Chapter Text
The night that changed Mukami Kou’s life forever was a calm one. The night sky reminded him of one of his old idol costumes- inky blue-black velvet, the stars stitched into the heavens like diamonds sewn on by a patient hand. Too bad he’d never get the chance to wear it again. A pity, too. He’d actually liked that one.
Leaves crunched underfoot. Strange, distant howls were carried on a brisk autumn breeze. Kou pulled his jacket tighter around himself and tried not to look particularly tasty to any beasts lurking between the gnarled tree trunks that bent and twisted in all directions. The foliage was dense enough that the pus-yellow moonlight struggled to filter in between heavy branches, leaving him squinting at darkness.
Kou missed his brothers. It was an ache like a hastily bandaged wound, a consistent sting beneath his skin. He missed Ruki’s easy confidence, the way he felt like nothing could go wrong as long as he followed his lead. He missed bickering with Yuma, and the assurance that if Ruki’s brain failed (as it rarely did), he could punch their way out of any trouble. He missed Azusa, sweet little Azusa, his baby brother who could do no wrong. He felt braver next to him, like he could face anything to protect him.
But none of them were here now. None of them even knew where he was, and he needed it to stay that way.
Kou hadn’t felt this alone in centuries, and yet, he couldn’t quite shake the feeling that he was being watched. Eerie shadows appeared and disappeared in his periphery, but there was nothing but empty space when he turned his head to follow them. It was his mind playing tricks on him, he told himself. That was all.
’Right…?’
He trudged on, miserable but alert and heavy with the knowledge that his boots were thoroughly ruined. The passage of time was hard to judge, seconds slipping soundlessly into minutes, then hours, passing all the same. He couldn't even be sure he wasn't walking in circles- the woods stretched on endlessly in an indiscernable ocean of deep green and black.
At last, slowly (too slowly for his liking), a jagged mass came into view on the horizon.
Eden Castle loomed large over the tree line. Towers climbed high into the night sky, and in places, the warped spires seemed to pierce the full moon like fangs. Despite the late hour- a prime time for vampires to conduct their affairs- light spilled out of only a few of the many uniform rows of windows, a thousand unblinking eyes lining the sides of the black stone beast.
This was it.
Kou pushed forward, newly energised-
Something wet hit his shoulder. Then again, then again. He looked up and got water directly in his open eye. Cursing, he rubbed at his face, carefully cupping his hand over his eyes as he squinted up at the source.
The ominous clouds overhead had seemingly materialised from nothing, snaking across the sky in dark swirling patterns. He had exactly a minute to take this in before thunder clapped and rain breached the barrier of his jacket, seeping into his skin.
“Seriously!?” Kou yelled to no one, his frustration finally reaching a boiling point, “Are you fucking kidding me?”
Almost spitefully, as if the storm had somehow taken offence to his screamed profanities, the rain fell even harder, pelting against him with such force that Kou might’ve mistaken raindrops for hail. An absurd part of him that might’ve believed in justice wondered if this was his karma for vanishing on his brothers, leaving them with nothing but the vague, fervent promise that he would be back with more money than they could spend in a lifetime. They would be worried sick. The thought made Kou feel ill too.
He kept his head ducked low, quickening his pace as he tried to keep close to cover- right up until lightening scorched the weathered oak to his left, turning the stout trunk into a blackened stump and narrowly singeing the sleeve of his shirt. Breaking into a sprint, his small bag clutched close to his chest, he stumbled over raised roots, careening dangerous close to the forest floor. Still, Kou pulled himself back up, even though there was a new pain blooming around his ankle, shooting up his leg like liquid fire. Kou grit his teeth. This wasn’t even close to the worst pain he’d endured. It was nothing, barely slowing him down as he fought to close the distance to his destination.
He reached the grounds in minutes and took the stairs two at a time, breathing so hard he feared he might empty his meagre lunch directly onto the rain slick stone. Thankfully, there was a small overhang jutting out from above the massive, iron-bound doors to take shelter under as he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to stop the world spinning. When he opened them again, he was eye-level with a snarling gargoyle cast in bronze.
He slipped the makeup bag from a pouch. His hands were shaking so terribly from the adrenaline and cold that he nearly dropped his brush into the mud. Cursing under his breath, he tried again. Concealer under his eyes to hide the dark circles that hung heavy beneath them, a touch of powder to smooth his features, and, of course, a swipe of glossy lip balm across his lips. There wasn’t much Kou could do about his hair, limp and soaked through, so he did his best to comb through it with his fingers, pulling stray twigs and leaves from between the blond strands. When he looked into the mirror of his compact, Kou looked a little more like himself: artfully messy, rather than the less appealing ‘dragged backwards through several bushes’ look he’d been sporting before. He stowed his things away, then raised his hand to knock.
Then he paused. Unzipped his jacket and undid the top three buttons of his shirt. Raised his hand again, and slammed the knocker against the door three times. It made no sound on impact, but Kou suspected it didn’t need to. That was that man's style, after all- never to reveal his full hand, to keep you guessing. A pang of grief squeezed his heart.
Silence.
…
More silence.
Just as Kou’s patience began to fray, and he lifted his hand towards the knocker once more, the doors creaked and groaned in a manner akin to a wounded animal, swinging inwards and revealing a tall, stone-faced man dressed in a crisp butler's suit.
"State your business." The man drawled, clearly disinterested. Impressively, Kou managed to look down his nose at him, despite being a full head shorter.
"My business? My business??" He affected the haughtiest tone he could muster, seemingly indignant to even be asked. The only people who would dare darken the Vampire King's doorstep were those with the self-importance to be there. No one would suspect a lowly nobody to be crazy enough to try. In fact, as news of the new King's hair-trigger temper spread, it seemed one would have to be either very stupid or very desperate to even bother, no matter their status. Kou didn't dwell on whether he was the former or the latter.
"My business, you fool, is with the King, not idling chit-chat with some servant." He gave the butler a look as though he was dirt beneath his boot, a look Kou himself was so familiar with, it took no effort at all to replicate. The butler's eye twitched, ever so slightly. Good. That meant it was working. That was the thing about elites- they never asked to take up space. They simply did, confident it was theirs to take, and take, and take.
"Present the royal seal of invitation." Kou's mouth ran dry. Shit. He hadn't thought this far ahead. If it had been Ruki, he would have anticipated it, would have managed to produce a convincing forgery or an even more convincing cover story. But he wasn't Ruki, and he stood there feeling foolish, floundering for excuse as he fought to keep his false confidence from slipping.
The tall man rolled his eyes, hands reaching out to push the doors shut.
'No. No, please, no.'
Kou's hand shot out, bracing against them. He needed another approach. Another angle.
He leaned in closer. His smile was all teeth, the grin of a predator pinning its prey.
"I heard that the last time he got upset, he set a whole park on fire with a thought." The servant visibly paled. 'Ah, so that story was true then.' That was the gamble with weaponising rumours, but it seemed fortune was finally on his side.
"Hm~... Y'know, I wonder, what do you think he'd do to the guy who sent away his personal guest? Maybe he'll burn you alive! Oh, oh, or do you think he'd put you on a stake, still breathing, outside the Castle as a warning to the others? And then we'll have tea and laugh about how silly you were to ignore me, as you beg for death."
It wasn't actually Sakamaki Subaru that Kou needed to see. At least, not at first. It was the girl, his bride, that he needed to charm before he could move on to the real prize. Fortunate indeed, that the very girl had spent a few months at his household, when that man was still alive and Kou could never have dreamed that he'd ever be anything but. Admittedly, he'd grown the smallest soft spot for her, in the way one might find a stray puppy endearing, but certainly not enough to feel anything but satisfied that he could make use of her.
The butler’s complexion had gone from pale to ashen. He wavered, and then let the doors swing back open, wordlessly granting permission.
Kou stepped over the threshold, and the Castle swallowed him whole.
//
Sakamaki Subaru was sure that if he spent another minute staring at tax documents, he was going to do something very un-kingly and put a hole in the study wall so severe that even the royal servants- his servants, he reminded himself- would struggle to repair.
With a groan, he pushed himself away from the desk, the legs of his chair skidding across perfectly polished floorboards. Reiji had scolded him more than once for it- something stupid about priceless, ancient materials and the like.
It was clearly made for someone taller, with more refined tastes, all burnished blackwood carved from a single piece of timber in elegant lines and arcs. It was a shame its previous owner had seemingly no nerve endings in his ass, because Subaru had quickly learned that sitting on it for any amount of time hurt like a bitch. Then again, Subaru would’ve been unsurprised to learn his father had no physical feeling at all, to compliment the emotional blackhole he’d been.
The armrest creaked under his grip, wood splintering where his fingers dug cruelly into it. Subaru hadn’t even noticed his hold tightening. At least he hadn't accidentally set something on fire this time, he though bitterly.
Still, in truth, it felt more like his when it was mangled, when he felt like he had some kind of control over it. The whole damn place oozed of that bastard’s influence, and Subaru felt caged by it, dogged by the ghost of the man he both hated and now was needed to become like. He shuddered at the thought. Wasn't he a monster enough as he was? To then emulate that bastard... he'd be something else then. Something not even Yui could stand. Something his mother couldn't love even half of the time.
He let go of the armrest. Reiji would talk his damn ear off if he broke anything else this week. Maybe he should ask Yui to pick out a new chair for him. She’d always been better with that kind of stuff than him. She’d been better at adapting to the new weight of their positions now too. Even though the Demon World’s system of governance was alien to her, she’d dutifully poured over books and listened intently to Reiji’s dry lectures. He didn’t know how she did it- just the idea of listening to him drone on for hours about history and policy would’ve driven him to madness. And yet, she managed it, along with finding time to be at his side, to comfort him. He was indescribably grateful for it, at the same time that he hated her a little for it too, for exposing his inadequacy without even meaning to.
"Damnit." His nails dug into his palm hard enough to leave little red crescents on his skin. Subaru needed air. He needed to be anywhere but here, in this glorified mausoleum, suffocating in its cavernous silence.
The door to the study creaked open.
"Subaru-kun?" A soft, tentative voice called his name, and there was only one person in the world who ever called it so sweetly.
"Che. What're you doing here? I thought you were busy listening to one of Reiji's boring lectures about the history of spoons or somethin'." Even if he pretended to be annoyed by her presence, Subaru was relieved she was here. Yet another kindness he didn't deserve. How many had he collected now, like stolen miracles hoarded? He couldn't count them all.
Yui closed the door quietly behind her, probably sensing his bad mood. She had that way of looking at, then straight through people, as though every person were a glass clock she could simply peer through to see their innermost workings. That had been another thing about her that he’d hated, then come to shamefully appreciate. It was better when he didn’t have to put voice to his thoughts, when she could unpick the thorny tangle of his emotions with her dainty hands without him having to say a word and fuck it up.
Usually, it was a comfort. But something about tonight had Subaru on edge, and even her gentle, unobtrusive presence felt cloying.
“Are you alright? You seem… upset.”
“I’m fine.”
Yui looked thoroughly unmoved. Already, she had that familiar furrow between her brows, and Subaru hated himself for putting it there. ”I’m not worth it,’ He wanted to tell her. But then she would argue, stubborn as anything, and that furrow would deepen, and it would only make him feel worse.
“I’m fine.” He repeated, as though he could make it true by saying it, “… I’m going to get some air.”
“I’ll come with-“
“No.” The growl in his voice surprised even him. He stood, storming past her, and a pathetic part of him wanted her to chase after him anyway.
For once, she didn’t.
He slammed the door open with enough force that one of the hinges simply snapped. It wasn't enough. Subaru wanted to break something. He wanted to crush it, shape it to the outline of his fist, until he felt like he was in control of something, instead of a stupid boy playing king.
Servants scurried to move out of his way, making themselves as inconspicuous as possible. One even ducked into another room. Subaru liked that. It felt powerful.
Then he rounded the corner and came face-to-face with a stranger.
The man was about an inch shorter than him, with messy blond hair dripping water onto the carpet, and gently swooping lashes long enough to swat flies. His shirt was practically slipping off one shoulder, revealing porcelain skin, and Subaru pointedly avoided looking. Somehow, despite obviously being caught in the rain, there was something graceful about his state of disarray, as if he'd just walked off the set of a photoshoot.
Subaru disliked him immediately. He looked like one of Kanato's dolls: pretty, with nothing behind his odd-coloured eyes.
But, more pressingly, he wasn’t wearing the servants’ uniform. In fact, it looked like the pink jacket he wore had…. cat ears on the hood?
“... Who the fuck are you?”
The stranger blinked, those stupidly long lashes fluttering like butterfly wings against his cheeks. He looked taken aback, though his surprise only lasted only a moment, disappearing so quickly Subaru had to wonder if he imagined it. Instead, he put his hands behind his head, cocking his head slightly as though he didn't understand.
“Hm~? I’m here to see M-ne… ah, Yui, of course!” He sounded so confident, so casual, he almost took him at his word. Almost.
Subaru felt energy collect at his fingertips, crackling quietly around his hands. The man jumped back, hands held up in surrender.
“Woah, woah! Geez, talk about an overreaction- I can’t even see an old friend without being treated like criminal?”
He was unconvinced. It must have shown, because the stranger doubled down.
“I’m serious, ask her yourself! Ask her if she knows Mukami Kou!”
Mukami Kou. The name sparked the faintest sense of recognition, but he couldn’t place where he’d heard it. He still didn’t trust him as far as he could throw him (perhaps a bad example, considering he looked like he weighed little more than Yui), but with effort, he flexed his hands once, twice, and let his power dissipate. If, by some very slim chance, he was telling the truth, Yui would be devastated if he reduced him to ash where he stood. Maybe it would be the final straw, the first sin of his that she couldn't forgive.
And if he was lying?
Mukami Kou would curse the day he was born almost as much as Subaru himself cursed his.
"Come with me. I'm not letting you out of my sight." His voice was laden with naked threat, but Kou only beamed, as though he couldn't be happier about it. It made Subaru's skin crawl.
"Really? Man, if I didn't know better, I'd think you've taken a liking to me~ Have my charms won you over already?"
Never before had a pretty face seemed so imminently punchable.
"Fuck off." Was all he could scrounge up in response. His unwanted companion seemed unphased by his hostility, and it made frustration simmer hot and low in his gut. Was he really that pathetic of a king, that this stranger barely even reacted to his words? He curled his hand into a fist and tried to focus on the image of Yui's face.
"No need to be so shy~"
Subaru was sure he could be one of her stained glass saints if he survived this encounter. He raised his hand, and Kou suddenly doubled over, wheezing, clawing at his throat.
"If you don't shut the hell up, I'll make you." He was satisfied to see a flash of fear in those doe-like eyes. There was something else lurking just beneath it too, darker, seething, but it vanished before he could scrutinise it. Subaru watched him squirm a little longer, then let it fall. Kou coughed, rubbing at his neck.
"... Point taken." His voice was little more than a rasp, and it must have been true, because the walk to one of the mansion's many sitting rooms was a silent and excruciatingly awkward one.
The moment Subaru pushed open the door, Kou slid right past him, as though he belonged there. Irritation spiked as he made himself comfortable on the wine-red couch, stretching across it with feline grace, letting his shirt hang so far open that he might as well have been shirtless. It made Subaru feel embarrassed just looking at him.
"Don't move from this room. If you do, I'll kill you." Subaru warned. It seemed he'd recovered from his earlier scare, because Kou only glanced at him beneath his lashes, crystalline blue gaze eyeing him in a way that made his cheeks heat in a way he didn't understand. It made him itch.
"Mhm, got it, got it."
He wasn't sure he did, but he delivered only one final glare and turned on his heel, stalking out of the room, wholly annoyed and wholly unaware of the simple fact that he'd invited his own ruin to take a nap in his drawing room.