PART 10

Nao sighed and plopped down on the couch that Taizo and Kozi had been sleeping on. Kyo-neko curled up at his side and playfully dug his nails into his thigh. Nao scooped him up and pet the cat’s belly.

The cat blinked up at him.

"What?" Nao asked and played with Kyo-neko’s ear. He pulled away and hissed.

Jumping off his owner’s lap Kyo-neko ran across the room and leaned up against a cabinet, looking back at Nao. Nao only blinked.

Kyo-neko looked at him for another second, with that usual expressionless look cat’s have. He ran to Nao and jumped up onto his chest, pulling at the medallian dangling in the center of Nao’s collarbone.

"Oh!" Nao stood up and Kyo-neko ran to the center of the pentagon painted in the center of the wood floor. Nao slipped the medallion around his tiny cat neck and stood back. He made a few movements with his arms, and a few words whispered beneath his breath and Kyo-neko started to change.

The body stretched and glowed a deep yellow and soon a muscle, and very naked, Kyo stood in front of Nao. Now as a human.

"I hate when you turn me into a cat just because some people are coming!" Kyo stomped to the couch and pulled the blanket off the back, wrapping it around his waste.

Nao watched, admiring. Then he said, "I had to, or it’s back to jail for you." He stood up and wrapped his arms around Kyo’s waste and pouted, trying to disarm the other man. "I feel so lonely when you are a cat…"

He pouted but his friend only snorted and pushed him away. "Nice try, imp. Now," He walked to the cabinet and opened it. "As I was trying to say; I know who and what your "bad thing" coming is."

He found the sketch book he was looking for and flipped it open. He looked at the naked man in the charcoal drawing smiling up at him. The only time Kyo saw the man smile was with Nao… He shook his head and turned back, showing the picture to Nao. "Yuki’s coming. I can feel it."

Nao snatched the drawing away and gasped.

"What did you just say?" Taizo whispered in shock.

Kozi leaned forward to get a closer look, almost falling off the branch. "My brother!" He looked around frantically, suddenly forgetting how to get out of the tree. "I have to get out there! How do I get out of this damn tree?"

Taizo held his arm. "Hold on, don’t fall. Listen, you won’t be able to get of there in time! That’s at least a half-mile away and they are on horses!"

Kozi stopped and looked out at his brother again. "Kaoru…"

Kaoru sighed tiredly and leaned his cheek against Hakuei’s back. He was very content to go to sleep right there. He hadn’t been sleeping well, not that he was complaining. When he had been a slave he had a girlfriend once. She had been a maid in the kitchen. One night they had snuck off to his room after dating for about a week. Dating for them was simply taking their breaks together and smiling over their food as they ate; it wasn’t as if a slave could take her anywhere nice with no pay and nothing nice to wear.

They didn’t love each other, it was more like lust. They both had horrible lives and were magnetically attracted to each other. He thought perhaps the reason he lusted after her was because she had been their master’s bedroom slave as well and he felt sorry for her. They had sex just once. It was clumsy and awkward and neither ended up satisfied in the end, he mostly because she made him stop before he came out of fear of pregnancy. He knew of course she probably never said that with the master.

He had been foolish in loving her and left a large red mark behind her ear in the night… When their master next summoned her he saw it. She had demoted to a field hand after being beaten nearly to death. Kaoru winced and shook his head before he would allow himself to remember what his punishment had been.

Now… He smiled. Hakuei was so gentle and skilled. He didn’t care how good he had gotten at it but only that he was using it on him. He shut his eyes and was lolled by the movements of the horse like a baby being rocked in it’s mother’s arms. He felt his legs dangle above the ground as they moved.

Hakuei felt him and tried to look back without making Kaoru fall. "Are you okay?"

Kaoru nodded and yawned. "Sleepy. Can we go back?"

Hakuei nodded and frowned a little. "Okay." He always went for his morning ride and wanted to treat Kaoru by taking him along on something he had always wanted to do alone. He smirked a little. Maybe he shouldn’t have worn him out the night before. Nah, he rather enjoyed it. "Do you want to have lunch?"

Kaoru shook his head and closed his eyes again. "Nemui." He whined.

Hakuei smiled to himself. He spoke jokingly. "I think you have become spoiled."

Kozi ran as fast as he could towards the main entrance of the mansion. Taizo flew along beside him to keep up. "Kozi slow down! Even if it were your brother they won’t be back from their ride yet." Kozi ignored the comment and kept running.

The joyous housemaid that had witnessed Kaoru’s naked backside those weeks ago saw the man as he first ran into the house. He was wet and dirty from the forest with wild hair all around his face. She screamed.

"No, don’t scream!"

Taizo flew to her and quickly dropped down, covering her mouth with his hand. At seeing him she gasped, fell back and dropped to her knees to bow and honor the spirit, so high above humans.

Taizo looked back at Kozi with a funny grin and shrugged. "Please stand up, Akimi." (Night Note: Is this a Japanese woman’s name?? I have no idea…)

She stood quickly and pointed towards the fields. "They are on a ride, but should be back very soon!"

As she said it they heard the back door opening, Winter took the opportunity and bounded into the house. He stopped to look and bark at Kozi. He ran to Taizo, licking the hand of the familiar man and ran off up the stairs. They heard laughter of two men; one deep and masculine and the other seemed shy.

Kozi gasped as he saw them enter the room. The tall man had his arm his brother as they walked casually into the room, unaware of the other presences. Kaoru’s eyes fell to look around and for a meer second overlooked the rust-haired man by the staircase that slowly walked towards him. Kaoru did a double take and froze, staring in disbelief.

Hakuei stared at both of them in wonder. "What’s going on? Who are you?"

Kozi continued to stumble towards his brother with happy tears gleaming on his cheeks. "Brother…"

Kaoru made a strange sound in his throat and fell against him. Hakuei looked at his friend Taizo for some information but he was smiling happily as he watched his lover finally reunited with his brother and didn’t notice the look on the man’s face. They were hugging so tightly Kaoru felt as if his ribs would break but didn’t care.

"What… what are you doing here?" Kaoru asked as he wiped his tears away. Without waiting for an answer he hugged him again.

Taizo waved cheerfully the the confused Hakuei and then smiled at his happy lover.

"What a joyous reunion." The bitter voice droned from the doorway.