Erich/Alexis, 2 and 30, Lust Royale cover? >:)
ser
(Art by ser as usual, lol! Some of these are going to end up with ridiculous ‘cover art’ like this)
(2: Marriage of Convenience, 30: Hot Consort, Erich/Alexis (and extras because polyam))
“…the promise of lasting alliance between our people…”
Erich resists the urge to sigh by dint of taking a sip of his — now lukewarm — tea, well and truly bored of listening to politicians natter on and not seeing the point of having three Generals present. At his side, General Zettour’s mouth quirks up just enough that Erich knows the man is laughing internally at him, and it makes him almost petulant enough to ‘accidentally’ spill the disgusting brew on his superior.
Except that would get Zettour out of the meeting — if only briefly — and not him.
Frankly, his superior doesn’t deserve the reprieve.
Instead, Erich carefully sets his teacup down and arranges his hands back in his lap, spine straight and head tipped slightly towards the current speaker, every inch the attentive soldier no matter how much the stillness grates at his nature.
(He’s had decades to perfect his guise.)
(He won’t break character just because he’s bored!)
(But maybe some harmless revenge against Zettour, who had gotten him invited to this meeting for some unknown reason…)
(He could do that.)
Across the table and three seats down from him, close to the head of the table, are the two people responsible for the meeting itself: two diplomats from overseas, members of the Shinigami corps of mages from the Akitsushima Dominion. They’re seated next to each other, tall and powerful and beautiful, and Erich…
Erich wants.
He missed their names during the introduction, too captivated by them, by their power, to truly register anything beyond the need to act normal. That he’d fumbled his way through the social niceties without error was down to his training.
That General Rudersdorf had elbowed him in the side and smirked at him was down to the man knowing his tells far too well.
(If he didn’t respect both men so much…)
Erich quietly sighs through his nose and sets those thoughts aside; it doesn’t really matter that his superiors know of his fascination, because they know his true form. They know the why behind his distraction, know he’ll keep his hands — and his powers! — to himself as the ancient covenant between their people agreed, but… well.
There’s no harm in looking, is there?
The one with the waterfall of pristine white hair is beautiful, his smile kind-calm-gentle and his power brimming beneath his skin; he feels like a quiet, clear stream to Erich’s senses, perfect-beautiful-deadly like a mountain stream before a flood. Water might not be Erich’s Element, but the man’s power is so clean, so pure, that it’s hard to resist siphoning some away just to try it.
The man’s partner is rougher but no less gorgeous, his lazy gaze hiding a sharp intelligence and his casual posture belying how alert he is; his power is all sun-dappled shade and vast trunks, like the edges of a deep, primeval forest. The temptation to just take is much less with him than his companion, but it’s still there, still enticing no matter how little strength he’d gain from it.
He wants like he hasn’t in a long time, like he hasn’t since he and Alexis snatched Kisuke from the shores of a foreign land and claimed him as their consort, as their mage—
The white-haired diplomat catches Erich’s gaze and smiles, a hint of interest-promise-heat in the cast of his expression. It’s enough to tell him he’s been caught — enough to tell him they’ve been watching him and he didn’t notice — and whether or not that smile is an invitation, it’s… it’s…
Embarrassing.
(Who else has noticed him?!)
Erich looks away to the large, clear windows. Breathes through his embarrassment-desire-want. Reminds himself that the men are diplomats, backed by the might of an army of mages who once purged their entire land of Elementals and have kept it that way for centuries. They will neither understand nor agree to any attempt at claiming them, and Erich is here as a General, as a man, his actions bound by the ancient covenant and his position amongst the Empire’s forces.
They believe they are propositioning a human, not a dreaded Elemental.
And in the eyes of those not in the know, he is a married man. To accept an invitation into either of their beds is… shameful. A betrayal of his vows, of his good name—
Motion through the window catches his eye. Makes the breath seize in his throat. Makes him bark out a sharp, “Sir!” even as he ducks, dragging Rudersdorf down with him, reaching for Zettour—
The rambling politician stutters to a halt.
The window shatters.
“Captain Alexis the Charming arrives!”
Jyuushiro listens with half an ear to the politician currently speaking, well used to dealing with the sort, and focuses the majority of his attention on subtly watching the young General Rerugen. The man is doing everything in his power to pretend interest in the ongoing speeches, but, well…
::You certainly have an admirer there,:: Shunsui teases him through their mental bond. ::Think we could entice him into bed? He looks like a sweet thing~::
::Shunsui!:: Jyuushiro mentally yelps in mock-offense, barely hiding his amusement at the suggestion. ::And it’s us he’s admiring, not me alone.::
::No, he’s definitely more interested in you, mister powerful exotic mage,:: Shunsui shoots back, eyes flashing with laughter as he glances at Jyuushiro.
::You’re ‘exotic’ too, you know,:: Jyuushiro feels the need to point out, even if he has to concede the point; Rerugen is definitely paying more attention to him than to Shunsui, though he’s subtle enough about it that Jyuushiro doubts anyone but the other two Generals have noticed.
Shunsui’s lips twitch into the barest glimpse of a wicked smile. ::Dare you to approach him after this meeting,:: he suggests. ::I bet you can get him to actually stutter if you turn up the charm a bit.::
Jyuushiro bites back a smile, amused by the idea; Rerugen had been perfectly polite when he was introduced to them at the start of the meeting, poised and collected and capable, but given his current state of fascination…
Well, it didn’t seem too far-fetched of an idea.
With that in mind, Jyuushiro turns his head just enough to actively catch Rerugen’s gaze and smiles at the man, doing his best to entice. Rerugen’s eyes widen and pink dusts his cheeks as he looks away, clearly embarrassed by being caught but just as clearly interested. It’s more than enough evidence for him; even if nothing comes of it, flirting with the young General will be a fun diversion from the tedium of meetings—
“Sir!” Rerugen barks, even as he launches into motion, dragging one of his superiors down with him, reaching for the other—
Wood erupts from the table in front of Jyuushiro as the window near Rerugen shatters inwards and Shunsui reacts instantly to protect them.
“Captain Alexis the Charming arrives!” a voice announces gleefully, accompanied by the heavy tread of boots on stone and the grating of glass as the person strides through it.
Several politicians near him groan softly but relax, shaking their heads as they stand from the floor and begin righting their chairs.
Clearly whatever’s going on is… common? Expected?
(What sort of land is this?)
“Alexis!” Rerugen exclaims, voice climbing in protest. “Alexis! You can’t just invade headquarters like this!”
Jyuushiro darts to his feet, eyes widening at the sight that greets his eyes; there’s a fierce-looking woman pacing towards Rerugen with a wicked smirk on her face, and behind her are four other, equally fierce-looking people. All of them are wearing a mishmash of styles and colors, at once rakish and almost ridiculous, with weapons visible everywhere and jewelry glinting as they move. They’re to a person intimidating, and Jyuushiro can feel their magical strength reaching out to blanket the room in a gesture of possession that not a single person other than he and Shunsui can feel—
All five turn their attention on him, and with a start Jyuushiro recognizes one of them.
“Shihoin?” he asks, incredulous at the sight of a clearly alive, clearly happy Yoruichi Shihoin standing amongst the others. “You… reports said—”
“That I died?” Shihoin finishes for him, a bright grin on her face as she saunters forward with a familiar-unfamiliar rolling gait. “Reports of my demise at sea were greatly exaggerated, I promise you.”
He swallows against the flash of relief that rises; he’s never quite believed the official story of betrayal and experimentation and forbidden techniques to turn mages into elementals, but… even if he had, he’d never have wished her supposed fate on anyone; lost at sea, cast adrift with no chance of rescue, no hope of survival…
“I suppose the others survived too, then?” Shunsui drawls as he edges closer to Jyuushiro, magic rising in silent warning-threat-promise that does nothing but make the attention on them sharpen. Even Rerugen is looking at them with a hint of the same focus-fascination-desire as the other four invaders, and probably-Alexis is looking at the two of them with outright glee.
(His instincts are practically screaming at him.)
(There’s something going on here, something that he’s not understanding.)
(Something dangerous.)
“They did, yes,” Yoruichi agrees with one of the sharpest smiles he’s ever seen on her. “Come to haul us back, have you?”
“They will not,” probably-Alexis barks, command heavy in her voice.
“They’re just diplomats,” Rerugen tries, rising slowly to his feet and lifting his hands in a placating gesture. It’s clear from his stance and his tone that he’s not afraid, that he knows her — probably quite well — and is used to talking her down. “Lexi, it’s—hey!” he nearly shrieks as Alexis grins and swoops in, heaving him up and over her shoulder in a display of strength that makes Jyuushiro’s mouth go dry. “Put me down! Alexis von Rerugen, unhand me immediately!”
“Hmmm… I think not!” Alexis announces as she wraps her arms around his legs, pinning him in place, draped awkwardly across her shoulder like something out of a ridiculous story. “It’s been too long since you came to visit, my love~”
“That’s not— I have a job to do, Alexis!” Rerugen protests as he pushes himself up, body arched and neck exposed, pristine uniform rumpled by the manhandling. Part of his jacket has come untucked, the pale skin of his side visible as he twists in her grip. “Put me down!” he tries to order, voice stern but undercut with a breathy quality that belies his protests.
“General von Rerugen, I believe you have some mandatory time off coming up soon,” General Zettour announces with a level of gravitas that Jyuushiro is certain hides laughter. “Captain Alexis, if you could have your husband returned in a month, I would appreciate it.”
Alexis gives the man a sloppy salute and chirps, “Sure thing!”
“SIR!”
“You’ve been looking a bit peaked lately, General,” Zettour continues airily, ignoring Rerugen’s protest. “A bit of time with your wife will do you good.”
“Speaking of, I think I’ll be taking your two guests as well, sorry!” Alexis announces cheerfully, sounding not at all apologetic. She flashes Jyuushiro a wicked-sharp-pleased smile when he stiffens in realization, then tightens her grip on Rerugen’s legs to hold him more firmly in place when he starts to struggle harder at her words.
“That’s…! They’re diplomats from Akitsushima, Alexis!” Rerugen protests, eyes wide and an edge of panic in his voice. “You can’t just— they won’t— do you really want to invite retaliation from the Shinigami on all of us?!”
Alexis hums and flashes Jyuushiro another smile. “Oh, I think everything will work out. Get ‘em, boys.”
Jyuushiro exchanges a brief look with Shunsui and then moves, using a touch of Wind magic to propel himself away from the invader trying to sweep him up. Another quick-step and he’s at the door—
“Nice try, but I’m still faster,” Shihoin murmurs in his ear as she slaps a suppressor seal on him and sweeps him up into a princess carry, her arms like steel bands around his body. “Trust me, just go with it,” she tells him, waiting out his futile struggles. “Nothing’ll happen to either of you, Captain’s just… curious.”
“Curious?” Jyuushiro asks, keeping his tone as polite as possible. “Shihoin-san, we came here for a reason—”
“You won’t be kept isolated,” Shihoin interrupts him as she hoists him a bit higher and begins to saunter back towards the broken window. “Folks here are used to, ah… interruptions of this nature. They’re good at working around it.”
“Do all official visitors to your country get this treatment?” Jyuushiro can’t help but ask, even as he tries — and fails — to gather his magic.
(Whoever wrote the seal knew what they were doing.)
(Which… really only leaves Urahara as an option.)
(Damn!)
Alexis laughs at his question. “Only the interesting ones!” she tells him with a sharp grin, then turns away to watch her other three crewmembers corner Shunsui.
Rerugen, still slung over her shoulder like a sack of grain, is glowering at the floor, clearly enraged but also… embarrassed? Regretful? Jyuushiro can’t truly tell, not without seeing his eyes or being able to feel his power, but it’s… touching, in a way. The man clearly hadn’t anticipated any of this, much less Jyuushiro and Shunsui’s capture.
General Rudersdorf sighs and Jyuushiro manages to twist enough in Shihoin’s grip to get a look at the man; he’s leaning against the table, attention focused on Shunsui even as he taps the ash off of his cigar. “You couldn’t have waited a week?” he asks as he shoots Alexis a dust-dry look. “We had plans on how to handle their introduction to your people, you know.”
(‘Your people’?)
(That’s… ominous.)
“Plans schmans, you should know better than that,” Alexis replies lightly, then takes a firmer stance and gathers her power around her like an invisible cloak. “Best this happens now,” she declares as if she’s the one in charge of everyone in the room. “Marcel caught wind of your newest guests, General, and you know what that means.”
Whoever ‘Marcel’ is, the very mention of them makes Rudersdorf scowl and makes many of the nearby politicians wince and exchange looks that Jyuushiro doesn’t like, considering how they’re reacting to this little ‘invasion’. Because for all the shattered glass and Rerugen’s complaints, for all that Jyuushiro is currently helpless and being carried like a damsel by a person he thought was dead, for all that Shunsui is struggling to avoid being captured as well… there’s nothing truly frightening about it.
The politicians are righting their seats and carefully cleaning the table of any debris, the two remaining Generals are watching with an air of paternal amusement, and for all that Shunsui is fighting back there’s no blood, no actual attacks being made, just lunges and harmless traps and every indication that the three people trying to corner him are more than willing to wait him out rather than potentially injure anyone.
If the very mention of ‘Marcel’ is enough to make them wince when this is treated so casually…
“You could have just warned us,” Rudersdorf half-heartedly complains, then takes a drag of his cigar and breathes out the smoke. “We were planning on putting General Rerugen as their liaison, and I have full trust in his abilities.”
Rerugen makes a strangled noise and pushes himself up to give his superior a startled, almost disbelieving look. “S-sir?!”
Rudersdorf arches one bushy eyebrow at Rerugen and says, “You don’t think Marcel would have accepted your claim?”
And whatever that means, it’s enough to make Rerugen flush scarlet and flop back down over his wife’s shoulder with a groan, arms moving to cover his face. “Sir,” he bites out, voice muffled. “Did you really expect me to— I know I— augh!”
Zettour takes the opportunity to speak up, voice bright-mischievous-casual as he says, “It was my understanding that sex wasn’t required—”
Rerugen squeaks, the tips of his ears turning a bright scarlet. “It isn’t!” he forces out, voice higher than before. He lifts his head slightly, body turning towards his superiors, and… meets Jyuushiro’s gaze. His blush immediately spreads further, creeping down the column of his neck to vanish beneath the collar of his uniform, and he buries his face back in his arms with a whine.
Jyuushiro purses his lips against the laughter than wants to rise and lets his head tip back so he can stare up at the tiled ceiling instead of at the tempting, tempting sight in front of him.
(How far does Rerugen’s blush extend?)
(He… kind of wants to find out.)
“Tempting, isn’t he?” Shihoin teases softly. “Just wait until you see him with Kisuke and Alexis at the same time.”
Jyuushiro swallows and sends her an exasperated look, doing his best to ignore the mental image that her words create. “Somehow I doubt I’m going to be so privileged.”
“I’m going to enjoy the sight of you eating those words,” Shihoin tells him with undisguised glee, lips curling up in a wicked smile. Then she tips her head towards where Shunsui is slowing being cornered and raises her voice as she says, “Now if someone will just get with the program so we can get moving!”
“Not exactly what I had planned for the day!” Shunsui shouts back at her, then grunts with effort as he twists around another attempt to grab him. Magic flares around his body, the wooden floor heaving, and—
Immediately settles back in place, no trace of Shunsui’s magic behind.
The sight leaves Jyuushiro cold, dread pooling in his stomach as he tries to look closer, tries to see—
(Mages can’t cancel each other’s powers so easily, even if they share the same element.)
(Only… only elementals… but elementals are dead, are just legends, stories to frighten children with—)
(This isn’t Akitsushima…)
Shihoin’s hand tightens a bit on his arm as she looks back down at him. “Nothing’ll happen to either of you,” she tells him, then huffs a laugh when he gives her the dry look that comment deserves. “Alright, alright, nothing worse than this will happen to you, promise. Kisuke and I are fine, and we’ve spent years with them.”
He… supposes that’s true; Shihoin seems stronger than ever, not weakened and listless like the stories of elemental-ridden mages say she should be. If… if the worst is true, if Alexis and her people are elementals, at least… that seems different.
Something clatters to the floor and Shunsui grunts, the sound ending with a soft wheeze of breath escaping his lungs, and Jyuushiro quickly looks back over, fearing what he’ll see—
His lover is slung over one of the men’s shoulders much like Rerugen is, a great scowl on his face and his long hair cascading down like a waterfall. “Your shoulder is bony,” Shunsui growls as he tries to twist away, only to have the man’s free hand settle on his lower back as a further brace.
“I’ve been told that,” the man answers cheerfully as he turns around and strolls back towards the rest of them, the other two crew members following behind. “Cap’n! I caught him!”
“I see that, well done Briar,” Alexis praises warmly. “And now that we’ve achieved our objective, we’re off!”
Rudersdorf snorts. “Just remember to bring them all back in a month,” he says sternly, like a father reminding a child of curfew.
“And remember to have fun!” Zettour adds with a fox-like smile.
Alexis laughs, bright-cheerful-wild, and says, “Aye-aye Generals, sirs. We’ll be in touch like usual!”
And with that, Alexis spins and darts towards the window, leaping out with neither a care nor hesitation, Rerugen still braced across her shoulder. They vanish from sight in a heartbeat.
Jyuushiro’s mouth goes dry.
Are they really…?
The window?!
“Ready?” Shihoin asks with a playful smirk even as she adjusts her grip on Jyuushiro one more time. “Hold on tight!”
And before he can do more than grab handfuls of her colorful coat, she’s racing towards the window with magic-enhanced steps. The frame flies past in a blur, gravity taking over and dragging them down—
Shihoin lands in midair, something pale and cloud-like beneath her feet. Alexis is standing atop another not-cloud, and third swirls into being beneath Briar’s feet as he leaps from the window too. The last two crew members each land on their own, and then they’re off, flying across the sky towards the south, the ground blurring by.
Jyuushiro exchanges a despairing look with Shunsui and then closes his eyes with a sigh.
They’ll get through this.
(He can’t let himself believe otherwise.)
(He can’t.)