Chapter Text
Sae loosely tugged at the collar of his shirt, perfectly pressed and stifling. He hated the way that ironed shirts felt buttoned up all the way, the thick cardstock-like edges of the collar leaf poking into the base of his neck.
Exasperated with his attempt to maintain professional attire even at a dingy bar, he unbuttoned the first button and breathed a sigh of comfort, accompanying the new peace with a sip of his drink. Ale at this bar was usually the pits, but for someone who could afford to pay for better choices, Sae figured he might as well.
His mug swirled with the sunshine coloured liquid as Sae stared into the bubbles as they floated to the top. Once his mug was finished, it would be back to his responsibilities, and a mid day break was no time to be drunk.
At least, Sae thought so. He stole glances at the red faced patrons beside him in tattered clothes and scuffed boots, noting how out of place he himself must be. He peered back into his mug. Contrary to what many thought of him, Sae considered himself an optimist when he wanted to be, so he chose to consider his drink as half full and not half empty already.
The bar stool next to him shifted over, causing Sae’s eyes to flit over momentarily.
“Partner,” The man nodded, but did not break his gaze. He continued to look over in Sae’s direction uncomfortably, even when Sae purposefully did not return the eye contact.
“Evening mister,” Sae finally let out, sliding the words across the table like a ‘do not disturb’ sign. The man, either blissfully unaware or purposefully pestering, continued to direct his attention towards the red head until he finally spoke.
“I’m just lookin’ fer some directions if you don’t mind mister,” He flashed a toothy grin and leaned his head on his palm, almost craning his neck to get a better look at Sae.
Finally, internally and potentially outwardly scowling, Sae turned his head to look the man over. He had blonde hair with pink dipped tips, a dingy shirt, and worn leather pants. Tucked under the linen of his tunic was the outline of a revolver, which less so worried Sae and more intrigued him.
After scanning his attire, Sae finally took in the man’s face. His eyelashes were long, but not in the way that Sae had always observed his own to be. They were thick and blonde from the root to the tips of his top lashes, whereas Sae’s bottom lashes had always been a subject of debate amongst his family.
Most days in his youth, his parents claimed that Sae was too feminine, with bright strawberry red hair and a build too short and thin for a working man. On more occasions, Sae was often complimented by women for his beauty. When his parents realized this, they commented less and less on his femininity.
Underneath the man’s blonde lashes, bright pink eyes were set into their respective sockets, seeming to flash when they saw Sae’s gaze stop over them. Pink was an interesting colour. He’d never seen eyes quite like those before.
“What makes you think I can help you?” Sae responded as he took another sip from his mug, each swig draining his time and patience.
“You look like you know your way around,” He shrugged and finally broke eye contact, signalling the bartender to come over.
“Where are you looking to go?”
“Can you point me in the direction of the nearest road leadin’ to a city?”
“You’re not looking to go anywhere specific? You need directions to wander?”
The man smiled again, before adding; “And maybe you can provide me with a little bit of work too? I’m strapped fer cash,” Sae scoffed.
“What’s your name?”
“Ryusei,” He answered, offering his hand. Sae looked down at it before eventually reciprocating the handshake. “And yers? I’ll even pay you for it.”
Ryusei dropped a couple coins onto the table, which were promptly scooped up by the bartender who took Ryusei’s order of a whiskey before turning to Sae.
“Itoshi Sae,” Sae offered his name and waved the bartender off. The amount of money Ryusei had put down in some show of chivalry was not enough to convince Sae to order a cheap drink.
“Oh please spend the coin, I don’t want to feel like I hired ye to sleep with me,” Ryusei pleaded unapologetically. Sae’s fingers twitched as he made eye contact with Ryusei for only the second time in their conversation, while the other man had been staring at him for its entirety.
In a way, Sae could appreciate Ryusei’s boldness. From the manner in which Sae’s hair was styled to the shoes he had gotten shined that morning, he found it amusing that Ryusei could even flirt with the idea that if anyone, he would be paying Sae for sex.
“What makes you so sure I won’t slip a word or two to lawmen for trying to seduce me?” Sae chose his words instead, carefully wrapping his lips around his mug to drain the liquid while maintaining his gaze over Ryusei. The stranger shivered in delight.
“The lavender kerchief tucked into your pocket and that faggy haircut? I’m surprised they didn’t get to you first,” Ryusei snorted and broke eye contact as the other man pushed his empty mug away from him.
Sae almost let a smile slip as he lifted himself from his barstool and made his way outside, the clinking of Ryusei’s spurs informing him of the company that had decided to keep him too.
“I might have some work for you,” Sae offered as he pushed the saloon doors open.
Sae hated complications. He hated when anything wasn’t exactly what it seemed to be between people. In that way, he appreciated the short and easy nature of his conversation with the man. They both knew what they wanted and expressed it, making the exchange easy.
Uncomplicated.
To say Ryusei wasn’t his type would be a lie. Sae knew he had dangerous taste, the kind that served as a double edged sword. Adventure and stories carried across the west found their way tangled in his sheets, lubricated with sweat and spilled in secret.
Sae knew much of the world outside his general area from these encounters - at least, the unfiltered world. Of course, he knew as well as his brother about the web of business opportunities which spread across the countless cities that Sae had rarely even seen.
He knew the type who could offer him worldly connections and the type that could offer him something a little different. And that type was always dressed in linen that hadn't been washed for days, pants which had horse hair weaved into the fibers, and a belt that held a shiny silver gun or two.
The issue was that normally these types were not too careful. When someone was always after you for murder or robbery, homosexuality seemed to feel less pressing. Ryusei was not careful, and from what Sae could tell already, that was dangerous.
Yet there he rode, next to the stranger he met at the saloon less than an hour ago, returning to the Itoshi ranch and estate with a secret in tow.
Sae’s horse snorted as they rode, earning a small pat from his rider as the two made their way back. Alvaro, Sae’s Missouri Fox Trotter, was a mild mannered and well tempered horse. Sae had been given him when he was first learning how to ride, and he had been instantly drawn in by the horse’s splashed black and white coat.
Now that Sae was older, and Alvaro was getting a little bit older too, he knew the worth of that coat and thought it a bit unnecessary to spend that money on a child.
Ryusei’s horse on the other hand was a smaller Nokota with an interesting colour palette. His horse was black and dappled with grey, but his muzzle was entirely ink dark. His horse seemed twitchy, and looking at its build, Sae could tell it was a race horse.
Sae and Ryusei reached the Itoshi estate shortly after embarking, words exchanged being far and few. Immediately on arrival, the two were approached by multiple farm hands who asked Sae about whatever work had to be done for the day.
Ryusei instinctively drew his horse back a little bit behind Sae, which was noted by the red head, but slowly approached again and rode up beside Sae.
Ryusei was interested in the clamour of people who for once seemed to entirely ignore him. He watched Sae give orders from up on his high horse - quite literally! - and observed how the crowd eventually dispersed.
“Wow, ye didn’t tell me ye were a big shot,” Ryusei grinned as Sae began to ride forward through the estate again, signalling for the other to follow. Sae shrugged.
“I’m used to it,” He waved off Ryusei’s comment and led his horse through to the stables.
To their right a little ways away, Ryusei noticed a boy with dark hair attempting to break in a horse with a coat as inky as his own locks. The horse was almost entirely black, with just a patch of white painting his muzzle and part of his left ear. Ryusei watched the struggle, watched the boy dig his heels in right as the horse he rode did, and ceremoniously get thrown off.
The boy started to get up again and dust himself off as the black horse rode in circles around the corral. Another boy, maybe just a couple years older than him but very obviously a farmhand, leaned over the fence to the dark haired boy and handed him a skin of water. The difference in their energies was interesting, as the first boy emitted a sort of similarly scowling sort of vibe as Sae, while the farmhand seemed fairly sweet and caring.
“He mirrors you y’know,” Ryusei called to the boy in the corral, whose head whipped around to spot Ryusei. “If you dig yer feet in, so will he. You need to be stern but ye can’t just try to overpower him.”
“Who the fuck are you?” The boy from the corral called back, his voice laced with irritation. Sae continued to lovingly get Alvaro settled in his stable, not particularly interested in dealing with whatever fallout was about to occur between his brother and the guy he brought home who just could not keep his mouth shut.
Ryusei shrugged and flashed the kid a grin. Rin scoffed and turned his attention back to the horse, who had started to slow down a bit.
“What’s the horse’s name?” Ryusei asked, instead turning to the farmhand who stood nearby watching. The other boy jogged over, noticing Sae in the stable and acknowledging him with an ‘evening sir’.
This boy also had blue eyes, but not the teal blue that Sae had. His eyes were a deep ocean hue, and his hair was a little bit unkempt with pieces sticking up at the crown of his head and his bangs grown out a bit too long.
“That’s Moonray - or at least, that's what Rin’s been calling him,” The farmhand replied. He seemed mild mannered and sweet, completely opposite to Rin.
Behind them, Rin was bucked off again, signalled by a loud curse let out by the boy in the corral. The farmhand turned around again, ready to set off before glancing back again one more time at Sae who had just about finished stabling Alvaro.
“Do you need anything, sir?” He asked, clearly eager to get back to Rin.
“No, I’m fine here Isagi, we’ll just be heading to the fields,” Sae offered back, dismissing the boy quickly as he took Ryusei’s horse’s reins and led him into the stable as well.
Ryusei slid off his horse and peered back out to the corral, where Rin and Isagi continued to try to wrangle Moonray. Ryusei snickered.
“He’s never going to tame that horse,” He whistled and turned his attention back to Sae. “He’s trying too hard to ‘control’ it.”
“Rin’s been like that his whole life,” Sae murmured, finishing up with Ryusei’s horse and turning to leave the stables. “He always wants the thing that’s difficult, to feel like he’s accomplished something more.,”
“As much as you try to pretend you ain’t, you’re quite the observer aren’t ya?” Ryusei teased.
“He’s my brother, I’d hope I knew him well enough,” Sae yawned as they stepped into the sunlight and back into Rin’s line of sight, who for now, seemed to have given up and let Moonray trot around as he willed.
Ryusei’s eyes flitted over to Rin, who in return unapologetically looked him up and down right back.
“Why’re you bringing the likes of him out here, Sae?” He snapped, and motioned towards Ryusei’s revolver, which was peeking out of his shirt.
“What’re you trying to say, partner?” Ryusei bit back just as hard, taking a step forward with a grin as Sae took one too.
“He’s just doing a job for me,” Sae replied back, almost hiding Ryusei behind himself as the cowboy tucked his gun back under his shirt and narrowed his eyes at Rin.
“Just a job, for sure,” Rin mumbled loud enough for Ryusei to hear. “I’ll remember that when we find horses missing in a couple days and we need to explain what happened to them to our father.”
“Mm, maybe he’ll just hand you the ranch for being so proactive,” Sae shot back, his delivery deadpan but his words sharp. Rin scoffed and turned his attention back to Moonray.
Ryusei, itching to get a word back at Rin, felt the familiar tension of a fight boiling in his chest. He fingered his revolver lightly, but shooed the thought away when he considered the number of people who lived at the estate and how clearly the Itoshi brothers were a big deal.
Also, maybe picking a gunfight with the cute guy’s brother wouldn’t be the play if he wanted to get laid.
When Ryusei snapped back to reality, Sae was already in the process of walking towards a plot of sorts. He hurried to catch up, wondering if the price of sex would actually be some work in the field.
They entered a vineyard that stretched over hills and as far as Ryusei could see, each trellis lined with ripe purple grapes. Ryusei marvelled at the fruit as he trailed behind Sae, and picked one without a second thought to pop in his mouth. Sae half turned to look back at him, but said nothing. In a way, Sae sort of envied how carefree Ryusei was. He acted on instinct, as opposed to Sae who planned absolutely every move he made.
“Y’know, it’s sure quiet out here,” Ryusei noted and whistled as the two of them walked further into the vineyard without seeing anybody. The outlaw wondered how Sae’s family managed to keep their produce safe when there was so much area to guard. “Might be good fer a quick fuck.”
Ryusei watched as Sae’s step never faltered.
“Maybe,” He replied, continuing to lead Ryusei deeper and farther from the house. “Although the dirt and insects wouldn’t be too picturesque, would it?”
“So you’ve considered it?” Ryusei grinned and ran his hands over the heavy bunches of grapes as he walked by them.
“No, I’m not an idiot,” Sae exhaled, finally slowing his pace as the two approached a fork in the road with two signs hammered into the ground, one pointing right and another pointing left. “Nor am I nearly as sexually charged as you, clearly.”
“Debatable,” Ryusei whispered under his breath.
Sae turned left, and Ryusei read the sign labeled ‘Barn’ before pausing.
“I thought you told that farm boy we was heading to the field?” Ryusei enquired. Sae turned back to face him and paused as well, his eyes glinting in a way that Ryusei figured he could grow to like
“I said that yes.”
“Now I’m clearly not as well read as you are, Lashes,” Ryusei started, burying his hands in his pockets and motioning his head towards the signs. “But the field’s the other way.”
“Yes you’re right about that too.”
“So… why’re we heading to the barn then?” Ryusei finally asked.
“So nobody catches us in the hayloft, cowboy.”
As the pieces clicked, Ryusei grinned again and picked up the pace, practically skipping to the barn as Sae followed him this time. He pushed the heavy door open with a loud creak, allowing Sae inside first and closing the door behind them.
The barn was old, dusty, and worn. There was nothing inside except empty stables, a trough that hadn’t seen feed in many years, and of course, bales of hay that covered the floors. Ryusei noted how the hay muffled their footsteps.
“Ye use this hideaway often?” Ryusei mused, looking up to the hayloft and the ladder which extended from it to the barn floor. Sae walked further into the barn and leaned against a stable door, propping himself up with his elbows and facing Ryusei.
Sae unbuttoned a couple more buttons on his shirt, loosening the neckline that once again felt like it was choking him. Ryusei shamelessly stole glances at the exposed collarbone and a peek of Sae’s chest.
“When it’s required,” Sae answered carefully, watching as Ryusei stalked closer to him, rolling up his sleeves. Sae had already considered Ryusei’s body in passing, but his forearms were more toned and tan than he had previously thought.
Sae considered his own pale skin from days spent inside if the weather was too warm, and hats to protect his face from the sunrays. Ryusei obviously never had that luxury. Along with his deeper complexion, Ryusei’s arms were covered in scars and dry skin as well. His knuckles were rough and gnarled, but in a way, it seemed even more attractive to Sae.
His entire body was well sculpted. The red haired boy noted Ryusei’s shoulders, legs, and thighs as they tangled in a mess of hay and creaking wood, memorized how each muscle rippled under his skin and melded into a sort of slow rocking mess with Sae’s. Ryusei was examining Sae as well, though much less analytically.
Sae’s eyes were the most captivating part to him. The green hue of his gaze which held steady and calm even through their sloppy kisses. Where Ryusei panted and hungered, Sae seemed to rein him in. Almost like a horse. Like he was in control. Ryusei bit harder, pushed deeper, trying to elicit a reaction in Sae as much as he was evoking one from himself. Ryusei buried his hands in Sae’s hair, tugging, nipping at his ear and lip, experimenting where he could grab and touch.
Ryusei was certain of one thing. Everybody had a tick. Whether it was as gentle as a stray nibble on a collarbone or the feeling of nails drawing blood down someone’s back, everyone had something. Ryusei loved to figure out what made somebody tick.
The shiver his partner would get as he hit something just right, the way they would pull back in the feeling of ‘how did he know that?’ before lunging back into Ryusei with renewed vigour. It’s what separated a boring lay and something Ryusei could have a good time with.
And Sae was giving him none of it. Ryusei bit, he scratched, he whispered, he was gentle. But Sae seemed to get him going effortlessly. Sae knew exactly where to plant a soft kiss that transitioned into a hickey. Sae knew with pinpoint precision where to squeeze and when to let go, to have Ryusei chasing his touch. His fingers brushed over Sae’s, tracing the red head’s silver rings and thin woven bracelets.
Sae knew where to hit him, and Ryusei’s heart knew when to pull away. Ryusei always thought he had a sixth sense for danger. And alarm bells had never been louder, drowning out the sound of his moans and the rustling hay.
~
Sae buttoned up his shirt, returning to the feeling of suffocation that came with the look of a prim and proper heir to an estate. He heard a clicking noise behind him and turned to see Ryusei, wearing pants but lacking a shirt, attempting to light a lighter with a cigarette in his mouth.
“Go outside,” Sae mumbled and continued to straighten himself out, smoothing over the wrinkles in his pants and dusting off the hay. Ryusei looked up, raising an eyebrow and hesitantly giving the lighter another attempt. “If you drop your cigarette in this barn filled with dry hay I don’t think there's any way I can smuggle you out,” Sae finished, offering an explanation to the man.
“Ye think I’ll drop it?” Ryusei snickered and lit the end of his cigarette, inhaling and blowing out a puff of smoke that clouded and dissipated into the barn ceiling.
Sae looked at him with enough warning that Ryusei did the best he could and cleared the hay underneath his feet away - just in case.
“Do ye smoke?” Ryusei asked as he blew another drag and watched the cloud twist and writhe.
“Socially,” Sae responded, finally slipping his shoes and leaning on the stable door across from Ryusei’s. The door remained shut, but Sae always kept some part of his brain tuned into what was going on outside, and if anybody was out there.
Realistically, Sae did not enjoy smoking per se. He was expected to smoke, especially at business events where smoke was probably the most tame thing anybody was inhaling. His father smoked, and his father’s associates, and his father’s associate’s sons smoked. So it would not be an odd sight to see Sae with a cigarette in his hand.
Ryusei offered his cigarette to Sae, who waved him off and shook his head. Giving an exaggerated pout, Ryusei brought the smoke to his lips and took another drag.
“Yer not social with me, Itoshi?” He teased. Sae scoffed, making eye contact. Ryusei was still missing a shirt, and that made it a bit harder for Sae to maintain said eye contact.
“Get your shirt on,” Sae turned again, gesturing towards Ryusei’s shirt on the ground with a nod. “It’s time to leave, I need to get back to Isagi and Rin at some point.”
“To watch him get kicked off that horse again?” Ryusei mused as he pushed himself off the stable door with one hand, sauntering towards his shirt with another. Sae caught a glimpse of that revolver again.
“To keep him from biting Isagi’s head off,” Sae delivered deadpan. Ryusei shot him a grin as he retrieved his clothing and slipped it on.
“My, Itoshi, was that a joke? I didn’t know you stored ‘jokes’ up there,” Ryusei finished his cigarette and leaned over one of the stable walls, dropping it into an old pail of water that had been sitting there forever. He listened to the hiss of the ashes hitting the liquid, watched it disrupt the murk that had been settling there.
“That makes me like ya even more,” He finished, turning his attention back to Sae. The other man raised an eyebrow and asked if he was decent instead.