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[ there he goes. there's the sound that's like music to his ears. does kaname know there are different meanings for different licks? this one isn't meant to shake the boy's nerves. it's light and delicate and ticklish. playful. ]

I dunno. I've only known one other cat, and that thing is a jerk just like his owner.

[ trein can shove it.

anyway. another thing he likes... ]

You're honest. Or rather, you're true to yourself. Not sayin' there's anything wrong with the first but it's hard to live if you can't do the second.

[ giving himself some leeway when leona is, and will, lie to protect himself. ]

[ he doesn't know, and he hasn't paid enough attention to notice if there is or not. it's just one that makes him laugh, which means it's successful in its playfulness -- kaname already likes to mimic the way leona nuzzles him, maybe he'll pick it up too sometime.

for now, though... true to himself. he leans his head back against the beanbag, humming softly. maybe. he'll trace circles against leona's back, looking back down after a moment. there's a certain sort of... warmth, but acceptance too. resignation more, as he talks. ]

... It's easier to manage that here. Whether it's from Reimei Academy or the industry at large, an idol like myself has many duties, obligations, and expectations placed on his shoulders.

[ i lied, he wants to say, when i said yodaka was my real name. it's really-- kaname sighs and flops his head back again to look at the ceiling. he doesn't miss them one bit. the weight of them, the limits he pushed until they broke, the fatigue they brought... he doesn't miss it. at the same time, ]

I wish someone expected something of me here. It makes me restless otherwise.

[ he looks up from his slightly uncomfortable position, more than happy to bear the awkward angle he has to contort himself in so that he can continue to give kaname the kind of affection that only a big cat like him can. it's now that he realizes he could probably... it shouldn't just be kaname that gets the chair to become more malleable. pliable. easier to sit in. less lumpy and more comfy.

so leona sort of... slides into it next to the one already sitting there. if it means pulling kaname more or less into his lap, he'll do that. ]

I do expect somethin' of you here.

[ he huffs. ]

I expect that if you ever get in danger, you run. Listen to your gut and don't think 'bout playin' the hero. Just survive.

[ -- oh, that's fine, sure. kaname rests against leona once the other gets comfy, shifting a bit to make sure he's comfortable too. he could fall asleep like this... he should be careful. he won't be, but he should. ]

You sound like my brother. [ sheesh. ] That's an obvious expectation, Leona. So is "do what you'd like" and "have fun". The ones I'm talking about are more...

[ ... mm. ]

Challenging.

[ also. he can't promise he'll run. what's the point in surviving if it means someone he cares about gets hurt or worse in the process? ]

[ he snorts. wrapping his arms around kaname, leona closes his eyes--- he also has to be careful to not fall asleep here. that's a pretty rough position to be in, comfortable and snuggling with his favorite person. ]

Livin' isn't challengin' around here? Well, I guess when you've got me around...

[ not to flex or anything, but leona hasn't been struggling. probably because he doesn't stick his neck out when it's unnecessary. ]

... wouldn't say having fun is exactly at the top of my priority list either. Lookin' for fun is like lookin' for a smack in the face.

[ which........ listen he's not saying he'd like that or anything but ]

[ big strong fearsome beastman... yeah no kaname doesn't seek danger out as much as he does just trouble, which are two very different things! being warm and comfortable is trouble, for example, which is why he's happy to cuddle up. ]

And what is your top priority, then? Finding the best places to nap?

[ my man. ]

Livin'.

[ not surviving. there's an obvious difference, at least to him--- to be alive and content, which means making sure the things and people that make him want to be those things are also fine. ]

Don't make me have to watch ya like some kind of starvin' animal.

[ regardless, he's always hungry for something. ]

As if you could ever starve.

[ besides the fact that kaname won't let him, there's plenty to gnaw on... remain content, king of beasts. he isn't getting hurt anytime soon. ]

Fifth item, Leona.

You don't make a big deal outta me bein' a prince.

[ that's one of the most important things. though he'd say a number of people wouldn't give him that automatic pass, that's not the norm. ]

So I guess you're a good judge of character. Or somethin'.

[ if that even counts. he'll make it count if he has to. ]

I am a good judge of character, but simply put your title means nothing to me nor would it ever.

[ they aren't in a place that cares. he has no sway here (he has no sway at home) but honestly... ]

Respect is earned, Leona. Even if I were in your lands, I wouldn't treat you any different than I do now -- introduced as a prince or not. [ he'd catch claws for it too. ] I cannot be your equal if I'm placing myself below you.

[ ... it's something he's gotten in trouble for in the past, though at least in the industry he's more careful. his stage persona had appearances to keep up after all. ]

Ha. You're automatically better than like, half of the people that walk 'round the savanna.

[ because the other half see and hear leona and understand what's going on. a sulking, arrogant, and belligerent princeling who just wanted the respect and love that someone more kingly deserves. ]

But you know I'd eventually have to put you in your place. Eventually. Survival of the fittest and all that.

[ sticks his tongue out. ]

[ cute. kaname's grabbing leona's tongue with his fingers and leaning in, peeved. ]

We're equals. There's no "putting me in my place". If I listen to what you ask, it's because I agree to it -- not because you're someone important.

[ ... he'll let go now, but he's still annoyed. eventually, huh? try never. ]

Understood? It's because I like you, Leona.

[ hey! his tongue! he fights the urge to bite down hard, instead wiggling his tongue as much as possible.

any sound he makes is a little muffled and he doesn't try to speak. he waits until kaname lets go before he chuckles.

what a feisty boy. ]

... yeah. And I like you too.

[ kaname stares hard at him for another moment (he can't be annoyed anymore) and cuddles into leona again, face warming after the fact. mm. that was fine. definitely just as hard as calling people friends. ]

As long as you know that, [ all of that, ] then good.

[ they'll get on just fine!!! ]

... If you really do need to keep up some level of appearance, then I'll go along with it. I know better than anyone what being at the top means.

[ ruggie'll make fun of him in an instant after all... ]

Psh. You think I care that much 'bout appearance?

[ equals are fine. he just doesn't want anyone thinking that he's subservient to someone... out in the open, at the very least.

he's got a little pride... ]

Don't have to worry if I never leave my room.

[ wiggles his ears. ]

[ he might not, but the others around him... well, that Would be a them problem not a leokana problem... anyway. ]

Why wouldn't you leave your room?

Comfy bed. [ that's one. ] Got someone who can always bring whatever I need to it. [ that's two. ]

And if you were there too...

[ well. imagine wanting to go anywhere. ]

[ oh leona. that does sound nice, being pampered and having a comfy bed... cuddling with the other like he is now...

however. ]

You'd be up and walking around outside with me. [ sorry. ] If there's a world to be seen, I'm going to see it.

[ simply put. it's nice, thinking about it, though kaname knows they're just that: thoughts. imagining the sorts of places the people he cares about grew up in has become something of a small pastime; imagining himself there has become a guilty pleasure. it's easy with his mother's penchant for making him the protagonist in stories at least... ]

Besides, I'd be staying with my brother. You'd have to get up to see me anyway.

Psh, you'd be stayin' with HiMERU and not me?

[ watch leona grump, bottom lip slightly higher than the other as he frowns. an overexaggerating pout that's a little more dramatic than it probably should be, but it's all in fun. nothing too serious. ]

Then... yeah, guess I couldn't just lounge 'round in my bedroom all day. Would have to do it in one of the common areas. Probably not a meetin' room. But there are also plenty of spas and museums and restaurants with private spaces too.

[ and he could have any of them all to himself if he wanted. if he wanted to actually use those resources. ]

It's a nice place. Would be nicer if I had my way.

[ no use pouting about it; where kaname goes, his brother would surely follow... and kaname isn't letting them be separated ever again either. he won't be able to "live happily" if they are. ]

Tell me about your kingdom, then. What you'd add, take away, emphasize -- whatever it is you'd do as king.

[ and he'll try not to doze off to the pleasant sound of leona's voice. ]

They gotta modernize stuff. My brother doesn't really pay attention to those kinds of things. He thinks that if it isn't broke, you don't fix it. If people are happy, don't change a thing.

[ and that's what bothers him the most. leona still cares that he is the better mage, the stronger mage, but it's what one does with power that puts them in the books. memories of the people. no statue, no monument will do. be up in the stars. ]

I want everyone to be able to eat and drink and not have to worry 'bout where their next meal will come from. There's still a lot of imbalance. Poverty. It sucks. One of my juniors... he's got nothin' but he busts his ass harder than anyone else.

[ heck, most of savanaclaw is like that, but ruggie is arguably one of the smartest. ]

No one deserves to be held back by their name or lack of one.

[ oh... he really has a type, doesn't he. it's hard not to think of tatsumi, who wants the same for the non-special students of reimei academy. there's a decisive different between him and leona... but their hearts are the same sort, and kaname noses under the beastman's chin the way the other does him sometimes. his quiet, careful affection. ]

Everyone deserves to be happy.

[ something he's often said, and has believed since the first day he found himself listening to tatsumi's words in the catacombs. even playing off any good will as a selfish act doesn't change the fact that it's a driving force in his life.

(there are easier ways to get what he wants. kaname has what he wants at the academy already, and yet he keeps up the same exhausting facade for someone else's sake -- all so that everyone has the chance at happiness, because he loves idols and it frustrates him to hell and back that someone as hard-working as sazanami would only ever be backstage if it kept up. how he could end up there too, because it is a genuine fear, but everyone deserves to be happy.) ]

If a coup is out of the question, because your brother's only an idiot, then that's fine. There's more than one way to change things. But it'll require you to change too, Leona -- survival of the fittest isn't the motto you want to put your strength behind, from one "prince" to another. They're your people too.

[ so if his brother won't look the way he needs to, then leona should. simple as that. he was never posed as a bad person, after all -- just an idiot, and there's nothing wrong with being an idiot. kaname doesn't accept that for himself just yet, but there's nothing wrong with it at all. ]

In other words, if I am ever able to, then I shall lend you a hand. I have experience with such things, after all.

[ cute. he's so cute and leona's so sure that kaname knows that. he could have the entire world on its knees. he's aware there are idols that can do that; one such goes to their rival school, except there is a naivety that makes him endearing. kaname has charisma. probably a little more maturity? or maybe not? but even then, one grows into that sort of thing, so... ]

Yeah, I don't wanna... I don't wanna exile him or anythin'. Besides, his kid is an annoyin' brat but he's good. Better when I'm around him.

[ could be moldable. could be someone he could influence. use? yeah. leona wouldn't be afraid to do that. still, it's easier to do things himself and cheka could grow up into someone with an actual head on his shoulders. by then, leona might have a little gray in his hair. maybe. ]

... think you're already doin' a pretty good job at lendin' a hand. Rather have somethin' else, though.

[ like... his lips... smooch! ]

[ kaname's curiosity is short lived and answered, heart fluttering same as ever and he returns it easily, playing with leona's hair and twirling it around his fingers. you'll have to forgive him this time, though, for not letting it stick past that with a small tug. ]

You always say that. I want to do more. And don't say I "do enough" simply by [ sheesh ] being with you and whatnot. That's true for now, but what of the future?

[ ...

should god will it, what if by next year it "isn't enough" anymore? kaname hasn't thought to put a name to this outside an involvement, but leona is still important to him. he feels safe, relaxed even, when he's with the other, so he wants to do as much as he can in return (to keep that spot safe, to repay kindness due). ]

Say you'll let me. Whatever it is, if I ask how I can help, you'll give me a real answer.

[ ... gosh, he is demanding today. ]

You keep me centered. That's a lot, Yodaka.

[ maintaining a positive outlook is difficult for him, which isn't to say that it's easy for others. but knowing that he could easily lose himself in those doubts and indifference just like he did before would be... awful. simply unforgiveable. he has reasons to keep his sanity and not throw away everything due to some selfish desire to become king. rather, he still wants to be king. he'll prove that he's worth it regardless of where he is in the pecking order.

he grunts at the light tug. the most minor of reactions. it's not like it hurts... in fact he might be okay with it some more........

maybe. easy for kaname to fix the braids if they get loose. ]

Fine. I'll give you a real answer, but you'll have to respect it if even if you don't like it.

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