Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Whisbei's sleep was interrupted by someone shaking his shoulder. When he turned around, very tired and a bit agitated, to see who the culprit was, it turned out to be none other than a fully-dressed Mitsunari. Once he knew Whisbei was awake, he stopped shaking the yokai's shoulder, but didn't move his hand.

"Good morning, Whisbei! Are you ready to get up?" Mitsunari said softly. The only response he got was a sleepy groan, which made him laugh a bit, and say, "Don't worry, I'll let you sleep in longer. Since, unlike you, I respect when someone wants to rest a little bit more." Whisbei gave him a sleepy glare in response to that last remark, but he was still grateful that his master was willing to let him get at least a few more minutes of sleep.

However, Mitsunari then yawned, and asked, "Actually, may I join you? I didn't have the best sleep last night, and Akiri isn't awake yet, so he doesn't have to know." as he grabbed the blanket, whispering the last part in a joking manner.

Whisbei could feel his face get warm, since Mitsunari seemed to want to go under the blanket with him, and he was almost completely naked. But, despite his shyness, he nodded, shuffling over to make more room, which didn't really help much. Mitsunari then lifted the blanket, exposing Whisbei's body to him, before he slid in, covered himself, and settled in. Once he was comfortable, Mitsunari laid at chest height, tilting his head slightly upward to meet Whisbei's gaze. They looked into each other's eyes, both feeling more and more awkward at how close they were.

Mitsunari cleared his throat, and gave Whisbei a small half-smile, "Well, good night!" he said, closing his eyes. Whisbei just stared at him for a few seconds, until he opened one eye, peeking. "Are you sure you're okay with this?" he asked, causing Whisbei to snap out of his trance.

"N-no! It's fine, really."

Whisbei couldn't explain it, but having Mitsunari so close, lying in bed with him, gave him a warm fuzzy feeling in his stomach. It wasn't a new feeling for Whisbei, it was the same one he had whenever he caught himself staring at Mitsunari for a long time.

Then, Mitsunari gently placed his hand on Whisbei's chest, making him hitch his breath at the warmth, and pushed slightly. Naturally, Whisbei's body squished in a bit, bringing a smile to Mitsunari's face.

"You're very soft, Whisbei."

"Thank you, I get that a lot." Whisbei managed to reply, his cheeks getting warmer.

Suddenly, Mitsunari shuffled closer, putting his arm around Whisbei, so his face was now right up against Whisbei's chest, and looked up at him. Without thinking, Whisbei wrapped an arm around his master in response. He didn't know why, but some part of him liked having Mitsunari so close, it almost felt like Whisbei wanted to cuddle with him. Mitsunari then buried his face into the yokai's chest, nuzzling it slightly.

Whisbei then felt his exhaustion return full force, and alongside Mitsunari's steady breathing, he was quickly lulled into sleep.

Unfortunately, the next wake up call wasn't as pleasant.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" Akiri screamed, making Whisbei jolt awake, with Mitsunari groaning and burying his face into the yokai's chest even more.

Akiri marched over, and ripped the blanket off of them. Mitsunari turned his head to glare at him, tightening his grip on Whisbei, and grumbled "We're only taking a nap, Akiri, there's no reason for you to panic."

After returning Mitsunari's glare, Akiri sighed, "Just get up, you have work to do and you're already behind." he then turned his attention to Whisbei, who was still stunned at being woken up so aggressively, throwing his now clean kimono at him, "Get dressed, and next time, wear something more than just your underwear, please."

Whisbei blushed as Mitsunari rolled out of bed, casting a glance at the yokai as he followed Akiri out of the room, and closed the door behind him.

As he got dressed, Whisbei thought of how nice his nap with Mitsunari had felt, and why he liked it so much. Something about it just seemed so RIGHT, he accepted the cuddle without even having to think about it, or saying anything. A part of him had wanted to try cuddling with Mitsunari, and now that part was hoping that they would get to do it again sometime soon.

He shook his head. Whisbei knew he shouldn't want that, not just because he was working for Mitsunari, or that he was a yokai. But because he wasn't who he said he was. He wasn't a tactician, his name wasn't even Whisbei. If he was honest with himself, he should have left much sooner, but now he couldn't bring himself to do it, even if it was probably the right thing. He looked at his reflection with a sigh, and resumed getting ready for the day ahead.

Once he was finished, he made his way down to the main hall, where he was greeted by Mitsunari and his underlings.

Mitsunari smiled, "Nice to see you, Whisbei, I trust that you slept well." he greeted, as if the events of that morning didn't happen, "Now that you're here, we can finally begin."

As soon as Whisbei sat down next to him, Mitsunari started addressing the other men in the room. It was the typical sort of stuff, protocol, reports, updates, and other miscellaneous things that needed to be done, but not by Mitsunari. In summary, nothing concerning Whisbei or things he had to do.

Unfortunately, he was still a bit sleepy, despite his little nap earlier, so he did what he always did whenever he was tired and wasn't needed for anything. Whisbei laid down and placed his head on Mitsunari's thigh, intending to use it as a pillow while he slept through the rest of the announcements. Under normal circumstances, when he did this if he was bored or tired it was completely acceptable, but these weren't normal circumstances.

Whisbei only remembered this once he noticed that everyone was now staring at him with shock and confusion. He looked up, locking eyes with a very surprised Mitsunari, before he quickly sat up straight, with a very light blush on his cheeks from embarrassment.

After a second of silence, Whisbei cleared his throat, "My apologies, sir. I suppose I'm still a bit tired. I promise, it will never happen again." he apologized, bowing to Mitsunari, and silently cursing himself.

"I will forgive you this one time, Whisbei, only because I like you, and you're good at your job. But don't let it happen again." Mitsunari responded, a dark emphasis on the last sentence, before turning his attention back to his underlings. Once Whisbei had returned back to his normal position, Mitsunari continued where he left off.

After a few minutes, which felt like hours for Whisbei, who was trying very hard not to lie down again, Mitsunari had finished and dismissed everyone. Soon it was only Mitsunari and Whisbei left in the room.

Whisbei glanced at Mitsunari nervously, before he looked down, averting his gaze out of shame and embarrassment.

Mitsunari then spoke up, "So do you...lay your head on me often?" he asked, sounding a bit embarrassed himself, which surprised Whisbei a little bit.

"Uh, y-yes. If I want to nap, or want to lay down, during work that doesn't involve me, I just use your leg as a pillow, or...I sleep on your lap."

With a slight blush on his cheeks, Mitsunari smiled, "Well, if you want to, you can still do it when we're alone."

Now Whisbei was confused, "But, sir, you said before not to let it happen again..."

"Don't let it happen again around others. Once we're alone, you can use me as a pillow all you want." Mitsunari said as he stood up, "Now, come on, I have some reports to write and I want you to look over them for me."

Whisbei nodded, following Mitsunari as he walked out of the room. Soon, they were working in Mitsunari's private study, with Whisbei sitting behind his master, where he could look over his shoulder to see what was being written. Since it was a private study, it was only the two of them and, considering the conversation they had only moments earlier, it almost felt like it was on purpose. Not that it really mattered to Whisbei, he had always enjoyed working alone with Mitsunari.

Everything was normal for a while, with Whisbei giving his inputs and instructions on what to write when Mitsunari requested it. But, this was soon broken when Whisbei rested his head on Mitsunari's shoulder. Like him laying on Mitsunari's lap, it was common for Whisbei to put his head on Mitsunari's shoulder when they were writing reports together. However, when Mitsunari stopped writing and turned his head to look at the yokai, he realized that it might be a little bit weird for him to regularly use his master as a living pillow.

"Ah, sorry Mitsunari-sama. This is also something I do often. I'll stop now." Whisbei apologized again, lifting his head, before Mitsunari used his free hand to stop him, placing it on top of the Whisbei's head.

"Don't worry, Whisbei, like I said before, you can do this when we're alone. You can stay if you want."

So, Whisbei then gently lowered his head back onto Mitsunari's shoulder. If his master was comfortable, then there wasn't any reason for him to move. However, after a few moments, Whisbei noticed that his weight was making Mitsunari lean forward. Naturally, he wanted to help, and his first instinct to do so was to wrap his arms around Mitsunari's middle to hold him up. Whisbei shuffled himself so that he was directly behind Mitsunari, while keeping his head in the same place. This lead to Mitsunari's back being pressed against Whisbei's chest and stomach, though this wasn't intentional.

In response, Mitsunari stopped what he was doing, put his brush down with a sigh, and tilted his head back. He then placed his hand over Whisbei's, pushing it against his stomach. Whisbei could feel the solidness of Mitsunari's form, and could feel heat begin to make its onto his cheeks. He didn't know why, but he didn't want to move, it was the same felling he had that morning when they were cuddling.

"You don't really do well with personal space, do you Whisbei?"

Whisbei chuckled, "I usually don't have to worry about it, most people can't see me, and those that can typically want me to go away."

Mitsunari smiled, "Well, I certainly don't have a problem with you being here." he said, pushing Whisbei's hand against himself a little bit more.

They stayed like that for a few more moments, before Mitsunari turned his head to look at Whisbei, who returned his gaze. Whisbei could have sworn that Mitsunari was leaning in closer.

But, before anything else could happen, Akiri opened the door. Immediately, Whisbei let go of Mitsunari and fell on his back in surprised panic. Akiri and Mitsunari just gave each other a silent glare, before Akiri sat down on the opposite side of Mitsunari to watch them work. They didn't even touch for the rest of the day, since after that incident, Akiri was always with them. Mitsunari was certainly unhappy with Akiri following them everywhere, and it did get on Whisbei's nerves a bit, but neither could really do anything about it.

Until, after dinner, they managed to slip away to their usual sitting area outside. Now that they were finally alone, Mitsunari's mood improved greatly, he and Whisbei talked and told each other jokes, like they always did.

"Hey." Mitsunari said, as he turned to Whisbei, and patted his thigh, implying that he wanted the yokai to use him as a pillow again.

Once he realized what Mitsunari was requsting Whisbei could feel a bit of warmth crawl onto his cheeks, before laying down on Mitsunari's thigh. Gently, Mitsunari began to pet Whisbei's head, running his fingers through Whisbei's hair, making sure he didn't accidentally pull it. Whisbei sighed, Mitsunari petting him felt surprisingly nice.

They stayed like that for a while, relaxing in pleasant silence, until Mitsunari broke it.

"There is something I've wanted to ask you for a few years now, Whisbei, and since you've become a human, I think it's finally the perfect time."

Whisbei looked up, and was immediately transfixed by Mitsunari's eyes. The moonlight in his master's purple eyes hypnotized him, making him feel like there was nothing else in the world, like they always did. Whisbei nodded, wordlessly encouraging Mitsunari to continue.

After a short pause to think about what to say, Mitsunari began, "Whisbei, would you do me the honor of-" but before he could finish, Akiri opened the door. Whisbei quickly sat up, once Akiri harshly cleared his throat.

"I recommend that you two get some rest now, since you were both so tired this morning." he informed, referencing their little nap.

Mitsunari calmly glared at Akiri, and said "We'll be there in just a minute, if you could be patient. You don't need to order us to bed like mere children."

Akiri returned Mitsunari's glare, "You know very well why I'm suggesting you to go to sleep now. In the meantime, I'll be right by the door if either of you need anything." he huffed as he went back inside.

Once Akiri was in the castle, Mitsunari sighed quietly, "I just want you and I to be alone together, without having to worry about Akiri, or anyone else, interrupting us."

Whisbei silently agreed, but then an idea popped into his head. Whenever he was feeling stressed, mostly from keeping up his facade, and wanted to be alone, there was a secluded area where he went at night when everyone was asleep. It was a small clearing in the woods by a river and a small waterfall. There were rocks, fish, and the water felt nice in the summer time. He could bring Mitsunari there so they wouldn't be bothered.

With this plan in mind, Whisbei leaned towards Mitsunari, and whispered, "Mitsunari-sama, I think I know of a place where we won't be disturbed. Tomorrow night, after Akiri has gone to bed, I'll take you there if you want."

Mitsunari seemed to freeze a bit, and though it was probably just the light, or lack thereof, Whisbei could see a deep blush on Mitsunari's face.

Quickly, Mitsunari regained his composure, "I would enjoy that very much. Though, is there anything you would like me to bring on our little trip?"

Whisbei thought for a moment, "Something to dry yourself off with would be a good idea, and maybe a change of clothes, just in case. Other than that, you won't have to bring anything." he answered. He could have sworn Mitsunari blushed again at that, but continued, "We can meet at the west side of the castle, and I'll lead you from there."

They had both agreed with the plan just as Akiri opened the door, saying nothing, and they walked back inside, to their own separate rooms.

Once Whisbei had gotten ready, and was lying in bed, he just couldn't contain his excitement for his plans with Mitsunari tomorrow. He was worried that he wouldn't get any sleep, but that didn't turn out to be a problem, since shortly after getting into bed, he fell fast asleep.