"The road to hell is paved with good intentions"
-they.
Chapter One Rei Shida At Your Service
Pain shooting up his back.
Crying. Screaming. A sick feeling in his stomache.
"Rei..."
The whistle of the belt coming down. Begging. Pleading.
"Rei!!"
He shot up in bed, his green eyes wide as cold sweat glistened on his face. Rei Shida swore colorfully, pushing his pitch black bangs out of his face. The buggers hung down to his mouth now. Maybe he should get a cut. Another nightmare. He hadn't had one like that in years. He'd have to tell Tsuki.
"Kyou?" He called, voice husky.
A shuffling reached his ears before he turned on his "sonar".
"Right here sleeping beauty."
Rei jumped and hit his best friend, making him laugh. He'd been right next to him the whole time! He glared at the blonde, a thin white haze covering his brilliant green eyes. Rei was blind but he could still "see". He had learned very younge that he could stretch out his aura like fingers to get details from the things around him. It worked like a magical sonar. He didn't get details though, like color or words but he did just fine.
"Toss me my pants cretin." He sighed, pulling the hair tie out of his braided hair.
It reached his waist already. He was rewarded with a pair of pants being thrown on his head. Rei threw off the covers and slipped the things on. He was rewarded with an appreciative whistle.
" You DO sleep nude."
"Lecher." He said, being careful where he stepped.
His kitten, Saaski, wasn't quite potty trained yet. Kyou just grinned as if he was proud of the fact. He probably was.
"Has Tsuki set up shop yet?" Rei asked, making his way somewhat timidly down the stairs.
He hated stairs. He wouldn't have had to sleep up there if the apartment hadn't been above the shop. Kyou was humming something he didn't catch. Weirdo. Morning people were sinners.
"No, she was waiting for you. She ran down to Seigawa's place for crushed salamader legs. She wants us to go to the Alleys for lacewing flies and the rest of the shopping. It's on the table downstairs."
"Fuck. I hate Europe." Rei swore, grabbing a coffee cup from the cabinet.
Saaski meowed from her place on the four seater breakfast table where she sat scarfing down the remainder of Tsuki's eggs. She grabbed a peice of toast just as Rei scooped her up and set her on the floor. Cutest little neko in Japan. She looked like a cow. Black and white spots everywhere. The batty old woman wasn't in sight. He poured himself some coffee and inhaled the loved aroma deeply. Tsuki Shida, the proud owner of the Xanadu Moon, was Rei's mother. She had found him when he was only five years old, broken and bleeding in the gutter. She'd brought him in, taught him everything he knew and raised him like he should have been raised from the start. Now that he was fifteen, he worked in the shop. Rei loved her like no other. The two of them had lived over the shop for many years. Working with your best friend and mother. What could be better? He felt Kyou's eyes on him. It was common knowledge that his friend wanted to be more than friends.
He had been so angry when Kyou had called him koi. He wasn't anyone's beloved. No one's property. People had mistaken him as their's and he had the scars all over his body as testimony. He had been sensitive about them once. He'd even kicked the crap out of some kid for commenting on them. Now, they were just another part of what made him, him. He poured himself a cup of coffee. Black with no sugar. Heavenly. He had drank half of his coffee before saying anything else.
"So...The Alleys, huh?"
"Yes."
Kyou was somewhat subdued today. Possibly because Rei had been skillfully ignoring his discreet advances for months now. Maybe he was getting tired of it. Maybe. He had been treating Kyou's flirting like he had treated the flirting of any other person who had approached him.
"How about we get some ice cream? My treat."
He immediately perked up. Kyou had such a sweet tooth. Rei hated to see that kicked, weary look on his friend's face.
O
Rei growled in annoyance. People him and eachother from all sides, trying to make their way down the crowded Diagon Alley. Kyou held his hand fast, pulling him through the chaos. All he could make out was the tramping of a tousand pairs of feet and the chatter of a thousand different conversations. It was claustrophobic. Even Knockturn Alley was packed with hissing, cursing hags and such. They always used Japanese when they went out in public. For privacy's sake.
"Kyou, maybe we should..."
"No, I've got it!"
Kyou pulled him through a group of women who were talking about how much the price of the performing rats had gone down. He rolled his eyes. Some women just chattered on about nothing. He prefered boys, personally. They were firm and comfortable. Not like the squishy or bony parts of a woman. It made him shudder to think about. Suddenly, his hand was torn from Kyou's and Rei was shoved hard into what felt like a brick wall. He could hear Kyou clling his name but his poor friend was being dragged backwards by the living tide. Rei couldn't even tell where his friend had gone. Fuck. He hated Europe. Rei knew that there was a door to his left and he quietly slipped inside. Silhouettes of shelves fully stocked and a desk to the back filled his mind's eyes. A few people whispered in a corner ,pointing to a mummified lizard. The shop didn't seem to be getting much business today despite the crowd outside. Where was he? There was a girl behind the front desk with a Witch Weekly propped up on the cash register in front of her, blowing bubbles with her gum. Her hair was done in a serious of complicated puffs and strands. It was truly a work of art. Rei didn't even want to think about how long it had taken her to get it that way. He walked up to her, pasting a smile on. She started to blush when he stepped up.
"Excuse me, miss. Can you tell me where I am?" He asked, his voice heavily accented.
She couldn't have been any older than him.
"What? Oh...Your in Hell in Handbasket: Magical Knick Knacks and Odds and Ends." She seemed embarassed afetr noticing Reis eyes.
He fought the urge too stick his tongue out at her before turning around. Like hell he was going back out there. Two men walked into the store, one wearing a glamour so distinct that he would be able to sense it a mile away. The crowd of people in the corner moved out in a hurry as if they could sense the man's incredible magical signature.
Rei's magic sought out the man, escaping it's owner. It wrapped around him like a dog rushed to it's master. The man's magic caressed Rei's mind like a lover, making him shudder. He knew that he had caught the pair's attention and decided to do something he had only done twice before in his life. He took a deep breath and jerked his magic back into his body. It was an uncomfortable feeling, like bottling some living thing. Everything went black. No one's magic had ever affected him like that. It was...intoxicating. He stepped back, reaching his hand out for the wall. When he was backed against it, he slide down to sit crouched on the floor. He hated this. Not being able to tell where that mysterious duo was. Not being able to tell where anything was. A hand touched his arm, making him jerk back. A voice like honey spoke up. It was right in front of him.
"Are you alright, kitten?"
Kitten? Why the pet name? Oh well. Re is upposed that he really didn't know his name. At least he wasn't made about the small magical run in they had had.
"I'm alright, I guess."
Too timid to release his sonar again, he just listened.
"Lucius, go and get your son his present. I'll see you back at the manor. Where is Severus?"
"On his way, I beleive.
"Alright, I'll see you later."
The shop bell rang on the door, signalling the other man's exit. Rei felt himself hauled from the floor gently, wavering a little. His face was tilted upwards but the man couldn't have been too much taller than him. The man took a deep breath. Probably because of his eyes. Even blind, he was often told how stunningly green they were.
"My name is Tom. Tom Riddle."
That was a nice name.
"Rei Shida. I seem to have lost my friend outside." He said, almost apologetically.
Slowly, he began to let his magic flow out again. He closed his eyes for a moment to get his bearings then looked up at the man. Under the glamour, his face was smooth and perfect. He was handsome. His eyes were slitted like a cat's.
' A snake's. He's a snake.' His mind supplied.
He took in all of Tom. He was wealthy, if his clothes were anything to go by. Rei prefered loose cargo pants and a tight midrift wifebeater, personally.
"Is that so? Well, then, I cannot, in good concience, let you wander alone. Will you allow me to escort you today? I will be meeting with an associate of mine later but it shouldn't be a problem." Tom asked with the grace and charm of a true gentleman.
Aristocrat. A smile crept to the corners of Rei's mouth. Was Tom, a man he had just met, flirting with him? Granted, he usually staved off any attempts at his attention but this was different somehow. He felt like he already knew this stranger. Like he was connected to him somehow. Tom was handsome and, from the conversation so far, was intellegent and had a good personality. Why not? At least he wasn't a vampire. Vampires seemed to be attracted to him like children to candy.
It was especially difficult in their mating season. Poor Tsuki had to ward every inch of the house.
"Alright."
O
Rei sat in a side cafe down Knockturn Alley and had to marvel at the fact that a cafe could be the darkest part of Knockturn Alley and not only florish but be a nice place too. Granted most of their business came from vampires. Rei tensed as soon as the group of them came in the door.
"Fuck." He whispered just loud enough for Tom to hear.
The vamp at the front of the group was obviously the leader. His name was Adair " The Jackal" Thayer. How did he know this?Because Jackal had been after his ass, literally, for quite some time. It had taken all Rei had to escape him up to this point. Tom's face held the same polite interest that it had for the duration of their trip but it had an icy coldness to it now. He got the feeling that Tom knew Jackal somehow. It took mere seconds for Jackal to sniff him out. A slow, lazy, mischevious smile spread across his perfect mouth and his eyes filled with pleasure. They faltered however when he saw Rei's company. Jackal came over anyways. His walk was filled with a sway that only the undead could achieve. His flunkies stayed behind to grab them a table and harass the waitress, all except for Tyrell. He was a thin, clean shaven, muscular black man and had been Jackal's partner in crime ever since Rei had known him. Tyrell's face was always as blank as a doll's and just as unsettling but Rei liked him. On his own, he was a good guy to do business with.
"Rei, how good to see you. I haven't seen you at the shop the times I stopped by. Tsuki said that you were out but she always says that." He said, doing the eye-rape that Rei had come to expect from him.
The teen raised an eyebrow but sipped his tea as if he were unconcerned with the fact that an eight hundred year old vampire was leering at him over the table.
" There is probably a reason for that. You are being very rude to my date, Jackal."
The vampire gave Tom a once over scornfully. Aparently he didn't see the attraction, nor did he like the idea of Rei being with someone else.
" And what is so compelling about this HUMAN that you would chose him over me?" He scoffed and glared outright at Tom.
"You forget that I am human too, Jackal." Rei hissed.
His anger level was rising and it began affecting everyone within range of his "sight". The magic around him began to churn restlessly. Jackal smirked but his eyes said that he was very serious about his intentions.
"Not for long..."
Tom had had enough apparently. He let the glamour over his eyes fall and they peered out red and reptillian. Jackal looked at him and hissed, himself, fangs bared. He was on alert, now. He had thought that Tom was just a normal human, and it could have cost him dearly.
"What ARE you?!" He growled, backing away a step.
Rei was still sipping his tea as if it were a different conversation that had nothing to do with him whatso ever. Tom's gaze was enough to make Jackal back off.
"I'm the Dark Lord and I believe that you are interrupting our evening."
Instead of slinking off with his tail between his legs, Jackal smiled as if he were pleased with the situation. It was odd.
"It's about time I got some healthy competition for you. One week, Rei. I'll see you then. All the wards in the world can't protect you this time." He purred seductively before walking off with Tyrell to their table.
Rei shivered but took another sip of the sweet raspberry tea. Mmmm...good. Jackal was a pig. He would have to be doped up indeed to ever willingly have sex with him. He raised his eyes to see Tom who was looking at him expectantly, as if afraid of what he would think about the news. At least that explained his level of magic. Even then it was whispering around him delicately.
"What's in a week?" Tom asked, his eyes never once leaving his date.
He sighed and set his cup down. It tinkled softly like real china does.
" The vampire mating season starts."
