WARNING: Illness

"Ro?" Remus called. "Ro, I'm home." He closed the door behind him and put his dagger down on a table by the door.

There was a bit of shuffling and a pale face poked out from a doorway of the decrepit building.

Roman's face split into a grin. "Re, hey. Thought you'd be back earlier."

"Did you stay up all night for me?" Remus asked. Roman nodded. "Ro, you know that's not good for you in your condition."

Roman rolled his eyes. "My condition is perfectly fi-" A coughing fit broke Roman off. Remus grabbed his arm gently and steered him into his room. "Really, Re, I'm fi-fine." Roman tried to insist, a stray cough breaking his words.

"Fine my ass. You're going to sleep." Roman grumbled something unintelligible but didn't fight Remus as he tucked him into bed.

"I'm older than you." He mumbled. "You shouldn't have to be doing all this for me."

"I don't mind, Ro. Really." Remus said, sitting down next to Roman's bed and hanging onto his hand tight. His brother always looked so thin and pale that Remus thought that if he let go, Roman would just disappear. Remus couldn't let that happen. No matter what.

Roman yawned widely. Remus laughed.

"Aw, is wikkle Roman all tuckered out?"

Roman shot a sleepy glare at Remus. "Shut up." Remus laughed. "So, you get your job done?" Roman was already half asleep but he was always interested in hearing about Remus' life. He found it exciting to imagine himself in Remus' place. Because of that, Remus usually left out all the details about how hard blood was to get out of clothes and things like that.

"Um... not really." Roman opened one eye and looked at Remus.

"Not really? How can you 'not really' assassinate someone?"

"I didn't." Roman raised himself up on one elbow excitedly.

"Ooh, did they get away?"

"Not exactly." Remus said.

Roman furrowed his brow and lent back on his pillows. "Well, did they or didn't they?"

"They did."

"Did you let them go?" Roman asked.

"I didn't really have a choice." Remus said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Who were they?"

Remus took a deep breath. "King Janus." He said.

"The king?" Roman burst out laughing before breaking off into another coughing fit. Remus raised him up on his pillow so he wouldn't choke. "How'd you let him get away?" Roman asked as the fit subsided.

"I, um..." Remus trailed off as he remember what had happened earlier that night and the feeling of Janus' lips on his.

"Ooh, you're blushing!" Roman declared, pointing at his brother. "Did you fall in love?"

"I, uh-"

"Aw, that's so romantic." Roman said, smiling and falling back on his pillow. "My younger brother finally found love. Kinda like Romeo and Juliet. You want to be together but you're destined not to be. Hey, your names even kinda match!"

"Yeah, I guess..." Remus mumbled. "But I've got to kill him, Ro. 350 ducats is too good to lose. Maybe we could even find you a medicine with that kind of money."

"Don't kid yourself, Re." Roman said sleepily. "We're not gonna find me a cure with 350 ducats."

Remus bit the inside of his lip. "I think he trusts me." He said, more to himself than Roman. "He even said I could go back if I wanted..."

"Then do." Remus hadn't even realised his brother was still awake. "Re, think about it. Which is more likely to find me a cure? 350 ducats or you marrying a king? And one of them comes with guaranteed happiness for you."

Janus shivered a little, the cold night breeze still somehow finding its way under his cloak.

"Your Highness?" Logan asked. "I think you need to come inside now." Logan looked around the moonlit garden. "Whoever he is, he's not coming back. I wouldn't be surprised if he cut his losses and left the kingdom."

Janus shot his advisor a glare. "He'll come back, Logan. And I'll come inside when I'm ready."

Logan looked like he was going to protest but thought better of it. "Very well, your Highness." He turned and went back to the castle.

"Maybe I should just go back." Janus thought, pulling his cloak tighter around himself. "It's not like he's actually going to come back. I don't even know his damn name, why would he come back?"

"But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?" Someone said, making Janus jump. "It is the East and Juliet is the sun."

Janus laughed a little through his nose. "Shakespeare. Didn't know a common traitor like you would know that."

"You could just call me by my name if you wanted." The assassin said, moving out of the shadows and into the moonlight. "It would save this whole 'traitor' business."

"Okay, what's your name then?" Janus asked, raising an eyebrow. The assassin grinned.

"Remus." He said, bowing. Janus laughed.

"If you've come here to kill me, Rem, you don't need to bow." He shrugged. "Best to just get it over with quickly."

Remus raised his hands. "Hey, whoever said I was gonna kill you? I don't kill people I like."

"You don't even know me." Janus said as Remus sat down next to him. He was trying very hard not to have a gay panic there and then. This assassin really was very attractive.

Remus shrugged. "True. But I know you're a good kisser. That's good enough for me." He grinned at the king, glad to see the light blush on his cheeks. Even in the moonlight, it was visible.

"So, um, how'd you come by Shakespeare?" Janus asked, trying to direct the conversation away from himself. He didn't miss how Remus was inching closer to him, nor how their hands brushed, nor how the air felt charged with lightning between them.

"My brother loves it. Insisted I read the stupid thing to him every night." Remus rolled his eyes. "He'd have made me read probably the whole of Hamlet to make up for making him worry last night only he wanted his 'little brother' to have his 'true love Romeo And Juliet' moment."

Janus bit back a laugh, feeling more heat rise to his cheeks. "True love?"

"Yeah, I know. He thinks that just because we're from different classes that we're like star-crossed lovers or something."

Janus' eyes flicked down to Remus' lips before he told himself to get a grip. "Well, aren't we?" Remus laughed once, the sound low and quiet.

Screw getting a grip.

Janus leaned forwards and kissed Remus, one hand cupping Remus' face. He felt Remus jump in surprise before kissing back. One hand went to Janus' neck, supporting his head, and the other went to his lower back, pulling him closer and drawing small circles through the material. The feeling sent a shiver down Janus' spine and he pulled Remus closer. Remus pulled back a little. Not much but just enough so their lips weren't connected anymore.

"Desperate, huh?" He asked. Janus didn't even roll his eyes. It was taking all his will-power to not kiss Remus again.

"Don't pretend you weren't the same last night." He hissed.

Before Remus had time to reply, Janus closed the gap between them. He pulled Remus even closer to him, his hand on Remus' face travelling to the back of his neck, tangling itself in his hair. He got an idea and grinned into the kiss. Remus let out a gasp as Janus' hand found its way under his shirt and snaked around his back. Another gasp fell from his mouth as Janus tugged on his hair gently, pulling him closer. Before he could recover and think up some sort of revenge, Janus pulled back, leaving him a blushing mess.

Janus raised an eyebrow, ignoring the blush on his own face as he surveyed the one on Remus'. "Desperate, huh?"

Not gonna lie... I really fucking like this. And yes, this is all kissing practice for future stories, doN'T JUDGE ME!
Bye,
Blaize