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“I’m alright, big guy. Promise.” Keigo smiled reassuringly at the large auburn centaur, fighting back a wince as Tsunagu applied healing salve to the large scrape on his side.
Enji huffed, looking annoyed as he folded his arms and stomped impatiently to the side. To anyone else, his large stature and fierce appearance would make him seem like he was angry at Keigo for being hurt, but his two partners knew it was anything but that. Enji was blaming himself as the charger for throwing his rider, and the centaur wasn’t that great at showing it.
“It’s just a scrape! Nothing is broken!” The small blonde continued, offering the man an even wider grin. This one was broken by their coach prodding a particularly deep abrasion and causing Keigo to hiss sharply between his teeth. “Okay, maybe some bruises too.”
“My apologies.” Tsunagu soothed him, casting a concerned eye to their larger partner. “Enji, kneel.”
The tone was one Enji was very familiar with, a hint of quiet but clear dominance that he responded to instantly. It was usually reserved for the bedroom, away from prying eyes, but occasionally brought out in instances where he needed the firm hand to give him reassurance.
His expression didn’t change much, but the stallion trotted quietly over and knelt down besides the two on the bench, hooves carefully tucked in and his fists resting on his front legs. Tsunagu gave him a small smile and leaned over to kiss his head with a quiet whispered ‘good boy’ before returning to the task at hand, making Enji’s cheeks flush ever so slightly.
The previous scene of their challenge played in the redhead’s mind. Their opponent was a boisterous blonde with a timid dark haired charger, Suneater as far as he could remember. They had begun their joust as any other challenge would begin, charging towards each other, their riders pointing their weapons, except Suneater had stumbled at the last moment, panicking as he nearly ended up under Enji’s hooves. In an attempt not to crush the colt, Enji had reared up on his hind legs, causing Keigo to take a long tumble onto the floor himself. Considering Enji’s size, that was a long fall onto harsh ground.
The result was the match being postponed and Enji carrying his injured rider back to their coach for first aid.
“There, all done.” Tsunagu patted Keigo on the arm, the words breaking Enji from his thoughts to look over at the two.
Due to his height, even sitting down Enji was on the same eye level as them while they were on the bench in their stable. As he looked up, Keigo was stretching, flexing his wings while he inspected the bandage. “Lookin’ good. Thanks Tsu’.” He leaned over and gave the slender blonde a peck on the lips with a light chirp.
Enji still felt awful. It was his job as the charger to mind his rider so that he could focus on their opponent instead of causing him injury like he had. Only young inexperienced chargers had the kind of incident he did, when they weren’t used to the jousting matches, when they panicked in the face of the lances, when they weren’t in tune with their rider. He was a big stallion, he charged with a lot of force and speed, and the power of the momentum when he’d reared up was enough to throw Keigo very far and very hard.
It was a miracle to him that the much smaller blonde hadn’t been more seriously injured. He twisted his fists in his lap but didn’t stand to pace like his body ordered him to. Tsunagu had told him to kneel, and kneel he would. He could follow that order.
Keigo noticed Enji’s concern, his perky smile melting into a warm and tender one as he scooted both himself and their coach closer to the centaur. He crooked his finger under the redhead’s chin, making him look up at him. “Hey, I’m fine. I’ll be sore as hell but it wasn’t any worse than when we were first training together.”
Enji felt another hand on his head, glancing over at Tsunagu who was carding his slender fingers through his red locks fondly, a similar reassuring smile on his face.
“You did a good job. If you’d continued charging, you would’ve risked trampling that young man.” Tsunagu spoke softly but firmly, occasionally gripping the red strands gently in his fist before petting him again. “I would rather you didn’t have the reputation as someone who ended a newcomer’s jousting career because you trod on them.”
Sighing heavily, Enji had to nod in agreement and resignation, though he did feel more reassured with the support of his two partners.
“Besides, I expect you to kiss it all better later.” Keigo laughed. He stood, throwing his leg over Enji’s withers, sitting on his back to embrace his torso from behind with his uninjured arm. He happily nuzzled his face over the other’s broad and strong back. “So I see it as a win really.”