"Iida-sama flatters me,” I told him, deliberately sounding humble. “I am but a simple lord, not a powerful one, like Ishihara-sama or Sakamoto-sama. Surely they would be able to give him better counsel?"
Both those men ruled large kuni in the south of Nippon, spread over several of what had been separate provinces in the real world part of the islands of Kyushu and Shikoku.
"He doubts it,” Mawatari replied smoothly. “My lord admires both your intelligence and your beauty. He would be overjoyed if you would join him for a journey to his kuni—"
"My Lady is flattered by Iida-sama's attention,” Aboshi interrupted effortlessly. “But as lord of her own kuni, she rarely travels. And she wouldn't travel alone."
That was true, after a fashion. I rarely traveled the Dreamlands, but I did travel to the real world whenever I wanted to. I also took advantage of Samojirou's ability to travel in the shadows to occasionally visit parts of the other realms of the Dreamlands, but on the whole, I was content to stay on my own land. It was like that with many of the other lords. And Iida was a fool if he didn't think I would bring a handful of my Reavers with me. I doubted they would let me travel alone, less so than Aboshi. Even now, I could sense a few of them waiting outside this room, as was their custom. I wondered how Mawatari would feel if I invited them in with us.
"As I have said, I am flattered by Iida-sama's interest in me,” I repeated, “but I must discuss this with my karo before I make any sort of decision."
Mawatari looked at the two of us. There was almost a faint sneer in his attitude after I said that. I ignored it.
"Your advisor might be biased in this matter,” Mawatari said, after a small silence.
I smiled sweetly at him, knowing what he was hinting at. Aboshi was no longer to be trusted because of Sakura, since he was strong enough to rule his own kuni. Mawatari was hinting that he would overthrow me while I was gone and replace me. Unfortunately, Aboshi's reputation still haunted him after all these centuries. He shifted, but that was his only reaction to Mawatari's accusation.
"I trust him,” I said, with a slight emphasis on the I. “He is family."
Mawatari said nothing for a moment. “My lord would be overjoyed to meet with you. He would escort you by water, aboard his personal yacht, to his kuni. He desires to meet with you alone, since he also wishes to discuss a delicate matter of a personal nature.” He bowed and took his leave.
We were silent for several minutes before Aboshi spoke. “Iida is not to be trusted."
I laughed. Not because it wasn't true, but since Aboshi sounded like an outraged brother more than my levelheaded advisor. “I know that!"
"Meeting alone means that he is plotting something."
"It is the nature of the Game to be plotting,” I reminded him. “We just have to figure out what he exactly wants. Is Iida interested in my power or my beauty?"
"Probably both,” Aboshi told me without hesitation. “You are a fascinating woman. You also have not taken a lover in the centuries you have been here. To be the one who coaxes you into his bed would be a triumph for Iida."
"I have no intention of bedding the man!” I exclaimed, trying not to gag at the thought. “And I have always thought of you as my consort. You have been my dearest friend, here and in the real world."
"If I had not assassinated Jin-yo,” Samojirou said, “then Satomi wouldn't have killed you. I was not a good friend to you."
"Jin-yo was a pig,” I said softly, trying not to shudder and failing. The man had been crude, had treated me like a dockside whore more than a trained concubine. I had been simply enduring the man's attentions, hoping my next contract would be better, when Aboshi had arranged for Jin-yo's hunting “accident.” I had dreaded my next contract. I was getting older and that had made me less appealing to most samurai. When Samojirou informed me blandly that he would be assuming my contract—but expected no sexual relations—I almost wept, for I was so relieved at his news. Aboshi's tastes were known to me, even if he had been discreet when he had been with Jin-yo. He had no sexual interest in women. “And you had no idea that Satomi would betray me like that."
"I should have known that it would have happened and protected you in some way."
I laid my hand on his arm. “You did all that you could,” I reassured him. “And you have supported me here in a manner that no one else would have."
* * * *
Samojirou
I wasn't surprised Iida was interested in my lady, since she was an interesting woman and a powerful lord. She hadn't been that social in the past few decades, so when she chose to grace our society with her presence, she had attracted admirers. I hadn't known Iida would be among them. But the man was new here, a younger lord who probably didn't understand all the rules here.
Iida was intrigued by the three of us, even with his rudeness to my Keno. Did he think Tamazusa would be jealous of him? Or threatened? The man was an idiot if he thought either of those things. But why approach my lady now? Was he interested in her or was there another plot here?
"You are worried,” Tamazusa said flatly.
"What does he want?” I posed. “Besides your body? Is he thinking of another kind of alliance? Does he want you as an ally for another reason?"
"It does sound like that,” she said thoughtfully. “But I doubt if I am going to know unless I talk with the man."
"I don't like the fact that he doesn't want you to have an escort,” I said.
A lord would always travel with an escort, even if just attending business in his kuni. To travel to another lord's lands, Tamazusa should take with her a small army of retainers, called a Hatamoto, whose duty was to protect her at the cost of their own lives. She had the habit of traveling with just her Reavers, which was unusual, maybe because of her ability to Gate to the real world. But if she were going to meet with Iida, she would need to do so with the traditional escort of a Hatamoto, even if the man had no idea what it was. It was the traditional guard from the Warring States era that had survived until the Meji Restoration, even if it had changed under the Tokugawa to more of an administrative position, as it was here.
"That is something that I can bargain with him about,” she told me briskly. “You and I know the Reavers will not let me go alone, even if he objects to any kind of escort. If Iida doesn't understand that, then he isn't worth playing the Game with."
"Is this more than a move in the Game?” I asked softly. “Do you want something more? I see you looking at Keno and I, and there is something about you...."
"I am content with my life here,” she reassured me. “I am overjoyed that you and Keno are so happy. I have no wish to have a man or anyone else in my life. You and Keno make me happy."
"I can never thank you enough for finding him,” I said huskily. I couldn't. I shivered when I thought about what could have happened to him in the real world in the hands of those animals. “He is a joy."
She smiled. “You're getting that look in your eye again."
"That look?” I repeated.
"The look that means that you want to find your blossom and do something scandalous with him."
"My lady!” I protested.
She laughed. “Let me think about Iida's offer. Alone. There are a number of issues with it, but it also might be an innocent offer. Iida may feel better getting advice from a woman rather than one of the greater lords. Or he might want to ask advice on how to search for a consort, something he might not be comfortable asking another man about."
"I had not thought about that,” I said. “Even if I don't think that is what he wants from you. There is something more to this. We just have to figure it out."
"We do not!” she told me with a laugh. “I will think about this, and you will go and spend time with Keno."
"My lady, I can—” I started.
She laughed again, and I took the hint. She wanted to be alone. I wondered if it was because she wanted to think about the implications of Iida's offer politically or personally. I know
she has never sought a relationship with anyone here, even after all these centuries. She had chosen not to deal with a formal alliance, but she could have amused herself with a paid companion or a lover of either sex. But she had not, and I grieved for her, concerned that she couldn't find the happiness I had with Keno.
Thinking of Keno quickened my step. It was early afternoon, and he would be studying in the library. I went there and was rewarded by finding him in one of the side rooms he had taken over for his own use. He was sprawled on the floor and reading.
"Samojirou-sama,” he greeted me formally, rising easily and gracefully.
"Keno, we are alone. There is no need to be so formal,” I chided gently.
He blushed. “I'm always afraid I'm going to forget one day and call you Aboshi in public."
"Since Sakura is still as mute and charming now as she was in the beginning, I don't think that is something you have to worry about,” I reassured him. “And we are very alone right now, aren't we?'
"I think that Hikura-san mentioned he was going to be away for the afternoon and that I was to just leave my books here instead of putting them away,” Keno said.
I leaned over and kissed him when he told me that. I wasn't surprised that he was kissing me back eagerly. He wasn't such a shy flower anymore, even if we didn't always consummate our relationship physically.
"Hikura-san would be very angry if we made a mess in here,” Keno murmured after a couple of minutes. He sounded very dazed and a light brush against the front of his yukata, told me that he was as eager for me as I was for him.
"Then we will just have to be neat,” I told him. “Or just messy on you."
"Whatever you want to do,” Keno managed to whisper hoarsely.
I was touched by the trust he had in me. “Messy on you, it is,” I teased him.
We continued to kiss, our light cotton yukata growing damp in the heat our bodies generated. I managed to undo both our fundoshi and our obi between kisses, Keno's body grew slick and pliant, his arms wrapped around my neck. My fingers wandered to his hidden opening, and when I brushed against it gently, he moaned into my mouth, a needy sound that went straight to my shaft.
"Please...."
"No oil, my sweet,” I said regretfully. “And I will not take you without it."
I didn't let him say anything else as I pulled him tight against me. I teased his opening some more, aware of the fact that he was slick enough for something else. Controlling him with kisses, I eventually had him sprawled out on the floor below me, his yukata spread out below him. I knelt between his legs, pulling back long enough to admire the sight of him open to me like this, vulnerable and so sexy. I cupped his sac, stroking the delicate tissue, watching him arch into my touch as my fingers wandered lower.
Keno bit his lip to stifle his moans, not wanting to enlighten the whole estate as to what we were doing. I thought of another way to quiet him and shook my head. As much as I wanted his mouth on me, I would take our pleasure in another manner. He gasped in pleasure as one of my fingers started to penetrate his entrance. He was slick enough with sweat, but I knew it still would be uncomfortable for him.
"Tell me if this is too uncomfortable,” I murmured.
"No,” he moaned. I have to confess I heard an edge of pain in his voice and it excited me in an odd way. I maneuvered us gently, my finger barely in him, until we were a tangle of arms and legs, lying on our sides and facing each other.
I said nothing more but kissed him hard, my finger sinking into his body deep enough to find that special spot in him. He was whimpering and writhing, kissing me as his hands explored my body. Keno arched into me, clutching my back and rubbing against me mindlessly, lost in the friction between us. I was having a difficult time holding back, wanting more than a bit of my finger in him. I found what I was looking for, and he came, moaning in my mouth as I stroked his center gently. When he was done, I wasn't surprised to feel his hand slip between the two of us to stroke my shaft.
I bucked helplessly after a few strokes, burying my face in his neck and biting his shoulder in my passion. When I was done, I didn't want to move, even with the mess drying between us. It was with great reluctance that I rolled to my back for us to cuddle. But even then, I couldn't stop fingering him, just to listen to the sounds he made.
* * * *
Keno
We were cuddling when Samojirou mentioned what was bothering him. Granted, we would have been more comfortable in our bedroom, and I didn't think I could forget we had made love here, but I was drowsy and content, listening to his heartbeat. I was enjoying his finger in me and the way his other fingers were playing with my balls. I didn't think I could have a coherent conversation with the man. Part of me wished we had done more, and I made a mental note to carry oil around with me all the time, even as I moaned as he touched that good spot inside of me again.
"Iida has sent a messenger,” he said quietly. “He wishes to meet with Tamazusa alone."
I gathered my wits and tried to think as well as feel with him. “That's not going to happen. The Reavers don't even let her sleep alone."
It wasn't that bad, but they hovered around her even more than they did me. Right now, I knew there were two or three of them outside the room in the garden. Was I embarrassed that they had listened to the two us? Kind of. But having them listen wasn't as embarrassing as either Tamazusa-sama or Okita-san listening to us.
"She is thinking about it,” Samojirou said quietly.
"Tamazusa-sama must think that it is a good move in the Game,” I muttered.
Samojirou kissed the top of my head. “She does."
"You're worried."
"I don't trust Iida,” he told me.
I thought about it. The man had spent the past couple of weeks stalking us. It was a little creepy, but I wasn't one to really talk about creepy, since I was living with oni. But the important question was, why was he stalking us? He had been rude to me on the occasions we had met, but that could mean nothing more than that the man had no manners.
"What do you know of him?” I asked, nuzzling and licking his shoulder like a dog. With what he was doing, Aboshi wasn't going to get anything too intelligent out of me.
"He holds a southern kuni, a very small one, poor but part of our southern defenses,” Samojirou said. “He's new here. No one knows much about him."
"Is he an oni or something else?” I asked, more to get him to think than out of any real interest in the answer.
He frowned, “No one really knows. He seems to be like your brothers, rather than like Tamazusa or myself. He's not a spirit, either. He had been of the real world at one time."
"A man of mystery,” I commented. “You know that this just might be something innocent. He may just be too Western to realize he's doing something strange, since he seems to be a modern spirit."
"His advisors should tell him he is being foolish,” Samojirou snapped.
"What if he doesn't have anyone like that?” I asked, trying again to put my brain in gear. “What if he's just realizing that he's got to do something like that? What if he just wants her advice about setting up a court and everything because he doesn't want to deal with the other lords? You know that it's something they'd never let him forget about, that Iida-sama hadn't known such basic etiquette. And you know, no matter how modern someone is, he might think this is girl stuff and ask her to come because of that. And if Tamazusa-sama comes with troops, it might mean that she'll try and take over his kuni. Iida may be many things, but he isn't stupid. You don't let someone walk into your castle with a potential army."
"It also might be something else,” Samojirou muttered. “A Hatamoto isn't an army."
"He might have a crush on her too,” I said.
Samojirou laughed. “Who wouldn't? I think I understand what you are saying with that word. She is a woman who is charming and intelligent."
"And beautiful,” I added. I wasn't jealous of his admiration of her, since they had been together for centur
ies. He loved her like a sister.
He kissed me again. “As are you."
We were silent for a while after that, content to be with each other. He eventually withdrew his finger from me, but I still didn't want to move.
"You know that he might not be able to feed a lot of extra people,” I said sleepily. I was ready to fall asleep right here and worry about that wrath of Hikura later. He'd be upset that we'd had sex here, but I had made sure the book hadn't gotten damaged, so he wouldn't be too angry with us. He just thought that libraries should be used for studying and not fooling around in. I usually thought that too. But there was something about Samojirou that made me do these mad things.
"There is that too,” Samojirou remarked thoughtfully.
"And you know she isn't going to go anyplace without a maid, because I really don't think that Iida has sent one with Mawatari's escort,” I said. “She wouldn't be without someone of her household."
"I still don't like it,” Samojirou said.
I made some sort of noise, agreeing with him, because I really didn't like it either. But I knew Tamazusa could take care of herself, and that if Iida did something to piss her off, she'd do that spell on him, the one that had turned Heiseg's insides to mush, and then Gate to the real world. Samojirou was just worrying over nothing, which was cute, in an odd way.
* * * *
I realized I had fallen asleep when I woke up back in our bedroom. It was late, and when I wandered into the other room, I discovered a tray had been left for me. I wasn't angry, since I was pretty sure they were hiding me because of some move in the Game. Sakura, Iida knew about. I was pretty sure he didn't know about me. I knew that sounded strange, but we were really two different people at times. It was no secret that Sakura was a guy, given that Samojirou had been openly gay for all of his life and unlife.
I really didn't want to have to deal with whatever plan Aboshi and Tamazusa were dealing with. And I wasn't going to be presentable until I cleaned up, so dinner alone sounded like a good idea for me. Even if I wasn't involved in the Game, I had a lot to think about with whatever Iida's proposition was and how it affected us.
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