Chapter Text
Biting back his pride, Edward announced, “I have an important favor to ask of you.”
“No,” Kiriya answered without hesitation.
“Y-You’re supposed to ask what it is before shooting it down like that!”
Kiriya scoffed, tapping at his arm impatiently. “Why? I don’t owe you anything, and I doubt there is anything you can offer me to make it worth my time.”
“I’m the king of Burguss,” Edward insisted. “There will be something you want that I can give you.”
Idly glancing around, Kiriya’s gaze traced the study’s reflective gold trim and stuffed bookcases. He apparently found something in it worth complying over. “I suppose the least I can do is hear you out. What is it?”
“I, uh.” Faltering one word in was a new low, and it was even worse with someone always pinpointing his weaknesses watching him. His face started to burn, but he closed his eyes and powered through. “One of the ministers is on my case lately about his eligible daughter.”
“And?”
“And he insists marrying her would add stability to my political ties.”
“And?” Kiriya repeated, furrowing his brow. “Are you asking me for advice?”
“Of course not. I’m asking you to…” Edward exhaled. This was humiliating. “...Pretend we’re engaged.”
Kiriya observed him for a moment before bursting out into laughter. It could have been a nice new sight if it didn’t sound so derisive. “Absolutely not. Did you really think I would agree to something like that?”
Edward hung his head, clenching his teeth. “You’re my only option, all right? I already got fed up with it and told him I was with someone.”
“Your gift of foresight is as impressive as ever, Your Majesty.” Having regained his composure, Kiriya simply smirked. “Why don’t you ask Vic?”
At the same time as a number of books hit the floor across the room, Edward slammed his hands on his table. “He’s fourteen!”
“I-I’d never do it anyway, okay?!” Flustered, Vic crouched down to begin reorganizing everything he’d dropped. “I’m his retainer, not—”
Kiriya raised a hand to silence him. “If you’re playing pretend, what does it matter?”
Edward glared at him. “You have to see the problem with the king announcing his engagement to a kid.”
“I’m not a kid!” Vic said indignantly. Once Edward turned that glare on him, his head darted back down to focus back on cleaning.
“Fair enough. I would certainly judge you.”
“Thanks a lot,” Edward said sarcastically. Realizing he was getting combative again, he cleared his throat and stood up. After a second’s hesitation, he bowed so low he nearly slammed his face on the solid wood.
“...What are you doing?” he could hear Kiriya ask.
“I beg you. I need your help, as the king and as your friend. It’s only until they lose interest.”
“And what if they won’t lose interest until they see an official ceremony?”
“I… I’ll take responsibility for it and be honest if it comes to that. It’ll be temporary either way.”
Kiriya was silent. Edward remained as he was. His legs started to strain almost as much as his dignity.
“Then I can act how I want, right?”
Edward lifted his head. “What?”
Kiriya smiled mischievously. “As our esteemed ruler’s betrothed, would I be able to use that freedom to act as I see fit?”
Edward cringed involuntarily. He didn’t even want to let his imagination run with that. “If you don’t tarnish my reputation more than marrying a fourteen-year-old would.”
“I’m not careless enough to bring about the downfall of this kingdom. All right, I’ll marry you.”
While Edward’s face reddened anew and he straightened his back with a start, he caught Vic chuckling. “Ya can just say it like that, huh?”
“My betrothed has much more of that to look forward to.”
He really wanted to wipe that smug expression off Kiriya’s face, but he’d made his bed. Now he had to lie in it. “...I appreciate it. Do you know what you want in return?”
“No, but I’ll be sure to call in the favor when it comes to me. Are we done for today?”
Suddenly exhausted, Edward dropped back into his chair and waved his hand dismissively. “Go ahead. I’ll call on you when I need you.”
With a flutter of his long hair, Kiriya turned on his heels and strode for the study’s heavy doors. “See you then.”
Pausing his mission to return the books to the shelves they belonged in, Vic reached him as soon as they were alone. Cheerfully, he patted Edward on the shoulder. “Really in it now, aren’tcha?”
“You’re not helping,” Edward grumbled.
“Who said I was tryin’?” Vic stepped back and cocked his head. “It’ll be fine. He's our friend, and he lives in Burgusstadt too. Isn’t that why ya asked him?”
“Yes. You’re right.”
“So cheer up and try to have fun with it!”
Vic’s earnest efforts weren’t enough to fix his sour expression. “Easier said than done. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“No… this won’t do either.”
Seated at a table strewn with loose papers and books of his own, Kiriya rested his cheek on the hand propped up by his elbow and tapped at the wood with its opposite. He was getting closer to reaching the cure he sought, but not enough to make tangible progress. So far he’d only managed to formulate a slightly better treatment for the symptoms.
A new illness was ailing some of those that went to a particular part of Luce Plains. With some help, Kiriya had already found the carrier: an insect that began to flourish in the absence of monsters. From there, creating a medicine wasn’t difficult. It was nice to see the gratitude of those affected, but he still dwelled on the missing piece often.
A pleasant blue sky waited on the other side of the window when he looked out. Sometimes, he still expected to see the wild flora of the Timberlands in its place. Living around other people had been difficult to adjust to at first, but the way the people of Burguss accepted him kept him around. He couldn’t say the same of the people aware of — or behind — his exile in Halgita, and without Empress Svala leading the country, he held no loyalty to that land.
He looked to the half-empty bottle of wine perched at the very corner of the table, abandoned there the night before. It was too early to drink, but if he couldn’t come up with a new idea before the day was out, it would still be there later.
Loud, hasty knocking at the door interrupted his thoughts. With a deep frown, he considered ignoring it; whoever it was could always come back when he was in a more gracious mood. The more aggressive knocking that followed seemed to happen just to toss that assumption out, so he stood and sullenly trod down the creaking wood stairs.
As soon as he opened the door, Vic rushed him. He was forced several steps back to keep his distance from the boy. “Ya gotta come with me!” Vic said, his face characterized by anxiety. “Ed’s gettin' harassed by that minister again.”
“That minister?” He must’ve pushed unimportant information out of his head to accommodate the rest.
“Huh?! The minister tryin’ to set him up with his daughter! Ed needs ya to prove he’s got someone already!”
“Oh, that,” Kiriya replied flatly. He almost attempted to shoo Vic away before recalling the power attached to the opportunity. Exercising that perk on a pompous noble today would be a great stress-reliever. “Lead the way.”
“Thanks! Then it’s back to the palace. Try and keep up!” Vic hustled out.
“Don’t underestimate the efficiency of longer legs, my friend.”
They passed through the cobblestone roads leading around the city, lively with the afternoon crowd. It grew progressively quieter behind each heavy gate outside the palace. He did admire Edward’s ability to still keep the place in order. He had been a capable leader of a group since they met, so his inexperience in leading an entire country was the only issue that remained.
Vic led him into the former chamber of rites. After handing out lunaglyphs became impossible, it was repurposed into a room where the king was to meet with concerned citizens. Today, it looked like the only ones engaged in conversation were Edward and a single noble.
Kiriya didn’t waste any time. “So you are the one trying to drive a wedge into our engagement,” he accused, arms folded and stride purposeful. Both men looked at him with wide eyes, but Edward recovered by the time Kiriya was at his side.
“You’re engaged to the medicinal researcher?” the minister asked Edward with his mouth agape.
Still working to get the conversation under his control, Kiriya replied, “Do you have a problem with his decision? Last I checked, he outranked you significantly.”
“N-No. What he decides is surely correct, but…” Again, he addressed Edward. “A noble from this country would be more prudent, Your Majesty,” he urged, and Kiriya rolled his eyes. They fell on the room’s entrance where Vic remained, leaning back and forth from his heels to his toes. “He may have a pretty face, but he is only a Halgitian commoner.”
“He’s more than his looks, and you should know that,” Edward answered harshly before Kiriya could complain. “Who has been helping improve the care of our people? He’s made sure medicine reaches anyone that needs it, and hasn’t stopped trying to make each treatment more effective.”
Mildly impressed, Kiriya remained silent and regarded him with a look of approval. On the minister’s end, he only appeared to be getting more red-faced and tense. “Y-Your Majesty. With all due respect, that is still not the best basis for a marriage.”
“And what better basis is there for a functional relationship than mutual respect and love?” Kiriya cut in flippantly, stepping close enough to Edward for their arms to brush. “You may not want to respect me, but Edward and I have already made our decision. You have no place in it.”
Edward suddenly rivaled the minister in physical tension, but the minister was the one to ripen like a tomato. Kiriya smirked confidently — the use of the king’s name as a show of intimacy worked as well as he expected. The satisfaction of reducing the minister to a frustrated mess made acting so affectionate nearly painless.
“Kiriya is right,” Edward said belatedly, controlling his voice rather well considering Kiriya’s bold improvising. “And I know that you will respect him, as both a contributor to Burguss’ success and my betrothed.”
“I-I…” Yanking a handkerchief from his pocket, the minister wiped at the side of his jaw. He wasn’t pleased with the direction the conversation had gone, but he could find no further foothold to argue from in his state. “I understand. But if you both change your mind…”
“We won’t,” Kiriya stated vehemently. “I trust you have no further business with us. Good day to you, Mr. Minister.”
“It’s Alberich…”
“Whatever.”
Utterly defeated, he bowed his head to Edward, offered a “Good day, Your Majesty,” and retreated in a hurry. As soon as the door to the chamber closed behind him, Edward exhaled loudly and Vic bounded over to them.
“You’re a little too good at acting out this role,” Edward told Kiriya, and Kiriya clicked his tongue.
“You’re just too honest. That mustn't do you any favors when dealing with their kind.”
“Ya mean the ministers?” Vic asked.
“All of the nobility. They flaunt the power they were born or married into like it means something. Putting them in their place is even more satisfying than I suspected.”
Curious, Edward asked, “Is that the reason you agreed to this?”
Kiriya smiled. “Exactly.”
“Aren’t ya the one bein’ too honest now?” Vic said, hands on his hips.
“That’s why he asked me in the first place, isn’t it?” Kiriya answered, but his gaze moved to turn the question on Edward. “I don’t talk around matters like they do.”
Edward nodded. “Thank you for coming so quickly. I didn’t expect him to ambush me about this already. Some people around here don’t understand the value of patience.”
“Some fresh air was useful. By the way, you think surprisingly highly of me from the sound of it. Do you really believe I contribute that much to this country’s healthcare?”
“Of course I do. I could live without you petitioning me for more research funds at every opportunity,” Edward stressed, “But what good you do for us is undeniable.”
A gentle wave of pride and contentment passed over Kiriya at that — regardless of what led him here, Burguss was his home. Doing some good and earning respect for it was welcome new territory. Switching gears to avoid giving that away, he smugly added, “You didn’t deny the comment on my pretty face, either.”
“Y—” Caught off guard, Edward’s face began to redden. “I was focused on more important things!”
“Right, right.” Cutting him some slack, Kiriya thought for a moment. “Are you busy?”
Vic piped up for him. “Nah, he actually got ahead of things this mornin', so we got all afternoon.”
“Vic,” Edward hissed.
“Allow me to call in the favor for today’s participation, then. I want to browse the shops for any new ingredients they might have.”
Edward eyed him skeptically. “Why do you need us for that?”
“I don’t need you, but your presence surely would grant me more space from other people. If I also wind up with much to carry, someone of your strength should have no problem with it.”
“Your motives are as awful as ever.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Kiriya replied, his bright expression easing the darkness on Edward’s face.
“Go with him,” Vic said to Edward. “The weather is nice, and the people always love to see ya out like one of them.”
Lifting his hand, Edward ran it through his dark hair. “It would be better than getting accosted by someone like Alberich again. Lead the way, Kiriya.”
It was entertaining dragging the king himself around for the afternoon, even if that king was only Edward to him. Shopping with someone else wasn’t that bad after all.
At a knock at the door with a familiar rhythm, Edward raised his attention over a nearly eye-level pile of books. “Come in.”
Pushing it open on cue, Kiriya breezed inside. He turned his head both ways as they fell closed behind him, apparently having trouble finding him over the mountain at the front of the table. When Edward raised his hand to cut his search short, Kiriya crossed his arms and smiled. “I came to see you again, darling,” he said with honeyed sarcasm. “How is this month’s budget going?”
“Do you have to call me that when no one’s listening?”
“You never really know when someone’s listening. The guards around the palace are getting awfully friendly with me. I can’t tell if they want something from me or from you.”
While Kiriya walked toward the table to speak with him properly, Edward asked him, “Is it that hard to believe someone might just want to be your friend?”
“Hm. Anyway, you didn’t answer my question.”
Edward exhaled. He didn’t have the extra energy to try to untangle the knot the conversation was getting tied in. “It’s… going.”
“You’ve spent this long on the throne and you’re still struggling with this?”
“Be quiet. I didn’t grow up with my nose in complicated books like you did. You have to admit I’ve gotten much better than when I started.”
Kiriya shrugged. He drew around the side and stopped just out of arm’s length, leaning back against the table’s edge. “I will admit that, but how much does it matter if small mistakes can cost as much as big ones?”
“Then help me,” Edward snapped. How readily he said so — even with his frustration building — surprised him, but it was too late to take it back. “...Please.”
“Fine. Tell me where the problem is.”
Edward blinked. “That’s it? You’ll do it just like that?”
“As one of your citizens, you can’t really expect me to want to see this kingdom fall apart.” Placing one hand on the table between them, he leaned over to examine the current document.
“Then if you could double-check these calculations, I’d appreciate it.”
Kiriya nodded silently. From his expression, he was taking it seriously. The ends of his hair curled up on the table, a shiny curtain of sunlight. Edward wouldn’t say it aloud, but he was impressed by the dedication Kiriya had to be putting into it. He wasn’t a slouch about his much shorter hair, and even that took effort.
“Are you paying attention?” Kiriya asked him suddenly, and Edward realized he might’ve missed something he said.
“Yes, I was just thinking it over,” Edward lied. “Could you repeat it one more time?”
“You’re hopeless. I said you need to consider that part of the city has higher demand than the others. You’ll run short if you treat them the same again.”
Edward followed to where he was pointing. “You’re right. I should’ve remembered that earlier.”
“It’s all right. No one can stay on top of everything at once,” Kiriya replied, oddly considerate for him.
“Why do you give me such a hard time about this normally? Always taking advantage of things I missed...”
“I wanted you to ask for help. From someone other than Vic, who couldn’t do a better job than you anyway.” Kiriya turned his head toward the door as if the kid would dash in and defend himself.
“You weren’t doing it to wring out as much money for your research as possible?”
Meeting his gaze again, Kiriya replied, “No. A good ruler needs to know when to be humble and consult others. Empress Svala didn’t try to take care of everything herself. I didn’t agree with all that happened under her rule, but I always believed she did it in Halgita’s best interests.”
“I don’t know if I will ever be as responsible as her, but I’ve been striving to be my best.”
“I know you have.” Kiriya smiled faintly and his finger moved on the document. “About this figure here…”
With Kiriya’s peerless eye for detail, the remainder of the document was corrected or reaffirmed. Even able to surprise him by explaining his better reasoning in a few places, Edward wasn’t that far off this time.
Vic arrived then, rapping once at the door before heading right in. “I got yer message delivered!” Stopping abruptly, he stared at Kiriya with briefly wide eyes. “Oh, I didn’t know Kiriya was here.”
Edward lifted up the document and half-heartedly waved it. “He gave the budget a lookover. Now he can’t extort money from me over any mistakes.”
“Ha. I’ll survive. I’m just glad you stopped being so stubborn about it.”
“Yer gettin’ along well lately,” Vic remarked brightly.
“Our king here has decided to stop letting his pride get in the way of everything. I like him more this way.”
“Was that a compliment?” Edward said skeptically.
Kiriya laughed. “It’s the best you’ll ever get from me.”
The weather outside was enticing, and his pantry was empty — a rare time it wasn’t so difficult for Kiriya to pull away from his work on his own initiative. He’d come a little closer to the correct composition of the cure, but something fundamental still eluded him. As he’d already hit that wall several days ago, he abandoned it and set out for the shops before evening. Catching what goods he could while they were still fresh and available might energize whichever part of his brain was failing him.
His shopping trip provided him with two bags stuffed full of food for both the night ahead and many days afterward. Pleased enough with the quality of what he found, he headed back home on a high note. He still tuned out most people on the street; old habits die hard, and only his immediate neighbors were of any real consequence. If directly spoken to, however (and that was often the case with chatty off-duty palace guards), he entertained their curiosity until it waned. In the minutes after those encounters, he wistfully considered how much he’d changed since the Liberation Force showed up on his isolated doorstep.
Just outside the shopping district, he heard a voice that made him turn his head. Standing in a grassy area, Edward was calling out to a young boy at a distance and made a gesture toward a second one. The first boy had a ball on the ground in front of him bigger than his head, but he made a valiant effort to kick it to the other. That boy had to get closer to catch it as it rolled to a stop, but he did, and then he kicked it to Edward.
“Awfully—” Kiriya began as he approached, making Edward miss the pass and turn to stare at him—“Generous of our ruler to be out playing with children.”
Edward frowned. “I can’t stay cooped up in the palace all the time.”
“I wasn’t criticizing you,” Kiriya replied, and Edward relaxed. “What are you doing here?”
Returning to the game as he answered, Edward said, “Their mother needed to go shopping, but she had no one to watch them.” The ball passed smoothly to the first boy. “I just overheard her talking about it and offered to play with them. Isn’t that right, Leo?”
“Yes,” the boy said pleasantly. He couldn't be more than ten years old, but the restraint in the way he acted gave an indicator of what their parenting might be like. Leo pulled back his foot and kicked it to his brother.
“He’s really good,” said the brother. “We played catch before this, but Leo wasn’t good at it.”
Edward caught the ball with the side of his foot. “Everyone’s good at different things,” he said, defending the first boy. “As long as you’re having fun, you’re good enough.” He kicked the ball to Leo, then looked at Kiriya and gestured to the brother with his thumb. “He’s Will.”
After a moment of silence, Kiriya realized it was the correct time to say something himself. “...It’s nice to meet you both. I’m Kiriya.”
“Who is he?” Leo asked Edward. It was a question Kiriya had held back from volunteering an answer to.
“He’s my friend. He makes medicine.”
“Leo got really sick last year. Did you make him better?” Will asked.
“It’s possible something I made helped, but I don’t know.”
“Thanks!” Leo said anyway, and Kiriya felt himself crack a smile.
Edward waved him closer. “Why don’t you join us? We can make it more fun with four people.”
“And how might that be?” Kiriya inquired with a doubtful tilt of his head.
“We can change up who we’re passing it to by calling out names. Come on.”
Kiriya exhaled deeply as if it was a grand inconvenience, but he didn’t hesitate in setting his things aside. He took his place between Edward and Leo, who eagerly passed the ball to him next.
The boy’s power left much to be desired, but his desire to try didn’t. They both looked not far from Rico and Rucha’s age when he first met them. Keeping up with the twins had been impossible, but these two had just the right energy. Either that, or he’d gotten more patient.
“I’m too hungry to play anymore,” Will said eventually, dropping down to sit on the grass as soon as he did so.
“Me too,” Leo agreed, but he stayed on his feet. He’d been the last one passed the ball.
Edward went silent, clearly trying to think of a solution. Pondering it himself, Kiriya returned to his shopping bags. He crouched down at their side and dug around, pulling out two red apples. Satisfied, he stood and walked to Edward’s side. “Will these do?” he asked the boys, and Edward watched him with raised eyebrows.
“Yeah!” Will scrambled to his feet, nearly tripping on the way. Leo mirrored him surprisingly quickly.
“Say please,” Kiriya instructed, lifting the apples just out of their tiny hands’ reach.
“Please?” they said together.
“There you go.” The two apples were passed off to the two boys, and Will started chomping on his as if he had a ten second time limit. Disapprovingly, Kiriya crossed his arms. “You’re going to choke on it if you eat that quickly, and medicine won’t help you then.”
Wide-eyed, Will obediently slowed down.
Edward spoke to him next. “Where did you get those?”
“I bought them for food this week.”
“And you don’t mind giving them away?”
“They weren’t the only things in those bags, Edward.”
“I guess not.” Under a sheen of sweat, Edward grinned at him. Kiriya couldn’t say he’d been the target of a look like that from him before, and it didn’t look bad on his face. “Thanks.”
“You don’t have to thank me. They do.”
“Thank you,” Leo’s high voice told him. Will joined once his mouth was only half full.
Their mother returned as they were finishing up. She looked of good standing, but perhaps not the noblewoman Kiriya imagined earlier. She bowed before Edward, saying, “I’m so grateful His Majesty would spend his valuable time with my children.”
Edward squared his shoulders, but looked at them kindly. “They can visit the palace any time you would like.”
“Can we? I want to play again,” Will said, and their mother looked bashful.
“We can’t impose on you that much…”
“Oh, please. He loves looking after children,” Kiriya interjected. “Make his day.”
The woman eyed him as if she had no clue why he felt he had the authority to say so, but had decided asking would be improper. She continued speaking to Edward. “We… may take you up on that someday. It is difficult raising them on my own. Thank you very much.”
Edward waved to the kids as they left, who just as enthusiastically waved goodbye to Kiriya. Although hesitant, he more subtly returned it. Being included was oddly, recognizably satisfying.
When they finally turned a corner, Edward left his side to sit on the nearby bench, knees spread and hands clasped together over his thighs. Retreating into his thoughts for a moment, it took Kiriya a little while to join him.
“Are you that tired over simply playing with them?” Kiriya asked, crossing one leg over the other.
Edward snorted, peering out at him from the smallest gap in his hair. “You wouldn’t understand. You dress much lighter than me.”
“I’m also more reasonable with my bangs.” Amused, he reached out to Edward’s forehead and brushed the damp hair aside. “How can you see like this?”
Both blue eyes met his. “Well, I can see a little better now.”
Gathering some awareness of what he was doing, Kiriya pulled his hand back and folded his arms again. Feeling restless, he stood and picked up his shopping bags. “Why don’t you come with me? I have enough for you too if you’d like to join me for dinner.”
“You’re generous today.”
“I’m just as capable of generosity as you are. Will you or not?”
Edward smiled and got up. “I never got to see you cook when we were traveling with the Force. I have to see what you can do.”
“I cooked for myself for years. I believe you’ll be satisfied. And if you aren’t, don’t say anything,” Kiriya said curtly, starting off toward home again.
Edward caught up to him. “All right, I won’t. Thanks, Kiriya. For this, and for helping with those two.”
“You’ll be a good father someday.”
“Huh?”
“You heard me. Whenever you settle down and have a family, being a father would suit you well. I suspected as much back when Rico and Rucha were around.”
“I haven’t really thought about any of that, but I... think I’m glad you think so. I don’t think you’d be half bad either now, from how you treated Leo and Will.”
“As if I would be good with children,” Kiriya said dismissively, unconsciously picking up his pace.
“I’m serious. You balanced it out with trying to make them be responsible. That doesn’t always come to mind with me, so we make a better team than I thought.”
Finding Edward’s expression too sincere to look at, Kiriya averted his eyes. “...If you insist.”