[Team Three] Rebellion
Some LoveBlossom fic from when they're out of high school but not yet settled into their adult roles. Sk8, Cherry/Adam, 600w, T.
Kaoru's eyes gleam in triumph when he catches sight of Ainosuke passing through the back of the crowd. Ainosuke gives no overt acknowledgement of the calligraphy demonstration, but his presence is enough. Things have changed since they were in high school and could hang out at all hours with no real concern for appearances. Now, every move they make is observed, studied, and reported back in newspapers and gossip columns.
It's only going to get worse from here. They're both still growing into the roles that are expected of them--not yet adult enough to take on the full mantle of responsibility, but old enough that it's time to introduce the world to the up and coming successors to their respective lineages. Ainosuke and Kaoru the high schoolers could sneak out together to their favorite skating haunts in the middle of the night, but Ainosuke the up and coming political powerhouse and Kaoru the next head of the Sakurayashiki lineage cannot. Every move they make now is deliberate and made with an eye to the larger optics and quiet power struggles.
Still, they find their ways. Ainsokue knows every imaginable route through the city. If he is slipping past the back of the crowd now, it's because he wishes to be seen. Plus, Kaoru would bet Carla herself that the unidentified drone she had sighted overhead during set up was Ainosuke's doing.
He finishes the piece he's working on--his first piece performed in public as an official representative of the family. Everyone wants to speak to him after, but once he's finished exchanging the customary greetings and small talk with the most important guests, he feigns a minor emergency to slip away from the crowd.
He heads back toward the building, but at the last minute he veers into the alley beside it instead. The ornate stairs to the front doors hide him from view. If anyone is watching him from the crowd, they'll assume he went into the same side entrance he emerged from an hour ago.
Ainosuke is waiting for him. He barely makes it two steps into the alley before he's spun around and pinned to the brick wall behind him, Ainosuke's breath hot against his ear.
"Where are they?" Ainosuke demands. He doesn't explain, but he doesn't need to, not when his fingers are playing over the subtle imperfections in Kaoru's skin that until recently were filled with stainless steel.
"It's not considered fitting for the head of a traditional family to have a face full of metal. You of all people should understand that," Kaoru says. Anything else he was about to say is lost in a gasp as Ainosuke shoves him more firmly into the wall. The bricks are rough at his back even through the layers of his yukata, and he can feel the heat radiating off of Ainosuke's skin from his ankles to his ears.
"Where did you put them?" Ainosuke asks as he trails his fingers down Kaoru's neck. There's a thinly-veiled threat in his tone that Kaoru can't quite place.
"In a jewelry box where no one will think to look," Kaoru starts to say, but he cuts off mid-sentence as Ainosuke's fingers find the still-healing ring in his nipple.
"I knew you'd keep them somehow," Ainosuke says.
Kaoru does his best to keep his voice even as he replies. He's not sure he succeeds, not when Ainosuke drags a hand across the front of his yukata until he finds the matching ring on the other side. "Consider it my secret rebellion."
Ainosuke's eyes snap up to meet his. This close, the desperation and desire are clear enough to hurt. "Give me one too."
Ziskandra is up next.
Kaoru's eyes gleam in triumph when he catches sight of Ainosuke passing through the back of the crowd. Ainosuke gives no overt acknowledgement of the calligraphy demonstration, but his presence is enough. Things have changed since they were in high school and could hang out at all hours with no real concern for appearances. Now, every move they make is observed, studied, and reported back in newspapers and gossip columns.
It's only going to get worse from here. They're both still growing into the roles that are expected of them--not yet adult enough to take on the full mantle of responsibility, but old enough that it's time to introduce the world to the up and coming successors to their respective lineages. Ainosuke and Kaoru the high schoolers could sneak out together to their favorite skating haunts in the middle of the night, but Ainosuke the up and coming political powerhouse and Kaoru the next head of the Sakurayashiki lineage cannot. Every move they make now is deliberate and made with an eye to the larger optics and quiet power struggles.
Still, they find their ways. Ainsokue knows every imaginable route through the city. If he is slipping past the back of the crowd now, it's because he wishes to be seen. Plus, Kaoru would bet Carla herself that the unidentified drone she had sighted overhead during set up was Ainosuke's doing.
He finishes the piece he's working on--his first piece performed in public as an official representative of the family. Everyone wants to speak to him after, but once he's finished exchanging the customary greetings and small talk with the most important guests, he feigns a minor emergency to slip away from the crowd.
He heads back toward the building, but at the last minute he veers into the alley beside it instead. The ornate stairs to the front doors hide him from view. If anyone is watching him from the crowd, they'll assume he went into the same side entrance he emerged from an hour ago.
Ainosuke is waiting for him. He barely makes it two steps into the alley before he's spun around and pinned to the brick wall behind him, Ainosuke's breath hot against his ear.
"Where are they?" Ainosuke demands. He doesn't explain, but he doesn't need to, not when his fingers are playing over the subtle imperfections in Kaoru's skin that until recently were filled with stainless steel.
"It's not considered fitting for the head of a traditional family to have a face full of metal. You of all people should understand that," Kaoru says. Anything else he was about to say is lost in a gasp as Ainosuke shoves him more firmly into the wall. The bricks are rough at his back even through the layers of his yukata, and he can feel the heat radiating off of Ainosuke's skin from his ankles to his ears.
"Where did you put them?" Ainosuke asks as he trails his fingers down Kaoru's neck. There's a thinly-veiled threat in his tone that Kaoru can't quite place.
"In a jewelry box where no one will think to look," Kaoru starts to say, but he cuts off mid-sentence as Ainosuke's fingers find the still-healing ring in his nipple.
"I knew you'd keep them somehow," Ainosuke says.
Kaoru does his best to keep his voice even as he replies. He's not sure he succeeds, not when Ainosuke drags a hand across the front of his yukata until he finds the matching ring on the other side. "Consider it my secret rebellion."
Ainosuke's eyes snap up to meet his. This close, the desperation and desire are clear enough to hurt. "Give me one too."
Ziskandra is up next.