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Lunch turned to afternoon tea, and afternoon tea turned to a visit in a couple of bookshops, which turned to a walk along the quaint, little streets of old Kyoto and the river. Asami and Takaba had left them alone soon after the tea, with Takaba giving Feilong his blessing when Asami wasn’t looking.
“Takaba is such a remarkable young man,” he said as he browsed overpriced souvenirs. “I should get him something.”
“If you have time tomorrow, I can take you where the good things are.”
“No, he wouldn’t appreciate expensive or valuable things. It has to be a gift from the heart. You understand?”
“Of course.”
“I was horrible to him,” he said, feeling guilty. “Seriously, until when will I blurt out the first thought that comes to my mind?”
“So, you believe me now?”
“Maybe.” All that talk about spirits and powers made little sense to him, but he hadn’t been able to find any other explanation in the past hours. And the more he tried to keep his mouth shut, “I don’t understand why you’d need this power when you can use alcohol, drugs, and sex to get the same results. Especially when you use these things already in your work. It makes little sense.”
“Think of it as an extra stimulant.”
“No, I think it’s…” He suddenly stopped. “It’s directed at me,” Feilong muttered.
“Erm…”
“Very eloquent,” Feilong snorted and he turned to face Mibu, giving him the bags with the old books he’d picked up at the antique prints shops. “Why me?”
“What?”
“Why me?” He put his hand inside his jacket, touching and moving his gun. “I am aiming at you. And your hands are practically tied,” he smiled.
“I could throw the books down and disarm you.”
“I saw how you touched them at the shop. No, you wouldn’t purposefully destroy an antique to stop me.”
Mibu sighed. “True.”
“So?”
Mibu shrugged. “You still don’t believe me.”
“Fine, tell me more of your delusions then. Why me?”
“Have you looked at you?”
Feilong smirked. “On occasion. But this doesn’t explain why, or how, you’re manipulating me.”
“I’m not. We want the same things, we have the same needs…” Mibu walked off the road, and sat down on the riverbank.
Feilong noticed that the couple that was perhaps twenty meters away from them instantly got up, giving them even more privacy. He followed him, still holding his weapon. When Mibu put down the bags, he’d be dangerous again. As if sensing his thoughts, Mibu held on to both bags.
“Well?”
“There have been signs,” Mibu said quietly. “Of change. Of upheaval.”
“And?”
“I think,” Mibu’s gaze moved along the quiet waters, seeing nothing. “This is so I won’t face what happens next alone. I think it’s also because you need me too. I don’t know how yet, but I’m drawn to you, so you will need me.”
“I need what Asami has, and more,” he said, the truth coming out once more instead of the ‘I don’t need anyone,’ that was at the tip of his tongue.
“Emotional stability, a relationship of equals, someone who will be there when you wake up in the morning, someone who will make you smile,” Mibu nodded. “I told you, we need the same things. “
“So, by your reasoning, you have bewitched me because we are both lonely?”
“Not me, my House.”
Feilong snorted. “Right. Your House plays matchmaker often?”
“Just once before.” He sighed. “You can’t believe me.”
“Well, no, not really.” Feilong looked across the river, at the old houses and shops. “There are no gods, or spirits, or matchmaking Houses.”
“If you live in a three-dimensional universe where time is linear, yes. But if not?”
Feilong glared at him. “Make it stop, and I’ll believe you.”
“You need to believe, to make it stop.”
“What? That our meeting was orchestrated by a spirit who has nothing but our best interests at heart? I can’t even begin explaining how conceited and, yes, I’ll say it again, delusional this sounds.”
Mibu smiled. “It does, doesn’t it?”
“The annoying thing is, my instincts tell me to trust you. But I’ve been wrong before. I can’t tryst myself.”
Mibu stood up. “Perhaps you’re still mildly hangover, and tired, and you can’t focus. Perhaps you’re too relaxed; isn’t this your first vacation day in years? Perhaps it’s just an emotional response to the sense of freedom, and lack of work obligations.” He suddenly smiled. “Perhaps it’s just lust. Want to fuck?”
Feilong stood up. It was tempting. “I don’t do casual sex anymore.”
“Nor do I.”
“Then why did you suggest it?”
“Sometimes sex can be good. Especially if you haven’t had any in a while.”
“Speak for yourself.”
“I was.”
Feilong stared at him. “Seriously? Have you looked at you? Although you probably don’t need it in your line of work.”
“I don’t sleep with my women. Do you take the drugs you sell?”
“Touché. We’re at an impasse, then.”
“You are.”
“You are not?”
Mibu shrugged. “It’s your decision. I…” He stopped and turned to face Feilong. “Last night, when you were so bored not because you couldn’t appreciate traditional music or because the business conducted was none of your business, when you were bored because it is was an inane pastime, I liked it. I thought you might be able to see beyond the surface of this world. You might be able to see where I am, and…”
“What? Save you? Support you?” He snorted.
“Walk with me.” He started walking towards Feilong’s hotel.
“I am.”
Mibu made a frustrated sound. “No, not literally, metaphorically. I thought you might want the same thing.”
“Someone to walk with me.” It sounded attractive.
He nodded. “And, I want you,” Mibu said simply.
Feilong frowned. There were people milling about in the street, tourists, townspeople, people hurrying to their business, people lazing in the early evening. And he didn’t give a fuck about any of them.
Feilong grabbed Oriya’s arm and pulled him to him. They were the same height, and it was so easy to kiss him. Lick his lips until they opened for him, and then slide his tongue inside his mouth to chase the flavor of dango away, and that lingering tobacco blend, until he could find what Mibu really tasted like.
Mibu made a sound that was close to a growl. He started exploring Feilong’s mouth with the same curiosity as Feilong, until he was satisfied. He licked his lips when he was finished, and his eyes were bright.
“Spend the night with me,” Feilong said hastily.
“It won’t be casual if I do. You will commit to me.”
Feilong shivered. “And you to me?”
“I already have.”
He smiled, feeling a sense of ease he hadn’t felt in a while. Perhaps it was all a matter of belief. To delusional men, to signs, to fate. He snorted. Or maybe not. But he did feel relaxed, like he wasn’t carrying a weight anymore. He liked it.