Title: Princes of Air
Prompt: "Ghost in the machine"
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Angst, violence, lovelorn stupidity.
Author's Note:This is a sort-of fusion of Tsubasa Chronicles with Norse mythology. And when I say "sort of fusion" I mean it's a horrible Frankensteinian beast made of actual Norse myth, Norse myth as bastardized through the MCU, and shit I just plain made up.

---

It was a glorious spring day in Asgard, which was no special occasion; the weather in Asgard was always glorious. The same could not be said for Jotunheim, which was wet and blustery more days than not: but that distant and chilly realm was in its late summer now, the weather unusually temperate as the leaves of the grand trees began to show their colors. It was also the time of year that the great elk would be at their peak size - twelve feet tall at the massive, muscular shoulders and with a spread of antlers nearly the same across. It was a rare opportunity for hunting, and not one to be missed.

"Well, what are we just standing around for?" Eagle said, pacing back and forth across the dusty forecourt. "It's already half noon! The longer we stand here and fritter away time, the shorter the hours of daylight we have to hunt!"

Lantis, seated on a sun-warmed stone bench by the wall, picked up a chunk of rock and lazily batted it towards his friend, who blocked the impromptu missile with a scowl. "Relax," Lantis advised him. "Time moves differently in the other realms, as well you know. It's still morning in Jotunheim."

"We were supposed to be there at dawn!" Eagle protested. His other friend, Geo, grinned at him from his half-reclining position on the bench.

"And whose fault was it that we were not?" he challenged. "Who stayed up so late last night with drinking and carousing that they were unable to leave their bed till only a few hours ago?"

"You did," the other two shot back in unison, and Geo rolled his eyes

"Yes, all right, I did. But you two also did, so quit complaining."

That, Kurogane thought regretfully as he listened to the three companions natter on, was unlikely to ever happen. Complaining, however good-heartedly, and sniping at each other was the primary pastime of the Warriors Three. Kurogane himself did not tend to indulge in it, since he had never been much for words and did not see the point of endless, circuitous bickering. He much preferred to get straight to the heart of the matter, and once a decision was made, did not enjoy spending time second-guessing himself. That straightforward determination, along with his unmatchable skill at arms, had somehow turned him into the leader of their small group.

Well, that and the fact that he was Kurogane Stormcaller, son of Ashura All-Father, King of all Asgard, might have had something to do with it.

But not much, really. Ashura had reigned for over a thousand years and looked like to reign for a thousand more, unless a new war or palace intrigue cropped up that was able to do what the last millennium's worth hadn't. And since social hierarchy in Asgard was more based on seniority and accomplishments on the battlefield than strict blood rank, Kurogane himself was still considered a junior - and not a leader - in the court.

That was all right with Kurogane. He fingered the hilt of his weapon thoughtfully, tracing the ridges and sharp points of the silver dragon that wound its way around the thick and heavy grip. It was a lifelike (though much smaller) representation of the great wyrm Eingeirr, from whose horns the handle for Ginryuu had been carved. The handle had broken when the hammer smashed into the wyrm's brain, and so it had been reforged in honor of the fallen foe, and in honor of the warrior who slew him.

He would never be content to rest on the rank of his birth; he fully intended to gain enough deeds to his name to command respect at all levels of the court. When they met in battle, he would prove himself in battle. When there was no battle, he would prove himself on the hunt.

Or at least he would if they ever got moving.

"So what are we waiting for?" Kurogane said. The position of leadership might have fallen to him, but he didn't really have the patience for organization. "Is someone else supposed to be coming?"

"The twins," Kendappa explained. She was the only woman among the group, female warriors being somewhat rare among Asgard; but anyone who tried to insult her femininity (or even use the word as an insult in her presence) would very, very quickly come to regret it. She was fast and vicious and Kurogane rather liked her, although not perhaps in the way his parents might have hoped for. Nor did she love him in return as anything more than a comrade-in-arms, for though there was little that Kendappa admired more than strength, there was absolutely nothing and no one she loved more than glory.

"What, seriously?" Geo scoffed. "Someone managed to get Yuui away from his dusty pile of books long enough to agree to go hunting?"

"It's not Yuui who wanted to go, it's Fai," Kendappa said.

Lantis groaned aloud. "Everybody check your shoes in the morning," he said. "If Fai is dragging Yuui along where he doesn't want to go, he's sure to take it out on all of us."

"Who thought this was a good idea, again?" Eagle grumbled.

"He's a good hunter," Kurogane said, "and a good warrior."

"Yeah, if you can get Fai to stop chattering for long enough to aim a bow," Eagle said, "or keep Yuui's knives out of your -"

Kurogane glared at him, and Eagle shut his mouth with an audible click. "Enough gossip," Kurogane growled. "I'm not interested in hearing you speak ill of Yuui in my presence. Or Fai," he added.

"Well, of course not," Geo muttered, low enough that he could at least pretend he hadn't meant to be heard, "they're your brothers."

Kurogane grimaced at the reminder. "Not by blood," he shot back, and it was true; although they were all technically sons of Ashura, no one comparing him to the twins would ever dream that they were related. Furthermore, they hadn't been raised together. They were of a generation older than his, and grown before he'd ever been born; if it came to ties of kin, they were more like uncles than brothers. Distant, adopted, eccentric uncles.

The twins. Referred to as a collective by pretty much everyone in Asgard, they had begun their lives as a pair of sickly, undersized hrimthurs infants brought back by Ashura after a war with the giants of Niflheim. He never explained to anyone how he had found them or why he'd decided to take them as his wards, but they'd clung to him at first, then slowly adapted to life at court. The realm of Asgard had hardly a moment's peace since then.

Fai Silvertongue. Yuui Liesmith. Patron gods of mischief and cunning; all these epithets were given to each of the brothers in recognition of their quick-worded ways. Slender and pale compared to the hearty Aesir, the twins were adept at magic and much more interested in knowledge for its own sake than their more boisterous adopted kin. They'd taken to plaguing and aiding the Aesir by turns, playing mischievous tricks and practical jokes that sometimes went too far and required their own cleverness to clean up afterwards.

It had been Yuui who cut off Kendappa's hair when she was but a girl, as vengeance for a slight; and then Fai who used a spell to grow it back again, only to protest his innocence when it grew back night-dark instead of gold. It had been Fai who'd sweet-talked the rampaging giant Ótr into taking the shape of an otter in order to prove his skill at swimming; and then Yuui who'd captured him in a net of woven thistle, only to bash his head in with a stone as soon as he'd been brought to land.

Now full grown, they had not lost their powerful propensity for magic, but their mischief - particularly Yuui's - had taken on a darker, more violent tone. Perhaps it was Ashura's fault - or all of theirs, really - for failing to punish Yuui properly, but it was difficult to mete out fair punishment for Yuui's deeds when Fai must also suffer for them.

The bickering of the Warriors Three had fallen to a comfortable background murmur; Kendappa had taken out a strop of leather, and was using it to sharpen her hunting knife. But Kurogane's hearing, preternaturally sharp, caught the light quick patter of footsteps rounding the stone-paved walkway into the courtyard where they gathered. He turned his head, and at his sudden focus of attention his companions also looked up, their words drying up.

A slender, pale figure came traipsing around the corner into view, the bright midmorning sunlight gleaming off his ash-blond hair. He wore a costume of pale linens and hunting leathers in a dark forest green, and slung the slack length of his unstrung bow across his chest as he walked. He stooped for a moment to struggle with the fastening on his boots, and when he straightened up again the clear light shone brilliantly on the pale silver pools of his eyes.

A covert sigh of relief went out of the assembled group as Fai's luminous grey eyes and wide beaming smile came into view, and everyone relaxed. "Yoo-hoo," Fai called out, his voice light and airy. "Sorry I'm late! Are we all ready to go to Jotunheim and have a marvelous day?"

"Of course we're ready; we were all waiting for you! It took you long enough to drag your lazy ass to drag out of bed," Kendappa said sharply. Fai just smiled, able as ever to deflect even the most acid criticism without turning a hair.

"I just wanted to make sure that everyone had quite recovered from last night's fun?" Fai cooed, batting his lashes at the Warriors Three, who variously snorted, groaned, and shook their heads. Fai turned his sly smile next to Kurogane, cocking his head slightly to the side as though enjoying his own private joke. It was a look that never failed to leave Kurogane unnerved and uneasy in his own skin. "And how about you, Kuro-thunder? I hope you don't plan to rain on everybody's parade."

Kurogane set his jaw and refused to rise to the bait. He felt a fizzle of the old, familiar irritation at the nicknames, but he'd long since passed the point of reacting to them (besides, that would only encourage the trickster to come up with more ridiculous ones.)

"Let's get moving," he said shortly, coming to his feet and striding forward towards the gate in the walls encircling Asgard; the others followed his lead.

---

No matter how many times he came to Jotunheim, Kurogane could never quite shake the feeling of intimidated awe that came from stepping under the canopy of gigantic trees. All of the Realms bore some kinship to each other, and in form the bones of Jotunheim were not unlike that of Asgard. But the sheer scale of it was what really made the difference. Everything on Jotunheim was just bigger, from the steep jagged crags of the rocky foothills leading up to the looming white-crusted mountain range, to the mammoth trees that towered a hundred feet over their heads, each trunk so thick it would take ten men hands-around to encircle them. The cool breath of winter was never far off in this land; even with the summer sun high in the sky overhead, the dark green shadows of the forest enfolded them and carried frost on their breath.

The game, too, was formed of the same prodigious measurements; that was what made Jotunheim the best (and most challenging) hunting grounds. Before long they chanced upon a track made in the cool loam and pine needle bed of the forest floor; a jagged gouge in one of the trees nearby still leaked sap from the hours-old wound, well above any of their head-height.

Fai was the best tracker of the group, although they all had some lesser or greater skill in the area; when he put aside his clowning long enough to really attend to his task, the silliness fell away and left a cool focused expression that transformed his features. Kurogane found himself unable to pay it no mind, and was glad of the usual bickering and play-fighting among his companions that kept any of them from noticing where his attention had strayed.

The morning passed swiftly in their hunt, in good company and good exercise, with the promise of a thrilling struggle at the end of it keeping tedium and frustration away. Judging by the impression made on some of the softer patches of ground, their quarry was a beast of prodigious growth and weight - and the solitary track of the beast, as well as the occasional antler-marks left on passing trees, indicated it was a male in full-growth, a buck wandering its solitary course as the great deer tender to do when not in season.

At last the signs of the trail began to grow fresh, and the horsing around dropped away as the hunting party began to focus more on the task at hand. As light glimmered between the tree-trunks ahead of them Fai drew up to a halt, and silently indicated a forest clearing up ahead.

The six of them fanned out, dropping into their accustomed roles. As the Warriors Three and Kendappa melted out of sight between the trees, moving to surround the clearing in a loose ring, Kurogane stayed within sight of Fai. The blond moved in precise, practiced motions to unsling the bow from across his chest and step through it, bending the wood backwards to slip the loop of string over the horn. With the bow newly taut and ready, Fai slipped an arrow from the quiver at his back and laid it lightly along the string, moving silently forward to the edge of the trees.

The hart stood at the far edge of the clearing, head lowered as he browsed the herbaceous growth that sprung up in the sunny meadow. Even at the haunch he stood taller than Kurogane, and his shoulders rose half again as high to the bulky lump of muscle at his neck. As he raised his head, it was apparent that he needed every pound of that muscle in order to compensate for the enormous rack of antlers that sprung from his head; though intended for display, and competition with other rivals of the forest, they would make a more than suitable weapon to crush and gore an unwary hunter.

Since Fai's weapon was purely long-ranged, it made sense for him to take the first shot; but if he missed a fatal shot, as was likely given the bulk of the beast, the maddened animal might well charge him. It might also charge in any other direction, hence the loose net formed by the other hunters - but Kurogane made sure to place himself at hand, so that he could swing Ginryuu in a deadly arc before the animal got close enough to pin Fai against the massive tree trunk and crush the life from him.

It was only a practical matter, Kurogane told himself firmly, and forced his head to turn away so he would watch the quarry in front of him instead of staring mesmerized by the silhouette made by Fai's body as he raised the arrow and bent back the bow. A graceful curve of pale white, like the new moon rising in the evening sky; he looked like some primal avatar of the hunt.

With every sense tensed to the limit, strained to attention as they narrowed their focus on the quarry, it took Kurogane a moment to register the loud crack of a branch breaking. The stag's head came up suddenly, the antlers slashing at the air as its nostrils flared deep, long legs tensing as it poised for flight. Kurogane grabbed at Ginryuu's haft, mouthing silent curses for whichever of his hunting companions had been so careless -

Until his brain caught up with his ears, and he realized that none of them had gone in that direction at all.

Kurogane's arm snapped back, and he hurled Ginryuu forward with a swift and powerful blow. She hurtled across the clearing and did not falter when she came to the line of trees, smashing through thick trunks as though they were no more than toothpicks -

A howl set up in the underbrush, the sound of it enough to freeze Kurogane's blood. The stag took flight, but neither Kurogane nor his companions had any attention to spare for it; from the ruin of the treeline on the other side of the clearing, a rush of burly bodies fell upon them like an avalanche.

"Ambush!" Geo's powerful voice bellowed out from the far side of the clearing, and Kurogane cursed as he called Ginryuu back to his hand. They'd been too attentive, damn it - too focused on their play and on the impending success of the hunt. They hadn't even noticed when the hunters had become the hunted.

Because of course the other great danger of Jotunheim, aside from the monstrously-scaled beasts that lived there, were the giants. They had inhabited its rocky crags and forested mountains for time out of mind, and though they built great halls of their own, they had no care for the niceties of civilized men. They were as likely to seize and devour upon a traveler, or make sport of them, than offer him hospitality - and all too often they grew restless even in the great expanse of their own territory and poured out onto the other realms, rampaging and pillaging until warriors of one realm or another could put a stop to them. It was Asgard, more often than not, which sent a band of warriors to put down rampaging giants - each realm had their own arts of war, but few were so skilled at it (or so eager for blood) as the Aesir.

The constant games of raid and reprisal did nothing to improve the relationship between Jotunheim and Asgard, and no giant would pass up the opportunity to revenge themselves on a traveling party of Aesir. They should have been more careful, they'd let the vast emptiness of Jotunheim lull them into a false sense of safety - how long had the giants been tracking them..?

Kurogane counted four giants, looming tall as houses, their torsos mottled with the grey and brown of the earth and gleaming at the edges with jagged quartzite. Stone giants, Kurogane thought with no small grimness; at least they need not fear the deadly lightning touch of storm giants, nor the creeping frost of the hrimthurs, but the skin of a stone giant was as tough as the earth which had spawned it, and the strength of the mountains was in their bones. This would not be an easy fight.

Their band of six outnumbered the giants by three to two, but the superior strength and toughness of their opponents made that no guarantee of victory - it was generally agreed-upon tactics not to engage giants at all unless you had at least double their might. Three were of average height for a giant (which meant they were only twice as tall as Kurogane) and seemed similarly armed, but one bulked head and shoulders above his fellows and bore a wicked double-ended shiv.

Kurogane marked that one for his opponent, and saw his friends scattering into their own battle formation: Eagle, Geo and Lantis surrounded one enemy, keeping him off-balance and distracted by taunts and catcalls. No matter which way the giant faced, one warrior stood his ground against the giant's attack while two more rushed against his flank and rear. Kendappa faced off against a second, and even from this distance Kurogane could see the grin that flashed in her face and hear the ripple of laughter as she tossed her sword-hilt from one hand to another in anticipation of battle. She was smaller, slimmer, and darker than her companions, but any opponent who read that as a weakness would soon get the worst - and last - surprise of his lifetime.

The last unengaged giant was advancing against Fai, pinning him back against one of the giant tree-trunks; Fai held his bow, useless at this short range, tight between his two hands like a stave. Just as the giant got within range of him, however, and raised one thick-muscled arm to strike, Fai's form suddenly rippled and vanished. The heavy sword passed harmlessly through thin air where his neck had been and buried itself deeply within the tree trunk.

Kurogane bit back the growl that wanted to escape him; Fai was a sorcerer, strong in illusions and deceptions but not in close combat. As long as he could keep himself out of danger, and hopefully keep his opponent engaged with illusions, they could finish off the fourth giant later.

And then he had no more time for watching his companions fight, as the largest giant was upon him, roaring in a voice like boulders grinding into salt.

The giant swung a fist the size of a tree (well, a non-Jotunheim tree) and Kurogane dodged the first blow. Despite his hulking size, though, Kurogane's opponent was fast and agile; his other hand came around with a huge, wicked-looking blade before Kurogane could recover his stance. He swung Ginryuu reflexively, and the grating impact of metal on metal rattled his teeth. Thunder growled, and the light began to fail as dark clouds gathered rapidly overhead; he was Kurogane Stormcaller, and even on Jotunheim the skies obeyed his will.

He got his feet back under him quickly, and his next parry was faster and more confident. He batted the blade wide with a heavy blow of the hammer, forcing the giant to flail to regain his balance; in that moment Kurogane spared a quick look about him and was able to see to his friends.

The skirmishes were not going well; Kendappa was holding her own against her giant, but seemed unable to press an advantage. Eagle was down, and the second giant pressed the attack on him ferociously despite all Geo and Lantis' best efforts to draw his attention. Of Fai and the fourth giant, there was no sign, and that was ominous.

Kurogane raised Ginryuu to the sky, and called down lightning with a sky-shattering crack. The impact struck with stunning force, charged air battering at them like the force of a hammer itself. The giants staggered and stumbled, clutching at their heads; Kurogane's own companions were more used to it, and took instant advantage of their foes' momentary stun to regroup and regain their footing. The tongue of brilliant energy snapped down from the sky to touch Ginryuu, and power hummed and sang through his arm as the silver dragon winding down the handle began to glow.

Kurogane bellowed a laugh, and many foes would have quailed and turned tail at the sight and sound of him alone.

The stone giant was made of sterner stuff, though, and pressed forward stubbornly. Kurogane matched his blows with equal speed and force - now that his weapon was infused with the power of the storm, he could match even a giant's strength. He spied an opening in the giant's defenses and drove forward, smashing the head of his hammer into the giant's grey-mottled torso with a deafening crunch.

The giant staggered backwards, dazed; a long crack had appeared lengthwise across his chest, like a boulder split by a tree root. Such a mighty blow would have felled most enemies, but Kurogane was just getting started.

His opponent had stumbled a step backwards from the impact of the blow; now Kurogane leapt backwards, increasing the distance between them. He readied the wild magic in his arm, took careful aim, then flung his arm out as though to throw his hammer - but the weapon did not leave his hand; instead, the charge of elemental lightning he had gathered into his weapon blasted forwards. "Senryuu hikogeki!" Kurogane roared out, and the lightning lashed mercilessly to his command.

The explosion blasted the stone giant clear across the battlefield, and Kurogane did not hesitate a moment before charging in its wake. Giants were tough, especially stone giants - and like Aesir, they could quickly shake off almost any wound that didn't kill them outright. Indeed, the giant was still moving, struggling feebly to get up and groping dazedly for his weapon even as he shook his groggy head to clear it.

With the giant knocked onto his back, struggling to regain his feet, for the first time he was actually on a level with Kurogane. For one brief moment, he had a clear shot to the giant's vulnerable head and neck -

Ginryuu swung again in a short, savage arc, and the giant jerked once before ceasing to move. Splatters of blood and shards of bone sprayed across Kurogane's armor, but he paid it no mind; he'd had worse messes before, and likely would again. Breathing hard, he gripped his hammer tightly as he wheeled around, searching the battlefield for more foes.

The Warriors Three and their foe had moved away, partially shielded behind a mound of earth and stand of trees, but he had a clear shot to Kendappa's enemy and he took it, hurtling his hammer across the intervening space to drive into the giant's lower back. He stumbled forward with a pained bellow, giving Kendappa the opening she needed.

-And then Kurogane himself pitched forward, seeing stars, as an unexpected blow caught the back of his head.

It was the fourth giant, the one he'd lost track of in the brawl - the one that Fai had evaded. Kurogane rolled over, dizzy and dazed, and stared upwards at the enraged face and upraised weapon of what could very well be his death. His hand stretched out, futilely seeking Ginryuu, but she was too far away - she would not reach him in time. His companions saw his plight and shouted in urgent consternation, but if his enchanted hammer could not cross the space soon enough, they had no chance.

The giant jerked and bellowed, rearing up and tipping its shoulders back; Kurogane would have thought it was preparing itself for a great blow if not for the note of pain in its howl. The giant continued to thrash about, jerking its shoulders back and forth and reaching up with helpless arms to claw at its own neck, until Kurogane saw the source of its distress: a pair of long, wicked daggers had appeared buried in the meat and tendon of its collar, like pitons for the hands which had wielded them.

The giant spun around, and then Kurogane could see for the first time the long, pale figure still clinging to the giant's back, its feet planted against the giant's kidneys and hands clinging to the blades buried like pitons in its enemy's shoulder. The giant squirmed and flailed and tried to bash its unwanted passenger against a solid surface, but the blond passenger rode his enemy like a horse, effortlessly disrupting every attempt the giant made at being rid of him.

Hot, dark blood spurted from the wounds, rendering the giant's back a slippery and precocious surface to grip. The blond figure crept a little higher, clinging to the giant's ribcage, and finally managed to rearrange its grip; one slender arm snaked around the giant's neck, balancing his weight and yanking the chin upwards with surprising strength. The other hand yanked a dagger free from dark grey flesh, and in one smooth flashing movement the dagger's blade came around to slice a deep gaping rent in the side of the giant's throat.

He fell like a mountain.

Even in death, he slammed and thrashed upon the ground enough to pulverize anyone within reach; for a moment Kurogane feared he had taken his slayer down with him in death. But the blond leapt from his back and seemed to float in the air like a leaf on the wind, drifting to land lightly on his feet on safe ground a few feet away from Kurogane.

Kurogane turned towards his savior, who wiped fastidiously at the great red-black splashes of giant's blood on his clothes. "Tch," the familiar voice said in a tone of disgust. "This'll have to be burned. What was my brother thinking - that he'd track down and murder some poor defenseless animal and yet somehow miraculously avoid getting blood on himself?"

Kurogane took a step towards him, and he gave up on the effort to clean and turned. The eyes that met Kurogane's were a shimmering gold color, which confirmed what Kurogane had already suspected - that this was no longer Fai at all, but Yuui.

"Liesmith," Kurogane called him by his title, holding his fist over his heart as he gave a shallow bow. As one of Ashura's heirs, he was not technically obliged to bow to Yuui at all; but to fail to give such a courtesy to a comrade-in-arms who had just saved his life would have been the most foul insult. "I wasn't expecting to see you on this battlefield."

"I wasn't expecting you to see me on this battlefield either, Your Royal Storminess," Yuui replied tartly. He stooped to retrieve a handful of grass, cleaning the thick blood and gore off his daggers before giving up and wiping them on his already-ruined clothes. He glanced around, his expression tight. "We're on Jotunheim, I take it?" he said.

Kurogane stayed silent; he never liked repeating the obvious. Trees never grew to this size on any other realm but Jotunheim, so where else could they be?

Yuui grimaced, taking his silence for the affirmation it was. "I would have thought my brother had better sense than to drag us out to this accursed realm, especially given what happened last time," he said.

When the twins were old enough to embark upon adventures of their own - instead of merely pestering the other Aesir until they agreed to take them - the brothers had gone on a trip to Nidavellir. They had laughed and sang, played and had a grand time, until they came upon animals slain by a snare. Unwisely, they took meat from the snare and ate it around a campfire, gorging themselves until they slept heavily. While they slept, the band of hunting trolls to whom the snares had belonged came upon them and captured them.

For the first time in their lives, the brothers' powers of evasion failed them. No amount of persuasion, sorcery or struggle was enough to win their freedom. At last the leader of the trolls gave them a choice: one brother would be allowed to leave and return to Asgard... and the other would stay, be killed, butchered and roasted over the campfire to replace the meat they had stolen.

Acting on a plan that could only have seemed like a good idea at the time, one of the brothers - and even to this day, none at Asgard knew which one - swallowed the other, taking his twin into himself.

From the day that they returned to Asgard, the two brothers now shared one body. Fai Silvertongue and Yuui Liesmith - they were known collectively now as "the twins," and one always slept while the other moved and spoke. One could only tell who was speaking by looking at the color of their eyes: bright silver for Fai, and molten gold for Yuui.

This all had happened many years before Kurogane was born, of course; he'd never known the brothers when they were young. The twin Jotnar had shared one body for as long as he had known them. Yuui now turned flashing, dangerous golden eyes on Kurogane. "Prince Thundercrack, could I kindly ask you to convey to my brother just what an insufferably foolish idea this was? Despite what you apparently believe, Jotunheim is not Asgard's private hunting reserve. As you've just now demonstrated."

Kurogane ground his teeth at the rebuke. "Since I might have died if you hadn't been here to save my life, I can't really say I regret his decision to bring you out here."

"All the more reason he'll listen to you." Yuui grimaced, shaking his head. "Not that it will do any good, I'm sure; he'll be overwhelmed with remorse for approximately five minutes, until the next shiny thing catches his attention, and then off he goes. Do at least try to impress on him the gravity of the situation - "

"I'm not your errand boy," Kurogane snapped, temper flaring easily in the wake of the ebbing frenzy of battle. "Tell him yourself."

Yuui's breath caught, and it caught up with Kurogane a moment too late just what he'd said. For the tragedy of it all, as the poets liked to sing it (when the twins weren't around to hear) was that although both brothers had survived Nidavellir, from that day onwards they could never see or speak to each other again.

Kurogane winced. "I didn't mean it like that," he said hastily.

"Of course you didn't," Yuui said, his voice dangerously soft. "After all, it's so easy for me to sit down with my brother in some quiet corner and have a heart-to-heart talk with him, isn't it?"

Kurogane sighed. "Forget it," he said. "Look, the sun is starting to go down - we should return to Asgard. Come on, we'll round up the others and return to the Asbru bridge. We have a victory to celebrate, after all - the day wasn't a total waste, not when we got to dispose of some giants - "

And stopped again, cursing himself fervently in his head. It was all too easy, given his Aesir-like stature, to forget that Yuui and Fai were also frost giants.

"Thank you, Prince Kurogane, for your kind invitation," Yuui said icily. "But I can find my own way back to Asgard, without need of you or anyone else's company."

He spun his daggers in his hands and slid them away into their hidden sheaths with an audible snick. Before Kurogane had wrestled his boot out of his mouth, the blond turned on his heel and walked away, melting into the shadows of the forest with the finality of a closing door.

Kurogane stared after him for a long time, before the voices of Geo and Lantis behind him called him back to the present. The last thing they needed to deal with right now was lingering in an enemy realm, where the commotion of their last battle would inevitably draw trouble to them like a beacon. It was time to collect themselves as best as possible after the skirmish, and go home.


---

Brother,

What in Hel's name were you thinking?! I woke up today in the middle of a pitched battle in Jotunheim with Prince Grumphound and the Four Stooges! I thought I made it clear when I refused to tag along with their little hunting expedition that I did NOT want to be involved with any of this. What if I hadn't been fast enough to fling us onto that giant? Kurogane almost got squashed like a bug! I would never forgive myself you the Fates if anything had happened to him the youngest prince got filleted on our watch. On top of that our best riding clothes got covered in giant blood, and I think I nicked my blade on some giant's vertebrae on the outstroke; the edge will NEVER be the same.

Why is your solution to every little problem to drop everything you're doing and force me to handle it? How many more messes am I going to have to dig us out of before you stop to THINK before you go along with such foolishness? I know you get lonely, I know you want to spend time with your friends but this is NOT the way to do it! I swear, one of these days I'm going to simply roll over and go back to sleep when you call me. You could handle your own messes for a change, and maybe you'd learn to look out for yourself to deal with a little pain a lesson.

---

Dear Brother,

I am SO sorry. Please, PLEASE forgive me, I cannot handle the thought that I have injured your trust beyond bearing. I am forlorn without you. I swear, I NEVER meant for anything like this to happen! I would do ANYTHING to make this morning never have existed, I would turn back the cycle of the stars themselves if it would earn your forgiveness! I cannot bear to have you angry with me. I swear on my life, I will never, EVER do anything so thoughtless again!

By the way, I couldn't help but notice while we were on the hunt, that Kuro-stealthy was staring! I'm sure he thought he was QUITE discreet, but there was definitely a southward trend to his eyes when he saw the way the leather pants clung...

---


That night, a page came to Kurogane's room bearing a note. The lines in it were simple and unembellished - his presence was requested that evening in one of the library's study halls, alone. It was unsigned, and the handwriting was unfamiliar to Kurogane; by the expedient of questioning the poor page boy, he learned that it had been sent from the suite of rooms belonging to the twins. The note had passed hands since then, so the servant boy could not tell him precisely which of the brothers had written it.

Kurogane couldn't think of any reason for either of the hrimthurs twins to call him out, at this hour, to a part of the castle that was bound to be deserted. The whole set-up made him wildly suspicious - not of any threat to his life or health, of course, but he wouldn't put it past either of them to make him the butt of some prank. It would be damn shortsighted of him not to expect just such a thing, in fact.

Still, if this was the lead-up to a practical joke, there was nothing to be gained by ducking the summons. Kurogane knew perfectly well that the twins' dubious sense of humor could not be avoided in such a manner - if anything, doing so was only likely to provoke their spite, and whatever prank came after it would be that much the worse. No, it was best just to go and get it over with.

The library wing was dim and hushed at this hour; not completely deserted, for a few late-night librarians and other devoted researchers still perused the shelves. But the side-chambers which branched off from the library were deserted, their lights quenched and doors barred. Kurogane avoided the librarians and their inevitable questions and let himself into the designated study-hall quietly; as the King's son, he damn well had the right to go where he pleased in his own castle without needing a bevy of servants or bodyguards to chaperone him.

As soon as he entered, letting the heavy gold-chased wooden doors fall to behind him, he saw faint light ahead of him. It shifted in response to the echoes, casting tenebrous shadows against the wood-strapped stone walls. "Who's there?" Kurogane called out, bracing himself with a hand against Ginryuu's haft.

"Kuro-punctual! You came," a happy voice floated out of the dimness. The light shifted, and a silhouette came into view against it at the far end of the small hallway. The golden glow resolved itself into a small hand-held lantern, and as his visitor raised it to the level of his head the light shone off of bright-blond hair and gleaming silver eyes. Fai.

"Yeah, I came," Kurogane said, scoffing at Fai's restatement of the obvious. "Though I'm damned if I know why I bothered. At this hour I ought to be asleep."

Fai laughed softly and raised his free hand, and the light of the lantern surged and then split into a half-dozen tiny golden orbs, which scattered and flew to alight on the lamp-sconces lining the walls. The light caught and grew as each lamp lit, bringing illumination to the room, though still only half that of what it would normally be in the day. "Oh, is Kuro-cranky getting old?" Fai sang. "I'm so sorry to have disturbed your rest. How can I possibly make it up to you?"

Kurogane snorted. "You can start by telling me what we're doing down here," he said. If this was the start of some kind of joke, the punchline was eluding him. He didn't think Fai would have called him down here to play any kind of games of court politics or intrigue; the pale frost giant twins had never shown much interest or inclination for such games. But Kurogane wasn't sure what that left.

"Well, what does one normally do in a dimly lit, secluded area like this one?" Fai purred, gliding across the floor towards him. "The possibilities, they boggle the mind. Lovelorn teenagers would sell their own mothers for such a perfect spot to hide away and neck, don't you think, Kuro-teen?"

Kurogane opened his mouth to reply, then left it hanging open as everything clicked into place. Oh. Oh. The late-night summons, the strange venue, Fai's flirty attitude (all right, so that wasn't too different from normal.) He hadn't been called down here for a prank or ann assassination attempt or anything else like that, this was a tryst. And it wasn't that Kurogane hadn't engaged in such things before, but always with women, and never with Fai.

Fai moved in with a swiftness he hadn't prepared for - brought slim white hands up to either side of his neck and held him there, pulling him gently but inexorably downwards. Kurogane took a breath - to speak, to push Fai away, to pull him forward - but opening his mouth had been a tactical mistake; in a moment Fai's lips had sealed over his own, and Fai's tongue quested gently between his parted teeth.

Fai's mouth was cool, tasting of apples and with a faint wild bite like snow in the air. His eyes had fluttered closed and Kurogane kept his own open, studying the way the fine gold lashes lay across his high-boned cheeks. Felt the way his breath rose and fell in his narrow chest, the fluttering of his fingers and palms as they danced across the width of Kurogane's shoulders to grip at the top of his arms.

That one soft moment hung like it could go on for hours - or years - and for one aching moment Kurogane allowed it. With Fai's face so peaceful, his eyes so softly closed, Kurogane could almost imagine...

But it was his lapse of self-control that had led them to this pass in the first place, if Fai had noticed enough of his preoccupation and oblique glances to come to this conclusion. So Kurogane sighed - he felt the warmth of his own breath, gusting reflected back from Fai's cheek - and reached up to push the other man away.

Fai's eyes flew open, and quicksilver glittered in their depths for a moment before they narrowed in cunning. A smirk twisted the edges of those pale lips upwards, crinkling his eyes with laughter. "Oh, come now, Kuro-shy," Fai laughed. "Now I know you're inexperienced, but you're surely not that new to the art of love. Does Teacher Fai need to give you all the extra-special lessons?"

"No," Kurogane said seriously. He kept his hands on Fai's shoulders, to hold him back so that he could not dart in again. "This won't work."

Fai's eyes widened in comic innocence. "Such pessimism from such a brave, fearless warrior!" he squealed. "I can't imagine why would you say such a terrible thing! Is it because we're kin - not technically, of course, as there's no blood between us! - or because you don't know how it's done with two warriors? That's no problem at all, I can assure you; let Mommy take care of everything -"

"Fai," Kurogane said, and fended off a sly hand sneaking towards of the waistband of his trousers. "Look, I don't want to upset you, but this just isn't going to happen?"

Fai paused, and retreated a few inches. "Whyever not?" he said, wariness creeping into his expression and voice.

"Because," Kurogane said, and he had to put force into the next words to keep them from cracking. "I don't love you. I'm sorry if you thought I did, or if I gave you the wrong idea, but - look. I'm in love with Yuui."

"What?" Fai cried out, and he fell back two full paces as he recoiled. Shocked horror washed over his expression, and he staggered as though he had been struck. "What, no! What do you mean? That's impossible!"

Kurogane shrugged, helpless and bereft of words in the face of Fai's exaggerated response. It was too much to hope for that Fai would take it calmly - would anyone really, on being told that your crush loved your sibling instead of you? But to back down, to soften it now, would only draw the pain out further. And so Kurogane repeated in a clear, quiet voice: "I love Yuui. Not you."

Fai began to laugh, a discordant and unsteady sound. "That - that's ridiculous," he said uneasily. "You can't - you can't possibly love him and not me. We have the same body!"

"You may have the same body, but not the same heart," Kurogane corrected him. "I've known you two all my life and I've always known that you're each your own person. You know it perfectly as well, so don't pretend otherwise to me."

"But if you only loved one of us - if you only loved one..." Fai broke off and shook his head, sending wisps of ashen-colored hair flying. "You should love me. You should love me, not him! Why aren't you in love with me?"

Kurogane shrugged again. "Why does the sun rise in the east, and not the west?" he said rhetorically. "You are a true companion, Fai, and I'd stand by you in any ring. I don't make the mistake others do of seeing you for less than you are. But what I feel for you, in my heart, is not love. I don't know why or why not. I just don't."

"But... why him?" Fai's face twisted, taking on an ugly sneer. "Of all the people in Asgard - of all the people in the Nine Realms to choose from, why him? Everyone knows that he's the evil one, wicked and heartless. No one loves him, no one even likes him. No one except me."

A growl rumbled in Kurogane's throat as his temper flared to life. He could understand surprise, even heartbreak at being rejected - but this was just vicious, petty and cruel. "That's not true," he snapped out. "Not even close to it. Maybe you've forgotten because you've been away from him for so long -" that was the most generous he could afford to be, to Yuui's brother - "but I see him every day, so I know. He has a sharp tongue and a brusque manner, it's true - but so is his heart, even if he hides it."

"But he's cruel!" Fai protested. "And bloodthirsty! He likes to fight, he kills for fun -"

"So do I!" Kurogane snarled, and he surged to his feet and turned away, beginning to pace from one side of the low stone room to the other. The restless frustration filled him with the need to move, as though he could physically strike the words from the air somehow. "I am Kurogane Stormcaller, and I wield Ginryuu, the giant's bane. That's no mere fancy title, in case you've forgotten. I love the thrill of battle, the contest of strength and the promise of glory - " he wheeled back to face Fai, his arms sweeping out before him as though describing the arc of his blade. "- But I won't pretend that a part of me doesn't love the taste of hot blood in my mouth or the satisfaction of seeing my enemy fallen before me!"

Fai stood frozen, tense and trapped as though snared on the edge of flight. Kurogane forced himself to take a step back, turn away, tamp down his dangerous aura. "It's not pretty, but it's who I am," he said quietly, "and it's that very same darkness in him that calls to the darkness in me. I love him not in spite of his 'wickedness,' as you call it, but because of it."

Fai was breathing heavily, Kurogane noticed - not with lust but exertion, deep gulps of air as though he'd just run a racecourse. The break in the rhythm when his chest hitched, and he swallowed hard, was loud as a blow in the silent chamber. "You had best leave the lying to the experts, Kurogane," he said in a faint voice.

Kurogane stepped forward, getting right up into Fai's space - Fai backed away, but not fast enough to avoid Kurogane catching his hands on his shoulders and leaning into his face. "I am," he growled. He didn't need Fai's approval to be in love with his brother - not that he planned to wait on it - but he didn't intend to leave any ambiguity in the situation if he could possibly help it. It would be better for all three of them in the long run - Yuui, Fai, and Kurogane - if everything was laid plainly out in the open. "And you'd best not get in the way."

Fai broke the moment, casting his gaze to the side and shuddering - a full-body movement that somehow shook him loose from Kurogane's grip and placed him a stride away, out of reach. "You're a fool, then, Prince of the Aesir," he murmured, "and I just hope we'll both survive for you to regret this."

He took a deep breath and tipped his chin up, his eyes rolling up in his head even as they slipped closed.

The twins greatly disliked having such unguarded moments witnessed by others, so they usually tried to keep them to their private chambers. But Kurogane had known them for years, and so he'd unwittingly been a witness to this process a number of times; it never ceased to be unnerving.

First came the shuttering, a closed and empty look that fell across the twin's face and body as his eyes closed and his expression went blank. Then, for the briefest of moments, a terrifying emptiness in the presence before him - as though the body before him were no more than a lifeless stone. Then - the same process in reverse. The newly wakened twin would shiver all over, as though shaking off a layer of dust or frost. Now the chin went up, and the lids flew wide...

Over silver eyes.

"Fai?" Kurogane blurted out in confusion. The silver-eyed twin looked over at him, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Why, Kuro-tan," he said, giving a surprised laugh. "Whatever are you doing down here at this time of night?"

Kurogane stared at the blond man, his brain feeling like a blade that had stuck in a cleft of its own cutting - no matter how he strained and pulled, he could not seem to make his thoughts move forward. What was going on here? If this was Fai - if this was Fai - then who had Kurogane just been talking to?

"Didn't you ask me to meet you down here?" he said, feeling uncommonly stupid for the question.

Fai tilted his head to the side, bemusement playing over his features. "Why, no! Did you need to talk to me for some reason? Or," he said, and his smile turned sly and knowing, "did you want to talk to Yuui? He's not here right now, I'm afraid - "

"No, I - no," Kurogane said, and cleared his throat gruffly. "It wasn't anything important. I'll - just go back to bed."

"Whatever you say, Kuro-somniac," Fai sing-songed, and he turned towards the dimly-glowing lanterns on the wall. He held up his hand, and the lights turned from yellow to white, then flew to his hand. Kurogane stared, and wondered how he had failed to notice the color of those uncanny lights before. Fai started towards the door, the bright cold light haloing the fringes of his hair as he turned away.

"Oh - I almost forgot," Fai said, turning suddenly back to face Kurogane. "Geo wanted me to warn you, if I saw you, if you didn't hear it from him first - apparently Yuui has been going around pretending to be me again. The silly-billy boy!"

"Again?" Kurogane said numbly. "This is something he's done before?"

"Oh, sure." Fai grinned and rolled his eyes. "We used to pretend to be each other all the time, way back before. It's easier now, I guess, when we only have to change the eyes - but that somehow just takes the fun out of it, don't you think? It's not sporting at all!"

Kurogane was left speechless, but Fai apparently expected no response, for after a moment more he shrugged and turned to go. "Good night, Kuro-turnal!" he sang out from the passageway, before the light disappeared with him.

---

~tbc...

(part 2)