Chapter Text
Hanzo was having a tantrum. It was the worst one Kuai Liang had ever seen him having so far, in all of the nearly seven months of him living in the Shirai Ryu settlement, and it was really getting out of hand. The boy did have anger issues, it wasn’t a secret for anybody, and, occasionally, lashed out, but it had never before been directed at him, personally. In fact, Hanzo normally acted quietly respectful towards him. It wasn’t, however, the case at the moment. Grandmaster was baffled, trying to understand what the problem was, and failing, because nothing came to mind.
Being stronger, more level-headed, not to mention an adult, Kuai Liang could contain this fire without much effort, but he had to physically restrain the boy to make sure he didn’t hurt himself while he was hitting the man with an intent to cause at least some damage.
“You will stop this, now! Explain yourself,” Grandmaster demanded. The boy just growled at him, rage burning brightly within him, as he struggled. “Use your words, Hanzo. Hanzo!”
The only reply he got was some unintelligible rant, as the boy was going completely feral in his anger and fought harder within the man’s firm grasp. A wild mixture of Japanese and Chinese (the latter he’d picked up from them and, evidently, had learned to understand, but not speak) made no sense and was simply impossible to comprehend.
“Enough!” Kuai Liang shook him a little, not applying any excessive force to avoid giving the child a whiplash or any other injury, which would be unforgivable, but hoping it was at least grounding and sobering. He wasn’t proud of it, but he was out of his depth.
“You make him cry! You make him cry!” Hanzo was screaming now, red-faced and furious, finally, uttering at least something coherent. That gave Kuai Liang pause, though he made sure he was still keeping the boy under control. So, he was angry on someone else’s behalf. The only person Hanzo cared about this much was Tomas. The boy had become quite protective of him, probably because, not only Smoke had brought him into the clan after their unexpected encounter in the forest, where he had been attacked and, surprisingly, knocked down by this eight years old, but he was the only one who had really managed to gain the boy’s trust, and, for a long time, he had been the only one Hanzo would even talk to, as little as he spoke in general. It wasn’t easy for Tomas to suddenly assume the role of a child’s guardian, being quite young himself and being busy with so many clan-related duties, but he’d accepted this responsibility as well, especially since Hanzo wouldn’t let anyone else come that close.
And the more recent development was that it was enough for anyone to even look at Tomas the wrong way (or if Hanzo perceived it as such) for the boy to start smouldering with anger. There could be no mistake here: he was talking about Smoke.
“Tomas cried?” Kuai Liang asked, now worried. Tomas had cried and, somehow, Kuai Liang was responsible for it; at least according to Hanzo. His heart sank at the thought of the younger man in tears. He had cried a lot as a child, inconsolably, seemingly unable to stop, but Scorpion hadn’t seen it happening ever since Tomas was about eleven, maybe twelve or thirteen years old; he couldn’t remember the exact age. The only reply he got was an accusatory glare from the boy in his grasp. His anger didn’t disappear, but, at least, he stopped fighting, likely tiring himself out, at least to some extent.
He walked the boy to his room in the house he shared with Tomas, hoping he would, eventually, calm down in his own personal space.
“Stay here. We’ll talk about your unacceptable behaviour later. I have to find Tomas,” Grandmaster said. Hanzo’s anger was suddenly replaced with concern that for one brief moment became visible on his face. “Don’t worry. I’ll deal with it,” Kuai Liang assured him. He shook his head, leaving the room. Honestly, this boy…
Of course, children tended to overreact, and to someone this young even a small problem could appear much more serious than it actually was, but Kuai Liang had a bad feeling about this. He had to find Tomas. As soon as possible.
“Is everything alright?” Harumi asked him, waiting outside the house, her eyes full of worry. “I’ve heard Hanzo was having an episode.”
“Yes, but he’s calming down now. I’ll check on him later,” Kuai Ling promised, never explaining what had happened, because he wasn’t quite sure himself.
He could feel her eyes following him as he was walking away, deep in thought.
Tomas was nowhere to be found. One of the clan members told him that Smoke had swapped shifts with someone else and left to patrol their territory an hour or so earlier. Which meant he wouldn’t come back till late evening. Kuai Liang suspected that Tomas wanted to clear his head on his own. He could track him down without much trouble, but decided against it.
Was he really to blame for whatever was going on with his younger brother? He was trying and failing to remember what he could have possibly done to hurt him in any way, with word or action. But, still, nothing came to mind.
Last time he had seen Tomas was the previous evening when Kuai Liang and Harumi had announced their engagement. It was nothing official just yet, because they were too busy managing the clan, so they hadn’t decided on a date yet.
There had been a small, very modest celebration.
“Congratulations. You couldn’t have made a better choice,” Tomas had said quietly with a smile, which was the only thing he had said during the entire evening, from what Kuai Liang could remember now. Looking back, he realised that the small smile appeared somewhat forced. The younger man wasn’t a very good liar when anything personal was involved. Grandmaster had been too distracted to pay attention back then, and later forgot about it altogether. Tomas had definitely left the dining hall early, probably never finishing his meal. Kuai Liang hadn’t even noticed exactly when it had happened, but he could remember the younger man slowly and gradually moving towards the exit. At first, he had been sitting next to Grandmaster. Next time Scorpion had seen him exchanging a few words with someone halfway across the hall, then he had seen the younger man at the doors, and, finally, he was nowhere to be seen again. During the entire evening their eyes had never met, and Kuai Liang wished it wasn’t the case, because sometimes it was enough for him to know that something was wrong.
Though, at times, it just confused him further.
“You don’t have to do this, Tomas. I know this is a lot. Starting everything from scratch… You never exactly felt at home with the Lin Kuei. As much as my parents loved you, other people there didn’t make your life easy. And now, you have to leave even that life behind and start something new entirely. If you want to find anyone from your biological family, a relative, perhaps, anyone you can still remember, you’re free to do so. You can go back to Prague, if that is your wish. You were never given a chance like this, and everything was decided for you. I want you to choose what’s best for you,” Kuai Liang told him one day when the Shirai Ryu had just started to form. Tomas’ biological and adoptive families were both gone now, what if there was someone, anyone, he remembered from his life before the Lin Kuei? What if he didn’t want to continue this path at all and wanted to live a normal life, but felt obligated to go with his adoptive brother, for some reason? Kuai Liang wanted to give him options, to make the younger man aware that he had them. He wanted to say something else, but his mind went blank, as soon as he looked into Smoke’s eyes.
Tomas looked hurt at the suggestion. It looked slightly similar to the times when Bi-Han had said something really cruel to him. Yet this was quite different. Did Tomas feel rejected? Did he imagine that Kuai Liang was trying to what? Send him away? Before he tried to explain that it wasn’t the case at all, Tomas replied:
“I have no one else. You’re all I have. I love you more than anything in this world. Of course, I’m with you in this.” The words were quiet, almost shy. Kuai Liang was slightly taken aback and really touched by them. He meant it as a brotherly affection, right? Because Tomas had no other family left? Their eyes met.
And there was that look. Disarming. Astoundingly deep, silver eyes, full of incomprehensible, deep feelings; something reserved for Kuai Liang alone and made his heart skip a beat almost every time. He was somewhat used to Tomas looking at him like that. When they were younger it had often been accompanied by the teenage boy’s cheeks turning pink from Kuai Liang’s praise or his suggestions to spend time together, be it going for a walk or training together, or anything else, really.
His memories threw him even further back into their past. It was irrelevant at the moment, but he couldn’t help it.
The boy was small, but, somehow, made himself look even smaller. He had been with them for a little over a month now, still afraid of everyone and still, understandably, hurting from the shocking loss of his family that he had witnessed. He had been brought to the palace completely unresponsive and covered in some blood; not his own, but either his sister’s or mother’s.
Kuai Liang’s mother tried to communicate with the boy, took care of him, and her gentleness had started to pay off, because he sometimes clung to her, in search for comfort and protection, probably because she was a caring woman; a mother. At least, he didn’t try to run and hide from her. But he still was a complete mystery to all of them. He currently lived in one of her personal chambers, next to her bedroom, so she was always accessible to him, and she hoped that him being within her personal space would, in time, make the boy feel safe.
That was where Kuai Liang found him. He had come to talk to his mother, but she was busy in her study, so he thought it was best if he came back later. But, before leaving, he decided to check on the little boy. As soon as he entered the room, the skittish child immediately hid behind a dresser next to the window. It didn’t deter Kuai Liang, who approached anyway and knelt next to the young foreigner who was hugging his knees.
“Are you hiding again?” Kuai Liang sighed softly. It was obvious that the boy didn’t understand their language at all. And none of the languages they knew. Perhaps, he thought, a friendly voice and demeanour would be helpful. His mother used her gentle and… motherly voice with the boy, and, despite the language barrier, he appeared more or less at ease with her now.
“They keep calling you ‘little boy’ or ‘foundling’. But I wish we knew your real name. I’m Kuai Liang. Kuai,” he said, pointing at himself. Then he pointed his hand at the boy. He repeated it again before, finally, the child looked in his direction, but never at him.
“Tomas,” he, finally, replied, so quietly that the older boy could barely hear. But he knew immediately that it was a name, not just a word. A European name. Eastern European version of it, perhaps? He wasn’t sure. But it was a start.
“To-mas… Tomas,” he repeated, making sure he put stress on the correct syllable (the name actually ended with ‘sh’, rather than ‘s’, but, sometime later, for some reason, everyone would just start mispronouncing it, calling him Tomas, with ‘s’, and he never bothered to correct them). The boy nodded, and, for the first time, tentatively met Kuai Liang’s eyes for a brief second. His were deep and silver, and full of uncertainty.
Kuai Liang decided to not stop at that and took a pen and a piece of paper. He wrote ‘12’ on it, using both Arabic and Roman numbers, because Chinese numbers would make no sense to their new resident.
“So, how old are you, Tomas? I’m twelve,” he said, pointing at himself again and then at the paper. Tomas understood, and when Kuai Liang gave him the pen, wrote number ‘6’ on the paper…
Tomas tended to keep his eyes down and look at everybody in a somewhat covert manner, except for his adoptive mother. And only when he reached his teenage years, he really started to look at Kuai Liang. Openly, but so differently, comparing to how he looked at Mother, or anyone else for that matter. Scorpion was trying to make sense of the longing he could sometimes see in his adopted brother’s eyes, but failed every time. It was probably just how Tomas was, and there was no need to overthink anything.
What was bothering him so much now? Kuai Liang was exasperated, because answers stubbornly evaded him. He decided to distract himself with the pressing matters related to the clan. It wasn’t like him to laze about or brood, especially given the fact that there was always so much to do. Paperwork alone was overwhelming.
Finally, he was back. He was late; later than he should’ve ended his shift, as if he really hadn’t been in a hurry to come back.
Kuai Liang had been waiting for him at the house that Tomas now shared with Hanzo, not far from his own and close to the main building of their settlement.
“Is everything alright?” Tomas asked. He looked calm and guarded.
“That’s what I want you to tell me,” Grandmaster replied.
“Why? Everything’s fine. Nothing suspicious at our borders.”
“Tomas, what’s going on? What happened yesterday?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, but I’m tired. I’d like to bathe and go to sleep now, if you don’t mind”. He walked past Kuai Liang, entering the house and quickly taking his boots off. His demeanour was a little cold, but it was concealing nervousness behind it, Scorpion could tell.
“We need to talk,” he insisted, following the younger man inside. Tomas stopped and looked at him over his shoulder, but never letting their eyes meet.
“Do you want a report?”
“No, I don’t want a report. I want to talk to my brother,” Scorpion replied, keeping his emotions in check. This was getting a little frustrating now. For some reason, Smoke frowned at his words.
“Please, like I said, I’m tired. We can talk another time.”
“Tomas, look at me,” Kuai Liang said, a little firmer now. He wanted to see.
“Good night, Kuai,” the younger man almost whispered, voice trembling ever so slightly, and disappeared into his bedroom, sliding the shoji door closed behind him almost frantically. Scorpion wanted to force it open and demand answers this time, not ask for them, but he knew that it would only make things worse. And he respected Tomas too much to do anything of that kind.
Kuai Liang was a straightforward man. He didn’t understand this. But Hanzo was right (not in the way the boy had expressed his concerns, of course): something was seriously wrong.
Notes:
Sorry if it was short and not particularly eventful. I'm going to turn up the heat in the next chapter.
Komments are welcome!
Chapter 2: Running and Hiding
Notes:
Tomas is a mess.
I promised you angst! I hope you're ready.-
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Tomas had no choice but avoid Kuai Liang as much as he possibly could, making sure they only talked to each other when others were around, and always about something that had anything to do with their clan. He did everything in his power to ignore Grandmaster’s eyes looking at him; attentively, encouragingly, expectantly, wanting answers, trying to read him. So, he closed himself off even more to avoid for it to actually happen. Kuai Liang was sparing them both the humiliation of abusing his power to make them stay alone together so that he could confront his subordinate. He was a good person, and, as much as Smoke knew the older man wanted to talk, he also didn’t want to push it (and he would’ve had to push really hard for it to happen, because Tomas was adamant to keep his mouth shut). Maybe he was waiting when Smoke was ready to open up to him of his own accord? But that was not going to happen. Tomas hoped that Kuai Liang would just forget about it in time and let go. It would be best for both of them.
He should’ve been ready for this, really. It was a logical and expected step for Kuai Liang to, finally, propose to Harumi. They’d been together for a while now; something had been there since their teenage years, and Tomas had thought he was prepared for it to result in something even more serious. But, by the gods, he hadn’t been prepared in the slightest. When the engagement had been announced, the void inside him threatened to consume him entirely there and then, in front of everyone. Everything had gone silent, and he’d felt as if he was in a vacuum, his whole world had become distant, as if it wasn’t real at all. He felt both empty and hurt at the same time. And it was so stupid to feel that way. What right did he have? He may be young, but he wasn’t a teen anymore, and he had to deal with it accordingly, instead of breaking down and sobbing his heart out that very evening, loud enough to startle Hanzo in another room; again. He was a lousy guardian for a child. Completely unfit for purpose.
It appeared, there was only one thing he was really good at: losing people he cared about, one way or another.
Tomas had fallen hard for a good man, who was off-limits, for more than one reason. Kuai Liang couldn’t find out about it. Ever.
Harumi wasn’t going easy on him. Her katana had almost injured him several times by now, and she wasn’t really holding back, even though it was just a practice fight. Whatever it was, neither of the two won, because the blade of Harumi’s katana was pressed against his throat, almost hard enough to cut, but not quite, after she’d put him on his knees, but, at the same time, Tomas’ karambit was pressed against her ribs (the other one lay on the ground somewhere nearby, knocked out of his hand earlier). If he pressed any harder, he would’ve injured her. Which he’d never do, of course.
“What did I do to rile you up so much?” he, finally, confronted her when she let him go and took the blade away from his throat, her normally kind eyes unusually cold. He got up and faced her, checking his throat with his fingertips. His skin was completely intact, as she had been in control and very aware of her strength. As much as he sometimes liked the challenge, he really wasn’t in the mood for it now, and something was clearly wrong.
“I wasn’t sure how else I could shake you out of… that state and get your attention for everything I intend to say to you,” she answered unemotionally. Tomas already didn’t like where this was going, even though he had no idea what it was all about just yet.
“Harumi, whatever I did to upset you, I…”
“Stop,” she sighed, almost softly, emphasising the word with a gesture of her hand. For that one moment, he saw the Harumi he knew, but then her eyes hardened again. “This cannot go on. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you?”
“I don’t,” he shook his head.
“Kuai Liang and your ‘secret’ feelings for him,” she explained. He immediately felt nauseous, his heart froze in his chest. Could the ground, please, open up and swallow him? Because he couldn’t take this. All of a sudden, Harumi, of all people, knew something he could barely acknowledge even inside his own mind. And she just talked about it so matter-of-factly, too.
“No, that’s not…” he started weakly.
“If you insist on denying it, I will have to keep twisting the knife. Don’t make me. You may call him your brother… By the way, when was the last time you called him that? …But your heart doesn’t see him as such, does it?”
He looked around, panicked, afraid that someone could hear her. But others were quite far away, busy with their own training. He was reeling. Maybe this was all just a nightmare?
“I want everything to be clear between the three of us, so, before we set the date of the wedding, I want you to tell him; better sooner rather than later.”
“Why are you doing this to me?” he managed to ask after a pause, during which he couldn’t speak at all. “I'm not doing it. I won't. How do you expect me to tell him when I can’t even wrap my own head around it?”
“Regardless, you will tell him. Or I will.”
“I never thought of you as cruel.”
“Trust me, it brings me no joy. When I first noticed it, you were younger. I thought you’d outgrow it, but it’s as clear as day that I was wrong.”
“It doesn’t matter!” Tomas exclaimed. There was no point in denying anything now. “This is my problem, not yours. I can keep it to myself till the end of my days. I don’t have to tell him anything, because I would never jeopardise your relationship. I’m not a threat to you.” He tried to negotiate now that he could form coherent sentences. He had to find a way out of this. He was desperate. “Thinking otherwise is laughable.”
“I’m giving you one week. Do it for all three of us,” she said, making it clear that she would accept no arguments or excuses. She turned to leave.
“He's not going to believe you anyway,” Tomas tried, helplessly. He couldn’t remember ever feeling so mortified. He wanted to shrivel up and die.
“Trust me, he is going to believe me. Don’t let it come to that.”
That was it. Now he was going to lose Kuai Liang even as his family. He had never thought of Harumi as malicious. She was clever, very clever, and it would be strange if she didn’t see that if Tomas confessed his stupid feelings to Kuai, the latter would turn away from him in disgust and become cold and detached, and then Tomas would lose him completely. They would be nothing to each other; Tomas would be left behind all alone, losing the only person he thought he still had, apart from Hanzo. Did she want to ruin it all with his own hands?
He had such a hard time concentrating that he had no choice but apologise and end his lesson with Hanzo sooner than he was supposed to. The boy had actually pushed him softly to make him return to the harsh reality (not that it was much better to be trapped inside his own head right now. No place could provide escapism anymore). The words in the books had stopped making sense a while ago, so there was no point in continuing.
A few days later, when they all were having their meals in the dining hall (everything kept getting stuck in Tomas’ throat, or so it felt like, and appeared tasteless, which was why he’d barely eaten for the last few days), Harumi wouldn’t stop looking at him pointedly. Her very eyes were telling him that his time was running out. Two more days and he was screwed, his life ruined. Kuai Liang was looking at the two of them, pensive eyes travelling from one to the other and back, but Tomas barely noticed it, which was no surprise, because now there was a wall between the two of them, metaphorically speaking.
Two more days had passed. He couldn’t sleep all night, and his headache was killing him now. There was only one thing he could do now, because his time had run out, and Harumi had probably already revealed his secret and doomed him. Physically removing himself from this situation was tempting enough that he got up and started packing. He’d thought things were getting better and he could build a new life for himself in this new clan, with the person he loved, without Bi-Han’s cold shadow always looming over him, simply because he had the audacity to exist.
Back when the Shirai Ryu had only been founded, Kuai Liang had told him that he could just leave and find another path. Alright, to be fair, the older man had simply given Tomas a choice, in case he wanted to do something else with his life. But it had stung, badly, because Tomas wanted to be… wanted. And needed. He wanted to matter. To be irreplaceable. To be held and not let go.
But what kind of place this was going to be for him now? Harumi, as it had turned out, hated his guts. And, if Grandmaster’s soon-to-be wife felt like that about him, he would know no peace here. Kuai Liang would want nothing to do with him anymore. Tomas had lost everything yet again.
He had nowhere to go. He didn’t know where to go. The only thing he could think of was ask one of their friends to give him a temporary shelter for him to bawl his eyes out for days and then think of what to do with his miserable life next.
Tomas didn’t take much. Just some clothes, bare necessities and things he held dear, such as family pictures (he only owned a few, with both of his lost families), his sister’s stuffed toy rabbit, which was smaller than a palm of his hand and she’d liked to take it with her everywhere, because it barely took any space. There were also his mother’s gold bracelet and a matching chain with a small pendant, and some things from his adoptive family, too. The things from his biological family had been given to him after their burial; his mum and twin sister had been buried in the Lin Kuei territory, and he wondered if their graves were going to be destroyed now, but he didn’t think Bi-Han even remembered about them at all, so they were likely safe from his wrath. Tomas had managed to retrieve all those precious things before the clan had been informed of his desertion with Kuai Liang. He couldn’t imagine leaving them behind.
He knew how to escape the Shirai Ryu territory without alerting the members of the clan who were currently guarding it, because he couldn’t bear answering any questions now or talking to anybody at all. He was in the forest in no time, throwing one last glance at the settlement that he’d put so much effort to help built, because he believed in the idea and because he’d had hopes back then. It was still night. The morning would come in a couple of hours and he would never have to face the consequences of not being in control of his feelings.
The farther away he was, the harder it all became. Walking away was not liberating. Suddenly, he remembered his training with Liu Kang, who had helped the clan form and visited them quite often back then. The god had tried to build bridges between the two of them, knowing that Smoke was hurt and angry with him, because ‘some ties had to be cut’, which, apparently, was all that Tomas’ murdered family had been; as if their lives had meant nothing, as if their blood on the cold ground hadn’t stained his entire existence, as if their lifeless faces didn’t continue to haunt him, as if he didn’t sometimes wish he’d joined them back when it all had happened, taking his last breath as he was holding his dying twin in his arms.
“Kuai Liang needs you for the battles ahead,” the god warned him.
“I’ll always be there for him, Liu Kang,” Tomas assured. Because there was simply no other way, and he needed no god to tell him that.
He felt nauseous remembering it, and he barely noticed how his own steps slowed down. He couldn’t leave. Even if Kuai Liang didn’t really need him anymore. Even if they became completely disconnected. He would become a quiet shadow, a thin cloud of smoke, not getting in the way. He would do anything and everything in his power to make sure Kuai Liang had his support; anything Tomas could provide. He’d do it even if it killed him. Literally. Even if Harumi wanted him gone from Scorpion’s life, he couldn’t just leave. He didn’t even have to talk about anything with Kuai Liang ever again, except for the things that had anything to do with the clan.
And then there was Hanzo...
Hanzo, who was currently following him! Shocked, Smoke stopped in his tracks and turned round; the boy stopped a few steps away from him, face unreadable. He was barefoot and dishevelled from only recently waking up. Tomas almost fell to his knees in despair. Even if he continued to run away, Hanzo would follow him; that much was obvious. It would be so unfair to tear the boy away from the place he had gotten used to calling home by now, even if it hadn’t felt like it in the beginning. A child like him needed stability.
Without a word, Tomas took his hand, finding no resistance whatsoever, and turned back. The guards were surprised to see them entering the settlement, because they hadn’t seen anyone leaving in the first place (yes, Hanzo included). This weakness in their settlement's defence would have to be addressed... When the two approached their home, Tomas saw the last person he wanted to see at the moment: Harumi.
“Please, Hanzo, go inside. I’ll join you in a minute,” Tomas promised. The boy didn’t look convinced, and Smoke had to give him a nod of encouragement before Hanzo hesitantly entered. He probably lingered somewhere he could still see Tomas. It was hard to tell, because the lights inside were off.
Harumi looked serious, but somewhat compassionate, her arms folded on her chest.
“I wanted to leave,” Tomas stated the obvious, not even knowing why he had to explain himself at all. He was angry with her, angry with himself.
“I know. But I knew Hanzo and your duties would bring you back,” she replied.
“Sorry if I disappointed you. Isn’t it what you wanted? Me out of the picture,” he shrugged.
“No. That's not what I wanted. You misunderstood my motives. I didn’t want to drive you away from home,” she sighed.
“Did you send Hanzo after me?” Tomas scowled, as the thought suddenly occurred to him. If she used Hanzo…
“Of course, not!” she frowned, offended. “Even if it was the case, I’m not his favourite person at the moment for him to listen to anything I say. And he follows you around all the time, as you’re well aware.”
“Oh, I don’t know anymore,” he shrugged. He believed her, but still wanted to needle her. “You’re so manipulative. I don’t even know how I could be so wrong about you. Guess I’m just stupid.”
“Again, it brings me no joy. None of this. Hurting you, in particular.” Harumi massaged her temples lightly, as if she was getting a headache that matched his own. The gentleness of her voice hurt more than if she just beaten him senseless, here and now, and cut him into pieces with her katana. He almost wished she did (just not in front of Hanzo, please). He wouldn’t have even tried to stop her. But she treated him as if he was already gravely injured. Inside, he felt as if he was.
“Like I’ve told you before, we cannot go on like this,” she reminded.
“Like I have told you before, you overestimate my importance in Kuai Liang’s life. But you won’t listen.”
“He cares about you more than you can imagine. He will never be able to be happy, seeing how unhappy you are. Have you seen yourself lately? You’re the one who keeps driving wedges between the two of you, so don’t even try to pin this on me.”
“I don’t think he sees me as anything now.”
“Then you’re wrong. And I haven’t told him anything, yet.”
“Then do it!” he almost screamed, now desperate for all of this to just end. “No need to pretend being nice to me anymore. You’ve made it very clear what you think of me.”
“Tomas, you’re wrong. I do all of this, because it’s also my life we’re talking about. I have no intention to tie myself to someone who has unresolved problems like these, even if it's just on your side. It's not something to be left behind to fester; it has to be faced, for all of our sakes.”
“I have nothing to say anymore,” Tomas sighed. He could no longer even be angry with her. His head throbbed. He entered the house, but she still didn’t move as he was taking his boots off at the entrance.
“Is it really easier to just run away and leave everything behind, instead of sitting down and talking to him?” she asked before he had a chance to escape her voice in his bedroom. “You know he would’ve found you if you left, don’t you?” It was the last thing she said before he heard her walking away. Tomas wasn’t sure it was true. And it hurt.
“Why can’t you just marry him already and leave me be? He’s yours… What more can you possibly want?” he whispered mournfully into the silence.
He wanted to get at least a couple of hours of sleep, but there was a matter he still had to address. He found Hanzo watching him from the entrance of his room, as if making sure his guardian didn’t try to run away again. Tomas lowered himself on his knees in front of the boy.
“Hanzo, I’m so sorry. I will never leave you, I swear to you on my life. I’m sorry for being so selfish. You deserve better,” he said regretfully, and wrapped his arms around the child.
Usually, when Tomas held him on a very rare occasion, his charge didn’t exactly reciprocate. When he had tried it for the first time, the boy was as tense as a bow string. And, normally, Smoke respected the boundaries, but he just didn't know how else he could fully express what he felt at the moment. And now, for the first time, he felt the smaller arms loosely and tentatively wrapping themselves around him. It really, really wasn’t fair that the boy, especially one that had problems of his own, had to depend on a wreck like him, instead of being taken care of by someone who could help him heal; who could raise him properly. Who knew what they were doing.
But, regardless, Hanzo had chosen him. Why? Only gods knew. Tomas had used to believe that he would absolutely help this child, that maybe giving him home, food, love and spending time with him would suffice to make him move on from everything bad he’d had in the past (Hanzo still kept his secrets, but Tomas knew things had been bad). Which was an overconfident nonsense on his part. People who had raised him were parents to two sons; they had experience of raising children. They had accepted Tomas and they’d taken care of him, loved him even. But, despite that, he was carrying a void inside his soul that felt as if it could consume him any moment. How could he have possibly thought he could do a better job with Hanzo, just because the boy gravitated towards him? It was ridiculous to even fantasise about anything like that. Besides, he was already failing miserably. His actions today took the cake, because he had nearly abandoned a child who had, most likely, been betrayed and abandoned before.
If Harumi wanted to tell Kuai Liang everything, she was welcome to do so. Tomas would deny everything, stubbornly, like a broken record, over and over again. Already at his breaking point, he barely had anything left to lose, because he already considered Kuai Liang lost to him in every way possible. It was easier this way. He just had to get used to the thought. His heart was broken, so what? It hadn’t been whole for a very long time to begin with.
He started to work harder than ever for the good of the clan. He didn’t sleep for more than three or four hours a day, but it was good to tire himself out so much that he could barely think of anything at all. No more obsessive thoughts keeping him awake at night, because now he was asleep before his head hit the pillow. And no more blood-chilling nightmares about demons that occasionally plagued his nights.
Apart from their normal activities, he was now more determined to teach Hanzo to read and write, and he was actually improving his own skills as well in the process, because his own Japanese left much to be desired, which he thought was unacceptable, since they lived in Japan now (not to mention the fact that the vast majority of their clan members spoke Japanese as their first language), and just being able to speak wasn’t enough. He’d learned to speak it long ago in the Lin Kuei, as a part of his education, but reading and writing was something he wasn’t very good at. This was a good opportunity to fix it.
For quite some time now, Tomas had been trying to teach Hanzo other things that children learned at school, even though the boy didn’t particularly enjoy it. But the stories about the other realms were something he did enjoy a lot, judging by the amount of attention on his part. And now, Tomas made deals with him: if Hanzo studied well, he got more stories (hopefully, they weren't going to run out of them too soon, even though there was so much to tell). It annoyed the boy a little, but he cooperated. Teaching him anything wasn’t easy, since he continued to be his usual taciturn, moody self, but Tomas had long since learned to see understanding or confusion on his face and acted accordingly, in case something needed to be explained in more detail. Despite his peculiarities, he was a clever child. He hadn’t understood a word in Chinese back when Tomas had brought him here about seven months earlier, but now he seemed to understand what they talked about without effort, barely speaking himself, even though there were very few people here, apart from Kuai Liang and Tomas, who spoke it.
He started to pay more attention to Hanzo’s training, too, taking it more seriously now. It was good for the boy’s discipline and anger management, which both Grandmaster and he had long since established. There were other people who also trained him, but Tomas had to oversee it anyway. Hanzo could react to some things unpredictably, and, in response, other people could, potentially, react to his behaviour in ways that Smoke would find unacceptable, even if they meant well.
Other than that, the clan-related problems occupied the rest of his time. Minor issues, mostly, but a couple of more serious issues, too. Everything was important. And he kept avoiding Kuai Liang, as much as he could, even though he could feel Grandmaster’s eyes on him, seeing and analysing Tomas’ new vigour.
It wasn’t long before he overworked himself and was falling asleep on his feet. He once fell asleep on the floor of Hanzo’s room, surrounded by opened books, and woke up with Hanzo’s head on his shoulder, the boy also asleep next to him.
And now, he was sitting at the stone table in the garden and his eyes were closing on their own, his head too heavy for him to be able to keep himself upright. He was supposed to be on a patrolling duty in twenty minutes. There was no harm in taking a brief nap. Just for a few minutes... He leaned forward, putting his head onto his folded arms on the table, and sleep claimed him immediately. The chirping of birds, the subtle noise of water in a small pond, the plants bothered by a light wind were all so soothing…
A warm hand touched and lightly rubbed his upper back, and he gasped softly, waking up immediately, keenly aware of whose touch it was even without seeing the owner of the hand. He hadn’t been touched by Kuai Liang in a long time. It filled him with both pain and immense relief. He leaned into it with everything he had.
“Your back won’t thank you if you keep sleeping like this,” the beloved voice said softly behind him. He’d missed this voice so much. Kuai Liang’s voice, not just Grandmaster’s, to whom Tomas had been talking lately, making reports and discussing important things.
So much for moving on and accepting that Kuai Liang was forever lost to him. Tomas longed for him with his whole being: his mind, body, soul, spirit. Everything. Gods, he was pathetic.
Notes:
“Kuai Liang needs you for the battles ahead.”
“I’ll always be there for him, Liu Kang.”
This is an actual dialogue from the game during character interactions.Komments are welcome!
Chapter 3: Keep This Fire Burning
Notes:
This chapter picks up from where the previous one has ended.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
He didn’t currently have his watch on him, but, judging by the position of the sun, he’d been asleep for more than an hour. His shift!
“I… My shift…” he tried to get up, but Kuai Liang’s steady hands lay on his shoulders and made him sit back down. Tomas obeyed without a word. Everything inside him submitted to these hands and voice, as per usual.
“I’ve already arranged for someone else to go instead. You’re not going, Tomas. You’re exhausted. You’re going to fall ill if you don’t stop punishing yourself like this.”
“I’m not…” he tried to argue. Inside, he silently mourned the loss when the hands stopped touching him. But then Kuai Liang walked from behind him and sat down at the table across from him.
“I’m tired of you hiding from me. I’ve waited long enough, hoping you would come to me and tell me what’s eating on you and why you’ve become so distant. Perhaps, you and Harumi think I’m stupid, but whatever is going on here, I don’t approve of it,” Scorpion said seriously.
“She’s your fiancée. An old friend of yours. You know she would never have done anything unseemly, don’t you?” Tomas replied bitterly. It wasn’t exactly fair. She was so good to her husband-to-be; that wasn’t even open to debate. In fact, she was nice to pretty much everyone, other than Tomas. Of that he was quite certain.
“Would you rather she wasn’t my fiancée?” Kuai Liang suddenly asked, still as calm as before, which couldn’t be said about the younger man, who was feeling increasingly anxious about this conversation.
“What kind of question is this? She’s going to make you happy and you’ll be able to have a proper family with her,” he said. It was the truth, plain and simple.
“That’s not what I asked.”
“Then what is it all about?” Tomas sighed, tired and confused.
“If you want me to rephrase it, fine. I want to know if you have romantic feelings for me.”
“She told you…” Smoke whispered, startled. His heart jumped and he was prepared to run for cover. She had done it. Now that he had no longer expected it to happen at any given moment, she’d gone and done it.
“No. But I’ve figured out that she’s been holding something over your head; probably not anymore, my guess. You forget how long I’ve known both of you. And you’ve been avoiding me like the plague, so I’ve had plenty of time to think about everything. I admit I was in denial for a long time. I thought I imagined everything. But all I had to do was give a proper name to what I saw.”
“What does it matter?! I want you to be happy. It’s all that matters to me. What I feel apart from that isn’t important.”
“It is important to me.”
“No. Please, let me keep at least some of my dignity. You know now. Congratulations! Let’s not talk about it ever again.” Tomas couldn’t believe they were having this conversation at all.
“Why not? We haven’t even started to talk about it,” Kuai Liang insisted, softly. He wasn’t forcing it, but he appeared pretty determined to not let it go either this time.
“Because… Because I can’t bear the thought of you hating me.” Tomas’ voice, finally, broke. And something inside him broke as well. There, he'd said it. And felt himself shaking. No way he was going to start crying now and make his humiliation complete. How could he just confess that the other man had practically been the centre of his universe for a few years now? His heart may be broken, but he still wanted to guard it from more pain.
“Hating you for what? Having feelings? I could never hate you, Tomas. Look at me,” Kuai Liang said softly. At first Tomas couldn’t, afraid of what the older man would be able to see (a wreck, probably), afraid of what he would see in return (pity, probably). But then, he let their eyes meet, rewarding Kuai Liang’s patience. What he saw was kindness, rather than pity. He didn’t dare move, because he couldn’t trust himself not to move too close… or run away. Gods, what was he going to do? There was a reason why he had avoided Kuai so diligently. And now it all decided to catch up with him with vengeance.
He was the first one to break their eye contact. Feeling drained, he put his head back onto his arms, folded on top of the table. He felt like explaining now that there wasn’t much left to lose.
“I suppose Bi-Han drilled it into my head that I wasn’t a real brother to either of you, even though your parents treated me so well, and I saw them as mine, too. And you also was good to me. I don’t know… I’ve known you since I was six. But you’ve been friends with Harumi since the two of you were children, yet you don’t see her as your sister. So… You’re my brother in the name only. I don’t know if that makes sense to you. When I was very young, I think I did start to see you as my brother, but it didn’t last and you became more like a friend. And then, more than a friend when I was, like… fifteen, I’m not sure.” He really needed to shut up now. It took him some effort to give the older man a side glance, but he could see no judgement in response to what he’d just said.
“You said you wanted me to be happy, but that’s the same thing I want for you,” Kuai Liang confessed after a pause.
“Guess I just don’t do happy,” Tomas replied quietly.
“It’s not true. I have seen you happy. For example, that one time when you managed to control your magic enough to lift yourself up in the air for the first time.”
“Happy? I thought I looked terrified,” Tomas chuckled despite himself and sat upright again, as tired as he felt. “I wasn’t even that high above the ground, but I thought I’d lose control, fall and break all of my bones.”
“That’s why I stood right below you the whole time,” Scorpion said, a little amused.
“You would’ve caught me,” Tomas agreed quietly, voice thick with emotion, suddenly realising that it was the truth, as he remembered that day. Kuai Liang had been there for him.
“You did look happy.”
“I think I was,” he admitted. Good memories were precious to him. Time tended to make most of them less happy when he looked back. Being reminded of something good in such a manner right now caused mixed emotions; mostly pleasant, though. But he had to come back to reality at present. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to create any problems for you,” he sighed. Kuai Liang was so busy leading and improving the clan and probably consumed by the thoughts of his upcoming wedding (no, Tomas didn’t want to think about it now); last thing he needed was a lovesick idiot pining for him.
“Tomas, it’s alright. I promise. Go have some proper sleep. You’re free for the rest of the day and for tomorrow.” The last sentence was Grandmaster’s order and sounded like one. But then… “Remember, you’re precious to me and always will be. I’m sorry for not showing you how much I appreciate you.” He then got up, slowly leaned down and kissed the side of Tomas’ head. It was unexpected and the younger man’s breath hitched in his chest. And yet, it felt bittersweet, because the kiss was so chaste; something friendly or brotherly. He was, however, touched by the words, so much so that he couldn’t say anything in response.
Kuai Liang walked him to his house and insisted that he went to bed immediately. Tomas didn’t argue and did exactly what he was told. But how was he supposed to fall asleep after something like that?
Thankfully, his fatigue overpowered him soon enough, and he did fall asleep, still feeling the other man's lips on his head, the roots of his hair tingled. He wanted the sensation to linger; to stay with him forever, so he held onto it.
It was no longer there when he woke up the next morning, feeling better, but still needing some more time after not taking a very good care of himself for a few weeks now.
He remembered his conversation with Kuai Liang in detail. The bitter-sweetness of it all was back. Everything about it felt a little surreal now. The cat was out of the bag, so what? Tomas hadn’t been kicked out of the clan. But nothing felt resolved either; maybe because Kuai Liang had a soft spot for him and was just too nice to tell Tomas to fuck off and live his own life.
His aching body felt less stiff after a nice bath. The dark circles around his eyes were still there, but he looked better. Hanzo wasn’t in his room, so Tomas decided to find him and see what he was up to. One of their men told him he’d seen the boy on the training ground.
While his presence hadn’t yet been noticed, Tomas just stood there and watched Kuai Liang training with Hanzo. The latter, as always, was fascinated with his fire abilities. He even tried to touch the fire, but Kuai chuckled and made it disappear before the boy got burned.
As a child, Tomas had used to have nightmares about being set on fire and burned alive, screaming in agony for what felt like hours, until all that was left of him were charred remains. Only once that dream had been particularly vivid, and he couldn’t wake up from it. But, as time had passed, dreams like that no longer tormented him, because he’d started to associate fire with Kuai Liang. It was warm, and it was never used against him in order to hurt him. It was under control when they trained together. It would brush against him to indicate that he’d been hit, yet it never left any serious burns on his body.
When Grandmaster noticed Smoke, he took a break and approached him.
“I didn’t want him to wake you up, so I took him with me to watch how our trainees were doing. And then he was interested in training with me,” he explained.
“I bet he loved it,” Tomas smiled softly. He knew Hanzo absolutely loved it.
“Are you feeling better?” Kuai Liang asked, taking a good look at him.
“Yes.” It was almost the truth. He did feel better; physically.
“Then why don’t you join us?”
“Alright.”
Gods, please, don’t let it be pity or duty, instead of Kuai Liang actually wanting to spend some time with him. Tomas felt too guarded to hope for the better. Acceptance of the reality was something he had to find and embrace. But it was still stubbornly out of his reach.
Almost two weeks later, he found Grandmaster moving some of his things to the main building of their settlement where he, normally, worked.
“What are you doing?” Smoke couldn’t help asking.
“I decided to move to the main building. There are several unused rooms, and everything I could possibly need is there.”
“What? But why? What about Harumi? Is she moving as well?”
“No, she’s going to have that house all for herself.” Scorpion was surprisingly calm about it. He was talking about the house, where he lived with her ever since it had been built. Not anymore, apparently.
“Kuai Liang, what happened?” Tomas almost whispered, worried and confused.
“Let’s just say, we decided to break it off. At least for now.”
“Are you out of your mind?! Why would you do that for?!” Great, now he’d ruined two more lives, apart from his own.
“She was the one who suggested it,” Grandmaster pointed out, ignoring his outburst.
“And you agreed to it?” How was this possible? “It’s because of me, isn’t it?” he asked carefully.
“You’re not to blame,” Kuai Liang assured, but Tomas couldn’t believe it. “We talked. A lot. About everything.” The way he said it was making it clear that it was just between the two of them, and not for Tomas’ ears. Scorpion wasn’t normally so evasive, unless he had someone else’s secrets to keep, not just his own.
“But you love her.”
“Regardless, all of this is unfair to her. She’s right about that.”
“I’m sorry,” Tomas said quietly. It was sincere. He knew he was to blame.
“Don’t be.”
“What’s going to happen now?”
“Nothing. We’re still friends, and I expect her to continue doing her very best for the good of the clan. I expect the same from you.”
“You can count on it.”
Tomas helped him move. The rooms were quite nice, indeed, and would make a great living space, separated from the working area. A fitting place for a grandmaster. Harumi actually helped with the move as well. Tomas was cautious around her, not knowing what to expect, but she didn’t appear angry with either of them. In fact, she and Kuai Liang were pretty at ease with each other, or so it seemed. It was so confusing.
When she left to spend some extra time training with a newbie who had potential, but had fallen behind others, Tomas couldn’t keep his mouth shut anymore.
“Kuai… Why?”
“We decided it was for the best.” And, again, he was evasive.
“It makes no sense.”
“You refused to talk to me for weeks. Kept everything to yourself for years, actually. But now you want answers from me?” Kuai Liang teased him lightly. Tomas felt his face warming up at that. He really had nothing to counter such a statement. But Grandmaster spared him: “There are no easy answers. I did have a moment when I started to feel something for you several years ago. And Harumi knows it, because we share everything.” The confession was so unexpected that Tomas’ mind almost blacked out.
“You have thought about me that way?” he forced out. His heart was beating faster now, but he could barely feel it.
“Yes,” was all he got in return, frustratingly enough. And Harumi knew about it? Then she should’ve confronted Kuai Liang in the first place, instead of tormenting Tomas like that, he thought sullenly. But then, whatever Kuai Liang had felt for him was likely gone by now, whereas Smoke’s feelings were very obvious to her.
“And?” he, again, forced out, simply unable to form anything more complex.
“And I made myself stop, because I thought it was wrong,” Kuai Liang answered. It was expected, but no less painful to hear. At least he’d chosen to say ‘thought it was wrong’, not ‘knew it was wrong’, which would’ve been a dig at Tomas, who couldn’t just ‘stop’.
“Just like that?” He did his best to not let the disappointment become obvious in his voice. Of course, Scorpion was always in command and in control, it was a well-known fact, but, for goodness sake, this was something else… Gods. Tomas could have asked why that momentary crush, or whatever it had been, mattered at all. Why it had any impact on what was happening now, considering the fact that Kuai Liang had, apparently, destroyed it all at the root (or simply lost interest before it had developed into anything that mattered; like a momentary eclipse that had come and gone). But, instead of screaming at him in frustration, which Tomas really wanted to do right now, he asked, despite himself: “Can you… start thinking about me like that again?” It was a silly way to say it, but Tomas was too desperate to care. If there was even a tiny chance…
“I need time to think about everything, Tomas. Like I said before, the clan should be our first priority. Always. In regards to everything else… Give me time.”
“Just don’t give me any false hopes now.” Smoke’s voice trembled slightly. But, damn it all to the Netherrealm, he already had hopes, blossoming inside him suddenly, like a lavish rose garden in a dark, old, abandoned cemetery; most likely to be burned to the ground later. “…Or do. Please, do.” Because he really needed something to hold on to even if it killed him later. He didn't know which was worse.
“No. I would never do anything like that to you,” Kuai Liang replied adamantly. And Tomas didn’t know if he should be grateful and feel respected or apprehensive and even more desperate than before. No other person was capable of making him feel anything like this.
In the evening, when the space of Kuai Liang’s new rooms appeared to be liveable and actually quite cosy, Tomas offered for the two of them to have some saké. The bottle was Kenshi’s gift that had arrived months earlier. They rarely allowed themselves to let their hair down, but maybe this was an appropriate occasion. He wasn’t sure which one of them needed it more.
He had only tried drinking a couple of times before, and he knew he was a lightweight, so it didn’t take long for him to relax and lose some of his self-control. His tongue became loose, too.
“I’m sure in some of those numerous worlds out there Kuai Liang and Harumi are happy together.” He couldn’t know it, of course. He just felt like saying it all of a sudden.
“And Tomas is also happy in those worlds,” Grandmaster chuckled, still seemingly sober and amused.
“No. That Tomas died together with his mum and sister, and nobody even remembers he ever existed, not even those who killed him,” Smoke replied indifferently, looking at the ceiling blankly.
“No, Tomas. Don’t say things like that,” Kuai Liang frowned, slightly concerned. Tomas didn’t want to ruin the mood, but the words had simply escaped him, unfiltered. There really was no point in thinking about anything like that though. Everything was different in other universes, whereas their lives were here and now. And, okay, he was tipsy.
“You can still reconcile with her.”
“We’ll see,” was all he got in response. Kuai Liang’s tone suggested that he wanted Smoke to stop obsessing over it all.
Tomas wasn’t sure it was a good look for Kuai Liang to announce the engagement weeks ago and then for it all to just go nowhere. But then, Grandmaster commanded so much respect that it was highly unlikely to cause any type of displeasure within their ranks. It seemed, Harumi was doing some careful damage control by subtly spreading the word that both Grandmaster and she were busy and working hard to improve the Shirai Ryu and they decided to put their personal matters aside, for now. The first part of it, at least, was completely true.
Nearly five months later, Tomas started to think that Kuai Liang’s silence on the whole matter was an answer in and of itself. At first, he had been impatient, waiting for something, anything. He even felt the urge to try and push his beloved into making a decision, almost like an annoying child who kept asking ‘are we there yet?’, but always stopped himself on time. That would've been so selfish of him, not to mention insolent, since he still believed it was his fault that the wedding had never taken place; not out of self-importance or anything like that, but because he had created the problem that resulted in the break-up.
And yet, now he was more inclined to think that whatever Kuai Liang had briefly felt for him when they were younger was gone for good.
It didn’t appear that he had resumed his relationship with Harumi either. They were close friends and spent plenty of time together, but Tomas didn’t see anything romantic going on between the two, unless they had got back together in secret and kept it quiet out of pity for him.
Kuai Liang didn’t change his mind easily. He had principles and beliefs that he always remained loyal to. So, Tomas didn’t think there were any chances that his feelings would ever be returned. If only his stubborn heart could accept it as a fact.
Today Grandmaster sent him to keep an eye on one of their clan members who tended to disappear recently, which was suspicious. They had enemies, and while their location was kept secret, they just couldn’t be too careful. The man, Shingo his name was, was only three years older than Tomas; he was a good fighter and he was hard-working, too. But his loyalty was now under investigation. It was Saturday today, and Shingo tended to disappear on Saturdays, as it had turned out.
Tomas was ready for his solo mission, but, of course, Hanzo decided to act up today when one of the young trainees shoved him out of the way in the dining hall, which was, most likely, a result of boisterous carelessness, rather than anything purely intentional, let alone malicious. Hanzo decided to ‘fix’ the injustice by throwing a bowl of hot soup at him. And, of course, Tomas had to calm down the situation. Thankfully, it didn’t take much time and effort, because everyone in their clan knew that their youngest had a temper, and they were, pretty much, used to it by now. Fortunately for everyone, including the boy himself, such outbursts had been happening less and less often lately. Slightly exasperated, but not angry, Tomas made it clear that they were going to have to talk about the incident, and Hanzo was grounded to their home.
Smoke almost missed the moment Shingo had departed. Luckily, he was able to track the man down very early on and quietly followed him to the nearest town, which was quite far away from their settlement, only to find him meeting a woman in the abandoned, unkempt, yet still beautiful, garden in the outskirts of the town. He was obviously smitten with her, kissing her face all over, her hands. Tomas was relieved, not expecting to find something so innocent, instead of exposing a traitor who spied on them for their enemies. Investigating the woman revealed nothing suspicious about her. She was two years older than Shingo, worked as a doctor at the local hospital and currently lived with her married sister and brother-in-law (the latter, it appeared, wasn’t very happy about that fact). Saturday was her day off, which was the reason Shingo disappeared nearly every Saturday.
Tomas hoped Kuai Liang wouldn’t be too harsh with his punishment, even though Shingo was breaking the rules by leaving the settlement secretly. There was a risk that the man would run away with his girlfriend anyway, and they would lose a good fighter. Maybe they could even recruit the woman. She was a doctor, and they could really use more of them than they currently had. If she was serious about Shingo, which appeared to be the case, maybe Kuai Liang could be persuaded to turn this situation to their clan’s advantage.
Smoke knew he had to be less lenient, especially with their safety being a priority, but being hopelessly in love himself, he couldn’t help sympathising with the other man. At least someone had a love life. He couldn’t blame him for it.
When Tomas came back to their settlement after his investigation, he went to report his findings to his Grandmaster. Kuai Liang seemed quite busy today.
“Is everything alright?” the younger man asked.
“I was supposed to leave for the meeting with our new potential allies tomorrow morning, but Harumi volunteered to go in my stead. I’m just making sure everything is in order. We’re expecting guests, and I’d rather be here when they arrive.”
“Who?”
“Takahashi, Cage and Syzoth.”
Turned out, Kenshi was serious about re-establishing his Taira clan, even though he still had plenty of work ahead of him if he wanted to free them all from Yakuza for good. But he already wanted to make some connections with the Shirai Ryu, and Kuai Liang was interested. Johnny and Syzoth had simply decided to accompany Kenshi for his visit.
Thank goodness, Tomas thought. Thank gods that never listened, cared or answered his prayers. At least, their friends would be a great distraction. He wanted to hear everything about Taira from Kenshi. He wanted Johnny to tell him everything about his new films, he wanted to hear all of his jokes; he’d laugh at all of them (well, to be fair, most of them were funny). He wanted Syzoth to tell him about his trips to Outworld. Just, please, he wanted a distraction. Life, after being unbearable for long weeks after the engagement announcement, stood still now, which had been the case for months.
“Tomas,” Kuai Liang’s slightly amused voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
“Yes?”
“Your report.”
“Um, yes. About Shingo…” Their eyes met and Tomas suddenly felt too warm. He looked away, composed himself and proceeded with his report, nonetheless.
Notes:
I hope this chapter wasn’t boring; rushing things would've been unrealistic, imo, so it had to be written this way. Please, keep in mind that it’s just the calm before the storm, and I’m going to make it up to you in the next chapter ten-fold. I mean it! :)
Love interests are often completely oblivious to the feelings of main characters, and sometimes it's okay, but that's just not Kuai Liang, and I couldn’t do it to him. He’s way too observant and perceptive, and it would’ve been out of character if he had no idea of what’s going on. He had to connect the dots, sooner or later.
Komments are welcome!
Chapter Text
The next day they welcomed their friends, and Tomas, for the first time in a long time, felt content. The five of them had a dinner together, discussing a lot of things that weren’t related to the main reason for this visit; there was a lot of small talk, banter and some news, and it all felt good, very good.
Later, when Kenshi and Kuai Liang decided to discuss their business, the others were left to their own devices. Johnny was happily spending time with his awed fans (because, yes, he did have some even here. And, yes, Tomas was a fan, too, but they were friends now, so it would've been odd for him to act like that). Meanwhile, Syzoth was playing hide and seek with Hanzo, blending with his surroundings and encouraging the boy to find him. Smoke thought Hanzo would dismiss the idea, annoyed that a child’s game like that had even been offered to him in the first place, but he ended up being quite interested instead. And Syzoth was baffled, because the boy managed to find him every time. It was unusual. Reptile even asked Tomas to check if his camouflage was working properly, feeling insecure all of a sudden. Tomas found nothing out of the ordinary. You had to be very attentive to see some distortion that most people would miss. But Reptile’s skill was as good as ever. When they asked Hanzo how he did it, the boy seemed unsure how to answer it, so he remained silent and just shrugged slightly.
The last thing anyone expected this evening was an attack. Not just an attack, but a well-organised, calculated raid on their territory. Tomas immediately instructed Hanzo to hide, covering his escape by fighting the attackers with all he had. Every building in their settlement had hiding places, and there were a couple of ways to reach the tunnel underground that led to the forest. He made sure their more experienced fighters either helped their newbies escape as well, or at least looked after them as much as they could.
They’d had drills, based on various scenarios of their settlement being attacked, but, clearly, they hadn’t been prepared enough. Their attackers were dressed as the Lin Kuei clan members and wore the clan’s emblem, but something wasn’t right. Tomas, however, had no time to think about it. Plus, he was secretly terrified at the thought that any moment now Bi-Han would appear.
They were quite outnumbered, and, in addition, quite a few people of the Shirai Ryu had gone with Harumi. Kuai Liang had sent some of their strongest with her, as something had made him suspicious. Smoke hoped she was okay, because, clearly, the whole thing was a setup to drive some of their people away from the settlement. What Smoke managed to notice was that the strangers appeared to be unprepared to see Kuai Liang, who was currently fighting them in all of his fiery glory. It made some of them… hesitant. And it wasn’t because he was a formidable opponent, who wielded fire on top of that; it was something else, but Tomas wasn’t sure about anything. He rushed to Scorpion’s side to assist him. The air was very hot, but he was used to it (he actually welcomed it now, because, to him, it felt protective).
They fought side by side and they were beaten down side by side, overwhelmed by the sheer number of the attackers. But another strange thing about it all was that said attackers aimed to capture and incapacitate them, not kill. They kept fighting even as they were being held down and tied with ropes, kneeling on the ground back to back. Their hands and arms were tied in a way that made it impossible for them to use their fire and smoke, or free themselves. The strangers knew what they were doing. In addition, Tomas’ hands were tied to Kuai Liang’s, making it even less possible to escape. He had some minor injuries and would have a lot of nasty bruises if he lived long enough for them to appear, but wasn’t seriously harmed. Scorpion was in a similar state.
Smoke looked around, only to see their three friends being tied up to each other in a similar way a few metres away. For his attempt to use telekinesis, Kenshi got a blow to his head to break his concentration (hopefully, nothing else), making Johnny shout colourful curses at the one who did it. Sento was taken away from the swordsman and removed from the range of his telekinesis. Kenshi appeared stunned by the blow, but didn’t lose consciousness.
The members of their clan were all under control of the strangers, hoarded together in groups, disarmed and secured. Some were seriously injured, but Tomas hoped no one lost their life. He couldn’t see everyone from his current position. There were losses among the attackers, and some of them were injured as well, but they won. Tomas swallowed hard. How could they all had possibly screwed up so badly by letting it happen? And what was going to happen to them now?
He still desperately tried to free his hands. Kuai Liang tried to do the same, but they couldn’t keep pulling at the ropes and twisting them without hurting each other. Yes, the attackers knew what they were doing, indeed.
But that was where it ended, because now their leader, or the one who appeared to lead the attack anyway, seemed confused and went to discuss something with some of his people, but not before he left two of his men to guard the five prisoners. It was as if the strangers were waiting for something. Or someone.
It gave Tomas time to think, as he was trying to calm his anxious heart, and Kuai Liang also quietly shared his thoughts with him. They couldn’t recognise anyone from their former clan, but that alone didn’t really mean anything. What did matter was that, while these people were very well-trained and well-organised, they weren’t the Lin Kuei. They didn’t move like the Lin Kuei. Others may not see it, but the two of them knew. Tomas couldn’t help pressing his back against Kuai Liang’s, in search for some comfort. Kuai Liang managed to find, grasp and squeeze his hand slightly in response. If the strangers came here to kill them, they would’ve already been dead, right? It gave Smoke some hope.
Suddenly, he saw Hanzo looking directly at him, crouching behind large rocks nearby. Tomas’ heart sank.
“Hanzo, what are you doing here? Go away,” he mouthed, making sure people who guarded them couldn’t hear him. "Go. Away. Now." The boy made an attempt to leave his hiding place to move closer. “Hanzo, no!” Tomas whispered heatedly, scowling at him. Hanzo’s attempt was aborted again. He didn’t try to move in their direction now, but there was defiance on his face. He was watching the guards carefully. Tomas couldn’t exactly see them, because his back was turned to them, and it was Kuai Liang who was facing them, blocking his peripheral view, to some extent. One of the guards was only about four metres away, his sword firmly held in his hand. The one who guarded Syzoth, Johnny and Kenshi was even farther away, armed with two shorter swords in both hands. Grandmaster carefully turned his face to see what had got Tomas so anxious, as he’d probably heard him, but quickly looked forward again. They couldn’t reveal Hanzo’s presence to these people. Scorpion, likely, knew now what was going on. He squeezed Tomas’ hand again.
As soon as the guards, apparently, looked the other way, Hanzo made his move, to Smoke’s horror. He came closer and was now hiding behind a tree, not thick enough to hide him entirely, never keeping his eyes off the guards. He was very close now, and Tomas’ heart was beating madly in his chest. If the boy got himself killed on his watch, it would be the last straw. Tomas was barely dealing with everything that had happened to him in his life, and this would, undoubtedly, be the end of him. He was dizzy with fear, probably as pale as a ghost.
“Kuai Liang, set the ropes on fire,” he whispered. He knew Scorpion could do it if he put some effort into it.
“No. You know that, if I do it, you’ll be set on fire as well,” Grandmaster replied quietly after making sure their guard wasn’t paying attention. Tomas knew it was true. It was highly likely that he would be severely burned before the ropes became damaged enough for them to be able to free themselves. But he really didn’t know what else to do.
Hanzo then covered the rest of the distance between them, quickly and quietly. He was crouching, pressed against Smoke’s chest. Tomas felt some relief feeling him so close, alive and well, but he wouldn’t be able to do anything if the boy was discovered. He tried to stop Hanzo from peeking from behind him, to no avail. He was nine years old now, still small enough to be able to stay hidden behind either of them. Kuai Liang straightened his back and broadened his shoulders to appear even bigger than he was and to hide the two of them from view even more.
Johnny, from his position could, apparently, see what was going on, but, to his credit, didn’t visibly react to it. Kenshi could probably hear what was going on, or was aware of it in some other way, but he, too, remained unreadable, still recovering from the blow to his head.
There was a knife in the boy’s hand. One of Tomas’ several karambits; the one he’d thought he somehow lost at least a month ago, which he’d thought was odd, because, normally, he took a good care of his weapons. Well, now he knew what had happened to it. Great, just great… Tomas hoped that Hanzo, at least, had no intention to attack anyone with it. He didn’t know what to do and how to stop it without making their enemies discover the child first. Hanzo waited for a few more seconds, his eyes never leaving the guards, before his hand that firmly held the knife went around Smoke. Tomas could feel the ropes being cut. Eventually, he and Kuai Liang managed to move away from each other slightly when the boy chose the right moment to squeeze himself between them to hide from view again, and cut the rest of the ropes. Both adults were already moving and rubbing their hands and feet that had started to fall asleep, preparing to fight again. This time the element of surprise would be on their side, but they were seriously outnumbered, so it was hard to decide what was best in this situation.
The decision was made for them when they heard the voice of the leader of their mysterious attackers from the distance, giving orders to his subordinates: “Leave their leader to the sorcerer and kill the rest of them.” They had no time to think about the ‘sorcerer’ part, as startling as it was. At this point, they were free from their ropes. Very timely. Alright, round two then. But first… Without wasting a second, Tomas turned around, grabbed the boy and quickly ran to get him to safety. He could feel the heatwave from Scorpion’s power hitting him in the back, but ignored it. The hell broke loose, and he intended to join in as soon as he could, hoping that Grandmaster would be able to stand against everyone on his own for a few seconds, which, knowing him, was highly likely.
Tomas used his magic to lift both himself and Hanzo in the air after kneeling and encouraging the boy to hold onto him from behind. They had done it a couple of times before, mostly just for fun, so it was, more or less, practised. Tomas landed onto the balcony of one of the nearest houses, where it was seemingly safe, and freed himself from Hanzo’s arms that let go of him reluctantly.
“Stay here,” he said, letting the boy go. Hanzo was scowling at him slightly, but there was worry in his eyes. “I mean it. I will come back for you,” Tomas promised, trying to sound stern, but, likely, failing.
He then rushed into battle, and managed to quickly free their friends from their ropes for them to be able to fight and defend themselves, before unleashing the full force of his magic onto their mysterious attackers the same way Kuai Liang had unleashed his innate power, already causing a lot of damage to them. Tomas noticed that Shingo had already overpowered those who had hoarded him and some others together and led those who hadn’t been seriously injured into battle. He was still blissfully unaware that his secret relationship had been discovered, because Grandmaster still wasn’t sure what to do about it after Tomas’ report and suggestions. Maybe now Kuai Liang would be inclined to consider those suggestions more carefully. If they survived this battle, that is. They were still very much outnumbered, and this time they were to be killed, not captured.
The battle was fierce. Their clan’s survival depended on them, so they didn’t hold back, hoping that their friends and their people knew better than come too close, especially to Kuai Liang, whose fire melted weapons and sent their enemies running engulfed in flames. And yet, they were still outnumbered. And they were starting to get tired. Tired fighters made mistakes.
Tomas was almost out of breath when he found himself surrounded. He managed to incapacitate two of his attackers and was in the process of fighting the third one when he was grabbed from behind, his hands were held behind his back now (everyone knew he needed them to be free for him to be able to use his magic, and one of his wrists was injured, on top of that, so it hurt a lot to be restrained like this), and the man he had been fighting before was about to stab him in the chest. It never happened, however. A sudden ‘crack’ could be heard, and the man stumbled with the look of shock in his eyes, almost losing his dagger in the process. Tomas managed to free himself and knock the woman who had been holding his hands down to the ground. His male opponent was holding the back of his head, which was bleeding, before turning to see what had hit him. It was then when Smoke realised that the man had been hit by a stone, thrown by… Hanzo (argh! Why wasn’t the boy listening to him and kept putting himself in danger for him?!). The angered and still reeling attacker intended to go for revenge, so, before he had a chance to go anywhere near Hanzo, Tomas rushed forward and attacked him as a flurry of smoke, aiming for the back of his already injured head and sending the man to the ground to writhe in pain and confusion from the head trauma. If he hadn’t been concussed before, he was now.
Smoke wanted to scold Hanzo and drive him away from the heat of the battle again when everything was interrupted by the bright light of Liu Kang entering the place through the portal. Despite their numbers, the attackers started to retreat and run away.
Everything was over before they knew it.
“I must go after them. I shall explain everything shortly. Meanwhile, take care of your injured,” the god said before disappearing again. Everyone appeared to be speechless at first, but then Kuai Liang quickly took everything under control, handing out orders left and right. Some clan members were assigned to look after their injured attackers who had failed to escape, so that they no longer posed any danger, others were sent to secure the territory and make sure no one was hiding on their premises to attack again, more people, especially those who had medical skills, were assigned to see to their own injured and assess the damage.
While they had many seriously injured clan members, surprisingly, everyone was still alive. It was a huge relief. Dead clan members weren’t just bad for the clan in general, they were also bad for the clan’s morale. Perhaps, this luck could be attributed to the attackers’ original plan not to kill anyone before their leader had decided otherwise, due to some unforeseeable complications.
Their three friends seemed, more or less, unharmed, at least not having any major injuries. Johnny and Syzoth were fussing over Kenshi because of that nasty blow to the head he had received. He was slightly exasperated with them, but seemed resigned and didn’t protest.
“Hanzo, you’re going to be the death of me!” Tomas complained. The boy pouted slightly, somehow looking both stubbornly defiant and sheepish at the same time.
“Of course, he does whatever he wants. You’ve spoiled him,” Kuai Liang teased a little.
“You spoil him, too,” Tomas replied defensively, not caring if it had been a joke on Grandmaster’s part or not.
“Both of your parents have spoiled you rotten, haven’t they, kid?” Johnny quipped at the boy. Hanzo looked back at him, face unreadable, but with some curiosity, and promptly looked away, curiosity seemingly satisfied. Tomas flushed a little, realising that Johnny had referred to both Kuai Liang and him as Hanzo’s parents. “Look, guys, I had no idea you had so much fun here, or we’d have visited sooner” Johnny continued to lighten the mood.
“Luckily for all of us, the three of you arrived exactly when you did,” Liu Kang said, relief evident in his voice as he had suddenly reappeared. They all had so many questions for him.
“Um… Have you killed those guys or something?” the actor asked in slight disbelief. Lui Kang wasn’t, generally, a bloodthirsty deity, even though he wasn’t above letting innocent people die (as Tomas knew from his personal experience).
“No. I have confused them enough for them to not be able to find this place again. They came here through the portal, created by Quan Chi. It means they can’t find it on their own again. This location should remain secret,” the god replied. Of course, they still had plenty of their attackers in their territory, and they would have to decide what to do with them.
This explanation created even more questions. Lui Kang stopped the influx of them by telling the whole story.
Everything that had happened was a part of Quan Chi’s plan. The attackers, dressed up as the Lin Kuei warriors, were, in fact, from the Tengu clan. Quan Chi had tried to hire them to do his bidding, but, upon learning that the Lin Kuei had been one of the sorcerer’s targets, their leader refused to be a part of it, as his clan had been nearly exterminated by the more superior Lin Kuei in the past. They were now at a relative peace, but that peace had costed the Tengu a lot. The leader wanted no part in anything that could start the war again, no matter what the sorcerer had promised him in return. Then, two of his children and granddaughter had been kidnapped (they were now safe at home, where Liu Kang had dropped them off), so he had no choice but comply and do the dirty work to get them back alive.
The plan was to lure Kuai Laing away from the Shirai Ryu territories, destroy the clan and kill people Kuai Liang cared about most. He was supposed to return and find his loved ones frozen to death, which was supposed to look as if Bi-Han had killed them. There were supposed to be a couple of survivors who would be able to confirm that the Lin Kuei warriors had attacked them (which was the reason for the disguise). Quan Chi counted on Scorpion to be beside himself with grief and rage and set out for revenge against his own brother. One or both of them were supposed to die as a result. But the Shirai Ryu would’ve been destroyed either way.
But, in order to make the plan work, Lui Kang had to be unable to stop it. Quan Chi had set up a powerful magical trap, connected to the Netherrealm (whatever that meant, Tomas wasn’t sure). And while it had seriously hindered the god, he had managed to free himself, eventually, which was why Quan Chi had never made it to the Shirai Ryu settlement. He was currently in Li Mei’s custody.
If the plan succeeded, the sorcerer would’ve completely destroyed the Shirai Ryu, and, perhaps, even the leaders of both of the clans. In case of his death, Bi-Han had no heirs or any real successors who were ready to take the lead, because Kuai Liang was supposed to become Sub-Zero’s successor if the latter died. However, now that Scorpion had left the Lin Kuei and was gaining the power as the new Earthrealm’s protector, together with his new clan, their enemies wanted him out of the picture. Bi-Han would’ve been just a small bonus. And then Quan Chi would’ve been able to use the beheaded clan for his personal gain, because he found Bi-Han too obstinate.
But there were things that hadn’t gone according to the plan, starting with the fact that Kuai Liang was the main target and had to be away for the stage to be set up for his return. Instead, it was Harumi who had left for the meeting, mainly because Johnny, Syzoth and Kenshi had arrived at short notice. Both the arrival of their friends and Harumi’s departure had been last-moment decisions that Quan Chi couldn’t have predicted.
While the Tengu warriors had their secret abilities and unique skills, cryomancy wasn’t one of them, and it was an important part of the plan, so they had to wait for the sorcerer, who had been, unbeknown to them, delayed by Liu Kang, to arrive. And, because they had realised that things weren’t going according to the plan and Scorpion hadn’t left, they’d had even more reasons to wait for Quan Chi and his decision on what he wanted to do about this situation (in that case, everyone in the Shirai Ryu settlement would’ve likely been slaughtered; all of them, without any new complicated schemes).
Tomas was trying to wrap his head around the story he’d just heard. It was a little overwhelming. If the plan had worked… No, he didn’t want to think about it right now.
“Is Harumi safe?” Kuai Liang asked.
“Yes, she’s already on her way back,” Liu Kang replied. “I suggest you show a gesture of good will, negotiate with the Tengu and let me take their survivors back home. They could become an ally. But it is your decision to make.”
“I’ll think about it,” Grandmaster promised.
“I also want to talk to Bi-Han about this. But I do not want to let him know that the Tengu are involved, because Bi-Han will, undoubtedly, destroy them if he learns that they impersonated the Lin Kuei.”
“If you think you can negotiate with Bi-Han, you’re wasting your time,” Kuai Liang frowned slightly.
“Regardless, I’d rather try and fail than regret not doing anything at all. You were the first target, but he was, likely, the second one,” Liu Kang explained.
“I do not support your decision, but, by all means, do what you have to do,” Grandmaster replied dismissively, obviously wanting to shift his attention to something more urgent and important: his clan and their friends.
Liu Kang left shortly after that. Kenshi, Johnny and Syzoth retired for the night when they had been encouraged to stay at least till the next day, or even longer if they wanted to. Once Tomas walked Hanzo home, he first went to help their men in any way he could before going to the main building of their settlement and entering Grandmaster’s, currently empty, study, as if on an autopilot. It was still hard to believe what had happened to them today. He had to receive his new orders for tomorrow, or even tonight. He wanted to do it before he would really start to feel the results of the beating he had received today, and he knew he would absolutely feel it the next day; his wrist was sprained (hopefully, not fractured), already swollen, and he could tell his body was going to bruise, badly. But it was nothing too serious.
The majority of their people weren’t going to sleep tonight, taking care of the aftermath of the attack, taking care of the injured, sorting out their temporary prisoners and doing something with the bodies. In case Kuai Liang decided to follow Liu Kang’s advice, both their prisoners and their fallen clan members would have to be handed over to the leader of the Tengu, the latter for proper burial. But until the decision was made, they couldn’t exactly let those bodies continue to lie scattered on the ground.
In addition, they had a lot to learn from this experience in terms of their security and everything else. Every single thing about the attack would have to be analysed. They all had almost lost their lives today.
“Tomas, is there anything you want?” he heard Kuai Liang’s voice behind him.
“Just want to know if there's anything else for me to do,” the younger man replied. He was tired, both physically and emotionally, but Scorpion was likely going to stay up all night, and Tomas could do it as well if it was required. He wanted to be as helpful as possible, and to show his full support, as per usual. He turned around to face his Grandmaster only to realise how close they were standing to each other. Tomas’ heart skipped a beat, but he ventured to look up into the warm, dark-brown eyes.
“You’re worried. For me,” Kuai Liang realised. Of course, he could read Tomas like an open book at times, even if he couldn’t always understand everything he saw the right way.
“I’m just a little shaken,” Smoke admitted. “By everything that could’ve happened today…”
“It’s all over. It didn’t happen,” the older man shook his head, his voice soft and reassuring.
“I know. But I need to process it anyway.”
“Just don’t dwell on it.”
“I’ll try not to.”
“It was good to feel you beside me the whole time. I didn’t have to worry.”
“Where else would I be? No smoke without fire, remember?” Tomas joked softly, even though it wasn’t really a joke. Not at all. It was just him being slightly giddy from standing so close to the man who meant so much. Tomas was like a moth to the flame when he inched even closer. And closer. Until he could feel warm lips capturing his own and closed his eyes unintentionally. Arms carefully wrapped his body in an embrace, mindful of his injuries.
As impossible as the very idea of it had always seemed, Kuai Liang was kissing him. And Tomas was kissing back as best as he could; of course, he was. It wasn’t very deep, but it was sensual, and not chaste at all. He found himself trembling. Disbelief in him battled the desperate need for it to be real. It was real. It had to be. Right? The kiss had stolen his breath, but now he couldn’t help inhaling shakily through his nose and moaning softly. He was almost afraid to open his eyes and find all of this suddenly disappearing, like an illusion, so he kept them closed and allowed himself to feel every single moment and detail, even when the kiss broke. Without looking, he raised his hand and let his thumb gently trace the scar above and below Kuai Liang’s eye, brushing against the eyelashes in the process. He was there. This was real. Kuai Liang’s lips then touched his cheek and moved to his ear to whisper:
“Everything is alright now. Everything will be taken care of. Go have your injuries tended to. And have some rest.” The younger man shivered at the warm breath against his skin and at the voice so close it almost felt tangible. He opened his eyes, yet nothing disappeared. The kind and handsome face was right there, in front of him. He obeyed, however; without thinking, half-dazed, nodded wordlessly and left to do what he had been told. Honestly, if Kuai Liang had told him to go jump off a cliff, he was likely to do that as well in his current state. Tomas’ head was swimming, he knew his cheeks were red as the cool night’s air caressed them.
Could this day become any more surreal?
Notes:
In the game, during character interactions between Quan Chi and Smoke, Quan Chi promises to cut Tomas into pieces and send them to Kuai Liang one by one. Tomas is quite startled by that. Quan Chi also says that he’s in possession of Tomas’ mother and sister’s souls.
I was already writing this chapter, and it had all been planned from the start, before I even started to actually write this story, but I doubled down on it after hearing all that. So, yeah, special thanks to Quan Chi for being an evil asshole. It felt even more satisfying for me to ruin his plans.
Harumi is, finally, alive and well, thanks to those last-moment decisions.
And, yes, the kiss! Life-threatening situations are wonderful motivators.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter; I’ve put my heart and soul into it. Komments are welcome!
Chapter 5: Establishing Connections
Notes:
MK1 may have triggered my inspiration to write again, but I've been a big fan of this pairing for years. And I have only recently discovered that there are actually more stories with the two of them here than I originally thought. Why? Because tags, in this particular case, don't make it easy to find them all. So, if you want to find everything with Kuai Liang/Tomas, there are actually four tags to be checked (hopefully, not more than that!):
Kuai Liang/Tomas Vrbada | Smoke (no codename for Kuai), Kuai Liang | Sub-Zero/Tomas Vrbada | Smoke (yes, the original), Kuai Liang | Tundra/Tomas Vrbada | Smoke and, finally, the latest development, Kuai Liang | Scorpion/Tomas Vrbada | Smoke.
A Smoke/Sub-Zero tag also deserves some attention, but, it appears, in about half of the stories there Sub-Zero is Bi-Han, so the stories should be checked individually before reading.
I'm going to have to catch up on everything I've missed (and re-read some of the stories I've read before, too), eventually, and show my appreciation for the authors who write (or used to write) this amazing pairing, even if it's long overdue.I sincerely apologise for the delay. This time of year is always crazy where I work, so I had to endure five long night shifts in a row. And, while this chapter had been almost complete for about a week, I wanted to finish and post it on my day off and with a clear head.
And, finally, I hope it's not news to anyone that this story is rated 'E'. ;)
__
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
“Yes, you are grounded, Hanzo. No need to argue with me. You know how much I hate doing this. You’re not allowed to leave this house for five days,” Tomas informed. The boy, of course, wasn’t happy about his decision. “Yes, you did well yesterday and you saved us. I’m grateful and impressed. I am! But you also stole my weapon. You knew I was looking for it, but still kept it. You didn’t do what I asked you to do; instead, you put yourself in danger and almost gave me a heart attack.”
“You didn’t have a heart attack,” Hanzo grumbled.
“If you continue to behave like this, I will. Who else would allow you to get away with so much misbehaviour if that happened?”
“Fine!” the boy growled, finally giving up and almost throwing his hands up in frustration. Gods, the audacity! Tomas bit his lip to prevent himself from bursting into laughter.
“I’m glad you agree,” he said with a thinly veiled sarcasm. “You’re not allowed to go outside. Stay here and study on your own. I’ll know if you don’t. I’m going to be very busy today, but I’ll visit you soon and bring your breakfast.”
Hanzo sat down on the floor at the table cross-legged and angrily opened one of the books lying on top of it, a scowl on his face. He might as well have opened it upside down to complete the picture of a sullen rebelliousness. Tomas sighed.
“Hanzo, eventually, you’re going to be trained to fight with all sorts of weapons; you will become strong and skilful enough to face anyone who threatens you or people you care about,” he promised. “Just… Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, okay?” His angry, little hero and protector pretended to ignore him, but Tomas knew he was listening. The boy’s shoulders relaxed a little at the words. Thank goodness. While Tomas fully acknowledged the fact that this was more than just a regular child (the way they’d first met was quite a spectacular evidence of that when Tomas had been knocked down on his ass, nearly choking on a piece of apple he’d just bitten off, because Hanzo had been starving and very determined to steal that apple and the rest of the food Smoke had had on him). But he was a child, nonetheless, and Tomas was responsible for him, even though chances were he wouldn't have been alive now if it wasn't for Hanzo. Regardless, adults were supposed to protect children and risk their lives for them, not the other way round.
To be fair, it wasn’t all just about the punishment. Tomas wanted him to be safe at home, instead of seeing dead and injured people outside, even though the bodies had already been taken somewhere else.
He adjusted his tightly bandaged arm in a sling (the sprained wrist would take some time to heal, but, at least, it wasn’t so swollen now, thanks to the medication and rest) and went outside to meet his Grandmaster. He felt a pleasant warmth inside after what had happened between the two of them last night, but he still refused to make too much out of it, because he didn’t want to get hurt again. But, yes, Kuai Liang had definitely given him something else to obsess about, instead of the attack and how it could’ve ended, had Quan Chi’s plan worked. Last night Tomas had only been worried about the man he loved being the main target of the attack, because it would’ve changed him forever had it succeeded, but Smoke was fully aware now that he was supposed to be found by him, frozen to death. Maybe both he and Harumi.
Turned out, Grandmaster had made a decision to negotiate with the Tengu, after all. He had already been invited and everything was ready for his departure, including their prisoners, whose wounds had been tended to. The dead had already been transferred via the portal Liu Kang had created. The god was currently in their settlement, ready to accompany Kuai Liang to the Tengu territory. A group of ten people had already been formed to go with them.
On top of that, Johnny, Kenshi and Syzoth had left early in the morning, unwilling to wake Tomas up to say their goodbyes, so they’d asked Kuai Liang to do it for them. Tomas couldn’t help sulking at that. Looked like he had missed a lot while he had been sleeping and then sorting things out with Hanzo.
“Do you want me to come with you?” he asked. He wanted to, but he wasn’t sure who else here had enough patience to look after Hanzo in his absence, especially considering the boy’s current behaviour. He was carefully going through unsuspecting and unlucky candidates in his thoughts. He could ask Yasu, who was a middle-aged man, one of their oldest members and tutors, who was a patient man and handled younger people’s antics and temper with good humour, and who never seemed to get angry at anyone. Young people, in general, looked up to him, Tomas included. But, as it turned out, Yasu was going with Kuai Liang, as one of his advisors, who could provide a useful input during the negotiations.
“I’d rather you stayed to look after the settlement. I’m leaving you and Harumi in charge until my return,” Grandmaster said. Tomas was slightly disappointed, but he took his duties seriously and wouldn’t argue. Harumi and he were going to have separate duties during Kuai Liang’s absence, which was a relief (what if she knew about the kiss?!). After giving him orders and instructions, Kuai Liang warned him against overworking himself and told him be mindful of his injuries.
“Yes, Grandmaster, I promise,” Smoke smiled at the concern, expressed in such a serious tone. He felt a little shy, and it wasn’t the best time, but he had a question. Apparently, his internal turmoil became obvious.
“What's on your mind, Tomas?” Kuai Liang encouraged.
“Last night… You didn’t do it for my sake, or out of pity, or anything like that, did you?” the younger man asked, making sure no one else could overhear.
“Do you know me as a person who would do such a thing?”
“No…”
“I kissed you, because I wanted to. And when I kiss you again, it’ll be for the exact same reason.” Scorpion said boldly, in his preferred straightforward manner. ‘When’? Tomas was aware that he was blushing and his heart was doing something unthinkable in his chest. He had nothing to say in response. Okay, this really wasn’t the best time for it all, but he was the one who had started it and now he was paying the price, hoping that numerous people around them were too busy to notice his current state.
But when everyone and everything was ready, Tomas couldn’t help becoming nervous.
“Please, be careful,” he said. He didn’t have to, but he still felt like saying it.
“Do not worry. I’m not sure how long it’s going to take with all the formalities, but Lord Liu Kang is going with us. From what I know, they are afraid of him and respect him in equal measures,” Kuai Liang assured. Tomas hoped he was right. He wasn’t very fond of Liu Kang, but he hoped that the god was interested in keeping their people alive, no matter what. They were, essentially, going to their enemy’s territory and could be ambushed there, immediately or at any given moment during their visit. The Tengu were extremely isolated and secluded, probably even more so than the Lin Kuei, so it was hard to tell what to expect from them.
They waited for the prisoners to enter the portal first. Some were carried by their comrades if they were too gravely injured to be able to walk. Liu Kang followed them. Kuai Liang then beckoned his people to follow him. He lightly squeezed Tomas’ uninjured forearm and gave him a nod of reassurance before leaving. Tomas hated to see him leaving. Hated when they had to be separated like this. If they had to fight, he preferred to fight alongside Kuai Liang, the two of them looking after each other. ‘No smoke without fire’, right; except the fire had just left, he thought sullenly. The portal disappeared, closed from the other side, and now all he had to do was wait.
The portal opened once a day, and one of their men entered through it to inform them that everything was alright, the negotiations were in progress, giving very few details about the negotiations themselves. The man then went back and the portal closed behind him. There really wasn’t much information so far. But, as curious as he was, Tomas just wanted it all to be over, as soon as possible. He distracted himself with the work he had been assigned to do, wanting to get everything done by the time Kuai Liang came back. It was mostly an administrative work, but, thankfully, the paperwork was Harumi’s problem, not his. She was much better at it anyway.
His body was healing well, his wrist wasn’t bothering him all that much after a week or so, and his bruises were fading nicely, thanks to the remedies he was using, even though he was still a little sore. He let Hanzo out of their house, which couldn’t have happened soon enough for either of them, and spent some time training with him, making sure he wasn’t putting too much strain on his still healing wrist. Hanzo had a lot of steam to blow off, and Tomas allowed him to.
When the portal opened this time, they were, again, informed that the negotiations still continued, only this time the messenger had an actual written message. And it was for Smoke, personally. The man then left and Tomas immediately opened it, at first worried that it was some code to let him know that things weren’t going well and they needed reinforcements. But all it said was: ‘I know you’re worried. Don’t be. We’re not going to be here for much longer. I will see you soon.’ It was signed by Kuai Liang’s confident hand. Tomas was glad he was currently wearing his mask, because there was no way he would have been able to hide how excited he was. He kept the message and put it among his personal possessions.
The negotiations had taken about two weeks. Their people led by their Grandmaster returned late at night. Kuai Liang looked a little weary, and it was decided that they would discuss everything the next day.
In the morning Tomas learned that the negotiations had been successful. They were now officially allies with the Tengu, whose people had, apparently, lost the majority of their connections with the outside world years ago and couldn’t be happier to make a new one, despite such a bad start with the Shirai Ryu. Time would only tell if it was going to work for both of their clans.
Smoke learned (well, overheard) that, at least, two of their people were quite happy about this new development, because they had, pretty much, befriended a couple of their former prisoners, despite the language barrier and the shortness of their stay, but had been afraid to be accused of fraternising with the enemy, who was no longer an enemy. Tomas buried his face in his hands at this information and sighed. He was pretty sure this was what people in the West called 'second-hand embarrassment'. Eventually, though, he decided to let it slide, for everyone's sake, but made a mental note to keep an eye on these two overly-friendly individuals in the future. And people accused him of naivety?
After the news had been announced, everyone was busy with their duties and chores, but in the evening Smoke decided to go to the main building again, because he still had a lot to report. It was raining heavily, so nearly everyone, except for the guards on duty, was inside their respective homes and barracks. Tomas threw his damp hood back and entered Grandmaster’s study. It appeared, Kuai Liang was the only one in the building at the moment. Good. They could, finally, spend some time alone, which they hadn’t had a chance to do since the return from the Tengu.
The older man was finishing to write something, but, very soon, redirected his full attention to Tomas.
“So, was it fun?” Smoke asked with a smile.
“It was quite interesting, yes. From what I remember, the Lin Kuei archives do have some information about the Tengu, but the majority of it is about the wars between the clans, some history, but not much about their culture. I should take you with me next time I visit them,” Kuai Liang answered. Tomas was excited about the idea.
“No hard feelings then? About us starting off on the wrong foot, I mean. They wanted to kill us, and their people got killed here,” he pointed out, more serious now.
“I think everyone understands, at this point, that they weren’t doing it of their own free will and that we had every right to defend ourselves by any means necessary. Don’t you agree?”
“Yes, it’s true,” Smoke agreed. Kuai Liang stood up and got out from behind the desk.
“Anything interesting to report?” he asked.
“Yes, I have some reports from when you were away.”
“They can wait. I said interesting,” the older man insisted, quite obviously not in a working mood right now, which was a very rare occasion for him. He came closer, and Tomas’ heart was racing slightly in a sweet anticipation of something.
“I missed you. Is this interesting?” he almost whispered.
“Yes. Very,” Kuai Liang nodded in approval, suddenly reached out to take Tomas’ hand and pulled him closer in one smooth move. The younger man’s breath hitched in his chest, but, before he could get it back, his mouth was claimed by the other man’s. It was deeper this time, with more urgency behind it; with some more force and passion. Their bodies were pressed flush together. Tomas’ arms were around Scorpion’s torso, enjoying the pleasant hardness of his muscles. One of Kuai Liang’s arms was around him, the other hand softly grasped thick, silver hair on the back of his head and tilted it to the side, slightly changing the angle. Tomas obeyed, wholeheartedly.
The two of them breathing almost erratically and the heavy rainfall outside was all he could hear, soon joined by the small, desperate noises he couldn’t help making. He was out of breath when his mouth was let go. But he wasn’t given much time to get himself together before his neck was being kissed next. Gods, he had almost expected the kiss on his lips, but not this. He wasn’t complaining though. He wanted more and he was keening for more, suddenly aware how aroused he already was. The warm mouth against his ear offered him to move somewhere more comfortable and private, and all he could do was nod enthusiastically, his voice all but gone.
They kissed nearly all the way to the private area of the building, which, unlike the working area, wasn’t accessible to pretty much anyone. Thankfully, it was a short walk, and, soon, Tomas found himself standing in the middle of Grandmaster’s bedroom. He had only been here once when he had helped Kuai Liang move. But now he was here for something he could only imagine in his wildest fantasies that had, normally, made him feel guilty and embarrassed afterwards.
Almost breathless, he was being kissed and undressed now. Kuai Liang was behind him, manipulating his body and, of course, finding no resistance whatsoever. Tomas was putty in his hands, and yet, suddenly, felt a little nervous about all of this. Not only his own feelings had probably already sentenced him to the Netherrealm, but he felt like a tempter who was also condemning Kuai Liang to the same fate. This man could’ve been happily married now, if it wasn’t for Tomas, instead of breaking what was likely a taboo. ‘Please, it’s all my fault. I assume full responsibility and I will face my punishment in due time. Not very soon, hopefully…’ he thought to himself meekly, as if making a deal; he wasn’t sure with whom.
Meanwhile, Kuai Liang had, evidently, felt that something was wrong and stopped kissing the back of his neck. Wait… Why had he stopped something that felt so good?
“Second thoughts?” the older man asked, slightly amused.
“N-no…” Tomas shook his head, flustered. His line of thought was forgotten when he realised he was standing stark naked in the dim light of the room, shivering from arousal, not cold, covered in goose bumps from all the touching, hair, likely, sticking out in every direction. He was so exposed: both his body and emotions. Kuai Liang’s warm hands lay on his hips, as if to keep him grounded.
“Is there anything I shouldn’t do?” Scorpion asked, between kissing his neck again and caressing his thighs. Tomas tried to kiss and touch back, but the other man was making it all about him.
“You can do anything… anything you want…” He had spent years hiding his feelings and desires, keeping them bottled up, even recently after they had been properly acknowledged. But now he just wanted to open up and let go.
“Anything, really?”
“Anything at all,” Tomas confirmed, half-delirious from arousal at this point. His untouched cock was twitching between his legs; how could he be so close already? He just wanted to be claimed and owned. Realising that he had whispered it aloud (he hadn’t meant to!), he flinched. His heart stuttered in his chest, and he looked carefully and slightly fearfully over his shoulder at the other man, whose eyes widened slightly. Despite the room not being very well-lit and the fact that Kuai Liang’s eyes were naturally dark, Smoke could swear his pupils were dilated from the confession he’d just heard. Tomas swallowed, not knowing what to say in his defence and whether he should even bother. Maybe… Maybe they weren’t such a bad match, after all? They worked so well when they fought together, pretty much completing each other, so maybe it was the case in other, less explored, areas as well?
“I see…” the older man almost growled into his ear, making the younger one shiver even more. “I might give you exactly what you need, and it’s only fair for me to take everything you’re so generously offering.” He cupped Tomas, cheek and turned his face to the side to reach his lips with his own, even though the angle wasn’t ideal. Tomas could tell he was undressing himself while they were at it. The very idea was heart-stopping, but he quickly lost himself in kissing, responding enthusiastically, and the pauses between the kisses were too brief for him to be able to think clearly.
When the kissing stopped and a perfect, naked body pressed against him from behind, he gasped, overwhelmed with sensation. He was trembling all over, uncontrollably. One arm was around him, holding him steady, and Kuai Liang’s body pressed harder, hard enough for the younger man to feel his hard arousal and almost lose his mind. A warm hand squeezed his bottom, making him cry out and throw his head back against Scorpion’s shoulder. He was leaking now, and his knees were about to give out.
“Ah! I’m close… I can’t…” he gasped shakily, grabbed his own private parts and pulled them down, hard enough to hurt and take the edge off. Some pre-come escaped between his fingers, making him wince in embarrassment.
“You’re… sensitive,” Kuai Liang commented with some effort after a few moments of shocked silence. He exhaled upwards through his mouth, likely, in an attempt to cool down his face.
“You know I am,” Tomas muttered, mortified.
“I know you to be sensitive to pain, not… anything else.”
“To everything… I’m sensitive to everything,” the younger man admitted. ‘Especially to everything you do,’ he added to himself. With pain it was somewhat easier, because he had been trained to control the emotions caused by it, at least to some extent (unless it was anything extreme), usually not letting it deter him all that much; though, of course, it depended on how bad it was. But pleasure was hardly something he was used to. Especially with anyone else giving it to him, let alone the right person. Any semblance of self-control went out the window.
“I’ll have to keep it in mind,” Kuai Liang murmured, some playfulness in his voice.
“Please, do,” Tomas whispered. He then turned around and faced his beloved, who, yes, was completely naked before him, and, yes, was absolutely gorgeous; perfect, as well as big and hard for him; but that he had already felt against his own body moments earlier. He felt himself blushing, but wasn’t given a chance to dwell on it, because he was pulled into a kiss again. He ventured to touch the warm skin with hard muscles underneath, and was pressed against them. It was torment and relief, at the same time, because it was both overwhelming and not enough. Next thing he knew, they were on the bed, twined together, rubbing against each other and kissing again.
Thankfully, he wasn’t the only one who wanted more, so much more…
They were on their sides, chest to back. Kuai Liang’s face almost buried into Tomas’ hair on the back of his head, arms securely around him, and Tomas’ hands squeezing the other man's in both arousal and discomfort. He felt… full and his body was still adjusting to both the length and the girth penetrating him. They’d used a lot of spit, though they were going to have to get their hands on something more appropriate for the next time (which would, hopefully, happen). But he couldn't make himself care about anything, other than what was happening right now, and this was a welcome intrusion. Tomas felt owned, in the best way possible, and he felt wanted and cherished.
Very soon, he was arching his back slightly to find that perfect angle they had already discovered earlier, but also willing for Kuai Liang to remain pressed flush against his back. He needed this contact so much it hurt. He needed the warm breathing against the back of his head and his neck. This need was in every fibre of his being. Getting close to his orgasm again, he met every thrust, soft cries of pleasure escaping him uncontrollably. He was close, so close. It was so much more than just sex for him, yet when Kuai Liang started to roll his hips in earnest, Tomas was sobbing at how good it felt. A strong wave of pleasure overwhelmed him in no time, and he grabbed his cock to gain some control over it. Apparently, it wasn’t without consequence that his body was erratically squeezing the other man’s hard arousal inside him of its own accord, because his lover followed suit soon enough, with a groan that almost sounded pained. If Tomas hadn’t reached his climax moments earlier, this would’ve absolutely thrown him over the edge, especially as he felt himself being filled with liquid warmth. He gasped, feeling his cheeks flushing at the sensation, as well as the very idea of what was happening, yet enjoying every second of it.
They were relaxed afterwards, taking their time to get their breath back, both hearts calming down slowly. Tomas moved his nearly limp arm back to wrap it around Kuai Liang’s waist, as best as he could from his current position (which he had no intention to change). It helped that he felt nearly boneless right now. His arm was rubbed gently in response, and he hummed in approval. He was so sensitive now, yet he couldn’t get enough of this contact.
Tomas wasn’t yet sure if he was slowly falling asleep or simply enjoying his post-orgasmic bliss, his mind pleasantly blank, all worries forgotten. And, once again, all he could hear was the two of them breathing and the rain outside, no longer as heavy as it had been before. The feeling of being held and pressed against the man he loved was beyond anything he had ever imagined.
Notes:
Komments are welcome! Very much so. :)
Chapter Text
There was no doubt that Kuai Liang felt his tension. Grandmaster stole a quick kiss, putting his ever-present paperwork aside. ‘Stole’, however, was quite an overstatement, because Tomas was always happy to give his lover anything, willingly and enthusiastically, even now that his mind was so focused on something completely unrelated to their relationship.
He had to admit he was a little nervous. The Initiation was meant to make it all official, even though Hanzo was already considered one of their own and had been for years now. Not only that, but he was being raised and educated as Kuai Liang’s heir. Regardless, everyone was going through the Initiation before taking their oaths, and, as exceptional as Hanzo himself was, he was no exception in that regard, nor would he want to be, too proud and too eager to face any type of challenge, as was in his nature. He was sixteen years old now, and he was the best among the young men of their clan.
There were three tests to complete. Two of them were, basically, missions, sometimes dangerous, but the initiates were looked after the whole time. Hanzo had already passed two of his tests with flying colours. Today was his final one, and it was a one-on-one fight with Harumi.
“I’m sure they are still getting ready. But we can go now, if you wish,” Grandmaster suggested. Smoke just nodded, giving a small smile of gratitude.
People had already started to gather on the training ground to watch the fight, including some of their friends that weren’t of the Shirai Ryu. Tomas hoped that Raiden’s presence alone would help Hanzo stay level-headed, because the Champion had also helped with his training, and anger management was a big part of it. Yuna, one of their best medics, and now Shingo’s wife, was already nearby as well, prepared. She was always present at such events, in order to quickly provide medical help, which was often required.
Tomas knew he shouldn’t worry, but he just couldn’t not worry, not because he thought Hanzo would fail, but because he knew how important it was for the teenager to show his best results. As far as Smoke was concerned, there was no tragedy if things didn’t work out this time. They would just train more and try again. Hanzo was the youngest person to ever be initiated into the Shirai Ryu anyway. But a failure could damage his self-esteem or make his anger issues flare up again, so Tomas hoped it would not happen, and Hanzo’s small crush on Harumi (despite their nearly eighteen years age difference!) would, in no way, prevent him from succeeding. But then, the teenager was too determined for anything like that to distract him from his goals. If anything, his admiration with her skills and strength would just encourage him to impress her by fighting her with everything he had; and even that would not be on the forefront of his mind. Tomas was sometimes the one their initiates had to fight, but, in this particular case, it would’ve been a conflict of interest.
Harumi really wasn’t easy to fight against, nor did she go easy on their initiates, whereas some others could show some leniency at times. In fact, the majority of the initiates were pretty discouraged if they knew that she, of all people, would be the one they would have to face. 'Cry during your Initiation, laugh on the battlefield,' could be her own version of the famous quote.
People kept arriving; everyone who was supposed to be here today was ready to witness the final part of the Initiation. Very soon, Hanzo himself came to the training grounds, looking stoic, determined and calm (to Tomas’ relief), followed by Harumi only a couple of minutes later. No one was late.
“You’re the only one nervous here,” Kuai Liang murmured with a soft smile in his voice. Tomas pressed his shoulder against his lover’s, leaning into him slightly.
“Better me than him,” he replied. “I know he can do it. Let me worry for the both of us.”
Hanzo then approached and bowed to him. He was almost as tall as Smoke already after his latest growth spurt, and he was still growing. Tomas quietly gave him a few recommendations for the upcoming fight.
“Are you done whispering to each other yet?” Harumi challenged, already standing in position, her katana unsheathed. Hanzo half-turned to her, frowning at the interruption, eyes narrowed, his normal defiance clear on his face.
“Hanzo, don’t hold back. She definitely isn’t going to go easy on you,” Tomas encouraged, giving Harumi a brief mock-glare. It was normal for her to assume this attitude, specifically for occasions like this, and they all knew it, even though some people were taken aback by it, especially if they knew her as a kind and patient mentor. It was all part of the test.
“I won’t fail you,” the youth promised. Tomas almost rolled his eyes, because Hanzo didn’t have to say it to him, of all people. He smiled to himself.
“I know you won’t,” he replied.
The youth bowed again, this time to both him and Grandmaster; the latter encouraged him with a few words of support of his own.
If only Hanzo was so calm and respectful towards other people, when it was necessary, but not so easy… As a potential future successor, it had been required of him to accompany Kuai Liang to Outworld a couple of months earlier; to watch, listen and learn. And Grandmaster had ended up sending him home early and reprimanding him, half-joking later that his attitude could start a conflict between their realms, had he put just a little more effort into it. Hanzo had taken a particular dislike to a few noblemen and some other important people of Outworld. They had provoked him, to a certain degree, but the way the teenager had handled it was something else. He accused them of looking down on the Earthrealmers like them, simply because Outworlders’ lives were longer, so they believed themselves wiser, stronger and superior in every way, almost bursting with self-importance. And that was a very light version of what he’d said to them. Things had been further aggravated when somebody said something about his attitude and that that was what happened when ‘a child was being raised by another child’ (Tomas had long since made a conclusion, that some Outworlders tended to see any Earthrealmer who was younger than thirty as a child). Which was an unacceptable thing to say, because it was a dig at Tomas, and saying anything disrespectful about him or their clan, even as a joke, always resulted in Hanzo losing his temper. Fortunately, General Kitana, and, to some extent, even the Empress herself, had a soft spot for him and had quickly calmed the situation down by partially taking his side and then carefully redirecting everyone’s attention to some official matter they wanted to discuss.
But now, thankfully, the teenager was calm and collected, his temper under control.
A few minutes later, after a rather intense fight, where neither was letting up, Harumi was on the ground, but her sword was against Hanzo’s chest, just like one of his swords against her clavicle. It was typical of her to find a way to turn defeat into a draw. After a few seconds of the two of them getting their breath back, she sighed and lowered her blade. Thankfully, there were no serious injuries on either of them, though some would have to be tended to, and Yuna seemed quite ready to do exactly that, only waiting for any type of signal that this was over and she was allowed to approach and do her job.
“I suppose this still counts as victory,” Harumi admitted, being the one on the ground. Tomas had suspicions of what was about to happen, and he wasn’t wrong:
“No!” Hanzo argued, extending his hand to her impatiently. “Get up.” Harumi’s eyebrow quirked up at his behaviour, but she looked intrigued. She took his hand and allowed him to help her up.
“Are you challenging me, Hanzo?” she asked, her expression neutral. “You won. Think twice, because you might not be so lucky next time.”
“I want victory, not this,” he insisted, already taking his stance. The spectators all seemed to be waiting with bated breath. Tomas noticed that Johnny was filming it all on his phone (of course, he was!), and Smoke fully intended to ask for that video to be sent to him later.
When the swords collided again, with a loud clang, sparks flew. Tomas felt Kuai Liang’s hand on his upper back.
“This is so like Hanzo,” Grandmaster murmured, shaking his head.
“Don’t I know it…” Tomas sighed.
Notes:
I rarely draw, because I tend to obsess over details, undo and redo things repeatedly, so it takes me more time to draw something like this cover art than, say, write two medium-length chapters of a story. I’m still not entirely happy with this, because I highlighted Tomas’ face a little too much at some point, and tried nearly every digital brush at my disposal to draw his hair, but it still doesn’t look like what I had in mind.
But I still had to draw it, not just because I wanted to draw something with the beloved pairing, but also for my dear readers, too, because your support means so much to me. So, Tomas getting squished in a loving embrace and getting all emotional over it is my thank you!
You can find this picture on tumblr, here, if you’re interested.
I don’t like tumblr and never have (but especially after one of my blogs was permanently hidden for my refusal to remove naughty stuff that they had no problem with for years before that), and I’m not active on social media in general, because I simply have no time, but I do have accounts for occasions like this one, because I need somewhere to post images since they can’t be posted on AO3 directly. At least, you can see full-sized pictures here, unlike on many other platforms.
About the epilogue: I absolutely had to write it, because I wanted you to know that 1. Tomas and Kuai Liang are still together, in a stable relationship, and very comfortable with each other. 2. Hanzo is doing good (Raiden taking part in his training has been mentioned in the game). 3. The clan is doing good as well. 4. Harumi is alive in this world.
If you’re curious, in the epilogue Tomas is 29, Kuai Liang is 35. It takes place seven years after the main part of the story.
And, finally, I already have ideas for at least two more stories with this pairing. I’ve already made some notes for one of them. I just need some time to think it all through to make sure I won’t end up writing myself into a corner. Be ready. :)
Komments are welcome!
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