A/n: Since I love proving myself wrong, I updated the next chapter! Quickly! *is proud of self* Thanks for the reviews! It's because of you that this chapter got written so quickly :D
Warning: Rated M for language and violence. Lots of violence. You have been warned.
Oh, and I don't own KHR. Obviously.
"Shi shi shi…you're joking."
The blonde was staring in disbelief at the silver haired man in front of him. Squalo had come knocking on his door for the second time in as many hours, and Bel was less than pleased to see him. And that was before he had opened his mouth.
"I'm not joking Bel."
Bel's eyes widened beneath his bangs, and he took a small step back. The expression on Squalo's face was serious and stony, and rather frightening, but it wasn't what had upset the blonde. No, Squalo's words had scared him far more than his face.
It had just been…words. No exclamation of anger, or annoyance, or even the kindness that Bel so despised. No signature "VRAIT!" before his sentence. Just words. Bel racked his memory for a time when Squalo had spoken just words and drew a blank. It just never happened.
It was all the proof he needed that Squalo was dead serious.
As the shock slowly wore off, it was replaced with an emotion that Bel was better acquainted with. Anger. Betrayal. He could feel his temper rising, darkening his features, turning what had once been a confused smile into a deep scowl. The first flickers of insanity swam across his line of vision, dancing on the sides of his mind. He noted Squalo's expression again – it had changed, morphed into a guarded, calculating look. Bel grinned, laughing coldly.
He knew this would happen. And yet he told me anyway. Shi shi shi…idiot.
He had a knife drawn before he finished his thought, and he took delight in seeing Squalo's eyes widen slightly. He giggled, moving the blade slowly left and right, watching as the other man's eyes followed the knife's movements carefully. He kept his victim in suspense a while longer before finally speaking.
"Now, peasant, tell me what you meant when you said 'He's staying'" He waved the knife threateningly in Squalo's direction, still moving it from side to side. Squalo scowled at the question and gestured wildly with his hand.
"VRAIIT! What d'you mean, 'what I meant'? I meant what I SAID! Fran's staying with us. He's gonna model for us since we lost Ma – "
Squalo paled at the blonde's sudden closeness. He felt the distinct prick of a blade at the base of his throat, trailing slowly across his skin. He gulped, a light sheen of sweat breaking out across his forehead.
V-v-vrait. He wouldn't dare hurt me…right?
Bel's horrific expression spoke otherwise. His face was inches from Squalo's own, his visible features completely void of emotion. Just as Squalo's simple statement from earlier had unsettled Bel, the complete lack of expression on the blonde's face unnerved Squalo to no end. The blonde always wore some kind of expression; be it a shit eating grin, a haughty smirk, or a puzzled frown, there was always something there. Staring into the blonde's blank face, Squalo found himself thinking that having Bel's face twisted into a murdering rage would have been better than this.
"Leave."
The harsh word shattered the silence, only to enhance the tense atmosphere. Bel hadn't moved an inch from his position, and neither had his knife. The only way Squalo could escape the knife wielder was to back out of the oh-so-tempting door behind him. Squalo shook his head slowly, feeling the distinct trickle of blood as his movement caused the blade to break the skin of his throat. The pressure on his throat increased slightly, causing more blood drip from his neck.
"Leave!"
Squalo took a deep breath before stepping back, his hands up. Suddenly, his entire situation seemed very familiar. He flashed back to just an hour before, when he had last visited Bel. He had left the room back then in the same manner he was about to now.
…This has got to stop.
Without warning, Squalo smirked and used his raised hands to grab tightly onto Bel's wrists, forcing them away from his neck. For a fraction of a second, Squalo thought that Bel was going to give up without a fight. A sharp kick to his shin erased any fantasies he had, and caused him to holler in pain.
"VRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIT! BEL! WHAT THE FUCK?"
Bel didn't say a word, instead trying his damnedest to break free of Squalo's grip, wriggling and kicking with all the strength he had, using the limited rotation in his wrist to maneuver his knife to Squalo's skin. He almost succeeded when Squalo shook him roughly, forcing him to pull the knife back or risk dropping it.
"VRAIT. BEL. He's gone. He's not coming back. Mammon. Is. Not. Coming. Back. You need to get a fucking hold of yourself." Bel froze at the change in Squalo's voice. He met the man's eyes through his bangs, enraged to see them laced with concern.
He hated this side of Squalo.
Without another thought, Bel twirled the knife through his fingers and stabbed his captor in the wrist. Squalo screamed and dropped him immediately, his good hand going to his left wrist and yanking the bloodied knife out of his skin. It fell to the floor with a clatter, nearly masking the blonde's low laugh as he pulled another knife from his pocket. Squalo's eyes widened and he took a step back, his right hand gripping his wrist in an effort to stop the blood.
"Vrait…Bel…"
The blonde laughed louder and lunged toward the other man. They both went sprawling to the ground, Squalo's head hitting the wooden floor with a resounding crack. His vision went blurry as he tried to force the blonde off of him, struggling and shouting with all his might.
"VRAIIITTT! XANXUS! GET UP HERE AND HELP M-"
His yells froze in his throat as he felt the touch of metal against the skin of his injured wrist. Sometime during their fight, Squalo's right hand had moved from his injury, and was now pinned to the right side of his body, leaving his wrist open to the insane blonde.
Bel applied more pressure, a sadistic grin spreading across his face.
"Shi shi shi…I told you, Squalo. I told you to stay out of my room…but you didn't listen. Shi shi shi~" The knife's tip was already embedded in Squalo's skin when Bel dragged it cleanly from one side of his wrist to the other, causing Squalo to start screaming again. They weren't the same as before; these screams were laced through and through with pain and desperation. Squalo gritted his teeth, unashamed of the tears flowing down his cheeks. "Xan..XANXUS!"
"Shi shi shi. He can't hear you~"
There was a flash of silver, and then another burst of pain. Squalo choked on his next bout of screams as the blonde assaulted his wrist with constant slashes. His vision was starting to blur around the edges, darkness slowly spreading across his eyes. He blinked once, a fresh wave of tears trickling down his face. He couldn't believe how hard it was to open his eyes again.
He couldn't feel his hand anymore. He couldn't really see anymore, either.
But he could hear. He could hear Bel's insane laughter as he shredded his wrist to pieces, surely severing his hand by now. He could hear his own ragged breathing, the sickening drip of blood as it hit the wooden floor beneath him. He could also hear the race of footsteps on the stairs in the hall, and then suddenly there was noise. Huge, loud, achingly complex noise, and the sound of everyone talking at once. Squalo recognized it vaguely.
Panic. Confusion. Fear.
It all disappeared, though, with the touch of a hand. Squalo blinked and found himself staring into two pools of red, so deep he could drown in them. He somehow managed to smile, lifting his good hand to touch the man's face. It was then he realized that Bel was gone.
"Vrait…Xanxus…you came."
Another hand clasped his own, and Squalo held onto it as if it were his lifeline. The pools of red softened, the rage in them lessening for an instant to reveal a soft side that only Squalo could see.
He uttered a strangled chuckle. "Of course I did, trash."
It was all he said, but Squalo was able to slip into unconsciousness with a smile.
It took all of thirty seconds after Squalo lost consciousness for Xanxus to leap to his feet with a snarl, whirling to face the rest of the room. Lussuria and Levi had tried to get Bel to calm down, but had ended up hitting him over the head with a lamp. The blonde lay limp on the floor, his crown lying a few feet away among the shattered bits of knife and light bulb. It took everything Xanxus had not to kick the man.
"Lussuria, get Squalo and take care of his hand. I don't care what you have to do, but save him." His eyes narrowed dangerously, and the flamboyant man gulped and scurried over to Squalo with a sharp nod. Xanxus turned to Levi next. "Levi…take Bel and get the fuck out of my sight. You and that piece of shit both." Levi nodded and dragged Bel by his feet out into the hallway. As an afterthought, Xanxus called out him "Lock him up somewhere quiet. I'll deal with him…later." He heard Levi's grunt of agreement before turning his attention back to his fallen comrade.
Lussuria was kneeling next to him, frantically to staunch the flow of blood from the stump that once was Squalo's hand. Xanxus knelt by the man, taking the bandages from his frantic hands and meeting his panicked gaze. "I'll bandage him. You stop the bleeding." Lussuria nodded, getting up immediately to look for something to use as a tourniquet. Xanxus methodically wrapped Squalo's wrist in gauze, trying to work fast enough that the blood wouldn't completely soak through before he finished. By the time Lussuria returned with one of Bel's belts, he was already out of the bandage, and the white was already stained with red. Lussuria quickly looped the belt around Squalo's forearm, cinching it as tight as it would go and holding it in place with the final piece of gauze from the roll in his back pocket. Lussuria sat back, panting, before turning to Xanxus.
"I need him downstairs. I can help him more there. You carry him, I'll get Fran-chan out."
Without waiting for an answer, Lussuria flew out of the room, his hideous orange scarf waving in his wake. Xanxus took a moment to stare at his fallen man. His beautiful silver hair was matted and stained with blood. His skin was ghostly pale, his breathing more shallow than Xanxus would have liked. And his hand…
Xanxus cursed harshly. His hand was gone, and what was left was a bloody mess. With a sharp sigh, he gently scooped Squalo into his arms and stood, walking swiftly out the door without another glance into the room behind him.
It's all Bel's fault. Bel did this. How…
How to punish him?
(The Next Morning)
Fran woke up suddenly and had no idea where he was.
Meaning he knew that he was still in the Varia mansion, even though he still had no clue where the mansion actually was. But he had never seen this room before.
This is definitely not the same room I fell asleep in. What the hell?
The room contained so much green, Fran felt like he had shrunk to the size of a bug and got chucked into the grass. The walls were painted a dark forest green, while the ceiling was a lighter color, almost pastel. The floor was dark hardwood, but was covered in some places with lush green carpets. The floor, along with the bed and desk that adorned the room, was the only thing that wasn't green. Even the comforter on the bed and the door to the closet were an appealing shade of green. Fran noticed he blended right in with his green hair and eyes.
As pretty as the room was, Fran still had no idea how he got there. He shifted slightly, delightedly surprised when he realized his arm was pleasantly numb. Lussuria must have dosed him with medicine while he was asleep. He arm was bandaged neatly, and there was a simple sling hanging from the bedpost near his head. As Fran sat up and lifted the sling from its resting place, a folded piece of paper fell from the folded fabric.
Fran blinked, securing his arm in the sling before reaching down with his functioning hand to pick up the note. His eyebrow twitched as he read it out loud to himself.
"Fran-chan. Sorry to move you so suddenly, hun~ Something happened last night, I needed the room. Come downstairs when you wake up – breakfast is always ready. See you~!"
Even without the 'Fran-chan' and 'hun' in the letter, Fran would have known it was Lussuria's doing just by the huge pink heart scribbled at the bottom of the note. Fran shook his head and left the note on his bed, making his way to the door in silence. Despite the note's flippant nature, he could tell that whatever had happened wasn't as simple as the rainbow man had made it sound.
Fran's thoughts immediately went to Bel. He scowled mentally, hating that the blonde was already on his mind this early in the morning. He knew from experience that the fake prince was dangerous, and if any trouble had happened, he was definitely part of it.
Especially if Lussuria needed the infirmary…
The note had just told him to 'come downstairs', so when Fran noticed the huge stairwell to his right, he shrugged and made his way down it.
He could have sworn he heard a scratching sound coming from the door at the end of the hall, but when he paused for a minute to make sure, the hallway was silent. He blinked away the strange feeling he had and continued down the stairs.
He didn't see the doorknob jiggle, or one of the screws that held it together fall to the ground. He didn't hear the 'plink' of the screw as it hit the wooden floor, or the faint laughter that accompanied the victory.
Shi shi shi~
(line break)
Fran found his way to the kitchen by pure sense of smell. He must have woken when breakfast was just being made, because the smell of waffles, sausage, eggs, and orange juice wafted through the entire mansion, giving him a perfect trail to the kitchen. As he got closer, Fran could hear the sound of someone arguing – he could recognize Lussuria's voice. He raised one eyebrow and entered the kitchen carefully.
It was Lussuria arguing. He had a cell phone pressed tightly to his ear, one finger in the other ear to block out any other noise. He seemed to be negotiating with the person on the other end.
" – understand that, hun, but is there any way we could move the gig? Our model is sick and –" Faint noise from the phone signified that someone had cut him off. "I understand that it's inconvenient, I know –" More noise, and the pause was longer this time. "What? You aren't serious!" More noise. "Well, we'll have to find some way to do this, then. Thanks for being so helpful~" Lussuria slammed his phone closed and placed it harshly on the table in front of him.
"What a bitch. Someone has her thong tied too tight this morning." The man pouted as he returned to the stove, flipping over sausages and preparing more waffle batter. He hadn't noticed Fran come in, so the teen cleared his throat loudly.
Lussuria turned with a smile. "Fran-chan~! You're up~!" He abandoned the food to hug the teen, being careful of his bandaged arm and ignoring the loud protests he was receiving. He released Fran with a smirk, pleased to see a dusting of red along the teen's face. He winked at Fran before turning back to the stove. He piled a plate high with waffles and sausage, setting it down in front of the teen with a smile.
"Here you are, cutie~ Enjoy!"
Fran choked on his orange juice. "Cuite?" Lussuria laughed and skipped back to the stove to monitor the cooking food. Fran muttered curses into his food, which he wasn't about to admit was delicious, and shot the raibow-tastic man a glare. Lussuria pretended not to notice. Poking fun at the teen allowed him to forget, for an instant, the bad news he would have to tell Xanxus when he got to the kitchen.
As if he had felt Lussuria thinking about him, Xanxus entered a few seconds later, followed closely by Levi, as always. Fran noticed Xanxus' expression with interest. He seemed rougher than he had yesterday, more on the edge. He also noticed Lussuria tense at his presence, but he relaxed again almost instantly, a grin plastered on his face.
"Ah, Xan-chan! Levi! Are you hungry?" With waiting for an answer, he set two more plates loaded with food on the table. The men both sat silently and began to eat. Lussuria soon followed suit with his own plate of food, and an awkward silence fell over the table. Fran clenched his fists in his lap, trying to think of something to say. He glanced around the table for inspiration.
"Ah…where's Squalo? Is he still asleep?"
It was apparently the wrong thing to say. If he had thought everyone was tense before, it was nothing to the rigid atmosphere now. Xanxus slammed his fist on the table, and Lussuria set his forkful of food down gently. He glanced over at Fran sadly.
"Did you get my note, Fran-chan?" The teen nodded, realization flickering in his eyes. Lussuria sighed.
"Bel…attacked Squalo last night. He's still asleep, yes…and probably will be for a while. He lost his hand." Fran nearly choked on his food, pushing his plate away forcefully. He swallowed rapidly to keep himself from puking.
He lost…his...HAND?
His control was slipping – he could tell by the expression on Lussuria's face. The disbelief, disgust, and worry must be showing on his face. He struggled to mask his emotions again, making sure they were hidden before he spoke. "Will he be okay?"
Lussuria nodded quickly. "Oh yes, he'll be fine. He won't…have his hand, but he'll be otherwise physically fine. The worst has passed. As long as the wound doesn't get infected, he'll be better within a month." He smiled reassuringly, but Fran could see the worry in the man's eyes. Xanxus, on the other hand, relaxed visibly, and picked up his fork again.
"Good. The trash can get back to work soon then." He stuffed a large amount of waffle into his mouth and glanced at Lussuria.
"Hey, Lussuria. How did the call go?"
Fran remembered the phone conversation he had walked in, and he guessed 'not well'. The expression on Lussuria's face confirmed it.
"They refuse to move the gig, even though I told them we don't have a model. You know what they said to me? They said 'you had better find one, or we'll just have to ask someone else to do it'. We can't lose this gig, but…we don't have anyone to model." He stabbed a particularly juicy sausage off his plate and chewed it sullenly, a pout trembling on his lips.
Xanxus sighed and massaged his temples with his fingers. Levi spoke up immediately.
"Xanxus! I'll go to the gig! I will do it for you!" He was practically out the door already. Fran cleared his throat loudly to get his attention.
"Ah, Levi-san, not to be rude or anything, but you'd give any photographer within a mile of you a heart attack with your ugly mug. No offense." Levi froze and made a slight choking noise. He rounded on the smaller man, sputtering in anger. "And what do you know, newbie? You've never modeled in your life, and you're telling me what to do! You've got brass, kid."
Fran regarded the man coldly, not missing the emphasis on kid. He smirked, much to Levi's dismay, and spoke.
"What do I know? Well, for one I know you're fucking ugly. Models have to be at least somewhat attractive, and you just aren't. Offense fully intended. Secondly, I know that even on my worst day, I'm prettier than you. And thirdly, you're a hypocrite. I bet you've never modeled before, either. I may be new, but I'm not stupid. Or blind, unfortunately." He gave Levi a pointed look before turning to the table's other occupants, who were openly staring at him.
"I'll do the gig. If it's that important to the company, then it would be better for a new model to try and not do spectacularly than for no one to do it at all, right?" Lussuria recovered enough to nod once. Fran turned his gaze to Xanxus, who nodded as well. Another smirk played across the teen's lips as he stood, taking care not to bump his arm. He gestured toward his injury. "I can take the sling off for an hour or two without bugging my arm too much, I'm sure. Just explain what I'm doing on the way there, and I'll be fine. I'm good at following directions." Being a club waiter, he had learned to take orders immediately, and remember them exactly. He had never thought anything he learned at that place would help him anywhere, but he was glad to be proved wrong if it helped him in his new job.
He stared at the silent room, embarrassment slowly catching up with his outburst. He cleared his throat quietly and meeting Xanxus' eyes full on, his own eyes bright with determination. "I can do it, sir. I know I can."
Xanxus blinked, taken aback slightly by the fact he had just been called 'sir' in his own kitchen, but he recovered quickly. He scoffed, waving his hand at the teen dismissively. "If you say you can do it, kid trash, then knock yourself out. I don't care. Lussuria, you take care of it." With that, he got up and left the room. Fran blinked slowly. Despite the rough dismissal, he had the distinct impression that he had just been accepted by Xanxus. Lussuria must have agreed, because he turned to Fran with a genuine smile. It seemed he was about to start gushing all over him, but an enraged yell tore through the mansion, followed by the sound of someone running, and Xanxus cursing.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING DOWN HERE, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!"
Lussuria gasped softly. "Shit. He got out."
Fran was about to ask who, but the culprit came barreling into the room at full speed, knocking Levi over in the process. The newcomer crashed into the table and fell to the ground, grasping his thigh and cursing eloquently. His blonde hair fell around his face, his skin a ghostly shade, due to something resembling fear, and his crown was strangely absent, but Fran recognized him instantly. He was in the same clothes he had worn the night of his attack, minus the big boots, and his entire outfit was covered in bloodstains, both older and relatively new. Fran thought about how those new bloodstains had gotten there and had to gulp down vomit again.
And then Xanxus was there, a pillar of rage that caused the entire room to freeze, the same way prey freezes when it senses a hunter nearby. Bel hissed in fear as he tried to get up and continue his flight, but Xanxus grabbed him by his shirtfront before he could blink. Fran watched warily as the blonde was slammed into the wall, various types of cutlery and china falling around him with a clatter. Bel's mouth opened as if to scream, but he was slammed into the wall again before he had the chance. Xanxus pulled his arm back and punched his captive in the head without warning. Bel let out a strangled cry, blood dripping from his open mouth as Xanxus pulled back to punch him again.
Fran thought he heard something snap.
He realized afterwards that it had been his sanity.
He raced forward and grabbed Xanxus' arm, trying to stop the punch. The man looked up in pure rage, only to meet a pair of steady green eyes. Fran blinked slowly, trying to think of a way to calm Xanxus down.
"Sir, please. Stop."
Xanxus ripped his hand out of the teen's grip, but Fran simply grabbed on again. Bel remained silent, still anticipating a blow, and knowing better than to try and get free. Fran glared at his boss, knowing his mask was slipping, but decided not to care.
"Sir, I understand. My condition is slightly different; I myself was hurt, not someone close to me, but the basics are the same. In truth, I should be helping you, not stopping you." He saw Bel tense out of the corner of his eye, but he continued to talk at a rapid pace.
"Think of what you're doing, sir. Yes, Bel hurt Squalo, but if you hurt him, you're no better than him. And if ethics don't float your boat, then there's always logic. If you kill him, then you're down another model. If you hurt him badly, then you have another patient to take up Lussuria's time, when he would otherwise be concentrating on healing Squalo. You also won't be able to do as many gigs with another model gone, which means less popularity and less pay, which leads to losing your place in the charts. Everything is related, sir, so please reconsider. I'm sure there are worse ways than pain to punish Bel."
Xanxus hadn't seemed hung on his logic at the beginning of his speech, but by the end, Fran could see he had miraculously won. Xanxus relaxed his grip on the blonde, who fell to the ground in a heap. The man turned to him, his anger receding enough to state a formal question.
"What do you propose we do, kid trash?"
Fran noticed that Bel had shifted toward him slightly, obviously paying attention. He took the time to smirk evilly at the blonde before returning his gaze to Xanxus. He shrugged.
"I need someone to show me the ropes. Make him do it. And if he complains or tries to mortally wound me, or anyone else, break his crown." A small gasp from the floor told him that he had said the right thing. He gave the blonde another smirk before continuing. "Also, you can make him do work around the mansion. I'm sure Lussuria could use the help, and it would be good for the prince to do peasant's work." Fran was still smirking, the closest he ever got to smiling, and calculated Xanxus' expression. He was pleased to see that the man was considering it, and when he broke out in a feral grin, Fran knew he had won.
"Humiliation. Perfect. Good job, kid trash." He gave Bel a sharp kick, causing him to whimper and curl in on himself. "You heard him, you piece of shit. You better make sure you obey your new rules, or I will kill you. And the kid trash won't stop me next time."
He left the room, undoubtedly headed for the infirmary to be with Squalo. Levi followed at his heels, and Lussuria rushed by them both, to give Squalo his necessary medicine. Fran realized he was left with a person who certainly hated him, and walked slowly toward the door. He couldn't help but look back, and the prone form of the blonde almost made him run to his side, but he kept his feet planted to the floor. He clenched his fist and spoke, his emotionless mask finally in place, as was his ability to speak neutrally.
"Sorry, Bel-senpai. You probably think death would have been better. But no one should go through what Squalo and I went through. Not even you."
He left the man without another word.
(Afternoon, same day)
"Ah…Lussuria? You sure this is the place?"
The man smiled and nodded, cutting the engine of the car and opening the driver's side door. "Positive, Fran-chan. It looks better on the inside, promise~" Fran made a noncommittal sound of agreement, secretly doubting that the studio looked any less like a dump on the inside than it did on the outside. It was a small, low building, with a dented roof complete with bad shingle job. The brick that made up its walls had probably been red once, but it was so faded now that it was impossible to be certain. The graffiti that smeared the walls didn't help, either. If Fran had been walking by, he would have ducked his head and run across the street rather than pass in front of this building. Swallowing a sigh, he followed Lussuria up to the ugly front door and stepped carefully into the building, positive he was going to regret this.
"Guys~! We're here~!"
As they rounded a corner, Fran could only stare in silence at the room they had just entered.
Lussuria had been right. It was much prettier on the inside. The walls were a light rose color, just a shade too light to be really called pink. There was one long red sofa and multiple plush looking chairs in what looked like a lounge area. The stage was at the far end of the room, which was seemingly larger than the house itself, and had multiple bright yellow lights shining on it. The backdrop was a very realistic rendition of a skate park, making Fran recall that the gig was an ad for a skateboard company. In between the stage and the lounge area was thousands of dollars' worth of cameras, lights, and other photo equipment. Fran blinked slowly, trying to take it all in and still appear professional, but judging by Lussuria's chuckle, he wasn't doing a very good job.
"I told you~" he whispered to the teen as two women approached them. They were practically identical, except for one had her dusty pink hair cut to her shoulders, rather than falling to the middle of her back. Their darkly tanned skin seemed to shine in the glow of the lights, but the masks they wore over their eyes made them seem rather stupid to Fran. When they opened their mouths to speak, Fran decided he liked their voices even less than their appearance.
"You're late." They both spoke at the same time, and even their voices were identical. Fran fought back a sour expression and listened carefully. "Where is your model?"
Are they blind? I'm standing right here.
Lussuria was obviously thinking the same thing, because he looked slightly surprised as he introduced the women to Fran. "This is Fran-chan~ He'll be modeling for you today." Fran didn't like the way the women looked him over, as if he were meat to sell on the market, and turned back to Lussuria.
"Has he ever modeled before?"
Why don't you ask me you stupid masked marauders?
"This will be his first gig." Lussuria answered smoothly, calmly. The two women looked at each other in disbelief. "He hasn't modeled before?"
Lussuria smiled thinly. "That is what I just said, isn't it? This will be Fran-chan's first photo shoot. Is there a problem, ladies?" One of them made a sound of scorn while the other answered.
"This child is not a professional. We, the Cervello, only photograph professional models. Please return with a real model, and the shoot will continue."
Fran supposed it was the pain meds that were making him so rash, for he stepped in front of Lussuria to face the women head on.
"Excuse me, but I really don't think it's up to you to decide. Certainly, if you wish to model in my place, feel free, but otherwise allow me to do my job. I wouldn't recommend you modeling though; that hair color looks absolutely horrendous with your skin tone. Is it even real? And your masks are tacky. I don't know if you're trying for a 'mysterious' look, but you failed epically. You look like two little kids playing superhero." He turned back to Lussuria, who was trying to cover his huge grin with his hand and swallow his chuckles.
"Lussuria, could you show me to the dressing room? You obviously know your way around. If you ladies would excuse us." He nodded politely to the women, reveling in their expression of shock, and followed Lussuria further into the building. The man turned to speak at him, his grin fully evident on his face.
"That, Fran-chan, was the best thing I've seen in a long time."
(Line break)
"Okay, good, very good. Could you turn a little more this way? Great, Fran!"
Fran let out a shaky breath as he followed the photographer's direction, turning his head to stare rebelliously at the camera. The clothes he was wearing fell around his body in what he knew was a complimenting fashion. His shirt was a slightly baggy black tank top that looked like it had once been a t-shirt, but someone had ripped the sleeves off carelessly. It had a large number 26 on the front in a bright red color, making it impossible to miss. His olive green shorts fell to his knees, and had so many pockets that Fran wondered absently if there was a scrap of cloth on it that wasn't a pocket. His hair, which normally fell freely around his face, was pulled up into a small ponytail. Instead of making him seem girly, as he had thought it would, it added an air of toughness to Fran that he hadn't known he had. A few strands of green hair and fallen free, and framed his face perfectly. He had two triangle 'tattoos' under his eyes, adding to the punk look he was trying to pull off. He had one converse-clad foot on the edge of a skateboard, tipping it toward him in the classic skateboard pose. His bandaged arm was hanging limply at his side, but Lussuria had assured him it complimented the look he needed.
After a few more flashes from the camera, Fran decided to try something different. He really didn't have any experience with skateboards, but he figured if he fell, he would make it work for the shoot. Allowing the skateboards to level out on the ground, Fran placed his other foot on the other side of the board, and slowly pushed his weight down on one side. Bending his knees for balance, he continued to lift one end of the ground until he was at what he thought was his limit. He then turned his face to the camera with a smug smirk, and he heard the camera flashing wildly.
Another position had him standing, holding the skateboard up by one end with his hand and leaning on it, staring off to the side, not looking directly at the camera. A few more flashes and he heard the photographed announce, "That's a wrap! Good job, Fran." After his complete dissing of the Cervello sisters, they had refused to cooperate with the gig, and walked out. The company had to call in another photographer short notice, and the first person they could get was a blonde named Dino Cavallone. His easygoing smile was able to relax Fran enough that he no longer felt like he was going to puke all over his shoes, and actually get up on the stage. Everything that happened after that blurred together into one long camera flash, and Fran nearly collapsed to the floor in relief in response to Dino's words. The shoot had exhausted him. He somehow managed to get off the stage without hurting himself, barely registering when someone told him he could keep the clothes he was modeling in, shook the correct people's hands and followed Lussuria out the door.
He was proud of himself. He was able to stay awake until he fastened his seatbelt in Lussuria's car. As soon as he heard the engine start, he slipped into blissful unconsciousness.
A/n: NOOOO, SQUALO…I can't believe I did that. That makes the SECOND person Bel has mauled in two days. . The next chapter won't have blood in it…I think. ^_^" Jeez, the Varia is uber dysfunctional O_O. I feel sorry for Fran.
The plot is developing slowly. It will be more interesting from here on out ;)
Each review calms Bel down a little, so he doesn't hurt anyone else. *smiles innocently*
See you next chapter!