"They're saying that the prince has joined the revolution, you know."

Hinata chokes on his pork bun.

Asahi sets down the tray hurriedly and rushes over to him, almost tripping over the multiple pillows and throws on the floor of the dimly-lit room, but eventually he manages to stumble his way through. He squawks like an agitated hen, trying to pat Hinata ineffectually on his back and fluttering around trying to make sure Hinata doesn't choke. After a few seconds, Hinata recovers his breath (no thanks to Asahi's efforts at all) and swipes at the inadvertent tears that have been squeezed out of his eyes.

"I'm okay," he manages, coughing, although he mostly just wants Asahi to settle down and stop prancing around. "I'm okay," he repeats again, and pats the cushion next to him. Asahi settles down uneasily, and it's not without a few more repetitions of flustered 'are you okay's and 'are you sure you don't need help's before he finally calms down.

Hinata looks over at him, and has to repress a giggle. Asahi looks absurdly ridiculous perching uncomfortably on the bright pink cushion placed in the room by its previous occupant, his long legs dangling uselessly around him and his big body hunched over as if he's unsure where all his limbs should go. Asahi is large, awkward, uncomfortable with the size of his body except when he's working in his element – the kitchen – and Hinata finds it absolutely endearing.

Asahi pouts, an adorable motion, completely belying his large and intimidating exterior. He repeats his statement, and Hinata is suddenly and reluctantly brought back to the present.

"Which prince?" he asks, because really, there's more than one prince, and who even is Asahi referring to? He thinks about Prince Oikawa joining the revolution, and dismisses it as hogwash. The crown prince would never be so stupid as to join the rebels in their (seemingly hopeless) endeavour to kick the sultan off his throne – the king's armies are a legendary size, after all, and Hinata cannot imagine any force being formidable enough to counter those numbers.

Prince Kageyama, on the other hand… Perhaps he really is that stupid. It wouldn't surprise Hinata any. He pouts as he thinks of the prickly, taciturn prince.

Asahi shrugs. It is a subtle moving of his large shoulders, but his eyes shift restlessly about as if wary of prying ears and eyes. He is wise to be wary; Hinata is no stranger to the fact that, in the inner palace, walls have ears and doors have eyes, and any stray word – especially against the royals – is bound to get one disembowelled and thrown to the eagles as carrion.

The big man leans closer, and whispers into Hinata's ear. His breath is hot and spicy.

"They're saying," Asahi murmurs, in that quiet way of his, "that it's Prince Kageyama involved."

Asahi's words come back to him again when he's standing in the garden, near the gates, picking flowers for Kiyoko-san's room. The older woman has been feeling poorly these few days, but has been bearing the pain with brutal stoicism; it wouldn't do to be sick in the harem, after all, because they're all replaceable.

What's most important is that it's not just Oikawa who partakes of her, and that the king also takes his fill. Although the king has seemed more preoccupied with other business, and doesn't visit the harem as frequently as before, and Oikawa's obsession with Hinata seems to have intensified to the point of excluding all other slaves from intimacy with him, it would still take a toll on Kiyoko-san's body if he or the king were to request her presence in their chambers.

Kageyama is the only one of the royal family who hasn't yet taken a slave to bed, so the gossips say, and Hinata had had to brush off the strange twinge in his chest when he had first heard that.

But the point is, Kiyoko-san's been down with something the past few days which has left her with a sore throat and a blinding headache, and yet she's still as calm and patient as ever. Hinata marvels at her strength and forbearance, especially since she has to deal with him on a daily basis, and he knows he can be quite a handful at times. Suga-san from the infirmary is doing his best, but it's not good enough, and he knows she must be feeling absolutely horrible.

So he'd decided to pick some lavender flowers from the garden to cheer up the gloomy stuffiness of Kiyoko-san's room. He knows they're not exactly her favourite flower, but datura don't flower until later in the year, and anyway they're apparently horribly poisonous.

That's when he hears the voices, and Asahi's words return to his mind.

"Shut up, Tobio-chan," a voice hisses, and Hinata cannot place it, so he frowns. The name is strangely-familiar, a word hovering on the edge of his memory and yet on the tip of his tongue. It fills him with a peculiar warmth that has him crouching down lower in the bushes and pulling the hood lower over his bright head of hair to conceal the flush that suddenly rises to his cheeks. He peeks out, cautiously, over the tips of the lavender flowers, and sees three figures standing just beyond him, having a hushed discussion behind one of the pillars of the corridors beside the garden.

Their words are hushed, soft, and he realises that this is a private conversation. It's only sheer luck that he's conveniently hidden by a very large, very dense bush, and also that he's very short (for once he thanks his parents for his height). Hinata is wondering whether he should shuffle away very slowly and try to escape without alerting the group, but then he hears the second, shorter figure speaks, and he stops, because he knows that voice all too well.

"Oikawa-san," Kageyama says, "If you would only tell me what to expect – "

"Shittykawa, you shut up," this new voice is surely Iwaizumi's voice, the captain of the royal guard, and Hinata's eyes go wide. What is Oikawa and his personal guard's business with Kageyama? After all, the crown prince's hatred and jealousy of the younger prince is legendary throughout the inner palace, and whenever Hinata had inadvertently chanced upon them meeting, the tension between them had been thick enough to cut with a cheese knife.

So what are they doing here together, all muffled up in thick cloaks and hoods that hide their faces, in the middle of an obscenely-hot day?

Hinata shifts slightly closer to hear the conversation clearer, and Kageyama suddenly turns his head. Hinata freezes, terrified that Kageyama's somehow detected his presence through his superhuman senses, and that he'll be hauled out of the bushes and sentenced to death for listening in on what is clearly a private conversation, and he'll never see Kageyama's adorable pouty smile again –

But Kageyama doesn't do anything, and he frowns before he turns back to the group. Hinata lets out a soft exhale, and tucks himself closer to the ground.

"We don't owe it to you to tell you anything of the sort, Tobio-chan," Oikawa is saying, a spiteful tinge to his voice. "I mean, you practically muscled your way in where you weren't invited, and so I don't see anything wrong with throwing you to the crocodiles without telling you anything – "

"We're going to meet with one of our allies, Lord Ushijima Wakatoshi of Shiratorizawa, and he's an extremely frank man. So don't be surprised when he says things that seem overly honest or offensive, that's just the way he is. And don't mention anything about his garden, or what we discussed with the rebels, or anything about the revolution at all. Let Oikawa and I do most of the talking. You got that?" Iwaizumi's deep voice cuts into whatever rant Oikawa's going off on, and the crown prince whines. Honestly, he seems more like a child than an arrogant, princely noble now, and Hinata's lips curls involuntarily.

"Rude, Iwa-chan!" he cries, and even through the shadows cast by his hood, Hinata can see the pout formed by his lips. He recoils a little and his fingers dig themselves into the mud.

"Let's go," Iwaizumi continues brusquely, ignoring Oikawa's sulky protests, and he walks away. Oikawa shuffles quickly away from Kageyama's side and catches up with Iwaizumi, leaving Kageyama trailing behind them. They're headed for the main gates, leading out onto the main street, and Hinata, now, has no doubt of their business here.

He crawls unsteadily out of the lavender bushes, the bouquet he has picked limp and pliant in his sweaty hand. He swipes at the sheen of sweat on his forehead, and has to wait for a few seconds before the burn in his thighs disappears and he can stand up to leave. His legs are shaky, and it takes him a few more seconds to stabilise himself.

His head is thrumming with the weight of the words he has just heard. The conversation seems only to confirm what Asahi had told him two days earlier – that Kageyama is involved in the revolution, and not just Kageyama, but Iwaizumi and yes, Oikawa as well, although Hinata had not expected the latter.

Hinata knows that he's not the brightest star in the sky, but even he can put two and two together, and Iwaizumi had made his words pretty plain. They had spoken of a Lord from Shiratorizawa, a neighbouring fief to the capital city, and had mentioned plans made with the revolutionaries. He thinks, very hard, harder than he has ever thought for a while, and then the implications hit him – Oikawa and Kageyama have made plans with some of the other Lords from the neighbouring kingdoms, to garner their support and – more importantly – their soldiers.

There are a ton of questions which hit him – why aren't those Lords bound to service under the sultan? Isn't someone going to notice the covert expeditions taken by the prince out of the palace? And if he – he, a lowly slave, had suddenly become privy to such crucial information, could their secrets not have already leaked to some other, less benevolent party?

Suddenly he is struck by a feeling of terrible fear. He doesn't exactly know the punishment for treason to the king, but from the horror stories Kiyoko has told him occasionally to get him to shut up, it's never something simple. Likely involving extreme torture, public flaying, and eventual death.

He doesn't want that for Kageyama.

Then he suddenly feels dizzy, and his chest starts to hurt. He stumbles over nothing at all, the bouquet falling into the mud as he clutches his chest, and tries to breathe normally, but he can't – there's lead flowing through his veins and blood rushing through his head and all of a sudden, he thinks of Kageyama's smile.

He's screwed, he knows that well enough, because Kageyama's smile has the power to make his knees go weak.

It's not the only bombshell he's hit with that day – far from it, and as luck would have it, the prince is once again concerned. A public announcement is made in the middle of the day by the master of the hall, a thin-faced man with a scraggly goatee and small cunning eyes, of the impending marriage of Prince Kageyama to Princess Yachi of Karasuno. Hinata had heard whisperings of the small, neighbouring kingdom before, of the barren land which had once been glorious, but its monarch had been usurped by one of the generals, who now reigned supreme through the young princess. It had quickly fallen into ruin, and the only reason why it has not yet been consumed by the raging fire of Aoba Johsai lies in its tyrannical and often brutal army.

The other servants, those who know more than Hinata does, say that their nation's king urgently needs an alliance with Karasuno to fight off the impending threat of the revolution. This sends a ripple of unease through the crowd of servants listening to the announcement, because before now the revolution had not been seen as a severe threat. But to be so great as to warrant a royal alliance – the threat must loom large indeed.

In a bizarre sort of way, Hinata's thankful for the first shock he'd received, because it had taught him to school his face into a semblance of calm when he first heard the news. He's a naturally excitable person, not one to hold back his exclamations or emotions, and somehow when he had heard the announcement it had made his heart twist, painfully, suddenly, and he had all but dropped to his feet in spasms of agony.

He does not understand his feelings even now, does not understand the hot heavy warmth that is spreading through his chest, sending throbs through his head, and pounding a deep bass rhythm through his stomach. Because he's felt pain before, and he's not unfamiliar with the feeling, but this is an altogether different emotion.

This emotion gnaws away at his nerves and sends his teeth chattering. It makes him frustrated, not knowing why or how he's feeling this way, not knowing why he'd felt like spontaneously crying, with only the stolid presence of Asahi at his side to prevent him from letting his emotions get the better of him.

He thinks of Kageyama's eyes, how they glitter and gleam in the dark, how he has the unconscious habit of biting at his lips as he speaks, haltingly, like his words are heavy and burdensome, and Hinata thinks that, maybe, yes, he does understand, just a little bit, after all.

He has always believed in honesty, candour, forthrightness, and the most direct path of action. Hinata knows his way around the inner palace by now, knows when and where most people are and will be – barring any unforeseen circumstances, of course. He knows that on the third days of the week, Prince Kageyama practises his swordplay in the gardens alone, since Oikawa and Iwaizumi have to attend the former's weekly chess session with the king. The royal gardens are secluded, safe ground, and they've met there before.

Hinata has to stop to wonder for a moment about his relationship with the prince as he's making his plans. What are they, after all? Acquaintances? Hardly, because their banter goes beyond that of mere acquaintanceship. Friends?

The word still weighs heavy on his tongue, and it feels not quite right, but it's the best he's got. They're friends, then, unlikely friends, with perhaps a little too much sexual tension between the two of them. Hinata decides that he's satisfied with that, and ignores the irritating niggle in his chest at the thought.

Two days later, he lays in bed for a little longer than usual in the morning, listening for the usual bustle of the women in the other room to fade away before he makes a move. It's a slow day today, apparently, with Prince Oikawa and the sultan occupied playing chess, and so most of the harem women are resting and relaxing. Kiyoko has been allowed out of the palace on an errand, so she's told him, and thus he's left mostly alone.

Although the other women had shown him animosity in his first few days in the harem, due to his immediate and inadvertent claiming of the prince's favour, their hostility has mostly died out by now. Having Kiyoko as his guardian had done wonders, apparently, since she's well-respected by many of the other women. Now, happily, their antagonism has been reduced to quiet, snide remarks and very pointed cuts, so he's mostly left on his own. It's not the best of situations, since Hinata thrives on companionship and being around other people, but he'd rather bear the burden of loneliness than have to withstand the hatred of the other women.

He dons his lightest robe and makes sure his hair is tidy before he leaves. After all, he has the most atrocious bedhead, and it wouldn't do to let the prince see him in such an unkempt state.

When he's done with his quick toilette, he hurries out of his room and down the corridor towards the main door. The other women in the main lounge ignore him as he passes, chattering amongst themselves or staring blankly into the mirrors on the walls. His small stature helps him pass unnoticed as well, and he slips out of the door.

Nishinoya's on guard outside. The two of them have struck up an unlikely friendship, stemming from the time Oikawa had driven Hinata too hard and he'd collapsed on the ground when Nishinoya had been bringing him back to the harem chambers. The older man had brought him to the baths and seen to it that he'd been pampered and primped by the bath attendants, who, he had cheerfully told Hinata, were close personal friends of his.

Nishinoya seems to know everyone in the palace, and his is a gregarious personality which Hinata greatly identifies with. They are cut from the same cloth, the two of them, and Hinata finds himself able to let loose and laugh along with the guard whenever they have the chance. Nishinoya seems to have taken him under his wing after the bath incident, and always gives him preferential treatment.

From Hinata's observation of the guard rotations, it's Nishinoya's turn to guard the harem chambers that day, a lucky coincidence. Hinata knows that Nishinoya would always give in to him, whether it be smuggling treats for him from Asahi, or letting him out into the garden at night to take a breather.

"Noya-san!" he chimes, shutting the door behind him and bouncing enthusiastically forward. The other man spins around and flashes a bright smile at him, the orange highlight in his hair glistening even in the dim light.

"Shouyou!" he screeches, his voice emanating through the hall, and he hugs Hinata with an unparalleled ferocity. "What'll it be this time? Want me to ask Asahi for another pastry? You want to go and pick flowers in the garden again? Or you want some goods from the infirmary?" He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. "Noya-san knows everyone and everything, so if you ever need anything, just ask!"

"Garden today, please, Noya-san," Hinata says, smiling widely and pressing a small corsage of lavender into the other man's hand. "This is for Asahi-san, as you asked."

The smile on Nishinoya's face only widens as he accepts the bunch of flowers, tucking it away securely into his robes and patting the spot to make sure it's secure. "He'll like that," he murmurs, and his face softens. Hinata looks away, suddenly feeling as if the scene is too intimate, as if it were a private moment not for his witnessing.

Nishinoya quickly clears his throat, an embarrassed, self-conscious sound which draws Hinata's attention back to him. "The garden, you say, my young protégé?" he says, his voice suddenly loud and ridiculously pompous. "No problem. As long as you keep out of sight of the others, you won't be missed, blah blah, you know the drill. Come back quickly and we can have a chat!" He waves Hinata off with a friendly flutter of his hand and returns to standing at attention in front of the large, heavily-ornamented door. The black of his hair shines and ripples as he moves restlessly, his body in a constant, never-ending pattern of motion which makes Hinata smile affectionately.

"Thanks, Noya-san!" he chirps happily, and trundles quickly down the main corridor.

As expected, he finds Kageyama in a secluded corner of the garden, practising his swordplay. He'd chanced upon this scene by accident, one day when he'd been rushing past with his load of overdue laundry in his arms towards the washerwomen, and he had made it his business after that to find out if the incident was a part of the prince's weekly schedule, or if it had been but a one-off thing. Nishinoya's contacts are useful things, and if Hinata asks him questions, he doesn't judge.

Hinata stands behind a pillar for a moment, watching the bright arc of the prince's sword as he slices it in a fierce movement above his head and then straight forward, into the abdomen of an imaginary enemy.

There's that familiar expression on Kageyama's face now, the expression which makes a low burn settle in the pit of Hinata's stomach. It's a curious mix of ferocity and quiet calm as he twirls the sword in complicated patterns and dodges around the enemies in his head. He jabs, stabs, dances elegantly around the clearing as Kunimi watches from the sidelines. Hinata holds his breath.

His movements are beautiful, clean-cut, hypnotic almost, and in Hinata's mind he can actually see the hordes of dark-cloaked, dangerous men swarming around the tall figure of the prince. Falling to the side, cut down brutally by the bright, shining sword, and the dark slash of Kageyama's hair flickering across his skin.

One last stab of the sword towards the ground, and Kageyama collapses down beside it, resting his weight on the balls of his feet. His breathing is laboured, heavy, and droplets of sweat cascade off his forehead as he rests his weight on the sword. There is hardly any other sound in the clearing, and suddenly to Hinata it seems as if time is suspended, the air is charged with tension, and the ragged panting of Kageyama's breath is magic.

Something prompts him to step forward then, and he clears his throat with a quiet cough. Kageyama's head whips up immediately, his pupils bright blue and burning, then as he sees Hinata his eyelids droop and he tilts his head down again.

"Oh, so it's just you," he murmurs, his voice quiet and petulant. The dark bangs of his fringe fall forward and hide his face from Hinata's view.

"What do you mean, it's just me?" Hinata exclaims, feeling mortally offended. He crosses his arms over his chest and frowns down at the crouched-over figure of the prince. "I came here to speak to you, you know."

"About what?" Kageyama sighs, then he straightens up and yanks the sword out of the ground. Hinata finds himself unconsciously wishing that he'd stayed bent over, because that ferocious glare Kageyama is levelling at him is nothing to laugh about.

He opens his mouth to speak, to mention the reason for his intruding on Kageyama's privacy today, but then his eyes stray to the silent, unmoving figure of Kunimi, standing beside the tree and watching their interactions with hooded eyes. He swallows – perhaps it's not the best idea to mention the revolution out here in the open, especially when others are around to hear.

He lifts his hand and tugs hesitantly at Kageyama's sleeve, a small motion that almost goes unnoticed by the other man as he tucks the sword back into its sheath. But when he feels it, his eyes widen and dart towards the spot on his sleeve where Hinata's fingers are clasped.

Hinata ignores the fact that he's just, unbidden, touched the member of the royal family, and leans forward.

"Can we speak in private," he hisses, in a conspiratorial whisper, hoping that Kunimi can't hear what he's saying.

Kageyama's eyebrows rise high on his forehead as he regards Hinata with large eyes. His mouth opens and closes as he tries to find words to speak, then he seems to regain his bearings and glances back at the figure of Kunimi, standing beside the – their – orange tree.

He looks back at Hinata, and lets out an exaggerated sigh that has Hinata fuming in an instant. "Alright, dumbass," he mutters, that familiar adorable pout returning to his face, "come on, follow me."

Kageyama beckons towards Kunimi, who leaves his post and walks behind them as they head into the cooler interior of the palace. Hinata doesn't say anything for fear of attracting attention from other unwanted parties, and instead tries to keep up with Kageyama's long strides. They head deeper into the palace, and suddenly Hinata realises with a start that they're headed towards Kageyama's own chambers.

This wasn't what he'd meant when he'd asked for a more private place to speak in, and the knowledge makes him falter a step. He hasn't really had good experiences – and that's understating it a bit – with members of the royal family, and Oikawa and Kageyama are related, after all. Perhaps Kageyama had thought that Hinata's words had been an invitation to bed –

No, no, no. Hinata shakes the thought out of his head. Kageyama's been nothing but kind, albeit a little prickly, towards him, and to think that he would have such base motives in mind seemed unthinkable.

But then he remembers the arrogant smile on Oikawa's face, the long, thin, cruel fingers dipping into his body like consent meant nothing to them, and he shudders.

Kageyama catches hold of his shoulder with a rough grip and shakes him, startling him out of his haze. He turns wide, confused eyes to the prince, and balks at the look of anger on his face.

"Do you think I am my brother?" Kageyama hisses, and his teeth are clenched. "I wouldn't rape you. Come on, dumbass, walk a little faster."

Then Hinata comes back to himself, and he laughs. It is a carefree laugh, and he bounces along to keep up with Kageyama, who seems to be walking faster than ever.

"Don't call me dumbass," he giggles. "Don't you know any other words, Bakageyama?"

The look of utter shock on Kageyama's face at the insult is enough to send Hinata into a roaring peal of laughter.

When they reach Kageyama's chambers, buried deep inside the inner palace, Kunimi draws closer and pulls his cloak around Hinata as Kageyama opens the door, decorated with beautiful blue and green mosaics. It's mid-afternoon right now, and as such many of the other occupants of the rooms are resting in their chambers. Oikawa's room lies diagonally opposite from Kageyama's, it appears, since Iwaizumi is standing outside on guard. Apparently, their chess session seems to have ended early.

His eyebrows rise on his high forehead as he sees Hinata being trundled along into Kageyama's room, but Hinata gives him a quick thumbs-up, and he flashes a very attractive smile.

"Iwaizumi-san is kind of handsome," he blurts out unthinkingly as he enters the room, and Kunimi coughs.

Kageyama's face flushes blotchily as he removes his cloak and throws it carelessly onto one of the large pillows adorning the bed. He nods to Kunimi and gestures for him to leave, an order which makes the guard's lip tighten, but one he follows nonetheless.

As the door closes behind Kunimi with a quiet click, Hinata trots over to one of the plush chairs settled on the ground and plops himself down. The pillows are surprisingly soft, despite the elaborate embroidery done on them, and he hugs one tightly to his chest. Kageyama makes an exasperated sound deep in his throat, and he sits himself down on another chair next to Hinata.

"Well?" he demands, his voice rough. "What did you want to talk about?"

Now that Hinata's finally found the opportunity to be alone with Kageyama and say the words he wants to say, he finds himself hesitating, something so out of character for him that he is surprised at himself. He grips tightly into the colourful embroidery of the cushion on his lap and blinks owlishly up at Kageyama, who's looking at him with hooded, expectant eyes.

"Well…" he mumbles, echoing the other man. "I've been hearing some rumours around the palace…"

He looks up timidly, and suddenly something in Kageyama's expression makes him blurt out: "Is it true that you're getting married?"

Those weren't the words he'd wanted to say, not at all; after all, he's really only concerned with the matter of the revolution, isn't he? He doesn't care about the marriage, no he doesn't, no matter how odd and tingly the thought of Kageyama married to some other woman makes him feel. All that he cares about – all that he'd wanted to talk about – is the matter of the revolution, and whether he or the other servants would be involved.

That's all that matters to him. His safety, and the safety of the other servants in the palace he'd grown to love. Asahi, Nishinoya, Sugawara, and the others who had made life easier for him. That was all he cared about, and that was all he'd wanted to ask.

So why had he asked about the marriage?

He knows it to be true, after all. It isn't like the news of the marriage had come to him as the news of the revolution had, on the wings of rumours and gossip which might have been untrue. It had come through an actual announcement by the master of the hall, and he had had no earthly reason to doubt it.

The moment the words leave his mouth he bites his lip and looks down at his lap. He doesn't want to see Kageyama's expression, and he doesn't want to let the deep flush on his cheeks show.

The room is shrouded in silence for a few moments, then Kageyama sighs.

"It's true," he answered, his voice emotionless. "I take it you've heard the news, then?"

Hinata finds his hands twisting in his lap, and he forces himself to keep still. The room is too silent, too immovable, and suddenly he is all too aware that he is alone in the room with Kageyama, and that the prince sits only a short distance away.

Today, Kageyama is clothed in a simple black robe complementing the colour of his hair, secured with a blue sash around his waist. The sweat from his earlier exertions sticks to his body and makes the thin fabric cling to the lines of his body, and his biceps tense as he raises an arm to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

The room is too hot, too stifling, and Hinata flaps the collar of his robe, gasping at the cool breeze that flutters over his overheated skin. He swallows as he watches Kageyama's eyes drop, almost inevitably, to the protrusions of his collarbone and the white skin that shows as the collar droops.

"That's not what I meant to ask," he says softly, and his voice is surprisingly calm.

"Still, what of it?" Kageyama is still speaking with that flat, emotionless tone, driving Hinata to distraction, and his hand is still roaming restlessly around the hard wood of the table. "I presume you've heard the details already. The marriage will be to Princess Yachi of the neighbouring kingdom Karasuno."

"I know," Hinata replies. He blinks several times at the floor, then takes a deep breath, and rustles up his courage. He turns, and bites his lip. "Kageyama?"

Kageyama lifts his head and stares at him. They remain in that position for a while, neither daring to move, neither daring to break the silence, and Hinata feels the quiet burn in his stomach start to roil and tremble.

With a slow and deliberate movement, almost unconscious, Kageyama lifts a hand to Hinata's cheek. Hinata feels his eyes widen and he opens his mouth to speak, but as Kageyama's fingers touch his skin, he feels the faintest tremor ripple through the other man, feels the almost-imperceptible quiver in his fingers as they touch, and he closes his mouth.

The contact is queer, intimate almost, and Kageyama is looking at him as if he had been born anew – like something precious, treasured, loved.

"I don't want that to happen," he says, the words spilling involuntarily out of his mouth, and he watches in a kind of disconnected daze as Kageyama's mouth falls open slightly. The words seem strangely inadequate somehow, he feels, and so he repeats them once again. "I don't want that."

Kageyama's mouth twists into a bitter, ironic smile, and his eyes slip down, half-mast and cold. "I don't want that either," he murmurs, "but what choice do I have?"

"There is always a choice," Hinata whispers, aware of how cliché his words are, but at the same time they are all that come to mind. A bead of sweat rolls off the side of Kageyama's jaw, and Hinata watches it slide, in slow-motion, across the plateau of his skin. His tongue darts out to moisten his lips, and it accidentally ghosts across the tip of Kageyama's ring finger.

Oops. He hadn't actually realised how close Kageyama's hand had been to his lips, but oh well.

Kageyama doesn't move, except for a quick intake of breath, but his fingers slip across Hinata's cheek and down to his chin. This time he grips hold with a gentle caress, and the motion would seem almost assertive and domineering, were it not for the faint tremble in his fingers, and the light blush that sweeps across his own cheekbones.

They're nice cheekbones, Hinata thinks dazedly, high and flushed and sharp as a knife, and oh god, what is he thinking, because he feels as if he'd like to lick across the expanse of tanned skin from his cheekbone to the underside of his jaw –

Kageyama leans closer, and Hinata finds himself leaning closer as well. Kageyama's fingers tighten on his jaw, his pull an inexorable force bringing them closer together, and when their lips finally meet, the kiss is surprisingly sweet.

Hinata thinks Kageyama's cast a spell on him. There's no other way to describe the way he's feeling now, after all, otherworldly and ethereal and completely unreal. Kageyama's lips are hot, burning like an anvil, and the way they move almost shyly across Hinata's own is like a match, set to fire. Hinata finds himself drawing closer, pressing firmer, and his hand comes up to hold on to Kageyama's neck.

If he doesn't hold on, he might well fall, he thinks hazily, fall into the abyss that is Kageyama.

Hinata's other hand lifts and threads itself through Kageyama's hair in a gentle motion. The strands of his dark hair are soft to the touch and feel like a field of pearl grass. He pulls Kageyama towards him and they continue kissing, twisting and turning their heads as they attempt to draw the other closer and closer, until there is no space left between them.

The kiss is chaste and tender, like a flower when first in bloom. Hinata feels his heart thudding a heavy rhythm in his chest, sending his eyelids fluttering closed and setting his every nerve ending on fire.

Kageyama is the first to break away, gasping a little for breath, his eyes open in small heavy-lidded slits. His breaths are coming fast, uneven, and Hinata has to smile a little at that. The blush on his face is back in full force, spreading quickly over his ears and even down to his neck, until his entire face has turned an adorable, peach-coloured pink.

Hinata trails his lips over the path of the blush, tracing the lines of Kageyama's face. He lands kisses on Kageyama's nose, cheeks, eyelids, and even drags his tongue over the underside of his jaw as he had wanted to. Kageyama shudders under his touch, his other hand now resting on his thigh and inching steadily up under his robe.

His fingers are like hot coals, and they leave a burning trail up the skin of Hinata's calf. He gasps as Kageyama grazes his nails across the sensitive skin on his inner thigh, a deliberate touch that is accompanied by his lips returning to Hinata's own. Emboldened by Kageyama's movements, Hinata opens his mouth and tentatively lets his tongue dart out.

The kiss becomes hot and heavy, intense, and Hinata shifts closer. He realises belatedly that he's now sitting in Kageyama's lap, pressing his body flush against the other's, Kageyama's thigh pressed in between his legs. There's an insistent pressure at his abdomen, and he makes an involuntary whine in the back of his throat. The hand at Kageyama's neck dances downwards and grazes teasingly across the prominent bulge at his crotch.

Kageyama lets out what sounds like a strangled curse. His tongue dips into Hinata's mouth and there is a newfound aggression in the way he kisses him, all tongue and teeth and fierce nips at Hinata's lips. Hinata mewls into his mouth and grips tighter into his hair. Kageyama tastes dark and rich, like dates and seasoned lamb, and the taste is addictive.

This time it is Hinata who breaks away from the kiss first, his face flushed and his lips inflamed. Kageyama moves his mouth to Hinata's neck, drawing lines of fire across his skin and licking the sweat off him. He scrapes his teeth over the base of Hinata's jugular and bites down hard near his collarbone. Hinata gasps, feeling pain-pleasure shoot down his spine at the feeling.

He peeks down at Kageyama, and is immediately enthralled. Kageyama's eyes are burning with the same fire that is present during his swordplay, unrestrained and dangerous and wild. He makes love the way he fights, like an animal, with his fingers trailing heat over every inch of Hinata's skin and his eyes burning through to Hinata's soul.

"Stop," Hinata manages, because he's going to overheat. "Stop!"

Surprisingly, Kageyama stops, his fingers halting where they had been at Hinata's waist, going downwards towards dangerous territory. He blinks, several times, as if recalling himself from somewhere far, far away, then he leans forward, so his head rests on Hinata's chest, and sighs. It is a deep sigh.

"Dumbass," he murmurs, and the word is quiet, but infused with a reluctant affection that makes Hinata's chest clench, and not in a bad way. Hinata tentatively untangles his hand from Kageyama's hair and lifts the other hand from Kageyama's crotch, resting them in the safe zone that is the other's chest.

There is silence for a few moments, no sound except their laboured breaths and the shifting of their clothing, then Hinata gives an exaggerated sigh.

"This wasn't what I came here to do," he sulks, his lip coming out in an involuntary pout, and Kageyama laughs. It's a shock to Hinata to hear Kageyama's laugh; it's not brutal and rough as he would have thought, but surprisingly gentle, as their first kiss had been.

"Yeah, I guessed as much," he answers. Hinata crosses his arms and shifts, then as Kageyama lets out an agonised squeak and their situation becomes crystal clear to him once again, he freezes.

"Get off," Kageyama says, his voice strangled. Hinata giggles and clambers off carefully, making sure to – accidentally, of course – brush up against a few more hot spots of Kageyama's as he moves. It's fun to tease the prince, after all, especially when the blush across his cheeks is so adorable.

The prince. Suddenly, the gravity of his situation lands on him – lands on the both of them – and they look up at each other at the same time. Hinata would have laughed again at the matching looks of alarm they both sport, were it not for the severity of the mood.

"Oikawa-san," he breathes, voicing the name on both their minds. Kageyama's lips tighten, and suddenly he grips onto Hinata's arms, painfully-tight.

"He won't know about this," Kageyama hisses. "He can't."

Hinata nods frantically, because of course Oikawa could never know about what they'd just done, about the attraction which had flared up between them, they'd both be flayed and disembowelled and executed at the drop of a hat. Well, perhaps Kageyama would be saved by his noble birth, but Hinata would most certainly face torture and the inevitable, painful death.

Thinking about Oikawa makes him remember his original purpose, and he bursts out, "Is it true also that you've joined the revolution?"

Kageyama jerks. His entire body trembles, and his grip on Hinata's arms becomes almost crushingly painful. "Where did you hear about that?" he hisses through gritted teeth.

"There were rumours…" Hinata mumbles, and winces at the pain shooting through his arms. Thankfully, Kageyama notices, and guilt flashes across his face as he loosens his fists. Hinata sighs. "And I overheard you, Oikawa-san and Iwaizumi-san in the garden. That's all I came to tell you, you know. You have to be more careful, otherwise you'll get yourself caught! For all you know, someone else might have overheard you, just like I did!"

The concern is now bleeding through into his voice, and some of it must have gotten through Kageyama's thick skull at least, because his steely gaze softens and he lowers his head.

"It was a slip-up," he mutters. "I don't think it happened to someone other than you, we've always been careful - "

Hinata rolls his eyes. He can't help it, and besides, the distinction between their social classes that's always held him back has all but disappeared now that they've had their tongues in each other's mouths.

"It happened to me," he cries. "And that proves that you weren't careful that one time, what if someone had overheard you someplace else – do you know how dangerous it is? What if you get killed?"

"I won't!" Kageyama yells, and Hinata stumbles backwards, his eyes wide. He hadn't expected Kageyama to shout, and the sound bounces around the enclosed room like a clap of thunder.

Kageyama buries his head in his hands, and sighs. "Don't you think…" he starts, then he lifts his head and glares petulantly at Hinata. "I understand the danger all too well, dumbass Hinata, and I of all people know what the risk is. But I'm willing to die if it's for the cause."

Hinata hesitates. He doesn't want Kageyama to get hurt, to die, just for the sake of a silly revolution which had practically no chance of success. But it is as if Kageyama can read the thoughts on his face, for he grabs Hinata's cheeks with his fingers, rough with calluses, and pulls him closer.

"It's not just a silly revolution," he says, with conviction, "and we're going to make it. At least believe in me as far as that."

Hinata stares at him, wide-eyed, as comprehension suddenly dawns on him. Yes, he decides, he believes in Kageyama, because he trusts Kageyama's word.

He peels Kageyama's hands off his cheeks and twines their fingers together in a gesture that is strange in its intimacy. He leans forward, and presses their foreheads together.

"I believe in you," he murmurs, his voice soft and tender. "And I know you'll come back safe."

Kageyama swallows. "I'll miss you," he whispers, his voice rough, as if the words are difficult to get out.

"I'll miss you too," Hinata says, and darts up for another kiss.

just some kagehina fluff to cleanse the palate and an apology for being so late :( so yes they have finally kissed oh my gosh the slow burn was just killing me.
next chapter will feature some oikage bonding, plot!1! and iwaois (hopefully).
i've already fleshed out most of the plot so don't worry, i'm not going to abandon this baby, i have huuuuge plans ahead for y'all. leave a suggestion for how things are going in the comments? i feel as if my writing is going stale ugh this chapter was hard to bang out.
sorry for long rambly note, hmu on tumblr at kitcatkandy 3