Work Text:
It was so strange to see the palace and the castle grounds covered in a blanket of snow. Sure Ryou had seen snow before, but this was different. There were no ordinary, yet boring grey buildings littering the streets of modern day Japan. There was only a vast forest with plenty of wildlife and an abundant lifestyle. The ground and even the trees themselves were fruitful with snow so heavy, the branches could easily crush an unexpecting victim if blown too hard by the roaring wind.
Ryou found himself staring up at the sky, quietly reflecting to himself as this time of year always brought back memories of him and Haruichi throwing snowballs at each other while their parents worked to sweep up the passageway to their shrine. He could so easily picture them both running off to see the storefronts littered with Christmas decorations and twinkling lights of various shades of color in town when the shrine was less busy. It was rare this time of year, but they always seemed to find a way or any excuse to enjoy this cheerful holiday season.
He quietly began to hum a familiar holiday melody as he leaned against the railing, waiting on his groom to finish up with their annual meeting with the neighboring clans. This one important meeting was so grand that he wasn't allowed to attend due to being a foreigner. Though Himari had rest assured him that next year the maiden would have permission to sit beside his future husband's side.
Thankfully, Himari let him out early from their studies to generously help out with the kitchen arrangements and soon snuck back into the meeting to sit by her husband's side. A path Ryou knew first hand that she worked so hard to earn as a foreigner herself, and now doing the best she could to make sure Ryou could attend these important meetings early while they were still young. There was no way of telling how long it would be before Himari and Hirotori could properly retire to the countryside to let them take over as the new clan heads. Perhaps when Ryou and Youichi were married for at least a decade or so, or when they would finally be ready to raise the new heir to the Kuramochi Clan's throne. If that was feasible with how things were going. Surely they would find a way to have a child and raise them as their own one day.
The maiden sighed, turning his attention back to the present to follow the balcony down to the other side of the castle. At least he had an idea of what to do in his free time. He quietly hummed the familiar holiday tune again, bending over to carefully mold a fresh snowball in the palms of his hands. The snow felt so cold, yet it wasn't too unbearable as he meticulously patted it into a compact shape. Too bad they hadn't invented gloves at this point. Unfortunately that wasn't a thing in the feudal era. At least not yet as he focused on throwing a few fast balls at an innocent tree. His aim wasn't nearly as good as before when he used to play baseball with Haruichi, though he was sure with enough practice, he'd be unstoppable at a snowball fight.
A few moments later, there came a voice from overhead.
"Ryou-san! There you are!" A rather distressed oni yelled as he caught sight of his maiden throwing snowballs at various targets along the courtyard. He was honestly stunned by the sight. The way the other threw them so precisely was both scary and a little unnerving. Was this similar to the game of baseball that Ryou tried to explain to him before? A game so foreign and not yet realized in the feudal era quite yet? Either way, he seemed to be enjoying himself. Though one had to wonder why Kanemaru wasn't out here volunteering to be the target for Ryou's game? Or rather why he wasn't being guarded at all in the first place? There were a lot of unanswered questions here. Good grief.
Youichi decided to worry about that later, taking the moment to selfishly watch from the sidelines for a little while longer. A moment to let himself relax and shake off the irritating tones of their neighboring clan's disapprovals. Ryou really wasn't missing much in all honesty. If anything, Youichi supposed he would worry about the guards later. For now, he let his shoulders fall as he got up from his perch, moving to walk over to where Ryou would get a good shot at him or notice him perhaps. "Your doing pretty good at that! Where did you learn to throw with such good aim and precision, Ryou-san?!," he commented, grinning sheepishly as the other turned to face him. Almost like he knew he was being watched. "Mind if I join in? Sure beats sitting in on that dull, boring meeting again, you know?"
Ryousuke raised a brow, amused that Youichi would want to throw snowballs with him. Come to think of it, this was their first time having a snowball fight together. Much less experiencing the snow for the first time after a rather long, warm summer. "Oh? Out of your meeting already?" The maiden inquired as he tilted his head in question, already not giving him the time of day to prepare as he threw the white powdered sphere right at his chest. "I don't play fair, you know?~"
The oni groom froze in place, not having a moment to even dodge as a snowball hit his chest hard. "Yikes! Ow! Ryou-san! You are certainly not fair!" He whined as he touched where the cold, frozen ball of snow had hit him. He could have injured him for all he knew, and still, his mother would fuss over the dampness of his family's kimono.
Kuramochi tried not to let that get the best of him as he grumbled, scooping up a fist full of snow, and patting it enough to form a compact snowball of his own. "Just you wait! I'll get you for that!" He growled, throwing it in the direction of the elder Kominato, who dodged it mere seconds before it could make landfall. Curse that Kominato's keen eyesight with those heavy, gorgeous eyelids of his!
"Try throwing without blabbering your mouth, Youichi! You'll give yourself away!~" Ryousuke teased, humming softly as he picked up another mound of snow. Letting the snowball fly in the oni groom's direction again while they were talking. This time, his groom was ready and moved out of the way of Ryou's fierce attack. "Kyahaha! Whatever you say, Ryou-san!"
The two of them went on for what seemed like hours before they were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. Turning around, all covered in particles of snow, Ryousuke and Youichi were greeted by a stern faced Hirotori and the mirror image of his wife beside him. "What are you two thinking?! You both are going to catch a cold out here! Get inside and take a bath before dinner is ready, the both of you!" Himari fused as she crossed her arms, turning her head in the direction of the baths. Though there was a no hint of malice in her voice, and no forgiveness either in those stern eyes of hers that meant no funny business.
At least Ryousuke thought there was a trace of fondness in them as he and Youichi quickly did as they were told. He knew Himari meant well as she wasn't always strict on them. Probably she was more concerned about the other neighboring clan's lingering around and catching sight of them playing around like children rather than doing their honorable duties as heir's to the Kuramochi Clan's throne. If it was any other time, he was sure Kuramochi's mother would join them and mercilessly get her husband involved as well.
"Yes Mother and Father," they both chimed in unison, knowing better than to argue as they both went off towards the baths to get ready for dinner as they were told.
Meanwhile when the two were out of viewing sight and ear reach, Himari took the opportunity to throw an unsuspecting snowball at her husband from the sleeve of her kimono. She had crouched down when he wasn't looking and hid it there until the perfect moment. Unfortunately for Hirotori, he took the blow to the back of his head. The oni Lord let out several futile curses as he growled low at the audacity of his wife attacking him without warning. The nerve of her.
So much for believing his own wife's words, HIrotori thought silently to himself. He knew better than to think she wouldn't pull one of those unsuspecting stunts on him. Did the snow really make humans so optimistic and brutal? He wondered again as he followed after his wife inside to get ready for dinner. Maybe at some point he would get a chance to get her back for that!
For now, the Kuramochi Clan would make peace with one another around a hearty meal and enjoy each other's company.