Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It all started so long ago. Several years, Hideyoshi couldn't remember exactly when. Not the year, at least. But he remembered that it first happened a day in autumn, when the trees were shedding their leaves, and the moon hung low on the sky.

He didn't remember what he had been doing, exactly, but he had been outside, and he had looked up upon hearing a sound.

And he had seen Nobunaga, up on the balcony where Ichi-hime often stood and sang. The silver-haired man had looked fairly distressed, as if something had happened. Melancholic, upset.

Then Nobunaga looked down, and spotted Hideyoshi, who rushed forward when he saw Nobunaga climb over the rail. He was about to shout at him that it was dangerous, but Nobunaga had already jumped, and because Hideyoshi wasn't paying attention to his feet, he tripped over something, and landed face first in the grass.

Nobunaga landed just a little bit away, and Hideyoshi saw his bare feet before anything else, and he looked up.

Nobunaga sat down in a crouch in front of him. "Be careful, Saru. You might get hurt." he said, and Hideyoshi both frowned and pouted. "That's my line, Nobu-sama." he pointed out, and Nobunaga chuckled.

There was something in his voice, though. Something that was a trace of that expression from before. An expression that he had not seen on Nobunaga's face before. An expression that worried him.

"Nobu-sama, are you alright?"

Nobunaga seemed to pull himself out of his thoughts, and glanced over at Hideyoshi. "Hmmm?" Didn't he hear him? "Oh. No, I'm fine." Hideyoshi frowned, but didn't inquire further. He had a feeling his Lord wouldn't give him a proper answer. Even less so, when Nobunaga returned his attention to the tall skies and the stars visible, far away,

But he was worried, and the one who usually worried about Nobu-sama was Mitsuhide, not Hideyoshi. He thought about it as he watched Nobunaga's eyes reflect the glimmering lights high up. It reminded Hideyoshi of dark surfaces of water, which gathered up the sky in an embrace of beauty. Nobu-sama was beautiful, just like the night-draped sea.

That in mind, Hideyoshi grasped Nobunaga's wrist, once more pulling his attention closer to the earth. Nobunaga gave him a puzzled look, and pursed his lips in a frown as Hideyoshi started to lead him away from the castle grounds. "...Saru?" he inquired, confused gaze shifting between the back of Hideyoshi's head and the hand around his wrist. "Just come for a bit, Nobu-sama." Hideyoshi said, not offering up any explanation. he simply led him along a path that he was sure that they both knew well already, even if none of them were aware of the destination the trip would lead them to, several years in the future.

Chapter Text

"Saru! We're standing in the sky!" Nobunaga exclaimed, an almost childish look of cheerfulness written all over his face. Hideyoshi grinned, glad to see the other showing an expression like that.

They were in a secret place of Hideyoshi's, not far away from the castle yet known by few, since it was hidden away as if in its own corner of the world, away prying eyes. It was a place where he sometimes went when he wanted to be away from everything, and think or do something secret. It was a place he had been taken with the first time he stumbled on it, and it seemed Nobunaga was just as amazed by the beauty of it as Hideyoshi was.

For several long moments, they were just silent, Hideyoshi sitting on the big flat, round rock that was touching the water instead of a beach, and Nobunaga standing in the middle of it, ankles surrounded by stars reflected in the still water surface.

"What do you think it's actually like?" Nobunaga then suddenly asked, and Hideyoshi looked toward him. The young lord seemed to be unable to tear his eyes from the reflection of the stars. "What what is like?" he asked, and Nobunaga finally looked at him. "To actually be among the stars."

"Cold," Hideyoshi muses, "The night air can be pretty cold, after all." Nobunaga made another of his thoughtful sounds, and slowly made his way toward the rock, and he stopped just at the edge, feet still in the water. "But what if it's warm? It might be different in the sky. I mean, the sun is warm." Hideyoshi frowned, "Are stars suns?"

Nobunaga shrugged, gaze once more turning back to the water. "I don't know," he said, and Hideyoshi got to his feet, taking the few paces between them and stopping just before the rock ended. Hideyoshi felt the temptation of touching Nobunaga's face, to see his star-filled eyes again, more close, and cupped Nobunaga's cheek with a hand before he could think about stopping himself. Nobunaga was clearly surprised, but then he closed his eyes, and there was something about the way his lips curved...

"Nobu-sama, there is something troubling you after all."

Nobunaga leaned his cheek against Hideyoshi's palm, and Hideyoshi blinked, startled into silent confusion. "Saru, you're so warm."

The comment - probably used to divert Hideyoshi's attention - made something shift inside Hideyoshi, and he moved his hand from Nobunaga's cheek to his shoulder, and they tumbled into the sea with a splash. Water rained down on them, dark drops glistening in the moonlight, and Hideyoshi found both himself and Nobunaga panting, where they stilled in the water, Hideyoshi hovering over Nobunaga, water dripping from his hair and clothes.

The water calmed around them, ripples few and slow. "You're laying among the stars, Nobu-sama," and he's so beautiful. The water had pressed Nobunaga's clothes even tighter to his body than usual, hugging it close and tenderly, and Hideyoshi licked water from his lips as his eyes wandered over Nobunaga's soaked body. All of a sudden, he wanted to touch every inch of it, wanted to feel his breath and hear his heart beat, and he didn't understand why, but figured that it had to be because of the sight in front of him. Anyone would be aroused by it, it was simply impossible not to be.

Something in Hideyoshi's eyes seemed to catch Nobunaga's attention, because he looked away, seemingly a little nervous. "I... should go back to the castle," he said, as he crawled out from underneath Hideyoshi, and Hideyoshi sat back, watching Nobunaga retreat. The other man had slightly flushed cheeks that might also be because of the chill in water and air.

When he was gone, Hideyoshi looked up at the sky, wondering what just happened, and what that feeling that had possessed him were, silently asking the heavens if they knew the answer.