it's a long way home

"Tch. The idea of making a royal decree about anything is ridiculous. And besides, I don't exactly rule alone, do I? So would a little privacy even be my decision?" What a terrifying thought. All the same, Ronin let that thread of conversation die and allowed his mind to wander to nicer things; to soaring through the clouds with Remi, for instance, both of them buck naked, performing all sorts of interesting acrobatics. Smirking, he let his arm move around his husband, the warmth building between them and rolling out of the fire enough to at least give the illusion that this was just another night of marital bliss. Speaking of which... "They are?" He grinned. "That's a trend I'm happy to have started. They both deserve happiness. I doubt they'll have dick fireworks, though... unless you make some." RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

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Raising a brow, Remi leveled a look at his husband. "You really think Wessex, queen of playing cards close to her chest, is going to rob you of privacy?" Then, with a jilted expression he added, "Rob us?" As much as Remi would appreciate having a few moments alone with his husband that didn't involve someone banging down their door for some emergency or another, there were sweeter things to wish for.

With a bright laugh that surprised even Remi, he glanced over his shoulder and grinned at his counterpart. "Now that is the best suggestion you have had all day. I wonder how to go about it...though I am sure Ianto has some." Though as the words left his lips, his smile soured slightly. Clearing his throat and steeling himself against the cold internal chill that always accompanied thoughts of the fox, Remi nodded. "Yes, Bastien came to me asking for a ring and proposed right away. I saw Rexanna only a few days later. They are planning a Deepfrost wedding with luxere for light."

Remi

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At Remi's expression - and his rather accurate description of the Wraith - Ronin let out a laugh and held his free hand up in a placating gesture. "A very fair point. Privacy we shall have, then - by royal decree. We don't take visitors after dark unless specified, and our bedroom is as sacred as a shrine." It absolutely wasn't, with the things they got up to in there, but still. The sound of his husband's laughter did everything to lift Ronin's mood and soothe his wounded spirit, so when it was doused so quickly with mention of a certain merchant, the hunter soured as well. "Find him," he implored quietly. "Find him and speak to him, please. Whatever is between you, clear it up once and for all. You can't carry this around with you forever..." Then, of course, there was the idea of a Deepfrost wedding - one he may or may not be able to attend. "It sounds sweet," he said quietly. I hope I can be there, he didn't say at all. RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

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Remi tipped his head back and laughed heartily at that. Supplicating though many of their acts might have been and though Frey surely would have approved, their bedroom was far from a shrine. Certainly it smelled far closer to a tomb, but that didn't need to be said.

"Whatever is between us?" Remi said with a wince. His fingertips pulsed out an uncertain rhythm against Ronin's hip as the alchemist sighed heavily against the hunter. "What is between us, is you." He reminded his husband gently, but firmly. "I left him for you. Well for me, but it was because of you." Ruffling a hand through his curls Remi shrugged. "Maybe in time he will forgive me for it. The last time I was there it certainly did not seem like he would, though."

Feeling the unsaid words and how they chilled his heart, Remi turned towards his husband pressing a long and gentle kiss against his lips, never-mind the tremble, the earthy taste.

Remi

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Wincing as well, Ronin couldn't very well deny that Remi was right - he absolutely was. But that didn't make listening and seeing how the loss of that friendship affected his husband any easier. "That was a while ago, though," he reminded Remi right back. "It has been a season. He has been... well, goodness knows where. And a lot has happened." Nudging the other man gently, he tried on a smile. "At the very least, would he really turn down a sale? For dick fireworks, of all things?" Glancing down at Remi, Ronin was surprised - though not at all against - the sudden press of lips against his own, a gentle and lingering kiss leaving warmth and love in their wake. "If I were less sick, I'd have ripped all your clothes off by now," he informed him cheerfully. RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

cut up our losses into doable doses

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"A season is not that long." Remi said, before the implications of his words sparked a chill in the back of his mind that ran the length of his spine. No, a season was not very long. But it as all Ronin had. Less now, even. "Perhaps I will see if I can manage to bump into him." The alchemist agreed reluctantly, if only to shuffle the conversation away from timelines. "And it is only fair. They set them off at ours." He added on, as if convincing himself that yes, he really ought to go find the fox if only for Rex and Bastien's sake.

"Mmm, and if I were a less upstanding caretaker I'd have melted all of yours away to flower petals." The alchemist agreed, ever wanting more and more from Ronin but ever cautious about how much he took. "I might not have learned much from Isla, but I do think I remember her saying something about leaving those who are sick with their clothes. Though I might have misheard." He added with a mischievous smile.

Remi

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It really wasn't that long. Ronin let Remi agree, however reluctantly, and move the conversation on without a fuss, the hunter smiling and nudging his husband gently. "Definitely only fair," he agreed. "We ought to make it a surprise, just as they were for our wedding." In fairness, it had been a thoroughly wonderful surprise that had left both men giddy with laughter. That seemed like a lifetime ago, now. With a boyish huff, Ronin grinned at Remi. "If it were up to you, every item of clothing I owned would be nothing but flower petals," he pointed out, rolling his eyes playfully. Still, despite his misgivings, his smile was utterly filthy. "Isla has been wrong before," he pointed out. "And when I have a fever I get very hot." RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

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"And what is wrong with flower petals?" Remi protested with an indignant frown. "I am just trying to keep the romance alive and all that." That, and transmutation truly was the fastest way of getting Ronin out of his clothes. Given the smells that now regularly accompanied his husband, Remi didn't think having a bit of flowery-scent in the house was a problem.

"Has she? Don't let her know that." Heat flushed in the alchemist's cheeks, boyishly flustered around his husband as ever. Snorting under his breath, Remi raised a brow and glanced towards the fire. "And yet you chose to sit so close to the fire." Clucking his tongue several times as if disappointment, the alchemist shook his head. "I am not sure I should let you make any more decisions today King Taliesin. You do not appear to be thinking clearly."

Remi

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"Nothing at all wrong with flower petals, my wonderful husband. But would you be a dear and at least fashion them into something wearable when you're done?" Granted, he didn't think anyone needed to see him prancing around the Hollowed Grounds in a loincloth, but... then again, since they were on the subject of royal decrees. Grinning, Ronin relished the flush in the alchemist's cheeks, as always, and shrugged his shoulders at the fire. "If you're going to be turning my clothes to petals, might as well make sure there's some warmth available when my fever breaks." With a sigh, he sagged against Remi and nodded in compliance, not that he thought the other man's judgement could be at all trusted either. "Go on then," he said. "What ought I be doing, nurse Remi?" RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

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"Perhaps I was a tailor in another life, you don't know." So saying, Remi ran a finger along Ronin's collar. The hemming swiftly changed to dark blue petals beneath his finger, as a deep collared-V of deep crimson-coloured ivy snaked its way into existence. The fabric of the shirt suddenly become tightly woven moss, soft but breathable; loosely held together, which was surely no accident. "What do you think?" Mischief and love sparked in the alchemist's shattered-stare as he looked over his work with a humble eye of approval.

"Well, one, you've done hardly any stretches. You'll seize up soon enough. Wouldn't want to be stiff, would you?" Remi hummed innocently.

Remi

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"Well I mean, your taste is impeccable," Ronin complimented, smirking as his shirt began to transmute beneath his husband's oh so skilled hands. Glancing down at it when he was finished, the hunter raised his eyebrows, visibly impressed, but also feeling as though Remi's choice of attire for him was heavily based on the fact that he smelled like the Greatwood anyway. The dying Greatwood. "Your finest work in moss, I would say," he agreed, flashing his husband a filthy smile at the idea of being stiff. "I don't know, it has its perks," he countered, leaning back on one hand and watching the alchemist as if the rest of his clothes were either going to disappear or also become earthen creations. RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

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"Well I should hope so. I picked you, after all." Only he hadn't, not really. Not even Remi could have dreamed up falling madly in love with the bay-watch ex-captain from all those long months prior. No, this love had quite literally grown on him after months and months of looking for it in all the wrong places.

"You think so?" Remi pretended to beam, before narrowing his eyes as a hand drifted up Ronin's side once the hunter leaned back. "Oh no, I think I've.." Intentionally trailing off, Remi pretended to pull at a thread. As he did so, the entire 'garment' fell off of Ronin entirely. "Oh." Remi frowned. "Look at that. What a shame."

A real crying shame.

"Now shut up and let me touch you." The alchemist ordered, voice suddenly heated and low. Rather than heading south as they were normally want to do, instead Remi pushed down on Ronin's shoulders and sat astride him, strong hands finding the swell of his husband's shoulders and arms and massaging deep into the tense flesh.

Remi

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Regardless of whether or not Remi had actually picked Ronin (and he both had and hadn't, in the hunter's eyes), he flashed his husband a truly sunny smile in response. To be picked, wanted, loved - wasn't that all anyone wanted? Ronin just felt lucky to have found that much with his best friend, and as Remi's hand strayed towards the loose 'thread' of his shirt, he was already laughing wickedly. The garment fell away and another of Ronin's shirts had officially gone to Mort's realm, not that he much cared. "Such a shame," he agreed, fully expecting things to kindle and heat up between them as was the norm - not that Ronin was even sure he could be, ah, up to the task these days. So as Remi pushed down on his shoulders and settled himself in his lap, Ronin was a little perplexed, though he had no intention of being anything but compliant after his behaviour that day. His hands slid gently along Remi's thighs and up to his hips, just as strong and skilled fingers found every knot in his shoulders, every bit of tension in his muscles. Grumbling something incomprehensible, Ronin all but flopped forward against Remi, his forehead finding the alchemist's shoulder, the ex-captain putty in his husband's hands. RONIN Darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up on you.

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Much as the alchemist did want the bright and carnal intimacy that came from the pairs sexcapades, it had become clear to Remi on more than one occasion what his husband was and wasn't capable of since having been blighted. Tenderhearted as he was, simply roaming the slopes of his husband's body was a more than gratifying placeholder.

"When I was younger.." Remi began, hands working at the knots interspersed throughout Ronin's muscles (whether because of the blight, or because of how rigidly Ronin tried to ward it off, Remi didn't know, nor did it matter). A similar sort of lubricant to that which the two men used in the bedroom (and almost every other room in the house) appeared on his fingers. Lightly scented like lavender, clover, and sea-salt, Remi worked the concoction onto Ronin's skin until it was warm to the touch. "..there was a particular trail that we would take, when going back and forth from the capitol..."

And so it went, that before the roaring fire with Remi sweetly whispering away at memories from his childhood and lovingly attending to his husband's body, Ronin fell asleep and missed the entire thing.

~FIN

Remi

Table coding by Sky, inspiration from Jae!