(no subject)
Title: After Dark
Rating: 18
Genre: Supernatural Horror
Band: Mejibray
Pairing: Koichi x MiA
Summary: The sun protects us, a shining beacon that has kept the darkness at bay. Evil fears it, for the light is their weakness and they shun it. Even the sun can't protect me now, nothing can. Except perhaps for the man I know only as 'Koichi'.
Author's Note: New chapters every Monday and Friday. (I may post early due to having no access to a computer on the posting day).
Previous Chapters:
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
New Chapter:
Chapter Twelve
“I've been thinking,” I commented as Koichi selected the outfit I'm to wear that day, “About the workers on the farms.”
“What of them?” Koichi asked. I'd learnt the day before that there was a small farm where some of the workers went during the day. I wasn't sure how they worked, only that they existed at all and were the main source of human food to those living in the former hotel.
“They have cows and chickens,” I recalled, “Which means they produce milk and eggs?”
“All free range,” Koichi reassured me, that's not what I was getting at, though it's almost amusing that the animals are free range but the humans are not. In a dark, twisted, sort of way.
“If there's sugar and flour, I can make you the cake you wanted,” I offered. It's what he had wanted so badly before.
“A chocolate cake?” Koichi asked.
“Well, I don't know if there is any chocolate,” I explained, “I'd have to see.”
“This outfit is no good for the kitchens,” Koichi decided, starting his choice of clothes all over again. I took this as a sign I was going to be allowed to bake. I only hoped I wouldn't mess up the recipe. He hands me some clothes and I get dressed, almost as happily as he was. It was nice to have something to focus on, other than my own survival.
Much to the kitchen workers dismay, Koichi forced them to allow me to bake. I tried to look bad for them, only in fear of what would happen to my food if they realised I was the one to blame. They seem to be buying it, but I was not welcome here, and Koichi even less. This is expressed in glares whenever Koichi wasn't looking, but I did my best to ignore them as I cooked a simple cake.
“Can I lick the spoon?” Koichi asked, taking it from my hand as I place the cake in the oven. It had been awhile since I saw him behaving so childish, it's a reminder of the simpler times before we came here. He licks off some of the mixture, before steering the conversation exactly where I need it to go. “How did you like the balcony?”
Across the room one of the chef's scoffed in pure disgust at my preferential treatment. I would have ignored it, only Koichi dropped the spoon and gave him the full red eyed glare.
“Leave us,” Koichi ordered. I feared for the chef's life when he began to worry about preparing the meal on time. “The food will be late. Get out, all of you.” So much for ever befriending any of these men.
“I liked breathing in some fresh air,” I answered, doing my best to ignore the scene that had just happened, “Only...”
“What's wrong?” Koichi asked. “Does the door bother you? The wood is only temporary.”
“My room is next to Zero's, he has balcony access too.” I explained. “I didn't talk to him, well hardly. Just enough that he knows I didn't know if I was allowed to talk to him.”
“So, you bake me a cake to trick me into giving you this permission?” Koichi asked. I flinched, cursing myself for getting too cocky. “I will speak to Yuuki about this matter. Thank you, for being honest with me.”
“The way I see it,” I began carefully, “Our moods have become entwined.”
“Don't push it,” Koichi warned, “I said I would speak to Yuuki.”
“That's not what I meant,” I reassured him. To his surprise I kissed him, my need evident in my actions. Perhaps I was lonely, or scared that being here was pulling us apart, but I needed to feel his love. Love he wouldn't, couldn't, vocalise but I knew was there.
“Naughty princess,” Koichi teased, lifting me onto the kitchen counter I had been working on. It was one of those island counters, with plenty of room for me to lie back, with only my legs hanging over the edge. He knew what I wanted, so wasting as little time as possible before hand, he took me hard and fast. I cried out, in pleasure at first, turning to false anguish as Koichi snarled a reminder of the role I was supposed to play. The macho man, stripped of everything masculine about him. I wondered how anyone could ever believe that at all.
“Well?” Zero asked as I stepped on the balcony. He was grinning like an idiot, of course Yuuki had told him.
“I got his permission,” I confirmed. It was early morning, which meant I was tired, but I was in no rush to go to bed just yet.
“By letting him 'abuse' you in the kitchen,” Zero replied, “I heard everything from Ichiro, who heard it from one of the chefs.”
“It wasn't like that!” I exclaimed, “Is that what you think?”
“Hey!” Zero complained, “I'm not judging.”
“I baked him a cake, for this,” I informed him, my tone as cold as ice. Zero stayed silent, waiting for me to calm down. “Are we whores?”
“Well that depends,” Zero answered, leaning over the railing so that he can whisper his next words, “Yuuki is my boyfriend, I'm no whore. What is Koichi to you?”
“I don't know,” I admitted. “He was the man I was dating, but then he became my means to survive. I don't think I know Koichi at all.”
“I don't know who he is, but I know what he was,” Zero offered, “A spoilt brat, in all honestly. He used to come around, from time to time, annoying the hell out of Yuuki half the time, but great fun sometimes to. He had passion then. He designed all kinds of clothes, his dream was to be a designer but the King refused to let his sons out of the hotel business.”
“Who we were before, those people are dead,” I said, feeling bitter. Talking to Zero hadn't helped. I wanted reassurance, of what I'm not sure. Perhaps that there was still good in me, that I was more than a manipulative toy of a possibly evil man. “I'm going to bed.”
“Sweet dreams,” Zero wished me. I wished him well to, and went back inside. I had no plans on sleeping though, it was about time I read my hidden book.
The weekly duel was well underway when I spotted Meto and Tsuzuku enter the room. I hadn't seen either of them since the night Tsuzuku had tried to kill himself, so it was more than a surprise to see how healthy he looked. If not happy, he looked relaxed at least. As best as I could, I watched him, wondering what had changed.
“You're paying more attention to him, than even me,” Koichi whispered, “The king will notice.”
“He seems a lot happier than before,” I replied, letting Koichi give me a possessive kiss, making sure to wipe my lips in disgust when Koichi wasn't looking. He was right, the king was watching me, it was dangerous to relax in his presence.
“He's spent a lot of time with Meto,” Koichi informed me, “But surprisingly it was Yuuki's visit that caused the changes. Whatever my brother told him, it made all the difference. You know, Tsuzuku even confessed where his human friends were hiding out. They were recently gone when the clan arrived. Another vampire got there first, but Tsuzuku never mourned.”
“It makes no sense,” I agreed. As Koichi made a show of scolding me, I tried to figure out what had happened. The one thing I hadn't expected Tsuzuku to do was to betray his former friends. Even Koichi, who would do anything to impress his father, hadn't pressed him any further than the location of an abandoned base. What had Yuuki promised him? The other prince was as mysterious, as he was beautiful.
Later I tried to press information out of Zero, but the other man was being surprisingly quiet on the matter. Suspiciously so. I made my excuses and returned to my room, reminding myself that whilst I might have Stockholm syndrome, he certainly did. The one thing Zero wasn't going to do, was betray the man he thought of as his boyfriend.
“You're arm looks fine,” Ichiro concluded with a smile. “Time to remove the stitches.”
“Is he fully recovered then?” Koichi asked, grinning when Ichiro concluded that I was.
“It's nice to see a healthy person around here,” Ichiro commented casually, the smile fading quickly when he saw Koichi's expression. “He doesn't know?”
“What don't I know?” I demanded, “Is there a flu outbreak or something?”
“Worse,” Koichi eventually said in the silence, “The humans found a way to avoid being food.”
“Suicide?” I guessed. Tsuzuku's attempt still fresh in my mind.
“Not quite,” Ichiro answered, as he glanced nervously over at Koichi. “There was a woman here, just captured this week, with HIV. Before anyone realised what was going on, six others caught it from her. Intentionally.”
“Why would they do such a thing?” I gasped in pure shock. Even as I said it, I knew. I'd seen how the vampires treated the humans here, as food, a sexual outlet, toys for their own amusement. I was no different, I was just luckier, Koichi's treatment of me left no mental pain. Not really, perhaps I had just been so well institutionalised that I could no longer see any evil in what Koichi did. “Are things really so bad? Koichi, isn't there anything you can do for the people here? Aren't you a prince?”
“How dare you judge my father's rule!” Koichi snarled at me, grabbing my wrist and leading me back to my room. I had no idea if his anger was genuine, or an act for any watching eyes, but for the first time since I had first learnt his secret, I truly feared him. “Don't question me like that, not in front of anyone. You hear me?”
“Do you really believe that what your father is doing here is all right?” I demanded right back, “Or do you fear him too?”
“Shut your mouth!” Koichi snapped. I was to be punished for sure, but in this I couldn't remain silent. The idea that anyone would willingly contract HIV, a disease that had terrified me from the moment I had realised how many gay men actually contracted it, horrified me to the core. I was prepared for any punishment or retribution and I knew Koichi could pick up on my feelings on the matter. Just as his anger was about to explode, he turned and left me alone in my room. Later that day Meto came with food, unlocking the products in the bathroom and ordering me to take care of myself.
“Are you all right?” Zero worried, finding me sulking on my balcony. “I heard that Koichi lost his temper earlier. You should see the hall outside our rooms.”
“He didn't hurt me,” I reassured him, though my wrist was red from when he had dragged me into my rooms. “He must have taken his temper out on the hallway instead.”
“What happened?” Zero asked, listening carefully to my side of events. “Shall I ask Yuuki to intervene?”
“Not yet,” I replied. “At least, it's good he went to calm down. Isn't it?”
“Unless he's plotting something worse?” Zero worried. I shook my head, about to say more when I heard Koichi inside my room.
“MiA, come inside please. Shut the door behind you.” He ordered. I gave Zero a helpless glance I did as ordered, finding Koichi sitting on the edge of my bed. Was I to be punished, I wondered as I obediently sat by his side. I flinched as he moved towards me, relaxing only when I realised he was merely putting his arm over my shoulder.
“You're not to question me in public,” Koichi said, his tone even and without emotion, “No more than to ask permission, or clarify an order.”
“I understand,” I replied, carefully. He orders me to play my guitar, a sign that he wants nobody else to overhear.
“Father scolded me today, that's why Meto came earlier,” Koichi explained, keeping his voice quiet. “He thinks I don't have you trained, and he's right, his training would mean breaking your spirit. You wouldn't be my princess any more, just a broken shell. Like his dolls.”
“I'm sorry,” I apologised, “I didn't want you to be in trouble.”
“I know, you're too good for this place, too good for me perhaps,” Koichi explained, “It's true, I haven't treated you as well as you deserve, but to do that would mean your death.”
“Koichi,” I said, stunned by his words. He's never shown this level of affection before, never shown any regrets that he kept me as his prisoner for so long.
“See this?” Koichi asked, showing me a scar above his left hip,“He pinned me to the wall with his ice magic, left me there until the ice melted enough for me to escape, one shard went straight through me. He's never been so cruel before.”
“Because I questioned you?” I gasped. The scar is so long it's a wonder Koichi is still alive, even with his vampire powers he was probably still healing inside.
“Because I lost my temper and destroyed part of the hotel,” Koichi corrected. “Don't feel sorry for me, I can handle myself. Only I want you to know two things, first, whatever I do around him, know it's not the real me. He's changed, for the worst, and expects his sons to do the same.”
“And the second thing?” I asked, changing the song I was playing to one that was more fitting to my mood.
“You were right to be upset, I won't punish you for your actions today.” Koichi answered. He looked like he wanted to say more, but he remained silent. Giving me a last longing look before getting up to go. “I have to spend the next couple of days by father's side. Meto will bring you food. Perhaps you can use this time to find out what's going on with Tsuzuku? He has to remain at Meto's side after all.”
Rating: 18
Genre: Supernatural Horror
Band: Mejibray
Pairing: Koichi x MiA
Summary: The sun protects us, a shining beacon that has kept the darkness at bay. Evil fears it, for the light is their weakness and they shun it. Even the sun can't protect me now, nothing can. Except perhaps for the man I know only as 'Koichi'.
Author's Note: New chapters every Monday and Friday. (I may post early due to having no access to a computer on the posting day).
Previous Chapters:
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
New Chapter:
Chapter Twelve
“I've been thinking,” I commented as Koichi selected the outfit I'm to wear that day, “About the workers on the farms.”
“What of them?” Koichi asked. I'd learnt the day before that there was a small farm where some of the workers went during the day. I wasn't sure how they worked, only that they existed at all and were the main source of human food to those living in the former hotel.
“They have cows and chickens,” I recalled, “Which means they produce milk and eggs?”
“All free range,” Koichi reassured me, that's not what I was getting at, though it's almost amusing that the animals are free range but the humans are not. In a dark, twisted, sort of way.
“If there's sugar and flour, I can make you the cake you wanted,” I offered. It's what he had wanted so badly before.
“A chocolate cake?” Koichi asked.
“Well, I don't know if there is any chocolate,” I explained, “I'd have to see.”
“This outfit is no good for the kitchens,” Koichi decided, starting his choice of clothes all over again. I took this as a sign I was going to be allowed to bake. I only hoped I wouldn't mess up the recipe. He hands me some clothes and I get dressed, almost as happily as he was. It was nice to have something to focus on, other than my own survival.
Much to the kitchen workers dismay, Koichi forced them to allow me to bake. I tried to look bad for them, only in fear of what would happen to my food if they realised I was the one to blame. They seem to be buying it, but I was not welcome here, and Koichi even less. This is expressed in glares whenever Koichi wasn't looking, but I did my best to ignore them as I cooked a simple cake.
“Can I lick the spoon?” Koichi asked, taking it from my hand as I place the cake in the oven. It had been awhile since I saw him behaving so childish, it's a reminder of the simpler times before we came here. He licks off some of the mixture, before steering the conversation exactly where I need it to go. “How did you like the balcony?”
Across the room one of the chef's scoffed in pure disgust at my preferential treatment. I would have ignored it, only Koichi dropped the spoon and gave him the full red eyed glare.
“Leave us,” Koichi ordered. I feared for the chef's life when he began to worry about preparing the meal on time. “The food will be late. Get out, all of you.” So much for ever befriending any of these men.
“I liked breathing in some fresh air,” I answered, doing my best to ignore the scene that had just happened, “Only...”
“What's wrong?” Koichi asked. “Does the door bother you? The wood is only temporary.”
“My room is next to Zero's, he has balcony access too.” I explained. “I didn't talk to him, well hardly. Just enough that he knows I didn't know if I was allowed to talk to him.”
“So, you bake me a cake to trick me into giving you this permission?” Koichi asked. I flinched, cursing myself for getting too cocky. “I will speak to Yuuki about this matter. Thank you, for being honest with me.”
“The way I see it,” I began carefully, “Our moods have become entwined.”
“Don't push it,” Koichi warned, “I said I would speak to Yuuki.”
“That's not what I meant,” I reassured him. To his surprise I kissed him, my need evident in my actions. Perhaps I was lonely, or scared that being here was pulling us apart, but I needed to feel his love. Love he wouldn't, couldn't, vocalise but I knew was there.
“Naughty princess,” Koichi teased, lifting me onto the kitchen counter I had been working on. It was one of those island counters, with plenty of room for me to lie back, with only my legs hanging over the edge. He knew what I wanted, so wasting as little time as possible before hand, he took me hard and fast. I cried out, in pleasure at first, turning to false anguish as Koichi snarled a reminder of the role I was supposed to play. The macho man, stripped of everything masculine about him. I wondered how anyone could ever believe that at all.
“Well?” Zero asked as I stepped on the balcony. He was grinning like an idiot, of course Yuuki had told him.
“I got his permission,” I confirmed. It was early morning, which meant I was tired, but I was in no rush to go to bed just yet.
“By letting him 'abuse' you in the kitchen,” Zero replied, “I heard everything from Ichiro, who heard it from one of the chefs.”
“It wasn't like that!” I exclaimed, “Is that what you think?”
“Hey!” Zero complained, “I'm not judging.”
“I baked him a cake, for this,” I informed him, my tone as cold as ice. Zero stayed silent, waiting for me to calm down. “Are we whores?”
“Well that depends,” Zero answered, leaning over the railing so that he can whisper his next words, “Yuuki is my boyfriend, I'm no whore. What is Koichi to you?”
“I don't know,” I admitted. “He was the man I was dating, but then he became my means to survive. I don't think I know Koichi at all.”
“I don't know who he is, but I know what he was,” Zero offered, “A spoilt brat, in all honestly. He used to come around, from time to time, annoying the hell out of Yuuki half the time, but great fun sometimes to. He had passion then. He designed all kinds of clothes, his dream was to be a designer but the King refused to let his sons out of the hotel business.”
“Who we were before, those people are dead,” I said, feeling bitter. Talking to Zero hadn't helped. I wanted reassurance, of what I'm not sure. Perhaps that there was still good in me, that I was more than a manipulative toy of a possibly evil man. “I'm going to bed.”
“Sweet dreams,” Zero wished me. I wished him well to, and went back inside. I had no plans on sleeping though, it was about time I read my hidden book.
The weekly duel was well underway when I spotted Meto and Tsuzuku enter the room. I hadn't seen either of them since the night Tsuzuku had tried to kill himself, so it was more than a surprise to see how healthy he looked. If not happy, he looked relaxed at least. As best as I could, I watched him, wondering what had changed.
“You're paying more attention to him, than even me,” Koichi whispered, “The king will notice.”
“He seems a lot happier than before,” I replied, letting Koichi give me a possessive kiss, making sure to wipe my lips in disgust when Koichi wasn't looking. He was right, the king was watching me, it was dangerous to relax in his presence.
“He's spent a lot of time with Meto,” Koichi informed me, “But surprisingly it was Yuuki's visit that caused the changes. Whatever my brother told him, it made all the difference. You know, Tsuzuku even confessed where his human friends were hiding out. They were recently gone when the clan arrived. Another vampire got there first, but Tsuzuku never mourned.”
“It makes no sense,” I agreed. As Koichi made a show of scolding me, I tried to figure out what had happened. The one thing I hadn't expected Tsuzuku to do was to betray his former friends. Even Koichi, who would do anything to impress his father, hadn't pressed him any further than the location of an abandoned base. What had Yuuki promised him? The other prince was as mysterious, as he was beautiful.
Later I tried to press information out of Zero, but the other man was being surprisingly quiet on the matter. Suspiciously so. I made my excuses and returned to my room, reminding myself that whilst I might have Stockholm syndrome, he certainly did. The one thing Zero wasn't going to do, was betray the man he thought of as his boyfriend.
“You're arm looks fine,” Ichiro concluded with a smile. “Time to remove the stitches.”
“Is he fully recovered then?” Koichi asked, grinning when Ichiro concluded that I was.
“It's nice to see a healthy person around here,” Ichiro commented casually, the smile fading quickly when he saw Koichi's expression. “He doesn't know?”
“What don't I know?” I demanded, “Is there a flu outbreak or something?”
“Worse,” Koichi eventually said in the silence, “The humans found a way to avoid being food.”
“Suicide?” I guessed. Tsuzuku's attempt still fresh in my mind.
“Not quite,” Ichiro answered, as he glanced nervously over at Koichi. “There was a woman here, just captured this week, with HIV. Before anyone realised what was going on, six others caught it from her. Intentionally.”
“Why would they do such a thing?” I gasped in pure shock. Even as I said it, I knew. I'd seen how the vampires treated the humans here, as food, a sexual outlet, toys for their own amusement. I was no different, I was just luckier, Koichi's treatment of me left no mental pain. Not really, perhaps I had just been so well institutionalised that I could no longer see any evil in what Koichi did. “Are things really so bad? Koichi, isn't there anything you can do for the people here? Aren't you a prince?”
“How dare you judge my father's rule!” Koichi snarled at me, grabbing my wrist and leading me back to my room. I had no idea if his anger was genuine, or an act for any watching eyes, but for the first time since I had first learnt his secret, I truly feared him. “Don't question me like that, not in front of anyone. You hear me?”
“Do you really believe that what your father is doing here is all right?” I demanded right back, “Or do you fear him too?”
“Shut your mouth!” Koichi snapped. I was to be punished for sure, but in this I couldn't remain silent. The idea that anyone would willingly contract HIV, a disease that had terrified me from the moment I had realised how many gay men actually contracted it, horrified me to the core. I was prepared for any punishment or retribution and I knew Koichi could pick up on my feelings on the matter. Just as his anger was about to explode, he turned and left me alone in my room. Later that day Meto came with food, unlocking the products in the bathroom and ordering me to take care of myself.
“Are you all right?” Zero worried, finding me sulking on my balcony. “I heard that Koichi lost his temper earlier. You should see the hall outside our rooms.”
“He didn't hurt me,” I reassured him, though my wrist was red from when he had dragged me into my rooms. “He must have taken his temper out on the hallway instead.”
“What happened?” Zero asked, listening carefully to my side of events. “Shall I ask Yuuki to intervene?”
“Not yet,” I replied. “At least, it's good he went to calm down. Isn't it?”
“Unless he's plotting something worse?” Zero worried. I shook my head, about to say more when I heard Koichi inside my room.
“MiA, come inside please. Shut the door behind you.” He ordered. I gave Zero a helpless glance I did as ordered, finding Koichi sitting on the edge of my bed. Was I to be punished, I wondered as I obediently sat by his side. I flinched as he moved towards me, relaxing only when I realised he was merely putting his arm over my shoulder.
“You're not to question me in public,” Koichi said, his tone even and without emotion, “No more than to ask permission, or clarify an order.”
“I understand,” I replied, carefully. He orders me to play my guitar, a sign that he wants nobody else to overhear.
“Father scolded me today, that's why Meto came earlier,” Koichi explained, keeping his voice quiet. “He thinks I don't have you trained, and he's right, his training would mean breaking your spirit. You wouldn't be my princess any more, just a broken shell. Like his dolls.”
“I'm sorry,” I apologised, “I didn't want you to be in trouble.”
“I know, you're too good for this place, too good for me perhaps,” Koichi explained, “It's true, I haven't treated you as well as you deserve, but to do that would mean your death.”
“Koichi,” I said, stunned by his words. He's never shown this level of affection before, never shown any regrets that he kept me as his prisoner for so long.
“See this?” Koichi asked, showing me a scar above his left hip,“He pinned me to the wall with his ice magic, left me there until the ice melted enough for me to escape, one shard went straight through me. He's never been so cruel before.”
“Because I questioned you?” I gasped. The scar is so long it's a wonder Koichi is still alive, even with his vampire powers he was probably still healing inside.
“Because I lost my temper and destroyed part of the hotel,” Koichi corrected. “Don't feel sorry for me, I can handle myself. Only I want you to know two things, first, whatever I do around him, know it's not the real me. He's changed, for the worst, and expects his sons to do the same.”
“And the second thing?” I asked, changing the song I was playing to one that was more fitting to my mood.
“You were right to be upset, I won't punish you for your actions today.” Koichi answered. He looked like he wanted to say more, but he remained silent. Giving me a last longing look before getting up to go. “I have to spend the next couple of days by father's side. Meto will bring you food. Perhaps you can use this time to find out what's going on with Tsuzuku? He has to remain at Meto's side after all.”