for the distraction that Sakurai was giving him. He knew that he was trying to take his mind off of the dismissal reading his head done earlier and he had to admit that it was working. Jumping from behind the large flowerpot he ran in the direction of the summer house shrieking with laughter when his back was pelted with snowballs. Some of the snow slipped its why down his collar to freeze at his skin.

“Ah no-fair!” He gasped wiggling around as he held Hercules more tightly against his chest not wanting to drop him. Sakurai laughed and hurried to his side helping him to remove the lumps of snow from out of his clothing before gripping him tightly in his arms and crushing him against his chest pressing his cold lips into neck.

“Would you like to go in now?” The older man asked and slowly Masaki nodded deciding that his feet were growing too numb to feel and he should probably warm them up by the fire suspecting that they would be helping make more parcels that afternoon. There were at least 668 members of staff currently in the palace, Masaki hadn’t seen that many but he knew that they were there floating around making sure everything was working smoothly, and he doubt that they had made up even half of the packages needed yet. Together they trudged through the snow their hands clasped tightly together and neither were surprised when they stepped through the door to the castle an old servant was there with a tray of hot drinks and a warm smile on his face.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Sprite…How are you feeling now?” Jun asked softly when they had been sitting quietly in their bedroom for close to an hour. Kazu had been attempting to lock away his memories again but it hadn’t worked and he couldn’t believe that only after one session with the doctor he was feeling worse than he had before. He had wanted it to work but now he was just making his husband worry about him again. He pushed himself up in the sofa and rubbed his eyes giving an attempt of a smile as he tried to lie;

“I…Am feeling alright now…”

“Please, sprite, I can understand that you will not want to tell me what happened to make you so upset but please, do not lie to me…I can see that you are not alright…” Jun whispered coming over and kneeling in front of him and taking his hand gently in his own. Kazu felt his cheeks grow warm at that and he kept his eyes on the hand that was holding his. It was such a warm comforting feeling having it there in his own but at the same time it was a daunting feeling and he found himself whispering shakily;

“I wanted it to work…I wanted to be a good husband…Instead I just feel worse…”

“My little sprite…” Jun replied sadly lifting his hand and kissing at the palm gently before he continued in a soothing tone “One talk with the man would not fix it all…In fact as you talk things over with him I am sure that it will make you feel worse…”

“Then…How can it be a cure?” Kazu asked with a frown of frustration and he was surprised when Jun gave a very small laugh and kissed his hand again.

“Sometimes unpleasant things can be a cure…I am uncertain how his cure works, but I know that my father would not suggest it for you if he did not think that it would help…” He said and Kazu nodded slowly thinking about the king who had been nothing but nice to him. Satoshi had warned him that it was not a miracle but he had still being hoping for one “I know that you are feeling bad now, my sprite…But I am sure that it just takes time…Do not grow disheartened because of this…”

“I will try not to take it to heart…But…It is difficult when I want so much to be a good husband for you…” Kazu mumbled not realising that he had spoken the words aloud until he felt Jun squeezing at his fingers. Kazu looked into his husbands face flushing brightly at the warmth he could see in his eyes. Once again Jun brought his hand up to his mouth kissing it again before just holding it there in front of his face.

“You are a perfect husband, my little sprite…I would never want another…” He said gently, his voice muffled against his skin and Kazu almost smiled at the ticklish sensation that ran through him and the words that were said. Jun stayed like that for a few more minutes before he looked up and asked gently “Do you wish to stay up here or would you like to go downstairs so we can help prepare the gifts for the staff?”

“…I…I will come down…It is fun to prepare them…I think that my mind would be made at ease…” Kazu whispered suddenly happy when he thought about the gifts they were making. It wasn’t anything spectacular, handkerchiefs and scarfs for the older members and toys for the younger, with some food and money, but he thought that the staff were going to enjoy them…Or at least he hoped so. “Thank you for staying with me…”

“Always…I love you my little sprite…” Jun told him so easily that Kazu couldn’t help but feel his cheeks burn with embarrassment but somehow he managed to reply;

“I…I treasure you…”

TBC
A/N: Sorry for the delay! I had a hard time writing this chapter >.<