Diamond

By: CrystallicSky

Disclaimer: I don't own Xiaolin Showdown, or any of the characters in it, nor do I make any claim to. In addition, I do not own Petshop of Horrors, from which the inspiration of this and all of the bolded dialogue came from; the Petshop of Horrors manga belongs rightfully to Matsuri Akino, not me. If I had come up with characters as awesome as Count D, would I really be writing fanfiction?

Warning(s): Somewhat strong references to sexual activity and romance, both of which are between two males; if that causes you discomfort, the back button is in the upper-left corner, my friend, and the close button is in the upper-right. Please make use of it. If not, please, carry on!

Notes: Inspired by reading Petshop of Horrors manga 3; more in author's notes.

I can still remember our wedding…How excited everyone was…I was so young.

Too young, I think.

Two young boys stared at each other, both dressed in fine silk and cloth. The older of the boys, the more daring, blinked his golden eyes untrustingly at the one before him. "You're my bride? You're not very pretty…" Red eyes went wide in offense, and the paler boy scathingly retorted, "Well, you're pretty short for a king."

Our first conversation turned into our first fight.

They glared at each other hotly before turning away with crossed arms and an indignant 'hmph!'

It wouldn't be the last.

We spent our days as actors, playing the roles of king and prince, husband and wife…

"Thank you for your hospitality, your majesties; I believe I will be on my way, now." Chase gave the traveler as sincere a look as he could muster, assuring, "It was nothing; we are glad to help our subjects when they are in need." Jack smiled charmingly as he offered, "You will always be welcome in our home."

…while we spent our nights in the arms of others.

Chase growled as the full-figured foreign duchess, Wuya, screamed his name in the throes of pleasure, knowing his body wouldn't last much longer, either.

"Ooh, Clay…" Jack cooed under the knight that currently held his favor, impressed by both his size and strength as he so skillfully manipulated the prince's body.

Then one day…

Having no errands that particular morning, Jack was taking the time to merely stroll through the halls, every so often looking at a vase or a tapestry he never remembered looking very closely at before in order to pass the time.

Suddenly, though, he felt strangely dizzy and stopped, a hand going to his forehead. Even to his own hand, he felt awfully warm. He'd been a bit under the weather, lately, but it had been nothing serious: minor headaches, a mildly stuffy nose, and a slight tickle at the back of his throat. Nothing to worry about.

But this…this felt wrong…The headaches had become a migraine hammering in his skull, his chest ached with the effort of breathing, and even as he began to realize that this was no longer a run-of-the-mill head-cold, he clamped a hand over his mouth, wracked by a violent bout of coughing, and focusing his hazy eyes on his palm once the brutal hacking had subsided, shock sent him into unconsciousness as he saw blood, and he collapsed like a lead weight to the floor.

…I fell ill.

For a week, I was fluttering between life and death.

When at last I came to…

A soft moan escaped the young prince's throat as he became aware after what felt like an eternity. His entire body resonated with a numb feeling, and he found that for a full minute, he couldn't so much as open his eyes. When he managed it, however, his vision was foggy, but he could make out a figure by the bedside, and upon feeling a slight pressure make itself known around his hand, he decided that whoever the figure was, they were the one who had their fingers curled around his. Blinking a few times, the fog blocking his sight disappeared, and he gasped quietly upon realizing who was at his bedside and holding his hand.

…I found my husband watching over me. He wore an expression of worry and concern I hadn't thought possible.

Golden eyes full of a combination of distress and lament, Chase's facial expression at least was blank, but for once, Jack could actually read his husband's eyes, and they certainly said it all. No words were spoken; they weren't needed.

In that instant…

The younger man tried to sit up in bed, largely unsuccessful until a strong arm hooked around his back and helped him up. Red stared into gold for a long moment until the prince's eyes glittered with tears, and he latched himself onto the king's front, sobbing quietly.

…All of our petty squabbles seemed to fade.

Jack had remembered long ago how angry and jealous he used to get when he heard his husband having sex with various men and women; he had always compensated by doing the same with absolutely whomever he could find at the time. It used to give him a sense of self-satisfaction knowing that for every person his husband made orgasm, he had given the same pleasure to two.

Now it just made him feel like a whore.

But at that moment, it felt really nice to just be held up against a strong chest, nuzzling his nose into his spouse's dark hair.

Like a snowdrift on the first day of spring…

Chase had always hated his husband, thought him weak and unattractive; that was why he sought the pleasures of the flesh with others so often, to make him forget what an unusual boy he'd been married to.

When had the albino become a man? And when had he become so beautiful?

Chase didn't know, but he felt an unknown guilt in his heart at his spouse's tears, convinced that he and his selfish actions had something to do with them, and for the first time in his life, he was sorry.

There would be much healing to do, much work to be done if their relationship was to ever have hope, but they were finally on the right track, and all they had to do was stay the course.

The king held the albino just a bit tighter, fingers stroking through pale hair the color of snow.

But true happiness was to elude us. Because I was male, I could not conceive an heir.

The council advised my husband to resume his actions with one of his female concubines…

"Please, sire, what difference does it make to maintain fidelity now? It's no secret that you've strayed over the years-"

"Silence," Chase growled firmly, arms crossed, "I will hear none of this."

"But sire, your husband is a known cheater, and quite frankly, a whor-"

"I SAID SILENCE!" the man roared, furious, "I WILL NOT TOLERATE SUCH DISRESPECTFUL TALK!"

…But he refused.

My husband and I had at last found love.

And more important, we realized that our love was meant to be our legacy.

Yes, the people desired a prince, an heir to the throne…

…But we believed that there were more important things.

After years of infidelity, restoring the sanctity of our marriage was all that mattered to us.

Everything else was secondary.

It was odd at first, to begin acting as a married couple should after so many years of faithlessness, but as things went along, it became easier, and it was a learning experience for both.

Sharing the same bed for the first time was quite awkward and strange, so much so that it was difficult to even sleep.

However, after a few nights of self-conscious cuddling, Chase discovered that he rather liked the feel of his small-framed husband nestled in his arms, snoring lightly against his chest, and Jack found out that he'd never felt safer and more comfortable than with his king holding him tightly, unconsciously making sure he was sufficiently covered by the blankets as he slept.

Slowly but surely, subtle affection crept its way into the marriage, and the cuddling at night was done of free will and not obligation, and during the day, the couple even shared a kiss.

It was chaste and quick, just a small token of fondness exchanged between the two, but it didn't feel forced, and it wasn't for show.

The kissing evolved from there, gradually, of course, but evolve it did.

One day, the kisses became firmer, had more energy and passion, and from there, it wasn't a gigantic leap for a bit of tongue to make its debut. Once that occurred, it was only a day or two before both the king and the prince allowed their tongues to actually meet, to play in a mock battle for dominance.

Chase learned that there was no better way to make his younger spouse quiver and moan than to lick forcefully at the underside of his tongue. Jack quickly gathered that if he wanted to tease his husband, make him growl and tighten his strong hands on his hips, the easiest way was to nip very lightly at the tip of his tongue; that always did the trick, it seemed.

And, of course, as is inevitable, bedplay began to surface.

Not all at once, obviously: they had both engaged in so many worthless affairs that neither wanted this to be one of them, and by means of mutual decision, had abstained from sex.

They had begun to experiment, but they were taking it slow.

A little groping here, some fondling there, but again, nothing too serious…or, at least, it wasn't until Jack felt particularly bold one afternoon and surprised his king with an evening of fellatio.

And that pretty much ended the two-year dry streak of both royals.

Jack soon learned first-hand that, as big or proficient as some of the men he'd entertained back when his relationship with Chase was loveless were, particularly that Clay, none of them could compare to the size or skill of his husband, and he was quite sure that he could never turn to women again, and now, no other man could please him.

Chase discovered how impossibly tight and positively perfect in passion his spouse was, and it was almost immediately plain that after making love to his Jack only once that he was spoiled completely from any of his previous lovers and any other lover that his advisors seemed so keen on forcing him to mate with.

From then on, it was obvious that the once-unfaithful couple was in love, and whereas they had previously refused eye-contact when passing each other in hallways and scoffed in derision whenever they had to be near one another, they always smiled affectionately when in passing and often tried to make the moment last with a small bout of kisses and sometimes even foreplay (although they usually never got around to the actual lovemaking because of pressing matters), and at special events and dinners, they relished the opportunity to sit at the other's side, throwing coy glances and loving looks every so often, even as they enjoyed the feeling of the closeness.

The rest of their days were spent with tender cuddling, fond kisses, and passionate lovemaking, and all the while, their subjects marveled at how truly devoted the king and prince now seemed to be.

When the time finally came, as it always does, Jack was forced to suffer the pain of his beloved parting from the mortal coil before him, and almost immediately after, he fell deathly ill.

Not even a full twenty-four hours had passed when the prince, now technically the king, lay prone on his bed, mere minutes from death. He was surrounded by his most loyal subjects, a physician, and the advisors that had once despised him for preventing the birth of an heir to the kingdom, but now could only regret such thoughts as they gazed down at their dying king with tears in their eyes.

Suddenly, the albino's eyes opened and he stared over at an empty corner of the room, a smile twitching his lips.

My husband comes for me.

At last we will be reunited.

Jack's last earthly words were, "Remember me…remember us." And then his heart ceased to beat and his final breath escaped his chest, leaving women and children to sob brokenly and men to bow their heads in respect as the physician checked for signs of life and found none, announcing to the room, "The king is dead."

But Jack couldn't hear their words anymore, too caught up in the sight of his lover standing before him, young as he was on the day they had first kissed with his hand held out in invitation.

The newly-deceased took it with no hesitation, noting that, as he reached out for the hand, his own had regained the vigor of youth as well.

"Chase…you waited for me." Jack smiled happily up at his beloved as he was pulled and held tightly against a firm, strong chest.

"Of course I did," Chase smiled serenely down at him, "I couldn't pass on without you."

All of the living people in the room felt a slight tingle course their spines, a ripple of something supernatural felt by all present.

The physician said it was a sure sign that their king's spirit had moved on into God's kingdom, to Heaven.

Their tale was not forgotten, and nor were they.

For centuries and millennia since, the story was told of the king and the prince and of their love which was fabled to be stronger than diamond.

A/N: Again, this was inspired by reading the third Petshop of Horrors manga in which a somewhat similar story occurs. They are quite different though, and the only thing I make no claim to are, like two snippets of dialogue (the first exchange between Chase and Jack and Jack's last words) and the items in bold (which, since it was originally meant for a heterosexual couple, I tweaked a bit in the appropriate places). I wrote everything else, and I make vehement claim to that.

Regardless, I'm honestly quite proud of this story, and despite its lack of length, I think it turned out well. Also, in case you weren't aware, reviews are my crack; they make me happy inside, so...you know, should you like to review, PLEASE feel free. Don't feel obligated, though, that's not cool, either, 'cause I HATE when people pull that 'oh, I need this many reviews or I'll never update again and delete my story' trick. It sucks. Then again, I guess there's no real way I can use it in this case, because this is a one-shot and can't really be followed up in another chapter or something; definitely over. And I'm certainly not one who would delete a story just because of bitchiness, so...mmm...yeah, I think that's about it.

Hope you enjoyed this story, and review if you have the time! :D