“I sense danger here, Lord Kamui.”

Something dark and sudden crept across the man’s face. He said nothing, only regarded Shion with a long and troubled expression.

“You came out to meet us alone, even before you had seen me, and the way you reacted to Lord Shiina-” Shion shook his head. “Perhaps you’re worried about your men thinking you’ve done this to me, or that they will regard you as weak for not punishing the one who has, but insisting that I stay here, after my face has already been seen-”

“Are you suggesting that I am lying to you, Shion?”

He lowered his eyes. “Not lying, my lord, but perhaps not being entirely truthful.”

“You would make such accusations against me?”

Shion glanced up at him. Kamui’s set expression revealed nothing.

“If you say I am wrong, I will believe you.”

That jawline twitched almost imperceptively. Kamui’s hand fell away.

“You are not.”

Shion’s mouth parted in surprise. He could do nothing but stare silently at the man’s unyielding expression.

“I did not wish to frighten you, beloved, but since it seems, once again, I cannot protect you from yourself-” The daimyo rose to his feet. “Trust no one within these walls, except for the two men who would never see you come to harm. Keep to us always, and, above all, stay away from Lord Shiina. He is not your ally, nor mine.”

“But, Kamui-” Shion heedlessly rushed to stand. “Are you not in danger as well?”

The daimyo hesitated for a moment, then gazed down at Shion’s feet and smiled.

He was half-cognizant of an abrupt warm sensation. The tea was spilling out near him on the floor. In his haste, he must’ve knocked it over-

“What am I to do with you, little bird?,” Kamui murmured gently, bending over to set the pot upright. “You are never concerned for your own sake, only for mine. Your face is already bruised because of me. Must you burn your poor feet as well?”

Shion watched, astonished, as the daimyo squatted beside him. The man’s hand brushed against his ankle, sweeping down to encompass the arch.

“It is nothing, my lord.”

“It is something, to me.” Kamui lowered his head. His lips caressed the tender redness while a hot blush assaulted Shion’s face. “You have sacrificed enough already.” The daimyo craned his neck, gazing up with a soft smile. “By the time your bruises heal, this will all be over. We will walk-” Kamui’s fingers drifted lightly over his straining tendons- “together once more.”