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Title: Ai no Honoo
Author: Andy-chan (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
antimiya88)
antimiya88)Pairings: Ohmiya, Sakuraiba (both main pairings)
Genre: Historical AU, Romance, Drama, Angst (slight)
Rating: R
Summary: Ninomiya Kazunari is a former courtesan, chosen to enter the Emperor's Ooku. There, he meets different people: The Emperor's favorite, Aiba Masaki who, at first glance, seems cheerful and perfectly adjusted to his life there, but proves to be someone with important secrets. He also meets Ohno Satoshi, Ooku's main guard who despises the concept of the Ooku and looks down at its members - particularly the male ones. Nino thinks that the best would be to stay away from him as much as possible. He knows his position well, even if he hates it.The only thing that keeps him strong is a memory...
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the boys, unfortunately.
Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 / Part 10 / Part 11
Part 12
Part 12
Part 13
“Matsushima Junichi?! You mean you are the heir of the most powerful family among shoguns, having under command the largest shogunate and being trusted enough to be in charge of the army in cases of emergency that the Emperor would decide upon?”
Jun lowered his head. “Exactly” his one-word answer made everyone stare at him curiously.
A complete silence fell in the room for several minutes. The Emperor himself was looking at Jun as if he hadn’t heard right. If you are who you say you are Jun then why?!
Jun, on the other hand, didn’t even dare to look at the man in front of him. He had lied because he had fallen in love but that didn’t change the fact that he had actually lied to him and he was afraid... afraid of losing the trust the other had shown to him… afraid he would lose everything…
“Why?” the Emperor finally spoke. To Jun’s surprise it sounded neither hostile nor angry… it was mostly concerned.
“I am…” Jun tried to speak but a member of the Board cut him before he could actually form a full sentence.
“Wait a minute! It’s been years since then! Even if we assume that Matsushima Junichi did escape from the fire, he was only fourteen at the time… There’s no way he could have survived alone in the-”
Jun looked at the one who had spoken. “First of all, there was no fire… and second of all I wasn’t fourteen but seventeen. My father had taught me since I was really young that a shogun isn’t supposed to stay in his palace and wait for the others to rescue him. He should be in the first line himself. From the age of ten I would follow him to the forest where we would spend the night accompanied by a couple of servants and guards. It was at my eleventh birthday that I was allowed to hold for the first time a katana. I admit that I was scared but soon, I learned that defending yourself is the true virtue of a soldier… because what you are above all is soldier… no matter what your ranking is. Thanks to my father, by the age of fifteen I was able to find my way through the forest and defend myself even if it was somehow clumsy, it was in a certainly effective way”
“How can we be sure that you are indeed Matsushima Junichi and not a servant or someone else who happened to steal the coat of the arms of the Matsushima family? Everything you told us could be a made-up story!”
Jun smirked. “If I was a servant as you said I would be probably among the first ones to die… accident or not I would… because if we assume that it was indeed a fire, then it would have most probably started in the kitchen… that happens to be close to the rooms provided to the servants but even if we’re talking of a murder, which was what happened, surviving servants would both hinder the attackers and be a dangerous source afterwards…
Servants have no way out because simply they are not informed of the location of the secret getaways underground the palace… and I’m also sure that you, Yoshimura-san, should already be well aware of the fact that the coat of the arms of an important family, exactly because it means the proof of its members identity, is to be placed somewhere known only among them… If I’m not mistaken, you were the one who was actually looking like a maniac for it… in my father’s office.
Unfortunately for you, I was already holding it in my hands at the moment… but even if I hadn’t you would have never found it… because it never occurred to you that my father would have kept it in my mother’s room… the person he loved the most and had given him his children… the one that symbolized his family!”
“What did you just say?” Yoshimura spoke almost breathlessly.
Toma wasn’t speaking at all. His face was pale as his eyes crossed with Satoshi’s. This is getting worse and worse…
“I think I spoke loud and clear enough…” Jun insisted.
“You cannot accuse a member of the Board of something like that even if you are truly Matsushima Junichi! After so many years and being under shock…” the voices of the Board objecting grew in number.
“You never forget the face of the one who killed your family in front of your eyes…”
“There’s no proof that it was a murder… it was a fire! The Matsushima palace was burnt down completely!”
“It was… but when Yoshimura realized that I wasn’t among the dead bodies… I can prove it!”
“How?!”
“Firstly, the coat of the arms of my family wouldn’t have survived the fire since it’s mostly made of wood and secondly, Yoshimura-san wouldn’t have a scar on his left leg, starting from a little lower of his knee all way down to his ankle. It was my father’s last attempt to protect his family. On the other hand, don’t you find it weird that it was the Matsushima family that died in the fire but none of the samurais under their command appear there only till it was already late? That can only mean four things: one - some of them were bribed, two - the ones that remained loyal to the shogun were sent away probably for a fake reason and couldn’t come back before it was already too late three - there was no fire till it was too late and four – everything happened in combination. Personally, I believe it was the last one…”
“But-” Yoshimura tried to speak up but was hushed by the Emperor, his eyes throwing flames.
“A shogun has many guards… soldiers… but for some reason no one was there to defend and protect him. Surprisingly, most of them were there to serve Shinakata Yoshitarou, from the first moment he got my father’s place… weren’t you, Yoshimura-san, the one who proposed his name to the Emperor? That way, everything was under control, you here at the Board, the shogun of your choice in the place of my father, Hiroyama Akihito at the other part of the country, Yorimoto the one pretending the spy but in reality weaving the web against the Emperor… You could finally get more gold… I heard that the golden decorations in your palace are almost equal to the Imperial palace!”
“Gold… I think that according to his Highness’ interpretation we should call it rice!” Satoshi spoke in a sarcastic way, causing a wave of whispers once again.
“You…” Toma was raging at the hearing of that.
“Toma, Silence!” the Emperor ordered his brother before turning to Jun. “Please, continue…”
“Thank you, your Majesty!” Jun said in a firm way, looking down at the floor. “When I started living in the forest all I wanted was to have revenge. I decided to live by the name of Matsumoto Jun, in an attempt to erase any possible traces of my real identity. I knew that it was possible to be recognized in the town so I went to the forest where I had been so many times with my father. I wanted to come to the Emperor and reveal the truth, claim my position back… then I met with Ohno Satoshi and we lived together. Somehow we shared many views in common and I could say that I had found an ally that would help me carry out my revenge.
And the opportunity came when Satoshi found his Majesty wounded. I managed to cure him and all that was left was to tell him the truth but I couldn’t… He wasn’t anything like I assumed… for me, even if it sounds rude, he wasn’t the Emperor… he was the most wonderful man I had ever met in my life… when he told me he would take me here as a member of the Ooku, I couldn’t deny… I simply wanted to be with him… no matter what and so I came and I don’t regret it.
Of course, I hadn’t forgotten my family and my obligation as Matsushima… I had guessed that Ohno Satoshi wasn’t what he seemed… I knew it of course not in detail but still good enough to be sure that the Emperor would be saved… That was what mattered to me… Justice would eventually come and I would be there to serve him the way he wanted me”
“Jun…” the Emperor whispered, not knowing what to say about the things he was hearing at the moment…
“But then I saw you, Yoshimura-san… It was my second year here I think… I was the entertainer of the dinner when we met… I couldn’t believe it… Back then, I only knew a face… since my father never brought to me to any discussions with the shoguns or the daimyos… I was still too young for that… but then I also had a name… Suddenly, my wish to kill you emerged in me again, even if I had decided to leave my past behind… but I tried to ignore it… my uneasiness though wouldn’t let me…”
“So in other words, you just confessed that you were planning to kill me when everything you’ve presented to us is nothing more than…” Yoshimura was now standing, his face being totally red.
“I’ve already proved what I needed to prove but that’s not the point. It was some years after our first encounter, when I became the responsible of the Ooku, a position that automatically gave me more freedom of moves in the palace. One day, I accidently saw you with the Prince. It was only a brief moment but I realized that he told you something… and after being sure that no one was looking at the two of you, he left heading backwards to his chambers. If I didn’t know you better, I would probably not pay attention but seeing you leaving right afterwards with a smirk on your face… that was something that I couldn’t overlook... I knew you were capable of everything… I was a witness of that everything… This was also the first time I spoke with Ohno Satoshi and the first time my suspicions proved right…
Everything was the Prince’s plot… He used the shoguns but in reality he would take them off the map as soon as he accomplished his plan. Yorimoto was the one he trusted the most since he was the one with the less power… or so he thought at least…”
“That proves that you have been already set things up with Ohno Satoshi! The betrayal of the daimyo Yorimoto you just spoke of, was mentioned before you are presented to this Board!” Yoshimura exploded.
“I’m afraid I will disappoint you but I happened to hear it from his mouth last night, Yoshimura-san. I was there with the guards that took him to the dungeon. I am the responsible of the Ooku, you see, and I actually had to be there. Ninomiya Kazunari has told me everything. It was as if the last piece of the puzzle got into its place…” Jun replied calmly, making Satoshi chuckle a bit.
I started watching the Prince closer and soon found out that he would spend many of his nights in the Empress’ rooms” Everyone’s but the Emperor’s eyes bulged at the hearing of this. “Soon, he came to me and asked me to have some of the female members of the Ooku to pass the night with him… it wasn’t difficult to figure out that he was a man with no restrains and above all, no morality…”
“How dare you talking like that…” Toma yelled but the Emperor made a nod to the guards standing next to the door in his right to hold him.
“Even if I had left behind my name, I hadn’t betrayed my family… and then there was the man I loved the most… I thought that I could play a role… even if I didn’t hold a katana in my hands… I knew I wasn’t worth of holding it anymore… So, I came up with a plan… play along… pretend to be a man that also sought for power, recognition… I made him believe that being taken from the position of his Majesty’s favorite to the responsible one had hurt my feelings, my ego… Of course, I was sad but never ungrateful…
He always told me that ‘we were more alike than I thought’… Then I was sure that I had succeed… My goal was to make him believe that he could trust me and tell me everything… In order to do that I passed to him, some members of the Ooku, of course the ones that were never asked by his Majesty. I had to make him believe that I was working for him, doing his favors and pretending to ask him also favors as a payback.
The matter of Sakurai Sho being in a secret relationship with his Majesty’s favorite member of the Ooku, Aiba Masaki, is false! He wasn’t happy enough with having the throne. I guess he wanted to see him hurt…” Jun felt a knot on his throat when he saw the Emperor sighing relieved and his eyes sparkling with hope again.
“I am the one who put that brooch in the Prince’s chambers, as I already told you… he had a plan to allure them so that the Emperor would hypothetically catch them being together but I couldn’t see innocent people lose their lives. So, I decided to convince him that if he did that was enough…” Jun continued and turned his attention to the Emperor. “But please let me tell you only one thing. As the responsible of the Ooku, I can positively assure you that Aiba Masaki truly loves you, your Majesty. I swear it on my life!”
“Liar! Everyone don’t you see that everything is a well-organized conspiracy against me?! Brother, don’t let them…”
“Let them what Toma?” the Emperor sounded angry. “You still have the audacity to speak in front of me? Even after accusing a person that is dear to me and a person that I trust with having nothing to do with your hatred against me? Why don’t you admit it already?”
“But everything they presented has to do with Yorimoto and Yoshimura… not me…” Toma tried in vain to make his brother believe in his words.
“You made a small mistake there, your Highness… if I may speak…” Satoshi suddenly said, making all heads turn towards him. “The timing of the two cases between the attack against Matsushima family and the attempt to kill the Emperor wasn’t right, unfortunately for you… Both of them took place around the same time…”
“What are you talking about?! We’re talking of a difference of years between the two of them!” Toma pointed out to Satoshi who limited himself to only smile. “There’s no wrong timing!”
“Yes… indeed… the difference is years and I’m not talking about this… I said that the timing is wrong. I’m talking of the season… When I found the Emperor at the river and brought him home Matsumoto Jun… no… Matsushima Junichi kept repeating the same thing… ‘Why did it have to happen with the first new moon of the year… just like my family…?’ For some reason, I found it weird but not until I started filling up the scattered pieces of the puzzle… I realized that they both happened around the same time of the year because they both were orders of the very same person, aren’t I right, your Highness?
Both happened one month after your birthday… It’s the occasion that all the daimyos are gathered in the palace to celebrate your birthday since in case of no successor from the Emperor, you automatically become the one… It was your only chance to talk to them in person… In both cases it takes almost three weeks to pass the information, to the respective shoguns… and from there I guess one week to finally be ready to execute… It was almost the best chance as it’s the custom of the Emperor to leave for a surveillance around the country; something that automatically meant you remaining alone in the palace where you would easily play the role of the devastated younger brother who had to carry the burden of responsibility…”
Toma was left speechless.
“And there is a proof that nothing can surpass it…”
“What?”
“Your Majesty, I think it’s about time…” he made a nod to the Emperor who gave the order to the guards on the door that led to his private chambers directly. Everyone was left with their mouth agape.
“Michiko… please, enter”
The Empress walked slowly with her head down. Jun couldn’t stop staring at her. She was a bit younger than her husband; almost at his age and very beautiful indeed… but unfortunately too rotten inside… she seemed like a snake… that was hurt and scared.
“We are listening!” the Emperor spoke in a cold tone.
“I was in a secret relationship with my brother in law… almost from the beginning of my marriage with his Majesty…” Toma fell on the floor, knowing well that everything was finally lost.
There were members of the Board that looked at her shocked and others who looked at her disgusted.
“I…” her voice trembled “I…”
“Speak!”
“I have given all the letters that he has sent me to Sakurai Sho, in order to study them… in them he was always writing of his dream…. taking his brother’s position with me as his wife… Everything is there… He’s the one behind the revolution…He’s the one that planned to become the Emperor…”
“That would be enough! Take her! She shall remain locked in her chambers alone till I go and meet her!” the Emperor ordered in a cold, severe tone that sent cold chills to the guilty ones’ spines. Once she was gone, he turned his attention to the rest. “I think there’s nothing else to say…”
“I…” Toma’s mind had stopped working.
“You betrayed me… but you were also betrayed… Michiko… Yorimoto… How does it feel, Toma?”
“Brother…”
“DON’T CALL ME BROTHER! I have no brother!” the Emperor yelled. “Now, I’m sure you all know well what will happen to you… Higashiyama Toma…” he took a deep breath as he looked at his brother, feeling tears building up in his eyes that he desperately blinked away. “Yoshimura Teriyoshi and Yorimoto Daichiro. You are all condemned to death with the accusation of conspiracy and betrayal against the Emperor and the Nation. Your heads will be cut off today when the sun sets. You are not worth of dying at dawn. The darkness is what you deserve. Take them to the Dungeons!”
Immediately, a group of ten guards stormed into the room taking the three men that kept resisting with all their might, yelling that everything was lies, away.
“As for the others” the Emperor continued in the same tone “they are already being brought here to also be executed, as we’re speaking. Justice shall be given. Do you have anything to ask?”
Jun closed his eyes tightly. He knew that even if the Emperor’s voice sounded calm, it was ready to tremble.
“Your Majesty… that was beyond imagination…”
The Emperor smiled bitterly. “It’s usually your left hand that cuts off your right… that’s what they say, right? I had my suspicions but I always wanted to be proved wrong… No matter what, Toma is my brother…”
“Your Majesty… there are many things left open. Matsumoto, no Matsushima… the shogunates…” a member spoke up. “The situation still is quite uncertain… there are the samurais that-”
“Ohno has taken care of that… He has already informed me…”
“Is that true, Ohno Satoshi?” another member of the Board asked.
Satoshi nodded. “Yes. I have already managed, thanks to my sources, to isolate the traitors… so that the danger will be eliminated…”
“As for the shogunates, I will announce my decisions tomorrow. For now, Sakurai Sho has already prepared all the documents with the analytical information. He will present them to you at the secondary boardroom. You may follow him. This Board has ended” he declared, showing that he clearly he wanted to be left alone.
The members of the Board along with Sho bowed and left the room leaving the Emperor with Satoshi and Jun. “Ohno, please… go and make sure everything will be ready by sunset”
“As you wish, your Highness” Satoshi bowed before turning his gaze to Jun who was left staring at the Emperor. “Go to him… he needs you…” he whispered to Jun’s ear before leaving the room.
The Emperor had fallen on the floor. He couldn’t remember the hours he had spent in that room. The only thing that he remembered was the way that his brother and the other traitors tried to convince him that they were innocent… even at that moment… his wife admitting everything in front of the Board… he felt disgusted… useless… Tears built up once again in his eyes but this time he didn’t fight them away… he let them fall freely, making his cheeks wet. He almost collapsed on the floor completely when suddenly, he felt two arms wrapping tightly around him.
“Noriyuki…”
“Jun…” the Emperor looked at him for a brief moment before turning his gaze away. “No… I made a mistake… Junichi…”
“I am Jun… I will always be Jun but… we can talk later… I think you should rest for now… Let me help you… ”
The Emperor seemed to think about it for a couple of seconds. “No! Masaki… I need to see Masaki… he’s the most pure in this palace… I need to see him…”
Jun sighed but still stood up, pulling the Emperor along with him. “Let’s go, then…” As they walked slowly, he did dare to look at the other and his heart was clenching painfully in his chest. He knew that finding that Masaki was dead would be another harsh news of that day… I am sorry that I will be the cause of you experiencing even more pain today… but I promise you this will be the last… I know you would be hurt anyway… Masaki would leave you and that would be even worse… his hand pressed on Masaki’s letter that he kept hidden inside. He somehow felt that he was betraying the man he loved the most but in the same time knew that it would be better this way... At least he would know that at least one person was honest with him. I can promise you Noriyuki, no matter what I will always be by your side… always…
…………………………………………………..
Nino was walking up and down in his room. His heart was beating crazily. It’s already been so late… where is aniki? I thought that they would have finished… and Matsumoto-kun went there… Please, Kami-sama please let them be safe! Ple- his thoughts were interrupted as he saw a figure leaning at the wall next to the half-opened door… and not any figure… it was him… “ANIKIIII!” he threw himself in Satoshi’s arms that wrapped around his waist tightly. “Aniki, I was so worried…” his voice trembled and tears had filled up his eyes.
“Why are you crying, Kazunari?” Satoshi said softly, wiping them away with his thumbs. “I told you that everything would go fine…”
“But still… I thought that I would go mad… I saw that Matsumoto-kun had also got called and I was scared… I…”
“I expected that to happen… you didn’t have to worry so much, my love…”
Nino buried his head in the crook of Satoshi’s neck, inhaling his scent deeply. “I will always worry, aniki… because I love you…”
“I love you, too…” Satoshi replied smiling before cupping Nino’s cheeks with both hands. “That’s why there was no way that I would betray my promise to you… I told you that I would come and I did…”
“Aniki…”
Satoshi’s eyes were locked on Nino’s lips that were left half-opened... as if they were expecting to be kissed. “Say nothing more…” he leaned closer and claimed them passionately, smiling when he heard a delicious small moan escaping from Nino’s throat as he deepened the kiss.
Several minutes passed by and Satoshi’s tongue kept tasting every single inch of Nino’s mouth. The younger one had his body attached to his, making him groan when he felt hardness against his thighs. He took his lower lip between his teeth and nibbled it softly before letting it go.
“You are already this hard?” Satoshi asked huskily as he placed his right hand between their bodies palming softly Nino’s erected member through the layers of the kimono he was wearing.
“I… missed you and… ah… I was afraid… ani… kiii…”
“Then, I shall make you feel safe again…” Satoshi in a low tone as he placed his hand directly on the bare skin and started moving it up and down in a steady rhythm giving all possible pleasure to his lover.
“Ani… what… about you…?” Nino managed to whisper as he clung himself to the other, his knees getting weaker as he felt coming closer to his orgasm.
“This is about you now, Kazunari… Let yourself free…” Satoshi whispered straight in his ear, as he twisted his thumb over the tip. “Come for me…”
Nino didn’t need to hear it a second time; his whole body was trembling throughout the shuddering pleasure that crossed every cell of his body. He hadn’t even gotten the chance to strip off his clothes yet it somehow felt so intimating.
“I will always be by your side Kazunari… I will always make you feel safe, loved, pleasured, complete… and you will always call out my name…”
“Satoshi…” Nino said, trying to ease his panting, his cheeks blushed. “But…”
“I wish I could make love to you right now but unfortunately I don’t have the time… There are special guests that will be arriving in a while and I also have to take care of that old betrayer of mine…”
“You mean Ohkura?” Nino asked frowning. “Where is he?”
Satoshi pecked his lips and smirked. “Where he belongs… Soon, he will have all his precious friends accompanying him…”
“You… killed him?”
“No… He did… I promise I will explain to you when we leave from the palace… Our trip will be long anyway…”
“You mean I am officially yours, already?” Nino asked, his eyes sparkling from enthusiasm.
“Not officially, yet… but you will be… I’m sure the Emperor didn’t let you go from the Ooku like that if he hadn’t noticed…”
Nino gulped. “Noticed what?”
“That I have feelings for you…” Satoshi smiled. “Tell me, Aiba-san’s and your clothes already in the place I had shown you the other day?”
“Yes! Everything is ready as you told me… though I don’t understand why I am the one to do Masaki-kun’s clothes… I mean wasn’t it better to decide himself what he should take and what not?”
“Aiba-san didn’t feel so well and Matsumoto was of the opinion to let him rest…”
“Masaki-kun?! Ill? Can I see him? Where is he? Now I feel so useless… he always took care of me and now that he needed me the most I…”
“You did what you had to do” Satoshi finished his line. “Aiba-san, is in the care of Jun and the Emperor…”
“The Emperor?! But we are supposed to leave… and how… I…”
“He’s fine! He just felt a bit tired…”
“But still… he’s my only friend, aniki…” Nino said under his breath.
“Your only friend…?” Satoshi asked frowning a bit.
“Yes… because you are my only lover… my only love… my only man… Aniki… I really care about him…”
“You have such a gentle soul, Kazunari…”
“You have a gentle soul yourself, aniki… I mean it!” Nino added fast seeing the doubt that rose in Satoshi’s eyes once again. “You are helping Sakurai-san and Masaki-kun!”
“But that’s because I…”
“I’m sure that you do it because you care about them… You know everything… I’m sure you knew about them as well… even if you hate the Ooku… you never gave them in… You cared… You have a gentle soul too, Satoshi…”
“How can you always make me feel as if I’m a better person than I truly am?”
“I’m just being honest… but… Masaki-kun… is he really ok?”
Satoshi nodded softly. “Do you trust me?”
“I do” Nino replied fast, with no hesitation.
“Then, believe me he’s fine… and he will be even better…” Satoshi reassured him.
“Now, you should take a quick bath and change into the yukata that Matsumoto has left for you somewhere… I don’t remember exactly…”
“There was a yukata on my bed”
“Good! You have to be ready. I’m pretty sure later tonight you will be asked to meet the Emperor”
Nino gulped as he nodded fast. He tried to stay strong but somehow he was feeling nervous.
“You don’t have to be like that. Matsumoto will be there… You know what you have to say. Yorimoto won’t be able to talk anymore by then… Everything will be fine. Think of it as the moment when our lives will change… Ok?”
“Yes. Don’t worry, Aniki… I always have you with me…” he said in a low voice. “This pendant… It’s my little charm and source of power. I will do my best…”
Satoshi kissed him gently on the lips one last time. “I have faith in you, Kazunari”
“And I have in you” Nino whispered back, smiling as he saw his lover getting out of the room; the determination his face portrayed was something that made Nino feel strong. He got his obi loose, starting unfolding it. As he saw the silk fabric of the kimono and the inside layers falling on the floor a warmness covered his heart. It felt as if finally, since when he left his family’s house, he would be able to leave this dark chapter of his life behind. “I trust you aniki…” he whispered softly before getting in the warm water, relaxing probably for the first time that day.
……………………………………………………….
“Your Majesty…” the Emperor frowned when he saw the healer waiting for him out of his chamber where Masaki was.
“What are you doing here? I thought that you were supposed to take care of Masaki!”
“Your Majesty… Aiba Masaki is…” the healer hesitated to form a complete sentence in front of the Emperor.
The Emperor’s eyes bulged as he realized from the healer’s tone that something had happened. He stormed in the room, heading to his bed where Masaki was. With a trembling hand he touched his cheek just to find it cold. No… No it can’t be… No… No… “This is a lie… please someone tell me this is a lie…”
“His heart was too weak and his lungs couldn’t get enough air. I even tried to bring him back with special acupuncture but it got weaker and weaker… I’m sorry, your Majesty…”
“OUT! GET OUT! EVERYONE GET OUT!” the Emperor had taken Masaki’s lifeless body in his arms, his very own body shaking due to the sobs.
“Noriyuki…” Jun managed to whisper as he placed carefully his hand on the Emperor’s shoulder. The Emperor who seemed lost in his lament only left Masaki back on the bed after several minutes. “I can’t believe it… he was so passionate the last time he was here… so giving… as if…” new sobs threatened to come to the surface “…as if he knew that…”
“I don’t know what to say…” Jun mumbled honestly. “But I can promise you… everything will be alright… I-”
“You will take the place you deserve, Jun… and I will be left alone…”
Jun threw his arms around the Emperor, surprising the latter. He was almost trembling. “You are making a mistake… You won’t be left alone… I will be here… I have told you many times… I don’t care how… I just want to be by your side… forever…”
“But…. I thought that you would want to take the shogunate…”
“I am not worth of holding a katana in my hand… I am not worth of having people under my command… Matsushima Junichi disappeared the day our eyes met for the first time… and died the day I became yours… I am Matsumoto Jun… I am only the man who loves you and will never abandon you… no matter what… I wish nothing in return… just to be able to help you… however you want me to… please… I know I lied… but with you I just wanted to be me… the man who loved you… not someone with such a name… my identity was my love… please Noriyuki… forgive me… let me stay with you, here… please…”
Noriyuki was left speechless. He slowly turned his gaze to Jun whose eyes were filled up with tears. He could feel the other’s desperation from the way had clung on him. For a moment he turned his look back at Masaki who was lying pale and cold. “You are the only one who loved me… and continues… up to today… even if I hurt you so much… I could see how shocked you were that day that I declared you responsible of the Ooku… At first, I thought that you would miss the physical part of our relationship… little did I know… I was really stupid… I was seeking for purity and egoistically I got it… or so I thought…”
“You love him… I know you do…” Jun whispered as he brought one of his hands on the top of the Emperor’s head, caressing his hair.
“He was always smiling to me… his eyes were clear… he was so beautiful… I thought I had him… but even that was egoism…” the Emperor mumbled his eyes locked on Masaki’s face.
“What do you mean?” Jun asked rather confused.
“He never loved me… I somehow knew it… but I didn’t want to lose him… It was as if a choice of mine proved to be wrong again… and I didn’t want that… but honestly, tell me… was it true? About Sakurai and him?”
“I…”
“Honestly, Jun…”
“He never betrayed you…” Jun whispered and lowered his head.
“What do you…?”
“He loved you… not as a man perhaps… but he did… I know he did…” he took Masaki’s letter out and gave it to the Emperor. “I found it as I was searching for clothes in his room… I think you should read it… I have to go now… there are preparations to be done…”
“Yes… please…” The Emperor muttered in an almost whispering tone before unfolding the paper he was holding with trembling hands. The writing was a bit clumsy but it was clearly Masaki’s.
Noriyuki
If you are reading this then I am already far away but I want you to know that even there I have a wide smile…
A few teardrops fell on the paper as he kept on reading. Masaki…
Jun looked at him before closing the door, feeling his own tears getting back to his eyes. I’m sorry… my love…
…………………………………………………
“You came to tell you congratulations?! You surely are demanding…” Toma said sarcastically.
Jun sighed, shaking his head negatively as he stepped closer to the younger brother of the Emperor who was tied with chains against the wall. “I did not come for that… I just had to tell you one thing… You once told me that we are more alike than I think… You were wrong… because I love your brother from the bottom of my heart…”
“Of course you do. That’s why you decided to lie to him about that Aiba and Sakurai…”
“I decided to do so because they deserve not to die…”
“I don’t understand why though… he is the one who has managed to capture the heart of the one you say you love… he’s the one who doesn’t love him back… he’s the one who’s cheating him… and you decide to cover him up… You have such good reasoning really…”
“In a way he has lied to him… but he never betrayed him… that’s the difference between you two, if you wonder why… he loves him… you might laugh… but I know he does, even if it isn’t the way Noriyuki wanted… you on the other hand…”
“…wanted to destroy him… am the monster… Come on! Say it! I know you die to say it!”
“No… I won’t exactly call you monster… You are… but I have figured out the reason and in a way, in a distorted of course way, I can somehow understand why… Above all, you didn’t wish to destroy him… but to hurt him… deeply… to take everything he loved away… If I was in Aiba Masaki’s position, I would be attacked by you… You wanted to make him feel what it is to lose someone you love… aren’t I right?”
Toma didn’t answer. He was left looking at Jun with a blank stare.
“He took the woman you loved… The Empress… I talked with her when I went to announce her his Majesty’s decision not to condemn her to death if she revealed the truth at the Board. She told me that you two were secretly in love before she was given to your brother … you expected her to say something… to look sad… but you realized she somehow was particularly contented with the option of her becoming the Empress… It wasn’t till a few months later that she realized that she wasn’t happy enough… and then you re-approached her… but this time you had your ego and pride hurt… that’s why you decided to destroy everything that represented your brother’s position and power… ending up with the final plan to become the Emperor yourself with her as your wife… but you still feel betrayed and tried to convince yourself that all women were the same… that’s why you would ask for me women from the Ooku… to feel that you were paying your brother back the exact same way… But I could see it you know… the sadness… the emptiness in your eyes… I don’t hate you though… I pity you… you deserve what you get… ” Jun turned away when he heard
“And you will get back to your position… The noble one Matsushima Junichi!”
“You’re making a mistake… Matsushima Junichi is dead. I am Matsumoto Jun… the man who simply loves Noriyuki… not the Emperor… and I intend to be by his side forever…” Toma was dumbfounded. “You see?” Jun continued “I was right. We’re nothing alike… Goodbye, your Highness…” and with that he left the small dungeon heading to the Emperor’s chambers. He had to prepare everything.
***
He knocked on the door and opened it where he found the Emperor in the exact same position he had left him; at the side of Masaki.
The other didn’t throw a single glance at him. “Jun… please… call Ohno Satoshi, Ninomiya Kazunari and Sakurai Sho here… I have taken my decisions…”
Jun gulped but nodded. “As you wish, Noriyuki…”
TO BE CONTINUED…
A.N. Soooo minna here's part 13! ^_^ I tried my best not to take that long to post it... but once again it's long! (*whispers* more than 6.500 words!! ;D) We found out everything about Jun and finally all the traitors were revealed!!! I think that the most tragic figure was the Emperor... hearing all of that and even obliging his wife to speak the truth in front of the Board... it took courage but it was necessary, right?!
I decided to add a small Ohmiya scene! Nino got reassured by Ohno that he will always have him by his side but I think that he needed it after being in his room not knowing what's going on! ;) We also got a hint about Ohkura's luck... more information in the next one! xP I know that Sho was completely absent in this one but I promise you next week he will be the one to talk with the Emperor! And Sakuraiba will have their time... but I can assure you that a couple of
On the other hand, Jun tried to convey his feelings the best he could! The Emperor finally dared to speak the truth - that Jun is the only one who loved him and not Masaki... He also got the letter!!! Masaki is the sleeping beauty but he managed to pass his message to the Emperor! There will be evolution as far as it is concerned! ;D
And I also added a small scene between Jun and Toma... He's the bad guy of the story... but I do believe that everyone has a reason for behaving the way he does... and so had Toma... Even if there's no excuse for all that hideous plans!
As for the cliff you know me... right?! xDDD
In the next one, apart from the Emperor's decisions, you will also have all the explanations behind Ohno's plan... because this is what they presented to the Board... not all the details that only Ohmiya, Sakuraiba and Jun know... that way everything will be clear! Aaaaaand some fluffy and smexy moments will also be there! ;D
The previous and this one were honestly the hardest chapters to write...... I just hope it didn't turn out to be boring or disappointing in the end... I honestly tried my best!!! ^_^"
I really hope you enjoyed it and as always your comments are <333!!!
See you soon! ^_^
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