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"Lord Ryoma, you called for me?"
The ninja's voice is one he’d never heard in all their shared years, tired and beaten, devoid of its gruff braggadocio. It doesn't quite waiver, but humiliation saps its strength.
It's almost more jarring than Saizo's changed appearance. He wears no mask within Ryoma's chambers - that was a habit the prince had insisted on breaking years ago - but he's gained a new scrap of clothing since the last time they spoke. A simple, black eyepatch.
"Yes, Saizo. Please, come here," Ryoma instructs, gesturing to the mat at his side. "And take off that silly thing. The healers informed me you have no need of it."
Although the red-haired man sidles next to his liege with no complaint, his hands do not stray to his face. Instead he affixes a scarlet eye firmly to the floor before his knees and says, "I swear it will not affect my service, Lord Ryoma. Though if you wish to dismiss me from your service for such carelessness, I understand."
Ryoma sighs at his far-too-serious retainer and places a warm hand across the man's shoulder. "I do not doubt your service, my friend. Please. Remove it."
Saizo's fists tighten in his lap. "It is a mark of shame. I do not wish to burden you with it."
"Then, as your prince, I choose to take on the burden myself," Ryoma replies. He reaches for the soft square of fabric. Saizo's visible eye squeezes shut and every muscle in his body coils, but he does not move away. He cannot deny his liege; he never could.
Ryoma gently lifts the black patch from his eye and rests it on the ground next to them, fascinated by the new sight. Where once there had been a scarlet eye as fierce and proud as a dragon's, there now is a white glass ball inside eyelids that could scarcely open. A long scar runs down the ninja's damaged eye, adding a rugged ferocity to features that had once been smooth and winsome.
It does not make him any less handsome. If anything, his face now fits the soul beneath - genuinely charming with a hint of roughness around the edges.
Ryoma lets his fingers trace the length of the scar, though his retainer still refuses to look at him.
"It is a mark of pride, not shame," Ryoma states, and smiles when Saizo's eye predictably snaps open to protest.
"It is a reminder of my failure as a ninja."
"No, it is a reminder of your love as a son," the prince corrects gently. "And the next time, we will not fail."
Saizo pales at Ryoma's words, for once not focused on their kindness, but on their insight. "You...you knew I was searching for my father's killer? Why did you let me go?"
This time Ryoma can't hold back a laugh at Saizo's expression. When the ninja glowers in response, he settles into a gently amused smile instead.
"Saizo, I have known you since we were young boys. I have watched you for all those years, hoping that we would spend our lives together, protecting one another. When you lost your father, it reminded me of my own loss. I wanted nothing more than to help you however I could. That's why I let you go - hoping you could find closure." Ryoma's hand slips down to cup Sazio's jaw as he speaks, his eyes soft with empathy. "I am sorry I failed you."
Saizo shakes his head slightly, but the movement is restricted by Ryoma's large hand against his face. "Lord Ryoma, you couldn't..."
"Yes, I could," Ryoma interrupts firmly. "And I did. I should have been at your side. I promise you, I will not make that mistake again."
"Lord Ryo..."
The rest of Saizo's objection is lost into his liege's mouth. It is not a kiss of passion, not when Saizo is frozen in shock, but one of affection and oaths pressed against the ninja's taught, terrified lips. A flush spreads to Saizo's cheeks, and he feels his hands shake in a way they hadn't since he was a child.
Just as Ryoma beings to withdraw, Saizo finds his courage. Surging forward, he seals the promise Ryoma offered him with his own kiss, as forceful as every other time he had sworn his allegiance to his liege. His life had been given to Ryoma long ago, how could he have hoped to keep his heart his own?
And when the prince accepts him he always has, happily, easily, Saizo feels the weight of his shame lifting.
Perhaps he never meant to face his father’s death alone, he realizes, allowing Ryoma to embrace him as the kiss finally ends. Thankfully, he would never have to.