CW: Explicit language, blood & gore, violence, ableist language, mental illness/panic attack, mentions of imprisonment/brainwashing, mentions of drug use/addiction, sexual content, self-harm.
A handsome young man dozes on his bed. He’s sat upright with an open book held loosely in his slack hand. Beautiful, shapely lips are parted to free light breaths. Brown lashes tremble as he dreams, his head lolling against the headboard.
The window creaks open, letting in a gentle spring breeze. It travels through the vast room, caressing the spines of a thousand books carefully displayed in wall to ceiling bookshelves. Ash stirs in an empty hearth, the black powder fanning across granite slabs. Well-thumbed pages of the youth’s book flutter against his fingers. Rich brown locks dance in the air before settling with a parting shiver.
A small figure slips into the room through the window and quietly clicks it shut. The intruder is in simple garb - a dark, long sleeved shirt and tan bottoms with soft soled leather shoes. Perfect for stealthing around a certain estate.
Rin sweeps his ponytail over a shoulder, gathering up the unruly locks. His dark gaze sweeps the meticulously organised and clean room, before settling on the slumbering man. His breath catches in his throat.
Jun’s handsome features are kissed with Luna’s light, giving them an ethereal glow. Hellebores draw intent lines over his proud, straight nose and generous mouth. The strong sweep of his jaw, softened only by sleep, and the precious pearl in his bared throat. The lord has filled out since last he saw him. Firm muscles are taut against his form fitting robes. Long, strong legs stretch out before him, casually crossed at the ankles.
Without thinking, Rin pads over to the bed and sits on the edge, mattress sinking beneath his weight. He carefully tugs the book from Jun’s hand and sweeps his eyes over the current page. His lips twitch. Seems like the little lord has been studying spirits again.
The raven sets the book down on the bedside table and shifts a little closer. He leans in, openly staring at the man’s features. A small pink tongue flits out as he licks his own lips. Why is his mouth so damn dry?
As he moves even closer, his leg bumps Jun’s other hand. Within he sees a gold glint.
Brow furrowing, Rin carefully unfolds those loosely curled fingers. Calloused skin burns hot against his own. Hellebores flinch wide at what he finds.
“Rinnie?”
He raises his head to meet those stunning golden eyes, still hazy from sleep. His heart thuds, each more painful than the last. A deep heat rushes through him in a molten wave. His throat seizes, snuffing his words before they even reach his lips.
Confusion colours the little lord’s expression as he rubs his eyes with his fingers. “Rinnie? What are you doing here?” His voice is low and hoarse, a near husk as he chases away the last remnants of sleep. It’s endlessly charming.
“I was--” Rin’s voice cracks. He quickly clears his throat, brows furrowing. “I was in the neighbourhood. Thought I’d just drop in to say hi. So...uh...hi.” He raises the corners of his mouth in a half-hearted smile, but he’s too flustered to truly commit.
“Hello.” A warm smile graces Jun’s lips, his goldens in glimmering crescents above his swelling cheeks. He reaches out absently to cup the raven’s scarred cheek, running his thumb below a widened eye. Hot flesh meets the lord’s palm. Very real, very hot flesh.
Jun jolts in surprise and reels his hand back, blinking at the raven. “Ah. You really are here.”
“Where else would I be? The fuckin’ South?” Rin scrubs at his burning cheek, squinting at Jun.
The lord's lips twitch. “I suppose not. I am simply...surprised. It has been many months since our last encounter.”
“Yeah, I remember. You didn’t stay long at the party. Too wild for you?” It’s as if the Rose Palace never happened, Rin thinks, as he sits there and teases the little lord.
“We were invited to Merchant Wang Bin’s riverboat for sightseeing. Of course we gave Lady Nam our greetings but...the soiree was rather out of hand.”
Rin smirks and shuffles closer to Jun, bringing his nose mere inches from the other’s. “Haven’t you noticed, little lord? I’ve taken off my mask.”
Jun gazes at the mischievous rat with a calm smile. He can’t control the faint blush dusting his cheeks however, betraying his true feelings. “I have noticed.” With slow, relaxed movements, he reaches out to grasp Rin’s hand, cupping it within his palms. Unlike the lord’s warm, dry touch, Rin’s is clammy and cold. “I want to apologise, Rinnie. I have thought long and hard about what you said to me that day. About the way that I see my own people. I understand that I have lived in a world far different from yours. I could never understand the trials and tribulations you face, nor the incredible strength it takes to overcome them. I have been...presumptuous, to think that I could fix everything. That you even needed saving at all. And for that, I sincerely apologise.”
Rin unconsciously trembles as he stares at his trapped hand. The lord’s are far larger and calloused than his own. His fingers are long and beautiful with perfectly trimmed nails. Light blue veins bulge slightly along the sinews in his hand and there’s the delicate bump of his wrist bone that Rin can’t help but linger on. I wish I could capture these hands and stare at them forever.
“It doesn’t matter,” Rin says, raising his eyes to those sombre goldens. “I mean. I appreciate your apology and all. But...it’s fine. I’ve long accepted the fact that you’re going to be an idiot hero trying to save everyone. And as annoying as it is, I can deal with it. Because I suppose that’s just who you are. Only…” He averts his gaze and bites his bottom lip, gnawing on the plump flesh. “Don’t make me leave again.”
Jun intakes sharply and squeezes the raven’s hand. Fingers curl around his palm in a protective manner. “I know I did not defend you like I should have. And I said some things that...that stems from ignorance. But what I said to you...about how I wish to know you more than anyone else in the world...all of that is true.”
A balled up fist slams into the lord’s chest, knocking him back into the headboard. The entire bed shudders from the force of impact. Jun stares at the red-faced perpetrator, rubbing his chest with a dazed expression. “What…”
Rin grabs the front of his own shirt, tugging restlessly at the fabric. His entire face is filled with blood and his heart thrums like hummingbird wings. Frenetic and relentless. “Stop talking,” the raven growls through bared teeth. “You’re making me nauseous. All you gotta do is stop being such a dipshit lord, okay? I don’t need any of that...other stuff.”
The corner of Jun’s mouth digs into his cheek, mirth kissing his face. “Very well,” he rumbles, laying a hand upon the raven’s fluffy crown. “I will not be...a dipshit lord.”
“Good,” Rin grumbles, ducking under that warm palm. He doesn’t think to remove it however, letting it sit there until the lord removes his touch unprompted.
“Tell me, Rinnie. How have you fared? You seem...different.” There’s a hint of concern in his voice.
“Oh? How’d you reckon?”
“...you appear strained. Like you haven’t had a proper sleep in weeks.”
Try months. Rin rubs his nape, averting his gaze. The shadows on the wall dance erratically upon their canvas stage. “I’ve...been at the Rose Palace.”
“So...you are a Rose.”
“Yes. Didn’t you see my mask?”
“I did.”
“I’m not just a Rose, you know. I’m the Perfect Rose. The head honcho. I pretty much rule the palace.”
“Are you safe, Rinnie?”
“Sure.”
“Are you happy?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“...then why are you crying?”
Rin jolts and claps a hand to his cheek, feeling the dampness there. His breath hitches in his constricting throat.
“Rinnie, are you--” The rest of the lord’s words are smothered by cold lips. A soft body collides into his own.
Goldens grow in surprise, before shrinking into slits of glistening honey. A small tongue slips between his lips and pries them open. He tastes something bitter and sweet, like fine wine. Teeth click. Tongues explore the intimate depths of each other’s mouths. Scorching breaths mingle. Plush lips rub and slide. Nips, bites, sucking, and licks. Every single sensation dictates his awareness. A tyranny of pleasure.
When they finally part, a string of saliva briefly bridges their lips.
Rin pants as he drunkenly climbs into the lord’s lap. His arms ring Jun’s neck and pillowy thighs squeeze into his sides. A pair of roses bloom in the raven’s cheeks, velveteen and gentle. His lips are plump and swollen, the bruised colour giving them an incredibly tender appearance. Wobbly pools of sable meet those melted honeys.
“Little lord…” he breathes, bringing his mouth to the man’s sharp jaw to nibble and kiss. Heart pounding messily, he unconsciously releases a whimper of want. Intense, unknowable emotion surges, crashes, and froths within his aching chest, giving him no reprieve. “I just want to feel you.”
Jun’s strong arms wrap around his body, squeezing him against his firm chest. He can feel the bigger man’s thundering pulse, vibrating against his own. He palms the lord’s nape and drags his head down for another kiss, this time slower, deeper, and hotter. His entire being melts into the other until he loses his edges, only knowing the heat and taste and gut twisting sears of pleasure that course through his molten core.
“Rinnie,” Jun rumbles, his voice rolling through his chest like thunder. His large hands slide down to the raven’s slender waist and grip him tightly, thumbs pressing into his hip bones. He gazes at the youth with eyes that rapidly darken with long-suppressed desire. “You are so beautiful.”
Heated hellebores crack and break. A wretched look descends upon Rin’s flushed face, as if he had been told the opposite. He tightens his arms around the lord’s neck and pushes his face into the crook of his neck. There’s a delicate fragrance rising from his tan skin - spiced chestnut oil…
“No talking,” he whispers tremulously before bringing his mouth to the man’s sensitive flesh, sucking and nipping with fervour.
Rin’s hips begin rocking absently as he tries desperately to satiate his hunger. His eager length rubs against the lord’s, the latter already as hard as a rock. Another whimper muffles against Jun’s neck when he feels that straining cock throbbing against his own, with only a flimsy layer of fabric between them.
Well placed grinds and intensifying friction brings him to the shallow edges of pleasure. Every roll of his hips takes him further out into the deep end, until he’s shamelessly leaking into his bottoms.
Impatient fingers slip down the hem of Jun's pants to wrap around his hot shaft. Velveteen hardness and swollen veins meet the palm of Rin's hand, and when he flicks his thumb over the slit, he finds it dribbling with desire. He uses the lewd fluid to slicken his palm as he winds his touch along that hefty length.
Jun huffs and grunts as he endures the other’s ministrations, eyes narrowed into thin, burning slits. Torturous pulls upon his swollen piece send shards of pleasure through his taut loins and it’s almost unbearable. He's never been stimulated by another and now he has this soft, writhing body undulating against his own, and those cold fingers sliding over his cock, every stroke silken, slick and sumptuous.
He blindly follows suit, pinching the hem of Rin's pants and yanking his hips close. His calloused hand reaches within to find a drenched cock, twitching and pulsing as it weeps. The lord intakes sharply at the other’s lasciviousness. Slowly, his rough, calloused fingers pump Rin's slippery shaft, inciting soft moans and hungry, rocking hips.
The raven throws his head back and arches his spine. Dewdrops quiver on the ends of his lashes. Plush thighs squeeze and shift against Jun’s strong waist with every stroke he delivers and is delivered. Supple cheeks grind into the lord's lap, every contact a primal temptation.
And as his end creeps ever closer, Rin smashes his mouth against Jun’s once more, moaning freely into the kiss. And Duri responds in turn, shoving his tongue into the raven’s mouth to claim him as his own.
He jerks back with a cry, scleras flashing as he stares wide-eyed at the man.
Jun instantly releases the panicked youth. He leans forward, hands stretched out to grasp air when Rin throws himself from the bed, numb legs buckling beneath.
“Rinnie? What’s wrong?”
But the raven can only see Duri glaring down at him in accusation, before Delilah slips into view, sitting upon his lap and capturing his mouth with a lascivious groan.
Their naked bodies twist grotesquely, snapping and cracking in impossible angles, until they are impossibly intertwined. Arms wind like double helixes, their torsos braided similarly and incomprehensibly stretched out.
Lips turn to teeth. Kisses turn to bites. Hot blood gushes, thick and steady. Chunks of flesh are ripped from the skull as the doomed couple tear into each other.
Within seconds, they shrivel and blacken, skin bursting open and charring like burnt barbeque meat. Lewd vocals distort into harrowing compositions of agony. Screams that seem to come from both within and outside his head.
Rin grabs his bursting skull, pure terror forcing him to the brink. Glazed hellebores roll wildly, unseeing. He gnashes his teeth, breath stuttering in his seizing lungs, and all the while, he can only sense Her, Her presence, Her being, suffocating every inch of him, until there’s nothing left.
***
The sky is corrupted with viridiscent clouds, near black from the sheer concentration of Her magic. A pure white light continuously pulses against the oppressive sky, shielding the last untouched place in this hellish landscape.
Skin-flaying gusts whip against Luna as he stands on the roof of the main house, hand raised to release his protective white light. Luminous white robes snap and lash around his body, and his sable hair dances wildly around his head.
Luna's eyes are a bloodied red, glowing unnaturally as he exerts his mana, though no other outward signs of strain can be seen on his clear and handsome face.
“Rin.” Though the spirit’s voice is soft, he can easily be heard above the cacophony of the tempest. “So you have finally decided to show yourself.”
Rin leaps into the air and lands on the roof beside Luna, the motion instinctive and graceful. He stares grimly at the turbulent sky, hands curled into tight, sweaty fists at his sides. “What’s happening?”
“Her magic has been triggered,” Luna says, crimson gaze flickering with his boreal light. “You must have done something to threaten her hold.”
“The Madame? But...I just…” Rin trails off, gripping the long sleeves of his white sleep robes. “I was with Jun. And we were…” His cheeks burn as he drops his gaze. “I betrayed Her.”
“If we can beat her back, we might be able to destroy her influence over you.”
“We can’t.”
“I can keep her from infecting this place, but I don’t have enough in me to destroy her. You’re going to have to fight, Rin.”
“I can’t.”
“Will you still cower?” Luna’s voice booms deafeningly, cracking against the sky like earth-borne thunder. “If you do not fight, then you will lose your sanctuary. You will lose the ones you care for. And you will lose yourself!”
The boy blenches and shrinks, arms wrapped tightly around himself. Wind tousled locks whip into his face, momentarily blocking out the world. He fears the emptiness. That crippling, soul-crushing void within that can only be filled with Her presence. The nothing, utter dissolution, threatens to unravel his sanity.
But then...there’s the effulgence in the murk. Spiced chestnut, ardent and bodied. A quiet touch. Searing lips. His name, uttered in a way that makes him feel beloved.
Rinnie.
Above, the turbulent verdant clouds churn and swirl like a brackish storm-tossed sea. A noxious, misshapen figure breaks through the waters and floats down silently. Just before it touches the grass, Luna’s light ripples beneath, keeping it afloat and from corrupting the land.
The figure gains its edges, verdant vapors shrinking like coiled threads, until the shape of a woman emerges from the blur. She is umbra, pulsing between unstable vapor and concrete flesh. Beneath every footfall is the unfurling of white orchid petals as Luna’s magic strains under the pressure.
Rin sprints for the edge of the roof and pushes himself into the air, his weightless form buoyed by torrid winds. He lands softly on the barrier, the light humming under the bare soles of his feet.
“...Madame Kahin,” he says, voice cracking midway. “Lila. You...shouldn’t be here.”
Kahin’s proxy crackles like lightning. When she speaks, her voice is lacuna, crushing him with every static syllable. But nothing she says is intelligible. It’s as if she’s imitating speech with the fleeting tail of familiarity, slipping from his grasp.
The raven paces over to the ornate sword, embedded deep into the soil. One light tug and it comes free, dirt and split rock flung across the grass as the blade whips up. He traces his fingers over the lion emblem. A memory flickers like a dying candlelight.
“Rin, you will need to hurry,” Luna says in warning, sweeping both hands before himself to strengthen his withering defense. “My strength is waning!”
He’s clumsy with the sword but agile on his feet, so he manages to land a few initial blows, jabbing, stabbing, and slashing at the writhing proxy. Bilious green tendrils caress the blade whenever he withdraws as if reluctant to part.
One of the tendrils whips out and snatches him by the thigh, the vapor like molten flesh against his own.
A steely arc slices through the tendril, but it quickly fuses back together, as if he were cutting through water.
The proxy violently yanks him off his feet and hurls him through the air. He slams into a nearby pagoda tree with a strangled cry. Leaves cascade from shuddering branches, disturbed by the impact.
He’s face down in the dirt, trying to catch his breath, excruciating pain radiating through his battered back. Luna’s voice howls in his ears, but all he can hear is the deafening hum of his racing pulse. The sword had been flung from his hand and it’s now out of reach.
The proxy calls back her vaporous appendages as she slowly steps towards the downed Rat. Her lips stretch into an uncanny leer but it does little to inject life into her barren face.
With a harsh pant, Rin forces himself to his feet, aching muscles spasming as he stretches out his spine. Sweat burns his eyes. His hands feel numb. His legs unsteady.
Hellebores flit over to the sword. It’s a few steps away. He might make it if he’s fast enough.
Long seconds tick by as the two entities stare at each other. The gap ever closing between them.
And then, just as her hands stretch out to meet him, he flings himself out of her reach and leaps for the sword.
His fingers brush the hilt before he’s brutally yanked away.
Several tendrils crawl across his form, he twists and writhes, tearing at them with clawed hands. Before they can toss him about again, he struggles to his feet and lurches at the proxy, arms outstretched.
An ebullient wall of vapour shoots up between them like a geyser.
He slams into the wall and sinks partway, the viscous smoke like sludge. Sharp heaves and strains, and he manages to yank himself free. Panting, he springs into the air, carried by the wind as he weightlessly tumbles over the wall. But the proxy is too fast - the wall shrinks and implodes, sending jagged jade shards at the wind-tossed body.
They pass through his flesh like knife to butter, entering through the front and bursting from the back. Blood and gristle sprays from the multiple holes, sending a light shower of gore over the grounds. An inhuman scream tears from his throat as he arcs and convulses in the air, his vision turning white from the crippling pain.
He’s dimly aware of tumbling to the ground head first and an emerald blur (the grass, the proxy, Her eyes).
Boreal light envelops him mid-fall, slowing his descent and cushioning his landing.
Unsteady feet sink into the barrier.
He sways dangerously, drenched in blood, and riddled with grotesque, gaping wounds. Shock white skin glistens with cold sweat. Unfocused hellebores are as drenched as his robes in a malignant red, sunk deep into a lifeless face. The one who stares blankly at the proxy is not entirely human.
Luna’s light rises from the ground to his hands, held aloft and splayed. An inexplicable heat seeps into his palms, sending mana through his veins until his core bulges and strains with the foreign energy. Foreign, yet inexplicably familiar.
Laboured breaths come ragged and strained. Unbearable, burning pain assails his ruined body. The earth lurches and rocks beneath his feet, but he remains standing -- Luna’s light, integrated within his core, keeps him from crumpling.
“Enough,” he snarls, struggling to maintain his ebbing awareness. “I’ve had enough of You.”
The proxy shrinks back into herself, delicate form poised as she watches him silently. Head tilted as if curious.
“Bellow...he's a stupid git and terrible at sex. And he also cares about me.” Rin shudders and coughs wetly, blood dripping thickly from his lips. It’s sweet and coppery.
“Small's family is fucking insane. His mother is more terrifying than the Watcher. And he wants to be one of us...so damn badly. And I kinda like that about him. He just wants to belong.” He slurs and stumbles with every wave of pain that wracks his entire body.
The proxy starts walking towards him, foul viridiscent smoke billowing behind like a pair of aberrant wings.
“Bucky’s stubborn and has a terrible sense of humour. Sometimes, she acts like she’s my mother and it’s annoying as hell. But she came back to the Rose Palace for me. She hasn't told me...but I know. Without her, I would already be gone.”
Tendrils erupt from the proxy, renewing their attack with vigour. The raven simply raises his shaking hand and sweeps it to the side, lashing Luna’s light towards the writhing coils. They disintegrate when struck, dying with the blaze.
“Nuwa taught me how to protect myself. And Bo, she saved my life when I was a kid. She’s the first face I remember seeing.”
The proxy throws her head back and screams, body contorting in animalistic fury. She lunges at Rin, hands clawed and aiming for his face. He intentionally leaps into her path, hands stretched out to catch those claws. Ignoring the venomous nails plunging into his hand, he pushes forth another powerful wave of light, this time through his palms. He grits his teeth, feeling the mana drain from his core almost as rapidly as it had filled.
“Dasom,” he gasps, heaving and straining against the proxy’s ghoulish strength. “She’s real crazy. A dirty drunk. She’s tried to maim me. Kill me. And she’s still my godsdamn mother. Even when she makes me sick to the pits of my stomach. Even when I hate her. I still have her.”
Luna’s magic is pumped into the withering form, seeping from every crack and pore as her vaporous flesh begins to disintegrate. Unearthly howls escape her gaping maw as she convulses. Though she desperately struggles, something keeps him latched on. A kind of ferocity and pith that he’d never actualised until this very moment.
“And Jun. The little lord. I barely know the guy. All I know is that he’s a complete and utter moron. He thinks he’s the hero who’s gonna save the entire world. And you know…” Rin gnashes his teeth in a savage grin, crimson gaze spreading. The madness has taken hold. “I believe him. I think that the idiot is idiotic enough to actually go through with it. I know he’s a hero. I know that one day, he’ll be strong enough. And I--”
Realisation flashes in his eyes and his heart skips a beat.
Kahin’s proxy releases a final, earth-shaking howl. Razor thin beams erupt from her flesh, one after the other, until she’s blazing phosphorescent.
A blizzard fills his vision.
His mind is static.
She disintegrates quietly. Like a sand sculpture melting in the waves.
When his vision finally returns, she’s gone, and with her, the noxious clouds.
The sky is a clean, sweeping blue. Luna’s shield flickers before disappearing altogether. The tempest has passed, leaving behind a profound calm.
Luna drops his hands and staggers, panting lightly. He steadies himself and catches his breath, wiping the sweat from his brow. “She’s gone…” he breathes, almost in disbelief. “You did it, Rin. You destroyed her hold, her influence.”
Smiling, he glances down at the green. At once, his expression sharpens.
Without hesitation, he leaps from the roof of the main house, flying towards the crumpled body.
Rin’s like a broken marionette, limbs strewn across the grass. Blood soaks into his white robes, turning them a gruesome red. Sticky lashes quiver against deathly pale cheeks, tight lines of pain marring his face. His chest pumps rapidly but his breath is strangled in his rolling throat. His very visage is suffering.
The spirit scoops Rin into his arms, cradling his upper body with the utmost care. The boy groans, expression tightening from the pain. “Why...does it hurt so much?” he croaks, reaching up to feel his front. Fingers sink into multiple gaping holes, and liquid fire ripples under every explorative touch. “It shouldn’t hurt this bad...Luna…” Red dimming like the dying dusk, fear slowly fills his gaze instead.
“You can make the pain stop,” Luna murmurs, grabbing ahold of that bloodied hand. “These injuries are merely projections. A way for your mind to process your internal experiences.”
The raven squeezes his eyes shut, brows furrowing as he silently struggles. Eventually, he’s able to grit out, “How do...I stop it?”
Luna frowns as he takes in the sight of the boy in his arms. The spirit lays a hand upon that pumping chest, sending some of his mana back into the wounded body. “This should ease some of the pain. But you must overcome this by your own will.”
The crushing boulders of pain lifts from his chest. He sucks in a lungful of air, relief battling the remnant agony.
“There is a part of you that believes you deserve this pain. Which is why you have not healed like you should have.” Luna moves his fingertips to the boy’s forehead, stroking the damp skin with featherlight touches. “Why do you punish yourself, Rin?”
The raven’s expression is clouded. Like he’s somewhere far away.
“Rin?” The spirit urges, giving his charge a short pat on the cheek. “Answer me.”
“...if you were there, it never would have happened.” His voice is small and distant. Words slung onto the next like drunken steps. “Where were you, Luna? If you had stopped me...they wouldn’t have died.” His blood stained lips quirk into an empty smile. “Ah. So they died for nothing.”
“I could not influence your actions,” Luna says, gravely. “Not while you rejected me and the Sanctuary. You have not been here since its creation and yet you expect me to take vigilance? There is always a choice, Rin. And you made the choice you did.”
“I had no choice--”
“You had a choice. You always have a choice. Remember?”
Rin closes his eyes, feeling them burn hotter than his open wounds. “Then I willingly killed them.”
“That is the choice you made. Now you must live with the consequences.”
“...then I won’t ever heal.”
“Then so be it. Accept the pain. Accept the punishment. Let this serve as a reminder.”
Rin opens his eyes, heavy lines of suffering carved into his face. “Luna...when I lost control...I used your magic...”
The spirit's eyes have returned to that stony pitch, intensifying the severity of his gaze. “I have been in your life since you were a child. It is not surprising that you are able to utilise my powers. Especially now that I am possessing you. It is inevitable for our connection to strengthen.”
“What was that light…?”
“The Luna light. It connects souls to the underworld. Much like Izayoma’s Call, it can repel souls and, at times, control them. Ones' magic is fueled by mana borne from the soul. Through this channel, the Luna light can be wielded as an efficient weapon. It can also be used to protect souls and, consequently, preserve the flesh. It is at its core, a soul magic. Or rather, the soul magic.”
“Control…? So Madame Kahin...she can use this also?”
“No, Rin.” Luna smiles down at the raven, seeing the hazy confusion in his eyes. The boy is too addled to be having this discussion. Regardless, he still responds. “Kahin’s magic controls the mind, not the soul. She injects herself into her victim like a poison. Alters and manipulates thought and emotion. The longer she uses her magic on them, the stronger the overall effect is.” He pauses, resting his palm over a particularly large wound and transferring more of his mana. “This is what I have garnered from my observations. Her magic is...incredibly powerful. And though Luna light can work against it, ultimately it will have no effect. Only one thing can truly counteract her magic.”
Feeling more of his strength returning, Rin struggles to sit upright. The steady hands upon his back assist his motion. Crippling pain still radiates through his body like his insides are being torn up by broken glass. But he seems to be able to rise above it for the moment. In fact, a part of him indulges in it.
He raises his pallid face and shakily wipes the blood from his mouth. “The little lord…” Pupils swallow his irises whole. The sword lies discarded just ahead, golden emblem glinting in the grass.
“Yes. Fifth Lord Hwan Jun was the death blow that destroyed Kahin’s magic.”
“And…” His breath hitches as his pupils flitter frantically about. “And she’s gone? Truly gone?”
“She’s gone.”
Rin grabs Luna by the arm, fingers curling into his sleeve as if he were a mere child. “And you will stay with me?”
“I will stay with you.”
“Promise?”
The spirit gives him a tender smile, eyes like warm crescents and brimming with boundless emotion. “I promise.”
***
The little lord watches him closely, his brows furrowed deep in concern. He quickly refills Rin’s water glass when he finishes the last drop, and goes back to staring at him again, ever tense and on edge.
The Rat sighs and takes a small sip to ease the lord’s worry. He sets his glass down, feeling rather bloated. “I’m fine, Jun.”
“Are you ill?” There’s an edge to Jun’s tone. His fingers turn white around the water jug.
“It’s Kahin.” The raven rests his elbows on the reading table, pushing the heel of his palms into his sore eyes. “Her magic made me...panic. I saw things that weren’t there. People who aren’t…” He trails off, the final word fleeing along with his courage.
“Kahin?”
“Madame Kahin. Of the Rose Palace.” Rin sighs and drops his hands, raising his eyes to the lord’s. Those goldens, once spectral, now burn more brilliantly than in his mind. “Every Rose must spend time in the Training Room. Kahin drugs them, tortures them, and strips them of their identity. Until the only thing that’s left is her.”
Those goldens darken a shade or two. “She did this to you?”
“I was in the Training Room for almost four months," Rin says flatly. "I suppose she had--”
Ceramic and water explodes in the lord’s hand, startling the raven badly.
Jun hunches and seethes, his narrowed eyes flashing with cold fury. His shaking fist still holds pieces of the broken jug, the jagged edges digging deep into his palm. Blood seeps through his fingers, painting them a stark red.
Rin’s pinned to his seat, heart stuttering hopelessly. He stares wide eyed at the enraged lord, mind gone blank for a good few seconds.
With slow, cautious motions, he leans over the table to pry open the man’s bloody fist, carefully pulling out the broken pieces from his grasp. Jun seems not to notice. His dusky eyes bear down on Rin with bone crushing weight.
“Y-you idiot," Rin stammers, cheeks burning. "Why did you hold it so hard, huh? Now you’ve fucked up your hand.” Flustered, the Rat goes to tear a strip from his shirt, when the noble silently pulls out a handkerchief from his pocket.
“So this is where you have been for the past six months,” Jun rumbles, watching the raven wrap his wounded hand in the handkerchief. “You have been imprisoned by this Kahin. Given drugs and enslaved. Despicable.” His upper lip curls as he spits the last, teeth bared like an ornery dog. “Are you still under the influence? Are you addicted?”
“Addicted?” Rin ties off the makeshift bandage, his handiwork rather clean and well done. “To the drug? No, it doesn’t work like that. The drug is just something to keep us docile. Maybe even to amplify the magic - but ultimately, it's the magic itself that controls us.”
“...magic.” Jun raises his hand, admiring the bandage with a subtle quirk of the lips. His austerity returns too soon. “Just now. When you collapsed. That was her magic, correct?”
“A Rose must always be devoted to the Madame. And only the Madame.” Rin drops his gaze, a faint blush kissing his cheeks. “When I was with you, I betrayed her. And her magic retaliated.”
“But you are sound, yes? You are not under her control anymore?”
“...I don’t think so. No.” He gently captures Jun’s wounded hand and begins wiping the blood from those calloused fingers with his sleeve. “Thanks to Luna, I managed to fight her off. I’ve broken free from her control.”
There’s a ripple of surprise. “Luna? You mean the spirit?”
“...or god. But I’m not quite sure.”
A sharp huff of relief sounds from the lord, who finally manages a weak smile. “If anyone could fight her, Rinnie, it is you.”
“I know that,” Rin scoffs, ducking his head as his cheeks ripen in colour. “But...there’s something I have to do. I’m her...her favourite pet. She calls me the Perfect Rose.” His lips purse and he pauses mid-wipe. Slender fingers squeeze and press idly upon the lord’s rough digits. “I was her enforcer. I fucked up, Jun, and I need to fix it.” He doesn't tell Jun about the arson. Or rather, he can't bring himself to. Not yet.
A sturdy, calloused hand cups his cheek, nudging his eyes upwards. The little lord’s tender expression snatches him by the chest and squeezes. A soft smile dances across those lovely lips like a secret only Rin is privy to. His thumb sweeps across the raven’s silken cheek, lingering at the corner of his mouth. Jun presses against that delicate dimple with absent fascination.
“Let me assist you, Rinnie,” he husks, unconsciously closing the space between them. He’s but a foot away, close enough to mingle their unsteady breaths. “Whatever you need to do, I will lend you my strength. If I had not let you go…” Shadows lurk in his visage. His smile falters. “If I'd stood up for you that day and not let you go, you would never have fallen into that fiend’s hands. You would not have had to suffer for those six months. And I, the entire time, clueless to your plight.”
“It’s not your fault, stupid,” Rin breathes, heart slamming against his ribs. “It would have happened sooner or later. Trust me. Kahin was never gonna let me be.”
“I still feel responsible.” Their brows graze. Lashes flick against the other. Unruly sable locks tickle the lord’s cheeks. “I wish to do this with you, Rinnie. I will never make you leave again. But you must make the same promise.”
“...I promise.” Their lips brush, endlessly soft, endlessly tender. Affection surges and he wraps his palms protectively around Jun’s injured hand. His fingers are sticky with blood but Rin doesn’t mind it at all.
Jun's back! (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
There's sexy time with Jun! (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
It "only" took 70k+ words to get here! (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
AND NOW......IT BEGINS! ψ(｀∇´)ψ muahhahaha~
