That Boy is a Monster II
Title: That Boy is a Monster
Pairing: none even though SOMEONE insists it's Taoris
Rating: PG-13 (I dunno why. I feel as if this is default for me.)
Genre: AU
Previous Chapters: One
Disclaimer: I never claimed to be good at this.
The room was tiny by most standards. The ceiling was low, barely two feet above an average-sized man's head; the walls were white and windowless, and so close together that it often felt as if they were closing in. There was a small metal bed with a thin mattress and a flat pillow; it took up nearly the entirety of the wall opposite the heavy metal door, and it was the only thing inside.
The door opened, its hinges squeaking in protest, and Tao was practically thrown inside. He stumbled and fell, landing half on the bed, his cheek pressing into the thin blanket; someone stepped up behind him and gripped his neck above the metal collar, squeezing tight to keep him still as the restraints on his arms were removed.
He didn't move. Didn't even try. He simply stared at the wall, eyes empty, body limp. One of them stripped off his jacket to check the pockets; when he found they were empty, he tossed it on the bed next to Tao's head, his hands moving to frisk the rest of his thin body. Tao heard the man holding him down laugh, and he closed his eyes when the guy roughly mussed his hair.
"Weird to see him so docile. He's like a broken dog." The voice whispered loudly into his ear. "Be a good little puppy and do as your new master tells you."
The door swung shut, the locks snapped into place, and the light dimmed. Tao was left alone finally, but there was no comfort in the silence and the near dark. He stayed where he was, quiet and motionless, trying not to think or breathe.
Every so often, however, his body would give a slow shudder. And, every so often, enough tears would gather to slip from his closed eyes.
~ ~ ~
It wasn't often that Yixing left his "control room" to explore the rest of the building, but today he found himself doing just that. His newest toy had been safely put away; he'd spent a few minutes reclining in his chair, watching as Tao was held down, frisked, and generally humiliated, a slight smile tipping his lips. He rolled his sleeves up, eyes on the monitor and the unmoving boy, now alone and silent.
He hadn't expected him to be so boring.
When Zitao offered no entertainment whatsoever, Yixing stood, smoothed his clothing, and stepped out the door Tao had been dragged through. This hallway looked very different from the one between the entrance and the control room; long and poorly lit, its walls were painted black and lined with metal doors. There was a small panel set into each door which could be slid open from the outside, giving anyone the ability to see what was behind a door before opening it.
There were letters stenciled in off-white paint on some doors as well, though most seemed to have been scraped off. Yixing passed the door with "Z" on it, catching a whiff of the fresh paint, and headed further down the hall to the last door.
This one was different. It was the only room in this hall that could be locked from both the inside and the outside, and it was the only door without a peek panel set into it. At eye-level, in red paint, the word "BIRDCAGE" had been scrawled. It was a room nobody wanted to find himself a prisoner in. Sometimes, Yixing even disliked being in charge of it.
He unlocked the heavy door, tucked the keys back in his pocket, and opened it.
The scrawl on the door was literal. Inside the room, situated in the very center, was a birdcage. It was tall enough for a man to stand inside, and not even wide enough for one to stretch his arms out without his forearms going out beyond the bars. Wires were threaded around each bar that arched upward from its base, wires that ran across the floor to the mess of machines in the far corner. Chains hung from the top of the cage, and more were scattered around it.
Yixing stepped closer up to the cage and hesitantly touched a bar to make sure there was no charge before leaning against it.
"Are you awake?"
Kris was slumped against the bars, eyes closed. His clothing was ripped and dirty, and there were scrapes on his knuckles. When Yixing spoke, he opened his eyes and looked up at him in a daze, lips parting with a quiet, rattling groan.
"Good. I'd apologise for putting you in here, but it's the most appropriate place for you, considering..." he shrugged and reached in, grabbing a handful of Kris's hair and giving it a short tug. "Now pay attention. We need to talk."
Kris winced, and one hand automatically snapped up to grab Yixing's wrist; the well-dressed young man seemed to panic, and he yanked his arm away hurriedly, eyes wide. He rubbed the place where Kris's hand had been before reaching through the bars again and slapping the boy's cheek with a loud crack.
"No. You don't get to touch me. You're not even one of my toys, you're just a hostage." Kris rubbed his cheek, and Yixing gave him a dark look. "Your little friend is here. What do you call him? 'Tao'?"
The boy in the cage tensed and straightened up a little. "Why do you want him?"
"He was bad. He got away for a while, tried to disappear and live like a person... but toys aren't real people. He knew one day we'd find him and bring him back." Yixing smiled, and Kris shivered at the look in his eyes. "And now you're going to tell me all about him and what he's been doing out there."
Kris shook his head, and Yixing's smile widened.
"I was almost hoping you'd say that."
~ ~ ~
Twenty-four hours passed before Yixing finally had Tao brought to him again. The boy, it seemed, had been so broken by the thought that his friend was dead that he hadn't moved much from where he'd been tossed; Yixing had watched him, his eyes flicking between two screens as he kept tabs on both of his new prisoners.
Kris didn't really merit much watching. Every so often he'd open his eyes and let out a dry moan; when his body slumped against the bars, and they hit him with a jolt of electricity, he'd cry out and jerk upright. It always caught Yixing's attention, and the slow, painful torture of the boy who had refused to tell him anything he wanted to know brought a smile to the young man's face.
That smile stayed on his face as he made his way to the training room. Trailing behind him, hauled along by another two suited, faceless men, was Tao. He was still unwilling to move, his legs dragging uselessly as they pulled him. Yixing cast a glance back at him and noted the way a bruise had bloomed across his cheekbone, as well as the imprints of fingers in the skin of his neck.
His new pet bruised easily. He'd have to remember that.
"Shall I call you Z? Or do you prefer the name you gave yourself?" He stepped into a large, well-lit room, looking around the empty space before turning his attention back to the men. With a quiet motion, he waved them away. "Zitao? Or Tao, rather. That's what your little friend called you."
Tao had dropped to his knees on the floor when the men had let him go; wordlessly, he looked up at Yixing, eyes dark. Yixing arched an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Well, Z it is. Get up now..." he waited, and when Tao didn't stand, he cleared his throat. "Stand, or I'll put that collar to use."
It wasn't a bluff, and Tao knew it. More than once he'd been threatened with that, and more than once he'd ended up on the floor, writhing around in pain. His old handlers had not been shy about trying to teach him "lessons", and from the way this one was... he didn't think he would be, either.
He stood.
"Good." He smiled at Tao and nodded. "I read your file. It was a big one, took all night." A muscle in Tao's jaw twitched as he clenched his teeth. "You do some very interesting things... I want to see them for myself. Show me."
Tao didn't move.
"I said show me. Don't pretend you didn't hear."
"Kill me." Tao was pleased to see the momentary shock on his face. "I won't be made to do those things again. I'm not a murderer."
Yixing's expression shifted and his arm shot out, fingers curling into Tao's shirt and jerking him closer. The boy tilted his head back, a growl catching in his throat as Yixing slid a finger between the collar and his skin. It made the collar uncomfortably tight, the metal pressing into the back of his neck as the single digit took up what meager amount of space there was.
"Do as I say or I'll make you wish you were dead." Yixing leaned close and whispered into Tao's ear, making the hair on the back of his neck stand up. "Your little friend will also be punished if you misbehave. Think about that before deciding how you're going to act."
The weight of his words settled on Tao, mixing up his emotions in the most confusing way.
"Kris is dead," he said softly, eyes searching Yixing's face. "You said-"
"I said bad things happen when you misbehave. I never said the boy had been disposed of."
Tao barely dared to breathe. "Prove it."
Yixing sighed in disgust and jerked down on the collar, making Tao's head snap back uncomfortably on his neck as his back bent in a sort of half-bow. Tao itched to grab the boy's arm, to snap his wrist so he couldn't continue treating him like a dog, but he knew better. His victory would be short-lived, and he'd suffer greatly for it. Kris, too, if he were still alive as Yixing said. He bit his tongue, fists clenched by his sides as he glared up at the young man.
"I don't have to prove anything to you, and you're well aware of it."
It was true. Yixing had the upper hand now; Tao had no proof that Kris was alive, but he also had no proof the boy was dead either. If he was defiant... if he didn't do as he was told, and Kris was truly still alive... Tao had no doubts that his friend would be tortured for his behaviour. It was well within the realm of possibility for these people.
"Now show me."
They separated, Yixing moving to lean against the locked door as Tao backed up toward the opposite side of the room. Tao stretched his arms up over his head, nose wrinkling when his shoulders popped; he closed his eyes and drew a quiet breath, his back bumping against the wall as he lowered his arms to his sides again. He stood still, his only movements the flexing of his fingers as they curled into fists before stretching back out.
His eyes opened, he took a step, and then he disappeared.
Yixing stared at the spot where the boy had been standing, his breath catching as every muscle in his body tensed. The soft swirl of what looked like black smoke hung in the air, the only remnants of the boy's form; a moment later, he reappeared, his body silently bursting back into existence several yards to the left of where he'd been.
Yixing blinked, and Tao was gone again.
"Amazing," he murmured, watching as his new toy disappeared and reappeared. With every repetition, he drew closer to Yixing; the time his body was gone seemed to grow shorter, while the distances he moved grew longer. Tao's body only appeared in brief flashes, as if he were a single frame out of place in a very long reel of film. The handler's eyes couldn't keep up.
Finally, the boy reappeared right in front of Yixing, his head lowered, one hand wrapped around the man's throat. He squeezed gently, closing Yixing's windpipe and making him gasp; Yixing grabbed his wrist, and Tao immediately released the pressure. His fingers stayed against Yixing's skin, however, and the well-dressed man squirmed, his amazement now mixed with discomfort.
When the boy looked up at him, Yixing stared into the icy blue pools that Tao's eyes had become.
"Let go." Tao's blank expression flickered, and he blinked slowly at Yixing for a minute before letting go of his throat. "I see why they were so insistent that you be brought back alive. It's useful to have a monster under one's thumb."
Tao looked away; when he spoke, his voice was soft, pained. "I'm not a monster."
Yixing shrugged a shoulder and stuck his hands into his pockets as Tao took a step back, putting more distance between the two of them.
"We're all monsters deep down inside, pet."
Pairing: none even though SOMEONE insists it's Taoris
Rating: PG-13 (I dunno why. I feel as if this is default for me.)
Genre: AU
Previous Chapters: One
Disclaimer: I never claimed to be good at this.
The room was tiny by most standards. The ceiling was low, barely two feet above an average-sized man's head; the walls were white and windowless, and so close together that it often felt as if they were closing in. There was a small metal bed with a thin mattress and a flat pillow; it took up nearly the entirety of the wall opposite the heavy metal door, and it was the only thing inside.
The door opened, its hinges squeaking in protest, and Tao was practically thrown inside. He stumbled and fell, landing half on the bed, his cheek pressing into the thin blanket; someone stepped up behind him and gripped his neck above the metal collar, squeezing tight to keep him still as the restraints on his arms were removed.
He didn't move. Didn't even try. He simply stared at the wall, eyes empty, body limp. One of them stripped off his jacket to check the pockets; when he found they were empty, he tossed it on the bed next to Tao's head, his hands moving to frisk the rest of his thin body. Tao heard the man holding him down laugh, and he closed his eyes when the guy roughly mussed his hair.
"Weird to see him so docile. He's like a broken dog." The voice whispered loudly into his ear. "Be a good little puppy and do as your new master tells you."
The door swung shut, the locks snapped into place, and the light dimmed. Tao was left alone finally, but there was no comfort in the silence and the near dark. He stayed where he was, quiet and motionless, trying not to think or breathe.
Every so often, however, his body would give a slow shudder. And, every so often, enough tears would gather to slip from his closed eyes.
~ ~ ~
It wasn't often that Yixing left his "control room" to explore the rest of the building, but today he found himself doing just that. His newest toy had been safely put away; he'd spent a few minutes reclining in his chair, watching as Tao was held down, frisked, and generally humiliated, a slight smile tipping his lips. He rolled his sleeves up, eyes on the monitor and the unmoving boy, now alone and silent.
He hadn't expected him to be so boring.
When Zitao offered no entertainment whatsoever, Yixing stood, smoothed his clothing, and stepped out the door Tao had been dragged through. This hallway looked very different from the one between the entrance and the control room; long and poorly lit, its walls were painted black and lined with metal doors. There was a small panel set into each door which could be slid open from the outside, giving anyone the ability to see what was behind a door before opening it.
There were letters stenciled in off-white paint on some doors as well, though most seemed to have been scraped off. Yixing passed the door with "Z" on it, catching a whiff of the fresh paint, and headed further down the hall to the last door.
This one was different. It was the only room in this hall that could be locked from both the inside and the outside, and it was the only door without a peek panel set into it. At eye-level, in red paint, the word "BIRDCAGE" had been scrawled. It was a room nobody wanted to find himself a prisoner in. Sometimes, Yixing even disliked being in charge of it.
He unlocked the heavy door, tucked the keys back in his pocket, and opened it.
The scrawl on the door was literal. Inside the room, situated in the very center, was a birdcage. It was tall enough for a man to stand inside, and not even wide enough for one to stretch his arms out without his forearms going out beyond the bars. Wires were threaded around each bar that arched upward from its base, wires that ran across the floor to the mess of machines in the far corner. Chains hung from the top of the cage, and more were scattered around it.
Yixing stepped closer up to the cage and hesitantly touched a bar to make sure there was no charge before leaning against it.
"Are you awake?"
Kris was slumped against the bars, eyes closed. His clothing was ripped and dirty, and there were scrapes on his knuckles. When Yixing spoke, he opened his eyes and looked up at him in a daze, lips parting with a quiet, rattling groan.
"Good. I'd apologise for putting you in here, but it's the most appropriate place for you, considering..." he shrugged and reached in, grabbing a handful of Kris's hair and giving it a short tug. "Now pay attention. We need to talk."
Kris winced, and one hand automatically snapped up to grab Yixing's wrist; the well-dressed young man seemed to panic, and he yanked his arm away hurriedly, eyes wide. He rubbed the place where Kris's hand had been before reaching through the bars again and slapping the boy's cheek with a loud crack.
"No. You don't get to touch me. You're not even one of my toys, you're just a hostage." Kris rubbed his cheek, and Yixing gave him a dark look. "Your little friend is here. What do you call him? 'Tao'?"
The boy in the cage tensed and straightened up a little. "Why do you want him?"
"He was bad. He got away for a while, tried to disappear and live like a person... but toys aren't real people. He knew one day we'd find him and bring him back." Yixing smiled, and Kris shivered at the look in his eyes. "And now you're going to tell me all about him and what he's been doing out there."
Kris shook his head, and Yixing's smile widened.
"I was almost hoping you'd say that."
~ ~ ~
Twenty-four hours passed before Yixing finally had Tao brought to him again. The boy, it seemed, had been so broken by the thought that his friend was dead that he hadn't moved much from where he'd been tossed; Yixing had watched him, his eyes flicking between two screens as he kept tabs on both of his new prisoners.
Kris didn't really merit much watching. Every so often he'd open his eyes and let out a dry moan; when his body slumped against the bars, and they hit him with a jolt of electricity, he'd cry out and jerk upright. It always caught Yixing's attention, and the slow, painful torture of the boy who had refused to tell him anything he wanted to know brought a smile to the young man's face.
That smile stayed on his face as he made his way to the training room. Trailing behind him, hauled along by another two suited, faceless men, was Tao. He was still unwilling to move, his legs dragging uselessly as they pulled him. Yixing cast a glance back at him and noted the way a bruise had bloomed across his cheekbone, as well as the imprints of fingers in the skin of his neck.
His new pet bruised easily. He'd have to remember that.
"Shall I call you Z? Or do you prefer the name you gave yourself?" He stepped into a large, well-lit room, looking around the empty space before turning his attention back to the men. With a quiet motion, he waved them away. "Zitao? Or Tao, rather. That's what your little friend called you."
Tao had dropped to his knees on the floor when the men had let him go; wordlessly, he looked up at Yixing, eyes dark. Yixing arched an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Well, Z it is. Get up now..." he waited, and when Tao didn't stand, he cleared his throat. "Stand, or I'll put that collar to use."
It wasn't a bluff, and Tao knew it. More than once he'd been threatened with that, and more than once he'd ended up on the floor, writhing around in pain. His old handlers had not been shy about trying to teach him "lessons", and from the way this one was... he didn't think he would be, either.
He stood.
"Good." He smiled at Tao and nodded. "I read your file. It was a big one, took all night." A muscle in Tao's jaw twitched as he clenched his teeth. "You do some very interesting things... I want to see them for myself. Show me."
Tao didn't move.
"I said show me. Don't pretend you didn't hear."
"Kill me." Tao was pleased to see the momentary shock on his face. "I won't be made to do those things again. I'm not a murderer."
Yixing's expression shifted and his arm shot out, fingers curling into Tao's shirt and jerking him closer. The boy tilted his head back, a growl catching in his throat as Yixing slid a finger between the collar and his skin. It made the collar uncomfortably tight, the metal pressing into the back of his neck as the single digit took up what meager amount of space there was.
"Do as I say or I'll make you wish you were dead." Yixing leaned close and whispered into Tao's ear, making the hair on the back of his neck stand up. "Your little friend will also be punished if you misbehave. Think about that before deciding how you're going to act."
The weight of his words settled on Tao, mixing up his emotions in the most confusing way.
"Kris is dead," he said softly, eyes searching Yixing's face. "You said-"
"I said bad things happen when you misbehave. I never said the boy had been disposed of."
Tao barely dared to breathe. "Prove it."
Yixing sighed in disgust and jerked down on the collar, making Tao's head snap back uncomfortably on his neck as his back bent in a sort of half-bow. Tao itched to grab the boy's arm, to snap his wrist so he couldn't continue treating him like a dog, but he knew better. His victory would be short-lived, and he'd suffer greatly for it. Kris, too, if he were still alive as Yixing said. He bit his tongue, fists clenched by his sides as he glared up at the young man.
"I don't have to prove anything to you, and you're well aware of it."
It was true. Yixing had the upper hand now; Tao had no proof that Kris was alive, but he also had no proof the boy was dead either. If he was defiant... if he didn't do as he was told, and Kris was truly still alive... Tao had no doubts that his friend would be tortured for his behaviour. It was well within the realm of possibility for these people.
"Now show me."
They separated, Yixing moving to lean against the locked door as Tao backed up toward the opposite side of the room. Tao stretched his arms up over his head, nose wrinkling when his shoulders popped; he closed his eyes and drew a quiet breath, his back bumping against the wall as he lowered his arms to his sides again. He stood still, his only movements the flexing of his fingers as they curled into fists before stretching back out.
His eyes opened, he took a step, and then he disappeared.
Yixing stared at the spot where the boy had been standing, his breath catching as every muscle in his body tensed. The soft swirl of what looked like black smoke hung in the air, the only remnants of the boy's form; a moment later, he reappeared, his body silently bursting back into existence several yards to the left of where he'd been.
Yixing blinked, and Tao was gone again.
"Amazing," he murmured, watching as his new toy disappeared and reappeared. With every repetition, he drew closer to Yixing; the time his body was gone seemed to grow shorter, while the distances he moved grew longer. Tao's body only appeared in brief flashes, as if he were a single frame out of place in a very long reel of film. The handler's eyes couldn't keep up.
Finally, the boy reappeared right in front of Yixing, his head lowered, one hand wrapped around the man's throat. He squeezed gently, closing Yixing's windpipe and making him gasp; Yixing grabbed his wrist, and Tao immediately released the pressure. His fingers stayed against Yixing's skin, however, and the well-dressed man squirmed, his amazement now mixed with discomfort.
When the boy looked up at him, Yixing stared into the icy blue pools that Tao's eyes had become.
"Let go." Tao's blank expression flickered, and he blinked slowly at Yixing for a minute before letting go of his throat. "I see why they were so insistent that you be brought back alive. It's useful to have a monster under one's thumb."
Tao looked away; when he spoke, his voice was soft, pained. "I'm not a monster."
Yixing shrugged a shoulder and stuck his hands into his pockets as Tao took a step back, putting more distance between the two of them.
"We're all monsters deep down inside, pet."