The Tattoo chapter seventy-eight
Nino stared at the house that had been printed on the paper it wasn’t as grand as his lord’s castle but it was well maintained with a walled garden and a high gate. Both he and Ohno were well trained in going unnoticed when needed and it was hard to lose the guard in the crowd. Nino almost felt sorry for the two men that had been assigned to follow him knowing that they would be punished for losing them.
“Are you ready to see your boy, my tiger?” Ohno asked squeezing at his hand. Nino gave him a very small smile and together they pushed open the large gate stepping inside. It was beautiful little garden with a small fountain was in the centre that Nino knew that his boy would be in love with.
“I am surprised that my lord has something so well maintained, my lord…” Nino said carefully immediately on the defensive when he noticed that there were two guards standing lazily on either side of the open doorway. Taking a look at their faces he saw that they were two of his lord’s most loyal guards, two men that he never had to remind to look away from his boy. He wasn’t sure if Sakurai had known that or not but he felt a deep sense of gratitude inside of him.
The guards clearly recognised him as well as their eyes widened with a fear that he hadn’t seen in the time that he had been in the palace as they saw him and their backs straightened. It was a look that he hadn’t missed but once again he quickly put on the mask of the poisoned spider giving them cold looks as he climbed the few steps to the house. Without even stopping to knock he swept inside and was almost immediately knocked over by a body hitting his and arms wrapping around him so tightly he thought that there soon wouldn’t be any oxygen left in his lungs.
“Fath-Nino-sama!” Takayuki cried his eyes filling with tears until he was properly crying his body shaking almost violently. Nino felt tears stinging at the backs of his own lids but he refused to shed them. His arms snaked around the boy though holding him tight as his face pressed into his neck. His scent was different, clearly he hadn’t been using the correct soaps that he had made for him but such a small thing didn’t bother him in that moment and he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to let go anytime soon.
“Ninomiya-sama…Hello…” Masaki said from somewhere in the room but all he managed was a small grunt of recognition as he began to sway the still crying Takayuki from side to side his lips pressed deep into the mass of hair. “Taka-kun has missed you…”
“I did! I did miss you! You only write me once! I write to you lots and lots of times!” Takayuki told him his tears getting harder than ever and Nino sighed his arms tightening around him. He had written and written dozens of letters since he had recovered from his exhaustion but it was predictable that they wouldn’t have reached him before he left home. They must have crossed each other on the road but he supposed that it didn’t matter. Takayuki would just have something to ready when they got back.
“I’m so sorry Taka…I got sick…But I did write to you as soon as I got better…”
“Nuh-huh…Only Satoshi wrote me!” Takayuki whined his nails clawing at his shoulder and Nino gave a little laugh kissing the top of his head again. He was surprised that Satoshi had written to his boy but he wasn’t sure why that would be the case. It was very clearly something that his lover would do. Looking up from the mass of black hair he found himself staring directly into Ohno’s eyes and he mouthed a thank-you that was waved away. He couldn’t imagine that the letters would have gone down well with his lord but he could deal with that later along with a whole lot of other things.
“I truly am sorry Taka, but I did write even though you never received them I promise that they will be there when we go back…” He said finally pulling out of the hug, not completely just enough that he could look at him clearly and he gave a smile. It had only been a few weeks but his boy had seemingly changed so much. His face was starting to fill out properly know and his hair was getting even longer giving him a soft touch and more than ever he was thankful that his lord had not brought the pair to the palace. He doubted very much that he would have been able to hold Satonori’s attention if Takayuki was there…More so because of his simple mind. It would remind him of his daughter in more ways than he ever could. Nino shuddered and moved back into the hug. “You are looking so beautiful my little bird…I have missed you so much…”
“Me too father! But you can stay now! Again to tell me my story…”
“I…I can stay a little while but soon I will have to go back Taka, I’m sorry…” He whispered gently his heart breaking as his tears very nearly came back. He wanted to stay here so much or at the very least to take Takayuki, Ohno, and Tsukuru and just leave never to come back to the hellhole that was the palace but he couldn’t. If he did he would never be able to live with knowing that he had the chance to end the life of a monster and didn’t take it. Like he had said to Ohno people like Satonori shouldn’t exist in the real world, they were the stuff of fairy tale monsters, and now, with his boy in his arms he knew that he would be the one that slayed the monster.
He had already begun work on the poison that he was going to use. It was something that he had never attempted before, he had found it in his family’s scroll something that his mother had been working on when she had been murdered, and as far as he could tell there was no known antidote. Judging from his mother’s notes not even their blood would be able to reduce the effects of the poison which would completely turn a person’s insides to a thick people soup. It was slow painful and seemed to be just the perfect thing for the emperor. Of course there was a lot of other things that he wanted to do as well which was another reason that the poison he was working on was perfect, he paralyzed the victim but kept them conscious.
Nino gave another little shudder closing his eyes as forced away the sickening feeling that was flowing through him. The desire to kill was bad enough but what he had in mind for the emperor was more than that and for a second something inside was telling him that he didn’t have the right to be holding his boy that he was just as bad. Just as he was about to push Takayuki away an image of a pretty girl with long hair that always seemed to hang loose even with the tie came to him and he was reassured that anything that happened to the emperor was well and truly justified. A quick and painless death was too easy on him.
“…Sho said that you had to stay somewhere else, that you were working!” Takayuki said reminding him that he was with his boy and Nino smiled nodding as he really did let him free of the hug now but held onto his hand moving further into the house as he asked;
“What have you and Masaki been doing while I have been away? Please tell me that you haven’t found your way into the fountain again?”
“No! I was good! I promise father…”
“Then tell me all about it…And then I will tell you the story of the tiger and the bird before I go…”
TBC
A/N: Urgh! Has this become too sappy? Nino is completely different now to the man that he was when this first started and although that was meant to be the point, his changing character…I…Dunno…>.<
“Are you ready to see your boy, my tiger?” Ohno asked squeezing at his hand. Nino gave him a very small smile and together they pushed open the large gate stepping inside. It was beautiful little garden with a small fountain was in the centre that Nino knew that his boy would be in love with.
“I am surprised that my lord has something so well maintained, my lord…” Nino said carefully immediately on the defensive when he noticed that there were two guards standing lazily on either side of the open doorway. Taking a look at their faces he saw that they were two of his lord’s most loyal guards, two men that he never had to remind to look away from his boy. He wasn’t sure if Sakurai had known that or not but he felt a deep sense of gratitude inside of him.
The guards clearly recognised him as well as their eyes widened with a fear that he hadn’t seen in the time that he had been in the palace as they saw him and their backs straightened. It was a look that he hadn’t missed but once again he quickly put on the mask of the poisoned spider giving them cold looks as he climbed the few steps to the house. Without even stopping to knock he swept inside and was almost immediately knocked over by a body hitting his and arms wrapping around him so tightly he thought that there soon wouldn’t be any oxygen left in his lungs.
“Fath-Nino-sama!” Takayuki cried his eyes filling with tears until he was properly crying his body shaking almost violently. Nino felt tears stinging at the backs of his own lids but he refused to shed them. His arms snaked around the boy though holding him tight as his face pressed into his neck. His scent was different, clearly he hadn’t been using the correct soaps that he had made for him but such a small thing didn’t bother him in that moment and he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to let go anytime soon.
“Ninomiya-sama…Hello…” Masaki said from somewhere in the room but all he managed was a small grunt of recognition as he began to sway the still crying Takayuki from side to side his lips pressed deep into the mass of hair. “Taka-kun has missed you…”
“I did! I did miss you! You only write me once! I write to you lots and lots of times!” Takayuki told him his tears getting harder than ever and Nino sighed his arms tightening around him. He had written and written dozens of letters since he had recovered from his exhaustion but it was predictable that they wouldn’t have reached him before he left home. They must have crossed each other on the road but he supposed that it didn’t matter. Takayuki would just have something to ready when they got back.
“I’m so sorry Taka…I got sick…But I did write to you as soon as I got better…”
“Nuh-huh…Only Satoshi wrote me!” Takayuki whined his nails clawing at his shoulder and Nino gave a little laugh kissing the top of his head again. He was surprised that Satoshi had written to his boy but he wasn’t sure why that would be the case. It was very clearly something that his lover would do. Looking up from the mass of black hair he found himself staring directly into Ohno’s eyes and he mouthed a thank-you that was waved away. He couldn’t imagine that the letters would have gone down well with his lord but he could deal with that later along with a whole lot of other things.
“I truly am sorry Taka, but I did write even though you never received them I promise that they will be there when we go back…” He said finally pulling out of the hug, not completely just enough that he could look at him clearly and he gave a smile. It had only been a few weeks but his boy had seemingly changed so much. His face was starting to fill out properly know and his hair was getting even longer giving him a soft touch and more than ever he was thankful that his lord had not brought the pair to the palace. He doubted very much that he would have been able to hold Satonori’s attention if Takayuki was there…More so because of his simple mind. It would remind him of his daughter in more ways than he ever could. Nino shuddered and moved back into the hug. “You are looking so beautiful my little bird…I have missed you so much…”
“Me too father! But you can stay now! Again to tell me my story…”
“I…I can stay a little while but soon I will have to go back Taka, I’m sorry…” He whispered gently his heart breaking as his tears very nearly came back. He wanted to stay here so much or at the very least to take Takayuki, Ohno, and Tsukuru and just leave never to come back to the hellhole that was the palace but he couldn’t. If he did he would never be able to live with knowing that he had the chance to end the life of a monster and didn’t take it. Like he had said to Ohno people like Satonori shouldn’t exist in the real world, they were the stuff of fairy tale monsters, and now, with his boy in his arms he knew that he would be the one that slayed the monster.
He had already begun work on the poison that he was going to use. It was something that he had never attempted before, he had found it in his family’s scroll something that his mother had been working on when she had been murdered, and as far as he could tell there was no known antidote. Judging from his mother’s notes not even their blood would be able to reduce the effects of the poison which would completely turn a person’s insides to a thick people soup. It was slow painful and seemed to be just the perfect thing for the emperor. Of course there was a lot of other things that he wanted to do as well which was another reason that the poison he was working on was perfect, he paralyzed the victim but kept them conscious.
Nino gave another little shudder closing his eyes as forced away the sickening feeling that was flowing through him. The desire to kill was bad enough but what he had in mind for the emperor was more than that and for a second something inside was telling him that he didn’t have the right to be holding his boy that he was just as bad. Just as he was about to push Takayuki away an image of a pretty girl with long hair that always seemed to hang loose even with the tie came to him and he was reassured that anything that happened to the emperor was well and truly justified. A quick and painless death was too easy on him.
“…Sho said that you had to stay somewhere else, that you were working!” Takayuki said reminding him that he was with his boy and Nino smiled nodding as he really did let him free of the hug now but held onto his hand moving further into the house as he asked;
“What have you and Masaki been doing while I have been away? Please tell me that you haven’t found your way into the fountain again?”
“No! I was good! I promise father…”
“Then tell me all about it…And then I will tell you the story of the tiger and the bird before I go…”
TBC
A/N: Urgh! Has this become too sappy? Nino is completely different now to the man that he was when this first started and although that was meant to be the point, his changing character…I…Dunno…>.<