Constructive Possession

A/N: Wow! You like this, you really like this! I’m glad. The fact is I’m having more fun writing it than you are reading it! More sexy bizarre family insanity is coming, I promise!

OH! We have more fanart, courtesy of Kyuubi1010 on deviantART. Go there and drool over Neji and Shikamaru: http://kyuubi1010.deviantart.com/art/Neji-Shika-106097488 and the most amazing rendition of Hiashi Hyuuga anyone has ever seen: http://kyuubi1010.deviantart.com/art/Playboy-Extraordinaire-106151962 and then please leave her a note with your thoughts.

Many thanks for the reviews and the fanart. You guys are awesomeness and love!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Warning: unbeta’d; language; romance; UST; angst; humor

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The approach of the Hyuuga men bearing a cart loaded with sake inspired a mixture of relief and anxiety in Shikamaru. On the one hand, he needed a drink or two. Or three. Badly. He watched his mother’s face light up at their approach and did not miss the sly look Hiashi threw in her direction.

On the other hand, considering Neji’s anxiety and Hiashi’s solicitous behavior, he considered that abstinence might be the better choice. Shikamaru knew his father had a ridiculously high alcoholic threshold and could be sorely tempted to commit unspeakable acts of malice once the rest of them got drunk.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Trays bearing sandwiches and tea were unloaded from the cart and onto the coffee table, along with small plates, bottles of sake and sake cups.

“Everything looks so lovely”, Yoshino exclaimed. “That china pattern is precious, Neji, where did you find it?”

“It belonged to my parents”, Neji responded. The set was a relic that he never brought out of the cabinet where it was kept until that evening. Neji felt rather than saw or heard his lover’s reaction to the revelation.

The Hyuuga men moved about with the regal bearing that was a hallmark of having been born into gratuitous wealth. When everyone had been served and was seated, their cups were raised in unison.

“Kanpai.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Shikamaru and Neji both downed their first cup of sake in one shot, grateful for the smooth warmth of the liquid as it went down and eager for another cup. They set them down and then Neji immediately refilled them.

“So Hiashi,” Yoshino began after sipping her sake, “we haven’t seen you for a while. How is the practice and everything?”

Hiashi looked at Yoshino, who was giving him a very pleasant smile. He smiled a very pleasant smile in response. Her beauty is so honest, he thought to himself. It’s an inspiration.

“Never better”, he responded. “We lost Kurosuki and all of his accompanying mayhem and gained a better lawyer. We’ve moved up in the world.” The twinkle in the elder Hyuuga’s eyes was enchanting.

“Kurosuki? As in Raiga Kurosuki?” Shikamaru asked.

“You’ve heard of him?” Hiashi responded.

“I’ve come across his name a time or two.” Shikamaru sipped his sake.

“Well then you’re probably well aware that he isn’t what one might call mentally stable.”

“Yeah, isn’t he the lawyer who tried to toss a client out of a fifth-floor window for non-payment?” Shikamaru asked.

“Yes, but only after failing to toss him out of a window on the eighth floor after the guy managed to get away. And that was because he tried unsuccessfully to barricade the guy inside a storage closet.”

“Gods”, Neji interjected. “What was that guy on?”

“No one knows”, Hiashi responded, sipping his sake. “It’s rumored he was struck by lightning a couple of times in his life.”

“So who is your new lawyer?” Yoshino asked, eager to be part of the discussion she’d started.

“A young blood”, Hiashi responded. “Itachi Uchiha, son of Judge Mikoto Uchiha.”

“No kidding. How’d you manage to convince a young blood Uchiha to work with you bunch of old guys?” Shikaku asked. Everyone in the room knew of the Uchiha family, which was equal in status to the Hyuuga family, right down to the family’s historical peculiarities.

“Good old-fashioned Hyuuga charm”, was Hiashi’s response. “Er, it didn’t hurt that Mikoto’s husband Fugaku and I ran in similar circles growing up as well.”

“One of your old conquests, Hyuuga?” Shikaku asked in spite of himself. It bothered him that he couldn’t help wanting to know.

Hiashi chuckled. “If you’re asking me that, then you don’t know Mikoto Uchiha.” Hiashi put his cup down on the table. “But I find your jealousy charming, Nara.”

Bereft of a more appropriate response, Shikaku scowled at Hiashi, who smirked. The elder Nara hoped it would serve as suitable camouflage for the fact that he wasn’t as shocked by the statement as he thought he should have been.

Yoshino turned away to hide her smile. This is going to be easier than I thought, she thought to herself.

Meanwhile, the two law enforcement officials seated across from the Naras filled their cups with sake for the third time.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Shikaku Nara was frustrated. It had been ages since he’d spent so much time with Hiashi Hyuuga, and his discomfort at the man’s proximity felt obvious to everyone else in the room. He was torn helplessly between wanting to collect his wife and leave and wanting to collect Hiashi and his wife and leave.

He had to admit that his son’s earlier statement was correct. Hiashi Hyuuga was, by far, the only man Shikaku had ever met that made him ever reconsider swinging. The man was intelligent, charming, and sexy as all hell and he’d been throwing himself at Shikaku for years. The harder it became to resist, the more distance Shikaku felt it necessary to put between them, until any and all relationships between them were dissolved.

To be fair, Shikaku missed the elder Hyuuga’s presence in their lives. He was like a bolt of lightning from out of the blue—a phenomenon. They’d begun as a simple lawyer and client, but being so similar in nature, seamlessly evolved into very close friends. Before long Shikaku and Yoshino were spending most of the time they weren’t working in the lab with Hiashi. They shared dinners out, dinners in, social events and weekends lazing about on Hiashi’s yacht.

Apparently, though, the ghost of Shikaku and Yoshino’s youthful exuberance hadn’t died, because Yoshino propositioned her husband one day to take Hiashi to bed. And while he had considered it, Shikaku wasn’t prepared to reconsider the chaos of a swinging lifestyle. Shikaku and Yoshino had grown up over the years--married, raised a fine son and built a successful business. At that point in their lives the chaos of swinging just wouldn’t have been practical. Shikaku denied the request of a woman to whom he had never desired to say no, perhaps for the first time in their married history.

From that point, things soured quickly. Hiashi began applying gentle pressure to Shikaku to take their relationship further as well. Shikaku tried to convince himself that his wife and his lawyer were plotting together but deep down he knew it was bullshit. They all wanted the same thing. Shikaku just didn’t have the strength.

So one day Shikaku fired Hiashi and more or less lost his number. Hiashi and Yoshino were disappointed, but unable to make Shikaku change his mind. As far as the elder Nara was concerned, their swinging days were over.

And now, years later, Shikaku was yet again facing the demon that was his inescapable predilection for the long-haired, pale-eyed lawyer. Time, it seemed, had done nothing to fade the man’s appeal—or the threesome’s desire to be together.

A point hit home all the more by the two men who sat across from him at that moment, that lawyer’s nephew--nearly the spitting image of his uncle--and Shikaku’s own son, who had started out as the work partner but was now, in a surprising twist, that lawyer’s nephew’s lover.

Fate, it seemed, was going to have her way.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“This is a nice place, Neji”, Shikaku began, and everyone else in the room stilled. They all knew what was coming—it had been written on his face for awhile.

“Thank you”, was Neji’s simple response. Shikaku openly met Neji’s eyes then, something he’d been reluctant to do since their arrival. Neji’s brutal beauty was Shikaku’s penance--it made it nearly impossible for Shikaku to question his son’s interest. It also forced Shikaku to accept the reality of his own desire for the young man’s uncle. They were all just too alike.

“Is Shikamaru living here with you now?” Shikaku asked.

“No”, Neji responded. He wasn’t going to rise to the bait. He already knew it wasn’t about him.

Shikaku eyed his son, who sat quietly next to Neji with a non-expression. The men’s legs touched but beyond that they made a simple image of two well-dressed men sitting beside each other.

It was actually a formidable image, Shikaku had to admit, and then wondered if that was the image he and Hiashi had presented back when they were friends.

“Shikamaru, I’ve got to tell you…I can see your young man here and while the appeal is obvious, I’m having a difficult time figuring out how you went from being in a relationship with two women at the same time to being the bottom in a relationship with a man. How does that work?”

Let the game begin, Shikamaru thought to himself. “I don’t know what to tell you Dad, it is what it is.”

“And what is that exactly? Did you get bored?” Shikaku ventured.

“You can look at Neji and honestly ask me that question?”

Not honestly. “So what, are you in love?”

“Yes, Dad, I am in love.”

Hiashi and Yoshino, who watched silently, smiled. Neji’s heart skipped a beat once more, though his expression didn’t change.

Shikaku’s heart all but stopped.

“How do you know you’re in love?” he asked his son. “You thought you were in love with those girls and look how that turned out? You were a quivering puddle of shit after they cut you loose. What’s so special about this?”

Shikamaru made a face then. “Everything”, Shikamaru responded. “We’re talking about the difference between apples and oranges. I know what I’m feeling, Dad.” Shikamaru folded his arms across his chest. “And for the record, I was not that bad!”

Shikaku snorted. “You came home crying to your mother; don’t tell me you weren’t that bad! Look, you’re new at this, son. You don’t even top! How can I not worry about what’s happening here?”

Shikamaru shook his head. Would his father ever quit? “Look, Dad, I love you for your concern, honestly…but I’ve got this.”

“What if you’re wrong again?” his father asked.

“If I’m wrong again, then I’ll just have to deal with it. But I’m taking that chance, Dad.”

Shikaku could feel the sweat trickling down his back. He’d never heard his son speak that way about anyone before. If he was surprised about anything, it was the realization of the painful way the fact that Shikamaru had truly found someone was gripping his heart. And not just anyone, but Neji Hyuuga—the only nephew of Hiashi Hyuuga.

Shikaku looked at Neji again and was immediately cognizant of that pain. “And what about you? Are you in love with my son or did you run out of things to do with your trust fund?”

Shikamaru shook his head again. “Dad, come on, you’re being silly”, he interjected.

“Let him answer the question, son.” Both men began to argue then, each one’s comments interrupting the other’s.

“It’s a bullshit question, Dad.”

“It isn’t bullshit to want to know if my son is being used as a toy.”

“It really isn’t any of your business, Dad.”

“Why won’t you just let him answer the question? It’s a simple enough question.”

“He doesn’t owe you any explanations.”

“Maybe he doesn’t. Maybe he owes you one.”

All noise in the room stopped. Shikamaru instantly wished it hadn’t.

Shikaku eyed the young Hyuuga again. “It’s a simple enough question, Neji. Are you in love with my son, or what?”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The time had come.

This was the moment that, at one point, Neji dreaded. He sat quietly as Shikamaru argued with his father about their relationship, and he could certainly sympathize. A man who loved his son was watching him mature and evolve from the young boy who’d once depended on his parents for everything. Shikaku’s reluctance to let go could be felt by everyone in the room.

It was a moment that now had Neji filled with a sense of exhilaration. Neji understood that he had a duty to try to set Shikaku’s mind at ease.

And Gods avail them both, he was ready.

“Uncle”, Neji began, his eyes focused on the man in front of him, “why don’t you see how dinner is doing?”

“Sure thing, Neji”, Hiashi responded, rising from his chair. “Shikamaru, would you give me a hand?”

It took Shikamaru a couple of seconds to catch on, but he did. He rose from his seat on the couch next to his partner and looked at his mother. “Mom”, he called out softly.

“Of course”, was her response. Yoshino rose gracefully from her spot next to her husband on the opposite couch. Wordlessly, the three people filed out the room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Neji reached for a half-empty bottle of sake to fill his cup for the fourth time. He handed the bottle to Shikaku, who took it easily. Neji raised his cup.

“Kanpai”, they both said. As Neji downed the contents of his cup and then set it down, Shikaku turned the bottle up to his mouth, drinking until the bottle was empty and then placing it back on the table.

Neji leaned forward, elbows resting against his thighs, and rubbed his eyes. “The flowers are nice, but they wreak havoc on my eyes.”

Neji got up, walking slowly. He remembered his lover’s earlier advice about his eyes and grew more confident with each step. Neji stopped when he reached the chair where his uncle had been sitting, and then turned around, training those insanely powerful eyes on Shikaku Nara.

“You know, I’ve been in law enforcement for three-and-a-half years, and in my line of work, I have learned well how to read people. I know when someone is faking, often before they themselves even realize it.” Neji sat down in the chair, which was still warm. “And I know fear. I know what it looks like, what it smells like, and what it sounds like.”

Shikaku smirked. “What are you trying to say?”

“Only that you were right.” Neji crossed his legs then, resting his arms in his lap.

“I do owe your son an explanation. I need to explain to him why I’ve known my true feelings for him for the past month but have been too afraid to tell him. It isn’t an easy explanation, as I’m sure Shikamaru is well aware. But he deserves one all the same.”

Shikaku narrowed his eyes at the younger Hyuuga. “Neji Hyuuga, are you or are you not in love with my son?” he asked.

A stunning smile slowly curved the corners of Neji’s mouth. “Yes. I am.”

And for the second time that week, Neji had confessed his love for Shikamaru. It was easier the more he was asked to do it, Neji noted with satisfaction, and brought with it an even greater sense of relief.

Now all that’s left is to tell Shikamaru.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

He loves you, Shikaku thought to himself as he watched the younger Hyuuga. He loves you and you love him.

My son is in love with you.

Unflinching pale eyes met his own.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“So you’re in love with him”, Shikaku responded, “But you won’t bottom for him. What’s the matter, you afraid my son’s schlong is going to be too much for you, Neji?”

Neji resisted the urge to roll his eyes. In the course of his confession he’d nearly forgotten whom he was talking to!

“Mr. Nara, why are you so hung up on our relationship dynamic?”

“Because it doesn’t make sense.”

“It does to us, and that’s all that matters.”

“But how can you look at something so…magnificent, and not even consider it?”

“Who said we hadn’t considered it, Mr. Nara?” Neji got up and walked back to his original spot on the couch opposite the elder Nara. He could hardly believe he was actually going to have this conversation with Shikamaru’s father.

Neji sat down and leaned forward, smirking. “I agree that your son’s body is magnificent. And I look forward to the pleasure of being bottom for him.”

“So what’s the hold-up?” Shikaku asked.

“Oh, there isn’t one. Shikamaru just happens to like it the way I give it to him.”

Shikaku scowled at the younger Hyuuga. How dare he corrupt his only son! “Well then, I suppose I’ll just have to have a talk with Shikamaru.”

I am the man. “Good luck with that”, Neji responded, quirking a brow. “And now I have a question for you, Mr. Nara. What exactly are your intentions concerning my uncle?”

Shikaku’s body stiffened and his eyes flashed in response to the question.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Shikaku heard the words “I don’t know what you mean” stumble out of his mouth, which suddenly felt dry.

Neji cocked his head. “Congratulations. That makes you the only thing breathing in this penthouse right now that doesn’t.”

Shikaku stood up then. “I happen to be a happily married man.”

Neji stood up as well. “You’re also my partner’s father but it didn’t stop you from practically eating my uncle with your eyes tonight.”

Shikaku’s eyes grew wide. Would he ever live this down? “I think you’ve got that backward, young Hyuuga.”

“Oh, please. The attraction between you and my uncle is palpable; we’ve all been on a steady ration of it since you got here. If you really don’t want him, then you’ve got your work cut out for you to convince him of that.”

Neji bit his lip, and then continued. “But if you do want him…I urge you not to let any more grass grow under your decision. My uncle has been waiting for you.”

Shikaku looked away. He couldn’t let Neji see how the truth was breaking him down. It had been so many years…back then, Shikaku hadn’t had the strength to do what Hiashi and Yoshino wanted. Now, tonight, it seemed he no longer had the strength he once did not to.

“What do you think Shikamaru would say about what you’ve just told me?” Shikaku asked the younger Hyuuga.

“He would agree with me. Shikamaru loves you both and wants you to be happy. You should know that.”

Shikaku looked at Neji again. “If he wants my happiness so much then why doesn’t he top?”

Neji snorted. It was like trying to listen to a damaged record. “Your son is not his ‘schlong’, Mr. Nara. And what he does or doesn’t do with it is no one’s business but mine.”

Shikaku narrowed his eyes at Neji’s statement.

Neji quirked a brow in response. I am the man.

Shikaku sighed deeply, in concession rather than defeat and feeling some tension leave his body. It was very clear to him now that Neji and Shikamaru loved each other and intended to stay together. His son had been right—the two relationships were completely different.

This one was fate, and Shikaku was learning that fate wasn’t one to be trifled with.

The elder Nara realized he was badly in need of a cigarette. “Mind if I smoke?” he asked Neji.

“The balcony is just through those doors”, Neji replied, jerking his head for emphasis. “Dinner is served when you’re done.”

Shikaku made his way to the balcony and stepped outside, closing the doors behind him. Now he was alone with a variety of prickly, inescapable, undeniable feelings that surged in no particular order.

I think I’ll be drinking my dinner tonight, he thought as he reached for his cigarettes.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

A/N: I added Itachi Uchiha (at least his name) to the story because I love Itachi Uchiha. I also made his mother a judge instead of his father because, well, why not? Mikoto gets short shrift in fanfiction; consider it my humble attempt to level the playing field, LOL.

LOL I made Raiga a nutball lawyer. Who said you had to be sane to practice law?

Well, how about that potential threesome between Shikaku, Yoshino and Hiashi? That seems pretty hot from where I’m sitting! For the record, no, there will NOT be a follow-on fic chronicling this threesome (at least not from me). I’m going to leave that up to the readers’ imaginations (or anyone who wants to take that threesome and run with it)!

Well, Neji and Shikaku had ‘the talk’. Neji confessed his love for Shikamaru again, but still not to the man himself. What is he waiting for?

Shikaku was called on the carpet to own up to his feelings for Hiashi—twice. So far we’ve heard from both men on the subject. What does Yoshino have to say about all this?

Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter and please leave a review!