Warning! Graphic content in future chapters, including torture and non-consentual intimacy. But this is Diabolic lovers, soooo. That's almost a given.

"Father, just let me take over the ranch..! Haruka is still too young, and you're too old..!" I snickered a bit, but the words behind my proposal were serious. My father sighed with a smile and looked at me with that clever sparkle in his eye.

"Hey, give your father some credit, I've still got some fight left in me, girl.." He leaned on the rake he'd been using to scatter straw around my favorite calf's stall. I made a face at his stubborn resilience. I was about to argue, but his expression turned serious. "And you and I both know a woman can't own land, Aika."

That stung.

"Father, you don't have to give me the title to it... just... let me do the work for you..! I'm sixteen now, I can handle it! I don't care if Haruka inherits the farm once he's old enough..." I hated to confront my father about anything, but his health was quickly deteriorating... He was sick for the second time this month, and this time it was worst than the last. But, as I feared, he was already shaking his head in that tired way he did. I knew that he wasn't going to budge, but I'd hoped that I wouldn't have to fight him for real about this. I hardened my heart for his sake.

"But father, you're far too old to still be herding." I stated firmly.

He gave a heavy sigh and fixed me with a tired look. I hesitated under it. Was he going to yell at me for calling him old? He must have known it was true though, because he closed his eyes with another sigh.

"... I know you're growing restless, Aika... you're a woman now, already sixteen years, and yet no husband yet... But what will the town think of old Takara Tsukimura if his daughter is the only one driving the cows in the winter?" He shook his head again and resumed his raking. "Nope, I won't let those Kawamaru boys have the last laugh at me."

"Father, who cares about-" I started complaining, but he interrupted me.

"No, Aika! A woman will not run this farm!"

I stared at his face for a moment; I'd never seen it so twisted in rage. Especially not at me... I only wanted to help..! Feeling sick, I spun on my heel and ran home.

Home consisted of just one square room, with walls cluttered by coats on pegs and pots on nails, lit by a cozy fire. Inside it I found Haruka seated before my mother; she was combing the tangles from his black hair. Painfully, if his expression meant anything. Seeing them warmed me from the bitter exchange with my father. I smiled.

Haruka perked up when he saw me. "Onee-Chan! Can you brush my hair? Okaa-San always makes it hurt..!"

Our mother was a kind woman, but she looked at my brother reproachfully and tapped him on the head with the comb she was using. "That's only because you never brush it yourself, Haruka..."

He rubbed his sore roots with a scowl. I laughed quietly, closing the cold out behind me. "If you braided your hair like me, Haru-Chan, that wouldn't be a problem."

"Hey, don't call me that..! I'm not five years old anymore, I'm ten now! I'm almost a man!" He whined.

I put my hands on my hips. "Right. Because men get stolen honey in their hair."

Haruka's bravado melted as our mother regarded him critically. "... honey?"

Harka laughed nervously. "W-what are you talking about, Nee-Chan? I would never take honey from the pantry...!"

"Mmmhm." I wagged a brow at my younger brother's attempts to sooth our mother.

"Is that why you haven't had an appetite lately? You've been taking sweets from under my nose..!" She knocked him on the head with the comb again.

"Ouch! Nee-Chan, you did this!" He wailed.

I laughed and turned on my heel, deciding to return outside. "I'm not the one who ate the honey, Haru-Chan! Take responsibility..!"

Back in the yard, I looked around for my father. I'd hoped that he'd calmed down by then... maybe I could talk some sense into him if I worded it differently... I could hardly believe he'd gotten so mad in the first place... Then I spied him, still over by my calf Yuki's stall. But Yuki wasn't the only one with him. Three men were, too. And Kawamaru men by the look of them.

I could tell by their fine hats and bright blue clothes. Their expensive, musky odor also clued me in as scowled and stomped towards them.

The Kawamaru were our competitors and the only other cattle ranchers within three villages. They'd bought out all the other ranches in the area, except our small one. Their visits were the source of much grief; last time they heckled us, Father was left coughing for days.

"Father! What are these leeches doing here?" I demanded, once in ear shot. The men turned to watch me in amusement. I realized with a pang of anxiety that one of them was that stupid Kaito. I feared the heat that crept into my cheeks and ignored him, looking only at my father. "Don't they know we aren't interested in their filth?"

My father looked exhausted. "Now, now, Aika... we're conducting... business..."

The Kawamaru men chuckled at that, but I refused to look at them. I felt heat rise in me.

"... you're actually making a deal with these scum...?" I hissed.

"Tsukimura-San.." One of the men reached for me, but I swatted their hand away. It was Kaito and he stared at me in amusement, but I was furious and couldn't stand to look at him. "It's nothing life changing, we're merely purchasing this calf."

When I rounded on him, my father looked on the verge of feeling guilty, but he was too proud to allow it.

"What?! Father, no..! Yuki is mine, you can't sell her! Especially to these people...!"

"Aika, are you out of your mind?" My father shifted his eyes in embarrassment for me speaking out. But I couldn't stop myself. "That's what cows are for; to be sold and eaten. You know that."

I stared, unable to move. It hurt so much. I'd raised Yuki from the time she was born until now; her mother had rejected her and none of the other cows would allow her to suckle. So I hand fed her, and she grew up strong and loved me. Father knew how much she meant to me...!

And now, she was going to be sold to these damn Kawamaru boys with their arrogant smiles?! No! I refused to allow that.

"We'll see about that!" I shouted to the amusement of those irritating Kawamaru boys and Kaito. Unable to stand their filthy gazes, I spun and ran back home. Behind me, I heard snickering about women knowing their place and business...

At dawn I was pulled from sleep by pounding on the door to our home. I was startled.

… did I forget to hang the laundry...? I panicked, but I realized the voices weren't that of my disappointed parents. They were men. Angry men. I recognized one distinctly.

"Come on out, Aikaaa." Kaito called; he was the one banging on the door. It stood out above the muffled voices. Kaito Kawamaru was once my best friend. But seeing how all Kawamaru are ass-hats, that didn't last long... even if they are handsome.

I was still puzzled and my family had began to stir from their beds around me, when the door finally burst open. Father was gone; he'd taken the cows to pasture that morning. Nothing stood between these invaders and my dazed mother and brother. It was up to me to protect them!

I jumped to my feet, wearing my night pants and shirt and looked for a weapon. I armed myself with a broom and stood my ground against the mob of angry men.

Kaito was the first one through the door, holding a blazing torch against the darkness of the faintly lit morning. He looked me square in the eye; I bared my teeth like a cornered wolf. Kaito smiled and raised a hand for the shouting men behind him to wait.

I shook with fury and ached to beat his face in. "Who do you think you are?!"

Slowly, he lowered his torch as a sign of peace, but somehow I found it hard to relax with a dozen armed men on my doorstep. He watched me like a bull ready to charge.

"Tsukimura-San... where is the cow?" He asked patiently. I froze in confusion, then grit my teeth when I remembered.

"Right... You're talking about my precious Yuki, aren't you?" I laughed wickedly. Kaito wasn't phased by my laughter.

"Yes. She is ours now, Aika. We bought her." He said slowly, I flinched when he used my first name. If I didn't know better, I'd guess he was actually trying to be nice to me. But Kawamaru men are all wolves, so I knew better. "Where is she?"

"You want me to tell you, so you can chop her up into tiny pieces!" I shouted, shaking. But then I smiled. "Fine. I'll tell you. She's probably three villages away by now, on her way to a dairy farm, you bastard! I'd never let you eat her!"

Kaito seemed shocked by that. It took a moment for him to gather himself. Then his peaceful expression turned into a tired smile. He sighed. "Then you leave me no choice, Aika."

I glared at my former friend, unyielding.

"Seize her."

I froze. My mother and Haruka screamed as the pitchfork wielding men came into our home. I gnashed my teeth. "KAWAMARU."

Shouting, I used the reach of my broom to swiftly jab a man in the stomach, knocking him backwards into the other men with a clatter. I was about to charge at them, but Kaito's torch was in my face.

"If you resist, I will burn your home." He warned, the fire light dancing on his stern features. "With your family inside."

I squeezed the broom in my hands. My mother held Haruka as he stared at the fire in terror. "... Onee-Chan.."

I leveled a glare at the man threatening my family and dropped the broom. Rough hands grabbed my arms and dragged me out into the yard. I was forced to my knees and bound with rope.

The sky was turning pink as Kaito watched his stupidly chuckling cousins tie me up. There was no way we could have ever been friends... I would never have trusted a wolf in such cheep fleece.

A crowd of villagers was gathering; my neighbors whispered curiously as I was treated like an animal. I felt humiliated.

".. do you seriously think you can do this, Kaito..?!" I hissed at him. He raised a brow and kneeled down to me.

"Who's going to stop me, Ai-Chan?" He whispered, his torch uncomfortably close to my face. He tilted his head. "You don't have any friends. You're not rich. And you're not even marriageable..! Who would help you?"

Kaito himself took a strip of cloth and gagged me as I struggled to scream. I loathed him. I wanted to set him on fire! I wanted to hear him SCREAMING. Just as Kaito rose, my father came running down from the field. He was huffing and puffing and had to lean on his walking staff. He stared at my state in horror. "W-w-what is.. the meaning of this...?!"

Kaito stood tall, and spoke for the growing crowd to hear him.

"Your errant daughter has stolen a calf that we paid for!" He pointed at me. Only then did my father take his eyes off of me. He stared up at Kaito, unable to speak. "I will be compensated."

The weight of his words seemed to press down on my father. He seemed so defeated, like he knew what would happen next.

What's going on here?! Is it really that serious..?! He can't seriously think that he can just take me like this..!

My father took a moment to collect himself, before seeming to harden his will. He looked up at Kaito. "I.. I consent, Kaito-San..."

I felt a stab of betrayal. W... what is going on... consent to what?! Father, are you going to let these bastards treat me this way!?

I struggled wildly, feeling the sting of betrayal well up in my eyes. One of Kaito's cousins had to hold me back, and my father stared at me like I was a bear on a rope leash, about to break free of its restraints. FATHER. DON'T LET THEM DO THIS.

Kaito chuckled, startling my father out of staring at me.

"It's a little too late for happy endings now, Tsukimura."

I glared up at him, furious and confused. They're talking over my head... what on earth...

"What do you mean..?!" My father asked in disbelief. He seemed genuinely terrified. Happy endings...? What deals were you making in Yuki's stall, Father..?!

"The deal is off. I have another plan." The filthy bastard smiled wickedly down at me. I felt ice wash over me with his gaze.

Whatever he's planning... doesn't sound fun...

Images of torture, burning stakes and a noose flashed before my eyes.

What have I done...?

"I'm going to give her to our kind Lords in the Forest." Kaito said proudly as horses pulling a steel cage rattled their way up the road. I stared at that cage; it was used for transporting cattle... and maybe thieving sixteen year old girls... The crowd of villagers began whispering louder.

Giving me..?! I'm not a... a sheep! I can't be given away as you please, bastard!

Fury pricked at my eyes but I held down the tears. I looked around at the faces of my village. None seemed the slightest distressed by this, only curious. But my father cried out and had to be restrained by one of those filthy Kawamaru men. He was struggling so much...

W... what does it mean...? Who are the Lords in the Forest..?! I stared at the faces of the people I'd grown up with. Why aren't they helping me...?

I felt so abandoned. I looked at the ground as my eyes began to water… does everyone really hate me that much...? Is it because I wear male clothing...?

My father was still shouting as Kaito lifted me, almost gently, into the cage. I was too numb to struggle even when Kaito removed the fabric gagging me. I stared at his boots, as I gathered my shattered wits. He waited patiently for me, awaiting a response. When I glared up at him, he seemed curious and amused. "... anything you want to say...?"

I felt hollow. "... for freeing one animal... you're doing all this...?"

I flinched when his rough fingers cupped my chin and stroked my cheek. He looked down on me, piteously. "It's more than for one mere cow, Aika-Chan..."

I grit my teeth and tiredly pulled myself away from his grip. He let me. "That's because Yuki isn't just a cow..! She's more than just food to me."

He smiled sadly down at me, but didn't reach for me again. Instead he lowered himself to my level, and invaded my personal space. I wrinkled my nose as his musky aroma assaulted my senses.

"... it's not just because you stole from me..." He murmured, brushing an errant strand behind my ear. I felt sick at his touch. "It's because your loving father refused to marry you to me..."

I stared wide. And cold gripped my chest. "You mean..."

The deal... the happy ending...?

He tilted his head, entertained by my reaction. "I can't say that I was taken by your charms; you wear trousers like a man and smell like a cow. I would have certainly cheated on you for a more gentle woman." He winked disgustingly. I finally stopped staring at him and glared at the ground. I'd heard enough of wearing skirts from my mother. "But if I can't have your farm through an unhappy marriage, then I can just destroy it from the inside out..."

"... the farm...?"

"Of course. It's not like you're of any value." He raised a brow at that. "But without you, your father won't be able to tend to his herd... it will grow week and sick... just like your father. And it will be so easy to take your land then. Almost boring, really."

I couldn't feel anything. It was like I was a ghost watching my corpse from the outside. But all I could think as that bastard locked the cage, laughing as he walked away, was the remorse my father would have for not marrying me off... the hunger my brother would feel when they couldn't afford food... my mother's agony as she watched her family suffer...

I think I screamed.