Not much to say except this took forever to write. Broken arms are not fun at all. Anyways, hope you guys enjoy. My YGO stories are next on my list to update, and then my YYH, so it might be awhile before the next chapter gets up for this. I need to stop posting so many stories…

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! You guys are amazing!

Warning: Mentions of lemon, slight violence

The Resting Place of Promises and Memories

Chapter 2: And So it Starts

"You seem very pleased with yourself, Kharl. This present must be something impressive."

"My lord, I can think of nothing I would rather give to you."

There was amusement in both voices. Rune knew one, the Alchemist, the one who brought him here. The other voice was foreign but he knew who it belonged to: the Demon Lord, his new master.

The door to the room opened, Rune cringing back on the bed. His wrist, ankles, and mouth were gagged, making it difficult for him to move. Kharl had left him on the Demon Lord's bed, a dark foreshadowing of what would happen once he came back.

There was a pause, long enough to make Rune look up. The Demon Lord stood before the bed, his red eyes making the elf shiver. He was tall, at least an inch taller than the Alchemist. His long dark hair was tired back, a white streak running down his bangs. He was handsome, Rune wouldn't deny that, but that wouldn't overcome the fear Rune had felt for this man all his life.

"Beautiful," he whispered, gabbing Rune's chin. "The Elf Prince?" he asked, glancing at Kharl.

"Yes, my lord."

He chuckled darkly, turning his full attention back to Rune. "You've done well, Kharl." Rune heard Kharl thank the other demon before the door closed. Rune was now left alone with the man he most feared.

"There's no need for that look," he said, his voice surprisingly sweet, which only scared Rune more. The dark haired man removed the gag, pulling Rune into a gentle kiss. "You'll enjoy this," he said, his hands running over the elf's body, pushing him down onto the bed. "I promise."

/

Kharl watched the blond elf as he slept. The Alchemist knew the beginning would be rough for the elf, but there was no other way than for Rune to go through every last one of his memories. He hated the elf, he wouldn't deny that, but even after all this time there was still an understanding between the two. 'How is it that you still have his love? He should hate you, just as I hate you…just as he hates me.'

"Lord Kharl." The white haired demon glanced over his shoulder to see Garfakcy standing in the doorway.

"Garfakcy, I gave you the day off again. Is there something wrong?"

"We might have a problem. It looks like the storm is getting ready to start up."

Kharl's brows furrowed in confusion, something that didn't happen very often. "They shouldn't be here that fast? Unless that stupid princess couldn't keep her mouth shut…" Kharl trailed off, muttering to himself as he swept past Garfakcy. "Unless she did, but that would require transportation faster than a boat." His eyes widened, the pieces falling into place. "They couldn't be…"

Kharl faced east, throwing his scenes across the continent, out into the ocean. After a moment he found what he was searching for. "Garfakcy," he said slowly, keeping his voice even. "Prepare two more rooms, away from the elf's. Our other guests will be here sooner than I expected." Kharl swept off again, leaving Garfakcy with his orders.

'I've never seen Lord Kharl look so flustered before.' Garfakcy sighed, shaking his head as he walked to the other end of the castle. 'This situation is getting out of control.'

/

"Where are we going, Thatz? There's nothing this way except for gardens."

Thatz slid down the steep hill, only looking back at Rath when he reached the bottom. "You can't tell me you haven't heard them? Or has your worry for Rune clouded your mind that much?"

Rath glared at him as he slid down the hill as well. As soon as Rath landed Thatz was off again. 'This is the way to the…he can't mean they're awake! Why didn't I realize that was where we were headed?'

They entered the clearing where the dragons slept, still as statuses. "They're not awake, Thatz. You've just wasted time."

The Blue Officer ignored him, walking up to Earth. He placed a hand on his former partner, a large smirk on his face. "You couldn't be more wrong, Rath."

There was a shudder that ran through the earth, almost throwing the Dragon Emperor off his feet. "What..?" Rath looked up to see that Thatz still stood in front of Earth, his hand having dropped off the dragon. Chunks of soil seemed to be dropping off the duel dragon, starting at his feet and the tips of his wings. Rath couldn't believe his eyes when the dragon began to shake out its wings, eventually taking a deep breath when the process reached his head. Earth bent down, his eyes level with Thatz's.

"Good to have you back, Earth." Rath could have sworn the dragon was smirking.

"Now, Rath, it's your turn."

Rath looked over at Light. This was the dragon that had saved him from Kharl, kept his soul intact for years, and now he was offering to forsake his rest in order to save Rune. 'Rath, it's all right. We are meant to protect the Dragon Tribe. Rune is your queen, the one to continue the Dragon Tribe. We will do everything in our power to get him back.'

Rath took a tentative step forward, but didn't raise his hand. Somewhere behind him someone sighed. "I still don't get why you can't just awaken Fire, Gil. We'll be standing here all night while he goes into his 'woe is me' mode. And he was so passionate about saving Rune only ten minutes ago."

Rath didn't look back at Bierrez. He knew the Red Officer was taunting him, and it had worked. 'I'll thank you for this when I get back, Bierrez.' He raised his hand, fingertips lightly brushing Light's chest. There was a blinding flash of light, but it didn't harm him. He could hear Thatz, Bierrez, and Gil curse behind him as the light reached them.

It was all over in a minute, Rath staring into Light's eyes. 'Well then,' he heard the Dragon whisper in his mind, 'shall we go rescue your queen?'

Rath smirked, mounting up on the dragon. "Ready, Thatz?"

"Way ahead of you!" Thatz shouted, Earth jumping into the air.

"I'm counting on you two to take care of things for me," Rath said, looking down at Bierrez and Gil who still stood at the edge of the clearing.

Bierrez raised an eyebrow but nodded. Beside him Gil nodded as well. "Good luck, Rath."

/

Rune wanted to die. His entire body was sore, but he deserved it. He'd begged the Demon Lord for it, forsaking his pride for pleasure. The demon had made sure Rune felt pleasure as well, worshipping the elf's body until Rune had given in.

He whimpered when he felt the bed sink next to him, a hand gently playing with his hair. "Really, Rune, there's nothing wrong with what happened last night. If must think there is then hate me for it, not yourself."

"I do hate you," Rune whispered, unable to pull himself away from the demon's touch. "I hate you more than anything else in the world."

"Except yourself?"

Rune remained silent, unmoving. 'How does he see through me? He doesn't even care about me.'

Above him the Demon Lord sighed, turning Rune so that the elf was forced to look at him. "You're different from my other slaves, special. I'm not going to lose you to self loathing."

"Then you should never have touched me," Rune snapped, glaring at him.

The Demon Lord shook his head. "There's no way I could have done that." He bent down, kissing Rune. He tried to resist, tried to push away, but eventually Rune couldn't help it. He returned the kiss, wrapping his arms around the Demon Lord.

"I hate you," Rune whispered when he pulled away.

"I know." The Demon Lord traced the edges of Rune's face, unable to help himself. "I know, Rune."

Rune stared up into his eyes. "Why do you keep your name a secret?"

The Demon Lord chuckled, still bent over Rune. "Normally people ask what my name is."

Rune tilted his head. "But that's not what I want to know."

The Demon Lord stared into Rune's eyes, remaining silent long enough that Rune thought he wouldn't answer. Finally he said, "Names have power, Rune, mine more than most. Every Demon Lord has his power tired to something."

"And your power is tied to your name?"

The Demon Lord didn't answer, simply wrapping his arms around Rune. "Get some rest, Rune."

/

Rath stared down at the endless expanse of dark water without seeing it. The adrenaline that had been pumping through his veins after the dragon's awakening had long since worn off. And yet his stomach was in knots. Each second they were getting closer to Arinas, closer to Rune, and closer to Kharl.

'Hang on, Rune,' he thought. 'I'm coming for you.'

He refused to think about the coming encounter with Kharl. All he knew was that if Kharl had hurt Rune, the Alchemist would pay.

/

Kharl stared out the window to the east. They would be here soon, no later than noon tomorrow. It definitely wasn't enough time for Rune's memories to sort themselves out. 'Rath's appearance is going to cause problems, possibly even permanently damage Rune's mind.'

His hands were clutched in fist, but his eyes were worried. 'How am I supposed to protect him when you are the one he'll need protection from? You always did make things difficult.'

/

Rune stood on the Demon Lord's balcony, looking out at the beauty of Arinas. He'd been the Demon Lord's slave for almost six months now, but ever since that first night Rune had only slept next to the Demon Lord, not under him. He sighed, brushing his hair back as a cool breeze began to pick up.

Arms wrapped around him, the Demon Lord resting his chin on Rune's shoulder. "It's a beautiful night," Rune whispered, comfortable in the other man's presence after so long.

He could feel the Demon Lord smile softly, placing a kiss on Rune's cheek. "There's a storm coming. You should come inside."

The blond leaned into the demon's embrace. "Just a few more minutes."

The Demon Lord didn't move, silently agreeing to Rune's request. "It's Rath," he said after a few minutes, Rune having almost fallen asleep.

Rune blinked his eyes a few times, turning in the demon's embrace. "My name," he said, "is Rath. You and Kharl are the only ones who know."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Rath smiled, a genuine smile that was rarely shown to anyone. "Because I wanted to."

The elf smiled softly. "It's a good name."

Rath chuckled softly. "Sometimes I think the reason I hide it is because I hate it so much."

Rune shook his head just as the first drops of rain began to fall."Come," Rath said, wrapping an arm around Rune, leading him back inside.

On impulse Rune stopped him, standing on tiptoes to reach Rath's lips. He knew Rath's eyes widened in surprise, but Rune didn't care, especially not when Rath returned the kiss passionately, sweeping Rune into his embrace. "Why?" Rath whispered, his lips still pressed against Rune's.

"You trusted me," Rune whispered back. "I thought it was time for me to trust you."

/

I had been planning on making this chapter a little longer, but that seemed a good place to stop for now. I don't know why but I'm always sort of disappointed with my second chapters. Anyways, let me know what you think and I'll update as soon as I can.