[Amber: 003]

[hakanai]

[Someone has enough energy to address the amber today! Yoshitsugu has recovered from his illness for the most part, just needing a little more rest to get his energy levels back up; right now he is in fact still in bed, lacking his usual hat but with facecloth still firmly in place. He wants to offer some advice to the tree, though considering it's him giving it? It's not necessarily offered in a straightforward way.]

The magic of this world is interesting, isn't it? And dangerous. Something to remember if you wish to take part in any future quests which lead you outside of the mist; you never know when the flow will deliver you to a malevolent being who might decide to reach deep into your heart and soul, tear at old wounds and drag your weaknesses to the surface so it might attack them in a cruel yet extremely precise way, leaving you awash in nightmares and haunted by the most painful and unsettling of memories.

[It's certainly said calmly; Yoshitsugu's expression doesn't betray much either, remaining serene except, for those really, really looking closing, when he says 'painful.' The flinch is slight, but real.]

Or you might simply have a quiet and pleasant journey.

[Moving on to better things and a more pleasant memory, Yoshitsugu relaxed against the back of his bed a little more; his smile isn't visible, of course, but the pleasure he feels when recalling this memory shows in his eyes.]

The most interesting magic was that which brought chocolate cake to us. Those of you who come from a time and place where you can eat it whenever you like are very fortunate.

Comments

[hakanai]

[Yoshitsugu grasps the cup and uses his other hand to draw his facecloth down, revealing what some might suspect is an ever-present ghost of a smirk. He sniffs the unusual wine, considering, before turning his gaze back to his lover.]

Did you 'steal' the wine and immediately come back to hide it away here, dear Takatora?

[Raising his cup, Yoshitsugu tilts his head a little and smiles a little wider.]

I appear to have a very devoted sentinel.

[handtowels]

[A touch of pink colours Takatora's cheeks -- guilty as charged, or as good as, but he has no taste for socialising anyway. He was never a social butterfly and after Sekigahara, the last of his interest died.]

Not so devoted that I didn't eat any of their offerings first.

[However smuggling out some alcohol had been his priority. He raised his own cup.]

Kanpai!

[hakanai]

[Yoshitsugu huffs a quiet, fond laugh, then says:]

Kanpai.

[He drinks deep from his cup then; after all, Yoshisugu has always had a high tolerance for alcohol and isn't particularly worried about the effects of not having had a drop for so long. It's good wine too, if different to what he is used to.]

['Sadly,' this wine does have an effect on him and it's pretty much immediate. It's unfortunate that Takatora didn't stay in the banquet room for long enough to realise that drinking the wine there was a bad idea, but he'll realise when he looks to the side and finds himself staring at a very teenaged Yoshitsugu.]

[handtowels]

[Likewise, Takatora takes a long drink from his cup. It must be stronger than he thinks, or his tolerence has dropped, because for a moment he feels his perspective lurch. He looks to Yoshitsugu, a remark on the tip of his tongue, only to nearly drop his cup as he cries out in surprise, his words forgotten.]

Y-Yoshitsugu, you--!

[He splutters, and the sound of his own voice sends a second wave of shock through him. Wide-eyed, he grips Yoshitsugu's shoulder tightly.]

You're... We're...!

[Both teenagers, apparently.]

[hakanai]

[Staring back at Takatora, Yoshitsugu looks visibly shocked for a moment. His gaze roams over his companions's face and body before he looks down at his own hands.]

We're young again. [He says, tone notably more high-pitched than usual.] Interesting...

[Putting it midly. What kind of potion, for potion it had to have been, could take one's body back so many years like this? Yoshitsugu feels dizzy with the change, now he is aware of it, something inside feeling incredibly different. He leans fully back into the bed and places his cup aside.]

[The bodies of youth are not quite the same as the bodies of adulthood.]

There must be an extra ingredient in this drink.

[handtowels]

What ingredient could do this?!

[He freezes his cup so that he can then drop it without thought, and twists his whole body around so that he can grip onto Yoshitsugu's other shoulder too. His gaze sweeps over Yoshitsugu, as though he needs extra confirmation.]

...Wait, in Chime's most recent shop...

[hakanai]

[Ah, yes; that makes sense. That potion of youth was a genuine item and whoever bought it must have laced the wine with some of the contents.]

Someone decided to pull a prank on the tree with their purchase.

[He closes his eyes and hums thoughtfully. As a younger teenager, Yoshitsugu is shorter, thinner and even more delicate looking than he is as an adult. His underkimono now looks rather baggy on his slender frame.]

[After a few seconds of quiet, he says, with considerable seriousness:]

At least you're less likely to push me off the bed now.

[handtowels]

[Takatora is also smaller, although only in comparison to his adult self -- he's still tall and broad for this age. He slumps forward.]

Unintentionally, sure.

[He can already feel that physically he flusters more easily in this state. Yoshitsugu needs to tighten his underkimono.]

Do you think this will last?

[hakanai]

[Yoshitsugu is quiet for a long moment, before he shakes his head.]

No. If it had been lasting there would have been an uproar about it.

[Their options are limited here, aren't they? This is a strange situation to be in, but for Yoshitsugu, well... this place brought him back from the dead in a body untouched by fatal injuries. To be in a younger body again for a short time isn't exactly the worst thing they've had to deal with.]

We just have to wait it out.

[No sign of him adjusting his kimono yet; it doesn't seem to bother him. Instead he leans into the slumped Takatora.]

Relax, and go with the flow.

[handtowels]

I suppose...

[Takatora blushes at Yoshitsugu's proximity; they've been closer than this, and he's breathed in Yoshitsugu's scent plenty of times, yet that nearness still makes his heart beat faster. He moves his hands from Yoshitsugu's shoulders down and round to Yoshitsugu's back, holding his lover in a different way.]

Were you really this bony?

[He murmurs.]

[hakanai]

Of course I was. Are you so hopeless that you forgot?

[It's interesting and endearing both to watch Takatora right now; in the period before one becomes a full adult it's much easier to grow embarrassed, and Takatora is simple for Yoshitsugu to fluster as a fully-grown man.]

[They might have the minds of adults, but in the minutes since their bodies have been taken back to youth Yoshitsugu can already feel just how much difference one's physical age can make.]

[Now the initial shock has worn off...]

Did you always blush so easily?

[Time for some teasing.]

[handtowels]

[The colour on his cheeks only grows more vibrant at those words.]

I-Idiot, who keeps track of that?

[He tugs a little on the back of Yoshitsugu's underkimono, his fingers curling into the fabric.]

[hakanai]

[Oh, this is delightful. Takatora is easier than ever to fluster, and in his youthful body it's even harder than usual for Yoshitsugu to resist the impulse to keep up his teasing. Or, indeed, make it even more embarrassing for his partner.]

Me. [He announces, all matter-of-fact.] I'm almost certain the colour will reach your ears soon.

[Is that a smirk? Yes, definitely a smirk.]

Especially if you keep pulling at my clothing like that.

[handtowels]

[Saying that ensures that Yoshitsugu's words come to pass. Takatora has no control over it, or so it feels to him.]

You need to readjust them.

[And yet he does not relinquish his hold -- in fact, he only tugs more.]

[hakanai]

Readjusting will do little good, Takatora; my underkimono is now too big for me.

[Yoshitsugu's grip grows almost wicked. The fact that romantic love is now an open part of their bond gives him options that were once unavailable to him, and oh, it's so satisfying to see how he affects Takatora.]

[Picking on the pure has never been so rewarding.]

If your mind wasn't so fixated on what lies beneath, you might be able to spare enough thought to realise that.

[After a moment of thought, he adds:]

Hopeless idiot.

[handtowels]

[Takatora jerks at those provocative words, and as a result, accidentally pulls hard on Yoshitsugu's too-big underkimono. He releases the fabric entirely.]

Th-That's not where my thoughts were!

[Even if it was wholly true before -- which is debatable -- now that the subject's at the forefront of his mind...]

Stop drawing attention to your state of dress.

[hakanai]

[Yoshitsugu glances down at his own front briefly before snapping his head back up and moving a hand so he could poke Takatora right between the eyes.]

You are the only one doing that, my dear.

[He laughs, for a few beats longer than he would usually.]

See? Look what you've done to me. The evidence is undeniable.

[handtowels]

H-Hey!

[Takatora blinks at the poke, flushing even deeper. He doesn't avert his gaze from Yoshitsugu, however, affected as he is -- it seems he is unable to. He feels hot all over.]

...You're the same as ever, whatever age your b-body is.

[hakanai]

Not quite.

[Yoshitsugu's smirk softens a little.]

Only a few moments in this body and I can feel how much harder it is to resist any urges I feel.

[Like the urge to tease, for example. And the urge to kiss, which he demonstrates his lack of resistance to by kissing Takatora there and then.]

[Which is also another kind of tease, in its way.]

[handtowels]

[Takatora gasps into their kiss before he returns it eagerly, eyes sliding shut and his hands clutching Yoshitsugu once more. Yoshitsugu's lack of resistence only stokes his own urges higher.

Maybe it's a little strange to been returned to their teens and so quickly end up like this, but then they have always been a little strange, together.]

[hakanai]

[It's not strange at all. If Yoshitsugu had known Takatora was thinking as such he would have laughed at him, called him hopeless and ridiculous. Did Yoshitsugu not just mention how urges were harder to resist? Wasn't that common of many teenagers?]

[Though it's true that they are both rather strange.]

It's harder for you too? [Yoshitsugu half-laughs the words against Takatora's cheek after that kiss, sounding warm and amused both.] As expected.

[handtowels]

You're not helping.

[Though that didn't stop Takatora from capturing Yoshitsugu's mouth with his own, this time reversing their roles, as he attempted to tuck Yoshitsugu's willowy form closer to his own bulk.

Hardly unexpected behaviour.]

[hakanai]

[Yoshitsugu does, of course, just go with the flow. He offers no resistance when Takatora pulls him in, though his body does shake a little as he quietly laughs into the second kiss.]

[How delightfully bold, by Takatora's standards.]

You want to find a way to push me away?

[But of course Yoshitsugu must continue to tease between the second and third kisses, giving his partner no room to immediately respond.]

[handtowels]

[Breathless after those kisses, with desire vibrant in his dark blue eyes, Takatora protests.]

Idiot...! What I want is...

[Too much. He trails off, wetting his lips, his face practically a beacon.]

[hakanai]

[It's absolutely impossible to resist further teasing in the face of that endearing display. Yoshitsugu's gaze is half-lidded as he cups Takatora's face in his hands.]

A stroll around the tree? A flight around its branches?

[A pause, and he grins wider.]

Or do you need to go and... feast?