War Is the Answer
Title: War Is the Answer
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Gabe/Ian
Warning: violence and discussion of past rape
Summary: Ray knew Ian was going to come for them, but neither of them quite anticipated this...
AN: Thanks to crashdownpixie for never ceasing to be a great beta.
Vicious Cycle:
The Only Deal You’ll Find, I’ll Gladly Take Your Soul
Another Night (Wishing I Wasn’t Here
Line In The Sand
Hit the Floor
Sleepless Night
Thick and Thin
Let the Walls Come Down
There was a tickle on the back of his neck that told Ray he was being followed. It had been there off and on for days, but any time he tried to look there was no one there who was obviously following him or watching him. He did see a few Rooks one time and worried that maybe they weren’t done with him yet.
A large portion of Ray’s confidence had come from being a Rook. It had put him well above the other students. He’d had a place he belonged and Brothers to watch his back if he needed it. With them, he’d felt invincible and it had showed. He’d gotten arrogant and made enemies and, in the end, he’d paid for it.
Ray thought it probably counted for something somewhere that he’d chosen his friend over the Rooks. He could have just as easily chosen the Rooks and passed their stupid loyalty test and not have had his world turned completely upside down. Had they not had their heart-to-heart only days prior to the test, Ray probably would have chosen the Rooks. After all, he had not known that Don considered him a friend like that.
With the Rooks as his enemies, he found himself watching his back once again. He’d already had one of the older Rooks snatch his bag off his shoulder and dump the contents on the floor. Ray had wanted to fight back, but he’d been outnumbered and instead had just gotten on his hands and knees and scooped up his stuff.
There was a tickle again and it brought him out of his thoughts. Ray snapped around to try and catch someone, but he was actually alone in the hall. He turned back around and hurried toward his dorm. He would feel safer there.
He made it to the dorm he shared with Don without feeling like he was being followed. Keying in the code, Ray gave a sigh of relief as the door unlocked. He pressed a button so that it would lock again once he closed the door after he stepped inside. With one hand he swung the door closed and with the other he started to lift the strap of his bag.
The impact to his back caught him completely off guard. With a grunt, Ray stumbled forward before falling to his knees. It hurt a lot more than it usually would have given that he was still healing from the beating the Rooks gave him, but his training kicked in and had him back on his feet in seconds. He twisted around and wasn’t surprised to see Archer glowering at him, blocking the door.
“Are you confused? This isn’t your room anymore,” Ray sneered.
His automatic reaction was to bait Archer, had been since the first moment he saw him. Archer’s aggression had only made it worse. As time went by, it became the only reaction he had when they interacted.
“No more taunting. No more of your fucking attitude,” Archer snarled, and he sounded really pissed.
Ray tossed his bag onto his bed and got into a fighting stance. “You’re one to talk. You’ve had an attitude since the moment you woke up here. Demanding answers and shoving me around. You’ve been a dick to me since the moment we met, how did you think I would react to that?”
“This isn’t about me,” Archer said. “This is about what you did to Gabe. All of it.”
Ray’s heart thumped hard and he had to swallow before he could say anything. “All of it?”
“Yeah, all of it, asshole,” Archer retorted. His face was getting red and his fists, clenched at his sides, were starting to tremble. “He might not want to tell Headmaster, but, by god, I’m not going to let this go unpunished.”
“I told Forrest I regretted it,” Ray said.
Archer snorted, still looking furious. “And you think that makes a difference?”
“It has to count for something,” Ray said with a shrug.
“Regretting you did something and actually being sorry for it are two different things,” Archer replied and Ray could see him getting ready to attack. “I’m going to make you sorry for it.”
The initial attack was expected and Ray dodged it, but Archer came at him with a fury he hadn’t seen before. It was all he could do just to keep up with the ferocious attack. He blocked as much as possible and kept trying to maneuver away to put some space between them, but Archer was methodical.
Ray tried to shove him away, but Archer grabbed him by one of his arms, twisted into an elbow to his sternum, then flipped him to the ground. The breath wooshed from his lungs and before he could get up, Archer pounced him. Archer managed to get in two good shots to the face before Ray tossed him off.
It was a scramble to see who could get up first and Ray won, throwing himself into a tackle to keep Archer down. Archer dodged to the side and threw a punishing right hook to Ray’s back. Ray didn’t get a chance to recover before another swing to his ribs stole his breath. He gasped as Archer grabbed a fistful of hair and yanked him backwards, causing him to stumble off balance and be wide open to a punch to his stomach.
The force of the blow knocked Ray onto his back. He rolled instinctively and narrowly missed the kick Archer threw at his side. Ray kicked the back of Archer’s legs and rolled to his feet as the other boy hit the floor. He back pedaled to put distance between them.
“Listen to me, I think there’s something in that drink the Rooks have,” Ray said. “I think it messes with our minds and our emotions. What I did to Gabe, that’s not something I would have considered myself capable of before becoming a Rook.”
“It couldn’t have just been the power going to your head?” Archer argued as he flipped to his feet. “You’ve been an asshole since day one.”
“You didn’t know me before I became a Rook,” Ray replied. He backed away as Archer started to stalk forward again. “I’m not trying to make excuses, Archer. I think there really is something like that going on with the Rooks.”
“And why the hell should I believe anything you say?”
“Because for the first time, in a long time, I feel like myself again,” Ray said.
It was the truth, whether Archer chose to believe it or not. His head felt clear and he felt…good. Before, with the Rooks, he’d felt superior and he’d thought that had been a good feeling. Freed of the Rooks, Ray felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He didn’t need to feel superior to others and, as they days went on without the Rooks influencing his thoughts and emotions, the feeling of general wellness was getting stronger and stronger.
Archer stopped stalking forward and stood with his arms crossed. “If you’ve turned over a new leaf like you say you have, then you must agree that you deserve punishment for what you did.”
“I…suppose I do,” Ray agreed reluctantly. “But I won’t tell Headmaster. They won’t send me back for punishment, I’ll disappear for good. There’s no telling what will happen to me.”
“So, you think there’s something wrong going on here too?” Archer asked, his surprise evident in his face.
“Well, yeah, but this place is safer than where I was before I came here, so I’ve been denying the truth to myself,” Ray replied.
Archer was silent for a long time as he just stared at Ray, as if sizing him up. Ray shivered under the intense scrutiny. He was sure their fight wasn’t over, but the breather was appreciated.
“Okay, we won’t go to the Headmaster, only because that could be a death sentence for all we know,” Archer relented. “But you still have to be punished.”
“It’s not in me to just stand here and take a beating, Archer,” Ray replied. “I have to fight, just like I’ve always had to fight.”
“That’s not what I had in mind,” Archer replied. “You want to do what’s right?”
Ray hesitated, then nodded. “Yes.”
“Then come with me.”
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Gabe/Ian
Warning: violence and discussion of past rape
Summary: Ray knew Ian was going to come for them, but neither of them quite anticipated this...
AN: Thanks to crashdownpixie for never ceasing to be a great beta.
Vicious Cycle:
The Only Deal You’ll Find, I’ll Gladly Take Your Soul
Another Night (Wishing I Wasn’t Here
Line In The Sand
Hit the Floor
Sleepless Night
Thick and Thin
Let the Walls Come Down
There was a tickle on the back of his neck that told Ray he was being followed. It had been there off and on for days, but any time he tried to look there was no one there who was obviously following him or watching him. He did see a few Rooks one time and worried that maybe they weren’t done with him yet.
A large portion of Ray’s confidence had come from being a Rook. It had put him well above the other students. He’d had a place he belonged and Brothers to watch his back if he needed it. With them, he’d felt invincible and it had showed. He’d gotten arrogant and made enemies and, in the end, he’d paid for it.
Ray thought it probably counted for something somewhere that he’d chosen his friend over the Rooks. He could have just as easily chosen the Rooks and passed their stupid loyalty test and not have had his world turned completely upside down. Had they not had their heart-to-heart only days prior to the test, Ray probably would have chosen the Rooks. After all, he had not known that Don considered him a friend like that.
With the Rooks as his enemies, he found himself watching his back once again. He’d already had one of the older Rooks snatch his bag off his shoulder and dump the contents on the floor. Ray had wanted to fight back, but he’d been outnumbered and instead had just gotten on his hands and knees and scooped up his stuff.
There was a tickle again and it brought him out of his thoughts. Ray snapped around to try and catch someone, but he was actually alone in the hall. He turned back around and hurried toward his dorm. He would feel safer there.
He made it to the dorm he shared with Don without feeling like he was being followed. Keying in the code, Ray gave a sigh of relief as the door unlocked. He pressed a button so that it would lock again once he closed the door after he stepped inside. With one hand he swung the door closed and with the other he started to lift the strap of his bag.
The impact to his back caught him completely off guard. With a grunt, Ray stumbled forward before falling to his knees. It hurt a lot more than it usually would have given that he was still healing from the beating the Rooks gave him, but his training kicked in and had him back on his feet in seconds. He twisted around and wasn’t surprised to see Archer glowering at him, blocking the door.
“Are you confused? This isn’t your room anymore,” Ray sneered.
His automatic reaction was to bait Archer, had been since the first moment he saw him. Archer’s aggression had only made it worse. As time went by, it became the only reaction he had when they interacted.
“No more taunting. No more of your fucking attitude,” Archer snarled, and he sounded really pissed.
Ray tossed his bag onto his bed and got into a fighting stance. “You’re one to talk. You’ve had an attitude since the moment you woke up here. Demanding answers and shoving me around. You’ve been a dick to me since the moment we met, how did you think I would react to that?”
“This isn’t about me,” Archer said. “This is about what you did to Gabe. All of it.”
Ray’s heart thumped hard and he had to swallow before he could say anything. “All of it?”
“Yeah, all of it, asshole,” Archer retorted. His face was getting red and his fists, clenched at his sides, were starting to tremble. “He might not want to tell Headmaster, but, by god, I’m not going to let this go unpunished.”
“I told Forrest I regretted it,” Ray said.
Archer snorted, still looking furious. “And you think that makes a difference?”
“It has to count for something,” Ray said with a shrug.
“Regretting you did something and actually being sorry for it are two different things,” Archer replied and Ray could see him getting ready to attack. “I’m going to make you sorry for it.”
The initial attack was expected and Ray dodged it, but Archer came at him with a fury he hadn’t seen before. It was all he could do just to keep up with the ferocious attack. He blocked as much as possible and kept trying to maneuver away to put some space between them, but Archer was methodical.
Ray tried to shove him away, but Archer grabbed him by one of his arms, twisted into an elbow to his sternum, then flipped him to the ground. The breath wooshed from his lungs and before he could get up, Archer pounced him. Archer managed to get in two good shots to the face before Ray tossed him off.
It was a scramble to see who could get up first and Ray won, throwing himself into a tackle to keep Archer down. Archer dodged to the side and threw a punishing right hook to Ray’s back. Ray didn’t get a chance to recover before another swing to his ribs stole his breath. He gasped as Archer grabbed a fistful of hair and yanked him backwards, causing him to stumble off balance and be wide open to a punch to his stomach.
The force of the blow knocked Ray onto his back. He rolled instinctively and narrowly missed the kick Archer threw at his side. Ray kicked the back of Archer’s legs and rolled to his feet as the other boy hit the floor. He back pedaled to put distance between them.
“Listen to me, I think there’s something in that drink the Rooks have,” Ray said. “I think it messes with our minds and our emotions. What I did to Gabe, that’s not something I would have considered myself capable of before becoming a Rook.”
“It couldn’t have just been the power going to your head?” Archer argued as he flipped to his feet. “You’ve been an asshole since day one.”
“You didn’t know me before I became a Rook,” Ray replied. He backed away as Archer started to stalk forward again. “I’m not trying to make excuses, Archer. I think there really is something like that going on with the Rooks.”
“And why the hell should I believe anything you say?”
“Because for the first time, in a long time, I feel like myself again,” Ray said.
It was the truth, whether Archer chose to believe it or not. His head felt clear and he felt…good. Before, with the Rooks, he’d felt superior and he’d thought that had been a good feeling. Freed of the Rooks, Ray felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He didn’t need to feel superior to others and, as they days went on without the Rooks influencing his thoughts and emotions, the feeling of general wellness was getting stronger and stronger.
Archer stopped stalking forward and stood with his arms crossed. “If you’ve turned over a new leaf like you say you have, then you must agree that you deserve punishment for what you did.”
“I…suppose I do,” Ray agreed reluctantly. “But I won’t tell Headmaster. They won’t send me back for punishment, I’ll disappear for good. There’s no telling what will happen to me.”
“So, you think there’s something wrong going on here too?” Archer asked, his surprise evident in his face.
“Well, yeah, but this place is safer than where I was before I came here, so I’ve been denying the truth to myself,” Ray replied.
Archer was silent for a long time as he just stared at Ray, as if sizing him up. Ray shivered under the intense scrutiny. He was sure their fight wasn’t over, but the breather was appreciated.
“Okay, we won’t go to the Headmaster, only because that could be a death sentence for all we know,” Archer relented. “But you still have to be punished.”
“It’s not in me to just stand here and take a beating, Archer,” Ray replied. “I have to fight, just like I’ve always had to fight.”
“That’s not what I had in mind,” Archer replied. “You want to do what’s right?”
Ray hesitated, then nodded. “Yes.”
“Then come with me.”