Chapter Text
Sunlight filled Mitsunari's bedroom as Whisbei sleepily opened his eyes, before yawning and stretching himself out like a cat. He had been staying with- er, working for Mitsunari for a few years now, but the feeling of waking up in a nice, soft bed, or basket in his case, instead of a chilly barn was one that he never got tired of. As he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, Whisbei turned to look at his master, who was still sleeping comfortably in his large bed. Whisbei smiled softly at the sight of Mitsunari's slumbering face, then floated out from under his blanket and gently shook the human's shoulder.
"Mitsunari-sama," Whisbei spoke, his remaining sleepiness still in his voice, "you need to get up. It's morning, Mitsunari-sama."
Mitsunari grumbled, pulling the blanket over his head "A few more minutes, Whisbei."
Whisbei pouted, grabbing the blanket and began pulling it off Mitsunari's head. Despite the sleepy resistance he received, he eventually succeeded, looking down at his master's face, which was glaring at the space above Whisbei's head, as Mitsunari couldn't see him. While most would have stopped and let the lord rest when given the glare he gave to Whisbei, but he persisted. He knew his master wouldn't hurt him, even if he could, and gently patted Mitsunari's cheek.
"No, we have work to do. Besides, it's bound to be a lovely day today." Whisbei said as he pat the human's cheek rapidly, making sure he didn't hurt him but still getting the point across.
Mitsunari groaned, then sat up and stretched, "Okay, okay I'm up! It'll just take me a moment to get dressed, so if you could go and make sure some tea is ready, that would be great." he said, shooing the yokai with his hand.
Whisbei nodded and floated out of the room, before pausing for a second and sticking his head back into the bedroom, seeing Mitsunari curled back up in his bed.
"Mitsunari-sama." Whisbei dropped his voice a few notches, prompting Mitsunari to sit up again immediately.
"Alright! I'm getting up, for real now." He said, now actually removing the blanket and standing up.
Whisbei huffed and floated out of the room once again. After making sure the tea was done, he took the teapot and cups out to Mitsunari's favorite spot outside, with the most perfect view of the gardens as well as the moon during the evening. It wasn't long before he he heard Mitsunari's footsteps coming towards him, followed by the sound of the sliding door opening and closing.
"Ah, thank you very much, Whisbei." Mitsunari said, sitting down beside the tea set with the yokai sitting on the other side.
Whisbei replied "You're welcome, Mitsunari-sama. Are you feeling more awake now?"
After pouring both himself and Whisbei their cups of tea, Mitsunari smiled, nodding while saying "Of course, I appreciate your help in that endeavor, my friend."
Whisbei smiled and took his smaller cup, taking a sip after replying with "Anytime, sir." They spent a few minutes sitting together, drinking their tea in pleasant silence, simply enjoying the other's company. Quietly, Mitsunari looked down into his nearly empty cup. Whisbei noticed this and looked up at his master "Mitsunari-sama, are you alright?" he asked. Mitsunari didn't seem to hear him as he kept swirling the warm liquid in his cup, before he sighed.
"You know, Whisbei, I wish I could see you, just once." he murmured "I don't care what form you'd take, I want- no, I need to see you, even if it's just for a second."
Whisbei looked up at his master, his eyes widening slightly, "Mitsunari-sama..." he whispered softly.
Before anything else could be said, one of Mitsunari's servants walked up to them and told them that everything was ready for their work to begin.
"Excellent!" Mitsunari said as he stood up, "I will be there shortly. Now, please take the remaining tea and cups inside for me." The servant nodded and quickly did as he was told, before scurrying back inside. "Well, time to get to work, eh Whisbei?" Mitsunari asked with a cheerful tone, tilting his head to look in Whisbei's general direction. He showed no trace of his longing that he expressed just a few moments ago.
"Yes sir." Whisbei said as he stood, or floated, up as well, deciding that he should just forget about Mitsunari's comment earlier.
He understood Mitsunari's feelings, truly he did. Whisbei even found himself wishing he could be seen by his master. Sure, there were disguise leaves, but they were very difficult to find, and the ones he could find were insanely expensive. Typically, the only yokai who could even hope to get one were either ones who were some form of nobility, or have one as a family heirloom, and neither of those options applied to him.
So, he quietly followed Mitsunari into the castle. The day continued on as usual with Whisbei assisting Mitsunari with his work and inspiriting him when needed. Before he knew it, it was supper time. In the early years of his and Mitsunari's friendship, Whisbei would steal food off the servant's plates, before he was caught and it was decided he would get a plate of his own. He hungrily stared down at the dumplings that were in front of him, and licked his lips, then swiftly gobbling them up in a matter of seconds. Once he had also finished his meal, Mitsunari leaned over to him.
"Hey, Whisbei. I have a treat I'd like to try with you." he whispered, being careful that none of the others in the room heard him, "Before you ask, it's a surprise. Come on." Mitsunari then stood up and walked out of the room without anyone noticing.
Whisbei got up and followed his master, until they were in an empty hallway a few meters away from where they just were. Mitsunari looked around, checking that no one else was there and that they were alone, then pulled a small wooden box with a tree symbol on top out from his haori, opening it to reveal two bite-sized cookies resting on a cushion.
"I purchased these a while ago from a merchant who was passing through here a few days ago." Mitsunari explained, picking up one of the cream colored cookies, "I was told that they're foreign and, apparently, very delicious. So, I decided to try them with you, to see if they're worth buying again."
Whisbei picked up the remaining cookie, taking note that the same tree symbol that was on the box was also imprinted on it as well. He remembered the merchant that Mitsunari was talking about. He was a short man who wore a cloak that also had the same insignia as the box and cookies. He had a strange aura around him that had made Whisbei a bit nervous, but he seemed like a decent guy. These cookies were probably homemade and not foreign, probably just a selling point to make them more interesting, but he was willing to try them none the less.
"Are you ready, Whisbei?" Mitsunari asked, holding his cookie up in preparation.
"Yes, Mitsunari-sama." Whisbei replied, holding up his own cookie. Mitsunari simply nodded and the air was filled with a tense silence.
"One...Two...THREE!" They both said in unison before shoving the cookies into their mouths.
After chewing for a bit, Mitsunari spat out his cookie and gagged, "Disgusting! It tastes like grass, hell I'd prefer to eat grass than this!"
Whisbei, on the other hand, kept chewing his cookie and swallowed it, "I don't know, Mitsunari-sama, I think it tastes okay, a little minty but still okay." he said shrugging "Though, it's nothing really that special."
Mitsunari shoved the box back into his haori, grumbling "Good, means that I don't have to buy this garbage again. The box is nice though, so I guess I'll keep it for something else. Let's go to bed, now. I'm exhausted."
After walking back to Mitsunari's bedroom and Mitsunari getting into his sleepwear, they laid down ready for a good night's sleep.
"Goodnight, Whisbei." Mitsunari yawned, pulling his blanket over himself.
Whisbei curled up in his basket and covered himself with his own blanket, replying with a sleepy "Goodnight, Mitsunari-sama." before looking over to him. Silently, Whisbei gazed at his master's face, which was softly illuminated by the moonlight streaming into the room, sighing quietly to himself.
Suddenly, Mitsunari lifted his hand and moved it over the blanket that was covering Whisbei's body, barely touching it like he was afraid that it would collapse if he wasn't careful. After a few seconds, Mitsunari smiled and spoke in the softest whisper Whisbei had ever heard him use, "One day. One day, I'll touch you, I'll see you, and we can finally live together properly."
Whisbei's breath hitched, he was unable to respond with anything, for once his mind was blank as to what he could say. Quietly, Mitsunari pulled his arm away from Whisbei and rolled over, facing away from the basket. After staring at his master for a few minutes, Whisbei could hear soft snoring, showing that Mitsunari had fallen asleep and breaking him out of his trance. Whisbei guessed that Mitsunari had thought he was already asleep when he said that, not intending for the yokai to actually hear him.
He decided that he should sleep as well, as he was suddenly hit with a wave of exhaustion, and allowed his heavy eyelids to close, making a mental note to talk to Mitsunari about his declaration tomorrow once they were fully rested. It didn't take long for Whisbei to be pulled into sleep, though he did have a strange tingly feeling throughout his body that he couldn't understand.