Series: Beat of Wings||Title: Wingbound
Characters: Yuugo, Rin||Ship: N/A
Word Count: 1,500||Chapters: 1/1
Genre: Angst||Rated: G
Challenges: Diversity Writing, Arc-V AUs, C14, K rated; Arc V Angst Week, day #4, Society
Notes: Winged!people AU. Same AU as Dreams of the Sky.
Summary: Society exists because of rules, spoken or not. One of those spoken rules in the City is that Common Fliers aren't allowed to fly. And that is a very enforced rule.
The click wasn't all that loud, just for the noise itself. It could have been lost in the normal sounds of a city street.
But Yuugo heard it loud and clear, just like he could feel the weight of the bonds across the high part of his wings, like he could feel the bonds holding his wrists together, keeping him in one place as the Security workers made certain they'd done their job.
He wanted to scream and dig into them, to wrench away and run as fast as he could, to even see if he could fly.
He knew he was supposed to be too young. Another year or two before he could really fly; that was what most people knew about Fliers. But to get away from this, he'd take that chance.
Screaming wasn't possible. Running wasn't possible. Flying really wasn't possible.
Before they'd locked his wings down, he'd also had his wrists and ankles chained together, binding him face-down to the operating table. A gag fastened across his lips kept him quiet, save for what little protesting noises he could manage.
He'd heard about this kind of thing before. Heard what Security did to every Flyer of the Commons before they could learn to use their wings and be in the skies. He'd never really thought that it would happen to him, and yet here he was, as chained as any other Common Flyer.
"How is it?" One of the officers asked. He wasn't talking to Yuugo. None of them had talked to Yuugo since he'd been dragged in here, kicking and fighting every step of the way.
It was kind of more than not talking to him. They talked about him, as if he were a piece of clothing they were trying to put a patch on, one that kept wriggling around but wasn't capable of understanding them.
"This should do it. For the wings, at least." That didn't sound all that great to Yuugo. He wriggled harder, but for all the progress he made, he might as well have just sat there.
They were really good at what they did. No one could seem to pin down how long they'd restrained those with wings, but they were really, really good at it.
"Time for the markings?" The first one asked, and Yuugo struggled even more, breathing harder, thrashing.
Or at least trying to. What kept him tied to the table meant that he couldn't really do as much as he wanted to do.
"Here and here," the second one said, chilly fingers brushing on the sides of Yuugo's face. "Is all the information ready?"
"Yes. Did you want to go for some drinks tonight? It's been a long day."
If Yuugo could have screamed at them he would have. Wasn't it bad enough they tied him down to do this? Worse that they marked him like a criminal? A Flier's markings weren't quite exactly like a criminal, but if he somehow managed to get the restraints off his wings, they would still be able to tell that he was a Common and thus not allowed to fly. The marks would tell them that.
Stories said there were ways around it. That if the right sort of Tops person paid for it, a Common Flyer could have the bindings removed, the markings removed somehow. Only no one knew anyone who'd had that happen and the stories about what a Common Flyer would have to do so it was…
Yuugo thought he'd rather stay on the ground.
Getting marked hurt every bit as much as he'd thought it would. He was almost grateful for the gag that kept the screams bound behind his lips.
"Think anyone will want this one?" He's not even sure which of them asked the question. It's like all the rest: spoken over his head, as if he's somehow too stupid to understand them. Not that he could answer anyway but that wasn't the point.
"Who knows. There's always someone, isn't there?"
All things considered, Yuugo knew he didn't really want an answer to that. He knew what they meant, even if they didn't talk to him. Commons weren't sold. That would be wrong.
But all of them were listed in the City's computer system, along with their skills and abilities and whatever form of education they'd managed to wriggle out, and if a Tops decided that they wanted to 'hire' a Commons for something, then it was pretty much written that the Commons worked for the Tops without question.
Sometimes without pay, with room and board being provided. They were supposed to be grateful.
It could be worse with Fliers. He'd heard some people liked having them as ornaments, putting them in fancy outfits to show off to their friends.
"All right, that's it for this one. Toss him in his room; he'll go back next week if the doc says he's recovered enough. Check up on his shots while he's there, too."
Yuugo hadn't ever had a pet, but he thought they'd probably treat strays better than they did him, as he was carted off between two muscular Security types to the small room he'd stayed in since they'd rounded him up.
He wanted to see Rin again. He couldn't even be sure if he would now. What else were they going to do before sending him home? His imagination gave way more details than he ever wanted to think about.
The 'room' - it's really more of a cell, however nicely they talk over his head about it – is just big enough for a cot that's big enough for him. No windows, of course; what would he need with a window? A door that he can't open.
So here he has to wait until they send him back. Here he's not tied to the bed like he was to the table, but he's still restrained, ankles and wrists tied together, facedown on the bed, as not to put too much strain on his newly bound wings.
Sure would be nice if he thought they cared. But that was like everything for the Commons. Any 'care' they got was just so the Tops wouldn't have to deal with whatever would come of not doing it. Everyone vaccinated against every disease they could manage? Not to care about the Commons. To make sure the Tops didn't have to worry themselves about any diseases too.
Yuugo tried to spread his wings, just out of habit. He winced a heartbeat later; they couldn't spread at all. Not like before. He hadn't been strong enough to fly before he'd been taken in anyway; the best he could manage were some impressive hops.
Now he couldn't even do that. Right now he couldn't even roll over and sit up. The bonds were too heavy, too fresh, too new.
At least they would have to unbind him so he could eat. His stomach rumbled at the very thought of food. He hadn't eaten at all since arriving here. Partly he hadn't had an appetite. Partly they hadn't tried to feed him in the first place.
But if he were going to be here a week, they would have to, wouldn't they? They couldn't just let him starve.
They can. Just say I slipped through the cracks or something.
He didn't like thinking about that. But stories he'd heard flickered up, vague memories about Fliers who'd been taken up to be wingbound and never come back. No one knew what happened to them. They just… weren't there anymore.
That wouldn't happen to him. He wouldn't let it happen. If they didn't send him home, then he would find a way to get there on his own.
Yuugo didn't know how long he lay there, stewing in anger, weight on his wings, losing feeling in his wrists and ankles, hunger growing sharper. A single light hung over his head, far out of reach even if he could have jumped for it.
He hated this place. Hated the City and the Tops and everything else that he could think of who'd made all these rules keeping the Fliers from living up to their name. If he could take off all the restraints from the Fliers, then he would have. Let them all fly free.
Only he couldn't. He couldn't even stand up. He refused to even think of shedding tears. He would get out of here. Somehow. Sometime. If he cried, it wouldn't be where they could see him.
As the hours ticked by, he fell into a restless doze, from sheer exhaustion more than relaxation, and in his dreams Yuugo could forget the hunger and the anger and the frustration. He fell into a world of freedom, where he touched the skies and the wind and the stars, and there were others with him, flashes of shades of violet and of red and green and voices he didn't know and remembered and the four of them flew free forever.
The End
Notes: I have plans for how Yuugo's wings are released. Teehee~