Ping- Hi hi! Another fic.
Rowen- Finally! We get some play!!
Ping- -_-^
Seiji- Settle down, this is all build up. Nothing's happened yet.
Rowen- Damn...
Ping- Hey, fix your damn name blue boy!
*Touma*- There! Fine! Happy!?
Ping- Not until I write a decent lemon.

Ping- I’m using the Japanese names as they sound a little nicer and seem to fit the period better.
Warnings: Serious AU, so far
Touma- *whine*
Seiji- Build up, Tou-chan, build up.

Pairings: SeijixTouma (SagexRowen)
Touma- ::Retard sound::
Ping- You do that well...

Disclaimers: I don't own them and I think everybody knows that...

This fic is dedicated to Kyoki! This is yours, hon, like it or not. I'll try and hand Seiji and Touma to you on a lubricated silver platter, but we'll have to wait and see. ^-^
 

/flashbacks/
‘thoughts’

*************

Chapter 1

*************

‘He’s sending me away. I can’t believe father’s actually sending me away…’ The mantra repeated itself over and over in Touma’s mind as he bumped along in the litter. ‘Could this road *be* any rougher?’ The jostling wasn’t helping the headache that was beginning to form in the back of his skull; the perfect compliment to the solid ball of depression settled in the pit of his stomach.

‘I know he has never been proud of me, but still…sending me away like this. And just before Tah’s wedding and the biggest political movement in history. Guess he wants to make sure I don’t screw anything up.’ He thought bitterly. Just because he wasn’t the politician his father was, would never be, then he wasn’t worth the effort. Of course, the fact that he openly disagreed with this ‘contract of peace’ could have had a part. He didn’t just disagree with it, he was disgusted by it; and his father for agreeing to it.

‘I can’t believe he’s going to sacrifice Tah.’
 

// “Peace, my brother, is more important than my happiness. “//

// “But it’s not fair, Tah. You shouldn’t have to do this! There has to be another way around this-“ //

// “You know father’s looked and you know there is no other way. It just has to be this way…”//
 

He heard the arguments, deep down accepted them, but he would never allow himself to stand behind his father’s decision to marry off his sister to some *prince* from their border country, Korin. A particularly rough spot in the road shook him from his thoughts.

‘Stupid litter…’

So there was nothing for it. In five days, his big sister was going to marry a warrior prince from a country they had not been on speaking terms with for hundreds of years. They only contact they made was in battles, which were becoming increasingly frequent. So, to end it, his sister was getting married. And she’d never even met him. Touma couldn’t understand why he was the only one who saw this as a sacrifice.

He sighed as he titled from side to side, another bump in the road. Were they even on a road at all?? He took a calming breath and thought ahead to his destination. They’d have to cross into Korin and take a peninsula to get to their destination, their actual border to Rekka a large river. Rekka. Nice place, a little hot. A big change from the frozen expanse of hell with trees called Tenkuu. And Korin, a land of nothing but trees and mountains sitting just over the horizon, tantalizing him with thoughts other than icicles and frostbite.

Rekka to the north, Korin to the east, and Kongo to the south. Kongo: lush, refreshing, invigorating…sand. He thanked his lucky stars that he wasn’t going there. He preferred, above all, Suiko, which was on the other side of Rekka. Maybe he would be allowed to visit the large tropical island during his visit.

‘Baka…You’re not supposed to be enjoying this, you’re supposed to be enraged at being sent away!’

But he still couldn’t resist the warmth that spread through him at the thought of being someplace else. Anywhere.

If only he could be there for Tah as well.

He dozed off, snapping awake at muffled voices and more bumps in the road before nodding off again.

‘Maybe I’ll have a nice dream…’

*BUMP*

‘Maybe I’ll have different people take me home…’
 

************
 

“Enter.” Came the crisp and none too pleased sounding reply from inside the tent.

‘I knew I shouldn’t have gotten out of bed…’ He thought as he pushed past the flaps and stood before the imposing gaze of one amethyst eye.

“What do you want?”

‘Just because he’s unhappy doesn’t mean he has to make everyone else miserable…’
“We’re ready to head back out, your majesty, whenever you wish to break camp.”

Seiji turned his face away, trying to hide his look of trepidation from his subordinate. No matter how well he built his walls, he still couldn’t suppress his feelings of anxiety. Marriage is always a taxing experience, never mind when it’s been arranged and the soon-to-be couple never even met each other. Even a letter would have been nice…

“ *Ahem, * Your majesty?”

‘Damn, lost in thought again!’ Lost in thought, not ignoring as so many people believed.

“I understand you do not wish to arrive too soon, but we do want to make it in time.”

‘Sure, too soon. That’s a good excuse.’

“Fine, lets get ready to move out. Have the scouts already been sent off?”

The servant bowed. “Yes, your majesty. We’ll be passing through a heavily wooded region. Barely anyone is ever seen there and there have been no reports of any incidents, but we sent them along anyway. Just to make sure we don’t encounter any…setbacks.”

Seiji nodded.

“Alright then. Let’s go.”
 

**********
 

*BUMP*

“OW! Dammit, can’t you guys even *try* to avoid the ruts in the road? Or are you purposely hitting every one?!”

His outcry was met with a rather nasty- and deliberate- shake that sent him reeling into a padded wall.

‘What the *hell* do they think they’re doing??’ He stuck his head out of the window with a glare and reprisal that had frightened many an unfortunate palace servant, but he never got the chance to utter a syllable.

‘Oh no.’

The crooked tooth, few tooth, no tooth grins turned to him weren’t those of his servants. The large one nearest to him drew the largest knife Touma had ever seen; probably just shy of being a sword; and leaped at him faster than he could follow. Before he blinked twice, the knife was at his throat.

‘Let me rephrase that. Oh shit.’