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Hakuryuu had been quiet the week following Gyokuen’s death. Judal tried not to think too much of it- Hakuryuu had been injured pretty badly in the fight, and with Gyokuen gone there wasn’t much for Hakuryuu to throw himself into to distract him from the crushing weight of existence. It was tough stuff. Judal knew the feeling.
Instead Judal took his eyes and ears to the courts and the streets and brought back information like a cat might bring back dead birds. Hakuryuu listened every day, patient and quiet, until Judal was done, and then he would smile a porcelain smile and thank Judal for his hard work. It was an easy routine- one that didn’t require them to confront the snarled hurt inside them that had nothing left to destroy.
But then one afternoon Judal came back to find Hakuryuu out of bed, half dressed in his robes with his metal vessels laid out on the bed before him.
“Hakuryuu?” Judal asked, hanging by the door and leaning on his staff. “Something up?”
Hakuryuu turned and almost looked startled. “Ah, Judal. I didn’t hear you come in.” He smiled and extended a hand. “Come here. Tell me what you’ve heard about the town today.”
Judal padded closer, grin on his face. “Well, the peasants have finally stopped their bitching. Most of ‘em seem to have decided that you’re the rightful heir since you’re the son of Hakutoku yadda yadda yadda… Even among those who weren’t affected by Belial’s magic are starting to believe the story you cooked up…” Hakuryuu raised an eyebrow, and Judal punched him in the shoulder. “Come on, don’t gimme that look! You know I’m on your side whether your means are moral or not! I’m in your corner.” He leaned in close and helped Hakuryuu affix Belial’s pauldron. At this distance, he could see the faintest beginnings of a smile play on his king’s lips, and he felt a spike of pride. No one else got looks like that from Hakuryuu.
“That’s good to hear. Having everyone on our side will make things much easier.” Hakuryuu’s hint of a smile turned into a confident grin. “I have had enough of laying around and recovering. The way forward is clear.” He caught Judal’s wrist, coming in so close that their faces were almost touching. “This world won’t change- it’s twisted and set against people like you and me. The only thing we can do is take hold of this world and rewrite to our own design.”
Judal shuddered, a grin overtaking his own lips. “Oh, is that what you’ve decided, Hakuryuu?”
“Does my magi disagree?” Hakuryuu closed the last gap between them, and they shared a kiss with terrible tenderness. When they pulled away, no more words needed to be said. Judal was Hakuryuu’s magi, and more than that, they were the same. If Hakuryuu wanted to tear down the world brick by brick, then he would gladly be by his side to make sure nothing remained.
It had been a long time since Arba had last inhabited a son- women were easier to blend into the shadows, easier to move the pieces of the world by. But she had nothing against using any of her children. Honestly, they all existed for her convenience, and if she had ever had any inkling that she wouldn’t need Hakuryuu, she would have finished what she started.
Hakuryuu’s body bubbles with black ruhk, dragged to depravity by a life of rage and pain and hate and fueled by Judal’s twisted encouragement. It’s the most comfortable fit she’s had in a while.
And Judal…. honestly, the unflappable loyalty Judal gives is the best part. When she kisses him with Hakuryuu’s lips, he melts into an obedient plaything, and there is nothing left of the resistance he’d shown her when she was alive and in her old form. His heart and mind and soul are hers once more, and that is honestly a prize worth dying for.