Of Heroes and Villainy

Kageo was out of it and mostly asleep for two days before he recovered enough to get out of bed for anything other than the bathroom. By that time, he was starving and a little frantic about what he might have missed while being unconscious. His hair had gotten a bit wild from being asleep for so long. The first thing he did was check Walt's bed anxiously, wondering if he was okay or not.

Just as he was frantically checking the bathroom, the door swung open and Walt came in carrying a tray of food and a small cloth tote bag. His eyes lit up when he saw Kageo out of bed and his smile seemed to brighten the room with its radiance. "Well, hello Coma-Comrade! I went to get you fresh food and gather some supplies. I figured if you didn't wake up capable of moving around more than bathroom trips, I'd clean you up in your bed. Your Uncle just left. He said you'd be upset about your hair but you'd be even more upset if I messed with it without your knowledge or permission."

Kageo blinked at the onslaught of information, processing it as Walt came in, kicked the door shut, and set the tray on the side table between their beds. Now that Walt mentioned fresh food, Kageo did remember there being a tray there when he got up to use the bathroom but he hadn't had the functionality to process it at the time.

At the realization of what Walt said about his hair, Kageo lifted up his hands to run his fingers through it, wincing when he was met with knots that he would need to brush out. His stomach let out a growl though and he turned his attention to the food.

"You're a lifesaver," Kageo commented to him as he sat down to eat. "In more ways than one."

Walt shrugged self-consciously, uncertain about taking credit when he felt that anyone else in his position would have done the same. "I do what I can. I guess I'm uncomfortable taking any kind of credit for something anyone would do," he said.

Kageo shook his head at that, swallowing and looking away from Walt when he said, "That's the thing, though. Anyone wouldn't have. Most people would have just walked away, because the Blackwoods aren't worth helping."

Silence lingered between them as Walt took that in and Kageo went back to eating. Walt, incapable of sitting still without tinkering with something, took out a rock he was carving sigils onto and his scribe. He deepened some of the lines before making the last part of the spell-form. He set the rock down and took out a small crystal, working to find the flat spot he had found before.

Kageo finished up his meal and then stood up, stretching out for a moment before he decided he really should shower. He grabbed his brush to brush out his hair and then disappeared into the bathroom and started the water. The hot water helped relieve how sore he felt from everything. He took his time getting clean and loosening his muscles up before he got out, dried off, and rebraided his hair. He came back into the room wearing only a pair of black sweatpants.

Walt looked up from the careful carving he was doing on the gem when Kageo walked back into the room. He whistled appreciatively. "Looking good, Roomie!"

Kageo couldn't help the smile that came to his face at that. Spending time with Walt like this always made his stomach do somersaults. It was a feeling that no one else had ever made him feel, but he didn't dislike it. In fact, he rather enjoyed falling into those feelings when they were alone and had the luxury to.

"How is Yami doing?" Kageo asked Walt, wanting to make sure she was okay. He felt that she was, but needed to hear it from someone else.

Walt smiled. "She's fine," he answered, "Stella's been staying close to her just in case, but she seems like nothing ever happened."

Kageo let out a breath and sat down, glad to hear it. His mind went back to the things he had seen when he touched Yami's hands and a shudder went through him. "Someone almost killed her, and did a lot of damage to me just from reading it. I don't know if that was the aim, but it seems like it."

Walt nodded, remembering how difficult that spell had been to unravel. "I wish I had been able to trace the thread back to whoever was changing the spell, but it was either keep fighting it or find out where it was coming from."

"I would have made the same decision you did in the moment," Kageo agreed, letting Walt know he wasn't upset with him. "I could see someone doing the chanting, but it was faint and distorted. I didn't see a face. I think it was a man though, with a couple other people helping him."

Walt nodded. "That makes sense. I am not bragging at all when I say I was giving that my all and I don't think many people could hold their own against me one on one," he said.

Knowing what he did about Walt's abilities, Kageo agreed with that assessment. He wasn't even sure

he

could go against Walt one on one if he wanted to unless he took in a ton of blood, and he was too careful for that. "I know you aren't bragging, and I think you're right. These could be the same people who killed my parents. My sister and I aren't doing anything wrong, so if they are going after us too, then treason probably wasn't why they were killed. Adiran was right."

Walt found that he agreed with that assessment. "I would say we can't rule out magical terrorism, but there would have been far more attacks and they would have been engineered instead of manually fed," he mused.

"And the school is not the best place for magical terrorism with their shields and protections," Kageo pointed out. "Better to do it in one of the cities. Getting in to get at one student is far easier than getting a bunch of them."

'Well, I'm not sure how we're going to figure out who did this without the trigger device, but we've been looking," Walt commented. "I've been tinkering, as well. This rock works to send messages to the one I already gave to Yami. It works in small burst vocal communications, so keep that in mind."

Walt handed him the smooth rock he had been carving on while he sat there looking thoughtful. Kageo took the rock from him, turning it over in his hands for a moment, looking at the faint spell-forms he could see on it. He thanked Walt as he put it onto his bedside table next to a small bag he almost always carried around with various spell items. He would keep it in there for when he needed it.

Walt launched into a brief but thorough synopsis of the changes he had made to the room while Kageo was out of touch with reality. He had reinforced the spell-form he had been etching into the door lock, making it much more impossible to break and adding a vocal trigger to unlock the door. He had reconfigured the noise-canceling spell to prevent noise from leaving the room while allowing the usual level of noise

in

. He had also added a repeater trigger for the spell so they could activate and deactivate it from several points in the room with a touch on a gem. It would also deactivate if it was active when they spoke the unlock command for the door.

While Walt was getting ready to tell Kageo about his latest creation, Yami came to the room to check on them and was glad to see her brother awake again. She practically tackled him onto the bed when she saw him sitting up, throwing her arms around his neck while she told him how worried she had been about him. That seemed funny to him since she was the one who almost died, but he didn't say anything and just hugged her back. Walt wisely chose to keep that modification for a later surprise.

They spent the next few weeks looking for that cursed object with the hopes they could figure out where it led back to, but it had disappeared completely. Locke had been serious about making his wards and protections stronger. Every time a student left the school, they were searched before they came back on, with everything being scanned magically for dangerous energy. It made Kageo feel slightly safer, but he made sure to keep Yami on campus so he could keep an eye over her.

Before they knew it, it was time to go home for their brief winter vacation to celebrate the winter solstice. That celebration was always filled with family, feasting, and rejoicing in the bountiful harvests that would keep everyone alive through the long winter. It was one of Kageo's favorites, though it had lost some of its magic after his parents had died. He became much more withdrawn and quiet during the festivities, though Adiran had tried to make it as bright and wonderful as it had been before. The shadow of his parents were in everything though. They likely always would be until Kageo knew the truth.

The solstice was also a time of giving presents. Yami had wanted to go out and get some before they traveled home, and Kageo agreed so long as he went along with her. Yami grinned at him, "Oh good, you can get your boyfriend something too."

"We aren't boyfriends," Kageo argued. "We're...I don't know, but nothing official."

Yami shook her head at him. "You should get that figured out at some point, Niisan."

He knew he probably should, but he pushed that to the side so they could go into the nearest city by train to look around for things for their aunt, uncle, and Rinne. Yami wanted to find something for Elliot as well, to give to him before they left, and that left Kageo looking around for anything that might be good for Walt. He wasn't sure if he should buy anything, but he was open to the idea.

He looked through the rows of items for sale in the market, all of the stalls set up to sell some of their best items for the holiday season. He was about to give up when he saw a bracelet set in a leather cuff. In the middle of the bracelet was a rounded stone of black tourmaline, which was known as a protective gemstone. It was known to protect the wearer from psychic attacks.

Kageo picked up the bracelet, watching as the light hit the stone. It reminded him a little of his own eyes. It didn't take him long to decide to buy it, and once it was wrapped up by one of the workers, he slipped it into his pocket and went to find Yami.

There was a big festival on campus the night before everyone would go back home for the holidays. A big feast was laid out in the food hall, with drinks, music, and dancing. Walt and Stella showed up first, dressed in greens and gold for the holiday. There were a few colors to choose from, but their father always liked them in some sort of gold. When the Blackwoods showed up, people stopped to look at them and stare. When Walt turned around to look at Kageo, he could see why. It was the first time that Walt could recall ever seeing Kageo out of his signature black and red. He wore black slacks but the sweater he had on was blue and silver, designed with snowflakes and stars, and it fit him perfectly. Yami was dressed similarly, in a long velvet dress of deep blue with silver stars all over the dress.

Walt, jaw dropping in amazement, wiped his suddenly damp palms on his pants. He had been hard at work while Kageo and Yami were out shopping, but he wasn't sure if Kageo would appreciate what he had done. Kageo smiled at him when he noticed Walt staring, his cheeks reddening slightly at the attention, though he liked it.

"Happy Solstice!" Yami cried and handed Stella a small present. Inside was a rose gold sun necklace with an opal in the middle of it.

Stella insisted on putting it on immediately after squealing with delight and hugging Yami. She produced a gift of her own to present to Yami. Stella had commissioned a local artisan to craft a brooch in the Blackwood crest with garnets and rubies on it. Yami beamed as she looked at it and thanked Stella, giving her a hug before showing Elliot.

As the three of them grabbed some drinks and started talking, Kageo came to a stop in front of Walt, taking in how he looked. No matter what he wore, Kageo thought he was handsome, but there was something about him all dressed up that did things to Kageo deep in his pelvis. "Happy early Solstice," he said quietly. "How are you feeling about heading home for a bit tomorrow?"

Walt looked up at Kageo's approach, mouth suddenly dry as his heart sped up. "Happy early Solstice. I'm not super thrilled about it, knowing that my father has the means to compel me to talk about things I'd rather not," he responded.

Kageo had been considering that. Who knew what Wilhelm could get Walt to admit while he was there if he wasn't careful. It killed Kageo that he couldn't fix that completely for Walt. The present would help though, so he held it out for Walt in its wrapped up box. "I hope you like it," Kageo said.

Walt took the gift with a bright grin, handing Kageo back a box of his own. They stared at each other for a moment then both tore into their respective boxes. Walt's box had the black tourmaline bracelet, which Kageo had shined up to make it really glow. Walt could see the spell-form in the bracelet that Kageo had placed, adding extra psychic protection, though it almost felt a little incomplete. Like part of it was just out of his sight despite knowing it was there.

Kageo's box had a small pin, etched on the front with the Blackwood crest and with a small spell-form on the back. It was somewhat nondescript until Kageo picked it up, then memories of time he and Walt had spent together flooded his mind. He could tell that this item was psychically charged but the spell-form was a sort of stasis spell that kept the memories fresh. He looked up in wonder to see Walt smiling sheepishly. "I can do the same to the things your parents touched, if you'd like," he offered shyly.

Kageo couldn't help the smile that came to his face. Walt could see him almost take a step forward, but then he seemed to remember where they were and stopped himself. If they had been alone, he would have kissed Walt, but he couldn't. Not here, with all of these people. Finally, he managed to find his voice, and said, "This is amazing. Thank you. And I would like that, with my parents' items. It would mean the world to me."

Walt nodded his agreement and looked around himself at the people around, understanding Kageo's hesitation and feeling it himself. He had already given Stella and Yami their gifts, similar gems with protective spell-forms etched into them like the one he had worn in the square during the crossbow attack. Yami had loved her gift and thanked him with a hug at the time before she handed over the gift of a leather bag filled with herbalist tools for him embroidered with green and gold thread in trees and branches, with colorful flowers and mushrooms on the side.

Yami and Kageo had exchanged gifts as well, which they were both wearing. Yami had given him the sweater while he had given her a small white gold necklace with a snowflake on it that she had loved when they were out. Kageo put the pin from Walt onto his sweater before he helped Walt get the leather bracelet on, reveling in every small touch between them as he got it fastened against the bare skin of Walt's wrist. It would be easy to hide with long sleeves too, which Kageo had been thinking of.

Walt could feel the protective energy of it, and could feel some of Kageo's energy in there as well, as if he was with him all the time now. It was like a light caress over his skin that made him feel safe and loved. He couldn't help the smile that tended to creep onto his face at random moments after that, nor did he try to. Kageo had a similar smile on his face, which he would sometimes hide behind a mug of cider or by turning away from their friends, but he didn't fight it.

They had a wonderful evening drinking, feasting, dancing, and talking with their small group. The only thing that may have even had a chance to mar it for Walt was the presence of Stella's date every once in a while, but the presence of Kageo and the bracelet dulled that annoyance to only that of a buzzing insect.

It was one of the few nights that Kageo didn't have the past or future hanging over his head like a guillotine. He could just stay in the present, enjoying being with his friends and sister, and basking in the presence of a man who had come to mean more to him than almost anyone else ever could. By the time the party was dying down and they were heading back to the dorm room, Kageo was certain he wanted to take his relationship with Walt further than they had before they couldn't see each other for two weeks.

Yami was right that he would have to figure out if they were something more official than just roomies or friends, but right then Kageo wasn't thinking about that. His hands felt sweaty as they came back into the room, and he wiped them off on his pants. It seemed Walt had similar ideas as he locked the door once he was through it and triggered the sound-proofing.

Kageo pulled off his sweater and put it on his desk before he turned to Walt, now wearing only his pants and the tanktop he had worn under the sweater. He licked his lips to combat how dry his mouth felt now and took a few steps toward Walt until he was standing right in his personal space. He brought one of his arms up and rested his hand behind Walt's neck as he pulled him down into a kiss.

Walt smiled as he brought his face down and accidentally bumped his teeth against Kageo's. They both pulled back briefly with twin embarrassed chuckles before diving back into the kiss with all the wild abandon of youth. They only broke apart to shed their shirts completely, leaving them on the floor for now where they could grab them later. Kageo backed them up until they both fell onto his bed, with Walt on top of him. Walt's body weight over his own was comforting and welcome, and feeling those hard planes and muscles got him more excited, which Walt could feel against his pelvis.

Walt was painfully aware of how thin the material was on his dress pants as he also pressed evidence of his excitement into Kageo's left hip. His hands were wandering all over Kageo's smooth chest and shoulders, delighting in both the feel of his lover's skin and the feelings that touching him engendered in Walt himself. Kageo's hands were exploring the exposed skin on Walt as well, letting out a small groan at how good it all felt.

They had done some of this before, getting down to only pants or underwear and exploring with hands while they kissed, but it always just made Kageo want more. He ran his hands down Walt's chest and stomach until he got to the top of his pants. He started to unclasp the belt, pulling it out and onto the floor before he worked on the button and zipper. Walt pulled himself to a kneeling position to give Kageo better access while working to unfasten his lover's pants as well.

They both worked to get out of their pants, discarding them on the floor, and then they were left only in their boxers. Kageo looked up at Walt and licked his lips, working up his courage before he slipped out of the black boxer briefs he was wearing and throwing them to the side. His erection slapped against his abs once it was released, giving Walt his first good look at it. Kageo was a little over average and uncut, and the head was flushed from the blood that was engorging him.

Walt paused, licking his lips as his attention was drawn to the thick, slightly curved phallus that he had only seen before in his wildest imaginings. He brought his gaze back up to meet Kageo's eyes as he knelt smoothly between his thighs. Walt smiled encouragingly as his fingers traced from Kageo's knees up the tops of his legs and swept out to grasp his hips. He kept eye contact while he lowered his mouth to meet his lover's lightly musky glans.

Walt took it into his mouth immediately, the warmth and wetness of his tongue sending a thrill through Kageo. Kageo let out a low moan at the sensation, surprised at how erotic and intense it was. He had only ever had his own hand around himself, and the wet heat was sending electricity through his whole body. He ran his fingers through Walt's golden hair, quietly moaning Walt's name as he did so.