The estate is just the same as it had always been: perfect. Walking through the cascading wall of ivy, Khimi takes Lumi’s hand and leads him along the side of the reflecting pool. The water is still, and their reflections cast back at them with a mirror-like finish. Khimi watches Lumi squat beside the pool and pokes his finger into the water, the water rippling across the length of the pool in waves. Khimi clicks his tongue and tilts his head, causing Lumi to scamper back to his side as they continue through the courtyard and into the open hall.
Vibrant blue doors, striking in their hue, are painted with golden trim. The intricately carved insignias are painted in the same gold, creating a rich appearance. As they pass the open doors, they begin their walk along the lengthy hall. Planted palms sit in colorfully painted clay pots beneath latticed windows. A Rhazian-patterned rug runs the length of the hallway, stopping just before it reaches the Grand Hall. The walls are painted with a striking orange, while colorful woven tapestries hang from the wall. Each of the doors along the hall are painted in the same blue as the entrance doors from the courtyard.
Traditionally, Khimi would be required to enter through the main gatehouse, in order to create a scene worthy of the return of Lord Zeybek. However, wanting to keep his return hidden from public notice, he had chosen a quiet return. Once they walk through the length of the hallway, they find themselves among the Grand Hall. A low table in the center runs a great distance along the hall, covered with a white linen cloth with plates set an equal distance from one another. Dozens of colorful cushions adorn the floor, ready for their guests. Always one for a feast, she is.
A thin-framed Feline rushes from one of the halls to greet them, a familiar handmaiden known as Maza. Her sandaled heels clap against the tile in her haste and she halts abruptly before them, panting with labored breaths. She brushes the wavy blonde hair from her face and adjusts her blue tunic.
“Lord Zey- Khimi,” Maza pants, “Lumi. Someone said they spotted you both among the garden. How’d you sneak in?”
“I have my ways,” Khimi sneers as he itches the scar on his cheek.
Lumi puffs his cheeks and smirks. “We took the gate by the alley…there is never anyone there,” he adds confidently.
Maza sighs and hangs her head as her fluffy blonde tail swings behind her. “I’ll…have to see to getting that fixed then.”
Khimi gives Lumi a look of reproach, “Now we’ll have to make an entrance next time,” he grumbles.
“S-sorry,” Lumi chokes. “Maza…you didn’t hear that. We came through the front!”
Maza places her hand on her hip and rolls her eyes. “Aleyna has been eagerly awaiting the day you would arrive…Ennui had us believing that neither of you would come.”
Lumi looks between Maza and Khimi then scoffs, “Of course we were gonna come!”
Khimi nods slowly in agreement. “Anything for Aleyna…”
Maza taps her fingers to her lips. “Really, Khimi?”
“I mean, I had thought…maybe we could not come back here…at least one time.”
“It’s once a year,” Maza scolds as her tail stands up on end, fluffing wider as the anger shows on her face. “Once a year, Khimi.”
Lumi pulls on Khimi’s arm. “He didn’t mean it,” he says, looking up into Khimi’s eyes. “He’s just cranky cause he’s hardly been sleeping.”
“Probably because you’ve been keeping him up,” Ennui snickers from behind. She crosses her arms and, “Is that why, Khimi?”
Khimi turns on his heels. “Unfortunately, it was my own fault. Having those ledgers delivered to the Athera was a mistake,” he mutters angrily.
“Oh, I figured you’d want to catch up on things…since we’ve been out of the loop for a while.”
“We’ve enough on our plates without having to worry about numbers and coin,” Lumi groans as he turns to Khimi.
Maza taps her foot impatiently. “Should I tell Aleyna that you’d like to see her…or?”
“We’ll see her!” Khimi snaps suddenly.
“Khimi!” Ennui and Lumi reply in unison.
Khimi raises his palms up. “Sorry, sorry. I’m just a bit tired.”
Lumi purses his lips as he leans against Khimi, rubbing himself on him. “You slept fine last night,” he whispers with a smile.
Khimi’s cheeks redden as he itches his fingers through Lumi’s hair. “Yeah…I certainly did,” he whispers down to Lumi.
“Makers help us,” Ennui groans, “together for two seconds and you’re already disgusting me again.” Her tail cracks against her leg as she fidgets with a golden chain hanging from her curved horn.
“You’ve survived this long,” Khimi snorts as he glares at Ennui while holding onto Lumi who writhes against him. “Perhaps you should skulk back to wherever you were moments ago?”
Ennui scoffs, “Hardly a way to treat your friend,” she says as her lips curl into a grin, laughter erupting moments after.
Khimi cannot help but laugh as well. Maza sighs and leaves the room, throwing her hands into the air. Ennui taps her fingers against her thigh before she carelessly steps onto the low table, then leaps over toward them. Awkwardly, she stands in front of them before embracing them both.
“Aleyna will be happy to see her boys…you know how much you both mean to her,” Ennui says with a curious compassion.
Lumi places his hands around her and whispers, “You’re never this nice…”
“What did you do?” Khimi asks as he returns her embrace.
Ennui slaps Khimi’s side and pushes herself away from the two of them. “I didn’t do anything, but I didn’t think either of you would be showing up this time around…I told her that you may both be…occupied.”
Lumi gasps. “Of course we would come to see Aleyna! How could you tell her that?” He asks with a disgruntled look. His ears begin to droop as he rushes after Maza.
“Ahhh, well, that upset him,” Khimi whispers as he brushes his fingers through his hair. “You know that he thinks the world of Aleyna?”
“Unfortunately, it seems we’re all enamored by your mother,” Ennui whispers under her breath. “Anyway, you’d best run along and see that your toy doesn’t find himself in trouble.”
“Lumi…trouble? No, doesn’t sound like him at all,” Khimi mocks with a sigh as looks back at the hallway. “Say, Ennui. Was she upset…?”
Ennui smiles maliciously, “Well when she thought that her precious son wasn’t going to visit her during his once a year visit…she did not take it well.”
“Why’d you tell her that?”
Ennui tilts her head to the side, “Did you not tell me a week before we came to Sidi that…you didn’t want to come to the estate? That you needed time away from all of this? That a year wasn’t enough for you?”
Khimi growls, fingers coil through the dark locks as he tugs them. “But you shouldn’t…shouldn’t have told her that,” he says quietly. “You know how emotional she can be.”
“I suppose she is rather like the Aslan. Prone to tears at the drop of a hat,” Ennui shrugs dismissively. “Didn’t mean to stir the pot or whatever…I am sure Aleyna is fine…she has already been through it anyway.”
Khimi palms his lips and shakes his head. “I suppose I’ll see you for whatever feast Aleyna plans to conjure,” he murmurs before he turns back to follow Lumi and Maza. “I’ll see you then.”
“Don’t blame me for your indecisiveness, Khimi,” Ennui whispers and glares through her narrowed eyes.
“I never said to tell her what I said,” Khimi grumbles as he walks with one foot in front of the other slowly across the Grand Hall.
The hallway reminds him of his childhood. The times he would play in these great and glorious halls, their expansive height always had a way of making him feel so small, even now. His footsteps echo through the halls as he glances out the latticed windows and into the terraced courtyard. Behind a veil of wood and vines, Khimi can see Lumi and Aleyna among a seating area nestled in the shade. Curious, he pauses to watch as Lumi kneels on the sandstone floor before Aleyna and places his head onto her lap. His mother had a way of making Lumi docile; It was a talent that only she and him seemed to have. Khimi leans against the lattice and peers through as the two most emotional individuals in his life begin to sob and embrace. His chin trembles suddenly as a wave of emotions surges through him. The guilt of abandoning his station and leaving Aleyna to handle the affairs suddenly weighs on him.
Khimi’s fingers fumble against the buttons along his raised collar as he tries to catch his breath. The struggles and duties assigned to his station are great and many, Lord Zeybek had always been the title bestowed upon the head of the family, the one who ruled over the Cerulean Star. The position had caused Khimi turmoil and pain throughout the years and he wanted nothing more than to be free of it. The golden clasp snaps open and Khimi gasps as he takes a deep breath.
Khimi grabs at the silk jacket, his breathing labored. There is only one thing that seems to calm him down during moments like this; Lumi. The fabric peels back as he pulls at the blue silk and rushes towards the courtyard with sweat dripping from his brow. The midday sun shines across the closed courtyard. Beneath a tanned linen awning, Lumi rests on Aleyna’s legs, his sobs echoing through the area in short bursts. Aleyna’s eyes are moist with tears as she looks up from Lumi and glances at Khimi from across the courtyard. No words leave her lips and she leaves Khimi wishing that he had stayed watching from the hall. Aleyna’s Minos features seem further accentuated by the golden jewelry which adorn her horns and the short tail which sways with what Khimi would guess is anger.
“M-Mom,” Khimi says as he stops in his tracks. “I need to see Lumi. Please?”
Lumi’s ears twitch at his words and he raises his head from Aleyna’s lap. “Khimi?”
Aleyna smooths Lumi’s hair and sighs. “Go on, Lumi. My son has need of you.”
Lumi rises from his knees and rushes across the courtyard to his side. His hand fits into Khimi’s while he looks up into his eyes. “What is it…?”
Khimi falls to his knees and embraces Lumi, his chin against Lumi’s shoulder. Lumi’s heartbeat rises to the beat against his own and a sense of calm rinses his worry away. “Nothing,” he whispers to Lumi. “I just needed to…”
Lumi places his hands at the back of Khimi’s head. “It’s okay,” he whispers into Khimi’s ears softly. “You’ll never be like him.”
“I don’t know, Lumi,” Khimi whispers quietly, his arms tightening around Lumi’s small form.
Aleyna rises from the rattan chair and places a hand on Khimi’s shoulder, a soft look in her eyes. “Lord Zeybek…is nothing more than a title. It does not make the man. It will not change who you are, Khimi,” she offers with a shake of her head. “I know…” she begins in a compassionate whisper, “that you fear home. That you fear it will change the man you are, the man you have become. But you will always be Khimi Zeybek, my son. You will always be Khimi, my gift…my boy.”
Khimi holds his breath and closes his eyes. Lumi’s gentle breath sweeps across his ear, the sound comforts him as they embrace. “I…thank you,” he whispers.
Aleyna kneels beside Khimi and embraces him from the side, “Khimi, you needn’t worry about the Cerulean Star, I have already told you that.”
Lumi takes Khimi’s face in his hands and pulls him back to peer into his eyes, “It’s okay,” he murmurs.
The words are enough to give Khimi the relief he needs; Within a moment he releases a sigh, along with the tension. “Thank you,” he replies quietly back to Lumi.
Aleyna rises and adjusts her dark blue saree. “If you’re feeling well enough, perhaps you’d like to take a walk and reminisce, though not much has changed,” she begins with a hand on both of their shoulders. “Maza is seeing to having a dinner prepared for your return, something smaller.”
“Smaller?” Khimi smirks as he pushes himself to his feet. “I can hardly believe that you mean it.”
“Just a couple dozen,” Aleyna says as the corner of her lips twitch at Khimi’s reproach.
Lumi chuckles and smiles at Aleyna, “It’s a lot less than last time at least!”
“From a few hundred to a few dozen,” Khimi snorts. The golden buttons snap back in place as he begins to assess his appearance. He raises his hand to Aleyna and smiles, “I’d love to see how the place looks.”
Aleyna closes her eyes as she takes Khimi’s hand, “I told you, not much has changed. But yes, let me show you the purple lupine, they’ve really taken over the garden this year.”
Lumi follows beside Khimi as they begin to walk through the courtyard and out towards the garden, “Do you still have the big room, Aleyna?”
Aleyna eyes him suspiciously. “You mean the Lord’s room?”
“Yeah!” Lumi beams, his tail swaying behind him as he looks at her past Khimi.
“Khimi’s room is equal in size,” Aleyna replies with pursed lips. “More than large enough for the two of you.”
Khimi shakes his head at Lumi, understanding his thoughts. “Our room is fine, Aleyna…Lumi is just being…Lumi,” he says, raising his brows at Lumi.
Lumi snickers and walks in front of them, “Right, I was just…being silly,” he adds, narrowing his eyes at Khimi while they enter the garden.
Aleyna clicks her tongue. “Whatever you’re both on about, I think I would rather not know.”
“I-It’s nothing,” Khimi stammers.
“Khimi won’t have sex with me in his room,” Lumi says as he raises his chin and closes his eyes.
Aleyna coughs and stumbles as Khimi helps her steady herself. “Lumi,” she gasps.
The evening is brimming with laughter and cheer. The guests Aleyna selected for the evening are dressed in their finest pieces: Lavish silk sarees and brilliant colored kaftans with bright golden sashes. Along the table, tiger tulips are on display in hand blown vases. Khimi sits across from Lumi at the low and narrow table, nearby are strangers that neither had seen before, except in passing during their time in Sidi. Khimi rolls his shoulder as he looks across the table at Lumi, who rolls an olive back and forth on his empty plate. The men and women on either side of them already made their attempt to curry his favor the moment they sat down earlier in the evening.
Every part of their meal had been exquisite, the whitefish was perfectly braised and coated with tamarind and seasoned with olive oil and sea salt, the barbari was crisp and covered with sesame seeds. Khimi stares at Lumi as he bites into a plump peach, the ambrosial scent strong in his nose. The juice drips down his chin and over his stubble. His thick tongue fondles the oozing fruit along its crevice, his eyes fixed on Lumi. Lumi squirms uncomfortably and grumbles under his breath.
Lumi looks up at Khimi with an unamused expression and tugs at the high collar of the kaftan Aleyna dressed him in earlier in the day. Khimi rolls his eyes playfully as the individuals beside him chatter loudly, mostly enamored with their own voices. He shoots a look up and down the table, noting Aleyna’s appearance at the head of the table with Maza and Ennui at either side. Of course. In the past it was Lumi and himself that would flank Aleyna, but he is certain that Aleyna had placed him amongst the others to build trust and make friends.
Khimi downs down the peach and breaks apart a piece of the naan in the center of the table and dips it through the kashke bademjan before bringing it to his lips. While staring at Lumi he drags his tongue over the unleavened bread tauntingly. Lumi’s eyes widen and his expression shifts, his cheeks turn scarlet and his lips part slightly to reveal his sharp fangs. To Khimi’s surprise, Lumi’s foot slides over and between his legs. Fuck.
Lumi tilts his head from side to side with a playful smirk on his lips as his dexterous feet massage his groin. “Do you mind passing the naan?” He asks while he glances up and down the table. “Or perhaps you can pick up the peach again…?”
“That depends,” Khimi croaks and begins to close his legs on Lumi’s foot. “Are you going to behave?”
Lumi raises an eyebrow while applying pressure against Khimi’s sack. “No,” he mouths. “Would you pass the naan?”
“Brat,” Khimi scoffs and tosses the rounded bread onto Lumi’s empty plate.
Lumi brings the naan to his mouth and rips a bite. “I’m your brat,” he replies with a mouthful of bread. “Now open up,” he demands with a smile.
Khimi begrudgingly spreads his legs for Lumi with a grunt of disapproval. All too quickly does Lumi move his feet over his bulge, rocking the ball of his foot back and forth against it. Khimi licks his lips and leans forward over the table as he brings himself closer.
“I’ve always known,” Khimi begins with another glance to either side of him. “That you were a Devil,” he mutters quietly.
Lumi’s smile spreads from ear to ear as he places his chin on his palms. “You want it,” he replies, undeterred by the crowd around them. “It’s okay to admit it,” he whispers while his toes begin to tug at the waistband and deftly slide the trousers from Khimi’s hip.
Khimi can feel the waist of his trousers loosening and he shakes his head as his lips thin into a line. “Lumi,” he mutters with raised brows. “Here? Of all places.”
“Lord Zeybek,” Lumi replies with a snicker and a smile. “Your face is so red, are you well?”
After pulling the silk scarf from Khimi’s waist, Lumi moves his feet along the trousers and places his toes along the waist. With incredible dexterity, he pulls the waistline towards him as Khimi’s chubbed cock flops out. Lumi’s excited grin only seems to grow further as he moves his small feet along the length of Khimi’s shaft, placing the girth carefully between his arches.
Khimi gasps and leans forward, breathlessness taking him as Lumi begins to stroke him with untold expertise. Khimi snorts and grabs the edge of the table, his fingers tight in the edges of the fabric. Lumi’s body barely seems to move from where Khimi can see, but he can feel his feet moving with such long and forceful strokes that it shocks him. Gods help me, he thinks as Lumi’s feet slide back and forth down the entirety of his size and rest briefly in the coarse bed of hair. Lumi’s toes bend and pull at his hair teasingly as he smiles with the innocence of an angel.
“Fiend,” Khimi mouths to him.
Lumi shakes his head with a playful tilt and smiles. “Khimi…are you sweating? Do you need a cloth?” Lumi taunts, waving Khimi’s waist scarf as he brings it from under the table.
Lumi’s feet move along the shaft once again, pausing briefly over the head as Lumi nudges his big toe against the slit and pushes back on the foreskin, moistening his feet with the copious precum dripping down the length. Khimi can see the eagerness in Lumi’s eyes, the once calm and stable Lumi slowly turning more impatient by the moment. The soft arches move back in place along the sides, pressing against the throbbing veins while Lumi moves back and forth with increasing speed and pressure.
Khimi’s eyes roll back in his head as he leans forward, fighting against the intense pleasure. The woman to his side places a hand on the table near Khimi’s and looks him up and down with a look of concern.
“L-Lord Zeybek, are you unwell?”
“Fine,” Khimi groans while leaning forward and glaring at Lumi across the table.
“Is something…amiss?” She asks, placing a hand on Khimi’s shoulder.
“Is something…afoot?” Lumi jests with a snicker.
Khimi turns to the woman as wipes his brow. “I’m fine, I assure you…all is well,” he groans as Lumi squeezes roughly over his girth with his arches.
The woman nods, a confused look on her face as she turns away and back to her previous conversation. Khimi submits to Lumi as he hangs his head, only able to endure Lumi’s constant touch. Even his damn feet are indecent. Khimi closes his eyes and attempts to control his breathing. Lumi’s toes move over the tip, spreading the toes to squeeze against the flared head. Precum drips in heavy lengths over Lumi’s feet, Stroke by stroke, Khimi finds himself closer to climax; The thick vein along the base nods several times, his length feeling as if it were ready to burst.
Khimi looks up at Lumi with a malicious look in his eyes, “You’re going to spill,” he mutters, his lip curling at the corner while he speaks in a low and knowing warning.
Lumi pauses, understanding Khimi’s words. Almost as if to punish him, Lumi continues. “Not like you would have let me have it here anyways,” he responds with his high-pitched lilt.
With both of his elbows on the table, Khimi holds his gaze with Lumi, a contest in which he knows he will lose. “Persistent Devil,” he growls quietly.
Lumi puffs his cheeks and leans forward with a tight squeeze over Khimi’s girth. “Persistent? Y-You’re the one who won’t…”
Khimi raises his fingers to his lips to silence Lumi and Lumi growls indignantly. “Lumi…jus—”
Lumi’s brow pinches, his face becomes more rigid and determined. Utterly focused, his tongue flops from between his lips as he begins to arduously stroke Khimi. With an almost malicious lust in his eyes, he stares at Khimi. Feet slick with precum slide along the length and stop just beneath the head, continuously rubbing against the flared edges. Khimi can feel the imminent climax and braces himself, clenching his teeth as his fingers tighten on the wooden table.
A gasp crosses Khimi’s lips before he clenches his teeth. Cum shoots onto Lumi’s legs, feet, and lap. The thick liquid continues to drip from the tip while Lumi drags his arches from the base to the tip several times, milking him slowly. With a coy smile, Lumi finally pauses, his feet skimming through spilled seed.
“Not even a day and you spilled so much,” Lumi teases, leaning forward and resting his chin on the back of his hand. “So…much,” he whispers, drawing out his words carefully. Again he waves the waist-scarf in one hand.
The guests on either side of Khimi look at them with looks of confusion and curiosity.
“Give me that,” Khimi whispers, his jaw clenched.
Lumi bundles the cloth and sighs before tossing it to him across the narrow table. “You wouldn’t need it if you…jus—”
“We can talk about it later,” Khimi interrupts as he opens the cloth and slides it under the table.
“W-What?” Lumi stammers with a look of surprise. “Sex?”
Khimi looks up as he finishes wiping between his legs. “N-Not sex,” he grumbles, “this.”
“You aren’t actually mad are you?” Lumi whispers, leaning forward over the table. “Khimi?”
Having finished, Khimi pulls the waist-scarf over his hips and looks up at Lumi. “I’m not mad,” he begins calmly, “just…surprised.”
Lumi’s aetherial eyes seem to shake with panic and he spreads his hands across the table past the small plates of food. “Don’t be mad,” he pleads as the onlookers shake their heads at their display.
“I’m not mad,” Khimi groans and rolls his eyes. Hesitantly, he reaches across the table and takes Lumi’s hand. “I promise,” he replies, smiling as his expression softens. Brat.
Lumi relaxes, slamming his forehead on the table. “Thank the Gods,” he says with a heavy exhale.